What's the difference between "ingredient", "element" and "material"?

Native speaker’s answer

Rebecca

"Ingredients" are foods or substances that are combined together to make a dish. Ex: I have a list of ingredients that we need from the store. Ex: The ingredients for our chicken pot pie are chicken, cream of chicken soup, pie crusts, carrots, peas, and onions. "Elements" are components or parts of something; the building blocks to something. Ex: There are many elements that go in to constructing a home. Ex: Everyone has different elements to their lives. "Material" are the parts or substances need to make something. Ex: We need these materials to build this. Ex: Do you have all the materials for your science project?

How do native speakers use this expression?

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Popular Q&As

12/27

1
Why is "ing" put after "to" here?
This sentence is in present progressive tense and so the verb is put in -ing form to indicate that the action is going to continue on. The progressive tense is not generally used after the preposition "to" in a sentence except after the phrase "close to". Ex: I was so close to falling asleep when the dog started barking. Ex: You are so close to winning the race - keep going!

2
What is "sec"?
"Sec" is short for "second". Ex: Wait a sec, I have to do something.

3
Is "when" necessary here?
While technically "when" is not necessary here, the speaker has used it to signify a hypothetical situation or subjunctive mood will follow. Thus, it is better to use it in this situation as it is a good clue for understanding and predicting the rest of the sentence. Ex: What if when you go to work, you get into an argument with a coworker. How should you react? Ex: When you check your email, you should answer emails in order of priority.

4
What is ‘em?
'em is shorten form of "them".

5
What's "water" mean in here
The theme of "water" at the beginning of the song is a metaphor. The "river" mentioned in the beginning is the life she has been living, and here, "waters" refers to this metaphorical river. She's saying that there's still hope within her life- within this "river" of her life. "Waters" can often be used in a similar metaphorical way when referring to a situation in life or the way things are. Ex: These waters are deep, be careful what information you look for. => The situation is complicated Ex: There's no hope in these waters. = There's no hope in this situation.

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