ESL Student Blog: Classic Vs. Classical

classic - typical

She made a classic mistake of a first-time marathon runner - she started out too fast and didn’t have the energy to reach the finish line.

classic - versatile, serving many functions

This liitle black dress is classic. I’ve worn it on many different ocassions and it always looked appropriate.

classical refers to things connected to ancient Roman and Greek civilazation

There are many gods and goddesses in the world of a classical myth.

classical music is music written in 18-19th century that was generally composed for orchestras

My mom has many classical music records with violin solos.

Choose: classic or classical

1. It’s a ___ French dish with butter and cream.
2. Red, black and white is a ___ color combination.
3. "You Are So Beautiful" is a ___ first dance song at a wedding.
4. A red rose is a ___ symbol of romantic love.
5. I want to buy tickets to a ___ music concert or opera when I’m in Italy next month.
6. She attended a school of ___ studies and was an expert in Greek religion and history.
7. It was a ___ story of good and evil.

 

Answer Key:

1. classic 2. classic 3. classic 4. classic 5. classical 6. classical 7. classic

ESL Student Blog: Preposition ‘by’ vs. ‘with’

Both prepositions can be used to show how something is done.

‘By’ can be followed by a gerund (-ing form):

 

He improved his English by reading novels.

You can change the look of that room by redecorating it.

 

‘By’ is followed by a noun in combinations refering to the means of transportation or communication:

 

by plane/car/bus/subway

by fax/mail/phone/sea

 

‘With’ is used when tools or parts of the body mentioned:

 

I opened the wine with a bottle opener.

He pushed the door with his foot.

 

Note: ‘by hand’ means ‘handmade’, ‘made by a person, not by a machine’:

 

She made the pie dough by hand.

Compare to: The mother touched the girl’s forehead with her hand.

 

Choose: ‘by’ or ‘with’:

 

1. I flipped the pancakes ___ a spatula.

2. She measured the length of the pants ___ a tape.

3. You can avoid the traffic jam ___ taking an alternate route.

4. You can change your personal information ___ logging on to your account.

5. The teacher wrote the notes ___ a marker.

6. Can you eat a soup ___ chopsticks?

7. They stopped the moving escalator ___ pushing the stop button.

8. He trapped the animal ___ forcing it into the cage.

9. She insulted Peter ___ calling him names.

10. Do you wash your dishes ___ hand?

11. She covered the eyes ___ her hand.

12. He saved the kitten ___ feeding it daily.

13. You can lose weight ___ exercising regularly.

14. She relaxes ___ listening to soothing music and taking a hot bath.

15. She combed her hair ___ a brush.

 

Answer Key:

 

1-with, 2-with, 3-by, 4-by, 5-with, 6-with, 7-by, 8-by, 9-by, 10-by, 11-with, 12-by, 13-by, 14-by, 15-with