Certain words are frequently confused, some more glaringly than others - "infamous" for "famous," for example. Others that, until recently, had entirely different meanings - "disinterested" and "uninterested," for example - are now almost interchangeable because of increased usage. Confusing the pronouns "who" and, "whom" and the adverbs "further" and "farther" are also no longer the eyebrow-raisers they used to be. Still watch out for these mix-ups:

• DISINTERESTED / UNINTERESTED: Someone who is disinterested is neutral, impartial, or has no self-interest in something; someone who is uninterested lacks interest or is bored. "I was a disinterested party when it came to the will, but that doesn't mean I was uninterested in seeing who got what."

• FAMOUS / INFAMOUS: Famous means well-known or celebrated. Infamous does not mean not famous; it describes someone (or something) notorious. "She was famous for her years on the silent screen, but the discovery that she was a gangster's moll made her infamous."

• FARTHER / FURTHER: Farther refers to physical distance; further indicates a greater extent or degree and can apply to abstract ideas. "As I walked farther down the path, I wondered whether I should pursue the issue further."

• FEWER / LESS: Fewer means a smaller number of individual things; less means a smaller degree or quantity. "When there's less water in the lake, fewer boaters will show up."

• FLAUNT / FLOUT: To flaunt something is to show it off-, flout means to treat with indifference or scorn. "She flaunted her new hairstyle, which flouted convention with its streakings of hot pink and lime."

• LIE / LAY: To lie is to recline; to lay is to place something, as on a table; lay also serves as the post tense of lie. "After I lay my towel on the sand, I'll lie down on the beach for only a few minutes. I got sunburned as I lay there yesterday."

• WH0 / WH0M: The distinction between these words matters much less today, but it doesn't hurt to know, the difference. Think of "who" as a subject (it does something, as in "Who brought the cheesecake?") and "whom" as an object ( something is done to it, as in "the person to whom the gift was given").

• REGARDLESS / IRREGARDLESS: There is only one choice here: "Irregardless" is not a real word, no matter how many times you've heard it spoken. It is substandard because it contains two negatives: "ir-" and "-less."