How to Use Though in English | PLUS Although, Even Though, & As Though

Have you ever felt frustrated by these words in English though?

Although even though and as though you might be wondering how

exactly are they different? Do they have the same meaning?

Can they be used interchangeably?

And where exactly do you put them in the sentence?

Do they go at the beginning or the middle?

Maybe you even avoid using these connectors due to that confusion.

If that's the case, you're definitely not alone. However,

mastering these connectors is important.

It helps you to present contrast with elegance, for example.

They can also help you acknowledge opposing points of view and

expectations,

all of which are important for balanced nuanced conversations in English.

Not only that,

these words often appear regularly in English conversations,

idiomatic expressions, films, literature and so on.

Understanding and using these words correctly not only improves your English

comprehension, it also elevates your speech.

So today we're going to explore the nuance of each of these connectors.

Throughout this lesson,

you'll gain clarity on how and when to use each of these

connectors,

and together we'll take on challenges with practical examples so you can see

exactly where to use these connectors.

In a sentence along the way.

I have a couple of quizzes for you as well to test your know-how.

Now before we get started, if this is your first time here, welcome.

I'm Annemarie, an English confidence and fluency coach.

Everything I do is designed to help you get the confidence you want for your

life and work in English.

If you'd love to discover years of lessons and free resources for me,

you can find all of that and more at my Speak Confident English website.

While you're there,

I recommend downloading my in-depth English fluency training called How to Get

the Confidence to Say What You Want. Okay, to help us get started,

I want to take a look at four example sentences. Number one,

although it was raining heavily, the kids in insisted on playing outside.

Number two, though she had studied for hours,

Nadia felt it was too early to take a break. Number three,

even though Melissa had a long day at work,

she decided to go for a run after dinner. And number four,

she acted as though she knew nothing about the surprise birthday party her

family had planned. What's the common factor in each of these sentences?

Of course it's the word though,

but is the meaning the same in each one? The connectors though,

although and even though are often used interchangeably to introduce contrast.

In other words,

they're used to highlight that two things are different or opposite.

This is not unlike using the word but in English. In fact,

in some of those sentences you could even replace the connector with the word.

But for example, if we go back to that sentence,

even though Melissa had a long day at work,

she decided to go for a run after dinner with just a few small changes.

I can say the same sentence but use though, although,

or even that word, but for example,

Melissa was tired after a long day of work,

but she still decided to go on a run after dinner.

Although Melissa was tired after a long day of work,

she decided to go for a run after dinner. And finally,

Melissa was tired after a long day of work.

She still decided to go for a run after dinner though while the meaning of each

of these though, although and even though is similar,

there are subtle differences among each one and the connector as

though is completely different.

So let's unpack all of that one by one.

Let's start with the word though.

Unlike the other connectors we're going to review today,

this one can be used at the beginning,

in the middle and at the end of a sentence. For example,

though she left home early, she arrived late for the interview,

she arrived late to the interview,

though she left home early and our third example, she left home early.

She arrived late to the interview though.

To decide where to put the word though in a sentence,

you need to consider the meaning based on the context.

So let's take a look at three uses of though first

though can be used to mean despite when the word though is used in

this way, it is typically used at the beginning or the middle of a sentence.

Let's take a look at a few examples and compare it to using despite

or despite the fact that Lily was fond of her brother,

though he did everything he could to annoy her here,

I could replace though with despite or despite the fact that Lily was fond

of her brother despite the fact that he did everything he could to annoy her.

As you can see with the use of though and despite the fact that we're

indicating contrasting or opposing statements.

Here's another example though. I tried to limit my coffee intake.

I've had three cups of coffee today. Similarly,

I could use despite the fact that I try to limit my coffee intake,

I've had three cups today.

The second use of though is in replace of the words. However or but,

and when we use it in this way,

it intends to weaken or soften the previous statement.

We'll take a look at several examples to see this in action,

and I want you to pay attention to the placement of the word though

in this context.

It's usually used in the middle or at the end of the sentence.

For example, the vacation request will likely be denied.

Though it's still worth asking. I could use the word,

but instead the vacation request will likely be denied,

but it's still worth asking as you can see in these two example sentences

by adding on that contrast language though or but followed

by an opinion that it may still be worth asking for some time off.

I'm softening or weakening the idea that this vacation

request will be denied rather than an all or nothing black

or white statement. There is an area of gray there.

Let's take a look at another example.

Wendy said she'll be here in about 30 minutes,

though I'm unsure with all this traffic.

Wendy said she'll be here in about 30 minutes. However,

I'm unsure with all this traffic.

And now here's a pair where we can move the word though to the very end of the

sentence. She called me yesterday and it was a brief conversation.

I don't remember what we talked about though. Similarly,

I could say she called me yesterday and it was a brief conversation.

I don't remember what we talked about. However, in this case,

by adding though at the very end,

it's as if I'm adding that second statement as an afterthought.

And finally, the third use of though is to replace words such as regardless,

nonetheless, and any way. For example,

maybe a friend of yours knows you have a business trip tomorrow and she sends

you a quick message saying, would you like a ride to the airport tomorrow?

In response, you could say, I have already booked my Uber.

Thanks though we typically use that expression, thanks though,

or thanks anyway to say that you appreciate the offer,

but you're going to decline it.

It is a nice way to say thank you even though you're not accepting

what somebody else has offered.

Let's take a look at one more example and then I've got a quick quiz for you.

Perhaps your coworker knows it's been a particularly busy day.

You have a long list of to-dos. So she says this,

I can take on a few of your tasks if you'd like,

and although you appreciate the offer, you don't really need it at this point.

You've gotten most of your list done, so you might say I'm almost done.

Thank you though, I appreciate it.

Before we move on to take a look at how to use all though,

I want you to review this one sentence and determine the

meaning of the word. Though though I usually back up my phone,

I lost most of my recent photos in this sentence.

Are we using though to indicate however or but are we

using it in place of despite the fact that or are we using

it to replace nonetheless or anyway if you selected

B despite the fact that you're exactly right.

And now let's talk about the word.

Although the words although and though can be used interchangeably.

However, there are two important distinctions to keep in mind. Number one,

the word although is considered a more formal choice. And number two,

it introduces a surprising contrast.

So some opposing idea or statement that you didn't really expect.

Let's take a look first at a few examples of where we might use

though. And although interchangeably, if for example,

you're using the word though to replace the words,

but or however this is where we can use although interchangeably,

again, it's a more formal choice,

but we can choose between either one and because it is being used

as a conjunction,

we would use it at the beginning or the middle of the sentence only.

I've got three example sentences for you and in each case you could replace.

Although with the first example we learned about though, number one,

although many of the team members were on vacation,

the product launched without any issues. Number two,

Olivia came to the party although she didn't stay long. And number three,

I knew it was the wrong decision, although I didn't say anything in the moment.

If you go back to review those sentences,

you can use the word though in place of,

although in each one and in the second two,

so in example sentence two and example sentence three,

you could also use however.

And now this second distinction that we talked about,

although is typically used to introduce surprising contrast.

So it means that this has a slightly stronger feeling to it.

For example, let's say that you're on vacation and you've got a lot of plans,

so you're carefully reviewing the weather forecast and something unexpected

happens. You might say this,

although the weather forecast indicated that we would have full sun all day,

it started to rain heavily in the afternoon.

Here we have two contrasting statements and there's an indication of something

surprising or unexpected. Here's another example.

I took piano lessons for years,

although I don't remember the musical scale. Now again,

we have a bit of surprise here.

You would assume that someone who has taken piano lessons for years would

remember something simple like the musical scale.

So we have this unexpected contrast and here's one

more example. The company went ahead with terminating the contract,

although the board members were on the fence about it.

And now let's talk about even though we can use though,

although and even though interchangeably and among the three,

even though is the strongest.

So if you think for a moment about those surprising or unexpected

contrasts, when something is particularly surprising,

even though is the more likely choice,

it's also the most formal of the three. And just like the connector,

although we use even though at the beginning and in the middle of sentences,

let's take a look at a few examples. Number one,

even though Jessica was severely ill,

she still worked hard to meet her deadline that day. Again, we could use though,

or although in that same sentence, however,

this one has a particularly strong contrast and as a result,

even though is a good fit. A second example,

the news channel continued to misrepresent ethnic groups even though

the public had a strong reaction. And our third example sentence,

even though she was terribly nervous about the presentation,

she spoke with confidence and clarity.

Now that you have though, although, and even though in place,

let's take a look at as though because it's the odd one out rather

than indicate contrast, we use as though for comparisons,

it's similar to using like or as if you'll often see

these words used for descriptions and for hypothetical or

even impossible situations. Let's talk first about descriptions.

When we describe how someone feels, looks or appears,

we will often show a comparison between two things to create a more vivid

explanation,

and this is where the connector as though is helpful.

For example,

the entire family celebrated as though they had won the lottery.

Now the truth is they didn't win the lottery,

but you can imagine how a family might celebrate if they did and whatever

event was happening at that particular time,

perhaps someone's birthday or an anniversary,

they were celebrating as though they had won the lottery.

Here's another example.

The sky was dark and gloomy as though there was a severe rainstorm

coming. Now, the truth is there may not have been a severe rainstorm coming,

but the color of the sky,

the feel of the atmosphere made it feel like that might happen.

Now, to build onto that idea of descriptions, as I mentioned,

we can use as though to indicate hypothetical situations,

so things that seem to be true even though they're not.

Here's an example.

The colorful houses looked as though children had designed them.

Now of course, children probably did not design these houses, however,

it's likely creating a vivid image in your mind.

You can imagine what these houses might look like if they had been designed by

children. Here's another example, and for this one,

I want you to imagine that we're talking about someone who is a skilled public

speaker,

someone who has presented to large audiences numerous times,

and yet for some reason on this particular occasion,

something is different. And you might say to your neighbor,

your coworker or friend sitting next to you,

why is her voice so shaky?

She sounds as though she's never given a presentation before,

and here's a final example. It's so hot outside.

Peter just came into the office and he looks as though he ran a marathon. Now,

of course, Peter did not run a marathon,

but you can imagine how someone might look at the end of running a full length

marathon on a hot summer's day. Again,

we're using this to compare two things in an effort to create a more

vivid explanation. With all that in mind, I have a quick quiz for you.

I want you to take a look at this sentence and decide whether you should use as

though, or even though in the sentence,

the night sky was lit up with stars,

someone had sprinkled glitter on a vast black canvas.

What do you think if you selected as though you're exactly right,

we're aiming to create a comparison here. Now,

I know you're probably thinking Annemarie, this has been super helpful,

but I really need to practice and I've got some good news for you over at my

Speak Confident English website.

You'll find this lesson and I have a worksheet you can download.

On that worksheet,

you'll find example sentences and the opportunity to choose whether you

should use though, although even though or as though in each one.

So once you're finished here,

I want you to go over to the Speak Confident English website and download that

worksheet. If you found today's lesson helpful to you,

I would love to know and you can tell me in a couple of simple ways. Number one,

you can give this lesson a thumbs up here on YouTube and while you're at it,

make sure you subscribe so you never miss one of my Confident English lessons.

And number two, you can also share your comments, your questions,

your answers to my quizzes down in the comment section below.

Thank you so much for joining me and I look forward to seeing you next time.