Tuesday, 31 December 2019
It's ____ to you- you're responsible for this.
New Entry: 'It's ____ to you- you're responsible for this.' has just been added to the Language Polls area of UsingEnglish.com.
source https://www.usingenglish.com/poll/1226.html
How Questions- Gapfill Guessing Game
New Entry: 'How Questions- Gapfill Guessing Game' has just been added to the Lesson Plans area of UsingEnglish.com.
source https://www.usingenglish.com/teachers/lesson-plans/view-how-questions-gapfill-guessing-game/
Monday, 30 December 2019
Out with the old, in with the new
As 2020 approaches, learn a phrase to describe what you can do at this time of year.
source http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p07y59ml
source http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p07y59ml
Sunday, 29 December 2019
Saturday, 28 December 2019
Thursday, 26 December 2019
Grammar and Christmas
Many Americans experience surprise (or disappointment) when they wake up on Christmas Day. They might be surprised or disappointed by a family member's actions. They might be happy or unhappy about a Christmas gift. Imagine a child expects to get an Xbox or PlayStation for Christmas. On Christmas morning, they quickly open their gift …. Inside is an English grammar book. They might feel disappointed. The Everyday Grammar team would prefer the new English grammar book. But if you are like most young people, you would probably rather have a new videogame system. Today, we are going to explore those feelings – feelings of surprise and disappointment. In other words, we are going to explore how speakers show that reality was better or worse than their expectations. Counter expectation Many languages use words to express expectation. Speakers also use words to express how events are not happening as expected. This idea is known as "counter expectation."* Do not worry about the term. Just remember that it means that speakers use words to show that reality is going against (or countering) their expectations. English has many words that serve this purpose. Three of the most common are the words "even," "still," and "actually." You will often hear them in casual, everyday speech. Speakers use these words to show surprise or disappointment. The pitch of their voice tells you what they mean. Let's study examples of each word. #1 Even Speakers often use the word "even" to show disappointment or surprise. Imagine a young child that expects a phone call from a family member – perhaps an uncle or grandparent. The phone call never comes. The child might say the following: "What's wrong with him? He didn't even call me on Christmas day." Here, the child is expressing disappointment. She could have expressed the same idea in a much longer statement, such as: "I was expecting him to call on Christmas Day, but I didn't hear from him. Why didn’t he give me a call?" "Even" highlights the child's disappointment because it emphasizes that the family member did not try to call. "Even" does not always have a sad meaning. It can have a happy meaning too. Imagine a man named Ted. Ted is a forgetful man. He forgets to send letters or gifts to his parents. Ted's parents might have the following talk after they get a Christmas letter from him: "Did you see Ted's letter? Yeah – he even sent us a gift!" Here, the word "even" shows a pleasant surprise. Ted's mother did not expect a gift from him. By saying "he even sent us a gift" she is suggesting that Ted has gone beyond her expectations. #2 Still Americans sometimes use "still" for showing how reality does not quite meet their expectations. Consider this example, from the 1986 film, Ferris Bueller's Day Off. At the end of the film, Ferris says the following lines. A different speaker might say similar lines after a lengthy, tiring, and disagreeable family Christmas party: You're still here? It's over! Go home. Go!" In the film, you can see the surprised look on Ferris' face. When he says, "You're still here," you can tell he did not expect people to still be around. He is a little disappointed. Now, imagine a different situation. A family is having a Christmas dinner. They are looking for one family member, Uncle Bob. They wonder if he left without saying goodbye. "-Have you seen Uncle Bob? -No. Did he leave? Wait! There he is! He's still here!" The way the final speaker says "still" shows that she is surprised to learn he was still at the dinner. She expected otherwise. #3 Actually A third common word that shows surprise or disappointment is "actually." "Actually" suggests something is true – even when it differs from what might have been thought or expected. Remember Uncle Bob? Bob has always been a nice guy. Imagine Uncle Bob sees a Christmas present he likes, and then runs away with it. A speaker might say: "I can't believe it! Uncle Bob actually stole her Christmas gift." Here, the speaker uses “actually” to emphasize the unexpectedness of a happening – Uncle Bob stealing the present. She does not sound very happy! Speakers can use "actually" to show positive feelings, too. Think back to our character Ted – the guy who always forgets to give gifts for Christmas. His parents could have shown their surprise at receiving a gift from Ted by saying the following: "Ted actually gave us a gift!" Here, the word "actually" shows that they are pleasantly surprised at this strange happening: Ted remembered Christmas! What can you do? The next time you are listening to an English speaker, try to find examples of words that show "counter expectation." Is the speaker expressing surprise or disappointment? How does the speaker change the pitch of their voice? By answering these questions, you will start to learn how English speakers communicate emotions in subtle ways. -"Excuse me, John, are you still recording your show?" -"Yes!" -"You're still recording? We have to go to the Christmas party!" -"Oh no! I had actually forgotten about that! And that's Everyday Grammar." I'm John Russell. I'm Anna Mateo. And I'm Ashley Thompson. John Russell wrote this story for Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section. *John McWhorter. Why English Won't - and Can't - Sit Still (Like, Literally). Picador. 2016 pgs. 37-41 _______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story prefer – v. to like (someone or something) better than someone or something else rather – adv. used to indicate what you want or prefer to do, have, etc. pitch – n. the highness or lowness of a sound emphasize – v. to give special attention to (something) : to place emphasis on (something) disappointment – n. a feeling of sadness or displeasure when one's hopes or expectations are not fulfilled casual – adj. not formal positive – adj. thinking about the good qualities of someone or something : thinking that a good result will happen: hopeful or optimistic subtle – adj. hard to notice or see : not obvious
source https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/everyday-grammar-and-christmas/4172368.html
source https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/everyday-grammar-and-christmas/4172368.html
Grammar and Christmas
Many Americans experience surprise (or disappointment) when they wake up on Christmas Day. They might be surprised or disappointed by a family member's actions. They might be happy or unhappy about a Christmas gift. Imagine a child expects to get an Xbox or PlayStation for Christmas. On Christmas morning, they quickly open their gift …. Inside is an English grammar book. They might feel disappointed. The Everyday Grammar team would prefer the new English grammar book. But if you are like most young people, you would probably rather have a new videogame system. Today, we are going to explore those feelings – feelings of surprise and disappointment. In other words, we are going to explore how speakers show that reality was better or worse than their expectations. Counter expectation Many languages use words to express expectation. Speakers also use words to express how events are not happening as expected. This idea is known as "counter expectation."* Do not worry about the term. Just remember that it means that speakers use words to show that reality is going against (or countering) their expectations. English has many words that serve this purpose. Three of the most common are the words "even," "still," and "actually." You will often hear them in casual, everyday speech. Speakers use these words to show surprise or disappointment. The pitch of their voice tells you what they mean. Let's study examples of each word. #1 Even Speakers often use the word "even" to show disappointment or surprise. Imagine a young child that expects a phone call from a family member – perhaps an uncle or grandparent. The phone call never comes. The child might say the following: "What's wrong with him? He didn't even call me on Christmas day." Here, the child is expressing disappointment. She could have expressed the same idea in a much longer statement, such as: "I was expecting him to call on Christmas Day, but I didn't hear from him. Why didn’t he give me a call?" "Even" highlights the child's disappointment because it emphasizes that the family member did not try to call. "Even" does not always have a sad meaning. It can have a happy meaning too. Imagine a man named Ted. Ted is a forgetful man. He forgets to send letters or gifts to his parents. Ted's parents might have the following talk after they get a Christmas letter from him: "Did you see Ted's letter? Yeah – he even sent us a gift!" Here, the word "even" shows a pleasant surprise. Ted's mother did not expect a gift from him. By saying "he even sent us a gift" she is suggesting that Ted has gone beyond her expectations. #2 Still Americans sometimes use "still" for showing how reality does not quite meet their expectations. Consider this example, from the 1986 film, Ferris Bueller's Day Off. At the end of the film, Ferris says the following lines. A different speaker might say similar lines after a lengthy, tiring, and disagreeable family Christmas party: You're still here? It's over! Go home. Go!" In the film, you can see the surprised look on Ferris' face. When he says, "You're still here," you can tell he did not expect people to still be around. He is a little disappointed. Now, imagine a different situation. A family is having a Christmas dinner. They are looking for one family member, Uncle Bob. They wonder if he left without saying goodbye. "-Have you seen Uncle Bob? -No. Did he leave? Wait! There he is! He's still here!" The way the final speaker says "still" shows that she is surprised to learn he was still at the dinner. She expected otherwise. #3 Actually A third common word that shows surprise or disappointment is "actually." "Actually" suggests something is true – even when it differs from what might have been thought or expected. Remember Uncle Bob? Bob has always been a nice guy. Imagine Uncle Bob sees a Christmas present he likes, and then runs away with it. A speaker might say: "I can't believe it! Uncle Bob actually stole her Christmas gift." Here, the speaker uses “actually” to emphasize the unexpectedness of a happening – Uncle Bob stealing the present. She does not sound very happy! Speakers can use "actually" to show positive feelings, too. Think back to our character Ted – the guy who always forgets to give gifts for Christmas. His parents could have shown their surprise at receiving a gift from Ted by saying the following: "Ted actually gave us a gift!" Here, the word "actually" shows that they are pleasantly surprised at this strange happening: Ted remembered Christmas! What can you do? The next time you are listening to an English speaker, try to find examples of words that show "counter expectation." Is the speaker expressing surprise or disappointment? How does the speaker change the pitch of their voice? By answering these questions, you will start to learn how English speakers communicate emotions in subtle ways. -"Excuse me, John, are you still recording your show?" -"Yes!" -"You're still recording? We have to go to the Christmas party!" -"Oh no! I had actually forgotten about that! And that's Everyday Grammar." I'm John Russell. I'm Anna Mateo. And I'm Ashley Thompson. John Russell wrote this story for Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section. *John McWhorter. Why English Won't - and Can't - Sit Still (Like, Literally). Picador. 2016 pgs. 37-41 _______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story prefer – v. to like (someone or something) better than someone or something else rather – adv. used to indicate what you want or prefer to do, have, etc. pitch – n. the highness or lowness of a sound emphasize – v. to give special attention to (something) : to place emphasis on (something) disappointment – n. a feeling of sadness or displeasure when one's hopes or expectations are not fulfilled casual – adj. not formal positive – adj. thinking about the good qualities of someone or something : thinking that a good result will happen: hopeful or optimistic subtle – adj. hard to notice or see : not obvious
source https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/everyday-grammar-and-christmas/4172368.html
source https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/everyday-grammar-and-christmas/4172368.html
Fake or real: What’s the best tree to have at Christmas?
What's the carbon footprint of your Christmas tree? We discuss which trees are best.
source http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p07y5b5j
source http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p07y5b5j
Wednesday, 25 December 2019
American English Listening Comprehension for Absolute Beginners #21 - Talking About a School Trip in USA
Learn American English with EnglishClass101.com! Do you find yourself only understanding bits and pieces of English conversations? Do you spend hours trying to figure out what that person said to you in English? Then this English Listening Comprehension for Absolute Beginners series is for you! In each lesson of this five-part series, you’ll see an [...]
source https://www.englishclass101.com/lesson/american-english-listening-comprehension-for-absolute-beginners-21-talking-about-a-school-trip-in-usa/
source https://www.englishclass101.com/lesson/american-english-listening-comprehension-for-absolute-beginners-21-talking-about-a-school-trip-in-usa/
British English Listening Comprehension for Absolute Beginners #21 - Talking About a School Trip in U.K
Learn British English with EnglishClass101.com! Do you find yourself only understanding bits and pieces of British English conversations? Do you spend hours trying to figure out what that person said to you in British English? Then this British English Listening Comprehension for Absolute Beginners series is for you! In each lesson of this five-part series, [...]
source https://www.englishclass101.com/lesson/british-english-listening-comprehension-for-absolute-beginners-21-talking-about-a-school-trip-in-uk/
source https://www.englishclass101.com/lesson/british-english-listening-comprehension-for-absolute-beginners-21-talking-about-a-school-trip-in-uk/
British English Listening Comprehension for Absolute Beginners #24 - Where In U.K Did You Put Your Keys?
Learn British English with EnglishClass101.com! Do you find yourself only understanding bits and pieces of British English conversations? Do you spend hours trying to figure out what that person said to you in British English? Then this British English Listening Comprehension for Absolute Beginners series is for you! In each lesson of this five-part series, [...]
source https://www.englishclass101.com/lesson/british-english-listening-comprehension-for-absolute-beginners-24-where-in-uk-did-you-put-your-keys/
source https://www.englishclass101.com/lesson/british-english-listening-comprehension-for-absolute-beginners-24-where-in-uk-did-you-put-your-keys/
British English Listening Comprehension for Absolute Beginners #25 - Talking About Your Job in British English
Learn British English with EnglishClass101.com! Do you find yourself only understanding bits and pieces of British English conversations? Do you spend hours trying to figure out what that person said to you in British English? Then this British English Listening Comprehension for Absolute Beginners series is for you! In each lesson of this five-part series, [...]
source https://www.englishclass101.com/lesson/british-english-listening-comprehension-for-absolute-beginners-25-talking-about-your-job-in-british-english/
source https://www.englishclass101.com/lesson/british-english-listening-comprehension-for-absolute-beginners-25-talking-about-your-job-in-british-english/
Tuesday, 24 December 2019
Monday, 23 December 2019
Opinions on Visual Arts
New Entry: 'Opinions on Visual Arts' has just been added to the Lesson Plans area of UsingEnglish.com.
source https://www.usingenglish.com/teachers/lesson-plans/view-opinions-on-visual-arts/
The more the merrier
It’s Christmas and time to party. Learn a phrase that means more people equals more fun!
source http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p07y598b
source http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p07y598b
Sunday, 22 December 2019
Friday, 20 December 2019
Thursday, 19 December 2019
Soccer and Grammar
In recent weeks, search terms related to European football have been popular on the internet. On Monday, for example, Google Trends identified ‘Champions League’ and ‘Champions League draw’ as the top two search terms on its Daily Search Trends page. In many areas, people continued to search for information about their favorite football team. In Vietnam, for example, Arsenal was one of the top search terms. In Egypt, the most popular search term was Real Madrid. In the spirit of these trends, our Everyday Grammar program this week will explore grammar and football, a game known as soccer in the United States. Specifically, we will talk about how soccer can teach you important points about English. #1 Sentence structure First, short sentences about soccer can teach you about transitive verbs and an important English sentence pattern: Subject + Verb + Object. The pattern often appears like this: Noun phrase (1) + Transitive Verb + Noun Phrase (2) Here is an example. Imagine a person is talking about a soccer match in the past tense. They might describe a series of events. One of those events might be: Ronaldo kicked the ball. Here, the subject is the Portuguese football player Cristiano Ronaldo. The transitive verb is kick. The direct object, the ball, is a noun phrase. The direct object receives the action of the verb, kick. Imagine the story about the game as the play continues: The goalie blocked the shot! In this example, the subject is the goalie, the verb is block, and the direct object is the shot. Finally, imagine a radio announcer was describing the game: Ronaldo scored a goal! Here, the subject is Ronaldo, the verb is score, and the direct object is a goal. All of these sentences follow the same basic pattern. You might be asking yourself why this is an important point. Understanding this pattern can help you tell which kinds of sentences you are dealing with, even if you cannot understand all of the words. Take our first example, Ronaldo kicked the ball. Imagine you are reading about a soccer match and do not know what the word kicked meant. If you remember the sentence pattern, you can probably guess that the word you do not understand is a verb. You can predict that Ronaldo is doing some action. Here is an idea. Ask yourself this: do the subject noun and the object noun relate to different things? If they do, then you are likely dealing with some kind of transitive verb. #2 Exclamatory statements Soccer can also teach you about incomplete sentences, also called fragments. When talking about soccer, speakers often use these fragments to express exclamatory statements. Here is an example. In a recent match, Premier League teams Tottenham and Burnley faced each other. Son Heung-min, a famous player, scored a goal for Tottenham. The announcer said the following words: What a run! What a player! Wonderful, wonderful goal! A joy to watch. You often here these kinds of statements when watching soccer games. They are missing important words needed to make a sentence complete, such as a verb. Listen again: What a run! What a player! The statements you heard begin with the word what. You might be wondering about the difference between exclamatory statements and questions. After all, many questions in English begin with the word what, as in What is your name? But in some cases, often when expressing strong emotions, English speakers make statements that begin with what, as in What a player! Here are two suggestions for telling the difference between questions and statements with what. First, ask yourself if there is a verb. Second, listen to the tone, or sound, of the speaker’s voice. Closing thoughts The next time you are watching a soccer game, try to listen for examples of sentence patterns or sentence fragments. Does the speaker or announcer use the sentence pattern we talked about today, or do they use a different one? What kinds of short, exclamatory statements does the speaker make? Asking yourself these kinds of questions will help you learn important information, such as new words, expressions and even grammatical patterns. And that’s Everyday Grammar. I’m Anne Ball. And I’m John Russell. John Russell wrote this story for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section. ________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story page – n. a written or online record trend – n. a general direction or movement transitive – adj. grammar of a verb having or taking a direct object pattern – n. something used or designed as model phrase – n. a brief expression match – n. a game or competition between two or more people score – v. to make a point (or points) in a sporting event fragment – n. an incomplete part exclamatory - adj. describing a word, phrase, or sound that expresses a strong emotion
source https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/soccer-and-grammar-/5212475.html
source https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/soccer-and-grammar-/5212475.html
Ecotherapy: Can nature make you happy?
Learn how being in the great outdoors is inspiring a particular kind of therapy.
source http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p07ydfyd
source http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p07ydfyd
Tuesday, 17 December 2019
Take one for the team
Are you the kind of person who makes sacrifices for others?
source http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p07y4svr
source http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p07y4svr
Monday, 16 December 2019
Sunday, 15 December 2019
Small talk on the news
New Entry: 'Small talk on the news' has just been added to the Lesson Plans area of UsingEnglish.com.
source https://www.usingenglish.com/teachers/lesson-plans/view-small-talk-on-the-news/
Saturday, 14 December 2019
How to teach restaurant language
New Entry: 'How to teach restaurant language' has just been added to the Articles area of UsingEnglish.com.
source https://www.usingenglish.com/articles/how-to-teach-restaurant-language.html
Friday, 13 December 2019
Thursday, 12 December 2019
Digital Communication: Emojis and Grammar
Writer and actor Larry David is behind some of America’s most popular television shows, including Seinfeld and Curb Your Enthusiasm. The shows often discuss the details of everyday life in a funny way. One time on Curb Your Enthusiasm, David criticized the use of emojis -- symbols often used in text messages and internet exchanges. She texted me. She texted you. How adorable. Yeah... smiley face at the end. Oh! Smiley face, see I hate that. I told her about the smiley faces, I can’t stand it! And everybody uses them! On today’s report, we will discuss grammar and digital communication. We will talk about emojis and the kinds of words they replace. We will also talk about the different ways people around the world use emojis. Increased use of emojis Emojis have their roots in Japan. Their name comes from the Japanese words for “picture” and “characters.” They have been common for years in Japanese electronic messages and Web pages. Over time, people in other countries came to adopt them, too. In 2015, Oxford Dictionaries named the “face with tears of joy” emoji as the word of the year. You might be asking yourself about the link between emojis and grammar. The first key point is this: Sometimes emojis act as a kind of language to communicate important information about emotions or attitudes. These emotions or attitudes might be difficult to express in writing, yet they are part of the idea the writer wants to send. For example, when people speak to each other, they often use their faces and voices to give a lot of information. The website emojitracker follows all emojis used on Twitter. It lists the most popular emojis on the social media platform. You might not be surprised to learn that some of the most popular emojis have a face. The most popular emoji is still “the face with tears of joy.” The second most popular emoji, according to emojitracker, is the “grinning face with the smiling eyes.” The limits of emoji and grammar Our second key point is this: Emojis fit into English grammar in certain kinds of ways. And experts think there are limits on how complex emoji grammar can become. A 2019 study by researchers in the Netherlands found that emojis were more likely to replace nouns and adjectives. They were less likely to replace verbs and adverbs. The researchers noted, “No prepositions or determiners were substituted” by emojis. Prepositions refer to words such as “in,” “on,” or “at.” These words often show the location of nouns. Determiners are words such as “the” or “these.” They give information about a noun. The study pointed out that emoji-only communication was very simple. One of the reasons is that users cannot change how they present the emojis. Also, vocabulary depends on existing emojis. Expressing feelings or attitudes outside the available choices is difficult. Emojis and other languages A 2016 report noted differences in how people around the world use emojis. The researchers found that “users from France are more likely to use emojis.” The researchers also found that users in France were “more likely to use emojis related to hearts, while users from other countries prefer emojis related to faces.” While how much these trends may have changed over the past few years is unclear, we bring up this point to get you thinking about how emojis are used in your native language. How do you feel about emojis? Do you give them a frowning mouth with scrunched eyebrows, like Larry David? Or a grinning face with smiling eyes? Write to us in the comments section. That’s Everyday Grammar. I'm Dorothy Gundy. And I’m John Russell. John Russell wrote this story for Learning English. Kelly Jean Kelly was the editor. ________________________________________________ Words in This Story adorable – adj. very appealing or attractive; very lovable digital – adj. using or characterized by computer technology trend – n. a general direction of change : a way of behaving, proceeding, etc., that is developing and becoming more common character – n. a symbol (such as a letter or number) that is used in writing or printing attitude – n. the way you think and feel about someone or something grin – v. to smile widely scrunched – adj. with tightened the muscles We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section.
source https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/digital-communication-emojis-and-grammar/5203424.html
source https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/digital-communication-emojis-and-grammar/5203424.html
6 Minute English: Chatting to new people
Many feel uncomfortable about talking to stranger - but it could be good for you.
source http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p07xp8gk
source http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p07xp8gk
Tuesday, 10 December 2019
Height of folly
New Entry: 'Height of folly' has just been added to the Idioms area of UsingEnglish.com.
source https://www.usingenglish.com/reference/idioms/height+of+folly.html
Monday, 9 December 2019
Present Progressive- Small Talk
New Entry: 'Present Progressive- Small Talk' has just been added to the Lesson Plans area of UsingEnglish.com.
source https://www.usingenglish.com/teachers/lesson-plans/view-present-progressive-small-talk/
Hold off on
New Entry: 'Hold off on' has just been added to the Phrasal Verbs area of UsingEnglish.com.
source https://www.usingenglish.com/reference/phrasal-verbs/hold.html#Hold-off-on
Hold off
New Entry: 'Hold off' has just been added to the Phrasal Verbs area of UsingEnglish.com.
source https://www.usingenglish.com/reference/phrasal-verbs/hold.html#Hold-off
How to teach positive and negative connotations
New Entry: 'How to teach positive and negative connotations' has just been added to the Articles area of UsingEnglish.com.
source https://www.usingenglish.com/articles/how-to-teach-positive-negative-connotations.html
Sunday, 8 December 2019
Saturday, 7 December 2019
English Kids’ Songs: Easy Videos for Beginners #45 - Cat Can Can
Learn English with EnglishClass101.com! This series is an easy way to improve your child’s English level and discover new music at the same time. Learn the song’s key words and phrases, then add it to your playlist to master it 100%. By listening over and over, your kids will learn English [...]
source https://www.englishclass101.com/lesson/english-kids-songs-easy-videos-for-beginners-45-cat-can-can/
source https://www.englishclass101.com/lesson/english-kids-songs-easy-videos-for-beginners-45-cat-can-can/
Friday, 6 December 2019
Aptis Speaking Part Two preparation tips
New Entry: 'Aptis Speaking Part Two preparation tips' has just been added to the Articles area of UsingEnglish.com.
source https://www.usingenglish.com/articles/aptis-speaking-part-two-preparation-tips.html
Thursday, 5 December 2019
Do These Things to Improve Your Collocations
If you have been studying English even for a short time, chances are you have already heard or read hundreds of collocations. A collocation is a group of two or more words that is almost always used together. Here are a few examples: heavy rain big decision break a habit make a mistake It would sound strange if someone said, “huge rain” “large decision” “finish a habit” or “do a mistake.” Most people would understand the meaning, but native English speakers would never combine words in that way. We would not say, for instance, “I’m hoping to hear about the large decision later today.” The point is that some words go together in English and some do not. There is no grammatical reason why. And that sometimes makes collocations difficult for English learners. If you don’t know, for example, that “big decision” is a collocation, it is not so easy to guess. Another thing that can make these things tricky is that many English words have several collocations. For instance, the word “decision” can be used in “difficult decision,” “final decision” and many others. Today on Everyday Grammar, we will give you three practice exercises on collocations. Improving your use of collocations will help your English sound more natural, which will make you more easily understood. Learn by recognizing One of the best ways to look for collocations is to read and listen to many things in English. This will help you start to recognize them when you see and hear them. In this first exercise, you will hear a short story with several collocations. Most in the story begin with common verbs such as have, get, make and take. But note that collocations can be made of any part of speech, not just verbs, but also nouns, adverbs and adjectives. Now, listen to the story and write down as many collocations as you hear: We had plans to meet some good friends by 11. So this morning, I took a shower by 9. As I was making the bed, I could hear heavy rain outside. I checked the weather and saw it was going to be a cold, wet day. So I got dressed in warm clothes. My husband made breakfast. The pancakes were tasty but whenever he cooks, he makes a mess! But he did wash the dishes so I can’t complain. So anyway, we took the train and met our friends at a holiday market. We had a great time but probably spent too much money! So, what did you find? Here are the verb-noun collocations: have plans, make the bed, take a shower, check the weather, make breakfast, make a mess, wash the dishes, take the train, have a good time and spend money You also heard the adjective-noun collocations “good friends,” “heavy rain” and “warm clothes” and the verb-verb collocations “get dressed” and “can’t complain.” This gives you some idea of just how much we use them. They are everywhere! Learn with a dictionary OK, onto the second exercise: using a collocation dictionary. Earlier, I told you that some English words have many collocations. So let’s take a few words from the story and see what I mean. You can find a few good collocation dictionaries online, such as freecollocation.com.* Now, try looking up the word “make” and find two collocations that were not in the story. Then, look up the word “time” and find two collocations that were not in the story. For “make,” you might for example find “make an effort” and “make money.” For “time,” you might for example find “free time” and “take your time.” Again, there are many possibilities for each word. These are just a few. Using a collocation dictionary can be helpful, but do not attempt to make long lists and memorize them. Instead, note just a few collocations every time and write a sentence or two for each that relates to your own life. For example, for “free time,” you might write “I wish I had more free time during the week” or “I will finally have free time when I go home for the holiday.” Then, try using some of these in your real life conversations. Learn by observation All right. That brings us to the third practice activity. TV, or television programs can teach you a lot about collocations. One way to use them is to observe and note the collocations you find in a few minutes of dialogue on a TV show or movie. Then, just as in the last exercise, write a sentence for each that you might use in real life, and practice using it sometime in conversation. Another fun thing you might try is a little less usual. Some of you may remember the 1990s British TV show Mr. Bean. On the show, Mr. Bean would find humorous solutions to the problems of everyday life, like shopping, going to restaurants, traveling or celebrating holidays. But here is what’s unusual about the show: there is almost no dialogue. So, in this activity, you are testing which collocations you can name without hearing anyone speaking. On our website, you will find a short video of Mr. Bean. Watch the video and try to name a few collocations to describe the place, people, things and actions you see. If you’re unsure whether something is a collocation, you can check it in a collocation dictionary. And don’t forget to tell us what you find! I’m Alice Bryant. Alice Bryant wrote this story for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. *Oxford is a British dictionary but includes American collocations. British and American English share most of the same collocations but be aware of small differences. ________________________________________ Practice 1 Write two or three sentences about your own life using collocations you heard today. You can choose from: have plans, make the bed, take a shower, check the weather, make breakfast, make a mess, wash (the) dishes or any of the others. Then, try using your sentences in real conversations. Practice 2 Note that the Mr. Bean practice exercise is fairly advanced so don't worry if you can't find many collocations. You can still try it for fun! Watch the video carefully a few times and see what collocations you can name from observation. ______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story habit – n. something that a person does often in a regular and repeated way grammatical – adj. of or relating to grammar guess – v. to form an opinion or give an answer about something when you do not know much or anything about it shower – n. the act of washing your body with a shower check – v. to get information by looking at something or asking about something pancake – n. a thin, flat, round cake that is made by cooking batter on both sides mess – n. a very dirty or untidy state or condition dictionary – n. a book that lists words in alphabetical order and gives the words' meanings, forms and pronunciations conversation – n. an informal talk involving two people or a small group of people dialogue – n. a conversation between two or more people
source https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/doing-these-things-will-improve-your-collocations/5192719.html
source https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/doing-these-things-will-improve-your-collocations/5192719.html
Firehosing
New Entry: 'Firehosing' has just been added to the Slang area of UsingEnglish.com. This entry is only available in our members' area.
source https://www.usingenglish.com/members/idioms/view.php?entry_id=27383
Why take a gap year?
Some delay university to take a year off travelling. Is it a good idea? Find out here!
source http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p07x03ch
source http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p07x03ch
Wednesday, 4 December 2019
How Questions- Tense Review
New Entry: 'How Questions- Tense Review' has just been added to the Lesson Plans area of UsingEnglish.com.
source https://www.usingenglish.com/teachers/lesson-plans/view-how-questions-tense-review/
Tuesday, 3 December 2019
Dad dancing
Swing those arms, shake those hips! Is this the latest dance trend?
source http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p07ws7mb
source http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p07ws7mb
LLE1 Fillable Certificate of Completion
Download the file, then fill in your name and the date you completed the course. Take a picture of yourself and share it on social media, our Facebook page, or send it to learningenglish@voanews.com.
source https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/lle1-fillable-certificate-of-completion/5190737.html
source https://learningenglish.voanews.com/a/lle1-fillable-certificate-of-completion/5190737.html
Sunday, 1 December 2019
Car loans are ____ the increase.
New Entry: 'Car loans are ____ the increase.' has just been added to the Language Polls area of UsingEnglish.com.
source https://www.usingenglish.com/poll/1225.html
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