Andrew D. Miles Blog
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“It’s not my plan” or “It is not my plan”
“Teacher, if contractions are so common in English, why do people sometimes not use them?” One of my adult students asked. “How do I decide between…
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Learn 20 Simple Rules to Easily Improve Your English
When students ask me how they can speak better I generally tell them to check whether they remember basic rules. It’s an effective way to improve…
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Use Likely for What’s Probable
Sometimes we want to describe possibilities that are not one hundred per cent sure but still high. We can use “should” for that (as in “it…
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What to Do When You Can’t Understand Anything
If you have problems to understand native speakers, there are solutions. Please read this dialogue to see what a teacher suggests. Before the meeting: get used…
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Want Others to Understand You? Speak Slowly!
Speaking slowly will help listeners understand you better when you are not using your native language. How to know whether you’re speaking too quickly? Record and…
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Offer Advice with “Should”
“Should” is one of the most common ways to recommend something. It’s strong but so frequent that listeners will not feel offended if you use it.…