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Unit 3: English In A Minute
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Session 22

Welcome to English In A Minute. Give us a minute and we'll give you a hot tip about English vocabulary... there's so much to learn! And all taught by your favourite BBC Learning English staff!

ክፍለ-ስራሓት ናይዚ ምዕራፍ

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ድምር ነጥቢ ናይዚ ክፍለ-ስራሓት 22

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    Activity 1
  1. Activity 1

Activity 1

Common uses of 'while'

Learn some common uses of the word 'while'.

ነቲ ቪድዮ ብምዕዛብ ነቲ ስራሕ ዕመምዎ

ነቲ ቅዳሕ ጽሑፍ ኣርእይዎ ነቲ ቅዳሕ ጽሑፍ ሕብእዎ

Sam

Let’s take a minute to look at some of the many meanings while can have.

As a conjunction, while can mean ‘at the same time as’.

While we were sleeping, it snowed!

We can swap the two clauses around, but notice the comma goes away.

It snowed while we were sleeping!

While can have the same meaning as ‘but’.

One of the twins is shy, while the other is outgoing.

And while, or whilst in more formal contexts, can also be used in the same way as ‘although’.

While I know that sugar is bad for me, I can never say no to dessert!

As a noun, while can mean ‘a length of time’ and, in the expression ‘worth your while’, it can mean ‘worth the time and effort used’. So, finally…

Even though we only had a short while together, we hope this lesson was worth your while. 

While

As a conjunction, while can mean:

1. ‘at the same time as’

  • While we were sleeping, it snowed!
  • It snowed while we were sleeping!

2. ‘but’

  • One of the twins is shy, while the other is outgoing.
  • The summers are warm, while the winters are very cold.

3. ‘although’. In formal contexts, you can also use whilst.

  • While I know that sugar is bad for me, I can never say no to dessert!
  • Whilst I agree with your point, I think there are other factors we need to consider.

As a noun, while can mean:

1. 'a length of time’

  • Mum, I'm going out to play for a while!
  • I haven't heard from Frank in a long while. Have you?

2. and in the expression 'worth your while', it means 'worth the time and effort used’

  • It's a difficult course but it will bring you many opportunities. It's definitely worth your while!
  • Even though we only had a short while together, we hope this lesson was worth your while.

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To do

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English In A Minute Quiz

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ኣገናዕ፡ ፈተናኹም ዛዚምኩም
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More

We hope you enjoyed English in a Minute. You can find more episodes here. 

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