Here are some open-ended questions you can ask Americans about football:
Now that the holidays are over, is it all work and no play? Well, take a break to learn about some fun expressions to use the next time you play games:
When you’re playing tag, there are many people in a group, and one person, “it”, has to chase everyone until they are caught. Can you think of equivalent games that are played in your country? Here are some we played when we were kids:
Small talk while playing games is a great way to pick up on these phrases and more.
“I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.”
Adding “Do you agree with the following statement,” to the beginning of axioms such as this is a good way to create sample essay topics if you’re taking or helping someone practice for the SAT, GRE, or other test with a writing component.
You might really like one of the projects your friend designed. You might be trying to cheer someone up. Maybe you want to offer congratulations. Whatever the situation, if you want to show approval or appreciation, here are some phrases you can use:
Your friends are your friends, and they will most certainly help you with your English if it’s appropriate, or if they see you struggling to communicate. It’s natural to help the person you’re talking to express themselves so mutual understanding is achieved.
However, if you ask them to help you, the boundaries between friendship and teaching will have been crossed, and your friends might deem your requests as work.
Try to avoid turning a social interaction into work by NOT saying the following:
Your friends can be an invaluable resource to your English growth…just not always as a walking-talking grammar and vocabulary reference. Just remember that not everyone is comfortable explaining grammar even if they use it correctly.
You’ve been trying for a while now to master English. You read books, do online grammar practice activities, read articles, comment on blogs, and tweet all the time. So why is it that when you speak English, people still struggle to understand you?
You really need to talk…a lot…to people…face to face. You need the two-way interaction with another human being to build speaking skills.
How can you meet these people?
The key is to actually speak. Get out of your shell, get out of your patterns, get out of your house, meet people and speak.
Here are some fun facts about English:
- The letters H, I, O, and X are the only letters that look the same if you flip them upside down or view them from behind.
- “Queueing” is the only word with five consecutive vowels.
- The only city in the United States whose name is spelled using only vowels is Aiea, Hawaii.
- The longest one-syllable words are “screeched” and “strengths”.
The full list is here at Brain Candy. Lists like this are good ice breakers for the first day of class or to have at the ready if you are babysitting or substitute teaching.
I’ve been making some updates to my blog. For instance, if you want to follow me on Twitter or contact me for tutoring or conversation practice through Skype, both buttons are working now! If you try to use them and they don’t work, please let me know.
Also, I’ll be uploading some new English tutorial videos to my Youtube channel (www.youtube.com/user/ALLENGLISHLLC), which you can subscribe to by clicking the link on the right menu.
As always, thank you for visiting!
The word last has a few different meanings, but this post refers to the word last in terms of duration. As a verb, last is stative, meaning it cannot be used in the progressive forms. It refers to the length of time of an event, or how long something continues.
Take a look at these examples:
Other ways you can express the same concept are by using these expressions:
Examples:
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