Learn English – What does ‘take a shower’ or ‘shower’ mean

light-verbsmeaning

There are two sentences below:

  1. She took a shower in the bathroom.
  2. He showered in the bathroom.

What is the difference between 'take a shower' and 'shower' in meaning?

Best Answer

There is very little difference in meaning; they are usually just two different ways to express the same thing: someone performed the act of showering.

"She showered in the bathroom" could mean that she regularly or routinely showered in the bathroom; "She took a shower in the bathroom" means that she performed one act of showering in the bathroom.

Take a shower is slightly less formal than shower.


The construction "take a shower" uses take as what's called a light verb in English. A light verb is one that doesn't really carry any meaning by itself, but is used in conjunction with a noun to create a phrase that has meaning. Usually, the light verbs in English are do, take, make, or have.

For example,

  • take a shower = shower
  • take a walk = walk
  • take a rest = rest
  • have a smoke = smoke (a cigarette, pipe, etc.)
  • do a trick = perform a trick
  • make a mistake = do something that is an error

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