Common Problems in English Usage

how and what

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Know and related verbs

Know is a little different from the Japanese verb shiru. Know describes a state of knowing about something, a state that continues for a period of time, so it sounds strange to use the verb know when you are describing the moment a person first comes to know something. Instead, find out, discover, and realizedare usually better, as in the examples below.

Strange:: When I first knew my sister's secret, I was shocked.
Better:: When I first found out about my sister's secret...; When I first discovered my sister's secret...; When I first realized my sister's secret...

Find out and discover are used if you learn about something from an outside source, for example, if your find out your sister's secret by reading her diary. Realize is better if you have come to know something as a process of your own thinking, (for example, if you realize what your sister's secret is after thinking about a recent conversation with her). Learn can also be used to describe coming to know something. Here are some more examples.

Strange:: I was shocked to know that Japan is nearly last in the world in TOEFL scores.
Better:: I was shocked to find out that...; I was shocked to learn that...
Strange:: I felt sad to know how J.R. [the train company] does business.
Better:: I felt sad to discover how J.R. does business.

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Learn in contrast to study

The verb study describes an activity, the activity that you undertake when you want to learn about something. In contrast, the verb learn focuses on the moment when something has become part of your knowledge. The verb learn also contains a sense of completion and permanency; usually, when you have learned something, you know everything about it and you don't easily forget it.

The sentence below sounds because of the sense of completion implied by learn. If you have truly learned something, that is, if it has become part of your knowledge, you are normally able to use that knowledge.

Strange:: I learned German last year, but I can't speak it.

It's possible to study something without learning it, however, so the sentences below sound fine.

Natural:: I studied German for three years, but I can't speak it.
Natural:: I studied very hard, but I didn't learn much.

Studying is an activity that we do over a period of time, but learning is a change in our consciousness rather than an activity. Consider the examples below:

Strange:: I learned German for three years.
Natural:: I studied German for three years until I finally learned to speak it.

Because learnimplies a sense of completion, it is not usually when we are talking about subjects that are vast and that no one can learn everything about. Instead, we use it with more limited fields of study.

Strange:: I learned science.; I learned philosophy.; I learned music.
Natural:: I learned how to play the piano.

It's hard to imagine that someone could learn everything about science. However, you can study science or learn about science.Learn about is similar to learn in that what you learn about becomes part of your memory, but learn about does not have the sense of completion that learn does, so it sounds more natural in the sentences below.

Natural:: I'm studying history.; I'm learning about Japanese history.; I want to learn about Western philosophy someday.

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