One Point English Lesson: Using Buy, Pay, & Spend
Jan 1st
Each of these words (buy, pay, spend) have to do with using money, but the grammar pattern is different for each. Let’s have a look at these words today.
Spend means to use money. The basic pattern is spend + amount + on (or) spend + amount + for
- I spent $12 on a new book.
- Yalcin said he spent $500 for his flight to Istanbul.
Pay also means to use money. There are a few different patterns with pay:
Pay + amount + for
- I paid $10 for this new book.
- Yalcin said he paid $500 for his flight to Istanbul.
Pay + for
- I paid for this book with a gift card.
- Yalcin said his brother paid for his flight to Istanbul.
Pay + person
- I paid Bob for his old car.
- Should we pay the waiter or the cashier?
Buy also means to use money. We use the pattern buy + item (+ for).
- I bought this book for $10.
- Jack said he is going to buy a new computer.
Have you bought something this week? What was it? Do you know another way to use buy, pay, or spend? Leave a comment here and let me know.
If you know anyone who has trouble with this English language point, why not help them out! Just share this lesson with them.
Thanks for studying today!
2013 is The Year of English!
Dec 31st
A lot of people spend a lot of time trying to become fluent in a foreign language. Maybe you are one of them, but maybe you have not become as fluent as you would like. There are a lot of reasons why this happens. It could be the way you are trying to study. Or maybe you don’t really spend enough time studying. You’ve probably been studying English for many years. Each year you get a little bit better, but you still haven’t reached the heights of fluency that you wished for. But there is hope!
You can become fluent in 2013 and our friends over at PhraseMix.com have something special to help. They have declared 2013 to be The Year of English. They are providing a free daily English-learning email course running throughout 2013. It’s for people who have been learning English for a long time, but haven’t quite “gotten there” yet. The Year Of English newsletter will include some lessons, but also advice, and assignments. There will be content from PhraseMix as well as from partners like Kaplan. You can sign up for it at yearofenglish.com
One Point English Lesson: Using Apologize & Sorry
Dec 27th
I’m sorry I’m late!
When things go wrong which are our fault, we can use apologize or sorry. There are a few set patterns using these words you’ll want to memorize. Let’s check out this topic today.
In conversational English, apologize is a bit more formal than sorry.
Pattern #1 – Apologize + for + gerund (VerbING)
- I apologize for missing your birthday.
- Jack apologized for coming to the meeting late.
- Tommy needs to apologize for breaking Mr. Kim’s window.
Pattern #2 – Apologize + for + noun
- I apologize for the miscommunication.
- Jack apologized his mistake.
- Tommy needs to apologize for the accident.
Pattern #3 – be + sorry + for + gerund (VerbING)
- I am sorry for missing your birthday.
- Jack said he was sorry for coming to the meeting late.
- Tommy told Mr. Kim that he is sorry for breaking the window.
Pattern #4 – be + sorry + for + noun
- I am sorry for the miscommunication.
- Jack said he is sorry for his mistake.
- Tommy told Mr. Kim that he is sorry for the accident.
Also, be careful of this common mistake. Sometimes I hear students say, “I am sorry for late” or I am sorry to late,” but both of those sentences are not correct. To apologize when you are late you can say:
- I’m sorry for being late (or) I’m sorry I’m late
Do you know another way to apologize in English? If so, why not leave a comment here and share your idea?
If you know anyone who has trouble with this English language point, why not help them out! Just share this lesson with them.
Thanks for studying today!
