Homonyms: plurals and third persons singular in present simple can coincide in English

Hiya!

English can be so amazing sometimes. Every day I discover new things about this fascinating language. This week I'm bringing you yet another interesting English quirk: homonyms. Homonyms are words which have the same written form, but they have different meanings and different origins. Think of the word 'watch', for instance, has two meanings:

By coincidence, the same word has two completely different meanings: a device to know the time and a verb that indicates pay attention by looking at something or someone. 

Today, I won't focus on all the homonyms but rather on some especial ones. When I plurals, I always tell my students that the rules to form regular plurals are practically the same that the rules to fomr the third person singular in the present simple, as you can see in my post on plurals. For example, the word 'cooks' in English can, at the same time, be the plural of cook (that is, chefs) or the third person singular of the verb 'cook' as in 'he always cooks paella on Sundays.' Today I will focus on homonyms whose plural and third person singular are identical, but who have different origins and are different words. Let's begin:

1. Leaves

 

'Leaves' can be the plural form of 'leaf' as in the leaves of some trees will fall in autumn. However, 'leaves' can be the third person singular of the word 'leave' as in 'he leaves work every day at 16.00.'

2. Lives

'Lives' can be the plural form of 'life', for instance, 'cats have got nine lives'. In this case the pronunciation is [laɪvz]. However, 'lives' can be the third person singular of the verb 'live', as in 'he lives in Scotland'. In this case, the pronunciation is [lɪvz]. Amazing! 'Lives' is at the same time a homonym and a homograph (two exact words in spelling that are pronounced differently). 

3. Watches

As I mentioned before, 'watches' can be objects that you put on your wrist to know the time, or simply the third person singular of the word 'watch' as in 'he watches TV every day.'

4. Flies

'Flies' can be some annoying animals that bother us during the summer, or it can be the third person singular of the verb 'fly', as in the well-known idiom: "time flies."

5. Makes

As a plural noun, 'makes' refer to the brands of cars, for instance, 'Toyota is one of my favourite makes.' However, 'makes' can also be the third person singular of the verb 'make' as can be seen in the sentence: 'he makes his bed every day.'

6. Trips

 

I love travelling and I love trips and as you can see, as a noun, 'trips' is similar to 'travels'. However, 'trip' can also be a verb and if someone trips, it means that person stumbles and probably falls.

7.Falls
  

Most of you will now fall as the third person singular of the verb 'fall', that is, what happens after you walk on the street and you accidentally trip. However, 'fall' as a noun is the American-English word for autumn. 

8. Parks
 

Children love parks!! As you can see, parks (as a noun) are recreational places for children. However, 'park' can also be a verb related to cars. As you know, in Madrid is sometimes very difficult to park your car (to leave a vehicle in a designated area).

9. Spots



As a plural noun, 'spots' has endless meanings: spots can be similar to circles (see photo), what teenagers have in puberty (acne) or a synonym for 'advertisements'. As a verb in third person singular, it means 'to locate something by seeing', that is 'to examine something with your eyes'. 

10. Arms



When used as a noun, arms are limbs of your body attached to your hands. However, when used a verb, it means to give someone weapons so that they can defend themselves. 

11. Lifts
 

As a noun, lifts are machines that take you from a floor to another (elevators in American English). However, you can also use 'lift' as a verb in the sense of moving something from a lower to a higher position (he lifts the child). 

12. Treats

 

Treats (as nouns) refer to food given by someone as an act of courtesy, for example, Halloween treats are very popular. 'Treat' as a verb is to behave toward someone in a way, for example, the man in the photo treats the old lady very well.

Well, as you can see English never ceases to surprise us. Plurals and third persons singular coincide in many cases! If you're interested in the topic, don't worry. I'll soon be writing another entry on homonyms.

Born out of wedlock...and other interesting expressions related to weddings!

Hiya!

Last year at this point I would have already walked down the aisle! That means it's been a year since I got married! In particular, I got married last 7th October 2017! It's also been a year since I wrote three very interesting posts related to weddings: one on wedding vocabulary; one on wedding traditions; and one on best men and maids of honour. Well, today I would like to show you some expressions related to weddings or said at wedding celebrations!

1. Born out of wedlock: This expression is said to someone whose parents are not legally married, that is, a child born out of the institution of marriage ('wedlock' being an old-fashioned synonym for 'marriage.' This is pretty much what happens nowadays! There are countless of couples who become parents before walking down the aisle, and there's nothing wrong about it! The image perfectly summarizes the idea:

From: https://azea3307gks.wordpress.com/2018/05/22/child-out-of-wedlock-they-are-not-criminals/

2. An illegitimate child: Technically an illegitimate child is a child born out of wedlock, that is, when parents are not legally married, but there are other possible scenarios. An illegitimate child can be the child of a parent legally married to someone, only this parent had the son with a lover or mistress. In this case, the illegitimate child is often called a 'bastard'.

3. A shotgun wedding: Very interesting and hilarious expression. Can you guess the meaning from its context? A shotgun wedding is a wedding celebrated very quickly to avoid embarrassment, maybe  because the bride is with child. 

From: https://www.thinkadvisor.com/2015/06/16/5-ways-ppaca-cushion-programs-could-drive-dealmaki/?slreturn=20180913151053

4. Walk down the aisle / Lead someone to the altar: Both expressions are synonyms of 'getting married'. The first one refers to the path leading to the altar that both the bride and the groom must walk to become spouses. The second expression refers to the sacred place where the wedding takes place (just at the end of the aisle). However, when you have second thoughts about a wedding (have cold feet), you can end up dumping someone at the altar and running away from them!

From: http://www.bridebox.com/blog/walking-down-the-aisle/

5. Cheers to the bride and groom: After the religious celebration, guests may want to wish the spouses the best through a toast. They deliver a speech and they finish it with the sentence: "cheers to the bride and groom" (or "here's to the bride and groom") and then everyone must toast! 

From: http://www.roofgardengalveston.com/heres-to-the-bride-and-groom-wedding-toast-tips/?doing_wp_cron=1539458338.3728730678558349609375

6. Here comes the bride: This expression is in fact part of the bridal chorus; it's the first composition heard at a wedding ceremony just when the bride walks down the aisle to the altar! 

From: https://es.dhgate.com/product/wholesale-rustic-wedding-here-comes-the-bride/262794261.html

7. I now pronounce you husband and wife: This is the final sentence that the priest utters in a wedding celebration to make join the bride and the groom and make them spouses and to give closure to the wedding ritual. This sentence can be followed by the words: 'you may now kiss the bride'. 

From: https://me.me/i/i-now-pronounce-you-husband-and-wife-you-may-update-3644394

8. Till death do us part: This sentence is said by the spouses to swear each other fidelity for all the eternity. It means "until death separates us". 

9. "Marriage isn't a word, is a sentence": This quote is a play on words with two meaning of the word 'sentence'. On a linguistic side, it can be understood purely saying that marriage is much more than just a word; it's long (like a sentence). It's something which is not trivial! 

From a prankster's point of view, this expressions can be interpreted as marriage is something negative; it's forever; it's like a (death) sentence. 

From: https://me.me/i/marriage-isnt-just-a-word-its-also-a-sentence-walter-3163273

10. One wedding brings another: This idiom indicates that after a wedding celebration, another wedding is yet to come (possibly because some guests at a wedding after witnessing the happiness of the spouses will undoubtedly want to get married).

Well, I hope you will have found this post interesting and highly recommended! See you around! Post a comment if you come up with some very interesting wedding expressions!

Webpages to learn English autonomously

How is your English going lately?

Do you devote time to studying and revising it? Do you actually use it? Today I'm bringing you some useful webpages for you to keep learning English on your own. Three years ago I wrote another post with fun resources for you to keep learning English and now it's time for an update!!

From: http://autoenglishlearning.blogspot.com/2015/04/8-great-websites-to-learn-english.html

1. Webpages to improve your listening skill

Other than the webpages I mentioned in my previous post, namely Listen a Minute; Esl-lab; and ESL Video, today I'm bringing you other webpages that will help you become a solid listener!

- 6 minutes English / BBC Learning English: This webpage is ideal if you're in the intermediate level. You have short extracts of videos and programmes talking about a specific issue and showing you some vocabulary on the way. You can download the transcript and the audio and listen to it as many times as you want. On top of that, there are countless topics! You'll learn a lot!

- Vaughan radio: Have you heard of Vaughan method? This method actively prompts you to speak English by means of different questions. In Madrid, you can listen to Vaughan radio while you are driving your car or cooking. You can even watch it on TV! If you're not in Madrid you can listen to in on the link provided. There are various types of programmes that cover the different levels, so don't miss them!

- Podcasts in English: In this webpage, you'll have access to hundreds and hundreds of interesting podcasts that you can download for free! However, if you want to practise with listening or vocabulary exercises you 'll have to pay membership. Anyway, a good opportunity to access unlimited listening material. 

TED talks: I presume you know what TED talks are since they are so popular nowadays. A person delivers a speech on an interesting topic in front of an audience. As simple as that! There are TED talks on a wide range of topics, so I'm sure you'll get to learn new things on your way to learning English!

- Https://learningenglish.voanews.com/: In this recommended webpage, you'll have access to tons of news items with their tapescripts. You can even practise your listening skills with some quizzes that will put your listening to a test!

2. English reading
Other than The Big Project, where you'll be able to read thousands of newspapers across the globe, and La Mansión del Inglés with hundreds of readings and audio-books, you have some other sources of reading across the Internet: 

- CNN News: In this webpage, you'll get instant access to breaking news in the US, so you'll stay tuned with one of the most influential countries in the world! There are videos, so you'll get to practise your listening as well. 

- El País en inglés: If you are fed up with reading newspapers in the UK and in the US, well,...suffer not, for you can also read Spanish newspapers in English. In this case, one of Spain's most renown paper, no other than El País. Enjoy its pages and news...in your favourite foreign language.

- Reuters: If you're into financial and politics, then  Reuters is definitely your site! Browse through its endless news and watch some of its videos to practise your listening skill!

3. English vocabulary
Vocab is very important when you're learning a new language. However, learning simple words is not enough. Once your English level is up, you'll have to learn idioms and expressions. Here you have two webpages that will help you master these expressions:

- https://www.theidioms.com/: This site offers a selection of the most used idioms sorted out by topic: idioms of food, idioms of violence, idioms of the body, animal idioms, colour idioms, idioms related to numbers,...

- http://www.phrasemix.com/collections:  This webpage is similar to the previous one, but it doesn't deal with idioms, but, rather, with phrases that you can use in different situations, e.g. in a job interview. Can't miss it!

4. Speaking 

- English with Jo: This website is arranged in different topics. The lesson starts with a video, then you receive some suitable vocabulary to speak about the topic and finally some questions related to the topic so that you can have a conversation. Ideal to practise your speaking before an exam!

5. Writing

- Dictations online: In this site, you'll hear some dictations according to your level of English and you'll have to write just what you listen to. At the end, you'll see the tapescript of the text. Ideal to practise your orthography! 

6. General webpages:

There are sites like isabelperez.com that offer wide amterial so that you can practise your English in the different skills.

- One of my favourites is the British Council webpage, which has everything for you, from grammar and vocabulary to podcasts sorted in different levels. Totally a must!

Well, I hope you have enjoyed my selection of  webpages. Let me remind you that I have created some very interesting sites myself so that you can practise your English, for example, Learning English EOI, the blog that I've been using with my students of language school for the last three years; English Calisto y Melibea, the blog I used with my students of high-school in the year 2015-2016; Listen 2 English, for you to practise your listening according to your level of the Common European Framework of Reference for Languages; and Grammaring with English, my webpage so that you can practise your grammar autonomously. 

I hope that from now on, you use these sites to keep advancing with your English!