Hi everyone. I'm Jennifer from English with Jennifer. Vocabulary requires a lot of brain work.
You know why? It's not just about learning what a word means. You need to learn how to use it.
Take for example the word "due." When I say, "My report is due tomorrow," what does that mean?
The answer is b. It must be finished by tomorrow.
When something is due, it is expected. We use "due" to state a deadline.
The report is due tomorrow. The report is due next week. The report is due on Friday.
What if I ask a woman, "When are you due?" What's the situation?
The answer is c. She's going to have a baby. A pregnant woman has a due date. We ask,
"When are you due?" The due date is when the baby is expected to be born.
The baby is due in September. The baby is due next month.
You know what else has a due date? Library books. When you check out books from the library,
you immediately have a due date. That's when you have to bring the books back.
Library books are usually due three weeks after you check them out. You might hear
"due" or "due back." My library books are due today. My library books are due back next week.
And if you're late bringing the books back, you might be fined. You might have to pay a fine.
The amount due is usually very small, but you're expected to pay this money
before you check out new books.
In more formal English, we can say a person or a thing is due to arrive on a certain day.
In everyday English, we can find other wording. Compare these sentences.
The First Lady is due to arrive at 10 o'clock.
The First Lady is going to come at 10.
The items are due to arrive on Friday.
When we use "due to," the meaning changes. "Due to" is a more formal way of saying
"because of." Can you rewrite the following statements and use everyday English? Let's try.
Due to inclement weather, the event has been cancelled.
I'll give you a hint. I suggest avoiding the passive and using an active verb.
They canceled the event because of the weather.
Company expenses often increase due to human error.
Here's a suggestion: More expenses means losing money.
How about saying, "Companies often lose money because of human error."
Just remember if you use "due to," it sounds rather formal,
and "due to" is followed by an object. Use a noun or a noun phrase. Got it?
Don't say "due to people make mistakes." Say "due to mistakes" or "due to human error."
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As always, thanks for watching and happy studies!
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