A language has to be practiced every day to be kept and improved. We tend to forget the rules that we learn at a young age. Also, the language evolved with next trends of contacts, text messages, and even emoji.
However, what makes the difference between two same kinds of people expressing their ideas? Obviously, the idea itself is the base, but the way to transmit to others is essential.
Check it LIVE
What if I tell you, you can check on real-time every word, sentences, questions, punctuation before to send it or share it with others. Would it be amazing?
Grammarly is this magic tool!
It is a web-based tool that can check your English for spelling, grammar, punctuation, sentence structure, and style. They also developed some add-on for your browser and Word. After you install your add-on, it will scan the text that you can type in Gmail, website platforms, social media, and more.
The free account is great and correct most of the common mistakes. If you want to go deeper and get close to a perfect English, you can upgrade.
It has been many months now that we upgraded to the Premium account, and it is amazing how many mistakes and wrong constructions Grammarly can notice and help you to understand why it is wrong.
Back to the basics
Sometimes, you have to go back to the school bench to review your basics. I know that most of us, learn English at school as a second language, so it was a bigger challenge to assimilate all the grammar rules and exceptions. Mignon Fogarty makes it straightforward and digestible for you.
She is the author of the NY Times best-selling book Grammar Girl’s Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing. Inside she gives you some bite-size grammar lessons around one topic with humour and easy to understand. However, in fact, she started everything with the podcasts, and I think you should start with that.
I was listening to the difference between Because, Due to, Since and As, and, as most foreigners English speakers I learned a lot.
It is time to redo you grammar education in a fun way with Mignon!
Expand your vocabulary
When you find your way to share your thoughts and your ideas, it is time to add some nuances and shades to your stories. Just for an email, for a comment on social media or your cover letter, situations have to be expressed with precision and clarity. You have to be sure to be perfectly understood.
We tend to use less than 1,000 different words of actual value in a day, and it is usually enough to be understood. However, without using the old English from Shakespeare, you can add more expressions and new words in your language. The end goal is to reach 15,000 words in your vocabulary toolbox, cause most of the foreigners use an average of 4,500 words; this can grow to 10,000 if you live abroad.
Did you know that the Oxford English Dictionary contains 171,476 words in current use?
It can be hard to focus on learning vocabulary, and we are all aware that it is easier to learn when you play too, so we recommend you this two free websites to practice and grow your vocabulary at the same time: Vocabulary.com and Freerice.com.
In any case, one solution that will improve your English in all these areas is simple: just read books regularly. If you have any other tips, please share your comments below.