Dunno is used in written English to represent an informal way of saying ‘don’t know‘. Examples: I dunno, maybe he was just trying to ensure the job was well done. His friend asked, “What happened?” to which Mr Kennedy replied “dunno, must have been [too many] and run out of air”. Instead of talking about, ohhh, I dunno, fixing our damaged public health infrastructure, or putting people back to work, Trump produced a veritable cornucopia of […]
Continue ReadingIDIOMS: Donkey’s years
Years and years. A very long time. And that’s basically it! It is believed that this expression originated from “donkey’s ears” in the early 20th century and referred to the considerable length of the animal’s ears, on top of that donkeys are believed to live a long time. Ears rhymes with years and there you […]
Continue Reading“interested” vs. “interesting”
Try and guess if these two sentences mean the same. “You look so interested.” “You look so interesting.” They’re not. interested (adj.) – wanting to give attention to something or someone interesting (adj.) – keeps your interest Examples: Many men are interested in getting to know Paula. You go ahead with you plan; I’m not interested. Many men find Paula interesting, so they try […]
Continue ReadingYou’re Very Fierce
I remember a long time ago, in secondary school, I constructed the following sentence: My teacher is very fierce. My teacher corrected me and said, it should be “strict” instead of “fierce“. Is that so? At that time, I accepted her explanation as she’s more learned than I was. Today, I believe there is a […]
Continue Reading“learned” vs. “learnt”
Is there a difference? Yes and No. learn (v.) learned (adj.) If the word “learn” is used as a verb, then there is no difference at all in the meaning and usage of the words “learned” and “learnt“ in its past form. I honestly don’t know why the spelling is inconsistent. It’s not really true to say that one […]
Continue Reading“inspiration” vs. “aspiration”
“Inspiration” comes from the word “inspire“, while “aspiration” comes from the word “aspire“. inspiration (n.) – a feeling of enthusiasm that gives you idea(s) to do something aspiration (n.) – desire to achieve something Examples: The recent speech was an inspiration to all of us to strive and work harder. My inspiration to be successful comes from failures of renown figures. […]
Continue ReadingI Founded It!
We know that the past participle of “find” is “found“. For instance: What did you find in the cave? I found some treasures there. Sometimes the word “founded” is used in a sentence but it gives an entirely different meaning. For instance: The organisation was founded by a prominent Chinese businessman. (√) Take note that “founded” has nothing to do with the […]
Continue Reading“affect” vs. “effect”
A regular reader of my blog, Bananaz, asked me to blog about the difference between “affect” and “effect“. I’ve heard politicians pronounce the words wrongly; they’re not interchangeable. affect (v.) – to influence or cause something to change effect (n.)* – the result of a particular action or event Examples: (a) affect The flu has affected my concentration at […]
Continue ReadingRaise up
You raise me up, so I can stand on mountains;You raise me up, to walk on stormy seas;I am strong, when I am on your shoulders;You raise me up: To more than I can be. Familiar? Yup, this is an extract from the song, “You Raise Me Up“, sung by Josh Groban. This post does […]
Continue ReadingLet’s Open
“Open” and “close” are used very often, but have you been using them correctly? I’m sure at one point or another, we have heard someone say the following: Open your shoes. Close the tap. In the sentences above, both words are incorrectly used although the meaning is understood – well, at least WE understand them. Here’s how […]
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