PhraseMix Articles

The problem with language learning "levels"

Most language systems and books have different levels: Basic, Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced, and so on.

I don't really believe in levels very much, because my experience is that people take very different paths to learn a language. One person might speak English like crazy after a few weeks...

Where do I start?

A PhraseMix reader asked this question:

I feel a little lost. There are is too much information, and I am so excited to learn everything but I don't really know where to start. Wherever I look I find new links and pages and phrases. Any advice on how to start to learn the right way and not miss...

How to practice your English intonation

A PhraseMix reader sent me an e-mail with a question about pronunciation. I thought that the answer might be useful to everyone else as well.

Question:

Over the past year, I've done a lot to improve my pronunciation. However, what I've just noticed is that my intonation leaves much to be...

Never tell yourself that you "know" an English word or phrase.

Here's one secret of great language learners:

Never tell yourself that you "know" something. 

Do you know the word "Hello"?

When you first started learning English, one of the first words you probably learned was "Hello". It seems like such a simple word. But stop to think about how well...

What do you do in English, other than study it?

When students ask me how to improve their English ability, here's what I always tell them:

Don't just study English; do something in English.

I say that because language isn't something that you can learn just by studying it. It's not a subject like History or Economics....

How do YOU study a PhraseMix lesson?

When you read a PhraseMix lesson, which part do you spend the most time reading and thinking about?

At the top of each lesson, I describe a specific situation and then give an example of something you can say, write, think, read, or hear. Below that, I break the example down into words and ...

How to improve your English listening comprehension

Why spoken English is difficult to understand

A lot of English learners have trouble understanding what native English speakers say.

One reason that real English is difficult to understand is that the English in classrooms and textbooks is very different from how people really speak. Some...

Use the site comments to increase your English learning.

I want to encourage more PhraseMix readers to use the comments feature of the site because I think you can get a lot out of it. Leaving a comment is helpful because:

1. It gives you practice with writing in English.
2. It lets me know when there are points that readers are unclear on.
3. It provides...

What is the best way to learn English grammar?

Here's a question that I answered on the Q&A site Quora about learning grammar. It's a topic that I've written about before, but that was a long time ago. I think it's a point that should be repeated.:

Question: What is the best fun way to learn English grammar?

I...

Look for common English metaphors to help you understand new phrases

In the last phrase this week, "The video's pretty choppy on my end," I explain that English speakers think of a telephone or online conversation as an imaginary string between two people. So you can talk about "my end" or "your end" of a conversation, just like you can talk about the two "ends"...