[ti:Place, Location and Position] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:02.00]This week we answer a question from Pakistan. Shahid writes: [00:06.96]What is the difference between these terms: [00:09.56]place, location, position, site and situation? [00:17.20]Dear Shahid, [00:18.60]The five terms you gave are very close in meaning. [00:22.96]The English language often has more than one word [00:26.48]to describe a similar idea or action. [00:30.40]The word "place" is used to describe an area [00:33.92]that may not have an exact border. [00:36.48]In fact, it may not be a particular or special area. [00:42.32]Place is so general it could be a room, a building, [00:46.16]a town, a country, or something else. [00:49.60]For example, in a news broadcast, I heard this sentence: [00:55.80]The beach is one of the safest places to be these days. [01:00.72]Official documents may ask for your "place of birth," [01:04.56]which usually means a city and country. [01:09.16]Have you ever been waiting in line [01:11.16]but need to leave for a short period? [01:14.28]Then you might ask someone: [01:16.56]Will you hold my place in line? [01:19.68]This use of place is the same as how we use the word "position." [01:25.44]Position means a specific point. [01:28.44]The position of something is relative to other things. [01:33.00]For example, in an auto race, [01:36.20]the "pole position" is in the first row on the inside lane. [01:41.72]She earned the pole position for the race [01:44.32]because she was the fastest driver this year. [01:48.52]A position can also be a way of holding one's body, as in this example. [01:55.12]Most office workers spend the day in a sitting position. [02:00.32]The word "location" is used to describe a specific point [02:04.72]in physical space. For example: [02:08.16]The location of a business is very important to its success. [02:14.36]People who buy and sell homes and buildings often use the expression: [02:19.56]Location, location, location! [02:23.64]That means a store on a busy street corner is more likely to be successful [02:29.08]and a house that is in a nice neighborhood will be easier to sell. [02:34.60]A related word is "site," [02:37.00]which we can use for the present or past location of a building [02:41.96]or an important event in history, as in: [02:46.44]This was the site of the first battle in the war. [02:51.00]We also use "site" to talk about the future location of a building or structure: [02:58.32]The mayor chose the site of the new memorial. [03:01.96]Finally, Shahid, you asked about the word "situation." [03:06.64]This is an old-fashioned and more formal, [03:10.68]or official, way to talk about a place: [03:14.68]The house is in a wonderful situation close to the water. [03:19.52]However, American English speakers [03:22.08]generally no longer use this word when talking about specific places. [03:28.32]I hope these answers help when you want to use these five place terms. [03:33.80]What questions do you have about English? [03:36.52]Send us an email at learningenglish@voanews.com. [03:42.92]And that's Ask a Teacher for this week. [03:45.92]I'm Jill Robbins. 更多听力请访问51VOA.COM