The Fun with Foreign Languages

Have you ever wondered how “doch” is exactly used in German and what it means in English? Or let alone how to teach it in a way that the students do not get lost in the process? It is very difficult to convey the message across, let alone understand some of the difficult concepts. And this to go along with the meaning of certain colloquial terms, idioms, and translations gone bad. The Files will feature some articles on teaching foreign languages and dealing with the problems of some of the vocabulary and grammar concepts in both languages with some tips on how to get along with them. Some examples are presented below (please stop by regularly as this page will be updated and topics added often):

.

.

English Topics (including Lexicas, etc.)

English Roundtable

How to say Tschüss in English

Verstehen Sie Savvy auf Englisch: A look at the many forms of “Do you Understand?”

The Culling of Quatsch in German

The Use of the F-word

.

.

• All They Want is Stuff: The Use of Stop-Gaps and Other Fillers in English: 

Part I: The Questionnaire

Part II: The Worksheet

.

.

• Time Markers:

Part I: Past Simple vs. Perfect Form  including the Alternative version

Part II: Present Simple vs. Present Continuous   including the exercise on the Christmas Market

Part III: Future Tenses Part A & Part B  

Part IV: Present Simple vs Past Simple

Part V: Past Continuous

.

.

• Nouns and Noun Phrases:

Personal Nouns

Feminine Personal Nouns

.

.

• Idiomatic Expressions:

Idiomatic Expressions in the Sense of Names of People

International Idioms

.

Nouns and Expressions dealing with Body Parts:

Introduction- Most Commonly Used Expressions

Shoulders (including Music Video)

.

.

• Pronunciations in English- Tongue Twisters:

Shunned- Words with -ion, -ian, -ience, -ial

Dining in Stein in Schleswig-Holstein: A look at the I-CON-E endings in English

Blacksmithing words with TH: A Guide to Pronunciation of TH-words  

Volkswagen: The V and W Words in English

Bear vs Beer: The Long -E- in English

It’s All About the -ES Words with -es endings

.

.

• False Friends between German and English (!: Worksheets included for each one unless starred):

Become vs. Bekommen

–

Personal vs Personnel vs Persönlich

–

Notiz vs Notice

–

Aufhören vs many words in English*

–

Why is German a Beautiful Language? (a look at word-for-word translations and the actual meanings)*

–

How High? Big? Tall? Large???  The Different Meanings of Groß in English (incl. activities)

–

Are you sicher? Bist du sure: The use of sicher in English. 

–

“Wie” in English- Appearance is Key. A Look at the Use of How and What, when Asking Questions

.

.

• Prepositions and Phrasal Verbs

At/In/On- Time

The Many (Creative) Uses of UP

English Phrase UP IT

The Von Words (from/by/of/with) and Cheesecake including exercises

.

.

.

• Other Lexical Topics:

The Difference Between Talk, Chat, Say, Speak and Tell in Communication

–

Understanding Perception Verbs (Look, See, Watch, Notice, Observe and Stare)- worksheet included)   Answer sheet to this topic here.

–

Beware of the German Umlaut: Confusing word Pairings with and without the Umlaut

–

Ordinal Numbers and the Tour de Revere

–

Translations of the longest German words founnd in Duden

–

On the Road: A Look at Verbs of Transport-  Guessing Quiz and Answers with Explanation

–

Make vs Do: A Look at Activity Verbs-  Photo Guessing Quiz  and Explanations/Exercises

–

Many Ways of Saying “No!” in English

–

The Weis Words and their Translations in English:  Theory (click here) & Exercises (click here)

.

.

• Other Grammatical Topics:

TED is DED: A Look at the Pronunciation of Regular Verb Tenses in Past Tense

Verbs that Function as Both Regular and Irregular Forms

The Creative Creator Creates a Creation: A Look at Adjective-Noun-Verb Derivations in English

.

• Modal Verbs

Modal Verbs and the Story of Wishing (I wish)

English Corner: I Wish- A Closer Look at English Modal Verbs

.

• Adjectives and Adverbs

Less is More or is Most the Least? A look at the use of More and Most plus their opposites

                     Worksheet included as well as answer key 

.

Being blessed by the weather is a blessing: The Difference between the Adjectives -ed and -ing

.

• Passive vs. Active Voice

Passive in American Football (quiz, rules and culture)

Lighting it up Passively: A Look at Passive vs. Active Voice in English

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

Each subject includes exercises to do with students or at home and with that, also an answer sheet for each one.

Advertisement