Shop? Store? Bar?

What's the difference between these three words?

A shop is small and is often where something is MADE.

candy shop

book shop

flower shop

liquor shop

ice cream shop

coffee shop

Some of these places USED to make things but now they don't... so shop and store are both often used. I think it depends more on where you are from. For example, in Montreal I am more likely to say liquor store but when I visited the US I often heard liquor shop.

Stores are usually larger.

candy store

shoe store

liquor store

book store

BUT I've never heard coffee store(it would be a place that sells coffee BEANS only and no drinks) or flower store(because they MAKE bouquets at a SHOP). Or ice cream store because they MAKE our ice cream cone and serve it to us.

A bar is a place with a counter.

So it is usually somewhere that serves drinks... like a bar~! But you might also hear coffee bar, sushi bar, oxygen bar, etc.

I hope that helps clear things up~!

Phil

Gibberish...

Do you know what gibberish means? It means things that SOUND like words but ISN'T.

A: Hi, how are you?

B: IZ IM GRAX.

A: Huh? Why are you speaking gibberish?

B: IJ HAR SZATZ.

A: ???

Here's a video made for an Italian TV show where they made a song of English SOUNDING gibberish but really they aren't using real words, enjoy~!

To? too? Two?

Hi Everyone, here's a quick lesson about the differences between these three linking words.

to

This indicates movement and direction. A --------> B

From Osaka to Tokyo.

This gift is from Jack to Jill.

This letter is addressed to Paul.

It can also indicate purpose, WHY you are doing something.

I exercise to stay in shape.

She's on a diet to lose weight.

too

This means ALSO.

He got a new car too.

I want ice cream too!

A: I like traveling.

B: Really? Me too!

two

This one is easy it is the number 2.

C: I bought two chocolates, one is for you.

D: Wow, thanks~!

It's two o'clock.

I live in room two-O-one (201).

These are difficult even for many native speakers so when writing in English please be careful not to get them mixed up~!

I go to Tokyo two times a year to see my friends and go shopping too.

So here we see direction, number, purpose and also all in one sentence~!

Have a nice Wednesday,

Phil

Do they get on?

Hey everyone, I am watching a British TV show and the guy said:

Do they get on? (UK)

Which you'd NEVER hear in North America, we'd say:

Do they get along? (US/Canada)

To get along means that they get along WELL, they have a good relationship and rarely fight. If they don't get along it means that they don't like each other and they often fight or argue.

Just thought I'd share that, have a good day~!

Phil

Do you know Brad Pitt???

Umm, no I've never met him but he seems like a nice guy...

Hey everyone, today we are looking at a common mistake Japanese English speakers make. They translate directly from Japanese ブラドピットしっていますか?

BUT in English "Do you know...?" means do you know him PERSONALLY, have you MET HIM in real life?

Jim: Do you know Tom, Bob?

Bob: No, I don't. Nice to meet you Tom.

Tom: Nice to meet you too Bob.

-------------------

John: Do you know Sara?

Ed: No, I never met her.

John: She's great I think you'd really like her.

Generally speaking, when talking about famous people, places or events we use the expression:

Have you heard of...?

It's a really useful expression to check if someone knows about something/have they heard of it.

A: Have you heard of the movie Oldboy?

B: Nope, is it any good?

A: Yeah, it's a bit violent but it's a great Korean movie!

---------

C: Have you heard of Johnny Depp?

D: Of course! I've seen all his movies, he's a great actor.

---------

E: Have you heard of the Kyoto Craft Beer Festival?

F: No, what is it?

E: It's a new festival where you can try many Japanese microbrews.

F: Wow, sounds great. Let's check it out!

Ok, that's it for now. If you have any questions please post a comment! I am a bit busy these days so I think I will only be able to post 5-6 lessons this month, sorry guys...

Have a good week,

Phil

Studying English is tough...

Hi everyone, I hope you all had a nice Golden Week. This month I thought I would start by talking about the tone of a conversation. You might hear someone say:

"I don't like your tone."

Which could mean I don't like your tone of voice (intonation) or the WAY you are speaking. Probably the person means that either the way or intonation of how you are speaking is disrespectful.

Like most languages, the words we use help set the tone:

1 - My job is difficult.

and

2 - My job is tough.

Sound quite different, the first sounds more formal and objective while the second sounds more casual and personal. For more on tough/difficult check out this previous blog entry: http://phils-english.blogspot.com/2011/03/learning-english-is-tough.html

Some other pairs are:

smart (casual)

He's really smart.

Bob is a smart guy.

intelligent (formal)

He's really intelligent.

Robert is an intelligent man.

So you can see that Robert becomes Bob, smart becomes intelligent and guy becomes man in formal speech. The tone of the sentence completely change from casual and friendly to a formal statement.

cheap (casual)

The hotel was really cheap~!

Let's go to a cheap restaurant, I'm pretty broke.

inexpensive (formal)

That hotel was quite inexpensive.

Let's go to an inexpensive restaurant, I don't have much money.

Inexpensive is used to makes things have a formal tone, so it is rarely used with really which is more of a casual word. Really goes very well with cheap which is also casual~! BUT be careful cheap has many meanings that inexpensive DOESN'T have!!!

Cheap can mean:

low cost

This book is 1$, so cheap~! +

stingy

He's a cheap guy. -

bad quality

Man this watch is cheap, it broke in one day. -

Inexpensive simply means low cost, it doesn't share the other meanings...

Have a nice week,

Phil