English Preposition Lesson: Using Around

I walked around the Library

I walked around the Library

Today I am going to show you how we use around, which is both adverb and a preposition. I am sure you will find learning this English Grammar helpful, especially if you are preparing for the TOEIC or TOEFL exam.

We use around to mean approximately:

  • There are around thirty English Language schools in New York City.
  • Jack is tall. He’s around 190cm.

We use around to mean near:

  • There are a lot of restaurants around my office.
  • You can see many interesting people around Times Square.

We use around with the meaning of encircle or surround something:

  • The hotel is build around a swimming pool.
  • We sat around the table during the meeting.

We use around with the meaning of moving in a circle or toward the other side of (like a corner):

  • The man walked around the corner.
  • The kids ran around the tree.

We use around to talk about moving to many different places in one area of a city, office, shop, etc:

  • We walked around Chinatown for three hours on Saturday.
  • Let’s look around the museum.

We use turn around to talk about changing the direction or movement in an opposite direction:

  • The road was closed so I had to turn the car around and go a different way.
  • Everyone turned around when we heard the loud noise in the office.

We use be around to mean exist in a location:

  • I’ll be around until 3:00, then I have to leave the office.
  • That café has been around since 1970.

I think I’ve covered most of the common ways to use around. If you know another way to use around, let me know. In the meantime, how about trying to use some of these patterns? Write a sentence or two in the comment box below!



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English Grammar Lesson: Using Feel

He feels so soft!

He feels so soft!

Yesterday, we I showed you the different ways to use seem. Today, I want to help you with another verb that can be tricky to use: feel.  I’d like to show you how we can use this verb in everyday English. There are several grammar patterns using feel, so let’s have a look at them.

First, we use feel + adjective to describe mental or physical states:

  • I feel hot. Can you please turn on the air conditioner?
  • Jack said he feels sick, so he is going to leave the office early.
  • This pillow feels soft! I love it!

We also use feel + like + noun to describe mental or physical states:

  • I didn’t sleep well last night. I feel like a zombie today.
  • This pillow feels like a brick. I want a softer one.

In a similar way, we can use also use feel + like + subject + verb:

  • I didn’t sleep well last night. I feel like I am a zombie today.
  • This pillow feels like it is a brick. I want a softer one.

It is also possible to use feel + as if & feel + as though with the same meaning:

  • I didn’t sleep well last night. I feel as though I am a zombie today.
  • This pillow feels as if it is a brick. I want a softer one.

We can also use feel like to mean want. After feel like you can use a gerund or noun:

  • I feel like eating ice cream.
  • We were talking about lunch and Jack said he feels like pizza. How about you?

We use feel + noun to talk about a physical perception or the sense of touch:

  • I felt something on my leg and it was a spider! Yuck!
  • Jack felt her forehead and realized she has a fever.

Well, I think I’ve covered everything. If you know another way to use feel, let me know. In the meantime, how about trying to use some of these patterns? Write a sentence or two in the comment box below!



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English Grammar Lesson: Using Seem

They seem to be having fun!

They seem to be having fun!

It seems as if a lot of students have trouble using the word seem, so today I’d like to show you how we can use this verb in everyday English. There are several grammar patterns using seem, so let’s have a look at them.

You can use use seem + adjective. The nuance is “I think~”

  • You seem tired today.

You can also use seem + to be + adj. The nuance is more like “It is true in my opinion~”

  • You seem to be tired.
  • The boss seem to be angry about something.
  • Jack seems to be worried about the meeting.

You can use seem like + noun phrase:

  • This seems like a nice restaurant.
  • Jane’s new boyfriend seems like a nice guy.
  • It seems like my dog Happy is hungry again!

You can also use seem to be + noun/gerund:

  • I found something in the meeting room that seems to be Jack’s schedule book.
  • This seems to be some sort of tool.
  • Jack seems to be working hard today.

You can also use There seems to be + noun

  • There seems to be a problem with the trains this morning.
  • There seems to be a bug in the program.
  • There seem to be a lot of places you can rent a bike in NYC these days.

You can use seem + to verb (besides be):

  • You seem to like your job.
  • Jack seems to know a lot about NYC.
  • I can’t seem to find my keys.

Finally, you can use It seems that (or) It seems as if (or) It seems like:

  • It seems that we have run out of coffee.
  • It seems as if it is going to rain.
  • It seems like the boss is in a bad mood.

Wow! That’s a big list. It seems like I wrote a lot. If it seems like I missed something, let me know. How about trying some of these patterns? Write your original sentence in the box below!



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English Idiom Lesson: How To Get Someone To Stop Talking!

Do you have any friends who are blabbermouths? Here is another awesome  Kaplan illustration with some idioms you can use to shut them up!

 

shhh! english idiomsKaplan International Colleges



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