Tag: English Fluency

How to express wishes

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This mini lesson includes a review of verb wish.

Verb wish is used to express our desire for something different from how it is now. Wish expresses a desire that is impossible or almost impossible to happen.

In this mini lesson you'll learn how to express desires in English

Differences between I would like and I wish

I would like vs. I wish

 Grammar Practice

Level of difficulty: ⭐

Wishes about present situations

Put the words in the correct order

 Speaking Practice

  1. Get into pairs or small groups.
  2. Take turns being the speaker and the listener.
  3. Choose a topic card.

You are going to make wishes about things that are or will be impossible.

You will need to use the I wish + simple past/ would to explain the things that you wanted to be real but you know they are not real

Give examples and reasons

Another speaking game

Level of difficulty: ⭐⭐

Wishes about past situations

Student A:

  1. Choose one box
  2. Read the sentence out loud

Student B:

  1. Close your eyes
  2. Listen to your partner
  3. Make a wish (I wish + past perfect)

Student C:

Write the sentence on a piece of paper

Switch roles <>

QUIZ

The Position of Adverbs

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Adverbs are words that describe an action (e.g. She speaks slowly) or modify adjectives (e.g. This car is incredibly expensive) or other adverbs (e.g. He works very hard). They can be one word (e.g. often) or a phrase (every now and then).

Common types of adverbs:

  1. Adverbs of manner describe how somebody does something.
  • They usually go after the verb or verb phrase
  • With passive verbs they usually go in mid-position
  • Examples: beautifully, slowly, happily, thoroughly, fast, quickly, cheaply, etc.

2. Adverbs of frequency tell us how often an action is performed.

  • They go before the main verb but after verb be
  • If there are two auxiliary verbs, the adverb goes after the first one
  • Some adverbs can be put at the beginning of the phrase or sentence for emphasis (sometimes, usually, and normally)
  • Examples: always, never, usually, sometimes, usually, normally, etc.

3. Adverbs of time and place tell us when and where an action is performed

  • Time adverbs usually go at the end of a sentence or clause
  • Place adverbs usually go before time adverbs
  • Examples: in the morning, at night, at the airport, in half an hour, here, there, etc.

4. Adverbs of degree describe how much something is done, or modify the adjective

  • Some adverbs of degree are used with adjectives and adverbs and they go before them (e.g. extremely, incredibly, very, a little, a little bit, etc.)
  • Some adverbs are often used with verbs and go before the verb or the verb phrase (e.g. a lot and much)

5. Comment adverbs give the speaker’s opinion about a particular topic.

  • They usually go at the beginning of a sentence or clause
  • Examples: luckily, basically, clearly, obviously, apparently, eventually, etc.

More examples:

Watch the following videos to find more examples and exercises

Grammar Practice

Level of difficulty: ⭐

Level of difficulty: ⭐⭐

 Speaking Practice

Level of difficulty: ⭐⭐⭐

  • Choose a type adverb of frequency
  • Flip the tile
  • Discuss the question with your classmates

Articles (part 2)

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In a previous post we discussed the basic differences between the indefinite articles (a/an) and the definite article (the).

As you can see in the Introduction to articles some of the patterns for the usage of articles in English are easy to remember. However, the use of articles in English is very complex.

Using articles in English can be very challenging for speakers of other languages because:

  • In some languages speakers use articles before almost every noun
  • In some languages speakers never use articles before nouns.

In this post you can find more specific rules and exceptions of article usage in English.

Using articles in English
Using articles in English

Practice Time

Articles (Part 1)

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Articles are tiny words that go before nouns. There are 3 common articles in English: a, an and the.

A and an are indefinite articles. It means that we use them to talk about things in general = one of many.

The is a definite article. It means that we use it to talk about specific things = only one.

Basic rules:

  1. We use a/ an to mention a noun for the first time or say who or what somebody or something is.
  2. We use a/an when the reader/ listener has not seen the person, animal or thing we are talking about.
  3. We use the when it’s clear who or what somebody or something is.
  4. We use the to talk about things or places that are unique.
  5. Don’t use an article to speak in general with plural and uncountable nouns.
  6. We don’t use an article in some phrases like at home, at work, go home, go to work, go to bed, next …, last …, etc.

Watch the following video for more examples

What to write in a Christmas Card

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Let’s write some Christmas cards!

Writing Christmas cards is a tradition in many many English speaking countries. The tradition of sending Christmas cards started in the mid 1800’s in the UK when a British artist created a greeting card for Sir Henry Cole to send forth to his family and friends. Sir Henry Cole thought that sending Christmas cards to his family and friends would be a nice way to convey happy sentiments while wishing them a joyful holiday.

Queen Victoria started sending seasonal greeting in the 1840’s.

The White House traditionally sends Christmas cards every year.

In spite diverse in culture and religion, Canadians also partake in the tradition. Christmas cards are sent to wish people peace and joy.

Writing a Christmas card can be a bit challenging, especially if you don’t know what to include in your card.

Here I have made a list of common Christmas messages that you can include in your Christmas cards:

Wishing you and your family health, happiness, peace and prosperity this Christmas and in the coming New Year.

Merry Christmas! May you get chance to take in the beauty and true meaning of the season.

Happy Holidays! I hope all of your Christmas wishes come true.

May your holidays be filled with love and rejoice. May you have a great time with your friends and family this Christmas! Sending my best wishes to you.

May your holidays be filled with happiness and good cheer!

It’s people like you that make Christmas a sacred, meaningful occasion. Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas! This coming year, may you be gifted with countless blessings.

Gifts come and go, what really matters are the people who light up our lives all year long. Thank you!

The past year has been anything but cheerful and bright. Wishing you love, light and a prosperous year ahead.

Wishing you nothing but the best this holiday season.

Practice time

Write a Christmas card

Christmas postcard

Christmas idioms

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Christmas came earlier this year

Meaning: When someone gets an unexpected surprise.

Example: John got a promotion last week. Indeed, Christmas has come earlier for him this year.

Good things come in small packages

Meaning: Used to say that people or things do not have to be large to be good

Example:

A: I’m upset at my boyfriend. He only gave me this tiny box for my birthday.

B: Don’t get upset until you know what’s in it. Good things do come in small packages!

The more the merrier

Meaning: More people will make something more enjoyable. This set phrase is used to welcome one to join a group or activity

Example: Oh sure, you can come to the party with us—the more the merrier!

Christmas comes but once a year

Meaning: Since Christmas only comes once a year, people should be good to one another in the Christmas season

Example:

A: I’m going to volunteer at the orphanage center, do you want to join a hand?

B: Of course, Christmas comes but once a year.

All my Christmases have come at once

Meaning: Said when one is experiencing a an extraordinary amount of good fortune

Example: The day I got married, I heard I’d passed my exams and got a promotion, so it felt like all my Christmases had come at once.

Like turkeys voting for Christmas

Meaning: The most popular choice of food for the Christmas in several parts of the world is turkey. When people choose or accept a situation that is not in their interest or will be directly harmful to them.

Example: The employees agreed to go back to the office in the middle of the pandemic without any increase in their pay. It was like turkeys voting for Christmas.

Practice time

  1. Roll the dice or spin the wheel
  2. Can you remember the idiom?
  3. Write a sentence using the idiom

Christmas Phrasal verbs

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Yaaay! Christmas is coming. That’s my favorite time of the year.

I have prepared some flashcards with festive phrasal verbs that you will hear a lot throughout the holiday season. You can give it a try and use some of them in your conversations.

Practice time

  1. Review the flashcards
  2. Click on the red button to do the online crossword.
Solve the puzzle

Want to download and print the flashcards and the crossword?

DOWNLOAD

been to vs. gone to

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Let’s talk about verb be and verb go

You already know that:

Base formsimple pastpast participle
bewas/ werebeen
gowentgone

Now, let’s say that you want to talk about your trips. If you want to talk about your trips and the places that you have visited in the past you can’t use verb go in the present perfect form.

simple present1. I usually go to Paris in the summer. ✔️
simple past2. I went to Paris last year. ✔️
present perfect3. I have gone to Paris many times. ❌
I have been to Paris many times ✔️

Why?

Because…

been tocompleted visits (round trip)
gone toone-way trip

In the video below I explain how to use been to and gone to correctly

Practice time

Now it’s your turn.

Complete the following sentences with been or gone:

  1. My mom has ________ to the supermarket. She’ll be back in an hour.
  2. I’ve ________ to that place before. I know how to get there.
  3. You’re late. Where have you ________?
  4. Where has the teacher _________? She was here 5 minutes ago.
  5. She’s ________ to New York for a job interview.
  6. Has he ________ home? The party hasn’t finished yet.
  7. Have you ever _______ to Australia?
  8. The children have ________ to school.
  9. The fridge is full of fresh food. I’ve _______ to the supermarket?
  10. My dad has ________ to the dentist.
Check your answers HERE

Introduction to Phrasal Verbs

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Phrasal verbs are two-word verbs. They include a verb and a particle. The particle can be a preposition or an adverb. Common particles are: up, down, back, out, on, off, or in.

When a verb and a particle are put together the resulting verb phrase has a complete different meaning.

Examples:

I usually eat out on Sundays. (I usually eat in a restaurant on Sundays.)

My computer broke down suddenly. (My computer stopped working suddenly.)

Mike works out every day. (Mike does exercise every day.)

Phrasal verbs are divided into 2 big groups:

  • Intransitive phrasal verbs
  • Transitive phrasal verbs

Intransitive Phrasal Verbs

  1. Intransitive phrasal verbs DON’T need an object to complete their meaning.

Remember that the object is the person or the thing that receives the action of the verb. The object of the sentence is the answer to the question who or what the subject does something to.

Example of objects:

Susan opened the door.I will invite Tony to the cinema.
Subject: SusanSubject: I
Verb: invitedVerb: will invite
object: the door (what)object: Tony (who)

Examples of intransitive phrasal verbs:

Sit down, please

Can you stand up for a moment?

They will come back tomorrow.

2. The particle always comes immediately after the verb.

Examples:

Can you stand for a moment up?

Can you stand up for a moment? ✅

We will go next weekend away.

We will go away next weekend. ✅

Transitive Phrasal Verbs

Transitive phrasal verbs need an object. Transitive phrasal verbs can be divided in 2 groups:

1 Separable phrasal verbs

Some phrasal verbs have an object and are separable. That means that you can put the particle before or after the object.

Example:

Take out your shoes before getting in the house.

Take your shoes out before getting in the house.

  • When the object is an object pronoun (me, you, him, her, us, them), the pronoun always goes between the verb and the particle

Take out them before getting in the house.

Take them out before getting in the house. ✅

2 Inseparable phrasal verbs

Some phrasal verbs have an object and are inseparable. That means that you cannot put the object between the verb and the particle.

Example:

Look your keys for.

Look for your keys. ✅

My friend is friend is sick, so I offered to take her dog after.

My friend is sick, so I offered to take after her dog. ✅

Practice time

Label the phrasal verbs T (transitive) or I (intransitive) according to their use in the sentence. Circle the object

  1. She walked into the room and then ran out.
  2. Her plane takes off at 12 o’ clock.
  3. She broke down in tears.
  4. Write down my phone number.
  5. My mom throws it away.
  6. Is the manager setting up a new project?
  7. Can you turn the radio down? I’m doing my homework.
  8. She decided to give up smoking.
  9. She’ll call back later.
  10. I don’t get along well with my neighbors.
Check your answers HERE

Two-word Question Words

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Listen to the audio

Questions are essential part of communication in any language.

If we want to get information or more details we usually place a question word at the beginning of the question. The question word refers to the information that we want to get. For example:

Question wordInformation we want to getExample
WhopersonWho is the man who has long hair?
WhatthingWhat’s the best place you’ve visited?
WhereplaceWhere are you from?
WhentimeWhen did you graduate?
WhyreasonWhy are you studying English?
*HowmannerHow did you like the movie?
Examples of question words

There are some two-word questions that start with How…?

For example: How far…? How tall…? How long…? How fast…? How often…? How old…? How much…? and How many…?

In the chart below there are more details and examples about two-word questions that start with How.

Two-word question words
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Let’s practice!!

Choose a question and answer it in the comments below

1. How old were you when you started learning English?

2. How often do you practice English?

3. How tall is the tallest man in the world?

4. How fast can a black panther run?

5. How old is your best friend?

6. How many apps do you have on your phone?

7. How much time do you spend on social media every day?