If you look up the adjectives impulsive and impetuous in a dictionary, you might feel like you’re in a hall of mirrors: impulsive is defined as “impetuous” and vice versa. While the two terms are very close in meaning, there are undertones that set them apart. Both refer to persons who are hasty or rash, or actions that are not preceded by thought, but impulsive emphasizes spontaneity or unpredictability and a lack of reflection; impetuous suggests passion or eagerness as the driving force behind abrupt actions or turbulent behavior.

Trick is a very broad term that can refer to everything from an underhanded act designed to cheat someone (a politician’s dirty tricks) to an optical illusion or a prank. Ruse has a narrower application, and is usually used in reference to a false impression or show put forth to hide true intentions or divert attention from shrewd maneuvers. The theme of misdirection or throwing someone off track in order to get away with something reflects the earliest sense of the word: ruse entered English as a hunting term referring to a turn or route taken by an animal in order to dodge its would-be captors.

To annoy is to disturb or bother a person in a way that displeases, troubles, or slightly irritates them. This verb is usually used in discussion of minor offenses, such as noises that repeatedly interrupt one’s focus or behavior that tries one’s patience. Vex is a more pointed term, suggesting a greater degree of irritation or frustration and sometimes even distress or worry. This versatile verb is also used to talk about problems or questions that, in their complexity or difficulty, confound or perplex.