Placeholder Image

Subtitles section Play video

  • Hi everyone, welcome back to English with Max. Today I have a video

  • for you on how to use the word "though". This video is for people

  • learning English who have an intermediate to advanced level, so if you are a beginner,

  • you might find this a bit difficult. But it's free, so if you are a beginner and

  • you want to watch, that's fine too. As usual, I'd like to remind you that you

  • can follow me on social media. I have Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

  • And don't forget to subscribe to this channel if you want to be updated on

  • new videos. All of that is free as well. If you have an intermediate to advanced

  • level, I'm assuming you already know the words "although" and "but". "But" with one T.

  • "Butt" with two Ts means "bottom". Anyway if you don't know the meanings of "but" and

  • "although", I recommend that you first go and look them up in your language,

  • because if I have to explain them, this video is going to be very long.

  • You should also look up "despite" if you don't know it already.

  • Firstly, "though" can be a conjunction, which means it joins two clauses.

  • In other words, it joins two parts of a sentence. As a conjunction,

  • it can either mean "despite the fact that" or "but".

  • Let's look at the first meaning: despite the fact that.

  • When it has this meaning, you can use it interchangeably with "although".

  • The only real difference here between "though" and "although" is that "though"

  • is more commonly used in spoken language. But you can still use it

  • in formal situations and in written language. Let's see some examples.

  • I went for a walk though it was cold outside.

  • I passed the exam though I had barely slept.

  • You can also put the clause with "though" first. For example:

  • Though it was cold outside, I went for a walk.

  • Though I had barely slept, I passed the exam.

  • It doesn't really matter whether you put the clause with "though" first or second.

  • Normally you put the part you want to emphasise first, but the meaning stays the same.

  • You can also put the word "even" in front of "though" to add emphasis.

  • It just makes what you're saying a bit stronger.

  • For example: I went for a walk even though it was cold outside.

  • But be careful, you can't put "even" in front of "although".

  • You can also put "though" or "although" in front of an adjective.

  • For example: Though small, the cat can run fast.

  • Or: The cat, though small, can run fast.

  • This means: Despite the fact that the cat is small, it can run fast.

  • The second meaning of "though" is "but".

  • For example: I'm meeting my friend later though I don't know where.

  • I don't usually drink coffee though I've had 5 cups today.

  • You can also use "although" here.

  • I'm meeting my friend later although I don't know where.

  • I don't usually drink coffee although I've had five cups today.

  • Finally, "though" can be an adverb meaning "despite this",

  • and that is when you put it at the end of a sentence.

  • Native speakers do this all the time and it's relatively colloquial.

  • It basically means "but" or "however", but as I said,

  • it goes at the end of a sentence. It doesn't join two parts of a sentence.

  • Here are some examples.

  • I felt sick after eating the entire cake. It tasted good, though.

  • That's like saying: I felt sick after eating the entire cake, but it tasted good.

  • I don't like cooking. I like eating, though.

  • That means: I don't like cooking, but I like eating.

  • You can also sometimes put it after "thanks" or "thank you".

  • For example, when you decline something.

  • Someone could say to you: "Would you like some cake?"

  • Then you might answer: "I've already had some. Thanks, though."

  • It's like saying "but thanks" or "thanks anyway".

  • In these last examples, where "though" is at the end of a sentence,

  • you cannot replace it with "although". You cannot say:

  • "I don't like cooking. I like, eating although." No, that doesn't make sense.

  • And you cannot say: "Thanks, although." And you cannot, I repeat, you cannot put

  • "but" at the end of a sentence. Some native speakers make this mistake,

  • particularly in Australia. But you should not copy them.

  • I know that was a lot of information, but hopefully it's a bit clearer now.

  • If you have any questions, don't hesitate to write them in the comments section... Or

  • you can leave a different comment if you want. As usual, please hit the thumbs up

  • if you found this useful, and don't forget to share it with your friends.

  • See you next time.

  • Cat...

  • Monty!

Hi everyone, welcome back to English with Max. Today I have a video

Subtitles and vocabulary

Click the word to look it up Click the word to find further inforamtion about it