Idiom For The Day

Idiom For The Day

A Bird In The Hand Is Worth Two In The Bush:


Having something that is certain is much better than taking a risk for more, because chances are you might lose everything.

American Slang Of The Day

American Slang Of The Day:  ankle-biter

Meaning

a child

For example

• Diana loves kids. She's always happy if there are lots of ankle-biters around.
  
• Richard's such a big guy now that it's hard to imagine him when he was a little ankle-biter running around in short pants.
  

Variety

This is typically used in American and Australian English but may be used in other varieties of English too.

Quick Quiz

Cathy loves being around ankle-biters, so she'd be happy working as a

a. kindergarten teacher

b. underwater photographer

c. zoo-keeper

A - AN - THE Definite and Indefinite articles

A  -  AN  -  THE Definite and Indefinite articles

A - AN :

A and an are indefinite articles used to refer to a singular countable noun.
An indefinite article means that we do not know which one, or it is not important to know it.

Which one to use:  'a' or 'an'?

The rule states that “a” should be used before words that begin with consonants (b, c ,d etc.), while “an” should be used before words that begin with vowels (a,e,i, etc.).

It should be noted, however, that the usage is determined by the pronunciation and not by the spelling, and this includes abbreviations and acronyms.

To simplify, one uses 'a' before a word that begins with a consonant SOUND, and 'an' before a word that begins with a vowel SOUND.

A is used before :

• a consonant (b, c, d, f, g, etc.) :	a car /a hotel / a game
• a vowel that is pronounced like "yu" :	a European /a university
• the vowel 'o' when it has a "w" sound :	a one-way street

An is used before :

• a vowel  (a, e, i, o, u, etc.) :	an animal / an elevator / an only child
• an unaspirated 'h' :	an hour/an honest man
• an abbreviation starting with a vowel sound :	an MBA ('em' sound)

THE :

The is a definite article used to talk about something specific.

• The town where Julie lives is very big.
• What book is Julie reading? She's reading the book Tom gave her.

The is also used to refer to:

• Rivers, seas, oceans :
  • the Mississippi river, the Mediterranean sea, the Atlantic ocean
    
• Nationalities :
  • the British, the Americans, the Japanese, the Chinese, etc.
    
    

NO ARTICLE :

No article is used in generalisations:

• I like music
• I watch television but I listen to the radio and I go to the cinema.
• I don't play tennis but I play the piano, the guitar, etc.

No article is used for place names (towns, countries, mountains) :

• London, Spain, Mount Everest
  
  
Except if plural :
• The Greek islands, The United States, The Alps, The Himalayas ...

A  -  AN  -  THE Definite and Indefinite articles

Complete the following sentences with A, AN or THE:


1. Danny wanted _____ new bicycle for Christmas.
a) A
b) AN
c) THE

2. Jennifer tasted _____ birthday cake her mother had made.
a) A
b) AN
c) THE

3. The children have _____ new teacher called Mr. Green.
a) A
b) AN
c) THE

4. All pupils must obey _____ rules.
a) A
b) AN
c) THE

5. Dad turned on _____ radio to listen to _____ news.
a) A/A
b) A/THE
c) THE/THE

6. Alex is in Boston studying for _____ MBA.
a) A
b) AN
c) THE

7. The teacher read _____ interesting article from the newspaper.
a) A
b) AN
c) THE

8. There was _____ huge crowd of people outside the church.
a) A
b) AN
c) THE

9. Julie talked for _____ hour about her school project.
a) A
b) AN
c) THE

10. _____ European expert was invited to speak to the committee.
a) A
b) AN
c) THE

11. The Mississippi river is in _____ United States of America.
a) No article
b) AN
c) THE

12. It would help us if you gave _____ honest opinion.
a) A
b) AN
c) THE

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----------Answers----------

1. (a)   2. (c)   3. (a)   4. (c)   5. (c)   6. (b)   7. (b)   8. (a)   9. (b)   10. (a)   11. (c)   12. (b)

American Slang For The Day

American Slang For The Day

Hickey

- a mark on the neck or face or any part of the body by a person biting or sucking the skin ; love bite


My History professor came to class with a hickey on his neck.

Simple Present

Simple Present

FORM

[VERB] + s/es in third person

Examples:

• You speak English.
• Do you speak English?
• You do not speak English.

Complete List of Simple Present Forms

USE 1 Repeated Actions

Use the Simple Present to express the idea that an action is repeated or usual. The action can be a habit, a hobby, a daily event, a scheduled event or something that often happens. It can also be something a person often forgets or usually does not do.

Examples:

• I play tennis.
• She does not play tennis.
• Does he play tennis?
• The train leaves every morning at 8 AM.
• The train does not leave at 9 AM.
• When does the train usually leave?
• She always forgets her purse.
• He never forgets his wallet.
• Every twelve months, the Earth circles the Sun.
• Does the Sun circle the Earth?

USE 2 Facts or Generalizations

The Simple Present can also indicate the speaker believes that a fact was true before, is true now, and will be true in the future. It is not important if the speaker is correct about the fact. It is also used to make generalizations about people or things.

Examples:

• Cats like milk.
• Birds do not like milk.
• Do pigs like milk?
• California is in America.
• California is not in the United Kingdom.
• Windows are made of glass.
• Windows are not made of wood.
• New York is a small city. It is not important that this fact is untrue.

USE 3 Scheduled Events in the Near Future

Speakers occasionally use Simple Present to talk about scheduled events in the near future. This is most commonly done when talking about public transportation, but it can be used with other scheduled events as well.

Examples:

• The train leaves tonight at 6 PM.
• The bus does not arrive at 11 AM, it arrives at 11 PM.
• When do we board the plane?
• The party starts at 8 o'clock.
• When does class begin tomorrow?

USE 4 Now (Non-Continuous Verbs)

Speakers sometimes use the Simple Present to express the idea that an action is happening or is not happening now. This can only be done with Non-Continuous Verbs and certain Mixed Verbs.

Examples:

• I am here now.
• She is not here now.
• He needs help right now.
• He does not need help now.
• He has his passport in his hand.
• Do you have your passport with you?