Word Choice Role vs. Roll

Word Choice Role vs. Roll Word Choice: Role vs. Roll Some words, such as â€Å"roll,† have more definitions than is strictly decent. And since it sounds identical to the word â€Å"role,† it is easy to get these terms mixed up. But if you check out our guide to using â€Å"role† and â€Å"roll† correctly, you can be confident your written work will be spelling error free. Role (A Position or Part) We’ll begin with â€Å"role,† since this term has fewer meanings. Its main use is to indicate a position within an organization or system. In particular, being in a specific â€Å"role† usually implies having a purpose or duty: My role as a proofreader is to check texts for errors. Proofreading plays an important role in the publishing industry. The other key use of â€Å"role† is to mean â€Å"part for an actor†: I auditioned for the lead role in the play. One thing to note here is that â€Å"role† is always a noun, never a verb. The Many Meanings of â€Å"Roll† â€Å"Roll† has several uses as a verb and a noun. As a verb, these include: Turn over to face a different direction (e.g., I rolled onto my back) Move via turning (e.g., The car rolled down the hill) Turn something into a ball or tube (e.g., She rolled the clay in her hands) Make something smooth and flat (e.g., Roll out the pastry) Make a continuous, repeated sound (e.g., The thunder rolled loudly) And as a noun, we can use â€Å"roll† to refer to the following: The act of rolling (e.g., I will do a forward roll) Something that has been rolled into a tube (e.g., A roll of carpet) An official list of names (e.g., An electoral roll) A continuous, repeated sound (e.g., A drum roll) A small bread product (e.g., A bread roll) This isn’t even a full list of the uses of â€Å"roll.† For example, a tear can â€Å"roll† down your cheek, and a ship might â€Å"roll† from side to side in rough seas. However, we have covered the main uses of â€Å"roll† above. And the main thing to take away from this is that â€Å"roll† has many definitions! Summary: Role or Roll? The key here is remembering what â€Å"role† means, as this term has fewer uses: The noun role means â€Å"position in a system† or â€Å"part for an actor.† Roll can be either a noun or a verb . Its meanings include turning over, making a low rumbling sound, a list of names, and a small bread product. In essence, then, if you’re referring to a position or part in something, the correct spelling will be â€Å"role.† In any other situation, â€Å"roll† will be correct. But if you want to make doubly sure that your writing is free from errors, you can always have it proofread by our expert editors.