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TOEIC Link Part 5 — Ordinance vs. Ordnance: A Local Law vs. Military Weapons

Ordinance and ordnance are separated by a single vowel and sound almost identical, yet one is a local regulation and the other is military weapons and ammunition. Ordinance is the far more common word in business and civic English — zoning, safety, noise — which is why TOEIC Link Part 5 uses the near-homophone as a spelling-and-sound distractor. This guide separates them with a one-line rule, workplace examples, common collocations, and a memory hook you can use under time pressure.

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TOEIC Link Part 5 — Ordinance vs. Ordnance: A Local Law vs. Military Weapons

Ordinance and ordnance differ by a single vowel and sound nearly identical, yet they name two unrelated things. An ordinance is a local law or regulation passed by a city or authority. Ordnance is military weapons, ammunition, and equipment. They share no meaning — the resemblance is a coincidence of spelling and sound — which is exactly what makes them a TOEIC Link Part 5 distractor.

Because the two words look and sound almost the same but mean completely different things, this is a precision trap in the same family as precedent versus president, where look-alikes with unrelated meanings get swapped to catch a rushed reader.

The one-line rule

ORDINANCE = a local law or regulation. ORDNANCE = military weapons and ammunition.

A quick swap test: if the sentence is about a rule, permit, code, or regulation that a city or organization enforces, the word is ordinance (note the extra i). If it is about weapons, shells, or artillery, the word is ordnance.

  • Ordinance (a local law) — a regulation made by a municipal or civic authority.
    • "A city ordinance limits construction noise before 7 a.m."
    • "The new zoning ordinance restricts building height downtown."
  • Ordnance (weapons) — military supplies, especially artillery and ammunition.
    • "The base stores its ordnance in a reinforced bunker."
    • "Engineers cleared the site of unexploded ordnance."

The collocations that anchor the pair

In business, civic, and TOEIC contexts, the word you almost always need is ordinance, and it travels with a predictable set of partners:

  • "a city / local / municipal ordinance" (a regulation)
  • "a zoning / noise / safety ordinance" (a specific rule)
  • "in violation of an ordinance" (breaking a rule)
  • "the council passed / enacted an ordinance" (created a law)

Ordnance almost never appears in a workplace or civic sentence — it belongs to military and defense contexts. So on the test, if the sentence is about business, buildings, permits, noise, or public safety, the answer is overwhelmingly ordinance.

How TOEIC Link tests it

Part 5 typically frames a civic or business sentence where only one reading fits:

The restaurant was fined for violating a local health ____. (A) ordnance (B) ordinance

The context is a regulation a business must follow, so the answer is ordinance. Ordnance (weapons) makes no sense here.

Because ordnance is so rare in TOEIC business settings, the safe default when the sentence is about rules, codes, or permits is always ordinance — the extra i matches the everyday, civic meaning.

A memory hook

Anchor the spelling to the meaning through the extra letter:

  • Ord-i-nance → the i stands for a rule you must obey — think "in accordance" with the law. The longer, softer spelling is the everyday civic word.
  • Ord-nance → shorter and harder, like the hardware it names. No i, no law — just weapons and ammunition.

If the sentence is about paperwork, permits, and city hall, add the i: ordinance. If it is about the military, drop it: ordnance. Letting one distinctive letter carry the meaning is the same tactic that separates stationary versus stationery: let the spelling detail do the disambiguating instead of the sound.

Quick self-check

Pick the right word (answers below):

  1. The council will vote on a new parking ____ next week.
  2. Military engineers were called to dispose of unexploded ____.
  3. The sign violates a city ____ on outdoor advertising.
  4. The factory failed to meet the safety ____ for chemical storage.

Answers: 1. ordinance (a local rule) 2. ordnance (weapons) 3. ordinance (a rule) 4. ordinance (a regulation).

The one thing to remember

A local law or regulation is an ordinance — with an i; military weapons and ammunition are ordnance — without it. Because TOEIC sentences live in the world of business, buildings, and civic rules, the answer is almost always ordinance. On Part 5, ask whether the sentence is about a rule or a weapon, and let the extra vowel pick the spelling.

More look-alike pairs with unrelated meanings are collected in the commonly confused word pairs master index.