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Meaning of Hangry

5/15/2015

I recently saw a post by someone that said, "Excuse my rudeness, I'm just hangry." I've never heard the word "hangry" before and at first I thought the person meant "hungry." I was wrong.

I did some research of my own and discovered that the word is a humorous slang (informal) used to describe anger caused by being hungry. The word was created by blending the words "hungry" and "angry" together. It makes sense, as when we're hungry, it becomes hard to focus and we become short-tempered and irritated. How interesting and useful as I've definitely been hangry before. What about you?

So happy to have discovered a new and trending word while being able to share it with you all!

The English Student, www.theenglishstudent.com, meaning of hangry, hangry, hangry definition, ESL vocabulary, ESL teaching ideas

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Meet and Meat

5/13/2015

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Words that sound the same but are spelled differently are called HOMOPHONES.

Take a look at some examples of homophones:
to, two, too
plane. plain
deer, dear
write, right
see, sea

When speaking, it's much easier to tell which words are used because there's context (not all the time, but most of the time!). If you're driving and someone says. "Go right," we know he/she doesn't mean "Go write" because why would you go "write" when you're driving?!

However, it's important to distinguish between different homophones so that we can write correctly and not confuse our readers.

Let's look at the words 'meet' and 'meat.' These are homophones that are spelled differently but have completely different meanings.
Meet= [verb] get together with someone, for example, "Let's meet for lunch tomorrow."
Meat= [uncountable noun] flesh from animals that we eat, for example, chicken or beef

Use this image to help you remember the difference:
Think of two people meeting on a date (E meets E)
Think of a person indulging in a delicious beef burger (E eats A)

Test yourself on these common homophones:
(1) I really wish I had your/you're job.
(2) The bank is on your write/right.
(3) There/Their/They're classroom is so much bigger than ours!
(4) Your cellphone is over their/they're/there.
(5) Look at that dear/deer over there!
(6) I don't want to attend this meeting to/ too/two.
Answers:
(1) your, (2) right, (3) Their, (4) there, (5) deer, (6) too

Related Lessons:
Jeans or Jeans
Everytime or Every Time
British Versus American English

Homophones, difference between meet and meat, words that sound the same but different meaning, homonym, homograph

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Happy Mother's Day

5/10/2015

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It's the special time of the year where we give thanks to our selfless, supportive mothers, grandmothers, aunts, sisters, or anyone who has been a mother to you. I always remember this quote " A mother is a person who seeing there are only four pieces of pie left for five people promptly announced she never did care for pie." Mothers make these kind of sacrifices every day. That's why "mom" written upside down is "wow." Moms are wow!

The word "wow" can be used in multiple ways:
(1) As an interjection (exclamation to show surprise or amazement): "Wow! That movie was amazing!"
(2) As a noun (excitement, dazzle): "You need furniture that will add some wow to your new home"
(3) As a verb (impress):" The actors really wowed the audience"

Wishing you all a Happy Mother's Day with your loved ones. How is your mom wow?

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Computer Savvy

4/7/2015

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If you're learning English for your job or business, then today's lesson will be beneficial to you. "Computer savvy" is a term we hear quite often in business and also commonly on a job application, resume, or job description

On a job description, you might see something like this:
Looking for someone who has experience in sales, can work as a team and must be computer savvy.

The word SAVVY [sav-ee] means knowledgeable or has advanced skills in a particular area. So someone who is COMPUTER SAVVY means they have good experience with using computers. It can sometimes be seen as computer-savvy.

The English Student, www.theenglishstudent.com the english students, what does computer savvy mean? meaning of savvy, ESL website, best education blog, learn English fun

Those who have poor skills in using computers would not be computer savvy. It usually refers to someone who can do more than just type an email or create a Word document. Just because you have a computer doesn't mean you are computer savvy!

But if you are a computer savvy person, you probably understand how to use several programs, how to perform virus checks, recovering deleted items, creating folders etc. I would say I'm a computer savvy teacher!

There are many other ways the word savvy can be used and not just with computers. Someone could be business savvy, internet savvy, politically savvy, technically savvy, marketing savvy, media savvy

It can also be used as an adjective before a noun:
"He is a savvy shopper", "She is a savvy bride", "He is a savvy politician", "She is a savvy Facebook user!"

Do you think you're computer savvy?

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What's In Your Bag?

4/2/2015

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Most people like to carry a bag with them everywhere, especially true for women! Since I haven't been a student for many years, I no longer have to carry a school bag filled with books and stationary, but I do like to carry a purse with me when I go out. I prefer to carry a larger bag as it gives me room to put a lot of things in. However, I USUALLY carry all the above items in my bag: my keys, wallet, cell phone, sunglasses, scarf (because Seattle's weather is unpredictable), and lip balm. The above is an actual drawing of the things inside my bag at the moment!

You may remember from a previous lesson before, USUALLY is an adverb of frequency. You can refer to this lesson and chart here. It means that the probability of me carrying the above items is very very likely, but not always 100% as sometimes I forget my cell phone at home. My husband can tell you that it happens to me quite often!! So the chances of me carrying all the above items in my bag is about 90% of the time. This is what USUALLY means.

Another word is CARRY. This is a verb meaning to have with you or to take from one place to another. There are so many things you can carry with you: carry cash, carry lipstick, carry my meeting notes, carry my dog, carry groceries. Non-humans can also carry things, for example, a train can carry passengers, a school bus can carry students.

There are times when the word CARRY doesn't necessarily have to mean something must move from one place to another. It can also be used to mean contain or hold on to something. For example a suitcase can carry clothes, a book can carry meaning . We can also "carry excess weight" or "carry burden."

Can you share some things that you usually carry in your bag?

Related Lessons:
Adverbs of Frequency
What Do You Eat For Breakfast?
Adverbs Of Manner

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The Oscars Word Party

2/22/2015

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Not everyone may be invited to The Oscars tomorrow night, but everyone is invited to join The Oscar Word Party! Learn the meaning of these ten commonly used words from The Oscars Ceremony so that you can join in the conversation.