July 21, 2011 - Word of the Day: appeal

To appeal is to create a sense of liking something. I always have a hard time explaining this word to students because "appeal" can't be used in exactly the same way that the word "like" is used. These examples might help:

• I like this car.
• This car appeals to me.
• Do you like those shoes?
• Do those shoes appeal to you?
• He likes that girl.
• She appeals to him.
• She doesn't like that boy.
• He doesn't appeal to her.

You can use "appeal" as an adjective: appealing

• Jeff doesn't find the artwork to be very appealing. (This is one way of saying he doesn't like it very much.)
• Jennifer has a very appealing personality.
• That dessert tray looks extremely appealing.
• Barack Obama was a very appealing candidate for President in 2008, so he easily won the election.

One last thing about the word "appeal." You can also use it as a verb when asking for something:

• The lawyer appealed to the judge for more time to talk to his client.
• Marta appealed to the teacher for some help with something she didn't understand.

 Learn more words here on Word of the Day.