Ads 468x60px

Pages

Know Your English (June 2001)

Know your English

What is the difference between ``present''and a ``gift''?

Many of us tend to use the two words interchangeably in most contexts. Of the two, ``present'' is the more informal. The two words are used with things given to other people without expectation of return or compensation. It is not uncommon to hear people say, ``I gave him a gift/present on his birthday''. Both the sentences are grammatically acceptable. Careful users of the language make a distinction between the two words. A ``gift'' tends to be much more `valuable' than a present. It usually passes from the rich to the poor, from the high to the low. A ``present'', on the other hand, passes between equals or from the inferior to the superior.
* The children brought a present for the Minister.
* I gave him a pen as a present.
* The foundation is planning to gift the land to the society.
* He made a gift of two million dollars to his old university.
The word `gift' is also used with the inborn talent or skill that one has. It is because God is believed to have given us these things - we are getting something from a superior being! Picasso had the gift of painting, M.S has the gift of singing, etc. We do not, in these cases, use the word `present'.


Source:
The Hindu daily, Tuesday, June26, 2001

0 comments:


Hello Friends ! Please send your requests,comments,suggestions to improve this blog.
Learn English Grammar & Usage; Are U Anxious To Know The Science & Tech News; Where Are You ? Know The Changes; Health:News N Tips
Word of the Day

backfire discuss

Definition:(verb) Come back to the originator of an action with an undesired effect.
Synonyms:backlash, recoil
Usage:Your comments may backfire and cause you a lot of trouble.
Article of the Day

Buddhas of Bamyan

Once the largest examples of standing Buddha carvings in the world, the Buddhas of Bamyan were two monumental statues carved into the side of a cliff in Afghanistan's Bamyan Valley. Built during the 6th century, the statues were destroyed in 2001 by the Islamist Taliban government, which decreed that the figures were idolatrous and bombarded them with dynamite and tank barrages for nearly a month. The Afghan government has since proposed that the statues be recreated using what technologies? More... Discuss

This Day in History

Samantha Smith Visits the Soviet Union (1983)

In 1982, Samantha Smith, a 10-year-old American girl, wrote a letter to the newly elected leader of the USSR, Yuri Andropov, asking if he intended to start a war. Andropov replied personally. Expressing a desire for lasting peace with the US, he invited Smith to visit. The following July, she and her parents spent two weeks in the USSR amidst a media frenzy that hailed her as a goodwill ambassador. After her death in a plane crash two years later, she was honored by both nations in what ways? More... Discuss
Today's Birthday

Gustav Mahler (1860)

Mahler was an Austrian composer and conductor. After studying in Vienna, he conducted at numerous prominent opera houses where his high standards became legendary, but his refusal to compromise aroused intense personal opposition. He composed in his free time, mostly during the summer, and completed nine symphonies in his lifetime. The biggest success of his career—the 1910 premiere of his eighth symphony—was overshadowed by Mahler's discovery of his wife's affair with what famous architect? More... Discuss

In the News

Quote of the Day
The first duty of a lecturer—to hand you after an hour's discourse a nugget of pure truth to wrap up between the pages of your notebooks, and keep on the mantelpiece forever.
Virginia Woolf
(1882-1941)
Discuss

Spelling Bee
difficulty level:
score: -
n. A long wooden bench with a back
 
spell the word:
Match Up
Select word:










Match each word in the left column with its synonym on the right. When finished, click Answer to see the results. Good luck!