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Cheryl
make the best of/take advantage of/make use of
I know these three phrases have an overlapping meaning of "using an opportunity", but are they equivalent in the below examples? What could be the possible difference between them ? Thank you in advance! :)
1.You should make the best of this valuable opportunity.
2.You should take advantage of this valuable opportunity.
3.You should make use of this valuable opportunity.
Sep 20, 2016 1:24 AM
Answers · 2
1
We usually use "make the best of" when a situation is not good, but we can't change it.
eg I'm not happy about this but I will try to make the best of a bad situation so it doesn't spoil my week.
"Take advantage of" is for when you have the chance to get a benefit, usually because of some new thing that happens. So it's much more positive than "make the best of".
eg Somebody offered me a better job and I want to take advantage of it to get a higher salary.
And "make use of" is more common when talking about something that more regular or continuous. It's not for new situations.
eg We have a great library at school, I should make use of it to read books in English.
September 20, 2016
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Cheryl
Language Skills
Chinese (Other), English
Learning Language
English
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