'Soul' is the spiritual part of a person; 'sole' means only or exclusive, or the bottom of a shoe.
Noun. The spiritual or immaterial part of a being. Also a genre of music originating in African-American gospel tradition.
She poured her soul into every piece of music she composed.
Music has the power to touch the soul in a way words cannot.
Not a soul was left in the building after the fire alarm sounded.
Adjective/noun. One and only, exclusive (the sole reason). Also the underside of a shoe/foot, or a flat edible fish.
She was the sole candidate for the director position.
The sole of his shoe had worn through after the hiking trip.
He holds the sole rights to distribute the product in Latin America.
Common mistake
"The soul purpose of this meeting" when meaning the only purpose (correct: sole purpose). Or "He is the sole reason I believe in humanity" when meaning spiritual soul (correct: soul).
Trick to remember it
'Soul' contains OU — like 'sound', 'loud', 'touch' — things that reach deep. 'Sole' is short and contained — like its meaning (only, exclusive, limited to one).
Quick rule
Is it the spirit, soul, or the music genre? 'Soul'. Is it only/exclusive or the bottom of a shoe? 'Sole'.
Did you know?
English has a long tradition of wordplay with homophones. 'A lost sole/soul' works as a pun: a shoe with a lost sole and a wandering lost soul. Shakespeare exploited this type of ambiguity constantly — in The Merchant of Venice, characters play on 'sole' and 'soul' in the same speech. In music, 'soul' gave its name to an entire genre when gospel music merged with R&B in the 1950s.
Exercise 1 · Pick the right one
She is the _____ survivor of the expedition — everyone else turned back.
Exercise 2 · Pick the right one
The music of Aretha Franklin spoke directly to the _____ of a generation.
Exercise 3 · Form the word
Is it the spirit, soul, or the music genre? 'Soul'. Is it only/exclusive or the bottom of a shoe? 'Sole'.
"The soul purpose of this meeting" when meaning the only purpose (correct: sole purpose). Or "He is the sole reason I believe in humanity" when meaning spiritual soul (correct: soul).
'Soul' contains OU — like 'sound', 'loud', 'touch' — things that reach deep. 'Sole' is short and contained — like its meaning (only, exclusive, limited to one).
Bryan López
Founder of SpeakUP Academy