English Knowledge Base

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Gauntlet My students and I often discus articles related to their industries or general business topics. Often, interesting or unusual vocabulary pops up and this...

Suggestions, recommendations, and Proposals: What’s the difference? Similarities  Suggestions, recommendations, and proposals are all used to share an idea. For example, my company bought some...

What’s the difference between end and finish? Finish and end both mean something stops, but finish typically means something is complete and end is the...

What’s the difference between overtime and overwork? Overtime is a noun. It means extra time a person works. In casual English, we sometimes say OT. ...

Valentine’s Day Idioms Valentine’s Day is the holiday of love. It’s an international holiday celebrated on February 14th in most countries. People celebrate the holiday...

Native American Words in English English is a mishmash of words from all over the world with plenty of regional variations. American English is, of...

100 Common Uncommon Words I’m very happy to announce the second edition of my book, 100 Common Uncommon Words, is now available as an ePub...

Why are rabbits’ feet lucky? Lucky rabbits’ feet are popular around the world, but why are they lucky? Read the story below at your level....

On the bed and In bed Students often ask about the difference between “in bed” and “on the bed”. Fortunately, it’s not too tough. 1. in...

Farther and Further What’s the difference between farther and further and how do you use them?  Many native speakers mix these words up. Why? Because...

Independence Day Idioms and Expressions Happy 4th of July!  Independence Day is an American holiday to mark the signing of the Declaration of Independence on...

Year’s Experience vs Years’ Experience Is it “year’s experience” or “years’ experience”?   This is a simple grammar point that a LOT of people ask about, including...

Father’s Day Idioms Happy Father’s Day!  As a very happy dad, you can imagine that Father’s Day is pretty special to me. There are lots...

How to use either. “Either” is pretty easy to use, but there are some special examples to look out for.  Let’s start with the basics. ...

Every Day and Everyday What’s the difference between every day and everyday? These words are easy to mix up, especially if you are typing fast,...

Whether, weather, and wether Whether, weather, and wether: what’s the difference?  These words aren’t too hard, but they are easy to mix up when we...

What is clickbait? Clickbait is a leading title, usually with an image. Online, these titles make people want to “click” through to some content. Unfortunately,...

Mother’s Day Idioms A face only a mother could love. Happy Mother’s Day!  There are lots of idioms in English related to to Mothers. So,...

The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test Instructions Read the story below at your level. Then, study the key words and phrases. Later, use them in your...

Silent K in English I like to say that spelling and pronunciation in English are a bit of an adventure. The silent K is an...

Literally and Figuratively Figuratively Figurative expressions mean something special. The words and meaning don’t always match. “Spill the tea” means “gossip”.  Literally Literal expressions mean...

How to write AM PM This drives me crazy. I look this up all the time, and always need to check again. Why? Because there are so...

North, South, East, and West I sometimes hear students mix up directions like “north of” or “in northern”. It’s an easy thing to confuse. Below...

Affect vs Effect What’s the difference between affect and effect?  English learners and native speakers alike get these words mixed up, myself included. So, let’s...