Language/English/Vocabulary/About

  About and round:

About + infinitive (with to) means 'going to very soon’; ‘just going to’.

 Examples:

Don't go out now - we're about to have lunch.

I was about to go to bed when the telephone rang.

"Not about to" can mean 'unwilling to’.

I ’m not about to pay 100 dollars for that dress. 

 (a)round and about

1. circular movement, etc: (a)round

We use both round and around (American English usually around) for movement or position in a circle or a curve. 

Examples:

She walked (a)round the car and looked at the wheels.

I'd like to travel (a)round the world.

‘Where do you live?' ‘Just (a)round the corner.’ 

2. touring, distribution: round

We also use round or around (American English usually around) to talk about going to all (or most) parts of a place, or giving things to everybody in a group. 

Examples:

We walked (a)round the old part o f the town.

Can I look (a)round? Could you pass the cups (a)round, please?

 

3. indefinite movement and position

We use "round" or "about" (American English usually around) to refer to movements or positions that are not very clear or definite: ‘here and there’, ‘in lots of places’, ‘in different parts of, ‘somewhere in’ and similar ideas. 

Examples:

The children were running around/about everywhere.

Stop standing around/about and do some work.

‘Where's Jack?’ ‘Somewhere around/about.’

I like doing odd jobs around/about the house. 

We also use these words in some common expressions to talk about time-wasting or silly activity. 

Example:

Stop fooling around/about. We're late. 

about and on:

We use "about" to talk about ordinary, more general kinds of communication.

"On" suggests that a book, talk, etc is more serious, suitable for specialists.

Compare:

- a book for children about Africa and its peoples

-a textbook on African history

- a conversation about money

-a lecture on economics