“Fond”, “Keen”, and “Ought to”
October 1st, 2007
This post is inspired by Anas’ comments on one of my last posts. Thanks for the comments Anas, and thanks for sharing the website with your classmates. We really appreciate it.
Your writing was quite good in the comment, but there are a few words I’d like to advise you on. The words “Fond”, “Keen”, and “Ought to” are words that I personally never use. They aren’t wrong but they sound very old to me. They are words that I often hear my grandparents using but no one younger. Maybe some people in other English speaking countries still use them, I’m not sure, but my personal opinion is to avoid using them.
You could say, “I’ve always been a fan of your posts”, “I’ve always really liked your posts”, or “I’ve always enjoyed reading your posts”. Those sentences sound less old fashioned than, “I’ve always been keen on your posts”.
The phrase “ought to” can always be replaced with “should”. It may sound boring to use “should” all the time, but that’s what we do.
The word “fond” can be replaced with, “like” or “enjoy”. “I really like your podcasts”, or “I enjoy listening to your podcasts” sound more natural than “I am fond of your podcasts”.
Thanks to everyone for sharing your thoughtful comments. I hope to read more soon.
Also, make sure you are practicing your writing on our discussion forum. There’s only one way to improve your writing and that is to practice. No excuses!
Andy
Grammar and Word Usage Learning and Improving English
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October 2nd, 2007 at 4:12 pm
Thanks Andy so much!
I was insecure about using those words in my writing , but I think I will not use them again. thanks again I really appreciate it!
October 21st, 2007 at 12:25 pm
hi Andy,
I had read your writing about fond, keen and ought to a while ago.
After that, I started attending British Council to learn business english.
However I found that my English teacher from England, of course :), often uses the word “keen”.
I think it can be difference between British & Amerian English
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August 16th, 2011 at 3:24 am
I lived in London for a couple of years and yes, they do use “keen” and “fond” on a daily basis. Not mainly youngsters but adults.
What I understand is that “fond” is used more when you refer to persons and feelings (but not 100% sure it could also be applied for things)
i.e She was especially fond of a little girl named Fiona.
On the other hand, you use ‘keen on’ to indicate that someone likes it a lot and is very enthusiastic about it.
i.e. I wasn’t too keen on maths at school.
August 16th, 2011 at 4:15 am
missy latin, spoken British English and North American English are different, you can notice it even in movies, and it is not about the accent only. Andrew made a good point with this blog, you’ll hear “keen” “ought to” “fond of” very rarely in spoken English in US and Canada.
August 17th, 2011 at 3:14 pm
Once I initially commented I clicked the -Notify me when new comments are added- checkbox and now every time a comment is added I get four emails with the same comment. Is there any approach you may take away me from that service? Thanks!
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December 14th, 2011 at 2:49 pm
Wow! I have never known that before
In our test,using “be keen on” “be found of” always helps us get higher mark.
January 14th, 2012 at 6:37 pm
Thats all very interesting but facebook friends is not the same thing as real friends. I have never met half the people I have on mine so i wouldn’t give these stats much weight
January 27th, 2012 at 12:16 pm
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January 29th, 2012 at 12:04 am
Todas las razones quedan supeditadas a los hechos , los hechos arrastran para bien o para mal ( normalmente para bien ) ya que un hecho siempre nos dara pie y fundamento para poder partir de ahi , enhorabuena.