Intonation and Speed of Speaking

Intonation

Many people from different countries have improper intonation because their teacher had improper intonation. In many situations, being monotone is better than having bad intonation. The worst is when someone goes up and down too much on every word. Another thing you should avoid is to end high at the end of a sentence.

To correct improper intonation, you need to remember to start high and end low. You cannot do it any other way. I recommend going to the interview section and listening to one of the audio files provided by a native speaker. You will hear proper intonation. After listening to the audio, record yourself and listen to it. Does it sound the same? If not, then find the areas that are dissimilar and make the necessary corrections.

This advice is very trivial, but intonation is relatively easy to correct. You can fix your intonation with only a little effort. If you have a friend who is a native English speaker, you can usually fix intonation in a couple of lessons. Recording yourself and listening to yourself might be tedious, but having correct intonation can go a long way.

I have had many students who fixed their intonation after 2 small sessions. The advice I gave them was the same as the one above. This will work, and if you want to speak with proper intonation, please follow this advice.

Speed of speaking

A common mistake of people who obtain English fluency with improper pronunciation and intonation is the speed in which they speak. Because they do not have perfect pronunciation and intonation, it is difficult to understand people who speak too fast. This is the biggest problem I have seen from people who gain confidence in speaking.

In order to improve your communication, and to hear "excuse me" less often, it is important to have the correct speed of speaking. For people with confidence, my advice is to slow down and to speak clearly. Don't blend words together too much and make sure to separate words with a small pause for words that are difficult to pronounce.

EXERCISE IN GRAMMAR-1

EXERCISE IN GRAMMAR-1

  In the following  sentences separate the Subject and the Predicate:

1. The cackling of geese saved Rome.

2.The boy stood on the burning  deck.

3. Tubai Cainwas a man of might.

4. Stone walls do not make a prison.

5. The singing of the birds delights us.

6.Miss Kitty was rude at the table one day.

7. He has a good memory.

8. Bad habits grow unconsciously.

9. The earth revolves round the sun.

10. Nature is the best physician.

11.Edison invented the photography.

12. The sea hath many thousand sands.

13. We cannot pump the ocean dry.

14. We cannot garments never fit well.

15. the early bird catches the worm.

16. All matter is indestructible.

17. Islamabad is the capital of Pakistan.

18.We should profit by experience .

19. All roads lead to Rome.

20. A guilty conscience needs no excuse.

21. The beautiful rainbow soon faded away.

22. No man can serve two masters.

23. A sick room should be well aired.

24. The dewdrops glitter in the sunshine.

25. I shot an arrow into the air.

26. A barking sound the shepherd hears.

27.On the top of the hill lives a hermit.

Prepositions Part III

List of Prepositions

Prepositions can only be learnt by memory; unfortunately there is no method or particular way to recognize and learn them. To help you with memorizing the different prepositions, here is a list of common prepositions.

Simple Prepositions 

For

By

At

On

Of

Off

To

Prepositions Part II

Kinds of Prepositions -

Simple Prepositions   

  - These prepositions are constructed by only one word like -

  - On, at, about, with, after, for, etc. 

  - He found the book about dogs on the table, in the bedroom.

Double Prepositions

Prepositions Part I

Prepositions are the words which are used to connect the different nouns, pronouns and phrases in a sentence. It functions to introduce or precede the word or phrase to be connected, called the object of the preposition.

The preposition usually indicates the relation between the words it is connecting. It tells whether the words are connected in actual space or a place, or related through time or are they part of a thought or process.

Adverbs

Adverbs modify a verb, an adjective, or another adverb. 

An adverb tells more about a verb in the sentence.

• The fire engine runs fast.
• Listen to his speech carefully.
• I browse the web frequently.
• It rained hard.

An adverb describes more about an adjective in the sentence.

• The news is very surprising!
• The coffee is extremely hot, so be careful.
• Nature is really amazing!

An adverb modifies another adverb in the sentence.

Comparative and Superlative Adjectives

Comparative adjectives compare two things. Superlative adjectives compare more than two things

Commonly, adjectives that contain only one syllable or end in 'y' use 'er' to form comparatives and 'est' to form superlatives. For adjectives ending in y, change the 'y' to 'i' before adding the 'er' or 'est'.

• old – older – oldest
• young – younger – youngest
• pretty – prettier – prettiest
• long – longer – longest
• short – shorter – shortest
• bright – brighter – brightest
• close – closer – closest
• happy – happier - happiest

Adjectives with two or more syllables do not change but instead add more to form comparatives and most to form superlatives.

• respectable – more respectable – most respectable
• beautiful – more beautiful – most beautiful
• preferable – more preferable – most preferable
• hardworking – more hardworking – most hardworking

Some adjectives have different forms of comparatives and superlatives.

• good – better – best
• bad – worse – worst
• little – less – least
• much (many) – more – most
• far – further - furthest

The word than typically appears in comparative sentences.

• Amy is smarter than Betty.
• Chad is stronger than Dan.
• Greg is more diligent than his brother.
• I have more apples than he.
• She likes him more than me.

Superlatives are typically accompanied by the word the.

• Tom is the oldest man in town.
• Paul is the tallest boy in the neighborhood.
• That shade of blue is the most beautiful color.
• This is the longest song that I have ever heard.

[Quiz 8.1]

Write the appropriate comparative or superlative form of the word cold in each blank.

Yesterday was a cold day. Today is                      than yesterday. Tomorrow will be the                      day yet. 

[Quiz 8.2]

Which of the following sentences is incorrect?

1) Mary is shorter than Jane.
2) The moon is more closer to the earth than the sun.
3) I have the best score on the exam.

Adjectives

Adjectives describe or modify nouns.

I like fairy tales. A fairy tale is an imaginary story that has unrealistic characters in a fantastic background. It makes me forget about the realworld and refreshes my tired mind.

Adjectives generally appear immediately before the noun.

• A pretty girl
• Red flowers
• A long stick
• Heavy boxes
• Warm weather

Commonly, adjectives of opposite meaning are formed by adding a prefix such as un, in, or dis.

Action Verbs

Action verbs express action and are the most common verbs.

Action verbs need s at the end with third-person, singular subjects.

• He eats bread.
• She walks to the station.
• It floats on the sea.

Negative sentences need do not, does not, or did not.

• I do not eat bread.
• He does not eat bread.
• You did not walk to the station.
• It does not float on the sea.

Interrogative sentences begin with do, does, or did.

'Be' Verbs

A verb shows action or a state of being.

I go home. Home is my place to rest. I like the smell of my house. I feel totally relaxed. Home refreshes me. At home, I get ready for a new day.

"Be" verbs indicate a state of being.

Verbs must match subjects.

• I am a doctor.
• He is sleepy.
• We are here.

Negative sentences need ‘not' after the verb.

• I am not a doctor.
• He is not sleepy.
• We are not there.

The verb comes first in interrogative sentences.

Pronouns

A pronoun takes the place of a noun. 

Example story:

Mary is one of the heads of the ToJi Corporation. Mary works with Mr. James and Mr. James' son Tom. Mr. James and Mr. James' son Tom are experts in biochemistry. Mary, Mr. James, and Tom researched and invented a drug for cancer treatment. 

If the story above is written using pronouns:

Mary is one of the heads of the ToJi Corporation. She works with Mr. James and his son Tom. He and his son Tom are experts in biochemistry.They researched and invented a drug for cancer treatment. 

Personal Pronouns

Count Nouns vs. Non-Count Nouns

Count nouns

Can be counted as one or more.

• pen, computer, bottle, spoon, desk, cup, television, chair, shoe, finger, flower, camera, stick, balloon, book, table, comb, etc.

Take an s to form the plural.

• pens, computers, bottles, spoons, desks, cups, televisions, chairs, shoes, fingers, flowers, cameras, sticks, balloons, books, tables, combs, etc.

Work with expressions such as (a few, few, many, some, every, each, these, and the number of).

• a few pens, a few computers, many bottles, some spoons, every desk, each cup, these televisions, the number of chairs, a few shoes, a few fingers, many flowers, some cameras, every stick, each balloon, these books, the number of tables, many combs, etc.

Work with appropriate articles (a, an, or the).

UNIT - II English Grammar Exercise

UNIT - II
COMPETENCIES

A LISTENING: Listening and doing
B SPEAKING: Telling jokes and riddles Describing an experience
C READING: Understanding explicitly stated information Understanding information not explicitly stated
D VOCABULARY: Using syllabification for reading and spelling purposes
Giving the correct spelling for words
Giving the correct spelling for adjectives
E STUDY SKILLS: Referring to the dictionary for grammatical information
F GRAMMAR: Using the past perfect, past perfect continuous, future perfect and future perfect continuous tenses
G WRITING: Expanding headlines
H OCCUPATIONAL COMPETENCY: Reading and understanding the content of travel time-tables (train timings)
I STRATEGIC COMPETENCY: Recording one’s speech for the purpose of self assessment
J CREATIVE COMPETENCY: Writing about one’s neighbour

A. Listening

English Grammar Exercise Part 3

POEM
TREE

Under the greenwood tree
Who loves to lie with me,
And turn his merry note
Unto the sweet bird’s throat,
Come hither, come hither, come hither:
Here shall he see
No enemy
But winter and rough weather.
Who doth ambition shun,
And loves to live i’ the sun,
Seeking the food he eats,
And pleased with what he gets,
Come hither, come hither, come hither:
Here shall he see
No enemy
But winter and rough weather.
                                                       - W Shakespeare

English Grammar Exercise Part 3

I. Strategic competency
Read the following statements. Give your opinion on each of the statements by marking the relevant box:

English Grammar Exercises part 2

G. Writing
1. Think of the few occasions when you have to fill in a form.
1. Admission
2. Bank transaction
3. .............................
4. ...............................
5. ..................................
2. What sort of information do you normally have to provide?
1. Name
2. Details of parents : Father Mother
3. Date of Birth
4. Age
5. ..................................
6. .................................
7. .................................
8. ................................
3. Fill in the following columns:
Write your name in capitals                : ...............................
Strike out that which is not applicable : student / employee
Put a tick in the relevant box               : |_|Female |_|Male

Your signature                                    : .............................

English Grammar Exercises part 1

HE STILL LIVES
‘He hath not lived that lives not after death.’ (In this lesson, it is the message more than the matter that matters.) (The domestic terminal at Meenambakkam Airport in Chennai was buzzing with excitement. One could see people of different hues and moods. Mrs. Radha Kannan, a low-profile social worker and Founder-Director of a foundation for the differently abled, boards an aircraft bound for Delhi. When she settles in her seat and buckles up her seatbelt she notices a young lady sitting next to her seat sobbing. Mrs. Kannan, quite unusual of herself, gets into a conversation with her).
Mrs RK : Excuse me. What has happened? Has anything gone wrong? You almost broke down. If it’s not too personal and if it’s not too much for you to take me into confidence you can share your feelings with me. Sharing after all, lessens one’s burden.
The Lady : Thanks for your concern, Madam. I am Catherine Rudolph from Vienna. I’m reserved and slightly reticent by nature. I don’t take to strangers easily. At the same time I understand your concern. Somehow or the other I feel that I should open up to you. May I know your name, please?
Mrs RK : I’m Radha Kannan, a small-time social worker with a big vision. We run a foundation in Chennai, for the differently abled. You may call me Radha.
Cathy : Thank you, Radha. I had two children – a boy and a girl. I lost my daughter who was beautifully named Philo. She died of Cystic Fibrosis, an incurable congenital disease that affects young children, especially girls.
Mrs RK : Is it such a deadly disease?
Cathy : Yes it’s a killer disease. It affects the pancreas, and the lungs are blocked with thick mucus. My daughter was just two years when the symptoms showed and she survived another two years. Only a month ago we lost our precious child. The thought of my lost child is all over me all the time. It’s painful, Radha, very painful. Do you know what she asked us when she knew that she was going to die? (drops of tears roll down the cheeks of Catherine)
Radha : Compose yourself, Cathy.Cathy : She asked us what would happen to her after her death. We told her that she would go to heaven and become an angel. After this every morning she would ask us why she had not grown wings yet as she had read in stories that all angels had wings. We assured her that she would get her wings the moment she reached heaven, and that God would personally fix the wings on her sides. (Radha’s eyes moisten as tears well up in her eyes.)

FOCUS ON SPOKEN ENGLISH - 15

ANSWERS :CLICK THE READ MORE BUTTON AND VIEW THE ANSWERS

BASIC GRAMMAR EXERCISES PART - 2

speak in English

speaking in English. 

1. I speak in English.

2. I write a letter.

3. I listen to News

4. I fill up the form.

5. I go to school.

6. I do my homework.

7. I read a book.

8. I travel by bus.

9. I look for a job.

10. I ride a bike.

BASIC GRAMMAR EXERCISES PART - 1

do a job" do a job

1. I do a Job.
2. I am doing a job.
3. I did a job.
4. I didn't do a job.
5. I will do a job...

6. I won't do a job.
7. Usually I don't do a job.
8. I am not doing a job.
9. I was doing a job.
10. I wasn't doing a job.
11. I will be doing a job.
12. I won't be doing a job.
13. I am going to do a job.
14. I was going to do a job.
15. I can do a job.