Proved vs. proven
Right: He proved his case.
Right: She was proved wrong.
Right: She was proven wrong.
Right: Unless I’m proven wrong, my decision stands.
Proven must be proceeded by a form of the verb “to be” (am/are/is/was/were/will be/will have been/could be/might be, and so on), while proved is correct either with or without a form of to be. In the fourth example, the two words are interchangeable. However, sometimes one sounds better than the other. (Personally, I feel that proved wrong, when spoken, doesn’t flow as well as proven wrong.)
Shear vs. sheer
Wrong: She cried out in shear terror.
Right: She cried out in sheer terror.
Shear means to cut, so unless she’s being menaced by pinking shears, it’s sheer, as in utter.
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