English As a Second Language

3 readers
1 users here now

All things for those who use the English language but still there's a lot to learn.

Please follow the instance's guidelines and keep on-topic. Any level of question is welcome, either from a beginner or from an almost-native speaker.

founded 3 years ago
MODERATORS
pioneer@lemmy.ml
listing: all - local
1
1
What is "ubroken" here? (self.english_esl)
submitted 11 months ago* (last edited 11 months ago) by FinallyDebunked to c/english_esl@lemmy.ml
0 comments fedilink
 
 

... his elephant caravans tramp through perfumed jungles in Kled, where forgotten palaces with veined ivory columns sleep lovely and unbroken under the moon.

From the first glance I thought it's an adverb, but the form would be unbrokenly then, wouldn't it?

2
1
What does the exclamation "clear about" mean (self.english_esl)
submitted 1 year ago by FinallyDebunked to c/english_esl@lemmy.ml
0 comments fedilink
 
 

I just saw the Pirates of the Caribbean 2 and there is an episode when a monkey steals the Jack's hat and Gibson yells to the crew "Clear about!". What is it?

3
3
does it sound okay to say "lingering on the horizon" meaning "looming ahead" (self.english_esl)
submitted 1 year ago by FinallyDebunked to c/english_esl@lemmy.ml
4 comments fedilink
4
1
Colloquial term for "Reverse vending machine" (collecting bottle deposit) (feddit.nl)
submitted 1 year ago by Joris@feddit.nl to c/english_esl@lemmy.ml
1 comments fedilink
 
 

I'm looking for a term people would use on a day to day basis for the machines where you return empty bottles/cans and earn your deposit back.

Wikipedia calls them Reverse Vending Machine but my Anglophone friend and I don't believe that's a term people would use on the street.

ChatGPT says the most commonly used term in the UK is "Bottle Return Machine" or "Bottle Return" but I can't find sources on the web for that.

TIA!

5
8
How to call people of unknown gender in English? (he or she) (lemy.lol)
submitted 1 year ago by iso@lemy.lol to c/english_esl@lemmy.ml
14 comments fedilink
 
 

cross-posted from: https://lemy.lol/post/196311

I'm from Turkey so English isn't my native language. We just call O in Turkish to no matter its he/she/it. Is there an equivalent of this generic term on English?

I don't want to call he to a female or vice versa.

6
0
What exactly should I learn? (lemmy.ml)
submitted 3 years ago by lemmyuser2@lemmy.ml to c/english_esl@lemmy.ml
1 comments fedilink
 
 

For the past 2 years, I've been "learning" English. Well, in my case, learning English is not something I planned to do at first. I don't even know I was "learning". I just watched a bunch of youtube videos, and the next thing I know I can speak a little English. But now that I have a little bit knowledge of the English language, I want to actually learn it. Not just by watching random YouTube videos. I have watched and tried different ways to learn like for example flashcards, watch movies, read books, speaking to myself, etc. But I feel like I am not improving. When I speak to other people in English, I feel like I'm not as good as I think I would. So, now I'm frustrated, thinking about how to learn and ACTUALLY improve.

What are your thoughts about this?

7
0
Fediverse or the Fediverse? (lemmy.ml)
submitted 3 years ago by pioneer@lemmy.ml to c/english_esl@lemmy.ml
0 comments fedilink
 
 

Wikipedia and other sources tend to use "the Fediverse", but I've also seen just "Fediverse". From what I know, it depends on whether the term is a proper name or just the name of a unique thing. Could someone please explain how do you think the term should be properly named and why?