English Grammar: Past Simple Time Markers

"Just now, I have seen a movie" or "Just now, I saw a movie" -- which sentence is correct? In this grammar lesson, I will teach you about past simple time markers. Time markers like yesterday, just now, last week, and ago can help you to know if you should use the past simple tense or present perfect. Teachers love to test students on this, so watch this video, do the quiz, and be prepared for your next test or writing assignment.

TRANSCRIPT

Hello. My name is Emma, and in today's lesson, we are going to talk about something many students have difficulty with. We are going to talk about the past simple -- or simple past -- tense and time markers, which can help students to figure out what tense to use. So I'll explain this in a second.

First, my question: What is the past simple? What is the simple past? Well, "I ate two cookies." The present tense: "I eat two cookies. Every day, I eat two cookies." So in the past, we would say "ate". So usually, simple past are verbs, actions that end in "-ed". So we have "cleaned" -- "I cleaned the floor." "I cooked spaghetti." "I baked a cake." "I worked all night." These are all "-ed" -- past verbs. We also have some things called "irregular verbs", like "ate" -- "ate", "lay". What are some other irregular verbs? "I ran to school yesterday." "I run -- right now, I am running. Every day I run to school. Yesterday I ran to school." So these are irregular verbs. So if you look at my timeline, we have the future. What's the future? Everything after today. So this would be tomorrow. Maybe this would be a week from now. Maybe this would be 2020, and then 2050. So this is the future. This line right here represents now. Today it is the year 2013, okay? Maybe when you watch this, maybe it will be 2014, but right now, as I film, it is 2013. So that's the present; that's now. This is all the past, okay? This is all before. This is 1990, 1950, 2000. This is yesterday, so things that happened before. So when we talk about the past tense, we're talking about here. Okay. So now, let me tell you what "time markers" are. Many students, they hear the present -- present perfect: "I've never been to China." "I have eaten four cakes today." They hear this, and then they hear the simple past, "I ate four cakes." Which one do you use? Simple past? Present perfect? And teachers love to test on this. So how do you know?

Well, one way is using things called "time markers". These are our time markers right here. So we have, "yesterday", "the other day", "last week", "last month", "last year", "when", "just now", "ago", and "in". So these are all words that we can use with the past simple or simple past. You do not use these words with the future. You do not use these words with any of the presents. You use them with the simple past or past simple.

Okay. So let's do some examples. I could put "yesterday" here. "Yesterday, I ate two cookies." Okay? I could say, "Yesterday, I ate two cookies." "The other day, I ate two cookies." "Last week, I ate two cookies." "Last month, I ate two cookies." "Last year, I ate two cookies." Even if this isn't written, if it's a test: "I _________ two cookies." "I eat two cookies"? "I have eaten two cookies"? As soon as I see "yesterday", I know: "Yesterday -- ate." "The other day -- ate." "Last week -- ate." Okay? So these are your clues. So memorize them. Associate them with the simple past. Now, we have "when" here. What do I mean by "when"? "I ate two cookies when -- when I was eight years old." "I ate two cookies when I broke up with my boyfriend." Okay? So you can use -- when you see "when -- blah, blah, blah", "when I -- blah, blah, blah", this is a clue. This should be -- what should it be? Simple past or past simple; not present perfect. "Just now": "Just now, I ate two cookies." "Just now, I went shopping." "Just now, I made a video." Okay? So again, "just now" -- what is it? That's right. Past simple or simple past. "Ago": "ago"? This is when you're talking about a certain amount of time. "Two years ago, I went to Thailand." "Five years ago, I went to France." "Two days ago, I ate two cookies." Okay? So there's usually a number in either years, days, weeks -- "ago". As soon as you see "ago" -- past. Finally, the last one we will talk about today: "in". "In 1990 -- what happened in 1990? In 1990, I was a little kid." "In 2000, I finished grade 8." "In 2009, I think, I finished university." So if you see "in" with a year, what is it? It's simple past. Okay. Very good. And what do all of these things have in common? Again, they are talking about -- if we look at this -- a moment in time, okay? They're looking at a moment. They're not looking at this whole period of time. They are not looking at a long period of time. They're looking at a moment. All right, so let's do some questions to see how much you guys remember.

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10 Weather Expressions in English

What does it mean to weather a storm? Have you ever rained on someone's parade? Do you feel under the weather today? In this lesson, I will teach you ten common weather expressions: steal someone's thunder, get wind of something, be on cloud nine, weather a storm, take a rain check, rain on someone's parade, storm out, take by storm, under the weather, and calm before the storm. Take our quiz by storm after this video.

TRANSCRIPT

Hello, my name is Emma and in today's lesson, we are going to learn about weather expressions. Okay, weather expressions. So I will teach you 10 new expressions that have to do with wind, rain, storm, thunder, and weather. Okay? So let's get started.

The first expression I want to teach you today is: "storm out". So, what is a storm? A storm is when you have heavy rain, lots of lightning, lots of loud "boom" thunder sounds. So that's a storm. So we use it when we talk about weather, but we also can use it when we talk about how people leave. Okay. So when someone leaves a room very angrily, - okay -, they storm out. I don't know if you've ever seen someone storm out, but if maybe you have two friends and they have a fight, when there's a fight, usually one person storms out; they leave the room quickly and angrily. So the key word here: "angry".

Our second expression: "under the weather". Okay. And it's important to note which preposition we're using; not: "over the weather". "Under the weather". What does this mean? It actually doesn't have to do with weather. It means you're sick if you are under the weather. It's a common expression; we use it a lot. -"How are you feeling today?" -"Oh, I'm a little under the weather.", "My teacher didn't come to school today; she was feeling a little under the weather." So we can use: "I'm under the weather." Or: "I'm feeling under the weather." Both are okay.

Third expression for today: "weather that storm". So again, I showed you what a storm is, lots of rain, thunder, lightning. What does it mean to "weather a storm" or "that storm"? Well, when you weather a storm, it means you have a difficult situation and you get through it. So, for example: maybe you have to do a big English test, maybe you're doing the IELTS or the TOEFL or just a general English test, and you and your classmates are very good friends. And every night you study, you work very hard; you study, study, study and finally the test day comes, and you pass the test. You weathered that storm. So any difficult situation or problem that you get through. Okay. I like this expression a lot. Let me think of another example. Surviving difficult times. If you have a boyfriend or a girlfriend, and maybe you break up, and you're very, very sad but one day you feel happy again - you weathered that storm.

Our next expression: "to get wind of something". So what is "wind"? This is our key weather word. "Whish, whish." Wind. If you get wind of something, it's like the wind blows you information. So to get wind of something means you find out information or a secret. So maybe it's somebody's birthday party, maybe you're throwing a big surprise party for your friend. You don't want them to get wind of the party; you want to keep it a secret, you don't want them to know. Maybe someone says something about buying a cake, and they start to think: "Oh, there's going to be a party for me." They get... They got wind of the party. So usually: "Get wind of something." Something. Maybe if you celebrate a holiday, maybe if you celebrate Christmas or Chinese New Year, some sort of holiday and someone bought you a very nice present, maybe you get wind of what is... What the present is. Maybe it's a trip. So if you get wind of something, it means you learn some new information, and usually it's secret information that you've now discovered.

So number five on this list: "rain on my parade". You can rain on somebody's parade, not just "my parade". So you can say: "rain on his parade", "rain on Mary's parade", "rain on Abdullah's parade". Okay? So you can change this to "his", "her", "my", "your" or a name. What does it mean to rain on someone's parade? If I rain on someone's parade it means I lessen their happiness. Okay? So this is not a good thing; to rain on somebody's parade is a bad thing. It means somebody's very, very happy about something and you say something that takes a little bit of that happiness away. So what are some examples? Well, maybe I got a new promotion at work. I'm very happy. I have a new job at work, it's a great job, I'm telling my friend about it and they say: "Well, it's great you have a new job, but you're going to be very, very busy now and maybe you'll have a lot more stress." So my friend has now lessened my happiness; I'm less happy now when I think about stress, and pressure, and hard work maybe. What's another example of raining on someone's parade?

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Exclamations in English!!!

What a great student you are! How wonderful! In this video, I will teach you about "how" and "what" exclamations such as "How exciting!" "What a cute couple!" Exclamations are very important in conversational English, and will help you to sound more natural in your English. Watch this video to find out more. What a great idea!

TRANSCRIPT

Hello. My name is Emma, and in today's lesson, we will be talking about exclamations: How exciting! So what is an "exclamation"? Well, "How exciting!" is an example of an exclamation. So an "exclamation" is, pretty much, something you say -- so this is used in conversation English, not written -- when you want to show you are surprised about something, okay? "Whoa! What a big car!", for example. You can also use it when you want to emphasize something -- when you want to show you really mean something. So for example, yesterday, my grandmother gave me this beautiful ring. So what did I say when I got the ring? I said, "What a beautiful ring, Nanny!" I call my grandma "Nanny". I also said, "How beautiful!" These are examples of exclamations. So we use them a lot in conversation.

So let's look at how you make an exclamation. Okay, so first, we will look at "how". We make a "how" exclamation by taking "How + an adjective!" If you remember, an "adjective" is something that describes a noun. Example: exciting, interesting, big, small, medium, beautiful, pretty, cool. These are all adjectives. So for example, "How exciting!" -- this is an exclamation. And do you notice what is at the end of this sentence? That's right. An exclamation mark. So maybe you're talking to your friend; they're telling you about their job; what's their job? Maybe they're an astronaut. They go to space. What would you say to them? You'd say, "How exciting!" Meaning you're very excited for them. "How strange!" So again, "How + adj.!" There is no verb. And we have, again, our exclamation mark. "How strange!" Maybe you would say this if you saw a haunted house or a weird man or you saw someone doing something very strange. You would say, "How strange!" Another example: Maybe you see a baby. Your friend just had a baby. You're looking at it. It has these nice, big eyes. What do you say? "How cute!" I always say this when I see puppies and kittens. "How cute!" Okay, so again, no verb, and if you write it, it has an exclamation mark. Okay. So these are our "how" exclamations.

Let's look at our "what" exclamations. It's on this side. It's the same idea. We use this when we're showing surprise, or we really want to show we mean something. So the formula -- it's like math: We take "What + a + adj. +noun!" So let's isolate this. "What + a + adjective + noun + !" So what are some examples of this? If I saw a movie -- I really liked this movie. Maybe it's an action movie. At the end, I might say, "Wow! What an exciting movie!" Okay? "Exciting" is your adjective; "movie" is your noun. In this case, there is no verb, but you have to be careful. You must remember "a" or "an". Okay? So it's either "what a", "what an". Let's look at another example: "What a strange man." Okay, so again, maybe you see a man doing something very strange or you meet someone; you think they're very strange. "Oh, what a strange man!" Again: "What + a + adjective is 'strange' + noun is 'man'". Okay? Another example: "Oh, what a cute baby!" "What a cute baby!" And again, what is your adjective? Cute. What is the noun? Baby. Is there a verb? No. Is there an exclamation mark? Yes. That's the exclamation mark. Okay.

So these are some examples of exclamations, but there's another way to do this. So we have with "how". Maybe you have a sentence: "She is pretty." "Oh, she's very pretty." "She is pretty." You can say this a different way. Especially in conversation. You can say, "How pretty she is." So it's just like what we did up here, but we are adding the subject and the verb. And notice the order: "How pretty she -- so subject first -- is -- verb last." Okay? "How exciting the movie was!" "How strange the man is!" "How cute the babies are!" Here are some more examples of this.

Now, we can do something similar with "what" exclamations. This sentence: "You have big eyes." There's a very famous story called "The Three Little Pigs" -- or no. Not "Three Little Pigs", "Little Red Riding Hood". And there's a very famous line in that story -- it's a kids' story -- where the wolf is dressed in Grandmother's clothes, and Red Riding Hood says to the wolf: "Grandma, what big eyes do you have!" Oh, actually, "What big eyes you have!" There's no "do"! "What big eyes you have!" "What big lips you have!" "What big teeth you have!" Okay? So that's from a very famous story. So it's just like what we did up here. You have "What" -- you don't have "a", but "What + adjective + noun + subject + verb". We could say also, "What an exciting movie this is!" "What a strange man he is!"

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IELTS TOEFL - How to give your opinion

Students use the words "I think" way too much when giving their opinions. In this IELTS TOEFL lesson, I will teach you better words to use that can help you express your opinion. This video is a must-see for anyone writing the TOEFL or IELTS. It will help you to score higher on both tests in the writing and speaking sections. Even if you're not taking an exam, you should watch this class to learn the vocabulary and expressions. Take the quiz on this lesson here.

TRANSCRIPT

Hello everyone. My name is Emma, and in today's lesson we are going to look at ways to give your opinion. So this video is very useful for anyone who will be writing the IELTS exam, the TOEFL exam, as well as anyone who wants to become a better speaker or a better writer. Okay, so in this video we will first look at some common expressions we use to give our opinion, and we will look at ways to strengthen these expressions to make them stronger and to show that we feel very strongly or not so strong about something.

Okay, so let's begin. I have here the most common way to give your opinion: "I think..." So why do I have an "x" here? Well the problem is students overuse "I think..." "I think this, I think that, I think this, I think that." It gets very boring. And so if you're doing the TOEFL or the IELTS, the problem with using "I think..." is you're going to get a lower mark because that's considered basic English usage. So in order to get a higher mark or if you're just interested in becoming a better speaker or writer, I've listed some expressions that will really help aid you in expressing your opinion. So let's look at some other expressions you can use. And these all pretty much mean "I think..."

So the first expression: "As far as I'm concerned," okay? "As far as I'm concerned,...". Okay, one question you often get on IELTS, on TOEFL is: "Should boys and girls go to the same school or should they go to different schools?" What I could say or I could write: "As far as I'm concerned, boys and girls should go to separate schools." Okay? One thing that's important to note: there's a comma. "As far as I'm concerned," and then you write your opinion. Okay?

Our next expression: "In my opinion,..." This is better than "I think" -- it's still a bit overused though. So I would recommend using some of these other expressions. But "In my opinion,..." is still okay to use, just don't use it too often. "In my opinion, in my opinion," -- I guess if we use the same example as before --, "boys and girls should go to separate schools." Okay?

Our next expression, again, it means the same thing as "I think...", it's just a nicer way to say it. I've given you two options. You can say: "It seems to me that..." or "It appears to me that..." These are excellent to use in writing. So if you're doing the TOEFL essay where you give your opinion on something, agree or disagree essay, or the IELTS essay this is a good one to use. One question that's often asked in the TOEFL and I think also the IELTS: "Do parents make the best teachers? Do you agree or disagree?" So I could say: "It seems to me that parents do make the best teachers.", "It seems to me that parents do not make the best teachers." Notice one other thing about this expression, whereas we have a comma here and here, "It seems to me that..." there's no comma. Okay? So any time we have "that", you don't have to worry about a comma.

Okay, our next expression: "I would argue that..." So again, we have "that", no comma. "I would argue that the death penalty is not a good form of punishment." Often times, the TOEFL may ask you if you agree or disagree with the death penalty. You could use: "I would argue that the death penalty is the best way to deal with criminals." So it all depends on your opinion, but you can either agree or disagree with this statement.

Another way to say "I think...": "From my point of view," or "From my perspective," Okay? Notice we have a comma for both of these. "From my point of view," okay, so now I'm not going to use an IELTS or TOEFL example, I'm going to use a superhero example. "From my point of view, Cyclops is a horrible superhero." So again, just for anyone who likes to argue,

this is a good one to use.

The last one is a very high formal way of saying your opinion. "I am inclined to believe that..." So you wouldn't use this with your friends. If you have an argument with your friends, maybe you're talking about the best place to live in the world or the best place to travel to, if you said: "I'm inclined to believe that France is a great place to visit." Your friends would find your language too formal. But you can use this in writing, in formal writing. If you're writing the TOEFL or the IELTS, you can use this expression. And again, at the end we have "that", we don't have a comma. Okay?

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Speaking English - How to answer the phone

Practice speaking on the phone with me, Emma! Do you know how to speak on the phone? Do you feel nervous talking on the phone? In this survival English video, I teach you common expressions to use on a phone call. By learning these expressions, your telephone conversations will become clearer and you will understand more. You can practice these expressions by taking our quiz.

TRANSCRIPT

Hello. My name is Emma. And in today's lesson, we are going to be learning some important telephone expressions. Okay?

I know a lot of students get very scared when they have to talk on the phone, and it's understandable; it can be very scary when you can't see the person's face when you're talking to them. So one great idea if you're afraid of talking on the phone in English is to memorize key expressions that we use all the time. This way, it will improve your listening, you will know what people will probably say on the phone, and your speaking will improve too. All right?

Now, in this video, we're actually going to practice these expressions together. In my pocket, I have my cellphone. All right? So what is going to happen is I will teach you an expression, and then I will pretend to be on the phone, you can pretend to be on the phone too. I will say something, and you say the correct expression to me. All right? So, if you don't understand, that's okay - you will in a moment. Let's get started.

Now, when somebody calls you... "Ring, ring, ring, ring" First thing you say is: "Hello?" As in a question. "Hello?" All right? And then what happens?

The person who's calling asks a question. They can do this in different ways. I've listed four different ways, the most common. Sometimes they'll say:

"Is __________ there, please?"

"Is Emma there, please?", "Is Daniella there, please?" "Is Yvonne there, please?"

Okay? A very common way. And notice: "please", very important to be polite.

You can also say:

"This is __________" - Emma - "calling for _________."

Whoever you're calling. So, if I'm calling you, I might say: "Oh, hello. This is Emma calling for Daniel", "This is Emma calling for Joseph.", "This is Emma calling for Pete." Okay? So this is a common expression, especially if you're at work, this is the one we would use a lot at work. This one is a little more informal; you'd probably use this one more if you're calling your friends or calling someone in not a business situation.

This is also another informal one:

"Is __________ in?"

So all of these blanks are the name of the person who the caller wants to speak to. "Is Emma in?", "Is John in?", "Is Mary in?" Okay. So, again: "Hello. Is Mary in?" Informal.

Last one:

"May I please speak to __________?" Emma.

"May I please speak to Mary?", "May I please speak to the doctor?" All right? This one is more formal. So we have sort of formal/informal, formal, informal, and last one, formal.

All right, so let's get your phone out. All right? Whether you have a real cellphone or your hand, and let's practice a statement. So you're going to be calling me. You're going to use one of these expressions. Pick whichever one you want and practice it. All right? Let's get started.

"Ring, ring, ring, ring."

"Hello?"

Perfect. All right? So you can watch this video again and again; practice, practice, practice until you have it memorized, until it is easy for you.

All right, now how do I respond or how..? How does the person you're calling respond?

If you say: "Is Emma there, please?" I would say: "Speaking." Which means: "Yes, it's me, it's Emma." I wouldn't say that, I would just say: "Speaking."

Or I could say:

"__________ speaking. How can I help you?" [SM1]"Emma speaking.", "Emma speaking. How can I help you?"

"This is __________." [SM2]"This is Emma." Or: "This is he.", "This is she."

All right? So again, these represents the... The name of the person. This... These blanks are names. All right?

So let's try one. I want you to pick any of these. All right? Now, I'm sorry - there are so many of you, I probably will not pick your name when I ask this question. So today, I am going to call you all "Bob". I'm sorry if that's a problem, but today, you are Bob. All right? So I want you to either say: "Speaking.", "Bob speaking.", "This is Bob." Just for practice. All right. So get your phone ready.

"Ring, ring, ring, ring"

So you say: "Hello?"

And I say: "Is Bob there, please?"

What do you say?

Good, very good.

All right, so let's learn some more expressions.

Okay, great. So we've gone through the first part of a phone call. -

"Hello, is Emma there, please?" -"Speaking."

All right? Now what? What if someone calls you and you pick up, but they're not looking for you; they're looking for your brother, they're looking for your mother, they're looking for someone else - what do you say?

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English Vocabulary - ABOUT, ABOUT TO, NOT ABOUT TO

"I'm about to go study" or "I'm not about to go study"? What do these sentences mean? How do we use about, about to, and not about to in English? You are about to watch a vocabulary lesson in which I will explain the difference between these expressions with many examples. You'll also hear the Canadian pronunciation of "about" that many people find funny! Take the quiz on this lesson here.

TRANSCRIPT:

Hi there. My name is Emma, and today's video is about the word "about". So before I begin, well it's also -- sorry --, it's about "about", "about to", and "not about to". So we're going to look at what "about" means, what "about to" means, and what "not about to" means; they have different meanings.

But before I begin talking about the grammar and what these expressions mean, I just want to say that you'll notice I have a Canadian pronunciation of "about". Okay? So, if you ever hear an American make a joke about a Canadian, one of the jokes they often make is about the way Canadians say "about". For me, I don't actually hear the difference between how Americans say "about" and how Canadians say "about", but any time I go to the States, as soon as I say this word they go, "You're a Canadian." So just so you're aware: I have a Canadian pronunciation of the word "about".

So let's get started. First I'm going to talk about the word "about", then "about to", and then "not about to". Okay, so "about". Now, there are many different meanings of the word "about", I'm just going to go through two of the most common. So these are not all the meanings, there are a lot of meanings. This is just... these are just the two most common. So I have an example sentence here: "It's about five miles to town." So this means it's close to five miles to town; it's around five miles to town. I'm not saying exactly, it's five miles. I don't know, maybe it's 5.2 miles, maybe it's 4.9 miles, but it's around five miles. I could say, "It's about three o'clock." I don't mean it's exactly three o'clock. Maybe it's 2:59, maybe it's 3:05; it's close to that time. Okay? So that's the first meaning that we use very often when we want to say: "It's not exactly, but it's close to."

The second meaning is when we want to say what the subject is, we want to know what the subject of something is. So you might ask somebody: "What's Titanic about?" So this is: -"What is the subject of the movie?" -"Well, it's about two people who fall in love on a sinking ship."

Another example of the same idea with subject -- I love this question --, "What are you thinking about?" So I have a friend who always asks her husband this question. She looks at him and she says, "What are you thinking about?" And he's probably not thinking about anything I'm pretty sure or maybe work, and he always says to her, "Nothing. Nothing, I'm, I don't know. I'm thinking, I don't know, sports?" So my friend always asks this question hoping that he will say something very deep, maybe something romantic, maybe something sweet. But usually, I'm pretty sure he's not really thinking about much. So these are probably the two most common usages of "about". So again, "close to" and you want to know the subject.

So now let's look at "about to". Okay, so now I'm about to talk to you about "about to". So "Be + about + to", this has its own unique meaning. So "be" is a verb, then you need "about", and don't forget this little preposition, this is important: "to". What does this mean? It means you're going to do something soon; you're very close to doing something.

So for example:

"I" -- you have your subject -- "am" -- which is the "I" form of "be" --, "I'm about to eat dinner. Can I call you when I finish?" So this means: "I haven't started dinner yet, but I'm going to eat dinner soon. Can I call you when I finish eating dinner?" Okay? So very simple meaning.

My second example:

"The movie is about to begin." So here we have "is" which is the third form of "be", "about", and "to". So we have "Be about to + a verb". "Be about to sleep.", "I'm about to sleep.", "I can't do my homework, I'm about to sleep.", "I'm about to go to class.", "I don't have time to talk because I'm about to go to class." Meaning: "I'm going to class soon." Okay? So that's "about to".

Now, "Be not about to" actually has a different meaning. Okay? So although it's similar, you still have your "to", the only difference is this is in a negative; the meaning is different. "Be about to" has to do with determination. So, what do I mean by this? Well, here is an example: I might say, "I am not about to stop studying English because I failed a class." So this is a strong way to say... We don't write this, this is something we say in speech when we talk. You're showing the person you have determination. In this case: "I'm not about to stop studying English because I failed a class", you're showing you're not going to give up.

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IELTS Speaking Task 3 - How to get a high score

Everything you need to know about the third part of the IELTS Speaking exam. I will tell you what to expect and give you tips and strategies to succeed! There's no need to be afraid anymore -- Emma is here to save you!!! Take a quiz on this lesson here.

TRANSCRIPT:

Hi there. My name is Emma and in today's video we will be looking at the IELTS, which is a test that ESL students take when they want to immigrate to certain countries such as Canada, Australia, England. It's also a test some universities require students take. So if you want to study at an overseas university, you may have to take this test. So we will be looking at specifically the speaking section of this test, part three. So the speaking task has three different parts to it; part one, part two, part three. We will be looking at part three. Okay, so first I will explain what happens in part three of the IELTS speaking test, and then I will look at some tips on how to do well, and also things you should not do.

So let's get started. First of all, it's important to know how long this test, this part of the test will take. It takes between four to five minutes. Okay? And it's different than part two. In part two, the student is expected to speak for about two minutes and there's no interruption. In this part of the IELTS, it's more like an interview. The examiner asks you some sort of question, you respond. They ask you another question or they might ask you to go deeper into the first question. Okay? What types of questions are there? Well, sometimes they'll ask you to predict something, to analyze something, to compare. They might ask you to give your opinion. Often times, you're looking at the future as well. So for example: what sports do you think will be played in the future? Okay? So often --future questions.

Part three is based on a theme. In part two, you're given something to describe often -- it might be a historical building, it might be a teacher you really liked, it might be an object precious to you. Part three continues from part two, so whatever you talked about in part two, you're going to talk about in part three, but at a more abstract level. So what do I mean by this? Well, if in part two you talked about your favourite teacher, in part three you might be talking about education. You might talk about how it is different today than it used to be. Okay? So you might be looking at education. Some of the topics you may look at in part three: technology is very common, education, environment, TV influence, leisure activities, shopping, sports, transportation. So these are all very common topics, and so you'll be asked between four to six questions on these types of topics. So an example you may be asked: "How are education priorities different from those in the past?" Okay? So again, you have to state your opinion for this question.

All right, so let's look at some of the "Dos" and "Don'ts" for this part of the IELTS. Okay, so let's look at some of the things you should do. Okay? So there's our smiley face, this is a good idea. The first one is: listen for keywords in the question. Okay? Sometimes you may not understand what the question is... try to listen for the keywords of the question. Do you hear the word "education", "school"? Listen and this will help you to understand the question better. If you still don't understand the question: ask. Okay? This is very important. It's okay to ask the examiner to repeat the question. If you don't understand, you can also ask for clarification. It's better to ask if you don't understand than to answer something completely different and wrong. Okay? So it's always better to ask.

When you do answer the question, make sure, again, you don't give these short yes/no answers. Expand, give detail. Okay? Give examples, give reasons. It's very important to support your points. For example: maybe they ask you if girls and boys should go to separate schools. Okay? If you're asked that, you might say: "I think girls and boys should go to separate

schools for three reasons. First of all, girls learn better when they're separated from boys. In my own experience, when I was a student, I was always distracted by boys." So you see what I mean? Give details, give examples. Stick to the topic. This is very important.

If you're asked about education, talk about education. Don't talk about your pets, don't talk about your hair; stick to education. I think this is actually the most important point out of all of them: think you're... Think you will do well. What do I mean by that? I think the IELTS isn't only testing you on your English, it's also testing you psychologically. Okay? You need to think positively. You need to think you will do well. If you think you will do well, you will definitely do better.

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IELTS Reading strategies: True, False, Not Given

Oh no! My IELTS test is coming, and I am not prepared! Sound familiar? In this video I will give you tips on how to do well on one of the hardest parts of the IELTS. I will explain a specific type of question you may find in the Reading module of the IELTS: True, False, or Not Given. After watching this class, you can try to do some practice questions. After all, practice makes perfect.

TRANSCRIPT

Hello. My name is Emma, and in today's video, we are going to be looking at the IELTS, that scary test a lot of you have to do. We're going to look at, specifically, one type of reading question for the academic reading. So this isn't for the general; it's for the academic reading. We're going to talk about the question that has to do with "true, false, or not given". So this is a specific question. It may or may not be on your test, but I think, personally, this is one of the most difficult questions on the reading section of the IELTS. So I'm going to give you some tips and strategies on how to do well on this section.

Okay, so let's get started. In this section, what you are going to find is a reading passage. So you will have a long passage on maybe cybercrime, maybe food security, on the history of the Internet -- it can be on anything. After the passage, there will be some statements, some facts, okay? What you need to do is you need to say if the fact matches -- if it's true based on the reading, if it's false based on the reading, or if the information is not given in the reading. So I will explain "true", "false", "not given" in detail in just a minute.

Okay. What else to know about the "true, false, or not given"? Another important thing about this question is we're not talking about the question that has to do with the writer's opinion. There's a very similar question on the IELTS that asks about the writer's opinion. That's the "yes, no, not given". This is only on "true, false, not given", not "yes, no, not given". Just -- hopefully, that will clear up any confusion.

Okay. So let's get started. What do they mean by "true" in these questions? When would you write "true"? I will show you. You can write "true" or "T". "T" is shorter. If there is a fact and it is clearly written, you write "T". If the fact is clearly written in the reading, you would write "T". You'll often see synonyms, and, again, write "T" only if you actually see this fact written. If you know the fact is true, but it's not written, don't write "true". Only write "true" if, with your eyes, you read it, and you see it in the fact. You see it in the reading; write "true". So I'll give you an example of this type of question. Here is just a part of a passage. The reading is a lot longer, but here is a short version that you might find on the IELTS. "This increase in cybercrime has alarmed many experts." So it would be a long passage. You might see something like that. And then, at the end of the reading, one of the statements you might see might say, "Cyber crime is on the rise." You need to say if this is "true", "false", or "not given".

So how do you know if it's "true", "false", or "not given"? My advice to you is first, read the statement: "Cyber crime is on the rise"; underline any key words. "Cyber crime" -- this is a keyword. "is on the 'rise'" -- that's a keyword, okay? Then you go back to the reading passage, and you quickly scan for these words or synonyms. What are "synonyms"? "Synonyms" are words that mean the same thing but are different words. So what is a synonym of "rise"? "Increase", "go up", okay? So let's see if we can find "cyber crime" or "rise". So I would scan the passage -- oh, the word "increase", "cybercrime". So "rise", "increase", okay. So I found a synonym. Now, it's important for me to read very carefully to see if there are any contradictions. What does the sentence say? Does it really match? "This increase in cyber crime has alarmed many experts." "Cyber crime is on the rise." Both of these -- both the reading passage and the fact or the statement are saying cyber crime is increasing. It's going up. So that would mean it's true. So I could write a "T" beside this, "true".

Okay. One thing to look out for with "true": Sometimes you will see words like "some", "all", "only", "never", "usually", "often", "sometimes". Be careful with these words, okay? Because if it says, "Some people in Canada like to eat poutine", and you see the sentence saying, "Poutine is always eaten by Canadians", even though you see the two words -- oh, "poutine", "poutine" -- one says "always", one says "some". So this would not be a true statement. So be on the lookout for "some", "all", "only", "never", "usually". This is where they try to trick you on the IELTS...

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IELTS Listening - Top 14 tips!

Improve your IELTS score with these quick tips! In this lesson, you will learn about the Listening module of the IELTS exam. I will teach you the most common mistakes people make and how to avoid them. Watch this free video, so that you know how to practice for the IELTS Listening test. I want you to be prepared and confident on your test day, so that you can get the best results on your IELTS!

TRANSCRIPT

Hello. My name is Emma, and in today's lesson, I am going to teach you my top tips for the IELTS listening module. Okay?

So, before I teach you these tips, you might be wondering: "What's the IELTS listening module?" Well, the IELTS is a test and one part of the test is listening. So, in the listening section, you're going to have 40 questions where you're going to listen to some conversations for about 30 minutes, and then you'll have 10 minutes to transfer your answers over to another sheet. So, in total, it's 40 minutes; 30 minutes for listening, 10 minutes for writing down your answers.

Okay, now this part of the IELTS is very possible to get a high mark, especially if you follow my tips. All right? Now, before we get started, I just want to let you know: I know you can do the IELTS. I know you can pass, I know you can get a great mark, a great bandwidth - you just have to have confidence in yourself and you have to practice. Practice, practice, practice; it really pays off. So let's get started.

So, my first tip: write no more than three words. What do I mean by this? I don't mean for the whole thing, write no more than three words. On the IELTS, you will have to read the instruction of what to do. Often times, the instruction, before you listen, you're going to see: "Write no more than three words." This is an example of an instruction you must follow. One mistake a lot of students make during the IELTS is they don't read instructions properly. They're nervous, they're stressed out, they write whatever, they don't... They don't follow the instructions. If you see something like: "Write no more than three words." Do that. You can't write four, don't write five. Write three or less. Okay? So my main point here: follow the instructions carefully.

Point number two: get used to British English. A large part of the IELTS, you will be listening... For... For... Sorry, for the listening, you will be listening to British accents. Sometimes you might hear Australian accents or Canadian, you might hear a range, but a lot of the accents will be British. So it's very important to get used to listening to British accents. And also, listen to other accents like Canadian, Australian; that's a good idea too. Where can you find British accents to listen to? I recommend the BBC. They have a lot of great videos there and most of it's with British accents, so it's a very good idea so you can practice listening. The more you practice listening with British accents, the easier it will be to understand British speakers. Especially if you're used to American English, this is a very good thing to do.

Related to this point: British vocab. You should learn British vocabulary. For example: in American English and Canadian English, we say: "truck". In British English, we say: "lorry". So it's good to know some of these British expressions, some British words. One idea where you can practice these is if you check out our website: www.engvid.com, we have a new teacher who is British and who will be talking about British English, so check out her... Her videos. It will also be good to help you with practicing listening to British accents.

Number four: spelling counts. Okay? Very important. The listening part of the IELTS is not just listening; you're actually using other skills like writing and reading. Now, with writing, when you write down your answers, you sometimes have to spell something out, so you have to be very, very careful with spelling. Okay? This is something you should really study and practice before you take the listening part of the IELTS. Practice your spelling. Learn spelling rules. We have a lot of different videos on how to spell on engVid, so I would come and check those ones out.

Number five - this is the thing that always gets my students and I always warn them about when we practice - plural versus singular. Okay? You have to listen carefully on whether you're writing down the plural with an "s" or the singular. If the question wants me to write down: "cat", someone's talking about their cat and I write down: "cats", it's incorrect. I would get an "X". Okay, so it's important to be careful, to really listen: is it a singular thing, is it a plural thing? Are they saying "store" or "stores"? Okay?

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Talking shit with Emma

Shit' is a very common and useful word in the English language. In this fun lesson, I'll teach you some of the most common 'shit' expressions. You will hear these expressions in movies, on TV shows, and in day-to-day life. Native speakers use the word 'shit' in a variety of situations. Do you know what it means to be shit-faced? Do you drive a shit-box? Learn these expressions to improve your vocabulary. Take the quiz to make sure you understand them all. And if you don't want to have shitty English, subscribe to my YouTube channel so that you can keep improving your English!

TRANSCRIPT

Hello. My name is Emma. And in today's video, we are going to do some shit talking. What's that? We are going to shit talk with Emma today. Okay? So I'm going to teach you 10 expressions with the word: "shit". Before we start, what is "shit"? Does anyone know? I've drawn a little picture in this corner. Shit is... I have a brown marker so it's-I don't know if you can see that-it's this colour. It's what you do in a toilet. We'll leave that... I think that's enough to tell you. You shit in a toilet.

So with these expressions, they're all very common expressions. They're not expressions you want to use with your boss, they're not expressions you want to use with your grandma or your grandpa. They're expressions you will use with your friends, they're expressions you will listen to in movies, on TV. So my main point: don't use these at work, don't use these with your family. Okay?

So let's get started. Oh, sorry, one other thing: pronunciation. Students often mispronounce the word: "shit". They say: "sheet", "sheet". You see? They smile when they say it. Shit is not something you smile about. So when you say the word: "shit", don't smile. Okay? Your mouth goes down, "shit". So repeat one time, make sure you're not in a room filled with people. Okay, let's say this word together. One, two, three, "shit". Okay. Good. So now let's look at some expressions.

My first expression today is one of my favorites. "Shitty", "shitty". Okay? So you can say that once: "shitty". When we say it, the "ty" almost becomes like a "dy" sound, and "shit" is longer and louder. "Shitty", "shitty". What does it mean? When something is "shitty", it's bad, it's a synonym of bad. So, for example: "Today I had a shitty day." Meaning: today I had a bad day. Okay? You can ask someone: -"How was work today?" -"Oh, work was shitty. I had a really shitty experience at work." Okay? -"How did your test go?" -"Uhh, it went shitty. It was a shitty test. I didn't do well." Okay? So it's an adjective.

Our second expression: "shit-faced". Now, important how you pronounce the "ed", it's like a "t" in this case. Okay? So we don't say: "shit-faced", no, no, no. "Shit-faced", okay, "shit-faced". What does it mean to be shit-faced? "Shit-faced" means very, very, drunk. Okay? If you ever go to the bar, you drink one beer, you drink two beer, you drink eight beers, you will probably get shit-faced. So it means very drunk. Here's our example sentence: "He had eight beers. He's shit-faced." Okay? We don't say: "He has a shit face." That would sound very bad if you said that to someone. We don't say: "He has a shit-faced." He... The "s" stands for: "He is shit-faced." Okay?

Let's look at our third expression: "shitbox". A "shitbox" is a car. Okay? It's a car... Can you guess? Do you think it's a good car or a bad car? If you said: "Bad car", you are correct. A "shitbox" is a very bad car; it's very slow, very ugly, maybe the wheel is falling off. Okay? It looks like it is going to fall apart at any moment. It's usually a very cheap car. So maybe you're on the street and you see your friend and he's driving a shitbox. You can say to your friend: "Look at the car. What a shitbox!" All right.

Similarly, so "shitbox" is car, a "shithole" is a way to describe a place someone lives. Okay? So if your friend lives in an apartment and the apartment is very ugly, and small, and dirty, and there's not a lot of light, maybe there's no windows, it's a really sad apartment - you can call it a "shithole". So I have a friend, "Her apartment is a shithole. It's dirty, and"-eww-"there are cockroaches." Cockroaches, do you know what a cockroach is? It's one of those insects that lives in people's apartments, they're really disgusting. So it's a type of bug. If you have cockroaches in your apartment, you might... May be living in a shithole.

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English Vocabulary - Assure, Ensure, Insure

Assure, ensure, insure, reassure? Learn what these words mean in this vocabulary lesson. I assure you that after this video, you will not mix up these words again. After watching, make sure you've understood by taking the quiz at here.

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6 tips for dealing with speaking anxiety

Scared of speaking English in front of people? Do you get nervous when you have to speak in class, at meetings or even social events? You are not alone. Speaking anxiety is one of the most common problems students face. This video will give you six ways to overcome speaking anxiety. I have used each of these tips myself and know that they work. Test your understanding of this lesson with the quiz.

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Grammar Mistakes - RISE or RAISE?

I rise my hand or I raise my hand? Rise and raise are two verbs that are easy to confuse. In this lesson, I will teach the differences between these two words, their present tense, past tense, and past participle forms, and tricks to remember how we use them.

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Gender-inclusive Language - How to avoid sexism

A student must always try their best, or his or her best? Mailman, policeman, businessman? Is there a problem with using these words? Do we still use the words man or mankind to refer to people in general? This vocabulary and grammar lesson will teach you how to avoid sounding old-fashioned or sexist and how to avoid incorrect grammar. Test yourself with the quiz at here.

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Using PASSIVE in English to avoid responsibility

"I made a mistake." "Mistakes were made." What is the difference between these two sentences? This grammar lesson will explain what the passive voice and active voice are and when we should use them. I'll also show you how governments and businesses use the passive voice to avoid responsibility. You can test your understanding of the class with the free quiz at here.

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IELTS Speaking Task 2 - How to succeed

OH NO! YOU HAVE TO TAKE THE IELTS! Well, I can help. Watch this video to learn exactly what to expect in part two of the IELTS Speaking exam. I'll give you sample questions and answers, as well as tips and strategies for success. Test your understanding with a quiz.

TRANSCRIPT:

Hi, my name is Emma, and in today's lesson we are going to be looking at the IELTS. The IELTS is a test that a lot of ESL students have to take when they want to go to a Canadian university, an Australian university, an English university. So when they want to study overseas or often times, when they want to immigrate to one of these countries. Okay? So we're looking specifically at the speaking part of the IELTS, part two. So the IELTS speaking task is split up into three sections. We are going to be looking at section two in this video.

Okay, so let me first explain what happens in section two, and then we are going to look at some tips on what you should do if you want to do well on this section, and things you shouldn't do. Okay? So let's get started. So, in part two of the speaking component of the IELTS, you will be speaking for about two minutes. Okay? So this part lasts for about three minutes, so you have three minutes. The first minute you will be handed a question card. Okay?

So here is an example of a question card. It will tell you, often times, to describe something. "Describe a museum that you have visited." It will tell you what you need to say.

You should say:

* Where it is

* Why you went there

* What you particularly remember

This is just an example. Okay? So it can be on different topics, but you will get a card that looks something like this. Okay? So you have one minute to look at the question and to make notes, and to think: "Okay, what am I going to say?" So that takes one minute, and then after that the examiner will tell you: "Okay, you can begin."

You must talk for one to two minutes. A lot of students actually consider this the hardest part of the speaking component because it's not a dialogue. Okay? The examiner isn't asking you questions and you're giving responses, and you're going back and forth. In this part of the IELTS, you just talk and you talk for one to two minutes. So a lot of students find this difficult because talking for two minutes, even for some native speakers, is a little difficult. Okay, so that's what's going to happen in this part. Okay?

So what are some of the topics you might be asked about in this part of the IELTS? Well, topics often covered include: you might be asked about a precious item, so you might have to describe a precious item that you own. You might have to say something about where you bought it from or: how did you get it, what does it look like, why is it so precious? You might be asked about a special day, a sporting event that you went to or a concert, a special trip or journey or vacation, people who have influenced you. For example: they might ask you to describe your favourite teacher. What was she like? Why was she so great? You might be asked about a book, music, a television program, a movie you saw or even items of clothing. Okay, so sometimes you're asked about historical buildings, you might be asked about a neighbourhood in your city. The key thing that you probably will be asked is this question is often about description, not always, but usually you have to describe something. And then they usually have three questions, they can be: who, what, when, where, why? Okay? So these are the types of questions that they ask.

...

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IELTS Reading

Do you have to take the IELTS? Are you nervous about the test? I can help. In this lesson I will tell you what to expect in the reading section of both the general and academic versions of the IELTS. You will learn about the amount of time you have to do it, the number of questions on it, how much you will have to read, and much more. I'll also give you some tips about how to use your time. Take my quiz at the end to make sure you know what to expect on test day. Once you know what will be on the test, you can do exercises to practice for your test. Be sure to check out engVid's IELTS section at here for many more lessons to help you prepare for the IELTS. Good luck!

Hi, there. My name is Emma. And in today's video, we are going to learn about the reading section of the IELTS. So it's very important before your test day to learn as much as you can about the test. If you know what's going to happen on the test, you're going to feel less nervous, more comfortable, and you'll do a better job. So in this video, I will explain what happens in the reading segment of the test.

So first thing to know is there are two different versions of the IELTS; one is for general and one is for academic. If you're doing the IELTS for things like immigration, you will probably be doing the general, whereas if you're doing the IELTS for... For to get into a university in Canada, England, Australia - you will probably be doing the academic. So there are a lot of similarities in terms of the reading passages on the general and academic versions of the IELTS. The readings are different, but there are some things that are the same.

In both cases, on the general and the academic, the reading module lasts for one hour. So it lasts for one hour. In this hour, you are going to see three texts or three passages. So there's three sections. Another thing to know is that you will also have to transfer your answers on to an answer sheet. That will also be a part of this one hour.

For both the general and the academic, there are 40 questions. The text in the general usually are social, work related, there's often one academic text as well; whereas in the academic, all the text are maybe something you would read in an undergraduate or graduate course.

In terms of also the general, you might see advertisements, you might be reading about... You know, comparing different products; whereas in the IELTS, they're usually more scientific or more academic articles.

Another thing to keep in mind is for both tests, usually the readings go from easy to difficult. So the first part of the test is going to be the easiest part, second section is going to be a bit more difficult, and the third section is going to be more difficult than the second. So keep this in mind when you're planning your time for the IELTS because if you spend all your time on the first section, that's actually the easiest. It's better if you spend less time on the first section, more time in the middle, and the most time at the end.

So in both the academic and the general, you're going to see a variety of questions. Okay? There are many different question types. And the best way to prepare for the IELTS is to learn about these question types.

You might see multiple choice where they'll want you to pick: "A", "B", "C", "D", sometimes "E". Short answer. Sentence completion. You might see tables, charts, diagrams. You might have to read something and then fill in a diagram based on the information you read. Sometimes there's summary completion. Paragraph headings where you have to match a heading with the correct paragraph. You might need to locate information. You might have to write about a writer's view or claims. You might get a question on classification. Or you might get a matching question.

So, the main point here is that it's important to know there are many, many different question types you can get on the IELTS. In terms of the IELTS also, it's very important before you do the IELTS to take a deep breath and to relax yourself. Especially with the reading section, you might see a lot of passages you have to read - take a deep breath, you will do fine.

It's also important to know with the reading module of the IELTS where it comes on the test. The first thing you do on the IELTS is listening, the second thing will be reading, and then after that, writing. So just so you're aware of where it comes, reading is in the middle.

So, I invite you to take our quiz to see if... How much you know about the IELTS, the reading module. Come visit our website at www.engvid.com. Good luck. Until next time.

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How to write numbers in English - 6 common mistakes

Do we write "ten" or "10"? "I have an eight year old son", "I have an eight years old son", "I have an eight-year-old son", or "I have an 8 year old son"? What is the best way to write this? In this lesson, I will teach you six common mistakes that students make with numbers, and how to avoid them. We will look at pronunciation, grammar, and writing mistakes.

TRANSCRIPT

Hi there. My name is Emma, and today we are going to look at common mistakes that ESL students make when they're talking about numbers. Okay? So in this video, we will look at five different mistakes I hear my students make often and ways to correct these mistakes. So let's get started.

First we're going to look at pronunciation, the pronunciation of numbers. Okay, so the first mistake I hear often is when students are talking about time -- or things in general, but often with time -- they're talking about the month, the week, the night, the year, the day; they often forget to pronounce the "s" or they pronounce an "s" when they shouldn't. So what do I mean by this? Well, first I have "one month", "two months". So notice in this case: there's no "s" so I don't pronounce an "s". In this case there is an "s" so I do pronounce an "s". So even though it's a pretty simple rule, a lot of people when they speak, they don't do this. I hear students say all the time: "I've been here for one years." Or "I lived there for five year." Okay? So be very careful when you say numbers, make sure that the noun that comes after, if there's more than one: you need an "s" and it's pronounced, the "s" is pronounced.

So what I'd like to do is I'm going to read to you five sentences and I want you to hear if I'm pronouncing the "s" or not. Okay? Oh, and one other thing I should say. So sometimes "s" are pronounced as "s'" like "sss", other times they're pronounced like "zzz" like a "z". So for month: "months", it's pronounced like "sss" like a snake. Week: "weeks". Night:

"nights". Okay? Whereas "year" and "day", when we add an "s", the "s" is pronounced like a "z". "Years", "days". Okay? So keep that in mind.

Okay, so the first sentence. Listen carefully to see if I pronounce the "s" after the number or not. "I've been here for one years." Is that a correct sentence? No, it's not because I said "one", it should have been: "I've been here for one year."

Okay, number two: "Four day ago I saw my aunt." So what's wrong with this? Is there anything wrong? "Four day ago I saw my aunt." It should be: "Four days ago". There're four of them so they need to be plural, so you need to pronounce the "s".

Next one: "I've worked for two months." Is there a problem with that? "I've worked for two months." No, that sentence is okay. I pronounced the "s" because there were two months.

Okay, number four: "I must study for five month." "I must study for five month." Did you hear an "s"? So that one was incorrect. It should be: "I must study for five months."

Last one: "I went to Cuba for one weeks." What's the problem with this sentence? I pronounced an "s" after "week", but because there's only one, it shouldn't be "one weeks", it should be "one week". Okay? So I know this is a simple pronunciation rule, but it's something that it's very important to be careful with. So even if you have to practice at home: "One year, one year, one year. Two years, two years, two years." Keep repeating it until it becomes easy and you don't make that mistake. Okay.

So what's our next pronunciation mistake? Well this is sort of a funny one. A lot of ESL students, when they mean "Thirteen (13)" they say "Thirty (30)" and vice versa. So I'll ask a student: how many years did they go to university? Or not university, that would be a bad example. How many years of schooling did they have? And I'll hear "Thirty (30)" when what they really mean to say is "Thirteen (13)". Okay? And this is very common when it comes to money. Students, you know, they'll hear the sum they have to pay incorrectly or they'll say something costs "Thirty (30)" when it really costs "Thirteen (13)" and vice versa. Same with when you give out your phone number, this could be a real problem -- or your address. So how do I pronounce "thirteen (13)" versus "thirty (30)"? Well the easiest thing to do -- and this goes for all the teen numbers so 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, it also goes for 30, 40, 50, 60, 70, 80, 90 -- it's important to be aware of stress. So what do I mean by stress? Well, when we stress something, we say it louder and longer. So when you say the number "thirteen", the stress should be on "teen". So I should say: "thir-TEEN." It's very clear if I say "teen" longer and louder. Same with "sevenTEEN", longer and louder. So the stress, again, is on "teen", that's what you say louder and longer.

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IELTS TOEFL Vocabulary - Technology

Is my computer outdated or state-of-the-art? In this vocabulary lesson, I will teach you words that can be used to describe technology and computers. This video will help you to improve your vocabulary and score higher marks on the TOEFL and IELTS. Watch to find out if you are a technophile or a technophobe, if your computer is cutting-edge and user-friendly, and whether you prefer technology to be bulky or compact. Then take a quiz on this lesson here.

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English Grammar - REMEMBER FORGET - gerunds infinitives

"I remembered to buy milk" or "I remembered buying milk"? What is the difference in meaning? "I forgot to water the plant" or "I forgot watering the plant"? English teachers often use similar questions in their tests. In this lesson, we will look at the verbs "remember" and "forget" and when they should be followed by a gerund or an infinitive. The meaning of "I remembered to watch this class" and "I remembered watching this class" is very different. Watch and find out how. And remember to take the quiz.

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