2019-02-01 Giving and Receiving Compliments
In the country of Japan, being told that your face is small is very high praise for a woman. In…
2019-01-25 How to Express Your Opinion in English
Suppose you are with a group of friends discussing the greatest inventions of the 20th century. One friend says, “I…
2019-01-18 How to Order at an American Restaurant
When I lived in Portugal, one of the simplest things to do was really hard for me: ordering food at…
2019-01-11 How to Interrupt Someone in a Nice Way
Imagine that you are talking with a friend who lives overseas. You haven’t seen or spoken to the person in…
2019-01-04 How to Ask for Clarification
In the humorous American television program Seinfeld, the characters often find themselves in strange situations because of small communication failures.…
2018-12-21 Compound Nouns: Putting Words Together
What do these five words have in common: hotdog, fireworks, well-being, waistline, sunset and ice cream? They could all describe…
2018-12-14 Words to Travel With, Part 2: Airports
Ask one hundred people whether they love to travel and most of them will probably say yes. Discovering a new…
2018-12-07 Words to Travel With, Part 1
Have you ever been to an airport or train station where the official language was English? What was your experience…
2018-11-30 Do You See What I See?
It was beautiful in Washington, DC, this morning! I could see the sun shining and hear birds singing. So, I…
2018-11-23 The Verbs Let, Allow and Permit
The verbs “let,” “allow” and “permit” are part of a group of verbs called “causatives.” These verbs express how one…
2018-11-16 How to Make a Complaint in English
Imagine that you are visiting friends or family in an English-speaking country. You need to have a few pieces of…
2018-11-09 The Road Signs of English
If you are driving a car, you will probably see many traffic or road signs. They provide information about how…
2018-11-02 Use Fewer Words but Say More
American comedian George Carlin is remembered for telling jokes about politics, religion and even the English language. He used humor…
2018-10-26 What’s the Difference? ‘So’ and ‘So That’
If you asked even the most knowledgeable Americans, they probably could not tell you more than a few meanings for…
2018-10-19 Four Adverbs: Just, Already, Still, Yet
Sometimes, the most common words in the English language can cause the most trouble. Today, we will talk about four…