almost / nearly (adv.)AmE: /ıɒːlmoʊst/ - /ˈnlrli/BrE: /ıɔːlməʊst/ - /ˈnləli/There is not usually much difference between almost and nearly, and we can often use both with the same meaning.• I've nearly finished.• I've almost finished.Sometimes almost is nearer than nearly.We do not usually use nearly with negative words: never, nobody, no one, nothing, nowhere, no and none.Instead, we use almost, or we use hardly with ever, anybody, etc.almost never = hardly everalmost nobody = hardly anybodyalmost no money= hardly any money• I'll eat almost anything.• Nearly all the students have bikes.• There were nearly 200 people at the meeting.• Dinner's almost ready.• Their house is almost opposite ours.• It's almost time to go.• I like almost all of them.• It's a mistake they almost always take.• Almost no one (hardly anyone) believed him.• The story is almost certainly false.
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affect (v.)/ effect (n.)AmE; BrE: /əˈfekt/ - /ıˈfekt/Affect is a verb. It means ‘cause a change in’ or ‘influence’.• TV affects children’s behavior.Effect is usually a noun meaning ‘result’ or ‘change’.• The war had a serious effect on petrol prices.Affect = to have an effect on something• My parents' divorce had a big effect on me.
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advice (n.) / advise (v.)AmE; BrE: /ədˈvaıs/ - /ədˈvaız/Advice is a noun, an opinion or a suggestion about what somebody should do in a particular situation:• For advice on AIDS, phone this free number.Advise means to tell sb what you think they should do in a particular situation, when you know more than them about something:• I'd advise you not to tell him.
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advantage/ benefit (n.)AmE: /ədˈvæntıdʒ/ - /ˈbenəfıt/BrE: /ədˈvɑːntıdʒ/ - /ˈbenəfıt/Advantage is something that helps you to be more successful than others, or the state of having this:• His height gives him an advantage over the other players.• Her experience meant that she had a big advantage over her opponent.Benefit is a feature of something that has a good effect on people's lives:• Tourism has brought many benefits to the area.• What are the benefits for Britain of belonging to the European Union?
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admit / confess (v.)AmE; BrE: /ədˈmıt/ - /kənˈfes/Admit means to say that you have done sth wrong or illegal, especially when someone asks or persuades you to do this:• Rachel admitted that she had made a mistake.• Paul admitted that he was angryConfess means to tell the police or sb in a position of authority that you have done sth very bad, especially after they have persuaded you to do this:• After two days of questioning, he finally confessed.• She confessed that she had killed her husband.
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act / behave (v.)AmE; BrE: /ækt/ - /blˈhelv/The way someone behaves is the things that they do and say, and the effects these things have on other people:• How does Sam behave at school?• Oh, be quiet! You're behaving like a two-year-old.• The next time I saw him, Frank behaved as if nothing had happened.• I'm not going to talk to him until he starts behaving reasonably.Act means to behave in a particular way, especially in a way that seems unusual, surprising, or annoying to other people:• She acts as if she owns the place and we're her servants.• You're acting stupid and I don't want to talk to you anymore.
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acceptable / permissible (adj.)AmE:/ əkıseptəbəl/ - /pərˈmısəbəl/BrE:/ əkıseptəbəl/ - /pəˈmısəbəl/Acceptable means good enough to be used for a particular purpose or to be considered satisfactory.• It's a cheap and acceptable substitute for rubber.• How do we reach an acceptable level of data security?Permissible means allowed by law or rules(= allowable; ≠ impermissible):• The use of racial preferences is not permissible under the new law.• the maximum permissible level of radiation
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accept / agree (v.)AmE; BrE: /əkˈsept/ - /əˈgriː/Accept means to take something that someone offers you, or say yes to do something that someone asks you to do:• Rick accepted her offer of coffee.• He accepted the invitation to stay with us.• Please accept this small gift.• They offered me a job and I accepted.• After a three week strike, the company has finally accepted the workers' pay demands.• Do you accept travelers' checks here?• She succeeded in persuading the jury to accept her version of the events.Agree means to have or express the same opinion about something as someone else (≠ disagree):• Teenagers and their parents rarely agree.• If she felt he was right, she would agree with him.• We don't agree on everything, of course.• After a few minutes' discussion we had agreed a price and the car was mine.• I agree with you about the color -- it looks awful.• I think it's too expensive. Do you agree?Agree means to say yes to an idea, plan, suggestionetc (≠ refuse):• I suggested we go somewhere for the weekend and she agreed at once.• No one really knows why he agreed to do the film.
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accept (v.) / expect (v.) / except (conj.) / aspect (n.)AmE; BrE: /əkˈsept/ - /ıkˈspekt/ - /ıkˈsept/ - /ˈæspekt/Expect means to think or believe something will happen or somebody will do something:• Don't expect sympathy from me!• That's not the sort of behavior I expect of you!• The company expects to complete work in April.• I didn't expect him to stay so long.Except used before you mention the only thing or person which a statement is not true; apart from:• We work everyday except Sunday.• You can have any of the cakes except this one.• The office is open every day except Sundays.Accept means to take willingly something that is offered:• He asked me to marry him and I accepted.• Please accept our sincere apologies.• She's decided not to accept the job.Also means to agree to or approve of something:Accept means to decide that someone has the necessary skill or intelligence for a particular job, course etc or that a piece of work is good enough (≠ reject):• Students accepted by Stanford Law School had very high scores on the LSAT.• They have accepted him as the representative of the company.Aspect means a particular part or feature of a situation, an idea, a problem etc.; a way which it may be considered:• The book aims to cover all aspects of city life.• She felt she had looked at the problem from every aspect.• Dealing with people is the most important aspect of my work.
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