Fun With English
English can be hard. It can also be fun! We have homophones and homonyms, phrasal verbs and idioms. It can be confusing and entertaining, even for native English speakers! Check out some of the links below and see for yourself.
Some may be hard, but you don't have to understand everything to think it's fun.
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Homophone: a word that sounds like another word but has a different spelling or meaning like sum and some.
Homonym: a word that is spelled the same as another but has a different meaning.
Phrasal Verb: a verb that is combined with with an adverb or preposition to create a new meaning, like take over and go through.
Idiom: an expression that you cannot guess from the meanings of the separate words. Twist someone's arm means force someone to do something,
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Thank you to Laurie, who was an English language learner, for sending me this link. She mentioned how much she enjoyed these fun twists of English, and that it would be a great addition to this site. Because of her I expanded my website to include this and other links.
*The Chaos
The Chaos is a poem written by Gerard Nolst Trenité, a Dutchman, in 1920. It plays with homophones and homonyms to point out how hard English pronunciation is. It's a fun way to remember that you're not alone. Remember, English pronunciation is different all over the US, and all over the world! From England to Australia, India to Singapore to Nigeria. Good luck and have fun!
This video is a short version of the full poem. It is recited (spoken aloud) by an actor, with the written words on the screen so you can read along.