Anshan English

I suspect this is a form of code switching. When people are talking in their second language, and hit upon a concept that leaves them lost for words, they drop back on their first language to vocabulary to fill in the gap. For example, I was having a conversation with a Bulgarian about his diet Read More …

The cost of English language schools in China varies massively. There are big differences between cities and regions. There are also big differences in the quality of tuition provided by various establishments. Thus different costs and benefits. I shall answer based on my city which is a middle-sized city in Liaoning. How much does it Read More …

To speak English fluently, first, forget about the speaking part and just think in English. Get your internal voice talking in English. Laziness isn’t the issue. To do this doesn’t take hard work. It just takes repeated work. You can do it lazily and still get the same result. Actually, I’d recommend doing it lazily. Read More …

There is no reason to suppose that anyone anywhere can speak English. It isn’t a universal language. By native speakers, English is ranked No.3 after Chinese Mandarin and Spanish. By second language speakers, English is huge and has about 1.1 billion users. However, if you consider that there are 7 billion people in the world, Read More …

As far as I know, the -ough grouping has the biggest pronunciation variation of any group in English. /ʌf/ enough, hough, rough, slough, tough (rhymes with stuff) /ɒf~ɔːf/ cough, trough (rhymes with off) /trɔːθ/ trough (by some speakers of American English rhymes with cloth) /aʊ/ bough, drought, plough (rhymes with cow) /oʊ/ dough, furlough, though Read More …

I understand this question has been asked many times but what I want to know is a little different. I can carry on conversation pretty easily but feel I still have many lacking I want to improve. One major problem I have noticed from last 4-5 years that though practising and talking a decent amount Read More …

The International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) is intended to represent pronunciation. When learning a new language, using the IPA allows learners to map spelling to new pronunciations. The IPA helps you pronounce words you have never heard. Native English learners learn pronunciation long before school. They learn to speak by listening to their parents, friends, TV Read More …

Scots is nearly as different from Scottish English as Scots is different from English English or British English. There is a small number of shared words but there are a lot of different words too. Scottish English is English. It is just as close to English as Scouse in Liverpool, Jordie in Newcastle, Estuary in Read More …

Don’t try to teach English. At least for teenage and above who are past foundation level. Teach something interesting – art, history, simple science, geography, natural history, environmental issues, sport, etc. The English learning will happen along the way. The idea is to spark a lively discussion where the students are the ones asking the Read More …