The difference between current and currant

TLDR: A currant is a grape.

Ah, yes, the accursed ‘ent’ vs ‘ant’ problem. Luckily for us, this one is easier than most.

current (noun)—a separate body of water or air that is moving in a different direction to the rest; or an electrical surge

‘Don’t swim out too far!’ the coast guard warned. ‘The current is very strong out there.’

In this complete circuit, an electrical current flows all the way to the light bulb.

current (adjective)—at the present time

The current bus timetable was pinned to the wall.

‘I don’t think I’ll stay in my current job much longer,’ Amy said.

currant (noun)—a dried variety of grape

Josie picked out all the currants from her cereal and put them aside.

‘We have a currant bush growing in our backyard,’ Tom said proudly.

It’s pretty safe to say that, in your writing, you will need to use current a great deal more than currant, so familiarise yourselves with the spelling of the former. That is, unless you work in breakfast cereal or dried foods a lot…!

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