May 3, 2022 Chunks, Word of the day Word of the day: big cheese At a party last week I was introduced to a foreign businessman who was visiting London. We got talking and started chatting about what we both did. I told him about my work and when I asked what he did, he responded – in excellent English – by saying: “I guess you could say I’m a big cheese in […]
Nov 19, 2021 Chunk of the day, Chunks Chunk of the day: a rite of passage Generally speaking, I’m not one for complaining about people’s use of language, and certainly not those supposed transgressions of grammar rules such as using like when reporting speech, saying there were less people than expected, or that people are loving it. If you’ve ever seen Hugh’s comments on the English Questions Answered group on Facebook, […]
Jul 7, 2021 Chunk of the day, Chunks Chunk of the day: having some work done Those of you who follow my ongoing series of ONE-MINUTE ENGLISH videos on YouTube or Instagram may have noticed that I’ve recently started filming them from the chaos of my attic. You’ll have seen the piles of boxes behind me, and sensed a general air of temporary discomfort. In case you were wondering what’s brought […]
Jun 15, 2021 Chunks, Word of the day Word of the day: whitewash By the 18th of June 1984 – thirty-seven years ago today – miners in England had been on strike for three months. In what has been called “the most bitter industrial dispute in British history”, the National Union of Mineworkers was attempting to bring the coal industry to a standstill in protest against planned closures […]
May 28, 2021 Chunks, Phrase of the day Phrase of the day: How the other half lives May has been a truly miserable month with the rain bucketing down day after day, the wind howling like it was the middle of March and temperatures more akin to November than the onset of summer. When will it all end? I had been hoping that one silver lining of cancelling our 2021 summer school […]
