Is there a difference between the meaning of selfish and self-centered? I have seen some using them identically. If there is a difference who would you like to hang out with: a selfish person or a self-centered person?
Learn English – Difference between “selfish” and “self-centered”
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Suasive is an adjective that, in Linguistics (Grammar), "denotes a class of English verbs, for example, insist, whose meaning includes the notion of persuading and that take a subordinate clause whose verb may either be in the subjunctive or take a modal."
Persuasive is an adjective as well, that means being "good at persuading someone to do or believe something through reasoning or the use of temptation:
an informative and persuasive speech." OR "She was very persuasive!"
The difference, then, is that while the former denotes a grammatical class for verbs, the second is adopted the way you already know, with people, situations, etc.
EDIT NOTE: In the OED it says that a speech can be "suasive" but considering the OALD and my dictionary didn't have it, I supposed it was an old use or it fell into disuse. So I checked the Ngram on google and it confirmed what Billare said and what I was thinking.
Notice that in your own examples, you vouched for a person, but guaranteed an action. This is exactly how I'd use these words, and it does seem to reinforce your intuition: "vouch" is about a person's character; "guarantee" is about actions or things. We might also say, however, that "guarantee" emphasizes the future, while "vouch" emphasizes the past. To explain my position, I'll call on the Oxford English Dictionary.
Guarantee
The OED lists the following meanings for the verb "guarantee":
- To be a guarantee, warrant, or surety for; spec. to undertake with respect to (a contract, the performance of a legal act, etc.) that it shall be duly carried out; to make oneself responsible for the genuineness of (an article); hence, to assure the existence or persistence of; to set on a secure basis. (Example: "Written languages guarantee a systematic pronunciation.")
- To engage to do something; to warrant or ensure that something will happen or has happened. (Example: "I'll guarantee that he'll never return to Bengurry.")
- To secure the possession of (something) to a person, etc. (Example: "Christ guarantees to the faith of His brethren...a true quittance and defence from sin.")
- To secure (a person or thing) against or from (risk, injury, etc.); to secure in (the possession of anything). (Example: "Angus was strongly disposed to make the attempt, if he could be guaranteed from loss.")
All of these definitions and examples state that something will happen in the future, or promise to do something or cause something to happen. In the first example, "Written languages guarantee a systematic pronunciation," the claim as I understand it is not that written language can't exist unless a systematic pronunciation is already in place; the claim is that written language tends to create a systematic pronunciation because we come to associate certain symbols with certain sounds. (Obviously, this claim would not apply to all writing systems.)
"Guarantee" is also often applied to products ("We guarantee this vacuum cleaner for life"); again, this is a statement about the future: the vacuum cleaner will not break down, and if it does, the manufacturer will replace it.
Vouch
"Vouch" has quite a few meanings, many of them archaic and/or specific to the legal realm. "Vouch for", however, has only these three:
- To speak or bear witness in behalf of (a person); to be surety or sponsor for. (Example: "I dispute not the lad's qualities, for which your reverence vouches.")
- To supply evidence or assurance of (some fact). (Example: "The certainty of the law...is vouched for...by the results of experiment.")
- To give personal assurance of the truth or accuracy of (a statement or fact). Also with accuracy, truth, etc., as object. (Example: "I love the country better than ever, I can vouch for that.")
I take it that the first meaning is the one you had in mind. My belief that "vouch" emphasizes the past, rather than the present, rests on the fact that even though you vouch for a person with an eye to the future--securing a job for her, for example--you're vouching for certain qualities, like character, experience, expertise, or personality, which are already possessed by that person. You're not guaranteeing that you'll take over the job if she fails; you're just saying that she has the expertise and background necessary to succeed at it.
Best Answer
These two words have different meanings, not merely different connotations. Part of the question was about whom it would be preferable to spend time with, a selfish person or a self-centered person?
One could be self-centered yet not morally bereft of compassion and generosity. Similarly, a self-centered person might want to further his or her objectives, whether or not that meant behaving selfishly in any given situation.
@Adel's comment is similar to my perception. Specifically, that a selfish person has a strong bias toward not giving anything-- time, money, effort, energy, or other support to anyone other than him or herself. And that seems much more unpleasant than the alternative.
A self-centered person would be inclined toward selfish behavior, but not necessarily so. Being self-centered implies finding oneself more fascinating than anything else. But it doesn't necessarily cause such a person to behave in the stingy, venal way associated with selfishness.