All Right and Alright
2022-03-05
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1Hello! This week on Ask a Teacher, we answer a question from Humera in Pakistan. Humera writes,
2Amazing way of teaching. I would like to know the difference between alright (one word) and all right (two words).
3Thanks.
4Dear Humera,
5Thank you for writing to us. This set of words is interesting because it shows a possible change in the English language.
6The two separate words "all right" and the single word "alright" both describe something that is fairly good or acceptable.
7We use them in the same way we use the expression "okay."
8Let us begin with the two-word adjective, "all right."
9In this example, you can see that "all right" means something is not outstanding or special:
10That writer's first book was great but her second one was just all right.
11We also use "all right" to talk about someone's health.
12It means a person is healthy or not sick.
13I asked Mom if she was feeling better and she said she was all right.
14You may hear "all right" used as an adverb along with verbs like "seem."
15The milk is a week old, but it seems all right, because it doesn't smell bad.
16You will often hear "all right' at the beginning or end of a statement:
17Let him know I stopped by, all right?
18So, you're free tonight? All right, let's go to the movies.
19Now, let us consider the single word, "alright."
20Here is where you can see language change happening in real time.
21You can use it in the same ways we talked about here with "all right" as two words.
22In writing, it gives a more informal feeling.
23Language experts say that this written form is appearing more frequently these days and may be based on the idea that the expression is similar to the adverbs "already" and "altogether."
24When you want to make someone feel better, you might say,
25Everything is going to be alright.
26You may also have heard this expression as two words repeated many times in popular songs and in movies.
27Here is the song Hey Ya by Outkast:
28I say what's, what's cooler than being cool? (Ice Cold!)
29All right, all right, all right, all right, all right, all right, all right, all right
30All right, all right, all right, all right, all right, all right
31Okay now, ladies (Yeah?)
32However, you should know that some English speakers consider alright (one word) to be a mistake.
33What question do you have about American English? Send us an email at learningenglish@voanews.com
34And that's Ask a Teacher.
35I'm Jill Robbins. And I'm Faith Pirlo.
1Hello! This week on Ask a Teacher, we answer a question from Humera in Pakistan. Humera writes, 2Question: 3Amazing way of teaching. I would like to know the difference between alright (one word) and all right (two words). 4Thanks. 5Humera, Pakistan 6Answer: 7Dear Humera, 8Thank you for writing to us. This set of words is interesting because it shows a possible change in the English language. The two separate words "all right" and the single word "alright" both describe something that is fairly good or acceptable. We use them in the same way we use the expression "okay." 9All right 10Let us begin with the two-word adjective, "all right." In this example, you can see that "all right" means something is not outstanding or special: 11That writer's first book was great but her second one was just all right. 12We also use "all right" to talk about someone's health. It means a person is healthy or not sick. 13I asked Mom if she was feeling better and she said she was all right. 14You may hear "all right" used as an adverb along with verbs like "seem." 15The milk is a week old, but it seems all right, because it doesn't smell bad. 16You will often hear "all right' at the beginning or end of a statement: 17Let him know I stopped by, all right? 18So, you're free tonight? All right, let's go to the movies. 19Alright 20Now, let us consider the single word, "alright." 21Here is where you can see language change happening in real time. You can use it in the same ways we talked about here with "all right" as two words. In writing, it gives a more informal feeling. Language experts say that this written form is appearing more frequently these days and may be based on the idea that the expression is similar to the adverbs "already" and "altogether." When you want to make someone feel better, you might say, 22Everything is going to be alright. 23You may also have heard this expression as two words repeated many times in popular songs and in movies. Here is the song Hey Ya by Outkast: 24I say what's, what's cooler than being cool? (Ice Cold!) 25All right, all right, all right, all right, all right, all right, all right, all right 26All right, all right, all right, all right, all right, all right 27Okay now, ladies (Yeah?) 28However, you should know that some English speakers consider alright (one word) to be a mistake. 29What question do you have about American English? Send us an email at learningenglish@voanews.com 30And that's Ask a Teacher. 31I'm Jill Robbins. And I'm Faith Pirlo. 32Dr. Jill Robbins and Faith Pirlo wrote this lesson for VOA Learning English. 33________________________________________________________________ 34amazing - adj. wonderful; very surprising or making you feel pleasure, approval, or wonder 35informal - adj. casual 36Do you have a question for the teacher? We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section.