Category: Vocabulary

a boy and his father singing and dancing together in the kitchen while doing the washing up, pretending that a scrubbing brush and mop are a microphone and guitar

Making a song and dance about it: talking about importance (2)

On By Liz WalterIn the English language, Vocabulary13 Comments

Listen to the author reading this blog post:

a boy and his father singing and dancing together in the kitchen while doing the washing up, pretending that a scrubbing brush and mop are a microphone and guitar
Marc Dufresne/iStock/Getty Images Plus

by Liz Walter

This is the second of two posts on importance and covers some more aspects of the topic.

I will start with things that are important because of their effect on someone or something else. Someone or something that has the power to affect things can be described as influential. Something that has a great effect on future events is momentous, or – even more emphatically – seismic: Continue reading “Making a song and dance about it: talking about importance (2)” →

Hospital emergency, medical staff pushing patient on gurney.

A matter of life and death: Talking about importance (1)

On By Liz WalterIn the English language, Vocabulary18 Comments

Listen to the author reading this blog post:

Hospital emergency, medical staff pushing patient on gurney.
Science Photo Library/GettyImages

by Liz Walter

The word ‘important’ is extremely common and is sometimes overused by learners of English. There are many possible alternatives – so many in fact, that this is the first of two posts on the topic. This one looks at general words, words meaning ‘extremely important’ and words that carry the sense of something being necessary. Continue reading “A matter of life and death: Talking about importance (1)” →

one little girl pointing at another girl in messy room

Telltales and fidgets (Words that we use for children)

On By Kate WoodfordIn the English language, Vocabulary12 Comments
one little girl pointing at another girl in messy room
Figure8Photos/E+/GettyImages

by Kate Woodford

In a supermarket last week, I heard a mother telling her child not to be naughty. Naughty is, of course, a word usually used for (badly behaved) children rather than adults. It made me think about other words that we use mainly for children, and I thought the subject would make an interesting post. Continue reading “Telltales and fidgets (Words that we use for children)” →

a yawning tabby kitten

Has the cat got your tongue? (How we talk, Part 2)

On By Kate WoodfordIn the English language, Vocabulary20 Comments
a yawning tabby kitten
Westend61/Westend61/GettyImages

by Kate Woodford

My last ‘How we talk’ post focused on words used for people who talk a lot, including adjectives such as ‘talkative’ and ‘forthcoming’. This week, I’m looking at the opposite – words that we use for people who say very little. Continue reading “Has the cat got your tongue? (How we talk, Part 2)” →

a photograph of two young people smiling and talking to each other, with a colourful, illustrated background showing a speech bubble

He could talk the hind legs off a donkey (How we talk, Part 1)

On By Kate WoodfordIn the English language, Vocabulary25 Comments
a photograph of two young people smiling and talking to each other, with a colourful, illustrated background showing a speech bubble
We Are/DigitalVision/GettyImages

by Kate Woodford

This week and next, I’m looking at ways to describe how much – or how little – we speak. There are lots of words (especially adjectives) in this area, with very different connotations, from chatty (=talking a lot in a friendly, informal way) to reserved (=tending not to talk about your feelings or opinions):

Jamie was his usual chatty self.

My grandfather was a quiet, rather reserved man.

This post will cover words and phrases that mean ‘talking a lot’ and Part 2 will deal with the opposite. Continue reading “He could talk the hind legs off a donkey (How we talk, Part 1)” →

nine wooden blocks stacked in a square - eight are black and point right, and one is red and points left

Having second thoughts (Changing our minds, Part 2)

On By Kate WoodfordIn the English language, Vocabulary12 Comments
nine wooden blocks stacked in a square - eight are black and point right, and one is red and points left
Chaiyawat Sripimonwan/EyeEm/GettyImages

by Kate Woodford

In part 1 of this post (Changing our minds, Part 1), I looked at language that is often used to refer to people in positions of power changing their decisions or plans. This post continues the ‘changing your mind’ theme but instead focuses on the sort of language that is used when people more generally change their minds. Continue reading “Having second thoughts (Changing our minds, Part 2)” →