Smoother - smother

A typo can lead you to confuse smother and smoother, and a spellchecker will let the mistake through.

• Smoother is the comparative of the adjective smooth. It is pronounced with a long '-oo-' vowel, IPA: /'smuː ðə^r/.
• 'To smother' is a verb, meaning to suffocate. The vowel in the first syllable is like that in 'up', IPA: /'smʌ ðə^r/.