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Idiom of the week: "to look down on"

To regard with condescension or contempt.

e.g.: The cheerleaders looked down on the less popular members of the school band.

Verb Time: Past Tense
Use this tense when you want to describe a completed action. It is formed by adding "-ed" to the simple form of the verb.

e.g.: The children started school last week.

*Many English verbs have irregular past tense forms.

e.g.: (put) They finally put their house up for sale.

(throw) Dennis threw the ball to first base and made the final out of the inning.

Problem Pairs : "borrow" vs. "lend"

You "borrow" something from a person (or institution) when you take it with the promise of returning it.

You "lend" something to someone when you grant that person the use of it with the understanding that it will be returned to you.

e.g.: I borrowed three books from the library today.

Could you lend me your pen. I forgot to bring mine.

Idioms

"on edge"
Nervous, anxious, irritable.
e.g.: -- Eileen seems a little on edge today. She may have had too much caffeine.

"a drop in the bucket"
A very small portion of the total amount possible.
e.g.: -- The billionaire's donation of $100,000 is just a drop in the bucket for him

"to drop someone a line"
To write to someone.
e.g.: -- I'll drop you a line when I get to Venice.

"to let oneself go"
To stop taking care of oneself.
e.g.: -- Barbara really let herself go after she got married. I hardly recognized her.

"to put up with"
To tolerate.
e.g.: -- Sandy can't put up with Steve's bad habits anymore, so she's leaving him.

"to put up"
To erect, build; to provide (money, capital): to provide someone with a place to stay (temporarily).
e.g.: -- They're putting up a new office building on 53rd Street.
-- Jack finally convinced a wealthy friend to put up the money for his business venture.
-- An old friend put me up for a few days when I arrived in Verona.

"to pull out"
To withdraw.
e.g.: -- Serbian troops have finally pulled out of Kosovo.

"to put out"
To extinguish.
e.g.: -- The firemen had a hard time putting out the fire.
Please put out your cigarette before entering the theater.

"to be over the hill"
To be old, past one's prime. (generally used facetiously to describe someone who has had a significant birthday, e.g. 40th)
e.g.: -- John is over the hill. He's not the party animal he used to be.

"to see red"
To be very angry.
e.g.: -- Larry Bird saw red when his team blew the lead in the final seconds of the game.

"actions speak louder than words"
What you say you are going to do is less important than what you do.
e.g.: -- Several of the Indiana Pacers have publicly stated that they are going to beat the Knicks. But actions speak louder than words. We'll see what happens.

"to take (someone) by surprise"
To amaze, astonish someone.
e.g.: Houston's timely, game-winning shot took everyone by surprise.

"to lose one's touch"
To fail at what one used to do well.
e.g.: This is the first time I've ever beaten George at pool. Maybe he's losing his touch.

"on the wagon"
Abstaining from alcoholic beverages.
e.g.: Pat is on the wagon. She finally realized that drinking was ruining her health.

"to be cut out for"
To have the necessary skills or talent for something
e.g.: Laura is not cut out for teaching. She doesn't have enough patience.

Verb Tenses

Past perfect
Use this tense when you want to describe an action that took place before another action in the past. It is formed with "had" + the past participle of the main verb.
e.g. The train had already left when I arrived at the station.
I had never really seen poverty until I visited India.

The Future: "will" vs. "be going to"
Use either "will" or "be going to" to express a prediction:
e.g., If you don't hurry, you'll miss your train.
If you don't hurry, you're going to miss your train.

Use "be going to" when the action was planned or thought about in advance:
e.g., I'm going to buy a new car.

Use "will" to indicate willingness, or a spontaneous decision.
e.g., Who wants to go for ice cream? -- I'll go.
Who'd like the last piece of ice cream cake? -- I'll take it.

Expressing future time with the Present Progressive
Use the present progressive to express a definite plan or a definite future activity. The time of the activity or plan should generally be mentioned.
e.g.: John is flying to Aruba tomorrow.
He's leaving for the airport at 9:30.

Expressing Future Time in Time Clauses and "If" clauses
Use the simple present to express the future in time clauses and "if" clauses.
e.g. Before I leave for the airport, I will call to confirm the flight departure time.
After I graduate, I'm going to take a long vacation.
I'll call you as soon as I get home.
I'll let you know when I'm ready.
If the weather is nice tomorrow, we are going to have a barbecue.

Imperative Mood
In an imperative sentence, the subject is understood (i.e., you don't have to say it). Imperatives, in English, are used to give directions, to give an order, and in polite requests (usually with the word "please").
e.g. Get off at exit 8A and make a right at the light..
Be quiet!
Please come in.

Subjunctive Mood
We use the subjunctive in noun clauses that follow certain verbs or expressions. It is generally used when we are stressing the importance of something.
The subjunctive mood employs the simple form of the verb (the infinitive without "to").
e.g. I suggest you be on time.
It is essential that he submit the report by 9:00.
She requested that we not smoke in the house.

Spell check

i before e except after c

"their", "there" and "they're"
their = belonging to them
e.g. Their children are well-behaved.
there = in, at, or toward a place; "there" is also used to introduce a clause.
e.g. I'd like to go to Brazil because it's warm there.
There are a lot of beaches in Brazil.
they're = they are
e.g. They're going to Rio de Janeiro this summer.

Double the final consonant of a word before suffixes beginning with a vowel (e.g. -ing, -er, -ed, -able, -est, -y) when the following conditions exist:
1. The word ends in a single consonant preceded by a single vowel. (begin, beginning) AND
2. The word has only one syllable, or the final syllable is stressed. (pin, pinned; regret, regretted)

Problem Pairs

"week" vs. "weak"
"week" (noun) = 7 days
I'm leaving next week.
"weak" (adjective) = not strong, feeble
The old man was too weak to carry the package by himself.

"win" vs. "beat"
Both of these words mean to gain a victory, but they are used differently. We "beat" teams or opponents, and we "win" games.
e.g. The Chicago Bulls beat the Utah Jazz.
They won the game by 42 points.

"beside" vs. "besides"
"beside" = next to
"besides" = in addition to
e.g.: I sat beside my classmate.
What courses are you taking besides Latin and Greek?

"advise" vs. "advice"
advise (verb) = to counsel, to recommend
advice (noun) = a recommendation or suggestion
e.g. The lawyer advised her client not to testify.
He took his lawyer's advice.

"teach" vs. "learn"
teach = to instruct
learn = to gain knowledge
e.g. He teaches Greek Mythology at a college near Boston.
She learned to read when she was five years old.

"speak" vs. "talk"
These two words have the same meaning (to communicate by using speech), but they are used differently. "Speak" is used with languages, greetings, and in formal settings. "Talk" generally refers to a conversation.
e.g. Do you speak Italian?
Hello. May I please speak to Mr. Starks?
I have no idea what you're talking about.