revenge/avenge

[Mad-ox]

hi again,

What is the difference between these two words?

Thank you in advance,

m

[MikeNewYork]

Originally Posted by Mad-ox

hi again,

What is the difference between these two words?

Thank you in advance,

m

As verbs, almost no difference. "Revenge" can also be (and usually is) a noun.

[Mad-ox]

It must be a difference as my test book ask in the following:

He swore to......................his fathers death.
He had to...............himself on his father's murder.

[Dr. Jamshid Ibrahim]

Originally Posted by Mad-ox

hi again,
What is the difference between these two words?
Thank you in advance,
m

As Mad-ox mentioned it is a matter of usage. You cannot revenge something but you can avenge something:
She wanted to revenge her brother's death wrong.
She wanted to avenge her brother's death. right.

[Dr. Jamshid Ibrahim]

Originally Posted by Mad-ox

It must be a difference as my test book ask in the following:
He swore to......................his fathers death.
He had to...............himself on his father's murder.

Yes, you are right:
1.He swore to..avenge....................his fathers death.
2. He had to..revenge/avenge.............himself on his father's murder.[/quote]

[MikeNewYork]

Originally Posted by Mad-ox

It must be a difference as my test book ask in the following:

He swore to......................his fathers death.
He had to...............himself on his father's murder.

There is a difference in common usage, but not in correctness. Both are transitive verbs. The definitions from AHD follow as well as a usage note from Webster's.

re·venge (rĭ-vĕnj')
tr.v., -venged, -veng·ing, -veng·es.

1. To inflict punishment in return for (injury or insult).
2. To seek or take vengeance for (oneself or another person); avenge.

a·venge (ə-vĕnj')
tr.v., a·venged, a·veng·ing, a·veng·es.

1. To inflict a punishment or penalty in return for; revenge: avenge a murder.
2. To take vengeance on behalf of: avenged their wronged parents.

As you can see, the citations are almost identical. "Avenge" is often preferred for an injury to a person other than the avenger. But that is not an absolute.

synonyms AVENGE and REVENGE agree in meaning to punish a person who has wronged one or someone close to one. They are often used interchangeably but AVENGE more often suggests punishing a person when one is vindicating someone else than oneself or is serving the ends of justice, the suggestion of justice achieved being strong in any application of the word *after all, if other people's children do not like him, he can always avenge himself by disliking them twice as much Robert Lynd* *it was a son who would some day avenge his father Charles Dickens* *his wife T entered the gubernatorial campaign to avenge her husband American Guide Series: Texas* REVENGE more often applies to vindicating oneself and usually suggests an evening up of scores or a personal satisfaction more than an achievement of justice, often connoting malice, spite, or vindictive retaliation *the novelist obsessed with the errors of his past T is irresistibly drawn to revenge himself on his past by rewriting it C.J.Rolo* *the hope of revenging himself on me was a strong inducement Jane Austen

[MikeNewYork]

Originally Posted by Dr. Jamshid Ibrahim

As Mad-ox mentioned it is a matter of usage. You cannot revenge something but you can avenge something:
She wanted to revenge her brother's death wrong.
She wanted to avenge her brother's death. right.

"Avenge" is far more common in that use (because "revenge" is most commonly used as a noun), but I don't think the first is wrong.

[Mad-ox]

MikeNewYork & Dr Jamshid. Thank you for your detailed answers,

m

[MikeNewYork]

Originally Posted by Mad-ox

MikeNewYork & Dr Jamshid. Thank you for your detailed answers,

m

You're welcome. I think the easiest approach is to use "avange" as a verb and "revenge" as a noun. I don't think you can go wrong with that approach.