Problems and issues in context
A broken lift and a meeting agenda show when a difficulty is a problem, when a topic is an issue, and where the words overlap.
Read and practiseAdventure journal
English: Choosing between similar words
English: Distinguish easily confused meanings and constructions with contrasting contexts, clear boundaries and explained answers.
Adventure journal
English: Choosing between similar words
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Customer and client in context
A purchase at a shop and a meeting with an adviser show how English names people who buy goods or receive services.
Read and practiseWork and career: activity or professional path
Tasks to be done and a professional path over many years are different ideas. Compare their meanings and use them in context.
Read and practiseMeeting or appointment: choosing the right word
A team discussion and a dentist visit call for different words, even though both are arranged for a particular time.
Read and practiseNews of an event or a message from a person
A festival in the news and an email from a cousin show two different ways to receive information.
Read and practiseAttendance and assistance in English
A concert audience and a helpful volunteer illustrate the difference between being present and giving help.
Read and practisePrevent and avoid: stopping or staying away
A lock stopping theft and a traveller avoiding a crowd show two distinct ways of dealing with unwanted things.
Read and practisePermission with allow and let
Visitors taking photos and a neighbour lending a ladder show how two permission verbs use different patterns.
Read and practiseSupplying and offering in English
A hotel supplies towels while a neighbour offers tomatoes: see how giving and proposing differ in English.
Read and practiseReaching and achieving: common objects
A station, a temperature and an aim reveal how English describes arriving at a point or accomplishing something.
Read and practiseJobs and tasks: positions and assignments
A bakery position, a painted fence and a checklist show how a job can contain several specific tasks.
Read and practiseOrdinary and usual: different kinds of normal
A plain stone and a familiar bus illustrate the difference between being unremarkable and happening regularly.
Read and practiseAdapting and adopting: change or take up
A recipe changed for a smaller oven and a new policy taken up by a school show two different actions.
Read and practiseDisapproval and analysis: criticize or critique
A complaint about a decision and a careful analysis of a design illustrate overlapping uses of two English verbs.
Read and practiseBelief and action: convincing and persuading
Evidence can change a belief, while an appeal may lead someone to act; explore the overlapping verbs and their patterns.
Read and practiseEstimating risk and judging value in English
A flood risk and a proposal judged against criteria show common emphases of two closely related English verbs.
Read and practiseAmount and number: choosing by noun
Rain and visitors reveal how the type of noun guides the choice between two common quantity expressions.
Read and practiseFewer vs less: what is the difference?
Count books and measure sugar: the choice changes with the noun, while totals of time or money often take less.
Read and practiseLater or latter: time and order
A delayed train and two choices show how a word for subsequent time differs from one for the second item mentioned.
Read and practiseHistoric and historical: significance and the past
A landmark victory and an archive of records show the difference between historical importance and a connection to the past.
Read and practiseClassic examples and classical arts
A familiar mistake, a vintage car and a Mozart sonata show how these two adjectives point to different qualities.
Read and practiseCredible and creditable: belief or praise?
A reliable account and a praiseworthy effort call for different adjectives, even when the words look almost alike.
Read and practiseEfficiency and results in English
A quicker route and a successful campaign show how saving resources differs from achieving a goal.
Read and practiseAssume and presume: degrees of certainty
An unchecked opening time and an office with its lights off show how two verbs express beliefs with different grounds.
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