Let’s say a friend of yours trips and faceplants onto a concrete floor. There’s a huge thud, and blood is gushing from his nose and a laceration on his eyebrow. Major ouch.

You, too, can feel pain as face meets floor and even the aftershock of it. You start to feel bad for them and rush over to help.

Now, what you may (or may not) realize is, you’ve just experienced empathy and compassion. Do you know which one is which?

That’s the thing with synonyms. We use them interchangeably, like ...