by Phil Williams | Dec 19, 2017 | Entertainment, General English
Advent is always a fun time here in the UK, and I like to celebrate it in a small way on this website with some Christmas learning. We have a whole culture of books, films and traditions that can make English more fun – some of which I’ve covered here...
by Phil Williams | Nov 7, 2017 | General English
As I continue work on my upcoming book on writing skills, I’d like to start sharing some of the lessons I’m preparing for the books. The first, and perhaps the most important, is such a general concept it works like an introduction – the idea of...
by Phil Williams | Oct 3, 2017 | Definitions, Grammar, Vocabulary, Words
I was recently asked which comparative form is more correct, using so or as: “England is not as hot as France” or “England is not so hot as France”. It’s an interesting point as they are both possible, so neither is really more correct – and one of my reference...
by Phil Williams | Aug 31, 2017 | Books, Writing skills
If you’re a member of the ELB mailing list you may have seen that I’m working on a new guide to improved writing skills. The idea is to present advanced writing tips for learners of English as a foreign language – a guide based on how the language functions, as...
by Phil Williams | Aug 8, 2017 | Grammar, Writing skills
When we write a rule in a past tense narrative, should it still be in the present simple tense? This was an excellent question raised by a reader, from a fairly unexpected source – this Christmas reading exercise. It contains the phrase “everyone knew how...