A versus E

Accept vs. Except

The confusion between these two words is a product of pronunciation. I was trained under a British education system and, to me, the "a" in "apple" is totally distinct from the "e" in egg. However, as my speech becomes more "Canadian", I realize how these words can seem like homophones. Here is a simple way to distinguish the two:

Accept implies agreement
Except implies exclusion

Than vs. Then

The same pronunciation snag explained above applies here. Here is a simple way to distinguish the two:

Than implies choice
Then implies consequence