VOA名师答疑2023--Award vs. Reward

Award vs. Reward

Hello! This week on Ask a Teacher, we will answer a question about the difference between "award" and "reward."

Question:

I am Li from China. I have been listening [to] the VOA Learning¹ English podcast [for] more than one year.

Ask a Teacher: Award vs. Reward

Ask a Teacher: Award vs. Reward

I have benefitted a lot from your program. Can you clarify² the meaning of "award" and "reward?" I am always confused (about) the two words.

Best regards,

Li

Answer:

Thanks for writing to us, Li.

"Award" and "reward" have similar meanings. They both can be different parts of speech - nouns⁴ and verbs. They are something you get for your behavior, but there are major differences. Let's look more deeply at each word.

Award

"An award" is a noun³. It is something valuable that is given, like a prize, to someone for their accomplishments⁶. "Awards" are usually given by someone to someone else.

The student received an award from the teacher for not missing⁷ any school days.

As a verb, "award" means to give someone something, like a prize or money, for an accomplishment⁵.

The judges awarded first place to the dance group.

In the area of law, "award" has slightly different meanings.

As a verb, "award" means to give an official judgment⁸ of an amount or sum of money. As a noun, "award" is the amount of money the court or judge decides.

The judge awarded money to the victims.

The award totaled 2.5 million dollars.

Let's move on to "reward."

Reward

"A reward" is a benefit given to someone in exchange for a certain behavior or action.

The reward for all the students passing the test was an ice cream party.

There is a $500 reward for returning the lost dog.

"Reward" as a verb means to give someone a reward for their actions or behavior.

I rewarded my cat with some fish after he did a trick.

Sometimes you do not need anyone to reward you. You can reward yourself.

Victoria rewarded herself with a weekend trip to the countryside after a hard work week.

Remember, "award" is based on accomplishments. And "reward" is based on behaviors or actions.

Please let us know if these explanations and examples have helped you, Li.

Words in This Story

accomplishment – n. the successful completion of something

benefit – n. something extra given to workers by an employer in addition to their regular pay

1 learning   

n.学问，学识，学习；动词learn的现在分词

参考例句：

• When you are learning to ride a bicycle,you often fall off.初学骑自行车时，常会从车上掉下来。
• Learning languages isn't just a matter of remembering words.学习语言不仅仅是记些单词的事。

2 clarify   

v.澄清，阐明，使变得清晰；净化

参考例句：

• I am happy to clarify any points that are still unclear.我愿意说明任何仍然不清楚的地方。
• Can you clarify this long sentence?你能把这个长句子解释清楚吗？

3 noun   

n.名词

参考例句：

• What kind of noun is this?这是哪类名词？
• This word is a collective noun.这个词是个集体名词。

4 nouns   

n.名词；名词( noun的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• French differs from English in having gender for all nouns. 法语不同于英语，所有的名词都有性。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Nouns join to form compounds. 名词和名词结合构成复合词。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 accomplishment   

n.完成，成就，（pl.）造诣，技能

参考例句：

• The series of paintings is quite an accomplishment.这一系列的绘画真是了不起的成就。
• Money will be crucial to the accomplishment of our objectives.要实现我们的目标，钱是至关重要的。

6 accomplishments   

n.造诣；完成( accomplishment的名词复数 )；技能；成绩；成就

参考例句：

• It was one of the President's greatest accomplishments. 那是总统最伟大的成就之一。
• Among her accomplishments were sewing,cooking,playing the piano and dancing. 她的才能包括缝纫、烹调、弹钢琴和跳舞。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

7 missing   

adj.遗失的，缺少的，失踪的

参考例句：

• Check the tools and see if anything is missing.检点一下工具，看有无丢失。
• All the others are here;he's the only one missing.别人都来了，就短他一个。

8 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。