Foreword

One of the best ways to improve your "word power" is to know the special meanings, nuances and differences in USAGES of English synonyms.

Firstly, you need to know what "hypernomy" or "hypernymy" means...

hyper (above) + nomy (name)

Hypernomy is the condition of being inclusive of all other synonymy of a given set of synonyms.

Hypernym is the word which includes the meanings of all the other synonyms.

Like this:

In the diagram above, the word "look" is a hypernym, and the diagram illustrates the hypernomic condition of "look".

Speak, Talk, Say, Tell, Mention, Discuss, Converse, Comment

  (v.i., v.t.)

1.  Speech¹ = the ability to produce the SOUNDS of words and sentences accurately;  This is related to "Speak" v.i.  AND "Speak" v.t., where the direct object is a language.

Examples:  (i) He speaks well.  (ii) He speaks poorly.
          (iii) He has a speech impediment.  (iv)  He speaks English well.  (v)  I speak Chinese poorly.

2.  Speech² = an oral composition, presented in front of an audience;  This is related to "Speak" v.t. where the direct object is an audience (it looks like an indirect object, but it's not, usually).

Examples:  (i) Pres. Bush spoke to the troops in Korea.  (ii) Pres. Bush gave a speech to the troops in Korea.

Note:  it is possible to use a direct object and an indirect object, but it is not common.

Examples:  (i)  I spoke English to my students.  [but in this case "spoke" has the number 1 meaning only].

If you say, "I spoke in English to my students"  "spoke" has the number two meaning, and there is only one object, because "in English" is an adverbial phrase.

Examples:  (i) I talk.  (ii) I talk with you.  (iii) We talk about the price of tea in China.

direct object:  something (sth)

indirect object:  (to) somebody (sb)

American style:  say + sth + to + sb

Example:  I said "I love you" to my son.

in the UK, I would seem that the direct object and indirect object are interchangeable, but the indirect object must have "to" before it.

direct object:  sb

indirect object:  (about) sth

Example:  I told him about the party.

Note:  the indirect object is optional, AND IT IS INCORRECT TO SWITCH THE ORDER OF DIRECT AND INDIRECT OBJECT.

There are a few idiomatic expressions which break the rule I gave above:

For example:  (i) Tell a story.  (ii) Tell a joke.

In those cases, the direct object has been omitted, when it is commonly known "who" the direct object is.

Example of full sentence:  Tell us a story.

Argue & Debate

v.i. : Don't argue with me.

v.t. : Why argue about politics?  Nobody wins.

v.i. : I like to debate.

v.t. : Let's debate about politics.

Hear, Listen, Comprehend

Listen and Comprehend, or  Read and Comprehend

Boats
ship, sail boat, yacht, motor boat, ferry, row boat, canoe, kayak, raft

Look
Watch, See, Stare, Behold, View, Peek, Peep, Peer, Glare, Glaze, Glance, Ogle, Goggle, 

We say, "Watch TV" because the picture portrayed by the TV moves.  If you want to see the TV, and NOT the picture portrayed by the TV, use "look at".

We say, "Watch a person" because people move.

It would be incorrect to say, "Watch a plant", unless it is a moving plant.  You could say, "Watch(ed) the leaves on the trees as they 'dance(d)' in the wind" because the leaves are moving.

Example:  "I can see the dog.  Can't you?"

It Can be used as a command.  Example:

"See the dog run."  But this usage is archaic.

BUT, there are several idioms with the word "SEE"...

1.  I see.

"I see" means "I understand", or "I am enlightened by your words".  NOTE:  light = knowledge or understanding, and since light is perceived through the eyes, "I see" has the meaning:  I receive light (or ENLIGHTENMENT).  Also, the expression "to see the light" means: to apprehend truth

2.  see a movie

You could also say, "watch a movie".  I do not know how "see a movie" came to be acceptable speech, but it is.  

Example:  I beheld the duck in the pond.

NOTE:  this word is archaic

somewhat formal usage

Example:  "The immigration officer viewed my passport."

Also:  preview [pre (before) + view (look)] and,

 review [re (again) + view (look)]

Example:  "I peeked at my Christmas present."

"Peeping Tom" is a man, who secretly looks at a woman undressing from outside her bedroom window

School, Academy, Institute, College, University

If you want to be specific, you should add an adjective:

1. public/private elementary school
2. public/private middle school or junior high school
3. public/private high school
4. state/private school of higher learning (college or university)

2. a place of extra-curricular learning
Example:  Smithsonian Institute

If you want to be specific, you should add an adjective:

1.  junior college "J.C."
2.  community college (same as 1)
3.  college of art (in a university)
4.  college of science (in a university)

A "colleague" is usually a person who is in the same academic field AND/OR in the same profession.

1.  the university's college of education
2.  the university's college of life science
3.  the university's college of physical science
4.  the university's college of art
5.  the university's college of mathematics
6.  the university's college of humanities
7.  the university's college of engineering
8.  the university's college of behavioral science
etc.

Note:  it is not difficult to comprehend the differences between "college" an "university" if you know the etymology of each word.

"College" means a groups of people interested in the same thing(s)

"Uni" (one) + "versity" (many) = one school with many colleges.

walk, saunter, strut, stroll, hobble, limp, stumble, stagger, ambulate, shuffle

ghost, phantom, spirit, soul, apparition, specter, sprite, banshee, disembodied spirit, un-embodied spirit, devil, Devil, demon, Satan, Lucifer, angel, Holy Ghost, ghoul, goblin, zombie

Effective & Efficient

Example:  I wanted to build a bridge.

I built a bridge in ten years.  I was effective.  Why?  Because I accomplished my goal, which was to build a bridge.

bilingual dict error

Example: I wanted to build a bridge.

I built a bridge by myself in ten years.  It was effective.

Then, I built a bridge in two years with the help of some workers.  It was time-efficient.  But, I had to pay them a lot of money.  It was NOT cost-efficient.  Also, I used wood, which is not as strong as stone or steel, so I had to use a lot of wood to reinforce the bridge.  It was NOT material-efficient.

Then, I built a bridge with migrant workers in two years with steel and concrete.  It was effective, time efficient, cost-efficient, and material-efficient.

Another Example: I want to buy a car that is effective in giving me speed and power AND efficient in conserving fuel and money.

I find out that I cannot have both.  I can get an effective car, but it is not efficient.  Or I can get an efficient car, but it's not very effective.

job, profession, vocation, occupation

full time job = job which works 40 hours per week or more [US]

part time job = job which works less than 40 hours per week [US]

2.  a day (or days) off of work/school [chiefly British]

3.  a festival day (sometimes it is a day off, and sometimes it's not) [chiefly American English]

2.  a trip

sb be on vacation.  (#1, American English)

sb go on vacation.  (#2, American English)

Today is a holiday. (#2, British, #3, American)

electric, electrical, electronic

examples:  electric shock, electric power, electric resistance, electric current, electric flow, etc.

examples: electrical wires, electrical components, etc.

examples:  electronic equipment, electronic device, etc.

Electronic equipment is composed of electrical components, and electrical components convey electric power/current.

excrement, feces, stool, crap, shit, defecation, manure, poop, etc.

- I accepted the information gladly.
- I received the reward money.
- But, I did not accept the generosity of my benefactor, and returned the money.
- I extended my hand, and he took it.
- She took my book without permission.

include, contain, have

- English includes many words, and some words include many meanings.
- Books generally contain many words on their pages.
- English has many words and Books generally  have many words.

be made of, be made from, be composed of, consist of

Example:  Glasses are made of glass.

Example:  Glass is made from sand.

Example:  A song is composed of words and music.

Example:  My family consists of two people, my son and me.

Example:  I traveled on a dirt road.

beach, shore, coast, ~side, bank

Example:  The valley is very wide.

(b) the shorter of two measurements of a dimensional figure or of a plot of land (opp. long)

Example:  My land is 100 meters long by 50 meters wide.

(b) abstractly wide

Example:  He has a broad mind.  (He is broad-minded).

had better / have to & must / ought to & should

The item "had better ((do sth))" is often collocated with "or else...", suggesting a negative consequence of NOT doing that thing.

For example:  "You had better not stick up your middle finger at another motorist in America, or else you might become a victim of road rage."  See Idioms Page for definition of "road rage".

While the Semantic Function is the same for both linguistic items, the Grammatical Functions are different...

SEMANTIC FUNCTION:  to explicate a situation where there is no other choice, i.e., it is required, and/or compulsory.

GRAMMATICAL FUNCTIONS:

In "have + to-infinitive" we see that "have" is functioning just as any normal verb, which is collocated with another verb.

But "must" functions as an "auxiliary verb".

Furthermore, while some auxiliary verbs, such as "can" have a past tense, there is no past (nor a future tense) for "must".

SEMANTIC FUNCTIONS:

1.  Giving advice or suggestion
2.  Explicating the moral or ethical thing to do
3.  Obligation

NOW, let me explain what "obligation" means, because most Asian bilingual lexicons are WRONG!  Look at the diagram below:

As you can see, obligation reaches into the realm of "that which is compulsory" as well as into the realm of "that which is owed".

The semantic function of "should" is the kind of obligation which is "owed", NOT compulsory.

That which is compulsory belongs to the semantic function of "have to" or "must".

Example:  I should raise my son.  Why?  Not because I am compelled to do so, but because I owe it to him, being his natural father.  I have a moral obligation to raise my son.

Clothes [C] any attire made of cloth.