Accept is a verb meaning to receive or agree to something: "She accepted the job offer." Except is usually a preposition meaning apart from: "Everyone came except Tom." Accept takes things in; except leaves them out.
One letter separates them and the meanings are close to opposite. Accept brings something in. Except keeps something out.
How to use accept
Accept is always a verb.
- "He accepted the apology without comment."
- "We accept card payments only."
- "I accept that I was wrong about the dates."
- "She was accepted onto the course."
Its senses run from physically receiving something, to agreeing with a claim, to admitting someone into a group.
How to use except
Except is most often a preposition or conjunction meaning apart from:
- "The shop is open every day except Sunday."
- "I'd help, except I'm working that weekend."
- "Nobody knew except the two of us."
It exists as a verb too, but rarely and formally: "Present company excepted." "Children under five are excepted from the charge." If you find yourself using except as a verb, exclude or exempt is usually clearer.
The test
Substitute agree to or receive. If either fits, you want accept: "receive the parcel" works, so "accept the parcel". Now substitute apart from or but not. If that fits, you want except: "everyone but not Tom" gives you the sense, so except.
A quicker mental hook: except excludes. Both start with the same two letters, and both mean out.
The mistakes that actually happen
The frequent one is "I would except your offer" for "accept". Because both spellings are valid words, no spellchecker will catch it — only reading will.
A subtler pitfall is expect, which people sometimes reach for by sound: "I expect the terms" is a different sentence from "I accept the terms". Expect means anticipate.
Finally, watch the phrase except for. It works where plain except would sit awkwardly at the start of a sentence: "Except for the noise, the flat is perfect." And note that excepting survives mainly in the fixed phrase "not excepting", meaning without leaving anyone out.
Two sentences to hold on to: "I accept your invitation." "Everyone accepted the invitation except me."
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it "I accept your apology" or "I except your apology"?
"I accept your apology." Accept means to receive or agree to. Except would mean you were leaving the apology out of something, which makes no sense here.
How do I remember which is which?
Except and exclude both start with ex, and both mean leaving out. Accept takes something in.
Is "except for" correct?
Yes. Use except for when the phrase opens a sentence or stands slightly apart: "Except for the weather, the trip was perfect." Mid-sentence, plain except is usually smoother.