Author: andreaalthoff

-ED no Passado: Três Sons

Posted by

0

No estudo do inglês, o ditado popular “ver para crer” precisa ser substituído por “ouvir para crer”.

Ouvir para Crer: O Caminho da Pronúncia em Inglês

1. Ortografia x Fonética

A relação entre escrita e som em inglês é muito diferente do português. A interpretação fonética da ortografia não segue um padrão único:

  • O mesmo grafema (letra ou grupo de letras) pode corresponder a diferentes fonemas (sons).
  • Uma mesma palavra pode ter pronúncia inesperada, se comparada à forma escrita.

2. A Irregularidade da Língua

Essa falta de correspondência regular entre ortografia e pronúncia faz com que a tentativa de “ler como se escreve” seja enganosa. Para quem não tem contato frequente com a língua falada, essa interferência da escrita pode criar vícios de pronúncia difíceis de corrigir.

3. O Desafio do Sufixo “-ed”

Um dos exemplos mais comuns desse problema é a pronúncia do sufixo “-ed”, que marca o passado dos verbos regulares.
Em português, tendemos a pronunciar todas as letras, mas em inglês o “-ed” tem três pronúncias possíveis:

  1. /t/ – quando o verbo termina em som surdo (p, k, f, s, ch, sh).
    • worked → /wɜːrkt/
    • kissed → /kɪst/
  2. /d/ – quando o verbo termina em som sonoro (vogais ou consoantes como b, g, l, m, n, r, v, z).
    • played → /pleɪd/
    • cleaned → /kliːnd/
  3. /ɪd/ – quando o verbo termina em som de /t/ ou /d/.
    • wanted → /ˈwɒntɪd/
    • needed → /ˈniːdɪd/

4. Recurso Prático

Para compreender e treinar a pronúncia correta, assista a estes dois vídeos selecionados. Eles explicam com clareza e demonstram, na prática, as três pronúncias do “-ed”.

👉 Dica prática: não leia o “-ed” como “édji” em todos os verbos. Escute, repita e associe cada grupo de sons.

✍️ Prática: Pronúncia do sufixo -ed

1. Classifique os verbos

Separe os verbos a seguir nos três grupos de pronúncia: /t/, /d/ ou /ɪd/.

  • wanted, washed, cleaned, needed, loved, kissed, played, watched, decided, worked, called, finished

2. Ouça e repita

(Leia em voz alta ou use um áudio)
Repita cada verbo prestando atenção no som final:

  • /t/ → worked, laughed, kissed
  • /d/ → played, cleaned, loved
  • /ɪd/ → wanted, needed, decided

3. Complete as frases

Coloque os verbos no passado. Depois, leia em voz alta com a pronúncia correta do -ed:

  1. Yesterday I ______ (play) soccer.
    (Ontem eu ______ futebol.)
  2. She ______ (wash) the dishes last night.
    (Ela ______ a louça ontem à noite.)
  3. They ______ (decide) to travel.
    (Eles ______ viajar.)
  4. We ______ (love) the movie.
    (Nós ______ o filme.)
  5. He ______ (need) help with the homework.
    (Ele ______ ajuda com a lição de casa.)

4. Desafio: Identifique a pronúncia

Leia as frases em voz alta e diga qual pronúncia o verbo no passado apresenta:

  1. I worked all day and finished late.
  2. She loved the surprise and called her friends.
  3. They wanted to travel but needed more money.

👉 Dica : diga primeiro o verbo no presente (work, play, want). Depois, acrescente o “-ed” de forma natural, sem tentar pronunciar cada letra isoladamente.

Phrasal Verbs

Posted by

0

What Are Phrasal Verbs?

Phrasal verbs are a verb + one or more particles (prepositions or adverbs) that create a new meaning.
Example: get over = recover or overcome (not “get” + “over” literally).

They are very common in spoken English and often unpredictable.

Types of Phrasal Verbs

1. Two-Part Verbs

Verb + one particle

Examples:

  • grow up – The children are growing up.
  • take after – She takes after her mother. (= She looks like her mother or she behaves like her mother.)
  • count on – I can count on you. (= I know I can trust you or I know I can believe you.)

a) Inseparable

Verb and particle cannot be split.

She takes after her mother.

b) Separable

With a noun object, you may place the particle before or after the object:

She gave back the money. / She gave the money back.

But with a pronoun, separation is required:

She gave it back. ✅
She gave back it. ❌

Common separable particles: apart, around, away, back, behind, down, out, over, together, off, up.

2. Three-Part Verbs

Verb + two particles, always inseparable:

  • walk out on – His girlfriend walked out on him.
  • catch up with – She caught up with the runners.
  • look up to – Children should look up to their parents.

Grammar & Tenses

Only the verb changes form; the particles stay the same.

  • Past: I got over the flu.
  • Infinitive: I need to get over this cold.
  • Gerund: I’m getting over the flu.

Key takeaway:
A phrasal verb acts as one unit of meaning, so learn them as phrases, not word by word.

Practice

Test your knowledge of phrasal verbs with these online exercises.

Keep Learning

Want more? Watch the video for more phrasal verbs.

Talking About the Weather

Posted by

0

🎯 Objectives

  • Learn common English adjectives to describe the weather.
  • Practice asking and answering: “What’s the weather like?”
  • Connect weather vocabulary to images, sounds, and real-life feelings.

🎥 Instructions

  1. Watch the video carefully.
    • Pay attention to the people describing the weather.
    • Listen to the audio and connect with images.

Dialogue Practice

Example 1

Chuck: It’s cloudy and damp.

Scene of clouds over a farmhouse with light rain.

📝 Damp = slightly wet.

Example 2

Diana: Brisk.
Dave: It’s brisk. It’s cool. Yeah.
Diana: Yeah, brisk. Wonderful.

📝 Brisk = invigorating; crisp; exhilarating.

Example 3

Steve: It’s a beautiful day in New York. It is cool and it is crisp. It is autumn.

A couple together in crisp air. Crisp means the same as brisk.

📝 Crisp = similar to brisk, refreshing air.

Example 4

Ghia: OK. Well, it’s really overcast and cloudy and it’s a bit crisp and a little windy. But it’s pleasant.

Overcast means cloudy, basically, so we see more clouds, but lower in the sky.

📝 Overcast = sky covered with clouds.

Example 5

Colin: Now? Dull and grey.
Chris: Cold.

Dull and grey here refers to the color rain and relative darkness.

📝 Dull and grey = dark, rainy, with no sunshine.

Example 6

Eric: Weather? Breezy. Bright. Sunny. Very nice. Very healthy.

We can tell it's breezy thanks to the arrows which indicate the direction of the wind, with a large sun for 'sunny'.

📝 Breezy = pleasantly windy.

Example 7

Minda: The weather is beautiful today. It’s a little cool. It’s dry and it is a little breezy and sunny.

The 3 weather adjectives are represented by 3 words, dry in the desert, with a big sun, and a lady with an umbrella about to break in the wind.

📝 Breezy = light wind. Windy = stronger wind.

Example 8

Sandra: It’s nice. It’s not too cold and it’s not too warm. It’s pleasant.

To illustrate the adjective 'pleasant' we have a man relaxing pleasantly in the sun with a thermometer showing pleasant temperatures.

Example 9

Anthony: Sunny. Mild. Not too hot. Not too cold.
📝 Mild = gentle, pleasant weather.

Example 10

Gabriella: Chilly. Windy.

Chilly: A man dressed warmly and for windy, a cloud figure blowing air.

📝 Chilly = almost cold.

Example 11

Peter: Cold and windy.

Icicles indicate it's cold.

Example 12

Lisa: Very sunny. Warm.

Just the sun shining brightly

Example 13

Stuart: Very cold. Windy. Not very nice.

Example 14

Paul: It’s raining.

A cloud releasing rain.

🔑 Key Vocabulary Recap

  • Damp = slightly wet
  • Brisk / Crisp = cool, invigorating
  • Overcast = very cloudy
  • Dull and grey = dark, rainy
  • Breezy = light wind
  • Windy = strong wind
  • Chilly = almost cold
  • Mild = pleasant, not extreme
  • Pleasant = nice, enjoyable

“What’s the weather like today where you are?”

The Verb To Be – The Basics

Posted by

0

Do you know this famous line?

“To be, or not to be – that is the question.”
It’s from Shakespeare’s Hamlet.

The verb to be is one of the most important verbs in English. In this lesson, we’ll learn how to use it to talk about ourselves and other people.

👤 Talking about yourself

  • I am → I’m
    This is the short form, and it’s very common in spoken English.
  • Hi, I’m Fred. → Fred is introducing himself.

👥 Talking about others

  • you are → you’re
    • You’re Jennifer, right?
  • she is → she’s
    • How’s Julia? – She’s good!
  • he is → he’s
    • He’s James.
  • it is → it’s
    • It’s a bee. 🐝

📌 Use he for a man, she for a woman, and it for an object or an animal (when we don’t know or don’t need to mention gender).

👨‍👩‍👧 Talking about groups

  • we are → we’re
    • We’re friends.
  • they are → they’re
    • They’re teachers.

👉 Tip: We use they when we talk about a group of people, and also when we don’t know someone’s gender.

💡 Extra Tip

We can ask “How are you?” when talking to one person or to many people.

  • You (singular) → How are you?
  • You (plural) → How are you all? / How are you guys?

The verb are doesn’t change.

📊 Summary Table

PersonVerb “to be”Short formExample
IamI’mI’m happy.
youareyou’reYou’re my friend.
heishe’sHe’s a student.
sheisshe’sShe’s a doctor.
itisit’sIt’s cold.
wearewe’reWe’re ready.
theyarethey’reThey’re here.

🚀 For Extra Practice

Practice saying these aloud:

  • Introduce yourself: “Hi, I’m …”
  • Point to a friend: “He’s … / She’s …”
  • Describe something near you: “It’s …”
  • Talk about a group: “We’re … / They’re …”

In the next step, you’ll also learn negatives (I’m not, you aren’t, she isn’t…) and questions (Am I…? Is he…? Are they…?).

✏️ Exercises – Verb To Be

1) Complete with the correct form of to be (am / is / are):

a) I ___ a student.
b) She ___ my best friend.
c) They ___ very happy today.
d) We ___ in the classroom.
e) He ___ from Brazil.

2) Rewrite using the short forms:

a) I am tired. → ____________
b) She is at the park. → ____________
c) We are ready. → ____________
d) He is my brother. → ____________
e) They are teachers. → ____________

3) Make the sentences negative:

a) I’m from Canada. → ____________
b) She’s here. → ____________
c) They’re students. → ____________
d) We’re late. → ____________
e) It’s a dog. → ____________

4) Ask questions with to be:

a) you / tired → ____________ ?
b) she / your teacher → ____________ ?
c) they / at school → ____________ ?
d) he / ready → ____________ ?
e) it / your book → ____________ ?

5) Translate into English:

a) Eu sou feliz.
b) Ela é minha amiga.
c) Nós estamos em casa.
d) Eles são médicos.
e) Está frio.

✅ Answer Key – Verb To Be

1) Complete with the correct form of to be:

a) I am a student.
b) She is my best friend.
c) They are very happy today.
d) We are in the classroom.
e) He is from Brazil.

2) Rewrite using the short forms:

a) I am tired. → I’m tired.
b) She is at the park. → She’s at the park.
c) We are ready. → We’re ready.
d) He is my brother. → He’s my brother.
e) They are teachers. → They’re teachers.

3) Make the sentences negative:

a) I’m from Canada. → I’m not from Canada.
b) She’s here. → She isn’t here. / She’s not here.
c) They’re students. → They aren’t students. / They’re not students.
d) We’re late. → We aren’t late. / We’re not late.
e) It’s a dog. → It isn’t a dog. / It’s not a dog.

4) Ask questions with to be:

a) you / tired → Are you tired?
b) she / your teacher → Is she your teacher?
c) they / at school → Are they at school?
d) he / ready → Is he ready?
e) it / your book → Is it your book?

5) Translate into English:

a) Eu sou feliz. → I’m happy.
b) Ela é minha amiga. → She’s my friend.
c) Nós estamos em casa. → We’re at home.
d) Eles são médicos. → They’re doctors.
e) Está frio. → It’s cold.

Now test how well you can use the verb to be.

How to Pronounce “WORLD” (American English)

Posted by

0

How to Pronounce 'world'.

Many English learners struggle to pronounce the word “world” — and for good reason! It contains two tricky consonant sounds: R and L, right next to each other.

👂 In American English, the pronunciation can feel especially challenging.

🧠 A Brilliant Tip from a 12-Year-Old

One of my former students, Rodrigo (only 12 years old at the time!), came up with a smart way to break it down:

➡️ wor + óld
Think of it as two parts:

  • “wor” (as in word)
  • “óld” (like the word old)
    Put them together: wor-óld → world
    🎉 Ingenious, right? Way to go, Rodrigo!

🎥 A Similar Tip from a Teacher

While preparing this lesson, I came across a video where another teacher gives a very similar tip. Listen carefully.

🗣️ Pronunciation Practice

Repeat each pair of words slowly, focusing on the R and L sounds. Then say “world” after each one:

  1. word – old – world
  2. were – gold – world
  3. worm – cold – world
  4. war – fold – world
  5. work – hold – world

Now try saying “world” 5 times in a row, slowly and clearly.
Finally, say these full sentences:

  • 🌍 The world is beautiful.
  • 🌎 I want to travel around the world.
  • 🌐 English is spoken all over the world.