Search from various English teachers...
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"The" with proper names like countries I was reading a Guardian article today (according to it, some Russians apparently hacked the national election servers in the US to ensure Trump's victory, but that doesn't really matter here). What struck me is the use of the definite article in the last sentence of this paragraph: Like his Democratic colleagues on the panel, Wyden is pressing Barack Obama for additional public disclosures revealing Russian electoral interference. Such pressure has placed the CIA and other intelligence agencies between the incoming president to whom they will soon answer and a chorus of legislators, mostly but not exclusively Democrats, who consider the Russia hack a national emergency. Why are those Russian hackers called "the Russia" here? Never seen such article use before. Or does it refer to "hack" ("The Russia/Russian hack is a national emergency")? Here is the article for your reference: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2016/dec/11/intelligence-agencies-cia-donald-trump-russia
December 12, 2016
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A 'P6 spelling book' - what is that? There is a poem by Sinéad Morrissey that starts like this: A soldier returned from a war was how my P6 spelling book put it: I saw cripples with tin cans for coins in dusty scarlet, back from some spat of Empire. Does it mean some textbook at school? For the 6th year of the primary school perhaps? But is yes, why is that a 'spelling book' - sounds more like history... Do they maybe put historical pictures/photographs into spelling textbooks? Any help really appreciated.
September 18, 2014
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Methinks - do they still use this word? The dictionaries say 'methinks' is ironic/archaic. Can it still be used ironically in everyday English?
September 17, 2014
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How do you study Danish pronunciation?

And by pronunciation, I don't even mean the quality of sound, but simply how the words are read aloud. There seems to be no way to predict that, and I feel so helpless! :) I know English is maybe even worse in this respect, but I started learning English when I was 6, so I don't really remember how I coped with that. All the other languages I studied afterwards, like German or French, had very strict spelling/pronunciation rules, but not Danish.

I try to listen to Danish speech as much as possible, and I have an excellent tutor who corrects me, but I still struggle. So fellow Danish students, do you have secrets to share? Or is it the case when nothing can help but a lot of practice?

 

I will also be glad if you share with me your favourite songs in Danish. Danish Disney dubs, which I mostly listen to, are really fun, but some diversity would be great!

September 9, 2014
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What's In A Girl's Name? 8 Female Russian Names In Culture And History
These female Russian names have significant historical context. What's the difference between Katya and Katyusha, and what special meaning do names hold? Find out in a walk through Russian culture here!...
September 9, 2014
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Learning Article : What's In A Girl's Name? 8 Female Russian Names In Culture And History

Discuss the Article : What's In A Girl's Name? 8 Female Russian Names In Culture And History

<a href='/article/246/whats-in-a-girls-name-8-female-russian-names-in-culture-and-history' target='_blank'>What's In A Girl's Name? 8 Female Russian Names In Culture And History</a>

These female Russian names have significant historical context. What's the difference between Katya and Katyusha, and what special meaning do names hold? Find out in a walk through Russian culture here!...

September 9, 2014
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There are two things I love about the Icelandic dub of 'Anastasia'. 1) The dull and ordinary 'Once upon a December' becomes 'Eitt sinn rétt fyrir jólin'. We know it very well from the sagas when magical things happen... Including dead people dancing, that's for sure. In 'Hrólfs saga kraka', they had a troll-dragon. What we have here is nothing. 2) Á ströndu draumalands. Come on, girl, you're in St Petersburg, do you mean ports at the Neva Bay? But then, just before Yule/Christmas it's only natural. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SkNG7h_wu1g I'm sorry for the post in English but I'm still vaguely afraid of writing in Icelandic except for very simple phrases. My Icelandic is too basic, and I don't always make difference between Modern Icelandic and Old Norse. Which must be hilarious to read.
September 7, 2014
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Jeg lytter til sange fra Disney-film på dansk Den danske udtale er vanskeligt for mig, og jeg besluttede at lytte til sange på dansk. Jeg kan godt lide sange fra Disney-film, især 'Frost' ('Frozen') og 'Aladdin'. Først lyttede jeg til 'Lad Det Ske' ('Let it go') fra 'Frozen'. Jeg forstod alt, fordi videoen er med danske og engelske titler :) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3U2_we0U65A Så jeg ønskede at at lytte til 'Aladdin' på dansk. Jeg menner at Genie er det vanskeligste rolle at overspille in 'Aladdin', fordi skuespilleren må konkurrere med Robin Williams. Men jeg kunne godt lide den danske skuespiller, Preben Kristensen. Han er meget kunstnerisk og også en god komiker. Jeg menner at oversættelsen er også god, men jeg lyttede kun til min yndlingssang, 'Prins Ali' ('Prince Ali'). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2SV73f0aMC8 Jeg elsker denne sang! Den er så lystig og morsom. Jeg oversatte teksten fra Dansk til Engelsk, men der kan være fejl. Jeg vil være meget taknemmelig, hvis i hjælper mig med oversættelsen! Vær så venlig, se min oversættelse nedenfor.
September 6, 2014
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Does anyone here teach for free?

I don't mean language exchange - just completely free lessons and/or tutoring sessions.

 

I've been here just for a week and I encountered this situation a few times already, when someone expects you to provide them speaking practice for free. When you politely say you aren't doing that, people get really upset and sometimes say rude things to you. I wonder if I don't understand something here. I mean, if someone tutors for free that will be probably written clearly in their profile. If someone is looking for language exchange, they will also have it there. And it's okay to simply have a chat with friends or just people you like for some reason... but a complete stranger? Are people really expecting that?

September 4, 2014
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How awkward do mistakes made by foreigners look to the native speakers?

We all try really hard to write and speak in English decently, but from time to time we do make mistakes. For example, yesterday I caught myself typing 'divource' instead of 'divorce' a few times. My other problem is that sometimes I confuse ie/ei in words like 'deceive' and 'achieve'. I think this should happen to the native speakers as well but probably foreigners are bound to make such mistakes more often. Most Russian people also have problems with tenses and tend to use adjectives (quick) instead of adverbs (quickly). And the articles. Articles are terrible :( Of course I try to proofread what I write but sometimes you miss things when you ar just typing messages on the internet.

 

I have always wondered how blunt mistakes like that look to native English speakers. I am maybe ovely sensitive to this because I am used to the fact that I make no mistakes when I write in Russian, but now I write mostly in English, which is not my native language. Do such mistakes look like mistakes that schoolchildren do? Or simply like unnatural English? I cannot compare this with how foreigners write in Russian because most of their mistakes are related to cases, which simply marks them as foreigners and makes you think 'Wow, their Russian in not bad'.

September 4, 2014
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