Culture file - Chinese tea




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Prefix 'ir'


You may change the meaning of some words by adding the prefix 'ir' (meaning "not").


irregular, irreplaceable, irresponsible, irrational, irrecoverable, irrelevant, irresistable, irretrievable, irreversible
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Prefix 'im'

You may change the meaning of some words by adding the prefix 'im' (meaning "not").

immobile, impermanent, impossible, immature, imperfect, impolite, imbalance, impersonal, immeasurable, immoral, immovable, immortal, impatient, impractical, imprecise, improper
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Transport


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Prefix 'un'


You may change the meaning of many adjectives by adding prefix 'un' meaning "not".


unable, unaffordable, unbelievable, unacceptable, unattached, unaware, uncertain, unbearable, unbreakable, unadventurous, unbeatable, uncomfortable, unfashionable, uncommon, uncovered, unfinished, unconnected, undecided, uneven, unforgettable, unconscious, unexpected, unimaginable, unnoticed, unpleasant, unhappiness, unlucky, unintentional, unhelpful, unknown, unpack, unidentified, unkind, unproductive, unnatural, unqualified, unsafe, untitled, unwanted, unreasonable, unwell, unreliable, unusual, untidy

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Compound nouns

A compound noun is a noun that is made up of two or more words. e.g. toothpaste

bedroom, raincoat, eyesight, dustbin, footstep, handbag, headquarters, notebook, postcard, rainbow

Compounds are sometimes written with a hyphen, as two separate words or as a single word. There are no clear rules.
ice-cream, ice cream, icecream

Compound nouns can also be formed using these word combinations:-

Noun + Noun (handbag)
Noun + Verb (sunset)

Adjective + Noun (weekly ticket)
Adjective + Verb (dry-cleaning)

Verb + Noun (sleep walker)

Preposition + Noun (underground)
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Culture file - Sri Lankan home cooking







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Job Interview - A professional diagnosis

How to write your CV? What key words can you use in order to increase your chances to be selected? Find the answers in the following article in English.

Would you go to a hairdresser to have your car fixed? Or, indeed, to a car mechanic to have your hair styled? Of course not! Why then do so many people go to a friend or neighbour or anyone who will offer advice when it comes to one of the most important aspects of their lives – their career? Your CV is your ambassador, it is your sales document and you need to invest a very small amount to get excellent results.

Job Interview

‘Finding yourself in a position where you have to construct a CV can be very daunting, but panic not! Firstly, you should look at the experience you have. What can you do? What are you good at? What do you enjoy? You need to be very realistic when doing this. There’s no point in deciding that you want to be an engineer, for example, if you need a specific qualification which you do not have. If you’ve been in a job as a sales person, then the likelihood is that you’ll be better positioned to find another opportunity as a sales person, as you’ll have the relevant experience for this type of job.

You need to consider what else is required for the role. Do you need to hold a full clean driving licence? Do you need to have a second language? Do you need to be available for shift work? There is absolutely no point in applying for a job that you are either not qualified for or do not have the essential requirements to fulfil.

I always recommend that you look at the jobs that are available and see which matches most closely to your experience and qualifications. Then, write your CV using the key words in the job advert. Often companies use software to select suitable CVs, using key words to search. If you have not included these key words in your CV, it will not be selected, even though you may be very well matched to the position. Once you have a clear idea of what you want to put into the CV, you are half way there.’

Original article in Metro Ireland.
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Student profile - Vietnam




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'al' as a prefix (spelling)


Words which use al as a prefix are spelt with one –l

always, altogether,also, although, already,alright, almost
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Take and bring


take/took/taken = from here to there
bring/brought/brought = from there to here
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'ful' as a suffix (spelling)

When ‘ful’ is used as a suffix (to mean "full of") it should be spelt with one -l

beautiful (full of beauty)
careful (full of care)
eventful (full of events)
fearful (full of fear)
forceful (full of force)
graceful (full of grace)
harmful (full of harm)
hateful (full of hate)
helpful (full of help)
hopeful (full of hope)
hurtful (full of hurt)
joyful (full of joy)
meaningful (full of meaning)
painful (full of pain)
peaceful (full of peace)
playful (full of play)
powerful (full of power)
purposeful (full of purpose)
regretful (full of regret)
shameful (full of shame)
sorrowful (full of sorrow)
skilful (full of skill)
successful (full of success)
thoughtful (full of thought)
useful (full of use)
wasteful (full of waste)
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The country/countryside


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Tools

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Expressteach in Singapore











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Opposites

The opposite of a word depends on how it is used in a sentence.

absence - presence
accidental - intentional
approximately - exactly
apart - together
to argue - to agree
complicated - simple
deep - shallow
to deny - to admit
foreign - domestic
immigration - emigration
to include – to exclude
minor -major
moderate - extreme
natural - artificial
private - public
professional - amateur
rude - polite
shelter - exposure
shorten - lengthen
supporter - opponent
urban - rural
vertical - horizontal
voluntary - compulsory
to work – to rest
wealth – poverty
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Culture file - Sri Lankan New Year




New Year has traditionally been a harvest festival in Sri Lanka which is celebrated by cooking and eating the New Year meal with family and friends often in the villages.
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Spelling 'ent' or 'ant'

ant
relevant, pleasant, observant, important, extravagant, reluctant, assistant, accountant, arrogant, elegant, ignorant

ent
confindent, independent, patient, obedient, permanent, current, convenient, accident, absent, accent, client, content, equipment, innocent
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Would you like to get a link to your blog or website?

Get a link

If your answer is affirmative then you’re very close to getting it by just following two simple steps: leave a comment on this entry and send an email to:

email leo

Indicating the blog or website you want us to link. Moreover, you need to attach a favicon, an image whose size is 16x16 and .png, .jpg or .gif (not animated) format.

And, where’s the trick?

Well, there’s no trick or small print. There are mainly three reasons for this initiative.

  1. To be grateful to our readers and followers for the things that we have achieved with the blog: +450 RSS subscribers, +1100 twitter followers and hundreds of daily visits to the blog. And more than 60 followers. Many thanks to everyone!
  2. We usually receive emails asking for a link exchange. In Learn English Online we don’t do link exchanges, but there are several ways to get a link from us: with a sponsored post, writing a guest post, being a collaborator and now leaving a comment!
  3. For reasons of design, this initiative will add colour and new life to the blog.
There are just two restrictions that you should bear in mind:
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  2. The validity period for the link will always be monthly and with a minimum duration of a month from the moment this post is published.
Have you signed up?

Don’t take too long as the number of links that we offer is limited and the first people that leave their comment and send a valid icon (16x16) will be the ones that get the link.

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Rhyming words

Understanding how words rhyme helps with pronunciation.

bird, word, third, heard
buys, tries, advice, prize
come, some, sum, thumb
dear, beer, clear, fear
go, toe, know, throw
goes, chose, shows, toes
good, could, should, wood
great, late, straight, weight
knew, grew, through, threw
made, paid, played, afraid
most, post, toast, roast
news, shoes, choose, lose
phone, shown, alone, thrown
please, trees, knees, peas
there, hair, care, wear
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Parts of an animal


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Two words or one?


Already / all ready
We’ve already eaten. (finished)
My friends were all ready to go to the party. (all of them)

Alright/ all right
Is she alright? (fine)
He got the answers all right. (correct)

Altogether / all together
1, 2, 3. That’s 3 people altogether. (in total)
Why don’t we go to the party all together. (at the same time)

Everyday / every day
Jeans are my everyday clothes. (ordinary)
Every day I wake up at 7am. (each day)

Everyone / every one
Everyone
enjoyed the party. (all people)
Every one of the hats is red. (each one)

Maybe/ may be
Maybe he’s sleeping. (perhaps)
He may be sleeping. (might be)

Sometimes / some times
I sometimes study. (occasionally)
During some times in the summer it gets hot. (some periods)
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One for the Weekend!

Some geeky humor for the weekend:

A man walks into a Silicon Valley pet store looking to buy a monkey. The store owner points towards three identical looking monkeys in politically-correct, animal-friendly natural mini-habitats.

"The one on the left costs $500," says the store owner.
"Why so much?" asks the customer.
"Because it can program in C," answers the store owner.

The customer inquires about the next monkey and is told, "That one costs $1500, because it knows Visual C++ and Object-Relational technology."

The startled man then asks about the third monkey. "That one costs $3000," answers the store owner.

"3000 dollars!!" exclaims the man. "What can that one do?"

To which the owner replies, "To be honest, I've never seen it do a single thing, but it calls itself a Consultant."
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Short forms (contractions)





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Time

Day (24 hours)
Week (7 days)
Thrice weekly (three times a week)
Month (28-31 days)
Bimonthly (every two months or twice a month)
Year (365 days or 12 months or 52 weeks)
Annual (every year)
Biannual (twice a year)
Biennial (2 years)
Leap year (366 days)
Decade (10 years)
Century (100 years)
Centennial (every 100 years)
Millennium (1,000 years)
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Portmanteau words

New expressions are often formed by combining parts of two words.

blog (web + log)
motel (motor + hotel)
smog (smoke + fog)
bedsit (bedroom + sitting room)
brunch (breakfast + lunch)
pixel (picture + element)
camcorder (camera + video recorder)
vegeburger (vegetarian + burger)
shopaholic (shopping + alcoholic)
Interpol (international + police)
guesstimate (guess + estimate)
Swatch (Swiss + watch)
Eurovision (Europe + television)
telethon (telephone + marathon)
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The age cycle


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Common Errors in English Usage

Common Errors

Which were the most common errors that we made when first using the English language? How to properly use a / an, farther / further? Fortunately, you’ll find the answer to these questions on the website that we’re introducing today.

In Common Errors in English Usage there are more than 1000 explanations for those errors that we usually make when using the English language.

As words are alphabetically sorted, it’s very easy searching through them. For instance, the explanation for the difference between backup and back up is:

To “back up” is an activity; “back up your computer regularly”; “back up the truck to the garden plot and unload the compost.”

A “backup” is a thing: “keep your backup copies in a safe place.” Other examples: a traffic backup, sewage backup, backup plan, backup forces.”

Older writers often hyphenated this latter form (“back-up”), but this is now rare.


As you can see, the explanations are clear and they also include examples that help understanding them better.

This comprehensive list of common errors has been made by Paul Brians, Emeritus Professor of English Washington State University. Thanks very much Mr. Brians!

Link | Common Errors in English Usage
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Clichés

A cliché is an expression that has been used over and over again and so it loses its originality.

Some examples of clichés:

Have a nice day!
Just a minute
Without a doubt
that was the best film I’ve seen.
I had the time of my life.
We waited for hours for the singer to appear but it was well worth the wait.
Even to this day I can’t understand English very well.
The film was a waste of time.
I was having such a good time that I lost track of time.
The film was so boring. It seemed to last forever.
The new manager made a big impression on me.
For the life of me I couldn’t remember his name.
To tell the truth, I didn’t enjoy the film very much.
It was late, I was tired and I couldn’t keep my eyes open.
They know full well that I don’t drink.
Let’s call it a day. We’ve been working for ten hours now.
Do you remember the good old days?
We were standing outside and the next thing I knew it was raining.
We’ll be there in an hour, give or take.
Shall we go out to eat? Now, that sounds like a plan.
I’ve never heard of that before! You live and learn.
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The phonemic chart (pronunciation)


Vowels

Consonants







Diphthongs
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