Sometimes nouns work together to describe a thing or idea, such as peanut butter, or fruit cake. But what happens to these nouns when they are plural? Do we say peanuts butter or fruits cakes? In this episode we talk about this common and confusing situation. After listening you’ll be able to answer that question easily!

The words margin and commission are often confused by non-native speakers. It’s no wonder, they have very similar meanings. But they are used in different types of situations. This week we talk about these two words and when to use them.

“What” and “how” are both question starters, part of the 5 W’s and 1 H. But their meanings can sometimes seem very close, and it may be difficult to decide which word to use in a question. A common mistake is asking “how do you think?” instead of “what do you think?” In this episode we talk about when to use both of these words.

Talking about deadlines can be a confusing business. But it’s important to get it right! In business we need to make sure our colleagues understand deadlines. We need to be clear in talking about deadlines. This week we talk about how to make deadlines more clear using by, until or due.

As we covered in last week’s podcast, whether to use the word “except” or “besides” is often confusing. This week we cover another situation where we have to consider which of these words to use. If you didn’t listen to last week’s episode, listen to that one first and then listen to this week’s part two. I hope that after listening to both episodes, using the words “except” or “besides” will become a little bit clearer for you.

It’s often difficult to know whether you should use “except” or “besides” in sentences. Sometimes either word is fine, but often one is preferred.. In Part 1 we look at a few situations where besides would work better than except.

Often English words enter other languages. In the case of Japanese, the phrases cost up and level up are common phrases that come from English but are only used in Japanese. This week we look at natural English alternatives to express increase and decrease.

These verbs and verb phrases have a similar meaning, but the nuance and feel can be quite different. Which one should you use and when. this episode introduces way to look at and understand these verbs.

Many English learners use the words “overwork” and “overtime” to mean the same thing. Actually these words have very different meanings. In this episode we discuss the meaning and usage of these words.

In positive sentences we can say “I think I can…” or “I think I will…” etc. But how about if the sentence is negative? Is it “I think I cannot” or “I don’t think I can”? This is a common usage question. Both are grammatical, but there is a different feel. Which one should you choose? The answer may surprise you.