✅ Sad describes a feeling of unhappiness, grief, or sorrow. It can also describe something that expresses or causes these feelings (a sad song; feeling sad after a disappointment).

✅ Melancholy describes a feeling of mournfulness, pensiveness, or depression. It can also describe something that expresses or causes these feelings (a long and melancholy poem; I feel melancholy when I visit the sea).

✅ Sad emphasizes a feeling caused by an event or happening, whereas melancholy emphasizes a state of mind, a particularly long-lasting feeling, or a personality trait (He’s a quiet, melancholy person; She was sad after she had to cancel her party).

✅ Melancholy can often suggest a deeper or more enduring sense of unhappiness or misery than sad, while sad can suggest a sharper or more immediate feeling.

Try describing a melancholy song with the help of Grammar Coach.

✅ Understand and comprehend mean very similar things. Understand suggests grasping something fully, including its implications or implicit or unspoken elements (I understand exactly what she means, though she won’t state it outright).

✅ Comprehend suggests thoroughly understanding something, and how it relates to other concepts or facts (I comprehend the causes of World War One).

✅ Understand is less formal and more commonly used than comprehend (I understand geometry).

Now that you comprehend the differences, check out these synonyms!

✅ Strong describes something that resists force or strain (The rope was very strong).

✅ Durable describes something that resists decay and wear over time, and lasts well (This chair is very durable in construction—it’s still good after fifty years).

✅ Strong is a more general word, but can suggest that something is well made, or made of materials that are difficult to damage (The castle had strong walls).

✅ Durable particularly implies that something has been made to last (These bicycle tires are particularly durable).

Write about something durable with the help of Grammar Coach.