All and Every
All and every can have the same meaning but all is
used with a plural noun as in All
towns have a post office, and every is used with a singular noun as in Every
town has a post office. Similarly , in the negative, " not all" is
used with a plural noun and "not every" with a singular noun ,as in Not
all towns have/ Not every town has a hospital.
Allow and let
Allow is more formal than let. Allow is used with
an object and an infinitive verb with "to".
Allow mike go home.
Let is used with an object and an infinitive verb
without "to".
Let mike go home.
Let has no passive form. Use allow as “in be
allowed to go home”.
Permit is more formal than allow.
Also, As well and too
Also is placed near the verb as in I
would also like to go. As well and too can be placed at the end of a clause as
in I would like to go on a trip to India as well/too.
Also is preferred when referring to the verb, as
in I can also swim (in addition to doing other
activities) and "too" is preferred when referring to the subject, as
in I, too, can swim (in addition to other
people). Also, as well and too cannot be used in negative sentences.
In and At
In is used for large or important places (e.g. A
country and city) and for
Structures, objects, situations etc that have, or
seem to have length, depth and height (e.g. buildings, vehicles,
containers, books, a group of people). At is only possible when referring
to a place (esp a building ) when being physically inside is not absolutely
necessary, as in at the station / library.
Note also that "at school" can mean
being a pupil. As in My son's still at school ,
as well as referring to where a person is, as in She’ll
be at work until 6 o’clock and
"in work" means employed as in She
hasn’t been in work for months.
Murder and kill
Murder is used when a person's death is planned
and caused by another person.
She was murdered by her husband.
He was killed in a car accident.
Persons and people
Persons is the standard plural of person but is
only used in formal situations, as inPersons under 16 may not enter. In
usual contexts use people as in Six
people came.
Say and Tell
Say is almost always followed by an object that is
not a person.
We say something.
Tell is usually followed by an object that is a
person.
We tell someone something.
Ago and Before
Ago is used when the point of reference is the
present. It means 'before now".
Before is used when the point of reference is not
the present. It means "before then", "earlier".
I started working for this firm three years ago.
Last summer, I finally left the firm that I had
joined eighteen years before. (Swan, 1980: 32)
Beautiful and Pretty
Beautiful is the opposite of ugly. Anything that
you find very pleasing. Attractive or desirable can be called beautiful.
Beautiful is used to describe so many things that it may not mean much any
more.
Pretty describes those things that are pleasant
and nice to look at but are not grand enough or important enough to called
beautiful. (Schiller et al, 1969: 59) Beautiful when describing people,
beautiful and pretty are generally used of women and children and handsome of
men. They all relate to the pleasing appearance of face. Beautiful is a serious
and approving description, suggesting elegance and perfection.
Pretty may suggest a delicate feminine appearance
and can be used disapprovingly of men. Handsome may be applied to women and
suggest dignity and maturity. Good looking and attractive are used of both men
and women.
Begin and Start
Begin and start have almost the same meaning. You
can use either word in almost every case, but start is better when you making
the first actual move. Begin can mean set about to do something.
Start means change from being still to moving. It
also means come into being. When you start walking, you take the first step.
In many cases, begin and start can be used with no
real difference. In informal style, start is more common than begin. Start is
used in same cases where begin is not possible.
1. "To start a
journey".
I think we ought to start at six, while the roads
are still clear.
"To start working".(for machines)
The car wont start.
2. "To make
(machines) start.
How do you start the washing machine? (Swan,
1980,103)
Big
when something is called big, it may be big in
size or in importance. A big dog can jump over a fence, but a little dog can't.
Big is a word that can be used to describe almost anything that is bigger than
something else.
Big and Large
Big and large are used when talking about physical
size, extent, capacity or number. Big is more informal. Large is not normally
used to describe people. Her husband is a very big man. Great is mostly used
when talking (usually approvingly) a bout important, quality, ability or
extent. Large and great are very similar in meaning when used with amount,
quantity and number.
Large is the opposite of little or small. Large
means bigger in size or amount than other things like it. Like the word big,
the word large is used for many things of different sizes, and you cant really
tell what a person means when he calls something large unless he is measuring
its size against something else like it.
Big and Large
When we talk about size, we use both big and large.
There is a difference of style, big is a more conversational word, large is a
little more formal.
Close and Shut
Close is more common than shut to talk about slow
gradual movements, like flowers closing at night.
Close is also used more often in a formal o solemn
style; shut is more common when we are taking roughly or rudely.
He sank back on the pillow and closed his eyes for
the last time.
Close and Shut
Close means the same as shut and is more formal.
Shut/close the door.
When referring to the opening hours of public
pleas both shut and close are used. Note close in the following example:
Museums are closed to the public on Monday.
Close can mean "terminate" and
"Make smaller". It is also used of road, railway, etc.
They've closed the road because of an accident.
Every and Each
Every and each are generally used as
determiners before singular countable nouns . Each is used when the items in a
group ( of two or more ) are considered individually . Every indicates that all
the items in a group ( of three or more ) are being regarded as members of that
group .It can be modified by some adverbs : Every / Nearly .Each on of and
every one of comes before plural nouns or pronouns , but the verb is
still singular .
Each of the houses is slightly different .
Each can function as a pronoun on its own .
I asked all the children and each told a different
story .
It can also follow a plural subject or an indirect
object with a plural verb .
We each have a different point of view. ( Oxford
Dictionary , 1989 )
Each is thus more individual and specific but
Every is the emphatic word .
Excuse me and Pardon me
We say Excuse me to someone if we want to get his
or her attention or before we do something that might disturb him or her. We
say sorry or (formally) I bag your pardon when we need to apologize for
something.
In US
English pardon me and Excuse me are used for apologize. We say pardon? When we
didn't hear what someone said and want them to repeat it. In this case sorry?
Is also used in British English and Excuse me? or pardon me? In US English.
Fast, Quick and Rapid
Fast (adj) moving or doing quickly, rapid; a fast
car, horse, runner, ie one that can move at high speed. b) happening quickly.
quick: a) (capable of) moving fast or doing sth in
a short time. A quick worker/ reader q quick to respond, react, learn b) done
in a shot time.
have a quick meal.
rapid: a) moving r acting with great sped; fast:
Ask several questions in rapid succession.
b) happening in a short time, prompt.
Fast (adj) is the opposite of slow. As an
adjective, fast means moving, happening, or action with speed or able to move
from.
rapid: means fast in movement.
quick: means fast in learning or
understanding or doing something. He gave a quick answer to the question.
Fast (adv Fast tells how someone moves or acts or
how something happens or is done. Synonyms for the adverb fast have the same
meanings as the synonyms for the adjective fast.
Finish and End
End as a verb, means stop doing something or come
to the part of something. It is the opposite of begin and start. Finish and
Complete mean end naturally what you started to do. You finish something when
you have done everything that is necessary to end it.
End (N) is the last point to which something can
go. It can mean the last part of something. End is the opposite of beginning.
The finish is the end of something that has been started or begun. Finish is
usually used for the end of something that has been started or begun. Finish is
usually used for the end of a race or fight.
Game and play
Game (N) form of play or sport with rules. Play
(N) activity done for amusement, esp children, recreation.
Hard and Difficult
Difficult are problems that must be given much
thought before can be solved. You might use difficult when you talk of problem
or task that makes you use your brain or come to some decision.
Hard is the opposite of easy. It usually describes
something that takes strenuous exercise or action or work. You may not have to
think to do something hard. You do have to think to do something difficult. If
something is hard to do, It is not impossible to do, but it will take a lot of
work and strength and may be a lot of time. It’s hard to move a piano, but it’s
difficult to play it.
House and Home
A house is any building use for dwelling in, and
home is the particular house in which one is living. “Home” may also denote
one’s own country. When an Englishman say, “I am going home this summer"
he means going to England.
Little and Small
Small refers to size. It is the opposite of big or
large. Little ( as an adjective) is generally used to express some emotion, as
well as the idea of smallness. This can be for example, attention, amusement,
disgust, contempt. Little is mostly used in attributive position. (before a
noun).
Little is the opposite of big or large. Little
means less than other things in value or size.
You can use small and tiny instead of little when
you are talking about the size of some object. You might speak of a small child
or a tiny child.
You wouldn’t use small or tiny if you were talking
about the amount of something. A little candy usually means a few pieces of
candy. A small or tiny candy would mean one piece that was very little.
Meet and Visit
Meet: a) come face to face with (sb) ; come
together: b) come together formally for discussion.
Visit: a) go or come to see ( a person, place,
etc) either socially on business or for some other purpose. B) to or come to
see ( a place, an institution, etc) in order to make an official examination or
check.
Mr and Sir
Mr 1) title that comes before the ( first name and
the) surname of a man. Mister:
Mr (John) Brown. Mr and Mrs Brown. 2 (fm1) title
for certain men in official position: Mr chairman. ( esp US) Mr
president.
Sir: 1a) used as a polite way of addressing a man.
Yes, sir. b) used as a rorm at address by school children to a male teacher 2.
sir ( used at the beginning of a formal letter): Dear sir 3. sir/ s6(r)/(title
used before the first name of knight or baronet. Sir”Edwad”. Sir “John Jackson”
See, Look and Watch
See : means take in the sight of something. You
see a movie when you are looking at one thing.
Look or look at: means take in or understand
something by using the eyes. To look you focus your at: means take in or
understand something by using the eyes. To look you focus your eyes on
something. She looked at the sky and saw millions of stars.
Watch: means look at or observe for a long time in
order to follow the movement of something in order to be ready for something.
Watch can mean look for something or someone. Watch also means keep a close eye
on something or someone.
See, Look and Watch
See is used we just want to say that visual
impressions come to our eyes. Seeing is not always deliberate. It may be
accidental. You can see things without thinking about them and even without
realizing that you are seeing them.
Look (at): suggests concern… Intention; if we
look, we are pay attention or trying to see what is there.
Watch is like look, but suggests that something is
happening or going to happen.
We usually use see to talk about public
performance of plays and films. “Did you watch the Avengers last night” ( A TV
serials) Have you seen “last Tango in Paris”?
( A film) We saw an extraordinary production of “Hamlet” last summer.
Say, Call, Talk, Speak and Tell
Say: is used so often that it has become one of
the most tired words in our language. When you say something, you are
expressing a thought by means of spoken words.
Call: means say loudly. Call means a sound with
your voice in order to get someone attention.
Talk: means express a thought or share ideas with
some in by using your voice and forming words. Talk usually suggests that you
say words to someone who listens to you and then replies. “People talk to each
other” But it is possible to talk to someone or to something that does not
listen or reply. “little girls often talk to their dolls”
Speak: means say words whether you are talking to
someone or not. Some people speak several languages.
Tell: usually means give information to someone by
speaking. You could tell your brother a bedtime story.
Speak and Talk
Speak is more formal, not so conversational. (
just as a speech is more formal than talk)
Talk usually suggests the idea of a conversations
exchange. Speak can be used of language by just one person. Speak ( and not
usually talk) is used to refer to knowledge of language and usually also to the
use of language.
”He speaks three languages fluently”
Talk ( and not usually speak ) is used in
expressions like nonsense, Talk rubbish
Street and Avenue
Street: ( abbr St) public road in a city, town or
village with houses and buildings on one side or both sides.
Avenue 1) wide road or path, often lined with
trees, esp one that leads to a large house.
2) ( abbr Ave) wide street lined with trees or tall
buildings.
In a town, street is the most general word for a
road lined with buildings. In British English street is not used for roads
outside towns but street in towns may have the word Road in their names.
An Alley or Lane is a narrow street between
buildings.
An Avenue is usually a wide street of
houses, often in the suburbs and lined with trees. ( In US cities avenue often
run at right angles to street). Roads
(US high ways) connect towns and villages.
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