Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner's English Dictionary - how

Frequency: The word is one of the 700 most common words in English. 1. You use how to ask about the way in which something happens or is done. How do I make payments into my account?... How do you manage to keep the place so tidy?... How are you going to plan for the future? QUEST • How is also a conjunction. I don’t want to know how he died... I didn’t know how to tell you. CONJ 2. You use how after certain adjectives and verbs to introduce a statement or fact, often something that you remember or expect other people to know about. It’s amazing how people collect so much stuff over the years... It’s important to become acutely aware of how your eating ties in with your stress level. CONJ 3. You use how to ask questions about the quantity or degree of something. How much money are we talking about?... How many full-time staff have we got?... How long will you be staying?... How old is your son now?... How fast were you driving?... He was asked how serious the situation had become. QUEST: QUEST much/many, QUEST adj/adv 4. You use how when you are asking someone whether something was successful or enjoyable. How was your trip down to Orlando?... I wonder how Sam got on with him. QUEST 5. You use how to ask about someone’s health or to find out someone’s news. Hi! How are you doing?... How’s Rosie?... How’s the job?... QUEST 6. ‘How do you do’ is a polite way of greeting someone when you meet them for the first time. CONVENTION c darkgreen]formulae 7. You use how to emphasize the degree to which something is true. I didn’t realize how heavy that shopping was going to be... Franklin told them all how happy he was to be in Britain again. ADV: ADV adj/adv c darkgreen]emphasis 8. You use how in exclamations to emphasize an adjective, adverb, or statement. How strange that something so simple as a walk on the beach could suddenly mean so much... ADV: ADV adj/adv/cl c darkgreen]emphasis 9. You use how in expressions such as ‘How can you...’ and ‘How could you...’ to indicate that you disapprove of what someone has done or that you find it hard to believe. How can you drink so much beer, Luke?... How could he be so indiscreet? QUEST: QUEST can/could c darkgreen]disapproval 10. You use how in expressions such as ‘how about...’ or ‘how would you like...’ when you are making an offer or a suggestion. How about a cup of coffee?... You want Jeannie to make the appointment for you? How about the end of next week?... QUEST 11. If you ask someone ‘How about you?’ you are asking them what they think or want. Well, I enjoyed that. How about you two?... CONVENTION 12. You use how about to introduce a new subject which you think is relevant to the conversation you have been having. Are your products and services competitive? How about marketing? PHRASE: PHR n 13. You ask ‘How come?’ or ‘How so?’ when you are surprised by something and are asking why it happened or was said. (INFORMAL) ‘They don’t say a single word to each other.’—‘How come?’... PHRASE: oft PHR cl