Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Word Differentiation 9

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adapt --------- adopt


adapt - change to suit new needs or conditions

* I found it very easy to adapt to life in England.

* Younger people find it easier to adapt to a different environment than older people do.


adopt - take a child into one's family; take and use as one's own; accept

* Russia is adopting a new economic system after decades of Communism.

* The British didn't adopt the decimal system for currency until the early 70s.


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alternate ---------- alternative

alternate - first one then the other; every second one

* She goes shopping on alternate days.

* To reduce traffic congestion in that city, people can use their cars on alternate days of the week.


alternative - that can be used instead of another; a different course of action

* If I had an alternative, I would not work on the night shift.

* She had no alternative but to confess to the murder of the man.

* There was a hold-up on the main road so they took the alternative way home.



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award ---------- reward

award - a prize; a grant given to a student; something given after an official decision

* He was given the award of Best Student.

* Ronnie and Kenny received awards of $100,000 for their studies in the United States.


reward - something given in return for work or service

* He was given some reward for finding the Siamese kitten.

* There is a large reward for anyone giving information which leads to the murderer's arrest.

* After all the work he has done for you, he will certainly expect some sort of reward.


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born --------- borne

born - brought into the world

* He was born in 1976.

* Before she was born her parents lived in a flat in Idaho.


borne - given birth to; to produce a crop or a fruit; to suffer, to bear pain

* She has borne four healthy children.

* He has borne many hardships in his younger days.

* His brilliant mind has borne many ingenious inventions over the years.



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bring ---------- take

bring - used for a movement from a further to a nearer place.

* Bring your book to me.

* If you come to my house tomorrow, bring your friends with you.

take - used for a movement from a nearer to a further place

* He often takes his children to the beach.

* You can take my calculator with you, but you must bring it back when you have finished with it.

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censor ---------- censure

censor - to remove offensive matter from books, films, etc., one who does this

* Most parents today censor their children's reading material.

* The censor cut out only a few short passages from the book.

* The decision to censor a film has to be taken after careful deliberation.

censure - to disapprove, to find fault with; disapproval, blame

* When John heard of his parents' censure of his violent behavior, he decided to apologize for his misconduct even before they questioned him.

* The government of that country received international censure for its invasion of the island.


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certainly --------- surely

certainly - really, without doubt

* He is certainly a very good friend of mine.

* He is certainly a very hard-working student.

* They will certainly arrive by six. They set off at 4.30 p.m.

surely - expressing some doubt, relief, surprise

* Surely you're not going to bring all those books with you !

* Surely you're not going to town dressed like that !

* He's not got lost in a small town like this surely ?


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site ---------- sight

site - a location, a place

* The site of the new school has yet to be decided.

sight - ability to see; something that is seen

* When we reached the top of Penang Hill, there was a beautiful sight to behold.

* Tourists come to Kuala Lumpur to see the sights of the oriental city.


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cloth ---------- clothes

cloth - material used for making clothes; a piece of garment

* He wiped up the mess with an old cloth.

* Get a cloth and wipe the table, please.


clothes - garments worn on the body

* His clothes are always beautifully ironed and so he looks very smart.

* It's time you bought some new clothes. You look very untidy these days.


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