Two Times Less than half

This one gets to me.  I can't recall how many times I've had a student say "It was 2 times less..."  leaving me slapping my head to restart my brain.  This phrasing is counterintuitive in American English, sending my mind in one direction only to reverse course in another.  In everyday English we do not use multiples to describe a fraction.  The reason for my brain injury mentioned above is that when you do phrase something like this and I hear "2 times" I immediately think, in a nanosecond, "ok, we are talking about some number larger than another." but then "less" enters my ears and all hell breaks loose.  "ABORT! ABORT! REVERSE COURSE!" go the voices in my head. 

Here is an example.

"The cat is 2 times more than the banana."  When I hear "times" my brain is signaled to expect a larger number.  In American English multiples, indicated by "times", mean greater numbers.  

On the other hand, if I say "The banana is half as much as the cat." the fraction "half" immediately lets you know that I'm speaking of a lower number.  Your brain is much happier.  Any fraction will work of course.  

We can also use percentages such as "The banana is 50% less than the cat." with the same meaning.  

"But Bruuuuuuuuuce, I love to speak in multiples.  I just have to use multiples." you might say and my response is that you could always reverse the objects and save everybody a lot of grief.  Instead of "My boyfriend is two times younger than me." you can say "I am two times older than my boyfriend."

So, when speaking English, keep the multiples in the plus columns and apply your power of division and percentages to talk about lower numbers.  Everybody's brain will thank you.

It is So Very Confusing!

WARNING: we are discussing proper English and NOT colloquial English.  English speakers break the rules all the time and yes, you will hear people break this one BUT only in certain settings and for certain purposes.

"Don't leave me hanging."  Have you ever heard that phrase?  It's common in American English and basically means, "Don't leave me waiting for something."   We don't want people waiting for us to finish.

And that is EXACTLY what we do when we misuse "SO".

A: I am SO hot.
B: Yeah?
A: Huh?
B: You said you were so hot.
A: I am.
B: And...?
A: Huh?
B: You're so hot what?
A: Huh?
B:  AAAAAAAARGH!
B Jumps up, turns over table and runs from the room screaming obscenities.

When we say "so" in a sentence like above, we are setting up an expected example.
"I am so hot I didn't wear pants to work."
"She is so confused that she brushed her teeth with hair gel."
"We are so hungry we could eat a horse."

In each of these sentences, we use "so" as an indefinite adverb of degree, which means it needs something in the sentence to work with.  

"Very", on the other hand, is an intensifier which does not need such a companion.  If you tell me "I am very hungry." "very" tells me that you are more than just hungry.  It intensifies the meaning.  Too often I hear students use "SO" when they should use "VERY".

Ok, ok, there are those who say that we should avoid "very" as well but I don't think it's so bad for learner of English as a Second Language.  When you get ready to start writing your English language novel we'll go over why it should be avoided but for now let's just make sure we keep everybody happy with no one wondering when we're going to finally finish our sentence!

For more on this, try this explanation, which goes a little deeper, especially about the dreaded "very".  Like I said, you can use "very" all day long with me.  It's a lot better than the common alternative.

Diss and That

Oh, the heartbreak of the TH.  Why oh why did we invent this godforsaken sound?  What evil character in history decided we should put our tongue between our teeth when speaking?  Why can't I just keep touching my tongue to the roof of my mouth?  Will this riddle of the ages ever be solved?

We'll leave the riddles and mysteries to the CSI but for now we need to address the issue at hand, correctly pronouncing TH.  This is VERY important for your English.    

As I've told all my students, this is done by bringing our tongue between the bottom and top teeth, blocking the air and then releasing to get that sweet, sweet "th"  sound found in "Mother", "Father", "Brother", "Sis..." hmm, not sure what sister's problem is (sister was always a troublemaker) but basically without the TH, we'd have no family!  Think about that for a moment... 

Ok, now back to how to make that sound.  I say put the tongue between the teeth but I recently realized that often, I often do not do that at all.  Sometimes I put my tongue between my bottom lip and top teeth.  Sometimes, my tongue is even behind my top teeth.  My tongue is all over the place... But it is never at the roof of my mouth and that is where 99% of mistakes are made.  Stay away from the roof of your mouth!

If you want to do a neat experiment, (By "neat" I mean, maybe you want to find a room that you can hide in while doing this so your co-workers or friends don't think you're crazy.) start making TH sounds with your tongue touching the bottom lip and top teeth. 

Go ahead, DO IT!  

TH, TH, TH, TH...ok, now start moving your tongue slowly back and up.  TH, TH, TH, keep making that sound and bring the tongue between the teeth TH, TH, TH and now drop the bottom teeth and keep making the sound with just the top teeth and the tongue TH, TH, TH and slide the tongue back behind the top teeth TH, TH, TH then move it up slowly TH, TH, D, D, D... you just reached the roof of your mouth and the sound changed. Now you know where it turns from TH to D.  That is your NO-GO area when pronouncing TH.  Play around and find the area you like best and fear the tyranny of the TH no more.

Ok, I've explained one side of the TH pronunciation but there is more information here from Rachel's English that should be helpful.  She's the expert.  

How do you say "What"?

Here's a common mistake I run into with students, using "what" when they mean "how" or vice versa (opposite order is equally true, see here for examples).  For example "What do you say..." when the correct question is "How do you say...".  I think it is difficult to break the habit of confusing these two words but if you do, it is very important to stop.  Take a moment and really think about what these words mean. 

First of all, these words have other uses but for in the case of confusion I'm addressing here, it revolves around the following.

"How" is an adverb asking for instruction on the way to do something or the way it is done.  How do you spell your name? How do I get to Italy? How does she cook so well?  Each of these questions is asking about the verbs "spell", "get" and "cook".   How is asking about actions.

"What" on the other hand is asking for a noun or pronoun.  "What is that called?"  "What is the name of that company?" "What is your name?"  What is about nouns and pronouns.

So, you cannot say "What do you say that?"  because say is a verb.  Instead use "HOW." 
You cannot say "How is the movie title?" because you are asking for a noun.  Instead use "WHAT."

This is another issue that may seem small but will really stand out when you make the mistake.  Take some time and try to finally get past this issue and your English will be improved immediately. 

Here's another explanation that may be helpful to you. 

Let me know if you have any questions concerning this or any other English Grammar issue. Thanks!