Marketers now rely on cutting-edge AI paraphrase tools to create original content. Utilising their precious time therefore becomes considerably simpler. 

Today, it can be challenging to pick an appropriate AI tool out of the numerous available online. Despite having the same basic function, these tools are not identical.

Your content needs to be original, regardless of the audience or sector for which you are writing. Google penalises duplicate and copied material, so keep that in mind. If your work isn’t original, it drastically affects its visibility.

Their functionality and design play a role in this. An effective AI paraphrasing tool can provide you with quick results that are of high quality. Again, creating quality content is always valued in the marketing industry nowadays.

Paraphrasing Tools for Effortless Rewriting

All website users and newsletter subscribers seek out useful stuff. However, even a talented writer occasionally has trouble producing high-quality content. The rise in popularity of AI writing aids today is due to this. 

A useful AI writing tool and an AI paraphrase tool are the same. A reliable paraphrase tool plays a crucial role in preventing plagiarism and producing properly prepared textual materials.

Therefore, we have covered the seven best and most effective AI paraphrasing tools in this article.

1. Paraphrasing.io

The most effective paraphrasing tool is paraphrasing.io. It first examines the provided content to determine its context before rewriting it.

The main goal of this paraphrasing tool was to make writing easier. You can rephrase the material at the phrase, sentence, and paragraph levels thanks to it. The diction and syntactic structures are changed, resulting in fully original and error-free content.

Rewriting the information in a way that avoids plagiarism and preserves readability works well. This tool employs cutting-edge AI algorithms to guarantee that the information is paraphrased accurately and quickly.

You can choose from any of the 15 available languages to rewrite the material as necessary.

This paraphrase tool is available to users everywhere without any subscription fees or usage restrictions.

2. GetGenie AI

The most recent and effective paraphrase tool is GetGenie AI. With Genie, you may edit any web material, including sentences, paragraphs, and whole websites. It is now offered as a WordPress plugin.

The tool includes a template for paraphrasing called Content Rewriter. However, all GetGenie templates are intuitive to use and well-organized. 

For a single input, GetGenie can generate several outputs. For the content that is generated, GetGenie provides outstanding SEO services. This material may rank on SERPs and drive new traffic to your website. If you buy the premium package, the templates also include more features.

3. Spin Rewriter

The most capable online paraphrasing tool at users’ disposal was Spin Rewriter.  Spin Writer enables the software to produce text that is on par with that written by a real human. The online tool for paraphrase called Spin Rewriter uses cutting-edge technologies for superior outcomes.

The programme gives the user the freedom to rephrase as many articles as they like. It may simultaneously paraphrase up to 1,000 articles, saving time and effort.

For consumers who are interested in signing up for the yearly plan, the Spin Rewriter tool provides a 5-day free trial. All of the tool’s subscription tiers provide complete access to all of its features. Additionally, it offers a reasonable lifetime subscription plan.

4. QuillBot AI

One of the greatest and most often used paraphrase tools available is Quillbot.

More than 150 million users use Quillbot every day to shorten paragraphs and speed up article creation. Advanced NLP techniques are used by Quillbot AI to paraphrase the content and provide you with an original result.

Anyone may get started using QuillBot with a free account. You have a 125-word paraphrase limit with it, but you can paraphrase as much stuff as you like. This means that you are limited to paraphrasing a few sentences or shorter paragraphs at once.

You can paraphrase an infinite quantity of information each day when using Quillbot Premium. You can reword paragraphs with Quillbot’s free extensions for Microsoft Word and Chrome.

5. Article Rewriter

If you want to paraphrase the text on your site, Article Rewriter Tool is the best online paraphrasing tool. It has the ability to reword full articles as well as single sentences and brief phrases. 

It will enable you to quickly divide up a single blog article into numerous blog posts. You can make the quantity of blog articles available into twice or three times as much material by using the Article Rewriter. This will enable you to produce content for the same or different blogs that is more readable.

In addition to paraphrasing the original text, it also adds some pretty advanced vocabulary. This gives the altered content the appearance of being produced naturally and by a talented writer. It gets rid of the characteristic that most rephrase sentences share: a robotic writing style.

6. Wordtune 

Wordtune is a singularly focused paraphrase tool that excels at what it does. Once more, you may immediately begin using Word Tune for nothing. You can perform up to 20 rewrites each day rather than being restricted to one per world like other tools. Unlimited rewrites are available if you subscribe to a premium plan.

The tool functions a little differently than others because it gives you a variety of options to choose from rather than just replacing the text. 

Outside of the app, you can paraphrase thanks to a Chrome extension. In the commercial version, you can select between informal and formal writing styles and shorten or lengthen the text.

7. Jasper

It is simple to use Jasper’s AI paraphrasing tool. Simply select a template for the kind of content you want to rewrite, and the programme will generate original content for you in a matter of seconds.

Jasper AI rewriter saves you time and produces unique text because it is coupled with a plagiarism detector. The material can be rephrased in more than 25 other languages.

You may write more quickly and the copy is search engine optimised with Surfer SEO integration. Jasper is capable of rewriting text in a variety of formats, such as blogs, emails, social media posts, and more.

Conclusion

In the world of content generation, paraphrasing tools are becoming essential. They speed up the rewriting process while maintaining precision, effectiveness, and high-quality output. You can improve your content creation process and save a lot of time and work by choosing the appropriate paraphrase tool that fits your unique needs. Explore the highlighted paraphrase tools without hesitation and take advantage of what they can do to improve your writing in 2023.

The post Top 7 Paraphrasing Tools for Effortless Rewriting in 2023 appeared first on Linguix Blog.

Unfortunately, the grim statistics show that most high school students lack the proficiency in writing necessary to successfully complete a college-level English composition class. As a result, poor writing skills affect students’ performance and grades as well as lower chances to succeed in their future. 

Why do students struggle with writing? What are the ways to overcome this issue? How can AI writing assistants help? We’ll cover these questions in our new blog post. Let’s dive into it.

Students don’t read as much as before

Reading is an effective process for improving writing skills. While reading, students learn new words, expressions and the way they can be used. 

The digital era provides us with numerous opportunities, while simultaneously creating new challenges. 

Teenagers and young adults are no longer eager to perceive information through reading. Why would they, if there are so many YouTube videos that explain all they need in 10 minutes? 

Social media destroy our focus, so reading becomes particularly tedious. As a consequence, students don’t memorize new expressions and proper grammar usage, their vocabulary is limited.

The casual style of writing differs from the formal one

Essays and research papers require an academic writing style. While creative writing is enjoyable, the formal one is tiresome for most students. 

Essays, for example, should be written using accurate and subject-specific vocabulary, which students often don’t possess. Social media, short videos or some blog posts that teens usually digest are unlikely to contain this kind of vocabulary. Combine this with a lack of reading and you’ll see dozens of students who are afraid of writing.

People don’t speak using correct grammar

Even though most students in the US are natives, a lion’s share of them doesn’t speak correctly, let alone formally. Spoken language is full of incorrect grammar, unnecessary fillers, slang words and so on. Written assignments, in turn, should be concise, clear, accurate and formal. 

That’s why ELL students, for instance, can’t rely on speaking to improve their writing.

Students aren’t prepared to write academic papers

According to The New York Times article based on several studies, the root of the problem lies in teachers’ inability to teach students how to write. They often have little training in how to teach writing and, as a result, are unconfident writers themselves. 

The analysis of teacher preparation programs indicated that the teaching of writing wasn’t being covered in a widespread or systematic way. 

For these reasons, students lack writing practice and get little or no feedback.

Students are dysgraphic or dyslexic 

Students with these disorders commonly suffer from poor reading and writing skills. To keep up with the pace, they should be provided with special room accommodation. However, the symptoms of the disorders are often overlooked because neither educators nor their parents are aware of students’ condition. 

Without proper care, they will most probably perform worse and get lower marks.

How to Help Students who Struggle with Writing 

First, educational institutions should take into consideration the peculiarities of all students. Dyslexic, dysgraphic and ELL students have special needs that should be met. For example, additional writing and reading classes or class accommodation would be of great value. 

Second, teachers should take additional programs to learn how to teach writing. In fact, various initiatives are taken to address the issue. For example, as part of its program at Nassau Community College, a group of teachers was honing their own writing skills.

Finally, students themselves should take action to improve their writing. Practice makes perfect, as we all know. 

There are numerous techniques: freewriting, copying articles or essays, journaling and reading. In addition, it’s important to have someone who can give feedback on students’ writing.

How Linguix Assists Students 

Although we learn how to write in childhood, it still is one of the most challenging skills for many students. Yet the amount of papers, essays and emails they have to write to survive the university is notorious. Silly mistakes can easily affect grades and eventually their future. 

Nevertheless, students rarely can afford to buy tools for their studies. 

Therefore, our team has decided to provide all students with Linguix Premium for free! Use the tool to check if your grammar, punctuation and spelling are correct. Your personal Writing Coach helps you learn and avoid common mistakes you make. Rewriter 2.0, in turn, makes your vocabulary diverse and eliminates repetition.

If you’re a student and have an “.edu” email address, click the link, create an account and get your free Premium right away.

If your student email account doesn’t end with “. edu”, contact us at hi@linguix.com and we’ll help you out.

Focus on the value you provide in your writing assignments. Linguix helps you with the rest!

The post Why Students Struggle with Writing and Ways to Help Them appeared first on Linguix Blog.

You can learn words and collocations in a context. Memorizing words is crucial for enhancing your vocabulary, but without a real-life context, they’ll probably be stored in your passive vocabulary. It means that you won’t be able to use them during a conversation or while writing. Films help you learn how and when to use new words.

You can listen to the real pronunciation. There are so many words to learn and you probably don’t have the time to memorize the pronunciation of every one of them. Movies are a great way to listen to the correct way of saying words. Besides, movies can help you choose what accent is your favorite: British or American. Textbooks, on the other hand, rarely focus on English accents.

You find out what is real native English. Learning grammar and vocabulary from textbooks is great, but it’s less efficient than listening to real native speakers. The natural way of speaking in movies is much closer to the one you desire to achieve than academic and a little bit “artificial” English in textbooks. By observing how actors communicate, you may sound like a native speaker far sooner. 

Best Movies for Learning English

Let’s look at the list of films that in our opinion help you learn the language by displaying the natural way of speaking and contain some rich vocabulary:

The Theory of Everything (2014)

The Theory of Everything tells the story of Stephen Hawking – one of the most famous physicists of our time. The movie is focused on his relationship with Jane Wilde and his fatal illness (ALS) diagnosed in his early twenties. 

If you love the British accent this film is the right choice for you. Many of the actors speak “the Queen’s”, which is considered upper-class, correct and clear English. The characters use difficult scientific words. Watch this movie if you already speak English well enough to make it more advanced. 

Great Gatsby (2013)

The Great Gatsby is a historical romantic drama movie based on F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel. A Wall Street trader, Nick Carraway finds himself captivated by the past and lifestyle of his extremely wealthy neighbor, Jay Gatsby. After being a part of his life for some time, Nick figures out the dark and ugly background behind Jay’s rich existence.

The movie is good for language learners who want to learn more about America in the 1920s. The characters’ slow dialogues and the amazing soundtrack are perfect for enjoyable English learning. 

Harry Potter (2001-2011)

Most probably, you’re familiar with the story of Harry Potter, an orphaned wizard, created by British author Joanne Rowling. The movies are about Harry’s magical adventures. All the main characters go to a magic school called Hogwarts. 

If you’re new to watching movies in English, Harry Potter is a good choice to start. The first two movies were made for a young audience, so the dialogues are slow and easy to understand.

The Shawshank Redemption (1994)

The Shawshank Redemption has been voted as one of the best films ever made and is based on a book by Stephen King. A formerly successful banker was sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty of a crime he didn’t commit. Over many years, he gets closer to another prisoner, they both find solace in their tragic situations.

Not surprisingly, the dialogues in the movie are full of difficult legal words as well as lots of American slang. 

Little Women (2019)

The movie tells the story of the lives of four sisters, growing up in New England during the Civil War. It shows their feelings, dreams, illnesses, and life lessons from childhood to young adulthood. The film is based on a novel written by American novelist Louisa May Alcott and is considered an autobiographical piece.

Little Women is a great choice for English learners because of clear dialogues and the story that makes people empathize with their family’s feelings. 

Forrest Gump (1994)

Forrest Gump, who is played by Tom Hanks, is a kind man with a low IQ. The film follows his entire extraordinary life and is narrated by Forrest himself. He accidentally takes part in some important moments in history without realizing it. The movie is funny and will make you feel good.

Forrest’s speech is slow and easy to understand, therefore it’s the right choice for English beginners. However, he often uses a lot of American slang, so it’s great for advanced learners as well.

The Social Network (2010)

This movie follows the story of Mark Zuckerberg, a genius Harvard student, who developed a revolutionary global social network in his dorm room. The network then has entirely changed the way we communicate with other people. Zuckerberg becomes famous and the youngest billionaire in history, but money and fame lead to personal and legal issues.

Aaron Sorkin, who has written the script, is well-known for his natural dialogues and funny lines, so the movie is enjoyable to watch and is easy to follow. You’ll find many advanced words related to computers, technology and social networks.

Final Thoughts

Your English learning won’t be boring for you from now on. Use subtitles if you wish. However, we recommend avoiding pausing to look for translation in the dictionary as it may stop you from enjoying the movies. Don’t forget to memorize new words and practice using them in real life. Have fun!

The post 7 Best Movies to Learn English appeared first on Linguix Blog.

EASY WAYS TO EXPAND & ENHANCE VOCABULARY

Here are some simple and easy ways for your vocabulary enhancement. We have divided them into categories for your convenience, so here we go:

1. MAKE A JOURNAL

It is the first step towards your vocabulary enhancement. Make a notebook or journal before following any other step to enhance vocabulary. It will help you in improving and expanding your vocabulary. Note down the word you just learned or read somewhere in your notebook.

Keep your notepad handy by opting for a digital version of the notebook. There are many notepads available online, each with different qualities and features. Try a few of them and then choose one according to your preferred features. Download it on your phone, so you can easily open your notepad to note a new word when you don’t have your journal around. Copy the words from your digital pad to your journal/notebook when you get some time.

Now you can recall your newly learned vocabulary anytime and this way you will never forget it.

2. READING

If you want to enhance vocabulary faster, then you have to read a lot more than ever. Whenever possible, read, read and read as much as you can. Take out some time from your daily routine for reading and make your vocabulary enhancement easy. While reading, don’t just read and learn new words and focus on how that word is used in sentences.

BOOKS/ NOVELS AND NEWSPAPER

Make learning new words easy for yourself by reading your favorite type of books, whether you like reading novels or informational books. When you have your interest in a subject, it becomes easy to learn and understand.

Vocabulary enhancement will become simple when you make a routine of reading newspapers daily in the morning. This habit will help you stay updated and improve your vocabulary because newspapers contain almost every kind of news, each with different words.

DICTIONARIES

Dictionaries are excellent to enhance and improve your vocabulary over time. Learn only one word per day from the dictionary, learn its meaning and search for its synonyms and antonyms on the thesauruses. Using thesauruses is an easy way to learn new words and enhance vocabulary.

ARTICLES AND BLOG POSTS

Read online articles and blog posts of your own choice as the internet has a massive variety of articles and posts. Learn new words from them and try to understand the meaning by the context of the sentence. Then check the meaning of the word that, whether you guessed it right or wrong, will make your vocabulary enhancement smooth.

3. LISTENING

We learn things quickly when we listen and hear them. Take an example of songs; how do we memorize songs so quickly? Because we listen to them on repeat. Here are a few ways to enhance vocabulary by listening.

MUSIC

Listening to music and songs is a free-time activity, and if you love listening to music, you can take advantage of it. Listen to English songs in your free and relaxing time, listen to your favorite genre and the music you enjoy. Whenever you hear a new word in songs, note down the word and find its meaning.

LISTEN ATTENTIVELY

While you are in the class, taking a lecture, listen to your professor with focus and complete attention. Listen to his words and pronunciation to remember those words. Listen attentively to your friends and family members who speak fluent or even average English. They might use some words which you don’t have a clue about and learn the meaning and pronunciation of that word.

4. WATCHING

Watching can make your vocabulary enhancement effortless. How? Here’s how:

NEWS & SPORTS

Watch English news channels whenever you get a chance. Try to extract some time from your day and watch the news for at least 20 to 30 minutes. Watching and listening to the news will indeed support you to improve and expand your vocabulary.

What if you are not interested in watching the news? Then, you might be interested in watching sports and games, and if yes, then it is a plus point. While watching some sports (cricket, football, etc.), focus on the commentary and learn new words from it. Commentators are usually very impressive and entertaining during a match/competition, and they use a wide range of expressions. If you find any word new and unique, don’t forget to note it down.

MOVIES

Watching English movies will help you expand and enhance vocabulary. Write down any word that you find unfamiliar and keep enjoying the movie. Search for its meaning after watching the film so that it doesn’t spoil your chilling mood too.

5. WRITING

Writing is an appreciable habit, and it is helpful in improving vocabulary. Following methods of writing will make it easier for you to enhance vocabulary for sure.

PERSONAL DIARY

Keeping a personal diary can sometimes be challenging, but it is advantageous and beneficial. It will remind you of the good and bad times of your life. But besides its actual purpose, it has some other benefits too. If you are trying to improve and enhance vocabulary, then penning down your daily routine in your diary will assist you in achieving better outcomes. Try to use new words in your diary, because you don’t have to search for the meaning of those words again when you read them someday.

IN YOUR JOURNAL

We have already talked about making a journal or notebook. But what is the method to maintain a vocabulary journal? We will tell you how to maintain a journal to get maximum benefits from it.

• The first step is writing down the words. Whenever you find a new or uncommon word, whether in a book, newspaper, or a movie, jot it down in your journal.
• Search for its meanings, synonyms, and antonyms and write them down too.
• Make a few sentences using the word to get fluent with its use.

Follow the above-mentioned three steps to make the best use of your journal either it is digital or manual.

ESSAY WRITING

As soon as you get smooth with the use of your newly learned words, try going big. Write some detailed paragraphs or essays using the new terms. Practice makes everything better, and vocabulary enhancement also needs a lot of practice. And writing an essay will be an excellent option to enhance vocabulary.

6. COMMUNICATING

After you have learned a new letter, its meaning, and also made some sentences using the word. Use that word in communication because it will help you memorize it forever.

CHATTING

Today, to catch up with our friends and family, we usually chat first and make plans to meet in person. Chat in English with your friends and family to improve and enhance vocabulary. Make good use of your just learned vocabulary so that you don’t forget it again.

CONVERSE

To make your English vocabulary better and better, conversing in English will effortlessly work best for vocabulary enhancement. When you meet your friends or anyone who speaks better English than you, talk to them in English. And ask them to point out any mistake you make. On the other hand, it will also boost your confidence, and you will be able to speak in English in front of anyone without a hitch.

7. MAKE IT FUN

PLAY SOME GAMES

Enjoy your journey to enhance vocabulary by making it a fun activity. There are hundreds of games that help in expanding and improving vocabulary. You can get some board games for vocabulary enhancement or download any available online game according to your choice. Play some fun games with your friends in your spare time and take full advantage of that time. For example, word searches, scrabble, crosswords, boggle are common and simple games to enhance vocabulary more quickly.

COMPETE WITH OTHERS

Take part in any English language competition to improve and enhance vocabulary without worrying about the results. Be confident and give your best because you will at least learn a few more new words; either you win or lose. It can be essay writing, a spelling competition, or maybe an online game competition. Online games usually provide options for competing with your friends and even anyone around the world. Like you can just lie on your couch and take part in an online global battle. Many groups also organize tournaments for online games, and that way, you can compete with hundreds of participants.

CONCLUSION

Vocabulary enhancement is not a difficult or impossible task, and it just needs some time, dedication, and attention. Dedicate your leisure and free hours to improve and enhance vocabulary by following those, as mentioned earlier, easy and handy ways. Learn one word a day, make it fun and enjoy your vocabulary enhancement journey.

The post Easy Ways to Improve And Expand Your Vocabulary appeared first on Linguix Blog.

When we look at the English language, it can be confusing and difficult at times. As it involves tricky spellings, tough grammar structures, and a variety of synonyms to deal with. A lot of words have the same meaning but it depends on the phrase, which is to use there. Either if you’re newly introduced to a language or you just want to improve your existing skills in English, expanding your vocabulary knowledge will help you a lot as an additional bonus. 

Improving your English vocabulary more effectively means learning to use the new words in a practical way, not just theoretically where you read a word; checked its meaning, and forgot it right away. However, if you have the will to understand English in a better way; the following ways can be highly helpful to improve your vocabulary. 

Reading – Your Choice: 

Reading can be a lot helpful while learning a new language. Reading is a very good activity; it helps the reader’s brain to be active. While many consider reading as an easy task as compared to writing. While it isn’t true, reading a book or journal can also be a difficult task if you don’t have much grip on your English vocabulary. But at the same time, reading complex and new words, and searching it’s meaning to understand the phrase properly is such a fascinating way to learn new words. While in the past, peoples used to suggest the reading of books; to improve vocabulary, but the actual trick is to read something you like that would help to boost your interest. Apart from books, comics, newspapers, journals, stories or anything can be your choice. If you continue to read regularly, you’ll notice a lot of significant improvement.

Writing – Journaling: 

I’m sure I’m not the first one to tell you that if you want to remember something for long; the best way is to write it again and again after understanding. Speaking new words isn’t that tricky, but using those same words with correct phrases and spellings in writing can be a little difficult. Try to write something you think is difficult to put into words and then ask someone to check your understanding of new words or try re-reading it. So, to improve English; learning and using new words in writing can help to improve a lot. 

Listening – English Songs or Lectures: 

Good listening skill isn’t much difficult to achieve, you just have to keep your brain focused and interested in listening. Listening helps to obtain information, understand it, and learn from it. Just like a child, who learns everything by listening to his surrounding, all the words, and sentences; before being able to read or write words. Similarly, after being all grown up you can still improve English by listening. When you hear a new sentence, try and repeat it afterward; it will help you to improve your pronunciation skills. So, listening to English songs, lectures, and talks can help a lot in improving vocabulary; you will easily learn how to pronounce and use new words. 

Watching – TV shows with subtitles: 

If you aren’t a book person, and you aren’t interested in reading long stories and boring book pages. Also, you’re facing difficulties in understanding English sentences after listening. Then, you should watch English movies or TV shows with subtitles tracks. This will surely fascinatingly help you by improving your English vocabulary through listening and readings at the same time. In this way, your reading and listening skills will improve and will surely help you to improve your English. 

Try speaking English with your fellows:

 You have heard the quote; “Practice makes a man perfect”. Similarly, to improve your vocabulary, you’ve to keep practicing what you’re learning. Try speaking in English with your mates. Don’t be shy, even if you’re having difficulties and might be using some wrong phrases. Still, stay confident and keep on trying all the time. You’re doing all the hard work to speak English fluently with improved vocabulary, not just for writing it down or to understand it. Good communication skills are of huge influence in practical life. Therefore, you should keep on trying to speak English with people who speak the same language as you.

Keep a dictionary: 

The sound of keeping a dictionary in your pocket or bag might sound a little old in this revolutionized world. While you don’t have to keep a hard one; you can simply download the dictionary application on your mobile phones. Having a dictionary to look up to is a quite helpful thing in the time of need. Dictionary can be the tool of great aid in all cases. Either if you have little knowledge of English or you have an advanced level of English. It offers thousands of words to look forward to, you can look up to different words along with their alternatives and you can pick according to your sentence. 

Guess the meaning of new words: 

Anything can be fun if you have the mindset to take things lightly and make learning more interesting. Guessing the right meaning of new words is just like a game of fluke, you can be either accurate or close to the actual meaning of the new word. The context helps a lot in understanding and guess the meaning of new worlds. The good thing about this practice is; it will get better with time. In the beginning, you might feel a little outplayed in guessing the right meaning, but with continuous practice and consistency, you will surely help yourself a lot to improve your English vocabulary.

Keep a Journal of new Vocabulary: 

To achieve anything, you’ve to be consistent and determined. Therefore, whenever you find a new word or phrase which you think is new to you and can be relevant, write it down in your vocabulary journal along with its meaning. This sounds pretty easy and is mighty helpful. Just in case, if you forget the new word after some days and are looking to remind it; this journal will be there to save the day. You can also keep reviewing your journal once a month to recall all.  

Test yourself: 

Stay focused and test yourself at times to determine either if there’s an improvement in your English vocabulary. Look forward to opportunities to learn and cash them. Pay attention to the things around you. Keep testing yourself, look forward to difficult and complex words and sentences, and then try to understand them. Try to look at the menu of the restaurant more carefully. Ask your fellows or teachers, to ask the meaning and synonyms of different words. Stay on the path to see and learn new vocabulary.

Stay Curious:

It’s human nature that under too much pressure and stress, the learning intensity goes down. It’s true that at times learning new things according to your goal in a short time can be a little stressful. Therefore, curiosity is a factor that can help you to stay in line and focused. Try to look forward to new vocabulary in different manners; the one you find interesting with a spirit of curiosity. This will help you to feel less stressed and more importantly, you might start to enjoy the process of learning. 

Conclusion:

In conclusion, we can say that improving vocabulary skills is probably the most important step in learning a new language. All the other skills, like reading, speaking, writing, listening, and conversing depends on the vocabulary level of a person. With all these various methods and ways are there to help in growing your vocabulary skill; one can easily feel a lot of improvement after continuous practice. 

The post 10 Ways to Improve Your English Vocabulary appeared first on Linguix Blog.

One such stock phrase is the almost ubiquitous (especially in the United States) “you’re welcome”. It’s the expression we roll out without thinking more or less every time someone thanks us for something.

“Thanks for arranging the meeting.”

“You’re welcome!”

Thanks for coming.”

“You’re welcome”

“Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.”

It’s almost an instinct to reply in this way. 

In fact, “you’re welcome” is so common in English, particularly in U.S. English, that the phrase has perhaps come to sound a little hollow. Certainly, using it is mechanical for many people: an instant response to when someone expresses any form of gratitude

Language becoming stale is always disappointing because it is one of the greatest gifts we have. Of course, saying “you’re welcome” is infinitively better than saying nothing at all, but why not try to instill a little bit of flavor, color and personality into your language with an alternative phrase; something that may make the other person’s day just that little bit more pleasant.

In business

Of course, in a business context it is important to use the correct kind of formality and politeness with your language: colloquialisms and slang are not the right options here. But why not replace “You’re welcome” with any one of these pleasant, and professional, options:

“My pleasure.”

“It’s a pleasure.”

“I/We/Business name am/are/is very happy to help.”

“I/We/Business name am/are/is very happy to be of service.”

“Just doing my/our job.”

“Always happy to be of assistance.”

In a social situation

Socially, there is no need to be quite so formal, and now you can start to inject even more colour into your responses. Let your personality break free and make someone’s day with any one of these options:

“I know you’d do the same for me.”

“It’s made my day helping you.”

“Don’t mention it.” (be careful to deliver this in a really light tone, or it could sound aggressive.

“No worries.” (beloved of Australians)

“Sure thing.”

“No problem at all.”

“You bet.”

“Anytime.”

“It’s truly a pleasure.” (be careful not to overdo it with the joy of helping)

“I know you’d do the same for me!” (be careful to sound sincere)

“You’re smile is thanks enough.” (you could be in dangerous territory here with the schmaltz)

In summary, there are so many other options to select from that is a crying shame to just carry on regardless with “you’re welcome”. You could even invent your own reply which becomes unique to you, but just be careful to try it out with close friends and family first before you go ahead with the public at large – you don’t want to offend anyone.

And remember, for help with the suitability of language, the Linguix AI-powered writing assistant will not only pick up mistakes and grammatical errors, but will also help shape your language in terms of using the right words at the wrong time. A simple spell-checking tool it isn’t!

The post Other More Creative Ways to Say ‘You’re Welcome!’ in English appeared first on Linguix Blog.

Fortunately, in English, making comparisons is something that, grammatically speaking, is not only easy to do, but rarely departs from the rule (the irregulars don’t vastly outnumber the regulars, as is the case in many elements of English grammar).

Making positive comparisons

Positive comparisons can be made as follows:

But beware, because there are a handful or irregulars

good – better

bad – worse

far – further (farther is also possible, but is less-used)

To emphasize any difference, use the word ‘much’ plus the comparative form. Here are some examples:

This car is much faster than that car.

I am much happier than I have ever been.

People are much more intelligent than computers.  

Also note that you can make a positive comparative by substituting the word ‘more’ for ‘less’ to create the opposite meaning. This is still considered a positive comparative because the verb form (‘is’) is positive. Here are some examples:

People are less intelligent than computers.

That bicycle is less expensive than this one. 

Making negative comparatives

Comparatives can also be made in English by using a negative verb structure. Now the form of the comparative changes:

Negative verb form + as + adjective + as

Here are some examples:

This car isn’t as fast as that car.

I am not as happy as I was.

People are not as intelligent as computers.  

The positive comparison for equality

Then, there is a way of blending the positive and negative comparative forms to create equality, meaning that the two things are of the same level. Here is the structure:

positive verb + as + adjective + as.

And here are some examples:

This car is as fast as that car. (they are the same)

I am as happy as I have ever been. (my level of happiness is the same)

People are as intelligent as computers. (they are the same)

Superlatives

Once again, making superlatives (for when you are comparing three or more things) is relatively simple in English, and there are not too many irregulars:

But do be aware of these irregulars:

Good – the best

Bad – the worst

Far – the furthest (the farthest is also possible, but is less common)

The post How to Make Comparisons in English appeared first on Linguix Blog.

“That is right,” he said.

The problem with ‘said’ is that all it does is report the words that someone speaks. It doesn’t say anything about the way that the words were actually spoken, not to mention any meaning, emotion or feeling that was behind the words. So, here is a list of synonyms that could be much better to use, depending on the context.

announced, agreed, whispered, shouted, reported, conceded

Although these words all communicate slightly different interpretations of the way in which the man said the words, every single one of them communicates more. More accurately. More insightfully. It’s simply better communication.

Why learning synonyms improves your writing

As the example with ‘said’ reveals, finding the correct word to express yourself is an essential part of clear and accurate communication. 

Most people will lean on their favorite words to say what they mean, but often there is a much better word to do the job. In the English language there are over a million words, while most people rely on a narrow vocabulary group of about 20,000 words to get by. That is a very small percentage of the words that can be accessed, and immediately reveals that there is probably a much more suitable option for the word that you have chosen. Statistically speaking, that is almost certain. 

And it’s not about being over-complicated either. It’s simply about finding the word that conveys, concisely and accurately, exactly what you wanted to say.

Here is an example.

““That is right,” he conceded.

‘conceded’ means that the man was somewhat reluctant in his admission that the other person was right. But he did agree in the end. That conveys so much more meaning that ‘said’, which gives none of those insights.

As long as that is the context of the words, then you have successfully chosen the word that can sum up the situation perfectly. That’s what the right synonym can do. 

How you can learn synonyms to improve your writing

The impractical way to learn synonyms to improve your writing would be to have a dictionary by your side, or to copy and paste every given word into a thesaurus or dictionary to get the given synonyms. But then you would need to cross-reference those words to get the true meaning of the synonym. You want to be correct, of course.

There is a much better way.

The Linguix writing and look-up assistant, free to download for Chrome, Firefox and Edge, allows you to highlight and click on words wherever you find them on the web and get an instant list of synonyms, as well as all important definitions for each category of synonyms.

For example, if you highlight the word ‘shifted’.

It’s that easy!

Get definitions depending on context, and then the synonyms which can correctly communicate the concept you are looking for.

So, boost your vocabulary, your writing and your communication ability today with Linguix.

The post The Importance of Learning Synonyms to Improve Your Writing, and How You Can Do It appeared first on Linguix Blog.

So, here is all you need to know about using indefinite articles in English.

The difference between ‘a’ and ‘an’

The first thing to establish is exactly what is the difference between ‘a’ and ‘an’ because there are some misconceptions about this.

The first thing to say is that ‘a’ and ‘an’ represent exactly the same thing, meaning that they are used in the same situations.

The decision to use ‘a’ or ‘an’ only comes with what the next word is, be that the noun or adjective that is following the article.

And contrary to popular belief, it is not decided on spelling, but on pronunciation.

‘A’ is used when the following word begins with a consonant sound. ‘An’ is used when the next word begins with a vowel sound. In most cases this is self-evident, except:

A university (not ‘an’). University begins with a ‘y’ sound, which is a consonant.

A European country (not ‘an’. Again, European begins with a ‘y’ sound.

An hour (not ‘a’). Hour begins with a silent ‘h’, so is, therefore, a vowel sound.

An honest person (not ‘a’). Again, the ‘h’ is silent.

A one-legged man (not ‘an’). One begins with a ‘w’ sound, which is a consonant.

It is therefore important to remember that using ‘a’ or ‘an’ depends on sound, not spelling.

It is important to note that, when speaking, it should be easy to identify when to use these articles as the sounds should connect easily, which is exactly why the rule exists. ‘An’ + consonant sound, or ‘a’ + vowel sound will mean gymnastics for your mouth!

Where and when to use indefinite articles

So, when should I use an indefinite article in English?

Indefinite articles are used with singular, countable nouns, when you are only providing an example of that thing, or when you are introducing that thing for the first time.

Here are examples of both of those situations:

I have always wanted a dog. I think it would be fun. (an example of something, not specific)

I have a dog. His name is Benji. (You are introducing your dog into the conversation for the first time).

Contrasting the indefinite articles with the definite article ‘the’

‘The’, as a definite article, is used to introduce something specific, or something unique. Here are examples:

The dog that lives next door to me is very big. (a specific dog that you are referencing)

Paris is the capital of France. (it is unique in that it is the only capital)

The sun is shining today. (there is only one sun)

Substituting ‘a’ or ‘an’ in any of the examples above would mean that you are talking about one of many. Here are some examples:

A dog that lives next door to me is very big. (there is more than one dog that lives next door).

Paris is a capital of France. (if France had more than one capital, which is doesn’t. You could say ‘Paris is a city in France’, which is, of course, true!)

A sun is shining today. (this just sounds ridiculous, as there is only one sun)

Failing to use any article with these single, countable nouns is always a mistake in English.

The post How to Use the Indefinite Articles ‘A’ and ‘An’ appeared first on Linguix Blog.

There are two reasons for these problems:

1) Modal verbs can operate differently in the learner’s mother tongue

2) Modal verbs in English have different meanings at different times, so it is a mistake to learn only one meaning.

Here we will look at the meanings of both ‘can’ and ‘may’, and then make a comparison between the two.

Using ‘can’

‘Can’ has two distinct meanings in English: ability and permission. It is vitally important to think about what meaning of ‘can’ is being used in any one sentence.

‘Can’ to express ability

‘Can’ as an ability is probably the first meaning that learners discover in English, and this then creates the problem that this is the only meaning of ‘can’ (which we already know to be untrue).

Here are some examples of ‘can’ meaning ability:

‘I can speak two languages.’

‘I can’t play the piano.’

‘Can you work late tonight?’

All of these sentences are concerned with your ability (or inability to do something). It is important to understand that this ability is not always something personal, but also related to external factors. So, for example, perhaps you can’t work late tonight because you have an appointment, which is an external factor, rather than your own personal ability or skill (such as speaking a language or playing the piano).

‘Can’ to express permission

‘Can’ is also used to speak about permission, which could be self-prescribed, or due to external circumstances, such as formal rules. Here are some examples:

‘In the UK, you can drive when you are 17.’

‘You can’t wear shoes in the house, my wife doesn’t like it.’

However, it is not considered totally correct to use ‘can’ to ask for permission. For example:

‘Can I smoke here?’

We will talk about this more in a moment.

Using ‘may’

‘May’ also has two meanings in English: to talk about possibility, and to talk about permission (like ‘can’). It is, therefore, this second meaning of ‘may’ (permission) that causes the confusion with ‘can’.

‘May’ to express possibility

‘May’, much like ‘might’ is used to suggest that there is a possibility that something will happen, but without confirming it. Here are some examples:

‘It may rain later.’

‘There may not be another opportunity to do this.’

However, notice that ‘may’ is not used to talk about personal actions. For example:

‘I may go to the party.’

That is because the meaning of ‘may’ then becomes confused with the second reason that we use ‘may’, which is to expression permission.

‘May’ to express permission

‘May’ is typically used to talk about permission to do something. Here are some examples:

‘I may go to the party’. (I have been given permission to go to the party)

‘I may not go to the party.’ (I am not allowed)

‘May I go to the bathroom?’ (Do you allow me to do that?)

In is in this last instance that ‘can’ would be used more informally to have the same meaning.

Comparing ‘can’ and ‘may’

So, let’s take a look again at the way we would ask for permission in English. In such instances it would be better to use ‘may’ so as not to confuse the meaning of ‘can’ as an ability or as permission. For example:

‘Can I smoke here?’

‘I don’t know, can you?’ (asking if you have the ability to smoke)

‘May I smoke here?’

‘Yes you may’ or ‘No you may not’ (Giving permission)

However, in reality, English speakers would use ‘can’ in the above example with the same result:

‘Can I smoke here?’

‘Yes you can’ or ‘No you can’t’ (Giving permission informally)

It therefore all comes down to context, and who your audience is. The reality is that, in informal settings (with friends, for example), ‘can’ is very often interchanged with ‘may’ to ask for permission and to even express that the permission has been given.

However, technically speaking, and therefore in a more polite or formal environment, it would always be better to use ‘may’ to ask for permission, and to express that permission has been given or denied.

That’s why these two words ‘can’ cause problems, or is that ‘may’?

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