A or an?

APParently the rule is simple: you use the article "a" always, except when the word following (noun/adjective) starts with a vocal, in this case you use "an".
The aim of this rule is to make pronunciation easier.

i.e:
-a peach/ an orange
-a squid/ an octopus.
-a continent/ an island

However , as usual there are exceptions to the rule:

-some vowels are sometimes pronounced as if they were consonants.
-also "h" sometimes is not pronounced.


So  for example, we say:

-a unique event (this is because we pronounce the letter "u" in unique as a hard "y" sound (yoounique), but we say an unusual event.

-a horrid man (because we pronounce the "h" in horrid) but we say an honourable gentleman (as we don´t pronounce the "h").
So the rule is: if the "h" is pronounced the correct article is "a", if it is not, the correct article will be "an".


-a football match (because we pronounce the "f" sound in football), but we say an FA Cup final (as we pronounce that F as "eff", it sounds as if it begins with a vowel and so we say "an" and not "a". This applys to similar cases of abbreviations, like MP or SAS,...

So what you have to see is if the noun/adjective following the article starts with a vowel sound or not. You have to pay attention to the sound, not to the spelling of the word.


We also need to know that there are cases where we don´t use articles in Spanish, but WE DO in English:

1. With profeSSions/ oCCupation: She is a doctor (Ella es médico).
2. With numbers: A hundred/ a thousand (Cien/ mil).
3. With What...!: What a nice day! (¡Qué día tan bonito!).
4. With these expreSSions of frequency: Once a month/ twice a year (Una vez al mes/ Dos veces al año. No una vez a un mes/ dos veces a un año).

I hope you´re having an amazing Christmas!

What does 'virgin' mean?

This is a very funny short cut. It´s still Christmas time so let´s take it easy.
Merry Christmas everyone!

- Grown-ups: adultos, "los mayores".

- To fit together: ajustarse

- Jigsaw: puzzle, rompecabezas.

- Sort of/kind of: más o menos.

Google and Facebook secrets.

Hi everyone! Already in a Christmas mood? We are!



Have you met ... TED?


TED is a website that gathers (reúne) riveting (fascinanates) talks by remarkable (sorprendente, excepcional, extraordinario) people, free to the world. So if you visit www.ted.com, you'll find plenty of really interesting talks for free.
This is one of Them. A really interesting topic: how Google and Facebook are biased (unbiased, biased) and how we all live in our own Internet bubble.


This is a very interesting talk. It also have a really easy vocabulary and pronunciation. So just dive in. It sure won´t let you untouched.





- Google personally tailors (confeccionar, sastre) your equiry results.


- This is something that is sweeping the web.


- The Washington Post", "New York Times",...they all are flirting (coquetear, aquí en sentido figurado) with personalization in various ways.


- Whereas this moves uys very quickly towards a world in wich Internet is showing us the things we want to see, but not necessarily what we need to see.


- What they discover in Netflix was that there is kind of this epic struggle (lucha) going on between our future aspirational selves and our more impulsive present selves.


- The problem is that because of that filtres, instead of a balance information diet, you can end up sorrounded by information junk food. 


(Junk: trastos viejos, basura. Actúa como adjetivo para "junk food": comida basura o junk mail: correo basura o spam).


- In 1915 is not like newspapers where sweating (sudar en sentido figurado) a lot about civic responsabilities.


-...and is not going to do that if it leaves us all isolated (aislados) in a world of one.





Ted: Ideas worth spreading. Highly recoMMended.

Similar but not the same: As and Like.

"Like" and "as", they both are translated in Spanish using the same word ("como"). That´s why we get confused with these two words.
But in English they are quite different. In the practice the main difference is that while "like" is a preposition, "as" is a conjuction, so if after this article, the difference is still not clear I recommend:


1. See if what you need in your sentence is a preposition or a conjuction. That will give you the answer.


2. If you are not sure if your choice is the correct one, try to use the other. You´ll see that the meaning changes, saying something different to what you meant.




Like.


Like means 'similar to', 'the same as'.


- Like is a preposition. So it is followed by a noun (like a palace), a pronoun (like me/ like this) or -ing (like walking) 


-What a beautiful house! It's like a palace. (not 'as a palace') 
-'What does Sandra do?' 'She's a teacher, like me.' (not 'as me') 
-Be careful! The floor has been polished. It's like walking on ice. (not 'as walking') 


- You can also say 'like somebody/ something doing something'.


-'What's that noise?' 'It sounds like a baby crying.' 
-You look like your sister.


- Sometimes "like" means 'for example'. 


Some sports, like (or such as) motor racing, can be dangerous. 




As.


"As" is a conjuction. You use "as" (not like) before a subject+verb.


-I didn't move anything. I left everything as I found it. 
-They did as they promised. (=They did what they promised) 


- We also say: as you know/ as I said/ as she expected/ as I thought,...


-As you know, it's Tom's birthday next week. (=you know this already) 
-Jane failed her driving test, as she expected. (=she expected this before) 


- We use "as" with some expresions like: as usual/ as always. 


-You're late as usual. 


- As can also be used as a preposition meaning: 'in the position of', 'in the form of'.


-A few years ago I worked as a bus driver. (not 'like a bus driver') 
-We've got a garage but we haven't got a car, so we use the garage as a workshop. 
-Many English words (for example, 'work' and 'rain') can be used as verbs or nouns. 
-London is all right as a place to visit, but I wouldn't like to live there. 




For comparison.


- You use "like" for comparison and metaphors.


-I work like (not as) a horse.


- Look what happens if you don´t use it correctly!


-I work as a horse (my work is being a horse, that´s my rol.)
-I'm talking to you like your mother" (I´m not your mother but IU´m talking to you as I was!)
-I'm talking to you as your mother" ( I´m your mother and I´m talking to you.)




Note.
In U.S.A, they use "like" instead of "as" in informal speech. That is not correct.


-Nobody loves you like I do. (Nobody loves you as I do.)

That´s capital! (or Capitalization.)

When to use a capital letter?
Let´s go over it! Just in case...


We use capital letters: 


-For the first word of a sentence.
-For proper nouns.
-For the days of the week, the months of the year and special oCCasion days (Christmas, Easter, Thanksgiving.)
-For brand names (Kleenex, Mars.)
-For acronyms (most of them): NASA, NATO.


-For the major words in the title of books, plays, films, works of art: Tha catcher in the Rye.
-For names of places and buildings: London, Paris, the Taj Mahal, Buckingham Palace.
-For adjectives derived from proper nouns: an English man, a Victorian house.
-For the pronoun I.
-For personal titles that come before the name: Mr, Ms, Mrs, Dr, Captain, Reverend.
-For the first word in a line of poetry.




Do NOT use capital letters for the following:


-after colon (dos puntos).
-when talking about kings, queens presidents and generals in general, unless you are talking about an specific individual.
-for the seasons of the year.
-for compass points: north, south,...going north, heading south,..
(except when referring to specifics: the American Civil World was fought largely between the North and the South, the South Pole.)

All´s well that´s starts well...Prefixes.

Actually the say is "All is well what ends well": Bien está lo que bien acaba.

So let´s start. This may look a little bit tough, but if you devote yourself (dedicar tiempo/esfuerzo a algo) to read this article carefully, you´ll be rewarded with hundreds of new words to your vocabulary.

A prefix is as you all know, a group of letters that is added to the begiNNing of a word to change its meaning.
Some of them are: anti-, auto-, -dis, extra-, hiper-, inter-, mega-, multi-, pre-, re-, sub-, tele-,...

We are going to review/ go over (repasar) some gramatic rules so you feel cofident when you use and especially when you spell them. Knowing the prefixes and their meanings will multiply by 10 the amount of words you already know and will provide you with good resources to face new vocabulary.





RULES:

-adding a prefix does NOT change the spelling of the original world, nor usually the spelling of the prefix.
Even when the last letter of the prefix and the first letter of the original world, are the same (disservice, dissimilar, unnecessary.)

What about dispirited (desanimado, abatido, deprimido)?
There are always exceptions, always being one of them. (Did you ever take notice of the origin of this word? Me neither! But it makes sense!)


- when all and well are used as prefixes, take away one -l (altogether, welfare.)
Except when the word is hyphenated (unida por guión) (well-adjusted, well-being, all-around.)


The prefixes dis-, mis-, un-, il-, im-, in-, ir-, create words that means the oPPosite of the root word (disobey, ilLLogical, inaPPlicable, iRReesponsible, misundertanding,...)


-be careful when a root word can take two or more different prefixes, as the resulting words will have different meanings.

-Disused/ Misused.

Disused: not being used, abandoned.

Misused: something that has been used incorrectly, not properly used.

i.e: I collected my children disused toys, intending to donate them to the fundraiser but years of misuse had left them unusable.



-Uninterested/ Misinterested.

Unintesrested: desinteresado. Adj: refers to a person that is not interested in something or someone.
i.e: He was totally uninterested in my work.

Disinterested: desinteresada (una acción, proposición,...). Adj: it defines an action or request that is done with no self-interest, selfelessly (desinteresadamente).
i.e: No worries, he  is a disinterested lawyer, and therefore uninterested in taking a bribe


(To take/ accept a bribe: aceptar un soborno.
To bribe somebody to do something: sobornar a alguien para que haga algo)

Similar but not the same: Work and Job

Hello! I´m looking for a job! (or work?)

Let´s clear this up (aclarar una idea)

The difference between the words "work" and "job" can be a little bit tricky, so let´s work on it.
We tend to use it by instinct and that´s ok as long as you are right, but just so you are sure you are not making a mistake, let´s clarify their meanings. We are going to define each word and give you examples of it uses so you remember when to use each one.






Job is a noun. It´s defined as "a paid position of regular employment" (empleo, puesto).

Expressions with the word "job":

-This is my job.
-I don´t have a job at the moment, I´m jobless.
-Joblessness in Spain is reaching historic figures at the moment.
-"Jobs for the boys" is a slang/idiom that defines "the practice of giving paid employment to one's friends, supporters, or relations." (No idea of what this is in Spain.)




Work on the other hand can be a noun or a verb. It´s more commonly used as a verb.
It´s defined as the "activity involving mental or physical effort done in order to achieve a result or as a means of earning incomes (como medio para recibir ingresos)
We know that it exits such a thing as unpaid positions but the aim of working is to get incomes.


Examples with the word "work":

-I´m at work, I´ll call you later.
-I´m off to work/ I´m going to work (estoy yendo al trabajo).
-I´m working on it (estoy trabajando en ello).
-She is a hard-worker.
-I work at Deloitte/ in the city centre.
-Are you working this weekend?
-What job do you have? I work as a plumber.


Work has also other meanings:

-a task or tasks to be undertaken (I can´t talk right now, I have work to do).

- a thing or things done or made; the result of an action.

- the complete artistic production of a particular author, composer, or artist (That exhibition shows Picasso´s earliest works.)


Other expressions:

-"work to rule".
follow official working rules and hours exactly in order to reduce output and efficiency, especially as a form of industrial action. (still, no idea what they are talking about).


-"work something off".
1 discharge a debt by working.
2 reduce or eliminate something by activity (I´m working my paperwork off.)

-"work out".
1 be capable of being solved.
2 develop in a good or specified way.
3 engage in vigorous physical exercise (He´s engaged with being healthy now. He goes to the gym every day to do work out (se usa también como nombre, trabajar en el cuerpo, hacer ejercicio físico)

-"work something out".
1 solve something.
2 plan something in detail.

I hope you feel more confident now when you use these words and people! keep trying with the job seeking. Good things come to those who wait! And for waiting I mean being patient, not literally sitting down and expecting for that dream job to knock on your door. Good luck and no matter what, keep learning and improving your English!

Let´s see how the Griffin family cope with the economic situation!
Have a good weekend everyone!

My blackberry is not working!

Hi everyone!

I bet you´ve been missing videos from Funny English! I also bet you´ve missed your Blackberrys on those three horrible days, my condolences to the victims.

Here you have a video from BBC about the issue. It´s a funny video. The jokes are based on puns/ play on words (juegos de palabras) and double meanings so listen carefully. Enjoy it!





-It´s completely frozen: está totalmente colgada.
Frozen as a slang is also described as "the inability to articulate words, phrases,... as a result of an extreme state of intoxication from too much alcohol consumption or beacuse of the consequent hangover (resaca)".


- It might be well worth waiting a couple of weeks: Igual te merece la pena esperar un par de semanas.


- Can you give me a date (fecha/ dátil)?


- I tried to put my dongle in it and it won´t fit. (Joking about Apple and it tendency to incompatibility with other operating systems).
Dongle: dispósitivo de seguridad para software.


- Well, I don´t know much about these things: Bueno, yo no sé mucho de estas cosas.


-Let me try a bootleg.
Bootleg:
- patada.
- a pirate copy of something.


-That is crashed!
Crash:
- roto, estrellado (adjetivo).
- (applied to a computer or program.) to shut down, cease to work.



- Anything else I can help you with?



- Yes, my grandson birthday is due, you see (Sí, es el cumpleaños de mi nieto dentro de poco, ¿sabe?) He already has an apple and a blackberry. 



- Well, I do, I have an special offer on this. The kids seems to like it: Egg box (X-box) 3.60 (pounds)

Similar but not the same: By and Until.

Both "until" and "by" indicate: any time before, but not later than.


Until tells us how long a situation continues until it finishes. 
If something happens until a particular time, it means that at that time you stop doing it.


i.e:
They lived in Oxford Road until September 2003.
(They stopped living there in September.)


I will be away until Wednesday.
(I will be back on Wednesday.)




- We also use "until" in negative sentences.


i.e:
Details will not be available until January.
(January is the earliest date you can expect to receive the details.)






If something happens by a particular time, it happens at or before that time. It is often used to indicate a deadline (fecha límite).


i.e:
You have to finish by August 31.
(August 31 is the last day you can finish; you may finish before this date, but no after.)




-We also use "by" when asking questions.
i.e:
Will the details be available by December?




Got it?? Here you have an exercise to check if you understood. Good luck!

http://www.tolearnenglish.com/exercises/exercise-english-2/exercise-english-45609.php

Similar but not the same: Between and Among.

The difference between the words “between” and “among.”

Ambas significan "entre", pero existen diferencias entre ellas. Lo que hasta ahora nos habían enseñado era a usar una u otra en función del número de opciones o sujetos involucrados.

Between, para referirnos a algo que está situado entre dos cosas. Among para referirnos a algo situado entre mas de dos sujetos.

Esto es cierto pero si queréis ir más alla (go the extra mile), seguid leyendo.


BETWEEN.

You use “between” when:

-you are talking about distinct, individual items, even if there are more than two of them.
For example, you can say, "She chose between Harvard, Brown, and Yale" (because the colleges are individual items.)


-talking about relationships, be it [ya sea] one to one relationships (Let's keep this between you and me.) or between more than two items, groups, or people as in these sentences:

i.e: The negotiations between the cheerleaders, the dance squad, and the flag team were going well despite the confetti incident.

i.e: The differences between English, Chinese, and Arabic are significant.


AMONG.

You use “among” when:

-you are talking about things that aren't distinct items or individuals.

-if you are talking about a group of people, you also use “among”.

i.e: Fear spread among the hostages.

i.e: The scandal caused a division among the fans.

i.e: Brian and Rob are among the residents featured in the newsletter.


-“among” can also indicate that someone is part of a group or has been left out of a group, as in these examples:

i.e: He was glad to find a friend among enemies.

i.e: She felt like a stranger among friends.

i.e: Ben was later found living among the natives.



For location.

“Between” and “among” can also tell the reader different things about location or direction. Think about the difference between these two sentences:

Ben walked between the trees.

Ben walked among the trees.

“Ben walked between the trees” gives you the idea that he stayed on the path; he either walked between two trees or was on a route that was surrounded by trees.

While "Ben walked among the trees” gives you the idea that he wandered around a park or forest. He may have had an endpoint in mind, but it doesn't sound as if he went from point A to point B on a defined path.

Wear sunscreen!

Oh Summer...

I bet many of you have seen this video already,"Wear sunscreen." I leave it here with the exact transciption so you can check it if you missed something. It also contains very good pieces of advice. Enjoy it and wear sunscreen!!





Wear sunscreen.

If I could offer you only one tip (truco) for the future, sunscreen would be it.
The long-term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists, whereas (mientras que) the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable than my own meandering experience. I will dispense this advice now.

Enjoy the power and beauty of your youth. Oh, never mind. You will not understand the power and beauty of your youth until they've faded (se haya apagado). But trust me, in 20 years, you'll look back at photos of yourself and recall (recordarás) in a way you can't grasp (agarrar, en este caso en el sentido de comprender) now how much possibility lay before you and how fabulous you really looked. You are not as fat as you imagine.

Don't worry about the future. Or worry, but know that worrying is as effective as trying to solve an algebra equation by chewing bubble gum. The real troubles in your life are apt to be things that never crossed your worried mind, the kind that blindside (atacar por sorpresa) you at 4pm on some idle (cualquiera) Tuesday.

Do one thing every day that scares you.

Sing.

Don't be reckless (imprudente, temerario) with other people's hearts. Don't put up with (aguantar, soportar) people who are reckless with yours.

Floss (usar hilo dental).

Don't waste your time on jealousy (celos). Sometimes you're ahead, sometimes you're behind. The race is long and, in the end, it's only with yourself.

Remember compliments you receive. Forget the insults. If you succeed in doing this, tell me how.

Keep your old love letters. Throw away your old bank statements.

Stretch (estirar, hacer estiramientos).

Don't feel guilty if you don't know what you want to do with your life. The most interesting people I know didn't know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives. Some of the most interesting 40-year-olds I know still don't.

Get plenty of calcium. Be kind to your knees (rodillas). You'll miss them when they're gone.

Maybe you'll marry, maybe you won't. Maybe you'll have children, maybe you won't. Maybe you'll divorce at 40, maybe you'll dance the funky chicken on your 75th wedding anniversary. Whatever you do, don't congratulate yourself  (felicitarse, congratularse) too much, or berate (reprender, amonestar) yourself either. Your choices are half chance. So are everybody else's.

Enjoy your body. Use it every way you can. Don't be afraid of it or of what other people think of it. It's the greatest instrument you'll ever own.

Dance, even if you have nowhere to do it but your living room.

Read the directions, even if you don't follow them.

Do not read beauty magazines. They will only make you feel ugly.

Get to know (conocer a una persona de verdad) your parents. You never know when they'll be gone for good (para siempre) Be nice to your siblings (hermanos/as, neutro) They're your best link to your past and the people most likely to stick with you (estar contigo, a tu lado)in the future.

Understand that friends come and go, but with a precious few you should hold on (agarrarse bien) Work hard to bridge the gaps (tender un puente, salvar las diferencias) in geography and lifestyle, because the older you get, the more you need the people who knew you when you were young.

Live in New York City once, but leave before it makes you hard. Live in Northern California once, but leave before it makes you soft. Travel.

Accept certain inalienable truths: Prices will rise. Politicians will philander (tendrán aventuras). You, too, will get old. And when you do, you'll fantasize that when you were young, prices were reasonable, politicians were noble and children respected their elders.

Respect your elders (Respeta a tus mayores).

Don't expect anyone else to support you. Maybe you have a trust fund. Maybe you'll have a wealthy spouse Un cónyuge rico). But you never know when either one might run out.

Don't mess too much with your hair or by the time you're 40 it will look 85.

Be careful whose advice you buy, but be patient with those who supply it. Advice is a form of nostalgia. Dispensing it is a way of fishing (pescar) the past from the disposal (basura, olvida), wiping it off (limpiarlo), painting over the ugly parts and recycling it for more than it's worth.

Harm.

HARM


Harm it´s a noun and means "daño". We all know that. But there are some expressions with this word that could be useful for you. Here they are:


- To do harm to sb/sth:  hacerle daño a alguien o a algo.

- To do more harm than good: hacer más mal que bien, o hacer más daño que bien.


- There's no harm in asking!: ¡por preguntar no se pierde nada!.


- Don't worry, there's no harm done: no se preocupe, no es nada.


- Where's/what's the harm in that?:  ¿qué tiene (eso) de malo?.

- I didn't mean him any harm: no quería hacerle daño.


- To be out of harm's way: estar a salvo.


- To get sb out of harm's way: poner a alguien a salvo.


- To keep out of harm´s way: evitar problemas.

One or two words?

ALL READY/ ALREADY.


All ready means "completely ready".

i.e: "Are you all ready for the test?"



Already (adverb) means "before the present time" or "earlier than the time expected".

i.e:
I asked him to come to the cinema but he had already seen the film.
Are you buying Christmas cards already? It's only September!



ALL TOGETHER/ ALTOGETHER.

All together (adverb) means "together in a single group."

i.e: The waiter asked if we were all together.



Altogether (adverb) means "completely" or "in total ".

i.e: She wrote less and less often, and eventually she stopped altogether.

("To be in the altogether" is an old-fashioned term for being naked! Como dios lo trajo al mundo.)



ANY ONE/ ANYONE.

Any one means any single person or thing out of a group of people or things.

i.e: I can´t recommend any one of the books on this site.




Anyone means any person. It's always written as one word.

i.e: Did anyone see Big Brother yesterday?



APART/ A PART.

Apart (adverb) separated by distance or time.

i.e: They split up (cortar una relación) last summer, they´ve been apart for three months now.



A part (noun) a piece of something that forms the whole of something.

i.e: They made me feel like I was a part of the family.




EVERY DAY/ EVERYDAY.

Every day. In this expression, every is a determiner and day is a noun.
When you say every day you mean each day without exception.

i.e: You have been late for school every day this week.



Everyday (adjective).
When you say everyday you mean ordinary, unremarkable.

i.e: My culture pages offer an insight into the everyday life of Britain.

CoMMonly confused words (II)

Queridos amigos, os dejo uno facilito para el viernes, que la mayoría tenemos ya las neuronas preparándose para el finde, ya sea para refrescarlas a base de bien o para derretirlas en la playa.
CoMMonly confused words volumen II.  Que paséis un buen finde!




ADVICE/ ADVISE.


Advice (noun.)


Advise (verb.)


The same happens with (noun)  /  (verb)


practice/practise
device/devise
licence/license






FORTH/ FOURTH.


Forth (adverb): hacia delante.


i.e: She was moving back and forth. (se movía de atrás a delante)


Fourth (adverb): cuarto.


i.e: Mary finished the fourth in the race.






COMPLEMENT/ COMPLIMENT.


Complement: complemento (noun)/ complementar (verb).


Compliment: cumplido.






STATIONARY/ STATIONERY.


Stationary (adjective) : parado, inmóvil.


Stationery (noun): papalería.


i.e: We bought all the pencils and notebooks for school in the stationery this morning.






WONDER/ WANDER.

Wonder (verb): preguntarse.

i.e: I wonder why she is doing that.

Wander (verb): vagar, deambular.

i.e: They wandered around the fair for two hours.






BORROW /LEND.


Borrow (verb):  to take or accept something for a short time with the intention of returning it to its rightful owner


i.e: May I borrow a pencil, please?


Lend (verb): to give something for a short time with the intention of getting it back


Would you please lend me a pencil?




BORED/ BORING.



Bored (adjective):  when someone feels tired and unhappy because something is not interesting or because they have nothing to do.


i.e: She was so bored that she fell asleep.


Boring (adjective): describe something that is not interesting or exciting.


i.e: The lesson was so boring that she fell asleep. 


The same happen with excited and exciting,
                                   interested and interesting,...




Un poco de música para despedirnos! 

Have you met Mr Duncan?

Mr Duncan is an English teacher. He was born in Stafford (U.K) and after working for 4 years in China as a conversation teacher, he came back to U.K and started making free English Lessons videos to teach English.


The videos:
-Are available in Youtube.
-They last 4 to 10 minutes and they have subtitles.
-He talks about different subjects: Office words, grammar, slangs,...


The guy is a little creepy (espeluznante) and I don´t find his videos very formative but some of the are ok and at least you´ll be listening good pronunciation, so...enjoy!






Lesson one: he gives some good pieces of advice.





Lesson 9: Fame.



Lesson 8: Friends. I´m speechless with his Spanish...

Similar but not the same: Make y Do

Those two verbs are very similar and sometimes it´s diFFicult to know wich is the correct one in a sentence. The best thing to do with this two is to learn the whole expreSSion as they usually go always together. That phenomena is called collocation.


Collocation: Some words in English need each other like best friends.
For example: I made a cup of tea. The verb 'make' and 'cup of tea' need each other to be correct. Using another verb such as 'do' would be incorrect. These words that go together are called collocations. There are strong collocations and weaker collocations, but it's a good idea to learn these words together as you´ll never find it separated and if you use another verb or preposition in that expreSSion, that will be incorrect.




DO.


-We use the verb 'do' when someone performs an action, activity or task.

do the ironing/ the laundry/ the washing up/ do the dishes/...


-'Do' is often used when referring to work of any kind.

do your work/ your job
do homework/ housework
do business

(Always activities that do not produce a physical object!).


-For general ideas: when speaking about things in general. To describe an action without saying exactly what the action is. That´s why is often used with the words 'something, nothing, anything, everything,…

I'm not doing anything today.
He does everything for his mother.
She's doing nothing.


-Expressions with 'Do': standard expressions that goes always with 'do'. 

do a favour
do good/ do something badly/ do well/ do your best!
do harm (hacer daño)
do time (to go to prison)
do your hair/ nails






MAKE.

You use make for activities that create something physical, that you can touch!

-For constructing, building or creating.

make a dress
make food
make a cup of tea / coffee


-'Make' is often used when referring to preparing food of any kind.

make a meal/ breakfast / lunch / dinner


-Expressions with 'Make'.

make amends (enmendar).
make arrangements (planes, acuerdos)/ an agreement (acuerdo)
make a plan
make believe (to pretend)
make a choice/ a deciSion/ a promise/ a comment/ a remark (comentario, observación)/ a suGGestion/ a speech

make a difference
make an effort/ a progreSS
make an enquiry

make an excuse/ an exception
make friends/contacts
make a fuss (make a mess: montar un lío)
make a journey/ a trip
make love

make a mistake
make an oFFer/ money/ a fortune/ a profit
make a move / a noise/ a sound
make a phone call/ a visit
make an attempt (intento)/ a complaint (queja)
make use of something
make sure (asegurarse)
make a living of something (ganarse la vida)

i.e: Remember Jack? He used to make all sort of paints. Well, it happens that (resulta que) he has make a living of that. He lives in Paris now, he´s made a fortune.

make it (hacer algo, conseguir algo)

i.e: He thought he wouldn´t be able to pass that exam but he made it!

Steve Jobs speech. Speechless.

"If you live each day as if it was your last, some day you´ll most certainly be right."



Amigos, os dejo el discurso que dió Steve Jobs en la ceremonia de graduación de la Universidad de Stanford en 2005. Os lo dejo porque tiene muchas expresiones que os pueden servir, pero también por el discurso en sí. Escuchadlo entero porque merece la pena.
Como sabéis, mucho ha llovido para Steve Jobs desde este discurso en 2005, pero por eso mismo es importante recordar sus palabras.
Un saludo a todos y qué paséis un fin de semana genial.





-To be left speechleSS: quedarse sin palabras, boquiabierto.

-Truth be told...: la verdad sea dicha.

-No big deal: (idiom). Seguro que lo habéis escuchado muchas veces, pero siempre está bien comprobar su significado. Os dejo la definición del Urbandictionary que son siempre acertadas y puyísticas:  
"Something said after something amazing has been said or aCComplished (conseguido). Usually said in a sarcastic way to make ones self seem modest when in reality one is bragging (chuleando).

-To connect the dots: unir los puntos.
Es un expresion muy descriptiva. Se refiere a esos dibujos en los que una vez unes los puntos ves the whole picture.

- Drop (out) college: dejar la universidad.

-College tuition: gastos de matrícula,...de la universidad.

-To figure something out: arreglárselas.

i.e: I´ll figure it out! (algo se me ocurrirá).

-...and trust that all will work out ok: y confiar en que todo saldrá bien.

- Priceless: (adjective) no tiene precio.

i.e: Experience is priceless.

-To look foward/ look backwards: mirar hacia delante/ hacia atrás.

- To run a company/ a busineSS : dirigir una empresa/ negocio.

-To let somebody down: decepcionarle.

-To screw something up: cagarla.

i.e: Sorry! I screwed the surprise party up!

-To be rejected: ser rechazado.

-To be/get fired: ser despedido.

- ...it made an impreSSion on me: me dejó huella, me impresionó.

- To button up/ down: abrochar/ desabrochar.

(en este caso es en sentido figurado, meaning "atar cabos").

- Thankfully: gracias a dios.



Me quedo con esta frase:
"Follow your heart and intuition, they somehow already know what you truly want to become."

CoMMonly confused words (I)

As you all know the spelling is a tricky matter in English. Also happens that some words are very similar in spelling and meaning but not exactly the same. 

Here it´s a list of some of those words, so next time you bump into them, you don´t get in trouble! 

Have a good day!

BESIDE/ BESIDES.

Beside (preposition): next to, at the side of.

i.e: Can you hand me that book? It´s beside the lamp.

Besides (adverb) also, as well.

      (preposition) 'in addition to',

i.e:

(adverb) He's responsible for sales, and a lot more besides.

(preposition) Besides tennis, I play soccer and basketball.

CLOTHES/ CLOTH.

Clothes: something you wear (ropa)

i.e:Just a moment! Let me change my clothes.

Cloths: pieces of material used for cleaning or other purposes (trapo)

i.e: There are some cloths in the closet. Use those to clean the kitchen.

LAST/ LATEST.

Last: (adjective) final, there is no more after this (último).

i.e: I took the last train home.

Latest: (adjective) most recent, new.

i.e: His latest book is excellent.

Have you seen his latest painting?

LAY / LIE.

Lay/laid/laid: (verb) to put down flat something (tumbar algo).

i.e: He laid his pencil down and listened to the teacher.

Lie/lay/lain: (verb) to be lie down, in a lying position (tumbarse uno mismo, tenderse, acostarse).

i.e: The girl lay on the bed asleep.

At the moment, he's lying on the bed.

LOSE / LOOSE.

Lose (verb) to misplace, not win. (perder algo).

i.e: I lost my watch!

Loose (adjective) not tight (suelto, desatado, holgado).

           (verb) to release (soltar, desatar).

i.e: Your trousers are very loose!

If I lose any more weight, my clothes will be too loose.






PRICE/ PRIZE.

Price (noun) what you pay for something (precio).

i.e: What's the price of this book?

Prize (noun) award (premio).

i.e: Tom hooper won the Academy prize as best director this year.

AWARD/ REWARD.

Award: (noun) premio.

i.e: He´s just received another award for his work.

Reward: (noun) compensación, recompensa.

i.e: A reward has been offered for anyone that can provide authorities with information about the suspect.

QUITE/ QUIET.

Quite (adverb): bastante.

i.e: This test is quite difficult.

Quiet: (adjective) the opposite of loud or noisy (tranquilo, silencioso)

i.e: Could you please be quiet?!

SOME TIME/ SOMETIMES.

Some time: refers to an indefinite time in the future.

i.e: We should definetly meet for coffee some time.

Sometimes: (adverb) oCCasionally.

i.e: He sometimes works late.

Similar but not the same: Sick/ill. Ache/Pain.

SICK/ILL.

Ambos son adjetivos y significan enfermo, pero tienen usos y connotaciones diferentes.

-Sick es más informal, más indefinido. Se refiere a un conjunto de síntomas sin tener necesariamente una enfermedad diagnosticada. Por lo general, suele estar relacionado con mareos, nauseas,...

i.e: I feel sick.

-Ill se refiere a tener una enfermedad en particular. Suele usarse para cosas más serias, graves o de mayor duración, siempre de tipo físico.

i.e: He´s in the hospital now, he is seriOUsly ill

Expresiones:

-I feel sick (or I feel unwell): estoy indispuesto, tengo ganas de vomitar, me duele la barriga, estoy mareado,…

-I´m sick: estoy mal (se refiere a enfermedades mentales)

-He is sick: está enfermo/indispuesto. También puede significar "es un pervertido, solo piensa en lo mismo,...". Así que cuidado con esta expresión, asegurate de definir bien el contexto.

-To call sick: llamar al trabajo para avisar de que no puedes ir porque estás enfermo.

i.e:

-Where is Paul? I haven´t seen him this morning.

- He is not coming today, he called sick this morning.

 -That (something) makes me sick: eso me da asco, me da ganas de vomitar.

i.e: Tuna makes me sick.

-You make me sick: No te soporto, me das asco, me pones enfermo.

Diferencias por zonas:

En el inglés de Estados Unidos:

- se utiliza casi exclusivamente sick.

- sick e ill tienen el mismo sigfnificado: to feel or be unwell, whathever the problema might be.

i.e: They didn´t get to the movies after all; their kid was sick.
(Al final no fueron al cine, su hijo estaba enfermo).

PAIN/ACHE.

Ambos son nombres y significan dolor (unpleasant sensations that you feel in your body).

Diferencias:

-Pain is usually used to refer to a kind of sharp discomfort that is difficult to ignore.

i.e: Yesterday I suddenly felt a lot of pain in my stomach. I was taken to hospital where they discovered I had appendicitis.

-Ache is similar to pain, but it usually is used to refer to a duller kind of discomfort that may continue for longer than a pain might (headache, stomach ache, backache and heartache,…)

Como verbos.

Pain and ache pueden ser usados como verbos pero es menos común.

-Pain.

i.e: It pains me to think of you being so unhappy with your life – meaning it makes me feel unhappy that you are so sad.

(You can´t use this verb in present continuous.)

-Ache.

i.e: My back is really aching.

I wish my leg would stop hurting, it really aches.

Os dejo un vídeo muy mítico, David after dentist...

¡Qué tengáis un buen día!

Little Britain. Fat fighters

Si pensabais que no se podía ser más desagradable que Carol Beer, os presento a Marjorie Dawes, fat fighters coach. Mean, gross, racist,...

This is acid, black humour,...not recoMMended for delicate sensibilities.
Enjoy it! And have a nice week!



-In Usa 80% of the people are morbidly obese, the other 20% are just plain fat: En USA el 80% es obeso mórbido, el otro 20% son solo gordos.

-Ice cube: cubito de hielo.

-Cut out: reducir, recortar, quitarse algo.

-Burm: bollo (de pan)

-Dry burm: un bollo a palo seco.

-Must be something they eat over there: Debe ser algo que comen por allí.

-If anyone would like to come up to my place afterwards for drinks: Si queréis venir a mi casa después de esto a tomar algo...

(To my place/ To mine´s/ To Rachel´s place/ To Rachel´s: : a mi casa. (No se dice my house, my flat,...)


-It´s for your own good: es por tu propio bien.




-To be aware of something: ser consciente de algo.

-Warm welcome: calida bienvenida.

-Your movies...well, we don´t remember any but I take your word: Tus películas...bueno, no recordamos ninguna pero si tú lo dices, te creo.

-You have had issues with your weight: Has tenido problemas con tu peso.

-Did you find hard to get a man because of the weight?: ¿Te resultaba dificil encontrar un hombre por tu peso?

-Can we just stick to weight: ¿Podemos centrarnos/ ceñirnos al tema del peso?


-Lost cause: causa perdida.
(Esto es lo que yo llamo un "real friend". Haré un artículo sobre esto, que en inglés no todo son false friends!)

-I can´t believe how you treat people! It´s completely rude! You are meant to help this people and you keep ridculing them about their seize! It´s disgusting!: No puedo creer como tratas a la gente. Es totalmente grosero! Se supone que estás aquí para ayudar a esta gente y no haces más que ridiculizarlos por su peso! Es vergonzoso!

Es un vídeo formativo, lo juro.

-Dismay: consternar (verbo), consternación (nombre).
-Inquiry/ enquiry: preguntar (verbo), pregunta (nombre).
-AGGresion.
-Play hide (or hide and seek): jugar al esondite.
-Dismissal: rechazo, desestimación, autorización para retirarse.
-IncompItent.

How are you?

Como responder a la pregunta How are you?. 

Matices.

How are you?

-I´m fine thanks, how are you?

- I´m good (lo más común).

- I´m well. (Implica que antes no estabas bien y ahora sí. Es lo que respondes después de haber estado enfermo por ejemplo). 

i.e: How are you feeling today? I´m well (I wasn´t last week, but I feel well now).

-I´m ok. (Lleva implícito que estás bien ante un peligro/ amenaza).

i.e: Te caes por la calle (por supuesto levantas corriendo antes de que nadie te vea, aunque por lo general suele ser ya tarde). Alguno de los testigos te preguntará. Are you ok?

How do you do?
Cuando te presentan a alguien (formal).


How are you doing? Como estás (Informal)
Os dejo a joey para el tema de la pronunciación. Disfrutadlo.

Similar but not the same. Good/ Well.

¿Cual es la diferencia entre good y well?


Ambos son adjetivos, y ambos significan bien.


-Good (adj). Significa bien/bueno.


Good weather, good car, good health,…


-Well (adj). Significa bien, pero no bueno.


i.e:
-Well done! (No good done)
-Our soon is well: Nuestro hijo está bien, se encuentra bien. (no bueno)
-He is a good (no well) son.


Well se usa tambien para formar adjetivos compuesto (siempre con guión).


Well-being (bienestar) Well-chosen. Well-dressed,…


Y para terminar este artículo y empezar el finde con positivismo, James Brown.

Little Britain! Estaba tardando...

Bueno amigos, para los que necesitéis aprender proper brittish English, porque vais a ir a vivir a la isla, sois fans de los Monthy Pyton o simplemente os queréis reir y mejorar inglés a la vez, os recomiendo esta serie, Little Brittain. Humor al más puro estilo inglés ácido, mordaz, no deja títere con cabeza.


Es también interesante porque parodia todo lo propiamente British. De hecho, la realidad supera a veces a la ficción, para que os hagáis una idea.


Muchos ya la conoceréis, pero eso no es problema porque es un series que no te cansas de ver y que te saca la sonrisa sí o sí.




Aquí va una selección de mis favoritos.
Pondré los vídeos agrupados por personajes, para que los vayáis conociendo por separado ya que tienen bastantes diferentes. Empezamos con unos de mis favoritos, Carol Beer.


This is Carol Beer, the worst recepcionist ever! In this chapter Little Britain is filmed in U.S.A so you can check the different accents. Hope you like it!







-Brave: valiente.
-To have an operation.
-Hip replacement: reemplazo de cadera.
-Tonsils remove: operación de extracción de amígdalas.







-Maternity ward: sala de maternidad.
-My wife is about to have a baby: Mi mujer está a punto de tener un bebé.
(i.e: I´m about to come: Estoy a punto de llegar).
-Baby it´s not due yet, I got you down for next week: El bebé no se espera para hoy, os tengo apuntados para la semana que viene.
(i.e: The payment is due for Monday)
-Just waiting for the page to come up: Esperando a que la página se cargue..


Disfrutad del jueves! Y hasta mañana!

Although working every day. I´m trying to write day in, day out, instead of every other day as I was doing last week, I hope you aPPreciate it! =)