BOX SET: English In A Minute 1 – TEN English lessons in 10 minutes!

Hi, I'm Sian from BBC learning English, and today we're going to look at the

difference between 'raise' and 'rise'. So, 'raise' and 'rise' both refer to something

going up but there's a difference in how we use them. 'Raise' always needs a

direct object, so, if you raise something, you move it up.

For example: I raise my eyebrows when I'm surprised.

And it doesn't have to be literal, so: The government plan to raise taxes.

Don't forget this is a regular verb, so, the past  

and past participle are both 'raised'.

But with 'rise', there's no direct object so if something rises,

it goes up or increases by itself.

The sun rises at 6 a.m. at the moment.

Careful! This is an irregular verb so the past is 'rose',

and the past participle is 'risen'.

Hi guys. Dan for BBC Learning English here. Today we're going to talk about the

verbs 'wish' and 'hope'. Now, the verb 'wish' can be used in many ways  

and you can get much more detailed information on our website. However, we

generally use 'wish' to talk about a present or past situation that 

we want to change, but understand that it can't.  

Present wishes are 'wish' plus a past simple verb, for example: I wish I were taller.

Past wishes are 'wish' plus past perfect: I wish I had grown taller.

'Hope' can also be used in different ways but generally, when we 'hope', we talk

about something that we want or expect for the future. 'Hope' can be followed by a

full infinitive, for example: I hope to see you soon. But more commonly we follow

it with the present tense that has a future meaning, or, with 'will'.

I hope you pass your driving test. I hope you'll have a good time.

Hello, I'm Tom and today I'm going to show you how we really say hello to our

friends in British English. If you're with your friends, you can say 'alright?' For

example: Alright, Ellie? You could also say 'hello, mate!' but say it like this:

Hello, mate! Another thing we could say is 'How are you doing?' but we say it like

this: How you doing? My favourite is 'What's happening?' and you say it like this:

Hey, what's happening? You can use any of these expressions when you meet

British people and sound super-natural. Excellent, so now you know how to use

these new expressions, you can come and say 'Hi' to us on the

BBC Learning English social media pages.

Hi everyone, I'm James. We're going to look at the difference between 'in case'

and 'if' in today's English in a Minute. Look at these examples: I'll call you if I need

help with my homework. I'll call you in case I need help with my homework.

In the example with 'if', it means that I might call you in the future but it depends

if I need help or not. The second sentence with 'in case' means I'm going to call

you before I do my homework to prevent any problems. Let's take a look at

another example: I'll take an umbrella in case it rains. I'll take an umbrella if it

rains. Just like in our first example, 'in case' means I'm going to take my umbrella

anyway, to prevent any problems. But in the example with 'if', this means that you

only take an umbrella because it is raining when you leave.

So, if you want to learn more English, join us on social media or on our website.

In case you can't remember the link, here it is.

Hi, I'm Phil from BBC Learning English. Today, I'm going to tell you the  

difference between 'even though' and 'even if'. Now,  we use them both for emphasis but they don't  

mean the same. We use 'even though' to introduce something that's true, but might be a little bit  

unexpected - it's a bit like 'despite'. Even though I  hate driving, I'm still going to Scotland by car.  

Even though I hate tennis, I'm still going to  watch the final. We use 'even if' to introduce  

something hypothetical, so it might not be real.  Even if it's sunny when we're in Scotland, I'm  

not going swimming. Even if you paid me, I wouldn't  watch that film. So, 'even though' is for things  

that are true but unexpected, and 'even if' if the  things that are hypothetical so they might not  

be real. Even though they look the same, they  are different, even if you didn't notice at first.

Welcome everyone. Today we're going to  look at the difference between 'few' and 'a few'.  

Have a look at these two sentences. Which sentence has a more negative feeling? Number one: I have few  

friends. Number two: I have a few friends who live  in London. It was sentence number one, right? When  

we use 'few', we're saying that the total number of  something is not as many as we would like. That  

the number is small. Here I'm telling you that I  don't have many friends. When we use 'a few', we're  

not talking about the total number, but a category  of something. It has a similar meaning to 'some'.  

Here I'm telling you that some of my friends  live in London. Just remember, we always use this  

with countable nouns only - so please be careful.  See you next time.

Hi, everyone James here. We're

going to take a look at some quick and easy ways  to agree with other people's opinions. If someone  

says something positive that you agree with, you  can say 'so do I' or 'so am I'. I love sushi. So do I.  

I'm really tired today. So am I. You can also  say 'me too'. However, when somebody says something  

negative with the word 'not', for example, we use  the word 'neither' or 'neither'. 'Neither do I' or 'neither am I'.  

I don't go to the cinema very often. Neither  do I. I'm not very well at the moment. Neither am I.

We can also just say 'me neither'. So, to agree with something positive, you use the word 'so' but  

to agree with something negative we use the word  'neither' or 'neither'. Thanks for joining us everybody.  

Hi, I'm Roy, and today I'm going to tell you the  difference between 'when' and 'if'. Firstly, you can  

use 'when' or 'if' with the present simple when it  is a fact or a repeated action. If or when you put  

water in the freezer, it becomes ice. We use 'if' for  unknown or possible situations. If it rains today,  

I'll take my umbrella. We use 'when' to say we are  certain something's going to happen in the future.  

When I go home, I'll watch a film. Compare these two  sentences: If I eat breakfast today, I'll have toast.  

I might not eat breakfast. When I eat breakfast  today, I'll have toast. I will eat breakfast. Anyway,  

that's everything for today. I've got to go because  I'm hungry. If I don't eat breakfast, I get grumpy. Bye.

Hi, Saskia for BBC Learning English here, and  today I'm going to tell you about how we use verbs  

of perception in English. There are a number of  these verbs but I'm just going to look at two  

with you now. 'See' and 'hear'. When we use these verbs,  this is the form. First the verb of perception, then  

the object of the sentence, then we have either the  infinitive without 'to' or the -ing form. Here's an  

example: 'I heard him go down the stairs' or  'I heard him going down the stairs'. There's  

a slight difference between these two forms. When  we use the infinitive, it suggests that we hear or  

see the whole action or event. Using the -ing forms  suggests that we hear or see something in progress.  

'I saw her cross the street' means I saw her cross  from one side to the other. 'I saw her crossing the  

street' means I saw her in the middle on the way  across.

I'm Georgina from BBC Learning English. Have you ever thought about

the difference between 'lend' and 'borrow'? They are both verbs but they're used in  

different ways. 'Lend' means to give something to  someone, generally for a short time. For example,  

the bank lent me some money. If you want to say who you lent something to, you can use the preposition  

'to'. I lent my mobile phone to James. Oh no. I forgot  my pen. Can you lend me a pen? 'Borrow' means to ask  

someone for something. Oh no. I can't read this.  Can I borrow your glasses? If you want to say  

who you borrowed something from, you can use the  preposition 'from'. For example: I borrowed a book  

from the library. Oh. I'm late I need to borrow  a laptop from Sam for my meeting. Got to go!