2019-06-28 How to Replace That-Clauses with ‘So’
As a general rule, the English language aims to avoid repetition. That’s why, on Everyday Grammar, we talk about ways…
2019-06-14 Three Common Forms in Everyday Speech
Have you ever had someone “repair” a home appliance but it kept breaking? I have been having trouble with my…
2019-06-07 Present Progressive Tense and Showing Annoyance
Samantha Fish is an American songwriter and blues singer. In her song Somebody’s Always Trying, she complains about other, unnamed…
2019-05-31 Too and Either: Short Responses of Agreement
In English conversation, when we respond to a speaker, we often do not repeat all of their words. Instead, we…
2019-05-24 The ‘By-phrase’ and the Passive Voice
In a famous scene in the American film Clerks, two of the characters have a disagreement. They debate which “Star…
2019-05-17 A Simple Sentence with Seven Meanings
In some languages, speakers say each word in a sentence with equal stress. That is true for Japanese, for example.…
2019-05-10 Science Fiction and the Passive Voice
The Terminator movies, featuring actor Arnold Schwarzenegger, have been some of the most popular films ever made. They tell the…
2019-04-26 Movies Can Teach You about Verbs and Objects
The 1972 film “The Godfather” is one of the most famous movies ever made. It tells the story of a…
2019-04-19 So and Neither: Short Responses of Agreement
In the American television show Saturday Night Live, actors make jokes of realistic situations and people, like politicians and sports…
2019-04-12 The Word ‘Which’ in the News
Imagine you open an American travel magazine. Perhaps you want to read about other countries and the must-see places to…
2019-04-05 The Many Ways We Use ‘Of Course’
In the film, “Love, Of Course,” single mother Amy Andolini finds herself alone after sending her daughter to college. But…
2019-03-29 Grammar and the News: Nouns Modifying Nouns
Imagine you are looking at an American newspaper or news website. You read a few stories, and see terms such…
2019-03-22 The Passive Voice with ‘Get’
Have you ever gotten invited to a wedding? If so, who got married — or will get married? Where was…
2019-03-15 Other, The Other and Another
It’s springtime in Washington, D.C. and I’m so excited! There are a lot of places to enjoy nature, like the…
2019-03-08 Diminutives Make Many Things Smaller
Hi everyone! Do you feel like playing a little word game today? I do. OK, here it is: I will…