stationary and stationery

Stationary means not moving.
Stationery is writing or office supplies (e.g., paper, pens).

Stationary and Stationery

The words stationary and stationery sound almost identical, but they are very different in meaning.

Stationary

The word stationary means not moving or still. (It can be used as an adjective or an adverb.)

Examples:

Stationery

The word stationery (with an e) means writing and office supplies (e.g., writing paper, envelopes, pens). (It can be used as an adjective or a noun.)

Examples:

A Quick Test

STATIONERY IS THE CULPRIT

The most common error associated with this pairing is writing stationary instead of stationery. It is rare to see it the other way round.

This error occurs because many are not aware that the word stationery exists.

E IS FOR ENVELOPE

Use the e in stationery to remind you of envelope.


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See Also

What are adjectives? What are adverbs? What are nouns? What are verbs? List of easily confused words