PhraseMix Articles

Halloween English phrases

(Photo courtesy of Gaudencio Garcinuño)

Halloween is a holiday that happens on October 31st each year. People dress up in strange costumes. Kids wear these costumes to walk around the neighborhood and ask their neighbors for candy. Adults go to parties or street fairs. Here are some...

English expressions that waiters, waitresses, and restaurant staff use

When you go to a restaurant, you usually have a good idea of what's going to happen. That's because eating at a restaurant usually follows a set script. The wait staff isn't actually given a written script to memorize, of course. But even so, waiters and waitresses usually stick to a very narrow...

Ways to talk about crime in English

There are a lot of specialized words and phrases in English. There is formal terminology that judges, lawyers, and newspaper reporters use. There's also informal language that people use when talking about crimes in casual conversation. This list will get you started with some common phrases...

Wedding phrases in English: the reception

A wedding "reception" is a party that happens after the wedding ceremony. Here is a list of things that happen at the reception:

• The bride and groom, and their families, greet the guests.
• Guests mingle and have cocktails.
• There's a catered dinner. Seating is usually assigned.
• Guests may get...

Wedding phrases in English: the ceremony

Here are some phrases to describe what happens at a traditional American wedding ceremony. Of course, there are people from all different backgrounds living in the U.S., so this doesn't describe all weddings. But this is a very common wedding style that you often see on TV and movies.

• The...

Things to say to a sick person in English

Here are some things that you can say to someone who's seriously sick or in a hospital:

• I'm here for you.
• Is there anything I can do to help?
• You're in my prayers.
• I can only imagine what you're going through.
• I hope you feel better soon.
• How do you feel?
• Can I get you anything?
• Are you...

Bathroom-related English phrases

You may find it embarrassing to talk about, but we all have to use the bathroom at some point. Here are some phrases that you can use to talk about all of the activities that take place in the bathroom.

Things you do in the toilet

• use the bathroom
• take a dump
• pee
• take a leak
• wipe your butt
• ...

The different uses of "get"

A reader asked about all of the different ways that "get" is used in English. Here are links to dozens of PhraseMix lessons which include the word "get", broken into different categories. 

I'm sure I've missed some, so if you think of any other uses of "get" that aren't on these lists, let...

Phrases for talking about sleep in English

This morning, I woke up early and felt sleepy. It made me think about crawling back in bed. And then I started to think of all the ways that you can describe sleeping, going to sleep, waking up, staying awake, and so on:

Going to sleep

• go to bed 
• fall asleep
  What's the difference? You "go...

Corrections to 30 Japanese English words and phrases

People in Japan use a lot of borrowed English words and phrases. Most of them have the same meaning in Japanese as they do in English. But there are also a lot of "Japanese English" words and phrases which sound like English, but are used differently. Here are some correct English...