What's the difference between these English Verbs?

Hey there I'm Emma from mmmEnglish!

There are many different ways to express

a single idea in English and these verbs

are a good example of that.

Knowing the subtle differences and understanding

how to use each of these verbs

accurately and naturally is a really good sign of

the difference between an intermediate student

and an advanced English speaker because

these verbs can all be used in really

similar situations, they're synonyms.

I suppose it can be confusing to know when

and how to use them.

I think you know what I mean right?

But I believe that by the end of watching this video

you'll be clear on how to use all of them correctly.

I anticipate you'll have some questions

but I'll do my best to answer as many of them as I can.

I predict that by the time we get to the mini quiz

at the end, you'll have no trouble at all.

Let's go!

Of all of these verbs, think is the one I'm certain

you know and you feel comfortable using.

Suppose, believe, anticipate,

predict, they can all be synonyms of think.

And think has quite a few meanings as well.

It can be used in phrasal verbs and other expressions

but if we focus on the meaning that is

similar to the verbs we've been talking about,

then think means to feel that something is true,

based on facts or knowledge that you have.

So we use it to take an educated guess.

I think it's going to be a hot day tomorrow.

So I'm making a guess and it's based on

the weather that we've had in previous days this week

and maybe I've seen the weather report so I'm not

a hundred per cent confident that it's going to be hot

but I'm using the information that I have

to make that guess.

And by using think, we're communicating

that we're unsure.

We're not a hundred per cent certain right?

If I was certain then I would say:

It will be a hot day tomorrow.

I think we need to turn left but I'm a bit lost.

Now if you're a regular student of mine,

then you'll know that I'm often talking about

how important collocations are

and even with simple verbs like think,

it's often the words that are used with it

where my students make mistakes.

So collocations are words that are commonly

used together in naturally spoken English.

And with the verb think,

the preposition of is often used.

When we think of something or someone, we're

remembering them

and often

keeping their needs or their happiness in mind.

Our neighbour is always thinking of us

and dropping home-baked goodies on our doorstep.

If I think of someone as something then

I have a specific opinion about them.

I always thought of him as a great athlete.

Or I've always thought of myself as a city person

but I really enjoyed the peace and quiet of the farm.

If you think about something, then you're

carefully considering it right? You're weighing up

different options to make a decision.

I know I said I'd make the offer by the end of the week

but I need more time to think about it.

It's a tough decision.

Quick note. It is much more natural when you're

showing appreciation to someone to say:

Thanks for thinking of me.

Rather than: Thanks for thinking about me.

I suppose you've heard this verb before

but I wonder

if you are completely confident in how to use it.

We use the verb suppose when you generally

believe or you think that something is true or possible

but you're not completely sure.

So of course

that sounds very similar to the definition of think, right?

Let's look at an example.

I suppose he's going to show up late again.

He always does.

I think he's going to show up again.

He always does.

So both of these examples are correct.

You can use each of these verbs like this

but there is a subtle difference.

Think is just a little bit more certain

like you feel that you are right

whereas suppose suggests that

you're not quite convinced of your own feelings.

Maybe you have some information,

enough to take a guess but you don't really have any

solid proof.

And when you're using think,

well you might also have some information

that helps you feel more confident about your feelings.

Maybe someone has said to you that they

hadn't seen him in the office all day.

Maybe he regularly turns up late

so you're using the information that you've got

to confidently take a guess.

When you're using suppose

it puts your feelings in a little more doubt.

Now you can also use suppose when you are

being sarcastic when you

think that something is true or correct

but you're not really happy about it.

I suppose I should finish my homework

before I come over.

You can also say

I suppose so as a way to agree with someone

and again to show that you have some

doubts or maybe that you're not loving the idea.

Could you help me to edit this

report by the end of the day?

I suppose so.

We use believe when we have an opinion

that something is true or that

what someone is saying is true.

But it doesn't have to be an opinion based on fact,

it can simply be something that you feel is true.

I believe that we'll find the right person for the job.

We can't give up yet.

So again, it's a synonym of think right?

So the differences are really subtle

but like the verb suppose, when we use believe,

it does sound a little less certain.

However it is a verb that has power like you

trust in your instinct. You feel that you're correct

but perhaps you don't have the evidence to support it

but you do have your faith or trust

that it will be.

Now believe is a verb that can be used and is often

used in the passive voice.

We say it is believed that...

And you'll often hear the adverb widely used as well.

It is widely believed that

and that's to emphasise that it's thought to be true

by many people.

So we use the passive voice when

we don't know or maybe we don't want to say

who believes that so it's a really great

sort of collocation, chunk of words

to learn and practise using together.

Now we use the verb anticipate when we

think that something will probably happen

so you believe

that something is coming in the future.

You can't anticipate that something has happened

in the past or the present, we anticipate the future, right?

We anticipate our sales will triple by next year.

So if I say that I believe our sales will triple,

well it's just my own personal opinion or my

feelings right?

However, if I use the verb anticipate

well then I usually have some kind of information

or facts to back that up.

I've got reasons to believe that something

is going to happen in the future.

And when we anticipate something we usually prepare

ourselves to deal with it too.

We know or we think that we know that something

is coming so we can prepare

for that moment or that event in the future.

I anticipated the test would be difficult

so I studied extra hard.

It's a good thing that we anticipated such a large crowd

and provided the extra parking.

And last but not least, we use the verb predict

which is actually quite similar to anticipate

because we use predict to guess or to explain

what we think will happen in the future before it actually

does happen.

But the very subtle difference is that we use

anticipate when the event that will happen in the future

is going to happen at a specific time

and we usually use predict when the event will happen

further into the future or we don't know

what time it's going to happen.

Scientists predict that machines will be quicker

in learning and predicting the future than humans!

But we could equally say:

We anticipate that machines will be quicker

and faster at learning than humans by next year.

Now remember that in many situations,

you could use several of these verbs correctly but

the meaning of each of those sentences

would be slightly different.

Let's just look at a comparison.

She believes that 2021 will be a great year.

She predicts that 2021 will be a great year.

She thinks that 2021 will be a great year.

She anticipates that 2021 will be a great year.

And she supposes that 2021 will be a great year.

So all of these sentences make sense

but there are some really subtle differences.

In the first example, by using the verb believe,

well it doesn't sound very factual, right? She

might not have much information to back up that belief

but she has faith,

she has the feeling that 2021 is going to be great.

So in the second example,

she not only believes but she's told someone

that she believes. She's announced her belief, right?

In the third example, if she thinks that 2021 will be great

then she's formed that opinion based on some

information. Maybe she's

considered some facts or some ideas, right?

We know that coronavirus vaccine is coming right so

we think next year is going to be better.

When we use anticipate, well we can assume that she's

planning for 2021 to be great.

She's based her belief on some information

and she's organising or she's preparing everything

to make that happen.

In this example, think and anticipate can be used

pretty interchangeably but anticipate is definitely a more

advanced way of expressing that idea. It also

suggests more specific and more formal language.

And lastly, well she's got some doubts about

2021 being great. She's not sure.

The facts and the ideas, maybe they suggest that it's

gonna be great but she's not totally convinced so she's

really expressing her doubt by using the word suppose.

I suppose it's gonna be good.

All right as always, we've got a little quiz to help you

test what you've learned. Are you ready to get started?

I've got some sentences for you

and I want you to do your best just to pick the best fit

for the space.

Don't forget that you need to change the

form of the verb

to make sure that the sentence is correct

so that might mean

conjugating the verb so the grammar's accurate.

Most of these examples are really common expressions

or collocations where

one verb fits better than the others so think about

the meaning and the intention of that verb first

and look for clues in the prepositions and words

around that verb, those collocations.

We're not

any major issues will be raised at the meeting

tomorrow.

Anticipating is correct.

Everybody likes her and

highly of her.

Now the clue is here.

Thinks.

If you had asked me to

how I would spend the year 2020 last year,

I would have been wrong.

Predict.

Since you have been so good today, I

we can stop for ice cream on the way home.

Suppose.

After watching a few sci-fi documentaries, he now

in aliens.

So again, look at that preposition for a clue.

Believe, you're right.

So how did you do?

Tell me down in the comments especially if

any of them were quite challenging for you

and can you think of any other synonyms of the word

think?

If you can, share them down in the comments below,

there are definitely a few more to explore.

I love that you have stuck with me all the way through

to the end of the lesson and you've done the hard work.

You're awesome! Well done.

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