English Made Easy

  Do you like stories about giants? You must have heard plenty of stories about giants in your childhood. But were they good giants or bad giants? I have heard some very interesting stories about both good and bad giants. And today, I have a short story for you that you will love. It is a story about a giant and it was written by Roald Dahl. If you want to know what this story is about and whether the giant was a good giant or a bad giant, you will need to watch the video--- and I assure you that you will not be disappointed. Today’s lesson will help to improve your listening skills, vocabulary, pronunciation, expression, intonation, spelling and comprehension. All you need to do is to look at your screen and listen to me very carefully while I read the story to you. At the end of the story, I will ask you a few questions to see how well you have understood it. I have circled a few words that I feel you will need to pay more attention to, and also written the meanings of so...

Questions 1.               What was the first pig’s house made of? 2.               Which part of the pig did the wolf eat last? 3.               How did the wolf plan to destroy the third pig’s house? 4.               Who did the third pig call for help? 5.               How did Miss Red Riding Hood get a pigskin travelling case?   Answers 1.               The first pig’s house was made of straw. 2                The wolf ate the pig’s tail last.   3              The wolf planned to blow the house u...

  COLLEGE / COLLAGE Did you notice a difference in the words? One is spelled COLLEGE’ The other is spelled COLLAGE Both words are spelled differently and also pronounced differently...and yet, it is so easy to get confused with them because there is just one letter that is different…   Today’s lesson will teach you the difference between these two words so that you do not make a mistake in your speech or writing. I will teach you how to pronounce these two words, tell you the meanings of both words, and show you how they are used in sentences. At the end of the lesson, I have a short quiz for you to test yourself. So, do watch the video first.... A college is an educational institution, while a collage is a piece of art. To be more specific, A college is an educational institution that provides higher education or specialized training. while A collage is a piece of art in which pieces of different materials like photographs and fabric are pasted on to a backgro...

  Funny Poem- The Crocodile by Roald Dahl After you have watched the video and understood the poem well, do try these comprehension questions. The answers are below so you can check your progress as well.  QUESTIONS ●1. Would it be true to say that Crocky- Wock was wicked? ●2. How many children does he like to eat for lunch every Saturday? ●3. Why does he smear the boys with mustard? ●4. Why does he not smear the girls with mustard? ●5. What does he smear the girls with? ●6. How many children has Crocky-Wock eaten so far- a few or many? ●7. What colour was Crocky-Wock? ●8. Were his teeth visible when he entered the room? ANSWERS ●1. Crocky-Wock was wicked. ●2. Crocky-Wock likes to eat six juicy children for lunch every Saturday. ●3. He smears the boys with mustard to make them hot. ●4. He does not smear the girls with mustard because mustard does not taste good with plaits and curls. ●5. He smears the girls with butterscotch and caramel. ●6. Crocky-Wock has eaten a few childre...

  There is a list of Indian words that have now become a part of the Oxford English Dictionary. I will tell you about twelve of the words, their meanings, and how they can be used in sentences. There are many more words like these. At the end of this lesson you will be able to use these words confidently, knowing that they are a part of the English dictionary. Let's do this in a fun way. You know that they are all Indian words. So I will give you the meaning of the word and you can guess what the word is…. Watch the video:   The first word is very common in south India and means ‘Oh Gosh’ or ‘Oops’... Any guesses? Aiyoo Sentence: Aiyoo! I wasn't expecting to see him so soon!   The second word means ‘a dishonest man’ in Hindi. Badmash Sentence: Mr. Roy was a badmash. He stole all the money from the locker and ran away.   The third word is the easiest of the lot. It means ‘older sister’ DIDI Sentence: The girl in red is my didi. ...

Watch this video about a naughty little girl who would never listen to anyone. You will see what she does and what happens to her as an outcome! This video will help you to improve your English.  You can watch it to improve your spelling, pronunciation, expression, intonation, comprehension, etc. Imagine getting so much out of a funny poem!

  Spell Well- Take This Test You will agree that it is important to be able to spell words correctly. Here are fifteen common words that you will come across at your workplace. Some of them can be very challenging so I challenge you to take the test and see how many of these fifteen words you can get right. Watch the video to take the test: You might want to keep a notebook and a pen close by in case you need to write the word . I always write a word if I'm unsure of how to spell it. That somehow helps me to get the spelling right. I will show you a sentence and you will have to fill in the blank with the right word. You will have four options with four different spellings to choose from, so make your choice carefully.  The best way to remember how to spell a word correctly is to break it up and connect it with something else:  ●      Business    (busi….ness)             ...

  An Easy Prepositions Test For You Watch this video on YouTube and learn how to use these commonly confused prepositions before you take the test that follows.  Fill in the blanks with in or into: 1. He threw the paper _____the bin. 2. He jumped _____the river and swam across it. 3. He found his pen ______the pen stand. 4. She was ____bed when he got home. answers: ( into, into, in, in) Fill in the blanks with on or at: 1. I am sitting _____ a chair. 2. I am sitting ____ a table.  answers; (on, at) Fill in the blanks with at, or  in 1. He was born ____ a hospital _____ Delhi. 2. She was born ______ Allahabad. 3. She was born _____the year 2010. answers: (at, in, in, in) Fill in the blanks with beside or besides 1. I would like some coffee ____ the muffins. 2. She sat _____ him and read her book. 3. He walked _______his parents all the way. 4. The mango tree grew ______the teak tree in the forest.  answers: (besides, beside, beside, beside) Fill in the blanks wi...

  Leisure  How do you spend your free time? How much free time do you have? Are you one of those many people who have no time to stop and admire nature? Here’s an interesting poem written by W H Davies, in which he criticizes all those who have no time to admire the beauty of nature. According to him, your life is not worthwhile if you are always rushing about from one place to another, always worried about the things you need to do, and taking care of various responsibilities. The poem Leisure, by W. H. Davies, has seven rhyming couplets. It is a short poem and one that is easy to understand. Questions 1. Which animals are known to stare a lot? 2. Which animals hide their nuts in grass? 3. ‘Full of care’ means        a) full of joy          b) full of worry Answers 1.  1.   Sheep and cows stare a lot. 2.    Squirrels hide their nuts in grass. 3.    Full of ...

  Here are the questions and answers for easy access QUESTIONS Would it be right to say that the king was conceited? Which word in the passage means ‘a covered passage with arches on one or both sides?’ Why did the king want to conquer God? Find a word in the passage which means the opposite of ‘real’. What was brightly colored and had a thousand eyes? Why did the king order for some thick blankets? Why did the king’s soldiers laugh? ANSWERS The king was conceited and thought only about himself.  An arcade is a covered passage with arches on one or both sides. The king wanted the priests to place statues of him on the altars of the churches. However, the priests refused to do that, saying that God was greater than the king. Hence the king decided to conquer God.  The opposite of ‘real’ is ‘artificial.’ The king’s ship was brightly coloured and had a thousand eyes.  The king ordered for some thick blankets to keep the mosquitoes away.  The king’s soldiers laughed...

  A hyperbole is an exaggerated statement that cannot be taken literally. It is an exaggerated way of describing something. And not just a modest or acceptable exaggeration of something, but an extreme exaggeration.  For example ‘ My neighbour is taller than a skyscraper’ .. Such a statement would be highly exaggerated as no man can possibly be taller than a skyscraper, and not even as tall as one. A hyperbole is a common literary device and is used in storytelling to make everything more interesting. It is a simple technique but can create a profound impact on the listener or the reader.  Here's another example ‘If I do not meet my brother tomorrow, I will die.’ And another one... ‘I am so angry with you that I will explode.’ Or ‘ The teacher was so wild that he could have killed someone.’ You might have heard this one …  ‘I'm so hungry, I could eat a horse’ Or this one  ‘I’m dying of hunger’  Or  ‘My bag weighs a ton’. I think many of us have used hy...

  What's the past tense of burst? And cost? Do you think you know the answer? Have you been using the right word in your speech and writing? Well, the past tense of cost is cost and the past tense of burst is burst…..the words costed and bursted do not exist…   I have a small, interesting verse for you before I end  It will help you to remember the present, past and future tenses of the verbs 'cost' and 'burst'.   He burst it now, he burst it yesterday He will burst it tomorrow And before I end, may I humbly say, How much it cost me now? It cost much   more than yesterday And will cost more tomorrow.. So if you made sense of this little rhyme, You sure have made my day! Watch the video here: https://youtu.be/bdHPF-U3h-c

  COME HELL OR HIGH WATER Idioms Idioms are expressions that you cannot take literally. So if you hear an idiom, you cannot simply understand what it means by looking at the meanings of the words in the phrase. The meaning of each idiom is very different from its individual parts.  Today's Idiom Come Hell Or High Water Meaning 'even if something hinders your work, or some kind of difficulty or obstacle arises' Examples I am going to visit my aunt tomorrow, come hell or high water. My boss insisted that the project should be complete by the end of the week, come hell or high water. They travel a lot every month, come hell or high water. They were determined to renovate the town hall, come hell or high water. Watch the video here: https://youtu.be/UAc3TPGxxJs Here is another common idiom https://youtu.be/RZo-Jy-Nu0U