gift [gift] 1. something given voluntarily without payment in return, as to show favor toward someone, honor an occasion, or make a gesture of assistance "The two words are used with things given to other people without expectation of return or compensation. It is not uncommon to hear people say, I gave him a gift/present on his birthday. Both the sentences are grammatically acceptable. Careful users of the language make a distinction between the two words. The word present is used in the sense of reward. On the other hand, the word gift is used in the sense of donation. A gift tends to be much more valuable than a present. It usually passes from the rich to the poor, from the high to the low. A present, on the other hand, passes between equals or from the inferior to the superior. present
Okay...have you got your vocabulary words memorized?
Confusing, right? (and I know that you're thinking, "Does it really matter?" well......hush and just listen or....read) The way I've always thought of the difference... A present is something a person gives to another, because he wants the receiver to have it. A gift is something a person gives to another, because he knows the receiver will like to have it. Are you a "gift giver" or a "present giver"? |