Cool MateLikelihood vs There's the possibility of nausea
When to use each in English, with meaning, register, and examples.
Likelihood
Top 2,000 (common)C1noun
There's the possibility of nausea
Top 5,000 (fairly common)
Most common: Likelihood
| Likelihood | There's the possibility of nausea | |
|---|---|---|
| Pronunciation | 🇬🇧 /["/ˈlaɪklihʊd/"]/🇺🇸 /["/ˈlaɪklihʊd/"]/ | 🇬🇧 //ˈpɒsəˌbɪlɪti//🇺🇸 //ˈpɑːsəˌbɪlɪti// |
| Meaning | The chance that something will happen. | It might make you feel sick. |
| Example | There is very little likelihood of that happening. | There's the possibility of nausea after taking this medication. |
| Register | Neutral | Neutral |
| How common | Top 2,000 (common) | Top 5,000 (fairly common) |
| CEFR level | C1 | - |
| Part of speech | noun | |
| Collocations | every, greater, increased, decrease, diminish, lessen, grow, diminish, likelihood for, likelihood of, in all likelihood | experience nausea, treat nausea, report nausea, nausea and vomiting, nausea symptoms |
| Antonyms | unlikelihood, improbability | - |
| Common mistakes | Confusing 'likelihood' with 'likely'., Using 'likelihood' as a countable noun instead of uncountable., Mixing up the preposition, saying 'likelihood for' instead of 'likelihood of'. | Confusing 'nausea' with 'nauseous'., Using 'possibility' in absolute terms., Incorrectly saying 'the possibility for nausea'. |
| Usage notes | Use 'likelihood' in discussions of probability. It's neutral, suitable for academic and everyday contexts, but avoid it in very casual conversations. | Used in medical or casual contexts to indicate that nausea might occur. It's generally neutral and suitable for both spoken and written English. |
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Frequently asked questions: Likelihood vs There's the possibility of nausea
What's the difference between Likelihood and There's the possibility of nausea?
Likelihood: The chance that something will happen. There's the possibility of nausea: It might make you feel sick.
Which is more common: Likelihood and There's the possibility of nausea?
Likelihood is the most common in everyday English.
Can you show an example of each?
Likelihood: There is very little likelihood of that happening. There's the possibility of nausea: There's the possibility of nausea after taking this medication.
Can I use Likelihood and There's the possibility of nausea interchangeably?
Not always. Likelihood and There's the possibility of nausea 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.