English Vocabulary: ABOUT, ABOUT TO, NOT ABOUT TO

Hi there. My name is Emma, and today's video is about the word "about". So before I begin,

well it's also -- sorry --, it's about "about", "about to", and "not about to". So we're going

to look at what "about" means, what "about to" means, and what "not about to" means;

they have different meanings. But before I begin talking about the grammar

and what these expressions mean, I just want to say that you'll notice I have a Canadian

pronunciation of "about". Okay? So, if you ever hear an American make a joke about a

Canadian, one of the jokes they often make is about the way Canadians say "about". For

me, I don't actually hear the difference between how Americans say "about" and how Canadians

say "about", but any time I go to the States, as soon as I say this word they go, "You're

a Canadian." So just so you're aware: I have a Canadian pronunciation of the word "about".

So let's get started. First I'm going to talk about the word "about", then "about to", and

then "not about to". Okay, so "about". Now, there are many different meanings of the word

"about", I'm just going to go through two of the most common. So these are not all the

meanings, there are a lot of meanings. This is just... these are just the two most common.

So I have an example sentence here: "It's about five miles to town." So this means it's

close to five miles to town; it's around five miles to town. I'm not saying exactly, it's

five miles. I don't know, maybe it's 5.2 miles, maybe it's 4.9 miles, but it's around five

miles. I could say, "It's about three o'clock." I don't mean it's exactly three o'clock. Maybe

it's 2:59, maybe it's 3:05; it's close to that time. Okay? So that's the first meaning

that we use very often when we want to say: "It's not exactly, but it's close to."

The second meaning is when we want to say what the subject is, we want to know what

the subject of something is. So you might ask somebody: "What's Titanic about?" So this

is: -"What is the subject of the movie?" -"Well, it's about two people who fall in love on

a sinking ship." Another example of the same idea with subject

-- I love this question --, "What are you thinking about?" So I have a friend who always

asks her husband this question. She looks at him and she says, "What are you thinking

about?" And he's probably not thinking about anything I'm pretty sure or maybe work, and

he always says to her, "Nothing. Nothing, I'm, I don't know. I'm thinking, I don't know,

sports?" So my friend always asks this question hoping that he will say something very deep,

maybe something romantic, maybe something sweet. But usually, I'm pretty sure he's not

really thinking about much. So these are probably the two most common usages of "about". So

again, "close to" and you want to know the subject.

So now let's look at "about to". Okay, so now I'm about to talk to you about "about

to". So "Be + about + to", this has its own unique meaning. So "be" is a verb, then you

need "about", and don't forget this little preposition, this is important: "to". What

does this mean? It means you're going to do something soon; you're very close to doing

something. So for example:

"I" -- you have your subject -- "am" -- which is the "I" form of "be" --, "I'm about to

eat dinner. Can I call you when I finish?" So this means: "I haven't started dinner yet,

but I'm going to eat dinner soon. Can I call you when I finish eating dinner?" Okay? So

very simple meaning.

My second example: "The movie is about to begin." So here we

have "is" which is the third form of "be", "about", and "to". So we have "Be about to

+ a verb". "Be about to sleep.", "I'm about to sleep.", "I can't do my homework, I'm about

to sleep.", "I'm about to go to class.", "I don't have time to talk because I'm about

to go to class." Meaning: "I'm going to class soon." Okay? So that's "about to".

Now, "Be not about to" actually has a different meaning. Okay? So although it's similar, you

still have your "to", the only difference is this is in a negative; the meaning is different.

"Be about to" has to do with determination. So, what do I mean by this? Well, here is

an example: I might say, "I am not about to stop studying English because I failed a class."

So this is a strong way to say... We don't write this, this is something we say in speech

when we talk. You're showing the person you have determination. In this case: "I'm not

about to stop studying English because I failed a class", you're showing you're not going

to give up.

I might say, maybe I have a friend, maybe they want to wear a pink wig and clown makeup

in public. Okay? Kind of weird. I might say to them: "Listen, I'm not about to let you

go into public and embarrass yourself. I'm not about to let you wear that clown wig and

mask because you'll embarrass yourself." Okay? Another thing I might say: "I'm not about

to... I'm not about to move to Hawaii just because someone tells me Hawaii has nice weather."

So I'm showing strong determination. So it's a strong disagreement, I'm not about to do something.

All right, so let's do a quiz to see if you can remember the difference between "about",

"about to", and "not about to". Okay, so I have five sentences here, and together, I

want us to fill in the blanks with either "about", "be about to", or "be not about to".

Okay?

So let's do the first one together. "Shiv is _______ six feet tall." Do you think

this is "about", "be about to", or "not about to"? If you said "about", you are correct.

Meaning he is close to six feet tall, maybe he's 5'12, maybe he's 5'11; he's close to

six feet tall.

Number two: "I'm _______ get on the train." "I'm about

get on the train.", "I'm about to get on the train.", or "I'm not about to get on the train."?

Well this one you could actually have two answers. You could say: "I'm about to get

on the train." Meaning soon, you will get on the train. You could also say: "I'm not

about to get on that train." Maybe you have a problem with the train, maybe you've seen

a scary movie about a train and you're really scared and so you want to say with determination:

"I'm not getting, I'm not about to get on that train." Maybe you see someone you know

that you don't like. So you could actually use "I'm about to" or "I'm not about to",

depending on if you want to say "I'm determined not to go on the train." or in this case:

"I'm going on the train soon." Okay, so both would be correct.

Number three: "Your father is _______ let you date Antonio."

Do you think this is "about", "about to", or "not about to"?

"Your father is not about

to let you date Antonio." So, I would say "not about to" because it sounds like maybe

fathers are protective of their daughters; they're worried about who their daughters

date so they're determined to prevent this man's daughter from dating Antonio. Okay?

But, on the other hand, maybe you have a very nice father who's not strict at all. Maybe

he decided he hated Antonio, and then he changed his mind, so maybe you could also say: "Your

father is about to let you date Antonio." But it's a little strange.

Number four: "What is Terminator _______?" "About", "about

to", "not about to"? "What is Terminator about?"

So here, we're looking for the subject. What's

the subject of Terminator? What's the movie about? Well, it's about a man who travels

back in time. It's a good movie.

Okay, number five: "I just heard Aziza and Ayesha talking _______

Nadira." So: "I just heard Aziza and Ayesha talking _______ Nadira." What do you think

it is: "about", "about to", or "not about to"?

"Talking about". So this isn't nice,

Nadira is the subject. Well, they could be saying nice things about Nadira, they could

be talking about Nadira in a very nice way, she, you know, saying she's a great person

but maybe they're not talking nicely about her. Okay?

So this video is about to finish. We have about maybe 10 seconds left. So before it

ends, I just wanted to say thank you for watching, and come visit us at our website: www.engvid.com

where you can try out our test to see how well you do with the difference between "about",

"about to", and "not about to". So until next time, take care.