Tear and desert ‘Tear’ and ‘desert’ are words that are pronounced differently to indicate their meaning. The noun tear, which is a drop of fluid from the eye, rhymes with the word dear. ‘She shed a tear when her cat died.’ But when we use ‘tear’ as a verb, meaning to rip, it's pronounced 'tear' and that rhymes with the word 'bear'. ‘Don't tear the book.’ The noun ‘desert’ means a barren dry, sandy and often lifeless place. ‘It rarely rains in the desert.’ But when the word ‘desert’ is...

Gonna and Gotta In informal English conversation, we often use shorter, versions of common word combinations. One of the most common is ‘gonna’ - short for ‘going to’. When we say the words ‘going to’ very quickly, they run together and sound like ‘gonna’. So ‘Are you going to wash the car today?’ becomes: B: ‘Are you gonna wash the car today?’ And ‘We are going to go home for dinner.’ becomes: ‘We’re gonna go home for dinner.’ We also shorten ‘got to’ so it sounds more like...

Practising contractions Pronouncing contractions can be tricky - let’s practise some: ‘I am’ becomes ‘I’m’. I’m I’m going to the beach. I’m going to come with you. ‘You are’ becomes ‘you’re’ You’re You’re going to the beach today, aren’t you? You’re late. ‘She is’ becomes ‘she’s’ She’s ‘She’s coming to the beach with me.’ ‘She’s running late again.’ ‘He is’ becomes ‘he’s’ He’s ‘He’s coming to the party.’ ‘He’s already here.’ And ‘it is’ becomes ‘it’s’ It’s ‘It’s too late to start...

Doubt or Question? Many English learners confuse the nouns ‘doubt’ and ‘question’. A ‘question’ is something you ask when you want to find out information. ‘Can you answer my question?’ ‘Does anyone have any questions?’ The noun ‘doubt’ describes a feeling of not being sure about something. ‘I have doubts about my ability to pass the test.’ ‘I never had any doubt you could do it.’ So if you have ‘doubts’ it means you feel uncertain. If you have ‘a question’, it means you want to ask...

How to join a conversation If you hear an interesting conversation, it’s a good idea to listen in and make sure it’s appropriate to join. If it’s a personal or private conversation, the speakers might not want you to interrupt. You‘ll have to use your own judgement, and take a risk. If they seem friendly and open, you can try to find something interesting to add. Don’t try to change the subject or talk too much about yourself. Remember to smile, be friendly and ask questions about...

Carnivores, herbivores and omnivores A ‘carnivore’ is a meat eating animal. It eats other animals. ‘The lion is a carnivore, as is the leopard.’ Carnivorous, an adjective, means ‘meat-eating’. ‘The Tasmanian devil is the world's largest carnivorous marsupial.’ A ‘herbivore’ is an animal that eats only plants. ‘Zebras are herbivores.’ An ‘omnivore’ is an animal that is able to eat both animal and plant life. ‘People are omnivores.’ Flickr CC: Chen Wu

The final ‘s’ sounds in words can be confusing as there are three different ways that we can pronounce ‘s’ endings. Listen to the following three words and listen for the difference: Cooks Earns Damages There are slight differences here: Cooks makes the /s/ sound. Cooks / cooks. Other examples are: Checks Graduates Hates Earns makes the /z/ sound. Earns / earns. Other examples are: Boys Girls Hours Messages makes the /iz/ sound. Messages / Messages. Other examples...

More tongue twisters Tongue twisters are an excellent way to practise your pronunciation. Listen to the following tongue twisters and follow the script below. Then, practise saying the tongue twister yourself. Practise a few times slowly so you can pronounce the sounds of each word. You will hear yourself improve each time. You might also like to record your voice then compare your pronunciation to ours. Tongue twister number 1 A big black bug bit a big black dog on his big black...

Word Pairs ‘Wine and dine’; means to entertain someone with food and drink - often with a motive in mind. The only way to win the new contract is to wine and dine the clients. ‘Sink or swim’; means to fail or find a way to succeed. Note that we always say ‘sink or swim’ in that order. The phrase ‘sink or swim’ is used to talk about someone who is thrown into a difficult situation where they must succeed without help from others. It’s a difficult job and there’s no training. He will sink...

Up ‘Bring up’ means to take care of and educate a child. Some people think it is better to bring up a child in a small country town. The past tense is ‘brought up.’ She was born in Sydney but brought up in Melbourne. ‘End up’ means to become or turn out to be. She started doing business at university but ended up doing medicine. No matter what she ends up doing, she will succeed. ‘Use up’ means to finish. Someone’s used up all the bread. Don’t use up all the toothpaste, I haven’t brushed...

Wander or Wonder? To ‘wander’ is to walk around without a clear purpose. An elephant wandered into the garden. ‘Wonder’ refers to feeling curious. I wonder why the elephant is there. Flickr CC: muzina_shanghai

Advice or advise? ‘Advice’ is the noun. 'You should follow your doctor’s advice.' ‘Advise’ is the verb. 'I advise you to listen carefully.' 'My doctor advised me to stop smoking. ' Flickr CC: Vic

'Used to' or 'Used for'? ‘Used to’ refers to something that was true in the past. 'I used to ride to work every day, but I live too far away now.' ‘Used to’ also means to be accustomed to. 'By the end of summer, I'm used to the heat.' ‘Used to’ refers to the purpose of something. 'Pens are used to write.' You can also say ‘used for’ to mean the same thing, but you say ‘for writing’ and not ‘for write’. 'Pens are used for writing.' Flickr CC: Daniel López

Lend and borrow Borrow something [from someone] Lend something [to someone] Lend someone [something] We use borrow to say that we take something temporarily with the intention of giving it back. Do you mind if I borrow a few dollars for the bus? That book looks great, may I borrow it once you have finished? We use lend to say that we give something temporarily with the understanding that it will be returned. Can you lend me your car? Her father lent her some money to buy a...

‘Stay in touch’ means to keep contact. I will be leaving today to go camping and will be away for a month, but don’t worry I will stay in touch. ‘Drop me a line’ means to send someone a note or a message in an informal way. 'As soon as you settle in to your new house, drop me a line.' ‘A shoulder to cry on' is someone who is willing to listen to your problems and offer advice. She needed a shoulder to cry on and went to visit a close friend. Flickr CC: Kevin Dooley

Loud / aloud / allowed ‘Loud’ is an adjective and means to make a lot of noise. Turn the music down, it is so loud. And it can also refer to bright clothes. Wow, look at his shirt, it sure is loud. ‘Aloud’ is an adverb and means to speak out, so you can be heard. The teacher told the students to read aloud. And ‘allowed’ is a verb meaning to have permission. We are not allowed to ride our bikes in there, look at the sign on the gate. Flickr CC: Sam Leighton

Debate and discussion A discussion is a detailed conversation. ‘We had a long discussion about which school I should go to next year.’ ‘The discussion was very helpful. I think I’m ready to make a decision.’ A ‘debate’ is a discussion in which people argue or consider opposing points. ‘We debated whether to have pizza or sushi for dinner.’ ‘The meeting went on for hours as we debated the benefits of both sides.’ The word ‘debate’ can also describe a formal speaking contest in which two...

Concern and Sympathy There are many ways we can express concern and sympathy. We could say: ‘That’s terrible.’ I had a car accident on the weekend. That’s terrible, are you OK? ‘I am sorry to hear that.’ I can’t come to the party on Saturday night. I’m sorry to hear that. ‘I know how you feel.’ I’m so upset this morning. I lost my wallet on the way to work. I know how you feel, that happened to me a few years ago. ‘I hope you feel better soon.’ I’m going to leave early. I’ve got a...

Asking for advice. There are many ways to ask for advice, here are some of the more common ones: What do you think I should do about _____? ‘What do you think I should do about the broken window?’ What should I do about _____? ‘What should I do about John? He never does his homework.’ What would you do about____? ‘What would you do about finding a new job? I don’t know where to start. What do you think I should do? ‘I can’t decide which car to buy. What do you think I should do?’ What...

Past continuous You use the past continuous tense to talk about something that occurred in the past. Past continuous tense is used when the action you’re talking about started before the moment you’re describing, but had not finished. For example, in past tense, you might say: ‘I watched a film on TV yesterday. The film started at 7pm and finished at 9pm.’ When we use the past continuous we say: ‘At 8pm yesterday I was watching TV.’ The past continuous can be used to say that something...

Keeping a conversation going To keep a conversation going it is important to show you are listening and want the conversation to continue. Here are some things you can say to keep a conversation going: ‘Really’ A: I went to the beach yesterday. B: Really? A: Yes, we drove there in the morning and had a lovely day. ‘I see’ A:I usually walk along the path by the river. B: I see. A: It’s lovely there in the morning. ‘That’s interesting’ A: My son is a great swimmer, he would swim all day...

Syllable stress A syllable is a word, or part of a word, which contains a single vowel sound. Every word contains at least one syllable, Some examples include: Pen Watch Cat The following words are examples of words with two syllables. garden: gar / den hotel: ho / tel consist: con / sist Here are some examples of words with three syllables: September: sep / tem / ber department: de / part / ment telephone: te / le / phone And these words have four syllables: kindergarten: kin / der /...

Get We the verb 'to get' in many different ways. Here are some of the more common usages. 'Get' meaning to acquire or come into possession of something: 'Get your cold drinks here.' 'Get' meaning to become or change state: 'She got very angry after she learnt that he had recorded over her favourite program.' 'Get' meaning to receive something: 'I got letters and notes from all the staff before the end of my last day.' 'Get' meaning to arrive or reach your destination: 'He gets in at...

Tongue twister A tongue twister can be a fun way to practice the different sounds of English. Try these tongue twisters, how well can you say them? She sells seashells by the sea shore. She sells seashells by the sea shore. Try this one; How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood. How much wood would a woodchuck chuck if a woodchuck could chuck wood. Flickr CC: Bemep