April 5, 2026
Legal Maxims
Maxims, or short, memorable sayings, are terrific ways to practice English. Here are a few random legal maxims. Maxims are pithy (the opposite of "wordy"), and might take a moment to understand.
- From fraud a right of action does not arise.
- From a wrong no contract can arise.
- The law arises from the deed.
- Infamy arises from the crime, not from the punishment.
- Good laws arise from evil manners.
- No action can arise from an illegal contract.
- The explanation should arise from the whole subject matter.
- An action does not arise from a base cause.
- No action arises from an immoral contract.
The common verb in these maxims is "arise." This verb is quite common on IELTS and TOEFL reading tests. What would be the correct synonym for "arise" in these sentences? And what does "base" mean in the eighth maxim? Not what you think! Many words have more than one meaning.
The maxims come from A Collection of Legal Maxims in Law and Equity (1880) translated by S.S. Peloubet.
February 28, 2026
Common Legal Collocations
If you need to become more familiar with occupation-specific English, such as the English of physiotherapists, pilots, or lawyers, one efficient approach is to study collocations.
Let's look at law-related collocations. We can put variations of a collocation in parentheses ().
LAW: the common law, case law, statutory law, enforce the law (law enforcement), enacted law, statute law, unenacted law, pass a law, strike down a law, comply with the law, follow the law, obey the law, break the law (a lawbreaker), a state law, interpret the law, equity law, contract law, tort law, the supreme law, criminal law
FEDERAL: federal law, federal government, federal system
Here's a challenge: What are the various meanings of the expression "common law"?
February 18, 2026
Using a List to Write an Entire Paragraph
When marking an essay, university professors like to comment, "unpack this dense sentence." This means they want you to explain in greater detail what you have just written. A dense sentence is a sentence with lots of information. Therefore, it can be explained in more detail.
A list sentence is often dense, as it contains much information in a small space. In the example below, the body paragraph consists of a topic sentence, a list sentence, and a series of sentences that "unpack" the list sentence. It then ends with a summarizing sentence.
There is no excuse for being lazy because of the variety of things to do. Hiking in the high mountains, cycling along a beautiful river, swimming in the ocean or a pool, and jogging at the park are popular outdoor sports. Concerning hiking, whether someone goes alone or with others, getting yourself up in the sky is exhilarating. It also strengthens leg muscles, builds endurance, and burns fat. Let’s say the first time someone can only hike for thirty minutes. The next time, he or she will be able to go for sixty. Second, with a bicycle, we can go a long distance fast, and see many beautiful things. Some expensive bikes make it more enjoyable because they are lightweight. Lastly, jogging is the easiest and least expensive physical activity. We just need a pair of joggers. We can even do this on a rainy day. In sum, living an active lifestyle is simple, cost-effective, and satisfying.
February 17, 2026
Describing the characteristics of things with lists
Can't brainstorm when writing essays? Easy! Simply write a list, such as the following:
1. Hiking, cycling, swimming, and jogging are popular outdoor sports.
2. Popular outdoor sports include hiking, cycling, swimming, and jogging.
3. There are numerous popular sports, such as hiking, cycling, swimming, and jogging.
As you can see, there are three basic ways to write lists in English.
You can also expand on the list to add a few more details:
Short: Hiking, cycling, swimming, and jogging are popular outdoor sports.
Expanded: Hiking in the high mountains, cycling along a beautiful river, swimming in the ocean or a pool, and jogging at the park are popular outdoor sports.
Lists, especially in the slightly expanded format, add to the word count of an essay in an interesting way. One of the easiest ways to improve essay writing is with lists, as they add details and therefore make your essays more informative and interesting. Use at least one list per body paragraph, as well as in the introduction and conclusion.
February 9, 2026
Useful words for analysis: Logical - Analytical English
Describing the characteristics of things
- Lists
- features, qualities, traits, properties
Problem and Solution
- face, encounter, run into
- deal with, solve, sort out, work out
- work towards, come up with
- practical, feasible, viable
Cause and effect
- due to, owing to, thanks to, because of
- impact, effect (n.), affect (v.), influence
- long-term, deeply-entrenched, thorny, short-term
Advantages and Disadvantages
- pros and cons, benefits and drawbacks, upsides and downsides, pluses and minuses
- beneficial, advantageous; harmful, detrimental, damaging
- outweigh: The advantages outweigh the disadvantages.
Comparing and Contrasting
- On the contrary, However, In contrast, Conversely, Unlike
- both … and …; likewise; Similarly, liken
January 20, 2026
Turning animal words into verbs
Staying to the theme of playful or imaginative uses of English, we can find many new words or uses of words from vocabulary that we already know.
All of the following can be used as verbs:
pig, hog, pig, horse, fox.
For example: I went to a buffet and really pigged out. (pig out = eat too much)
Do you know how to turn these nouns into verbs? Do you know how to use them in a sentence?
The following can be turned into adjectives: mouse, fox, fish, cat.
For example: There is something fishy about that person. (fishy = suspicious)
Can you make sentences with them?
January 19, 2025
Portmanteau answers
infotainment = information + entertainment
frenemy = friend + enemy
vlog = video blog (blog is the portmanteau for web + log)
cosplay = costume + play
webinar = web + seminar
workaholic = work + alcoholic
emoticon = emotion + icon
January 14, 2026
Interesting words
Today I bought a package of very simple, cheap cookies that are found at all convenience stores where I live. I have eaten them numerous times before, but this was the first time in about a year. As I was paying, I noticed that there was one fewer cookie than normal, which I saw through the see-through packaging. I went back to the shelves to check the other packages, and noticed the same for all of them. I paid the same price and got less product! I can't call that inflation, because the price remained unchanged. However, I am paying more per cookie.
In fact, it is a type of inflation. We have coined a new word for this: shrinkflation: the combination of shrink + inflation.
A word combination such as this is called a portmanteau.
Other common examples are infotainment, frenemy, vlog, cosplay, webinar, workaholic, emoticon.
Do you know the original words of each of these?
January 12, 2026
How to learn vocabulary
"The meaning of a word is its use in the language." Wittgenstein
“You shall know a word by the company it keeps.” John Rupert Firth.
"Language consists of grammaticalized lexis, not lexicalized grammar." (Learning how words combine with other words, such as with collocations, is more important than learning about grammar at the sentence level.} Michael Lewis
These quotes guide us on how to learn vocabulary. The second and third quotes are saying very similar things.
January 11, 2026
Answers to yesterday's entry
These words are considered plural.
The good are always honest.
The bad like to cheat.
The rich own many houses.
The poor struggle to make ends meet.
January 10, 2026
Adjectives to Nouns
A simple and easy way to improve your IELTS or TOEFL essay scores, and to improve your English in general, is by extending how you use simple words. Using words in an uncommon or precise manner will make you sound more natural.
Let's take a look.
A1-A2 students are familiar with the following words: good, bad, rich, poor. How can we turn these into B2+ words? Easy. Change them into nouns simply by adding the before. However, you have to ask yourself whether these new nouns are singular or plural.
Let's take a test. Choose the correct verb:
The good is / are always honest.
The bad likes / like to cheat.
The rich owns / own many houses.
The poor struggles / struggle to make ends meet. (make ends meet = have enough money to pay for their lives)
January 5, 2026
How to talk about words
A common activity in the English classroom is Taboo. It's like charades. One student has to get the others to say a word or expression. It is an excellent way to review recently-studied vocabulary.
Here are some basic ways to talk about words:
This is a three-word expression.
The first word is a / an verb / adjective / noun / adverb / preposition (in, on, at, to, from ...), conjunction (and, or, but), article (the, a, an), pronoun (he, she, it, they ...).
This is another word for ...
This is a synonym for ...
This is the opposite of ...
For example, ...
This is singular (egg) / plural (eggs).
January 1, 2026
Logic for the IELTS and TOEFL exams
As an English student, have you ever read an article and not understood it even though you knew all of the vocabulary?
In fact, this is a common experience. One reason it happens is a lack of logic. Logic is an important part of language use, but it is often overlooked. Most students and teachers focus on vocabulary and grammar. English students need to exercise their logical thinking muscles in English, just as they do in their native languages.
How can this be done?
One simple way is to associate vocabulary with logic.
One simple logical reasoning that is often expressed by speakers and writers is cause-and-effect. Common verbs for cause and effect include cause, lead to, result in, bring about, come about.
Here is an example: Smoking causes cancer.
This is, in fact, a poor example of causal thinking, because it is too broad a statement. A better sentence would be: Smoking can cause cancer or Smoking is one of the causes of cancer. (Note that in the second sentence cause is a noun, not a verb.)
Another group of cause-and-effect verbs begins with the effect, and works to the cause: stem from, come from, originate from.
We can write: Cancer can originate from smoking.
Can you think of any other cause-and-effect expressions?
December 28, 2025
Answers to the previous entry
- I like mystery novels.
- We can learn a lot from books.
- She didn't tell me the truth, so I'm disappointed in her.
- My dream is to travel the world.
- The teacher gave me an intense mission.
- You might be curious why my phone number changed.
- I have some experience looking after a pet.
- I learn many things from my parents.
- I think that teaching is meaningful work
- When we make a friend, we should be truthful.
December 24, 2025
More errors the night before Christmas
- I like mystery novel.
- We can learn many knowledge from books.
- She don't tell me the truth, so I'm dissapoint to her.
- My dream is travel the world.
- Teacher give me a intensity mission.
- You might curiosity why my phone number changed.
- I have some experience about keep a pet.
- I learn knowledge from my parents.
- I think the teacher is a meaningful work
- When we make the friend, we should be a truth people.
December 20, 2025
Solutions to yesterday's errors
- Good leadership is important to me.
- I want to be healthy and fit.
- I like listening to music in my study time. (already correct)
- Beauty changes in every era.
- A team needs collaboration to achieve its goal. (notice the spelling of achieve)
- I love helping others. It makes me happy.
- I am passionate about being a lawyer.
- There are a lot of famous dishes in my country.
- Efficiency would make you more stronger.
- He wants to have meaningful work.
December 19, 2025
Error correction #2
- Have a good leadership is important to me.
- I want a health and fitness body.
- I like listening to music in my study time.
- Beauty changing in every era.
- The team need collaboration to achive goal.
- I love helping others, it's make me happy.
- I have passion to being lawyer.
- It's have many famous food in my country.
- Doing efficiency for every would help you more stronger.
- He want to has a meaningful work.
December 18, 2025
Answers to yesterday's entry
- Studying math requires good logic.
- I know a lot about plants.
- I love cooking delicious food.
- I always want to travel to different countries.
- Going to haunted houses is exciting.
- Children are creative.
- Magic is mysterious.
- A leader should have leadership skills.
- My country has bubble tea.
- I always listen to the music of JJ.
December 17, 2025
Error correction #1
My students made the following errors in a recent class. Can you correct them? Often, there is more than one error per sentence.
Have fun!
- Studying math need good logic.
- I have a lot of knowledge on plant.
- I have many passions on cooking delicious food.
- I always want travel different country.
- Going to ghost houses is excitement.
- Children are creativity.
- The magic is mystery.
- Leader should have leadership.
- My country have bubble tea.
- I always listen the music of JJ.
December 16, 2025
Corrections to the last entry
1- There was a small / an insignificant gap in sales of the two beverages.
2- Sales of fish and chips were slightly lower in subsequent years.
3- Just under three quarters of the smartphones bought were no longer in use three years later,
4- A small majority of the new job openings in Australia are for research.
5- After an initial decrease/fall, the overall consumption increased/rose dramatically.
6- The overall profit rose gradually after a steady fall.
7- Property taxes went down significantly/notably.
8- The export of wood soared to 6%.
9- Prices soared more than 30% in April.
10- The expenditure of the office fluctuated for the last six months but the profit rose by almost a quarter.
Some explanations:
Well over means significantly over. There are two opposite terms to consider. Change Well to Slightly and change over to under.
Remained constant means that the number did not change much. The opposite is something that means change much. That would be fluctuate.
December 15, 2025
Talking about Numbers
Describing numbers in a foreign language can be very frustrating. It is easy to misunderstand someone else, and to make mistakes.
So let's dig into numbers. The following sentences describe graphs, such as found on the IELTS writing test 1.
Write a sentence that states the opposite of the parts in bold
E.g.
Only a tiny fraction of the total household budget is spent on luxury products.
→
A substantial majority of the total household budget is spent on luxury products.
1- There was a notable gap in sales of the two beverages.
2- Sales of fish and chips were substantially lower in subsequent years.
3- Well over three quarters of the smartphones bought were no longer in use three years later.
4- A small minority of the new job openings in Australia are for research.
5- After an initial increase, the overall consumption decreased dramatically.
6- The overall profit dropped suddenly after a steady rise.
7- Property taxes went down slightly.
8- The export of wood plunged to 6%.
9- Prices plummeted more than 30% in April.
10- The expenditure of the office remained constant for the last six months but the profit rose by almost a quarter.
December 12, 2025
Answers to the last entry
What do you do to economize on your spending?
Would you prefer to live at home or on your own?
What do you suggest a student with poor grades (=scores) do to raise them?
What do you advise me to wear at the beach?
How does your generation differ from your parents generation?
How does communicating with social media differ from face-to-face communication?
Can you differentiate among the various clothing brands?
How can you differentiate between good and bad study strategies?
December 10, 2025
More verb patterns
Since you did so well on the last set of difficult verbs, try to make sentences with these:
What / you / do / economize / spending?
Would / prefer / live / home / on your own?
What / suggest / student / with poor grades (=scores) / do / raise / them?
What / advise / me / wear / at the beach?
How / your generation / differ / parent / generation?
How / communicate / social media / differ / face-to-face / communication?
Can / differentiate / various / clothing brands?
How / can / differentiate / good / bad / study strategies
December 8, 2025
Answers to the last entry
2. Why do some people think that the government should prohibit firearms?
3. What's the biggest problem that you need to face in the next one to two years?
4. Should governments rely on strong punishment to prevent crime?
5. What can we do to prevent disease?
6. How do you differ from your best friend?
There are so many verbs with a specific pattern. English learners make many errors in this area of grammar. For example, "suggest" is a hard verb to use. Many of my students incorrectly say, "My mother suggests me to study harder." This is the correct pattern with the verb "advises," as in "My mother advises me to study harder." I assume that the error with suggests is a case of overgeneralization: students apply the pattern for one verb to that of another.
If "My mother suggests me to study harder" is incorrect, what is the correct sentence?
December 5
Verbs with difficult patterns
In order to sound natural and really know a word, you need to know how it behaves in a sentence. You have to know its pattern.
For example, many verbs are in the VERB + TO + VERB pattern.
We want to eat.
They need to sleep.
She has to know.
Please note: we don't say, We dream to live in Spain one day, but We dream of living in Spain one day.
Today, I have a huge challenge for you. However, your effort will be worth it because these are very useful verbs.
Your challenge is to make a question from each prompt. Let's do the first one together:
1. Agree / government / prohibit / use / certain drugs?
Do you agree that the government should prohibit the use of certain drugs?
(As you can see, you have to add words to make the full question.)
Try the next 5:
2. Why / some people / think / governments / prohibit / firearms?
3. What / biggest problem / you / need / face / next / one-to-two year?
4. Governments / rely / strong punishment / prevent / crime?
5. What / can / do / prevent / disease?
6. How/ you / differ / best friend?
December 2, 2025
Answers to yesterday's entry
Here are the answers to yesterday's quiz:
garlicky
oniony
peppery (as in salt and pepper)
fishy
tomatoey
meaty
juicy
cheesy
Easy, right?
You can also say chocolatey (hope that's the correct spelling), lemony, oily, greasy, fatty, nutty.
Small additions to your English such as the above will help you to sound more natural.
December 1, 2025
Learn and use the words you already know better!
Let's go back to when we tried to describe a pizza, and I suggested that you avoid adjectives such as "good" or "delicious." We can improve our English with precise, less common, and a wide range of vocabulary without needing to stretch our memories too much. We simply play with the word forms of words that we already know. These are common words, but when we use them in fresh ways, they are uncommon!
Let's begin. As you know, if food contains a lot of salt, we call it "salty." Easy enough.
What do we call something like a pizza that has lots of ...
garlic
onions
pepper (as in salt and pepper)
fish
tomatoes
meat
juice
cheese
November 28, 2025
Answers for binomials
Hello Friends,
Here are the answers to the quiz from last time:
safe and sound
chalk and cheese
peas and carrots
pros and cons
benefits and drawbacks
then and now
You knew most of the above words, except possibly drawbacks. My students often tell me that they want to learn more words. They study word lists and use their online dictionaries. They take meticulous and copious notes.
I admire this ambition. However, one essential point to binomials and collocations is that students of English also need to understand the words that they already know more deeply! Most students of English know only the basic meaning and use of words.
Learn binomials and collocations to make your English more natural and to understand familiar words in different ways!
November 26, 2025
How do I use this word?
Many students tell me that they know the meaning of a certain word, but that they do not know how to use it. These students are very insightful. In fact, a famous twentieth century philosopher, Wittgenstein, memorably said that this is a vital issue for language.
One way to think of the proper use of a word is something you already know because of your attentive reading of my previous blog entries: collocations. You'll remember that collocations are word combinations, words that naturally go together.
Other word combinations are also very important. For example, we often use chips with the word fish: fish and chips. This type of A and B combination, called binomials, is very common in English. It matters that you put the words in the correct order. Thus we say salt and pepper, not pepper and salt, ketchup and mustard, not mustard and ketchup. There is no real explanation for the arrangement of these words. It's just how English developed over the centuries.
Remember: A large part of using a word correctly is to know its pattern with other words.
As usual, let's have a test:
safe and sound OR sound and safe
cheese and chalk OR chalk and cheese
carrots and peas OR peas and carrots
pros and cons OR cons and pros
drawbacks and benefits OR benefits and drawbacks (similar meaning to the above)
now and then OR then and now
November 24, 2025
Correlative conjunctions Part 2
Hello dear readers. Here are the answers to the last entry:
The less cheese I eat, the more weight I lose.
Her math scores are not as high as her sister's. (Tip: Many writers forget the second "as")
He can speak not only Vietnamese, but also Polish. (Tip: Many students will write, Not only can he speak Vietnamese, but also Polish. This is incorrect. The correlative conjunctions should "surround" the noun phrases.)
November 22, 2025
Improve your grammar score quickly
Conjunctions are words or phrases that connect parts of sentences together. In English, we have coordinating conjunctions (and, but, or), subordinating conjunctions (although, because, until, while), and correlative conjunctions.
It is this last group of conjunctions that can help you quickly improve your grammar score. They allow you to write clear but complex sentences.
Here are some easy examples that you probably already know:
1) either ... or: We can get either chicken or fish.
2) neither ... nor: They have neither hot sauce nor mustard.
3) both ... and: She likes both French fries and onion rings.
Here are some more difficult ones:
1) The ... the ... : The more pizza I eat, the happier I am. The less traffic there is, the faster we can go.
2) whether ... or: He does not know whether to study electrical engineering or physics.
3) As ... as: Tom is as tall as his father.
The encouraging thing is that you likely already know most of these. The problem is that most students are not in the habit of using these. If you want to get a high score on a test, you have to "peacock" your English: you have to show off a bit.
Therefore, start using correlative conjunctions when practicing your writing. In a 250 word essay, try to use 5 to 7 correlative conjunctions, including the harder ones.
Your grammar score is similar to your vocabulary score: you have to use less common, precise, and a wide range of grammar structures in order to achieve a high score on the IELTS or TOEFL.
Can you make proper sentences out of the following?
1) The cheese I less eat, more the lose weight I.
2) not Her math scores are as sister’s high as her.
3) speak He can not only also Vietnamese Polish but.
November 20, 2025
Answers to yesterday's blog
People ...
... in a restaurant (diners), at the movie theater or art gallery (movie-goers, movie buffs, art lovers, art buffs, art enthusiasts)
... who are hiking (hikers), cycling (cyclists), walking on the sidewalk (pedestrians), driving a car (drivers, motorists), flying a plane (pilots)
... who love art, baseball, Marilyn Monroe (art lovers, art buffs, art enthusiasts: same for the others).
You can also make interesting words from collocations: people who make the law: lawmakers; people who make policy: policymakers; people who pay taxes: taxpayers
November 19, 2025
Stop using "people" in your essays!
What kinds of vocabulary do you need for your IELTS or TOEFL speaking and writing tests? Precise, less common, and a wide range of vocabulary.
We saw in the previous post that good is a general label that describes nothing. Any good effective writing teacher will tell you that you need to paint a picture in the reader's mind. You need to express yourself with concrete terms.
People (and its singular, person) is just as non-descriptive and boring as good. There are so many words that express your thoughts much more precisely than person or people.
For example, instead of saying, "People in Taipei get around on the MRT or by Youbike," you can say, "Locals in Taipei ..." (A common mistake is "Citizen", which in fact refers to political status. "Citizens vote in democracies.")
Let's take a test. What word can be used for people ...?
... in a restaurant, at the movie theater or art gallery
... who are hiking, cycling, walking on the sidewalk, driving a car, flying a plane
... who love art, baseball, Marilyn Monroe
Hint: buffs can be used for some of these.
November 18, 2025
Describing a pizza
One more point about describing pizza, or any kind of food or drink. As well as good, another empty descriptor is delicious. English students vastly overuse this word. Again, it means nothing!
So how can we describe a pizza?
When approaching any such problem as this, it helps a lot to break things down. Think about the parts of a pizza: the crust, the sauce, the cheese, the toppings.
Now say a few things about each of these. What kind of a crust do you like? Thick or thin? Stuffed crust? How can you describe a pizza sauce? Don't only say "tomato." Describe the flavors in a tomato or a cream sauce. Then ask yourself how you can describe cheese, including (like the crust) the texture. Last, list three or more toppings, and describe each of them as well, including both flavors and texture. And somewhere in there, add the word fresh.
November 17, 2025
Stop using "good" in your essays!
On the written essays section of exams such as the TOEFL, IELTS, and GRE, you will be scored on your vocabulary, grammar, organization (which is called "coherence"), and success at answering the question prompt.
Let's talk about vocabulary. It is essential that you consider the types of words you include. Most of us rely on the same words again and again. This is not effective or high-level writing! Notice in my last sentence that I did not write, This is not good writing! Good is one of the most over-used words! Good does not describe anything. It is a a very general label. It comes from lazy writing and lazy thinking!
Let's take an example. What does it mean when someone says, This is a good pizza. What can be good about a pizza? It really depends on many questions: What toppings do you like on your pizza? Do you like thick or thin crust? What kind of cheese do you prefer? And what about tomato or cream sauce?
If you say that a certain pizza with seafood toppings such as shrimp is good, you will disappoint my friend Angelo, who does not really like seafood!
Avoid general labels such as good, great, bad, new, or old. Try to force yourself to paint a picture in your reader's or listener's mind when you describe something.
Here is your challenge: really describe a pizza in five or more sentences. Use less common and precise vocabulary.
November 15, 2025
Collocations Part 2
First, the answers to yesterday's blog entry: do homework, commit a crime, face a problem.
If you go to freecollocation.com and enter problem into the search box, you will find many other verbs to collocate with problem. These include encounter and run into. Then check out the adjectives: grave, urgent, pressing, longstanding. And many more.
What are the best verb collocations for solution?
Do a general internet search to find interesting collocations for the TOEIC exam. Since this is a business English exam, these expressions are useful for all English learners. They will help you to read the news or follow the dialogue in a movie. Just learn one new expression per day, and try to use it in your speaking and writing. Impress your English teacher next class!
November 14, 2025
Collocations Part 1
Collocations are word combinations, words that co-locate, words that go together. When you use collocations, your English sounds much more natural than when you mis-collocate your language. Even though people will understand what you are saying with your mis-collocation, you will receive lower exam scores. Your professional work will be received less happily. Your work presentations may not make as big a splash as they can.
Common examples of mis-collocations:
*write homework
*do a crime
*meet a problem
Do you know the correct collocations for the above?
Hint: many collocation errors are due to an incorrect verb.
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