Ed Swick - English Problem Solver

English Problem Solver

Ed Swick

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ISBN: 978-0-07-179125-0

MHID: 0-07-179125-6

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Contents

Preface

This book is aptly named a problem solver. Unlike other publications for learning English, it does not look at all aspects of grammar and structure; rather, it isolates those things in the language that non-natives often find complex or confusing. It then describes them, analyzes the complexities that cause confusion, and provides explanations and examples of how the problem areas work.

Most of the 20 chapters in the book delve into specific areas of difficulty. After these areas have been described, explained, and illustrated, they are put into practice in a wide variety of exercises; here, the reader can become more familiar with the problem areas, how they function, and how to take control of them. Some of the exercises require changing a word appropriately for the sentence in which it is found. Others ask the reader to insert a new word or phrase into a sentence. There are even a few multiple-choice exercises. In addition, most chapters have at least one exercise in which the reader writes original sentences. If a particular subject still seems difficult after a chapter has been completed, the reader should simply reread the chapter and practice the exercises again.

Homophones are a special problem for those learning English. presents a variety of homophonic words and provides practice with them. But the list of homophones is quite long. Therefore, a detailed list is provided at the end of this book in the appendix. This resource will be essential for working with homophones.

The last chapter of the book does not discuss a specific problem area or describe any particular linguistic difficulty. Instead, it is a miniature linguistic laboratory that the reader can use to practice all aspects of the language simultaneously. Like any language, English is not a random series of conjugations, case varieties, and vocabulary. It is a combination of all those things that make communication in the language comprehensible and accurate. Therefore, the last chapter asks the reader to write creatively and not just practice with isolated concepts. The exercises are not for grammatical or vocabulary practice but a forum for the reader to apply his or her knowledge of English in a personal way. Of course, there will be some guidelines for this type of creative writing, but generally the reader will have ample opportunities to experiment.

This series of books is intentionally called Practice Makes Perfect, for that idea is basic to learning and mastering a new language.

Some native languages other than English do not use definite and indefinite articles. Therefore, speakers of these languages often have difficulty learning and using the English definite and indefinite articles accurately. This chapter will help to alleviate this problem.

Definite articles

The definite article in English is the. It is pronounced as th ( = schwa) when it precedes words that begin with a consonant.

th book

th funny story

th long book

th silly clown