In this lesson, we're going to learn some key phrases with the verbs have and take. 


HAVE 

We use have when we talk about events, actions, experiences and activities. 

Examples: 

• I'm going to have a bath. 
• Let's have a party to celebrate your birthday. 
• We usually have a break at noon. 
• Did you have a nice holiday? 
• Did you have a nice time in London? 

We use have when we talk about eating food and meals. 

Examples: 

• We had a wonderful meal in the new Italian restaurant on New Oxford Street. 
• Shall we have lunch together sometime? (You don't know exactly when or you haven't decided yet.) 

We use have for days or parts of days. 

Examples: 

• Have a nice day! 
• I had a tough day. 
• Did you have a nice morning (afternoon / evening / birthday / holiday)? 

We use have for conversations and interactions. 

Examples: 

• I need to have a chat with my colleague about our working hours at the weekend. 
• My parents had an argument about money. 

We use have when we talk about sleeping. 

Examples: 

• She had a rest in the afternoon. 
• I used to have terrible dreams when I was young. 

We use have when we talk about accidents and problems with cars. 

Example: 

• She had an accident when she was young. She fell off a horse. 

We use have when we talk about travel. 

Examples: 

• We had a 12-hour flight from London to Hanoi. 
• Have a safe trip!

PHRASES WITH HAVE

• have breakfast / lunch / dinner (Don't use 'a' in this case!) 
• have fun 
• have a shower / bath 
• have a nap 
• have a rest 
• have a chat 
• have a baby 
• have a look 
• have a choice / an opportunity 
• have a problem 
• have a feeling 
• have a cold (When you are sick and you sneeze a lot.) 
• have an influence 
• have an operation 
• have a clue / idea 
• have a surprise
• have a (good) laugh (about something) (Informal) 

TAKE

Remember: 
We don't use take when we talk about having a meal or a drink. 

Examples: 

• After the cinema we usually go for a pizza. 
• Why don't we have a coffee together tomorrow morning? 

We use take to talk about time and duration. 

Examples: 

• take something to do something - It takes about half an hour to get to the airport. 
• take somebody something (to do something) - How much does it take you to get to work? 
• It takes me 20 minutes to get to work. 
• It took us a week to paint the house. 

The verb take can be used in other cases as well. These are the most common phrases that you need to learn. 


We use take in a lot of phrases, especially with nouns. In these cases, the meaning of take depends on the noun. 

PHRASES WITH TAKE 

• take notes (= to write something down) 
• take advantage (of something) 
• take a photograph / picture of somebody / something 
• take somebody's temperature 
• take a seat (a polite way of inviting somebody to sit down) 
• take bribes (= to give or offer money to somebody to persuade them to help you, especially by doing something dishonest or illegal) 
• take advice / take (someone's) advice (about something) 
• take criticism 
• take a step / walk / stroll / trip 
• take a bath / shower 
• take a look (at) (It's more casual and friendly.) (= to look) 
• take a deep breath 
• take a break / rest 
• take a risk 
• take a job (= to accept a job offer) 
• take a chance / an opportunity 
• take an action (= to do something in order to make something happen or to deal with a situation) 
• take time (to do something) (= to need a certain amount of time)  
• take part (in something) (= to participate; to be actively involved in something with other people) 
• take place (= to happen; used for organized events) 
• take responsibility (for something)
• take an exam / a course 
• take a taxi / bus / train / plane 

Exercise 

1. I just ................ a sandwich for lunch. 
2. My hair is too long. I really need to ................ a haircut. 
3. There is no need to hurry. ................ your time. 
4. Could you ................ a picture of us, please? 
5. This picture was ................ on my 25th birthday. 
6. I was angry at that time but we ................ a good laugh about it afterwards. 
7. They're ................ a surprise party for Kim on Saturday night. 
8. The menu ................ a good choice of desserts. 
9. My husband and I ................ turns to cook. 
10. He ................ what I said as a criticism. 
11. The dentist can't ................ any new patients today. 
12. If they offer me the job, I'll ................ it. 
13. I think you should ................ advantage of this discount. 
14. This festival ................ place every summer. 
15. The 2016 Summer Olympics ................ place in Brazil. 
16. All Members of the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) can ................ part in the European Song     Contest. Every year, the invitation to participate in the contest is sent out to all Members. While some of them choose not to ................ part, most of them do. 


Answers: 
1. had; 2. have; 3. Take; 4. take; 5. taken; 6. had; 7. having; 8. has; 9. take; 10. took; 11. take; 12. take;
13. take; 14. takes; 15. took; 16. take; take; 

BRING vs. TAKE 

In this lesson, we are going to look at the difference between 'bring' and 'take'. 

When you use these two verbs, you need to think where the speaker is. 

BRING 

Bring is an irregular verb. 
bring - brought - brought 

Bring means to take or carry someone or something to a place or a person, or in the direction of the person speaking. 

Examples: 

• The teacher (at school) says: Don't forget to bring your book to class tomorrow. 
• bring somebody / something (with you) - Don't forget to bring your books with you. 
• When they visit us, they always bring their dog with them. 
• I brought a couple of things from home. 
• I've brought something to show you. 
• Can you bring me my jacket? It's in the living room. 
• bring somebody / something to something - She brought her boyfriend to the party. 
• Can I bring a friend to the party? 
• 'Did she bring you anything for your birthday?' 'Yes. She brought me some flowers and a present.' 
• I brought you some sandwiches because I thought you might be hungry. 
• Individuals may bring medicine into Dubai for their personal use. 
• Narcotic items can only be brought into the UAE in exceptional cases with prior permission from the director of medicine and pharmacy control. 
• ​Before you travel you need to check what amount of tobacco products you can bring into the foreign country. 

TAKE 

Take is an irregular verb. 
take - took - taken 

Take means to move something or someone from one place to another. 

Examples: 

• take something (with you) - I forgot to take my bag with me when I got off the bus. 
• The weather forecast said it's going to rain, so take your umbrella (with you) when you go out. 
• Our suitcases were taken to another city by mistake. 
• take something to somebody - Can you take this to the manager for me, please? 
• Could you take this document to Jane, please? (= It means that you will take it with you and give it to her.) 
• I took some food from the table. 
• I took several books with me for the journey. 

​
Take means to go with somebody from one place to another, especially to guide or lead them. 

Example: 

• Let me take you to your room. 

Take is used when you go somewhere with someone, often paying for that person or being responsible for them. 

Examples: 

• We're taking the kids to the zoo on Saturday. 
• take somebody - It's too far to walk - I'll take you (there) by car. 
• take somebody to something - My mother always takes me to school before she goes to work. 
• take somebody to do something - We take the kids to see their grandparents every weekend. 
• My cousin wants to rent a car, so I'll take him to look at some tomorrow. 
• take somebody doing something - Will you take me swimming tomorrow? 

​Exercise 

1. What are the things you always ................ with you when you go on holiday? 
2. Miss Universe contestants told us about their journey to the Philippines and all the special things they ................ from home. 
3. I'll ................ you to the airport if you ................ me back a souvenir. 
4. I watched the weather forecast this morning. It will rain in the afternoon so don't forget to ................ an umbrella with you. 
5. Never ................ prohibited goods into the UK. If in doubt, ask at the Customs enquiry point. 
6. These guidelines relate to medicines ................ in by an individual through an airport or border crossing and medicines arriving by post. 
​7. Before you travel abroad, you need to check what amount of tobacco products you can ................ into the foreign country. 
8. There are no restrictions on the amount of money that you can ................ into or ................ out of Canada. You must, however, report amounts of currency equal to or greater than CAN$10,000 or its equivalent in a foreign currency. 
​9. When you come to Seoul, I'll ................ you to my favourite places. 
10. I got up really early this morning and I ................ my relatives to the airport. 


Answers: 
1. take; 2. brought; 3. take, bring; 4. take; 5. bring; 6. brought; 7. bring; 8. bring, take; 9. take; 10. took; 

COME vs. GO 

Let's look at the difference between these two verbs. A lot of English learners have difficulties with using 'come' and 'go' correctly. 

These verbs are used for different directions.  

COME 

Come is an irregular verb. 
come - came - come 

Come means to move to or towards a person or place. 

When you are talking to someone, you use this verb to say who or what is coming where you are. 

Examples: 

• My sister is coming home soon. (= She is coming to the place where I am. In this case, home.) 
• My cousin is coming next week. (= He / She is coming to the city where I am or where I live.) 
• My best friends are coming back from Germany. (= They may have been there to work or study, and are coming back to their country, for example Japan. The person who is saying this is in Japan at the moment of speaking.) 
• I come to work by bus. (= I am at work at the moment of speaking.) 
• I came to work quite early. 
• Come here! 
• come to do something - When did your parents last come to see you? 
• Can you come to my office? I need to show you something. 

Pay attention: 
​​In spoken English come can be used with and plus another verb, instead of with to and the infinitive, to show purpose or to tell somebody what to do. 

Examples: 

• ​Come and have your breakfast.
• Would you like to come and have dinner with us this Saturday? 

The and is sometimes left out, especially in North American English. 

Example: 

• Come have your breakfast. 

Come means to arrive at or reach a place. 

Examples: 

• come (to...) - What time did you come (to my house / to school)? 
• The book comes with a CD. 
• Your breakfast is coming soon. 
• Has the post come yet? (= If you're expecting a letter, for example.) 

Come is also used with the meaning of moving or travelling, especially with somebody else, to a place or in order to be present at an event. 

Examples: 

• Are you coming with us to the beach this Friday? 
• We're going to the park. Are you coming with us? 
• Would you like to come with us? 
• May I come with you? 
• 'I'm going for lunch. Are you coming?' 'Yeah, why not.' 

GO 

Go is an irregular verb. 
go - went - gone 

Go means to travel or move to another place. 

Examples: 

• I went to Paris last summer. Have you ever been there? 
• Does this train go to Newcastle? 
• He goes to work by bus. 
• I have to go to London on business. 
• She has gone to China. (= is now in China or is on her way there) 
• She has been to China. (= she went to China and has now returned) 
• Are you going home for the holiday? (= going to your hometown or country) 

Remember: 
Been is used when somebody has gone somewhere and come back. The person is not there any more. 

Pay attention: 
In spoken English go can be used with and plus another verb to show purpose or to tell somebody what to do. 

Examples: 

• Go and buy me coffee! 
• Go and get me a drink! 
• Go and pick up the phone. (= When someone is calling.) 

The and is sometimes left out, especially in North American English. 

Example: 

• Go ask your mom! 

​
Go is also used with the meaning of moving or travelling, especially with somebody else, to a place or in order to be present at an event. 

Examples: 

• go (to something) (with somebody) - Are you going to his birthday? 
• Who else is going to the beach? 

PHRASES WITH GO 

• go abroad 
• go by bus / car / plane / train 
• go camping 
• go for a walk 
• go on holiday 
• go sightseeing 
• go skiing / walking / cycling / jogging / swimming / sailing / surfing 
• go hiking / go horseback riding 
• go shopping / go window-shopping 

Come and go have other meanings as well but let's not get into too many details. 


Exercise 

Complete the sentences with come or go in the correct forms. 

1. 'Is your mother at home?' 'She ................ out ten minutes ago. She'll be back in about an hour.' 
2. 'Would you like to ................ to the barbecue?' 'Yes, I'd love to.'
3. I'm leaving Hanoi on Sunday. I hope to ................ back next year. 
4. Simon isn't here at the moment. He's ................ to the shop. 
5. I ................ to Tokyo last year and I'm planning to ................ back this year. 
​6. She ................ to work by bus. 
​7. Have the children ................ to sleep? 
8. My friend is on holiday. He has ................ to Italy. 
9. My sister is back home now. She has ................ to Japan. 
10. 'Are you going to the bank?' 'No, I've already ................ there.' 


Answers: 
1. went; 2. come; 3. come; 4. gone; 5. went, go; 6. goes; 7. gone; 8. gone; 9. been; 10. been; 

BEGIN vs. START 

There isn't much difference in meaning between begin and start. 
Begin is more frequently used in written English and is often used when you are describing a series of events. Start, on the other hand, is more common in spoken English and in business contexts.

We can use the verbs begin and start to mean the same thing but begin is more formal than start. 

BEGIN

Begin is an irregular verb. 
begin - began - begun 

Remember: 
beginning (double 'n') 

Begin means to start doing something. 

Examples: 

• Shall I begin? (When you want to ask whether to start doing something.) 
• I have so much to tell you, I don't know where to begin. 
• begin something - We began work on the project in May. 
• I began (= started reading) this novel last month and I still haven't finished it. 
• Selena Gomez began her career in show business in 2001. 
• begin something with something - Let's begin today's lesson with a game. 
• She began to cry. 
• She looked at us nervously before she began to speak. 
• begin doing something - She began acting at a young age. 
• Chris has just begun learning to drive. 

Begins means to start to happen or exist, especially from a particular time.  

Examples: 

• When does the conference begin? 
• The film we want to watch begins at seven. 
• The new project is due to begin in May. 
• The evening began well. 

Begin as something - to be something first, before becoming something else. 

Example: 

• He began as an actor, before starting to direct films. 

Begin is used when you have something as the first part or the point where something starts. 

Examples: 

• Where does Europe end and Asia begin? 
• "I'm thinking of a country in Asia." "What does it begin with (= what is the first letter)?"  
• Each lesson begins with a warm-up activity. 

Begin is used when you start speaking. 

Examples: 

• "Well," he began, "I don't know how to tell you this." 
• "Ladies and gentlemen," he began, "welcome to our 5th Annual Conference." 

​
Idiom 
to begin with = first or most importantly (It's used when you give the first important reason for something.) 

Examples: 

• To begin with, I don't have enough money to take a trip to Europe this summer. 
• The hotel was awful. To begin with, our room was far too small. 

START 

Start is a regular verb. 
start - started - started 

Start means to begin doing something. 

Examples: 

• It's a long story. Where shall I start? 
• start something - When do you start your new job? 
• Can you start (= a new job) on Monday? (job interview) 
• The kids start school next week. 
• start to do something - It started to rain. 
• start doing something - She started laughing. 

Another meaning of this verb is to start happening or to make something start happening. 

Examples: 

• When does the class start? 
• When does the next season of Game of Thrones start? 
• Do you start the day with a good breakfast? 

This verb is also used when you start a machine or a vehicle. 

Examples: 

• My car won't start in cold weather. 
• The car won't start. 
• I can't get the car started. What should I do? 
• Press this button to start the printer. 

Start is used when you make something begin to exist. Start is used to talk about creating a new business. 

Examples: 

• start (up) - There are a lot of small businesses starting up in that area. 
• He started his own software company. 
• She started a new restaurant and it's been going really well. 
• She started a yoga class at work. 

​
Idiom 
to start with = at the beginning; It is also used when you are giving the first and most important reason for something.  

Examples: 

• The group had only 5 members to start with. 
• To start with, it's too expensive. 

​
END vs. FINISH 

END 

End is a regular verb. 
end - ended - ended 
​
End means to finish or to make something finish - 'to come to a stop'. 

Examples: 

• The road ends here. 
• How does the story end? 
• They decided to end their relationship. 
• Their marriage ended in 2010. 
• Andre Agassi ended his tennis career in 2006 with over $30 million in prize money. 
• I think that his contract ends this month. 

FINISH 

Finish is a regular verb. 
finish - finished - finished 

Finish means to complete something or come to the end of an activity.  

Examples: 

• Haven't you finished your homework yet? 
• She finished law school last year. 
• I'm reading at the moment. I'll just finish the chapter and then I'll come. 
• finish doing something - Be quiet! He hasn't finished speaking. 
• Call me when you've finished writing the report. 
• She finished second (= in second place) in the finals. 
• They've already run out of money and the building isn't even half-finished yet. (= half of it has not been completed) 
• The meeting should finish around four o'clock. 
• School starts at 9 a.m. and finishes at 3:30 p.m. 
• I thought you'd never finish. 

Finish is used when you talk about food and drinks. It means to eat, drink or use something completely so that none remains. 

Examples: 

• finish something (up) - He finished his drink, paid the bill and left the restaurant. 
• He finished his meal in ten minutes. 
• We finished the pie last night. (= We ate all of it.) 
• We might as well finish up the cake. 

Exercise 

Complete the sentences with begin, start, end and finish in the correct forms. 

1. Let's ................ by writing down a few ideas. 
2. The show was due to ................ at 8:30. 
3. Their problems are only ................ There's a lot more to come. 
4. In 1993, Angelina Jolie ................ her professional film career with her first major part in the sci-fi film "Cyborg 2". 
5. Angelina Jolie has ................ an advocate for children's education and protecting the interests of child immigrants and other vulnerable children. 
6. I didn't save the file I was working on and now I need to ................ from scratch. (= from the very beginning) 
7. If you want to learn more about marketing, this book is an excellent place to ................ 
8. It's time to ................ thinking about next year. 
9. He's just ................ a new job. 
10. Hotel prices ................ at $65 a night for a double room.
11. They decided to ................ their trip from Saigon. 
12. The show last night ................ with a song. 
13. Carolina Rodriguez, a Spanish gymnast, competed at the 2016 European Championships where she ................ in 9th place. 
14. Rodriguez ................ her career after the 2016 Summer Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. 
​15. Have you ................ reading that magazine? 
16. Have you ................ with the vacuum cleaner yet? I need it. 


Answers: 
​1. begin; 2. begin; 3. beginning; 4. began; 5. begun; 6. start; 7. start; 8. start; 9. started; 10. start; 11. start; 12. ended; 13. finished; 14. ended; 15. finished; 16. finished; 

PRACTICE vs. PRACTISE 

These words are often confused. 

If the word ends in -se, then it is a verb. 

Remember: 
practice - noun 
practise - verb 

PRACTICE 

Practice refers to an action rather than thoughts or ideas. [Uncountable] 

Examples: 

• How are you going to put your knowledge into practice? 
• I can't wait to put what I've learned into practice. 
• She's determined to put her new ideas into practice. 

Practice is a thing that is done regularly, often as a habit, tradition or custom. [Uncountable or Countable] 

Examples: 

• common / standard practice 
• It is common practice in the States to tip the hairdresser. 
• In some countries it is common practice to leave a tip at a restaurant. 
• It is common practice in some universities to employ foreign English teachers. 
• It is standard practice not to pay until the end of the month. 
• It is his practice to read several books a week. (= habit) 

Practice is when you do something regularly or repeatedly so that you can improve your skill. [Uncountable or Countable] 

Examples: 

• conversation practice 
• You will be given a class book and a practice book before the course starts. 
• You need more practice at swimming underwater. 
• Students need more practice in using English. 
• There's a basketball practice every Friday evening. 
• It takes a lot of practice to play the violin well. 
• You'll gradually get better at playing the guitar - it's just a question of practice. 
• I need to get more practice before I take my driving test. 

Practice refers to a job or business of some professional people such as doctors, dentists and lawyers. These jobs require a lot of skills and training. [Uncountable or Countable] 

Examples: 

• a dental / medical / veterinary / legal practice 
• safe medical practices for children 
• She's decided to leave the National Health Service and join a private practice. 
• They have been studying Japanese business practices. 

Idiom 
Practice makes perfect - It is used to encourage someone to continue to do something many times, so that they will learn to do it very well. 


PRACTISE 

​Pay attention that you will most probably see this verb written this way: practice. This spelling is more common in American English. 

Practise means to do an activity or train regularly so that you can improve your skill. 

Examples: 

• practise for something - She's practising for her driving exam. 
• practise something - I've been practising speaking English for two months now. 
• I'm quite good at tennis but I need to practise my serve. 
• She practises English every day. 
• If you want your English to improve, you need to practise every day. 
• I need to practise my presentation before the meeting. 
• practise (something) on somebody / something - Some driving teachers use computers to simulate different road conditions for learners to practise on. 
• practise doing something [+ -ing verb] - His written Japanese is very good but he needs to practise speaking it. 

Practise also means to do something regularly, often as a habit, tradition, custom or set of rules. 

Examples: 

• The company denies that it has practised discrimination against any of its employees. 
• The technique is rarely practised in the West. 
• Do you still practise your religion? 

You need to practise if you have an important skilled job, such as a doctor, dentist or lawyer, for which a lot of training is necessary. 

Examples: 

• How long have you been practising as a dentist? 
• He practised as a lawyer for many years. 
• She practised medicine for 20 years. 

​ADVICE vs. ADVISE 

Remember: 
advice - noun 
advise - verb 

Advice is a noun. 
advice BrE /ədˈvaɪs/ ; NAmE /ədˈvaɪs/ ['s' sound at the end] 

Advice means an opinion or a suggestion about what someone should do. [Uncountable] 

Examples: 

• Let me give you some advice: stay away from her. 
• She gave him a lot of advice, but I don't think he listened. 
• advice on something - She gave me some advice on road safety. 
• Can you give me some advice on where to buy new jeans? 
• Ask your teacher's advice. / Ask your teacher for advice on how to prepare for the exam. 
• Follow your doctor's advice. 
• Take my advice - don't leave. 

Pay attention: 
If we want to use advice in a countable way, then we use the phrase a piece of advice. 

Example: 

• I have two pieces of advice for you about the holiday. 

Advise is a verb. 
advise BrE /ədˈvaɪz/ ; NAmE /ədˈvaɪz/ ['z' sound at the end] 

Advise means to tell someone what you think they should do - to give someone advice. 

Examples: 

• I strongly advise you not to do it. 
• [+ to infinitive] - I think I'd advise him to leave the company. (I'd = I would) 
• advise (someone) against something / against doing something - His doctor advised him against smoking. 
• I'd strongly advise against making a sudden decision. (= Don't make a sudden decision!) 
• She advised us when to come. 
• [+ -ing verb] - I'd advise waiting until tomorrow. (I'd = I would) 

Advise means to give someone information about something, especially on a subject you know a lot about. 

Examples: 

• Your lawyer can advise you whether to sign the contract. 
• I will contact you later to advise you when to come. 

Exercise 

Complete the sentences with practice, practise, advice or advise in the correct forms. 

1. You've got the necessary skills and now it's time to put them into ................ 
2. The more you ................, the better you will become. 
3. You will get ................ on grammar and vocabulary. 
4. You can improve your English conversation skills with our speaking ................ course. 
5. Whatever you do, keep ................ and good luck on your IELTS exam. 
6. The good news is that, with preparation and ................, you can overcome your nervousness and become better at speaking in public. 
7. When most people think of ................, they think of someone doing an activity over and over again. 
8. If you're willing to ................ hard, you can also achieve success.  
9. Go to your doctor and ask for ................ 
10. We were ................ to book early if we wanted to get a room. 
11. I think you need to seek legal ................ 
12. I'd ................ buying your tickets well in advance if you want to travel in August. 
13. The website gives free ................ on all aspects of saving energy. 
14. I'd ................ you not to sell your house. 
15. If you want my ................, I'd say it's better to tell him the truth. 
16. Many writers are ................ to write every day to improve their skill. 


Answers: 
1. practice; 2. practise; 3. practice; 4. practice; 5. practising; 6. practice; 7. practice; 8. practise;
9. advice; 10. advised; 11. advice; 12. advise; 13. advice; 14. advise; 15. advice; 16. advised; 

BREATH vs. BREATHE 

English learners often times find it difficult to use breath and breathe correctly. 

What is the difference between these two words? Let's find out. 

Breath is a noun. 
breath BrE /breθ/ ; NAmE /breθ/

Breath is the air that you take into your lungs and send out again. 

Examples: 

• I opened the window and took a deep breath. 
• Take a deep breath and try to relax. 
• Take a deep breath before diving into water. 
• How long can you hold your breath for?
• I felt a bit short of breath and had to sit down. (= had difficulty breathing) 
• I'm a bit out of breath after running. (= unable to breathe comfortably because of tiredness) 
• She was out of breath when she got her birthday present. (= unable to breathe comfortably because of excitement.) 
• I'm going outside for a breath of fresh air. 
• Smoking gives you bad breath. 
• His breath smelt of garlic. 
• When she said she had been fired, I caught my breath in surprise. 

​Breathe, with an 'e' at the end, is a verb. 
breathe BrE /briːð/ ; NAmE /briːð/ 

Breathe means to take air into your lungs and send it out again through your nose or mouth - that is to inhale and exhale.  

Examples: 

• Just breathe deeply and calm down. 
• The air was so cold that we could hardly breathe. 
• Most people don't realise that they are breathing polluted air. 
• Open your mouth and breathe through your nose. 
• It's so hot today that I can barely breathe. 
• She breathed slowly in and out. 
• It was great to be outside again and breathe the fresh air. 

Idiom 
breathe easy = to relax and stop worrying 

Example: 

• You can breathe easy - I'm not going to tell anyone.  

Remember: 
breath - noun 
breathe - verb 


Now let's focus on two other words. 
​
BELIEF vs. BELIEVE 

Belief is a noun. 
belief BrE /bɪˈliːf/ ; NAmE /bɪˈliːf/ 

Belief is a strong feeling that something / somebody exists or is true. 
belief (in something / somebody) 

Examples: 

• belief in God / democracy 
• His belief in God gave him hope during difficult times. 

belief [singular, uncountable] - belief that... - an opinion about something; something that you think is true 

Examples: 

• Their working system is based on the belief that people work more productively in a team. 
• She moved to London in the belief that this would help her career. 
• There is a belief among young people that education is a waste of time. 

belief [countable, usually plural] - something that you believe, especially as part of your religion 

Examples: 

• religious / political beliefs 
• beliefs about the origin of the universe 
• He tried to impose his beliefs on other people. 
• You must respect other people's beliefs. 

Believe is a verb. 
believe BrE /bɪˈliːv/ ; NAmE /bɪˈliːv/

To believe means to feel certain that something is true or that somebody is telling you the truth. 

Examples: 

• They believe in the power of education. 
• I believe she's telling the truth. 
• We believe in democracy. 

To think that something is true or possible, although you're not completely certain. 

Examples: 

• 'Where does she come from?' 'Vietnam, I believe.' 
• 'Does he still work for the same company?' 'I believe so.' / 'I believe not.'

believe that... - to have the opinion that something is right or true 

Examples: 

• She believes that eating dairy products is unhealthy. 
• Vegetarians believe that killing animals for food is unethical. 

don't / can't believe - it is used when you are surprised or annoyed at something 

Examples: 

• believe that... - She couldn't believe that she got the job. 
• I can't believe I'm going to South Korea to meet them for the first time. 

Exercise 

Complete the sentences with breath, breathe, belief or believe. 

1. Take a deep ................
2. Make sure to ................ deeply. 
​3. Finding it hard to ................ inside the exam room, I stepped out for a ................ of fresh air. 
4. We all inhabit this small planet. We all ................ the same air. 
5. Don't ................ on me. I don't want to get sick. 
6. The three most common ................. that consumers have about shopping online are that it saves time, saves money and helps find products that best match needs. 
7. Do consumers ................ advertising? 
8. With more than $140 billion spent on advertising each year, how much do consumers ................? 
9. Changing one's ................ is not easy. 
​10. The ................ you have about anything in your life are created over a period of time through a consistent way of thinking. 


Answers: 
1. breath; 2. breathe; 3. breathe, breath; 4. breathe; 5. breathe; 6. beliefs; 7. believe; 8. believe;
9. beliefs; 10. beliefs;