As we frequently hear following sentences:
My question is:
Is there any difference between nowadays-these days and today? I know that nowadays and these days show us a trend and they are interchangeable. But, can we interchange both of them with 'today'? I want to understand them in the terms of usage. Thanks in advance.
I'd say that 'nowadays' & 'these days' are direct synonyms.
'Today', used in that way, is a synonym - but I think it smacks of 'Reporterese'.
I think it is a forward formation from the old style TV news reporter, standing in the rain in front of a famous building, grimacing into the driving wind & opening with, "Today, in the House of Lords…"
I consider the first two to be identical. The third one is identical in most circumstances but "today" in it's literal use can also mean "today alone". If you were in a class and it was halloween then "Today everyone's wearing costumes" probably means only on that specific day. In the case that you're working with a team that all require smartphones which the company is buying for them, then in the context of that team "Today, everyone has a smartphone" again probably means that specific day. Since there's a possibility for mistake, I'd generally avoid alternative three. The first two are unambiguous.
IMO...
The first two are the same. The third one is similar. It simply means the trend of having a smartphone is on.
But the tricky one is the last one especially when it is viewed from different angle. Though it certainly talks about the trend, the word 'today', I think, goes beyond the trend and might talk about the result.
Thus,
Today, everyone has a smartphone
apart from 'trend', it may also talk about the result of revolution in electronics and telecommunications.
When we are using a language , everything must be placed in its own ,so three of them are just near to each other in meaning for I dont think we have got exact synonyms in English ,entries are only approximate . these days means refer to yesterday the day before yesterday tomorrow and the day after tomorrow today is absolutely today no more but now a days is completely refer to this century or the period of time we are living in ...this decade and etc. I am hopeful I could take you in ...
