Fransy Fancy English

Agree On, To or With? Hello and welcome to Fransy Fancy English! We can agree on something, to something and with something or someone. Let's investigate! AGREE (WITH SOMEONE) ON/ABOUT SOMETHING  AGREE (WITH SOMEONE) ON DOING SOMETHING People agree on a topic, plan, solution or idea when they have they same opinion about something. "We finally agreed on a time/date to meet." "They agreed on a solution." "Musk and Bezos agreed on who is responsible for the inflation." "NATO members informally agree on not equipping Ukraine with combat weapons." "The two leaders agreed on the plan." "I think that we must agree on a price." "It's not possible to agree on everything." "Can we at least agree on what to do tonight? It's getting late." AGREE TO DO SOMETHING AGREE TO PLANS/IDEAS/DEMANDS/CONDITIONS/PROPOSALS/TERMS You need to give your consent to agree to something or to do something. When you ag...

Belong To, With, In, On or Under? Hello and welcome to Fransy Fancy English! In answer to this question, I can assure you that it is possible to use all these prepositions. Let's see how they differ! BELONG TO SOMEBODY/SOMETHING (phrasal verb) When someone owns something or is a part of a group, we use the phrasal verb "belong to". "Does Ukraine belong to the European family?' "The mansion that once belonged to Gianni Versace is now on sale for $70 million." "He belongs to a social club." BELONG + IN/ON/UNDER/BEHIND/NEAR You can use "belong" with the right preposition to show location.   "Your clothes belong in the the closet!" "I don't think that the new mall belongs in a residential area." "Does he really belong in this line of work? "Those two cups belong on the top shelf. Put them there, please." "You belong at a higher level." BELONG WITH SOMEONE  BELONG TOGETHER When you belong w...

Care For, About or To? Hello and welcome to Fransy Fancy English! The verb "care" has lots and lots of meanings, depending on the preposition. Let's make things clear! CARE FOR SOMEBODY/SOMETHING (phrasal verb) A. To care for somebody is to take care of them or look after them. We care for people who aren't able to do it themselves, be it our elderly relatives, our kids when we leave for work or a patient in the hospital. "Ukrainian soldiers are being cared for in hospitals or in the fields." "She moved back home to care for her elderly parents ." "Can your friend care for my dog while I am away?" "Who will care for my children if one of us has to isolate?" "Girls, show me the way. I have a husband to care for !" B . We all have someone we cherish and care for in a friendly way. We think the world of them and it has nothing to do with sex. It can be a hobby, our pet or our job we are devoted to. "I get the f...

Fill up, Fill in, Fill out or Fulfill?  Hello an welcome to Fransy Fancy English. Today, we'll be looking into the phrasal verbs fill up, fill in and fill out. As you may have noticed, we'll also touch on the verb fulfill which more often that not, gets mixed up with the rest. FILL SOMETHING UP (with something) FILL UP SOMETHING (with something) You can use this phrasal verb when you make something full. The meaning is the same as fill. To illustrate, you can say: "He filled my glass with champagne/wine/beer."   "He filled up my glass with champagne/wine/beer." "He filled my glass up with champagne/wine/beer." "The bar/restaurant/office began to fill up with people." "The bar/restaurant/office was filling with people." In regard to your car's fuel or petrol tank, you can say: "I need to fill the tank ( with petrol/gas)." "I stopped to fill up the tank ( with petrol/gas)." "We need to fill up ...

Good Luck To, With, On or In?  Hello and welcome to Fransy Fancy English! Can all these prepositions be used when we wish somebody "good luck"? Yes, they can. But in what circumstances? Let's find out! Good luck to someone A: "I'm finally taking my driving test tomorrow!" B: "Well, good luck to you then!" or "Best of luck to you!" When you mention a person or thing (it can be a pronoun or a name) after "good luck" use the preposition to. "Good luck to Mary/John/her/him/them."  "Good luck to people/everyone/anyone/those who … " Good luck with/on something  "Good luck with your/on job interview!"          "Best of luck with/on your job interview!" "Good luck with/on your exams!"                     "The best of luck with/on your exams." "Good luck with/on your new job, Steve!"        "Best of luck with/on your new job!" "Good luck with/on your gam...

Remuneration, Wage, Pay, Profit, Revenue, Income, Earnings or Proceeds? Hello and welcome to Fransy Fancy English! These words have to do with the money a person or a business makes. Since I'm no financial expert, feel free to share your insights! Let's identify some similarities and differences. REMUNERATION  For employees: The noun remuneration is a general term for the monetary and non-monetary compensation that employees receive for their work. You could say that your remuneration includes your salary, wages, bonuses as well as perks. Salespeople and white-collar workers often receive remuneration. "We received fair remuneration for our services." WAGE (also wages) For employees: Wages are common among manual workers. If you're paid daily, hourly or weekly, you call it a wage or wages. Some people earn minimum wage, while some others are paid a high or low wage. "She receives weekly wages of £500." "He gets a good wage....

Throw Away, Throw Out, Dispose Of, Get Rid Of, Discard or Dump? Hello and welcome to Fransy Fancy English. These are all common in day-to-day conversations when we come across unwanted things. But how do they differ? Let's find out! THROW SOMETHING AWAY (phrasal verb) Informal THROW AWAY SOMETHING THROW SOMETHING OUT (phrasal verb) Informal THROW OUT SOMETHING When it comes to physical objects, "throw away" and "throw out" both mean that the object is going into the rubbish bin, trash can, dustbin or that the object is being removed from a place. When you throw something through the air (which is not a good thing to do), use "throw out". "Why do people throw empty cigarette packs out of the car window without thinking about the consequences of their actions?" "Throw out/away that old sofa." "It's a crime to throw away/out all the food you prepared." "Throw away/out any eggs with cracked shells." THROW AWAY No...

Refuse, Turn Down, Reject, Decline or Deny? Hello and welcome to Fransy Fancy English! All these words show that you don't want to accept or consider something. Let's go through them one by one. REFUSE SOMETHING / TO DO STH (verb) REFUSAL (noun) If you refuse to do something, you're unwilling to do it. You may change your mind later though and do it. You might also refuse to give someone what they want. "I refused to pay for their meal."  Sometimes we refuse to accept, allow, admit or discuss something. "He refused to admit his mistake." "I refuse to accept that you didn't know anything about that." "They flatly refused to discuss the issue further." We can also refuse something, such as a(n) offer or request. People have the ability to refuse entry, access, permission or help, and they do!  "Why do elderly people always refuse help from others?" "The company refused my request for an interview." We have all re...

Located In, On, At or To? Hello and welcome to Fransy Fancy English! Prepositions! What a nightmare! To gain a proper understanding of prepositions of place, watch my YouTube video and then come back here. The same rules apply, more or less.  You're quick! Let's not waste any more time! LOCATED IN We use "in" with cities, countries, areas, rooms and states. Follow the same rule when you use the adjective located.  "My house is located in the city center." "Our school is located in the suburbs." "The university is located in Cambridge." "The apartment is located in a quiet area." LOCATED ON  We use "on" with the adjective "located" when we are talking about surfaces, rivers, mountains, coasts, street names (without a number) and islands. We also use the preposition "on" with the noun "side".  If something is situated on the outskirts, it's in an area on the edge of a town or city. ...

Distraction or Destruction? Hello and welcome to Fransy Fancy English? These two nouns, may sound approximately the same but in reality they aren't related. Let's break them down! DISTRACTION (noun) DISTRACT (verb) DISTRACTION When you want to work and concentrate and noises or notifications on your phone won't let you, then these are all distractions. They distract you from your work. Your focus is lost.  "You need to study somewhere else. There are too many distractions at home." "Silence your devices to avoid distractions." DISTRACT When you're distracted, it's hard for you to pay attention to what you are doing because of what is going on around you. Mobile phones, emails, background noise and conversations are all common distractions. "Stop distracting me from my study!" "The music distracted me from my work" DESTRUCTION (noun) DESTOY (verb) DESTRUCTION  When a bomb goes off, it causes serious destruction. Destruction is ...

Existing, Existent or Existential? Hello and welcome to Fransy Fancy English! You're reading this post! Aha! This means that you exist, you're real.  EXIST (verb) To exist is to be in this world and be alive. It has no passive form.  "We can't exist without air." "Does life exist on Mercury?" EXISTENCE (noun) Your existence is the state of being present. "I want to leave my dull existence behind." EXISTING + noun  (adjective)  As an adjective, it describes something used in the present, something that is currently being used. "Existing" goes before a noun. "Existing methods should be improved." (the methods in use) "The existing system is unsatisfactory." (the system in use) EXISTENT (adjective) Formal Use the adjective "existent" when you talk about something that is alive and active. Some key differences between "existing" and "existent": 1. The former is associated with being used i...

Native, Indigenous or Local? Hello and welcome to Fransy Fancy English! Today we will be looking at the subtle differences between these three words. NATIVE TO A PLACE (adjective) NATIVE OF A PLACE (noun) We talk about our native countries and towns when we refer to the country we were born. There are native traditions and customs when you visit a new country. The adjective native can be used with people, animals and plants but be cautious when you want to mention the place of origin. Use the preposition 'to'.  "The tiger is native to India."   Native is an adjective. Use 'to'. You can use 'native' as a noun when you want to refer to someone who was born in a place. You can also use it with an animal or plant that grows there. When you name the location, the correct preposition is "of".  "The coconut palm is a native of Malaysia." Native is a noun here. Use "of'. "My friend has become a native of  Mexico." "Y...

Transfer, Transmit, Transport or Transit? Hello and Welcome to Fransy Fancy English! Aren't these words messing with your head? Well, admit it, they are! I'm here to help, so let's get down to it! TRANSFER SB/STH FROM A TO B (verb)       /trænsˈfɜː(r)/   The person or thing isn't in its initial position (A) after the transfer. TRANSFER (noun)       /ˈtrænsfɜː(r)/ Transfer is a noun and a verb. As a verb, it's when you move something or someone from a place to another. A transfer is the act of moving from a position to another. You can transfer data or files from your flash drive to your computer. Everyone is acquainted with the money transfer process these days. You can instantly transfer money to other bank accounts. Employees and workers can be transferred to different offices, branches or companies. When you cook, you may need to transfer your mixture or salad to a bigger or smaller container. "How can I transfer content and data to m...

Emigrate, Immigrate or Migrate? Emigration, Immigration And Migration Hello and welcome to Fransy Fancy English! These words mean to leave your country but there are some differences.  EMIGRATE FROM … TO (verb)  EMIGRATION FROM  … TO (noun) EMIGRANT (NOUN) The letter "E" plays a key role here. What I mean is, emigrate starts with an "E" and this is what you have to remember. When a person e xits their country to live in another, they e migrate.  E migrate = E xit your country You emigrate from your country to another region/country/area. "Many people emigrate (from Europe) to Australia." EMIGRATION Emigration is the act of moving abroad. EMIGRANT An emigrant is a person who leaves their country of residence. I MMIGRATE TO … FROM (verb) IMMIGRATION TO … FROM (noun) IMMIGRANT (noun) The key letter here is the letter "I". When you i mmigrate to another country, you move i nto it. I mmigrate = Move In to another land "More than 1,000 Ukrainian...