Dear E:

You wrote:
>
> I´m learning English, and I would like to know what are the correct uses of the verbs DO and MAKE? What are the rules? When I use DO and when I use MAKE?
> Thank you
> E
>
This is one of the most difficult problems in English for someone who is a native speaker of one of the Romance languages. The Romance languages have many idioms which use the verb DO or MAKE which do not translate into
English. Mostly it simply takes practice to understand what “sounds right” in English.

In very simple terms, “make” means to create or achieve. “I made a computer program,” i.e., I created a computer program. “Their team made the final game,” i.e., their team achieved the final game in the tournament standings.

“Do” means to act or make an action. “I do my exercises every day,” i.e., “I act out my exercises every day.”

If you have not seen it, I highly recommend the following book:
Michael Hogan. “Intelligent Mistakes: An English Grammar Supplement for Latin American Students.” Association of American Schools. [As of 2011 this is no longer in print but is available in various E-book formats.]

Your problem is simply that the Portuguese word for DO (from the Latin FACERE) does what both DO and MAKE do in English–plus it is used in many idioms. In English both DO and MAKE have some different idioms of their own.
More than anything else, it just takes practice and familiarity with the language.

Dear NT:

You wrote:
> The following is a slightly modified sentence from a book. It is about what the comparison between the lectures (spoken word) and the published texts of a particular writer shows regarding his work. I have a problem with the phrase: “for all that it enriches…”.
>
> “Such a comparison (between “unscripted” lectures and texts that were later derived from these lectures and published) shows how the repeated revisions he undertook on the road to publication, for all that they enrich the intellectual content and precision of a work, can sometimes have a sobering effect on the extempore spoken word; or conversely, it shows how a long underlying text can acquire new life and directness when used as a source for a lecture not read from a prepared script.”
>
> What does “for all that” mean here?
>
This is something of an idiom. The most famous example is the poem by Robert Burns, “A Man’s a Man for All That.” In the sentence you gave “all” is an indefinite pronoun, not an adjective. “They” clearly refers to the “revisions,” so the sentence is saying “for all that the revisions…” Substitute “everything” or “all things” for “all” and that may help you
understand the meaning.

Dear “H”:

You wrote:
> On the webpage https://www.englishplus.com/grammar/00000245.htm it claims that there is no such word as orientate. That is a false statement. Orientate is a more British word and orient is more of an American word.
According to many sources that I have found, they are both correct. Here are a few references:
> http://www.quinion.com/words/qa/qa-ori1.htm
> http://dictionary.cambridge.org/define.asp?key=55964&dict=CALD
> http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?book=Dictionary&va=orientate
> http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=orientate
> http://machaut.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/WEBSTER.sh?WORD=orientate
> Thanks for your time.
>
People use a lot of nonstandard words. It is carried in most descriptive dictionaries, but avoid it in any standard or formal situation.

Dear R:

You wrote:
> Can you provide guidance as to which term is correct: Biggest vs. Largest. Are there circumstances / rules that dictate which word should be used? Or are both correct in any circumstance.
>
> Thank you for your assistance.
>
The two words are very similar in meaning and use. In many cases they can be used interchangeably. However, there is a tendency for “big” to refer to size and “large” to refer to quantity. There is certainly an overlap, but you are more likely to hear that a million is a big number and a million pounds (or dollars) is a large amount of money.

Dear J:

You asked:

> Hello —
> I read about blonde/blond on the site, and still have a question. I’ve
> heard that when used as an adjective, blond should be used, not blonde.
> (“The blond floozy hitchhiked to Los Angeles.”)
> Is that indeed the rule, or is that no longer true?
>
Authorities vary. It appears to be more common to use “blond” as the adjective, but some authorities still use “blonde” when referring to a woman. I have seen film reviews which will speak of a “blonde bombshell,”
for example. Whichever you choose, be consistent and I doubt if anyone will correct you.

Dear J:

You wrote:

I would like to see a “Compliment vs. Complement” section at https://englishplus.com/grammar/00000160.htm#C. That mistake drives me crazy for some reason.

Thanks,
Joey

That is in our Spelling Slammer program which is part of Grammar Slammer Deluxe or as a separate e-book. There are many other similar words in that. That is not online. I hate to sound too commercial, but you might want to think about buying it. In the meantime, this is what we wrote:

Complement or Compliment?
Complement is something that makes complete. It can also be used as a verb to mean “to make complete.” It is related to the word complete; therefore, the letter e follows the pl.
The adjective form is complementary.

Compliment is a favor or words spoken expressing admiration. It can also be used to as a verb to mean “to speak highly of.” It is related to the word comply; therefore, an i follows the pl.
The adjective form is complimentary. In modern usage, complimentary often means “free, with our compliments.”

That definition for the grammatical term complement is found at https://englishplus.com/grammar/00000075.htm .
I hope this helps.

Dear Sarah Jean:
You wrote:
> The one common problem I have (as well as others) is which do I use
> effect or affect?
>
Here is what we say in Grammar Slammer Deluxe or in Spelling Slammer:

These two words can sound very similar. They are often confused.

Affect is normally a verb. It means “to influence.” Its roots are ad + fect and literally mean “to do to.” That is still pretty much what the word means. It can also mean “to put on airs” or “act like someone of a higher status.”

Example: He was deeply affected by her moving apology.

Affect can be used as a noun to mean “a person’s disposition or state of mind.” This is usually used in a psychological sense and is rarely found outside the realm of psychology or educational psychology.

Effect is normally a noun. It means “result.” It can sometimes means “the apparent result” or “gist.” Its roots are ex + fect which literally mean “to do or make from,” and that is still pretty much the meaning.

Example: What were the effects of the 1973 oil embargo?

Effect is sometimes used as a verb to mean “cause” or “achieve.”

Example: Their voluntary effort effected a genuine change in the
neighborhood.

I hope this helps.

Forgive the commercial intrusion, but if you had Grammar Slammer Deluxe or Spelling Slammer, you
could find out the answer to this and many other similar questions. Learn
more at https://englishplus.com/gramslam.htm .

Dear Mr. D:

You wrote:

> Dear English+
>
> During my brief visit to your excellent site I didn’t see mention of the
> abused word ANTICIPATE – frequently used as a synonym for ‘expect’.
>
> Would this be worthy of a mention?
>
> Regards
>
>JD
>
Good point. However, the most recent dictionaries including the Random House and Merriam-Webster have decided that this one is no longer worth quibbling over. Blame Carly Simon or someone else, but that meaning has entered the language in common use to be recognized as an alternate definition of the word. This is a fight we have surrendered and there does not appear to be a big problem with misunderstanding.

Dear Mr. B:

You wrote:
Would you give me a list of all the British words that have spelling differences between American English?

Here are some examples;
endeavour, colour, programme, etc.

thank you much

I am not sure that anyone outside of a lexicographer could do that with any sort of guarantee, especially when you start to include scientific terms (e.g., aluminum vs. aluminium). Most of the common words and the common patterns (you note above -or vs. -our at the end of impersonal nouns) can be found at https://englishplus.com/grammar/00000186.htm .

It might be possible to make a fairly exhuastive list by using a full featured word processor which has both English and American spell checkers, such as Grammar Slammer Deluxe with Checkers. Load one of the dictionaries as a document, if possible, and then run the other spell checker to check it. Any flagged words would give you pretty good list.

I hope this helps.