Search results for 'tag:Expressions tag:Accents' matching tags 'Expressions' and 'Accents'

grammar check please!

Ellisa — Tue, 04 Nov 2008 05:13:21 GMT

Hello teachers!
I've wrote an introduction of my presentation.
Checking grammar errors or suggesting better expressions are always welcomed!
Thanks in advance!

StartFragment>

Hello everyone. My name is Kim studying at Russian Department. In my presentation, I'm going to criticize professor Lee's paper titled "Korean spelling errors of Korean learner's and ways for improvements."

Lee conducted an experiment based on the teenagers who are mother tongue is English living in North America. The goal of this experiment was figuring out the reasons why these students have had spelling errors in Korean. Also he proposed some solutions to improve the errors. Professor Lee thinks that they have different learning processes between heritage learners and foreigners.

First of all, teenage Korean learners whose parents are both Korean, obviously they have more opportunities to be exposed to an Korean speaking environment than others.

Second, even though Korean is their second language, the teenagers have the most similar accent of Korean one. Because of this, despite their unclear pronunciations, it sounds fluent.

Last, those students who have abilities to listen and speak properly can't write Korean without mis-spelling. It's due to the fact that they haven't got proper education for writing which leads them mis-spelled.

I want to raise an objection to his second point. What does it mean having ìì ì ì¸ ìµì? (never mind using Korean here, it's needed to be here) Does it mean having the most similar sound to Korean accent? Are there any standard accent we can tell easily?

Please comment on and correct on my writing

Raen — Sat, 25 Oct 2008 00:47:41 GMT

I don't know what I'd call it. Not an essay, there's no arguement techinically, just an opinion. I wrote it as a practice in writing racticing rather than voicing an opinion, although every bit of it is genuin. I had trouble deciding on the name for the subject matter, but this name, "Collocation, the adjective-noun part", is the best I could do. There must be a name for it, because it exists. Please review it, and correct for grammars and comment on the wording, style, conciseness, clarity ect.....I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks.

Form over substance:

for the eager and unsuspecting

Callocation, the adjective-noun part..beware of it.

It stands next to a phony foreign accent, the #1 suspect, in the lineup of "phoniness". Callocation is a by-product of the end result of one's learning of the language and becomes part of their voice. Assuming it and use it as your own is like picking up somebody's spit from his dinner, putting it in your mouth and chewing it so deliberately as if to convince the spewer how tasteful and delicious it is. That's just embarrassing, if not downright nasty. So before you drill the list of callocation into your already overwhelmed head and use it the next chance your have, think twice, it will betray you and tip you off.

What makes the hair on the back of my neck shoots up from its root more than anything else is when I hear my country fellowmen and women mimic a native speaker's personal property: the tone, the voice, ..and you've got it, the callocation! Using the expression like "a stunning beauty" time after time is annoying as if there's no other degree of beauty. That's for John, the native speaker next door, who uses it to describe any woman that breathes and happens to walk by. I rather you just say beauty and let me decide on what adjective to use to modify the noun based on the merit of the girl's beauty in question. In fact, I'd be more impressed if you say "a cucumber-white beauty", because that expression of originality conjures up in the brain of any Chinese a vivid image of a beautiful girl with smooth, clear and translucent white skin that we Chinese, men or women, obssess over ever so perversely. Show Originality, speak in your own voice, then I'll take you seriously when you want to tell me about the Angelina Jolie, I'll take you at your words that are your own. If I want to listen to John, I'd go talk to him myself.

As a foreigner, mimicking the fixed verbiage without reserve will stifle the little creativity you have left from learning the strigent rules of grammar. Your speech should not only convey your thoughts, your opinions, your views but also reflect your personality. Resist the temptation to speak LIKE a native, rather speak like an original with an accent (if you can't shake it, most of us can't) in your own voice. No matter how well you think you handle callocation, you're still copycatting it. You know it, I know it, even the cat standing and meowing next to you knows it, cats themselvies can smell a copycat right off the bat. So be original, be yourself. If you're still at the stage of mastering the skill of combining dependent clauses into one sentence, please do not say "crystal clear" or "stark contrast", simply "clear" and "contrast" would be sufficient for you.

Learning a foreign language is not about showing it off by using certain flashy verbiage that you drap over the substance of your speech, and how much you can sound like a native speaker using a borrowed voice. It is ultimately about learning to communicate, to tell people what you think, see, feel and hopefully in the process they understand who you are. Don't overlearn fixed verbiage such as callocation (the adjective-noun part), know it's there and that's that. Native speakers use it and sound awsome becaus they own it, it's their birth right.

Unless you're already there when callocation flows freely and naturally from your mouth to your speech, your thoughts to your text, deliberate and pre-mature use of it can be as hard on the ears as Modonna's British accent. So skim thru the list of callocation somebody kindly compiled, just so you know it's out there. But don't drill it, if you have to drill it into your head, it doesn't belong to you. If it doesn't belong to you, don't use it. Callocation will come to you in its own term, so haste not and be real. Rene Descartes said this famous wisdom: "I think, therefore I am." And I'd say, using my first neologism:

You phonify, then you are not.

Re: Filipinisms/Filipinoisms? Ring a bell?

Mister Micawber — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 00:07:37 GMT

.
I would consider this exercise damagingly prescriptive; most are neither uniquely Filipino nor wrong. However (and my comments refer to AmE/BrE):

1. Free subscription of... (Free subscription toâ¦) - prepo issue-- AmE/BrE uses the collocation subscribe to.
2. Can I speak withâ¦? (May I speak withâ¦) - To sound more polite/ask permission?-- Both OK. 'Can' is more casual but just as common.
3. Come again? (I'm sorry I didn't get quite get that / Excuse me? / I'm sorry would you please say that again?) - English trainers discourage agents to use this because they say that it could mean 'cum again')-- The English trainers are nuts. Come again is common and casual. Your examples in parentheses are overly formal for most situations.
4. It's for free! (It's free. / It's free of charge. / We're sending it to you for free.) - Filipinos have been used to saying 'It's for free'. How do I say that it should be avoided? What makes it wrong?-- Nothing makes it wrong; it's fine.
5. Hold your line/For awhileâ¦ (Would you mind if I put you on hold for a second? / Please hold) - hold your line is absurd. any comment? what about for awhile?-- I agree that 'Hold your line' is not natural in AmE/BrE. 'Please hold' or 'Could you hold, please' is the usual.
6. Open/ close the light/computer (Turn on/off the light/TV/computer) - how do I explain this? it sounds like opening/closing the tv for repair.- This seems to be a direct translation from Spanish? Tagalog? At least, it is the same error that Japanese make.
7. Do you mind waiting? Yes, I'll wait. (No, not at all. / No, I don't mind at all.) - YES is the issue. wrong response. any other feedback?-- 'Yes' is logically wrong but common when the tag ( e.g. 'I'll wait') is also present; speakers seldom have the opportunity to stop and think about the 'Do you mind?' form, and this includes native AmE/BrE speakers.
8. Anything? (Is there anything I can do for you? / How may I help you?) - fragmented, seems vague?-- Yes, it seems vague and fragmentary out of context.
9. I'll ask her an apology. (I'll apologize to her. / I should make an apology.) - this sounds illogical?-- Not a natural AmE/BrE formation.
10. We take lunch. (We eat lunch. / We have lunch (every Sunday).)-- 'Take' seems to be an occasional replacement in this context in many Englishes. It is not an egregious variation.
11. We accept repairs. (This shop repairs cars/cellphones, etc.)-- Seems fine to me.
12. We accept painting jobs. (This shop does painting jobs.)- Quite common.
13. Tuck out (Untuck)- Odd.
14. He was salvaged. (He was assassinated.)-- A new meaning for the word for me, and it is not in the dictionary. Perhaps some confusion with 'savaged'?
15. She delivered her baby yesterday. (She had her baby yesterday. / Dr. Smith delivered her baby.)-- This is fine. From the dictionary-- 'to give birth to: She delivered twins at 4 a.m. '
16. Xerox (Photocopy)-- Very common in AmE at least. Among my generation, 'to xerox' is perhaps more usual than 'to photocopy'.
17. Oppositor (Opposition member)-- A new word for me. Not a bad formation, but perhaps difficult to understand by foreigners.
18. Hand carry (Carry - on luggage)-- A new word, but reasonable.
19. It's traffic today. (Traffic is heavy.) -- It seems vague and fragmentary
20. Senatoriable (Senatorial candidate) -- Odder than #17
21. At around 2pm (At about 2pm) - around is Am? about is Brit?- Very common in AmE; it also appears with this meaning in the Cambridge dictionary.
22. I failed in Accent training. (I failed accent training.)-- A common expression, though I prefer your alternative.
23. We were under Mr. Johnson. (Mr. Johnson was our teacher.) - Filipinos are used to saying 'That student is under my class' so this filipinism has started.-- In context, 'We were under Mr. Johnson' sounds fine, while 'That student is under my class' does not.
24. My brother is taking up law. (My brother is taking law. / My brother is studying law.) -- 'Take up' is common, but means the overall intention, not just the matriculation.
25. Where are you studying? (Where do you go to school? / What school do you go to?)- 'Where are you studying' is fine.
26. Pass by my office before you go. (Drop by my office before you go.) - Brit/Am phrasal?-- Not AmE, at least. 'Stop by' or 'Drop by'.
27. We have one participant only. (We only have one participant.) - should they say 'only one participant'?-- The 'only' can go in several places; at the end is one of those places.
28. I talked to her already. (I already talked to her.) - I need help on adverb order. This confuses all Filipinos and me too. Where should adverbs be placed?- Adverbs are relatively variable in their placement. In this case, both are all OK. More interesting is that AmE uses simple past more consistently with 'yet' and 'already' than does BrE, which prefers the perfect aspect.
29. Will you be at the office at 7am? Actually. (Will you be at the office at 7am? Yes.)-- Not AmE/BrE
30. Actually, I like Jennifer Aniston. (I like Jennifer Aniston.) - Actually/basically has become Filipinos expressions.-- I wouldn't say that it is unique to Filipinos; many AmE speakers develop the habit in various contexts. Too much is too much, however.
31. As per Paul, all request forms should be signed by him. (As per Paul's instructions, all request forms should be signed by him.)-- This is common bizspeak throughout the English-speaking world.
32. Wanted: Sewer (Wanted: Tailor or seamstress)-- Yes, it is certainly open to misinterpretation! But 'seamstress' is sexist.
33. Take home (Take it home / To go. / For take out)-- 'Take home food' seems like a regional variant of 'take out food'.
34. I felt kind of tired. (I felt rather tired.)-- 'Kind of' is very common in informal AmE.
35. As to the projectâ¦ (About the projectâ¦)-- A common formality in most Englishes.
36. Thank you for that/this one. (Thank you for the information. / Thank you.) - I need to send this in a few minutes and I still couldn't think of an explanation. Phrasing sounds awkward to me. But besides getting straight to the point, why did 'for that/this one' make it wrong?-- 'One' is wrongly used; 'information' is uncountable.
37. I do love playing basketball/volleyball. (I love playing basketball/volleyball.) - this may sound right depending on the flow of the conversation, right? e.g. you don't love playing... No, I do...-- You are correct. This is called the emphatic 'do'.
38. Currently, I live in Quezon City right now. (Currently, I live in Quezon City. / I live in Quezon City.) - redundant - now and currently.- Yes, redundant.
39. Actually, I like Microsoft, Symantec and Adobe (I like Microsoft Symantec and Adobe)-- The comma is necessary if Microsoft and Symantec are different softwares.
40. As per Mon, all request forms should be signed by him. (As per Paul's instructions, all request forms should be signed by him.)-- This is the same as #31, and OK.
41. I do apologize (I apologize.)-- This is fine indeed. It is the same as #37, and is more polite than your bracketed alternative.
.

Filipinisms/Filipinoisms? Ring a bell?

samwalker — Tue, 26 Aug 2008 18:26:28 GMT

Has anyone heard about Filipinisms/Filipinoism?

Hi guys. In the call center industry, it refers to terms/phrases used by Filipinos in speaking and in writing (sometimes). They gave me a list with corrections and assigned me to send one Filipinism with corrections weekly. However, in my opinion, sending the filipinism and a correction seems not enough.
I want to include reasons/explanations why a certain Filipinism is wrong but I'm neither a teacher nor a native Brit/Am so I don't know how to exlain each entry/correction.
I need your feedback for each entry (What makes them wrong? Is it grammatically incorrect? etc... How do I explain to agents?)
Here is their list:

"Filipinisms are words or phrases that are ususally grammatically incorrect or are almost always results of transliteration."

Filipinism (Correct Usage)

1. Free subscription of... (Free subscription toâ¦) - prepo issue
2. Can I speak withâ¦? (May I speak withâ¦) - To sound more polite/ask permission?
3. Come again? (I'm sorry I didn't get quite get that / Excuse me? / I'm sorry would you please say that again?) - English trainers discourage agents to use this because they say that it could mean 'cum again')
4. It's for free! (It's free. / It's free of charge. / We're sending it to you for free.) - Filipinos have been used to saying 'It's for free'. How do I say that it should be avoided? What makes it wrong?
5. Hold your line/For awhileâ¦ (Would you mind if I put you on hold for a second? / Please hold) - hold your line is absurd. any comment? what about for awhile?
6. Open/ close the light/computer (Turn on/off the light/TV/computer) - how do I explain this? it sounds like opening/closing the tv for repair.
7. Do you mind waiting? Yes, I'll wait. (No, not at all. / No, I don't mind at all.) - YES is the issue. wrong response. any other feedback?
8. Anything? (Is there anything I can do for you? / How may I help you?) - fragmented, seems vague?
9. I'll ask her an apology. (I'll apologize to her. / I should make an apology.) - this sounds illogical?
10. We take lunch. (We eat lunch. / We have lunch (every Sunday).)
11. We accept repairs. (This shop repairs cars/cellphones, etc.)
12. We accept painting jobs. (This shop does painting jobs.)
13. Tuck out (Untuck)
14. He was salvaged. (He was assassinated.)
15. She deliveredher baby yesterday. (She had her baby yesterday. / Dr. Smith delivered her baby.)
16. Xerox (Photocopy)
17. Oppositor (Opposition member)
18. Hand carry (Carry - on luggage)
19. It's traffic today. (Traffic is heavy.)
20. Senatoriable (Senatorial candidate)
21. At around 2pm (At about 2pm) - around is Am? about is Brit?
22. I failed in Accent training. (I failed accent training.)
23. We were under Mr. Johnson. (Mr. Johnson was our teacher.) - Filipinos are used to saying 'That student is under my class' so this filipinism has started.
24. My brother is taking up law. (My brother is taking law. / My brother is studying law.)
25. Where are you studying? (Where do you go to school? / What school do you go to?)
26. Pass by my office before you go. (Drop by my office before you go.) - Brit/Am phrasal?
27. We have one participant only. (We only have one participant.) - should they say 'only one participant'?
28. I talked to her already. (I already talked to her.) - I need help on adverb order. This confuses all Filipinos and me too. Where should adverbs be placed?
29. Will you be at the office at 7am? Actually. (Will you be at the office at 7am? Yes.)
30. Actually, I like Jennifer Aniston. (I like Jennifer Aniston.) - Actually/basically has become Filipinos expressions.
31. As per Paul, all request forms should be signed by him. (As per Paul's instructions, all request forms should be signed by him.)
32. Wanted: Sewer (Wanted: Tailor or seamstress)
33. Take home (Take it home / To go. / For take out)
34. I felt kind of tired. (I felt rather tired.)
35. As to the projectâ¦ (About the projectâ¦)
36. Thank you for that/this one. (Thank you for the information. / Thank you.) - I need to send this in a few minutes and I still couldn't think of an explanation. Phrasing sounds awkward to me. But besides getting straight to the point, why did 'for that/this one' make it wrong?
37. I do love playing basketball/volleyball. (I love playing basketball/volleyball.) - this may sound right depending on the flow of the conversation, right? e.g. you don't love playing... No, I do...
38. Currently, I live in Quezon City right now. (Currently, I live in Quezon City. / I live in Quezon City.) - redundant - now and currently.
39. Actually, I like Microsoft, Symantec and Adobe (I like Microsoft Symantec and Adobe)
40. As per Mon, all request forms should be signed by him. (As per Paul's instructions, all request forms should be signed by him.)
41. I do apologize (I apologize.)

Seeing and hearing their errors frustrate me. I wanna help them and tell them why each entry is wrong/grammatically incorrect/vague/illogical/awkwardly phrased/etc. but I'm not a teacher.
I would appreciate if someone could add exlanation to every entry...

Re: If I'm used only to Standard English, might I have trouble understanding dialects?

Tanit — Fri, 30 May 2008 14:48:26 GMT

Mr Wordy
Welsh people speak English with a distinctive lilting accent that is often described as "sing-song".

Hi,

I had never heard of that expression, and it's just perfect! I've known some people from South Wales (Swansea and Cardiff, especially) and they really seemed to sing while speaking, because of their usage of intonation. It took me some time to get used to it, but it was not difficult after all.
I also met some people from the Valleys, but never became accustomed to their accent - really hard for me.

Re: get his Irish accent across to the audience

Grammar Geek — Tue, 20 May 2008 21:09:03 GMT

Sorry to join the fray, but I'm right with Khoff on this. Probably, the only thing that DID make it through to the audience was the accent, not the message. In the original, it sounds like he wasn't able to convince them he was Irish.

As Clive says, "get across" and "come across" are different expressions.

Re: get his Irish accent across to the audience

Clive — Tue, 20 May 2008 20:44:40 GMT

Hi,

'to get something across (to someone)'

'something comes across (to someone)'

These are two pretty different expressions, although they both feature the word 'across'.

Best wishes, Clive

Re: Is American English lazy English?

Brazilian clown — Sun, 11 May 2008 22:16:09 GMT

All I know is that British accent sounds better but surprisingly...however, I'd rather to speak the American one because words come out easier regarding the pronounciation..of course sometimes when I watch some American movies is unavoidable to dislike some colloquial expressions...some used by rappers, for instance..

Re: true and correct

Kooyeen — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 19:16:03 GMT

Hoa Thai
What I am trying to figure out is this: before everyone says it, it must be invented by a person or a small group of people; so how does it eventually get accepted by everyone? Is it because it sounds good or it is backed up with some acceptable rule(s) / logical reasoning? I could be wrong - but I tend to think that without conforming to certain standards - for example, a fundamental grammar structure - it would not survive.

Hi Hoa,
I don't know, I think that's something for linguists.
Anyway, I'm sure not all changes happen the same way and for the same reasons. Some things could be logical and expected, like changing the spelling of "colour" to "color", but others might not make much sense... where does the expression "I could care less" come from? LOL, I have no idea. Or why is it "quarter of ten" in the US?
So I think this is rather complicated to explain, and since I am not a linguist, I can't tell you more. Sorry!
But I believe today the media plays an important role in deciding what will be part of modern English and what will not. If someone makes up a new term in high school, if they are popular chances are all the others in the school will start to use that term. But not all the others in the rest of the US. But if that term is put in an important movie, on TV shows, on The Simpsons, on commercials... heh, I bet that term is more likely to be listed in dictionaries in the future... even thought I think only young people are likely to actually pick up "new language."

Hoa Thai
In other words, in any language, words might be born as we search for a new way to express our thoughts, but they must satisfy some basic principle(s). In the end, wouldn't it be true that rules make up the foundation of languages?

Yes, but we all follow implicit rules, that might not be the same for everyone. You could say "It don't matter" is wrong according to your rules, but those who say it consider it a possible sentence, according to their own rules. Because that's what they have always heard from most people around them. They are not breaking any rules or corrupting anything. Maybe they break the rules of "standard English", which is what people call the variety spoken in somewhat formal situations, for example by newscasters, or the variety you find in newspapers. Well, since few people can talk like newscasters or write like journalists, I'm starting to think that maybe most native speakers don't speak "standard English". It seems everyone is allowed to have their own accent but not their own grammar, according to prescriptivists, although native speakers pick up both of them the same way during their lives. That's curious, isn't it? LOL

Re: I have Problems understanding English dvd movies

Kooyeen — Mon, 26 Nov 2007 18:26:37 GMT

Hi David,
2 x 3 = 6 movies in 2 days! LOL, that's a lot!
Anyway...

David Little wrote:
My problem is i could"nt understand the dialogues properly without the sub-title turned on.

...hmm, ok, let's try this. Try to answer this question.
When you don't understand, you turn the subtitles on. After you have read the subtitle, do you say something more similar to #1 or more similar to #2?
1) Oh, yeah, they really said that. I could have figured it out if I had listened more carefully.
2) Damn, this is difficult. I would have never guessed a single word. They talk too fast.

If you answered #1, your problem might be vocabulary and common expressions. You just need to get used to common expressions and learn vocabulary. This is my problem, for example. This takes time, an awful lot of time, but you'll notice you improve little by little.
If you answered #2, your problem might be pronunciation. You don't understand because you can't hear the words.

Note 1: there are movies that are difficult. There are movies (or animated cartoons) where I can understand 90% of what it's said, and movies where I hardly understand a single word. I'm not kidding! Many characters have regional accents too.
So, don't always watch movies. Try sitcoms or something else, until you find something that sounds easier to you.
Also, using headphones will help you hear the words better.
Note 2: you don't have to understand everything. Try to understand as much as possible, but don't worry if you don't understand a whole sentence or joke. I never use subtitles, because I find them distracting and I noticed they are often wrong, therefore they could be misleading. If I don't understand... who cares. I don't need to understand everything to follow the story and enjoy it. If I don't understand a joke... who cares. I always think "one day I'll understand almost everything, when I'm better at English". And believe me, I don't understand a lot of things.