Speak Better English with Harry | Difference between Unless and Until

So I thought what I would do today is spell out specifically with lots of examples, exactly what we mean and how you can use them. Okay. So I'm going to explain them to you. I'm going to give you examples of each work you through the example . So hopefully by the end of the lesson you'll know the difference between unless and until and at the end. I'm also going to give you an explanation as to until, until, because that's something else that causes my students a little bit of confusion.

Okay. Well unless and until they're both conjunctions . So we use them in sentences to join some thoughts. Okay. So there's a commonality between them, but in every other respect, they are very different. So let's look first of all that unless so when we're using it, unless we don't use it with any negative word, it's not followed with a negative. We can't say unless not on less . No, unless I didn't.

Okay. So you cannot follow it with a negative only with the positive and you can't follow it with will unless I will. Okay. So there are things that you cannot do, but when we use it in the , in the sentence, let me give you an example. Um, you can't play football outside unless you have finished your homework. Okay? So, Hey, we're being very specific. We're telling the person what he has to do if he wants to play outside.

And this is the actual comparison we can make because it's very similar in some ways to the word. If it's conditional. Okay? So you're introducing the condition. So he cannot play outside unless he finishes his homework. Okay. You could rewrite that and say, if you finish your homework, you can play outside. So there you put a positive, if you finish your homework, you can play outside unless you finish your homework, you can't play outside. Okay .

So the if and unless they're opposites, but they give you the exact same meaning in the sentence. So there's a condition there , cause we always use if when we're talking about the condition . So let me give you that example again. You can't play outside unless you finish your homework. You can't play outside unless you finish your homework. Okay? So let me just expand on that again for you. So we've said you can't use a negative after unless, okay.

So in the example I've given you, you can't play football unless you do your homework first. So the negative comes first. You can't, you cannot play football on less. You do your homework first. And then how I twisted it around. If you want to use the positive with, if, if you do your homework then you can play outside. Okay? So if you do your homework, you can play football outside. So unless and if in that situation are both eh , opposites.

Okay. But they are giving you the same meaning one with a positive spin. If one were the negative spin on less. Okay. Let me give you some, some more examples. So I left my keys at home. So your , your phone, your partner to say you've left your keys of the house at home. So , um, hi. Really sorry to bother you. I've left my keys at home so unless you're home before me, I'm going to have to wait. Yeah. Okay. So you're ringing to say you've left your keys at home, you've done a stupid thing.

You're , you're , we're in a rush this morning and unless, so this is where the negative comes. Unless they get home before you, you're going to have to wait. Okay. So if they can get home then everything is going to be okay. And here we have that word again. If, if they can get home before you, then everything's going to be okay. But as normal, if your home first, you're now going to have to wait because you don't have your keys. So you ring them. Sorry to ring you. Sorry to know you.

I've left my keys at home and unless you can get home before me, I'm going to have to wait. Okay. So let me give you another example. We'd go to the kitchen. Uh, we're trying to get out to work and look in the cupboards and we have no coffee. Okay. Oh, I'll get some coffee on my way home. Unless you want to run out to the shop now and get some. Okay. So you're giving somebody the choice. You're open the cupboards, there's no coffee. Oh, I get some on my way home this evening.

Unless you want to go now quickly and get some. Okay. Okay. And one more example, and here we're going to put the, unless at the beginning of the sentence and so it doesn't really matter where you put it . The meaning is exactly the same. So unless he studies harder, he really isn't going to pass that exam at the end of the year. So you're talking to your partner about one of the children, he's having a difficult time at school. So you're wondering how are things going to improve?

How is he going to get that final exam so he can get into university? So unless he studies harder, he isn't going to be able to pass this exam at the end of the year. So we're putting on less at the beginning, still negative unless he studies harder . Meaning if he studies harder than yes, he has a chance of doing the exams, but unless he studies harder than he's not gone to be successful.

Okay. So we can use on less as an opposite to if and when we use, unless we don't follow it with it a negative, we can only follow it with a positive. Uh , and we can twist it if we want to use if, okay. So let's look at until again, as we said before, it's a conjunction. It's different than unless and when we're using, until it's constrained by time. It's always time constraints . Okay. It's always a better restriction. So let's give you a quick example.

I lived with my grandmother until I was 15 I lived with my grandmother until I was 15 so what does it mean? It means that for a long part of your childhood, maybe from a young age of two or three, you lived with somebody other than your parents, in this case, your grandmother until you were 15. So all to that age, two 15 and then from 15, something changed . Perhaps you went back and live with your parents or you went somewhere else.

But the time constraint is that period of your life from early up to your mid teens or 15 you were , you spent that time with your grandmother. So just to make sure that you're , uh , actually understand this , uh , in , in, in the best way possible when we're talking about, until, as I said, it's time constraints. So it's constrained before and up to the particular time, but not after.

So in the example that I gave you about living with the grandmother til 15, he was there before, up to the age of 15, so before 15 up to the age of 15, but after something changed. So before an up to but not after. So always time constraints. So let me give you a few more examples. I don't have any money for uh, the shops . We need to go shopping or you'll have to wait until I get paid at the end of the week. You'll have to wait until I get paid at the end of the week.

So here the time constraint is up to the end of the week, whether that's Friday or Saturday, whenever you get paid. So before that and up to that, you can't have any money because I don't have any. After that I will have money. Hopefully I will get paid. So before an up to , so you want to go shopping? I'm sorry I don't have any money. You will have to wait until I get paid at the end of the week. Okay. Can give, I'll give you another example. I've never been in the USA until last year.

I had never been in the USA until last year. So perhaps you went there on a holiday or you went there on a business trip. You're really excited to tell your friend. Wow. I've never been in, in the USA until last year. So up to last year, whatever year that was, that the mall today is 2019 last year would have been 2018 so up to and until , uh , before 2018 you had never been in the USA and then it changed.

Okay. So now you can say to somebody, well I have been there, but up to last year I hadn't been. So until last year I hadn't been in the USA. Okay. And the third example , um, you're talking to your son or daughter about some mathematical problem and the homework and say, Oh, can't you wait until your father comes home? Can't you wait until your father gets home and he will help you? So can you wait, okay, until he gets home. So that constrained, now that is a time restriction.

You don't know what time he's going to be home and they're not telling you what time it is now, but it's that restriction until he gets home and when he gets home, you can ask him and then he'll probably help you. So condo , can you not wait until your father gets home and then he will help you with it. Okay. So this is everything to do with until it's always about time and it's always a time constraint. And finally that I just want to give you a little bit about until until, okay .

Uh , until at the U N T I L till T I L L. so just be careful with the spelling of that. And the good news is that they're exactly the same and there's no need to be confused. The only difference is that until there's a little bit more formal and till is very informed. Okay? Yeah . There's a song till the 12th of never had , there's a song and they use the , uh , the little abbreviated version of it till rather than until, okay . But until formal until it informal. So you can use either of them.

If you're writing a letter and you're writing to somebody important, then I would suggest you use until, if you're speaking in an informal way, as most of us do now till is absolutely acceptable. And you don't have to use [inaudible] . They have exactly the same meaning. Okay , well, here we are at the end of yet another lesson. I've hoped you at . You have enjoyed it.

And I've explained to you properly the difference between eh , unless and until, and also giving you the information about until, until. So when you've gone through those examples, hopefully you'll be able to practice them yourself and you won't be making any mistakes in the future. Okay? So remember as always, press that button and subscribe to the channel and join me on www.englishlessonbyskype.com and when you get there, look out for that link to the easy peasy English club. It's really good.

There's lots of people joining and it's there to help you to improve your English because that's what you want to do. And that's what I want you to do. So join me against

.