[mesmark]

a student has asked me what's the difference in the usage of 'hardly' and 'seldom.'


I'm going with interchangeable

[stanley]

I would say 'seldom' is interchangeable with 'hardly ever'. 'Hardly' can be used in several other ways, that do not mean 'seldom', eg: with 'any' as in 'hardly any English people speak Chinese' or meaning 'do not' as in: 'I hardly think that's relevant'
To simplify, I would say 'hardly' means 'almost no' or 'almost not', whereas 'seldom' means 'rarely' or 'hardly ever'
Clear as mud?!

[mesmark]

the second question was what's the difference between 'accomplish' and 'achieve' ?

She's a Japanese woman and works as an English teacher in Tokyo, but comes to me to verify that I know what I'm doing.

I said that accomplish is generally used with a target or goal.

Achieve is not necessarily associated with a set goal.

[mesmark]

New question from the same student:

What's the difference between 'in the street' and 'on the street?'

[emile]

She's a Japanese woman and works as an English teacher in Tokyo, but comes to me to verify that I know what I'm doing.

Tell her that before you reveal to her the ancient mysteries and subtleties of the English language, she must shave her head and fast for forty days. (And then tell her what you just said is a popular English idiom)

...when I google "accomplish a" most results return 'accomplish a goal' or 'accomplish a task'. Googling 'achieve a' returns a wider range of, er, achievements. You can achive a victory or even a lean and healthy body.

[mesmark]

Quote emile

...when I google "accomplish a" most results return 'accomplish a goal' or 'accomplish a task'. Googling 'achieve a' returns a wider range of, er, achievements. You can achive a victory or even a lean and healthy body.

Cool! So, I might have been right. I didn't bother to look it up.