Cliche Finder Have you been searching for just the right cliché to use? Are you searching for a cliché using the word "cat" or "day" but haven't been able to come up with one? Just enter any words in the form below, and this search engine will return any clichés which use that phrase... Over 3,300 clichés indexed! What exactly is a cliche? This is Morgan, creator of the Cliche Finder. Or, you might like my crazy passion project: Spanish for Nerds: Learning Spanish via Etymologies! Back to cliches... if you would like to see some other Web sites about clichés? © S. Special thanks to Damien LeriAnd to Mike Senter Morgan's Web page
Koprowski - Ten Good Games for Recycling Vocabulary The Internet TESL Journal Mark Koprowskimarkkoprowski [at] yahoo.com Introduction Learning is remembering. If we respect this axiom, the review and recycling of new language items will be critical if they stand a chance of becoming readily accessible in long-term memory. In fact, students do the majority of their forgetting shortly after the lesson and then the rate of forgetting diminishes. Experts these days concur that learners actually need as many as 5 to 16 'meetings' with a new language item in a variety of contexts before it can be truly learned and activated for genuine use. 1. Divide the class into Teams A and B. Variation: To ensure a slightly quieter and less chaotic game, the teams can take it in turns. 2. Put the students into pairs or small groups. Variation: To add a spelling accuracy component, teams can also earn an extra point for each correctly spelt item. 3. 4. Divide the class into Teams A and B. 5. 6. Divide the class into Teams A and B. 7. 8. 10. Bibliography
25 Synonyms for Story by Mark Nichol So, you’re writing a story? What kind of story? No, don’t unreel the plot for me. Provide some context for the narrative style by telling me what your model is for your tale. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19: Record: (see annals) 20: Roman a clef (French, “novel with a key”): a story with thinly disguised versions of actual characters and events 21: Short story: a tale shorter than a novel, featuring relatively few characters and focusing less on plot than on mood 22: Short short story: an especially brief story 23: Tall tale: a story intended to entertain through the introduction of exaggerated elements 24: Urban legend/urban myth: a moralistic or sensational story presented and widely perceived as fact 25: Yarn: a story that is adventurous or humorous or both, and perhaps is a tall tale (see “tall tale,” above)
Weather base Writing Tips: Abolish the Adverbs Are they slowly running or are they jogging? Adjectives and adverbs are modifiers. Adjectives modify nouns whereas adverbs modify verbs, other adverbs, adjectives, phrases, and clauses. In fact, an adverb can modify an entire sentence. For example, car is a noun and red is an adjective. But run quickly is better stated as sprint. The examples above demonstrate why adjectives can be useful in writing and why adverbs are usually useless. Why Adverbs Are Weak and How They Weaken Your Writing “The road to hell is paved with adverbs.” ~ Stephen King Here’s a list of 3732 adverbs. “Why don’t you come over here and sit by me?” It’s a horrid sentence. “Why don’t you come over here and sit by me?” It may not be the greatest sentence ever written, but showing the character batting her eyelashes is a lot better than telling readers she asked a question flirtatiously. Most adverbs either tell us what we already know or use too many words to communicate an image or idea. It’s a very warm day.
IdiomSite.com - Find out the meanings of common sayings Expanding Vocabulary, One Schools Creative Idea (ARTICLE) Expanding Vocabulary, One School's Creative Idea (ARTICLE) We are always looking for clever and creative ideas for supporting children as they work on expanding their vocabulary. We received permission from Darlene, a literacy coach from Canandigua, New York, to share with you her school-wide vocabulary initiative call "Big Dog Words." The initiative is grounded in the research by Isabell Beck, PhD and her work with 'tier two' words. (you can read more about these types of vocabulary words in her book: Bringing Words to Life: Robust Vocabulary Instruction by Isabel L. Beck, et. al.) Darlene writes, "Our "Big Dog" vocabulary words were taken school wide last year as I created 2 Big Dog words lists (one for primary and one for intermediate). This summer we even had a Big Dog Vocabulary Reading Challenge for students where they looked for their big dog words in the books they read. We do lots of other exciting things with our schoolwide Big Dog words. Vocabulary Game
40 Synonyms for Praise by Mark Nichol Last week, I offered a list of synonyms for the word criticize. To avert criticism (admonishment, censure, chastising, and so on), I offer here a roster of synonyms for its antonym, praise, in that word’s verb form as well as when it’s used as a noun. 1. Acclaim: To applaud or praise; also a noun referring to the action of applause or cheering. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40.
45 ways to avoid using the word 'very' Writers Write is your one-stop resource for writers. Use these 45 ways to avoid using the word ‘very’ to improve your writing. Good writers avoid peppering their writing with qualifiers like ‘very’ and ‘really’. They are known as padding or filler words and generally add little to your writing. According to Collins Dictionary: ‘Padding is unnecessary words or information used to make a piece of writing or a speech longer. Adding modifiers, qualifiers, and unnecessary adverbs and adjectives, weakens your writing. This post gives you 45 ways to avoid using the padding word ‘very’. Three Telling Quotes About ‘Very’ “Substitute ‘damn’ every time you’re inclined to write ‘very;’ your editor will delete it and the writing will be just as it should be. If you enjoyed this, you will love: Top Tip: If you want to learn how to write a book, sign up for our online course. by Amanda Patterson © Amanda Patterson