Symbols of Easter
2024-03-29
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1Spring has begun in the northern half of the Earth. For Christians, a major springtime holiday is Easter.
2This year, Easter falls on March 31.
3In this week's Everyday Grammar, we learn how to talk about holidays and the foods, objects and activities connected to them.
4On Easter Sunday, families with children follow the tradition of coloring eggs and hiding them for an egg hunt.
5Some of the eggs are just one color.
6But others are painted in great detail.
7The Easter eggs symbolize new life and rebirth.
8There is a mythical animal we talk about at Easter, the Easter Bunny.
9Bunnies, or rabbits, stand for fertility in some cultures.
10That is because rabbits reproduce easily and often.
11In the days and weeks before Easter, toy bunnies are found in stores.
12So are plastic eggs that parents fill with candies to give their children on Easter morning.
13The American President even hosts an Easter egg "roll" at the White House on the Monday after Easter.
14The child who rolls their egg the farthest distance without breaking it is the winner.
15Lamb is often served at Easter meals. For Christians, lamb represents Jesus Christ, who Christians call the Lamb of God.
16Another food that is common at Easter is ham. Pigs symbolized good luck in Europe in the time before Christianity.
17You might have noticed three ways we have talked about the connections people make between the foods and symbols of Easter.
18They involved two transitive verbs and a phrasal verb.
19First, we used "symbolize," which means to be a representation or expression of something.
20We said that eggs symbolize new life.
21Next is "stands for," a phrasal verb.
22We said that bunnies stand for fertility.
23In this case, "stands for" also means to be a representation of something.
24Finally, we used "represents" to explain the importance and meaning of lamb.
25Let's look a bit more at how to use these words.
26"Symbolize" is the verb form of the noun "symbol."
27A symbol is an object, action or event that expresses a quality or idea. Let's compare the verb and noun form. We will start with an example using "symbolize."
28The lion symbolizes courage.
29The sentence has this structure:
30Noun phrase + symbolize + noun
31Now let's look at how to use "symbol."
32The lion is a symbol of courage.
33The sentence has this structure:
34Noun phrase + BE + a symbol of + noun.
35Please note that even though our two example sentences have different structures, the meaning is the same.
36Of course, you can create much more complex sentences and examples when using "symbolize" or "symbol."
37But for this lesson, we will keep things simple.
38Next, let's take a closer look at "stand for."
39This phrasal verb has a few different meanings.
40But in our description of Easter, we used "stand for" in the same way we use "symbolize."
41That is right -- it means to be a representation - or symbol - of something. Here is another example:
42The color yellow often stands for happiness and joy.
43Finally, we have "represent."
44This verb has many meanings.
45In this lesson, "represent" means to serve as a symbol or sign of something.
46Let's look at this word in another example sentence.
47Wedding rings represent a married couple's love.
48Today, we have learned three verbs you can use to describe holiday celebrations: symbolize, stand for and represent.
49Let's quickly compare our three verbs. All of them are transitive verbs, meaning they take a direct object. And they can all be used in a simple structure:
50Noun or noun phrase + verb (or phrasal verb) + noun or noun phrase
51For example:
52Red symbolizes love
53Red stands for love
54Red represents love
55Try to use all three verbs to tell us about a holiday that you celebrate. What do the foods or activities of the day symbolize, stand for or represent? You can email us at learningenglish@voanews.com
56And that's Everyday Grammar.
57I'm Jill Robbins.
1Spring has begun in the northern half of the Earth. For Christians, a major springtime holiday is Easter. This year, Easter falls on March 31. In this week's Everyday Grammar, we learn how to talk about holidays and the foods, objects and activities connected to them. 2Easter eggs 3On Easter Sunday, families with children follow the tradition of coloring eggs and hiding them for an egg hunt. Some of the eggs are just one color. But others are painted in great detail. The Easter eggs symbolize new life and rebirth. 4The Easter Bunny 5There is a mythical animal we talk about at Easter, the Easter Bunny. Bunnies, or rabbits, stand for fertility in some cultures. That is because rabbits reproduce easily and often. 6In the days and weeks before Easter, toy bunnies are found in stores. So are plastic eggs that parents fill with candies to give their children on Easter morning. 7The American President even hosts an Easter egg "roll" at the White House on the Monday after Easter. The child who rolls their egg the farthest distance without breaking it is the winner. 8Lamb 9Lamb is often served at Easter meals. For Christians, lamb represents Jesus Christ, who Christians call the Lamb of God. Another food that is common at Easter is ham. Pigs symbolized good luck in Europe in the time before Christianity. 10You might have noticed three ways we have talked about the connections people make between the foods and symbols of Easter. They involved two transitive verbs and a phrasal verb. First, we used "symbolize," which means to be a representation or expression of something. We said that eggs symbolize new life. 11Next is "stands for," a phrasal verb. We said that bunnies stand for fertility. In this case, "stands for" also means to be a representation of something. 12Finally, we used "represents" to explain the importance and meaning of lamb. 13Take a closer look at symbol 14Let's look a bit more at how to use these words. 15"Symbolize" is the verb form of the noun "symbol." A symbol is an object, action or event that expresses a quality or idea. Let's compare the verb and noun form. We will start with an example using "symbolize." 16The lion symbolizes courage. 17The sentence has this structure: 18Noun phrase + symbolize + noun 19Now let's look at how to use "symbol." 20The lion is a symbol of courage. 21The sentence has this structure: 22Noun phrase + BE + a symbol of + noun. 23Please note that even though our two example sentences have different structures, the meaning is the same. 24Of course, you can create much more complex sentences and examples when using "symbolize" or "symbol." But for this lesson, we will keep things simple. 25Stand for 26Next, let's take a closer look at "stand for." This phrasal verb has a few different meanings. But in our description of Easter, we used "stand for" in the same way we use "symbolize." That is right -- it means to be a representation - or symbol - of something. Here is another example: 27The color yellow often stands for happiness and joy. 28Represent 29Finally, we have "represent." This verb has many meanings. In this lesson, "represent" means to serve as a symbol or sign of something. Let's look at this word in another example sentence. 30Wedding rings represent a married couple's love. 31Today, we have learned three verbs you can use to describe holiday celebrations: symbolize, stand for and represent. 32Let's quickly compare our three verbs. All of them are transitive verbs, meaning they take a direct object. And they can all be used in a simple structure: 33Noun or noun phrase + verb (or phrasal verb) + noun or noun phrase 34For example: 35Red symbolizes love 36Red stands for love 37Red represents love 38Now it's your turn 39Try to use all three verbs to tell us about a holiday that you celebrate. What do the foods or activities of the day symbolize, stand for or represent? You can email us at learningenglish@voanews.com 40And that's Everyday Grammar. 41I'm Jill Robbins. 42Dr. Jill Robbins wrote this lesson for Learning English. 43_________________________________________________ 44Words in This Story 45symbolize - v. used to show one thing represents or is similar to another because it is typical of that thing 46mythical - adj. something or someone that exists only in stories; not true 47We want to hear from you. Tell us about your own culture and the ways you celebrate a holiday. The holiday can be at any time of the year. Write to us in the Comments Section.