«English Collocations»

Collocations are not quite the same as idioms.Whereas idioms are understood to represent a more standard meaning (e.g. ‘round the bend’ = mad; ‘fed up’ = depressed; ‘touch and go’ = uncertain; etc.), collocations are words that have been paired (or grouped) together...

«Rhetorical Question»

What is a rhetorical question? It is a figure of speech that native speakers often use in conversations or presentations. The purpose of a rhetorical question is not to obtain a response, but to implicitly assert or deny a particular point that one is making. In other...

«Similes and Metaphors»

This month’s blog is about similes and metaphors. A simile is a figure of speech that makes a comparison between two things using words such as «like» or «as». Metaphors resemble similes, but they suggest a comparison between two things without using connecting words...

«Cockney Rhyming Slang»

You may encounter Cockney Rhyming Slang and its many variations mainly in England and Australia. It is not very common in the US. The origins of this form of the language dates back to the early 19th century. It was originally used by traders so they could talk to...

‘Synecdoche’ and ‘Metonymy’

‘Synecdoche’ and ‘metonymy’ are not words that one often hears. Yet we are presented with examples of both of these intriguing literary devices on a regular basis. Synecdoche is the use of part of a thing to represent its whole or, conversely, using a whole to...

«The Irish Expressions»

Let’s start with the most popular expression in Ireland; «what’s the craic?» This means «what is going on?» or «how is it going?». The word ‘craic’ is Irish for ‘fun’ but we use it in this context to ask somebody how things are or...

Uso de cookies

Este sitio web utiliza cookies para que usted tenga la mejor experiencia de usuario. Si continúa navegando está dando su consentimiento para la aceptación de las mencionadas cookies y la aceptación de nuestra política de cookies, pinche el enlace para mayor información. ACEPTAR

Aviso de cookies