EnglishfixwithSayo

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HOW STRONG IS YOUR IDIOM GAME?

Happy New Year, leaders🤗
I appreciate your support last year and I hope to get more of that this year. Thank you so much.

Let's start with IDIOMS this year. A lot of people (including me) stay away from idioms almost completely to avoid making unnecessary blunders.

However, for one, including idioms in my expressions makes me sound intelligent😁

How sure are you about your IDIOMS? Let's see how accurate you are with them.😎

Score yourself in the comment section and let me know the one(s) you just discovered you've been expressing wrongly (optional). Example: 3/5 (I just discovered 3 and 4).

Some expressions have been around for the longest time and have equally been made wrongly.

Just as it is not right to follow the crowd in life matters, it is also wrong to make expressions without confirming, just because many people express them a certain way.

Below are some old idioms that have been expressed incorrectly by many:

1. Who will bail the cat❌
Who will bell the cat?✅

In all honesty, 'bail' seems more relative in this expression, but as they say, it is what it is. The correct verb for this bell ✅and not bail❌

To 'bell the cat' means to take up or agree to take up a difficult or dangerous task for the good of a larger group.

E.g: No one is willing to bell the cat.

2. Out of the blues❌
Out of the blue✅

I used to be guilty of using blues❌ instead of blue✅ when making this expression because it sounds unusual and I am a fan of unique things😁. It turns out it's not unique, it's just wrong🙈.

To do something out of the blue or for something to happen out of the blue means to be done unexpectedly or without prior warning.

E.g: She jumped on our conversation out of the blue.

3. Wet their appetite❌
Whet their appetite✅

Apparently, to 'whet' means to stimulate or make enthusiastic. If I had not been intentional about making the correct expression, I would have chosen wet❌ over whet✅ any day.

To whet one's appetite for a thing means to heighten one's desire for or make someone interested in something, especially by giving an idea of what it is like.

E.g: The dancers whet the audience's appetite with their debut performance.

4. Peak my curiosity❌
Pique my curiosity✅

This idiomatic expression has the same meaning as the previous one. To pique✅ also means to stimulate or arouse one's interest or curiosity. Peak❌ on the other hand, as a verb, means to get the maximum or highest degree of something.

E.g: I will go to the cinema if you pique my curiosity about the movie.

5. First come, first serve❌
First come, first served✅

For the longest time, we have heard and used the first expression which is the wrong one to use. The idiom simply means the first to come will be attended to first. Therefore, the correct expression is first come, first served✅, not serve❌

E.g: Bookings are made on a first-come-first-served basis.

Thanks for reading🥳
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Have a beautiful weekend🤩

Will or Would? (III)

Why do we use WOULD when referring to a future event?

We hear people make expressions as seen in the examples below:

Would you mind if I took your pen? (Permission)
Would you like some water? (Offer)
Would you mind donating some books to the library? (Request)

We have learnt that WILL is used to refer to a future event but in the case of the expressions above, which are yet to occur, WOULD is used. Why is this?

One of the uses of WOULD in the English language is to make POLITE EXPRESSIONS.

When you intend to be polite in making a request, seeking permission or making an offer, it is preferable to use WOULD.

The most logical reason for this is to show that while you can imagine doing what you have asked or having your request honoured, you are not sure of the receiver's approval.

In other words, using WOULD means while you wish to get a positive response from the receiver, you are aware of the possibility of getting a negative response and you are willing to accept whatever response you get.

Remember, WOULD is sometimes used when referring to imaginary situations.

Going back to the example above;

1. "Would you like some water?" means I have some water to give you and I wish you would take it from me, but you are not compelled to do so. It's okay to turn down my offer.

2. "Would you mind if I took your pen?" means I need your pen and I wish you would borrow me, but if you don't want to, I will respect your decision.

3. "Would you mind donating some books to the library?" means I know you have some books you no longer need and it would be nice of you to donate them to the library. However, it is your choice and if you don't want to, you don't have to.

Thank you so much for reading.🤗

Would you mind if I asked you to like, share and comment on this post you just read?😎

Have a beautiful weekend.❤

Will Or Would? (II)

I would have posted this earlier if the month hadn't been hectic.🤨

Yes, in this lesson, we will look into the more complicated uses of the modal verbs Will and Would as seen in my first sentence above👆

In the previous lesson, we maintained that while WILL is used when talking about a future event, WOULD is used when reporting a past event.

Let's get into the lesson...

The use of WILL and WOULD becomes confusing when used in conditional expressions. Conditional expressions are basically sentences that include a CONDITION and a RESULT.

Three of the four conditionals we have in English make use of Will or Would; the first, second and third conditionals.

The first conditional is used to express real and possible situations. We use WILL in this conditional because it expresses future events.

For example: If John studies well, he will pass his examination.
Here, the condition for John to pass his examination is to study well.

2. If I am strong enough, I will hang out with my friends.

The second conditional is however used to express imaginary or impossible situations.

Although these situations are not in the past, WOULD Is used to show that they are just imaginations and cannot happen in reality at the time of making the expression or, in some cases, can never happen

P.S: These situations may not be generally impossible.

Examples:
1. If I had six eyes, I would see everything at a time.
It is naturally impossible to have six eyes, so this is clearly an imagination or an impossible wish.🤣

2. If John studied well, he would pass his examination. (This means John has a problem with studying, so he can never pass his examination except a miracle happens)

3. I would lend you some money if I had enough for myself. (I don't have enough money at the moment, so I can't lend you some. However, I could have enough tomorrow).

The third conditional is used to talk about conditions that occurred in the past. In this case, the result of a condition is expressed.

Examples:
1. If John HAD studied well, he WOULD have passed his examination. (This shows that we already know that John failed his examination because he failed to study).

2. If I had been strong enough, I would have hung out with my friends. (I wasn't strong enough, so I didn't hang out with my friends).

Thanks for reading🤗

Don't forget to like, share, comment, and ask questions.

Remember, knowledge is POWER
Enjoy the rest of the weekend😁

WILL or WOULD? (I)

These two are the most confusing of the modal verbs we have (arguably).

While some English language learners are willing to know when to use which, others couldn't care less.

The next two lessons on this page will cover how to use WILL and WOULD correctly.

Let's check the straightforward usage in today's lesson.

Basically, WILL is used when making expressions concerning the future.

We use the verb when we mean to express what we predict will happen in the immediate or distant future.

Examples:

1. I WILL be done with my rehearsal by noon.

2. She WILL get there by 3 pm.

3. He WILL send the money.

4. They WILL take the snacks.

The examples above show what will happen in the future (all things being equal).

WOULD on the other hand is the past tense form of WILL. It is often used to report a conversation that happened in the past.

WOULD is the correct tense to use when you intend to tell someone about a conversation or event that happened in the past.

Using the same examples as above

1. I thought I WOULD be done with my rehearsal by noon (but I was delayed by my music teacher, so I wasn't done until later in the evening).

2. We concluded she WOULD get there by 3 pm.

3. He promised he WOULD send the money.

4. They said they WOULD take the snacks.

We will consider the complicated usage of the two verbs in the next lesson. Stay connected!

Thanks for reading. 💯
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Enjoy the weekend❤

WRITING LESSON 2

In my previous post, I explained the difference between 'everyday' and 'every day'. Let's look into a variation so many English language learners find confusing: 'some time', 'sometime', and 'sometimes'

SOME TIME

Some time is a phrase that expresses a length of time or a span. It is used when we mean to say an activity or a result will not begin, end(activity) or be seen (result) immediately or soon.

Examples

1. It will take some time for him to get over the loss of his cat.✅

2. The result of the test will take some time before it is released.✅

'Some time' can be used in place of 'a long time' or 'a while'

SOMETIME

This could be used as an adverb to mean an indefinite or unstated point in time whether in the past or future.

'Sometime' could also be used as an adjective to mean 'former' or 'occasional'. However, some English speakers do not accept the use of 'sometime' to mean 'occasional' to avoid confusion due to ambiguity.

Examples as an adverb

1. The book will be published sometime next year.✅

2. Would you like to go on a date with me sometime?✅

Examples as an adjective

1. Catering was my sometime job before I became a dancer.

2. Gladys, a sometime baker who works in a bank

An easy trick to know which to use between 'some time' and 'sometime' is to know that the one with a space in between (some time) refers to a long time while the single word (sometime) refers to a point in time.

SOMETIMES

The adverb 'sometimes' simply means 'occasionally'. It is used when referring to an event or occurrence that does not happen always but occurs 'now and then'.

Examples

1. Sometimes I doubt if my body cream is as effective as it claims.✅

2. We make mistakes sometimes.✅

3. Life is good sometimes, but sometimes isn't fair.✅

From the given, 'some time' means a length of time, 'sometime' means 'at some point' or 'formerly' while 'sometimes' means 'occasionally'.

Thanks for reading. I hope you learnt from this?
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Enjoy the weekend🤗

WRITING LESSONS 1

There are just some words in the English language that we are not ready to bother about. More like "we have enough to deal with already, so let's just use these as we please abeg".

What's more? Except for when you're writing, no one knows whether you're right or wrong

Words like Everyday or Every day, Anyone or Any one, and Sometimes, Sometime or Some time, among others, fall effortlessly into this category.

These words, except for the space between some and an extra letter in another, look just the same to us but those 'tiny' differences make the difference in their meanings.

To avoid driving you graciously into boredom while reading this, I'll dive straight into the differences and how to know when to use each of the words.

So, Everyday or Every day?

Simply know 'Everyday' is an adjective used to depict what we do, use or see daily while 'Every day' is a synonym for each day/month or daily.

'Everyday' is usually followed by a noun as seen in:

1. Everyday chores can be so frustrating✅
2. Singing is an everyday ritual for me✅
3. Water is for everyday consumption✅

Chores, ritual, and consumption are nouns.

'Every day' on the other hand may come before or after the verb in a sentence. Using the same examples (tweaked a little), we say:

1. It is so frustrating that I have to do my chores every day.✅
2. I sing every day, so it has become a ritual.✅
3. If you don't take water every day, you might develop a health problem. ✅

To know which to use in a sentence, if it can be replaced with 'each day' or every Saturday' (any day/month) in the sentence, then use 'every day', but if it is immediately followed by a noun, then know 'everyday' is the right word to use.

You can replace "I go to school every day" with "I go to school every Monday/each day".✅

However, it would be wrong to say 'Dancing is an every day exercise'❌ because you can't say "Dancing is an each day exercise."❌

Another clue is that a comma may come after 'Every day' if it appears at the beginning of a sentence. For example:
"Every day, I go to the beach to get some air." You can't use a comma after 'everday' because it is usually followed by a noun.

To be continued...

Thanks for reading.
Kindly like, comment, share and ask questions.

Have a lovely weekend🥰

Happy New Month, language learners🤗
I trust we've been well.

Quickly, let's check out these two common errors in English language. Who knows, this might be your new month gift from me🤭

1. You and me are friends. ❌

Except for some cases where this doesn't apply, for the most part, you shouldn't use 'you and me' at the beginning (subject) of a sentence. Instead, use you and I at the beginning (subject) and you and me at the end (object).

You and me take pictures. ❌
You and I take pictures. ✅

They take pictures of you and I ❌
They take pictures of you and me. ✅

Here is the logic, you use 'you and I' when it comes before the verb while you use 'you and me' when it comes after.

In the sentences above, the main verb is 'take'. The use of 'You and I' was marked correct in the first group of sentences because it came before the verb; but in the second sentence, it was marked wrong because it came after the verb which shouldn't be so.

To avoid making this grammatical error, always read out the sentence without including the 'you' in the first instance.

Dropping the 'you' in the sentences above, we have:
Me take pictures❌
I take pictures✅

They take pictures of I❌
They take pictures of me✅

2. Be rest assured ❌

Not until about two years ago did I know 'be rest assured' was incorrect. To think I grew up hearing that often.

'Rest assured' is actually an idiom used when giving an assurance. You may use the expression to show your determination to do something or the assurance that something will occur.

Be rest assured that she will come. ❌
Rest assured that she will come. ✅

Be rest assured, I will get it done. ❌
Rest assured, I will get it done. ✅

Thanks for reading.
Please feel free to ask questions about what has just been discussed or anything you're confused about.

Don't forget to like, share, and comment. Kindly follow my page too if you haven't.

Have a beautiful weekend ❤

Uncountable Nouns You Have Been Pluralising Wrongly

Generally, a noun is a naming word. Any word that names a person, animal, thing, place, idea, quality or substance among others is a noun. While some of these nouns can be counted (countable/count nouns), others cannot be counted (uncountable/mass/noncount nouns).

Uncountable nouns include physical objects that cannot be easily separated (rice), abstract concepts (advice), disciplines (chemistry), general sports (basketball) and so on.

Naturally, uncountable nouns cannot be pluralised, i.e you can’t add ‘s’, ‘es’ or ‘ies’ to them. However, we pluralise some of these nouns because we feel they don't fall under the category of the noncount/mass nouns.

Below are some uncountable nouns that we pluralise wrongly:

Equipment

Equipment is a mass noun, therefore, it is uncountable.
It is wrong to say 'an equipment' or 'equipment. Instead, you say ‘a piece of equipment’, 'a set of equipment', or 'some equipment' depending on the context of its use.

You need an equipment to make your work easier.❌

You need equipments to make your work easier ❌

You need a piece of equipment to make your work easier.✅

These items of equipment will make your work easier✅

Advice

The word 'Advice' does not take a plural form either.

I have an advice for you❌

She has some advices to give you❌

I have a word/piece of advice for you✅

Do you need some advice?✅

Evidence

You can't say you have 'one evidence', 'two evidences' or 'many evidences' for that matter. Evidence is an uncountable noun.

I have an evidence against her❌

These evidences will implicate them❌

Do you have evidence to prove your innocence?✅

You have no evidence to implicate me.✅

Jewellery

Jewellery is another noncount noun that we wrongly pluralise.

My jewelleries are beautiful❌

These jewelleries are fashionable❌

I buy a lot of jewellery✅

She owns a piece of jewellery✅

Luggage

Irrespective of the number of luggage you have, never put an ‘s’ at the back of the noun.

You cannot have luggages, you can only have 'a piece or pieces of luggage'.

I have a luggage in my room ❌

My luggages are too many❌

They put their luggage in the boot of the car✅

I have a piece of luggage✅

NB: Some uncountable nouns can be pluralised depending on the context of their use.
Example: Many washing liquids do not wash well. While 'liquid' is an uncountable noun, the example referred to different kinds of washing liquid.

Thank you so much for reading🥰

Don't forget to like, share, and comment. Please follow the page too if you haven't.

Enjoy the weekend 🤗

Six English Words You May Find Confusing To Spell 🤔

Autocorrection can only help you when you write, what if you have to spell verbally? Will your masquerade not "enter" express?😜

Let's check out these confusing words together.

1. Absence✅
Absense❌

All I know is you can't blame me for writing what I heard🤷‍♀️
If 'sense' is with an 's' why isn't it absense.
My dear, kill that mentality, English will humble you🤣

In the case of this word, the letter 'c' is pronounced /s/ just like the 'c' in 'face'

So, the correct spelling is 'absence'✅ and the same goes for 'presence'✅

2. Liaison✅
Liason❌

A not-commonly-used word that means cooperation.

I remember my Phonetics lecturer once asked all of us in class to spell the word in our notebooks. I don't think anyone got it right.🤣

The vowel cluster (iai) is what brings confusion to the spelling of the word.

3. Millennium✅
Millenium❌

The English language can be very tricky. I see no need for the second 'n' in the spelling of this word. However, it is what it is.

The word is spelt with double 'l' and double 'n'

4. Vacuum✅
Vaccum❌

It's very rare to see an English word with a double letter 'u' side-by-side.

The word 'vacuum' is one of the rare words that have this. Take note.

5. Fluorescent✅
Florescent❌

The word has not only spelling but also pronunciation issues as I have also just learnt.

While 'Florescent' is not wrong, it is the American spelling, the British spelling includes a 'u' before the 'o'.

This also makes the British pronunciation of the word different from the American.

Consult your dictionary for more understanding.

6. Misspell✅
Mispell❌

The word includes double 's' and double 'l'. 'Mispell' is the wrong spelling of the word.

Thanks for reading.
Don't forget to like, comment and share.

Enjoy the weekend🥰