English

My grandpa always tells me that water does a body good. He swears that it has kept him alive thus far. He is 88 years old and had a heart attack when he was only 54 years old. The doctors gave him 2 years to live, but he has survived for 34 years!

He tells me that eating a lot of fruit and vegetables and drinking a lot of water have kept him alive. I have to believe him since he has beat all odds.

It is amazing what water, fruit and vegetables can do for you. Staying natural is a good thing!

~Missy

I always like a cup of Joe in the mornings. It's what wakes me up and starts off my day. What exactly is a cup of Joe (you might say)? ........... It's coffee!!!

I prefer mine with some milk and sugar. Actually, I use Sweet-n-low more than sugar because I prefer to take in less calories. I am not sure how good artificial sweetener is for you, but it saves me from putting on the pounds.

Anyways, for me, waking up and smelling the coffee brewing and taking the first sip is what I look forward to each morning.

Hope you had your cup of Joe today. :)

~ Missy

1) "Needless to say" meaning: obvious
Example: It is needless to say that we can't buy a house if we can't even afford a car.

2) "Shape up or ship out" meaning: start behaving or leave
Example: Matt, I have told you eleven times to not throw things in class! Shape up or ship out!

3) "A lemon" meaning: a car or vehicle that has many problems.
Example: The last time I bought a car, I got a lemon. This time when I buy a car I will have a mechanic check it first.

4) "Set in stone" meaning: finalized, already decided
Example: The decision is set in stone, you can't change your mind now.

5) "Don't bite the hand that feeds you." meaning: don't hurt the people who help you
Example: Marsha always helps you clean the house, don't bite the hand that feeds you. You should help her tonight with her school project like she asked.

I was just thinking about the different accents that there are in English. People from different states have different accents. I like to listen to the different accents that there are out there.

Not only are there accents within the English language itself, but other accents come from people who speak English as their second language. Some people have an easy time getting rid of their accent but others keep their accent for the rest of their life.

Living in California, you get used to hearing many different kinds of accents because there are many immigrants who live here. It is nice to hear variations in the language.

I think we are so accustomed to hearing people whose native language is not English. Sometimes we don't even really pay attention to their accents. Sometimes we don't even hear their grammatical mistakes. The most important thing is communication and understanding one another.

~Missy

When your phone is ringing and you answer it, the first thing you say is "Hello".

The other person on the phone will usually say something like: "Is John there?" or "May I speak with John?"

If John is not home, you respond: "No, I'm sorry, John isn't here. Can I take a message?"

If John is home, you would reply, "Yes, hold on a minute and I will get him for you." or "Yes, please wait a minute."

Hope this helps you have a little more confidence when you have to answer the telephone in English.

Good luck!

~Missy

A very difficult poem proving that English is difficult to pronounce. The words are below the video.

I take it you already know
Of tough and bough and cough and dough?
Others may stumble but not you
On hiccough, thorough, slough and through.
Well done! And now you wish perhaps,
To learn of less familiar traps?

Beware of heard, a dreadful word
That looks like beard and sounds like bird.
And dead, it's said like bed, not bead-
for goodness' sake don't call it 'deed'!
Watch out for meat and great and threat
(they rhyme with suite and straight and debt).

What is a "bad apple"?

Is it an apple that is old? An apple that is brown?

No, it has nothing to do with that.

This phrase actually is an English idiom and refers to a bad person. An example sentence is:
Sam's brother is a bad apple because he is always causing problems in the family.

Most people who speak English, when asked what is the longest word they know, will say: antidisestablishmentarianism.

This word was first created to oppose the disestablishment of the Church of England.
Nowadays, people use the word to say that they are opposed to the belief that there should not be an official church in a country.

Try saying this word 3 times fast!

Antidisestablishmentarianism
Antidisestablishmentarianism
Antidisestablishmentarianism

:) Good luck!

~Missy

Do you know the difference between "your" and you're"?

Many times people mix up the two words and use them wrong. Even native English speakers do so. Be careful when writing these words and remember that "your" is a possessive pronoun and "you're" is a contraction of the words -- you are--.

We use "your" in sentences like:
This is your candy.
Is your name Sarah?

We use "you're" when we want to use the contraction of the words "you are" like:
You're going to get in trouble.
Sam, you're a really handsome guy!

Hope this helps you avoid a grammatical error in English.

~Missy

Verb - Be
Simple Past - Was/Were
Past Participle - Been

Verb - Break
Simple Past - Broke
Past Participle - Broken

Verb - Choose
Simple Past - Chose
Past Participle - Chosen

Verb - Fall
Simple Past - Fell
Past Participle - Fallen

Verb - Fly
Simple Past - Flew
Past Participle - Flown

Verb - Hide
Simple Past - Hid
Past Participle - Hidden

Verb - Know
Simple Past - Knew
Past Participle - Known

Verb - Leave
Simple Past - Left
Past Participle - Left

Verb - See
Simple Past - Saw
Past Participle - Seen

Verb - Write
Simple Past - Wrote
Past Participle - Written