A question for Spanish speakers:
Can you think of a verb in English that has all these meanings?
correr (cortinas)
llegar (conclusión)
atraer (atención)
provocar (reacción)
arrastrar (trineo)
sacar (dinero del cajero)
empatar (un partido)
dibujar
Simple home-made chocolate hazelnut spread
A yummy and fun way to put an end to the course with the little ones.
You will need a food processor to blend the ingredients into a creamy texture.
Additionally, you will need something to spread on: it could be toast, crackers or sponge cake.
Continue reading “Simple home-made chocolate hazelnut spread”
Botanic or botanical? (More on suffixes: -ic and -ical)
Do you find the use of these suffixes confusing?
That makes two of us.
Not long ago, I published two posts dealing with some of the differences between historic/historical and classic/classical. In this post, I’ll deal with other common words ending with the suffixes -ic and -ical.
Botanic and botanical
Magic and magical
Comic and comical
Electric and electrical
Economic and economical Continue reading “Botanic or botanical? (More on suffixes: -ic and -ical)”
20 words that you may be mispronouncing
Chaos
Foreigner
Decision
Government
Do you know how to pronounce these words?
If you don’t, keep reading….
As my students know, I’m a great believer in the power of self-study. The activity I’m presenting today comes from material I use in class but you can also use it by yourself at home.
A pre-requisite is that you need to be familiar with the pronunciation chart. If you aren’t yet, you can learn it by yourself or book some classes with a teacher. I encourage you to do that if you want to acquire an invaluable tool to improve your pronunciation over time. It may take a while, but it’s not as hard as it seems. Continue reading “20 words that you may be mispronouncing”
ADJECTIVE COLLOCATIONS WITH THE WORD: EFFECT
Learning collocations makes our communication more vibrant and descriptive. It enlivens it. Let’s have a look at 6 adjectives that collocate with the word effect.
Calming effect
Calming effect“At the end of a stressful week,
the absolute silence in the snowed forest
had a calming effect on her.”
(also soothing effect)
Continue reading “ADJECTIVE COLLOCATIONS WITH THE WORD: EFFECT”
Common mistakes in First-B2 (Part 2)
Can you spot the mistakes?
X “He explained us why he didn’t agree with the proposal.”
Clue: What preposition would you need after explained?
Key: explain to somebody.
√ “He explained to us why he didn’t agree with the proposal.”
Common mistakes in First-B2 (Part 1)
Can you spot the mistakes?
X “I knew her while we were volunteering for the National Trust in the Peak District.”
Clue: What is the difference between meet and know in this context?
Key: You meet someone for the first time and from then on, you know them.
√ “I met her while we were volunteering for the National Trust.”
Extra: “Over the working holiday, I got to know her and we became friends. After having shared some more experiences, we know each other very well now.” Continue reading “Common mistakes in First-B2 (Part 1)”
Talking about a hospital stay
Have you ever had to talk about an experience connected to hospitals in English? Did you feel you lacked the vocabulary? That’s natural; it’s not everyday language.
Here is a suggestion:
Why don’t you try to practise now so that you are prepared next time? You could first use a dictionary to find the words you may need, and then, write the events down or alternatively, record yourself speaking. You can also pick up some words from the following text.
Classic or Classical?
Mozart, Beethoven, Chopin, Vivaldi… What do you call music composed by them? Classic or Classical?
3 basic pronunciation tips
Intended for:
Spanish speakers learning English at an Elementary or Lower-Intermediate level or those with a higher level but without experience in learning pronunciation.