How to Use the Word THEN with Dogs and Ice-cream

By RealLife Team | August 29, 2014

Do you know all the different ways THEN is used in the English language?

In this episode of RealLife TV you are going to discover some great ways to use this versatile word which will ultimately help your English fluency.

See full transcript below

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Transcript

Hey what’s up guys, I’m Chad, from RealLife English with another episode of RealLife TV. And today we have an awesome English lesson you’re not going to want to miss, especially if you live dogs and ice cream. Aww yeah.

Alright guys, firstly today, I’m going to teach you all about the word THEN, not than, then, not than… then.

Then at the End of a Phrase

So, one of the most common ways you’re going to hear the word then is at the end of a phrase. And we use this to show that, that is our final decision or that you have just recently made your decision about something.

For example, if you and a friend were going to go and have lunch and you’re trying to figure out a cool place to go and your friend says, “Hey, there’s an awesome pizza restaurant down the street and it’s really cheap,” you might say, “Wow, let’s go there then, let’s go there then.”

That just means that you definitely want to go there it sounds good and you made your decision.

Alternatively, maybe another friend of yours could say in that same situation, “oh but last time I saw a big cockroach there,” and then you might say, “oh I don’t want to go there then, I don’t want to go there then.” I hate cockroaches.

Then as a Substitute for Time References

Another way we can use then is to substitute a time or sometimes even a phase in your life. For example, if I was going to invite you to a party this Saturday and the party is going to start at 8.30 pm, I can say I’ll see you then, see you then.

So then in that case is just saying 8.30 at the party, I’ll see you then. So instead of repeating the time and the place I can just say then, hey I’ll see you then.

Back Then

An expression we use in the past is back then, and this is always a phase in your life that was in the past. if I was talking about when I used to study at school and I wanted to say that I was different I could say I was much skinnier back then, back then.

So back then is that period in my life when I used to study at school. I was much smaller back then.

Now and Then

And another popular phrase using time or related to time in some way is, now and then. Now and then just means sometimes, occasionally, I love to eat ice-cream now and then. So it’s not all the time sometimes.

Then to Show a Sequence of Actions

And lastly, we use then during speech to show the continuity of what you’re saying, it puts what you’re saying into a sequence. For example, I could say today I woke up at 7 o’clock then I made some coffee then I went for a run then I brushed my teeth, then, then then, then. It just shows a sequence of what you’re saying.

Ok and for all of you guys who love dogs and ice-cream, then…

Ok then, thank you for joining us today here in this episode of RealLife TV, hopes you enjoyed it. And if you guys want more videos like this, don’t forget to subscribe to us on YouTube, like us on Facebook, follow us on twitter and check out our blog reallifeglobalcom. You’ll see all of our articles and podcasts.

And if you want to start using your English make sure you go to the RealLife global social network that is online.realifeglobal.com (there is no www) and there you can go onto the platform, make a profile, you can do a proficiency test and you can meet people from all over the world and practice you English. Aww yeah!!!

Thanks a lot guys and see you next time on RealLife TV.

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