Tag Archives: definitions

Words of Power

Profanity

[The Bad Words #3] Why are some words “bad”? English has a large and varied collection of “bad words”; what do they have in common? The answer is surprisingly spiritual. Words are powerful. They enable us to take thoughts from … Continue reading

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Write Right Rite

Homophones are words that sound alike but have different meanings. Homonyms are a subset of homophones – they sound alike and are spelled alike, but have different meanings. The word right is a good example of a word with many … Continue reading

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The Domino Effect

When one event causes a series of other events, we call that the domino effect. A domino is a small rectangular block that is marked with dots. A set of dominoes can be used to play various games. Another thing … Continue reading

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Read the Fine Print

A free smartphone would be nice to have. And all you have to do to get your free smartphone is try on shoes! That seems too good to be true. If you read the fine print, you will learn that it’s … Continue reading

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My Christmas Song Search

I love Christmas music! Unfortunately, Christmas carols don’t make very good English lessons.  When I realized this, I became determined to find the simplest English Christmas song and share it with you. I had to reject my favorite Christmas carol, … Continue reading

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An Intrepid Lego Model

The USS Intrepid is an aircraft carrier that was commissioned in 1943.  Intrepid no longer travels the world’s oceans; she was moved to New York City in 1982 and became part of the Intrepid Sea-Air-Space Museum. “Intrepid” is a good … Continue reading

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MacGyver Music

What can you do with two balloons and a wooden box? If you have as much talent as these two guys, you make music! I call this “MacGyver” music because these musicians created instruments using ordinary objects. The word “MacGyver” … Continue reading

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Hearing and Listening

Hearing is not exactly the same as listening.  Hearing happens any time a sound reaches your ears.  Listening happens when you give your full attention to the sounds that you are hearing. If your neighbors had a loud party last … Continue reading

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Inspiration

I’ve never been been an athlete or a fitness fanatic, but I used to have good exercise habits. Unfortunately, I’ve gotten out of the habit of exercising regularly. I don’t really want to do sit-ups or go for a jog, … Continue reading

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Spoiler Alert

When I lived in Japan, a college student named Charles came to visit. Charles was from Canada, and everything about Japan was new to him. He didn’t understand the language. He was unfamiliar with the customs. He wasn’t used to … Continue reading

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