Similar but not the same: As and Like.

"Like" and "as", they both are translated in Spanish using the same word ("como"). That´s why we get confused with these two words.
But in English they are quite different. In the practice the main difference is that while "like" is a preposition, "as" is a conjuction, so if after this article, the difference is still not clear I recommend:


1. See if what you need in your sentence is a preposition or a conjuction. That will give you the answer.


2. If you are not sure if your choice is the correct one, try to use the other. You´ll see that the meaning changes, saying something different to what you meant.




Like.


Like means 'similar to', 'the same as'.


- Like is a preposition. So it is followed by a noun (like a palace), a pronoun (like me/ like this) or -ing (like walking) 


-What a beautiful house! It's like a palace. (not 'as a palace') 
-'What does Sandra do?' 'She's a teacher, like me.' (not 'as me') 
-Be careful! The floor has been polished. It's like walking on ice. (not 'as walking') 


- You can also say 'like somebody/ something doing something'.


-'What's that noise?' 'It sounds like a baby crying.' 
-You look like your sister.


- Sometimes "like" means 'for example'. 


Some sports, like (or such as) motor racing, can be dangerous. 




As.


"As" is a conjuction. You use "as" (not like) before a subject+verb.


-I didn't move anything. I left everything as I found it. 
-They did as they promised. (=They did what they promised) 


- We also say: as you know/ as I said/ as she expected/ as I thought,...


-As you know, it's Tom's birthday next week. (=you know this already) 
-Jane failed her driving test, as she expected. (=she expected this before) 


- We use "as" with some expresions like: as usual/ as always. 


-You're late as usual. 


- As can also be used as a preposition meaning: 'in the position of', 'in the form of'.


-A few years ago I worked as a bus driver. (not 'like a bus driver') 
-We've got a garage but we haven't got a car, so we use the garage as a workshop. 
-Many English words (for example, 'work' and 'rain') can be used as verbs or nouns. 
-London is all right as a place to visit, but I wouldn't like to live there. 




For comparison.


- You use "like" for comparison and metaphors.


-I work like (not as) a horse.


- Look what happens if you don´t use it correctly!


-I work as a horse (my work is being a horse, that´s my rol.)
-I'm talking to you like your mother" (I´m not your mother but IU´m talking to you as I was!)
-I'm talking to you as your mother" ( I´m your mother and I´m talking to you.)




Note.
In U.S.A, they use "like" instead of "as" in informal speech. That is not correct.


-Nobody loves you like I do. (Nobody loves you as I do.)

That´s capital! (or Capitalization.)

When to use a capital letter?
Let´s go over it! Just in case...


We use capital letters: 


-For the first word of a sentence.
-For proper nouns.
-For the days of the week, the months of the year and special oCCasion days (Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving.)
-For brand names (Kleenex, Mars.)
-For acronyms (most of them): NASA, NATO.


-For the major words in the title of books, plays, films, works of art: Tha catcher in the Rye.
-For names of places and buildings: London, Paris, the Taj Mahal, Buckingham Palace.
-For adjectives derived from proper nouns: an English man, a Victorian house.
-For the pronoun I.
-For personal titles that come before the name: Mr, Ms, Mrs, Dr, Captain, Reverend.
-For the first word in a line of poetry.




Do NOT use capital letters for the following:


-after colon (dos puntos).
-when talking about kings, queens presidents and generals in general, unless you are talking about an specific individual.
-for the seasons of the year.
-for compass points: north, south,...going north, heading south,..
(except when referring to specifics: the American Civil World was fought largely between the North and the South, the South Pole.)

All´s well that´s starts well...Prefixes.

Actually the say is "All is well what ends well": Bien está lo que bien acaba.

So let´s start. This may look a little bit tough, but if you devote yourself (dedicar tiempo/esfuerzo a algo) to read this article carefully, you´ll be rewarded with hundreds of new words to your vocabulary.

A prefix is as you all know, a group of letters that is added to the begiNNing of a word to change its meaning.
Some of them are: anti-, auto-, -dis, extra-, hiper-, inter-, mega-, multi-, pre-, re-, sub-, tele-,...

We are going to review/ go over (repasar) some gramatic rules so you feel cofident when you use and especially when you spell them. Knowing the prefixes and their meanings will multiply by 10 the amount of words you already know and will provide you with good resources to face new vocabulary.





RULES:

-adding a prefix does NOT change the spelling of the original world, nor usually the spelling of the prefix.
Even when the last letter of the prefix and the first letter of the original world, are the same (disservice, dissimilar, unnecessary.)

What about dispirited (desanimado, abatido, deprimido)?
There are always exceptions, always being one of them. (Did you ever take notice of the origin of this word? Me neither! But it makes sense!)


- when all and well are used as prefixes, take away one -l (altogether, welfare.)
Except when the word is hyphenated (unida por guión) (well-adjusted, well-being, all-around.)


The prefixes dis-, mis-, un-, il-, im-, in-, ir-, create words that means the oPPosite of the root word (disobey, ilLLogical, inaPPlicable, iRReesponsible, misundertanding,...)


-be careful when a root word can take two or more different prefixes, as the resulting words will have different meanings.

-Disused/ Misused.

Disused: not being used, abandoned.

Misused: something that has been used incorrectly, not properly used.

i.e: I collected my children disused toys, intending to donate them to the fundraiser but years of misuse had left them unusable.



-Uninterested/ Misinterested.

Unintesrested: desinteresado. Adj: refers to a person that is not interested in something or someone.
i.e: He was totally uninterested in my work.

Disinterested: desinteresada (una acción, proposición,...). Adj: it defines an action or request that is done with no self-interest, selfelessly (desinteresadamente).
i.e: No worries, he  is a disinterested lawyer, and therefore uninterested in taking a bribe


(To take/ accept a bribe: aceptar un soborno.
To bribe somebody to do something: sobornar a alguien para que haga algo)

Similar but not the same: Work and Job

Hello! I´m looking for a job! (or work?)

Let´s clear this up (aclarar una idea)

The difference between the words "work" and "job" can be a little bit tricky, so let´s work on it.
We tend to use it by instinct and that´s ok as long as you are right, but just so you are sure you are not making a mistake, let´s clarify their meanings. We are going to define each word and give you examples of it uses so you remember when to use each one.






Job is a noun. It´s defined as "a paid position of regular employment" (empleo, puesto).

Expressions with the word "job":

-This is my job.
-I don´t have a job at the moment, I´m jobless.
-Joblessness in Spain is reaching historic figures at the moment.
-"Jobs for the boys" is a slang/idiom that defines "the practice of giving paid employment to one's friends, supporters, or relations." (No idea of what this is in Spain.)




Work on the other hand can be a noun or a verb. It´s more commonly used as a verb.
It´s defined as the "activity involving mental or physical effort done in order to achieve a result or as a means of earning incomes (como medio para recibir ingresos)
We know that it exits such a thing as unpaid positions but the aim of working is to get incomes.


Examples with the word "work":

-I´m at work, I´ll call you later.
-I´m off to work/ I´m going to work (estoy yendo al trabajo).
-I´m working on it (estoy trabajando en ello).
-She is a hard-worker.
-I work at Deloitte/ in the city centre.
-Are you working this weekend?
-What job do you have? I work as a plumber.


Work has also other meanings:

-a task or tasks to be undertaken (I can´t talk right now, I have work to do).

- a thing or things done or made; the result of an action.

- the complete artistic production of a particular author, composer, or artist (That exhibition shows Picasso´s earliest works.)


Other expressions:

-"work to rule".
follow official working rules and hours exactly in order to reduce output and efficiency, especially as a form of industrial action. (still, no idea what they are talking about).


-"work something off".
1 discharge a debt by working.
2 reduce or eliminate something by activity (I´m working my paperwork off.)

-"work out".
1 be capable of being solved.
2 develop in a good or specified way.
3 engage in vigorous physical exercise (He´s engaged with being healthy now. He goes to the gym every day to do work out (se usa también como nombre, trabajar en el cuerpo, hacer ejercicio físico)

-"work something out".
1 solve something.
2 plan something in detail.

I hope you feel more confident now when you use these words and people! keep trying with the job seeking. Good things come to those who wait! And for waiting I mean being patient, not literally sitting down and expecting for that dream job to knock on your door. Good luck and no matter what, keep learning and improving your English!

Let´s see how the Griffin family cope with the economic situation!
Have a good weekend everyone!