Cinco De Mayo

confuse

People confuse Cinco De Mayo with Independence Day.

We confuse something with another thing when we mix them in our mind. Notice the samples.

1. On TV, I sometimes confuse Arsenal with Man U. They both wear red uniforms.
2. In written English, many people confuse ‘effect’ with ‘affect’.

as if

People want to celebrate as if it was a Mexican holiday.

We use the phrase 'as if ' to show what something or someone is like. Here are two sample sentences.

1. It looks as if it’s going to rain.
2. you sound as if you are not happy with your new job.

catchy name

It has a catchy name.

Something that’s catchy is easy to remember. Notice the following.

1. Blackberry is a great phone with a catchy name.
2. I’m not an Oasis fan, but their songs sure are catchy.

unlikely

It was a very unlikely battle.

‘Unlikely’ talks about something we don’t think or expect to happen. Here are two examples using unlikely’:

1. It’s unlikely Team USA will win the World Cup anytime soon.
2. I didn’t study last night, so it’s unlikely I’ll pass the test today.

declare war

The French declared war after the bakery was burned down.

In this example, ‘declare war’ means for a government to publicly and officially announce plans to go to war. See the samples below.

1. After the country was attacked, it declared war the next day.
2. In the United States, the president does not have the power to declare war. He or she must seek the approval of congress.