The tutor brings up another pair of homonyms, homophones, or what you like to call them….

a lot:  many.  We had a lot of problems producing the film.

allot:  allocate.  We will allot five graph sheets to each student for the exercise.

To my knowledge, alot is not a word; the spell checker doesn’t even tolerate it:)

Source:

Merriam-Webster. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary. Springfield: Merriam-Webster, 2004.

Jack of Oracle Tutoring by Jack and Diane, Campbell River, BC.