Tip 57: "EN" in words

en route: on the way or along the way, eg I rested en route. eg There was an en route delay. Pronounced: on-root (British), n-root (American). (French-origin)

en bloc: as a whole, eg en bloc sale. Pronounced: on-blok. (French-origin)

en core: again, eg an en core of the singing performance. Pronounced: on-core. (French-origin)

Other similar words with "on" pronunciation: entourage (on-tow-rarch), entree, entrepreneur, ensemble

Tip 56: Commonly Misused Words

1. Not "I will revert to you" but "I will get back to you later"
2. Not "Try to meet the dateline" but "Try to meet the deadline"
3. Not "Many elderlies" live here" but "Many elderly live here"
4. Not "Do it irregardless of what others think" but "Do it regardless of what others think"
5. Not "Do not mispell my name" but "Do not misspell my name"
6. Not "She has alot of patience" but "She has a lot of patience"
7. Not "He has many loyal staffs" but "He has many loyal staff"
8. Not "We bought many pieces of new equipments" but "We bought many pieces of new equipment"
9. Not "I am a licenced seller" but "I am a licensed seller"
10. Not "He has been adviced many times not to do this" but "He has been advised many times not to do this"
11. Not "She has a humourous boyfriend" but "She has a humorous boyfriend"

Tip 55: Beside Versus Besides

Beside (preposition)
Please stand beside me. (Used to mean next to)
This is beside the point (Used as a phrase to mean irrelevant point)


Besides (advert)
Besides the ice-cream, we also have fruits fro dessert. (Used to mean in addition)
Besides you, nobody knows this secret. (Used to mean apart from)
No one besides Tom is able to accomplish this mission. (Used to mean apart from)
I'm not going to the party. Besides, I was not invited. (Used to mean furthermore, moreover)

Tip 54: Words Singaporeans Often Mispronounce

I suggest after reading each of the following words aloud, click to hear what it should have been. How close or far are you from the recorded pronunciation? How many did you get correct?

1.     Exaggerate 

2.     Salmon

3.     Sumptuous 

5.     Believe

6.     Abalone

7.     Doubt 

8.     Debt

9.     Subtle

10.  Jostle

11.  Bustle

12.  Hustle

13.  Baggage 

14.  Bargain

15.  Children

16.  Athlete 

17.  Colleague 

18.  Fragile

19.  Mischievous 

20.  Lullaby

21.  Character

22.  Wednesday

23.  Restaurant

24.  Receipt 

25.  Sponge 

26.  Debut

27.  Reservoir

28.  Espresso

29.  Poignant 

30.  Infamous 

31.  Vehicle 

32.  Jewelry 

33.  Mammoth 

34.  Resonate

35.  Gourmet

36.  Exactly

37.  Resound

38.  Envelope

39.  Lettuce
40.  Salivate
41. Marijuana
42. Steak
43. Sorbet
44. Connoisseur

Tip 53: Tricky Subject-Verb Agreement

We all know that a singular subject goes with a singular verb and a plural subject goes with a plural verb. However, it is sometimes not easy to identify the subject of the verb and when the subject and verb are not matched correctly, a grammar mistake is made. Look at each of the following examples and see if the answer is always so straightforward for you.

Examples:

1.     The list of grocery items has been recorded into my smart phone.

2.     The herds of elephants are escaping from the forest fire.

3.     Neither Jerrie nor Jackie knows how to swim.

4.     Neither Jerrie nor her friends like swimming. (Verb agrees with the closest noun)

5.     Either Jerrie or Jackie is helping me with lunch.

6.     Either of the sisters is helping me with dinner.

7.     Neither of the brothers is joining us for tea.

8.     Neither Moses nor I am looking forward to going to the banquet. (Verb agrees with the closest noun)

9.     Moses and I are invited to the banquet.

10. Bread and butter is my favourite breakfast. (Bread and butter is a compound noun)

11. Bed and breakfast is my preferred kind of accommodation for vacation. (Bed and breakfast is a compound noun)

12. Jerrie, along with her best friends, is expected to arrive anytime.

13. Jackie, as well as her teachers, is very excited about this event.

14. Amos, not his parents, is to be blamed.

15. All of the cakes are gone.

16. All the cake is gone.

17. Half of the people are not showing up.

18. There are obstacles to clear.

19. There is one more obstacle to clear.

20. A lot of people are coming today.

21. Three hours is too long to wait for the doctor. (Three hours is treated as a unit.)

22. Ten dollars is too much for a pen. (Ten dollars is treated as a unit.)

23. Ten dollars were found in in the dustbin. (Ten dollars are interpreted as dollar notes.)

24. The couple was presented a gift.

25. The staff was in a training this morning.

26. I wish Shaun were here. (Hypothetical/wishful statement.)

27. I wish it were Sunday. (Hypothetical/wishful statement.)

28. I saw him fall and break his nose. (“fall” and “break” are 'bare' infinitives, ie infinitives without 'to'.)

29. We all have seen her dance. (Infinitive “dance”.)

30. We heard the bell ring. (Infinitive “ring”.)

Tip 52: Maybe vs May be & Everyday vs Every day

Do you know that there are differences in meaning for the following pairs? Or have you been using them interchangeably?

Maybe Vs May be

Maybe - perhaps, possibly.
Eg. Will you be at Tom's party tonight?
Maybe

May be - verb referring to a possibility
Eg. Any trouble? I may be of help.


Everyday Vs Every day

Everyday - an adjective to mean normal/ordinary/common
Eg. This pair of shoes is for everyday use.

Every day - each day
Eg. I wear this pair of shoes every day.

Tip 51: Countering Negatives in Question Tags

Note the different effects in the use of "hardly" in the following sentences:
1. Peter hardly reads, does he?
negative statement  => affirmative tag


2. John never acts like a gentleman, does he?
negative statement => affirmative tag


3. There is hardly any crowd at the market, isn't there?
affirmative statement => negative tag


4. Jenny could barely breathe in the thick smoke, couldn't she?
affirmative statement => negative tag


5. Nothing will cure his illness, will it?
 negative statement => affirmative tag