English Tips"Thank God" or "thanks God"
✔️ It’s “thank God”.Lumpy Space Princess is saying it right❌ Thanks God – incorrectExplanation“Thanks” is a nounWhen we want to thank someone, we often say thanks, meaning “I give you [many] thanks”. Thanks in this case is a plural noun. “Thank” is a verb When we say Thank God, or thank goodness, to express relief or gratitude, it literally means “God should be thanked”. Cf. German Gott sei dank. In this case, thank is a verb in the subjunctive. So no “s” at the end please!
English TipsRelated to or related with?
It’s “related to”. ✔️ This is a mistake that Spanish and Portuguese speakers often make.❌ It’s related with another issue.Probably because in these languages it’s “relacionado con/com”. However, in English, the correct preposition is “to”.✔️ It’s related to another issue. ✔️ It’s related to them being on vacation. ✔️ She’s unrelated to that old man. ✔️ There’s a rumor in relation to the recent events.In some rare cases, you can see “related with”, but you should normally say “related to”.
A collection of bite-sized tips for English learners.
English Tips"Thank God" or "thanks God"
✔️ It’s “thank God”.Lumpy Space Princess is saying it right❌ Thanks God – incorrectExplanation“Thanks” is a nounWhen we want to thank someone, we often say thanks, meaning “I give you [many] thanks”. Thanks in this case is a plural noun. “Thank” is a verb When we say Thank God, or thank goodness, to express relief or gratitude, it literally means “God should be thanked”. Cf. German Gott sei dank. In this case, thank is a verb in the subjunctive. So no “s” at the end please!
English TipsRelated to or related with?
It’s “related to”. ✔️ This is a mistake that Spanish and Portuguese speakers often make.❌ It’s related with another issue.Probably because in these languages it’s “relacionado con/com”. However, in English, the correct preposition is “to”.✔️ It’s related to another issue. ✔️ It’s related to them being on vacation. ✔️ She’s unrelated to that old man. ✔️ There’s a rumor in relation to the recent events.In some rare cases, you can see “related with”, but you should normally say “related to”.
A collection of bite-sized tips for English learners.
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Many letters in written English are silent. ESL speakers often still pronounce them because they learnt that word from a book. The spelling of a word often interferes with how we hear it, too.
bomb /bɔm/, womb /wuːm/, tomb /tuːm/
comb /koʊm/, climb /klaɪm/
lamb /læm/
thumb /θʌm/, plumb, crumb etc
receipt /rəˈsit/
W: who /huː/ – no W!
W: write, wrong, wrap, wreck, wrist – a W before R is never pronounced
K: knight, know, knock, knee, knuckle – a K before N is always silent
G: gnat, gnu, gnocchi – the same for G before N
P, M: psychology, mnemonic, pneumatic – an initial P and M in words of Ancient Greek origin are often silent
H: honest /ˈɑnɪst/, “H” /eɪtʃ/, honor – no H there!
The English spelling often dates back to when the word was pronounced the way it’s written, but then the sounds has changed.
In many of the examples above, the silent letter was at some point pronounced, but it’s not anymore.
As a general tip, you should always check the IPA of any new word that you learn. It’s impossible to predict how the English language will trip you up even with simplest-looking words.
Cover photo by Ernie A. Stephens on Unsplash
Many letters in written English are silent. ESL speakers often still pronounce them because they learnt that word from a book. The spelling of a word often interferes with how we hear it, too.
bomb /bɔm/, womb /wuːm/, tomb /tuːm/
comb /koʊm/, climb /klaɪm/
lamb /læm/
thumb /θʌm/, plumb, crumb etc
receipt /rəˈsit/
W: who /huː/ – no W!
W: write, wrong, wrap, wreck, wrist – a W before R is never pronounced
K: knight, know, knock, knee, knuckle – a K before N is always silent
G: gnat, gnu, gnocchi – the same for G before N
P, M: psychology, mnemonic, pneumatic – an initial P and M in words of Ancient Greek origin are often silent
H: honest /ˈɑnɪst/, “H” /eɪtʃ/, honor – no H there!
The English spelling often dates back to when the word was pronounced the way it’s written, but then the sounds has changed.
In many of the examples above, the silent letter was at some point pronounced, but it’s not anymore.
As a general tip, you should always check the IPA of any new word that you learn. It’s impossible to predict how the English language will trip you up even with simplest-looking words.
Cover photo by Ernie A. Stephens on Unsplash
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