The words ‘air’ and ‘heir’ sound the same, which makes it easy to confuse them in writing. However, our guide will help you to avoid errors when using these terms.
Typically, the noun ‘air’ refers to the invisible gases we breathe. For instance:
Your lungs fill with air when you breathe in.
But ‘air’ has several other meanings, too, including:
As a verb, meanwhile, ‘air’ can mean:
In all of the cases above, though, we use the spelling ‘air’.
‘Heir’ is always a noun and refers to a person who is legally entitled to the property or rank (i.e. title) of another when that person dies:
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As his heir, I inherited his house in the Cotswolds.
Prince Charles is the heir to the British throne.
The ‘h’ in ‘heir’ is silent, so it is pronounced to sound the same as ‘air’.
These words sound the same, but they have different meanings:
Since ‘heir’ only has one meaning, it should be easy to remember. But if you need to tell these spellings apart, keep in mind that the ‘air’ we breathe is part of the ‘atmosphere’ and that both of these words begin with ‘a’.
And don’t forget: if you are worried about misusing these words, or any other aspect of your writing, our proofreading experts are here to help.
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