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Today I’d like to go over a problem that many people have: the difference between -ed and -ing words as “bored” and “boring”. In English, we use -ed words to talk about a person’s feeling about a situation, and we use -ing words to talk about the situation itself. For example:

I was bored when I watched that movie.

I thought the movie was boring.

I was really confused by the teacher’s lecture.

I don’t know much about chemistry, so the teacher’s lecture was really confusing for me.

I was so shocked when I heard the news about my uncle’s death.

My aunt told me some shocking news! My uncle died yesterday.

I’m so tired because I had many meetings today.

I had many meetings today and it was very tiring.

If you’re still not sure how to use these words, try to remember a simple rule: we use -ed when PEOPLE are the subject of the sentence, and we use -ing when SITUATIONS are the subject of the sentence. However, there is an exception to that. We can use -ing words when a person is the subject IF the person is causing the speaker to have that certain feeling. For example:

My math teacher is so boring. I hate going to his classes.

My friend Paul is a very interesting guy.

People who talk loudly on the train are so annoying!

Today, I have three adjectives which are closely related but have different meanings in English: “fun”, “funny” and “interesting”.

The word “fun” is used when we talk about enjoying ourselves or having a good time. For example:

The party was so much fun! We danced and drank all night long.

The action movie was a lot of fun. I’d like to see it again.

I love going to Disneyland! It’s so much fun!

The word “funny” is used when something or someone makes us laugh. For example:

Tom is such a funny guy. He always makes me laugh.

That joke wasn’t funny at all. Nobody laughed at it.

The new comedy with Jim Carrey is supposed to be really funny. Let’s go see it this weekend.

The word “interesting” is used when talking about situations in which we learn something or are made to think about something. For example:

I think going to museums is interesting, but my boyfriend doesn’t agree with me.

The new drama on TV is sad but very interesting. It’s about a doctor who is suffering from cancer.

I’m reading about the history of China right now. It’s really interesting!

So this is how we use these words in English. They are all adjectives, but the word “fun” can also be a noun and is used with the verb “have”.  For example:

I had a lot of fun at the party.

My family and I had fun on our vacation to Hawaii.

Earlier, one of my students asked me what the difference is between “find out” and “know”, so I think that would be a good topic for today’s blog entry.

In English, we often have a separate word or expression to talk about the beginning of a situation. For example, first we PUT ON our clothes and then we WEAR them; first we GET a cold and then we HAVE the cold.

Another example of this is “find out” and “know”. First, we FIND OUT some information, and then we KNOW it. So when we talk about the first moment that we learn some information, we must use “find out”, but we can’t use “know” until afterwards. For example:

I found out about the terrorist attack when I watched the news report on TV. I was so shocked!

I knew about the terrorist attack before I watched the news because my friend had told me about it before.

Did you know that ABC Department Store is having a sale this weekend? I just found out today.

A: Did you know that Rachel is going to have a baby?

B: Yes, I know.

A: When did you find out?

B: I found out yesterday when Rachel’s husband told me.

As you can see from the examples, when we use “find out” we usually will say when we received the information. If we don’t say when we received it, the sentence will sound a little strange.

I recently had a request from one of the readers to explain the difference between the words: all, whole and entire. So that’s what I’m going to write about today, but I’d also like to include the words “each” and “every”.

The word “all” is used with countable or uncountable nouns to refer to 100% of many things. For example:

All of my furniture is from Ikea. (uncountable)

I bought all of my plates from ABC department store. (countable)

The words “whole” and “entire” mean 100% of one thing. It is used with countable nouns. For example:

I ate the whole pie by myself. I’m so full right now.

I spent the entire day watching TV and drinking beer. It was great!

The word “each” and “every” are very similar but have slightly different meanings. They are both used with countable nouns. The word “each” focuses on the individual parts that make up a collection of something, but “every” focuses on all the parts that make up a collection of something. For example:

Each of the stamps in my collection came from a different country.

Every stamp in my collection is very valuable.

Each person in my family is very special to me.

Every person in my family can play the piano.

In addition, we use “each” when we want to focus on the differences between things, and we use “every” when we want to focus on the fact that things are the same. For example:

I have many pins in my collection and each one comes from a different country.

I paid over $20 for every pin in my collection.

I hope this is clear to everyone. Please note that when the words “each” and “every” are followed by a verb in the present tense, it must have an “s”. Therefore, “each” and “every” follow the same grammar rules as “he”, “she” and “it”.

There is a common misunderstanding in Japan and Korea (and possibly in other countries as well) about the difference between “until” and “by”, so I’d like to explain the difference today. The word “until” refers to the time when some action stops, but the word “by” refers to a deadline when an action must be stopped. For example:

I worked until 8:00 p.m. last night.

I’m going to keep my part-time job until I graduate from university.

I’ll be in Osaka until Thursday, and then I’ll go back to Tokyo.

You can borrow my CD, but please give it back to me by the end of the month.

This project must be completed by Friday, March 26th.

A: What time do I need to check out of my room by?

B: By 11:00 a.m. please.

We also use “by” in the expression “by the time…” which is similar in meaning to “when”.  For example:

By the time I got to the office, the meeting had already started.

I had already finished my work by the time the boss called me.

Everyone had already started eating by the time I arrived at the restaurant.

By the time you get this message, I will already have left the office.

By the time I’m 50, I will have started my own company.

These last examples are a little bit more difficult because they use more complex tenses (had + pp and will have + pp). If you feel uncomfortable using them, try using the method I explained in my first blog: memorize the examples and then change the small details of the sentences to make new sentences. The important thing is that you don’t think in your native language. If you start thinking in your native language, you’ve changed the sentence too much! Good luck!

Tonight I had dinner with one of my Japanese friends and he suggested I write about the difference between the words “can you”, “could you” and “would you”. So that is what I’m going to do.

In terms of formality, “can you” is the most casual, “could you” is more polite and “would you” is the most formal and polite. There is no major difference in meaning between “can you” and “could you” except that “could you” is more polite. However, there is a difference in nuance between “could you” and “would you”. The words “could you” focus on the ability to do something, but the words “would you” focus on the willingness to do something. For example:

Can you help me with my homework later? (said to a friend or family member)

Could you tell me how to get to the train station from here? (said to a stranger on the street)

Would you lend me your car this weekend? (said to a friend or family member, but in a very polite way because you want something from them)

Sometimes people get confused between the difference between “could you” and “would you” but there is one example sentence which usually helps people to understand. If a man is asking someone to marry him, he would say:

Would you marry me?

But he would NEVER say:

Could you marry me?

By saying, “Would you marry me?” he is asking “Are you willing to marry me?” but if he said “Could you marry me?” it sounds like “Do you have the ability to marry me?” (which sounds quite strange and VERY unromantic.) Here are some other examples for you to study:

Can you drive me to work today? My car isn’t working now.

Could you tell me how long I’ll have to wait until I can see the doctor?

Would you please stop tapping your foot? I’m trying to study.

So I hope this helps people to understand the difference between these words.

There is a lot of confusion about the difference between the words “wish” and “hope” so I would like to clear it up in today’s blog entry. The word “hope” is used to talk about possible situations that we desire in the past, present or future. The important thing to note is that these situations are POSSIBLE. For example:

I hope you had a good time at the party last night.

I haven’t looked outside yet. I hope it’s not raining.

I hope you have a great day.

I hope you’re not going to go to the movie without me.

I hope my boss will give me a promotion this year.

I hope my boss gives me a promotion this year.

The last two examples are about the future. In English, we can use the future tense or the present tense after the word “hope” to talk about the future. Both are natural.

On the other hand, “wish” is used to talk about situations that we desire, but which are the opposite of the current reality or which are impossible. We can use wish + past tense to talk about our situation right now. Even though we use the past tense, we are NOT talking about the past. For example:

I wish I had a car. (In reality, I don’t have a car now, but I want one).

I wish I didn’t have to work tomorrow. (In reality, I have to work tomorrow, but I don’t want to).

I wish I were tall. (In reality, I’m short, but I want to be tall).

I wish I could play the piano. (In reality, I can’t play the piano, but I want to).

When we use wish + past perfect tense, we are talking about regrets we have from the past. For example:

I wish I hadn’t gone to the party. (In reality, I went to the party, and now I regret it).

I wish I had studied harder in school. (In reality, I didn’t study hard in school, and now I regret it).

I wish I hadn’t gotten drunk in front of my boss. (In reality, I got drunk in front of my boss, and now I regret it).

I wish I had gone to bed earlier last night. (In reality, I didn’t go to bed early last night, and now I regret it).

We can use wish + would + verb to talk about situations that often happen in our lives that we don’t like. For example:

I wish my husband would help me clean the house. (In reality, my husband never helps me clean the house, and I don’t like it).

I wish my children wouldn’t play their music so loudly. (In reality, my children play their music very loudly, and I don’t like it).

We can also use wish + noun to talk about things that we desire for other people. In these cases, the meaning of  “wish” is more similar to “hope”. This way of using “wish”, however, is much less common that the other ways. For example:

We wish you a merry Christmas. (The meaning is: We hope you have a merry Christmas).

Wish me luck on my exam. (The meaning is: Please hope that I have good luck on my exam).

I wish you health and happiness. (The meaning is: I hope you have health and happiness).

Finally, we can use wish + the infinitive form of a verb (this is means “to” + the base form). In these cases, the meaning of “wish” has the same meaning as “want”, but it is more formal. For example:

I wish to see your boss right away.

We don’t have a table available right now. Do you wish to wait?

If you wish to have more information, please let me know.

I hope that everyone now understands the difference between these two words. The best way to really learn them, as I’ve mentioned before, is to memorize the full sentences and then change the small details in order to create new sentences.

Today, I’d like to deal with a common misunderstanding of the meaning of the word “upset”. Many people think that it means that someone is sad or angry, but it is different from both of these words. Basically, to be upset means to react to a negative situation in a very emotional way. For example:

I just found out I failed my exam, so I’m really upset now.

Everyone is upset today because the boss just cancelled the year end party.

I’ll be so upset if it rains tomorrow for our picnic. I’m really looking forward to it.

Carol is really upset now because the boss just fired her.

That little boy in the corner is crying very loudly. I wonder why he is so upset.

In these examples, we don’t use the word “sad” because the people are showing their emotions more openly. Sadness is a very internal feeling in which we don’t show strong emotions. Also, feelings of sadness usually last for a longer time. For example:

My wife has been so sad since her mother died. I wish I could do something to make her feel better.

At the end of the movie, the main character dies. It always makes me sad when I see it.

On the other hand, “angry” is used when a person or group does something bad to us and we react to that negative action. For example:

My co-worker stole my idea and told the boss it was his! I’m so angry at him right now!

The government is raising out taxes again! That makes me so angry!

I hope that helps everyone understand how to use “upset”. In my understanding, the Japanese language does not have an exact translation for this word and the closest words to it are “sad” or “angry”. However, as you now know, it’s quite different. This might be true in other languages as well. So, when you need to find the meaning of an adjective, please use an English-English dictionary only. If you use a translation dictionary, such as a Japanese-English dictionary, you will probably misunderstand the true meaning of the word in English.

Today’s entry is about a big misunderstanding many Japanese people have about the word “claim”. The Japanese language has borrowed many words from English and then changed the original meaning, so this leads to a lot of confusion. Many people in Japan think that to claim something means to complain about it. This is absolutely not true! The word “claim” has about four meanings:

1. for a person to say something without providing proof for their statement. This is often used when we have a doubt about the truth of the statement. For example:

My friend claims he saw a UFO last night.

The man was arrested for his wife’s murder, but he claims he didn’t do it.

2. to identify something as yours and then to take it. For example:

Someone found my wallet and took it to the Lost and Found, so I went there yesterday to claim it.

You said there would be a $100 reward for the person who found your dog. Well, I found her, so now I’m here to claim the reward.

I’ll get my bags at the baggage claim area and then meet you at immigration.

(The area at the airport where you collect your luggage is called the baggage claim area because that’s where you identify your bags and pick them up.)

3.  to write something down on a tax form in order to pay less tax or on an insurance form to get money back from the insurance company. For example:

I gave a lot of money to charity last year, so I can claim those donations on my taxes.

A: If you pay money for medication, your insurance company will let you claim that.

B: That’s great. That will save me a lot of money.

4. for a disaster to take the lives of people who were in it. For example:

The earthquake last week claimed the lives of over 10,000 people.

The fire in my apartment claimed the life of my landlord, but everyone else escaped.

So this is how we use the word “claim”. The word “complain” is used when we talk about situations or people that we don’t like. It can be done in an official way or just in a casual conversation. For example:

I complained to my landlord about the noise coming from my neighbor’s apartment.

I’d like to complain about the service in this restaurant. My waiter was very rude to me.

My co-worker is always complaining about having to work overtime.

Susan is having problems with her husband, and she complains about him all the time now.

So, this is how we use these two words in natural English.

It’s Sunday here in Japan. I wasn’t able to write a blog entry yesterday because I was quite busy. First I had to teach and then I had dinner with some Japanese friends. During the dinner, we started talking about the difference between “ashamed” and “embarrassed”. This is a very common misunderstanding in Japan and I think in Korea too, so I’d like to write about it today.

Basically, the word “embarrassed” means having a feeling of emotional discomfort in front of other people. This last part is very important. If we are embarrassed, we have to be in front of at least one other person. We cannot be embarrassed if we are alone. These situations are usually not so serious.

Some example sentences using “embarrassed” are:

I made a big mistake during my presentation yesterday. I was really embarrassed.

I was embarrassed in front of my date last night because I didn’t have enough money to pay for dinner.

*It’s important to remember that you shouldn’t say “embarrassing” when talking about your personal feeling. We use that when talking about the situation. For example:

I made a big mistake during my presentation. It was really embarrassing for me.

It was so embarrassing for me last night. I didn’t have enough money to pay for dinner with my date.

On the other hand, “ashamed” means having a feeling of guilt because you did something bad intentionally. We can also be ashamed of  someone else if they did something bad intentionally. In this case, the feeling is not about guilt but about judgment. In both cases, it’s important that the bad thing was done intentionally. If we cause something bad to happen by accident, we don’t usually say we are ashamed.

Some example sentences using “ashamed” are:

When I was a teenager, I stole money from my parents. I’m really ashamed of that now.

Last year, Bill stole his co-worker’s idea and told the boss it was his. He should be ashamed of himself.

Many people in my country are ashamed of the way the government treated the native people a long time ago.

I can’t believe you cheated on your exam! I’m really ashamed of you!

So that’s the difference between “embarrassed” and “ashamed”. As I said in my first blog entry, the best way to improve your English is to memorize full sentences and then change the small details. You can do this with the examples I’ve given you and then you’ll never be confused about these words again. Good luck!