Who or Whom? How to Know Which to Use

Who or whom? Owl

What is the difference between ‘who’ and ‘whom’ – and how do you know which to use? This grammar question has stumped many native English speakers, so it is no surprise that non-native speakers find it difficult.

‘Whom’ is used to refer to the object of a preposition or verb. But how does this work with real life examples? Read on for an explanation of the grammar behind ‘who’ and ‘whom’. We’ll explore common misconceptions surrounding the ‘who or whom’ debate and provide useful example sentences showing when to use ‘who’ and ‘whom’ – and when it’s a personal choice. Continue reading

The Royal Wedding – Congratulations to Prince Harry and Meghan Markle!

Prince Harry and Meghan Markle - Wedding Vocabulary

The wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle took place on Saturday 19th May at St George’s Chapel at Windsor Castle. The fifth in line to the British throne became engaged to the American former actress in November last year and the union of Harry and Meghan has brought Britain and America together – although they remain two nations divided by a common language! Join us for an exploration of wedding vocabulary and words related to engagements as we await the royal wedding. Continue reading

What’s in a Hurricane Name? Ph and F Sounds in English

HurricaneHurricane Ophelia arrived in the British Isles on October 16th, leaving many homes in Ireland and Wales without power and schools temporarily closed. There were violently strong winds across parts of Scotland, Wales and England as the remnants of Hurricane Ophelia hit British shores from the Azores in the Atlantic Ocean.

With so much discussion in the news about the hurricane, English language learners might have been intrigued or confused about the ‘ph’ pronunciation in the word Ophelia. Read on to find out the correct pronunciation of Hurricane Ophelia, how storms and hurricanes get their names and how the ‘ph’ sound and letter combination works in English. Continue reading

Learn Ancient and Rare Languages in New Online Courses

Native American in ink

Have you ever wanted to talk to locals in the ancient language of Gangte? Now you can! Tribalingual is running a series of online language courses for students wishing to learn rare languages and help preserve ancient cultures. The last native speakers of a number of ancient and rare languages have been recruited to help deliver content for the courses, which will be taught via video link. Languages available to study include Ainu, a Japanese dialect, Greko, a ancient form of Greek, and Buryat, a Mongolian dialect. Would you like to study one of the world’s rarest languages? Continue reading

Is Office Jargon Annoying? It’s a No Brainer!

If you’ve been working from home more often after Covid, you might have missed some aspects of office life (or maybe not). One element that most people won’t have missed is the office jargon of business meetings. In fact, a new study has revealed that office jargon is one of the most hated aspects of going to work!

Business talk or office jargon includes those irritating phrases that regularly crop up at work. Many people secretly dislike corporate jargon but it continues to be used in many offices. From ‘thinking outside the box’ to ‘touching base’ and ‘leveraging synergies’ – it’s hard to avoid in most offices. So let’s employ some blue-sky thinking going forward, as we unpack the most common office jargon! Continue reading

Wimbledon EFL Lesson – Game, Set and Match!

Wimbledon is one of the world’s biggest tennis tournaments and the most prestigious of the Majors. These few weeks of Grand Slam tennis offer a great chance to prepare a sporty EFL lesson with a traditional British flavour. Grab your racket and let’s explore the traditions of Wimbledon and learn some useful tennis vocabulary! Continue reading

Exploring Vocabulary in George Michael’s Careless Whisper

Each Christmas is the anniversary of the death of pop star and esteemed singer-songwriter George Michael, who passed away on Christmas Day 2016. As a tribute to his song-writing talent and philanthropic work we have taken one of his most famous tracks as inspiration for language learners.

Careless Whisper contains many interesting phrases that are useful to English language students, so let’s consider this classic song and use George’s clever and evocative lyrics to help EFL learners get to grips with some new vocabulary and expressions. Continue reading

It’s Freezing Out There! Useful Cold Weather Vocabulary

Are you enjoying the cold snap? With the thermometer diving towards zero across the UK, it’s time to think about winter weather vocabulary. There are many ways to describe a cold day – certainly useful when living in a northern climate!

From cool to chilly to freezing, whether the wind is breezy, blustery or gale-force – with or without a downpour – cold weather vocabulary is always handy at this time of year. Read on to explore the English vocabulary you need to talk about the cold weather. Continue reading

Do the Monster Mash This Halloween!

Monster Mash Halloween Halloween is an exciting holiday occasion and the perfect time to learn some new vocabulary – so why not learn with a classic song! Monster Mash is a fun Halloween-themed pop song by Bobby ‘Boris’ Pickett and the Crypt Kickers, recorded in 1962. It contains lots of spooky vocabulary and is a great way to expand your knowledge of idioms – and enjoy some Halloween-flavoured language fun. This is great listening material for the EFL class. Will you do the Monster Mash?     Continue reading

Raise a Glass to the Haggis – it’s Burns Night!

Burns Night EFL Lesson - Rabbie BurnsBurns Night is a celebration dedicated to the life and works of the great Scottish poet Robert (Rabbie) Burns. On 25th January, many people will be throwing a Burns Night supper, featuring all the traditional elements. The classic celebration includes a piper to welcome the guests, speeches, prayers to bring in the food, a special address and toast to the haggis, lively entertainment, a ‘toast to the lassies’ and many other fun elements.

How will you be celebrating Burns Night in the EFL class? Read on to discover more about this fascinating Scottish tradition and how you might use it to create a fun, Scottish-themed EFL lesson.

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