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Time Flew Today…In The Breeze
Jun 2nd
Where did today go? I woke up at 6:20 and the weather was just beautiful. The sky was bright blue, and the temperature was about 21C/70F. And there was a breeze. Perfect sailing weather…or so I thought. After my lessons this morning, I decided to go for a sail. My boat is on a mooring and so I need to take a dingy out to her. When I reached the dock, the wind was really blowing and the sea was quire rough. Sea Joy is about 50 meteres from the dock, and the water was too rough to row out. I gave up. Hopefully tomorrow will be a bit less windy. I’ll let you know. Anyway, I’ll be back tomorrow with another English lesson. See you then, or see you on twitter @happyenglishny. Bye for now!
English Lesson: So, Too, Very
May 26th
The weather is so nice today. The sun is shining very brightly and the sky is very blue. I love the summer. Well, I don’t like when it is too hot and humid. Sometimes it is so hot in New York that you can’t walk around outside for too long.
Too, so, and very are similar words but we use them differently. In today’s lesson we will take a look at the difference between the these words.
Too + Adjective
Too + adjective is used to show something is excessive or problematic. Too is used with negative adjectives like expensive, tired, difficult, etc. Too implies a negative feeling and perhaps an unstated negative consequence. Look at the following example:
Justin: Do you want to come to the party tonight, Mike?
Mike: Sorry, Justin. I’m too tired.
This means, I am tired, and because I am tired I won’t go out tonight. Here are some more examples:
- My old car is too unreliable.
- Economics is too difficult for many students.
When we want to show that because something is excessive or problematic and there is a consequence, we use too + adjective, as in the above examples. When we simply want to emphasize an adjective, we use very.
Very + Adjective
Very + adjective makes that adjective stronger. Very is used to emphasize an adjective.
- I’m very tired today.
- My old car is very unreliable.
- Economics is very difficult for many students.
Let’s compare too and very:
- It’s very hot today. This is just a statement that the weather is hot…very hot.
- It’s too hot today. This implies that it is hot and there is some negative feeling or problem
- That bag is very expensive. This is just a statement that the bag costs a lot of money.
- That bag is too expensive. This implies that the bag costs a lot of money and I cannot buy it.
Remember, we do not use too with positive adjectives:
- Angelina is very beautiful. Not, Angelina is too beautiful.
- Justin is very kind to his fans. Not, Justin is too kind to his fans.
So + Adjective
So + adjective is similar to too, but it can be used with positive or negative adjectives. So is used to show a cause and effect relationship. So is often use with that:
- I’m so excited about my vacation that I can’t sleep.
- Joe was so nervous when he went on his first date that he forgot to shave.
- It’s so hot and humid that it is hard to breathe outside.
So, how was today’s lesson? I hope it wasn’t it too difficult. I’m so happy that you visited my blog today. That was very nice of you. By the way, what is the summer like where you live?
English Lesson: Gerunds Vs. Participles
May 24th
Exercising is an important part of staying healthy. While some people enjoy exercising in a gym, I prefer walking. It’s because I don’t like exercising in a hot building. I like to walk on the beach or in the park. I find enjoying nature while exercising makes the time pass quickly…and more enjoyably! When I was walking this morning in my neighborhood, I saw a barking dog. He wasn’t barking at me, thank goodness. Maybe he was barking because someone disturbed his nap. Like the old saying goes, let sleeping dogs lie.
Today we will have a look a the difference between gerunds and participles. Basically, gerunds are the ing form of verbs which function as nouns, and participles are the ing form of the verbs which function as adjectives. Read the paragraph above and see if you can find the gerunds and participles. Then, check the examples below.
A gerund is a Verb-ing that works like a noun. Here are some examples:
• Exercising is an important part of staying healthy.
• My wife always complains about my snoring.
• George got in trouble for napping in his office.
A participle is a Verb-ing that works like a adjective. Here are some examples:
• You shouldn’t disturb a sleeping dog.
• There was a crying baby on my flight to New York.
There are other uses for gerunds and participles, and we will look at those uses in a future lesson.
Do you like to exercise? Do you like exercising in a gym? What do you do you keep healthy.
