Thursday, January 31, 2019

Shopping in Supermarket Vocabulary

1. Supermarket (noun) = a large self-service shop which sells most types of food and other goods needed in the house.

2. Shopping Cart (noun) = a bag or basket on wheels for carrying shopping purchases, in particular one on wheels provided for the use of supermarket customers.
2. Shopping Trolley (noun) = a bag or basket on wheels for carrying shopping purchases, in particular a large wire basket on wheels provided for the use of supermarket customers.

3. Aisle (noun) = a passage between cabinets and shelves of goods in a supermarket or in other building.
(Pronunciation of 'aisle' is 'ail')

4. Items (noun) = an individual thing, object, unit, article, product or commodity.

5. Barcode (noun) = an optical, machine-readable representation of data; the data usually describes something about the object that carries the barcode.
Or
Barcode is an optical, machine-readable code in the form of numbers and a pattern of parallel lines of varying widths, printed on a commodity and used especially for stock control.

6. Price Tag (noun) = a piece of paper or label showing the price that is attached to a product.
Or
Price Tag is the cost of something.
Or
Price Tag is the amount that something costs.

7. Offers (noun) = (promotions/discounts)
If goods in shop are on (special) offer, they are being sold at a lower price than usual.
DISCOUNT (noun) = a reduction from the usual cost of something.
Promotion (noun) = it is an attempt to make a product or event popular or successful, especially by advertising.
Or
Promotion is the publicizing of a product, organisation or venture, so as to increase sales or public awareness.
e.g. Buy 2 containers and get 1 free.

8. Cash counter (noun) = a checkout counter in a store.
Or
Cash desk (noun) = the place in a store where a person pays for the things he or she is buying.

9. Pay with (cash/card) = give (a sum of money) in exchange for goods received.

10. Cashier (noun) = a person handling payments and receipts in a shop, bank, or business.

11. Receipt (noun) = something such as a piece of paper or message proving that money, goods, or information have been received.
Or
A receipt is a proof of purchase.

Example passage:-

Alice went to the supermarket. She took a shopping cart and walked in 1st aisle and picked up few items. After that she walked in 3rd aisle and took few more items. Before putting the items in the cart she carefully saw the price tag of each item and then put them in the cart. Also, she saw 'buy 2 get 1 free' offer for the plastic containers. She accepted the offer and moved ahead towards the cash counter. The cashier entered the invoice on the computer by scanning each item's barcode and prepared the bill. And then the cashier asked Alice whether she is going to pay the bill with cash or card. She replied 'cash'. The cashier received the cash and gives her the bill which she accepts as a receipt.





Tuesday, January 29, 2019

Difference Between 4: On Time vs In Time

'On time' and 'in time' both are prepositions.

'On time' denotes duty or obligation.

e.g. Peter wants to start the meeting on time.
Suppose the meeting is fixed at 4pm, then 'on time' means that the meeting will begin exactly at 4pm.

'In time' denotes anytime before the fixed time.

e.g. Peter wants to finish the meeting in time.
In the above example it means the work should be finished before the deadline. For instance, if the deadline is on Sunday, then the work has to be finished anytime before Sunday or by Saturday.



Friday, January 25, 2019

Talking About Music

1. Song/Track/Number (noun) = a short poem or other set of words set to music or meant to be sung.

2. Lyrics (noun) = the words of a song.

3. Chorus (noun) = a part of a song which is repeated after each verse.

4. Verse (noun) = a group of lines that form a unit in a poem or song; a stanza.

5. Singer (noun) = a person who sings, especially professionally.

6. Duet (noun) = a performance by two singers, instrumentalists, or dancers.

7. Solo (adjective and adverb) = for or done by one person alone; unaccompanied.

8. Concert (noun) = a musical performance given in public, typically by several performers or of several compositions.

9. Instrumental (adjective)  :-
An instrumental is a musical composition or recording without lyrics, or singing, although it might include some instrumental vocals, such as shouted backup vocals in a Big Band setting.

Sharing Personal Information

John: Can I have your phone number, please?
(Please denotes politeness)
Mary: Sure, 53878907... Or
Sure, my number is 53878907...
John: Do you have an email address?
Mary: Yes, I do. It's abc@xyz.com
Or
John : Can I please have your email address?
Mary: Sure, my email address is abc@xyz.com
John: Are you on Facebook?
Mary: Yes, I am. I will send you a friend request.
John: Thank you. I will call you.
Mary: Sure. ('haan teekh hai' in Hindi) 

Thursday, January 24, 2019

Difference Between 3: To vs For (part 1)

Difference 1: To vs For

'To' is used to denote direction.
e.g. He went to the store to buy milk.

'For' is used to denote purpose.
e.g. He went to the store for milk.

Wednesday, January 23, 2019

Greetings 2

If you greet someone properly then people think you are polite and cultured. Otherwise you might come across as a rude and disrespectful person.

Depending on the time of the day, we should use different greetings.

1. Good morning.
It should be used only before 12pm.
In Hindi it means "aapki subhah shubh rahe ya shubh hai/ho."
In Hindi its just 'namaste'.
'Good' means 'accha/shubh' in Hindi.

2. Good afternoon.
It should be used between 12pm to 4pm.

3. Good evening.
It should be used between 4pm to up till late night.

4. Good night.
In Hindi its literal translation 'shubh ratri'.
It is also used at the end of conversation.

5. Good day.
It is a multipurpose and versatile greeting.
It means 'shubh din'.
e.g. good day sir/mam.
e.g. thank you and good day.
'Good day' can be used in the morning, afternoon or in the evening. But not after sunset.

All of the above 5 greetings are used to greet people formally.

Among friends only 'hi'/'hello' can be used.
But in formal conversation it should be like:
e.g. Hi/hello, good morning/afternoon/evening/day.

Okay, good night.


Tuesday, January 22, 2019

Replacements for 'lots of/a lot of'

Informal replacements for  quantifier 'Lots of/a lot of'

The quantifiers are used to talk about quantities, amounts and degree.

A lot of/lots of = a large number or amount; a great deal

We, that is, non native English people use 'a lot of' much commonly in English. But, in reality, native English speakers don't use 'a lot of' as much as we do.

There are really better words used naturally by native speakers as a replacement for 'a lot of.' The following are the words can be instead of 'a lot of':

1. Heaps of/a heap of = a large amount or number of
2. Loads of/a load of = a lot of, often something unpleasant
3. Stacks of/ a stack of = a large quantity of something.
4. Piles of/a pile of = a large amount of something

Any of the above four quantifiers can be used informally in natural way of speaking.

'A little' is the opposite of 'a lot of'.

Examples:-

Lots of/a lot of

1. A lot of people went to the game.
2. She had been under a lot of stress.
3. I have a lot of books.
4. We ate lots of pizza.

Heaps of/a heap of

1. We have heaps of room.
2. I had a heap of coffee.
3. We have heaps of time.
4. We got in a heap of trouble.
5.This job requires someone with heaps of experience.

Loads of/a load of

1.You are getting yourself into a whole load of trouble.
2. She was talking a load of rubbish.
3. She spends loads of money on clothes.
4. He is making loads of money.
Loads(of things) to do: 
5. He has got loads to do today.

Stacks of/a stack of

1. The smell of alfaalfa came from a stack of hay in the corner.
2. There is a dryer and a stack of towels next to the shower.
3. He stood near the windows and had in his arms a stack of clothing.
4. There is stacks of work for me now.

Piles of/a pile of

1. On the top of a pile of clothes lay a flower and note.
2. She has a pile of pens.
3. He is making piles of money.





Sunday, January 20, 2019

Favourite Things

Commonly used 'wh' to ask questions with the word 'favourite' are 'who' and 'what'.
Examples:-
Who is your favourite athlete?
What is your favourite travel destination?
Less commonly used 'wh' are 'where', 'how' and 'when'.
Examples:-
Where is your favourite vacation spot?
How is your favourite noodles cooked?

Other ways of using 'favourite' --
Q: What do you like to eat most?
A: My favourite food is ice-cream.

Q: What is a childhood memory that stands out?
A: My favourite childhood memory is a time I went to zoo with friends.

Q: Which Professor do you like the most?
A: I like Professor Jackie the most.

Q: What is your favourite type of food? Or What is your favourite cuisine?
A: I love Italian food especially pasta.

Q: What is your favourite music?
A: I really enjoy listening to jazz music.

Conversation 1:
Mary: What are you doing tomorrow?
Alice: I am going to stay at home and watch a movie.
Mary: Which movie are you going to watch?
Alice: I bought a DVD of 'Titanic' movie last week. Have you seen it?
Mary: It is one of my favourite movies. You will not be disappointed.

Conversation 2:
John: What's your favourite food?
Bobby: I like Chinese food the most.
John: Have you ever been to Sam's Chinese?
Bobby: No, I haven't. Is it good?
John: It's my favourite Chinese restaurant. I believe you will like it.
Bobby: That sounds great. Let's go.



Friday, January 18, 2019

Difference Between 2: Forthcoming vs Upcoming

'Upcoming' basically means happening in the future. However, 'coming' is often a better choice of words.
'Upcoming' was a relatively recent word creation, by analogy with the phrasal verb 'coming up', that is, happening soon. Yet the participle 'coming' already existed, and still does, with the very same meaning. You can say an upcoming event, but its really unnecessary, because a coming event is the very same thing. It's like saying 'coming in the future' - when else would something come but in the future, at a time later than the present? So 'upcoming' is often redundant.
Does 'upcoming' ever mean something significantly different than 'coming'? It's possible that 'upcoming' puts slightly more emphasis on coming soon, just about to happen -- but not a lot more. It's true that 'upcoming' can only be used for things that are planned, not things that will happen regardless of human intention, you couldn't substitute 'upcoming' in expressions such as the coming storm, the coming economic down turn. But does the reverse hold true? Are there, planned events for which 'coming' sounds off? Not really any. The upcoming NBA playoffs -- well, maybe 'coming' is less common there, but is that only our bad habit because we've heard the jargon form so often in the media?
As for 'forthcoming' , it doesn't really mean simply happening in the future, even though it's sometimes misused with the sense. It means coming forth, which means coming out, that is, appearing, being released, being made public. Information can be forthcoming when someone divulges it. Anything that is to be published, presented, or announced can be forthcoming: the forthcoming issue of a magazine, the forthcoming edition if a book, a forthcoming statement from a government spokesperson and so on.
But if you're simply announcing now that an event is going to take place in the future, not that it's going to come out or up, then why not just say 'coming'.
(Please note: this excerpt is taken or copied from a forum and not my own explanation.)

Friday, January 11, 2019

Difference Between 1: Excerpt vs Snippet

Excerpt vs Snippet
1.Excerpt (noun)= a short extract from a film, broadcast, or piece of music or writing.
e.g. She read out excerpts from an article in the Times.
Excerpt (verb)= take ( a short extract ) from a text.
e.g. The notes are excerpted from his forthcoming biography.

2.Snippet (noun)= a small piece or brief extract; a small and often interesting piece of news, information, or conversation.
Examples:-
I heard an interesting snippet on the radio this morning.
I love listening to snippets of conversation in restaurants.

Verb Tenses

Verb Tenses
Any verb has 3 forms:-
Present- used in present tense
Past- used in past tense
Past Participle- used in perfect tense
Examples:-
Present     Past            Past Participle
Do              Did              Done
Work        Worked      Worked
Read          Read           Read
Speak        Spoke         Spoken

Example:-
Did you do that? -------->Its a question in past tense. So the question begins with the past form of the verb 'do' that is 'did'. 'do' is the main verb in the above question. And 'did' is the helping verb or the auxiliary verb.
Do = perform an action




Wednesday, January 9, 2019

What to answer to "what's up?"?

Reply to greeting "what's up?"
A: Hey, what's up?
B: Nothing much! (or)
Other examples:-
Nothing much! You tell me? (or)
Nothing much, just reading the newspaper. You tell me? (or)
Nothing much, just finishing up my work. You tell me? (or)
Nothing much, just preparing for an interview. You tell me? or
Etc.

What do you do?

1. What do you do?
I am + occupation.
Examples:-
I am a tailor.
I am a doctor.
I am a lawyer.
2. Where do you work?
a.I work at + place.
Examples:
I work at a clinic.
I work at a restaurant.
I work at a shop.
Here 'at' denotes exact place where you work.
b. I work for + the person/ the company.
Examples:
I work for a designer.
I work for ABC industries.
3. What does he/she/( name of the person )do?
Examples:
He is a doctor.
She is a lawyer.
Sam is a salesman.
4. Where does he/she/( name of the person ) work?
Examples:
He works at a shop.
She works at a showroom.
Nick works at a school.



How to ask time in English?

Asking for time in English
A: Excuse me, do you know what the time is?
B: It is 3:30pm. ( or, I am sorry, I am not wearing a watch. )
A: Oh no! I am late.
B: Don't worry, my watch is a few      minutes fast.
A: Great, which means I can still catch the bus.
B: Yes, it is only 3:20pm. The bus comes at 3:30pm.

Tuesday, January 8, 2019

What color vs Which color

What color do you like? vs Which color do you like?
"What color do you like?" means in general which color do you like amongst all the available colors in the world. In this case, no particular set of colors are offered to choose from.
Whereas, in "which color do you like?" A particular set of colors is given to select from.
For example:-
Among blue, green and yellow, which color do you like?
If you like, then the answer could be any one or two or all the above three mentioned colors in the question;
Examples:-
I like green.
I like yellow and green.
I like green, yellow and blue. Or I like all of them.
If you don't like any of the above then the reply could be "none of them".
Example:-
I like none of them.

Basic English Questions

Few simple questions in English:
1. What did you today?
Answers can be, such as;
I went fishing.
I played soccer.
I went to school and played soccer.
I went to work. Etc.

2. How old are you?
Answers can be depending upon one's age as follows:
I am 10.
I am 10yrs old.

Basic English Talk

A: Hi/Hello, what is your name?
B: I'm John. How are you today?
A: I'm fine. Thank you.
B: Where are you from?
A: I'm from London.
B: It was nice to meet you.
A: Same here. ( used instead of repeating "It was nice meeting you too.")
B: Bye.
A: Bye.

Instead of "how are you?", "How do you feel?" can be used to greet people.
How do you feel? = "din kaisa jaa raha hain" in Hindi.

Monday, January 7, 2019

Only 5 Words: Part 1

1. DRAMATIC (adjective)
Common usages of this word are:
a. sudden or strikitng
Example:-
The share price of the stock has increased in a dramatic way over the period of just two years.
b. exciting or impressive
Example:-
He escaped in a dramatic way.

2. CHARMING (adjective)
a. very pleasant or attractive.
b. if a person is described as charming, you mean they behave in a friendly, pleasant way that makes people like them.
Example:-
Amy is a charming girl.

3. PICTURESQUE (adjective)
a. ( of a place or building ) visually attractive, especially in an old-fashioned way.
Example:-
Taj Umaid Bhavan is a picturesque palace in Jodhpur, India.

4. QUAINT (adjective)
a. attractively unusual and especially old-fashioned.
Example:-
A quaint old place.
b. disapproval of something, especially of an opinion, a belief or a way of behaving, because it is strange or old-fashioned.
Example:-
"What a quaint idea!" she said laughing at him.

5. FABULOUS (adjective)
a. almost impossible to believe, incredible, extremely good, wonderful.
Example:-
Alice looks fabulous.




Sunday, January 6, 2019

You vs Yourself

Have faith in you vs Have faith in yourself
Now what's the difference between above two phrases.
The former that is "have faith in you" is an incomplete sentence because subject is missing. The subject should either be the first person singular/plural or third person plural.
e.g. 1. I have faith in you. (first person singular)
e.g. 2. We have faith in you. (first person plural)
e.g. 3. They have faith in you. (third person plural)

The latter that is "have faith in yourself" is a complete sentence which means the other person is telling you to have faith in you.




Greetings 1

How to greet in English?
Common ways used to greet someone are:
1. How are you?
2. How are you going?
3. How are you doing?
4. Hey, what's up? ------- this one is quite casual.
Now, what should be the response when someone greets us? The following can be used according to one's own condition:
I'm good.
I'm great.
I'm wonderful.
I'm tired.
I'm hungry.
Not so good.
Pretty good.
All right.
Terrible!
Etc

Textbook conversation is:
A: How are you?
B: I'm fine. Thank you. And you?
A: I'm fine. Thank you.

Real casual greetings 1:
A: Hi/Hello/Hey, how are you doing?
B: I'm pretty good. And you?
A: Uh, I'm not bad. Thanks.

Real casual greetings 2:
A: Hi/Hello/Hey, how are you doing?
B: I'm great. Thanks.
A: What about you? / How about you?
B: I'm all right. What's new?

Real business greetings:
1. How are you?
2. How are you today?
3. How are you doing?