| Hi, everybody. Welcome back to Ask Alisha, the weekly series where you ask me questions and I answer them, maybe! |
| Let's get to your first question this week. |
| First question this week comes from Kittipong. Hi, Kittipong. I hope I said your name correctly. Kittipong says, "Hi, Alisha. How do I use the words 'finally' and 'eventually' in sentences? Thanks." Okay, sure. Let's talk about the words "finally" and "eventually." First, let's talk about the word "finally." So, this word means the end of a time period. So, for example, we use this word a lot when we have been waiting for something for a really long time. So, for example, if you go to a café to meet your friend and you wait for an hour, you might describe that situation with the word "finally" in a sentence like this: "I went to the café to meet my friend. After an hour, he finally arrived." So, this "finally" comes before the verb "arrived," which tells us the action that happened and after the waiting period. So, we use the word "finally" before that action or that thing that ends the long period of waiting. |
| We can use this for other long periods of time as well. So, for example, "I was looking for over a year and then I finally found the house that I wanted to buy." So, in this situation again, we have something that takes a long time to do, and then we have "finally found," that's used to describe that last action that's taken. So, we use "finally" to express this idea of something that took a long time finishing. If you want a good hint, you can remember that the word "final," which refers to the end of something, is inside the word "finally." Another thing to keep in mind with the word "finally" is that it often expresses a feeling of relief. So, that means this thing that took a long time is over, it's done. We reached the end and we feel relieved. So, for example, "After waiting for one hour, my friend finally arrived." I feel relieved, right? I don't have to wait anymore. And, in the second example sentence, looking for a new home, we feel relief. We're like, "Oh, it's done, finally." So, we can express this sense of relief with "finally." |
| Okay. So, there's one other use of "finally" that I want to talk about in this video. And, that's to use "finally" to express the last step in a series. So, the easiest way to understand this use of "finally" is in something like a recipe. So, when you get to step one, step two, step three, step four, and the last step, you'll often see that with "finally" at the beginning of the step. So, for example, if you're making a salad and it says, "Chop the onion, step one. And, step two is to mix the dressing. And, step three is to put these other ingredients in whatever." Maybe step four, the last step, is something like, "Finally, mix and serve." So, "finally" there shows this is the final step in something. So, we can use "finally" to show that it's the last action in a series. So, you will also see "finally" used in this way. This use of "finally" doesn't really communicate that sense of relief. Rather, this use just shows us this is the last step. So, this is kind of like a hint word. You've reached the last item in this situation. So, these are the two uses of "finally" I want to talk about. |
| Let's compare this to "eventually." So, we use "eventually" to mean kind of in the end or after a period of time. And, we can use this to talk about the past. We can also use this to talk about the future. So, let's take an example situation. Let's say for example you're really, really good at school and your friend wants to comment on that and give you some opinions about your future. Your friend might say something like, "You're so smart. I'm sure you'll get a scholarship eventually." So, in this situation, the person is giving a compliment, "You're so smart." And then, "I'm sure you'll get a scholarship eventually." So, a scholarship means money to attend college or to attend university, and then they finish with "eventually." |
| So, this "eventually" means at some point in the future. We don't specify when in this sentence. The speaker just wants to say at some point in the future. So, you might think, "Okay. So, what's the difference between something like 'sometime' or 'someday' in this situation?" Couldn't I say, "I'm sure you'll get a scholarship someday," or "I'm sure you'll get a scholarship sometime"? Yeah, you could. But, "eventually," the word "eventually," in addition to talking about something we think will happen in the future or over time, "eventually" sounds like something that happens gradually, step-by-step. So, in this situation, when the speaker says "You're so smart. I'm sure you'll get a scholarship eventually," it sounds like through hard work probably, or through demonstrating that you're very smart, or you're very talented, you will receive a scholarship. The speaker thinks so. So, "eventually" communicates this idea of something happening gradually step-by-step. So, we can do this to talk about the future. We can also talk about past situations, things that were resolved. So, let's take a look at that as our next example. |
| Let's say for example, you were really sick or you know somebody who was really sick last year. You might say, for example, "Ugh, she was really, really sick last summer, but she eventually got better with lots and lots of good food." So, in this situation, "she eventually got better," again, sounds like it took some time or it happened over a time period, and eventually communicates this idea of gradually step-by-step improving. So, this is what we use "eventually" to communicate. Something that happens gradually over time. Remember, we use "finally" to talk about the end of a period and we often use it to communicate relief that that thing is now finished. So, I hope this answers your question about the differences between "finally" and "eventually." Thanks very much for sending this question along. Okay, let's move on to your next question. |
| Next question comes from Andrea. Hi, Andrea. Andrea says, "Hi, Alisha. Can you explain when I should use 'beyond' and 'behind'? For example: 'May I drive my car beyond the house?' Or, 'May I drive my car behind the house?' Thanks a lot." Yeah, great question. So, "beyond" and "behind" both create grammatically correct sentences here, but they communicate two different ideas. So, let's take a look at how we are communicating different things with these two simple word choices. So, let's take an object and imagine our car in this example situation. So, when we say, "I moved the car" or "I drove the car behind the house," it sounds like the position of the car here is the opposite of the front, right? So, "I drove the car behind the house" or "May I drive the car behind the house?" it sounds like it is not in front of the house, it's the opposite side. So, that means here right here. So, driving the car "behind" the house is here. |
| On the other hand, when we use the word "beyond," it means to come up to something to approach something, in this case driving, to reach that thing and to continue past it. So, "May I drive the car beyond the house?" is saying, "Can I come up to the house, and reach the house, and then continue past the house?" So, when we say "drive the car behind the house," sounds like this position. And, when we say "drive the car beyond the house," it sounds like continuing. So, that's what we're communicating here. The difference between a location that is the opposite of the front, and continuing past something. So, in addition to these ideas, it's important to note that "beyond" does not use that much in everyday conversation to refer to this kind of passing and continuing on action. We use the word "past" a lot. So, for example, we would say in your example sentence, "May I drive the car past the house?" P-A-S-T, past the house. So, "beyond" tends to be used a little bit more formally. And, we also have some uses in idioms and other expressions where you might hear "beyond" used. |
| We can also use "beyond" to talk about time as well. So, for example, when you have maybe a meeting and you use too much time in the meeting, you might say, "We went beyond the meeting time." So, that means we continued, we reached the meeting time and continued our meeting. So, "beyond" has some uses other than the ones that we're talking about in this lesson. But, this is the difference in terms of "beyond" and "behind." So, if you want to communicate this idea, if you want to use a more natural word for everyday communication, I would recommend using "past," P-A-S-T. "May I drive the car past the house?" This communicates the idea of reaching something and continuing to go even after you reach the destination, or you reach this key point. So, I would recommend that choice. But, I hope that this answer helps you understand the differences between "behind" and "beyond," and also "past." So, thanks very much for sending it along. Okay, let's move on to your next question. |
| Next question comes from Renad. Hi, Renad. Renad says, "Hi, Alisha. I have a question. What is the difference between 'too much' and 'so much'? Thanks for your lessons." Okay, let's refresh our minds on the differences between "too" and "so," with "too much" and "so much" as our focus points. When we have "too much" of something, it sounds like a negative. For example, "I ate too much junk food yesterday and now I feel terrible." Or, "He got too much sunlight at the beach and now his skin is red." So, this sounds like it's a bad thing. "Too much" of something is generally not considered good. If someone says something like, "I have too much money," they're probably making a joke. |
| On the other hand, "so much" is generally considered a good thing. We use it as an emphasis. Like, for example, "I love ice cream so much." You can use it in the same way as you would use the word "very," as in "I love ice cream very much." Another example with "so much" might be something like, "This food was so much fun to make." So, we can use it with a verb as well. "This food was very fun to make." We can use the same very trick to confirm that this is correct. So, when we use "so much," we tend to use it a lot to talk about good things with lots and lots of emphasis. But, there are some cases where you may hear people using it for a negative emphasis as well. Like, "I hate that so much." But, the key here with "so much" is that it's being used for emphasis. And, while we tend to use it a lot to express happy things, you may hear it used in negative sentences, too. |
| But, to recap, "too much" is used in a negative sense that there is more than we need, and it's a bad thing. So, this is a very, very quick review of the concept of "to" and "so." If you want some more information, there is a Whiteboard video on the channel about how to use these. In addition to "too much" and "so much," I also covered "too many" and "so many" there, too. So, check that out. I hope that it answers any and all questions you might have about this grammar point. So, I hope that that helps you. Thanks very much for sending this along. |
| All right, that is everything that I have for this week. Thank you as always for sending your great questions. Thanks very much for watching this week's episode of Ask Alisha, and I will see you again next time. Bye! |
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