With the international markets increasingly converging on each other, the Frankfurt Book Fair is placing renewed emphasis on the international exhibitors. In the future, they will be brought closer to the heart of the action and better integrated into the overall hall plan. The new infrastructure programme is intended to provide exhibitors and visitors with…
Category Archive for: English language
Jerry Seinfeld turns 60 Thursday (April 29), and as the co-creator and star of the most successful sitcom of the past two-plus decades, he probably has everything he wants. So no gifts necessary. Instead, let’s focus on what Seinfeld — or more accurately, “Seinfeld” – has given us. The show, which will celebrate its 25th anniversary in…
We all have our language pet peeves. Some bemoan like and other conversational hedges, while others are more put off by icky-sounding words like moist or munch. But there is one corner of the English language that our culture seems to collectively disdain: workplace jargon. At their best, the trite phrases with which we fill our work speech are vapid and convey a false sense of…
Students who don’t speak English as their first language would seem to be at a fundamental disadvantage in English-speaking schools, but a focused approach is seeing them outperform their peers, showing that it is possible to come first with a second language. The rapid growth in the number of non-native English speakers is one of…
The Ministry of Education and Training (MoET) issued an official document in February-end urging kindergartens to desist from teaching foreign languages to children and not popularise the related curriculum. The MoET also does not approve the use of tutorial software for foreign languages. But, it is a known fact that when there is demand, then…
Synonyms for 95 Commonly Used Words in the English language Amazing — incredible, unbelievable, improbable, fabulous, wonderful, fantastic, astonishing, astounding, extraordinary Anger — enrage, infuriate, arouse, nettle, exasperate, inflame, madden Angry — mad, furious, enraged, excited, wrathful, indignant, exasperated, aroused, inflamed Answer — reply, respond, retort, acknowledge Ask — question, inquire of, seek information from, put a question to, demand,…
Even though writing ideas abound all around us, we writers sometimes get stumped. We search for topics, plot ideas, models for our characters, and interesting language. Unfortunately, our searches don’t always yield desirable results. But by fostering curiosity, we can ensure a constant stream of inspiration. Some of the best writing ideas come from simply…
Beauty may be in the eye of the beholder–or the ear of the listener–but when it comes to discerning the most beautiful words in the English language, there’s some objectivity at play. Certain sounds make English speakers cringe; moist is a classic example. When said aloud, it can elicit not only irritation, but a negative physical reaction called word aversion.…
When Erin Sucher teaches her third graders about measurement, she draws a big rectangle on the board and marks it end to end. Then she stretches out her arms like two ends of a measuring tape. “Show me length!” she says, and the students stretch out their own arms and call back, “Length!” From here…
A student who penned a nasty letter to their teacher at the end of semester learned this lesson the hard way when the teacher decided to correct the letter’s spelling, grammar, syntax and construction — and then posted it where everybody could see it. The letter clearly insulted the teacher — but only… Read more…
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