Archive for 'English Language'
April showers bring May flowers Posted by Gabriele on May 6, 2012
We have a saying in English that goes like this: “April showers bring May flowers.” This is a simple saying, a rhyme, and a proverb that most English speakers know well. Since we have now entered the month of May and it is the time of year (in the northern hemisphere) that we start…
A versus An Posted by heather on May 5, 2012
Have you ever been confused about when to use a and when to use an? You may have heard the “rule” that you put an a before words that start with a consonant and an an before words that start with a vowel. While that is a semi-good starting point, there is actually a little…
Extracurricular Activity: Cheerleading Posted by heather on May 2, 2012
A few weeks ago I told you about the extracurricular sport of colorguard. Remember, extracurricular means something that happens outside of, or is not part of, the normal school curriculum. If you are struggling with the word curriculum, it means all the subjects that are taught during a school year. Today I’ll tell you about…
Foreign Words in English (Part III) Posted by Gabriele on Apr 27, 2012
As I mentioned in my first post in this ongoing series, like most other languages, English contains words that are directly taken from other languages. Sometimes words that come from one language are used in a new language without much or any change are called “loanwords.” A loanword can also be called “a borrowing.” The…
Syllables and Word Stress Posted by heather on Apr 21, 2012
photograph – photographer – photographic Do these three words sound the same when you say them out loud? If you are pronouncing them correctly, then they shouldn’t. The reason (and no, it is not just because they are three slightly different words) has something to do with syllables and word stress. What are Syllables? Syllables…
Food Idioms (Part II) Posted by Gabriele on Apr 20, 2012
Yesterday I introduced you to ten new food related idioms, today I have ten more! First though, here are some important points about idioms to keep in mind. Native speakers of English use idioms all the time. Thus a strong knowledge of idioms will help you to be a better speaker and negotiator. There…
Goodnight or Good Evening? Posted by Gabriele on Apr 17, 2012
I was recently walking down the street around 7:00pm and a non-native English speaker said to me “Goodnight.” I replied back to him, “good evening.” This started me thinking about the important difference between the use of these two phrases “goodnight*” and “good evening” in English. It is important to know what each means…