00) ENGLISH QUICK FIX (ebook)

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<p>Do you want a speak Advanced English…. FAST?</p><p>If so, then this book is for YOU!!</p><p>I’m Greg Pioli, from English With Greg. I have taught English in person,</p><p>online, and via YouTube to thousands of students over the past 15 years.</p><p>In this book I am going to give you 16 quick fixes to help take your English to</p><p>an Advanced level.</p><p>We will do this by focussing on the 16 most common errors that 99% of</p><p>Intermediate / Upper Intermediate students make when speaking English.</p><p>If you fix these errors, you will instantly make noticeable progress in your</p><p>English.</p><p>Are you ready? Let’s fix your English!!…</p><p>INTRODUCTION</p><p>W W W. E N G L I S H W I T H G R E G . C O M</p><p>http://www.englishwithgreg.com</p><p>❑ Why is this wrong?</p><p>If you say “We are 5” you are actually saying that you are 5 years old,</p><p>not that there are 5 people in your group.</p><p>❑ The correction</p><p>Instead of “we are”, we have to use the expression “there are … of</p><p>us”. This might sound a bit strange, but it is the only way in English to</p><p>express number of people that are in your group.</p><p>❑ Example phrases</p><p>❌ How many are you?</p><p>✅ How many of you are there?</p><p>❌ We are 5.</p><p>✅ There are 5 of us.</p><p>❌ We were 5 at the meeting yesterday.</p><p>✅ There were 5 of us at the meeting yesterday.</p><p>Quick Fix 1. We are 5 people</p><p>W W W. E N G L I S H W I T H G R E G . C O M</p><p>http://www.englishwithgreg.com</p><p>❑ Why is this wrong?</p><p>I often hear students say things like “If it will rain, I will call a taxi”.</p><p>However, we must never use will twice in a sentence.</p><p>❑ The correction</p><p>For sentences like this, we use the 1st conditional:</p><p>[If / When] + [present simple] + [future with ‘will’]</p><p>If it rains I will call a taxi</p><p>Although the first part of this sentence refers to a possible future, we</p><p>must use the present simple tense.</p><p>❑ Example phrases</p><p>❌ When I will get home, I will call you.</p><p>✅ When I get home, I will call you.</p><p>❌ If we will play well, we will win.</p><p>✅ If we play well, we will win.</p><p>❌ When I will find out, I will tell you.</p><p>✅ When I find out, I will tell you.</p><p>Quick Fix 2. If I will... I will..</p><p>W W W. E N G L I S H W I T H G R E G . C O M</p><p>http://www.englishwithgreg.com</p><p>Quick Fix 3. Still v Already v Yet</p><p>W W W. E N G L I S H W I T H G R E G . C O M</p><p>❑ What’s the problem?</p><p>These three grammatical words are easily mixed up by students and</p><p>can cause real confusion when talking with native speakers.</p><p>❑ The correction</p><p>First we must imagine a timeline…</p><p>⏪ PAST → → → → → ▶ PRESENT → → → → → ⏩ FUTURE</p><p>Don’t panic: it’s easier than you think…</p><p>⏪ We use already to talk about things we have done in the past.</p><p>▶ We use still to talk about things that are happening now.</p><p>⏩ We use yet to talk about things we haven’t done, but we will do in</p><p>the future.</p><p>❑ Example phrases</p><p>✅ I don’t want to eat out tonight because I’ve already had dinner (I</p><p>had dinner in the past)</p><p>✅ I moved to the USA 3 years ago and I still live here. (I live here</p><p>now)</p><p>✅ I’m married but we don’t have any children yet. (I will have</p><p>children in the future)</p><p>http://www.englishwithgreg.com</p><p>Quick Fix 4. As v Like</p><p>W W W. E N G L I S H W I T H G R E G . C O M</p><p>❑ What’s the problem?</p><p>These two words express a really similar meaning in English (and</p><p>even native speakers don’t always follow the more specific grammar</p><p>‘rules’).</p><p>❑ The correction</p><p>Let’s keep this simple…</p><p>1. As describes the function of a person or object.</p><p>2. Like expresses that something is similar to something else.</p><p>❑ Example phrases with ‘As’</p><p>✅ I work as a teacher. (This is my function / my job)</p><p>✅ You can use your key as a bottle-opener. (A function of my keys)</p><p>✅ I use one of the bedrooms as my office. (A function of the</p><p>bedroom)</p><p>❑ Example phrases with ‘Like’</p><p>✅ You are kind and sweet, just like your mum! (Similar to your mum)</p><p>✅ He plays the guitar like a professional. (He is not a professional)</p><p>✅ She speaks like a native speaker. (She is not a native speaker)</p><p>http://www.englishwithgreg.com</p><p>❑ What’s the problem?</p><p>There are many pairs of adjectives that are very similar (boring-</p><p>bored, interesting-interested, exciting-excited, tiring-tired…), and</p><p>students very often get very confused about when to use each one.</p><p>❑ The correction</p><p>We use -ing adjectives (boring, interesting, exciting…) when</p><p>describing our opinion of something.</p><p>We use -ed adjectives (bored, interested, excited…) when describing</p><p>a feeling.</p><p>❑ Example phrases</p><p>❌ It’s been a tired day! I had lots of work to do.</p><p>✅ It’s been a tiring day! I had lots of work to do. (My opinion of</p><p>today)</p><p>❌ There’s nothing to do here. I’m boring.</p><p>✅ There’s nothing to do here. I’m bored. (My feeling)</p><p>❌ My uncles is bored. He always tells the same stories.</p><p>✅ My uncle is boring. He always tells the same stories. (My opinion)</p><p>Quick Fix 5. Bored v Boring</p><p>W W W. E N G L I S H W I T H G R E G . C O M</p><p>http://www.englishwithgreg.com</p><p>Quick Fix 6. Make or Do?</p><p>W W W. E N G L I S H W I T H G R E G . C O M</p><p>❑ What’s the problem?</p><p>Many other languages have just one verb for these two verbs. It is</p><p>therefore very difficult to know when we use Make and when we use</p><p>Do.</p><p>❑ The correction</p><p>Here’s a quick guide: use Make for creating or producing something,</p><p>and use Do for activities or jobs. However the rules for this are not</p><p>black and white, and there are lots of exceptions. We must therefore</p><p>change the way we learn English, and always learn “chunks” – groups</p><p>of words that go together – rather than individual words.</p><p>❑ Example phrases that use ‘Make’</p><p>✅ Make a booking ✅ Make money</p><p>✅ Make a decision ✅ Make an effort</p><p>Example phrases that use ‘Do’</p><p>✅ Do exercise ✅ Do someone a favour</p><p>✅ Do business ✅ Do a course</p><p>http://www.englishwithgreg.com</p><p>Quick Fix 7. Listen v Hear</p><p>W W W. E N G L I S H W I T H G R E G . C O M</p><p>❑ What’s the problem?</p><p>Confusing these two verbs is a mistake that typical intermediate</p><p>speakers make. But I want you to have an advanced level, so you</p><p>need to stop making this type of mistake! Now!</p><p>❑ The correction</p><p>Hear is an involuntary action. But when you want to hear something,</p><p>you listen to it (please learn it together with the preposition… ‘listen</p><p>to’!)</p><p>❑ Example phrases with ‘listen to’</p><p>✅ I always listen to the radio when I’m driving my car.</p><p>✅ Hey! I’m talking to you! Are you listening to me?</p><p>✅ Julie says her husband never listens to her!</p><p>Example phrases with ‘hear’</p><p>✅ Can you speak more loudly, please? I can’t hear you very well!</p><p>✅ Have you heard the news about the elections?</p><p>✅ My house is so near the airport that I can hear the aeroplanes.</p><p>http://www.englishwithgreg.com</p><p>Quick Fix 8. Say v Tell</p><p>W W W. E N G L I S H W I T H G R E G . C O M</p><p>❑ What’s the problem?</p><p>Confusing these two verbs can make you sound like you have a</p><p>lower level of English. Don’t let that happen. You deserve better!</p><p>❑ The correction</p><p>The rule is simple… We say + something We tell + a person</p><p>So, use say when the verb is followed by another phrase (e.g. happy</p><p>birthday / she was coming / hello / that’s not fair…)</p><p>And use tell when the verb is followed by a person (e.g. him, them,</p><p>me, you, Peter, everybody…</p><p>❑ Example phrases with ‘tell’</p><p>✅ I’ve already told you the answer three times! (person: you)</p><p>✅ Katy told Peter she wanted to eat out (person: Peter)</p><p>❑ Example phrases with ‘say’</p><p>✅ Courtney said she was coming to the event.</p><p>✅ Rob said that it wasn’t fair, and left the meeting angrily.</p><p>http://www.englishwithgreg.com</p><p>❑ Why is this wrong?</p><p>In some languages it is OK to use double negatives, but in English,</p><p>we must never use two negatives in a phrase. Just remember, in</p><p>English (and mathematics), two negatives make a positive!</p><p>❑ The correction</p><p>If you already have one negative word (e.g. don’t, didn’t, can’t,</p><p>aren’t…), the other word must be anything / anyone / anywhere /</p><p>any…</p><p>❑ Example phrases</p><p>❌ I haven’t had nothing to eat all day.</p><p>✅ I haven’t had anything to eat all day.</p><p>❌ I don’t know nothing about rugby.</p><p>✅ I don’t know anything about rugby.</p><p>❌ I haven’t said nothing to him for 2 years.</p><p>✅ I haven’t said anything to him for 2 years.</p><p>❌ I didn’t do nothing special this weekend.</p><p>✅ I didn’t do anything special this weekend.</p><p>Quick Fix 9. I didn't do nothing</p><p>W W W. E N G L I S H W I T H G R E G . C O M</p><p>http://www.englishwithgreg.com</p><p>❑ Why is this wrong?</p><p>To make things easier, let’s imagine today is Monday 1st January. If</p><p>you say “See you next Wednesday” you are not referring to</p><p>Wednesday 3rd January, but rather Wednesday 10th January (i.e.</p><p>Wednesday of next week). Similarly, if you say See you next 10th</p><p>January, you are referring to the 10th January of next year. Be</p><p>careful: you probably don’t want to say the word ‘next’ when making</p><p>plans!</p><p>❑ The correction</p><p>If you plan on seeing someone on Wednesday of the same week,</p><p>then simply say, “See you on Wednesday”. If you want to see</p><p>someone on 10th January of the same year, say “See you on 10th</p><p>January”.</p><p>❑ Example phrases</p><p>❌ Let’s meet for your job interview the next 4th June.</p><p>✅ Let’s meet for your job interview on 4th June.</p><p>❌ Come to my house next Friday for dinner.</p><p>✅ Come to my house on Friday for dinner.</p><p>Quick Fix 10. See you next Wednesday</p><p>W W W. E N G L I S H W I T H G R E G . C O M</p><p>http://www.englishwithgreg.com</p><p>❑ Why is this wrong?</p><p>This overuse of the word of is often caused by directly translating</p><p>from your own language. If you use of once in a sentence (e.g. the</p><p>cat of Joe), you sound quite unnatural. However, if you use it twice</p><p>(e.g. the cat of the dad of Joe), it becomes quite difficult for native</p><p>speakers to understand what you’re talking about.</p><p>❑ The correction</p><p>Use the apostrophe to express possession (you might have learnt</p><p>this as the “saxon genitive”, though native speakers generally just</p><p>call it the apostrophe). So we would say Joe’s dad’s cat (3 simple</p><p>words) instead of the cat of the dad of Joe (7 words!). We could go</p><p>on and on and say, for example, Joe’s dad’s ex-wife’s son’s friend’s</p><p>cat’s food.</p><p>❑ Example phrases</p><p>❌ It’s the birthday of the wife of my friend today.</p><p>✅ It’s my friend’s wife’s birthday today.</p><p>❌ This is the favourite song of my mum.</p><p>✅ This is my mum’s favourite song.</p><p>Quick Fix 11. The cat of the dad of Joe</p><p>W W W. E N G L I S H W I T H G R E G . C O M</p><p>http://www.englishwithgreg.com</p><p>❑ Why is this wrong?</p><p>There are some confusing plurals in English, and they are sometimes</p><p>very basic words. Woman, man, child, wife and tooth are all</p><p>examples of words with confusing plurals that students often have</p><p>problems with. However, the most confusing of these examples is</p><p>the plural of woman…</p><p>❑ The correction</p><p>The correct plurals of the above words are women, men, children,</p><p>wives and teeth. Students have the most problems changing woman</p><p>to women because, although both words begin wo-, the sound of</p><p>the o changes in the plural and sounds more like an i.</p><p>❑ Example phrases</p><p>❌ All the childs in my class are lovely.</p><p>✅ All the children in my class are lovely.</p><p>❌ There are only three womans at my office.</p><p>✅ There are only three women at my office.</p><p>Quick Fix 12. Two woman and a men</p><p>W W W. E N G L I S H W I T H G R E G . C O M</p><p>http://www.englishwithgreg.com</p><p>Quick Fix 13. Pronouncing -ed in past tenses</p><p>W W W. E N G L I S H W I T H G R E G . C O M</p><p>❑ What’s the problem?</p><p>English is not a phonetic language, and we do not pronounce every</p><p>letter that we write. I’m sure you know this. But I’m also you you</p><p>sometimes pronounce regular verbs in the past incorrectly!</p><p>❑ What’s the fix?</p><p>Change your mentality! Pronouncing letters when you shouldn’t</p><p>(simply because we write them) will not help a native speaker</p><p>understand you.</p><p>There are 3 ways to pronounce the -ed:</p><p>1. /t/</p><p>2. /d/</p><p>3. /id</p><p>The thing is, that /t/ and /d/ are so similar that it’s almost impossible</p><p>to distinguish the two. So my personal tip is to always add /t/ to the</p><p>end of the verb. If it’s not possible to add a /t/ to the end of a word,</p><p>then add /id/.</p><p>Note: It’s only not possible to add a /t/ to the end of verbs that</p><p>already end in /t/ or /d/ sounds, for example:</p><p>✅ Decide ✅ Want ✅ Add ✅ Hate ✅ Collide</p><p>http://www.englishwithgreg.com</p><p>Quick Fix 14. Used to v Usually</p><p>W W W. E N G L I S H W I T H G R E G . C O M</p><p>❑ What’s the problem?</p><p>You’ve used these words incorrectly so many times that you sound</p><p>like you missed the day they taught it at school.</p><p>❑ What’s the fix?</p><p>Used to is a past tense. We use it to talk about a past habit that is not</p><p>true now (think of things you habitually did as a child that you don’t</p><p>do now) e.g. I used to live with my parents, I used to go to school, I</p><p>used to have longer hair.</p><p>Usually is used for things we habitually do in the present! I usually go</p><p>on holiday in December. I usually eat fish on Fridays.</p><p>❑ Example phrases</p><p>❌ I am used to live in France when I was younger.</p><p>✅ I used to live in France when I was younger.</p><p>❌ I love the mornings, so I am used to wake up early.</p><p>✅ I love the mornings, so I usually wake up early.</p><p>http://www.englishwithgreg.com</p><p>❑ Why is this wrong?</p><p>Depending on your mother tongue, you will either have some or lots</p><p>of problems using the articles in English.</p><p>❑ The correction</p><p>The basic rule is quite simple…</p><p>When we are talking about something in general, we do not use ‘the’.</p><p>When we are talking about something specific, we use ‘the’.</p><p>❑ Talking about something in general (without ‘the’)</p><p>✅ Bananas are yellow.</p><p>✅ English is spoken in the USA</p><p>✅ I like beef</p><p>Talking about something specific (with ‘the’)</p><p>✅ The bananas I bought yesterday are still green.</p><p>✅ The English spoken in the USA is different to the English spoken in</p><p>the UK.</p><p>✅ I like the beef they sell at the local butcher’s.</p><p>Quick Fix 15. Do you like the beef?</p><p>W W W. E N G L I S H W I T H G R E G . C O M</p><p>http://www.englishwithgreg.com</p><p>❑ Why is this wrong?</p><p>Can is a useful word, but we can only use it in the present simple and</p><p>past simple tenses. It is not possible to use it in the infinitive (to can),</p><p>the future (I will can) or other tenses.</p><p>❑ The correction</p><p>If we want to use it as the infinitive, we must use be able to. This has</p><p>exactly the same meaning as can but we can use it in every tense by</p><p>simply conjugating the verb to be (e.g. I will be able to, I would like</p><p>to able to, I would have been able to…)</p><p>❑ Example phrases</p><p>❌ I would love to can speak English perfectly.</p><p>✅ I would love to be able to speak English perfectly.</p><p>❌ I’m not sure if I will can go to the party.</p><p>✅ I’m not sure if I will be able to go to the party.</p><p>❌ I’ve never could run fast.</p><p>✅ I’ve never been able to run fast.</p><p>Quick Fix 16. I want to can speak English</p><p>W W W. E N G L I S H W I T H G R E G . C O M</p><p>http://www.englishwithgreg.com</p><p>WHO AM I?</p><p>I’m Greg Pioli, and I help students like you to power through the intermediate</p><p>barrier to communicate clearly and confidently in English!</p><p>I was born in Yorkshire, England, and now live in Santiago de Compostela,</p><p>Spain with my wife and two bilingual daughters (the baby can cry in both</p><p>languages). I've been teaching English for more than 15 years, exclusively</p><p>online since 2012... and I absolutely LOVE it!!</p><p>In 2016 I started teaching via YouTube, and my lessons reach people in over</p><p>200 countries. I love how this makes the world seem a smaller place, and how</p><p>my lessons make a small difference to people’s lives all around the world.</p><p>GREG PIOLI</p><p>British English Pronunciation and Grammar Coach</p><p>W W W. E N G L I S H W I T H G R E G . C O M</p><p>◉▶ Click here to watch my NEWEST YouTube video</p><p>http://www.englishwithgreg.com</p><p>https://goo.gl/fCHJ75</p>