There are many commonly confused words in English. In this lesson we will look at two different pairs of these words, as the differences between them are similar.
Go vs. Come
These two verbs of movement are frequently confused as their meaning is similar. Both are frequently used with the preposition of direction or movement, “to”. The principle difference between these two verbs is in the direction of movement.
Go
“Go” is used to indicate a direction moving away from the speaker or the person being spoken to or to a location different from the current location. “Go” is often used with the adverb “there”.
| | Are you going to Anna’s party this weekend? |
| | I must go to work now or I will be late! |
| | Q: Why are you going to New York? A: We are going there on holiday. |
| | Let’s go to the beach, it’s a beautiful day! |
| | You have a fever. You should go home and go to bed. |
Come
“Come” indicates a movement towards or in the direction of the speaker or person being spoken to. It is used to express movement from a different location to the current location of the speaker or person being spoken to. In contrast to “go”, “come” is frequently used with the adverb “here”.
| | Are you coming to my party this weekend? |
| | Q: Where are you? A: I’m coming! |
| | I have an appointment at 12:00. Can I come a little earlier? |
| | Why don’t you come here to my house and we can watch a movie. |
| | Hi mom. The nurse says I have a fever so I am coming home. |
Note: The phrasal verbs “go back” and “come back” follow the same rules.
| | We are having such a great time here in New York, we don’t want to come back home![Speaking to family back home.] |
| | We are having such a great time here in New York, we hope to come back very soon![Speaking to the receptionist at the hotel in New York.] |
| | We are going back home on Saturday.[Speaking with the receptionist at the hotel.] |
| | We had such a great time in New York, we hope to go back there soon.[Speaking with family at home after the holiday.] |
Bring vs. Take
Like “go” and “come”, these two verbs are commonly confused, but the difference in their use is the same as that of “go” and “come”.
Bring
As with “come”, we use “bring” to indicate a movement in the direction of the speaker or person being spoken to.
| | Don’t forget to bring your school books! |
| | What can I bring to the party? |
Take
“Take”, like “go”, indicates a movement away from the current location of the speaker or person being spoken to.
| | Here, take these books with you. |
| | I would like a coffee to take away. |
Hay muchas palabras que se confunden en inglés. En esta lección estudiaremos a fondo dos de estos pares de palabras y las diferencias entre ellas.
Go vs. Come (Ir vs. venir)
Con frecuencia se confunden estos dos verbos de movimiento ya que su significado es similar. Ambos se utilizan a menudo con la preposición “to”. La diferencia principal entre estos dos verbos está en la dirección del movimiento.
Go (Ir)
“Go” se utiliza para indicar una dirección alejándose del orador o la persona a la que se habla o a un sitio diferente del actual. “Go” significa “ir” y se utiliza a menudo con el adverbio “there”.
Ejemplos:
| | Are you going to Anna’s party this weekend?(¿Vas a la fiesta de Anna este fin de semana?) |
| | I must go to work now or I will be late!(Tengo que ir a trabajar ya o llegaré tarde!) |
| | Q: Why are you going to New York? A: We are going there on holiday.(P:¿Por qué vais a Nueva York? R: Vamos allí de vacaciones.) |
| | Let’s go to the beach, it’s a beautiful day!(¡Vamos a la playa, es un día hermoso!) |
| | You have a fever. You should go home and go to bed.(Tienes fiebre. Deberías ir a casa e ir a la cama.) |
Come (Venir)
“Come” indica un movimiento hacia o en la dirección del orador o la persona a la que se habla. Significa “venir” y se utiliza para expresar movimiento desde un sitio diferente al sitio actual del orador o la persona a la que se habla. En contraste con “go”, “come” se utiliza a menudo con el adverbio “here”.
Ejemplos:
| | Are you coming to my party this weekend?(¿Vienes a mi fiesta este fin de semana?) |
| | Q: Where are you? A: I’m coming!(P: ¿Dónde estás? R: ¡Ya voy!) |
| | I have an appointment at 12:00. Can I come a little earlier?(Tengo una cita a las 12:00h. ¿Puedo venir un poco antes?) |
| | Why don’t you come here to my house and we can watch a movie.(¿Por qué no vienes aquí a mi casa y miramos una película?) |
| | Hi mom. The nurse says I have a fever so I am coming home.(Hola mamá. La enfermera dice que tengo fiebre, así que vengo a casa.) |
Nota: Los verbos phrasals “go back” y “come back” siguen las mismas reglas.
Ejemplos:
| | We are having such a great time here in New York, we don’t want to come back home!(Nos lo estamos pasando tan bien aquí en Nueva York que, ¡no queremos volver a casa!) [Hablando con familiares que están en casa]. |
| | We are having such a great time here in New York, we hope to come back very soon!(Nos lo estamos pasando tan bien aquí en Nueva York, ¡esperamos volver muy pronto!) [Hablando con la recepcionista del hotel en Nueva York]. |
| | We are going back home on Saturday.(Vamos a volver a casa el sábado.) [Hablando con la recepcionista del Hotel]. |
| | We had such a great time in New York, we hope to go back there soon.(Nos lo pasamos muy bien en Nueva York, esperamos volver pronto.) [Hablando con la familia en casa después de las vacaciones.] |
Bring vs. Take (Traer vs. llevar)
Tal como “go” y “come”, estos dos verbos se confunden a menudo, la diferencia en su uso es igual a la de “go” y “come”.
Bring (Traer)
Usamos “bring” para indicar un movimiento en la dirección del orador o la persona a la que se habla.
Ejemplos:
| | Don’t forget to bring your school books!(¡No te olvides de traer tus libros escolares!) |
| | What can I bring to the party?(¿Qué puedo traer a la fiesta?) |
Take (Llevar)
“Take”, tal como “go”, indica un movimiento de alejamiento del sitio actual del orador o la persona a la que se habla.
Ejemplos:
| | Here, take these books with you.(Toma, lleva estos libros contigo.) |
| | I would like a coffee to take away.(Me gustaría un café para llevar.) |
