English Vocabulary Practice | Thought vs. Thought

A great way to expand your English vocabulary is to isolate one word and dive into its definitions while learning how to use it in context.

Today we’re going to be focusing on one word. This word is used pretty often in English conversation and can be used in a few different ways. The word I am talking about is the word ‘thought’. In English the word ‘thought’ can be used in two different contexts:

• It can mean an idea. For example “I had a thought about how we could solve this problem.”
• It can also mean something that you were thinking about in the past or that you believed in the past. For example “I thought your name was Ashley not Amanda.”

To help you understand how to use this word in context, let’s go over 20 different phrases that use the word ‘thought’.

‘Thought’ as in a belief

• I thought you were from New York.
• I thought we were going to the beach today.
• They thought I was from India but I’m from Pakistan.
• We thought your friend was very nice.
• Your sister thought I was already gone.
• I thought that burger was delicious.
• They thought the restaurant was nice.
• We thought about it, but decided not to go.
• He thought she had a sister.
• I listened to the song and thought it was really good!

These phrases are all ‘thought’ in the context of something that you believed in the past. The word thought is really important in the context of these sentences. let’s move on to thought as in the idea or to think.

‘Thought’ as in an idea

• Do you have any thoughts on the matter?
• Does anyone have any thoughts on today’s lesson?
• I thought we could all go to the park.
• I never thought about a career in medicine.
• She thought of her nephew when she saw this toy.
• They thought it would be fun to travel together.
• We thought going to a movie would be a great activity!
• I thought a tutor might be helpful.
• Does she have any more thoughts about the party?
• I don’t have any additional thoughts.

There are many ways you can use the word thought. Can you think of any yourself? This week when you’re practicing using the word thought, make sure you’re able to use it in the two contexts listed above. Either something that you were thinking of in the past like “I thought about you” or an idea that you had like “I thought we could try this new restaurant.” For more explanation check out our video here: https://youtu.be/qE_NpSQftlY