Are you pronouncing these words the WRONG way?

Mispronunciations are another major issue in English, especially for non-native speakers like many of us Malaysians. We struggle to fathom why certain words are pronounced as they are when our brain clearly deciphers it differently. For instance, why dessert and desert have different pronunciations when its difference is only an 's' but threw and through are pronounced the same way despite being totally dissimilar in spelling. 

1. blood, flood 

Most people pronounce 'blood' and 'flood' as if they sound like 'blurt' and 'flirt' but they're actually more towards 'blard' and 'flard'. Check out this video for the correct pronunciation. 

2. Honest/Hour/all the silent H

I have students telling me how they 'hor-nest' they are. But the fact is, all these 'h's are silent. Meaning, you say 'o-nest' for 'honest' and 'our' for 'hour'. 

3. Espresso 

This word is often mispronounced as expresso when it's supposed to be 'es-pres-so'. 

3. Suite

Have you ever since the label 'Presidential Suite' when you visit hotels/resorts? The word 'suite' seems to have stronger resemblance to 'suit' but it's actually pronounced similarly to 'sweet'. 

4. Hyperbole

This is a mispronunciation that I've been doing myself too (but I've always been curious because it didn't sound right) so now I know! 'Hyperbole' implies an exaggerating effect and it's not pronounced as 'hyper-bowl' because a bowl cannot be overly exaggerated. It's pronounced as 'hyper-boh-lee'. 

5. Cache 

'Cache' is often mispronounced as 'ca-shay' but this pronunciation belongs to cachet, which means the state of being respected. 'Cache', carrying the meaning of a group of hidden items stored in a hidden place, is pronounced just like how you say 'cash'. 

6. Niche

Just like cache, 'niche' should end with a soft -sh so it's wrong when people say 'nitch' because it's supposed to be 'neesh'. 'Niche' carries two meanings: a shallow recess usually in a wall to place an ornament OR a suitable position in life or employment. 

7. Buoy

'Buoy' isn't any different from 'boy', in pronunciation. It simply means a float or keep someone/something afloat. 

8. Debris

Here, the 's' is silent so you pronounce it as 'de-bree'. 

9. Mischievous

Very often, this word is misspelled and mispronounced as 'mischievious'. It should be 'mis-chie-vous' without the 'i'. It implies naughty or playful. 

10. Subtle 

'Subtle' is pronounced as 'suh-tull' with a silent b, meaning delicately complex and difficult to describe. 

11. Queue / Quay

'Queue' is pronounced as 'cue' while 'quay' is read as 'key'. Quay, for your information, is similar to a pier or jetty. 

12. Athlete 

The word 'athlete' should be pronounced with only two syllables - 'ath-lete' and not 'a-the-lete'. 

So there you go, pronouncing English words the English way. Yes, I do agree English words have tricky pronunciation but have fun learning! 

Disclaimer: I do not label myself as an English expert but sharing also means learning. Nobody has perfect English but I believe learning knows no boundary. Feel free to correct me by commenting on my blog or Facebook posts/profile. I also welcome suggestions, ideas and any English-related info. 

Singularity & Plurality of English Nouns

Have you ever wondered why scissors always ends with an 's'? My teacher used to tell me everything that has a pair in it is always plural. For instance, glasses, jeans, pants, etc. However, that is not always the case. I made some reading and found a clear understanding of the singularity and plurality of some nouns. 

1. Cutting/Clipping Utensils

First, take a look at these items:

Scissors

Pliers

 Forceps 

Tongs 

Tweezers

As you can see, all of these items have double sides thus we classify them as being always plural. Therefore, we cannot say 'a scissor' or 'there is a scissor'; it is always 'a pair of scissors' or 'there are scissors'. So if you wish to say more than one scissors, you still say 'there are many scissors'. 

However, there are also tools that have two joined parts yet they are not always plural. 

Bear Trap

Flat Iron

2. Eyewear

We do not say I'm wearing a glass but we say we wear glasses. Eyewears such as glasses, contact lenses, sunglasses, shades, goggles or even binoculars are ALL plural. 

Rationally, we can relate this to the fact that these eyewears are made of two connected parts, resulting in the plurality. 

3. Clothes

My curiosity of why we never use 'clothe' has always been unanswered. But I know clothes may refer to shirts, pants, jackets etc. so it should always be plural. However, certain types of clothings are strictly plural, even though it refers to a single unit. For instance:

 Pants

 Shorts 

 Jeans

Bell Bottoms

So all these clothings we wear with separate enclosures for our legs come in plural form. Other examples include leggings, tights, trousers, and skinnies. Even pyjamas (or pajamas in US English) is plural because it's a combination of a top and bottom.  

4. Underwear

*sorry, no photos for this :P

As I've mentioned, clothes refer to a wide range of clothings. Underwear however, is singular. Yet, distinctively, those that come under underwear are mostly plural. For example, panties, boxers, drawers and briefs. Same concept here - the separate enclosures for our legs. 

BUT why are thong/t-back singular? So is the bra (which has strong resemblance to goggles or glasses, no?)!

So yeah, English, as I've said, is funny and weird sometimes. But it's fun! Happy learning :)

Disclaimer: I do not label myself as an English expert but sharing also means learning. Nobody has perfect English but I believe learning knows no boundary. Feel free to correct me by commenting on my blog or Facebook posts/profile. I also welcome suggestions, ideas and any English-related info. 

15 Commonly Misspelled Words among Malaysian Students

One of the major issues that Malaysian students find it difficult to master is spelling. I have to confess I had a hard time remembering spellings of English words as some are so complex and confusing but it all boils down to hard work in remembering them. 

Here's a list of 15 common misspellings done by most of my students. 

1. Definitely 

NOT definately

I wonder why so many people, even those with good English could spell 'definitely' as 'definately'. There is no A in 'definitely'. 

2. Accidentally

NOT accidently

This word is commonly misspelled as 'accidently' but accident is one of the few words which cannot be merged directly with -ly. 

Similar:
Incidentally NOT incidently

3. Judgement

NOT judgment

Some people get very confused whether there is an 'e' in judgement or not. To make things clear, we get back to the basics that Malaysia abides with UK English hence judgement instead of the US's judgment. Students in Malaysia will NOT be penalized for using both judgement and judgment but isn't it better to spell correctly?

Similar: 
Argument NOT arguement, 
Instalment NOT installment (American) 

4. A lot

NOT alot

I've seen many using the term 'alot' as if it's a single word but there is no 'alot' in English. There should be a space in between them. 

5. Maintenance

NOT maintainance

The word 'maintenance' originates from 'maintain' which carries the meaning to sustain something. However, you don't just add 'ance' to the word; you change it to 'maintenance'. 

6. Surprise

NOT suprise

I often encounter students eating away the letter 'r' to make a 'su-prise'. 

7. Pronunciation

NOT pronounciation

You pronounce a word using its pronunciation but not 'pronounciation'. 

8. Explanation

NOT explaination

When you wish to use the noun form of the verb 'explain', remove the 'i' and add 'ation' at the end. 

9. Occasion

NOT occassion or ocassion

Only one 's' is needed for occasion. 

10. Accommodation 

NOT acomodation, accomodation, or acommodation

Always remember that accommodation has two doubles, the 'c' and 'm'. 

11. Until 

NOT untill

'Till' has two 'l's but until has a single 'l'. 

12. Receive

NOT recieve

Many of my students tend to switch the place of 'i' and 'e'. 

Similar: 
Deceive NOT decieve
Perceive NOT percieve

However, achieve is different. 

13. Knowledge

NOT knowlege

Do not forget the letter 'd'. However, privilege has no 'd'. English is weird, I know. 

14. Forty

NOT fourty

4 = four
14 = fourteen
14th = fourteenth 
40 = forty
40th = fortieth
40s = forties 

15. Curiosity

NOT curiousity

You're curious but when you say curiosity, remove the letter 'u'. 

So there you go. Spelling English words the right and proper way. Good luck! 


Disclaimer: I do not label myself as an English expert but sharing also means learning. Nobody has perfect English but I believe learning knows no boundary. Feel free to correct me by commenting on my blog or Facebook posts/profile. I also welcome suggestions, ideas and any English-related info. 

13 Grammar Mistakes Malaysians Should NOT Make

Like many other languages in the world, Grammar constitutes a large part of English and if you fail Grammar, you fail English. Nevertheless, Grammar is a very complex and convoluted section that many have problems coping with. 

Grammar is taught directly to students in very distinctive parts. For example, tenses, pronouns, verbs, adjectives etc. Some students are able to connect the topics and create an English network in their brain thus they are capable of using them the right way. But those who cannot see the link between these separate aspects may fail to master English. These are the basic common errors that my students and people around me often make. 

1. THEN / THAN

Then is used to say 'after that', meaning a subsequent action taken after a first is done. For example:

I am going to eat now. Then I will take a shower. 

Than is used for comparisons. It is used after a comparative adjective. For example:

Marie is taller than her sister. 

2. MANY / MUCH

Many is used for countable nouns whereas much refers to uncountable nouns. For example:

I have many friends. (because we can count our friends)

I love my mother very much. (because we cannot count love)

3. THOUGHT / TAUGHT

Thought is something you have in mind while taught is the past tense for teach. Examples:

I thought you weren't coming. 

Mrs. Tan taught me Grammar in school today. 

4. LOSE / LOOSE

Lose is the opposite (antonym) of win. You'd say 'I am not going to lose'. However, loose implies the opposite of tight. For example, 'The pants is too loose for me'. 

5. AFFECT / EFFECT

Affect is a verb while effect is a noun. You use affect when somebody or something influences another. For example:

The weather affects my mood today. 

Effect, on the other hand, is the consequences of somebody's action or an occurrence. Using the above example:

The effect of a bad weather is a bad mood. 

6. PRACTISE / PRACTICE & ADVISE / ADVICE

When do you use 'S' or 'C'?

NOUN: practice, advice

VERB: practise, advise

Examples:

I am going to practise my piano later. 

I have piano practice later.

My sister advises me not to skip class. 

My sister gave me a good advice. 

7. TO / WILL / SHALL / SHOULD / WOULD / CAN / COULD / MAY / MIGHT

Always use the ORIGINAL form of word after the above words. You can't say 'I am going to ate my lunch' or 'I should bought the computer'. 

Example of original form of a word: BREAK and NOT breaks, breaking or broke

8. I / ME

'I' should be used as the subject of a sentence while 'me' is an object in a sentence. Usually, the subject is used in front of a sentence or phrase (the person performing the action) while object is used at the back of a sentence or phrase (an action is done towards the person). For example,

I am going to work. (The person I is doing the action of going to work)

My boss will bring me for lunch today. (Bring is the action done towards me)

9. YOUR / YOU'RE

I was wondering if I should highlight this but this seems to be a pretty serious mistake done by most people, especially those who love using short forms on the internet or via text messages. 

As obvious as it is, 'your' is a pronoun that carries a meaning of possession while 'you're' is the short for 'you are'. 

10. THEY'RE / THEIR / THERE

This is very severe mistake done by my students who are still unable to differentiate the three even after years of learning English. 

They're  refers to "They are" which could be followed by a verb, noun or adjective. For example:

VERB: They're eating. 

NOUN: They're students. 

ADJECTIVE: They're tall. 

Their is a pronoun used to refer possession to a group of people. For example: 

The girls love their mothers. 'Their' here refers to the girls. 

There is an adverb to point to a specific place or to generalize something within a bounded area. For example:

There is a kitten in the box. A specific place - box

There are many place in the supermarket. A bounded area - supermarket

11. ITS / IT'S

The usage of its and it's tells me how vast the difference an apostrophe makes. 

Its is a pronoun used to refer possession to an animal, baby of unknown gender or a non-living thing. For example, 

The cat is licking its tail. 'Its' here refers to the cat.

It's simply means it is. 

12. ONE OF THE 

When you intend to say "one of the", the noun that follows must be plural. For example:

One of the boys in my class, One of the children here, etc. 

13. PROBABLY / PROPERLY

I've seen people using probably as properly and vice versa. 

Probably = maybe, perhaps
Properly = doing it the right or correct way

There are many more but these are the very basic ones. 

Thank you for reading! 

SPM

Exactly eight years ago, I was as nervous, anxious and worried as the SPM candidates of 2013 who will be collecting their SPM results tomorrow. Back then, I was profoundly influenced by my peers and teachers that SPM is almost the biggest deal on earth - I couldn't afford to fail it. In fact, getting a C for me would cause me an almost-dying effect. Yes, I was that "kiasu" (scared to lose) in academics. 

I still remember prior to that "date", I had dreams about getting my results. I can recall that there were two dreams; in one of it, I was showing my very perfect (10As) results to my belated grandmother who passed away a year plus before I sat for my SPM and she was extremely happy. Another dream happened that my SPM results were only mediocre (5As I guess). 

I didn't dare to aim high as I was a very timid girl and I feared disappointment very much so I'd rather aim for something lower and feel happier for it. I told my friends who were eager to obtain straight A1s that it would never be my goal to have straight As, let alone straight A1s (now A+). My confidence in several subjects (History, especially!) was so low I was afraid they might turn out to be a disappointing C. 

When the judgement day finally arrived, I let go all of my emotions and went to the teacher with an open heart. I told myself that I have decided to accept whatever the results might be and I was ultimately prepared to fail my History because I only answered less than half of the subjective questions. 

I got straight As. Yes, all As - 7A1s and 3A2s (History, Biology and EST).

Wow, I was extremely dumbfounded but joyful at the same time - it was like a miracle falling from the sky. It was way beyond my expectations and I felt like I am one of the smartest in the world (hyperbole, haha!). 

But the exuberance didn't last any more than a mere several days. Yes, my family was proud of me and everyone who knew about it congratulated me. Yet nothing beyond that. 

With such results, I couldn't even nail a scholarship to study anything prestigious. My aim was to take up a pharmacy course but even people with straight A1s couldn't get a scholarship, let alone my results. I wasn't really disappointed but I envied my friend who was of a difference race with slightly lower results yet she received offers that I would never get. I couldn't even enter Matriculation! Yeah, people rumoured that matriculation is only meant for Bumiputras or non-Bumis who are living in outskirts. WTF

And so I went to Form 6 (STPM) like some of my friends and SPM results didn't matter anymore. Nobody asked what my results were and nobody gave a damn. 

Even until today, having people questioning me about my SPM results is a very rare occurrence. 10As on the SPM certificate is just as plain as a piece of paper. In fact, a blood donation certification seems more valuable than that. Like most people agree, SPM standards are so low anyone could get an A. 

Some people say SPM is a transition period - the results are vital for scholarships and tertiary education opportunities. Yes, they are but only if your results are damn good. Perfect A+s I mean. Or to students whose results do not revolve around As but the number of passes then yeah, you need a minimum number of passes to qualify an enrollment in a college. And of course, only a pass in BM (and now History as well) will enable you to obtain your SPM certificate, which in time, you would either hide it somewhere unknown or lose it. 

What I'm trying to convey here is, academic results are simply nothing. It doesn't reflect who you are and it doesn't determine who or what you will become. Good results might bring you some privilege educational opportunities others may never qualify but at the end of the day, your results won't deliver success to you because you decide on your life, actions, efforts and paths. 

Still, all the best SPM 2013 candidates! 

Some of whom are my ex-students. Be happy or sad ... just for a while.