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BBC Learning English Adjectives and Adverbs PDF
BBC Learning English Adjectives and Adverbs PDF
BBC Learning English Adjectives and Adverbs PDF
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Adjectives and adverbs
'actually', 'in fact' and 'well'
Could you please tell me the difference between actually, in fact and well? I think
all of them can be used to correct the previous utterance. Is there any difference
between them?
They are all very similar, but there are also slight differences in use.
actually / in fact
Both actually and in fact can be used to modify or contradict a previous statement:
Actually and in fact can also be used to introduce more detailed information or to
make things clearer or more precise:
I'm going to take on a bit more responsibility now that Kevin's left ~ John, that's
wonderful news. ~ Yes, well, actually / in fact I've been promoted to senior sales
manager.
I got so bored listening to what he was saying that I actually fell asleep / in fact I
fell asleep half way through his presentation.
Note that we can also use in actual fact or as a matter of fact to clarify matters or
to introduce new information:
I got so bored with what he was saying that in actual fact / as a matter of fact I
dozed off before he'd finished speaking.
Richard wants to invite us to spend the weekend at his cottage in the Lake District.
Isn't that exciting? ~ Well, actually, I've already said we can't go.
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Note that when actually is placed at the end of the clause, it confirms news that
others do not expect:
well
Well is more widely used as a discourse marker than in fact or actually. As we can
see from the examples above and below it is very widely used to indicate that we are
about to say something. It is sometimes used to give the speaker more time to
think:
So how much do you want for your 1999 Renault? ~ Well, I was thinking of £2,500.
So how do you propose to furnish the house? ~ Well, I thought we might invest in
some second-hand furniture.
Well is also used to introduce a statement which indicates that expectations have
not been fulfilled:
You know I said I thought I might go skiing with Jamie this year? Well, I'm not
going to now.
How was the tennis lesson? ~ Well, in actual fact, we forgot to go.
You know I've been seeing a lot of Eddie lately? ~ Hmm. ~ Well, we're going to get
engaged.
Oh well!
If you say oh well, you are saying that you accept the situation as it is, even though
you are not very happy about it:
I'm afraid you'll have to pull out of the trip to Greece. ~ Oh well, it doesn't matter.
I'm afraid I forget to save that document and now I've lost it. ~ Oh well, it can't be
helped. I'll just have to re-type it.
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Adjective order
I tried to answer latest Quiznet programme on your site of adjective order. I found it
a bit tricky and difficult, so could you please give me any help of this matter. And
Belen says: May I ask which the correct order in adjectives is?
When we use two or more adjectives together to describe a noun, the order we put
them in is quite important. For example, we don't usually say an old Indian beautiful
carpet. It sounds much better say a beautiful old Indian carpet.
opinion > size > quality > age > shape > colour > participle forms > origin >
material type > purpose
1 4 8
quality age origin noun
a beautiful old Indian carpet
You don't have to include an example of every type of adjective, but the ones you do
use should follow the order. So if you wanted to add red and green to the phrase a
beautiful old Indian carpet, you would put it between old and Indian like this:
1 4 6 8
opinion age colour origin noun
a beautiful old red and green Indian carpet
2 3 10
material
size quality noun
type
a large comfortable wooden chair
3 7
quality participle noun
a new improved recipe
1 3 10
opinion quality type noun
an old-fashioned romantic candle-lit dinner for two
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Sometimes we can use but between adjectives, especially if their meanings seem
contradictory.
2 3
size quality noun
a small but tasty meal
If we use 2 adjectives that are similar in meaning, we usually put the shorter one
first: a soft, comfortable cushion.
I hope that's answered your interesting English questions, Pasan and Belen!
Catherine
Adverbials
A group a Spanish learners of English have written with the following question:
Hello! We are Spanish students and we want to find out all we can about adverbials
in English with explanations and examples.
• We have been living here in this house for over twenty years.
From these examples, you can see that the most common position for adverbials is
at the end of the sentence Place adverbials (here in this house) come before time
adverbials (for over twenty years). Manner adverbials (peacefully) come before
place adverbials (in our beds).
They do not always follow this pattern. This applies particularly to adverbial clauses.
In the above example we could begin with the adverbial clause, if it was important to
highlight it at this stage in the discourse:
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Why did you arrange to meet him there?
So that he could give me the money.
Note from the above examples that adverbs of frequency are often placed in mid-
position in the sentence, as well as at end-position. Placing them before the
subject is sometimes also possible:
adverbial clauses
A wide variety of different conjunctions are used to initiate adverbial clauses which
function as the adverbial part of a main clause. Some of the most common are listed
below:
• When I arrived home I went to see Joan although it was very late.
Whereas in the 70s and 80s most men worked until they were 60 or
65, nowadays most retire when they are in their fifties.
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• You can borrow my car on Saturday, provided / so long as you return it
by seven o' clock in the evening.
Take a packed lunch with you, in case you get hungry.
adverbs of manner
Note that not all adverbs of manner which answer the question How…? end in -ly.
Most of them do, like this:
• He was driving straight at me and I ran very fast to get out of his way.
• There was a power failure earlier today and the trains are all running late
now.
Note also that adjectives that end in -ly, e.g. lively, lovely silly, friendly, cannot
form the adverb by adding another -ly as this would be impossible to pronounce.
Instead some other way must be found:
appropriate ~ suitable
Appropriate and suitable are both qualitative adjectives - i.e. they describe the
quality of something - and are very similar in meaning and usage. As you suggest,
they carry the meaning of 'fitted, suited to a purpose.' They are both placed as
modifiers before nouns and they are both used as complements after the verb be,
although appropriate is perhaps more commonly used in this way, especially with
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the pronoun it. They are both used with the preposition for and are often used with
negative prefixes. The adjectival form suitable (for) sometimes crops us in the verb
format suited (to). Study the following examples:
• The pay was adequate, but it certainly wasn't generous. The rate of pay -
£5.50 an hour - was barely adequate to raise a family on.
• His answer to the question was adequate but it wasn't developed
sufficiently to gain high marks.
• The Prime Minister gave an inadequate reply to the journalist's question.
• The action taken to combat the spread of malaria was quite inadequate.
• There were not enough seats for all the guests. The supply of seats was quite
inadequate.
• There was easily enough food for every one. There was a sufficient amount
of food.
• There was insufficient evidence to convict him of house-breaking.
Dear Sirs,
Could you please explain the difference in usage of approximately, roughly, about,
nearly?
Hi Samad. I wonder why you asked this question – are you by any chance writing a
report?! All of the words you list above are adverbs which describe a quantity or
variation in quantity. Well, these words are known as degree adverbs and one of the
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differences between the words you mention is their degree of formality, which would
affect the times you use them.
Approximately, about, nearly and roughly are most usually used to modify
measurements or quantities. And I’m going to start with the adverb which is more
formal in tone, which is approximately. Just listen to these examples:
Approximately half of the residents in the survey stated that they agreed with the
government’s plan to reduce traffic in the city centre.
Police say that the main suspect charged in the case escaped from custody
approximately twelve days ago.
I think Samad, you’ll realise that these examples could be part of an academic paper
or an official report. It’s not impossible to use approximately in speech, but you’d be
far more likely to use roughly, nearly or about in everyday situations and the rest of
my explanation will look at the use of these three adverbs.
Jane told me that she spends nearly one-third of her salary on rent.
Because the traffic was bad, it took about four hours to get to my aunt’s house.
It’s possible to interchange roughly and about in each of these four sentences with
the same meaning. About can be confusing for learners when they first see it as a
degree adverb, because they’re familiar with its use in prepositional phrases, such as
Books and newspapers were spread about all over the room.
Nearly is slightly different to roughly and about, because nearly means ‘almost’, or
‘not quite’. So, if Jane spends nearly one-third of her salary on rent, it means that
she spends just under one-third. If we said roughly or about, her rent could be
slightly more or slightly less than one-third. If it takes me nearly ten minutes to walk
to the station, it means it takes me not quite ten minutes. All of these adverbs could
be used in writing too, but if you’re writing a report it’d be usual to enter the actual
figures or percentages in brackets, so:
Roughly half (53%) of the children in the study could not identify the US on a map of
the world.
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I live about half an hour out of town.
Well, Samad, thank you for your question, I think that’s about all I have to say about
these adverbs!
My question is: what is followed by as well as? For example, can we say I can swim
as well as cook well?
as + adj + as + clause/phrase
as + adv + as + clause/phrase
For example:
What is interesting in your example, Van Anh, is that if you say: 'I can swim as well
as cook well', you are stating that these are two things that you can do, whereas if
you say: 'I can swim as well as I can cook', you are stating that you can do both
these things to an equal degree of proficiency.
• 'As well as playing tennis with Steve three times during the week, I (also)
play badminton with my wife at the weekend.'
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• 'In addition to working on his Ph.D. dissertation, he (also) translates articles
for The Weekly Review.'
Note here that the adverb as well is similar in meaning to as well as and is often
used as an alternative to too. Note that both as well and too must be used at the
end of the sentence:
• 'We enjoyed a rare night out last night. We ate at Luigi's, and went to the
cinema as well.' ( = As well as eating out, we (also) went to the cinema.)
• 'We eat well here in Sardinia. The wine is excellent too.'
• 'My wife is a chemist and both her parents were chemists as well.'
Note the special use of as long as which is similar in meaning and use to provided
that. Both are more emphatic forms of if and are used to introduce conditions:
• 'As long as you promise to help me, I don't mind cooking for twelve people
on Easter Sunday.'
• 'I'll join you on this skiing holiday, provided I can have my own room at the
hotel.'
I often confuse the difference between beside and besides. Please clear up my
confusion.
It is quite important not to confuse them, for they are different in meaning and
usage.
beside
Beside is a preposition, similar in meaning to 'next to', 'at the side of' or 'by':
• 'Where is the apple orchard?' 'It’s right beside the main road. You can’t miss
it!'
• 'We were lying beside the pool when the phone rang. It was his boss wanting
to know why he wasn’t at work.'
It is often used with verbs such as 'standing', 'sitting', 'lying'. It is also used in the
expression beside the point when referring to something that is not relevant to the
subject under discussion:
• 'Modern art isn’t really art at all!' 'That’s beside the point when so many
young people respond to it with such interest. They regard it as art.'
besides
Besides is a preposition, meaning 'in addition to', 'as well as' or 'apart from':
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• 'What exam subjects are you taking besides English and maths?'
• 'Were there any boys at the party besides Matt and Dillon?'
• 'Besides bruising his face, he cut his lip and bloodied his nose.'
• 'It’s too late to start a round of golf now. We shall never finish before dark.
Besides, it’s starting to rain.'
• 'He doesn’t have very much money and he doesn’t have very many
prospects. Besides, he’s far too young to think of getting married.'
toward - towards
What about towards and toward? One of my own students was worried that there
might be similar pitfalls in store for her when using these prepositions. Well, I can
re-assure all of you that these prepositions can be used quite interchangeably and
that there is no difference in meaning. The only slight difference in usage is that
toward is perhaps more characteristic of American English and towards more usual
in British English. Toward or towards means 'in the direction of':
• 'Can you see that light over there?' 'I think it’s coming towards us.'
• 'There are always more mosquitoes in the air toward evening. Have you
noticed?'
'What are you busy with?' or 'What are you busy about?' Which sentence is correct?
I have not heard 'What are you busy about?' before and find it unnatural.
'What are you busy with?' as in 'What are you busy with this morning?' is fine as a
question, but I don't think you would repeat busy with in your reply. Instead, if you
were a university lecturer, you might say: 'Oh, I've got so much to do. I've got
essays to mark and reports to write and then I've got to go to the Dean's reception
before lunch!'
You often use busy directly with the present participle, as in: 'I was busy ironing
when Jeremy arrived.' No preposition is then required.
Utterly doesn't go with excited because if you are excited about something that is
normally a positive emotion and both utter and utterly (meaning
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complete/completely) have negative meanings and are used only in negative
contexts:
If you think that, then you are a complete and utter fool.
They had no means of support and were utterly dependent on their parents.
complete - completely
Complete and completely are much more neutral and can be used in positive,
neutral and negative contexts:
Jon has sent me ten red roses and that has come as a complete surprise.
I'm a pessimist and she's an optimist so she's the complete opposite of me.
The PM's treatment for an irregular heartbeat has been completely successful.
When I go on holiday next year, I'm looking for something completely different.
terrible - terribly One of the most common adverbs used with excited is terribly.
Note that the adjective terrible (meaning horrible, dreadful, awful) can only be
used in negative contexts but the adverb terribly can describe extreme behaviour
in both negative and positive contexts.:
Prison life is terrible and I have the most terrible nightmares every night.
The children were terribly upset when their pet dalmation puppy died.
Children in Britain get terribly excited on Christmas morning when they come down
to open their presents.
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awful - awfully
Note that awful and awfully follow a similar pattern. As an adjective, awful is used
only in negative contexts, but as an adverb awfully has both negative and positive
meanings:
It's an awful shame that she's unable to come back home for the holidays.
She was late and I was worried that something awful had happened to her.
He may get on your nerves, but he has always been awfully nice to me.
She's awfully pretty, don't you think? The most striking person in the room!
It's awfully good of you to find the time to help us with this.
awesome
It was an awesome party. We danced all night and then watched the sun coming up
over the sea. No better way to welcome in the New Year.
adjectives:
comparitive and superlative forms
But what do you do when you have hyphenated adjectives? Does easy-going
become easier-going or more easy-going? And does user-friendly become
user-friendlier?
You are quite right, Babek, two-syllable adjectives ending in -y have -ier and -iest
as their comparative and superlative. Thus:
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pretty prettier prettiest
happy happier happiest
dirty dirtier dirtiest
messy messier messiest
Others, particularly participial adjectives formed with -ing and -ed and those ending
in -ious and -ful form their comparatives and superlatives with more and most:
With some two-syllable adjectives, er/est and more/most are both possible:
Three or more syllable adjectives take more or most in the comparative and
superlative except for two-syllable adjectives ending in -y and prefixed with un-:
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reasonable more reasonable most reasonable
beautiful more beautiful most beautiful
untidy untidier untidiest
unhealthy unhealthier unheathiest
• John is the unhealthiest person I know, but one of the most successful.
Hyphenated adjectives, which are also known as compound adjectives, normally use
more and most for the comparative and superlative forms. This is the general rule.
Sometimes we have to use more/most if, for example, the adjectival part of the
compound ends in -ed. So, sun-tanned would have to be more sun-tanned, just
as tanned would have to be more tanned:
Sometimes it is not so clear-cut, so we would say that one form is more likely than
the other. In your examples, Babek, both are quite possible, it seems to me.
"The emerging markets that investors can easily put money into seem a lot more
risky than they did."
It is clear that adjectives of one syllable normally end in -er and -est in their
comparative and superlative forms whilst the comparative and superlative of
adjectives with three or more syllables are formed with more and most:
• The water in the pool was colder than I expected it to be on what was the
hottest day of the year.
• They always go to the most expensive restaurants where you can see the
most glamorous people in the world.
• The work I do is now more satisfying because the conditions under which I
work are more satisfactory.
When it comes to two-syllable adjectives, the case is less clear cut. With some two-
syllable adjectives, -er/-est and more/most are both possible:
• The water here is shallower / more shallow than it is further up the beach.
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• The grey squirrel is one of the most common / commonest rodents that
you will see in England.
Others, with particular endings, tend to folllow either one or the other pattern:
-y > -ier
Two-syllable adjectives which end with consonant + -y nearly always form their
comparatives and superlatives with -ier and -iest:
• You are one of the messiest people I know. Even Jane is tidier than you
are.
• I'm busier than I used to be so I have to get up even earlier than before.
• Walking along this mountain path is much more risky in winter than it is in
summer.
However, as a general rule, stick to -ier / -iest with two-syllable adjectives which
end with consoant + y
Note that two-syllable adjectives with these endings always form their comparatives
and superlatives with more and most:
less / least
Note that when we are making the not-so-much comparison, less and least are the
only options open to us, unless we use the construction not as…as:
• I was angriest with John about the spoilt weekend. I'm less angry with you.
But I'm still angry, nevertheless.
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• Why don't you sit here? This is the least uncomfortable of our chairs.
Note that we tend not to use less and least to form comparatives /
superlatives with one syllable adjectives, as short adjectives often have other
words as their opposites. Compare the following:
• Your cooking is less bland than Mary's. - Your cooking is spicier than
Mary's.
• It's less warm today, don't you think? - It's cooler today, don't you think?
as ... as and as
Hello! I hope you are in the best of health. Would you kindly tell me what parts of
speech as... as are. I know that we use adjectives or adverbs between them, but I
don not know what they are themselves. Kind regards.
This structure is used to measure and compare things that are of similar proportion.
In this construction, the first as functions as an adverb modifying the following
adjective or adverb. The second as functions as a preposition when it relates to
the following noun or pronoun. (It can also function as a conjunction when it
relates to the following clause.) Compare the following:
Note from the above example that if there is an adjective and a noun after the first
as, a / an must go between them. Note also that if we want to make a negative
statement, we can use so…as instead of as…as:
There are a large number of idiomatic expressions or fixed phrases which we use in
informal English when we are making comparisons like this. Here are a few of them
in context:
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• All the children were as good as gold when they came to visit me.
• These stories are as old as the hills and have been passed down from
generation to generation.
Remember that when we are measuring or comparing things that are of unequal
proportion, we need to use the structure comparative + than:
• Let me finish the report. I can type much faster than you (can).
• He played the piece of music more slowly than I had ever heard it played
before.
as as subordinating conjunction
We may use as as an alternative to when when we are comparing two short actions
or events that happened or happen at the same period of time. We often combine it
with just:
• As Mary was the eldest child, she had to look after her younger brothers and
sisters.
• As it had started to rain we had to abandon the picnic.
• I’ve decided to end our relationship because my boyfriend has been cheating
on me.
• I think you become more tolerant of other people as you get older.
• As prices rose, the demand for higher salaries became more intense.
as as preposition
Finally, note that as can also be used as a preposition when we want to avoid using
the verb to be. Compare the following:
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• As his father, it is your duty to ensure that he goes to school every day.
• As you are his father, it is your duty to ensure that he goes to school every
day.
• As a social historian, I am always interested in people’s life styles.
• Being a social historian, I am always interested in people’s life styles.
• He established his reputation as a freedom fighter through many heroic acts.
• The police described him as a dangerous criminal.
• The police considered him to be a dangerous criminal
Sometimes when I read English newspapers or books I see some words with
hyphens between them, for example densely-populated. I do not know what they
are called, sometimes I do not know exactly what they mean. Finally, I would like to
make them up by myself, but I don't know how. Could you please help me?
Words like densely-populated are compound adjectives and they are made up of
two or more words, normally with hyphens between them. Something that is dense
contains a lot of things or people in a small area. Thus a densely-populated town
or city is one with a high population count within the city boundaries. A densely-
wooded hill would be one that is difficult to get through because the trees are so
close together.
Adjective or adverb plus past participle is one of the most common patterns for
forming compound adjectives. Some common examples would include:
Note that adverb / past participle combinations when they are used with a copular
verb like be or seem, and come after the noun they modify, are not hyphenated:
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• The streets in our town are dimly / brightly lit and encourage / discourage
burglars.
• The dishes he had prepared with all the labour-saving devices at his
disposal were all mouth-watering.
• If you want trouble-free motoring, make sure you use only lead-free
petrol.
• She was wearing a full-length dress, quite unsuitable for deep-sea diving.
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• The forty-mile journey in the two-door, open-top convertible was ill-
advised in such inclement weather.
Try out other combinations of these patterns for yourselves, e.g. four-door saloon,
five-page document, well-advised, etc. Make a note of compound adjectives that
you come across in your reading and note the way they are used with particular
nouns.
I would like to ask about the differences in meaning and use between concern and
its related forms concerned and concerning. Thanks a lot.
You are quite correct, Eunice, to suggest that concern and its related forms are
used in a variety of different ways. Here are some of the most important.
• Why do you keep ringing me? ~ Well, I'm concerned about you. Are you all
right?
• I was very concerned that my daughter might not have proper clothing for
the skiing trip.
• I was concerned for her safety as well. There have been a lot of avalanches
recently.
• There was a concerned expression on his face. I knew something awful had
happened.
it concerns me = it worries me
Note that when concern is employed as a verb in this way, it cannot be used in the
first or second person and it is normally used with the preparatory subject it. Note
also that concern is not normally used with progressive forms. We need to indicate
the idea of progression in some other way. Compare the following:
Rather than:
• That she'll be in London for a whole week on her own concerns me).
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• Doesn't it concern you? She's only nineteen.
• The pollution problem in that part of the river is beginning to concern all
the local anglers.
• There is growing concern that the climbers may have lost their lives.
• He expressed deep concern about the way in which the elections had been
held.
Why are you arguing? What's it all about? What does it concern?
• ~ It's about the long lunch breaks enjoyed by the senior executives.
• If you want to know about opening hours in the summer months, give Joan a
ring.
• We had a lot of questions about people's concerns about the new vaccine.
The participle modifies the noun or pronoun in these examples and can be used
instead of a participle clause:
• There was a brawl outside the nightclub. Those concerned were held in
custody overnight. / The youths (who were) involved were held in custody
overnight.
• Many have lost their savings. The pensioners concerned will receive
substantial compensation / The pensioners who are affected by this will
receive compensation.
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as far as I'm concerned = in my opinion
When you want to express an opinion, you can use this formula as an alternative to
in my view or in my opinion:
You can use these expressions to introduce the topic that you wish to talk about or
the issue you want to refer back to - i.e. it may have been raised once already and
you, as the current speaker, want to return to that topic. As far as x is concerned
is a bit less formal than concerning x:
I always get confused in the usage of effect and affect. Please give examples of
their use in sentences.
I’m 16 and I’ve been studying English for a few years now. I’d like to know the
difference between efficient and effective and the way to use them.
affect – effect
Affect and effect are often confused, Warda, even by native speakers of English.
The most important thing to remember is that affect is used as a verb and effect is
normally used as a noun. When they are used in this way, they are similar in
meaning, signifying ‘influence’, ‘impact’ or ‘change’. Compare the following:
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Note: we talk about someone or something having an effect on something or
someone. If we use effect as a verb, it means to ‘carry out’ or to ‘cause something
to happen’, but it is used only in very formal English. Consider the following:
• 'Repairs could not be effected because the machines were very old.'
efficient – effective
These two qualitative adjectives are often confused, Kisy. If somebody or something
is efficient, then he, she or it works in a well-organised way, without wasting time
or energy. Consider the following examples:
• 'She was efficient in everything she did and was frequently commended for
exemplary service to the organisation.'
• 'He hasn’t made very efficient use of his time in revising for these exams: he
has made no notes and his concentration spans appear to last for no longer
than ten minutes.'
• 'This engine is really efficient, it can run for 30 km on only 1 litre of fuel.'
If something is effective, it works well and produces the results that were intended.
Consider the following examples:
Eminent / prominent
Please, I could not understand the difference between eminent and prominent… -
Javed Ahmed.
Hello Javed! Eminent and prominent are both adjectives, and they can both be used
to talk about people who are very well-known and successful in their profession.
Here are some example sentences:
The proposal for the research centre has the backing of Sir David Jones, one of the
world's most eminent statisticians.
Eminent contains the idea of respected. For example, if a doctor is very well
qualified, has had a lot of success in his or her career and is often asked to give
advice to other doctors because he or she is known to be so good at the job, we can
describe them as eminent.
Prominent has the idea of being well-known and important. Bill Gates is a prominent
figure in the world of computers, for example.
Now, it's possible to be a prominent person without being eminent, since eminence
depends on respect which is earned through skill, education, public recognition. For
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example, a pop star might be prominent but they probably wouldn't be described as
eminent.
And prominent has a couple of other meanings as well. It can mean 'easy to see or
notice'. For example, we could say:
His arm was badly cut in the accident and he has been left with a prominent scar.
The builders did a really bad job. The floor was very uneven and there was a
prominent bump in one of the walls.
Right, I hope that answers your question, Javed, and I hope that you become both
prominent and eminent one day!
emphasizing adverbs
I have been learning English for eight months but some adjectives and adverbs are
still a problem for me, especially adverbs such as absolutely, definitely, certainly,
exactly, etc. These mean almost the same thing in Turkish and I don’t know when
to use them in English or which one to use. If you gave me some examples that
would help me. - Thanks a lot.
absolutely/definitely/certainly/exactly
There is not very much difference in meaning or in use when these emphasizing
adjectives are used to express strong agreement with a statement, question or
suggestion.
Absolutely is perhaps the strongest. If you use exactly, you are emphasizing that
what someone has said is 100% correct.
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absolutely/simply/utterly/totally/completely/perfectly
These emphasizing adverbs are normally used with adjectives that are in themselves
already quite absolute. They give even greater emphasis to what is said.
completely or quite
Note that quite can mean very much or completely. It can also mean fairly or to
some extent.
certainly or surely
However, surely can also be used to express the speaker’s surprise that something
is happening. Certainly CANNOT be used in this way.
Study the following and, as you say them to yourselves, give surely fairly heavy
stress:
• You’re surely not going out again tonight, are you? You went out last night.
• Surely that can’t be Felicity standing over there? I thought she was in
Australia.
• I can’t get any reply, but there’s surely somebody at home. They can’t all be
out.
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• Surely you’re not suggesting she poisoned him on purpose?
I can’t believe you could think that!
enough/sufficient/adequate
I would like to know the differences in meaning and use of enough, sufficient and
adequate.
enough – sufficient
Enough (where the second syllable is pronounced as in puff or stuff) and sufficient
are very similar semantically, meaning as much as is needed:
I don’t have enough time to finish reading this report before the meeting. But I have
sufficient information to know what the outcome should be.
We have sufficient evidence to convict him for the crimes he has committed.
adequate
This country will never maintain an adequate supply of trained teachers if so many
leave the profession after four or five years.
This little car is perfectly adequate for any driving you need to do in town.
His computer skills were adequate for the type of work required of him.
inadequate – insufficient
Note that the negative of sufficient and adequate can be formed with the prefix
in-. For the negative of enough we have to use not:
enough as an adverb
In this climate it’s not warm enough to go out without a jumper in the evening.
You’ve missed him, I’m afraid. You didn’t get up early enough.
I didn’t work hard enough so I was unsuccessful in the exam.
I didn’t revise enough so I didn’t pass the exam.
Modifying adverbs, of course, are normally placed before the adjectives or adverbs
that they modify, so if we want to use the less common sufficiently in these
examples instead of enough, they will look like this:
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In this climate it’s not sufficiently warm to go out without a jumper at night.
You’ve missed him, I’m afraid. You didn’t get up sufficiently early.
I didn’t work sufficiently hard so I was unsuccessful in the exam.
I didn’t revise sufficiently so I didn’t pass the exam.
enough as a pronoun
Enough can also be used alone without a noun when the meaning is clear:
I’ve only saved up £250. Will that be enough for this type of holiday?
Some more dressing on your salad? ~ Oh no, I have quite enough, thanks.
Before determiners (this, the, etc) and pronouns we use enough of:
I’ve had quite enough of this fruit salad, thanks. It’s a bit too sweet for my liking.
I didn’t read it all, but I read enough of the report to get the main idea.
I answered all the questions, but I didn’t get enough of them right to pass the
driving test.
As you can see, Celine, enough is commonly used in a wider variety of contexts
than sufficient or adequate. I haven’t mentioned all of them, but that is enough for
today!
Enough is enough!
I don't think the distinction has been completely neutralised either. It is certainly the
case that in usage these two adverbs are often confused and can sometimes be used
with the same meaning.
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specially - for a particular purpose
However, when specially is used to mean for a particular purpose, this form of the
adverb is the norm:
• This shower gel is specially designed for people with sensitive skins.
• This computer programme is specially for children with learning difficulties.
• My father made this model aeroplane specially for me.
special - especial
Note that the adjective especial is rarely used nowadays. Its use is confined to
particular contexts where it collocates with particular nouns, e.g. especial interest,
especial value when we want to emphasise the exceptional nature of this interest
or value:
• The police took especial interest in his activities and watched the house
continuously.
• The Koh-i-noor diamond, now among the British crown jewels, has especial
value as its history dates back to the 14th Century.
In all other cases and contexts, when it means important or different from
normal, special is preferred:
Continual - continuous
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• This refectory has been in continual /continuous use since the 15th
Century.
• The continual / continuous croaking of the frogs prevented any sleep that
night.
In certain contexts only continuous is possible because continual here would imply
that breaks are possible. In these examples, there are clearly no breaks, so
continuous is preferred:
• His continual drinking was bound to lead to liver failure one day.
• He refused to give up despite the continual warnings of his family.
continually - continuously
• She sniffed continually / continuously all the way through the film and
disturbed everyone around her.
But when the meaning is clearly very often, rather than without a break,
continually is preferred:
• I've got a very bad stomach upset and I'm continually running to the loo.
• never > rarely > occasionally > sometimes > often >generally > nearly
always > constantly/continually
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M. A. Khaliel from Saudia Arabia writes:
Please let me know how to use adjectives and their formation.
instead of:
Fun here means pleasant and enjoyable. It/she made you feel happy.
However, funny is the normal adjective and fun is normally used as a noun. Note
that when funny is used as an adjective in this way, it will have one of two quite
different meanings. Consider the following:
Adjectives describe the qualities of people, things and places. They are one of the
largest word classes in English. They are normally placed before a noun but, as we
saw above, they can also come after the verb to be and also after other linking
verbs such as stay, look, seem, appear, become, etc. Study the following:
• A tall young man and a petite middle-aged woman were walking along the
narrow road.
• Tasty, fresh, white French bread is always best served with Stilton cheese and
red wine.
• The fine sunny weather is set to continue. It will stay fine for the next few
days.
• New ideas are always interesting and exciting.
Note that if we have more than one adjective before a noun, the order in which they
appear is not always fixed, although it tends to be in this order: quality, size, age,
colour, class. Check to see to what extent this is true in the above examples.
Note also that we often use adverbs of degree to modify the meanings of the
adjectives we use. Among the most common are very, too, quite, rather, much,
more, and most. Consider the following:
• It was very noisy in the garden but much quieter in the house.
• I would have said he was rather tall. But my mother described him as
exceedingly tall.
• She is a very gifted child. Her teacher says that she is too intelligent for her
class.
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adjectival endings
Many of the most common adjectives have no special endings. Consider these pairs
which are opposite in meaning:
However, many common adjectives can be recognised as such by their endings. Here
are some of the most common:
'We eat good and drink well.' (An English colleague put it that way.)
good = adjective
well = adverb
Therefore it has to be we eat well as we are describing how we eat and drink. It
might be said that adverbs answer the question How…? whilst adjectives answer
the question What sort of…?
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• 'She speaks Japanese well.'
• 'She speaks Japanese better than I do.'
Note that better is the comparative form of both good and well.
In English, we often play around with basic language, whether consciously or
unconsciously, for effect. So, whilst 'we eat well and drink well' would be
grammatically correct, 'we eat good and drink well' may be more effective in terms
of impact because it breaks the grammatical rule. I would not recommend it,
however, if you are taking an exam, but it will sound good over a drink with friends.
Why not sound well in this particular example? It is because when we use verbs
such as be, seem, appear, sound, look, feel, smell, taste, they are followed by
adjectives rather than adverbs as we are describing the subject of the sentence
rather than the action of the verb.
So we have:
Look up good and well in your dictionaries to see if you can find further examples of
adjectives formed in this way.
The only time when well can be used as an adjective by itself is when we are talking
about someone's health. Here well means in good health. Compare the following:
• 'How are you today?' 'Fine. Very well, thanks. / Not very well, actually.'
• 'I often feel unwell when I'm on a boat, but as soon as I get off, I'm fine.
Note that the expression well and good is used to indicate that you find a particular
situation satisfactory or acceptable. Thus, we might say:
• 'If you can do the job in less time and leave early, I don't mind. That's (all
very) well and good.'
• 'If you want to stay here on your own over Christmas, well and good.
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Incidentally, there is now a trend among young people, particularly in the 18 - 25
age range, to use well instead of very in expressions like:
hardly/scarcely...neither/nor....so/too
Neither do I OR So do I?
hardly....neither/nor
Only Neither do I or Nor do I is possible here, Olga. This is because hardly has a
negative meaning. It means almost not at all. So if you wish to agree with what is
being said, you will also need a negative adverb and use neither or nor in response.
Note that scarcely has the same negative meaning as hardly and that either of
them can be used here. Compare the following:
• I can hardly / scarcely believe you're twenty years old now. ~ Nor /
Neither can I!
• They're hardly / scarcely ever at home.
~ Neither / Nor are we!
• He's dead now, but I hardly / scarcely knew him.
~ Neither / Nor did I.
Note that neither/nor always come at the beginning of the response clause and that
inversion of subject and verb are needed with the tense form agreeing with that of
the first clause.
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not either
As an alternative to neither/nor you can also use not either which has the same
meaning, but normal word order:
neither…nor
Neither…nor are used together when we want to link two negative ideas:
Note that when singular subjects are connected with neither…nor, the verb which
follows can be either singular or plural.
so / too
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Note that the expressions Me too and Me neither, both of which are used in very
informal speech, can only be used with first person singular agreement:
• Look, it's already two o' clock and I haven't done any work today. ~ Me
neither.
• I'm so tired I could sleep for twelve hours. ~ Me too.
I've learned that the words hardly and rarely have the same meaning and that
moreover we can use these words interchangeably in any sentence. Is this right or
wrong?
They are not quite interchangeable as they stand, but need some modification first of
all. If we add ever to hardly to arrive at hardly ever, then this is synonymous with
rarely and also with seldom.
hardly ever
These adverbs describe how frequently or regularly something happens. Thus along
a spectrum of frequency, starting with most frequent and ending with least frequent,
we might find the following:
• Well doctor…. I always have two meat rolls for breakfast. Without fail. Every
day.
• I usually have poached eggs on toast at the weekend.
Not every weekend. But most weekends.
• I often / frequently have two chocolate biscuits or a pastry with my
morning coffee. Not every day. But most days, I have to confess.
• And I sometimes have a brandy with my coffee after
lunch. After a particularly good lunch.
• I hardly ever / rarely / seldom eat a full English
breakfast. Once every two months perhaps.
• I never drink coffee after 7 p.m. Always tea. So what do you think is
causing the high blood pressure?
Note that hardly ever, rarely and seldom equate with occasionally or very
occasionally in terms of frequency, but that when you use hardly ever, etc, you are
putting a negative gloss on what you are saying. Occasionally sounds much more
positive. Compare the following:
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hardly
Hardly, as an adverb by itself, means only just, and equates with barely and
scarcely.
Hardly any means very little or very few and is the opposite of plenty of, or
colloquially, loads of. Note again the negative tone in which it is used:
I recently found the Learning English section of the BBC webpage (which was such a
delight for me because I really love the language) and I was wondering if you could
tell me the difference between incredible and unbelievable and the right uses of
each of them.
These two adjectives, incredible and unbelievable, are quite interchangeable and
to these two you could add a third: unimaginable.
They all describe things or events which are so amazing that they cannot be
imagined or believed.
You can substitute any of these adjectives or adverbs under discussion as you wish:
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• 'My performance at the Christmas concert was unbelievably bad.'
• 'The weather on the mountain yesterday was unbelievable. There was no
chance of us getting to the top.'
• 'The operation was performed under almost unimaginable conditions. It is
unbelievable that he survived.'
• 'The new computer game was unimaginably difficult. Neither Mike nor I could
work out how to progress from level 1 to level 2.'
I have tried to learn English via the BBC, which is great! I like your Quiznet, but I
need an explanation for the fifth item of Quiz Three: 5. Choose the correct answer:
Why is it not possible to use 'bats leave'? I would like to acquire this grammatical
rule.
Quite often in English, certain expressions with a restrictive or negative meaning are
placed at the beginning of a sentence. The reason for doing so is to emphasize the
point that you want to make. It is striking, original or surprising in some way. And
whenever you make such a statement, inversion is necessary. So, it has to be:
Inversion is also used after the not only ... but also construction:
• 'Not only did we visit Cuba's capital, Havana, (but) we also spent three days
exploring the Galapagos Islands off the coast of Ecuador.'
Inversion is also found in expressions containing the word 'no', when placed at the
beginning of the sentence:
• 'Under no circumstances are you (allowed) to walk home from school alone.'
• 'In no way will I agree to sharing an office with Ben.
The same rule operates for 'seldom', 'hardly', 'scarcely', 'rarely', 'never', 'never
before' and 'no sooner':
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• 'Never before had I seen such realistic dinosaurs as there were in the BBC
television series.' (This is a reference to a recent BBC series. If you want to
know more have a look at the web site - Walking with Dinosaurs.)
• 'No sooner had I arrived at the station than the train came in.'
• 'Rarely do we see such brightly-coloured birds.'
• 'Seldom do we walk on such green grass.'
• 'Scarcely had we finished lunch when the bell rang for afternoon classes.'
Remember, you are registering surprise, or something similar, when you do this. If it
is inappropriate to be so emphatic, you would say:
• 'We had scarcely finished lunch when the bell rang for afternoon classes.'
I'm getting ready for the TOEFL exam and this part of the website has been really
useful for me. I need an explanation for all kinds of inversion and I want to know if it
is an obligation to use inversion patterns.
I would like to know if you really use expressions like So do I, So can I, So must I.
Do you use them or are they formal?
So do I, etc
These expressions are quite informal, Martine, and are readily used in short answers
in spoken English to express agreement with what has been said in the first
statement. So is here followed by inverted word order: auxiliary verb + subject:
• If you don't believe me, just look out of the window. It's snowing! ~ So it is!
• You've given me tea and I asked for coffee! ~ So I have! I'm sorry.
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These expressions are used in a similar way to So would I, etc, to express
agreement with negative statements:
In this example, the first statement is more emphatic than the second one. We can
use this approach with a wide variety of adverbial negative expressions, although it
makes them sound rather formal. Compare the following:
• At no time would he allow his team mates to argue with the referee.
• Rarely / Seldom have I seen such an exciting game of football.
• Hardly had I taken my seat before two goals were scored.
• I had to show him my press pass and only then did he let me in.
• Only when the players had changed into smart clothes after the match were
they allowed to talk to the TV reporters.
We can use inversion in certain types of conditional sentences when the if-clause
begins with had, were or should. Sentences with inversion sometimes sound more
formal than those with the more conventional if-construction. Compare the following:
• Had he not resigned, we would have been obliged to give him the sack.
• If he had not resigned, we would have been forced to sack him.
• Were she to find out that he was seeing some one else, she'd go berserk.
• If she were to find out that he was cheating on her, she would go mad.
• Should you decide to cancel the contract, please let me know by Friday.
• If you decide to withdraw from the agreement, please phone me by Friday.
My question is about ‘no sooner’ and ‘than’ requiring the semi-inversion. Most of
those sentences sound like 'no sooner came John to the station than the train
arrived'. And my question is, how can I make two sentences of this one sentence, in
order to understand better the way it functions?
OK, yeah, that’s a good and interesting question. And let’s make it clear first of all
what order things happen in. If I say “no sooner had I arrived at the station than the
train came in”, we need to be clear what happened first. Does it mean, the train
came in and then me, or I came in and right after me the train? Well, my experience
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is actually that I arrive at the station, and then the train doesn’t come in for hours.
But, to answer your question, if I say “no sooner had I arrived at the station than the
train came in”, it means, I came in, and right after me the train. I got there first…
just! I’ll give you another couple of examples:
“No sooner had I put the phone down than it rang again”.
“No sooner had I finished the meal than I started feeling hungry again”.
It’s actually a rather literary construction. I’d expect to read it, maybe write it, but I
probably wouldn’t say it. Instead I think I’d say something like this:
“The train came in just after I got to the station”, or “ had only just got to the station
when the train came in”…or something like that.
There’s two similar structures, also rather literary, that have got the same meaning,
with ‘hardly’ and ‘scarcely’. You could say “hardly had I arrived at the station when
the train came in”, or “scarcely had I arrived at the station when the train came in”.
Same meaning: I got there just before the train. It’s a slightly different structure to
the one with ‘no sooner’, because with no sooner we use ‘than’ – after a
comparative, sooner – with ‘hardly’ and ‘scarcely’ we say “when”: “hardly had I
arrived when the train came in”.
Trains are actually a bit unreliable in Britain today as I’ve suggested. I was on one
recently on the way to London, we were moving extremely slowly, and the driver
made an announcement over the loudspeaker saying “we apologise for the slow
running of the train, but we have been moved onto a branch line because of
engineering works, and we are likely to stay there for the foreseeable future!”.
I was pretty upset, because it was my birthday and I really didn’t want to spend it on
a train between Oxford and London! However, no sooner had he made the
announcement than we started going faster again – so I had my birthday at home
after all. So thanks for your question, Michael!
I'm confused about adjectives and adverbs like expensive, dear, costly, dearly,
etc. Can you please explain them to me?
These adjectives are all synonyms though they are used in slightly different ways
and in different collocations. It is also the case that dear as an adjective has two
42
meanings, it means both expensive and well-liked, as well as featuring in
expressions such as Oh dear! or in letters as in Dear Sir. The problem with costly
may be that it looks like an adverb as it ends in -ly. This is confusing as most
adverbs end in -ly, but costly is an exception and is an adjective. Compare the
following uses and collocations in these examples:
• It was an expensive suit, but if you want to work for this firm, you have to
dress well.
• These are very nice. ~ They're a bit too dear / expensive, I'm afraid.
Haven't you got anything cheaper?
• Agatha is a dear friend of mine. She is so kind and gentle in everything she
does.
• It was a costly mistake and it meant I wouldn't have another chance until
the autumn.
Dearly
Dearly can only be used as an adverb and normally collocates with the verbs love /
like and in this sense means a lot or very much:
• I would dearly like / love to be in your shoes and to have the whole summer
free to travel around Europe.
There are not very many, but other common adjectives apart from costly ending in -
ly include: friendly, lively, lovely, silly, ugly, unlikely:
• It was a lively party and there were lots of very friendly people there.
• He was really quite ugly and unlikely to succeed in the blind date
competition.
As you no doubt know, most adverbs are formed by adding -ly to the adjective:
43
• I'm going to give a house a thorough clean.
I'm going to thoroughly clean the house.
But note that we cannot form adverbs in this way when the adjective ends in -ly.
We cannot say: friendlily or uglily or sillily. We have to find some other way of
modifying the verb, e.g.:
A number of adverbs have the same form as adjectives. The most common include:
hard, fast, straight, early:
• It's hard work, but if you work hard and really concentrate, you'll finish it
by bedtime.
• The Aurelian Way is a very straight Roman road which goes straight from
Rome to Pisa.
• You always seem to come home late from work.(late = arriving after the
expected time)
• Yesterday she jumped right off it. It was highly amusing. (highly = very)
• Alfonso can eat free in the restaurant where he works. (free = without
paying)
• You can speak freely. Nobody can hear us. (freely = without feeling
restricted)
• Can you please be waiting for me outside at nine o' clock sharp? (sharp =
punctually)
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• Don't talk so loud. Everybody in the room can hear you. (loud = informal
usage)
I would like to ask you about the meaning and grammatical construction of the
phrase likely to be hard pressed to in the following sentence:
…this region is one of the least developed in China and the authorities are likely to
be hard pressed to respond to the disaster.
likely
• The most likely cause of the fire in the stadium was an unextinguished
cigarette
• The most likely outcome to the investigation is that the stadium will have
to be rebuilt.
With the modifiers most, quite or very, likely is also sometimes used as an adverb,
meaning most probably:
• They'll quite likely invite you out to eat in a restaurant when you're staying
with them.
• It's unlikely that this afternoon's session will last very long. It should be
over by five o' clock.
• It's more than likely that I shall see Chris in Cambridge. I am almost
certain to bump into him, in fact.
be likely to + infinitive
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As an alternative, we can use the be unlikely to + infinitive construction with a
normal subject, but probable cannot be used in this way:
If you are hard pressed or hard pushed to do something, you experience great
difficulty in doing it. Being pressed suggests being under pressure:
• It seems to me that the Labour government will be hard pressed to win the
next election.
• We were hard pushed to complete all the preparations before the guests
arrived.
Use of the adverb hard here suggests a lot of force being used against you. Note
that hard also sometimes suggests physical force:
This door is inclined to stick, but if you push it hard, it will open.
Pressed also collocates with time and money and other ideas in a similar way to
hard pressed, suggesting difficulty:
• Are you pressed for time? If not, I suggest we have some lunch.
• This one's worn out. Why don't you buy a new one? ~ I'm a bit pressed for
cash at the moment.
• It's not really her subject, but she says she could teach beginners Spanish if
we're really pressed.
participles as adjectives
46
I am confused as to when I can use participles as adjectives. Let me give you an
example. I can say: I saw a barking dog. Here the present participle barking is used
as an adjective. But I can't say: I saw a barked dog, using the past participle as an
adjective. Why not? Thanks.
barking dogs [ yes ] barked dogs [ no ]
There are not very many adjectives formed from verb participles, Tutul, that can be
used in both -ed and -ing forms.
You can often get a sense of what works and what doesn't by transforming the
participial adjective into a participial clause.
The dogs that had been barked kept me awake all night.
Barking works in the first pair of examples because -ing forms when used as
adjectives have similar meanings to active verbs.
Barked doesn't work in the second pair of examples because most past participles
have passive meanings when they are used as adjectives. Dogs can be washed,
dried, combed, brushed, fed and walked, but they can't be barked. That is something
they do themselves.
Abandon (meaning to leave someone when you should stay with them) is commonly
used in passive structures. For this reason, abandoned works as an adjective, but
abandoning does not. Compare the following:
The child that had been abandoned cried for three days.
The abandoning child was so unhappy she cried for three days.
The child which was abandoning was so upset she cried for three days.
Abandoning doesn't work because children cannot abandon themselves, though the
unfortunate ones are sometimes abandoned by their parents.
There are a few participial adjectives that can be used in both -ing and -ed forms,
but note the differences in meaning, depending on active or passive use in these
examples below.
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broken hearts [ yes ] breaking waves [ yes ]
Huge waves breaking on the beach pushed the surtboard out to sea.
Alarming reports are coming in that refugees are being racially abused.
Reports are coming in that refugees are being racially abused. This alarms me.
A small number of verbs have past participles that can be used as adjectives
before nouns with active meanings. Note with these examples there may not be so
much change in meaning between the -ing and -ed forms:
The falling leaves covered the path and made it quite slippery.
The leaves that were falling covered the path and made it slippery.
The fallen trees blocked the road and only pedestrians could get through.
The trees that had fallen blocked the road and made it quite impassable.
When we think of countries that are still developing and countries that have
developed, it is true to say that:
The advancing army surrounded the city and cut off all its supply lines.
The army, which was advancing rapidly, had cut off the city by nightfall.
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Ed and -ing as adjectives:
Patrizia Rapali from Italy writes:
It sounds as if they say I'm finished or Are you finished? to state or to ask if you
have concluded your work.
Shouldn't they say: I've finished and Have you finished?? I don't understand.
Thank you for your answer.
The confusion arises because finished operates both as an adjective and as the
past tense and past participle of the verb to finish.
So if your colleagues say 'We're finished for today', they are using it as an
adjective.
If they say 'We've finished work for today', they are using it as the past participle
of the verb to finish. (This would be more normal in standard English).
-ed as an adjective
When we use it as an adjective, we can talk about things being finished as well
as people being finished with something:
• Their marriage is finished. It was a disaster from the beginning, so it's good
it's over.
• She's not ready to leave. She won't be finished for at least another hour
and a half.
• Sheila wasn't finished with Paul yet. They still had a lot to talk about.
There are, of course, a wide range of adjectives ending in -ed which follow the verb
to be and other linking verbs such as seem, appear, look and become. Here are a
few of the most common:
Note that all of these adjectives ending in -ed describe people's feelings, mental
states or emotional reactions to something. There are many more. Check those
49
you don't know in a dictionary to see how they are used and which prepositions
they can be used with:
-ing as an adjective
There are also a large number of adjectives ending in -ing which relate to verb
forms and are used in the same way as -ed adjectives.
Note that these adjectives usually describe things rather than people directly,
although they also describe the effect that something has on your ideas and
feelings:
• The meeting was very satisfying for all concerned as everybody got what
they wanted.
• The play was quite interesting and commented on many aspects of
contemporary life.
• These results, Tom, are disappointing and must be very worrying for your
parents.
• I don't want to go to the seaside again this year. It's boring.
• His answers were misleading. In fact, everyone thought he was lying.
Here are some more which can be used in the same way. All of these -ing adjectives
listed here have their -ed counterparts:
Remember:
• His offer - three weeks in the Caribbean with nothing to pay! - is tempting
and I am tempted to accept it.
-ed adjectives
I am confused by the way adjectives are formed from verbs with just an -ed added,
e.g.
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The same thing happens with complete (verb) and completed (adjective). Is
there any difference in meaning between the two sentences? Which one is more
appropriate in spoken English?
There is no real difference in meaning or use between finish (verb) and finished
(adj) or between complete (verb) and completed (adj). Both sound very natural
in spoken English:
• Is your work finished for the day or do you still have some to do?
• Have you finished your work for the day or do you still have some to do?
• Can I read the manuscript of your latest novel? ~ No, sorry, it's not
completed yet.
• Can I read the manuscript of your latest novel? ~ No, sorry, I haven't
completed it yet.
Note, however, that complete as an adjective with the slightly different meaning of
whole or entire is more frequently used than completed as an adjective, meaning
finished:
• If you think I can handle all this work on my own, that shows a complete
lack of understanding on your part.
• With only one hand on the steering wheel he was not in complete control of
the car he was driving .
A large number of adjectives in English end in -ed. Many of them have the same
form as the past participle of the verb:
They indicate that something has happened or is happening to the person referred
to. Thus, a child who is spoilt is a child who has been spoilt by something.
Here are some more common adjectives which have a similar meaning to the related
verb:
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distressed embarrassed excited frightened interested
satisfied shocked surprised tired worried
• It worries me that Jack stays out so late every night. I am a very worried
mum.
• You will embarrass your father if you dare to wear clothes like that.
• She came down the stairs wearing jeans with holes in them and I have
never been so embarrassed.
Occasionally, the adjectival form has a meaning which is different from that of its
related verb. Compare the following:
• I spotted her through the crowded room. She was wearing a spotted
dress.
• The cancer was quite advanced and he had only a few weeks to live.
Hi, Roger. I'd like to ask a very simple question. How do I say:
Of the three, only the middle one is a possibility. But even here, it sounds slightly
awkward. I think most people would say simply:
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• I find that very interesting.
Remember: people might be interested in something and it is the thing itself that
people find interesting. Other adjectives describing emotions follow a similar
pattern:
• I'm starting a new job and I'm quite excited about it. I think it will be quite
exciting.
• The news was shocking. We were shocked when we heard that everyone
had drowned.
• Everybody was surprised when Jenny came top of the class. It was really
amazing!
• It was a tiring day. I was dead tired after all that shopping.
Note that people can also be adjective -ing, if they awaken this emotion in others:
A: Frank is such a boring person, isn't he? I find his conversation really boring.
B: He may be boring, but at least he's not as annoying as Ben who sniffs all the
time.
A: Paul's an amazing guy, isn't he? He amazes me. He can always see the funny
side of things.
B: I'm quite amazed by all the things Paul gets up to, I must say!
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Note that some of these adjectives are often followed by an infinitive clause:
• We were most surprised to see Kevin and Henry holding hands at the bus
stop.
• I must say we were disappointed to learn that he had abandoned his job.
Note that if you are using a prepositional structure with these adjectives, it will
normally be either with or by, sometimes both are possible. Interested, however,
is usually followed by in. Compare the following:
• I was quite disappointed with / by the film. He's normally such an exciting
director.
Note that the verb forms of these adjectives describe an emotional state, not an
action, and are thus rarely used with continuous tenses:
• She wanted to please him, but disappointed him when he discovered that
she had spent so much money. (NOT: … was disappointing him…)
• It surprises me to see you making so many basic errors in this game. (NOT:
It is surprising me…)
Pitiful
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How can I use the word pitiful in a sentence? – Sandro
Hello Sandro. Well, that’s an interesting question. Now, pitiful is an adjective and it
comes from the word pity. Now pity is a feeling that people have of kind of kind-
hearted sympathy, or sorrow or compassion… when you see a person or an animal
that’s suffering in some way, maybe hungry, cold, not looked after. And these
feelings of pity will often lead you to help the person or animal that’s suffering. So, if
something is described as pitiful, it’s suffering in a way which makes you feel sorry
for it and you recognise that it needs help. And here’s some examples:
The horses were in a pitiful condition. They hadn’t been fed for weeks, and they had
sore and infected patches all over their skin.
The children had made pitiful attempts to look after their mother but it was clear
that the family could not manage.
You can use words like sorry and pathetic as synonyms for pitiful. Now these words
pitiful, sorry and pathetic can also have quite a negative meaning. They can be used
to mean a feeling of pity but mixed with contempt or disgust for the lack of skill or
care or attention that’s caused the situation. Here’s an example:
He made a couple of pitiful excuses about why he hadn’t finished his work, but they
were not accepted.
And here are some synonyms for this second meaning of pitiful. They are:
deplorable, woeful, disgraceful and contemptible.
Adjectives are normally placed before nouns and this is known as the modifier or
attributive position. Thus, we would normally say:
• Getting all the way round Brazil in five working days proved an impossible
mission.
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• He asked me a number of difficult questions.
• I was sitting next to the open window which I couldn’t close.
Attributive adjectives can be placed after the verb to be (and other copular verbs).
Then we would have:
Copular verbs, which join adjectives to their subjects, describe the state of
something or someone or a change of state. They include: be, seem, appear, look,
sound, smell, taste, feel, get, become, stay, remain, keep, grow, go, turn:
Also attributive adjectives with their own complement, e.g. capable of achieving
first-class degrees, usually require the whole expression to come after the noun
rather than before it:
In a similar way, participles are placed after the nouns which they define:
• The people questioned about the incident gave very vivid accounts of what
had happened.
• The issues discussed at the meeting all had some bearing on world peace.
In all of these last four examples, however, it is perhaps more normal to use a
relative clause:
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• I used to live in a house which was next to the Royal Opera House.
• The people who were questioned about the incident gave vivid accounts of
what had happened.
• The issues that were discussed at the meeting all had some bearing on
world peace.
Finally, adjectives come after most measurement nouns and after some-, any- and
no- words:
• The fence around the estate was three metres high, thirty-five kilometres
long and one hundred and twenty years old.
• This place doesn’t look very promising, but let’s try and find somewhere
nice for dinner.
• I couldn’t find anything interesting on the television so I had an early night.
• There’s somebody outside who wants to speak to you. Shall I let him in?
• Nobody present at the meeting was able to offer me any useful advice.
I studied English for more than twenty years in school. But I still don't know the
exact position of an adverb. Is there any rule regarding the position of
adverbs? Thanks a lot.
There are three normal positions for adverbs in a sentence: 1) initial position
(before the subject)
2) mid position (between the subject and the verb or immediately after be as a
main verb) or
3) end position (at the end of the clause).
Different types of adverbs favour different positions and I describe these trends
below. There are sometimes exceptions to the general rule, so please regard this as
a basic guide.
Initial position
Linking adverbs, which join a clause to what was said before, always come here.
Time adverbs can come here when we want to show a contrast with a previous
reference to time. Comment and viewpoint adverbs (e.g. luckily, officially,
presumably) can also come here when we want to highlight what we are about to
say. Compare the following:
• Two of the workers were sacked, and, as a result, everybody went on strike.
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• The weather will stay fine today, but tomorrow it will rain.
• Initially, his condition remained stable, but over the last few weeks it has
deteriorated.
• Margaret ran the office, although, officially, Trevor was the manager.
• I haven't made any plans yet, but presumably you'll want to show her
around London
mid position
Focusing adverbs (e.g. just, even), adverbs of indefinite frequency (e.g. often,
always, never) and adverbs of certainty and degree (e.g probably, obviously,
clearly, completely, quite, almost) all favour this position. Note that when
auxiliary verbs (e.g. is, has, will, was) are used, they normally go between the
auxiliary verb and the main verb:
• Tom won't be back yet, but I'll just see if Brenda's home. I'll give her a ring.
• My boss often travels to Malaysia and Singapore but I've never been there.
• Have you finished yet? I haven't quite finished. I've almost finished.
adverb-adjective
When adverbs modify adjectives, they are placed immediately before them:
• We had some really interesting news last night. John's been offered a job in
Australia. He's absolutely delighted.
An exception to this rule is enough which is placed after the adjective or adverb that
it modifies:
• I got up quite early but not early enough to eat a good breakfast.
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Katinka Raupenstein from Germany writes:
Hi! I'd like to know when you should use maybe and when you should use perhaps.
I'm not sure, buy maybe perhaps was used only in former times. In any case, I've
never heard perhaps on the radio. All the VIPs use only maybe.
maybe / perhaps
In British English both of these adverbs are still very commonly used and have the
same meaning. You use them to say that something is possible or may be true, but
you are not certain.
They can be used interchangeably but of the two, maybe is very appropriate for
more informal contexts and perhaps is used in more formal situations. Compare the
following:
Note that perhaps is pronounced 'praps'. Note also from the above illustrations that
perhaps and maybe can be used to refer to past, present or future events.
may / might
Similarly, we can use the modal auxiliaries may or might to say that there is a
chance that something is true or may happen. May and might are used to talk
about present or future events. They can normally be used interchangeably,
although might may suggest a smaller chance of something happening. Compare
the following:
• I may go into town tomorrow for the Christmas sales. And James might
come with me!
• What are you doing over the New Year, Ann? ~ Oh, I may go to Scotland, but
there again, I might stay at home.
• If you go to bed early tonight, you may / might feel better tomorrow.
• If you went to bed early tonight, you might feel better tomorrow.
• One of my New Year resolutions is to go to the gym twice a week! ~ And pigs
might fly!
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Note that 'Pigs might fly' is a fixed expression and always uses might. It means
that something will never happen.
• If you go to bed early tonight, you may / might feel better tomorrow.
• If you went to bed early tonight, you might feel better tomorrow.
Hi Roger! My friends often argue about the meaning of the adverb quite. Webster's
Dictionary defines it as extreme or very. Am I right to say that it is the same in
British English?
In British English, quite has two different meanings. It does mean completely or
entirely, but it also means fairly or rather.
quite = completely
When it is used for emphasis with adjectives that cannot be graded, quite means
completely. The colour adjective black, for example cannot be graded. Things can't
be more black or less black. They are just black. So, if we put this into context and
look at some more examples of quite with ungradable adjectives, we may find:
When not is used with quite, it always means not exactly or not completely.
Study the following:
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quite = exactly / I agree
If we are using quite with an adjective that is gradable, it means fairly or rather.
The adjective easy, for example, is gradable. Things can be easier or harder. Thus,
quite, when used with easy, means fairly or rather. Study these examples:
• How did you find the maths test? ~ Oh, it was quite
easy, really. / It was quite difficult.
• What did you think of the cabaret? ~ Oh, it was quite entertaining.
• I'm quite tired but I'll try and finish this book review
before I go to bed.
When quite is used to modify verbs, the meaning depends on whether the verb is
regarded as gradable or not. Compare the following:
When quite is used to modify nouns or adjectives with nouns, it normally has the
meaning of rather. Compare the following:
• I know they left in a hurry. How did they leave the house?
~ Oh, it was in quite a mess.
• How was the house contents auction?
~ Oh, it was quite a success. Nearly everything went.
• Let's take a picnic with us. I think it's going to be quite a nice day.
• Did you get to see Hamlet at the Barbican?
~ Yes, it was quite an interesting production.
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So / Very
What's the difference between 'so' and 'very'? And what is the difference between
'were laughing' and 'are laughing'? I think both have the same meaning. Can you
explain it to me?
Hi Halimatus, thanks for your question. Let's start with the easy bit... "We are
laughing" is the present continuous tense, and that normally means that it is
happening right now.
We might say that "We are laughing at the comedy on television" or "Don't worry,
we are not laughing at you - it was something John said earlier!"
In expressions with 'when', it might mean every time we do something, for example,
laugh:
"When we're laughing, I forget about our problems."
But "We were laughing" is the past continuous tense, and so normally talks about a
time in the past:
"We were laughing at the story about Paul when he walked in the room" or
"I saw what happened, but why were you laughing?"
When we use 'so', there's normally another clause - that's part of a sentence - after
it. The 'so' part of the sentence explains why the 'that' part of the sentence happens:
"Tokyo is so big that it is difficult for tourists to find their way around."
"Einstein was so intelligent that some other scientists had problems understanding
his theories."
"The Petronas Towers are so tall that they were once the world's tallest buildings."
The first part of the sentence doesn't really make any sense without the second part,
so although we can say:
"The Malaysian grand prix is very noisy" it doesn't really make sense to say:
"The Malaysian grand prix is so noisy" - unless you're replying to something another
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person has just said.
For example:
"I don't like motor sports!"
"No - me neither. I went to the Malaysian grand prix and it was so noisy."
What we mean here is that it was so noisy that she didn't enjoy it.
So use 'very' when you don't mean that something is good or bad, just extreme, and
use 'so' when you want to add extra information afterwards.
I hope this answers your question Halimatus. It was very difficult - so difficult that I
think I need a rest now!
Could you kindly tell me whether the use of so in the following sentence is correct:
'Miles looked older than his brother, revealing so a strange maturity.' Here so should
stand for 'in this way'.
If so here means 'in this way' or 'thus', it would normally come immediately after the
main clause:
• 'Miles looked older than his brother, so revealing a strange maturity.' ('so' =
less formal)
• 'Miles looked older than his brother, thus revealing a strange maturity.'
('thus' = more formal)
However, if you are using so or such for emphasis to mean 'to a very great degree
or extent', their position immediately before the adjective is correct.
But take care using these two forms. It has to be such before a noun or before an
adjective plus noun. So it will be:
• 'Miles looked older than his brother, revealing such a strange maturity.'
So is obviously used in a similar way, but is placed before adjectives standing alone
or before adverb plus adjective, thus:
• 'She was so indescribably beautiful that we couldn't take our eyes off her.'
Remember:
such + noun
so + adjective
such + adjective + noun
so + adverb + adjective
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• 'I've been working far too hard today and I've got such a headache now.'
• 'She really embarrassed me. She is such a fool.'
Occasionally, in certain expressions, when the noun has a gradeable meaning, the
indefinite article is dropped:
You will already have noticed from at least one of the above examples that so and
such are often followed by 'that'-clauses suggesting result or consequence. Note
that when plural nouns are used after such, the article is, of course, omitted.
There is one exception to the general rule as set out above and that is that only so
can be used with indefinite determiners much and many and it is more usual with
little and few when these are followed by a noun. We therefore have the new
pattern:
so + determiner + noun
• 'So many sun-worshippers had crowded on to the beach that there was no
space left for my towel.'
• 'I'm sure there will be so much noise in the restaurant that I shan't be able to
hear what anybody is saying.'
• 'I had so little rest over the weekend that I couldn't go to work on Monday
morning.'
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• 'There were so few leaves on the tree that it was pointless to try to shelter
from the rain beneath it.'
You cannot say: 'such many sun-worshippers', or 'such much noise' and it would be
unusual to say: 'such few leaves' or 'such little rest'.
Finally compare:
You will already have noticed from at least one of the above examples that 'so' and
'such' are often followed by that-clauses suggesting result or consequence. Note that
when plural nouns are used after 'such', the article is, of course, omitted. 'I'm so
glad (that) you could come!' 'It had been so hot on the journey (that) we had to
drink a litre of water when we arrived home.' 'There was so much to do on that
holiday (that) nobody ever got bored.' 'They were such good swimmers (that) they
had no difficulty swimming across the fast-flowing river.' 'She prepared such good
meals (that) no one ever thought of going out to eat.' 'I've got such a high
temperature (that) I'm hoping (that) my husband will drive me straight to the
surgery when he gets home from work.'
I'm a bit confused about using the word though. It's often used at the end of a
sentence. For example:
Can you help me out and explain the usage of this word?
'though' as conjunction
• Even though it was suffocatingly hot, she was wearing a thick woollen
sweater.
• Although she was very fond of him, she had no intention of marrying him.
• We could try to phone her before we go, though we might miss the train if
we do.
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'though' as adverb
But in your example, Tamas, though is used as an adverb as the less formal
equivalent of however. We use though and however when we want to add a
comment that seems to contradict or contrasts with what has already been said. As
in your own example, Tamas, though often indicates an afterthought. Compare the
following:
• I’m sorry, I can’t stay for lunch. I’ll have a coffee, though.
• What a lovely sunny day! ~ There’s a chilly wind, though, isn’t there?
as though / as if / like
Strictly speaking, like, meaning similar to, is a preposition which can only be
followed by a pronoun, noun or noun phrase. So, if you want to be grammatically
correct, make sure you use like in this way:
• Like all good curries, it was served with fresh coriander and nan bread.
• Like me, she refuses to work after six o’ clock in the evening.
• On the phone you sound just like your mother. In fact, I always think it is
your mother.
'before' or 'ago'
I am studying how to use tenses correctly in English. I am having difficulty with the
difference between ago and before. Ago cannot be used with the present perfect
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tense. We cannot say: I have met him five years ago. We have to say: I have
met him before. Why is present perfect possible with before, but not with ago?
Before means: at some unknown time before now. It does not say when. Therefore
we would say:
We normally use the present perfect tense because the effect of meeting or seeing
someone or being somewhere is still felt in the present. Simple past is also possible
because we are talking about unknown occasions in the past, but it is less likely:
Ago tells us how long before the present time something happened. It tells us when
and gives us a time or a date. Because we are referring to a specific time in the past,
the simple past is used:
Your mother phoned five minutes ago. Can you phone her back?
I saw her for the first time at film festival in Cannes some twenty years ago.
Ago always counts back from the present time. Note that if we are counting back
from a past time, before or earlier or previously are used, not ago:
I met him at the AIDS conference in Durban in December 2002 when he told me that
he had contracted AIDS four years before. ( = 6 years ago)
Last year I went back to my hometown that I had left ten years before and
discovered that the house I grew up in was no longer standing. (= left home 11
years ago)
Last year I returned to my hometown that I had left ten years ago and discovered
that the house I grew up in had been demolished (= left home 10 years ago)
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They left the dining table before I had finished my meal. How rude of them!
He knelt down to say his prayers before he got into bed.
I shall read all the reports before I decide what action to take.
It can also link clauses denoting habitual current activity with the simple present:
To stay young and beautiful, try to get to bed before midnight each night. To stay in
shape, I try to go for a jog and a swim in the sea every morning before breakfast.
There were so many tall people in front of me that I could see nothing of the
procession as it passed by.
We know it is correct to say: ‘I have never been to London’. But for someone who
has been to London before, is it correct to say: ‘I have ever been to London’?
No. Ever means at any time, so it is inappropriate in the above sentence. Ever is
used mainly in questions.
Although it is usually associated with the present perfect, it can also be used with a
present, past or past perfect verb form or with future reference.
If the answer is no, we often use never in the reply, meaning ‘not at any time’.
If the answer is yes, we might add once or twice, etc, to indicate how many times
we have done whatever is being referred to. Compare the following:
• 'Have you ever been to Ireland?' 'Yes, I’ve been there twice, once in 1983 and
again in 1995.'
• 'Did you ever meet Tom Robinson when you were at uni?' 'No, I never did.'
• 'My driving instructor asked me if I’d ever driven before.' 'I said, no, I never
had.'
• 'Do you ever go to the cinema?' 'No, I prefer to watch films on video or DVD.'
• 'Are you ever going to finish this book?' 'I’ll try and finish it over the summer.
I’ve no time now.'
• 'Will you ever marry me?' 'No, Jason I don’t think I ever will.'
As you can see from this last example, ever can be used in an affirmative sentence
with not as an alternative to the more usual 'never'. It can also be used in
affirmative sentences with if and with adverbs which express a negative idea, like
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hardly. Remember the meaning of ever is always ‘at any time’. Compare the
following:
• 'If you ever change your mind, let me know. We’d love to have you on the
team.'
• 'If you are ever in London, be sure to come and see us.'
• 'We hardly ever go to the theatre. It’s too expensive.'
• 'I don’t think we shall ever see Jenny again now that she’s emigrated to
Australia.'
Remember also that ever can be tagged on to ‘where’, ‘when’, ‘what’, ‘which’, ‘who’
and ‘how’ to make the conjunctions wherever, whenever, whatever, whichever,
whoever and however, meaning 'no matter where’, ‘no matter when’, ‘no matter
what’, ‘no matter which’, ‘no matter who’ and ‘no matter how’. Compare the
following:
• 'We were playing ‘Hide and Seek’ and we couldn’t find him wherever we
looked.'
• 'If you have a problem, you can phone me up whenever you like – at any
time of the day.'
• 'Whatever advice I gave her, she would be sure not to take it.'
• 'Whichever path we took, we were unable to find our way out of the maze.'
• 'I shall sell my computer to whoever wants it.'
• 'However hard I try, I can never seem to learn vocabulary.'
Finally, ever is used in the comparative expression as ever and than ever, meaning
‘as/than at any time in the past’. Study the following two examples:
• 'You’ll have to work harder than ever today, if you want to finish this job
before it gets dark.'
• 'Jayne, it’s so long since I heard you sing, but you sing as beautifully as
ever!'
I'd like to know the difference between lately and recently. My dictionaries say they
are almost the same, but I guess there's a slight difference, isn't there?
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Recently / lately - late
There is a slight difference in use between recently and lately (see below) but note
that the adverb late is quite different in meaning from lately: its opposite is early.
Compare the following:
• I haven't been to the theatre recently / lately. (= over the last few weeks
or months)
• My health hasn't been too good recently / lately - I've hardly been out at
all.
• It's a good idea to arrive early so that you have time for a drink before the
show starts.
There is a slight difference in use between recently and lately (see below) but note
that the adverb late is quite different in meaning from lately: its opposite is early.
Compare the following:
• I haven't been to the theatre recently / lately. (= over the last few weeks
or months)
• My health hasn't been too good recently / lately - I've hardly been out at
all.
• It's a good idea to arrive early so that you have time for a drink before the
show starts.
If you arrive punctually, you arrive at the right time, neither late nor early - you
arrive on time. Punctually is normally used with the verb arrive, but promptly,
which means without delay, is used with other verbs (see below and note the
position of promptly in these sentences. In time has a slightly different meaning
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from on time. If you do something in time, you do it with time to spare - before
the last moment. Compare the following:
• He sat down to watch the television programme and promptly fell asleep.
• He was saved from falling overboard by the prompt action of the skipper.
• The train left exactly on time. The show started exactly on time.
Instant(ly) - instantaneous(ly)
• Death was instantaneous for all the people in the car when the bomb
exploded.
• The airbags for the driver and front seat passenger inflate instantaneously
on impact in a head-on collision.
If things happen simultaneously, they happen at the same time. Note that
simultaneous is used in more formal contexts than at the same time (see below):
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• The two-minute silence in memory of the famous footballer was observed
simultaneously on all the football grounds in England.
• The shots were fired simultaneously and three of them hit their target.
In informal and semi-formal registers, at the same time can also be used to
connect ideas between sentences. It introduces a statement that slightly changes or
contradicts the previous statement. Simultaneously cannot be used in this way.
Compare the following:
I admired her for her courage in the face of such adversity. At the same time, I
was slightly afraid of her. (NOT: Simultaneously I was slightly afraid of her.)
Cities are becoming more and more crowded. At the same time, people are using
their cars less and less in city centres. (NOT: Simultaneously people…)
always or ever?
Could you please explain when I have to use ever and when I have to use always?
Ever usually means at any time and can be used to refer to past, present and
future situations. The converse, meaning at no time, is never. Ever is mainly used
in questions. Sometimes it is used in negative sentences (not ever) as an
alternative to never. Compare the following:
Have you ever been to the Everglades in Florida? ~ Yes, I was there once, but it was
years ago.
Will you ever speak to her again? ~ No, I don't think I ever will.
If I ever catch you fiddling your expenses claims again, you'll be sacked.
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Don't ever do that again!
How ever did you manage to drive home through so much snow?
Now that we have young children, we seldom, if ever, go out in the evening.
ever = always?
We do not often use ever to mean always, i.e. on every occasion or all the time.
We have to say, e.g.:
I always bike to work now. It's so much healthier. (Not: I ever bike to work now. It's
so much healthier.)
Compare the difference in meaning between these two example sentences. In the
first sentence, they often agree, but not on every occasion. In the second sentence,
they never agree:
My mother and I don't always agree about the best way to rear children.
My mother and I don't ever agree about the best way to rear children.
ever = always
But occasionally, ever is used to mean always. We sometimes end letters with
Yours ever or Ever yours as an alternative to Yours sincerely. Here Ever yours
means Always yours.
And in these contexts too, in which we are indicating that a person has particular
qualities, ever is used to mean always:
as ever
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As ever, they couldn't agree. They've never ever agreed on anything.
I thought she might be upset by this, but she was as unperturbed as ever.
We plan to live in this village now for ever. We shall never move out.
ever since
I first met him when I was in the army and we've remained friends ever since.
Note that with the ever since construction the 'always' period commences when
something happens. In the above examples, this is husband's death or army service
meeting.
The water was rising ever higher and we were in danger of being cut off.
The volume of work is going to increase and I shall become ever more busy.
As well as all the time or on every occasion, always can also mean very often
when it is used with the progressive form:
She always going on about the cost of living and how expensive everything is.
I'm always losing my keys. I put them down and can never remember where I've put
them.
I'll always lend you money when you have none. You know you can depend on me.
(Always = on every occasion)
I'm always lending you money when you have none. Why don't you try to budget
more carefully? (Always = very often)
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Maria Rita Barros from Brazil writes:
I always get confused when I use still, yet and already. Could you please explain
them again with examples.
I got the book a month ago and I haven't yet had a chance to read it. (Cambridge
Dictionaries on line) Later issues are not yet published.(British Library)
I would say that your grammar book, Cambridge Dictionaries and the British Library
are all correct, Maria-Leena.
Yet is normally placed at the end of the clause, particularly in informal English
and in questions, but can go immediately after not in negative sentences in a
more formal style, such as Cambridge Dictionaries and the British Library have
used. Compare also the following:
Although she has been in Britain for more than a year, Maria has not yet visited
either Wales or Scotland.
We use yet in questions to ask whether something has happened up to the present
time. Not yet then indicates that it hasn't happened yet:
• We have yet to discover whether there are any survivors from the plane
crash.
• We still don't know whether there are survivors from the plane crash.
• I haven't spoken to the manager yet, so don't know what my future will be.
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• I still haven't spoken to the manager, so don't know what my future will be.
• Is it still raining?
~ Yes, it's still raining. No chance of playing tennis today, I'm afraid.
• I still don't know whether Brendan will be coming to the engagement party.
I've tried to reach him several times on the phone, but can't seem to get hold
of him.
Whereas still and yet normally refer to present and future circumstances, already
normally refers to something that is in the present or recent past. It is mainly used
in questions and affirmative sentences and usually expresses surprise that something
has happened sooner than expected.
• Can you give me a hand with the layout for this article.
~ No, I'm sorry, I'm already late. I have to leave right now.
• By the age of three, Mozart had already learnt to play the piano.
Note from the above examples that in contrast to yet, still and already usually
occupy mid position in the clause.
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using this phrase or is it just a case of learning it? Is 'well and truly' an adverb and
what should follow it, or is it an adjective and is it only for negative things?
However 'well and truly' is a very difficult phrase to use because it doesn’t go with
lots and lots of different adjectives. If you were to say the words 'well and truly' to
someone in Britain they would imagine that the next word would be stuck. 'Well and
truly' is an adverbial phrase to describe the adjective stuck. And they just go
together.
There are no clear rules to for why certain adverbs go with certain adjectives, they
just do. So, for example, if you say to someone in Britain the adverb – 'stunningly' –
the adjective they're most likely to think of is 'beautiful'. These are what we call fixed
phrases. They're phrases which just go together, they collocate – co locate – they go
together. It's not just adverbs and adjectives which go together in this way. We
often find nouns and nouns go together. So for example 'fish and …. chips'. Or
adjectives and nouns, for example we can say - 'heavy smoker', someone who
smokes a lot, or 'heavy drinker' someone who drinks a lot. But someone who eats a
lot? No it's not a 'heavy eater' it's a 'big eater'. Basically these phrases which go
together form patterns, there are no real rules to learn. You just have to be able to
work out what the patterns are.
So how do you learn these phrases which go together? Well the two best things you
can do are to read and to listen. When you're reading a newspaper or a book try to
work out phrases that you see coming up more than once. If you see a phrase which
goes together maybe two or three times then you can think 'mmm I think those go
together, I think those collocate.'
And similarly if you're listening to the radio, when you're listening to the BBC World
Service if you hear the phrase two or three times, make a note of it, because then
you know 'mmm this is a collocation, this is a phrase which goes together.'
So hopefully Katie that answers your question. To sum up, 'well and truly is an
adverbial phrase and most often you use it with the adjective 'stuck', 'well and truly
stuck.' You can use it in one or two other circumstances, but usually you will hear it
with he adjective 'stuck'. Although now I'm well and truly finished and I'm going to
go and have a cup of tea.
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Would you please explain the difference between these two sentences:
It's worthwhile…
It's worth somebody's while…
There is no difference in meaning between the first two sentences. In both of them
we are talking about the value of an activity. The difference is one of form only
and both forms are frequently used
Worth usually follows the verb to be and is often used with a preparatory it. It can
then be followed by an -ing clause:
Note that with this construction, it can be used to refer to an action mentioned in the
previous sentence:
• Shall we have this car repaired? ~ No, it's not worth repairing.
• I shall never have any independence. ~ It's worth fighting for, you know.
With this structure the object of the -ing clause is made the subject of the sentence
and the preparatory it becomes superfluous:
Worth is also often followed by a noun phrase when we are discussing the
monetary value of something or somebody and saying how much it or they are
worth. With this construction the question forms how much and what are often
used:
• What / How much do you think this violin is worth? ~ It must be worth a
fortune. It's a stradivarius.
• He bought me earrings worth two thousand pounds. ~ Gosh, how much is he
worth? ~ He's a dollar millionaire!
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With these expressions we are saying how good, useful or reliable something or
someone is:
• She's always there for me. Her companionship is worth a great deal to me.
She's worth her weight in gold.
• The government's promises and policies are not worth very much. The
policies are not worth the paper they're printed on.
Note that to be worth your weight in gold and not worth the paper they are
printed on are both idioms. Word order cannot be changed.
If you say it will be worth your while to do something, it means that you will get
some (financial) advantage or benefit from it, even though it may take some time or
trouble:
• It would be well worth your while to invest in shares now while the stock
market is low.
• It's not really worth my while to spend the whole day on my feet behind the
counter for as little as fifty pounds.
Note from the above example that worth can also be modified by well to make the
expression well worth.
worthwhile
If something is worthwhile it is well worth the time, money or effort that you
spend on it:
Sometimes, worthwhile simply means of value and can be used in a similar way to
worth with preliminary it. Compare the following:
• It may be worth comparing this year's profit margins with last year's
• It may be worthwhile to compare this year's profit margins with last year's
• It may be worth your while to compare this year's profit margins with last
year's
worthless
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'yet' as conjunction and adverb
Yet is similar in meaning to but. But people also say: not yet. This is confusing.
~Not yet.
yet as conjunction
• They can speak Arabic but they can’t read or write it.
• He tried to book a holiday on Bali, but he didn’t have enough money to pay
for it.
We use yet as the preferred alternative to but when we want to emphasise that
contrast to achieve a stronger effect:
• She can play the piano very well, yet she can’t read music at all.
• The yachtsman had lost all sense of direction, yet he refused to give up in his
attempt to cross the Atlantic.
We sometimes put and in front of yet when it is used in this way or use even so as
an alternative to yet or and yet:
• She can play the piano very well, and yet she can’t read music at all.
• The yachtsman had lost all sense of direction. Even so, he refused to give up
in his attempt to cross the Atlantic.
• He had no chance of winning the race or even of coming in the first six.
However, he kept going and crossed the finishing line ahead of his team
mates.
• He had not slept for three nights. Nevertheless, he insisted on going into
work the following day.
In colloquial spoken English, mind you, but still or still are sometimes used as less
formal alternatives to yet:
• The weather was lousy. It rained every day. Still, we managed to enjoy
ourselves.
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• I don’t like the work very much. Mind you, the people I work with are very
nice.
• You can be very annoying at times, but we still love you.
yet as adverb
When yet is used as an adverb, it is used to talk about something over a period of
time, up till now:
It is often used with the negative when you are saying that up to the present time
something has not happened. It is normally used with present and perfect tenses,
though in American English you will sometimes hear it used with the past tense. Still
can sometimes be used as an alternative to yet. When we use still in this way, it is
emphatic. We are saying that we are very surprised that it hasn’t happened.
Compare the following:
• Don’t eat the plums. They’re not ripe yet. / They’re still not ripe.
• I haven’t been to Wales or Scotland yet, though I’ve visited England many
times.
• I still haven’t been to Wales or Scotland, even though I’ve visited England
many times.
• Did you phone him yet? No, sorry. I forgot.
As we can see from the above examples, yet is normally used with negative
sentences and in questions, but it is sometimes used in affirmative sentences in a
more formal style:
Hi Richard - I can see the confusion here - the words even sound nearly the same!
I think that the most important difference is that 'an accident' is something which
happens purely by chance, there was no intention involved, and we can?t really use
'incident' like this.
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If you do something by accident, you don't mean to do it, perhaps it's something
you do or did without thinking.
Post-it notes, for example, are little sticky pieces of paper that we use to write notes
on. And they were discovered by accident when a scientist, who was trying to make
a very strong glue created a very weak one instead. He didn't mean to discover Post-
it notes - he made them by accident.
'An incident' is much more general - we can use it to talk about almost anything
that happens, any single event. If we were describing a particular time when
something went badly wrong, we might talk about "the incident last summer" for
example.
It might be something completely intentional - someone deliberately starting an
argument ...
"We don't talk about politics at home since the incident last summer. Li was looking
for an argument and brought up the subject of the recent elections."
We often say 'incident' when we don't want to mention what actually happened, or
sometimes if we want to make an event sound less important. The police use
'incident' to talk about possible crimes, if they're not yet sure if a crime has been
committed. It's quite common to hear:
It means that they are investigating to see if someone has committed a crime.
So the biggest difference is that accidents are never intentional, but incidents
might be!
Acting / Acting as
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Susan Fearn answers:
So first of all, let me explain that the Chief Executive Officer is the person at the
head of a company. But you might not have actually heard this said very much, and
that's because it's such a mouthful that speakers of English often just use the initials
- 'CEO', and that's true of both speech and writing.
I've got a couple of examples from BBC news stories. Here's one from October 2006:
But anyway, the question here isn't 'What is a chief executive officer?' it's about
Acting Chief Executive Officers. And here's an example:
A friend of mine, who's the CEO of a charity, recently took a few months off to have
a baby - she went on maternity leave. And while she was away, someone else took
her job for a few months. That person had an official job title, Acting CEO - Acting
Chief Executive Officer.
Now acting here has nothing to do with Hollywood - it just means being temporarily
but officially in a job. And the person that normally does that job is away - perhaps
they've left and a permanent replacement hasn't been found. You can be an acting
anything, pretty much: an Acting Manager, Acting Head, Acting Editor, but your
role is recognized. So in my friend's case, the Acting CEO got the job title, the
money and the recognition.
She was lucky! Sometimes, a company might not find a replacement immediately, or
perhaps not find one at all. And some poor person still has to do all the extra work.
That person might be acting as the CEO - they're doing the work but not necessarily
getting the recognition, the pay or the official job title - they may or may not be. So,
two examples:
On the other hand, poor old Maria, in her company, is acting as the CEO but she's
not getting the job title or the extra money; she's not officially the Acting CEO.
Now a quick word about a related phrasal verb 'act up'. If you fill an acting
position, it's normally a level above your usual job; you're acting up. So, we can
say, for instance:
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more than one meaning. 'Act up' can also mean 'misbehave', as in:
adjective-noun collocations
I usually get confused using adjectives like heavy, strong, severe, hard. For
example, should it be :
As you progress further with your English studies, Amin, you will become more
sensitive to which adjectives best collocate with which nouns and which adverbs best
collocate with which verbs. You can learn this by listening to as much spoken English
as possible and reading as much written English as possible. Always try to learn use
of vocabulary from the context in which it appears and with the help of an English-
English dictionary which gives plenty of examples of use as well as definitions. In
your examples, we would talk about:
• The heavy rain and heavy traffic made me late for my appointment.
• The strong wind whipped the waves up into three-metre-high breakers.
• They hit me so hard that I found it difficult to stay on my feet.
heavy
• He won’t be able to lift such a heavy suitcase. He’s only nine years old.
• He’s been a heavy smoker and drinker all his adult life.
• It was a very heavy meal – far too much meat and not enough vegetables or
salads.
• She had a very heavy cold and her breathing was heavy too.
• I’ve had a really heavy week – I’ve got a really heavy timetable this term.
• The First World War yielded much heavier casualties than had ever been
known before.
Interestingly, thinking about antonyms of heavy, although we would talk about light
suitcases, light meals, light weeks, light timetables and light casualties, we wouldn’t
quite so often say a light smoker or a light drinker. I think you would rarely hear
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someone say a light cold. Instead it would be a slight cold, although you might say
that someone’s breathing was very light.(The antonyms of a word is another word
which means the opposite.)
strong
• Martina Hingis has always exerted a strong influence on the way I play
tennis.
• Although I have strong views on this, I had the strong support of everybody
in the room.
• He has a strong case and there is a strong chance that his appeal will be
successful.
• She speaks English quite well but with a strong French accent.
For the converse of strong views and strong support, we would probably say: I don’t
have very strong views on this and I had some support.(The converse of a
statement or fact is the opposit of it.)
severe
Conversely, we would talk about mild weather and mild winters, slight damage and
slight shortages, some pressure, lenient penalties or leniently punished.
hard
• It was a hard exam and the final question was really hard – it was a hard
nut to crack!
• It’s been a long hard day and I’ve been working very hard.
• They had a hard life and worked through hard times. We had no hard
evidence that they had used hard drugs.
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Conversely, we might say an easy exam, easy questions, an easy day, an easy life,
easy times, soft drugs, circumstantial evidence and I haven’t worked very hard. The
expression a hard nut to crack, which means that it was difficult to do this, has no
converse form.
This is an interesting question, Farhoush and I'm afraid that there are at least
seven ways to use the adjective 'afraid'!
The most common meaning of 'afraid' is the one I have just used to introduce the
topic -when we want to politely tell someone something that may upset, disappoint,
annoy or even worry them.
Less common uses of the adjective 'afraid' are used as a way of saying either 'yes'
and 'no'.
'Afraid' + not... is used to mean 'no'
And 'Afraid' + so... is used to mean 'yes'.
Or when someone calls and the person they want to speak to isn't there:
A: Could I speak to Sun Chen please?
B: I'm afraid not, he's not available at the moment. Would you like to leave a
message?
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So let's sum up...
We can use the word 'afraid' in the following ways:
First, to politely tell someone something that may disappoint them.
Second, to simply mean: 'frightened'.
And third, to mean 'yes' when we say 'I'm afraid so' -
and 'no' when we say 'I'm afraid not'.
So, to return to the most common meaning of 'afraid'; I'm afraid that there are
several uses of the word! And I hope this has helped.
In some very old forms of English you will see these type of words - 'thou', 'giveth'
'hast' etc - most notably in certain religious texts such as The Bible or possibly
English translations of The Qur'an. In other words, these forms are what we call
'archaic', meaning they're not in active use anymore, other than in either religious or
ancient texts, or as they appear in literature and other forms of writing from
previous centuries.
A specialist in the development and history of English would perhaps be able to tell
you more about the origins and the use of the specific words in your example, but
most of them would have been in use from around the 15th century onwards in a
form now known by academics as 'Early Modern English'.
Although this was by no means used consistently if one examines different texts
from the time, by about the 18th century these forms were not so widely used and I
can clarify that nowadays we would definitely not see or hear these in typical
situations, spoken or written. In today's English, 'thou' would always be replaced
with 'you', for example, 'seest' with 'see' and so on.
Hasan asks: when do you use afraid and when do you use scared?
Natali asks: Could you please explain to me the difference in meaning between
scary, frightening and terrifying?
There are differences in use and I shall try to illustrate these. But all these adjectives
express roughly the same degree of worry or fear and can therefore be used
interchangeably to some extent. Frightened suggests more sudden fear:
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All small children are afraid of / scared of / frightened of school bullies.
All three can be followed by of + -ing clause. Frightened cannot always be followed
by of + pronoun or noun:
She seemed too scared to swim where there were such big waves.
They were frightened / terrified by the gunfire and the breaking of glass.
Note that afraid is one of those adjectives that cannot normally be used before a
noun, but instead is used after a verb. Scared and frightened can be used in both
positions:
I’m afraid… is also used in another way, meaning: I regret that I have to tell
you that…. It is used to introduce bad news in a gentle or polite way:
I’m afraid there’s been an accident at the crossroads. Your son’s been knocked over
on his bike.
I’m afraid we shan’t be able to come on the skiing trip with you. John’s got to work.
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He’s done very little work, I’m afraid. He’ll have to repeat the course.
Will I really have to repeat the course next year? ~ I’m afraid so.
Can’t you really come on the skiing trip with us? ~ I’m afraid not.
frightened / frightening
As a general rule, adjectives ending in -ed are used to describe how people feel.
Adjectives ending in -ing describe the things or situations that give rise to these
feelings. So, remember, frightened describes how you feel. Frightening describes
the things that make you feel frightened:
She looked very frightened when I told her she would lose her job.
It’s frightening to think that they are capable of producing nuclear weapons.
terrified / terrifying
Similarly, terrified describes you feel. Terrifying describes the things that make
you feel terrified. Terrified and terrifying express a higher degree of anxiety or
worry than frightened and frightening:
I was so much in debt. I was terrified I would lose my job when the restructuring
was announced.
scared / scary
I felt scared when night fell and I was nowhere near human habitation.
Using 'approve'
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Frank Hasenmueller from Germany asks:
I would like to know if there is a difference in using approve with or without the
preposition of in your sentence structure. Or is it just the same?
The meaning of approve changes when you add the preposition of to make
approve of. Approve'by itself means 'sanction' or 'endorse' as in these two
examples. In the first, an accountant is speaking and in the second, a university
admissions tutor.
• 'I cannot approve the reimbursement because you haven't given me the
receipts for your expenditure.'
• 'I cannot approve your application to study law because you do not have the
relevant qualifications.'
f you approve of something, then you consider it to be good or you agree with it.
Consider:
archenemy
Well, first of all, 'archenemy' is a countable noun that is usually spelled as one
word, though I notice that the BBC choose to use a hyphen to join the two parts of
the word - as in 'arch hyphen enemy' - 'arch-enemy'.
Some examples, all from films and TV shows, of how 'archenemy' is used include:
"...they're bringing back Doctor Who's archenemies, the Daleks..." - the Daleks are
Dr Who's most dangerous enemies and have threatened the Doctor's life on many
occasions.
"Oscar-nominated actor, Thomas Haden Church, is to be Spider-Man's next
archenemy, according to reports..."
"The actor playing Harry Potter's archenemy, Lord Voldemort, has been chosen for
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The Goblet of Fire..."
If we'd like to talk about our friends, as well as our enemies, we could use the words
'main ally' as an opposite to 'archenemy'. 'Ally', when used as a noun, means a
person, group or nation that is linked to another or others because they have
something in common that they'd like to achieve. For example:
"Britain and the United States were allies in World War II."
But perhaps a word of warning here: some people think it's only possible to have one
best friend, so choose carefully. But maybe that's another topic!
So, have you got an archenemy? I don't think I have, or maybe I do, and just don't
realise it yet. Let's hope we have some allies and at least one best friend as well!
As / Like
Well thank you! What poetic examples you’ve given me to work with! If I could fly
like a bird and I love you just as before.
Well, I think the main difference between like and as is in formality. Like is common
in conversation in comparative metaphors; as is still used in conversation, but it’s
more frequent in written English. I don’t think I can think of examples as romantic as
yours Silvio, but I’ll try! Here we go:
In conversation, we might say, The view was just like I remembered it.
In conversation, we might say: Exercise, just like diet, is important for good health.
But I think we’d use the as ... as structure to say something like She’s as lovely as
her sister.
In all of these examples, two states or things are being compared: the view before
and now; exercise and diet; two sisters. We can see that as is being used as a
preposition to show comparison, and like is the informal equivalent.
And, to continue with like: as well as being a verb that we’re all familiar with (as in I
do like you, Silvio), like has a couple of different meanings you may not be aware of.
We can use like to give examples, where it means such as. Here we go:
Some consumer goods, like household electrical products, are cheaper to purchase
than repair.
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Many successful Broadway shows, like Chicago, Annie and Fame, have been turned
into films.
We were looking for a good present for a five-year-old, like a bicycle or a remote
controlled toy.
And finally Silvio, I’d like to tell you about another use of like, which is as a kind of
filler or a speech marker. Listen to these examples, which are taken from
conversation:
I’ve just got to get, like, one hundred more points to move onto the next level.
This kind of usage is very common in the speech of young people, like my son. And
I’m going to end my explanation here – thank you for your question and I hope this
has helped, Silvio!
English language learner Oksana wants to know how to correctly use the words
'beyond' and 'behind'.
But 'behind' also has adverb uses: if you stay behind, you remain in a place after
others have gone. For example: 'John stayed behind after school to take the test.'
Equally, if you leave something behind, you do not take it with you when you go:
'They'd been forced to leave behind their businesses and possessions.'
There are also some more abstract uses of behind that you should be aware of. If an
experience is behind you, it is finished. So, for example, 'Now that the divorce is
behind us, we can move on.'
Also the people, reasons or events behind a situation are the causes of it or are
responsible for it as in the sentence: '...the man behind the modernisation of the
organisation.'
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Finally, if you are behind someone, you support them. 'The country was behind the
president.'
If we turn now to think about 'beyond' - 'beyond' can also function as a preposition
of place. If something is 'beyond' a place, it is on the other side of it, as in the case
of '...a house beyond the village.'
But there's a more abstract meaning to 'beyond' as well - it can mean to extend,
continue or progress beyond a particular thing or means to extend or continue
further than that thing or point. For example: 'Few children remain in school beyond
the age of 16.'
'Beyond' also has some quite interesting idiomatic usages. If someone or something
is beyond belief, understanding or control, it has become impossible to believe,
understand or control it. 'The situation has changed beyond recognition.'
If you say that something is beyond you, you mean that you cannot understand it.
'How he managed to find us is beyond me.'
So, quite a few different meanings there to contend with, but I hope this helps you
to identify which word you might use.
I was reading a biography of an actor whose height was given as 6'3''. In Europe we
have centimetres and metres for the height of a person. Could you possibly tell me
how this height would correspond in metres?
Six foot (or six feet) three (inches) would describe a fairly tall man. Note that we
would normally say six foot despite the plural reference, although six feet is also
possible. As a rough guide, three feet is almost one metre, so six feet would be
nearly two metres.
To be precise:
3 ft (3') = 1 yard = 0.9144 m (zero point nine one four four metres)
Here are some more tall men and women for you to practise feet and inches with:
Who is the tallest man in the world and how tall is he? ~ It's Radhouane Charbib
from Tunisia and he's 7 ft 8.9 in. ~ That's pretty tall!
And the world's tallest woman? ~ It's Sandy Allen from the US who is 7' 2.5''. By the
age of ten she was already 6' 3''. ~ That's amazing!
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We also use inches, feet and yards to measure length and width as well as height.
Note the following examples:
Our dining room is long and narrow - it's about 30' by 10'.
We had over a foot of snow this morning. How much did you have? ~ Oh, we had
about six inches.
The post office is about a hundred yards down this road on the left. ~ Is that two
blocks away in American English? ~ Two or three, I'd say.
If you are planning to drive in Britain next year you will need to know the following:
The speed limit in towns and built-up areas is normally 30 mph (thirty miles per
hour) although in some areas it may be 20 mph.
The speed limit on roads outside towns and villages is normally 60 mph except
where it is sign-posted as 50 mph.
The speed limit on motorways is 70 mph, but watch out for lower speed restrictions
which may be sign-posted.
And seventy miles per hour - is that roughly 110 kph? ~ Round about 110, yes.
English people just like to be different, don't they? The bad news is that we still use
pounds and stones to measure people's weight instead of kilograms. At least the
older generation do. Here is another conversion table and note the abbreviations that
are used:
How much do you weigh? I'm eleven stones eleven pounds - that's about 75 kilos.
I'm a little bit overweight for my height. Somebody my height and build (I'm 5' 8'')
should weigh between 10 st 7 and 11 st 7.
And if you are cooking something in an English house, you will know that recipes for
solid substances are still given in pounds (lbs) and ounces (ozs) and for liquid
substances in pints (1 pint = 0.57 litres). A rough guide here is that 4 ozs is very
roughly 100 gr.
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Yorkshire Pudding
To make Yorkshire Pudding to accompany your roast beef, you will need 4 ounces of
plain four, an egg, a quarter of a pint of milk and a quarter of a pint of water. And a
pinch of salt.
Finally, if you are going shopping in England on your next visit, you will need to note
English clothing sizes, although European equivalents are usually also given on the
labels.
I'm confused about the difference between presenter, broadcaster, and announcer;
and the difference between reporter and journalist. Your answer must be very helpful
for me. Thanks.
Hi Suharno,
All these words are used to describe people who work in the media. The first three:
presenter, broadcaster and announcer are all related to TV and radio: media which is
delivered partly – or wholly – through sound and speech (this type of media is
increasingly available on internet too).
The word broadcaster can refer to an organisation such as the BBC (UK) or NBC
(USA) which produces television and radio programmes. It can also be used to
describe someone who is well-experienced in the TV and radio industry. He or she
usually has multiple talents – scriptwriting, directing, presenting etc. and his or her
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programmes may be considered to be very important and well-respected. Famous
British broadcasters include Sir David Attenborough, Sir Robert Winston and Sir
David Frost, and Larry King in the USA.
Turning to the second part of your question, Suharno: you wanted to find out about
the difference between a reporter and a journalist. In fact, these jobs are very
similar, and in some respects the terms are interchangeable. A journalist's work is
most often seen in print – especially newspapers – but they can work for TV and
radio too. A journalist gathers, writes and reports news stories, and may also edit
and present news articles.
Finally, Suharno, I'd like to mention one more media profession. A columnist is a
writer (usually a journalist) who writes regularly (often weekly) for a newspaper or
magazine. She or he chooses a topic that is in the news and writes not only about
the events that have become newsworthy but also often offers some analysis and/or
personal opinion. This job is usually reserved for senior journalists at a particular
newspaper or magazine. Well Suharno, I do hope this has been a useful answer to
your question!
In American English, one of the meanings of the verb to call is to make a phone
call. And the verb to kid means to joke. Do these verbs have the same meaning in
British English and are they widely used?
call
• Your wife called while you were in the meeting. Can you ring her back?
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• If you need more information, you can call this number.
Do you also know the informal expression used in British English to give sb a bell,
meaning to phone?
• I'll give you a bell next week and we'll make the final arrangements then.
When it is used without an object, call can also mean visit as well as phone. Note
that if the context does not make the meaning clear, this may lead to confusion:
• By the way, Jenny called while you were at the hairdresser's. ~ Do you
mean she rang or she popped in?
Note that if we want to use call with an object, meaning to visit, we normally say to
call on sb:
• I called on my sister on my way home from work. She was pleased to see
me.
• If it's a boy, they're going to call him Cedric Alexander Roderick or Car for
short.
• This area is sometimes called the garden suburb because there's so much
greenery around.
• Did you call me? ~ I called you three times. ~ Sorry, I didn't hear you
because the hair dryer was on.
kid (verb)
Kid is widely used as a verb in British English meaning to joke if you want to
suggest that what has been said may not be appropriate or true:
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• I'm going to call her and tell her she should marry Ben. ~ Are you kidding?
Ben's the last person she should marry!
• I'm going to buy her a ring with diamonds and emeralds. ~ You're kidding
me! Where are you going to get the money from?
kid (noun)
Note that kid and kids are also widely used as nouns to refer informally to children,
sons and daughters:
• We're going to take the kids to see Lion King at the theatre in London.
• He's just a kid. He doesn't understand the difference between right and
wrong.
• A group of kids were stealing the apples from the orchard and selling them
on the street corner.
• They don't have any kids so there's always plenty of money for holidays.
Hi. I've been learning English in Australia for 5 months. I've been having a hard time
because English syntax is so different from Korean. Some of the meanings of words
too.
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I've got a problem with go back, come back and return, because in my opinion -
(only?) - they are the same!
go
We use go to describe movement away from the place or position where the speaker
or hearer is:
come
We use come to describe movement to the place where the speaker or hearer is:
The same rule applies with go back and come back, Andrzej, but you can use
return for both come back and go back:
• You must have come back / returned very late last night.
I didn't hear you come in.
• He went back / returned to Mexico when he had finished post-graduate
training.
Note, however, that come with and not go with is normally used when we are
talking about joining a movement of the speaker or hearer, even though the
movement is away from their current place or position:
• I'm going to the hospital this afternoon to get the test results. Could you
come with me?
• We're going to Egypt for a week at Christmas . Would you like to come with
us?
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bring or take?
Note that the difference in use between bring and take is similar to that between
come and go. We use take to describe movement away from the position of the
speaker/hearer and bring to describe movement to the place where the
speaker/hearer is, was or will be:
• Can you take the car in for its service tomorrow, Jan? I’m going to take the
train.
• They’re not here. He must have taken them to the club. He’s taken my
umbrella too.
• These shirts that I bought don’t really fit me. I‘m going to have to take them
back.
Hi. I've been learning English in Australia for 5 months. I've been having a hard time
because English syntax is so different from Korean. Some of the meanings of words
too.
I've got a problem with go back, come back and return, because in my opinion -
(only?) - they are the same!
go
We use go to describe movement away from the place or position where the speaker
or hearer is:
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• Are you going to the pub tonight?
• Let's go and see Auntie Mary before the holiday is over.
• They've gone to live in Australia and I don't think they'll ever come back.
come
We use come to describe movement to the place where the speaker or hearer is:
The same rule applies with go back and come back, Andrzej, but you can use
return for both come back and go back:
• You must have come back / returned very late last night.
I didn't hear you come in.
• He went back / returned to Mexico when he had finished post-graduate
training.
Note, however, that come with and not go with is normally used when we are
talking about joining a movement of the speaker or hearer, even though the
movement is away from their current place or position:
• I'm going to the hospital this afternoon to get the test results. Could you
come with me?
• We're going to Egypt for a week at Christmas . Would you like to come with
us?
bring or take?
Note that the difference in use between bring and take is similar to that between
come and go. We use take to describe movement away from the position of the
speaker/hearer and bring to describe movement to the place where the
speaker/hearer is, was or will be:
• Can you take the car in for its service tomorrow, Jan? I’m going to take the
train.
• They’re not here. He must have taken them to the club. He’s taken my
umbrella too.
• These shirts that I bought don’t really fit me. I‘m going to have to take them
back.
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• It’s kind of you to invite me to supper. Is it all right if I bring my boyfriend?
• Always remember to bring your calculators when you come to these maths
lessons!
• I’ve brought you some beans and tomatoes from my garden. I hope you can
use them.
Many compounds are spelled as one word - as in the two words that you mentioned:
classroom and blackboard. But there are many compound words that are not spelled
as one word, but that are spelled with a hyphen. And in many cases some people will
spell them one way, and others will spell them another way - so eye-witness with a
hyphen can be spelled eyewitness without a hyphen; the same is true of drop-out.
You can see it written in both ways (drop-out or dropout). Other compounds are
always written as two different words - like petrol station or heart attack.
There are two rules that can help - or maybe I should call these generalisations
rather than rules. Let's look at some words that are compounded and written as one
word: blackbird; whiteboard; bathroom; skateboard; greenhouse. Observe how
many syllables they have - they have two syllables, and each of the independent
words that make them up is one syllable.
On the other hand, compounds where one of the words has more than one syllable
are normally written with a hyphen or as two separate words. So bathroom is one
word; but living room is written as two words. Blackboard is one word, but drawing
board is written as two words.
The second important rule concerns the stress. Teachers always like to talk about the
difference between a blackbird, which is a compound that refers to a specific kind of
bird, and a black bird, which is any bird that is black, and is not a compound. Or
about a greenhouse - a glass building where you grow plants, which is a compound -
and a green house, which is a house that is green - and is not a compound.
You will notice that in these short compounds, made of two words of one syllable,
the first syllable is stressed, and this is always true. This is also true for most longer
compounds - not all, but most of them - so, for example, we talk about a petrol
station, not a petrol station; or a heart attack, not a heart attack.
So, to sum up, I have made two generalisations about compounds, and this may
help you. But there is really no substitute for a good dictionary in this case, because
these rules are not fixed!
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Confusing pairs: definite~definitive etc.
I teach English in Germany and have lived here for 26 years. I notice a word which
is being used in Britain these days for which I would have used another.
The new word definitive appears to be used with the same meaning as definite -
something that is sure.
I notice, by the way, that teenagers in Britain these days always appear to prefer
definitely to certainly in the following sort of exchange:
If any of the following pairs of words are easily confused, you might try this sort of
activity as a class exercise with a more advanced group of students.
One is the person who cooks and the other is the stove that food is cooked on.
But which is which...?
• He was a really good cook and his spaghetti made me think I was in Italy.
• The cooker was really dirty and I could see that it hadn't been cleaned for
weeks.
One is the sweet food that is served at the end of a meal. The other is an area of
land where nothing grows and there is very little water. But which is which...?
• For dessert I had chocolate cake with whipped cream and then a bowl of
cherries.
• The hot desert sand cut into our faces and we had to close our eyes.
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One of them describes something that gives you a feeling of fulfilment. The other
describes something that it good enough to be acceptable. But which is which...?
• The doctor said he was making satisfactory progress but it seemed very
slow to me.
• There's nothing more satisfying than concluding an agreement after five
days of talks.
One describes something that you can choose to have or do instead of something
else. The other describes an activity that is off then on, then off then on again. But
which is which...?
• We could see our father only on alternate weekends. Unfortunately not every
weekend.
• There is no alternative to a prison sentence for such a serious crime.
One of them describes a general rule or set of beliefs that you try to adhere to. The
other means first in order of importance or the person in charge of a school. But
which is which...?
• He was a man of very few principles who later came to regret the path his
life had taken.
• His principal interest in life was to look after the welfare of others.
There are many other pairs that can be used, depending on the level of the class:
• electrical ~ electronic
• economical ~ economic
• historical ~ historic
• complement ~ compliment
• personal ~ personnel
• stationery ~ stationary
• emigrate ~ immigrate
• housework ~ homework
• tasty ~ tasteful
• complexity ~ complication
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• Push your bicycles across the underpass (i.e. a short tunnel under an
expressway).
Does this mean that you push your bicycle through the underpass across the
expressway? Why not write it simply this way instead:
You are quite right, John. Logically it should be: Push, do not ride, your bicycles
through the underpass, if the underpass crosses a road beneath the expressway
or motorway. I understand that the rationale for this instruction is that it would be
too dangerous to pedestrians if cyclists rode their bikes through the underpass.
Road signs can sometimes be confusing, often because they are too concise. Can you
work out the intended meaning in the following:
• (a) drive carefully because when you go round the next bend, you will see
cattle crossing the road in front of you?
• (b) drive carefully because when you go round the next bend, you will come
to the place where cattle sometimes cross the road?
DIVERSION AHEAD
• (a) that there are some amusements ahead which will enable you to take a
break from driving and take a rest?
• (b) that the road ahead is blocked and you will have to take an alternative
route?
Public Conveniences
100 yds
• (a) you will find all the facilities you need, banks, shops, restaurant etc
approximately one hundred metres to you left?
• (b) there are public toilets approximately one hundred
metres to your left?
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STOP
CHILDREN CROSSING
• (a) you must do all you can to prevent children crossing the road ahead?
• (b) you must stop because there are children crossing the road in front of
you?
ROAD WORKS
'Dedicated / Devoted'
I really appreciate your efforts to help us to learn and improve English language.
I have a query about two words in English language. 'dedicated' and 'devoted' are
the two words which are commonly used in speaking and writing. I am well aware of
the meanings of the two words. My question is that in some situations we prefer to
use the word 'dedicated' rather than 'devoted' while in other circumstances we prefer
to use 'devoted'.
This is a tricky question, Ikram - the words 'dedicated' and 'devoted' seem very
similar.
If we look at the etymology of the words - that's how they came into English - we
see that they have quite similar meanings originally. Both come from Latin: 'devote'
comes from the word meaning 'a vow', and 'dedicate', which has changed very
little, comes from the word meaning 'to proclaim', 'consecrate' or 'devote'. Both
words have a religious background, and both mean to have great love, affection or
enthusiasm for something.
We might identify some differences in the use of each word today, however...
'Devoted' has remained far closer to its original meaning - we still use it to talk
about someone's commitment to a particular activity or object. It's particularly used
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to talk about someone's love for their family -
"He's a devoted father" OR
"She was devoted to her grandchildren."
We can use it, perhaps less frequently, to talk about other areas of life:
"Years of devoted research finally produced results," for example, or...
"The teachers were devoted to their students."
The central meaning is that effort and concentration are involved in the object of the
devotion. And it's worth noting that the noun 'devotions' might also mean religious
activities like praying, for example.
To sum up then, both words have similar origins and meanings, but we're more likely
to use 'devoted' to talk about family or loved ones, and 'dedicated' to talk about
work or other interests.
Could you please show me the difference between 'deny', 'refuse', 'reject',
'decline'...
Hi Thuy Nhien,
This is a very common question as 'deny', 'refuse', 'reject' and 'decline' often
translate to the same word in other languages, so learners often have problems
distinguishing between them.
One useful way of seeing the difference between words is to look at the opposite of
each one...
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'Accept' could be the opposite of 'refuse', 'reject' and 'decline', so we can see that
these words have very similar meanings.
The opposite of 'deny' would be 'admit', however, so this is different to the others -
an 'odd one out'.
The main meaning of 'deny' is to say that something is not true. If the police are
questioning somebody, the suspect might deny that he committed a crime, for
example.
'Deny' also has a less common use, which is quite similar to 'refuse' - if you deny
somebody something, you 'refuse' to give it to them - for example:
Finally, if you 'deny' someone, you say that they aren't connected to you at all - but
this use is rather old-fashioned.
You could also refuse something, which means that you don't accept it. For
example:
Notice that the pronunciation has the stress on the second syllable - refuse as
opposed to refuse, which is a formal word for rubbish.
If you reject a proposal or a request, for instance, you decide not to agree with it...
"Judge Dread rejected the lawyer's request for more time to study the case"
If you reject a belief or a theory, you decide that you do not believe in it and you do
not wish to follow it...
'Reject' often carries the added meaning that you don't think something is good
enough - if an employer rejects a job applicant, or a machine rejects a credit card
it is because something is considered unsuitable, invalid or wrong in some way.
If someone rejects a lover, their family or friends, they behave with cruelty or
indifference towards them and perhaps do not want to see them any more.
Notice that in all cases, the pronunciation is reject, reject, with the stress on the
second syllable, which is common for verbs with two syllables.
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The noun, a reject, has the stress on the first syllable and means somebody or
something which has not been accepted. For example:
for example.
It can also be a noun - but this time it is pronounced the same as the verb, decline.
If something declines, it loses quality, importance or strength. Listen to how the verb
'decline' is used in this sentence:
"As China and India become more powerful, the economic power of the United
States may be declining"
deny an allegation
refuse an offer
I would like to know why done doesn't appear to make very much sense in this
sentence in American English.
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In British English there are a large number of expressions with do/did/done in
regular use.
In your example, Navid, it's simply a matter of usage. Americans that I have
consulted would all recognise this expression, as they would an almost identical
expression it's (not) the done thing to, though they might not use them actively
in speech or writing.
In British English, both of these expressions are commonly used. The meaning is that
it is (not) socially acceptable to do this. It may not be politically correct, to use
another similar expression to describe actions which might appear insulting to
particular groups of people (also sometimes referred to as PC and non-PC).
• In this society, it is quite the done thing to eat with your hands.
• It's not the done thing to poke fun at disabled people.
• It's not done to remain seated when your National Anthem is played.
• It is clearly politically incorrect (non-PC) to refer to childcare workers as
nursemaids.
Sometimes, expressions which may appear similar at first glance have quite different
shades of meaning.
Use of the past participle done in expressions normally suggests completed action,
but whereas done and dusted means successfully completed and refers to
something that you are upbeat about, over and done with suggests something
mildly unpleasant which you are pleased is now finished:
• I finally completed that project last month. Yes, it's all done and dusted.
• At long last their divorce has come through. Now the whole thing's over
and done with.
What about he's done his nut and it's done his nut in?
In both of these nut means head, as in nutcase to describe someone who is crazy
or insane. But are these two very informal expressions the same or different? What
do you think?
• I didn't have time to clear up after the party and my mum's done her nut.
• He was so tired he couldn't concentrate on the details in his contract. It did
his nut in.
Clearly, they are different. To do your nut means to lose your temper, to fly into a
rage. It did his nut in means that it confused or bemused him.
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And what about have done with and do away with? Are these two informal
expressions the same, similar or different?
Slightly similar, though have done with means end relations with someone and do
away with means abolish or put an end to.
If we substituted done away with for have done with in the first example, it
would mean murdered!
How about do a good turn to and done to a turn? Same, similar or different?
• He did me a good turn and took care of Felix while I was on holiday.
• The goose was done to a turn: lovely soft breast meat with the juices
oozing out of it!
Quite different: done to a turn means cooked perfectly and do a good turn means
do someone a favour.
In very common use are: Well done! All done! and Done!
But how exactly are they used?
As an introduction or greeting, remember that How do you do? and Hi! How're
you doing? are complete opposites in terms of formality - informality:
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Wear, put on, dress, be dressed in
Hello. I would like to know the difference between wear, put on, dress, and
dressed in.
Wear
When you wear your clothes, shoes or jewellery you have them on your body:
• David Beckham used to wear his hair short, but now he is wearing it long.
• If you didn't play football every day, your shoes wouldn't wear out so
quickly.
• I've spent all day shopping and I feel quite worn out.
Put on
When you put clothes on you place them on your body in order to wear them.
And when you have finished wearing them, you take them off. We also put on
weight, the opposite of which is to lose weight. Compare the following (additional)
usages of put on:
• Take that shirt off and put on a new one. You can't go out in such an old
shirt.
• The amateur dramatic company put on a new show, but had to take it off
after three days as nobody came.
• The casserole is in the oven. Put the potatoes on now and put the rice on
in five minutes.
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• I thought I was going to put some weight on on holiday, but I lost half a
kilo as I swam every day.
• Why don't you put that new CD on so that I have some music while I'm
ironing?
Dress
When you dress, you put clothes on. You can also dress children, dress a
wound by cleaning it and covering it and dress a salad by putting oil and vinegar
on it. If you dress up, you put on different clothes to make yourself look smarter, if
you dress down, you put on clothes that are less smart than usual. We often speak
of getting dressed as a colloquial alternative to dress. Compare the following
usages:
• You'd better get dressed now. Henry will be here in ten minutes.
• She came in covered in mud. So I bathed her and dressed her in new
clothes.
• I must dress now for the party. Have you dressed the salad yet?
• I think it's better not to dress that wound. We'll just leave it so that the air
can get to it.
Be dressed in
If you dress or are dressed in a particular way, you wear clothes, usually for a
particular purpose:
I am a military man from Albania and I would be very grateful if you could give me
some explanation of how to use neither, either and too. I find it very difficult.
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Try as I might, I couldn't find a clear answer to this question. How should we say:
neither of them is or neither of them are? Which form would you use? Is one
more proper than the other?
Either indicates a choice between two alternatives. Neither combines two negative
ideas. Study the following examples of use:
• Which of these apples would you prefer? ~ I don't want either of them,
thanks.
• You can have either the £15 cotton top or the £17 cotton-and-polyester
blouse. You can't have both.
• Neither Richard nor Judy could come to the party.
• I want neither alcohol nor cigars for my birthday. Now that I'm fifty I must
live a healthier life.
When they function as pronouns, they are often followed by of + noun phrase:
• I've known you for two years, but I haven't met either of your two brothers
yet. (OR: I've known you for two years, but I haven't met either Francis or
Damien yet.)
• Neither of my two brothers survived the war. Neither Francis, nor Damien.
• Which of these fur coats is yours? ~ Neither (of them). That one's mine.
When they function as adverbs, they behave as linking words which can be tagged
on in agreement at the end of a negative sentence. But with neither, subject and
verb are inverted, with either this does not happen:
• I can't make the meeting on Tuesday. ~ No, neither can I (OR: No, nor can
I.)
• I can't make the meeting on Tuesday. ~ No, I can't either.
• I don't approve of sex before marriage. ~ No, neither do I. (OR: No, nor do
I.)
• I don't approve of sex before marriage. ~ No, I don't either.
• I don't go mountain climbing and I don't go mountain walking, either. (OR: I
don't go mountain climbing and neither do I go mountain walking.
Too can function as an adding adverb which is placed in agreement at the end of an
affirmative sentence. Compare the following:
• I like peaches and nectarines best. ~ Yeah, I like peaches and nectarines,
too.
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• I don't like peaches or nectarines. ~ No, I don't like peaches or nectarines,
either.
When either and neither function as determiners, they are placed before the
noun.
I don't think there is a clear answer, Wojciech. Although this of-pronoun is normally
considered singular, it is normally followed by plural nouns or pronouns. Thus, the
boundary between singular and plural is blurred and effectively it can go with either
a singular or plural verb form. Strictly speaking, it should be singular, but you will
hear both formulations with no clear preference for one or the other:
• Neither of them are coming. They both have to work next weekend.
• Neither of them is coming. They both have to work next weekend.
• Which of these umbrellas is yours? ~ Neither of them are. That one's mine.
• Which of these umbrellas is yours? ~ Neither is. That's mine.
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What's the difference? The main use of 'affect' - with an 'a' - is as a verb meaning to
have an influence. So you could say: 'Your emotional state affects how you
remember things'. The word with an 'e' - effect - is usually used as a noun and it
means the result of an influence. So: 'What effect will the new law have on road
use?' Part of the problem, you see, is not only that these two words are spelt very
similarly, often pronounced the same, but their meanings are also very similar -
one's a noun, one's a verb. There is a rarer and more formal use of 'effect' as a verb
- that's the one with the 'e' - meaning 'to make something happen'. So you could
say: 'It is pointless to try and effect a chance in policy now'.
There are also a number of fixed phrases so something that you might hear quite
often is 'take effect'. So that's effect - with an 'e' - used as a noun. Here's an
example: 'New privacy regulations will take effect on July 1st.'
Since we're being complete here, I'll give you one last little meaning. You may
sometimes run across the word with an 'a' but it's pronounced differently, meaning a
good or bad feeling towards something, or an attitude towards something. And that's
usually pronounced /æfekt/. So it's a psychology term. You might hear, or read more
likely: 'The influence of positive effect on social behaviour'. But, that's quite rare and
I hope that differentiating 'affect' - with an 'a' - as a verb, and 'effect' - with an 'e' -
as a noun, will at least set you on the right track. Hope that's helpful.
'effective' / 'efficient''?
Both could be translated in French by "efficace", although the word "efficient" also
exists in French and there is a difference between both.
Gareth Rees:
Well Hervé, thank you very much for your question. Your question in fact relates to
the topic of false friends. These are words in a foreign language which seem similar
to words in your own language. However, in fact they have a different meaning in
the foreign language, so they're not really friends, they're false friends.
English is a language that has developed from Germanic and Latin languages, and it
has also adopted words from other languages such as Hindi and Urdu. Because
English has, in part, developed from Latin, and so has French, there are many similar
looking or sounding words. And this is the problem that Hervé has with 'effective'
and 'efficient'. In French there are similar sounding words, but the meanings are not
exactly the same.
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In English, 'effective' means that something produces results or an effect. It does
what it is supposed to do. 'Efficient' means that something is done in a good way,
without wasting time, money or energy. For example, a car with an effective engine
will move, because the engine does what it is supposed to do. It produces results. It
moves the car.
A car with an efficient engine is a car that travels a long way without using a lot of
petrol. It is efficient, it doesn't waste energy.
It seems from what Hervé says, that the French word efficient' is more similar to
'effective' than the similar sounding 'efficient'. However, I am not a French expert, so
I?ll leave him to decide.
A couple of other examples of these false friends include 'sympathetic' and 'sensible'.
'Sympathetic' is a false friend for the French and 'sensible' is a false friend for the
Spanish.
I hope my explanation has been effective, and that I have made it in an efficient
way.
I would be most grateful if you could tell me the difference between assurance and
insurance. I was told that we talk about life assurance but property insurance.
However, I have also heard that American insurance companies talk about life
insurance. Please help.
I will start with the verbs from which these nouns are derived as they are in more
common use and then deal with the more specialist noun forms second.
If you assure someone that something is true or will happen, you tell them that it
is definitely true or will happen, often in order to make them less worried. We often
use such phrases as I can assure you or let me assure you in order to emphasise
the truth of what we are saying:
• Let me assure you / I can assure you that the children will be totally safe
on this adventure holiday. No risks of any kind will be taken.
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Ensure is subtly different from assure and people often confuse the two. If you
ensure that something happens, you make certain that it happens. A less formal
equivalent of this verb in spoken English would be make sure:
• Ensure / Make sure that your working hours as well as your rate of pay are
written into your contract.
• I tried to ensure that everybody wore their life jackets the whole time that
we were on the sailing boats, but not everybody carried out my instruction.
• I shall try to insure that you have a nice time while you are here.
Insure has another meaning, as you suggest, Betty. If you insure yourself or your
property, you pay money to an insurance company so that if you become ill or if your
property is stolen or damaged, the company will pay you a sum of money:
• We can insure your car against fire, theft and third party damage for as little
as £30 per month.~
• Make sure you remember to insure the digital camera and the mobile
phones. They're not included under the house contents insurance.
Assurance
First and foremost, assurance has the same meaning as assure. If you give
someone an assurance that something is true or will happen, you say that it is
definitely true or will definitely happen in order to make them feel less worried:
• I was unable to give her any assurance that Beth would arrive in time for
the family re-union.
• As we came down that hill, I thought we were going to die and I started
thinking about my life insurance / life assurance policies.
• That car is not insured. The insurance expired at the end of July and you
haven't renewed it.
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Note that we cannot say ensurance. There is no noun which is derived from
ensure.
There are of course other differences in spelling between American and British
English. The most common ones are words that end with 'our' in British English and
are spelled 'or' in American English - labour (labor), honour (honor), and so on.
Another common difference is words that end in 're' in British English and are spelled
with 'er' in American English- theatre, centre.
And finally, words that end with - 'ize' in American English and are often spelled with
- 'ise' in British English - sympathise, criticise, and so on.
Thank you for these four items, Sam. They are clearly all from the same lexical field.
What you need to know is what restrictions are placed on their use.
Equipment usually describes (all) the necessary articles for a purpose. Thus you
would say:
• 'A lot of equipment was needed for this mountaineering (or camping)
expedition.'
• 'The chemistry lab was full of the apparatus needed for a range of
experiments'.
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For tools and utensils it is also very important to know which other words they
collocate with. For example, we talk about garden tools for a gardener and work
tools for a carpenter, but kitchen utensils for a housewife or house-husband.
'take'- expressions
I don't quite understand the meaning of the expression take for granted. Can you
please help me?
There are two realisations of this expression, Mirto. In one of them when somebody
takes you for granted, they are befitting from your help, without acknowledging it:
• He just takes me for granted - never any thanks for all the things I do for
him.
If you take something for granted, you assume it will happen or is the case
without thinking about it:
• I took it for granted that I would give the opening address at the
conference.
• The things I take for granted in Madrid just do not apply to my life in
London.
take it as it comes
If you take things as they come, you take them in sequence or in order with no
need to prioritise:
• You're going to be very busy today - lots of customers. ~ Oh, that doesn't
bother us. We'll just take it as it comes.
take-expressions
We noted in another answer (to review that answer click here) that take is one of
the most frequently used verbs in the English language. Consequently, there are
more than fifty expressions in current use that incorporate the verb take. Here are
eight of the more opaque.
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take it lying down - submit to insult without protesting, like a dog when cowed
• She's horrible to you all the time - don't just take it lying down!
• Her criticism was quite justified. He took it on the chin and apologised.
• I know you've had a bad day at work, but don't take it out on me.
• When you get a first glimpse of the Niagara Falls, it takes your breath
away.
• I take my hat off to the police for managing the protest without arresting
anyone.
• They took me to the cleaners. I went into the casino with £100 and came
out £1,000 in debt.
take someone for a ride - trick or deceive them, perhaps for financial gain
• He's taking you for a ride. Why did you lend him £100? You'll never get it
back.
• I didn't mind her borrowing my jeans, but stealing me underwear - well, that
just about takes the biscuit!
Similarly, there are numerous multi-part verbs where take is combined with a
preposition and/or adverbial particle. Some of them have a literal meaning, like
take away or take off which are relatively easy to understand:
• Have you finished with that yet? ~ Yes, I have. Please take it away.
• I took off my dirty clothes and put them in the laundry basket.
Other examples have an idiomatic meaning where the meaning may not be clear
from an understanding of the individual words. These include:
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• Sylvia has always been a worrier - she takes after her mother in that
respect.
• It's possible that the supermarket chain Safeway will be taken over by
Sainsbury's.
Note that the verb needed for going past someone is overtake:
in my view / opinion
I think we would normally drop point of and simply say in his view (in my view /
in their opinion / etc):
• How important is it, in your view, that the twins should stay together? ~ In
my opinion, it's very important.
If we want to use point of view, I think we would more often say from my point
of view rather than according to my point of view. Both these expressions
emphasise the position or angle you are judging the situation from:
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• From the point of view of safety, always wear a helmet when you are on the
building site.
to my mind / etc
In my view, from my point of view, in my opinion are all fairly formal ways of
expressing your opinion characteristic of written English. Less formal equivalents
more characteristic of spoken English, include the following:
• If you ask me, it's unreasonable to pay for something which should be free.
• To be honest (with you), I'm surprised you got into university with such low
grades.
• As far as I'm concerned, the matter is over and done with and we can now
move forward.
If you are required to write an academic essay in which you are asked to express an
opinion (see below), useful alternatives to in my view include:
I think that…
It seems to me that…
I would argue that…
I do not believe that…
I am unconvinced that…
I do not agree that…
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move around. I would argue that it is kinder to allow a rare animal to die
naturally in the wilds rather than to prolong its life artificially in a zoo.
making concessions
To achieve balance in any essay, it may be useful to incorporate opinions that are
different from your own. Useful linking words and expressions include:
clarifying an opinion
By this I mean…
Here I'm referring to…
To be more precise…
That is to say…
Could you help me to work out the differences in use between the following words:
faults, flaws, weaknesses and drawbacks? Are they interchangeable when talking
about someone’s character?
Of these four synonyms, or expressions with similar meanings, fault is probably the
most widely term used.
Faults
Fault is not so much used to talk about someone’s character, Helen. Instead we talk
about electrical, mechanical or technical faults:
There was a fault in the wiring and I had no idea how to correct it.
There was a delay in the broadcast of the programme and this was due to a technical
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fault.
A mechanical fault caused the train to come off the rails.
She has her faults, but, on the whole, she’s a nice person.
We all have our own faults, I suppose.
We also have the frequently used expression: It’s (not) my/your/his/etc fault.
This is a more idiomatic way of saying: I am (not) to blame or I am (not)
responsible (for this unfortunate situation).
If you don’t get enough sleep, it’s entirely your own fault.
It was partly the teacher’s fault for giving them too much homework.
Flaws
We use flaw mainly to talk about a minor fault or weakness in something which
make it less effective or valuable. We talk about flawed arguments for example.
Note also a flawless complexion:
There’s a flaw in your argument. I agree with you up to a point, but the last part
doesn’t make complete sense to me.
There was a tiny flaw in the necklace and it certainly wasn’t worth all the money we
had paid for it.
She attributed her flawless complexion to the moisturising creams she used.
There are major flaws in the way we train teachers in this country.
There were serious flaws in the construction of the pedestrian bridge.
And, yes, we can also use flaw to describe a fault in someone’s character:
The only flaw in his character was his short temper – he tended to fly off the handle
at the slightest provocation.
Weaknesses
Weaknesses generally describe the state or condition of being weak and of lacking
strength or resilience.
The main weakness of this government is that it keeps changing direction on key
policy issues.
He showed great weakness in not owning up to his part in the bad behaviour.
Weaknesses can also refer to faults or problems that make something less
attractive or effective:
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They were keen to know how well it would sell in Russia so they listed all the
strengths and weaknesses of their product for this market.
The only weakness in her character that I could spot was that she seemed to be
over-dependent on others.
Note that if you have a weakness for something, you are very fond of it:
Drawbacks
The only drawback / disadvantage with this accommodation is that it’s a fifteen-
minute walk to the bus-stop.
The main drawback of this examination is that it takes two months before the results
are released.
So, Helen, from the shades of meaning inherent in all four of these terms, note that
we can refer to faults, flaws and weaknesses in someone’s character, but we are less
likely to talk about drawbacks in someone’s character.
Could you, please, explain the meaning of the phrase "to fire or shoot (something or
someone) in anger", and provide a paraphrase. I realise it doesn't actually mean to
fire or shoot because one is angry. But I'm also unsure whether the phrase "to fire in
anger" is used specifically in a war context or also applies to non-military conflicts.
In a military context, 'to fire in anger' means to shoot for a purpose in war. For
example, a submarine that 'fires in anger' shoots missiles at an enemy ship. Shots
fired in anger are never just for practice; they're fired to deliberately cause damage
or harm.
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When I typed "fire in anger" into an internet search engine, the military websites
clearly used the phrase to mean 'shooting in war, not for practice'. Interestingly, as
far as I could tell, the non-military websites used the phrase to mean 'to shoot
angrily', or as you say in your question, 'to shoot because one is angry'. For
example:
"The man waved his gun around, shouting and shooting in anger."
So I think the best answer to your question is that 'fire in anger' has two
meanings, depending on whether the context is military or non-military.
The military meaning is 'in a real situation, not for practice' and has no connection
with the emotion of the person or thing doing the shooting. You'll notice that from
these authentic examples of the phrase, as used in a military context:
"The sinking of the Argentine cruiser, General Belgrano, during the Falklands war by
HMS Conqueror, the first British nuclear submarine ever to fire in anger, is fully
recounted."
"...the first military guns in World War I to fire its guns in anger on British soil..."
"...becoming the first VII Corps unit to fire in anger since World War II."
Now, in contrast, the non-military use of 'fire in anger' implies strong emotion. In
our previous example, we heard how...
"The man waved his gun around, shouting and shooting in anger."
So it's clearly implied that the gunman was extremely upset, distressed and angry
about something he felt was very important.
I hope this helps, Pierre - and special thanks to my Military English colleagues for
their specialist knowledge!
Foot / Feet
Thanks for your question, Maria. It's an interesting one because of the differences
between the way we write and the way we speak.
As you say, 'feet' is an example of a measurement for height, length and distance.
'Feet' is a non-metric measure, unlike 'metres' and 'centimetres' which are metric.
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'ounces', 'pounds', 'stones' and 'tons'.
For example:
"I weigh fourteen stones, seven pounds. That's fourteen and a half stone! I
really need to go on a diet."
Non-metric measures are still widely used in the UK, especially for personal weight
and height, and for distance. But some things are changing. Most people now use
metric litres rather than non-metric gallons for volume. For example, we buy
orange juice and petrol by the litre.
Most people also use Celsius rather than Fahrenheit for temperature, for example:
"Today, the temperature in London is 18 degrees Celsius, so you'll be fine in just a
t-shirt!"
Most older British people still use 'feet', rather than 'metres', to describe their own,
and other peoples', height. They might say, for example:
"He's just like his dad; he must be at least six foot tall."
You're absolutely right about 'five foot tall'; if you're talking to someone or writing
and don't need to be formal, saying that you're 'five foot tall' is fine. However, to say
you are 'five feet tall' is correct and is probably safer when you're writing in English.
Maria, you don't have to tell us your real height, but if you really are five foot tall,
you may be interested to know that you are the same height as the Australian singer
Kylie Minogue and the Columbian singer Shakira! However, there does seem to be
some confusion over Shakira's height, with some sources saying that she is 'four foot
eleven' and others claiming she is 'five foot two'.
Shakira, if you're listening to BBC Learning English, perhaps you could contact us
and let us know!
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get, turn, go and grow are often preferred to become. Is there a rule for when to
use become?
Get, as we shall see, has many different meanings whereas become basically
indicates development of some kind.
Get is more informal and is frequently used in speech; become is more formal and
is more often used in writing.
Get/become + adjective
When used with adjectives, get indicates growth or development and can therefore
be used as the preferred alternative to become in an informal register. Compare the
following sentences:
Informal Formal
I got interested in photography when
I became interested in art in later life.
I was ten.
As he got older, his garden got really As he became older, he could no longer
messy. maintain his garden
It got colder and colder the further It became increasingly cold as we travelled
north we went. north.
I'm getting quite hungry now, aren't He became quite angry when he discovered
you? there was no food
Become + noun
We cannot, however, use get with a noun, even though the meaning is 'grow' or
'develop into'. We have to use become in this sense:
Get + noun/pronoun
When we use get with a noun or a pronoun as a direct object, get usually means
'obtain', 'acquire', 'receive' or 'fetch'.
• 'I got the highest marks in the class for my essay on Lord Byron.'
• 'I got my goldfish from the pet shop down the road.'
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• 'I was getting about fifty emails every day when I was working on the
project.'
• 'Could you get me a punnet of peaches from the supermarket?'
• 'Let me get you a drink. What'll you have?'
Get indicates the end of a journey and can be used informally as an alternative to
'reach' or 'arrive at'. When we use go, we are talking about the 'complete journey',
usually. Compare the following:
Grow indicates a slow change and sounds literary. It can be replaced by ‘become’ or
‘get’. Turn indicates a faster change and can be replaced by ‘go’:
There is so much more to get to know about get, Margarete, but I'll get into trouble
with my editor if I make this reply any longer. It is a difficult area, but I hope it is
slowly becoming clearer.
We use hear for sounds that come to our ears, without us necessarily trying to hear
them! For example, 'They heard a strange noise in the middle of the night.'
Listen is used to describe paying attention to sounds that are going on. For example,
'Last night, I listened to my new Mariah Carey CD.'
So, you can hear something without wanting to, but you can only listen to something
intentionally. An imaginary conversation between a couple might go:
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'Did you hear what I just said?'
'No, sorry, darling, I wasn't listening.'
Let's look at each of these in a little more detail and describe a situation when they
could be used.
First, the structure "let's" - which is the common short form for "Let us". This is
followed by the infinitive of a verb without "to" and is usually an informal suggestion.
When it's a suggestion it is often followed by the tag, "shall we?"
Imagine that you are at a party, it's quite late at night, you are tired and you have to
go to work the next day. You are there together with a friend and because it's late
you want to go home. You might say to your friend something like, "Let's go, shall
we?" You want to leave and you want your friend to come with you. "Let's go, shall
we?" It's not really an order to do something but a polite way of suggesting that you
want to leave.
If you just say, "Let's go!" that is more of a polite instruction and suggests that you
have made the decision that it's time to leave and you expect the person you are
talking to do what you say. It could be a parent talking to his or her children - "Come
on kids, let's go." However often there is no real difference between "let's go" and
"let's go, shall we?" It really does depend on your tone of voice and the relationship
you have with the person you're speaking to.
Now, the other phrase from Abdallah's question was, "It's high time we went". This is
quite an unusual structure because it has what looks like a simple past form -
"went", the past of the verb "to go." - "It's high time we went." - What is unusual
about this is that this sentence is not talking about the past at all! There are a
number of phrases, all using the word "time" where this happens.
We have the example - "It's high time we went", but you could also say:
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- It's time we were going
- It's about time we were going, and
- It's high time we were going
The past form in these examples is, I think, the subjunctive form of the verb. The
subjunctive is often used when we talk about unreal or imagined situations. You can
see it clearly in a conditional sentence like this one:
Normally you wouldn't expect to see the form "were" following the pronoun "I". You
expect "I" to be followed by "was". But that is only true if the verb form is the past
simple. However "I were" as in "If I were you" is the correct form of the past
subjunctive which is used here because obviously I am not you and I can't be you -
so it's an imagined or unreal situation - "If I were you." And that's the same form
that's being used in the expressions after the word 'time'
You can remember the time expressions I mentioned above as fixed expressions and
they all have more or less the same meaning. They are quite formal in their use and
are stating that it's time that something happened. A parent might say to a child, for
example - "it's time you went to bed!" Which means "I want you to go to bed".
In the party situation you could say, as I mentioned above, "let's go!" - but you
could also say - "It's time we went." You can imagine the person who said that might
be looking at their watch and worrying perhaps about catching a train.
And if the situation is a little more urgent, we use the expression "It's high time"
which means it's very important that this happens now - "It's high time we left -
come on or we'll miss the train." Or again a parent might say to an older child - "It's
high time you found a job, young man!"
So in summary -
"It's high time" - is a formal statement that it is important that something happen
soon or that something happen now.
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also be a difference between what you can hire and what you can rent. 'Hire a help'
but surely not 'rent a help'?? 'Rent a car', but not 'hire a car'?
hire or rent?
The meaning is the same: to rent or hire something, you pay money in order to be
allowed to use it for a limited amount of time. It is simply a matter of usage. With
some nouns you can use one or the other – it doesn’t matter which as both are
freely used. You can: rent or hire cars, bikes, electronic equipment:
• 'We rented a TV and video as we intended to stay in England for only six
months.'
• 'If you’re planning to go to Cambridge for the day, hire a bike when you
arrive. It’s the best way to get round the town.'
With other nouns it is customary in British English to use one and not the other. We
would: rent a flat, caravan, cottage, house:
• 'I had too much to do on the farm, so I decided to hire some help three
mornings a week.'
• 'The police enquiries were making no progress, so we decided to hire a
private detective.'
• 'I was painting the outside of the house and had to hire a tall ladder to get to
the top.'
rise or raise?
Two verbs which are similar in meaning: to move to a higher position. The essential
difference is that raise is a transitive verb which needs an object to complete its
meaning and rise is intransitive, it functions without an object and is sometimes
followed by a phrase of time or place. Compare the following:
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• 'He rose (i.e. stood up) to greet her.'
• 'I raised my hand because I wanted to raise a question, but he took no
notice of me.'
• 'If you are raising a family as a single parent, you shouldn’t try to work full-
time.'
• 'My child was ill and I had to raise money to pay for the operation.'
drive or ride?
Anything with four or more wheels (like a car, a bus, a lorry or a train) we drive;
anything with two wheels or that we straddle (like a horse, a bike, motorbike or
scooter) we ride, (even though you need a driving licence to ride a motorbike. In a
recent court case, a judge in Britain has ruled that riders of go-peds – those tiny
scooters which have a very small engine at the back – will also need to have a
driving licence to ride them on the roads.)
Note that when we are passengers rather than drivers, we ride in cars and trains,
but we tend to ride on buses.
Hold or keep?
Can you please explain to me the different uses of keep and hold?
I know there are some phrases where I must use keep and some where I must use
hold but sometimes I don't know which one I should use.
Hold or keep
We use the verbs hold and keep in many different ways and with many different
meanings. Only when the meaning is to prevent something from moving can
they be used interchangeably:
• Hold / keep the ruler steady so that I can draw a straight line.
• Keep / hold still while I put this necklace on you.
• Her talk was so boring that she was unable to hold / keep my attention.
• This is a firm arrangement which cannot be changed. I'll hold / keep you to
this.
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• For tax purposes, you do not need to hold / keep financial records for more
than five years.
But you can only hold records in sport, etc, you do not keep them:
• John Lees from the UK holds the record for the fastest walk across America -
2628 km in 53 days 12 hours 15 minutes between 11 April (the eleventh of
April) and 3 June (the third of June).
hold on to = keep
You can see from the above example that one of the slight differences in meaning is
that hold sometimes suggests something temporary while keep may suggest
something more permanent. There is a similar distinction between hold on to and
keep, meaning not to lose:
The phrasal verb hold somebody up, meaning delay, can also be used as an
alternative to keep with this meaning:
• I don't want to hold you up / keep you, but could I just have a word?
• Can you hold my books for me while I look for my mobile phone?
• He held her tightly and hoped that she would stop crying soon.
• Old Trafford, the home of Man U, holds 67,000 spectators while Highbury, the
home of their main rivals, Arsenal, holds only half that amount.
• I plan to hold a meeting soon to see if we can increase profitability.
• Referendums have been held in all central European countries in connection
with EU membership.
When keep means any of these, we cannot substitute hold in its place. When keep
means continue, note that it may be followed either by verb-ing or by the
preposition on + verb-ing:
• Don't turn left or right, just keep right on till the end of the road.
• You must keep taking the medication until you are quite better.
• I kept (on) reminding him that he should take my advice, but he ignored me.
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• Where do you keep the keys to the shed? I can't find them.
• Let's buy two kilos of peaches now. They'll keep in the fridge for about two
weeks
• If you want to keep fit, eat plenty of fruit!
We also keep secrets and promises and you keep your word. You do not hold
them:
horrible
You can describe something as horrible (or deadful or awful) when you do not like
it at all:
• The hotel was horrible - just awful. The walls were all painted a horrible
colour and I've never had such dreadful meals.
horrific
• Having to survive in the desert for eight days with very little water and
practically no shelter from the sun was horrific.
• It was a horrific motorway accident: twelve people died, a further twenty
four suffered horrendous burns.
horrendous - horrifying
Horrendous can mean horrifying, describing something you feel dismay or disgust
about, but it can also be used in a less extreme way, meaning unpleasant or
shocking.
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• The traffic this morning was horrendous. It took me seventy-five minutes to
travel eleven miles.
• It was a horrifying picture: the dead and the wounded had all been left by
the roadside.
Note that all of these adjectives with their various endings -ible, -ic, -ous, -ing, are
derived from the noun horror which also crops up in the compound noun horror
film:
In a similar way, terrible and terrifying, which have similar shades of meaning to
horrible and horrifying, are both derived from the noun terror from which we get
the nouns terrorist and terrorism:
• Ridding the world of terrorists and terrorism is easier said than done.
Be careful however with the adjective terrific which does not have the same
meaning as horrific. Whereas horrific means very bad, terrific means very good.
• The food was terrible. Nobody at the camp had any idea about how to cook.
• Everybody in the team was terrific. I had never seen them play so well
together before.
• Sharing a prison cell with a convicted murderer was a terrifying prospect.
horribly - terribly
These adverbs are used even more frequently than the adjectives terrible and
horrible. They often mean little more than very.
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• We're going to be horribly / terribly late if we stop to buy flowers on the
way.
Here are some more adjectives which are used informally and which mean very good
and very bad. Note that they all have very common adjectival endings:
Very good:
Very bad:
Can you think of any others meaning very good or very bad, like superb or dire,
which do not have these common adjectival suffixes? If you can, write to our
Message Board and put them into sample sentences, e.g.
• Their performance was dire. Most of the audience walked out long before it
was over.
• The dancers were superb. They had obviously spent a long time rehearsing
it.
Could you please tell me the origin of the words hot dog and hat trick?
hat trick
A hat trick was originally performed by a conjurer at a circus or variety show. The
conjurer or magician pulled rabbits or other impossible items out of a top hat as if by
magic.
In a sporting context, it was first used in the game of cricket in 1887 to describe an
unlikely situation where a bowler takes three wickets with three successive balls.
This entitled the bowler to pass his hat around the ground for a collection of cash, or
he might have been presented with a new hat or cap by the club he represented.
This usage quickly spread to the game of football to describe three goals scored by
the same person in a football match:
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• Geoff Hurst's hat trick in the 1966 World Cup Final will always be
remembered by English football fans.
• Now as he approaches the tenth green, he's on a hat trick of birdies. A birdie
on the eighth. A birdie on the ninth. Let's see if he can make it three in a row
with a birdie on the tenth.
old hat
• Wearing a tie with a jacket - for young people, that's really old hat.
hot dog
For those among you who don't yet know this Western delicacy, a hot dog is a
sausage, especially a frankfurter, inserted lengthways into a hot bread roll and
garnished with onions, ketchup or other relishes. It originated in America and was an
invention attributed to Henry Stevens, a caterer with the New York Stadium in 1900.
There may have been an allusion to the 'sausage' dog or dachshund which is roughly
the same shape.
• A diet of hot dogs, pumpkin pie and ice-cream sundaes is not good for your
waistline!
• On the pier there were all the usual side-shows, plus hot-dog, hamburger
and ice-cream stands.
Note that we also have to hot dog in slang usage, possibly derived from top dog or
best person, meaning to show off or perform very well in skiing or surfing:
hot pants
Hot pants were very brief skin-tight shorts originally worn by young women in the
early 1970s in Britain - 'hot' because they looked sexy.
• The mini skirt is back in fashion, but I don't think hot pants ever will be.
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hot potato
A hot potato is a delicate or tricky situation that has to be handled with extreme
care.
• The new law is politically a hot potato for the government as many people
are very unhappy with it.
As you will know, the original hot potatoes are difficult to handle when you take
them out of the oven or pluck them from the barbeque fire. Care has to be taken not
to drop them!
Hope / wish
I was told by an English teacher that the main difference between the verbs hope
and wish is that when we use hope we do not know all the facts (a kind of future
meaning) and when we use wish we know all the facts already. For instance, 'I hope
you will be OK' and 'I wish you were here' (from Pink Floyd). This led me to think
about Christmas time. Why should I say 'I wish you a Merry Christmas' instead of 'I
hope you a Merry Christmas'? Is there any grammatical explanation on this issue?
The answer is that the verb wish is used in a variety of different ways and hope
cannot be used as a 'stand alone' verb in a sentence, other than in the expressions 'I
hope so' or 'I hope not.'
In your 'Merry Christmas' example, or when you wish someone good luck or Happy
Birthday, you are expressing the hope that they will have good luck in the future,
often in connection with a particular event, or that they will enjoy their birthday
which is to come. Thus we have expressions like:
As you suggest, wish is also used when you wish that something were the case or
you would like it to be the case even though you know that it is impossible or
unlikely. In this sense, the verb which follows wish has a past tense inflection. Thus
we have:
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• 'It rained every day. I do wish I hadn't gone there for my holidays.'
• 'I wish you didn't have to work so hard.'
Wish, as in 'wish to', is also sometimes used as a slightly more formal alternative to
'want to'. So we have:
• 'They were very much in love and wished to get married as soon as it could
be arranged.'
• 'I don't wish to see him ever again,' she said, five months after they were
married.'
• 'He could do most of his work from home, if he wished.'
• 'I don't wish to interrupt (your conversation), but the potatoes are burning
dry.'
• 'I don't wish to be rude, but that red dress really doesn't suit you.'
Now let's take a brief look at hope. We speak of people's 'hopes for the future' and
hope normally signals future intentions. If you hope to do something, you want to
do it and intend to do it if you possibly can.
Like wish it can be used with to, plus infinitive. So we might have:
Hopes and wishes! It is my hope and wish that all of you out there reading this
column will enjoy good health and every happiness in the New Millennium. Or, to put
it in two other ways: I wish you good health and every happiness in the 21st
Century. I hope you'll enjoy good health and every happiness in the 21st Century.
'house' or 'home'
Home is the place where you live and feel that you belong to.
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• 'Most people in Britain live in semi-detached houses.'
• 'We’re going to buy Emma a doll’s house for Christmas.'
• 'The Houses of Parliament in London are visited by 50,000 people each
year.'
• 'I’ve enjoyed living abroad for the last six years, but it’s time for me to go
back home now!'
• 'We were at home in bed when our car was stolen from outside the house.'
• 'These children need a good home and we are in a position to give them one.'
Note also the differences in meaning and use between 'houseproud', 'housework' and
'homework', 'homesick' and 'homeless'.
• 'I did my housework (i.e. cleaning the house) this morning and my
homework (work given to me by my school to do at home) this afternoon.'
• 'People say that I’m houseproud because I spend so much time cleaning the
house so that others will admire it.'
• 'She said that she was missing her home and family so much. She sounded
really homesick.'
• 'I am homeless. I have no home to go to.
Could you kindly explain what is the difference between interfere and intervene?
Thank you.
'Interfere' has very strong negative connotations. There's a wonderful short story by
Julian Barnes called 'Interference', in his collection Cross Channel, and the title refers
to two types of interference which happen in the story.
One type of interference that the title refers to is interference with radio signals - you
know, when you're listening to a radio programme and there are other signals and
reception is not very good.
The other type of interference is the type where people interfere in other people's
business, telling them what to do, how to behave, what to eat and so on. If I say to
someone, Stop interfering I mean that what I am doing is none of their business.
And there's some of that happening in the story too.
'Intervene' has got more positive connotations; it has the connotation of wanting to
improve a situation, change things for the better. You intervene between two people
in order to prevent a quarrel, for example.
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job applications
I would like to know the difference between an application letter and a cover
letter. I would like to have examples of application and cover letters. This is because
I am always confused as to why both must be sent when one is looking for
employment.
letter of application
If you are responding to a job advertisement you may be asked to write a letter of
application. This is the letter which lists all your work experience and qualifications
and should also explain why you want the job. Begin your letter by telling the reader
where you saw the advertisement:
• I am writing to apply for the post of Fashion Shop Manager advertised in the
'News Shopper' of 14 February 2002.
• I have worked in the retail industry for a total of ten years, first as a sales
assistant in a department store and for the last three years as a Section Head
and Deputy Manager at Jones the Bootmaker.
You might then go on to say why you are particularly interested in this job and
mention the particular abilities and skills that you have.
• I believe I have all the skills, knowledge and expertise that you are looking
for. I have lots of retail initiative, can schedule and prioritise tasks and can
work to strict deadlines. I also work particularly well with people and would
enjoy leading the team and working with clients and customers.
You might then close the letter with the following formula.
• I look forward to hearing from you and hope that you will be able to invite me
for an interview.
covering letter
Many employers will ask you to write to them or phone them for an application form
and further details when they advertise jobs. Sometimes you will be asked to send
your CV or resume.
Your CV or curriculum vitae lists your educational and career history and is a
useful summary for an employer of all your educational and employment
achievements up to the present time. You must always ensure that it is up to date.
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A covering letter may then be very useful because you can enclose it with your CV
or a completed application form. In your covering letter you can draw attention
to particular information which you wish to highlight. Such a covering letter might
look like this:
Dear Mr Sorefoot
Please find enclosed my completed application form for the above position.
As you will see from my form, I have ten years experience with Bates Retail as a
Fashion Shop Manager.
I look forward to hearing from you and hope that you will be able to invite me for an
interview. I can be contacted at any time by phone, fax or email at work or at home.
I would very much welcome an opportunity to discuss my application in greater
detail and convince you that I am the right person for the job.
Yours sincerely
Frances Slimwaist
If you have filled in an application form you do not need to send a CV because all the
relevant information should be on your form.
cover
Note that cover as verb, noun and adjective is used in a variety of different ways:
If you cover something, you place something else over it to protect it or hide it or
close it:
• Always cover what you are cooking with a tight-fitting lid and cook it slowly.
• His desk is always covered with papers. I don't know how he can work in
such a mess.
• She covered all her bedroom walls with posters of Eminem.
• There are always lots of cafes and restaurants within the covered shopping
malls in British towns and cities.
cover = protection
Cover can also be used to talk about protection from enemy attack or for talking
about insurance.
• The air force was unable to provide any sort of air cover for their ground
troops.
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• There was no cover of any kind, no trees, no valleys, just the endless barren
plain.
• Are you covered to drive this car? Do you have proper insurance cover?
• Does your travel insurance cover you against theft or loss of valuables?
Cover can be used to talk about studying a subject or in a journalistic context to talk
about reporting.
• We haven't covered molecular biology yet. We're going to do that next term.
• He's going to cover the World Cup later this year for BBC World Service.
• Can you cover for me this afternoon while I visit my father in hospital?
• There were not enough teachers to cover for absent colleagues and some
students had to be sent home.
I'm confused about the difference between presenter, broadcaster, and announcer;
and the difference between reporter and journalist. Your answer must be very helpful
for me. Thanks.
Hi Suharno,
All these words are used to describe people who work in the media. The first three:
presenter, broadcaster and announcer are all related to TV and radio: media which is
delivered partly – or wholly – through sound and speech (this type of media is
increasingly available on internet too).
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things they say.
The word broadcaster can refer to an organisation such as the BBC (UK) or NBC
(USA) which produces television and radio programmes. It can also be used to
describe someone who is well-experienced in the TV and radio industry. He or she
usually has multiple talents – scriptwriting, directing, presenting etc. and his or her
programmes may be considered to be very important and well-respected. Famous
British broadcasters include Sir David Attenborough, Sir Robert Winston and Sir
David Frost, and Larry King in the USA.
Turning to the second part of your question, Suharno: you wanted to find out about
the difference between a reporter and a journalist. In fact, these jobs are very
similar, and in some respects the terms are interchangeable. A journalist's work is
most often seen in print – especially newspapers – but they can work for TV and
radio too. A journalist gathers, writes and reports news stories, and may also edit
and present news articles.
Finally, Suharno, I'd like to mention one more media profession. A columnist is a
writer (usually a journalist) who writes regularly (often weekly) for a newspaper or
magazine. She or he chooses a topic that is in the news and writes not only about
the events that have become newsworthy but also often offers some analysis and/or
personal opinion. This job is usually reserved for senior journalists at a particular
newspaper or magazine. Well Suharno, I do hope this has been a useful answer to
your question!
Explanation of a joke
'Taking his seat in his chambers, the judge faced the opposing lawyers. "So," he
said, "I have been presented, by both of you, with a bribe."
Both lawyers squirmed uncomfortably. "You, attorney Leon, gave me $15,000. And
you, attorney Campos, gave me $10,000." The judge reached into his pocket and
pulled out a check. He handed it to Leon.
"Now then, I'm returning $5,000, and we're going to decide this case solely on its
merits."'
To decide a case 'solely on it merits' means that only the intrinsic rights and wrongs
of the arguments will be considered. In a court of law one would expect all cases to
be decided solely on their merits.
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It is funny because that is no longer possible in this case as the judge has already
pocketed bribes of $10,000 from both the defense and prosecution counsels. He
argues that his judgement will be unbiased now that the amount of bribe from
defense and prosecution is equal, but would you expect to get a fair trial in a court of
law from a judge who was open to bribery?
I have always had problems using the words kind and type. Is there any difference
and can you give me some examples of usage?
Kinds, sorts, types and even varieties can all be used interchangeably, (although
varieties may be used more in more scientific sorts of contexts, e.g. varieties of
tomato) The first three are very common and can be used in singular and plural
forms. Compare the following and note that all the examples today are taken from a
global music theme:
What kind(s) / type(s) / sort(s) / varieties of music do you like most? ~ I like all
kinds / sorts / types: hip-hop, R&B, pop, rock, rap and classical.
If you want to know what type of instrument a morinhoor is, how to find music
from Yakutia or how to buy an organo pinareno from Cuba, Global Music websites
can help you
These nouns collocate readily with different, various and many as well as with all:
There are various kinds / types / sorts / varieties of jazz, originating with
ragtime, blues and swing of the 20s and 30s and then the later varieties of hard bop,
soft bop, funky, third stream and free styles of the 50s and 60s.
Well, it’s a sort of jig or reel, danced to very fast time. I don’t know exactly what it
is because there are several types of jigs – single jigs, double jigs, slip jigs and hop
jigs.
Note that when the indefinite article is retained, it sometimes has a derogatory
meaning:
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What kind of a DVD player is that? You don’t seriously expect me to listen to
electronic music with no surround sound, do you?
sort of / kind of
Sort of and kind of, but not type of, are used in another important way in informal
spoken English when we want to demonstrate to the listener that we are not
speaking very precisely but simply indicating a general idea. They are used to modify
many different parts of speech including adjectives, verbs and clauses, see below:
Why don’t you like this kind of music? ~ Well, it’s sort of loud and tuneless.
They may also be used as fillers, i.e. to fill a gap in the conversation and to give the
speaker more time to think:
Well, I… I kinda howl like a wolf, and then ...kinda...kinda...squeal like a pig, but
it seems to work, sort of.
Would you please tell me all the uses of the word lack (in different forms) and make
a sentence for each of its uses? Is the sentence 'Many children are in lack of sleep'
correct? If it is wrong, what should it be?
I'm not too happy with 'in lack of', Wong, which doesn't sound quite right to me.
Lack of is fine where lack is used as a noun, so you can say, for example:
Large / Big
What is the difference in use and meaning between the words 'large' and 'big'?
Well, this is a big question Iryna, so I'll do my best to answer it clearly and briefly!
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Their superlative forms are 'largest' and 'biggest'.
'Big' is a very common word in both written and spoken English; in fact, it's in the
top 1,000 most frequently used words.
'Large', on the other hand, is a less frequently used word and doesn't even make it
into the top 3,000 most frequently used words in English.
In these examples, both 'big' and 'large' mean that Iryna's house is of more than
average size. Although 'big' and 'large' both mean the same in these examples,
'large' sounds a little more formal.
So next, I'll try and give you some examples of when this is the case...
Also in informal situations, we can use 'big' to mean 'doing something to a large
degree', for example:
'She earns a lot of money, but she's also a big spender' - OR...
'I'm a big fan of yours'.
'Big' is used in a lot of fixed phrases, and because these phrases are fixed, to
change 'big 'to 'large' would sound wrong. Examples of fixed phrases using 'big'
include:
'It's no big deal' - it's not really important.
'I have big ideas for this house' - impressive plans for the future.
'She's a big mouth' - a person who can't be trusted to keep a secret.
'He's too big for his boots' - too proud of himself.
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Finally, quantity words....
'large', more often than 'big', is used with the following quantity words:
'a large amount', 'on a large scale', 'a large number of', 'a large quantity of', 'a large
proportion', 'to a large extent', 'a large percentage of', 'a large part of', 'a large
volume' and 'a large area'.
So......a very big - or large - question, Iryna! I hope this has helped a little!
I'm not sure about the difference in use between take and last. Which is better in
these examples:
Take or last?
Both take and last are used to talk about the amount of time needed for something.
We tend to use take when we are more in control of the experience and last when
we have little or no control over it. Take suggests more active involvement and
last implies a more passive experience. Thus we are more likely to say:
Compare also the following examples of greater and lesser control of the action using
take and last:
• Dinner lasts for / takes at least ninety minutes when Henry's at home -
there's so much to talk about.
• The five-set match lasted for more than three-and-a-half hours before the
champion went through to the next round 6-3, 3-6, 6-1, 6-7, 6-2. "I didn't
expect it to take so long, but it took me twenty minutes to settle down in
the opening set," he said afterwards.
• It will take you all day to tidy your room - it's in such a mess.
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• It only takes me five minutes to put my make-up on now. It used to take
me ninety minutes before I got married.
Like get, take is a very common multi-purpose verb and is used in many different
ways. Here are a few of the commonest:
• I offered him four tickets for Romeo and Juliet, but he only took two.
• I'll take a copy of the agreement, if you don't mind. Then I won't forget
anything.
• I'm going to take ten minutes now to explain to you how this works.
They are opposites in the sense that when we use bring we are describing
movements to where the speaker or listener is located, and when we use take we
are describing movements away from the speaker/listener. Compare the following:
• My secretary always brings me my mail first of all and then she takes the
children to school.
• I took my calculator to school every day until the maths teacher said: "You
needn't bring them any more. We have enough now for everybody."
take (= have)
• I'm going to take a shower now. ~ Why don't you take a bath? It'll be
more relaxing.
• Let's take a break now. You've been driving for two hours and you need to
take a rest.
• I'm going to take a holiday as soon as my boss gets back from leave.
• We took a long walk along the seashore every evening before dinner.
• Take a good look at this and make sure it's in perfect working order before
you decide to buy it.
In all of these expressions with take + noun to describe common actions, we can
use either have or take. Have is more characteristic of British English whereas
Americans would be more inclined to use take.
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lazy and idle
That’s idle – i.d.l.e. Both words can actually be used to describe someone who
doesn’t work very hard, for example “John is really lazy.” or “John is really idle.”
Both mean that John’s doesn’t really work as much as he should do.
However, there are some very subtle differences between the two words which
means we can’t use them completely interchangeably. For example, “lazy” will
always have a negative connotation; it will give us a very negative idea of the person
it’s being used to describe. So lazy is always seen as a very bad thing.
However, idle can be used in other contexts, still to mean something or someone
doesn’t work, but without the negative judgement. So for example, if you press print
on your computer, you may see a sign which says “Printer idle.” This means that the
printer, at the moment, isn’t doing anything. Similarly, sometimes factories must
close, because there isn’t enough work, an so at that point, the factory is idle. Also,
the work force, the people are idle.
So when we use idle in this way we are not giving a negative comment on the people
or the thing, we are just saying they’re not working.
It’s very very important to think about the adjectives you use in particular because
very many of them can carry different connotations. For example: cheap and
inexpensive. Both mean that something doesn’t cost a lot of money. However, in
British English, we often use the adjective cheap to describe something that’s not of
very good quality. So it can sometimes have a negative connotation.
Similarly, you may find two adjectives that mean similar things, but one adjective
can be used with a wider range of nouns. So for example wealthy and rich. We can
talk about wealthy people or rich people. Both mean people with lots of money.
However, we can also talk about rich food, rich furnishings, meaning very good
quality. So here, rich has a slightly different meaning. It’s important to remember
that it’s difficult to find words that are exact synonyms, which can be used
interchangeably, in all contexts.
So when you learn some new synonyms, it’s important to learn not just what they
share, but also what the difference is between them.
Remember, when we say someone is lazy, we mean they don’t work very hard, but
we can’t say the printer is lazy, we can only say the printer is idle.
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Learning and using synonyms
People use synonyms to avoid repeating the same word. For example:
What is the difference in meaning between expensive and pricey? When should I use
synonyms?
expensive / pricey
Synonyms are words with the same or sometimes slightly different meanings.
Alternatives are sometimes used in the same context with little or no difference as in
your example, Yeon-Ju, except that pricey is a bit more informal than expensive.
Virtually anything that costs a lot of money may be considered expensive or
pricey.
keen / eager
I am always keen / eager to introduce synonyms in this way in the examples of use
that I quote on the learnit pages. In this example, keen and eager are very close in
meaning and may be used interchangeably.
Finding alternatives with the same or similar meaning is undoubtedly a good way of
expanding your vocabulary and use of English, Yeon-Ju, but we have to be careful.
disgusting / appalling
These synonyms are quite close in meaning, but not as close as in the previous
pairs. Compare the following:
The food they served at John and Paula's wedding reception was disgusting.
The food they served at John and Paula's wedding reception was appalling.
Both adjectives are possible in both contexts, but disgusting is perhaps more
appropriate to the first context as it suggests that the food was highly unpleasant to
the taste. Appalling is perhaps more appropriate to the second context as it
suggests that the service was generally unpleasant, shocking, offensive and
unacceptable.
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It was a beautiful summer's day.
With his jet-black hair and high cheekbones he appeared unusually good-looking.
Collocation
What we learn from this is that words sometimes occur together, or collocate with
each other, in fairly fixed ways.
verb + adverb
If you think hard / carefully about it, you'll realise that I'm right.
(Not: If you think strongly / powerfully / precisely….)
If you truly / really love me, you'll turn down that job in Norway.
(Not: If you purely / justly / rightly / precisely love me….)
adjective + noun
verb + noun
If you eat chocolate before a meal, it will spoil / ruin your appetite.
(Not: …it will damage / harm / suppress your appetite.)
The government has recently conducted / carried out a survey on the causes of
obesity in children.
(Not: The government has fulfilled / administered / run a survey…)
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I can't change my eating habits so I shall continue to eat junk food.
(Not: I can't alter / amend / modify my eating habits…)
When you are learning new words it is always a good idea to learn them in the
contexts in which they are used and the typical collocations that go with them.
'lend' or 'borrow'
How can I use the word owe when I lend someone some money. Do I say: 'I owe
you 20 dollars' or do I say: 'You owe me 20 dollars?' The importance of my question
is how do I use this word in both ways such as when I borrow some money from
someone and also when I lend someone some money?
If you borrow something from somebody, you take it with their permission and
promise to return it in due course, at the end of a limited period usually. If you
borrow £5,000 from the bank, you will owe them £5,000, plus interest on the
period of time you have borrowed if for.
• 'I borrowed five pounds from my brother and forgot to pay it back.'
• 'I always buy the books I want to read, although I agree it would be cheaper
to borrow them from the library.'
• 'Many of his ideas are borrowed from other sources.'
If you lend somebody something, or lend something to somebody, then you give
them something of yours for a limited period of time. If you lend someone some
money, they will owe you the money.
• 'She lent her sister her car for the weekend.' (NB: verb + indirect object +
direct object)
• 'If you lend your coat to Philip, you’ll never see it again.' (NB: verb + direct
object + indirect object)
• 'If you can lend me a hand with these reports, we might finish them by
suppertime.'
In the sentence, ‘work hard lest you should fail in your examination’ can
'lest' be used without the support of the word 'should'?
Yes, it can. First, what does lest mean and when do we use it? Lest is a very rare
word and quite old fashioned.
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Most people in Britain know it, because we see it written very often in the same
place - on war memorials, on statues, which have been put up so that we remember
people who died in wars; and what's very often written on these statues is ‘lest we
forget’! Now, what lest means is ‘so that we don't’ or ‘so that you don't’. It's a
warning. It's introducing a danger to be avoided.
And Shazad’s example: ‘work hard lest you should fail your examination’ lest
introduces the danger of things to be avoided: if you don't work hard, you will fail
your examination.
We often use it after a command, ‘work hard lest you fail your exam’ and ‘dress up
warmly (wear warm clothes) lest you catch cold’.
We can use it without a command, we might talk about something we did in the
past, so we might say ‘I worked really hard, lest I failed my exam’.
Written
What we do need to remember though is that it is a very, very formal and old-
fashioned word and if you use it when you're talking, you're going to sound rather
strange. It's a word which we see written - it's not a word that is used in
conversation. Remember it, because you will see it written; but only use it if you
really want to impress somebody in a very, very formal situation.
Yes. And it normally is used without should. In Shazad's example, 'lest you should
fail your examination', that use of should of course has a completely different
meaning from the usual meaning of should. We usually think of should in terms of an
obligation: something you have to do. And here, it doesn't mean that - here, the
meaning introduces a conditional that suggests that this is a possibility, but not a
strong possibility. It is not necessary. We usually do leave it out.
The interesting thing is, that when we do leave it out, the word that is left there is an
infinitive - which means, that if we're using ‘he’, we don't say ‘he must work hard,
lest he fails the examination’; we say ‘he must work hard, lest he fail the
examination’. And that's a curious and interesting little bit of English.
let or leave
I am 22 years old and have been learning English for 6 months. I would like to know
the difference between let and leave.
We use both let and leave in different ways and for different purposes. They cannot
be used interchangeably.
let + infinitive
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A very common usage of let is in the phrase let us or let's when we are making a
suggestion involving others.
We say this instead of Why don't we…? or I suggest we… which is quite formal.
It is often used with shall we? as a question tag.
• Let's just have a cold salad for supper this evening, shall we?
• And let's go for a run before we eat!
OK. Let's do that!
• Let's forget I ever said that, shall we? I didn't mean to offend you.
When it is used with the negative there are two alternative versions to choose from:
don't let's or let's not. Both are very common.
• Let's not get too involved in their argument. It's better if they sort it out
themselves.
• Don't let's go to Sheila's party tonight. Let's just have a quiet evening at
home
Let is also commonly used to make a suggestion to oneself in the phrase let me or
to a third person in the phrase let him/her/them. Note also the usage with the
infinitive of there is/there are.
Let = allow/permit
We can see from these last examples, particularly the Joey and Phoebe example,
that let also means allow or permit. These are more formal alternatives and
require to before the infinitive.
• I wouldn't let them stay up after nine to watch the adult film on TV.
• I can't let you go to France without me.
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Note that with the passive voice, we have to use permit or allow:
Finally, let is frequently used with know, where it means tell, and have, where it
means send or give.
• Please let us know as soon as possible whether you are able to accept our
offer.
• If you had let me know earlier, I would have saved it for you.
• Can you let me have those reports by midday on Friday, please?
• Let me have half an hour to think about it and then I'll let you know.
leave = go (depart/quit/abandon)
As we saw with let, leave has a number of different meanings and uses.
• The plane left early as everybody was on board half an hour before take-off.
(= departed)
• Nobody leaves school at the age of sixteen now, like they used to. (= stops
attending)
• Don't tell Maureen I'm leaving her. (= abandoning)
left = remaining
Here it is almost opposite in meaning and is used as a past participle normally at the
end of the clause, often with there is/are or have got:
• I haven't got any cash left. Can you get the sandwiches?
• There were only two days' rations left, but they had to last for six days.
• Nothing was left of the castle. It had been completely destroyed.
It is here that the meaning of leave comes closest to let, close but not identical.
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• I can't get the stove to work.
Leave it with me / to me. I'll deal with it.
This final example combines a number of different usages of let and leave:
There are even more shades of meaning of leave than we have covered. Check
them out in a good dictionary.
*******************************************************************
What's the easy way to remember the difference between lie and lay ?
Perhaps the easiest way to remember the difference, Antonio, is that lay is a
transitive verb which needs an object to complete its meaning and lie is an
intransitive verb which functions without an object and is followed normally by a
phrase of place.
First, see how the words look in the present and the past tense.
Present Past
lie he lies..., he is lying... he lay..., he was lying..., he has lain...
lay she lays, she is laying he laid, he was laying, he has laid
lay ( + object) She laid the baby on the bed in order to change its nappy.
lie ( + phrase of She was lying asleep on the sofa when her husband arrived
place) home.
lay ( + object) Can you lay the table for me please? Lunch is ready.
lie ( + phrase of I told her not to lie out in the sun, but she must have lain there
place) for at least an hour for her back was very sunburnt.
I had never laid carpets before, but I was determined to have a
lay ( + object)
go.
lie ( + phrase of When I looked out of the aircraft window, I could see that London
place) lay beneath us.
lay ( + object) His lawyer will lay great emphasis on his state of mind when the
murder was committed and claim that it was manslaughter, not
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murder.
lie ( + phrase of None of us knows what lies ahead, but you must try to take a
place) grip on your life and decide where your future lies.
When we watch something, we intend to look at it but we're also looking at it quite
intensely, usually because it's moving. So, for example, "I watched the bus go
through the traffic lights." "I watched the movie." We want to see it, we're looking at
it intensely and it's normally moving.
When we use verbs of the senses, and this group, 'look', 'see' and 'watch' are verbs
of visual sense, there's usually a difference between intention and non-intention, so,
for example, "I heard the radio." - I didn't intend to, it just happened, or, "I listened
to the radio" - I switched it on to find my favourite programme. Similarly, "I felt the
wind on my face." - I didn't intend to feel this, it just happened, or "I touched the
fabric." - I intended to feel the fabric.
It's important when you find these verbs of the senses to gather them together and
try to find the differences between them. Remember that when you look at words
which seem to be similar it's important to find out exactly the differences between
them because basically you can't really use them interchangeably.
Remember, 'see' – you didn't really intend to, it just happened; 'look' – you intended
to do it; and watch you intended to do it and you were looking intensely, usually
because it was moving.
I have been studying English since I came to Canada, about four years now, but
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because there are so many exceptions to rules, it's hard for me to apply what I've
learnt. For instance, I don't understand why it's correct to say I look forward to
hearing from you and not I look forward to hear from you.
In the example In no way will I agree to sharing an office with Ben, I just
wonder why you can use both infinitive and V-ing form for the verb share.
Look forward to is one of the many phrasal verbs in English in which an adverbial
particle (forward) as well as a preposition (to) is combined with the stem verb to
signify a particular meaning. What we are looking forward to can be exemplified as
either as a noun phrase or as a verb-phrase with an -ing pattern
• Jill says she's not looking forward to Jack's party next weekend.
• I very much look forward to meeting you soon.
• They're looking forward to joining their children in Australia
There are a number of instances where such verbs end with the preposition to, e.g.:
face up to = confront
get round to = do something after some delay
get down to = concentrate on
Note that in such instances to is not part of any infinitive phrase. It is an integral
part of the verb. And whatever it is that we face up to or get round to is normally
expressed as either a noun phrase or as a verb phrase with an -ing pattern:
Note that when verbs follow prepositions (any prepositions) the V-ing form is
normally used, not the to-infinitive pattern:
agree - agree to
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There is a complication in your example, Jolie, where both the -ing form and the to-
inifnitive pattern appear possible:
The complication arises because there are two different forms of pretty much the
same verb, agree and agree to. If we are using the phrasal verb, agree to, the
-ing pattern is more likely. If we are using the non-phrasal verb, agree, the to-
infinitive pattern is imperative. Compare the following:
object to
Note that the opposite of agree to is object to and here only the -ing pattern is
possible:
Gareth Rees:
Well Pia, thank you for asking a question about my favourite topic, food and meals
during the day. The expressions you've chosen - lunch, supper and dinner, belong to
a larger set which includes words such as breakfast, tea and brunch. I'll be talking
about those later.
The expressions do relate to the time of day that you eat the meal and the type of
food and the size of the meal. That's why it can get confusing.
First of all, breakfast. This is simplest; it's the first meal of the day in the morning.
In the middle of the day, you might have lunch or dinner. Lunch sounds more
informal or more typical, particularly for people who are working.
In the evening, you might have dinner or supper. I think that people who have a
quick lunch in the middle of the day will say they have dinner in the evening and this
dinner will be a good meal.
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A supper is usually a light meal and is probably had after a larger dinner has been
had in the middle of the day.
Confused? Well most people see a dinner as a more complete meal. A common lunch
in England is a sandwich, but dinner might include soup, meat with vegetables, and
then a dessert like apple pie and ice cream. So, dinner is really the main meal and
people might have it in the middle of the day or in the evening. Lunch and supper
are both light kinds of meal. Lunch is in the middle of the day, supper is in the
evening.
Now I mentioned there are some other meals. We talked about breakfast. Two more
words that you could add to your list are brunch and tea. Brunch is a mixture of
breakfast and lunch, as you can tell by the sound of the word: 'brunch'. And people
usually have brunch as a replacement for both lunch and breakfast. Brunch is usually
had at about 11 o'clock.
And the final word is tea. Now of course this is a drink, like tea and coffee, but it can
also be a light evening meal. I think this word is often used in families, particularly
with their children. "It's tea time", "It's time for tea!" This means their small evening
meal.
To finish, it is of course unusual to have breakfast, brunch, lunch, dinner, tea and
supper all in one day. But let me tell you, not impossible. And from that comment
you'll understand that I have the ideal physique and dietary habits for radio and the
internet and not for TV.
I would like to know the differences between the verbs to do and to make. Do you
'make an exam' or do you 'do an exam'?
do
You do an exam. But there are no easy rules to follow. We always use do to describe
indefinite activities, often with what, thing, anything, nothing, etc and generally
speaking we also use do to talk about duties, jobs or (leisure) activities. Look at the
following examples:
• 'What shall we do now?' 'You can do what you like. I'm going home!'
• 'He didn't do anything. He just sat there.'
• 'You expect me to do everything around the house. Well, I'm fed up!'
• 'I did all my homework last night so tonight I'm going to do the housework.'
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• 'I did a lot of research and I think I did a good job on that essay. I did my
best anyway.'
• 'I intend to do lots of walking on holiday this year, and perhaps some bird-
watching too.
make
• 'I made three suggestions and left it to him to make the final decision.'
• 'I've made all the arrangements for the trip and I've made a great effort to
get it all right.'
• 'I'm afraid I'm going to have to make my excuses and leave.'
• 'I have to make three phone calls.'
make or do?
Test your knowledge of make and do now by clicking on what you think is the
correct box in the examples that follow.
It is not always as easy as the above examples suggest. It is often simply a matter
of usage, of learning and knowing which of these two verbs collocate with which
nouns. Best of luck! The first two examples are done for you.
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5 make do a lot of damage (to something) check answer
6 make do an announcement or a speech check answer
7 make do an application (e.g. for a driving test) check answer
8 make do a sound or a noise check answer
9 make do one's hair or one's teeth check answer
10 make do a lot of harm rather than good check answer
11 make do business (with somebody) check answer
12 make do (somebody) a favour check answer
13 make do love, not war check answer
14 make do a mess, a profit or a fortune check answer
15 make do fun of someone or a fool of someone check answer
16 make do amends for one's behaviour check answer
Answers
do the cleaning and the cooking
make a lasting impression (on someone)
do the shopping and the washing-up
do some serious work
do a lot of damage (to something)
make an announcement
make an application (e.g. for a driving test)
make a sound or a noise
do one's hair or one's teeth
do a lot of harm rather than good
do business (with somebody)
do (somebody) a favour
make love, not war
make a mess, a profit or a fortune
make fun of someone or a fool of someone
make amends for one's behaviour
I'm confused about the difference between presenter, broadcaster, and announcer;
and the difference between reporter and journalist. Your answer must be very helpful
for me. Thanks.
Hi Suharno,
All these words are used to describe people who work in the media. The first three:
presenter, broadcaster and announcer are all related to TV and radio: media which is
delivered partly – or wholly – through sound and speech (this type of media is
increasingly available on internet too).
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A presenter is a person who introduces or hosts television or radio programmes. A
presenter's opening words on a programme are usually something like Good
evening, and welcome to[name of show] with me [name of presenter]. On tonight's
show we will be... [presenter talks about the content of the programme]. The topic
of the programme is not all about the presenter. The presenter is the person who
introduces the programme, introduces or links sections of the programme together
and says goodbye at the end. Some well-known presenters include Johnny Carson
(an American TV chat show host), Trevor MacDonald (a British TV news presenter),
and Karim Kouchouk (the presenter of BBCe for BBC Learning English Arabic
Service).
The word broadcaster can refer to an organisation such as the BBC (UK) or NBC
(USA) which produces television and radio programmes. It can also be used to
describe someone who is well-experienced in the TV and radio industry. He or she
usually has multiple talents – scriptwriting, directing, presenting etc. and his or her
programmes may be considered to be very important and well-respected. Famous
British broadcasters include Sir David Attenborough, Sir Robert Winston and Sir
David Frost, and Larry King in the USA.
Turning to the second part of your question, Suharno: you wanted to find out about
the difference between a reporter and a journalist. In fact, these jobs are very
similar, and in some respects the terms are interchangeable. A journalist's work is
most often seen in print – especially newspapers – but they can work for TV and
radio too. A journalist gathers, writes and reports news stories, and may also edit
and present news articles.
Finally, Suharno, I'd like to mention one more media profession. A columnist is a
writer (usually a journalist) who writes regularly (often weekly) for a newspaper or
magazine. She or he chooses a topic that is in the news and writes not only about
the events that have become newsworthy but also often offers some analysis and/or
personal opinion. This job is usually reserved for senior journalists at a particular
newspaper or magazine. Well Suharno, I do hope this has been a useful answer to
your question!
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Keith Gama de Carvalho from Brazil writes:
Could you please tell me if there are any differences between the verbs melt and
thaw? I'm thinking about the second scene of the first act of Hamlet by William
Shakespeare:
melt
When something melts, it changes from a solid to a liquid state, usually because it is
heated:
• Melt 50 grams of butter in a saucepan and then add the onions and
mushrooms.
• The snow on our grass melted quickly in the warm sunshine.
We also have the phrasal verbs melt away and melt (away) into meaning to
disappear:
• At first they were enemies, but over time their differences melted away.
• The shoplifters just melted (away) into the Oxford Street crowds of
Christmas shoppers.
thaw
When something thaws it warms up slowly and changes gradually from a frozen
state to a temperature above freezing point:
• The snow was thawing and the streets had become slushy.
We also have the phrasal verb thaw out, which we use when referring to frozen
food or if we have just come inside from very cold weather:
• If I were you, I would take it out of the freezer and leave it to thaw out
overnight.
• Let me just stand by the radiator and thaw out a bit before I start to cook
dinner.
Hamlet, in the speech you refer to, Keith, is mourning the death of his father two
months earlier and is distraught about his mother's hasty re-marriage to his father's
brother. For this
reason he wishes that his flesh might melt into the dew.
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We still use melt figuratively today when we speak of our feelings or emotions
melting, e.g.:
Study the examples below to see how these verbs may be used:
• If it's cold enough in January, the lake will freeze (over) and we can go
skating.
• His assets were frozen because he was five hundred thousand pounds in
debt.
• This glue dries very fast and hardens in less than an hour.
• His attitude to the company hardened when he realized that his shares were
worthless.
• Pour the beef dripping into a bowl and when it has solidified you can spread
it on toast.
• All the various factions solidified and promised allegiance to their leader.
• She was afraid. Her whole body stiffened when she heard him come through
the door.
• They were clearly going to lose, but their resistance stiffened and they
fought harder than before.
It is always hard for me to use the verb miss correctly. I always get confused, for
instance, when I try to translate: Tu me manques. Please advise me. Thanking you
in advance.
There are a number of shades of meaning when miss means 'fail to make contact
with'. Compare the following:
• If you're not careful you'll miss the flight and there isn't another one till
next week.
• Is Jenny still here? ~ You've just missed her. She left five minutes ago.
• He scored four goals, but then he missed a penalty.
• The bullet just missed my head. It whizzed past my ear and embedded itself
in the wall.
• No, you've missed the point. Bobby GAVE her the money. He didn't want it
back.
• The railway station is right at the end of this road. You can't miss it!
• If you leave the queue now, you'll miss your chance of seeing this film.
• It was my granny's funeral last Thursday so I had to miss all my lessons
last week.
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miss = be sorry to be without
In this sense, we can miss both people and things. This is the meaning of miss that
you allude to in your sentence Tu me manques, Bernadette. Note in English we
would not translate it as You are missed by me. Instead, we would say simply: I
miss you! Compare the following:
When missing and missed are used as adjectives, they behave like present and
past participles, e.g missing pages are pages that are missing, a missed
opportunity is an opportunity that has been missed. Note also that missing is
often placed after the noun it qualifies, rather than in front of it. Compare the
following:
• The weather cleared. We should have climbed the mountain. It was a missed
opportunity.
• They were unable to complete the jigsaw as several pieces were missing.
• Did you know there are five pages missing from this book? It goes from 32
to 43.
• My name was missing from the list of participants but it was clear that I
had enrolled.
• Ten people are known to have died in the blast and a further fifteen are still
missing.
• Did you know you've got a button missing from your blue shirt?
• She has been missing for over six months and has now been placed on the
missing persons register.
Note that in this last example we talk about a missing person or a missing
persons register, rather than missing people or a missing peoples register, to
emphasize the individuality of people who have left home and it is not known
whether they are alive or dead.
miss in idioms
• He didn't have all the advantages of a proper education and really missed
out.
• Growing asparagus is very difficult and can be a very hit-and-miss affair.
• There have been several near misses between planes landing at this airport
recently.
• He's failed his exams again and I think he has missed the boat as far as
higher education is concerned.
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• I think I've missed a trick here in failing to consult my accountant about tax
returns.
• I think I'll give the book signing ceremony a miss. What about you? ~ No,
I'm going.
• They came fourth in the league and missed promotion by only one point, but
as the old saying goes: a miss is as good as a mile.
miss out on something = miss an opportunity that you would clearly benefit from
hit and miss / hit or miss = sometimes very successful, sometimes not
miss the boat = miss an opportunity which will probably not arise again
• He was looking for the perfect Miss Right and had some difficulty in finding
her!
meeting/gathering/assembly/rally
Can you please tell me what the difference is between these four nouns: assembly,
gathering, meeting and rally? How do we distinguish between them when we use
them?
Meeting (and meet) are the most generally and widely used from your list of four,
Jianxin. Assembly (and assemble), gathering (and gather) and rally are more
restricted in use.
meet (verb)
When two or more people meet, they come together or are brought together for
some reason or they just happen to be in the same place and start talking:
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• Where shall we meet this evening? ~ Let's meet under the clock at Waterloo
Station.
• Have you met my dad? ~ No, I haven't. ~ Well, come and meet him. Dad,
this is Martin. ~ Pleased to meet you, Martin.
• Representatives from the two countries will meet again in June to resume
their talks.
meeting (noun)
A meeting is any event where a smaller or larger group of people come together to
discuss something or to make a decision:
• Can I speak to Jane please? ~ No, I'm sorry she's in a meeting. ~ When will
the meeting be over?
• Can we hold a meeting with everybody to discuss this, please? You can't
make a decision without having a meeting first.
• Can you come to supper on Thursday? ~ I don't think so. I've got a meeting
in the afternoon which is sure to go on till six or seven in the evening.
gather (verb)
When people or things gather somewhere, they come together for a particular
purpose. They do not meet by chance:
• Can you see the birds gathering on that tree over there?
• We gathered around the camp fire and started singing folk songs.
When you gather things or pieces of information, you collect them with a particular
purpose in mind:
• I need to gather as much information as I can so that I can write this report.
I gather means I understand in the sense that somebody has told me or I have
read about this. As far as I can gather… is an expression meaning As far as I
can find out…:
• As far as I could gather, he was trying to raise money by selling cars which
had been stolen.
gathering (noun)
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A gathering is a group of people who are meeting together for a particular purpose:
• It was a friendly gathering. Everybody was in good humour and there was a
lot of laughter.
assemble (verb)
Assemble is very close to gather in meaning in the sense of coming together for a
particular purpose. It perhaps suggests a greater sense of organisation:
• They assembled / gathered in the school canteen after the exam to discuss
how well they had done.
When we assemble things, we fit the different parts together to make a whole:
• He couldn't assemble the jigsaw without seeking the help of his older sister.
• If the police can assemble / gather enough evidence, they will arrest him
for burglary.
assembly (noun)
Assemblies are usually larger gatherings of people who meet regularly for a
particular purpose:
• The National Assembly voted to hold the first entirely free elections for over
20 years.
You will also find assembly lines in factories where employees work on particular
part of a product (e.g. a car) at a particular stage of its manufacture.
rally (verb)
• He rallied his supporters in the hope that his party would win the election.
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When someone or something rallies, it begins to recover from a weak position:
• The stock markets rallied and shares returned to their early morning values.
If you rally at tennis, badminton or squash, you manage to keep the shots going
with your partner for as long as possible without losing. Rally can also be used in
this sense as a noun:
• It was one of the longest and most exciting rallies of the entire tournament.
rally (noun)
A rally is primarily a large public meeting that is held to show support for a cause or
a political party. Rallies, like meetings, are held:
• Over ten thousand people held a rally in the square to demonstrate their
support for international human rights.
Saeed asks: Why do we say mother tongue and not mother language and why
honeymoon and not honey month?
Marga asks: Do you say: a small amount of gold or a little amount of gold? What is
the difference?
Honeymoon
Honey month is an impossible combination and would not make any sense now,
even though the word honeymoon was originally used to describe the first month of
marriage. The reference to the moon (and therefore lunar month) is ironic:
everybody knows that as soon as the moon is full, it starts to wane and dies.
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Mother tongue - native language
Mother tongue is another fixed collocation. You are right, Saeed, we do not say
mother language. Instead, we would normally say native language, though
native tongue is also possible, see below:
Her mother tongue was Russian, but you would never have guessed it from her
perfect pronunciation of English.
You should acquire a perfect grasp of your native tongue before you start to learn a
foreign language.
The greater part of learning a foreign language, Saeed, is all about knowing which
words naturally occur together. The examples given so far are relatively
straightforward but it becomes more complicated when we look at the words which
small and little naturally occur with.
When little and small both mean not large, with some nouns they can be used
interchangeably with little or no difference in meaning:
However, little also suggests that you feel sympathy for something, whereas small
is more neutral and does not suggest this. Compare the following:
He's only a little boy. He doesn't know the difference between right and wrong. ~ He
may be a small child, but that doesn't excuse his behaviour!
Because little invokes sympathy, it is often used with other adjectives like nice,
sweet, tiny, pretty, poor. Small cannot be used in this way:
This job is a nice little earner. Maximum reward for minimum effort.
She's a sweet / pretty little thing. Always has a smile on her face.
Little is also more complicated than small because it can also mean not much.
Small can only mean not large. Compare the following:
Will you have beer or wine with your meal? ~ I'd like a little wine, please. A small
glass of red wine would be nice.
Would you like a large or a small coffee? ~ Oh, a small coffee please. I shan't sleep
tonight if I have a large one.
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Abstract nouns that often follow little (meaning not much) include hope, chance,
change, effect, use and point:
There's little chance / hope of finding any survivors after such a massive explosion. I
see little point in continuing the rescue mission.
There has been little change in his condition over the last seventy two hours. The
new drugs appear to have had little effect.
When we define small as not large we are thinking about small in size, amount or
number:
These shoes are too small. They really don't fit me at all.
I only had a small amount of gold but enough to purchase everything I needed.
Note that small also combines readily with very and few as well as with too. Few
cannot be combined with little and little is not normally used with very or too:
The phone box was very small, but we all managed to squeeze in.
I've heard the term 'Soho nail bomb attack'. What does the term nail bomb mean? I
know the word bomb. What does the addition of nail do to the meaning?
A nail bomb is a bomb which is filled with nails. When the bomb explodes the nails
fly out and cause serious injury.
On Friday 30 April 1999, a massive explosion devastated a gay pub in Soho in the
heart of London. The blast tore through the Admiral Duncan pub at 6.37 p.m. when
the area was crowded with people enjoying the evening sunshine at the start of a
holiday weekend. Three people were killed and more than one hundred were injured,
many of them very seriously.
It was the third in a series of three bombings in the capital in which ethnic minorities
and homosexuals had been targeted.
The Soho nail bomb caused particularly horrific injuries as a consequence of the
confined space in which it exploded and because of the shrapnel effect of the long
nails contained within it.
I have studied English in high school for three years but I can't tell the difference
between
normal,
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ordinary
and usual.
Hi Hoa,
Well, this is a good question! There are so many words in English that have similar
meanings, which I know can be confusing for learners. In the examples you give,
normal and ordinary do have very similar meanings, but usual has a slightly different
meaning. I think it’s useful here to talk about vocabulary collocation, which means
words that are often used together. And when you’re studying English vocabulary,
it’s worth spending some time just studying collocation. You can do this by looking at
a good quality monolingual (English-English) dictionary, which explains collocation.
You can also study collocation by reading texts (fiction or non-fiction) in English and
looking carefully at the combinations of adjectives and nouns, and verbs and their
objects. And it’s also possible to purchase specialist vocabulary books and collocation
dictionaries.
But to get back to the words you asked about Hoa, I think normal and ordinary have
[a] very similar meaning, which is probably: ‘how you expect something to be, not
unusual or special’. So if we had a normal or ordinary day at work, it would mean
that nothing particularly special happened. A normal or an ordinary meal in a
restaurant doesn’t sound very exciting, but I suppose it’s better than having an awful
one!
There is a slight nuance in meaning, however, when we talk about normal people
and ordinary people. If we mention normal people, it probably means ‘people who
think and behave in the same way as most other people’. But the phrase ordinary
people may carry a nuance in meaning about wealth and social status, meaning
‘people who are not particularly rich’. So we might say:
… it would be a slightly rude or negative comment. And the opposite of ordinary is, of
course, extraordinary, and if we described a watch as extraordinary it would mean
‘very special or unusual’.
Now let’s get back to the other word you mention, usual. This is slightly different
because it implies habit or regular behaviour. For example, my usual bus would be
the one I always take, at the same time, every day. My usual newspaper would be
the one I always buy. You can arrange to meet someone at the usual, meaning the
usual bar, café or place where you meet. In this case it would be impossible to use
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normal or ordinary. Finally, regular customers in pubs often ask for their usual,
meaning the drink they usually order!
Well thank you for your question and I hope this has helped!
In the sentences:
Zero means no and the noun that follows it should surely be in singular form. Please
answer my question.
zero = not any
With countable nouns, zero is always followed by plural nouns. With uncountable
nouns, the singular form is used. Compare the following:
than:
It was 9 a.m., yet there was no policeman on duty outside the embassy.
It was 9 a.m., yet there were no policemen on duty outside the embassy.
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Sometimes, it is more natural to combine singular and plural use:
He must lead a lonely life in that village: he has no wife and no children.
(A man normally has one wife, but often has more than one child!)
no = emphatic use
Note that we tend to use no, rather than not a or not any when we want to
emphasise a negative idea. In the lonely man example above, no is more effective
than not a / not any. Compare:
He must lead a lonely life: he doesn't have a wife and he doesn't have any children.
With subject nouns, when no is used emphatically, not a / not any are not
possible:
no collocations
There are a number of common nouns that normally combine with no, rather than
not a or not any. Most of them are uncountable and include no amount, no time,
no idea, no doubt, no reason, no need, no evidence, no problem, no way, no
point, no use. Study these examples of use:
I’m a little confused because I’ve found the word thrice in a book. A few teachers
told me there is no such word or that I cannot use it and that I should use three
times instead. Can I use this word and in what circumstances?
We’ll take this opportunity to look at a number of complications with the expression
of numbers and frequency in English.
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once, twice, thrice
The norm here is to say once (rather than one time) to say three times (rather
than thrice) in current usage. Thrice is definitely old-fashioned, although you may
still come across it in certain contexts:
Better to say:
When it comes to twice, this is more often used than two times, although two
times is also quite common in informal usage. Compare the following:
I’ve visited her twice already this autumn and she’s visited me once.
I’ve visited her two times already this autumn and she’s visited me once.
We go out with our colleagues for a drink once a week or once a fortnight and have a
staff party once a year.
Once, (not one time) can also mean at some time in the past:
I once ran a fish-and-chip shop in Brighton. ~ When was that? ~ Before I bought this
business.
Our house in the village was once the train station. ~ When was that? ~ When the
trains used to run here.
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House prices rose by nought point two per cent last month.
Visibility was almost zero at the City Airport last night because of the fog.
England won their recent match against Liechtenstein by two goals to nil.
My phone number is o two o, eight seven o seven, nine nine o three.
Roddick was leading by two sets to love and forty love in the first game of the third
set when rain stopped the match.
Can you set out the arguments for and against capital punishment in half a dozen
paragraphs?
I bought two dozen eggs but we’ve only used four. ~ Why didn’t you buy half a
doxen?
Scores of volunteers offered to help in the search for the missing child.
To express the idea of the largest amount possible, we would normally use
maximum as both adjective and noun. Maximal as adjective or maximally as
adverb are more rarely used. Compare the following:
Arsenal now head the Premiership table with maximum points from five games.
The maximum sentence for armed robbery is twenty years.
How long are the shifts for this type of work? ~ Four hours is the minimum and
twelve hours is the maximum.
How long should I sit in front of the computer screen? ~ Maximally three hours.
Minimal, however, meaning very small in quantity, is much more often used as an
adjective. Note the slight difference in meaning. Mimimum describes the smallest
amount possible. Compare the following:
A friend who is 50 recently sent me an email gladly informing me that he now has a
girlfriend. In Slovenian this sounds really funny. Which could be the alternatives – if
there are any? ‘Partner’ didn’t seem to be accepted, so what DO you say for
somebody who is not in his/her teens or twenties any longer and is in a relationship,
but they are not married?
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We don’t have very much choice in the matter, Mojca. ‘Boyfriend/girlfriend’ and
‘partner’ are the words that we normally use to describe somebody who is in a
sexual relationship. Although boyfriends and girlfriends are often associated with
teenager years, as in:
• 'I remember my first boyfriend was a very spotty individual whose voice had
only just broken.'
it is also quite common for people in their twenties, thirties, forties and even fifties to
use the words 'boyfriend' or 'girlfriend' to describe someone that they are in a
relationship with, but do not necessarily live with.
Partner’ is perhaps the preferred term to describe the person you are living with on a
more permanent basis, but are not married to:
It is unlikely that teenagers would have ‘partners’, although people from their
twenties onwards may well have.
However, 'partner' can sound rather formal because partnerships, of course, are not
only of a sexual nature. If you play a game against another pair of people, or dance
then you would do so with a ‘partner’. Consider the following:
And ‘partners’ in a firm or business are the people who share the ownership of it:
There are some other expressions that can be used, such as 'lover' and 'other half'
but it's true to say that in English there is no one preferred term!
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Could you please give me the parts of the body from head to toe with exact
pronunciation of native English speakers?
Here's a chart which shows the major parts of the body: obviously not to be used for
an anatomy lesson! Some words are used mainly in the medical profession - others
are more popular. You can use this list for pronunciation practice, particularly the
practice of vowel sounds.
1 - hair
2 - head
3 - eye
4 - ear
5 - nose
6 - lips
7 - face
8 - neck
9 - shoulder
10 - arm
11 - elbow
12 - wrist
13 - hand
14 - thumb
15 - fingers
16 - breast
17 - chest
18 - stomach/tum/
tummy
19 - abdomen
20 - bottom
21 - thigh
22 - leg
23 - knee
24 - ankle
25 - foot/feet
26 - big toe
27 - toes
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Parts of the body
From head to toe,
But for the sake of rhyme
And pronunciation practice
This time they are not in order.
On your face
your eyes, nose and lips
are placed.
And at the side
are your ears
to help you hear.
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- short for tummy
At the rear is your bum
- short for bottom!
Between your bum and your tum
Are your thighs - roughly speaking.
Glossary:
Tum: your tum or tummy is the part at the front of your body, just below your
waist.
I'm going to be doing a lot of sunbathing this summer, so I don't want my tummy to
show.
It can also be used to refer informally to stomach, i.e. the parts inside your body
where food is digested. In this sense tummy, as an alternative to stomach, is often
used by children or by adults talking to children:
Jonathan's got tummy ache from eating too many unwashed strawberries.
Bum: your bum is the part of your body which you sit on. It is frequently used in
informal English and is slightly rude:
Dainty feet: feet which are dainty are small, delicate and pretty.
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A question from Yumi in Japan:
Hi, I would like to know about the difference between 'epidemic' and 'pandemic',
related to the bird flu.
'Epidemic' is the word that we use when we're talking about a large number of
people or animals in a certain place that are affected by disease or illness. 'Pandemic'
is the word we use when almost all the people and animals in a certain place are
affected by a disease or illness. And that's the short answer.
But that little 'pan-' prefix is something that you might want to remember because
we often use it to mean 'all'. So people make up new words by putting 'pan-' in front
of something ? you might hear about a 'pan-Asian' conference, for example.
So don't forget 'pan-', but let's hope we can forget the pandemic. Thank you.
My full name is Yaciel Edelio Tellez Toledo. I come from Cuba. I wrote to you because
I am in doubt with the correct use of 'person' and 'people'. That was my question -
because I know that 'person' and 'people' both are nouns and I would like to know
when I'm going to use 'person' or 'people'.
However it becomes slightly more complicated because sometimes you do see the
word 'persons'. For example if you're in a lift or elevator you might see the sign 'Four
persons only'. And sometimes if you're listening to the news, to news reports you
may hear news reports talking about persons. So for example 4 persons were injured
in the accident, or police are looking for 5 persons. Persons is normally a more
formal use, a more formal plural form.
It gets slightly more complicated when you find the word peoples. People can be
used to mean a nationality – all of the people of one country – so for example 'the
people of Cuba'. And when you're talking about a group of nationalities you may find
the word 'peoples', for example, 'the peoples of South America'. So that's another
slightly more complicated and not so common use of the word 'peoples'.
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Finally you may find the word 'person' attached to a number. For example 'a two-
person car', 'a three-person room'. This is where 'person' is being used to describe
the noun. '2 – person' is the adjective describing 'car' and as you know we don't put
an 's' on an adjective. So far example we talk about a 'two-week holiday' not a 'two-
weeks holiday' or a 'three-year course' not 'a three-years course'. So hear we use
'two-person car'.
So in summary, normally you find 'people' as the plural form of 'person' – one
person, three people. Sometimes you'll find people used to describe the nationality
so you'll find 'peoples' to describe different nationalities and sometimes you'll find the
word 'persons' in more formal styles of writing or in signs for example.
I'm having difficulty distinguishing between problems and troubles. Can you please
explain to me how to use both terms correctly?
Problem
• I've got a big problem with my computer. Can you come and have a look at
it?
(NOT: I've got a big trouble with my computer. Can you come and have a
look at it.)
• I can't meet him in Paris and he can't meet me in London. It's a real problem.
(NOT: I can't meet him in Paris and he can't meet me in London. It's a real
trouble.)
• We couldn't solve the problem of getting across London in less than two
hours.
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With the verb cause, we can use both trouble and problems, problem as a
countable noun and trouble as an uncountable noun. Compare the following:
• The current drought is causing serious problems for the farmers in this area.
We also have the expressions No problem! which we use to say that we will be
happy to do something or are happy for something to happen and What's your
problem? which we use in a threatening way to ask someone about something we
disapprove of. Compare the following:
• Could you look after Jimmy for me for five minutes while I pop out to the
shops? ~ No problem!
• I don't like people wearing face jewellery. ~ What's your problem? It's quite
harmless.
I think it could cause health problems in later life. ~ Well, that's their
problem!
trouble
• I'm having trouble with the printer now. Can you come and have a look at it?
• I'm a bit deaf and I had trouble hearing what she said as she spoke very
softly.
• Why are you crying? What's troubling you? ~ It troubles me that I haven't
heard from him for five weeks.
• I'm sorry to trouble you, but could you move your car forward a bit. It's
blocking my drive.
In addition to cause, the verbs that the noun trouble collocate with include the
following: put to, take, go to, save, get into, run into, and be in. These verbs
cannot be used with problem in the same way. Compare the following:
• I'm sorry to put you to all this trouble ~ It's no trouble at all!
• I'm going to take the trouble to bake my own bread, rather than buy it from
the shop.
• If you buy a dishwasher, it will save you the trouble of washing your dishes
by hand.
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• We ran into trouble as soon as we reached the motorway. It was jammed all
the way from Epping to Cambridge.
• I shall get into real / big trouble, if I lend you my brother's bike.
• I was in serious trouble. I had run out of water and was still ten miles from
the nearest oasis.
No trouble!
• I'm sorry to have kept you waiting for so long ~ That's no trouble!
Note from the examples above that the adjectives big, real and serious collocate
with both trouble and problems. Note that fundamental, insoluble and
intractable collocate only with problem:
Hello Jean-Francois, thanks for your question. You asked whether 'quite' means
'partially' or 'totally'. The simple answer is that it has both meanings.
If we say:
"I am quite happy"...
This can mean that I'm partially, fairly, somewhat happy but not completely happy -
or it can mean I'm totally, entirely, completely, 100% happy.
Your next question will probably be: How can we tell the difference?
When somebody says:
"I am quite happy"...
How do we know if they mean partially happy or totally happy?
Well, I'm sorry, but simply reading the sentence on the page can't help us with this.
If I read the words, 'I am quite happy', I really don't know if this means'partially'
happy or 'completely' happy. However, don't despair - there are some clues that can
help us solve this problem.
Firstly, we have some adjectives in English which include the idea of 'very'.
For example:
'delighted' means 'very pleased'
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'exhausted' means 'very tired'
'enormous' means 'very big', and so on.
'Quite' is often used with one of these adjectives, and in this situation, it always
means 'totally'.
So, if we say:
"I am quite exhausted"...
This means I'm absolutely, completely, 100% exhausted.
If you think about this, it's logical because it's impossible to be 'somewhat very tired'
- that doesn't make any sense.
Secondly, we have to think about the context. Often we can clearly understand which
meaning of 'quite' the speaker intends, by looking at the meaning of what he or she
is saying.
Here, William probably means that he has fully recovered, and he's feeling 100%
healthy.
In this case, William probably means that he feels partially healthy, but not
completely healthy.
Also, when these sentences are spoken, we can often get a clue from the speaker's
tone of voice and intonation:
If he or she speaks in a positive, definite tone of voice, going down at the end of the
sentence, that probably means that he or she feels totally happy, or healthy, or
whatever.
However, if the speaker's tone is more uncertain, and if it rises at the end of the
sentence, that probably means that he or she is partially happy or healthy, but not
completely.
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A question from Alice in France:
'Raise' and 'rise' - it's difficult to use them. Will it be possible to explain these two
verbs in BBC learning English? Thank you.
The difference between them is a grammatical one. 'Raise' needs an object, and 'rise'
cannot take an object. So, for example, I can say that I personally think that the
government of this country needs to raise taxes (and 'taxes' is the object of the
verb); another way I can say that is that I think that taxes need to rise. We are
always talking about the need to raise standards (and 'standards' is the object of the
verb) - another way of saying it is that standards need to rise.
I do not feel comfortable when I have to use the words relation and relationship.
Could you please help me to clarify the main usages and differences of these two
closely related words. Many thanks in advance.
Relationships
• They had been together for two years and Mike wanted to carry on, but Jenny
felt that their relationship wasn't really going anywhere.
Relationship can be used in two other ways. It can describe two things and the
way in which they are connected:
It can also describe close ties between people or groups of people and the way they
feel and behave towards each other:
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• The relationship between the leaders of the two countries has never been
closer.
Relations
Relation also describes the link between people, groups or countries and the way
they behave towards each other. In this sense there is very little difference between
relations and relationship. For instance, we could also say:
• Relations between (the leaders of) the two countries have never been
closer.
Most of the differences are context specific in this sense. For example, we talk about
diplomatic relations and race relations, not diplomatic relationships or race
relationships:
• Diplomatic relations between the two countries were broken off over this
incident and their ambassadors were sent home.
• Mark Totterdale and Simon Totterdale (no relation) are both head teachers
in Bristol.
Your blood relations are the people who are related to you by birth, not through
marriage. If you say that they are your own flesh and blood, you are emphasizing
that they are members of your own family:
• He's my own flesh and blood. I can't leave him to fend for himself when he
needs my help.
Note that we also use the term relative to describe members of your family:
• She couldn't get any of her relatives / relations to look after the children,
so had to employ a childminder.
The adjective relative and the adverb relatively are used when you are
comparing the quality or size of something in relation to something else:
• Both cactuses were relatively small and I wanted one that was larger to fit
into the pot.
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• Fitness is a relative concept. You must always ask the question: fit to do
what?
• He was able to smuggle the animals out of the country with relative /
comparative ease.
Related (adj)
When two or more things are related, there is some kind of connection between
them. When people are related, they are members of the same family:
• I had all the equipment needed for gymnastics and related activities.
• Aren't you two related? ~ No, we're not. ~ Oh, I thought Henry was your
cousin.
Would you please be so kind as to explain the difference between the following
verbs: rise and arise? Thank you so much.
Generally, if something rises it moves upwards. If you rise, this is a rather formal
way of saying that you get of out bed, get up or stand up:
When the sun and the moon rise, they appear in the sky. If the water in a river
rises, it becomes higher. If the wind rises, it blows more strongly:
• I hope to be out in the desert on my horse as the sun rises behind the
Pyramids.
• The water in the river had risen to a dangerous level and everyone had to
be evacuated from the village.
• The wind rose later in the night and kept me awake as it howled through
the trees.
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If an amount rises, it increases. If you get an increase in your wages or
salary, this is also known as a rise. (In American English, it's known as a
raise.) If you rise to a higher position in your organisation, you become
more successful or powerful:
• Inflation rose by 0.5 percent last year, the lowest increase since 1992.
• Industrial use of oil rose by over 200 % in the 1970s whilst industrial use
of coal fell by the same proportion.
• At the age of 32, she has risen to the top of her profession.
• I don't think the question of compensation will arise, but if it does, just give
a vague reply.
• A problem has arisen with the TV that I bought last week. I can't get
teletext.
We can also use arise to mean to get up, get out of bed or stand up, but it is
even more formal than rise in this sense. Note that when a knighthood is bestowed
in Britain, the monarch touches the recipient's shoulders with a sword and then says,
e.g.
meaning that he, William, may now (a)rise from his kneeling position as a knight of
the realm.
If you raise something, you move it to a higher position. If you raise your
voice, you speak more loudly. If you raise the standard of something, you
improve it:
• If you are in agreement with what Mr Jenkins has put to you, would you
please raise your hand.
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• The flag on the roof of the palace is raised whenever the queen is in
residence.
• Amy was sitting at the back and had to raise her voice in order to be
heard.
Note that raise is a regular verb, whereas rise is irregular. Note also that raise
is a transitive verb, in other words, it must always be used with a direct object.
You always raise something. Rise, on the other hand, is an intransitive verb: it
does not involve anything or anyone other than the subject.
to raise a smile or a laugh = say something which makes people smile or laugh
to raise the roof = make a building reverberate with loud singing, shouting,
clapping etc
• I decided to raise the alarm and alerted the rescue services when my
companions had not returned by nightfall.
• His wife does everything around the house. He never raises / lifts a finger
to help her.
• I thought it was a good joke, but it didn't even raise a smile, let alone a
laugh.
• The female audience raised the roof when the boy band appeared on stage.
I have a question about verbs which appear very similar. Could you possibly explain
the differences between remember, remind, recall and recollect? Thank you very
much.
remind
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Remind and remember are not the same. If you remind somebody about
something, you make them remember it. Thus, remind is a transitive verb, i.e. it
always has an object which may be followed by to + infinitive or a that-clause.
Compare the following:
When you say that somebody or something reminds you of something, you
associate it with a memory from your past:
She reminds me of The Princess Royal. They are so alike in looks and appearance.
Doesn't this countryside remind you of Cornwall? It does me.
I think I know which one it is, but remind me of your house number.
Remember
If you remember something, you recall people or events to your mind. Remember
can be used transitively with an object or intransitively without an object. It
is often used with to + infinitive and with when- where- or that-clauses.
Compare the following:
Do you remember the first time we sat under the stars, listening to Beethoven's
Ninth?
Do you remember when we first ate wild mushrooms? ~ Yes, I remember.
I can't remember where I've put the spare set of car keys. Have you seen them?
Will you remember to collect your suit from the dry-cleaners or shall I do it?
She remembered that she was going clubbing that evening and cheered up.
A lot of readers ask about verbs that are followed by verb-ing forms or to +
infinitive. Some, like want, decide, agree, are always followed by to + infinitive.
Some, like look forward to, enjoy, finish, are always followed by verb-ing forms.
I decided to turn off the computer and go home. I would finish writing the
report tomorrow.
I don't remember talking to you about Terry's divorce. I don't even remember
you asking me about that.
I shall always remember flying to America on Concorde.
Remember to close all the windows and lock all the doors before you leave the
house.
I forgot to warn him about the dangerous dog and he was bitten.
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I shall never forget sharing a bottle of iced water with you beside the Pyramids in
Egypt.
recall
When you recall something, you remember it and tell others about it:
The Prime Minister recalled his visits to France and the six meetings he had had
with the French President.
I seem to recall that you were against the idea of Henry joining the Board of
Directors.
As far as I can recall, you were warned three times that you would lose your job if
you persisted in being late. I distinctly recall warning you about this.
The pharmaceutical company is going to recall one of its drugs because of possibly
dangerous side effects.
If a player is recalled to a team, s/he is included in the team again after being left
out:
Many people in Ireland still hope that Roy Keane might be recalled to the Irish
squad in time for the World Cup.
recollect
If you recollect something, you remember it and usually talk about it. There is
little difference between recollect and recall in this context. We could also use
remember here as the most common of the three verbs, although remember
would not imply that the experience was talked about.
She recollected / recalled that she had been living in Paris when Picasso and
Matisse were both working there.
I just want to know the meaning of this word: rote learning, what's the exact
meaning?
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over and over again; saying the same thing and trying to remember how to say it;
trying to say it fluently and fast. Now, it doesn't help us to understand - it helps us
to remember - and often we learn a poem, or a song, or something like that by rote
learning. What have you learnt by rote learning, Dahlia?
Dahlia: I just keep saying it to pass my exam, without understanding, most of what I
read, or study.
Martin: Well, if you need to remember it for the examination, then I'm sure that's
very useful. It's an interesting term, rote learning. It describes the technique for
learning - but often we say "I learnt something by rote", and we use the expression
"by rote".
Question: If Dahlia wants to learn some useful vocabulary, that could also
help her to pass the exam, but she wants to know the meaning as well,
what else can you do apart from rote learning then?
Martin: Reading and underlining words, and words that come up several times,
looking them up and then perhaps putting them on a list, and perhaps using some
rote learning. But, Dahlia, I'm interested in what you learnt by rote for your exams -
is this your English?
Dahlia: No, it's not my English. It's something related to my studying. I'm studying
economics…
Martin: Yes...
Dahlia: ...and there is a lot of subjects quite difficult to understand every single
word.
Martin: Yes?
Dahlia: So, we just keep just rote learning it - you know, to pass the exam…
Martin: Yeah
Dahlia: ...but, erm, many words is hard to know the meaning of.
Martin: That's right, and it doesn't actually help to understand it, does it?
Dahlia: Yeah. Most of our books are translated from, from Russian to Arabic…
Martin: Yeah?
Martin: It is. I think sometimes in learning a language rote learning can be useful. I
know that I worked in China at one time, where my students astonished me by how
good they were at rote learning, and I used to set lists of words for them to learn
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and the next day I'd discover that they remembered them. And then as a teacher I'd
just have to help them understand them.
Martin: I think rote learning may be useful for remembering it - to understand it, we
have to see vocabulary in a context - so we need to be not necessarily reading a long
book, but reading text in which those words occur. The best is when perhaps the
word is used several times in different contexts, and we can understand from the
context what it means. A good bilingual dictionary is such a useful tool as well.
I'd like to know the different meanings of see and watch and the typical uses of
these two verbs.
See / Watch
Seeing is noticing something or somebody with your eyes, usually with no explicit
intention or purpose behind the action. If you watch something or someone, you
look at them deliberately, usually for a longer period.
Watch is often used with progressive tense forms. See is not used with progressive
forms, but may be used with can to suggest something in progress. Compare the
following:
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I could hear a dog barking but apart from that there was no sound.
I'm surprised to hear you say such awful things about her. I thought you liked her.
I could hear them talking in the next room, but I tried not to listen to what they were
saying.
You need to listen to the tape very carefully if you want to understand what she is
saying.
I didn't hear the phone ringing because I was listening to a Mahler symphony on the
radio.
We often use I hear and I see with a that-clause to indicate that we have noted
something or that we understand or gather that something has happened or will
happen.
I hear / understand / gather that you're planning to quit your job with IBM and go
freelance.
Have you heard that Jenny's gone freelance? ~ No, I've heard nothing about that.
I see / understand / gather that the postal workers are threatening another one-day
strike in October.
I can't see / understand what all the fuss is about. It's only a one-day strike.
see = meet (note that in this meaning progressive forms are often possible)
I'm sorry, but he's not well enough to see you now.
She must really stop seeing him. He has a bad influence on her.
As we saw when he went back to help them, these guys are totally independent.
see = accompany
You may not be able to find your way out. I'll just see you to the door.
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He's old enough to come home by himself, but can you just see him across the busy
road?
Watch that you don't spend too much money in Oxford Street. Watch your purse too.
Watch out for pickpockets.
You may also watch your weight if you decide to be careful about the things you
eat or watch the world go by, if you stand or sit somewhere and watch people as
they pass by.
All three nouns are similar in meaning, but they have different nuances or shades of
meaning and are used in different contexts in different ways.
Condition
Condition describes the physical state of something or some one. We talk about
people or things being in good / bad / terrible / etc condition. Condition can
also refer to a health problem:
He was in a terrible condition and had drunk far too much whiskey.
The rescue was attempted under extremely difficult conditions and with little chance
of success.
The refugees were living under appalling conditions with no access to clean water.
Are you happy with your working conditions? ~ Yes, they are excellent. I have no
complaints.
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The extremely windy conditions made it difficult for either side to play decent
football.
Conditions also describe things that must be true or be done before something else
can happen. We talk about meeting or satisfying or imposing conditions.
In order to qualify for a grant as a postgraduate student, you will need to satisfy
certain conditions.
The conditions imposed by the university meant that no one was likely to qualify.
Make sure you read the terms and conditions carefully before you take out the
student loan
on condition that
Note the expression on condition that for saying that one thing will happen only if
another thing happens:
You can have the day off tomorrow on condition that you agree to work on Saturday.
They spoke to the police about the incident on condition that they would not be
called as witnesses.
Situation
Situation refers to a set of conditions that are in place at a particular time and in
a particular place:
If the situation had been different, our marriage might have succeeded.
I am particularly concerned about the situation in the south of the country where the
rules of law and order appear to have broken down.
The financial situation is dire - the company has failed to make a profit in each of the
last four years.
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Note also the compound nouns situation comedies (abbreviated to sitcoms) which
describe amusing television drama series revolving around a set of characters in a
family or organisation and situations vacant which refers to a column or page in a
newspaper where jobs are advertised:
'The Office' is regarded as one of the most original sitcoms the BBC has produced so
far this century.
If you just want a clerical job, look in the situations vacant column in the local
newspaper.
position
Position is used in a wider variety of contexts than situation or condition. First and
foremost, it refers to the way or where somebody or something is placed.
I was quite badly injured in the demonstration but managed to drag myself to a
sitting position under a tree.
This plant loves sunlight and should be placed in an open sunny position in the flower
border.
This is quite a detailed map showing the position of all the oil refineries.
Position can also describe a general situation and in this context can sometimes
be replaced by situation:
The position / situation is that everyone must be interviewed about the break in by
the security services.
Position also means opinion, i.e. where you stand or are placed, on an issue:
My position on fox hunting is that it is a useful way of keeping the number of foxes
down.
Position can also refer to a job in a company, a place in a list or where you play in a
team sport such as football:
Is the assistant manager position still open? ~ No, I'm sorry, it's already been filled.
What is their position in the league? ~ They're in forth position at the moment, but if
they win today, they'll move up to third.
My best position is on the left in midfield, just in front of the back four.
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A question from Lilia in Rio de Janeiro:
Since I'm improving my English, I'm trying to write my reports in English. I need to
know the difference between the verbs 'solve' and 'resolve'. Thank you.
The simplest answer I can give you here is to say that in many contexts they are
roughly synonymous - in other words similar in meaning and therefore sometimes
used interchangeably, where the basic meaning is to find a solution or answer to a
problem.
For example, we could say either "we have solved the problems in management" or
"we have resolved the problems in management". To resolve a problem, argument or
difficulty means to deal with it successfully. As in the example, "The cabinet met to
resolve the dispute."
However, be aware that 'resolve' can be used with the infinitive with a slightly
different meaning. If you resolve to do something you make a firm decision to do it.
So Lilia, you'll find more examples in your dictionary, but in them meantime, I hope
I've clarified the key differences there.
'sport' or 'game'
The Olympics are over and I would like to ask why we call them the Olympic Games
when they are about sports. Can you please explain in more detail the difference
between sport and game?
Sports are activities which require physical effort and ability and some degree of
mental skill usually. They are often organised competitively, played outdoors and
with a ball, although not necessarily. Thus:
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rugby cricket football basketball hockey baseball
netball tennis table tennis squash badminton volleyball
golf motor racing cycling skiing running swimming
However, we talk about games when two teams or individuals meet to play against
each other. (So, for this reason, they are called the Olympic Games.) Compare the
following:
Games are also activities involving skill, knowledge or chance in which you try to win
against an opponent or solve puzzles. Thus, we have 'word games', 'card games',
'computer games' and games like chess, backgammon, dominoes, darts, snooker,
mahjong and Monopoly. For games like these, not so much, if any, physical ability or
skill is needed.
Are there any significant structural or semantic differences between seem, appear
and look in the sense of to give the impression of being or doing something?
Look, seem and appear are all copular verbs and can be used in a similar way to
indicate the impression you get from something or somebody. Copula verbs join
adjectives (or noun compounds) to subjects:
He seems angry.
Note that adjectives, not adverbs, are used after copular verbs. We do not say:
He seems cleverly.
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We have to say:
He seems clever.
Of course, when look is not used as a copular verb, but as a transitive verb with an
object, an adverb will describe how someone looks:
She looked angrily at the intruder.
After look and seem, but not normally after appear, we can use an as if / like
construction:
They appear to have run away from home. They cannot be traced.
We can also use a that-clause after It seems?... and It appears..., but not after
look. It looks... has to be followed by an as if / like clause:
It seems that I may have made a mistake in believing you did this.
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You can use seem to talk about more objective facts or impressions and about more
subjective and emotional impressions. We do not usually use appear to refer to
emotions and subjective impressions. Compare the following:
impressions / emotions
It seems ridiculous that he has to stay here to look after the cat.
They have the same surname, but they don't appear / seem to be related.
She's not getting any better. It seems / appears that she's not been taking the
medication.
Note that seem is used only as a copular verb, but both appear and look have
other meanings and uses:
Digital radios for less than £50 began to appear in the shops before the end of last
year.
I've looked through all the drawers and through all my files.
Could you look after the children this afternoon while I go shopping?
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It's been a hard year. I'm looking forward to a holiday now.
I've written a letter of complaint and they've promised to look into the matter.
Look out for me at the concert. I'll probably be there by ten o' clock.
Don't you want to look round the school before enrolling your children?
If you don't know the meaning of these phrasal verbs, look them up in a dictionary.
Solicitor
lawyer
attorney
barrister
counsellor
These legal terms all belong to the same family of words, but are quite different in
use.
Solicitors are lawyers who give legal advice to clients and prepare legal documents
and cases. Solicitors often specialise in different areas: there are, for example,
family law solicitors and company law solicitors. They do not usually, to my
knowledge, appear in court. The following would be an example of usage:
• 'When my husband left me, I was advised to put the matter into the hands of
a solicitor.'
Attorney is American English word for a British English lawyer. The D.A. or District
Attorney is a lawyer in the U.S. who works for the state and prosecutes people on
behalf of it. There are also, of course, defense attorneys in America who act on
behalf of their clients. Consider the following:
(Note that in British English defence is spelt ‘defence’ and not ‘defense’.)
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A lawyer, then, in British English, is a person who is qualified to advise people about
the law and represent them in court. We talk about lawyers for the prosecution and
lawyers for the defence. Study the following:
A barrister in British English is a lawyer who operates in the higher courts of law in
Britain and speaks on behalf of either the prosecution or the defence:
• 'He was regarded as an eloquent and persuasive barrister and was much in
demand for a period of over twenty years.'
We also speak about the prosecution counsel or the defence counsel when
referring to the team of lawyers who are operating on behalf of either the state or a
client:
• 'The counsel for the defence argued that the case should never have been
brought to court as it relied only on circumstantial evidence.'
However, please note that we do not use the term counsellor in the legal sense at
all! A counsellor can be any person whose job it is to give advice, care and support to
those who need it. Consider the following:
I have a question - can you please answer it for me? What's the difference between
as such, and such as? Thank you.
Hi Arif - thanks for your question. These two phrases, as such and such as, look
similar, but in fact their meanings are very different.
As such has two meanings. The first is quite difficult to explain, so let's look at an
example. I could say,
I'm an English teacher, and because I'm an English teacher I hate to see
grammar mistakes.
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Another way to say this, with the same meaning, is like this:
I'm an English teacher, and as an English teacher I hate to see grammar mistakes.
However, in this sentence I'm saying the words 'an English teacher' twice. An easier
way to say it is like this:
In this example, we use the word such to represent the words 'an English teacher',
the second time it appears. Here are some similar examples. You could say:
We can also use as such to mean something like 'exactly' in a sentence like this:
The shop doesn't sell books as such, but it does sell magazines and newspapers.
Magazines and newspapers are similar to books, but they are not exactly books. Or:
He isn't American as such, but he's spent most of his life there.
Spending most of your life in America is similar to being American, but it isn't exactly
the same as being American.
Such as is much easier; it has the same meaning as 'like' or 'for example' (but not
exactly the same grammar, so be careful there!). We use it in sentences like this:
There are lots of things to see in London, such as the Tower of London, the London
Eye and St. Paul's Cathedral.
Or:
Hi! I’m an Indian citizen living in America. Here people use suppose and supposed
to a lot of the time in conversation. Can you please tell me in which sense and where
they should be used?
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Suppose and supposed to are used very frequently in British English too. We shall
see that suppose has a number of different meanings and uses and that supposed
to is different again from suppose.
suppose = think/believe/imagine/expect
In this sense, suppose is often used in requests with negative structures when we
hope the answer will be positive:
• I don’t suppose you could lend me your dinner jacket, could you? ~ Sure!
When do you need it?
• I suppose it’s too late to see the doctor now, isn’t it? ~ Hold on. Let me see
if I can fit you in.
• I don’t suppose I could see the doctor now, could I?~ I can fit you in at
11.30. Can you wait till then?
Note that suppose here describes a mental or emotional state, and it is not normally
used in the continuous form.
Suppose or supposing can also be used in a quite different way instead of What
if…? to introduce suggestions or to express fears. Compare the following and note
that the verb that follows suppose or supposing can be in either present of past
tense form:
Supposed to in this sense means that something should be done because it is the
law, the rule or the custom. However, in practice it is often not done:
• I’m supposed to tidy my room before I go to bed at night, but I always tidy
it when I get up in the morning instead.
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• In Germany you’re not supposed to walk on the grass in the parks, but in
England you can.
• I’m supposed to return these books by Friday, but I’m not sure whether I
can.
In the past tense, it is used to mean that something was planned or intended to
happen, but did not happen. Note that in these examples, we can use should have
as an alternative to was supposed to:
• I was supposed to go to Cuba for a conference last year but then I got ill
and couldn’t go.
• Wasn’t Tom supposed to be here for lunch? I wonder what’s happened to
him!
• I should have gone to Cuba for a conference last year but then I got ill and
couldn’t go.
• Shouldn’t Tom have been here for lunch? I wonder what’s happened to him!
• This stuff’s supposed to be good for stomach cramps. Why don’t you try it?
• The castle was supposed to be haunted, but I had a good night’s sleep there
nevertheless!
When you are practising these examples in speech, note that the final d in
supposed to is not pronounced. It is pronounced as 'suppose to', but should
always be written in its correct form grammatically as supposed to.
cotton to / cotton on to
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Much more common is the colloquial expression to cotton on to which means to
catch on or to grasp a line of thought:
• They didn't know much English and it was surprising how quickly they
cottoned on / caught on to what I was saying.
• He still hasn't cottoned on to the fact that I'm not in the least bit interested
in him.
The allusion is the same as before: cotton fibres or threads which become attached
to clothing.
Other expressions which use the idea of cotton threads are to lose the thread of
something and the opposite to pick up the thread(s).
To lose the thread means to lose one's train of thought because of some sort of
interruption or digression. To pick up the thread(s) means to resume one's line of
argument or to get back into the way of things:
• I haven't done this sort of work for over five years so it will take me a while
to pick up the threads.
• I'm going back to John and we're going to try to pick up the threads of our
marriage.
• Sorry, I've lost the thread of what you were saying. Could you go back over
that last bit again?
I don't understand
English, and particularly British English, appears to be incredibly rich with informal
expressions for I don't understand. Here are a selection of the most common. Can
any of you answer these difficult questions?
• I don't know
• I've (got) no idea
• I haven't (got) a clue
Which British king is supposed to have imprisoned his nephews in the Tower
of London?
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• I've got no notion
The expression 'You've stumped me' or 'I'm stumped' derives from the game of
cricket, where if the batsman is stumped, he is out and his innings is over.
We can also use get in this question to mean 'Do you understand?':
If something is beyond your ken, you do not have sufficient knowledge to be able
to understand it. Ken is much used in informal Scottish English as both a verb and a
noun for know and knowledge. But if your mind goes blank, this suggests that you
do know the answer which might even be on the tip of your tongue, but it is not
immediately available.
These last two synonyms for I don't understand are more colloquial and not quite
in the same politeness register as the earlier alternatives. However, they are quite
acceptable in discourse among friends. The idea of the last one is that if you did a
body search on me, you would not find the answer to the questions you have asked.
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If you do know the answers to all these questions, please write to our Message
Board and tell us. A score of 100% would suggest that you might be a suitable
candidate for a TV quiz game!
I do understand!
Finally, let's finish on a more positive note with some synonyms for I do
understand! We don't seem to have as many of these!
• I'm afraid I can't agree to you borrowing £500 from your sister.
• I completely understand!
• That's absolutely clear!
• You're quite right!
• Of course!
Absolutely is currently one of our most favoured adverbs when expressing strong
agreement with something:
slang
Big bucks denotes a large amount of money (bucks are dollars), chickenfeed is
small change. Knees-up = party, my ex = former boyfriend or girlfriend.
Absolutely bonkers is very crazy or unpredictable. Booze is alcohol, just as a
boozer is a pub or someone who drinks a lot of alcohol.
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idiomatic expressions
Idiomatic expressions are extremely common and are found in all kinds of
English, both formal and particularly informal. But do not make a special effort to
learn them. There are too many. You will learn the most common naturally through
the learning material that you are using. And it is much better to be accurate when
using non-idiomatic English than inappropriate when using an idiom. For example, it
is better to say:
than:
which has gone out of fashion. As a learner, it may be difficult for you to know what
idioms are in fashion and which are not.
Good dictionaries will usually list idiomatic usage of words after the literal meanings
are given. Thus after the literal definitions of out, you may find the following
idiomatic usages listed and illustrated:
These two are in current use. (As a rule of thumb, if you come across idiomatic
expressions more than once in your study of contemporary English, they are
probably current.) To go out like a light is to fall asleep or unconscious instantly.
The allusion is to falling asleep immediately like switiching off a light. If someone is
out of order, they have acted in bad taste or their behaviour is unacceptable. Note
that the primary meaning of out of order relates to machines that are not working
or are not in good order:
• Go and put this out-of-order notice on the photocopier. It's not working
again.
• He was totally out-of-order. I can't believe he was so rude to her.
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euphemisms
A euphemism is a polite word or expression that people use when they are talking
about something which they or other people may find unpleasant, upsetting or
embarrassing. When we use euphemisms we are protecting ourselves from the
reality of what is said. There are many euphemisms that refer to sex, bodily
functions, war, death, etc. Euphemisms are often good examples of idiomatic
language use:
Spend a penny derives from the days when there were door locks on the outside of
cubicles in public lavatories which could only be opened by inserting one old penny
into the lock. This was not just the pre-euro era. It was the pre-decimal era. The
expression is still in frequent use today.
Collateral damage is unintended damage and civilian casualities and deaths caused
by the dropping of bombs in the course of a military operation. The term is of US
origin and was first used to describe deaths in the Vietnam War, then in the Gulf
War, then in the action (euphemism!) in Serbia at the end of the 1990s and most
recently in Afghanistan.
Hi Roger! Are you familiar with the words switch and change? I guess you are, but
me and my friends have had some pretty hot discussions about the meaning and
different usage of these two words…
• Going out to work every day is quite a change from university life, I must
admit.
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• I can't go straight from work. I shall have to come home and change first.
(i.e. change clothes)
• There's no direct (train) service to Oxford after 10 p.m. You'll have to change
at Reading.
• I was away for the whole weekend so I packed two changes of underwear.
• I hardly recognised her - she had changed so much. (i.e. changed in
appearance)
• I'm the father of three children but I still don't know how to change a nappy.
• Could you change the light bulb for me please?
~ OK. But I'll change the oil in your car first.
• Can anybody change this £50 note? (i.e. give me the same amount of money
in smaller coins or notes)
• I had no loose change (i.e. smaller coins) so I had to pay with a £10 note.
• You must wait till the (traffic) lights change (i.e. from red to green) before
you cross the road.
• Did you know that Brenda's sex-change operation hasn't been successful?
~ Do you mind if we change the subject?
~ Of course we can, but you should know that she's going ahead with her
plan to change her name from Brenda to Brendan.
• I can't afford to take everybody to this football match. ~ You've changed
your tune, haven't you? You were going to get a season ticket three weeks
ago!
• He suddenly became responsible for his actions. This sea change in his
behaviour surprised his parents.
A switch is a device for making and breaking the connection in an electrical circuit in
e.g. a light, radio, TV or heater. We
switch these things on and off. We also turn them on and off. We can turn them
down or up, but we cannot switch them
down or up:
• You call that music? It's a terrible row! Either turn it down or switch it off.
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• Would you mind switching / changing places with me so that I can sit next
to my child?
• I had to switch / change planes in New York. There was no direct service to
Miami.
• I was going nowhere so I decided to switch / change jobs.
• I think you would create more space if you switched / changed / moved
the furniture around.
Abel Xaviar, the Portuguese defender, is ready (= set) to move from Everton across
town to Liverpool football club.
The changeover or switch from the Irish punt to the euro has revealed the high cost
of certain goods.
A criminal group of men (= gang) changed or switched train signals from green to
red so that trains would stop to allow refugees to climb on board.
Finally, note these more informal and idiomatic usages of switch and turn:
• His description of his working day was so boring that I just switched off.
• He is really switched on when it comes to fashion. He knows all about the
Italian fashion houses.
• I thought you liked me, but I don't really turn you on, do I?
• Oh no - it's a film about philosophy. What a turn-off!
• And then I became really interested in the triassic, jurassic and cretaceous
periods.
~ Whatever turns you on!
Travel/journey/trip/expedition/safari/
cruise/voyage
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travel/journey/trip/expedition/safari/
cruise/voyage? Thank you.
It's the right time of year to talk about travel as the holiday season is now beginning
in most countries north of the equator.
travel/travelling (nouns)
Travel is the general term to describe going from one place to another. We can talk
about someone's travels to refer to the journeys he makes:
• His travels abroad provided lots of background material for novels he wrote.
• Travelling by boat between the islands is less tiring than travelling by road.
• Make sure you keep all your travel documents safely. You can obtain your
travel tickets from the travel agents in the High Street if you don't want to
order them over the Internet. Some of you may suffer from travel sickness.
Air travel may well give you a bumpy ride. If you don't have a credit or debit
card, make sure you take plenty of traveller's cheques with you.
• I love to travel during the summer holidays. This year I plan to travel all
around the Iberian Peninsula.
journey (noun)
A journey is one single piece of travel. You make journeys when you travel from
one place to another. (Note that the plural is spelt journeys, not journies):
• How long did your journey take? ~ Oh, it lasted for ever. We stopped at
every small station.
trip (noun)
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A trip usually involves more than one single journey. We talk about day trips,
round trips and business trips. We make journeys usually, but we go on trips:
• I went on a day trip to France. We left at 6.30 in the morning and returned
before midnight the same day.
• The round-trip ticket enabled me to visit all the major tourist destinations in
India.
• The trip went well. It was an old car, but we didn't break down in four weeks
of travelling
expedition (noun)
• Are you going to join the expedition up the Amazon this year, like the one
Tom went on last year?
• Less dangerous and less adventurous are shopping expeditions when you
are hunting down particular goods or bargains and fishing expeditions
when you go in search of fish which are not easy to locate or catch.
safari (noun)
• His one ambition in life was to go on safari to Kenya to photograph lions and
tigers.
A cruise is a holiday during which you travel on a ship or boat and visit a number
of places en route. When we cruise, this is exactly what we do:
• They cruised all around the Mediterranean for eight weeks last summer and
stopped off at a number of uninhabited islands.
voyage (noun)
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A voyage is a long journey, not necessarily for pleasure, on a ship. We don't talk
about voyages very much in the present time, but historically they were very
significant:
• His second voyage (1493 - 96) led to the discovery of several Caribbean
islands. On his third voyage (1498 - 1500) he discovered the South American
mainland.
(Christopher Columbus, the great explorer)
Maria asks: Please can you give me some information about collocations, especially
about verb + noun collocations with take? Thanks a lot.
collocation
Collocations are words that habitually or typically occur together. There are verb +
adverb collocations like wave frantically (not wave hecticly). There are adjective +
noun collocations like regular exercise (not steady exercise). There are adverb +
adjective collocations like completely or wholly satisfied (not utterly satisfied).
And there are verb + noun or verb + object collocations like follow someone's
example (not pursue someone's example).
take
Take is one of the most commonly used verbs in the English language whose basic
meaning is to move something or somebody from one place to another, e.g:
There are a large number of take + noun collocations of which I include a selection
of the most common below. Note how much of the original meaning of take is
retained in these examples.
take exercise
take an interest in
take a photo
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I'm not ready yet. Why don't you take a walk round the park?
Aren't you finished yet? ~ No, it will take me a while, I'm afraid
The middle five are a bit more difficult so an explanation of the meaning is given
after each example:
take advice
take offence
take cover
take pity
We should take steps to ensure that no more money is lost on this venture.
She took pity on the stray dog and be became a family pet.
take advice: follow someone's guidance (on how best to achieve something)
take offence: feel upset because of something someone has said or done
take pity: show sympathy for someone because they are in a bad situation.
The final five are most difficult as they are idioms whose original meaning has been
lost (but which is explained in the notes below):
take a raincheck
take heart
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take one's breath away
Stop taking the mickey. I'm fed up with being the butt of your jokes.
Can you manage Friday? ~ I'll have to take a raincheck on that, I'm afraid.
The way she played Lady Macbeth was so compelling it took my breath away.
Try to take heart from the fact that he's no longer in pain.
The company took the axe to senior management and abolished five posts.
take the mickey out of someone: to tease. Mickey represents Mickey Bliss, Cockney
rhyming slang for piss. The expression then is a euphemism for take the piss.
take a raincheck: politely decline an offer whilst implying that you may take it up
later. A rainckeck was originally a voucher used in the US entitling one to see
another baseball game if the original one was rained off.
take heart: take courage In former times, moral courage was supposed to come
from the heart and physical courage from the stomach.
take one's breath away: be so surprised by something that it makes you hold your
breath
take a seat
take care
take a look
take a break
take a risk
take responsibility
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take a dim view of something
take a leak
take stock
Check them out in a good dictionary, if the meaning is not clear. Start with the most
commonly used ones which I have listed first.
Teacher/trainer/instructor/lecturer etc.
Would you please tell me the different usage of the terms: teacher, trainer,
instructor, lecturer, professor? Thank you in advance.
Teacher
I'd like to go into teaching and get a job as a teacher in an inner city primary or
secondary school.
Teaching assistants can only ever support the classroom teacher; they can never
replace him.
Tutor
We sometimes use the word tutor instead of teacher to describe somebody who
gives personal or private lessons:
My son wasn't making much progress in school, so I hired a maths tutor to give him
private lessons after school.
If you are enrolled as a student in a British university, you will have a personal
tutor who provides you with close support throughout your studies and with whom
you will have tutorials to discuss aspects of the subject being studied:
There are just six students in my tutorial group and we had a very interesting
tutorial on global warming and climate change last week. On all quality distance
learning schemes, face-to-face support from trained tutors is essential.
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Lecturer
Dr Gradgrind is our lecturer on the Victorian novel and the course will be taught
through a series of lectures and seminars.
Note that a seminar at a college or university is a class for a small group of students
to discuss the subject with the lecturer.
Professor
In the UK, professor is a university teacher of the highest rank in a subject area:
The first step in an academic carrier is usually lecturer, then senior lecturer, then
reader, then eventually perhaps professor.
Instructor
If you want to learn how to drive, you will need a driving instructor.
If you want to learn how to fly, you will require a flying instructor.
If you intend to ski this winter on the higher slopes, you'll need a ski instructor.
Coach
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A coach is someone who trains individual sports players or a team. The examples
below are taken from tennis and football:
Tim Henman, Britain's No 1, has a new coach, Paul Anacone, who worked with Pete
Sampras for six years.
Paul Bracewell, national coach with the England youth teams for the past two years,
has resigned.
Trainer
A trainer can be someone who trains people for a particular job or profession or who
trains someone in certain varieties of sport.
In-service teacher trainers are in very great demand here as there is no pre-service
training for teachers.
If you can get Kevin as your personal fitness trainer, you'll work on a wide range of
strategies and techniques.
With 'tell' we usually say who is told. You could say there is a personal object, so:
'Can you tell me what's happened?' We say, 'me'.
With 'say' we don't usually say who is told. So you might say 'please say each word
clearly and distinctly'. And if we do say who is told, we use the word 'to', so: 'He said
goodbye to me as if we would never see one another again'.
Now... There's another limit on the usage of 'tell'. We only use 'tell' to mean instruct
or inform. 'I told him to wait for me on the platform'... that's an instruction. "My
father used to tell me wonderful stories" - informing me.
'Say' can be used for any kind of talking. So here are three sentences where you
could not use 'tell':
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Maureen said 'What's the matter?'
We use 'tell' without a personal object in a few expressions, that are kind of fixed
expressions like tell the truth, tell the time and tell the difference.
And we use 'say' before words like a word, a name, or a sentence. An example would
be: 'Don't say a word.'
That's 'tell' and 'say'. You also asked about 'speak'. We use 'speak' to mean 'talk
formally', and when we do use 'speak', we use the word 'to' if there's a personal
object. So you could say, 'I spoke to him severely' or 'She spoke to our teachers'
association last year'.
And of course we use it when we're talking about people's language ability: 'Do you
speak English?' And you do, and I hope this will help you be happier with the way
you speak it.
'And if the experience of earlier Asian economic miracles like Japan and South Korea
is anything to go by, China should carry on growing at this hectic pace for another
twenty or thirty years.'
Another example of 'is anything to go by' could be: you're standing on a station
platform, you're looking at your watch, the train is late, you go up to a guard and
say: 'When is the next train to London?' And the guard might say, 'Well, if previous
trains are anything to go by, it will be half an hour late', meaning that his previous
experience of the trains running late is about thirty minutes.
Another example would be if, perhaps, we invited a well-known pop star onto our
programme, Britney Spears, for example and we said, 'If we had Britney Spears on
the programme, do you think we would get lots more listeners' letters asking us
questions?' And our producer might say, 'Well, if last week's programme with Phil
Collins is anything to go by, yes we would.'
So in his experience in something similar is anything to go by. So it begins with if: 'if
x is anything to go by then... something else.' So remember how to construct that:
it's 'if' and 'is anything to go by', 'then', and then the concluding sentence.
To / For
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Hi Samantha, my name is Paulo. I like to study English and my question is about the
use of the prepositions to and for in some special cases. As I wrote to you, I know
that I must say Happy birthday to you and That’s a gift for you. But I just don’t know
the reason I can say, for example, That’s a gift for you. I would like some guidelines
to help me with this matter. Thank you Samantha.
I am always confused when to use to or for. For example, should I say an efficient
method to solve my problem or an efficient method for solving my problem? Why,
according to one American, does it sound natural to hear Let's go out for lunch?
Shouldn't to be used with go when followed by a verb? Please enlighten me on this
topic. Yours sincerely, Renato
Hi Paulo and thanks for your question. And, as well as answering your question, I’m
going to answer a similar one at the same time from Renato.
And the use of preposition is a topic that worries many of my students – I know
because I’m often asked for advice about which preposition to use where, especially
around the time that assignments are due in!
I do think that prepositions are one of the most difficult areas of English to master,
because there are so many prepositions and so many different combinations of verb
and preposition that have to be memorised individually.
But let’s begin with your first example Paulo, when we say Happy Birthday. And
when we use Happy Birthday we’re using a set expression or a greeting like Happy
Christmas, Happy New Year or Congratulations, and if you wanted to follow this
expression with a pronoun, you would have to use the preposition to with it - Happy
Christmas to you!, Happy Birthday to you! – although it might be more common
simply to use the greeting without a pronoun in speech.
In your second example Paulo, for is followed by a pronoun, you, and functions as a
preposition showing the intended recipient:
So now to answer Renato’s question. In the examples you give, Renato, I’d say that
the first example, with the infinitive verb, is the better choice. You’ve only given me
part of the sentence – an efficient method to solve my problem – but the phrase
suggests an outcome or the solution to a problem. Let’s put this into a complete
sentence by adding a verb:
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In this case, the second verb always appears in the infinitive form because these are
all examples of the infinitive showing purpose:
Finally, to look at the last example, if I said Shall we go out to eat lunch? the verb go
out would be followed by a verb, wouldn’t it? However, in your own example, Renato
– Let’s go out for lunch – the verb is followed by a noun (lunch), so we have to use
the preposition for in this expression!
Well Paulo, thanks for your question and I hope that both the answers will be useful
to you.
I always confuse to be used to and used to, especially the meaning of them. Please
kindly show me what the differences are.
When we use used to, we are talking about something which happened regularly or
was true at an earlier stage in our lives but which is now over.
Thus, it can only be used in the past tense. If we want to talk about present habits or
states, we simply use the present simple tense.
With the negative we often say never used to in preference to didn't use to or
used not to - in an informal register. Study the following examples:
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• 'Do you remember? There used to be fields of clover where those houses are
now.'
• 'I never used to smoke, but now I smoke twenty a day.'
• 'You used to play chess with your friends, but nowadays you play chess
with your computer.'
• 'I used to buy really expensive make-up, but that was when I was working
full-time.'
To make questions, we use the normal auxiliary did. Note that used to cannot be
used in question tag form. Note also the possible/probable replies to used to
questions.
• 'Did you use to go ice-skating when you were young?' 'No, I never did.'
• 'Didn't you use to ring the school to say you were ill and then play poker with
Sam?' 'I sometimes did, yeah!'
• 'You used to do ballet in the church hall, didn't you?' 'Yes, I did. Every
Saturday between the ages of nine and twelve.'
• 'These are very high heels, I know, but I'm sure you'll get used to (wearing)
them.'
• 'I wasn't used to living in such a small flat and I found it really hard at first.'
• 'I'm used to all the noise now, but I'd always lived in the country before, you
see, where it is very quiet.'
• 'I never got used to shaking hands with people all the time when I lived
there. It's just not the custom in our country.'
• 'Are you getting used to the accent now? It's very different from standard
English, isn't it?
Read through them again using these replacement verbs. So, just to recap and
confirm:
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verbs with adverbial particles
What are the differences between pop into and pop over? And how about pop out?
Can we say pop out somewhere?
I would be most grateful if you could tell me which sentences in those settings (along
with prepositions) are most common.
Informally, we would be more likely to say and write the first of these two
possibilities, whereas in more formal English we might write the second of these two:
• Alternative transport was laid on for all employees throughout the train
drivers’ strike.
• Alternative transport was provided for all employees throughout the train
drivers’ strike.
The problem with phrasal verbs (verb plus preposition or verb plus adverbial particle)
is that the meaning of the two-word (or sometimes three-word) verb is very different
from the meaning of the two parts taken separately.
Let’s have a look at how pop is used with either particles or prepositions:
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pop into pop in pop out pop off
pop over pop round pop down pop up
In all of these examples with pop, Amin, all the prepositions function as adverbial
particles, not as prepositions with objects except for:
They are all similar in meaning with the adverbial particle indicating direction, except
for pop off which has a more distinctive meaning and is not quite so common.
• My new neighbours across the road had just moved in so I popped over to
see them.
• I was passing by, noticed the light was on, so thought I would just pop in for
a chat.
• I’m going to pop out to the shops for ten minutes. Don’t answer the door if
anyone calls.
• My friend, Dora, lives in the flat above me. So she often pops down if she
needs anything, or I might pop up to see her if I’m feeling lonely.
• I hadn’t seen him for years. Then he just popped up one day at the club we
used to belong to.
• I may be 85 and I may have to use a stick to get around, but I’ve no
intention of popping off yet.
In the first five examples above, we might define pop + particle as appearing or
disappearing (popping out) briefly and casually. In the sixth example it means
appearing unexpectedly. And in the final example it is a euphemism for dying.
Of course, we can also use pop in its original literal sense, meaning to burst open
with a short sharpish sound.
• He had shaken the champagne bottle and the cork popped out before he
was ready to pour.
When you are learning phrasal verbs, it is safest to assume that for each one each
particle introduces a different meaning and sometimes more than one meaning!
Let’s compare the following pairs. Are they similar or different in meaning?
• Could you give me a lift in your car and drop me off at the station? (= let me
get out)
• The lecture was so boring that I dropped off half way through. (= fell into a
light sleep)
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• Drop by any time you’re passing. You don’t need to phone first. (= pay a
casual visit)
• He dropped out after a term - he just wasn’t prepared to study. (= left
college early)
• I opened the car door carelessly and my purse dropped out. (= fell out)
• I dropped over to see her because I knew she wasn’t feeling well. (paid a
casual call).
Learning phrasal verbs is probably a lifetime’s work and if you want to do it well, it’s
probably worth getting hold of (= obtaining) or lashing out on (= spending a
substantial sum of money on) a dictionary of current idiomatic English which pays
attention to verbs with prepositions and particles. I emphasise the word ‘current’ as
idioms come into and go out of fashion.
The reward is that if you can use them appropriately in context, they are
distinguishing marks of a native-like command of English.
wedding or marriage?
Could you please explain to me the difference between wedding and marriage?
wedding / wed
There are a number of other wedding compounds that are associated with wedding
day:
• The newlyweds had told everybody that they wanted no wedding presents
as they were emigrating to Australia.
• The predominant colour at Sophie's wedding was creamy white. Her
wedding dress was this colour and the icing on the three-tier wedding
cake was this colour too.
• Is it true that in Britain you wear your wedding ring on the third finger of
your left hand?
• A silver wedding is celebrated after 25 years of marriage and a golden
wedding after 50 years.
If you wed someone, you marry them, but wed is not used very much nowadays as
a verb as it is rather old-fashioned. It can sound quite effective however, because it
is unusual. Sometimes it has a poetic ring to it:
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marriage / marry / get married
Marriage describes the relationship between husband and wife or the state of being
married:
If you marry someone, that person becomes your husband or wife and we use the
verb marry in preference to wed normally.
However, even more usual than marry is get married. This use of get with a past
participle is a very common structure in contemporary English and is used across a
range of common expressions. It has the same sort of force as reflexive verbs have
in other languages. Thus in English we would say: Don't get lost! NOT Don't lose
yourselves! Consider the following:
• I married the man next door / I got married to the man next door.
• They didn't get dressed until two o'clock in the afternoon.
• I didn't bother to get washed as I knew I would be working on the farm.
• Remember, it's a big dark wood. Be careful not to get lost.
• We had known each other for fifteen years before we got engaged.
• I never get invited to Sarah's parties.
• We got married on 10 June, but by the beginning of the autumn both of us
knew that the marriage would not last and that sooner or later we would have
to get a divorce / get divorced.
The first difference is in the grammatical structures that are associated with these
two verbs.
The verb 'await' must have an object - for example, 'I am awaiting your answer'. And
the object of 'await' is normally inanimate, not a person, and often abstract. So you
can't say, 'John was awaiting me'.
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The verb 'wait' can come in different structures. Firstly, you can just use 'wait' on its
own: 'We have been waiting and waiting and waiting and nobody has come to talk to
us.'
Another structure that is very common is to use 'wait' with another verb - for
example, 'I waited in line to go into the theatre.'
Very often, with 'wait', you mention the length of time that you have been waiting -
for example, 'I have been waiting here for at least half an hour.'
Finally, speakers often mention what or who they have been waiting for - so, if a
friend was really late you could say, 'I have been waiting for you for two hours!'
The other difference between the two verbs, 'wait' and 'await', is the level of
formality. 'Await' is more formal than 'wait' - it would be used in formal letters, for
example.
If you want a tip about using these two verbs, I would suggest that you should use
'wait for'; use 'await' only in cases where you are absolutely sure that you have
heard good users of the language using it, and in cases where things are quite
formal.
Well-off relates mainly to money matters. If you are well-off, you may not be rich
exactly, but you have enough money to live well and comfortably:
By central European standards they are quite well-off They have their own flat and
drive new cars.
well-off for
However, if you say you are well-off for something, this means that there are many
of them:
We’re well-off for coffee shops in this town. There’s one at every corner in the High
Street.
better-off
The comparative form of this adjective is better-off which is used to talk about the
varying degrees of wealth different people have:
We’re not as well-off as the Jones’s. They’re definitely better-off than we are. Just
look at the way they dress!
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If you’ve got heavy bags to carry, you’d be better-off taking a taxi.
It says on the sign that the motorway ahead is blocked. You’ll be better-off if you
leave the motorway at this junction which is coming up now.
the better-off
The rich and the poor live side-by-side in this part of town.
The better-off should pay a higher rate of income tax, while those who are worst-off
should pay no tax at all.
Prefer and would rather can be used interchangeably. As you indicate, Omar,
when we are talking about general preferences, prefer is followed by verb-ing,
thus:
'd rather
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• Would you like to go out for dinner tonight? ~ No, I think I'd rather eat at
home / I'd prefer to eat at home.
• Would you rather drink beer or wine with the curry ~ I'd rather drink beer.
What about you?
• They'd rather have the strawberries by themselves, but I'd prefer to have
them with cream.
Note that would rather is followed by a bare infinitive without to, whereas prefer
requires to + infinitive. Would rather (but not would prefer to) is also followed by
a past tense when we want to involve other people in the action, even though it has
a present or future meaning. Study the following:
• Shall we go out for dinner tonight? ~ No, I'd rather we ate at home, if you
don't mind.
• Shall I write to Harry and tell him that we've sold the car? ~ I'd rather you
didn't.
• My mother would rather we caught the bus, rather than walk home after the
party.
Rather than means instead of and can be used in combination with would prefer
to and would rather. Study the following and note the intricacies of the verb forms:
• Rather than lose precious sleep discussing it now, I think we should go to bed
and talk about it in the morning.
• My mother would prefer us to email each other once a week, rather than
spend half an hour on the phone every night.
• My mother would rather we emailed each other once a week instead of
spending half an hour on the phone every night. In fact, she insists on it. So
we'd better do that, I suppose.
'd better
Note that 'd better, which is similar structurally to 'd rather, is used to suggest
necessary action. In this case however, 'd is the abbreviated form of had, not
would. Like 'd rather, 'd better is followed by the bare infinitive without to. Study
the following:
• We'd better not be late for the Ambasador's party. It would be unforgivable to
arrive late.
• You'd better phone him and tell him that you're not going.
• They'd better buy me a Christmas present or I shall never forgive them.
Note that it is sometimes slightly threatening in tone, as in the last example. Had
better is always more urgent than should or ought to and has the same force as I
would advise you strongly to…. or We must / we mustn't….
injure/wound/hurt/harm/damage as verbs/adjectives/nouns
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Agustin from Spain writes:
I would be very grateful if you could explain the difference between injure, wound,
hurt, harm, damage and their associated adjectives: injured, wounded, hurt,
harmed and damaged. Their meanings are so close that I have difficulty
differentiating them.
You are quite right, Agostin. These verbs and related nouns and adjectives are quite
close in meaning and use, but there are a number of distinguishing characteristics.
hurt (verb)
If part of your body hurts, you feel pain there. If you hurt someone, you cause
them to feel pain. Note that verbs that refer to physical feelings (hurt, ache, etc)
can often be used in simple or progressive tenses with no difference in meaning:
• Have you been knocked over? Tell me where it hurts / it's hurting. ~ My
arm hurts.
• You're hurting my arm. Ouch! Don't touch me. That hurts!
You can also hurt someone's feelings, and cause them to feel emotional pain:
• I think she's going to be hurt. I don't think she'll ever fall in love again.
• What hurt me most was the betrayal. How could he behave like that?
hurt (noun/adjective)
• The hurt that she felt was deep and would only be softened with the passing
of time.
• They were suffering from shock but did not seem to be otherwise hurt.
injure (verb)
In the sentence describing people suffering from shock above, hurt could be
replaced by injured. If you injure somebody, you cause physical damage to part of
their body usually the result of an accident or through fighting:
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wound (verb)
If you wound somebody, you inflict physical damage on part of their body,
especially a cut or a hole in their flesh caused by a gun, a knife or some other
weapon, often in battle.
• There was no escape. They were mortally wounded by the enemy fire.
• The driver of the Red-Cross ambulance was wounded by the shrapnel.
• The open wound really needed stitches and took a long time to heal.
• The four wounded men were taken to the field hospital in the back of the
Jeep.
We also have the expressions: to rub salt into the wound, i.e. to make an
unpleasant situation even worse and to lick one's wounds, i.e. to slowly recover
after being defeated or made to feel ashamed or unhappy:
• I didn't want to rub salt into the wound so decided not to mention Bob's
infidelity.
• The British team could only retire and lick their wounds after such a
comprehensive defeat on Spanish soil.
damage (verb)
It is things that are damaged, not people. Damage is the physical harm that is
caused to an object. More abstract qualities, such as reputations and the economy
can also be damaged. Compare the following:
• The car was so badly damaged in the accident that it was barely worth
repairing.
• When he got home, he discovered that the vase he had bought had been
damaged.
• If he continues drinking like that, his reputation as a defence lawyer will be
damaged.
• High inflation was damaging the country's economy.
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• It was a huge bomb and the damage caused to the shopping precinct was
quite extensive.
We also have the informal expression: What's the damage? meaning 'What is the
damage to my purse or my pocket?' in other words: What do I owe you in payment
for this service or these goods?:
• Thanks very much for the work you have done on those curtains. What's the
damage?
harm (verb)
harm (noun)
We have a number of expressions with the noun harm which are confusingly similar:
will come to no harm, it will do no harm to…, there's no harm in…, no harm
done:
• Will my dog be all right with you? ~ He'll be fine. He'll come to no harm in
my garden.
• It will do / can do no harm to remind him to take the medication before he
goes to bed.
• She might not agree, but there's no harm in asking her to postpone the
meeting.
• I'm sorry to crash into you like that! Are you all right? ~ I'm fine. No harm
done!
Harmful and harmless describe something that has or does not have a bad effect
on something else:
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