Accept vs Except | Meaning, Examples & Worksheet

Accept and except are two words that sound similar, but they have different meanings.

  • Accept (pronounced [ak-sept]) means “approve or allow something” or “willingly receive.” It’s used as a transitive verb
  • Except (pronounced [ek-sept]) means “other than” or “not including” and is most often used as a preposition. It can also be used as a conjunction or verb.

You can remember that “except” means “excluding” with the mnemonic “they both start with ‘ex.’”

Examples: Accept in a sentence Examples: Except in a sentence
I’m happy to accept the job offer. I like all fruits except bananas.
Sandra did not accept John’s apology. I would have gone to the park, except it started raining heavily.
Our company accepts and embraces diversity in the workplace. He excepted his dad’s watch from the list of things to be sold at the auction.

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When to use except

Except is often used as one of three parts of speech, namely a verb, a conjunction, or a preposition. Related variant forms are used as a conjunction, preposition, or noun.

  • The less common variant form excepting is used as a conjunction or preposition, but the use is perceived as formal and odd in conversational language.
  • The noun exception refers to something or someone who is excepted (i.e., excluded from a rule or general statement) or to the act of excepting itself. It can also be used in the formal phrase “take exception” (e.g., “Sarah took exception to the disrespectful comment during her speech”)
Part of speech Use Example
Preposition Meaning “not included” All students passed the exam except for John.
Verb Exclude something The chef excepted ingredients from the recipe to accommodate dietary restrictions.
Conjunction To connect opposing phrases (instead of “but” or “only”) He studied diligently, except when his favorite TV show was on.

When to use accept

Accept is always used as a verb, but it can have slightly different meanings:

  • To approve of something
  • To allow something
  • To tolerate or endure something
  • To willingly receive something

The related variant forms, “acceptance,” “acceptable,” “accepted,” and “accepting” can be used as different parts of speech:

  • The noun acceptance refers to the act of accepting someone or something.
  • The adjective acceptable describes something that’s suitable, tolerable, or satisfactory.
  • The past participle accepted and the present participle accepting can be used as verbs or participial adjectives.
Meaning Example
To approve of something The committee decided to accept the proposed changes to the project.
To allow something The school’s policy does not accept late submissions for assignments.
To endure something She had to accept the scorching heat during the summer months while working in the desert.
To receive something voluntarily The charity gladly accepts donations from generous individuals who want to support their cause.

Accept vs except worksheet

Test your knowledge of the difference between “accept” and “except” by filling in either “accept” or “except” in each practice sentence.

Frequently asked questions about accept vs except

What is a synonym for “except”?

Synonyms for the preposition (common), conjunction (uncommon), or verb (uncommon) except include:

  • Besides
  • But
  • Excluding
  • Other than
  • Aside from
  • Barring

QuillBot’s sentence rewriter can help you find synonyms for words like “except.”

What is a synonym for “accept”?

Synonyms for accept (verb) include:

  • Endure
  • Support
  • Tolerate
  • Welcome (voluntarily)
  • Warrant
  • Yield to
  • Concede to

QuillBot’s sentence rewriter can help you find synonyms for words like “accept.”

What is an antonym for “accept”?

Antonyms of the word accept are:

  • Decline
  • Refuse
  • Deny

In these cases, someone will not accept something. For example, “Erin declined her boyfriend’s marriage proposal.”

QuillBot’s sentence rewriter can help rewrite your sentence to reflect your intended meaning.

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Julia Merkus, MA

Julia has a bachelor in Dutch language and culture and two masters in Linguistics and Language and speech pathology. After a few years as an editor, researcher, and teacher, she now writes articles about her specialist topics: grammar, linguistics, methodology, and statistics.