Vijana wenzangu wanaojifunza Kiingereza, leo tutaangalia tofauti kati ya maneno "hard" na "difficult." Ingawa mara nyingi hutumika kwa kubadilishana, kuna tofauti kidogo katika maana zao. "Hard" mara nyingi humaanisha kitu kinachohitaji nguvu nyingi za kimwili au akili, wakati "difficult" humaanisha kitu ambacho ni vigumu kuelewa au kukifanya, mara nyingi kutokana na ugumu wake au utata wake.

Hebu tuangalie mifano:

• Hard:

  • Kiingereza: "This exercise is hard."
  • Kiswahili: "Zoezi hili ni gumu." (This exercise is tough/demanding.)
  • Kiingereza: "He works hard."
  • Kiswahili: "Yeye hufanya kazi kwa bidii." (He works diligently.)

• Difficult:

  • Kiingereza: "This problem is difficult to solve."
  • Kiswahili: "Tatizo hili ni gumu kutatua." (This problem is hard to solve/complex.)
  • Kiingereza: "The instructions were difficult to understand."
  • Kiswahili: "Maelekezo yalikuwa magumu kuelewa." (The instructions were complicated to understand.)

Kumbuka, maneno haya yanaweza kutumika kwa kubadilishana katika baadhi ya sentensi, lakini kujua tofauti kati yao kutaboresha uelewa wako wa lugha ya Kiingereza.

Happy learning!