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Today I’d like to go over another common verb which has more than one meaning. When people think of the verb “count” they imagine counting numbers. However, this verb has other meanings which many people don’t realize.

1. to consider something or someone to be a certain way. For example:

I count Victor as one of my best friends in the world.

Many people count brussel sprouts as being one of the worst vegetables in the world.

2. for something to be considered part of a general rule or category. For example:

I think it’s wrong to kill but, in my opinion, killing insects doesn’t count.

A: You said every man had to wear a tie at the office, but that man over there isn’t wearing one.

B: Well, he doesn’t count. He’s the boss.

3. to be considered valid. For example:

The other soccer team scored a goal, but it didn’t count because the ball went in after the whistle was blown.

A: I’ll teach you how to play this game. Then we’ll play three games to see who the best player is.

B: Ok, but the first game doesn’t count because I’m still learning how to play.

4. for something or someone to matter or be important. For example:

Lately at my office, I feel like my opinions don’t count with my boss. He doesn’t seem to appreciate anything I say.

In an election, I think every vote counts.

Among these definitions, the first one is a little bit formal. If you want to sound slightly less formal, you can use the word “consider” instead. The other three definitions are quite commonly used, especially the second and third ones. As you can see, with these definitions, the verb “count” is often used in the negative.

Today, I want to write about a word which is a bit complex in the English language: “apparently”. It is complex because it has two meanings which are, in many ways, the opposite of each other. The first way we use this word is when something is plainly obvious from our observation of the situation. For example:

Sam wants us to give him a promotion even though he’s only been with the company for six months. Apparently, he thinks he is better than the other employees.

A: Do you think Sarah is happy with the gift we gave her?

B: Apparently she is. Just look at the smile on her face.

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A: Was our neighbor angry about the noise from our party last weekend?

B: Apparently he was. He complained about us to the landlord.

The second meaning of “apparently” is used when talking about some information that we receive about someone or something from another source. We do NOT experience the situation directly, but are told about it from another person or from some kind of media such as a book or newspaper. For example:

I’ve never been to Spain but, apparently, it’s a really beautiful country.

I wasn’t at the office yesterday but, apparently, Gerry had a big argument with the boss.

Apparently, there’s going to be a big storm this weekend, so we’d better cancel our plans to go hiking.

In the first set of examples, the people can tell from observing the situations that Sam thinks he’s better than the other employees, that Sarah is happy with her gift, and that the neighbor was angry. It is obvious based on their observations. However, in the second set of examples, the people get their information indirectly. The person may have read that Spain is a beautiful country, a co-worker told the person about Gerry’s argument with the boss, and the person probably saw the weather forecast for the weekend on TV or in the newspaper.

This word can be difficult because the two meanings are almost opposites of each other. The first meaning is that we get the information directly, and the second meaning is that we get it indirectly. To avoid getting confused, my advice is to always study full sentences so you know exactly how to use the word in each context.

Previously I wrote that certain verbs have surprising second meanings. The verb “tell” is another example of this. The main meaning of “tell” is to say something to another person. However, there is a second meaning which is to be able to notice something about someone or something based on your observation of that person or thing. For example:

What’s wrong with Nathan? I can tell that something is bothering him.

I’ve only seen the new video game for about a minute, but I can already tell it’s going to be really fun.

Is Paula telling the truth? I can never tell if she’s lying or not.

My wife can always tell if I’ve been drinking, and she doesn’t like it. I’d better not have a drink.

Most of the time, this meaning of “tell” is used to talk about other people. In these cases, the person observes the other person and realizes the truth about them.

I’m still on vacation now, so I’ve been unable to write my blog for the last few days, but I have a new entry for you finally today. I’d like to write about the word “hardly”. This word has two meanings.

1. It is used to talk about something that we can do, but that we almost can’t do. For example:

It’s so dark that I can hardly see my hand in front of my face.

The man’s accent was really thick, so I could hardly understand him.

2. We can also use it to talk about things that we don’t do very much. For example:

My brother hardly works at all. He’s a very lazy person.

I’ve hardly lost any weight even though I’ve been exercising a lot.

It’s important to note that the adverbial form of “hard” is NOT “hardly”. Therefore, we DON’T say:

My brother works hardly.

Instead, we must say:

My brother works hard.

Sometimes there is a joke question that English speakers ask each other:

Are you working hard or hardly working?

If we work hard, it means we work very much, but if we hardly work, it means we don’t work much at all.

Many common verbs in English have more than one meaning, and this can cause confusion among people who are learning the language. The verb “find” is one of these verbs. Most people know the first meaning of “find”, which is to locate something. However, there is another common meaning of this verb which many people don’t know about. The second meaning is similiar to “think”. However, when we use “find” instead of “think”, it means that the opinion is based on our own personal experience of the situation. For example:

I found Brad Pitt’s new action movie very exciting but too long.

I find my new boss to be extremely demanding.

Generally speaking, Korean food is too spicy for me, but I found the Korean food at the new restaurant downtown to be quite mild and delicious.

A: How did you find Italy when you were there last summer?

B: I found it very interesting. I’d love to go back there again sometime.

When we use this meaning of “find”, we can use “to be” in front of the adjective, but it’s not necessary. It’s important to note that when we use “think”, the opinion may or may not be based on our actual experience, but when we use “find”, the listener knows that it is based on our actual experience. Therefore. if we  read about a certain place or see something about it on TV, we can use “think”, but we CAN’T use “find”.

For today’s blog entry, I’d like to write about the verb “wonder”.  It is used when we ask ourselves a question about something we want to know about. For example:

Kate was supposed to come to my party, but she didn’t. I wonder why she didn’t come.

I wonder how much Jake’s new car cost. It looks very expensive.

Cheryl invited us over for dinner on Saturday night. I wonder what she’s going to cook.

We can also use the verb wonder with the past progressive form (was + ing) as an introduction to a very polite request. For example:

I was wondering if you could help me with my project.

I was wondering if I could have the day off tomorrow.

My wife and I were wondering if you’d like to join us for dinner tomorrow night.

Sometimes people ask me why we have to use the past tense form (was). The reason is that the action of wondering started in the past. When you ask the question, the wondering is already over and the asking of the question is happening now.  As I mentioned before, when you use this, it’s very polite.

Today,  I’d like to write about a word that everyone knows very well: “should”. However, most people only know one meaning for this word. Most people don’t realize that it has another meaning which is commonly used. So, let me go over the two meanings:

1. it is used to give advice to people and to say that something is a good idea, but that they have a choice about whether or not to do it. (If there is no choice, we use “have to” or “must”.) For example:

If you’re not happy with your job, you should quit.

My sister is a little overweight. She should go on a diet.

My Japanese isn’t very good. I should study more.

2. the word “should” can also be used when we have an expectation that something will happen, but which is not guaranteed. For example:

My friend invited me to a party tomorrow night. It should be really fun.

Mr. Norton should be back in the office at 4:00. Can I have him call you back at that time?

I ordered a book on the Internet. It should be delivered by Friday.

In the examples for the second definition, if we use the word “will”, it means that the situation is 100% guaranteed. So, because we can’t guarantee the situation will come true, we use the word “should”.

Today I’d like to talk about an adverb which is commonly used in English: “eventually”. It is used to talk about situations when something will happen at a later time, but we don’t know exactly when it will happen or we choose not to say exactly when it will happen. For example:

Right now I’m working for ABC Company, but eventually I’m going to look for another job.

Right now the economy is bad, but it will improve eventually.

My sister is learning French these days. She’s just a beginner now, but I’m sure she’ll eventually be a very good French speaker.

We can also use this word in past tense sentences to talk about when something happened at a later time than something else. Again, either we don’t know how long it took, or we don’t want to say. For example:

My sister was married for a while, but eventually she got a divorce.

Getting up early was very difficult for me at first, but eventually I got used to it.

My grades in high school were very bad in my first year, but eventually they got better.

Today I’d like to go over another word that we often use in casual conversations: “way”. It is used to emphasize something. For example:

I live way out in Iruma, so my friends don’t often come to visit me there.

This box is way too heavy for me. I’ll carry a lighter one.

The book we had to read for English class was way too long. I couldn’t finish reading it.

Tokyo is way bigger than my hometown. The population of my hometown is only 650,000 people.

In the first example, the words “way out in” indicate that the location is very far away. Also, this word is often used with comparatives and superlatives and has the same meaning as “much” in these cases. Therefore we could say, “Tokyo is much bigger than my hometown” or “This box is much too heavy for me”, but that sounds much more formal. The word “way” is always used in casual conversations.

Today, we’re going to go over the word: unless. This particular word is very difficult for my students to use correctly even when they understand the meaning. That is why I’d like to write about it today.

Basically, “unless” means “if not” but that definition doesn’t help people to use it in conversation. So here are some examples:

I won’t go to the party unless you go with me. (The meaning is – I won’t go to the party if you don’t go with me.)

You won’t pass the test unless you study hard. (The meaning is – You won’t pass the test if you don’t study hard.)

We won’t get to work on time unless we leave right now. (The meaning is – We won’t get to work on time if we don’t leave now.)

I will get to the restaurant at 9:00 unless I get lost. (The meaning is – I will get to the restaurant at 9:00 if I don’t get lost.)

I won’t buy a new suit unless it’s not expensive. (The meaning is – I won’t buy a new suit if it’s expensive.)

I will go to the picnic unless it’s really far away. (The meaning is – I will go to the picnic if it’s not far away.)

I can’t operate this computer unless someone shows me how to do it. (The meaning is – I can’t operate this computer if no one shows me how to do it.)

I can buy a new car next year unless I lose my job. (The meaning is – I can buy a new car next year if I don’t lose my job.)

So as you can see from these examples, the second part of the sentence will be turned from positive into negative or from negative into positive by using the word “unless”. Also, you can see that usually the first part of these sentences begins with  either “I will” or “I won’t”, but “I can” and “I can’t” are also used sometimes.