Holiday Vocabulary: Christmas and New Year’s Eve
Holiday A holiday is a special day of celebration or a day when most people do not have to work. In American English, the holiday season refers to the time from November until the beginning of January. Wishing someone a “happy holidays” is a polite and inclusive way of expressing seasonal greetings. If you want…
Read MoreEnglish Grammar Myths
The English language has many rules that must be adhered to, along with a number of guidelines that are typically true for constructing sentences. In this lesson, we’re going to explore three myths about English grammar and reveal the truth behind each. The first two myths take what are essentially guidelines and turn them into…
Read MoreEnglish Mistakes in Advertising
Native English speakers make mistakes not just in conversation, but in advertising for businesses. Remember, even prominently-displayed examples of English grammar can sometimes contain errors! Wrong word forms This campaign for an international women’s brand included this tagline: You’ve never seen body’s like this! This is the singular possessive form of body, but the…
Read MoreConfusing Word Pairs
In English, there are a number of words that share similar spelling or meanings that can make them hard to differentiate from each other. Here we will be looking at some commonly confused word pairs that can be tricky to master, even for those who speak English as a native language. Confusing Lose and…
Read MoreAbbreviations
As a general rule, you should avoid abbreviations in formal writing unless you are sure that the abbreviations you are using will be familiar to your audience. The situation is somewhat different in scientific and technical writing. Depending on your specific field, it may be acceptable or even preferable to use agreed upon abbreviations for…
Read MoreCommon American English Slang
Below are several slang words and phrases often used by American English speakers. We’ve provided a definition for each word and an example of how that word is used in a sentence. Some of these words have multiple definitions, but here we’re focusing on the common and informal meanings native speakers convey when speaking casually. …
Read MoreWriting Out Numbers
In the English language, there are rules to when you should write out numbers as words (twenty) and when you should write numbers as numerals (20). How do you know the difference? We’re going to look at some general guidelines now, but keep in mind that these rules might differ from the rules used in…
Read MoreUsing Apostrophes
How do you use apostrophes? While a common form of punctuation, apostrophes have multiple uses, which makes them hard for even native English speakers to always use correctly. Learn to identify these errors, and make an effort to avoid making them in your own speech and writing. Using Apostrophes to Form Contractions and Show Possession…
Read MorePoliteness in American English
Modern American English has few official rules for how politely you should address a given individual in a given situation. In French, Portuguese, and Spanish, for example, a second person singular pronoun takes different forms depending on who you are addressing. This formal/informal pronoun distinction is entirely absent in English, though there are some basic…
Read MoreDecember Quiz
Test your knowledge of some of the tricky pairs and groups of words that are common in the English language. For each sentence, choose the correct word or words from those in brackets. Answers and explanations can be found at the end of the quiz. If you have trouble with any of these words, feel…
Read More