This is the Business English Podcast, Episode 146, Finish vs. Complete vs. End in English.
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Offer ends August 10th. allearsenglish.com connection what's going on michelle how's it going hey lindsay i'm doing well how are you feeling good feeling good what are we getting into today Well, what time do you usually like to end your work day?
Typically, I end up finishing at about 6 p.m.
So you work a long day. Yep, 8 to 6. Usually, it's 8 to 6.
Unless something... If there's something going on, like if we're launching a course and I... Like this week, we are launching our course at the end of this week.
Oh, this is recorded ahead of time. So I just don't know what I'm talking about.
But anyways, then in that case, I will go work out and then go back to work after that, actually.
Oh, okay. But generally eight to six by what my workday looks like.
Yeah. Okay. Okay. So interesting. So today we have a great listener question that is useful for business.
We're talking about nitty gritty nuances today that will definitely be helpful.
So guys, but before we get into that question, let us come to you hit follow on the business english podcast now wherever you're listening so the episodes come straight to you you don't have to go looking for them yes i love that idea so easy so simple hit that follow button wherever you are listening michelle should i read our listener question Please do.
This is from Fabiana. Love it. Hi, Lindsay.
What's shaking? I love it. I love what our listeners repeat back, our common sayings that we say all the time, right?
Yes. Everyone has their trademark phrases, right?
Maybe we'll do an episode on that, our trademark phrases.
Yeah, I think you're what's shaken, right?
That's you. I'm what's shaken. I feel funny.
I never say that. Oh, yeah. I feel funny.
Yes. Yes. Oh, my gosh. Okay. Here I am again.
Hey, could you please help me understand what is the difference between finish, end, and complete?
For instance, if I'm developing a system, when it's done, it means that I finished, ended, or completed it.
Ooh, how about meetings and calls? Do we end or finish them?
And tasks, what is correct to say in this case?
Thank you for your help, Fabiana. I think this is our listener, Fabiana, who has been in our Business English course and had a lot of success in that course.
So very exciting to see that she's still listening to the podcast and tuning in regularly.
Shout out to Fabiana. Yes. Hey, okay. So guys, we're going to be talking about ending things today.
But we also have an episode about beginnings.
Okay, so listen to Business English Podcast 144 was how to this is just from the other day, actually, I realized how to introduce yourself in a remote online meeting.
So go ahead and make sure you listen to that.
Oh, yeah, that was a good one. Oh, yeah, for sure.
So we need to know the beginnings, the middle and the end.
Yes, that's right. That's right. So today we're going to focus on these words as verbs, right?
We're not going to like focus on them. It can be used in other ways, but we're going to stay focused.
So, Lindsay, what is finish? OK, so the definition of finish is to stop or to end something.
Maybe when you get something done. What do we mean by that, Michelle? we'll see more in the examples it's all right it's it's like when you well we're going to define them but then it's okay yeah um so complete i think complete has more of an emphasis on something got done yeah like it's over yeah okay i would agree i would agree yeah And what about end?
End is more, probably more about a time.
Like what time does lunch end? Whether you finished your meal or not, you have to leave the lunch, you know, lunchroom, right?
Wouldn't you say it's to stop, to cut off?
Right. There's a cutoff, right? So let's, this is going to be, if you're like, what?
Yeah, this is interesting. Nitty gritty nuances, as you said, Michelle, this is what we're getting into today.
Nitty gritty nuances. So, all right, Lindsay.
So the example, I finished my coffee. Does that sound natural to you?
Yes. I like that. I like that. I finished my coffee.
Okay, next one. I completed my coffee. How does that sound to your ears?
Does that sound like nails on a chalkboard to you?
Yes. I was like, what? But why do you think it sounds that way?
I mean, doesn't that mean also finish? Well, first of all, the first problem I see here, it's too formal.
Completed feels more formal. And second of all, we don't say it when it comes to consuming food.
Yeah. Yeah. I completed my French fries.
Yeah. Well, I think also it's, it's like, you know, complete is more on the emphasis of getting something done, which is what I mentioned.
Like, yeah, it's this like, right. Yeah.
Yeah. You're not taking something in. It's like you're, you're rounding something out, something, maybe a task, but not just like eating something.
Or the worst one of all, which sounds the worst to me is I ended my coffee.
Yeah. I ended my coffee. Yeah, that doesn't make any sense.
It's like I cut off my coffee. I stopped my coffee.
What? Like it just doesn't work. It doesn't work for me.
It doesn't work for you. Right, right, right, right.
So like, so if you say, you know, so finish sounds the best, right?
So let's do another. Let's do another one.
So I finished the book. What does that sound like?
It means... It's just the most standard way to say, right?
I finished reading that book. I finished the book.
I read it. I got to the end. I know what happens.
I close the cover. Boom. That feeling, you know, when you close the back cover of a book and it's just, it's a sense of completion, right?
I finished the book. A sense of completion.
But what about I completed the book? It doesn't sound quite right, Michelle.
It feels like for complete, we need more of a project.
Right. I think you said task, more of a task.
Yeah. yeah so if i say i completed the book it sounds more like less like i read it and maybe like i wrote it right right i i i completed you know i completed my book i completed the essay i completed the project right yes yes yes yes i totally agree with that i love that idea that's so that's what it is yeah yeah but what about i ended the book Now, this would mean you're the writer, right?
And you could say, like, I ended the story.
I ended the book with the anti-hero, blah, blah, blah.
Something happened, right? Yep. So that's not about consuming the book.
Right. And it's not about it's more on the focus of like the stop.
Right. I completed the book. It means like I finished writing it like it's it's it's tied up.
It's like one beautiful present with a bow.
I ended the book. Like you said, you might be saying like, oh, I ended the book on a on a cliffhanger.
I ended the book. Right. So that's how it's it's talking to more specifically what happened. yes i love it very interesting okay should we go to the example of a meeting this might be really you know might really drive it home so now we're going exactly so this is what uh she asked about so okay let's finish the meeting okay so just can we need to stop the meeting we need to conclude the meeting right let's come now meeting it sounds a little funny Yeah, it really sounds funny.
I think we need to reserve complete for, again, like I said, tasks, projects.
It's kind of hands-on. We are physically completing this thing.
It's often digital work. Difficult. I know, right?
Nitty-gritty nuance. Yes. And let's end the meeting.
That's also just a focus. Okay. It's like, Lindsay, what you said, like the time.
It's like, okay, let's end this meeting with an inspirational quote, right?
Yeah. Right. Yeah. Like, for example, when you and I signed on today, I let you know, hey, I need to end today.
You know, I need to end our recording around, you know, 930 because I don't have as much time today.
Right. And so that's kind of about I guess I could have said, let's I need to finish recording, too.
That would have been valid, too. But complete.
Could I have said that I need to complete our recording to formal to as Yeah, it's a little too formal.
I mean, in some ways, you know, you could argue, oh, you could say that because we're completing a task or completing a project we're doing together.
But it just sounds for it's just I don't know if you said that to me, I'd be like, wait, what?
Like, it would just sound silly to me. Yeah, for sure.
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Exclusions apply. See details online. Okay, Michelle.
So let's get to the question, right? So Fabiana asked about a system, right?
So would you say, what do you think? Do you think you would say you finish a system, end a system or complete a system?
Okay. I'm leaning towards complete a system, right?
Because you made it, right? Yeah. And then meet.
Yeah, no, that's what I think. I think it's complete because it's, if it's a system, you, it sounds like it's something you built, right?
This project. So keep that always in mind.
She used in her question, she used the word developing a system.
So that means she- Oh, developing a system.
Built it, right? Probably using code, that kind of thing.
I think she's a systems engineer or something like that.
So coding, maybe that kind of deal. Yeah.
Completed a task, a project. Yeah. Right.
And then meetings and calls, would you say you finish the meeting or you end the meeting?
I think either are fine, but I wouldn't say like we talked about, I wouldn't say complete the meeting.
No. Finish or end are both fine. End again has a little bit more of the connotation of the time's up.
We have to end. Time's up. Time to end. The clock strikes nine.
I have to be in my next meeting. So I need to end this meeting.
Whereas maybe with finish, maybe it's less about the time.
It's more about have we done what we needed to do?
Did we talk about what we needed? too. Correct.
Yes, that's good. That's very good. And then yeah, with a task, I would say finish or complete the task rather than end the task.
Right. And because a task is definitely not about a timeframe.
Right? Right. Yes. Right. Right. So yeah, I know it's really a lot here.
But basically, guys, we've given you some takeaways for today.
It's basically about how much something was done, who was doing it, if it got accomplished, did it get cut off.
But I think that the main things to really take away from this are this idea of like completing a task, right?
And being maybe something didn't get done, maybe it did, but it's just stopped.
Yeah, it's just stopped. Yeah. And also how formal do we want to be?
If you have a choice to use complete, save that for the more formal scenarios.
Like maybe you go to your boss and you say, I've completed the project.
Would you like to take a look? Right? Right.
A little more formal. Yes. So let's put it all together.
And we are in a business meeting in this role play.
So let's go for it. So fancy and professional.
Here we go. All right. So, okay. So let's finish by completing the survey.
Great. Then I can finish my lunch. Absolutely.
Should we just end now? No, no, no. Let's finish what we started.
Let's complete the survey. All right, sounds good.
All right, let's break this apart for our listeners here.
So Michelle, the first thing you said was, okay, so let's finish by completing.
So here we're putting both words in one sentence.
That's interesting. yes making it complicated yeah so you're saying like let's let's at the end of the meal let's wrap up the meeting by completing the survey little formal the task the task um and then you said great then i can finish my lunch you wouldn't say complete my lunch we don't say or and consuming yeah Well, the only time you would say end my lunch is more when it's about the time, like your lunch break, right?
Right. It's the timeframe. You know, my lunch break ends at 1230.
So I got to get back. It's never about physically consuming food or drinks.
Okay. That's, yeah, that's important. Right.
And then I said, should we just end now?
So there the emphasis is like, it's like a cutoff.
Like maybe we won't actually finish this meeting.
Maybe there's more we need to know, but we're just saying, oh, should we just end it now?
Right. So we can eat. Okay. All right. I like it.
I like it. And then you said, no, no, no, let's finish what we started.
So let's, you know, again, a task, let's get it done.
Let's complete the survey. And that's saying basically the same thing.
We're going to finish the survey. We're going to complete the survey.
It's just a little more formal, right? Yeah.
Exactly. Exactly. So, I know, I know. But I mean, but it was a great question.
I mean, this is really useful for business English specifically, right?
Because there's so many tasks you're completing.
You're doing lunch break, you're, you know.
Yes. Emails, tasks, consuming at lunch and lots of different things.
And so you're going to want to get used to the difference between these because they are different.
But it's not so glaringly obvious why. So we tried to break it down for you today and we gave you some good things to think about.
What do you think, Lindsay? I love it. And I think we should do a follow-up episode on variations off of these phrases like the phrase finish up.
Finish up is a great phrasal verb. So guys, make sure you hit follow on the Business English Podcast and send in your question.
If you have an awesome question like Fabiana did, make sure you email your question to our team.
You can send it to Michelle at allearsenglish.com.
She'll add it to our list and we'll create an awesome episode for you guys.
Okay. Perfect. All right. Well, this was fun, Lindsay.
Let's complete. No. Let's finish this recording.
Let's finish this recording because I have to end today around 930.
So let's finish up. All right, Michelle.
Let's finish up. Bye. Talk to you soon. Bye.
Bye. Thank you for listening to Business English, a podcast just for you, the high achieving global professional.
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