Lesson 308--UN vs. Dis

The prefixes un and dis have similar meanings, but sometimes they can both be used as a prefix for the same base word, but with different meanings.

unassembled--it is not together

disassemble--take it apart

uninterested--not be interested

disinterested--have no interest (often used in legal cases)

discoloured--wrongly coloured

uncoloured--having no colour

disable--deprive of some ability

unable--not having the ability

disprove--show that it is wrong

unproven--has not been proven, though it might be

Lesson 243--Like as a Verb and Preposition

 

 

Most of my students are very good at using like as a verb. 

example:          I like chocolate.

                        I liked chocolate when I was a child.

                        I've never liked Jazz music.

However, like is also a preposition.  In the following examples notice that like is a preposition following other verbs.

He looks like a fool.

Maria works like a dog.

Tim and Nancy feel like having hot chocolate.

The party guests were dressed like characters from the Lord of the Rings.

Lesson 209--Sometime vs Some Time

 

 

some time means quite a bit of time.

examples:        It will take some time to fix your car.

                        Sana spent some time with Rachel.

sometime means some unclear, indefinite time in the future.

examples:        I will see him sometime next week.

                        We will eat dinner sometime later.

Lesson 204--be after (Phrasal and no Phrasal meanings)

Be after

 

She's after the top job in Ontario.

This is a confusing phrasal verb because it has a non phrasal verb meaning, and a phrasal verb meaning. 

Non phrasal verb meaning = next, following

The letter b is after the letter a.

The credits are after the movie.

First John, then Mike.  Tom is after both of them.

Phrasal verb meaning = chasing, trying to acquire

The police are after Yannick because he stole some cigarettes.

Amanda is after a new job.

Paul is always after a good deal on cars.

Lesson 196--Hard English

 

I have a lot of sympathy for my students.  Whether they complain about it or not, English can be confusing.  Similar combinations of words often mean very different (or just a little different) things.  Here are some useful examples of that.

Working hard = the person is putting a lot of effort into something.

Maria is working hard on her essay.

Hard at work = the person is quite busy and probably should be disturbed.

Paul is hard at work and can't come to the phone.

Hardly working = the person is doing almost nothing.

Timothy is hardly working since he had the accident at work.

Hard work = this describes the work as being difficult, but not the person.

For Grace, taking care of children was hard work.  She loved it, but it was really hard work.

Lesson 73--Vocabulary

Capable

an adjective used to describe what you can do.

i.e.       I am capable of eating a whole pizza.

            He was capable of holding his breath for 3 minutes.

            They aren't capable of murder

            He is a very capable person.

word family

adjective          incapable

adverb             capably/incapably

noun                capability/incapability

typical confusion with capacity (the capacity of the jar is 1L)

Lesson 71--Confusing Words--economic vs. economical

 

 

Economic refers to the science of economics, or to the economy of a country.

i.e.       I study economics.

            We have a lot of economic issues to deal with.

Economical means that you are not wasting money.

i.e.       My car is very economical on gas.

            To save money for my trip, I have to be very economical.