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Can the words "although" and "but" be used interchangeably?
"Although" and "but" can be used interchangeably as they both aim to connect two ideas inside the same sentence.
“But” can only be used in the middle of a sentence whereas "although" can be used either at the beginning or in the middle of a sentence.
Here are some examples:
"She likes him but doesn't want to get married."
"Although they were hungry, they did not eat."
"They did not eat although they were hungry."
Source: Edited from the english@work e-newsletter by 938LIVE. Subscribe to the english@work newsletter.
Is there any difference between these words - "learnt" and "learned"? When do we use each of them?
"Learnt" is the past tense of "learn" and is used as a verb.
For example, "She only learnt about the news yesterday."
As for "learned", it is used as an adjective to refer to someone who has much knowledge.
For example, "We consulted the learned professors."
Source: Edited from the english@work e-newsletter by 938LIVE. Subscribe to the english@work newsletter.
I have seen people writing "Specially for you" but lately I have also read "Especially for you". Is the latter grammatically correct?
If something is bought only for someone for a specific purpose – you can label it “specially for you”.
“Especially” means “much more than usually or normally”.
For example, “He tried to appear especially cheerful for her sake.” The smiles were especially for her.
Source: Edited from "English As It is Broken" on STOMP. Visit www.stomp.com.sg for more.
"You are to bring along your student pass to the camp."
"You are to take your student pass to the camp."
Do these two sentences have the same meaning? Can the words "bring" and "take" be used interchangeably?
The words "bring" and "take" do not have the same meaning.
"To bring" refers to a two-way process where the subject would be back at the original position/location.
"To take" refers to a one-way process where the subject would be left at the destination.
For example: If we were to "bring along the student pass", it means that we would have the pass back with us when we return to our original location.
However, if we were to "take our pass to the camp", the pass would actually be left at the camp (destination).
Source: Edited from the english@work e-newsletter by 938LIVE. Subscribe to the english@work newsletter.
Considering words starting with the vowels (a, e, i, o, u) have “an” as a prefix, is it “a eunuch” or “an eunuch”? Any other exceptions?
It’s “a eunuch” because the word “eunuch” sounds like it begins with “y”.
Other examples: a eulogy, a unicorn.
We say “an honest man” because the “h” in “honest” is silent and the word sounds like it begins with an “o”.
Other examples: an honourable person, an honorarium
Source: Edited from "English As It is Broken" on STOMP. Visit www.stomp.com.sg for more.
