observe vs obey ?
Which is correct in this sentence:

Children have to ..... rules and work very hard.

I quess it's "observe". However, in the keys to the grammar tests it was 'obey'.
If it's the latter, can you please explain why ?

Thank you.

Question

observe vs obey ?
Which is correct in this sentence:

Children have to ..... rules and work very hard.

I quess it's "observe". However, in the keys to  the  grammar tests  it was 'obey'.
If it's the latter, can you please explain why ?

Thank you.

Answer

You are correct in that 'to observe' can be used here and it would make sense. (although the verb more commonly means to look upon something). 'To obey' is a bit more formal. 'To obey' just means to follows rules or laws, or to follow the will of someone, something, or multiple people. ex.: "An aircraft in flight obviously will always obey the laws of physics." "Many people put a lot of effort into seeing that their dogs know how to obey commands."

Answer

The answer is "obey": to do the task without (any more) questioning or complaining.

"Observe" has a meaning of "be aware" (apart from "look at").  You can observe an anniversary, or observe the requirements of a contract.

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