Everyday Grammar: You Had Better Learn Modals!

For VOA Learning English, this is Everyday Grammar. This week we are going to show you how to give advice using modal verbs. Modal verbs (called modals for short) are auxiliary verbs that express a speaker's attitude and the strength of that attitude

Everyday Grammar: Mastering Reported Speech

We often need to tell others what someone else said. There are two ways to do this. One is to say the same words and use quotation marks. That is direct speech. The other method is to summarize, or tell about what someone said. This is called reporte

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Imagine that you are planning to travel to another country. There is a lot that you need to do before you leave. Here are some things that might need to be done: Your passport has to be renewed. Your hair still needs to be cut. Your shoes should be r

The Excitement of Three-Part Phrasal Verbs

The Excitement of Three-Part Phrasal Verbs Popular music can teach you a lot about the English language. You may not realize it, but musicians are actually teaching you about English grammar in each song they perform. Consider this song by the famous

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If you asked even the most knowledgeable Americans, they probably could not tell you more than a few meanings for the word so. It is an everyday word that most people use without even realizing its complexity. But this mysterious little word can act

英语单词大师：To Catch On to Phrasal Verbs, It

AA: I'm Avi Arditti with Rosanne Skirble, and this week on Wordmaster -- English teacher Lida Baker joins us from Los Angeles to talk about phrasal verbs. RS: The first word is a verb. The second word, sometimes even a third, is usually a preposition

生活英语对话 Episode 65: A tricky meeting

本单元是关于讨论棘手问题的会议的对话 Boss: Come in. Ah, Tim, how can I help? Tim: Erm, well, I think you should read this letter from the watch repairers. Boss: Oh yes, let me see it? hmm, well, I imagine someone in their office must have made a mis

Cooking with Phrasal Verbs

In a recent program, we told you about phrasal verbs related to food. The program centered on eating food: what, how much and when. You will remember that a phrasal verb is a verb made of two or more words: a verb plus a preposition or adverb, or bot

Verbs and Gerunds in Speech and Fiction Writing

The American rock group Journey released the song Don't Stop Believin' in 1981. This song, still popular in karaoke music bars, can help you learn about English grammar. Let's listen to some words from the song: Don't stop believing Hold on to that f

VOA慢速英语2017--Thanksgiving and English Verbs

Every year around the Thanksgiving holiday, a strange ceremony happens in Washington, DC. The president stands outside the White House, gives a brief speech and then officially pardons a turkey. A pardon is a declaration that someone will not be puni

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English can be a complex language to master. It has a lot of rules and breaks many of them. No matter your level of English, forming questions can be one of the more vexing parts of mastering the language. The good news is that we are here today to m

英语日常语法:情态动词

Everyday Grammar: You Had Better Learn Modals! 英语日常语法:情态动词 For VOA Learning English, this is Everyday Grammar. This week we are going to show you how to give advice using modal verbs. Modal verbs (called modals for short) are auxi

VOA慢速英语2015 日常语法:掌握间接引语

Everyday Grammar: Mastering Reported Speech We often need to tell others what someone else said . There are two ways to do this. One is to say the same words and use quotation marks . That is direct speech . The other method is to summarize , or tell

You Really Should Learn Modals!

You Really Should Learn Modals! For VOA Learning English, this is Everyday Grammar. This week we are going to show you how to give advice using modal verbs. Modal verbs (called modals for short) are auxiliary verbs that express a speaker's attitude a

They Say That Reported Speech is Easy

They Say That Reported Speech is Easy We often need to tell others what someone else said. There are two ways to do this. One is to say the same words and use quotation marks. That is direct speech. The other method is to summarize, or tell about wha

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Weasel, Duck, Dog: Animals That Are Also Verbs A few months ago, I told Anna Matteo I would write a Words and Their Stories program about animals that are also verbs. But I failed to keep my promise. Instead of accepting responsibility, I told her I

英语单词大师：Phrasal Verbs

AA: I'm Avi Arditti with Rosanne Skirble, and this week on Wordmaster -- English teacher Lida Baker joins us from Los Angeles to talk about phrasal verbs. RS: They're all around us, especially in spoken English. The first word is a verb. The second w

英语单词大师：Lida Baker: Modals

AA: I'm Avi Arditti with Rosanne Skirble, and this week on Wordmaster, meet the modals! RS: Modals are words like can, could, will, would, may, might, and must. The list goes on. And they can be tricky to learn. AA: We get more of an introduction fro

词汇大师(Wordmaster)--Lida Baker: Modals

Broadcast on Coast to Coast: June 20, 2002 Re-broadcast on VOA News Now: June 23, 2002 AA: I'm Avi Arditti with Rosanne Skirble, and this week on Wordmaster, meet the modals! RS: Modals are words like can, could, will, would, may, might, and must. Th

Can and Be Able To

Modal verbs are helping verbs. We use them with main verbs to help us express ability, possibility, necessity and permission. Todays question is about a modal that is commonly confused with an expression. Heres the question, which comes from a listen