Latest Articles from ELB
Perspective and Points of View in English
After some interesting questions regarding points of view and pronouns, on the pronouns cases article, I felt it would be useful to share my more extensive look at perspective in English, as taken from the Advanced Writing Skills book. So here's a slightly abridged...
What is Style in English?
A common theme in my teaching is exploring the difference between clearly defined grammar rules and where English becomes flexible. Sometimes variations in English fall into regional or linguistic uses, but often it is a case of style, which can be defined by rules...
Word Order in English Sentences is now available in audio!
I’m thrilled to announce that my bestselling grammar guide, Word Order in English Sentences, is now available in audiobook format! You can skip straight to checking it out on Audible US here (Audible UK here) and it will soon be available from other audiobook...
Phrasal Verbs Using “to do”
To continue my series on phrasal verbs (started last time with "to be"), today I’m looking at phrasal verbs using to do. This is a rather common root and we have phrasal verbs with very varied meanings. To do is usually followed by an object that describes a complete...
Phrasal Verbs Using “to be”
I’ve been meaning to write some articles covering phrasal verbs, as these are always a difficult area to master with lots of specific considerations. To cover all the very specific meanings of the different phrasal verbs, in each article I’ll take one root verb and...
Bake a Perfect Loaf: English tenses exercise
I always try to make exercises that use relevant everyday language, and today I thought I'd share an English tenses exercise all about baking bread. It's a topical subject right now, with people in isolation and baking bread at home - but it's something I've been...
Updating ELB for the Changing World
As we're living in interesting times right now I'd like to let you know where I am at personally and with this website and our publications. But first of all, great thanks to those who have already sent me supportive emails - it means a lot to know you're thinking of...
Forming Polite Questions and Requests
As this website has become more popular, I’ve received an increasing number of questions and requests for assistance. It’s always good to hear from readers, as I know there is always more to explain, or different ways to explain things, and also because it exposes...
Pre-Intermediate Mixed Tenses Exercise: Simple or Continuous?
A mixed English tenses exercise for beginners, comparing the simple and continuous tenses.