2019-02-02 The Rules of Word Stress, Part 1
In English, syllable stress is hugely important for communication. The word “stress” here means saying part of a word louder…
2019-01-26 House or Home – Which Is It?
A house or a home? That is the question. How do we know when to use one or the other?…
2019-01-19 How to Use the Word ‘Ever’
Have you ever noticed the number of times that a native English speaker uses the word “ever”? Ever is an…
2019-01-12 How to Count Syllables
In the English language, spelling and pronunciation have a funny relationship. How we write a word and how we say…
2019-01-05 Can and Be Able To
Modal verbs are helping verbs. We use them with main verbs to help us express ability, possibility, necessity and permission.…
2018-12-29 Sorry and Excuse Me
Imagine that you are in a crowded place in an English-speaking country. You want to politely ask someone to move…
2018-12-22 How to Say the Letter ‘I’
In some languages, you can look at a written word and know almost immediately how to say it. You can…
2018-12-15 How to Learn More Words
In English, we have a saying that goes, “Use it or lose it.” It means that if you do not…
2018-12-08 Must and Have To
Today we will answer a question about two misunderstood modal verbs. Modal verbs are helping verbs. They help us express…
2018-12-01 The Preposition ‘By’
If you can write or speak even just a little English, you have surely used prepositions — words like “to,”…
2018-11-24 Well or Good
Here at VOA, I am a teacher. But outside of work, I am a language learner, too. Having studied three…
2018-11-17 Between and Among
Prepositions can be tricky in any language, including English. And English has a lot of them. But, do not worry!…
2018-11-10 Sentence or Statement?
Many VOA Learning English stories and programs use the words “sentence” and “statement.” But what exactly does each word mean?…
2018-11-03 Like or Alike?
Have you ever wanted to talk about similarities between people or things but were unsure what words to use? Today’s…
2018-10-27 Foot or Feet?
The English word “foot” has more than one meaning. In the United States, one meaning is a unit of measurement…