musictoenglish blog

I used to dislike doing online lessons years ago when there were not many applications available. Skype was around but it wasn’t very stable. Times have changed since the pandemic came to be though. With so many people working from home now video apps have to be dependable. I’m back to teaching cyberly and I must say I’ve been very happy with present day Zoom and Skype. Both have good picture and good sound. So if you’re about doing face to face lessons and getting infected you should try
online lessons.

Japanese people often confuse the use of "put on" and "wear". below are some rules to follow and some examples followed by a conversation and a quiz:

Wear = Used as a noun: Cannot be used alone, must be preceded by
an adjective. (no I have a lot of wear) (okay The men’s wear department is in the corner)

Wear = Used as verb: You wear anything that is put on your body or
applied to the skin such as clothing, or make up. There is no action.
(I have to wear a suit every day)

Put on = Used to talk about the action of putting clothes on your body
when getting dressed or putting make up on your face. (You should put
on your tie before you leave.)
.
Compare
Could you tell me what floor the ladies wear is on? Yes, the 3rd floor
That’s a nice suit you’re wearing. Is it new? No. I don’t wear it much.
Hurry up. We’re going to be late. I just have to put on my make up.
Help me put on my dress. I can’t reach the zipper in the back.
If we’re going skiing we’ll have to buy John some ski wear..
What are you going to wear to the party? I was thinking of wearing my tux.

CONVERSATION
A woman and her daughter are talking about what to wear to a friend’s wedding
Daught: What are you going to wear to Mary’s wedding?
Mom: I don’t know. I have absolutely nothing to wear.
Daught: What about your black dress. Put it on. We’ll see how it
looks.
Mom: That dress is too old fashioned. I bought it 20 years ago.
Daught: Why don’t we go shopping to the outlet mall then?
Mom: They don’ have any good ladies formal wear shops.
Daught;: Yes they do. They just opened a new shop for ladies formal
wear.
Mom: Really? Okay let’s go. I wonder what your father’s going to
wear.
Daught: Well he put on his blue suit yesterday but he couldn’t
button the waist.
Mom: I told him he should watch his weight. He’s gaining so
much.

QUIZ:
Fill in the gaps with a form of the words "wear" or "put on"

1. He’s going jogging so he ____________ his running ________.
2. You’d better _________ a warmer jacket. It’s going to get cold
tonight
3. Here. _______ these new jeans I bought for you. I want to see how
they fit.
4. High school girls and boys have to_______ uniforms to school..
5. Sometimes older women ________ too much perfume.
6. I wanted to experience the typhoon so I ______ my rain boots and
my raincoat and went outside.
7. Some female college students in Japan _______party dresses to
school.
8. Sometimes it’s hard to find the men’s ______ section in
department stores.
9. If you don’t _______ sunscreen before you sunbathe you’ll get a
sunburn..
10. You should _______ some clothes, It’s 2pm and you’re still ________
pajamas.
11. I can’t ______ these shoes. They’re too tight.


Send me a comment with your answers to the quiz and I'll correct it for you.

I’ve been living in Japan for the past 42 years. Had Billy Joel lived here he never would’ve written the lyrics “Honesty, such a lonely word”. Through my experiences here I can truly say that Honesty Is the Best Policy in Japan.

My first day in Tokyo I can remember walking past electronics shops in the Shinjuku district. The shops had tables on the sidewalk with all their goods on display. The shop master would be inside the shop. People would walk by and look but nobody would steal anything. That would be unheard of in America. Of course shops don’t do that anymore with so many foreigners living here.

I’m a very forgetful person and have been since I was a child. I failed a kindergarten test because I couldn’t remember the word coffee cup when I was shown the picture. Anyways there have many instances where I have forgotten items at different places. On the train I left my smartphone one time, another time my stick bag full of drumsticks and my expensive leather gloves. All of these things I got back, I left my wallet on the counter at a bookstore and another time at a convenience store. Both times I got the wallet back with no money missing. I’ve dropped my prepaid commuter pass at my station and I got it back, Each time this happens I say to myself, “I’m so glad I’m in Japan.”
.”