7 English Expressions with the Word WORLD

#1 – “What a small world!” 
= it’s an incredible coincidence

For example: if you meet someone new and you discover that you both went to the same elementary school, you can say, “What a small world!”

#2 – “It’s not the end of the world.” 
= It’s not so bad. (stop overreacting)

For example: If your sister is very upset because she broke a fingernail, you can say “It’s not the end of the world” to show her that her problem is really not so terrible.

#3 – “It made a world of difference.”
“It did a world of good.”
= a big difference / a lot of good

For example: If there’s a new program in your country that successfully reduces unemployment, you can say “it made a world of difference” or “it did a world of good.”

#4 – “He thinks the world of her.”
= He admires her, he has a very high opinion of her

For example: If there’s a really wonderful colleague who is liked and respected, you can say that the boss “thinks the world of her.”

#5 – “It’s the best of both worlds.”
“It’s the worst of both worlds.”
= When you experience the positive/negative aspects of two different opportunities/situations

For example: If you live in a location that has both the beach AND the mountains, you can say “it’s the best of both worlds” because you can enjoy going to the beach or hiking in the mountains

For example: If you have a job that you hate AND it pays a terrible salary, you can say “it’s the worst of both worlds” because you have disadvantages in two areas – you hate the job, and it doesn’t pay well.

#6 – “She’s on top of the world.”
= She’s extremely happy

For example: If your daughter got a full scholarship to the college she really wants to attend, you could say “She’s on top of the world.”

#7 – “It was out of this world!”
= It was incredibly wonderful, amazing, etc.

For example: If you tried eating at a new restaurant, and the food was REALLY great, you can describe it as “out of this world.”

- See more at: http://www.espressoenglish.net/7-english-expressions-with-the-word-world/#sthash.cwJ5D5r7.dpuf

More about → 7 English Expressions with the Word WORLD

However Vs Although

However and although are two English words that both loosely mean “but”. Unfortunately, knowing exactly when you should use however vs although is something that most native English speakers would struggle to explain.

The difference between “however” and “although”

The main difference between these two words is that however can stand by itself at the beginning of a sentence, with a comma after it. Although can’t do this.

The words also have slightly different meanings:

Although means “in spite of the fact that…”.

However means “but”.

The actual rules about whether to use however or although are quite complicated, but there is an easy rule that works in almost all situations.  See if you can figure out what it is.

The next two sentences are correct:

Although the weather was cold, we decided not to wear our jackets.

We decided not to wear our jackets. However, the weather was cold.

While this sentence isn’t correct:

We decided not to wear our jackets. Although, it was rather cold.

If we were to use “however” instead of “although”, this sentence would be correct.

So in general, we use “however” at the beginning of a new sentence, with a comma after it. “Although” can be used at the beginning or in the middle of a sentence, but it doesn’t have a comma afterwards.

Here’s a few for you to try

See if you can work out whether to use “although” or “however” in the following sentences.

1. __________ I speak English well, my first language is actually German.

2. We can go to the park for lunch. _________, the weather report says it’s going to rain.

3. I’ll happily drink red wine, ________ I prefer white.

See if you got the answers right by checking the Answer Key

More about → However Vs Although

English Sentence Structure: 4 Types of English Sentences

Simple Sentence

A simple sentence contains one independent clause.

What’s an “independent clause”? It’s one subject followed by one verb or verb phrase. It expresses a single idea.

Examples of simple sentences:

• I‘m happy.
• Robert doesn’t eat meat.
• My brother and I went to the mall last night.
• This new laptop computer has already crashed twice.

Notice that a “simple sentence” isn’t necessarily short. The subject can be a single word like “I” or “Robert,” or it can be a double subject like “my brother and I,” or it can be multiple words describing a single person/object, like “This new laptop computer.”

Compound Sentence

A compound sentence has two independent clauses joined by a linking word (and, but, or, so, yet, however).

Each independent clause could be a sentence by itself, but we connect them with a linking word:

• I‘m happy, but my kids are always complaining.
• Robert doesn’t eat meat, so Barbara made a special vegetarian dish for him.
• My brother and I went to the mall last night, but we didn’t buy anything.
• This new laptop computer has already crashed twice, and I have no idea why.

Note that each sentence has TWO subjects and TWO verb phrases.

Complex Sentence

A complex sentence has one independent clause and one or more dependent clauses.

A dependent clause cannot be a complete sentence by itself.

• I’m happy, even though I don’t make much money.
• Robert, a friend I’ve known since high school, doesn’t eat meat.
• My brother and I went to the mall last night, while my sister stayed home and studied.
• This new laptop computer, which I bought yesterday, has already crashed twice.

Compound-Complex Sentence

A compound-complex sentence contains 3 or more clauses: 2 independent and at least 1dependent clause.

• I’m happy, even though I don’t make much money, but my kids are always complaining since we can’t afford to buy the newest toys.

Independent clauses: “I’m happy” and “my kids are always complaining”
Dependent clauses: “even though I don’t make much money” and “since we can’t afford to buy the newest toys”
Linking word: “but”

• Robert, a friend I’ve known since high school, doesn’t eat meat – so Barbara made a special vegetarian dish for him.

Independent clauses: “Robert doesn’t eat meat” and “Barbara made a special vegetarian dish for him”
Dependent clause: “a friend I’ve known since high school”
Linking word: “so”

• My brother and I went to the mall last night, while my sister stayed home and studied because she has a test coming up.

Independent clauses: “My brother and I went to the mall last night” and “my sister stayed home and studied”
Dependent clause: “because she has a test coming up”
Linking word: “while”

• This new laptop computer, which I bought yesterday, has already crashed twice; however, I have no idea why.

Independent clauses: “This new laptop computer has already crashed twice” and “I have no idea why”
Dependent clause: “which I bought yesterday”
Linking word: “however”

Source: http://www.espressoenglish.net

More about → English Sentence Structure: 4 Types of English Sentences

Fun Facts about Language Learning

Here are more fun facts about language learning, which languages are the most popular in the world today and how the brain learns new vocabulary!

It is thought that there are up to 7,000 different languages spoken around the world today.

More than half of the world’s languages have no written form.

The world’s most widely spoken languages are: Mandarin Chinese, English, Spanish, Hindi, Arabic, Bengali, Russian, Portuguese, Japanese, German and French.

It is estimated that 75% of the world’s population does not speak English.

The official languages used by the United Nations are English, French, Spanish, Chinese, Russian and Arabic.

The ease or difficulty of learning another language can depend on your native language. Research suggests that Chinese and Arabic are amongst the languages that are the hardest to learn.

The UN has 6 official languages

The brain and language 

Research shows that it is best to start learning a language at a young age, with the best age being age seven.

Researcher Neil Fleming says that there are three types of learner:

• The visual learner learns from images and writing down words and phrases.
• The auditory learner learns from reading out loud or recording their own oral work or conversations.
• The kinesthetic learner learns from physical activity or in a group rather than listening to a lecture or watching a demonstration

The language learning process is mainly conduced by the left side of the brain, which controls logic, reasoning and mathematics.

According to researchers, learning a new language in a short space of time can help the brain to grow – which is great news for our students who are looking to take one of our courses!

How many languages can you speak? Which ones?

How hard do you find it to learn new languages?  Which techniques help you with language learning?

Source: http://kaplaninternational.com

More about → Fun Facts about Language Learning

How to Prepare for the IELTS exam

If you are a non-native English speaker and want to study at a university in an English-speaking country, then you may be required to take the IELTS test. The test is recognized in the UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand and Canada, although some universities may have different entry requirements.

The test is comprised of four parts: Listening, writing, reading and speaking. Your English will need to be strong and you will need to be well prepared. What’s the best way to do this? Here are our suggestions below:

Become familiar with the test
It is important to know what the test is like before you take it so that on test day, nothing will surprise you or distract you from showing off your English skills. Practice tests are available online or in practice test books. When you look at these tests, pay special attention to the answer guide to see what kind of answers you are expected to give. This way you know what is required when it comes to the real test.

Time management
A big problem for students in almost any written exam is that they plan their time poorly. They often spend too much time at the beginning of the test on questions with lower marks and then run out of time on questions with higher value. Try to time each question sensibly. For example, if a question is worth half of the exam’s total marks then try to spend half of the allowed time on that question!

Stay relevant
Particularly in written and speaking tests and while under the pressure and stress of an exam, it can be easy to get a bit panicky and to stray away from what the question is asking. Try to keep your cool, and always remember that you will be judged on the quality of your answer, and not the length of your response. Quality, not quantity!

Improve your general English
While it is important to be familiar with the IELTS, we would not recommend only taking practice tests repeatedly. This could actually limit your English and remove your motivation to learn. Try to vary your English input and resources as much as possible to improve all of your skills and to keep the language fun! Between completing practice tests, try to chill out while watching English movies, read English news to see what’s going on in the world, and meet new people by speaking English with native speakers.

Check out our posts on using YouTube and podcasts to have fun and learn English at the same time.

If you are thinking about taking the IELTS exam, then make sure you take a look at our specialIELTS courses!

Have you taken the IELTS test before? What methods helped you to prepare for the test? Be sure to leave your suggestions in the comments below!

Vocabulary

to be comprised of – to include or contain

to keep your cool – stay calm or composed

to chill out – relax

Source: http://kaplaninternational.com

More about → How to Prepare for the IELTS exam