Cool MateAwesome vs Really great
When to use each in English, with meaning, register, and examples.
Awesome
InformalTop 1,000 (very common)B1adjective
Really great
InformalTop 1,000 (very common)
| Awesome | Really great | |
|---|---|---|
| Pronunciation | 🇬🇧 //ˈɔːsəm//🇺🇸 //ˈɔːsəm// | 🇬🇧 //ˈrɪəli ɡreɪt//🇺🇸 //ˈrɪli ɡreɪt// |
| Meaning | Very good or impressive | Very good or excellent. |
| Example | That movie was awesome! | The movie was really great and I enjoyed every minute of it. |
| Register | Informal | Informal |
| How common | Top 1,000 (very common) | Top 1,000 (very common) |
| CEFR level | B1 | - |
| Part of speech | adjective | |
| Collocations | awesome experience, awesome job, awesome view, awesome performance | really great time, really great job, really great meal, really great news |
| Antonyms | terrible, awful, bad | - |
| Common mistakes | Used too frequently; try to vary vocabulary., Confused with 'awful', which means very bad., Overused for minor achievements. | Using it in a formal context, like a business email., Confusing it with just 'great' which might sound too neutral., Using it with negative sentences, e.g. 'It's not really great.' |
| Usage notes | Commonly used in casual conversation. Avoid in formal writing, where 'impressive' or 'excellent' might be more appropriate. | Used in casual conversation to emphasize positivity. Not suitable for formal written language. |
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Frequently asked questions: Awesome vs Really great
What's the difference between Awesome and Really great?
Awesome: Very good or impressive Really great: Very good or excellent.
Can you show an example of each?
Awesome: That movie was awesome! Really great: The movie was really great and I enjoyed every minute of it.
Can I use Awesome and Really great interchangeably?
Not always. Awesome and Really great are related and overlap in some contexts, but they differ in register, how common they are, and usage, so swapping one for another can change the meaning or tone. Check the differences above before substituting.