I don't know if this makes you feel any better. A Canadian geophysicist and friend of mine has just told me he knows the term "Taconic", but not "taconian". He cannot explain why one adjective is "better" than the other, but agrees with you

One of my favourite books is Michael Swan's "Practical English Usage". It's a good "manual" to start with in terms of grammar and proper word usage. Style goes a bit beyond. I know there's a famous old book called "The Elements of Style", writen

This is an interesting question and could be paraphrased into "Is an EFL/ESL certified teacher allowed to sign any ESP/ESAP certificate?" When we are trained, we are taught how to cope with the methodology and the art of second language

Mmm... let's see: "after 3 days of vacation..." or "after a 3-day vacation..." "... today is the first day I'm back to work" or "... today is my first day back to work" Hope this helps!

dispense: 1. (tr) to give out or distribute in portions 2. (tr) to prepare and distribute (medicine), esp. on prescription 3. (tr) to administer (the law, etc.) 4. (intr.; foll. by with) to do away (with) or manage (without) 5. to grant a

It depends on the skills you perform the best. Some people like writing, but not speaking, i.e. great writers but poor conversational counterparts. Some like speaking but cannot write a single word. To become a "competent non-native speaker" you

Formally speaking, number 2 is the correct one from a grammtical point of view. However, number 1 is also acccepted - it's just a stylistic variation to "season" the language. Hope this helps!

You travel for two reasons: pleasure or obligation. You may not like travelling at all, but if your job forces you to do so there is nothing you can do about it (and you may end up in liking travelling but not touring). Now, if you travel for

Formally speaking, no. Your voice does not change because every one of us has an innate and unique pattern. You can cheat human ears, but not voice-recognition instruments. Anyway, you may (as a matter of fact SHOULD) change your intonation

As a subject noun, it must be "Tim and I". As an object noun, it should be "Tim and me". Compare: Tim and I have been friends for 10 years. Jane invited Tim and me to a party. It is very common, although wrong, to say "me and Tim", for