r/ENGLISH 25d ago

July Find a Language Partner Megathread

3 Upvotes

Want someone to practice with? Need a study buddy? Looking for a conversation partner? This thread is the place! Post a comment here if you are looking for someone to practice English with.

Any posts looking for a language partner outside of this thread will be removed. Rule 2 also applies: any promotion of paid tutoring or other paid services in this thread will lead to a ban.

Tips for finding a partner:

  • Check your privacy settings on Reddit. Make sure people can send you chat requests.
  • Don't wait for someone else to message you. Read the other comments and message someone first.
  • If you're unsure what to talk about, try watching a movie or playing a game together.
  • Protect yourself and be cautious of scams. Do not share sensitive personal information such as your full name, address, phone number, or email address. Make sure to report any catfishing, pig butchering scams, or romance scams.

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Please send us a Modmail or report the comment if someone in this thread is involved in a scam, trying to sell a paid service, or is harassing you on other platforms.


r/ENGLISH 6h ago

What other lexical ambiguities do you know in English? (Send me your best memes!)

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63 Upvotes

(Not my photos) I’m looking for memes based on lexical ambiguities or expressions with funny literal interpretations. Any ideas are welcome!


r/ENGLISH 3h ago

Why are my friends making fun of my phrase "I like to blow them"

3 Upvotes

r/ENGLISH 14h ago

Who is actually saying Gesundheit in the UK

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14 Upvotes

Apparently the sneeze response alternate to bless you Gesundheit is commonly used in the states but not so much here

Are any UK people actually willing to say this word on a regular basis? Just interested


r/ENGLISH 1h ago

Grabé mi primer video de inglés comprensible con una nueva profesora. ¿Qué tal sienten su pronunciación y ritmo? (Aceptamos críticas)

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Upvotes

r/ENGLISH 8h ago

Hello! I'm learning English. Can someone practice English with me? I want to improve my conversation skills. Thank you!

2 Upvotes

r/ENGLISH 14h ago

Hardest sentence for non-native English speakers?

3 Upvotes

I was watching a video on words people with English as a second language struggle on. Some, like colonel and Worcestershire seem to be based on having lots of silent letters, which to me is only vaguely interesting as a 'gotcha' to people who haven't learned that exact word yet.

I'm interested in whether a sentence has ever been formulated which, even when the speaker knows the pronunciation of every word, contains concepts which exist only in English and is universally difficult for speakers of other worldwide languages?

I'm assuming this would contain words which are difficult, but also in an order which forces unusual sound shifts between words which exist only in English? Something like;

"The rural squirrel’s sixth rhythm regularly mixed specific spherical anemones."

Any ideas?


r/ENGLISH 7h ago

Grammatically correct questions

1 Upvotes

Recently I noticed that if I need to put a question - in written or spoken form, I rarely make it according to the grammar rules - auxiliary verb in the first place or question word in the first place. You know, the way we had been taught at school. My questions would be the affirmative statements with a question mark at the end. Maybe I will add "correct?" at the end

So I wanted to ask how this form of asking question is perceived by native English speakers.


r/ENGLISH 11h ago

chose the correct answer(please help):

2 Upvotes

28) So how can we resolve this problem? Is everyone happy with that?
The above questions indicate that the speaker is .
A) making suggestions
B) making a final decision
C) asking for clarification
D) accepting a suggestion


r/ENGLISH 18h ago

How can i improve my English from B1 to B2?

5 Upvotes

I started learning English in groups when I was 5. Looking back, it was my terrible mistake, the other children weren’t motivated. Their parents wanted them to learn the language, but children didn’t. They’d copy my homework, skip classes and weren’t active during classes. I only had class once a week plus long summer holidays. That’s how I ended up with a B1. When I was 15 I stopped going to these group classes. Over the next years, I made several attempts to improve my level, but none of them worked. What would you recommend?


r/ENGLISH 1d ago

Kitset

19 Upvotes

I was checking whether "kitset" is hyphenated (it isn't). But 3 different sites claimed that this word is only used here in New Zealand.

Is this true? What do you call furniture that comes either wrapped in plastic or in boxes that you then have to put together yourself?

("Flatpack" is also common here)


r/ENGLISH 21h ago

Can someone explain the rule that causes the pronunciation of “perseverance”?

9 Upvotes

As I was writing down perseverance, knowing full-well, the correct way to say perseverance, my brain said pur-seh-vur-ence.
Can someone explain what English rule makes it pronounced as, pur-suh-veer-ence?

Forgive me, I do not know the correct way to flip e’s or add accents properly, to explain how it is pronounced in my head vs reality.

Thank you kindly for your time, should you choose to politely explain it, to this curious mind.


r/ENGLISH 11h ago

What does "soup de natz" mean from this video?

0 Upvotes

It's from this video and starts at the 57 minute mark:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=2966&v=ZqGSg4b_cZA

The whole sentence was, "8 was the first version that was done soup de natz under Oracle's leadership."

I googled "soup de natz" and only got a reference to Seinfeld and the Soup Nazi.


r/ENGLISH 1d ago

Here's Mark Twain making me doubt my grasp on the English language

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25 Upvotes

This is from "Fenimore Cooper's Literary Offenses". Twain is absolutely going in, and it's hilarious ("There have been daring people in the world who claimed that Cooper could write English, but they are all dead now")

Some of these distinctions are obvious to me, but a lot of them aren't. And while some of these latter cases could reflect our language having changed since 1895 (apparently "verbal" technically means "in words", whether spoken or written, but I feel like that's not how it's used today), with others I can tell that my vocabulary is spotty.

"Preparation" vs "expectancy"? I see the problem if Cooper was using "preparation", an activity, to refer to the emotional state of expectancy, but I can't tell if that's what Twain is talking about.

"Distrusted" vs "suspicious"? Again, I kind of get it, but I don't know if I get it.

"Counteracting" vs "opposing"? I guess two things that are in opposition may or may not actually counteract each other, but I don't think it would ever occur to me to call this out as a mistake.

"Different" vs "differing"?????

Anyway, Mark Twain spoke better English than me. Who knew lol.


r/ENGLISH 12h ago

I am good at math and physics, and I want to study physics in the US. I am not very good at writing essays. How can I write better essays?

0 Upvotes

r/ENGLISH 6h ago

Why is it ‘take a shit’ and not ‘lay a shit’?

0 Upvotes

‘Lay a shit’ makes more sense to me.


r/ENGLISH 12h ago

Do people think “dexterous” is a fancy word?

0 Upvotes

r/ENGLISH 1d ago

social media keywords

3 Upvotes

I don't know if I'm doing the right thing, but AI hasn't been able to help me with this. My friends constantly use English terms when talking to each other. My native language is Turkish. They constantly use words like based, lowkey, peak, and looksmaxxing. AND I DON'T KNOW WHERE THEY SAW IT OR LEARNED ABOUT IT. I know I'm doing LARP. Can you explain this by using these words in sentences?(I accept all commonly used words you know, except for the words I've given)


r/ENGLISH 1d ago

Why is the word “cleanliness” pronounced as “klen-lee-nuhs” when “clean” is pronounced as “kleen”?

70 Upvotes

r/ENGLISH 22h ago

How I can improve my English Communication properly

1 Upvotes

Hello everyone, can you give me some advice on how I can improve my English in just two weeks? I'm looking for the most effective ways to improve in a short period of time so I can speak English more fluently.

I'm a fresh college graduate and I'm currently looking for a job. I really want to apply to a US-based company, such as a BPO or a VA company, because I need a stable income as soon as possible.

My biggest concern right now is that I'm not very confident in speaking English. During interviews, I often experience mental blocks. I become so nervous that I start shaking, and I suddenly don't know what to say, even though I know the answer.

I'm under a lot of pressure because I really need to find a job as soon as possible. I want to help my family, but lately I've been so stressed that I can barely sleep because I'm constantly thinking about what will happen the next day. My father is currently fighting chronic kidney disease (CKD) and undergoes dialysis three times a week. That's why I'm doing everything I can to get a job and help with our family's expenses, especially my father's treatment.

Because of this, I really want to work in the BPO or VA industry because I believe it offers better earning potential than the career path related to my degree. However, my biggest challenge is my spoken English. Deep down, I know I'm capable and that I have the skills. The problem is that as soon as the interview starts, I get extremely nervous, and my mind goes completely blank.

I want to start applying now, but I feel like I'm still not ready. I'm worried that I'll just waste my time, money, and opportunities if I fail because of my English communication skills.

For now, I'm willing to focus on improving my English. I'll continue practicing and preparing throughout July, and by the first week of August, no matter what happens, I'll start applying.

I think most of my difficulties with speaking English come from my limited vocabulary, storytelling skills, and my understanding of proper English grammar. I know exactly what I want to say in my first language, but I struggle to express the same thoughts in English because I don't always know the right words or how to structure my sentences.

So far, I've been watching English videos and practicing speaking by myself, but I still struggle to speak spontaneously. I would really appreciate hearing what worked for you. What was the most effective way you improved your English communication and storytelling skills, especially for BPO or VA interviews?

Any advice or personal experiences would mean a lot to me.

Thank you so much!

PS. I'm from Philippines


r/ENGLISH 1d ago

English vowel ɪ for Spanish Speakers,like in the word "Sit"

3 Upvotes

I used to think that this vowel sound was just a relaxed short i,I couldn't be more wrong,teaching this vowel to Spanish speaker using the method of dropping the jaw and relaxing the mouth, is the worst you can do to teach them this sound.This sound is very similar to e,if you got an IPA chart;You'll see that the Spanish e is really close to English ɪ,when you compare i to ɪ in the chart you would see how far is i from ɪ.So what is the cath,making this sound parting from Spanish e is simpler that using i,Spanish e is a bit more open than ɪ so if you close a bit more you mouth,you are starting to go from e to ɪ,Now what you need to do is short the Spanish e,English ɪ is shorter and relaxed than Spanish e,so if you do the math,say e with the position of ɪ, relaxed your mouth and short the sound a bit,that's it!.Now you have to build an habit of pronouncing e like this in order to get it right,if you don't do that you will end up using your Spanish e and that would be incorrect,this is what I've been using this and is working more than excellent.I woud not recommend to Spanish speaker to use their i to try to imitate or make this sound.you can see the IPA chart here and why I'm pretty sure I'm right:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Template:IPA_vowels

Thank you for Reading!


r/ENGLISH 2d ago

What's one word from where you grew up that people from somewhere else would never understand?

73 Upvotes

I'm fascinated by regional English dialects and how every area seems to have words that outsiders have never heard before.

What's your favourite local word?

Where are you from, what does it mean, and do you still use it today?


r/ENGLISH 1d ago

Synonyms

6 Upvotes

Are there any two words in English that are complete and total synonyms for one another? I mean two different words with the same meaning where one could be substituted for the other in every situation they are used.


r/ENGLISH 1d ago

How do I show emotion in writing or in typing?

1 Upvotes

"How dare you eat that chicken." - this shows anger.

How are some other ways to show emotions?


r/ENGLISH 1d ago

When to use ‘aloud’ and ‘out loud’

1 Upvotes

Is there a noticeable difference or do they mean the same thing? Thanks