talk to me!

[Duckduck]

Hi tiorthan,

why did you write

a lot of vocabulary is explained at the end of the news.

and not:

a lot of vocabulary are explained at the end of the news.

I always thought if you have more than one vocabulary, you must say "are" and not "is"? Does that only go for German? Is it different in English?

Good night, Alexander

Hi Alexander!
Just let me explain the problem:
1. If you talk about one vocabulary, you must use the verb form "is".
2. If you talk about more than one, you must use the verb form "are", but you must also use the plural form of the noun: "vocabularies"

My advice:
Don't use the word at all in this context. It's certainly not completely wrong, but it's almost a so-called "false friend". When you want a word for the German "Vokabel" use "word" in English. For example I would always prefer "I must learn my words" to "I must learn my vocabulary". It can of course be translated as "Vokabel", but I would prefer to use it as "Wortschatz".

Bye
Duckduck

[tiorthan]

Also "a lot of" is a singular noun.

By the way, you'll find the word "vocable" in linguistics. So - you see - they have a term meaning the exact same as "Vokabel" in English but you won't find it outside of linguistic publications. Virtually everyone else just says "word".

[Duckduck]

Also "a lot of" is a singular noun.

By the way, you'll find the word "vocable" in linguistics. So - you see - they have a term meaning the exact same as "Vokabel" in English but you won't find it outside of linguistic publications. Virtually everyone else just says "word".

And right you are, tiorthan!

Just to make it clear to everyone:

"a lot of" can be used in connection with both the so-called countable and uncountable nouns. And that is important when choosing the correct verb form (singular or plural).

Example:

"A lot of time is wasted watching TV." -> the noun "time" is uncountable (unzählbar) and therefore you use the verb in its singular form. BUT

"A lot of apples are wasted lying on the ground." -> "apple" is a countable noun, you put it in the plural form because you are talking about more than one apple here ("a lot of") and so the verb must be in its plural form as well.

Cheers
Duckduck

[kölscheklüngel]

Hi all together,

today I read a lot articels in english magazines. It was a nice feeling to read articels, understand that and remembered about the vocabularies. In the night I can write about this things and get corrections from friendly persons.

The comprehension from the news are easy for me, okay not easy but okay. But, if I would explain somebody the content, I have big problems with the words and so on. That is the reason, why I try to write in this forum.

Good night, Alexander

[Emilia]

Hello, may I join the conversation?
I like English very much and I have been good at it in school...but now, I have a new teacher who does not like my expression much, so I would like to improve it...could you help me, please? That would be very kind of you

[tiorthan]

Hi all together,

today I read a lot of articels in English magazines. It was a nice feeling to read the articels, understand them and remember about the vocabulary[sub]1[/sub]. In the night I can write about these things and get corrections from friendly persons.

Understanding[sub]2[/sub] the news is easy for me, okay not easy but okay. But, if I was to[sub]3[/sub] explain somebody the content, I would have big problems with the words and so on. That is the reason, why I try to write in this forum.

Good night, Alexander

1 - Vocabulary does not mean just a single word but all words that are used in a given context.

2 - This is meant as both a correction and an improvement on your expression.

3 - Oh das muss ich wohl auf Deutsch machen. Ich wusste nicht genau was du ausdrücken wolltest. Das Idiom "be to do something" bedeutet ungefähr in die Situation zu kommen etwas zu tun. Wenn du müssen ausdrücken wolltest wäre hier natürlich "I had to explain" notwendig.

[tiorthan]

Hello, may I join the conversation?
I like English very much and I have been good at it in school...but now, I have a new teacher who does not like my expression much, so I would like to improve it...could you help me, please? That would be very kind of you

Did your teacher tell you what he doesn't like about your expression?

I can see some problems but it would give us a better understanding of your problem if you could write a longer text. Don't be shy we've certainly seen worse

[kölscheklüngel]

Hi tiorthan,

my English teacher told me, that I can write:"But, if I had explained somebody the content, I would...

What you wrote to me was absolutely correct but very difficult. You can forgot the "to". You wrote in the Correction: "I had to explain" Without "to" it is correct.

He is from Seattle, maybe the British native speaker will write with "to". I don't know.

[tiorthan]

Hi tiorthan,

my English teacher told me, that I can write:"But, if I had explained somebody the content, I would...

Well, it is a correct English phrase but it means "Falls ich jemandem den Inhalt erklärt hätte, würde ich ...".
I assumed you meant "Wenn ich jemandem den Inhalt erklären wollte/müsste, dann ..." which is exactly what

What you wrote to me was absolutely correct but very difficult. You can forgot the "to". You wrote in the Correction: "I had to explain" Without "to" it is correct.

He is from Seattle, maybe the British native speaker will write with "to". I don't know.

Sorry but I don't really understand what you're trying to say here.

If I had explained the content = Falls ich den Inhalt erklärt hätte
If I had to explain the content = Falls ich den Inhalt erklären müsste
If I was to explain the content = Falls ich den Inhalt erklären müsste/sollte/wollte

[kölscheklüngel]

Thanks for your help.
I keep in my mind "had explained" and "had to explain". The third sentence I think I didn't need very often in practice.

How did you improve your English? Did you have a good help?


If I had explained the content = Falls ich den Inhalt erklärt hätte
If I had to explain the content = Falls ich den Inhalt erklären müsste
If I was to explain the content = Falls ich den Inhalt erklären müsste/sollte/wollte

[tiorthan]

Well, every text by and talk with native speakers has helped me.

[kölscheklüngel]

Yes, I have a native teacher and I practice with him, but sometimes it is difficult to find the right topics with a foreign person. The situation is unusual, because we meet for only one hour and then I must talk. In this Forum it is easier for me to write about something. I should go to London for vacation go in a pub and speak with the persons. But peoples from UK hate Germany boys and when I say a wrong sentences I am in row.

[Duckduck]

Yes, I have an American teacher (er ist ja eher kein "geborener" Lehrer, oder? ) and I practice with him, but sometimes it is difficult to find the right topics with a foreign person. The situation is unusual, because we meet for only one hour and then I must talk. In this Forum it is easier for me to write about something. I should go to London for (a) vacation, go into a pub and speak with the people. But guys from the UK hate Germany boys and when I say one wrong word (eher deutscher Ausdruck, aber warum auch nicht?) I am in a row.

Weeeeeell, kölscheklüngel, looking at what you said about cheating on women the other day (Carl Gustaf, you know) it may well be the ladies too that pick on you. And you wouldn't even have to go to England for that!

Anyway, I like the way you're really trying to improve your English and can only recommend reading! Don't forget, the language you're likely to learn in a pub is not necessarily the language you'll want to use in your job...

CU
Duckduck

[kölscheklüngel]

Hello Duckduck,

was du mir mit Carl Gustav geschrieben hast, habe ich wahrscheinlich nicht ganz verstanden. Ich übersetze es mal auf meine Art: Du hast gesagt, das ich meine, das Frauen in meinen Augen Schweine sind? Habe ich so nicht gemeint. Ich meinte mehr, das Carl Gustav auch nur ein Mann ist und dann in seinem Alter auch noch mal Spaß an jungen Frauen hat und wenn er die Möglichkeit besitzt, an solche Frauen dran zukommen, dann nutzt er das aus, wie viele andere Männer auch.

Anyway, I like the way you're really trying to improve your English and can only recommend reading! Don't forget, the language you're likely to learn in a pub is not necessarily the language you'll want to use in your job...

Maybe, I think, when I can practice with a person from UK, to sample in a pub and improve my skills and speak fluently, then it is definitely good for my job.The specific vocabulary for job you can learn very fast, because I see it every day. My opinion is, that I must think a little bit different between German language and the English language. If I had to understand that, I would be better. Please correct me.

Bye kölscheklüngel

[Emilia]

hey tiorthan
Yes, of course I can try to give you a better overview...but actually, I am not completely sure. She says my vocabulary is not very extensive, and I agree with her. I often do not know the proper words for what I want to express, so I talk around it sometimes. I know that is a problem since I have always wanted to choose English as my LK...:/ Do you know how I can help it? I read English books sometimes (when I like them better in English, like the twilight saga ), but I did not notice a big positive change because of that... But thank you very much for answering me anyway!
I hope I was a bit less shy this time
Kind regards,
Emilia