Re: "Between" is used when naming distinct, individual items (can be 2, 3, or more).
Generally speaking, I really think you should avoid asking us what the difference in meaning is, because a) it unnecessarily leads us to focus on meaning, and b) it may lead us to different interpretations of what kind of meaning you mean. You could simply ask What are the differences between a and b? This will open the question to all kinds of difference—aspect, sense, naturalness, formality, usage patterns, etc.
Thank you, jutfrank.
I tried that before, and a member answered me (something like) "(a) is in the present simple; (b) is in the past simple", and that was not the answer I wanted to receive. I had seen they were in different tenses,
but what did that mean? In other words, the answer I wanted to know was like:
"(a) is in the present simple, so it means a repeated action; (b) is in the past simple, so it means this action happened."
This is why I usually choose to ask "what is the the difference in meaning between them?" - although I know in this case it may
technically not be called "
meaning". (What should I call it? Usage?)
Maybe next time I can
ask in the question, "I know they are in
different aspect, sense, etc., but what do this mean?"
Is this asking better?
Another question that I think works well is Of a and b, which is better? or Of a and b, which should I use? Again, these questions are open enough for us to give you quick, simple, diverse, and clear answers. Those of us who wish to provide reasons for our advice, and/or any accompanying explanations, will do so without being asked.
This is another thing I'll have to say.
Case 1.
I ask a question, and provide
a possible answer and reason, then ask "Am I right?"
Case 2.
I list two sentences, and ask "Of a and b, which is better?" or "Of a and b, which should I use?"
In case 1, if the you simply answer "yes", that will be fine, because I have written the reason myself.
In case 2, if the you simply answer "a" or "b", it won't be enough,
because I want to know why (so I'll have to ask this part). :roll:
This is the reason I usually say "Do they mean the same thing?
If not, could you tell me your opinion?"
I would like to learn English in the way that I know not only the answer, but also the reason.
If you really do want to ask about meaning, though, it will be very useful if you remember the following two distinctions:
1) effective meaning versus analytic meaning
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.
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2) speaker meaning versus sentence meaning
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I'll remember it.
Okay, but sentence B exists only in your mind. It's not an authentic sentence. What's more, you're a non-native speaker, so it's rather unlikely that B is as good as A, very unlikely that B is better than A, and quite likely that B is completely inappropriate, so why bother focusing on it at all? Why not just try to learn what you can from sentence A?
Yes, it is true. But if I can know why
B is worse, maybe I can avoid using such a mistake or a bad element in it to other sentences I'll write in the future. I mean to learn the principles.
I think the best is that I can learn what I can from sentence A, and what I shouldn't use or should avoid from sentence B.