English has many words that have similar meanings or the exact same meaning. Look at the infographic above. Big and huge have similar meaning, but we use them to describe very different things. We call these words synonyms.
In this post, we'll discuss synonyms and how to choose between words that have similar meanings.
First, the best way to build your vocabulary, and improve your grammar, is to read. Books, magazines, webpages, graphic novels, whatever you like - just read as much as you can.
Native English-speakers aren't very concerned about grammar in everyday conversation, but when writing grammar (along with spelling) is much more important. So, read, read, read.
Now,
Let's take a common, easy adjective: big.
What's the difference between "big" and "huge"? The best way to explain is with pictures.
(copyright: Marvel Comics)
Iron Man (right) is big. The Hulk is huge. In fact, you can say he's massive.
The situation (context) will usually give you an idea of which words to use. In the case of the Hulk, "big" or "large" don't give the best description of his size."Huge", "massive", "gigantic" are better.
Also, a thesaurus (a dictionary of synonyms) is an excellent resource for building vocabulary. You can check Thesaurus.com online for free.
Exercise
Study the infographics below:
(special thanks to FingerTips English)
Using the words above or Thesaurus.com and choose the best synonym(s) for the words in italics. There is more than one possible answer for the questions.
The first question has been done for you. Feel free to use the comments section to write your answers.
1/
Warren is scared of mice.
terrified
2/
My father was angry when I crashed his car. He wouldn't talk to me for days.
3/
Hans loves natto (fermented beans) but Harue thinks the smell is bad.
4/
Garibaldi Lake is nice. I went there last spring.
"Wow! That joke was funny!"
6/
Mmm....That apple pie looks delicious.
Below is an interesting (or should I say, "a fascinating") video from Alex at EngVid on different words for "small".
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