difference between 'to steal' and 'to rob'. Both 'to steal' and 'to rob' mean to take something without
permission. 'To steal' focuses on the object or the thing which is taken, for example:
Hey! Somebody just stole my phone. 'Rob' focuses on the victim of the crime, for example: The men robbed
a bank last night. I wouldn't say someone robbed my phone - I would say they robbed me and stole
my phone.
Hi, I'm Sam from BBC Learning English, and today we are looking at the difference between 'no',
'not any' and 'none'. Let's have a look. Imagine you asked me this question: Do you have any change?
I have zero change, and I can say this in three different ways. 'Sorry, I have no change' where we
use the verb 'have' with 'no' followed by a noun. 'Sorry, I don't have any change' where we use the negative
'don't' followed by the verb, followed by 'any', followed by the noun. Or, I can say: 'Sorry, none at all'
where we use 'none' without a verb or a noun, so it's a short answer. So, now you shouldn't have any
problems with this.
I'm Sian from BBC Learning English, and today we're going to look at the difference between
'lay' and 'lie'. So, 'lay' always has an object, and it means 'put something or someone down
carefully, normally in a flat position'. When I eat, I lay a cloth on the table. You can lay a baby in a cot.
The past tense is 'laid', but careful with the spelling: I laid all my cards on the table. The verb 'lie'
doesn't have an object, and it means that you are in a flat position or you put yourself in a flat position - so,
you move on your own. Tonight I want to lie on the sofa and watch a film. But be careful - now,
the past of 'lie' is 'lay'. Yesterday, I lay on the beach and read my book.
Hi everyone, Dan for BBC Learning English here. Today we're going to talk about 'don't mind' and 'doesn't matter'.
The verb 'mind' means 'dislike, be annoyed by or object to'. It's followed by 'verb-ing' and often used in negatives and questions.
For example: Do you mind opening the window? No, I don't mind. If someone says 'I don't mind',
it means that they have no preference or that they are happy for something to happen. However, the verb
'matter' in English can mean 'be important'. 'English matters' means 'English is important'. If we say
'it doesn't matter', it means that the thing that we are talking about is not important or not significant.
Do you want tea or coffee? It doesn't matter. OK. Sometimes, they can both mean the same thing.
Do you want chicken for dinner? I don't mind. Do you want chicken for dinner? It doesn't matter to me.
Hi, I'm Phil from BBC Learning English. I'm going to tell you three facts about 'the'. We use 'the' when we're
referring to a specific thing and that both you and the person you're talking to know which one
you mean. Please pass me the milk. We can see the bottle, so we know it's that one.
Number two. We don't use 'the' when we're talking about something in general, for example: I love
chocolate. Number three. We don't use 'the' when it doesn't matter which thing we're talking about.
We usually use 'a' or 'an' here. Give me a cup of tea. I don't care which cup, any cup will do.
Hi, I'm Georgina from BBC Learning English. Do you ever wonder about the differences between 'next', 'the next',
and 'nearest'? 'Next' means immediately after this one, and is often used with 'day', 'week', 'month', or 'year'. I go
on holiday next Tuesday. I'll start my diet next week. 'The next' means the period of time starting
from now. The next two weeks are very busy. It'll be cold for the next few days. 'Nearest' means the
closest to something or someone in distance. The nearest bus stop is over there. I think we should
stay at Susie's. She lives the nearest to the airport. Right, I'm off to the nearest cafe to get a coffee. Bye.
Hi everyone, welcome back to English in a Minute. 'Peep', 'peer' and 'glimpse' are all verbs of
sight that mean 'look at something', but are used in different situations. Let's look at some examples:
My friend peeped at my test answers. This verb means 'to look at something quickly and secretively'.
I peered at the document trying to understand it. 'Peer' means 'to look at something intently or
carefully in detail'. It can also be used in another way. I was peering at the clock in the distance.
This example means that I had difficulty reading the clock. Maybe the clock was very small or I have
bad eyesight. I glimpsed the sunlight through the trees. 'Glimpse' means 'to see something for a short
time or to only see part of something'. We often use 'glimpse' as a noun with the verb 'catch', for example:
Hello again everyone, Tom here for BBC Learning English. Today, I'm going to explain the difference
between 'what' and 'which' in questions. 'What' is used to ask a question which has a lot of possible
answers. Consider the question: What do you want to eat for lunch? Here, there are no choices to limit
your reply. You could choose anything you want. We use 'which' when we have options to choose from.
So, here we have two choices: a sandwich and a melon. So, I can say: 'Which do you want to eat, the sandwich or
the melon? Now, next time you need to ask a question, you'll know which word to use: 'what' for anything
and 'which' when you have a choice.
Hi, I'm Phil from BBC Learning English. Today, I'm going to tell you the difference between 'still', 'already'
and 'yet'. They all talk about things around the present but they don't mean the same. We use 'still' to talk
about something that hasn't finished. Are you still studying? Let's go out! We use 'already' to talk about
something that has finished, and maybe we didn't think it would have by now.
She's already finished work. She's gone home. We use 'yet' in questions and negatives to talk
about things that haven't happened, but we think they will. Haven't you left yet? You'll be late.
So, just remember: things that are still happening, haven't finished. Things that have already happened,
have finished, and things that are yet to happen,
haven't started. Are you still watching? Have you learned this yet? You remember it already? Fantastic.