"It's at the corner of St. Clair and Yonge," he said.
Instantly I could see the buildings there, the shopping mall, the news-stand, the McDonald's near the subway entrance.
"Oh yes," I said. "I know where that is."
Later that day I read an article about a new building being proposed for the corner of Richmond and University. I've been through that intersection many times, but I couldn't call to mind a single feature about it.
"Oh yes," I said. "I know where that is."
In both cases I was quite right to say, "I know where that is." But if I make the mistake of thinking they mean the same thing I run the risk of getting thoroughly lost at some point.
It's never words that confuse us, it's our tendency to think that the same words always mean the same thing. Or that different words always mean different things.
Of course, mostly they do.
