ESL Learning: Food Idioms

Idioms make English more exciting and more fun to speak. Idioms and other slang can also be very valuable when writing essays or having IELTS or other types of interviews. When we can express ourselves in many different and creative ways, this gives our English more power.

Please see below a few food idioms that you can start using right away. Also, please note the IPA spelling to help you with your pronunciation.

BAD APPLE
Example:  Get away from her!  She’s a bad apple.
Word Stress:  BAD, AP-
IPA:  [bæd ˈæp əl]

COUCH POTATO
Example:  Do not be a couch potato and just sit around and watch TV all the time.
Word Stress:  COUCH, -TA-
IPA:  [kaʊtʃ pə ˈteɪ do]

TOUGH COOKIE
Example:  She can win the fight.  She’s a tough cookie.
Word Stress:  TOUGH, COOK-
IPA:  [tʊf ˈkʊ ki]

BIG CHEESE
Example:  Since the big cheese told us to do it, we must do it.
Word Stress: Stress both words
IPA:  [bɪg tʃiz]

SOUR GRAPES
Example:  He thinks the game is all about luck and not skill because he didn’t win.  It sounds like sour grapes to me.
Word Stress: Stress both words
IPA:  [saʊəɹ gɹeɪps]

LEMON LAW
Example:  The lemon law has protected me when I bought a lemon (bad car). I returned the lemon thanks to help from the lemon law.
Word Stress:  LEM-, LAW
IPA:  [ˈlɛm ən lɔ]

Don’t forget one thing:

Actually, go out and speak and write these idioms a few times so they are forever in your long term memory. And most importantly, do not forget to have fun using them ^__^

If you have never learned English online, but you want to try, please do not hesitate to book a free trial class with one of our professional ETO teachers today!

By: Luke 

ETO American English teacher

ETO English teacher

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ESL learning: Learning Native English

Using Authentic Material to Learn Native English

Today one of my weekly Japanese students asked me a question that should be answered for the benefit of many learners.

His question: “I am studying 1 hour every day, what material should I use for best results?”

Straight away, I knew it was time to tell him about Authentic Materials. Authentic material (referred to as ‘AM’ from here forward) is any material that exists in the real world for native speakers in English. AM is the SECRET to understanding and speaking English like natives.

The language genius, Valdman (1992), said “communicative ability, both spoken and  heard, can be obtained only if learners are exposed to a variety of authentic written and oral texts illustrating a broad range of genres and pragmatic situations” (p.88). Keep reading and learn more…

Here are a few examples of authentic materials:

Prescriptions and instructions, Announcements, Written notes and memos, Newspapers, Advertisements, Bill boards, Websites, Blogs, Tweets, Bills, Letters and forms, Maps and directions, Commercials that can be exploited to learn culture, YouTube and Facebook content, Music, Menus, Signs, Comedy and many more.

What other kinds of AM can you think of???

Some of the Benefits of AM:

1. Exposes learners to new ideas and language as it used in real-life

2. Prepares learners to handle real-world situations, including slang and idioms, pronunciation and cultural issues

3. More learning takes place with written and spoken texts that interest the learner

4. Exposure to a variety of native vocabulary and structures

5. What other benefits of AM can you think of???

Parting words:

Authentic texts have a place in every classroom. Be sure to keep a notebook and make notes of everything you learn. I learned to speak Thai rather fluently through mostly AM. It works!!! Believe me!!!

If you have never learned English online, but you want to try, please do not hesitate to book a free trial class with one of our professional ETO teachers today!

By: Luke 

ETO American English teacher

Other useful ETO links:

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Sources

1. New Ways in Using Authentic Material in the Classroom. Ruth E. Larimer and Leigh Sleicher, Editors, with Maria H. DaCosta

2. New Ways in TESOL Series II, Innovative Classroom Techniques, Jack C. Richards, Series Editor, TESOL Inc. Pantagraph Printing, Bloomington Illinois, 1999

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ESL learning: Idioms

He is a two-faced, low down, snake in the grass!!! How many idioms do you see in that last sentence? Should be 3. Let’s try matching the idioms below with the correct meaning.

a. Two-faced

b. Snake in the grass

c. Low down

1. ____Not trustworthy, predatory & takes advantage of people
2. ____Acts like a friend in front of you, but really is not a friend
3. ____Having low ethical standards and low morals in general

Feel free to comment below with your answers…

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ESL learning: Compound words

type + writer = typewriter!

Typewriter is a compound word; a word made up of two words that come together to make one new word.

Can you guess the one word that would change all the words in each example to compound words?

1.
a) water
b) chair
c) pin

2.
a) ring
b) ache
c) drum

3.
a) glasses
b) flower
c) roof

4.
a) bowl
b) net
c) star

Feel free to comment below with your answers…

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Why Others Can Not Understand Your Good English?

What are you talking about?

Have you ever spoken English to someone and thought to yourself, why does he or she not understand me? Many times your English is correct, but you forgot one thing. Americans and other Western people need lots of information and context before we ask them a question or tell them something.

You can greatly improve communication by giving more context (details). Western cultures do not use context as much as Eastern cultures. Asian cultures use language that relies on the context around them and background information about the conversation. Westerners need you to introduce a topic and speak more details. NEVER assume the other person is clear and knows what you are thinking. You must SAY everything to Westerners.

Please teacher, explain more!

OK, I will. Assume you have planned to meet someone at their office. You arrive to the office and walk to his personal secretary’s desk. You then ask the secretary in perfect English, ‘has Mr. Smith come yet’. His personal secretary stares at you and you wonder if the secretary has hearing problems. The problem is not her, but YOU. You assumed the secretary knew about the meeting and knows who you are.

The solution (the funnel technique)

You should have said this:

Hi, how are you today? (to let the listener tune in to your accent)

What a beautiful office! (to let the listener tune in to your accent more)

My name is Bo and I work for ABC company. (start general and wide)

Mr. Smith asked me to meet him today at 10:30 a.m. (get slightly more specific and move towards the question)

It is now 10:35 and I am waiting on Mr. Smith. (more specific and creating more context)

Do you know if Mr. Smith has come to the office yet? (the actual question)

What will happen when using this technique?

You have taken all guessing, assuming and confusion away from the listener. I can almost double guarantee you that you will be understood clearly.

How to use this more often

You should use this technique any chance you get, with individuals, groups or in meetings. After just a LITTLE bit of practice, this will become an easy habit for you and you will not even have to think about it. You will be using this technique naturally before you know it.

Parting words

If you would like to try a language / communication class with a professional teacher, feel free to book a free trial lesson with ETO today!

 

By: Luke 

ETO American English teacher

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ESL learning: Collective nouns

How many fish do you think are in this school? How can they be called a school? Collective nouns! Just like a group of crows is actually called a murder of crows.

 Let’s try a few more.

a. Pack

b. Band

c. Colony or Army

1. ________ of ants
2. ________of gorillas
3. _______ of dogs

Feel free to comment below with your answers…

For more fun English lessons, sign up for a Free trial class with ETO and speak to one of our native English teachers today!

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Image credit: National Geographic-Underwater in Mexico

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ESL learning: Spend or Save

“How did it get so late so soon?”
― Dr. Seuss

Time is something we can spend or save.
Choose either save or spend to complete the sentences below:

1) I want to _______ time with you.
2) I can ______ time by driving to work.
3) Learning online can ________ time.
4) She will _______time on Saturday with me.
5) By working less I can ________ time to ________ time with my family.

How do you like to spend your time? Tell us about it!

Feel free to comment below with your answers…

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People vs Persons

Here is a tough question for you today guys; is it possible to say 7 persons? Or must it be 7 people?

Well, if you thought it could be 7 persons, then you are right! Do you know why you are right? People refers to a mass of people and persons refers to number of individuals: seven persons is a number of individuals.

Have you ever seen the word persons used? How so? In what kinds of sentences?

Feel free to comment below…

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Image credit: Adrielchrist

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See, look or watch?

Watch – to observe something carefully, usually at something which is moving.

Look – to observe something for a reason & with an intention.

See – to notice something that comes into our sight that we weren’t looking for.

Let’s practice…

‘______ where you are going! You almost stepped on my foot!’

‘I _____ you driving to work today.’

‘_____ at the pictures I took on holiday.’

‘Did you _____ that bird? – I wasn’t ____-ing for it; it just appeared.

‘_____ at that strange man.’

‘______ TV’- the TV doesn’t move, but you ______ the moving images carefully.

Feel free to comment below with your answers…

For more fun English lessons, sign up for a Free trial class with ETO and speak to one of our native English teachers today!

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Make the Change with English

Make the change!!

Learning to speak English well may be the best thing you can do to improve your life.

That’s right! Do you think it would be fun to have access to information that other people can’t get? Talk about things and write interesting letters to people that others can’t communicate with? Impress the people around you whenever you open your mouth? Make big jumps in your career, leaving others miles behind?

You can get all this if you speak English well. Don’t wait and make the change today!

Image credit: Artist Kate Powell

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