WORDS, WORDS, WORDS

Do you find learning Slang Expressions confusing? Well, don’t worry - you are not alone. Most students struggle with the many slang expressions in the English language.

In our last edition of WORDS, WORDS, WORDS, Dr. English asked you to find the meanings of some common slang expressions related to money. Here are the answers :

Throw money out a window – to waste your money.
Ex: You are throwing money out a window by going to a school other than the Vancouver English Centre!

Get your money’s worth – to get good value for your money.
Ex: I really got my money’s worth at the All-You-Can-Eat sushi restaurant.

Quick buck – money made quickly or easily.
Ex: I don’t care what kind of work I do, I just need to make a quick buck.
**Buck is a slang word for money**

Feel like a million bucks – to feel great.
Ex: Last night I slept for 10 hours and today I feel like a million bucks!

If you would like more information on WORDS, WORDS, WORDS, please email Doctor English with your questions at drenglish@vec.ca.

T.I.P.S – To Improve, Practice Skills

Tired of studying English through basic grammar practice? There are many other creative ways to practice and improve your language skills than just by using a textbook.

Listening is a skill that many students struggle with, as some native speakers are very easy to understand and others are more difficult. It is important to practice your listening skills by focusing on different accents and ways of speaking, by listening to both men and women, and to people of different cultural backgrounds.

One way to focus your listening skills is by watching TV or movies at home, and by using captions. It is helpful to watch a movie or program first with captions and pay attention to words or expressions that you are unfamiliar with. Then, watch the same movie or program again without the captions and see how much you can understand. You may even want to watch the same show a third time and see if your comprehension improves even more.

If you would like more information on T.I.P.S for English, please email Doctor English with your questions at drenglish@vec.ca.

CANADIAN, EH ?

One of the challenges of learning English is that the language changes depending on the English-speaking country in which you are in. Whether you are in Canada, the United States, England, Australia, or any of the many other countries in which English is the primary language, you will find the language changes. Not only are there distinctions in vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation, but there are also many cultural differences which affect how we use the language.

There are many differences in conversation styles depending on cultural background. When in a conversation in Canada, one person introduces a topic and it is expected that the second person will respond and then add something additional to the topic. They can agree or disagree, but they should continue bouncing the discussion back and forth, like in a tennis game. If there are more than two people, they do not wait for their turn, they simply jump into the conversation whenever they have a point to make.

This is very different from some other cultures, such as Japan, where you wait for your turn to speak and there is an order to who speaks when. It is important to be aware of the differences in conversation styles in other cultures to be sure that you don’t unintentionally offend anyone.

If you would like more information on CANADIAN, EH?, please email Doctor English with your questions at drenglish@vec.ca.

WORDS, WORDS, WORDS

Do you find learning Slang Expressions confusing? Well, don’t worry - you are not alone. Most students struggle with the many slang expressions in the English language.

The best way to learn new slang expressions is to listen to how and where they are being used. The most important thing for a non-native English speaker is to UNDERSTAND slang expressions, not necessarily to use them. If you do try to use a slang expression, use it in the SAME situation in which you heard it being used and do not try to apply it to other situations. This is how slang expressions are often used incorrectly.

There are many slang expressions related to money. Here are some :

Throw money out a window

Get your money’s worth

Quick buck

Feel like a million bucks

See you if you can find out the meanings of these slang expressions and in what situations you might use them. Dr. English will provide the answers in the next edition of WORDS, WORDS, WORDS.

If you would like more information on WORDS, WORDS, WORDS, please email Doctor English with your questions at drenglish@vec.ca.

T.I.P.S – To Improve, Practice Skills

Tired of studying English through basic grammar practice? There are many other creative ways to practice and improve your language skills than just by using a textbook.

It is important to pay attention to grammar mistakes you make in your speaking if you want to improve your overall conversation skills. When you get a correction from your teacher, try to write it down and then practice it at home.

For example, if you commonly use an incorrect preposition combination such as depend of, and someone corrects you by saying depend on, you should go home and practice that combination by repeating it to yourself. Then, the next time you say it incorrectly, you should correct yourself. Self-correction is a very important skill to learn because you will not always have a teacher around to make the correction for you.

If you would like more information on T.I.P.S for English, please email Doctor English with your questions at drenglish@vec.ca.