Maintaining a Conversation
Are you often at a loss for words in English? You have the opportunity to practice, but you don’t know what to say? When it comes to conversing in English, keeping the conversation going can be tricky. Whether you’re at a party or in a business setting, put these tips to use and you’re sure […]
Benefits of a good night’s sleep
“Early to bed, and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.” — Benjamin Franklin, 1758 (in Poor Richard’s Almanac) A third of our life is spent sleeping. How much sleep a person needs changes as one ages. A new mother needs seven hours of sleep per night, but her newborn baby needs 12-18 hours of […]
Idioms to talk about happiness
In English, there are loads of different ways to express happiness. Many of these are interesting idioms or expressions. So, if you want to show people how happy you are in English, read the following tips.. Metaphors A metaphor is a type of idiom where we replace what we are talking about with another for dramatic […]
10 English Business Phrases
Working in an English-speaking office can be tough if English is your second language.. The best way to deal with this is to make an effort to understand the new expressions you hear and learn to use them yourself. Here are ten useful business English phrases to get you started. 24-7 (Twenty-four Seven) This phrase […]
Idioms to talk about Money
Idioms are something that you hear native English speakers use all the time. So what exactly are they? An idiom is a phrase that uses certain words to convey a figurative meaning. So, let’s take a look at some idioms and phrases that will help you learn to speak English by describing things to do […]
Telephone English_Useful tips
Do you know how to make and receive telephone calls in English? Talking on the phone is more difficult than speaking face-to-face, so improve your telephone tactics with these useful expressions. Who’s calling please? This is a polite way to ask the name of the caller. I’d like to speak to… Use this phrase to […]
10 Motivational quotes to keep learning English!
The best way to predict the future is to create it. –Abraham Lincoln If you want to be a fluent speaker of English in the future, you need to make it happen. You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream. – C.S.Lewis Many people say it’s easier to learn […]
Where do English Weekday names come from?
Let’s take a look at the seven days of the week and how they came to be named. Sunday The first day of the week was named after the sun – dies Solis – day of the sun in Latin and later Sunnon-dagaz in old Germanic. It’s easy to see where the English word Sunday […]
The Oscars are here!
With the Oscars coming up on Sunday let’s have a look at some classic American movies that give insight into American culture. Here is a list of four famous American movie quotes that everyone should know: “You’re gonna need a bigger boat.” Roy Scheider in Jaws (1975). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gciFoEbOA8 Da Dun. Da Dun. The movie JAWS […]
The English Language. How many words?
In the second edition of the Oxford English dictionary, there are approximately 600,000-word forms defined. This includes many old-fashioned words that are not in common use anymore. The dictionary also expands every year to keep up with new words that are invented to describe the world around us, or to include new meanings for words […]
4 Great Idioms to offer useful advice!
Using idioms, or figurative speech, is a sure way of sounding more like a native English speaker and is key to learning English to a high level. So here are some idioms all about giving advice. 1. Don’t bite off more than you can chew – With the words “bite” and “chew” you might be thinking that […]
Difficult to pronounce
Have you ever tried to say a word, and you just couldn’t say it properly? Many words are hard to pronounce. In this list, you can see some of the English words that are the most difficult to say. clothes The e is silent. February You must pronounce both r‘s: Feb-roo-a-ree, not Feb-yoo-a-ree. athlete Make sure there are only two […]
Five Colour Idioms with the colour, Black
What associations do you have with the colour black? Perhaps negative things like, death, eternity, evil, mourning, or not at all and perhaps it’s your favourite colour!! Let’s see the meaning of the following five idioms: 1. Blackmail (someone) Meaning: to extort or take money from someone by threatening him or her Sample Sentence: The photographer tried […]
Winter Weather Expressions
British people are famous for loving to talk about the weather. The Spanish like to chat about the weather too but as the climate in the UK is fairly unpredictable perhaps it gives us more to talk about! Winter is a great time to talk about the weather in English because we have lots of interesting […]
False Cognates (False Friends)
There are several words in Spanish that are similar in English, but have a different meaning. Here are a few examples: actually is similar to Spanish actualmente; however, actualmente is better translated with e.g. currently, as actually actually means in reality. Confusing, eh? embarrassed is not the same as embarazada. A translation for embarrassed could be apenado. In some situations it can be embarrassing to be embarazada, i.e. pregnant! realize should not be […]
Worst jobs!
Most of us find Monday mornings hard. After the relaxation and pleasures of the weekend, having to pull ourselves up out of bed and get ourselves to work is never fun. However, don’t complain about your job too much because it could be a lot worse! Here are some examples of jobs that would make Monday mornings […]
Hesitation Fillers
You must have often heard about how important it is to be able to formulate your thoughts clearly and coherently when speaking in English, isn’t that right? It’s nearly as important, though, to know what to say when you have a pause in the middle of a sentence. You might not be as fluent as […]
Funny English Idioms!
We get it, idioms are weird, and often have nothing to do with their literal meaning. But here is a list of ten of the funniest English idioms and how to use them! The lights are on but nobody’s home– used to describe a stupid person Example: She really has no clue- the lights […]
Seven most used Idioms
You’ve been studying for years now and you find yourself talking to your Irish friend. You tell him you’re going skiing next week and he says “Have fun and break a leg.” My god what a friend you think!!! You don’t understand why your good friend would want you to break a leg Well don’t […]
Can you hear the difference?
Ever been stopped by a stranger and asked what language you speak? How frequently have they guessed the correct language on the first try? And how good areyou at telling the difference between languages? The “Great Language Game” is a fun way to try and figure out just that! The game increases in difficulty the longer you […]