ENGLISH GRAMMAR
LOOK - SEE - WATCH
The difference between the verbs 'look', 'see' and 'watch'.
The verbs 'look', 'see' and 'watch' have different meanings and are used as in the examples given below.
| LOOK |
LOOK means to turn your eyes in a specific direction or concentrate on something.
- Look at that house. It's on fire!
- If you look in the top cupboard you'll find cups and saucers.
- People turn to look at the man who was shouting.
- Sophie looked at all the dresses and finally selected one to try on.
- My father looked out the window before he opened the door.
- People should look carefully before they cross the road.
- Look at the crowd. There must be something happening.
|
| SEE |
SEE means to perceive with the eyes or to notice something.
- From the back of the hotel you can see the lake.
- Have you seen my keys anywhere? I can't find them.
- Let me know if you see any mistakes.
- My grandmother can't see anything without her glasses.
- Did you see how excited the children were when the clown arrived?
- Can you see that helicopter up there?
- Yesterday we saw a fox in the garden!
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| WATCH |
WATCH means to observe or follow something attentively over a period of time.
- We were watching a film with the phone rang.
Note: We go to the cinema/theatre to see a film/play/show, and when we get there, we sit down to
watch it.)
- The whole family went to watch the parade.
- The owner watched the boys as they approached the shop.
- Jack decided to stay home and watch the football match on telelvision.
- The police decided to watch the suspect's movements.
- Watch that saucepan and make sure the milk doesn't boil over!
- The children watched the teacher attentively as she showed them what to do.
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