Tonight in one of my writing classes, a student in Shenzhen, China had written an essay: How to Learn Chinese.
Curious, I asked her: “Why did you choose this topic?”
Her answer: “It’s the first thing I could think about.”
Her answer sounded a bit strange to my ear, and I thought about it. In this case, English speakers would probably say, “It’s the first thing I could think of.”
That made me think: When do we use “think about” vs. “think of?”
THINK ABOUT:
This implies a person’s attention and thoughts are focused on a subject for a long time. Examples:
- I think about how to do my homework. –Yunni, student in Shenzhen
- Global warming is a serious problem; please think about it carefully and find a solution to solve it. –Felicia, student in Taipei
- Billy keeps thinking about the girl who sits in front of him in class.
- Martha is so busy raising her three young children at home, she doesn’t have much time to think about much else right now.
THINK OF:
This implies a person think up or creates an idea; it can usually be done quickly. Examples:
- “Ellie is crying, can you think of anything that can cheer her up?” Jack asked Ella. –Felicia, student in Taipei
- Have you thought of where we should go today? –Yunni, student in Shenzhen (Language note: this sentence can be written both ways. “Thought of” implies you came up with an idea of where to go today, while “thought about” implies you spent quite a bit of time pondering the issue, but maybe you have not come up with an answer yet. Notice also this sentence uses “think” in the past tense.)
- I wanted to make dinner quickly, and spaghetti was the first thing I could think of.
- Tests make me so nervous. Many times I really do know the answer, but I just cannot think of it right away during the test!
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So if you think about it, English is a crazy language. I saw so many people having a hard time learning it, so I thought of a way to help people figure it out: learn English online! Contact me today to find out how we can help you!
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