Vocabulary

Linguists in America have voted the singular "they" as the word of the decade.

There are a lot of idioms in English that use the word "nose". Apparently, we like to talk about our noses a lot! Here are just 10 to add to your phrasebook (plus a bonus one to amaze your friends and colleagues with).

Simple, safe English is often not the best choice. Take, for example, the word "happy". If you can read this blog post, you can use that word, but should you? 

Have you ever felt very confused about what to say or do? That's the perfect time to use the phrase "at a loss". To be at a loss means that you don't know what action to take or thing to say in a particular situation. 

It is often followed by "for" but can be used alone:

You have probably said the word “work” many times: to do a job (I work a lot of overtime), to make an effort (That’s hard work!) or to function (does this thing work?).

Many students are familiar with the word increase, but fail to use it correctly. Try to spot the error in the following sentence:

Elderly people are increasing in Japan.

The word "can" is used in different ways in English—it can mean ability, possibility and permission. When native English speakers talk about what they can do, what do they mean?

Consider this: 

As spring comes, so does allergy season. Millions of people around the world suffer from pollen allergies, so let's look at the words and phrases you can use to describe how this allergy affects us. 

While the words "value" and "values" are deceptively alike, they actually have two different meanings. 

• Value (uncountable) is your worth. What you bring to the table. In Japanese, the equivalent to it would be the word 価値.
• Values (countable, usually used with “s”) are your important and lasting beliefs or ideals. In other words, your principles. The Japanese word here would be 価値観.

Japanese people say "delicious" far more often than native English speakers do. The reason is that "delicious" is a direct translation from a Japanese word that is very commonly used in Japanese. But translating directly from your native language is a big roadblock when you are learning a language.

I've often heard non-native English speakers say something like, "You had better do it." But to a native English speaker, this sounds like a threat! If "better" is a positive word, why does "you had better" seem scary?

Have you ever said something like this?

A: How was your weekend?
B: It was fine. I could enjoy a relaxing time.

All languages borrow words from other languages. The Japanese language uses a lot of phrases and words from English and other languages. Many times they are changed in their meaning or usage. That means that when you use these words in English, you should be careful.

You are sick. You have to go to work. Maybe you say to your co-worker or friend, “My condition is not good today.” However, using the word “condition” like this is not natural in English. Learn how to say it the natural way.

People often confuse “content” and “contents“.  These words are used differently in English.