March 4, 2011　=========

☆ chance 機会

============================

Sometimes you’ll come across words in English
that are similar in meaning and so you might not be
sure which one to use.

Today’s word and yesterday’s word for example,
you could use either “opportunity” or “chance”
in most situations, and it would not be wrong.
However “chance” is often used in idioms, and so
there are some situations where it would be strange
to use “opportunity”. Here are some examples:

I met him by chance. (OK)
I met him by opportunity. (NG)

Chances are (OK)
Opportunities are (NG)

There is little chance of success. (OK)
There is little opportunity of success. (NG)

So if in doubt, use “chance”!

Bye,
Chris
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時々、意味が似ていてどれを使えばいいのか分からない言葉に出くわすかもしれません。

今日と昨日の単語はその例で、ほとんどの場合、どちらでも使えるのですが、「chance（機会）」はイディオムとしてよく使われているので、そういったいくつかの場面では「opportunity(好機)」を使うとおかしくなります。

例文です：

I met him by chance. (OK)　(偶然、彼に出会いました)
I met him by opportunity. (NG)

Chances are (OK)　～ の可能性が高いです。
Opportunities are (NG)

There is little chance of success. (OK)　 成功の可能性はごく少ない
There is little opportunity of success. (NG)

心配なら、「chance(機会)」を使った方が安全かもしれませんね。

それでは。
クリス