Silent Letters

Everybody who is learning English wants to have a proper accent when speaking. This is very difficult if you don't start learning on an early age or if you don't go abroad for a time of your life.

It is known that pronuntiation is one of the clues to speak a proper English. For Spanish speakers, English is very weird because you don't pronounce as you write. For instance, in Spanish you pronounce every single letter that is written but in English you don't.

Here you have some Word lists with SILENT CONSONANTS and SILENT VOWELS that you can use to improve your vocabulary knowledge and your pronuntiation.

Enjoy!

Basic Word list

Pre- Intermediate Word list

Using extreme adjectives

Hello there!

Today we are going to put into practice some vocabulary tips to develop our speaking skill.

We, as Spanish speakers, can make some mistakes using adjectives when speaking in English.

If we don't know the exact meaning, we try to translate it into Spanish, but sometimes in English the meaning is "harder" than what we really want to express and for English speakers it sounds very exagerated.

Here we have some advices from our friend @C.EnglishTeacher to improve your vocabulary using extreme adjectives which show more level than using normal adjectives.

Please, feel free to play this video all the times you need to and while listening try to pronounce them.

Enjoy!

How much or how many????

If we want to learn how to use HOW MUCH ?  and  HOW MANY ?  first of all we need to know the difference between COUNTABLE and UNCOUNTABLE nouns.

According to the Cambridge Dictionary, when we say COUNTABLE noun, we are talking about some nouns that refer to things which, in English, can be treated as separated items that can be counted. 

COUNTABLE nouns can be singular or plural. They can be used with a/an and with numbers and many other determiners like these, a few... For example:

                    a house, three houses
                    a book, a box full of books
      
                    She has got two sisters and a younger cousin.
                    Sean bought Kevin a few magazines.

Knowing that we consider UNCOUNTABLE nouns those which refer to things that are seen as a whole or mass and cannot be separated or counted. Some examples of UNCOUNTABLE nouns are:

                    - Ideas and experiences: advice, information, progree, news, luck, fun, work
                   
                    - Materials and substances: water, rice, cement, gold, milk

                    - Weather words: weather, thunder, lightning, rain, snow

                    - Names of groups or collections of things: furniture, equipment, rubbish, luggage

                    - Other common uncountable nouns include: accomodation, bagage, homework, knowledge, money, permission, research, traffic, travel.

👀 These nouns cannot be used with A/AN or numbers and not used in the PLURAL. For example:

                    We're going to get new furniture for the living room. 

          Not: We’re going to get a new furniture for the living room. or We’re going to get new furnitures for the living room.

So, when we want to know the quantity or amount of something, we ask HOW MUCH ? for the uncountable nouns and HOW MANY ? for the contable nouns. These questions always follow the same structure:

                    HOW MUCH/MANY + noun + verb +  C ?

Here you have a summary chart from our friends from Woodward English:

LET'S PRACTISE!

Choose the correct alternative: How much? How many?

Exercise 1

Exercise 2

Body parts vocabulary

Body parts is one of the topics of vocabulary that we learn in elementary courses of English.
Here you have some vocabulary about the BODY.

Did you know all of them?

Enjoy!

To infinitive or -ing?

The weekend is here and we have the opportunity of practising our favourite hobbies or just enjoying our free time. But, do you know how to express what you LIKE, HATE, LOVE OR PREFER?
We can use hate, like, love and prefer with both forms the -ing or with to-infinitive.

There is a very small difference in meaning between the two forms. We often use the -ing form to suggest enjoyment (or lack of it), and the to-infinitive form to express habits or preferences. for example:

I love climbing at the weekends.

I hate to wake up early.

The -ing form emphasises the action or experience. The to-infinitive gives more emphasis to the results of the action or event.

EXCEPTIONS

Would + hate, like, love, prefer

When we use would or ’d with hate, like, love, prefer, we use the to-infinitive, NOT the -ing form:

We would love to watch your .

Not: We would love watching your film.

They’d hate to cause a problem.

Not: They’d hate causing a problem.

I’d prefer not to give you my name.

Not: I’d prefer not giving you my name.

British English VS. American English (Part 1)

It is sometimes difficult for us, as English learners, to differentiate between English and American English.

Here you have the first "lesson" where you can see some of the differences of vocabulary.

Both of them are correct, BUT REMEMBER!!! If you sit an official exam you have to choose only one, in other words, you can't mix both. ☺

Enjoy!

The Weather

This Winter is being very harsh. Here you have some vocabulary and expressions to describe the weather.