Learn English – “What is the difference” or “what are the differences”

There are times where I would tend to favor one over the other, but I'm having trouble figuring out a simple rule that dictates which one I would choose. I would describe:

• The aroma of bread, coffee, and wine, but
• The scent of a skunk, a perfume, a flower, or a woman

Aroma seems to be the more natural word for describing blends of food and spice, while scent seems to be more apt for describing the natural smell of a plant or animal.

Also, not too unlike atoms and molecules, scents seem more fundamental, while aromas seem like more of a mixture or blend. So, I might talk about the scent of a particular candle, but the aromas of the candle store.

Still, the literature has plenty of counterexamples, such as the scent of bread, or the aroma of the flower, or the scent of the wine, so it would be a mistake to interpret any of these thoughts as "rules". The two words are largely synonymous, so there's plenty of room for overlap. If someone said that only one of the two words could be used in a particular context, I'd regard that as smelling fishy.

Reasonable means that whatever decision was made is appropriate given the particular circumstances, and most would regard it as so.

Justified means that whatever decision was made is done for a good reason, in the interest of fairness.

There are times the words could be used interchangeably, and contexts where the difference is subtle. It all depends on the nature of the request or issue at hand.

I might use "justified" if I was angry about something, and was acting in response:

Was it polite to skip their wedding after they insulted me like that? No, but I think my decision was justified.

I might use "reasonable" if I think everyone would agree that there was nothing else that could be done:

Was I happy about missing their wedding so that I could go to my mother's funeral? No, but I think my decision was reasonable.

But there are contexts where either word will work just fine:

You said that you'd deliver the cake before noon, but it didn't get here until 3 o'clock. I think my request for a refund is reasonable/justified.

In that sentence, reasonable would work because most people would agree that a refund would be appropriate given the circumstances, and justified would work because the request is fair.