Most Uncommon (or weird) Singular Words in English

There are many words in English that are often used only in the plural form. Speakers often make the mistake of using the plural grammatical form when they should actually use the singular. Here are 9 words that are quite common in the plural but unusual in the singular with examples of how to use them:

1. Data – The singular is datum.

Example: The data show that the drug effectively lowers cholesterol.

2. Criteria – The singular is criterion.

Example: The most important criteria for college admissions committees are GPA, SAT score and involvement in extracurricular activities.

3. Media -The singular is medium.

Example: The media are often accused of being biased.

4. Alumni – The singular is alumnus for a male and alumna for a female (female plural is alumnae).

Example: The alumni gathered at their university for their 10th reunion.

5. Dice - The singular is die.

Example: Yahtzee is played by rolling five dice to make different combinations.

6. Bacteria – The singular is bacterium.

Example: Bacteria is often found on light switches and remote controls in hotel.

7. Algae – The singular is alga.

Example: Some types of algae are edible.

8. Paparazzi – The singular is paparazzo. 

Example: The paparazzi compete with one another to get the best picture of a celebrity.

9. Parentheses – The singular is parenthesis.

Example: The teacher did not like that she used so many parentheses in her writing.

Source: voxy.com

Most Common Baseball Idioms

Keep the idioms coming! Last month, we had a post on boxing idioms that are often used in the real world. As we are halfway through the baseball season, it would only be fair to point out that many frequently used idioms also come from baseball. Let’s take a look at some of them.

1.  “Throw (someone) a curveball” – to do something unexpected, usually something unpleasant

Baseball scenario – When the pitcher throws a curveball, the ball will dive downward instead of flying in a straight line. Usually, this is done in order to trick the batter into thinking that he will be able to hit the ball, when actually he will probably fail to do so.

Real world scenario – During a presentation at school or work, you expect others to ask questions that relate to your presentation. However, when someone asks you about something you were completely unprepared to discuss, that person has just thrown you a curveball.

2.  “Step up to the plate” – to accept a challenge or responsibility for something; to rise to the occasion

Baseball scenario – The batter gets into position to hit the ball. He stands at the right or left of the plate depending on which feels more comfortable.

Real world scenario – Natural disasters, like hurricanes, wildfires, and earthquakes, can wreak havoc and cause significant damage. People who want to help rebuild destroyed neighborhoods should step up to the plate and begin working with each other to help these communities.

3.  “Strike out” – to fail at something

Baseball scenario – A batter is given three chances to hit the ball and run to first base. If he fails all three times, he has just struck out and has lost an opportunity to score a point for the team.

Real world scenario – If a man is attracted to a woman, he should seize the chance to ask her out on a dinner date. If he takes too long to do this and somebody else ends up asking her out first for dinner, then he has struck out and will not be having dinner with her.

4.  “Play hardball” – to play tough/act aggressively; to be unwilling to compromise

Baseball scenario – In baseball, a hard ball is used while in softball, a softer ball is used.

Real world scenario – If two major companies are trying to come to a certain agreement, but one refuses to cooperate in the deal, then that company is playing hardball. The company will not compromise until it gets what it wants.

Have you heard of any other idioms that might come from baseball? What about other sports?

Source: voxy.com

Less or Fewer: which one should you use?

It is common for English speakers to mix up “less” and “fewer”. This is a mistake that even native speakers make fairly often. As a rule, “fewer” is used for nouns that can be counted individually, called count nouns, while “less” is used for things that can’t be counted, or noncount nouns. Compare these sentence sets:

“You should try to eat fewer sugary snacks.”
“You should try to eat less sugar.”

“Fewer distractions in the office would help me work better.”
“Less talking in the office would help me work better.”

These sentences illustrate the difference between count and noncount nouns. Count nouns can be expressed in the plural (like snacks or distractions), while noncount nouns cannot be expressed in the plural (like sugar or talking).

The distinction between “much” and “many” also depends on whether a noun is a count or noncount noun. Much is used for noncount nouns while many is used for count nouns. Putting the 2 rules together, you use “much” and “less” for noncount nouns and “many” and “fewer” for count nouns:

“Eating too many sugary snacks is unhealthy. You should try to eat fewer sugary snacks.”
“Eating too much sugar is unhealthy . You should try to eat less sugar”.

“There are too many distractions in the office. Fewer distractions would help me work better.”
“There is too much talking in the office. Less talking would help me work better.”

The exceptions to less/fewer rule are time, money, and distance. You would say that something costs “less than $100”, not “fewer than $100”, even though dollars can technically be counted. This is because you are referring to the cost as a whole amount. Similarly, you should also say “I’ve lived here for less than six months” or “There’s a supermarket less than 2 blocks away”.

By the way, that sign for the supermarket express lane that reads “10 items or less” is technically incorrect and should read “10 items or fewer” since you can count the individual items. Every so often, a grammarian will point this out but so far it’s been a losing battle.

Hopefully these tips will help you make fewer mistakes with English grammar!

Source: voxy.com

Top 3 Most Popular English Teachers on YouTube

The world is getting smaller and smaller, thanks to globalization and the Internet. This is good news for language learners and language teachers alike! From Facebook to Twitter to blogs, language learning has never been as easy, interactive, and social as it is now. Youtube has been growing as a popular language hub for free videos and lessons for almost any language you want to learn. English lessons in particular have a huge following on Youtube, some channels having over 6 million views per video. Although there are too many to name, here are the top three most popular English teachers on YouTube:


Jennifer from English with Jennifer 
Jennifer produces a mixture of more advanced level grammar lessons and pronunciation lessons. But the cream of the crop amongst her videos are her lessons on idioms (kitchen idioms, driving idioms, color idioms…) and American slang/phrases based on everyday environments and tasks. Most of the content in her curriculum is based on expressions and conversations from authentic experiences. For beginners who are learning to speak English for the very first time, Jennifer’s channel is a great free resource to help them get started.

Mister Duncan from Learning English with Mister Duncan
Mister Duncan hails from Great Britain and is an extremely well known ESL teacher on Youtube. His channel is popular because of the quality of each video and his amiable camera presence. His teaching style resembles Bill Nye the Science Guy (Remember that show? It was so awesome), except with the English language. Mister Duncan’s lessons focus mainly on fluency and speaking English naturally, rather than prescriptive grammar. Although he doesn’t always provide actual instruction or explanations, he covers many topics that students may not encounter in a traditional ESL classroom. His videos are good supplementary material to help students listen to and practice native speech about authentic topics.

Teacher Paul from Learn American English Online
Paul focuses mainly on very specific grammatical concepts and produce content-based traditional lectures. Although his website’s appearance looks like it’s been stuck in the 90’s, it actually contains a solid grammar curriculum based on learners’ proficiency levels. For intermediate and advanced students who need help with their written English, Paul does a great job teaching complicated and sometimes ambiguous concepts. This Youtube channel seems like a better resource for other English teachers who want to brush up on gerunds and conditionals and also for those who want some inspiration for their own grammar lessons.

Source: voxy.com

We Think More Rationally In A Foreign Language

prussiahasinvaded:

One of psychology’s major contributions has been to document the myriad ways our thinking is sent haywire by a series of biases. Investigations into the ways and means to combat these biases have lagged behind, but that’s starting to change. Now a team of researchers at the University of Chicago has reported that people are immune to two key biases when they think in their second, less familiar language… 

Read More

(via bellalinguista)

Source: bps-research-digest.blogspot.co.uk

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