Future Perfect

Past Perfect

Present Perfect

Basic English Tenses

Hello! This week I am going to post a series of videos that will explain how to use different verb tenses. 

Grammatical "voice"

PASSIVE VOICE

In this section of the blog we are going to learn about the passive voice in order to acquire a higher english level. This is a different way of speaking, it will help you practice!

Functions:

The passive voice is used to show interest in the person or object that experiences an action rather that the person or object that performs the action. In other words, the most important thing or person becomes the subject ot the sentence.

• Sometimes we use the passive voice because we don't know or do not want to express who performed the action.

• The passive voice is often used in formal texts. Switching to the active voice will make your writing clearer and easier to read.

Passive	Active
A great deal of meaning is conveyed by a few well-chosen words.	A few well-chosen words convey a great deal of meaning.
Our planet is wrapped in a mass of gases.	A mass of gases wrap around our planet.
Waste materials are disposed of in a variety of ways.	The city disposes of waste materials in a variety of ways.

Greetings

How to Greet in English-Speaking Countries

Greetings are a fundamental aspect of each culture and a sign of good education, kindness, and openness towards others. Every country has its own way of greeting. In Spanish-speaking countries, handshakes are used when meeting acquaintances or someone new, while one or two kisses on the cheek are given to friends and family.

The United Kingdom

In the UK, a good handshake is also a sign of good manners. In the case of relatives and those we know well, we can greet them with a kiss on the cheek. One kiss is enough. What English expressions you should use? You could opt for a simple “hello,” or you could also ask the person how they are, even if you have just met. Let’s look at some sentences together.

Formal Greetings

• Good morning. / Good afternoon. / Good evening.
• Hi, how are you? / Hello, how do you do?
• Nice to meet you. (After shaking hands.)

Informal Greetings

• Hi. / Hello.
• Morning. / Afternoon. / Evening.
• How is everything?

The United States of America

Even in the USA, handshakes are very common. In the case of greeting a woman that you know well, you could also give her a gentle hug. Additionally, it is often a sign of politeness to greet someone you make eye contact with while passing on the street. Let’s look at some of the most common phrases.

• Hi, how are you doing?
• Hey, what’s up?

Ireland

Ireland is a special country, even when it comes to greetings. Even though English is the national language along with Gaelic, the way of greeting in Ireland is very special and varies by region. Let’s see some phrases.

• How is the form? (= How is life?)
• What’s the story? (= How are you doing?)
• Alright there, bud? (= Is everything okay there, friend?)
• What’s the craic? (= How are things going?)
• What’s the bars? (= Is there any news? Gossip?)
• Alright, boyo? (= Is everything okay there, friend?)

New Zealand

The Maori greet each other with the hongi. This is a complex ritual full of meaning in which two people press their foreheads and their noses together while breathing in at the same time. But this is a traditional greeting, which is now reserved for formal occasions. If you meet someone on the street, you will not need to perform this ritual. To greet someone, it is enough to simply shake hands with good eye contact. If you are meeting someone for the first time, it is important that you introduce yourself and that you ask the other person how they are. Here we leave you some sentences.

• Kia ora (key-or-rah) (Maori greeting.)
• How are you?

Canada

In the case of Canada, the forms of greeting and the gestures are generally the same as those of other English-speaking countries. We can affirm, therefore, that except for a few small variations, the greetings are almost universal. What does often change is the English pronunciation of the sentences. Let’s look at the greetings in this case.

• How ya doin’? (= How are you doing?)
• Howzit goin’? (= How is it going?)
• Whadder yup to? (= What are you up to?)

Australia

We conclude our list with the last and the youngest English-speaking country: Australia. In this case, you might note some differences in etiquette. As Australia is a relatively young country, there is a tendency to not establish a clear boundary between what is formal and what is not. This could cause problems for those people from countries where they are expected to be treated in a certain way according to their social, cultural, or familial origin. In 1980, a Japanese prefecture sponsored a seminar to present the possible difficulties that the Japanese could encounter in Australia. One speaker, Hiro Mukai, said, “Australians have a very naive attitude towards the newly-arrived Japanese. They address everyone in the same way.” This cultural aspect is the consequence of the country’s history and egalitarian policies. Nevertheless, beyond the perceptions that people of other countries may have of Australian culture, the customs related to greetings do not undergo many changes either. Let’s look at the expressions, though.

• G’day, mate! (= Good morning, friend!)
• How are you going? (= How are you doing?)
• Hey, how are you?

Idioms

Fascinating cultures around the world

There are many reasons why travelling is addictive, it opens a new window of knowledge specially when communicating with native speakers, however sometimes we don’t understand the meaning of some words or phrases because we don’t know the context, and as a result we intend to put a literary meaning to all those phrases; hence here we are going to learn some common idioms that are often used in english spoken places:

Idiom	Meaning	Usage
A blessing in disguise	a good thing that seemed bad at first	as part of a sentence
A dime a dozen	Something common	as part of a sentence
Beat around the bush	Avoid saying what you mean, usually because it is uncomfortable	as part of a sentence
Better late than never	Better to arrive late than not to come at all	by itself
Bite the bullet	To get something over with because it is inevitable	as part of a sentence
Break a leg	Good luck	by itself
Call it a day	Stop working on something	as part of a sentence
Cut somebody some slack	Don't be so critical	as part of a sentence
Cutting corners	Doing something poorly in order to save time or money	as part of a sentence
Easy does it	Slow down	by itself
Get out of hand	Get out of control	as part of a sentence
Get something out of your system	Do the thing you've been wanting to do so you can move on	as part of a sentence
Get your act together	Work better or leave	by itself
Give someone the benefit of the doubt	Trust what someone says	as part of a sentence
Go back to the drawing board	Start over	as part of a sentence
Hang in there	Don't give up	by itself
Hit the sack	Go to sleep	as part of a sentence
It's not rocket science	It's not complicated	by itself
Let someone off the hook	To not hold someone responsible for something	as part of a sentence
Make a long story short	Tell something briefly	as part of a sentence
Miss the boat	It's too late	as part of a sentence
No pain, no gain	You have to work for what you want	by itself
On the ball	Doing a good job	as part of a sentence
Pull someone's leg	To joke with someone	as part of a sentence
Pull yourself together	Calm down	by itself
So far so good	Things are going well so far	by itself
Speak of the devil	The person we were just talking about showed up!	by itself
That's the last straw	My patience has run out	by itself
The best of both worlds	An ideal situation	as part of a sentence
Time flies when you're having fun	You don't notice how long something lasts when it's fun	by itself
To get bent out of shape	To get upset	as part of a sentence
To make matters worse	Make a problem worse	as part of a sentence
Under the weather	Sick	as part of a sentence
We'll cross that bridge when we come to it	Let's not talk about that problem right now	by itself
Wrap your head around something	Understand something complicated	as part of a sentence
You can say that again	That's true, I agree	by itself
Your guess is as good as mine	I have no idea