- abbreviations
- Adjectives
- Adverbs
- Articles
- British/US English
- bullet points
- Clear and concise writing
- Commas
- Compound nouns
- Conditionals
- Conjunctions
- Countable and uncountable nouns
- Gerunds
- Idioms
- Modal verbs
- Negation
- Noun groups
- noun phrases
- Nouns
- Numbers
- Participle clauses
- Passive voice
- Phrasal verbs
- polite expressions
- Possession
- Prepositions
- Punctuation
- Quantifiers
- Relative clauses
- Singular or plural
- Time expressions
- Useful everyday phrases
- verb phrases
- Verbs
- Verb tenses
- Weights and measures
- Word order
- writing lists
-
Recent Posts
Links
Tag Archives: Verbs
“Prepare for” or “prepare to”?
WRONG She spent three hours preparing to the court hearing. RIGHT She spent three hours preparing for the court hearing. This is a very common mistake. But “prepare” is not always followed by “for”. Sometimes “to” is correct. The rule … Continue reading
The “family is” or the “family are”?
Collective nouns are words that describe groups of people or things, e.g. “family” or “team”. Grammatically they are singular, but as they describe more than one individual, they may also take the plural form of a verb or use a … Continue reading
The difference between “ask” and “request”
These words have similar meanings, but they are used a little differently. Usage as verbs “Request” means “ask for”, NOT “ask”. You “ask a question”, but you can’t “request a question”. E.g.: WRONG He requested whether I’d read the email. … Continue reading
How to use the word “holiday”
WRONG I am currently on holidays. He is on his holidays now and will be returning to the office next week. RIGHT I am currently on holiday. He is on holiday now and will be returning to the office next … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Adjectives, British/US English, Nouns, Useful everyday phrases, Verbs
4 Comments
How to use “provided that”
The phrase “provided that” has numerous possible meanings, which can result in ambiguity if it is not used properly. First of all, “provided that” can simply be a verb + conjunction combination. This is a common structure in legal … Continue reading
How to use “provide for”
“Provide for” can be a phrasal verb or simply a verb + preposition combination. Here are some examples of “provide for” as a verb + preposition combination: I will provide the wine for the meal. We care about the service … Continue reading
How to be polite in English
Non-native English speakers sometimes sound abrupt and impolite to native English speakers. This is because they often use language that is too direct, and does not have the correct “distance” from the hearer or reader. It is therefore important to use … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
Tagged Conditionals, Modal verbs, Passive voice, polite expressions, Verbs
2 Comments
The differences (and similarities) between “compose” and “comprise”
Non-native speakers of English are not the only ones who regularly confuse these words or use them incorrectly. Unfortunately, native speakers are equally guilty of mistakes. Here’s how to use them correctly: “compose” – to make up, i.e. the parts … Continue reading
The difference between “consist of” and “consist in”
Until relatively recently I was not aware of the difference between “consist of” and “consist in”. This is probably because among native English speakers “consist in” is very infrequently used in comparison to “consist of”, which is relatively common. In … Continue reading
The difference between “affect” and “effect”
Generally speaking, the difference is this: “affect” is a verb meaning to have an influence on, to cause a change in something (often negative), “effect” is a noun meaning a result. So, for example: If an area is affected by flooding, … Continue reading
Common Mistakes in Business English 