IELTS Writing: Synonyms

Here is a link to some useful IELTS advice regarding synonyms:  https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/JebH7ae94u24q2DjSv-QqA Note that the various words presented in the vocabulary list on the other end of that link aren’t necessarily better or worse than other words you might use. The point is that you should try to vary your language by learning how to … Read more

Academic Vocabulary – comparED vs. comparING (useful for IELTS Writing Task 1)

One of the main things students have to do in academic writing is to make comparisons between different theories, methods and sources of data. In task 1 of the IELTS writing test, students need to compare the significant features of the visual provided. In both cases, it is clearly a big problem if students cannot … Read more

Exploring Academic Vocabulary with BAWE

This page is set up to help students explore the use of the BAWE corpus as a tool for informing vocabulary choices in academic writing. The examples below come from either common errors in student writing or questions my students have asked about specific lexicogrammar features of English. If you search for words or phrases … Read more

Improving your Vocabulary

Hello! 🙂 Many students learning English as a foreign language find it difficult to learn enough vocabulary to read and write effectively. So, here are some ideas to help you improve your vocabulary in an efficient way. READ A LOT: Reading English is by far the best way to improve your vocabulary range. Read whatever … Read more

AWL Exercises 11

The exercises below are intended to help students learn the words from the first four sublists of the AWL Choose the correct form of the word to complete the passage The gaps are all words from the AWL sublists 1-5; the words in blue bold are also from the AWL These exercises focus on the correct … Read more