incumbent (adjective and noun) – adjective: holding an official job. – noun: the person holding an official job. Examples of how you can use incumbent: The photograph shows the incumbent president shaking hands with the Ayatollah from Iran. Will the incumbent mayor participate in the festivities around the Queen’s birthday? With 12 million downloads in… Continue reading Word to the Wise: incumbent
There are so many French words in English that you won’t even notice many of them anymore. Does passport sound French to you? Probably not. But both pass and port come from French. Pass means go over (to the other side). And port means carry. So voila, there we are with the passport, a document… Continue reading French Words in English
pinnacle (noun) – a high point: of a mountain, a tower or as a metaphor. Note: You can also use this verb as a verb, but it’s not so common. Examples of how you can use pinnacle: Her appointment as ballerina will surely be the pinnacle of her dancer’s career. It’s illegal to climb the pyramids,… Continue reading Word to the Wise: pinnacle
gambit (noun) – an opening move or remark to gain some advantage. Note: This word comes from the game of chess where a player uses an opening move that risks losing a pawn, to gain a more important piece. It’s a popular word in magazines and news websites. Examples of how you can use gambit: The… Continue reading Word to the Wise: gambit
hagiography (noun) [the stress is on o] – a biography of a holy person (saint), or a biography of a normal person that is written in an admiring style. Note: Can also refer to a movie. hagiographic/hagiographical (adjective) – connected to the biography of a holy person (saint), or an admiring biography of a normal person.… Continue reading Word to the Wise: hagiography
The coffin, the piano and the wheelchair are props prop (noun) – an object that is used by a performer in a movie or on the stage (in a theatre) Examples of how you can use prop: Before the director can start filming the scene, the stagehands need to make sure the pen and papers are… Continue reading Word to the Wise: Prop
I promised we’d do something easy this time. I realised that some students of mine didn’t know what you call the parts of the eye. Yes, the black thing inside is a pupil, the same word for a child/school student. Here is a picture of an eye. Look at the picture, then do the quiz.… Continue reading Do You Know the Parts of the Eye? – Vocabulary
DonkeyHotey President Barack Obama was the first American president in 88 years to visit Cuba. This is what he said in his speech to the Cuban people: “I have come here to bury the last remnant of the Cold War in the Americas.” Yes, and it’s about time. Obama also mentioned a few things he… Continue reading What did important people say this week? Obama said remnant
by Jacqueline Schaalje There was a row in the tennis world when star player and current number 1 in the world Novak Djokovic said he believed that men players should be awarded more prize money than women players. “I think that our men’s tennis world […] should fight for more because the stats are showing that… Continue reading What did important people say this week? Djokovic said award.
by Jacqueline Schaalje No, I’m not going to discuss with you which job is the most difficult to do. Is it teacher or waste cleaner? Or maybe psychiatrist? I want to teach you how to say these job titles correctly, and for completeness’ sake, we’ll also explain what it is. So this is mostly a… Continue reading Difficult Jobs to Say in English
English with a Smile 