0
Tung Quoc Posted 20 years ago
Grammar

keen vs eager

Hi,

keen = eager.
So,

I wasn't too keen to go to the party. = I wasn't too eager to go to the party. (a)
Fred was very keen to help. = Fred was very eager to help. (b)

Thus,

I wasn't too keen on going to the party. =? (c)
Fred was very keen on helping. = ? (d)

Please re_write (c) and (d) by using eager so that I can see the difference in meaning between (a) and (c), (b) and (d)?

Quoc
  

Top answer

keen = eager only in the first approximation. The fact that they are synonyms doesn't mean they are equal. com/dictionary/eager there are some slight differences between them, which you need to be aware of, if you want to use them properly.

— Marius Hancu

  • keen = eager only in the first approximation.
  • The fact that they are synonyms doesn't mean they are equal.
  • com/dictionary/eager there are some slight differences between them, which you need to be aware of, if you want to use them properly.
  • There is no substitute for learning those differences, or at least knowing where you can find them.
  • And I would argue that no one on this forum knows better than the M-W dictionary in terms of synonyms.
Free · every Monday

Get the Weekly English Kit 📬

New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.

1 Answers
0
keen = eager
only in the first approximation.

The fact that they are synonyms doesn't mean they are equal.

When you look at the definitions in the synonyms area here:
http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/eager
there are some slight differences between them, which you need to be aware
0

Related Questions