Learn English through Songs

Vocabulary needs to be revised again and again. Well, what could be better than studying vocabulary by listening to your favorite songs?Read the lyrics first and try to understand them. You don’t have to translate the lyrics word by word, just try to find out what the song is all about. (Note: ‘Rap’ might not be practical as those songs usually contain slang words that not even ‘ordinary’ English native speakers know.)

Pick some words or phrases from the song that you would like to learn. If necessary, look up their exact meaning in a dictionary. A dictionary might also be useful to find other interesting phrases with the word.Now, to learn the vocabulary, all you have to do is listening to the song again and again (that shouldn’t be a problem if it’s one of your favourite songs).Let the music turn you on.

Free music from MP3.com - you can download mp3 and listen to the music and song online - great site
nlyrics.com - Lyrics Collection of Quality Song Lyrics
Music from Yahoo - where you can watch video music clips
MTV - oh yes - this one is famous with great and sexy video clips from famous singers
Video music from Google - that's great too
Video music clips from YouTube
Independent Music from Garageband.com - you can listen to the music and English song from independent artists
Song, Music and video clips from American Online (AOL)
Music from Microsoft Networks
Sing365.com - Where you can find every English song lyrics of every singers with their photos and biography
RockStar Supernova from Microsoft Networks - for whom who like rock music
Song room from ElsClub - you can listen to the song and see the lyric

Study Abroad Tips

• With astute planning, anyone can afford study abroad. To economize, study in a country where the U.S. dollar is especially strong and/or study for a shorter duration.
  
• Study abroad is for everyone, not just language majors. In fact, many employers and graduate and professional schools welcome applicants with overseas experience.
  
• If you aren't sure about how you'd fare alone, consider going abroad with a close friend.
  
• Study the political climate of the country to determine if it is safe to visit.
  
• Learn about museums, architectural landmarks and other famous sites, and then explore them.
  

• Attend all program orientations. They're a great source of information.
  
• Research the host country's culture, religion, history, current events, and economy. This will help reduce subsequent culture shock and home sickness.
  
• Learn about traditional day-to-day behavior. What may be polite in one country—i.e., tipping—may be offensive elsewhere.
  
• Try to learn a few handy local phrases of the local language. The more you know of the language, the better you'll adjust.
  
• Record the address and telephone numbers of the nearest U.S. Embassy or Consulate, and keep this information with you at all times.
  
• How expensive or difficult is a local Internet connection? Online access lets you contact family and friends via email, and keep informed of events back home via the Web. All this will help reduce culture shock and home sickness.
  
• Keep a journal. When you return, your journal will remind you of interesting sites and events you might otherwise have forgotten. Moreover, your journal may be a helpful resource if you subsequently write about your experiences or advise future study abroad students.

USA Study Guide & Scholarship

.

Us-guide  - Study in the USA guide - good site for study in the USA

Institute Of International Education - IIE Vietnam - Information to study in the US.

Vietnam Education Foundation - VEF- Provide scholarships for Vietnamese students to study in the USA

Fulbright Program in Vietnam - Hanoi, Vietnam - U.S. Scholar Program. International Fulbright Science & Technology Ph.D. Scholarship

Chương trình học bổng Việt Nam - Vietnamese Overseas Scholarship - 322 project from Vietnamese government - 400 scholarships every year.

Singapore Study Guide

Singapore Education - The complete guide to study in Singapore - in Vietnamese

Singapore Cooperation Programme (SCP) Singapore Scholarship

 

United Kingdom Study Guide

British Council Vietnam

Chevening Programme - wards scholarships to overseas students in over 150 countries

Official Homepage of the Vietnamese Student Association in the UK

 

Australia Study Guide

IDP Education Australia

Practicing Business English

What do I need to study?

Social interactions


Introductions

Socializing

Inviting

Requesting

Telephoning


 




Business Correspondence


Letter writing

Memos

Proposals

Business plans

Advertising

Other communication


 




Business Meetings


Phrases for discussion

Agendas

Assignments and Follow-up


 




Business Presentations


Professionalism

Organization

Visuals

Audience awareness


 




Business Vocabulary


Products and Services

Promotion

Finance and Banking

Accounting and Invoicing

Technology

Channeling


 




Business Activities


Buying and Selling

Cultural skills

Networking

Negotiation

Contracts

Business English

Business English The Australian Radio network provides a great site to learn Business English through concrete examples and situations. There are tips and exercises after each lessons. You must enjoy it.

BBC Learning English | Business English Learn and improve your English through business related topics.

English for Presentations - Effective Public Speaking Skills

Business English  Doing Business in English

Useful Expression for  business English

 

Business English Pod  Learn Business English at your convenience with our free MP3 Business English Podcast.

Bloomberg.com - Financial news - Investment Tools - Market Data

American Business Jargon

Business English for EFL, ESL students.

BusinessWeek: Daily & Breaking News from the world of business.

MBA Programs at Business Schools

Worldwide directory of MBA schools and programs that includes admission tips, scholarship links

Weekly Business Writing Tips

English Net Links - Business English

English Dictionary Online

Merriam-Webster Dictionary

You can hear the pronunciation of words.

AskOxford  You probably know the famous Oxford Dictionary. This is the online version with a lot of advantage compare to the hardcover book thanks to its richness of resource such as writing tips, grammar tips, ask the expert, the quotes of the day.  You can also find the Children Dictionary from this site and other world of English dictionaries such as Australian English , New Zealand English, American English and Canadian English.

Visual Dictionary. To learn by way of image with thematic, clear and precise pages, with concise and rigorous texts.

Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary

You can add it to your browser.

Newbury House dictionary of American English  contains over 40,000 entries. With simple, clear definitions, and provides a wealth of sample sentences and idioms.

Encyclopedia Britannica

Lets users simultaneously search the encyclopedia, expert reviews of the Web's best sites, timely articles from leading magazines, and related books.

Encarta World English Dictionary A big talking dictionary, click to hear the pronunciation of the word.

Wikipedia!

A free, open-content encyclopedia in many languages.

Your dictionary.com

More than 1500 dictionaries representing more than 230 languages.



Answer.com

A great site with all definition of every concept and term

Babel Fish

Machine translations of texts.

Eurodicautom

The European Commission's multilingual term bank. The focus is on specialized and technical terminology.

VDict (Vietnamese Dictionary) is the best and totally free Vietnamese-English-French Online Dictionary 

When children should learn a second language?

Did I mention that it is also so much fun to connect with your child in such a meaningful and exciting way? It was strange, my mother was the one to first communicate with Johnny through sign language and she and I both noticed an almost immediate shift in his temperament. He became even more relaxed than before and seemed to be much more contented during those times when he would normally be frustrated with us not understanding his needs because he now was able to tell us!

I recommend to any parent, guardian or child worker to start small with simple signs for words you use every day. Remember that baby/small child hands are not quite as nimble as ours yet so the more simple the better. I found a book that really works for us however there are many many resources available to you for free on the Internet. Keep an eye out also for any courses locally available to parents, guardians and child workers as those can also be an excellent way to learn and share the joy of being able to communicate with your little one(s).

Treasure each moment with your child. These times won't last forever but the memories will!

English Learning Resource for Children

• ESL Kids Lessons. Free Video Slide Lessons, ESL Printables – Worksheets, Flashcards, and Phonics.



• Disney website - great for kids including activities, games, music, song



• English songs for childrenKizclub.com provides lots of educational activities in language arts for preschool and elementary age children



• Starfall.com The Starfall learn-to-read website is offered free as a public service. A fun site to learn to read English.



• Woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/interactive/onlinestory.htm - Online stories - children can hear and read stories online



• Cartoon Network - The kid favorite site for games and cartoon



• Discovery Kids - Check out Discovery Kids shows, games and more online



• Website for Children of AmericanOnlinePBS Kids. A lot of activities for kids to learning English: Games, stories, music.



• British Council's Learn English Kids. You can listen to songs, read and listen to stories.



• Sillybooks.net A lot of free audio book and stories for children.



• Internet4classrooms.com A great website for children to learn Math - from grade 1 to grade 8.

• Time for Kids. A weekly magazine for kids that delivers the most current news.

• School Discovery. Discovery Channel's Website with lesson plans and learning contents for all kinds of subjects for K-12.

• Kids' Health. Dealing with feelings, recipes, everyday illnesses, injuries, and kids' talk.

• Kids Domain. A great site with a lot of games and free software to download.

• Picture Books. Free online picture books by professional illustrator and Writer Dandi Palmer.

• Franky Fox & Friends. Free online picture books by professional illustrator and Writer Dandi Palmer.

• Weekly Reader. A popular site for kids and teens. Read this week's feature story.

• Room 108. A primary education site for kids with lots of free online games but all with an educational focus.

• ESL Kids Lab. Printable ESL Worksheets, Games Videos, Kids Vocabulary & Grammar Quizzes,Powerpoint downloads.

• PBS Kids. Games, stories, music, and coloring.

• Story Place. The Preschool Library and Elementary Library with new activities and themes being added each month.

• Kids Web Japan. An attractive site for kids to learn about Japan.

• Space Place. NASA's Website for kids. Games, animations, projects, and fun facts about Earth, space and technology.

• British Council's Learn English Kids. You can listen to songs, read and listen to stories.

• Education Place Kid. Wacky Web tales, brain teasers, and best reading activities.

• International Children's Digital Library. The best in children's literature are made available online.

• Scholastic. Popular website of the largest publisher of children's books.

• Brain Pop. Popular site for kids to learn English and other subjects.

• Fairrosa Cyber Library of Children's Literature. A fairly big collection of classics, folk tales, and professional journals.

• Kid Genius. Free educational software to teach alphabet, numbers, counting, and so on.

• Phonics. There are phonics posters, flash cards, coloring sheets, game cards, handouts and more.

• KidSource Online. A parenting newsletter with a lot of good advice.

• Carol Hurst's Children's Literature Site. This is a collection of reviews of great books for kids, ideas of ways to use them in the classroom.

• ESL Play House. An excellent resource for teachers of young learners.

• Teach children ESL. Download free worksheets and flashcards, play free games and songs.

• ESL Kids Stuff.Some excellent links for both teachers and students.

Improving vocabulary

Tips for improving vocabulary

English is the richest language with the largest vocabulary—over 1,000,000 words—on earth. Yet the average adult has a vocabulary of only 40,000-50,000 words. Imagine what we're missing! Here are some strategies for unlocking the meanings of new words and a process for remembering the new words and their meanings.

Context

You can often get at least part of a word's meaning from the way it's used in the sentence. So, when you come to an unfamiliar word while reading, rather than first looking it up in the dictionary, try to figure out its meaning from the words around it. Often the author provides clues to help you unlock the general meaning.

"Perihelion is the point in the earth's orbit when the distance between the earth and the sun is at its minimum, as opposed to aphelion."

Glossary

If your book has a glossary it will give you the specific definition for this field of study. A glossary, a mini-dictionary in the back of a text, contains only the definition that fits the use in this book.

apheloin The point in the earth's orbit when the distance between the earth and the sun is at its maximum.

Dictionary

To find exactly what a word means and where it comes from look it up in the dictionary. The dictionary is a reliable source of definitions plus correct spellings, pronunciation, parts of speech and derivations. To use this resource book effectively however, you must understand the abbreviations it uses and the variety of information it includes. Since you may find a variety of definitions for a word, always fit the definition back into the original context to be certain it makes sense.

aph·elion n. pl -elia [NL. fr. apo + Gk helios sun—more at solar]: the point of a planet's or comet's orbit most distant from the sun—compare perihelion

Structure

Knowing the parts of words—prefixes, roots, suffixes—helps you understand and unlock the meanings of whole families of words. A prefix is the part that's sometimes attached to the front of a word; there are about 100 common ones. The root is the basic part of a word; most of our root words come from Latin and Greek. A suffix is often attached to the end of a word.

apo prefix from Greek meaning away from

helios comes from Greek meaning the sun

Now, other words with apo or helios start to make sense such as apolune=the point in the path of a body orbiting the moon that is farthest from the center or heliophyte=a plant thriving in full sunlight.

Read, Read

In addition to using these strategies it's important to read a variety of a materials. The more you expose yourself to new words, the more words you will learn.

Improving Vocabulary Resources

Irregular Verbs

English Vocabulary - Learn words by image and pronunciation

Building a better vocabulary - An article guiding you to improve your vocabulary

Test your vocabulary - A self-study English vocabulary quizzes

Vocabulary Training - Test your vocabulary

Vocabulary page from learnenglish.de - a lot of vocabulary terms to learn and practice

Free Rice One of the most popular vocabulary learning websites, which automatically adjusts to your level of vocabulary.

Vocabulary, Free Word Puzzles and Activities

Everyday Vocabulary Anagrams - 600+ Anagrams - Over 600 anagrams sorted by topic and number of letters. Includes randomly chosen ten-question quizzes.

English Vocabulary (Ohio ESL) - Idioms. Reference. Vocabulary for Special Purposes

Vocabulary Improvement Program -Vocabulary Improvement Program that provides a study of roots, prefixes, and suffixes.

Learning Vocabulary Word search, hangman, quiz, and match games.

Pronunciation

These English pronunciation tips will help you get the most out of your  Pronunciation Power program.



Tip 1

Do not confuse pronunciation of words with their spelling! For example, "threw" and "through", although spelled differently, are pronounced the same.

Also, identical letters or letter clusters in words do not always produce the same sound. For example, the "ough" in "though" and "through"  represents a different sound in each word. Learn to practise what you hear, not what you see.



Tip 2

Imagine a sound in your mind before you say it. Try to visualize the positioning of your mouth and face. Think about how you are going to make the sound.

Tip 3

Listen to and try to imitate the Pronunciation Power instructor. In addition to listening for specific sounds, pay attention to pauses, the intonation of the instructor's voice and patterns of emphasis. This can be just as important as the pronunciation of sounds.



Tip 4

The English language has many different dialects, and words can be pronounced differently. It is important, however, that you pronounce words clearly to ensure effective communication.

English Pronunciation

ronunciation tips from BBC - a great site to learn British English pronunciation including pronunciation tests

American English Pronunciation Exercises for every sound with audio available. You need to install the RealPlayer in order to listen.

International Phonetic Association's The major as well as the oldest representative organization for phoneticians since 1886.

Mouth Mangler A fun site with audio and let you repeat as many times as you want.

Sentence Stress What sentence stress is, why it is important.

Sounds of English Detailed instruction on how to pronounce each sound.

Word Stress  Learn where to put a stress in a word.

Online English Pronunciation. Okanagan University College, with QuickTime video to show you how to pronounce each sound.

Online Language Laboratory. Online pronunciation guides to 9 varieties of the English language.

American English Pronunciation Practice. Minimal pair practice and quizzes by Charles Kelly.

Authentic American Pronunciation. Practice pronunciation of basic English words and sentences.

Pronunciation practice. The world's most visited pronunciation practice website, over 40 native speakers, and 10 languages.

Accent Reduction. Tongue Twisters with audio from ESL Mania.

Tongue Twisters. The world's largest collection of tongue twisters, with 2680 entries in 105 languages.

Talk English. Learn how to speak English fluently - Sample sentences on every topics - click on the sentence to hear the pronunciation.

Confused words

Here is a list of easily confused words:

accept  adoptive  adverse  advice  affect  all ready  all together  allot  allusion  altar  ambiguous  among  amoral  appraise  are  augur  award  bad  beside  brake  breathe  by  by  can  canvas  capital  censure  cite  clothes  coarse  compare  compare to  complement  consul  continuous  council  decent  definite  defuse  delusion  delusion  descent  desert  discreet  draft  egoism  envelop  flounder  forth  good  grisly  hear  hoard  hole  hour  imply  incidence  incite  instance  its  knew  know  later  lay  lead  leave  loose  luxuriant  marital  notable  object  officious  passed  peace  perspicuous  plain  pore  precede  precedence  presence  principal  proscribe  quiet  quiet  rain  rain  raise  regretful  sea  sit  site  stationary  statue  statue  story  than  their  their  threw  to  to  tortuous  vain  vain  vociferous  waist  weak  wear  wear  weather  whether  whose  your

except  adopted  averse  advise  effect  already  altogether  a lot  illusion  alter  ambivalent  between  immoral  apprise  our  auger  reward  badly  besides  break  breath  buy  bye  may  canvass  capitol  censor  site  cloths  course  contrast  compare with  compliment  counsel  continual  counsel  descent  definitive  diffuse  illusion  allusion  dissent  dessert  discrete  draught  egotism  envelope  founder  fourth  well  grizzly  here  horde  whole  our  infer  incidents  insight  instants  it's  new  no  latter  lie  led  let  lose  luxurious  martial  noticeable  subject  official  past  piece  perspicacious  plane  pour  proceed  precedent  presents  principle  prescribe  quit  quite  reign  rein  rise  regrettable  see  set  sight  stationery  statute  stature  storey  then  there  they're  through  two  too  torturous  vane  vein  voracious  waste  week  were  where  whether  rather  who's  you're

Rules of Writting English

Here is some rules of writing English:

1) To join two independent clauses, use a comma followed by a conjunction, a semicolon alone, or a semicolon followed by a sentence modifier.

Examples:

Incorrect -- Correct

The delivery boy knew he carried strange cargo, but still ventured off unafraid.

The delivery boy knew he carried strange cargo, but he still ventured off unafraid.



My math teacher doesn't know how to lecture, she should have remained a student.

My math teacher doesn't know how to lecture; she should have remained a student.

2) Use commas to enclose subordinate clauses or phrases, which are not essential to the sentence's meaning.

Examples:

Incorrect -- Correct

The bus driver with her ears tuned to the roar decided to take the grumbling bus on a detour across the football field.

The bus driver, her ears tuned to the roar, decided to take the grumbling bus on a detour across the football field.



My window as dirty as it is reveals the beauty of nature on a snowy morning.

My window, as dirty as it is, reveals the beauty of nature on a snowy morning.

3) Do not use commas to bracket phrases that are essential to a sentence's meaning.



Examples:

Incorrect -- Correct

The man, who has too many ties, has too few necks.

The man who has too many ties has too few necks.



The cats, with six toes, are a unique attraction of the tour of Hemingway's house.

The cats with six toes are a unique attraction of the tour of Hemingway's house.



4) When beginning a sentence with an introductory phrase or an introductory (dependent) clause, include a comma.



Examples:

Incorrect -- Correct



After buying the five pound jar of marshmallow spread he set off in search of a bulk portion of peanut butter.

After buying the five pound jar of marshmallow spread, he set off in search of a bulk portion of peanut butter.



With this he bestows the responsibility of his own happiness on his mother and father.

With this, he bestows the responsibility of his own happiness on his mother and father.

5) Make the subject and verb agree with each other, not with a word that comes between them.



Examples:

Incorrect -- Correct



The cart, as well as its contents, were gone.

The cart, as well as its contents, was gone.

The girl, along with her classmates, like the new teacher.

The girl, along with her classmates, likes the new teacher.

6) Use parallel construction to make a strong point and create a smooth flow



Examples:

Incorrect -- Correct



I was glad to be departing for Australia but I was nervous when I left my apartment.

I was glad to be departing for Australia but nervous to be leaving my apartment.

The system excels at tasks such as communicating with other computers, processing records, and mathematical calculations.

The system excels at tasks such as communicating with other computers, processing records, and calculating mathematical equations.

7) Use the active voice unless you specifically need to use the passive voice



Examples:

Incorrect -- Correct



A refund was given to him by the hair regeneration company.

The hair regeneration company gave him a refund.





A good score was achieved by the team.

The team achieved a good score.

8) Omit unnecessary words.



Examples:

Incorrect -- Correct





I would like to assert that the author should be considered to be a buffoon.

The author is a buffoon.





It would be safe to say that Gregor Samsa is not the only character in Franz Kafka's The Metamorphosis to undergo drastic changes.

Gregor Samsa is not the only character in Franz Kafka's The Metamorphosis to undergo drastic change.





Before going to the supermarket, we made a list of the groceries we needed in order to make the food that we intended to eat for dinner.

Before going to the supermarket, we made a list of groceries that we needed to prepare dinner.

Writing English

1) To join two independent clauses, use a comma followed by a conjunction, a semicolon alone, or a semicolon followed by a sentence modifier.  2) Use commas to enclose subordinate clauses or phrases, which are not essential to the sentence's meaning. 3) Do not use commas to bracket phrases that are essential to a sentence's meaning. 4) When beginning a sentence with an introductory phrase or an introductory (dependent) clause, include a comma.  5) Make the subject and verb agree with each other, not with a word that comes between them. ; 7) Use the active voice unless you specifically need to use the passive voice 8) Omit unnecessary words. ; Essay Info. Basics of essay writing, writing tips, essay types, citation styles, and so on. Careerlab.com - 200 FREE Cover Letters For Job Hunters Good Essay Topics. A collection of great topics for your college paper or essay, and 10 tips for choosing a thrilling essay Topic. The Purdue University Writing Lab Handouts. One of the earliest online writing lab. The Handouts section provides excellent guide to academic writing. There is also a section of English as a Second Language. Online Guide to Writing and Research University of Maryland University College (UMUC) prvides this site, like an online writing textbook. Technical Writing. An online textbook for technical writing. It's also a good online reference book. Web Style Guide. Yale online design manual dealing with Web design principles and various Web design issues. Writing Studio. A free, password-protected writing/learning environment that offers WYSIWYG writing tools. Writers' Workshop at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign A Guide for Writing Research Papers based on styles recommended by the American Psychological Association in question-and-answer format. APA Style Official website of the American Psychological Association. Writing for the Web Research on how users read on the Web and how authors should write. Essay Writing A step-by-step guide to essay-writing. Web Frequency Indexer Cut and paste in an article, you will get a list of words used in the article, with their frequencies. Web Concordancer. You can search an online corpus for a word and display all the sentences in which the word occurs. Online Writing Collaboration Project is the meeting place on cyberspace for English teachers and learners. Touch Typing. Free Program that lets you exercise and learn Touch Typing. Peter's Online Typing Course. A set of free online typing lessons and exercises. 1-Language Chat. A Popular ESL chatroom that does not require any registration to enter. Writing? How to write English Texts. Punctuation, essays, and business letters. Paradigm Online Writing Assistant. A lot of information about how to write informal essays, thesis/support essays, argumentative essays, and exploratory essays.

Listening Tips

Does this situation seem familiar to you? Your English is progressing well, the grammar is now familiar, the reading comprehension is no problem, you are communicating quite fluently, but: Listening is STILL a problem!



First of all, remember that you are not alone. Listening comprehension is probably the most difficult task  for almost

all learners of English as a foreign language. So, now you know you are not alone....! OK. The most important thing is to listen, and that means as often as possible. The next step is to find listening resources. This is where the Internet really comes in handy as a tool for English students.

First you need to:



Download The RealPlayer from Real.com

The RealPlayer allows you to listen to RealAudio and use the Internet like a radio station. Many sites now also provide listening using the  Windows Media Player - or even have their own players on the site. Once you have the RealPlayer you can begin to listen to English as it is used in everyday life. The possibilities are almost unlimited.

You can:

Listen to All Things Considered news stories on NPR

Listen to the BBC.

 

Listening Resources

English as a Second Language Podcast

Center for Educational Development,

Los Angeles

Slow speed, with transcripts, vocabulary and cultural explanations.

Randall's Cyber Listening Lab

These self-grading JavaScript listening quizzes will help you check your listening comprehension in English.

Wonderful resource from Randall Davis.

 

Audio English - English Learning, listening and pronunciation course

TOEFL Podcast

Center for Educational Development, Los Angeles

Listen to native speakers talk and discuss topics similar to those that will appear on the TOEFL or IELTS exams

Shortstoryradio.com - Listen to short stories in English

Living on Earth  - Living on Earth is an independent media program and relies entirely on contributions from listeners and institutions supporting public service. You can listen online with text for each topic.

CNN's podcasting service  - News and information files that may be downloaded to your computer and/or transferred to your portable MP3 player

National Public Radio - Where you can read and listen a lot of interesting article daily on diverse topics. - Great!!!

ABC news - Daily news, including Video Podcast

Elllo.org - English listening language lab online - including audio & text

History.com - The history channel - including video. You can listen to some of the most famous and important speeches in history

Mercurytheatre.info - The finest radio drama of the 1930’s was The Mercury Theatre on the Air - Now you can listen these drama on the Internet - advanced level

The Bob and Rob Show Podcast

Weekly English lessons from an American and an Englishman.

ESL PodCards

With accompanying worksheet and transcript.

Clive Hawkins

Englishcaster

A list of podcasts for learning English .

Beginners Dictations

An illustrated series of exercises for real beginners.

Real English Video Dictations

Based on interviews with ordinary people.

Fairy Story Dictations

Telephone Dictation

Hotel Reservations - "Dictation"

A grammar dictation: tenses & time words.

Movie sounds & clips

Michel Barbot

Soundguide

Rodolphe Maurel

Dictations of dozens of authentic British & American sentences - many of them taken from films. (You don't need to understand the French instructions to do the dictations.)

English Dictations

On Nicola Dökel's Kico4U site. (You don't need to understand the German instructions to do the dictations.)

Online dictations . org

Traditional dictations - many from classical texts.

Learn English - Dictations Please

Lynne Hand. Traditional dictations on various subjects. Elementary & Intermediate. You need a fast connection to do these.

 

In-House Listening Quizzes

11 sentences.

On-Line Lessons - Spelling

100 spelling dictations

Dictation Quiz

Video clip with 7 questions by Masatoshi Sugiura

Graded online English language dictations

Traditional "dictation test" format. Mainly classic literary texts.

Learn a Song Podcast

Learn to sing folk songs, campfire songs and group-singing songs that native English speakers sing.

ESL Podcasts

Choose a podcast from the menu at the top of the page

Voice of America news podcasts

News from Voice of America

Breaking News English

Ready-to-use EFL / ESL Lesson Plans & Podcast.

Listening English from Webcast of BBC 

CNN.com features the latest in Free Video News, including breaking news, world news, politics, weather, business, health, law, sports

Theamericaproject.org - At this site, you'll find some very interesting radio stories about American people

Themoonlitroad.com - Do you like scary stories? Here are four traditional ghost stories and folktales from the American South

 

Reading for Content Guide

Normally, when reading a text, people use a strategy that I call "reading for content". The goal of this strategy is to get the main idea of the text as quickly as possible and with as little effort as possible. To accomplish this goal, your brain will try to read as few words as possible and spend only a fraction of a second on each word.

Here are some characteristics of "reading for content":

1. 
   

   Not seeing "grammar words" like a, the, in, of, through, that. The eye only stops at content words (main nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs).

   
   
2. 
   

   Not seeing word forms: Was it look or looked? Has looked or had looked?

   
   
3. 
   

   Not noticing the exact spelling. It is well known that the brain recognizes whole words - it does not analyze them letter by letter. Native speakers see the word piece all the time, but many of them still misspell it as peice, because the two spellings have similar shapes.

   
   
4. 
   

   Ignoring difficult words that are not essential to understanding the meaning (here: primeval, constrictor). Who has the time to use a dictionary?
   
   

   
   

Pause and think

Here's the process that the "pause and think" method recommends for dealing with sentences in texts:

1. 
   

   Stop at interesting (not obvious) things: a new word, how a word was used, a grammatical structure, a preposition, an article, a conjunction, the order of words, etc. For example, spend a while to think about the fact that the sentence contains the preposition at, and not on. Perhaps the sentence uses the present perfect tense where you would have expected the past simple. Perhaps the word order is different than in your first language.

   
   
2. 
   

   If the sentence contains a useful phrase, ask yourself: Could you produce a similar phrase yourself? Would you use the right tenses, articles and prepositions? Would you use the right word order? If you're not sure, practice saying a similar phrase aloud or in your mind. The idea is to move the phrase to your "active vocabulary".
   
   

   
   
3. 
   

   If necessary, or if you feel like it, use your dictionary to find definitions of words in the sentence and get more example sentences. This will help enrich your "feel" of the word.
   
   

   
   
4. 
   

   If you use SuperMemo, consider adding the phrase to your collection (e.g. as a sentence item) to make sure it will stay in your memory. Of course, only useful phrases should be added

   
   

Websites for Readings

Normally, when reading a text, people use a strategy that I call "reading for content". The goal of this strategy is to get the main idea of the text as quickly as possible and with as little effort as possible. To accomplish this goal, your brain will try to read as few words as possible and spend only a fraction of a second on each word.

Here are some characteristics of "reading for content":

1. Not seeing "grammar words" like a, the, in, of, through, that. The eye only stops at content words (main nouns, verbs, adjectives and adverbs).
   
2. 
   

   Not seeing word forms: Was it look or looked? Has looked or had looked?

   
   
3. 
   

   Not noticing the exact spelling. It is well known that the brain recognizes whole words - it does not analyze them letter by letter. Native speakers see the word piece all the time, but many of them still misspell it as pieces, because the two spellings have similar shapes.

   
   
4. 
   

   Ignoring difficult words that are not essential to understanding the meaning (here: primeval, constrictor). Who has the time to use a dictionary?

   
   

Try to read a lot of divers books and information. Especially novels. Because while reading novels you will learn a lot of new phrases, the way English speaking people make conversation. Not counting the precious information you acquire when reading interesting books. If you see a new words, try to check them with a electronic or online dictionary. Days after days, you will learn a lot of vocabularies.

All levels

Magda's Reading Links

A well researched list of interesting exercises.

Elementary level

Adult Learning Activities California Distance Learning Project

Short articles on health and social problems (and other topics) with audio and video.

Vocabulary and comprehension exercises (The exercises are less interesting than the texts.)

Intermediate level

Encyclopedia Britannica - trusted sources of information on every topic imaginable - from the origins of the universe to current events and everything in between.

Interactive reading exercises

Based on the Voice of America's Special English programs

Quizzes Based On VOA's Special English Programs

Charles Kelly

BBC Learning English - News English

News stories with vocabulary explanations and comprehension exercises. Also audio and video.

Story Archives from the CNN

A wide range of articles from their archives with exercises and audio and video clips. Highly recommended.

Finest Quotes. A huge collection of inspirational quotes, thoughts of greatest minds of history

National Geographic Kids News

Aimed at teenagers, a wide range of topics are covered in relatively simple English.

flesl.net

Forrest Lunn

A collection of paired news articles - some with exercises.

The Mystery Spot

Access Excellence Mysteries

The reader takes the role of an investigator and has to solve illustrated science/health mysteries.

Enchanted Learning: Inventors and Inventions

Short paragraphs on lots of subjects. Some graphics.

Enchanted learning: Explorers

Short paragraphs with photos, maps, etc.

Easy jokes

Using Jokes and Humor to Learn English Joe's Jokes - Read, Listen, and Learn English. A great way to increase your vocabulary!

Aesop's Fables

Texts - no exercises.

Reading from E.L Easton - no exercises.

SOON

A Christian easy-English literature program.

OurTimeLines.com

Create a timeline of your own life or of another period.

Simple English News. All kinds of news in simple English

Advanced level

Public Domain Books. Hundreds of books you can free download or open to read.

Yahoo Daily News. Quickly updated news, classified into different categories.

Story-Building

Michael A. Riccioli

Active reading exercises - fun to do.

Urban Legend Reference Pages

Lots of strange stories: some of them true!

English Grammar - Interjections

An interjection is a word added to a sentence to convey emotion. It is not grammatically related to any other part of the sentence: : Ouch, Hey, Oh, Wow


Examples:

Ouch, that hurt!
Oh no, I forgot that the exam was today.
Hey! Put that down!
I heard one guy say to another guy, "He has a new car, eh?"

English Grammar - Conjunctions

Conjunctions are used to express a connection between words. There are three types of conjunctions: coordinating conjunctions, correlative conjunctions, and subordinating conjunctions.

The most familiar coordinating conjunctions are and, but, and or.

Examples:

I and my wife go to the party.

Hot or cold.


Here are examples of correlative conjunctions. They are always come in pairs:
both...and, not only...but, also either...or neither...nor whether...or

Examples:

Both my dad and my mom play the piano.


Subordinating conjunctions, (subordinators) are most important in creating subordinating clauses.

Here are some examples of them:

after
before
when now
while
since
until

because
since
that
as
in order that
so


although
though
even though
whereas
while
in case (that)


if
unless
only if
whether or not
even if

English Grammar - Prepositions

Prepositions are used before nouns to give additional information in a sentence. They links nouns, pronouns and phrases to other words in a sentence. Usually, prepositions are used to show where something is located or when something happened.

Here are some prepositions showing the locations:

above
below
over
under
among
between
beside
in front of
behind
next to
with
in the middle of
on
in
at


Examples:

The book is beside the table.


Here are prepositions showing the time:

at
on
by
before
from
since
for
during
to
until


And here are the prepositions showing the action and movement:

at
by
from
into
on
onto
off
out of
after


Complex prepositions consist of two- or three-word combinations acting as a single unit.

Here are some examples:
according to
along with
apart from
because of
contrary to due to
except for
instead of
prior to
regardless of

More links on Prepositions:



http://137.122.14.100/academic/arts/writcent/hypergrammar/preposit.html

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/esl/eslprep2.html

English Grammar - Pronouns

A word used to take the place of one or more nouns is called a pronoun.

A pronoun that can replace a person, place, or idea is demonstrative: these, that, this, those

Examples:

We really like this house.

Do you want to buy those cats or these dogs?


An indefinite pronoun is a pronoun referring to an identifiable but not specified person or thing. An indefinite pronoun conveys the idea of all, any, none, or some.
The most common indefinite pronouns are "all," "another," "any," "anybody," "anyone," "anything," "each," "everybody," "everyone," "everything," "few," "many," "nobody," "none," "one," "several," "some," "somebody," and "someone."


A pronoun that forms a question in the sentence is interrogative pronoun: whom, who, which, what, whose

Examples:

Who wrote this letter?

What are your problems?


Possessive pronouns are used to show ownership over something else: my, our, his, her, your, its, their

Examples:

It's my bag.

Your car is stolen?

A pronoun that refers to a subject and directs the verb action back onto the subject is reflexive: myself, itself, yourself, ourselves, themselves, himself, herself.

Example: I've cut myself.


A pronoun is personal if it refers to the person speaking: I, you, he, she, we, they etc...

Example: Do you want to go with me?


Other links on pronouns:



http://www.arts.uottawa.ca/writcent/hypergrammar/pronouns.html

http://www.geocities.com/pants098/np.html

English Grammar - Adverbs

What is an adverb?
Most adverbs tell you how, where, or when something is done. In other words, they describe the manner, place, or time of an action.

Examples:

She speaks slowly.

It is raining heavily.


Many adverbs end with the suffix -LY. Most of these are created by adding -LY to the end of an adjective.

immediate -> immediately
quick -> quickly
careful -> carefully
bad -> badly

There are some exceptions that the adjectives are the same as the adverbs such as:

fast -> fast
late -> late

hard -> hard
early -> early

Be careful when using "hardly" that doesn't have any meaning related to "hard".

There are also some adjectives also ending with -LY but they are not adverbs such as:

Friendly, lively, elderly, lonely, silly, lovely


You can find more resources on adverbs at the following links:



http://www.ucl.ac.uk/internet-grammar/adverbs/adverbs.htm

http://esl.about.com/library/grammar/blgr_adverbs.htm

English Grammar - Adjectives

What is an adjective?

An adjective is a word that modifies or describes a noun or pronoun. Every adjective answers one of these three questions: What kind is it? How many are there? Which one is it?

Examples:

warm -> warm weather

strong -> strong boy

slow -> slow train


There are a lot of adjectives ending with -ING and -ED such as boring and bored.

For example:

Ann's job is boring -

Ann is bored with here job.

Here are a list of -ING and -ED ending adjectives:

Interesting - Interested

Exciting - Excited

Amusing - Amused

Shocking - Shocked

Confusing - Confused

Worrying - Worried

Annoying - Annoyed

Exhausting - Exhausted

Satisfying - Satisfied

Amazing - Amazed


Some adjectives can stand together to described a noun such as: a nice sunny day or a beautiful large wooden table.

The order is often : 1) Size -> 2) Age -> 3) Color -> 4) Origin -> 5) Material -> Noun

For examples:

an old French song

a tall thin man

a small black plastic bag

a big red eyes


Here are some more interesting links on adjectives:


http://www.arts.uottawa.ca/writcent/hypergrammar/adjectve.html

http://www.chompchomp.com/terms/adjective.htm

English Grammar - Nouns

A noun is a person, place, thing, or idea.

Examples:

This girl is nice.

I like this book.

We will visit Paris next year.

There are 2 types of nouns: Common & Proper Nouns

Common nouns are any person, place, or thing. Common nouns are not capitalized: a policeman, that newspaper

Proper Nouns are the name of a special person, place, or thing. Proper nouns are capitalized: Dallas Officer Walker New York Times.


Most nouns change their form to indicate the plural by adding "-s" or "-es".

For examples:

one book -> ten books

a worker -> many workers

a city -> many cities

There are nouns that change completely the form when indicating the plural such as:

a child -> children

a foot -> feet


Possessive nouns are used to show possession (owning, or having).

Example:

The dog's collar is too large.


The word "dog's" is the possessive noun. It tells you that the noun "collar" belongs to the dog. The dog owns, or possesses the collar. Add 's to the end of a singular noun to make it possessive.
Add only the apostrophe (') to the end of a plural noun that ends with an s.

For example:

My bothers' names are David and Christopher.


Nouns can be countable or uncountable.

A countable noun is a noun with both a singular and a plural form, and it names anything (or anyone) that you can count. You can make a countable noun can be made plural and attach it to a plural verb in a sentence. Countable nouns are the opposite of non-countable nouns and collective nouns.

for examples:

dog, cat, job, umbrella, notebook, book

Before countable nouns you can use "a" or "an".

A non-countable noun is a noun which does not have a plural form, and which refers to something that you could not usually count. A non-countable noun always takes a singular verb in a sentence. Non-countable nouns are similar to collective nouns, and are the opposite of countable nouns.

for examples:

music, furniture, water, news etc...



Here are some more resources on nouns:



http://www.arts.uottawa.ca/writcent/hypergrammar/nouns.html

http://www.englishclub.com/grammar/nouns.htm

English Grammar - Verbs - Future Perfect

Form:Will have + Past participle
or
Am / Is / Are + Going to have + Past Participle
Usage:
We use the future perfect to talk about something that will have been completed or done by a particular time in the future
Example:
We'll have completed this project by the end of this month.
If we want to stress the continuity of the future event, we use the future perfect continuous tense.
Example:
They will have been talking for over two hours by the time Jane arrives.

English Grammar - Verbs - Future Continuous

The future continuous is formed with:Will/Shall be + Verb+ing
or
Subject + [am / is / are] + Going To + Verb+ing
Examples:I hope the race goes well. We'll be watching it on TV. When her train arrives this morning, we are going to be waiting for her.
We can use the future continuous to talk about events that will be happening at a particular time in the future:
Tonight at 8 p.m., we are going to be seeing a movie.
We can use the future continuous to talk about what we believe or guess is happening at the moment of speaking:
Examples:
They'll be arriving in Paris just about now.
We can also use the future continuous to indicate that an action in the future will be interrupted.
Example:
We will be going to the supermarket when he arrives this afternoon.

English Grammar - Verbs - Simple Future

The Simple Future is expressed in a number of ways. The most common are with "will" and "be going to".
Examples:We will go to see you in some days.
I am going to see David tomorrow.
Both "will" and "be going to" can be used interchangeably in some cases such as predictions and guesses.
We use "will" to express a voluntary action which is one the speaker offers to do for someone else. Often we use "will" to respond to someone else's complaint or request for help.
We use "be going to" to say something is going to happen when it has already been planned.
Sometimes future time can be expressed with either the present or present progressive tense. In such cases, time words must be expressed or clearly implied.
Example:
I fly to New York tomorrow.

English Grammar - Verbs - Past Perfect Continuous

FORM Past Perfect Continuoussubject + HAD BEEN + VERB+ing
Usage:
The past perfect continuous tense is used to talk about longer situations that continued up to the moment in the past we are talking about.

Examples:
By the time I left France we had been living in Paris for twelve years

It is also used to say how long something went on for up to a past time.
Examples:
I apologized because I had kept them waiting for 5 hours.
Using the Past Perfect Continuous before another action in the past is a good way to show cause and effect.Examples:We were tired because we had been playing tennis during 6 hours

English Grammar - Verbs - Past Perfect

FORM - Past Perfect
+ HAD + past participle
Examples:
I had arrived
USAGE:
We use the past perfect when we wish to stress that one action or situation in the past occurred before another action or situation in the past.
Examples:
We had never seen such a beautiful place before I went to Miami.
USE 2 Duration Before Something in the Past
We use the Past Perfect to show that something started in the past and continued up until another action in the past.Examples:I had had this house for ten years before it was in fireBy the time Jonh finished his studies, he had been in Paris for over five years.
Finally, the past perfect tense is also used in third conditional sentences.
If she had studied harder, she would have passed her exams.

English Grammar - Verbs - Present Perfect Continuous

The present perfect continuous tense is formed with the present tense of the verb to have + been + -ing form: I/you/we/they have been singing He/she/it has been singing
We use the present perfect continuous tense to speak about situations which started in the past and are still continuing, or which have just finished and affect the present:We have been living here for 7 years. I feel tired because I've been partying all day.

English Grammar - Verbs - Present Perfect

FORM Present Perfect

[HAS / HAVE] + [past participle]

Examples:
We have never talked to each other.


USE 1 Unspecified Time Before Now


The most important thing to remember about the present perfect is that it can never be used with adverbs which describe finished time periods, such as yesterday, five minutes ago and at three o'clock. If a time adverb is used with the present perfect, it should describe a time period which is unfinished. Example include today and this week.

We use the Present Perfect to say that an action happened at an unspecified time before now. The exact time is not important. You CANNOT use the Present Perfect with time expressions such as "yesterday," "one year ago," "last week," "when I was a child," "when I lived in Japan," "at that moment," "that day" or "one day." We CAN use the Present Perfect with expressions like "ever," "never," "once," "many times," "several times," "before," "so far," "already" and "yet."

Examples:

I've lived in Austin for eight years.
There have been many tsunamis in Indonesia.
People have traveled to the moon.


We can distinguish three situations where the present perfect is used, although there is a lot of overlap between these situations.

They can be described as:

To describe 'experiences'
To describe the duration of continuing states and actions
To describe a past action with a result in the present


TOPIC 1 Experience
You can use the Present Perfect to describe your experience. You can also use this tense to say that you have never had a certain experience. The Present Perfect is NOT used to describe a specific event.

Examples:

we have been to USA.
We have been to USA three times.
We have never been to USA.
Philips has studied Spanish


TOPIC 2 Duration of continuing states and actions
We use the present perfect simple to describe the duration ('How long...') of a state which is true now.
Examples:

I have been in the US for six months.

We have been watching TV since four o'clock


TOPIC 3 Accomplishments - past action with a result in the present

We often use the Present Perfect to list the accomplishments of individuals and humanity. You cannot mention a specific time.

Examples:
My son has learned how to write.
Policemen have stopped a lot of criminals
She's broken her glasses.


Just
'Just' is commonly used with the present perfect simple to show that an action happened very recently. When 'just' is used the result referred to is often indirect, and this form can be used if you want to make it clear that the action is complete while at the same time explaining an indirect result of the action:

I've just washed the car, which is why I'm wet.

English Grammar - Verbs - Past Continuous

FORM Past Continuous[WAS / WERE] + [VERB+ing] Examples:While I was sleeping, she was working.Henry was speaking to Mary when Jane arrived.
USE 1 Interrupted Action in the Past
Use the Past Continuous to indicate that a longer action in the past was interrupted. The interruption is usually an action in the Simple Past. Remember this can be a real interruption or just an interruption in time.Examples:Tommy was watching TV when I called.When the phone rang, He was writing a letter.While they were having a picnic, it started to rain.Ann was working when Martin had the car accident.I was reading when he arrived.
USE 2 Specific Time as an Interruption In USE 1, described above, the Past Continuous is interrupted by an action in the Simple Past. However, you can also use a specific time as an interruption.Examples:What were you doing at 7.30 last night?At midnight, we were still watching the movie.
USE 3 Parallel Actions When you use the Past Continuous with two actions in the same sentence, it expresses the idea that both actions were happening at the same time. The actions are parallel.Examples:She was studying while I was making dinner.While David was reading, Chris was watching television.We were eating dinner, discussing our plans and having a good time.

English Grammar - Verbs - Simple Past

FORM Simple Past[VERB+ed]Examples:I visited my friends.I often visited my friends.
USE 1 Completed Action or Completed Condition in the Past
Use the Simple Past to express the idea that an action started and finished at a specific time in the past. Examples:The weather was rainy last week.Last year, I traveled to Japan.He didn't like the movie. We visted the museum yesterday.
USE 2 A Series of Completed Actions
We use the Simple Past to list a series of completed actions in the past. These actions happen 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th...Examples:I finished work, walked to the beach, and found a nice place to swim.He arrived from the airport at 8:00, checked into the hotel at 9:00, and met the others at 10:00.
USE 3 Single Duration
The Simple Past can be used with a duration which starts and stops in the past. A duration is a long action often used with expressions like "for two years," "for five minutes," "all day" or "all year."Examples:I lived in Brazil for two years.Shauna studied Japanese for five years.They sat at the beach all day.We talked on the phone for thirty minutes.How long did you wait for them?We waited for one hour.
USE 4 Habit in the Past
The Simple Past can also be used to describe a habit which stopped in the past. It can have the same meaning as "used to". To make it clear that we are talking about a habit we often use expressions such as "always," "often," "usually," "never," "...when I was a child" or "...when I was younger" in the sentence.Examples:I studied French when I was a child.He played the violin.She worked at the movie theater after school.They never went to school, they always skipped.

English Grammar - Verbs - Present Continuous

FORM Present Continuous[AM / IS / ARE] + [VERB+ing]Examples:I am watching TV.He is quickly learning the language.
USE 1 Now
Use the Present Continuous to express the idea that something is happening now, at this very moment. It can also be used to show that something is not happening now.EXAMPLES:He is speaking now.They are not talking at the moment.The teacher is teaching.Who are you writing to? We are looking for the keys.The kids are watching TV. What is she doing?
USE 2 Longer Actions in Progress Now
In English, now can mean "this second," "today," "this month," "this year," "this century" and so on. Sometimes we use the Present Continuous to say that we are in the process of doing a longer action which is in progress; however, we might not be doing it at this exact second.Examples:She is studying to become a lawyer.I am not studying to become a dentist.He is reading the book Tom Sawyer.I am not playing tennis right now.Are you working on any special projects at work?We aren't working hard these days.
USE 3 Near Future.The Present Continuous Tense is also used to talk about activities happening in the near future, especially for planned future events.
Example:She is meeting her parents after dinner.I am not going to the party tonight.We aren't going on holiday next week.Tony is coming for dinner tomorrow.
The ING form of the verbsUsually we add ING work working stand standing learn learning
When the verb ends in an e, we drop the e and add ingcome coming have having write writing If a one syllable (with only one vowel sound) verb ends in one consonant (for example p, t, r) that follows one vowel (for example a, o, e), we double the consonant.
swim swimming get getting stop stopping
Some verbs have irregular ing formlie lying die dying travel - travelling (Britain) or traveling (American)
Non-continuous Verbs
These verbs are usually things you cannot see somebody doing. These verbs are rarely used in "continuous" tenses. They include:Abstract Verbsto be, to want, to cost, to seem, to need, to care, to contain, to owe, to exist...Possession Verbsto possess, to own, to belong...Emotion Verbsto like, to love, to hate, to dislike, to fear, to envy, to mind...Examples:He is here now. CorrectHe is being here now. Not CorrectHe wants a drink now. CorrectHe is wanting a drink now. Not Correct

English Grammar - Verbs - Simple Present

Forming:
I + simple form You + simple form He + simple form + S She + simple form + S It + simple form + S We + simple form They + simple form
Example - [ to eat] I eatyou eathe eatsshe eatsit eatswe eatthey eat
USE 1 - Repeated Actions
Use the Simple Present to express the idea that an action is repeated or usual. The action can be a habit, a hobby, a daily event, a scheduled event or something that often happens. It can also be something a person often forgets or usually does not do.Examples:He plays piano.I do not play tennis.The bus leaves every morning at 9 am.The train does not leave at 9am.He always forgets her watch.They never go to school late.The Earth circles the sun.USE 2 - Facts or Generalizations
The Simple Present can also indicate the speaker believes that a fact was true before, is true now, and will be true in the future. It is not important if the speaker is correct about the fact. It is also used to make generalizations about people or things.Examples:Children like milk.Birds do not like milk.New York is in America.Paris is not in the United Kingdom.Windows are made of glass.Cars are not made of wood.
ACTIVE / PASSIVE Simple PresentExamplesOnce a week, Tom cleans the car. ACTIVEOnce a week, the car is cleaned by Tom. PASSIVE
-S or -ES?With most verbs, the third person singular form is created simply by adding -S. However, with some verbs, you need to add -ES or change the ending a little. Here are the rules:
Verbs end with
s Add -ES >- He passes z Add -ES -> She dozes sh Add -ES -> She wishes ch Add -ES -> He watches consonant + y Change Y to I, then add -ES -> It flies

English Grammar - Verbs

A verb is a word that expresses an occurrence, act, or mode of being. Finite verbs, sometimes called main verbs, are limited by time (tense), person, and number.
Verbs are sometimes described as "action words". Many verbs give the idea of action, of "doing" something. For example, words like run, fight, do and work all convey action:
The bear caught a salmon in the stream. Who ate the pie? Stop!But some verbs do not give the idea of action; they give the idea of existence, of state, of "being". For example, verbs like be, exist, seem and belong all convey state:
I am fine.
She likes me.A verb always has a subject. (In the sentence "She likes English", She is the subject and likes is the verb.) In simple terms, therefore, we can say that verbs are words that tell us what a subject does or is; they describe: action (David plays football.) state (Ann seems ok.)
A nonfinite verb form - such as a participle, infinitive, or gerund - is not limited by by time (tense), person, and number.

Grammar learning

Grammar learning is to understand how English phrases are constructed. In English you have the simple (present) tense, past tense, future tense. You also have the continuous tense that expresses the action that is happening. The nouns are words that can present a person, an object or a fact. There are singular nouns and plural nouns. Countable nouns are nouns that we can count for example one table, two tables, hundred tables etc. Uncountable nouns are the one that usually can not be count such as water, or information. Remember to do the exercises frequently. Most native speakers NEVER learn rules of grammar.English grammar rules are complex and have many exceptions. It is best to learn grammar by hearing and reading as much natural English as you can.
Keep a diary. For each day consider the "WH"-questions (what, where, who, when, why, how).Write reviews of movies you've seen, restaurants you've eaten at etc. Describe them and say what you liked - and didn't like about them. Find some English speaking penpals or email friends to practice real English communication with. Write letters to newspapers and magazines on subjects that interest you.
Grammar Handbook An excellent online grammar handbook

An On-Line English Grammar Book An online grammar book with a lot of example sentences.


A complete grammar book online - great
Revelle Humanities Grammar Handbook Explanation of various aspects of English grammar.
English Grammar Online English Grammar Reference and Exercises
UVic's 20 Grammar Topics (Elementary level)
UVic's 330 Grammar Topics (Elementary/Intermediate level)
UVic's 410 Grammar Topics (Intermediate/Advanced level)
Interactive English Grammar Exercises to help you understand English grammar.
Interactive grammar exercises All with graphics, mainly low level.
Zozanga Grammar Lessons A free and independent web site for EFL/ESL learners and teachers

Free Online English Learning Resources

English learning requires a lot of practice, patience and resources. The Internet provides a great way and tool to learn and improve your English. You can find the sites to learn vocabulary, grammar, listening skill, writing and maybe make friends all around the world. Learn English is to understand its sentence construction, phrases, or in general its grammar. But it's not enough. You need to have a lot of vocabularies in diver topics such as sport, culture, politics, economics etc. Listening and speaking are also very important. Try to spell correctly the new words at the first time.


1. GlobalEnglish.com GlobalEnglish: Providing global companies with online learning and support for improving business English communication. We offer a scalable, on-demand solution that addresses the English language learning and business communication challenges of globalization..

2.EnglishBaby.com A great site that uses fun movies and music to teach you REAL English. English Baby is one of the very best site that offers the listening new fresh lesson everyday with the American accent, excerpt from movies to give you the real English conversation and daily vocabulary. You can also make friends all around the world. They are from China, Turkey, Russia etc. They also offer the chat room where you can chat in real time with a lot of people. Don't be afraid. Try to express the best you can do.


3. English Club If you search on the Internet with a keyword "Learning English" you may find this site easily because it is one of the most famous sites offering English learning resources. Started some year ago, English Club helps you learn English or teach English as a second language. Access to all pages is free. You'll find everything from lessons for students to jobs for teachers, including interactive pages such as forums, games, quizzes, chat, help and penpals.

4. English Grammar Quizzes This project of The Internet TESL Journal has contributions by many teachers. To learn means also to pass the test. By taking these quizzes you may know what you forgot and what you need to improve. You can find exercises from easy to difficult levels with varieties of topics and subject ranging from preposition, crosswords, phrasal verbs, conversation, vocabulary etc. Activities for ESL Students has over 1,000 activities to help you study English as a Second Language.

5. TalkEnglish.com focuses solely on speaking English. It is their goal to help you gain the ability to speak English fluently.

6. Using English UsingEnglish.com provides a large collection of English as a Second Language (ESL) tools & resources for students, teachers, learners and academics. Browse the grammar glossary and references of irregular verbs, phrasal verbs and idioms, ESL forums, articles, teacher handouts and printable, and find useful links and information on English. Topics cover the spectrum of ESL, EFL, ESOL, and EAP subject areas.

7. Technical Writing Guide Remember your first letter or your first paper written in English. How difficult they are. Because writing requires a lot and a lot of practices, mostly when you are an English learner. If you are technical student who need to write a technical paper or essay, this site may be a good resource for you. It teaches you in very details of how to write a number, use of unit such as Hz, cm, volt etc. that you may think easy but in fact they must follow a certain rule in English.

8. ManyThing.Org is also a good and funny site to learn English online. It's totally free and offers many activites for beginners also for advanced students

9. OWL: Grammar, Punctuation, and Spelling Brought to you by the Purdue University Online Writing Lab. In this site, they offer you handouts and exercises on grammar, spelling, and punctuation. they also have PowerPoint presentations related to grammar, and they have an entire section of handouts and resources for English as a Second Language learners that might also prove useful.

10. Learn English from British Council This is a great site from British Council. The site offers many possibilities such as songs for listening, article for reading, fun stuff for playing. You learn English through daily article in various topics such as sport, culture, arts, story, poem. A great resource to practice reading and listening skills from elementary to advanced level, with interactive games, multimedia exercises

11. Learn English Kids from British Council This is the kids version. You can let your kids be familiar with English from very small and they will learn very fast. A Great resource for kids to learn English - songs, games, stories, painting activities

12. BBC Learning English BBC is a great website to be updated with what happening in the world. They also provide comprehensive materials for intermediate to advanced ESL learners from the BBC World Service. You can learn vocabulary from the news, take the quizzes, listening to the story and music. Great!

13. Chat with a robot in English. Yes - you can chat online with a robot. It's a software program that can understand what you are typing and chat with you. Hum, you now don't need to be shy. It's a really intelligent robot that can chat with you like a real native speaker

14. Answers.com You may not know that Answers.com is the number 4 in the search industry. You can search for definitions, pronunciation, and even translation of any English words.

15. Special English from Voice of America. It's great to have a website that offers the news and the audio of the article. You can read the news in a simple English and listen to the audio. So you can learn not only the writing text but the pronunciation.

16. Encarta World English Dictionary. With this dictionary you can hear the pronunciation of each word you look for.

17. Esl.about.com About.com is a huge site with a lot of resources and articles for every subject. They offer also a section for learning English as Second Language. Appropriate for beginners to the advanced students, you can find tips on grammars, reading, writing and listening skills. The business English section is also interesting. Try it out.

18. AudioEnglish.Net With over 150,000 pages and 2,500 audio files, this site provides a huge English conversation audio to you.• British and American English native speakers from Oxford, London, Scotland, New York, California, Massachusetts, and Canada.• listen to audio and practice pronunciation;• check out the online tests.

19. Kizclub.com Kizclub provides lots of educational activities in language arts for preschool and elementary age children. This website provides abc's, phonics, crafts, story patterns, nursery rhymes, flashcards, teaching extras.If you are a teacher, use my materials as your teaching resources. Parents may also print this out for their child to do. So take a few minutes and browse through the website.

20. Starfall.com The Starfall learn-to-read website is offered free as a public service. Starfall is an educational alternative to other entertainment choices for children. A fun site to learn to read English.