<![CDATA[オンライン英会話・SKYPE

<![CDATA[オンライン英会話・SKYPE - Blog]]>Thu, 10 Jul 2025 13:54:18 -0700Weebly<![CDATA[The English 808 Blog has moved to...]]>Sun, 23 Aug 2015 12:28:55 GMThttps://www.english808.com/blog/the-english-808-blog-has-moved-tohttp://english808.blogspot.jp/

]]><![CDATA[English Idioms 英語慣用語 - Sweating Buckets]]>Sun, 09 Aug 2015 15:43:36 GMThttps://www.english808.com/blog/english-idioms-sweating-bucketsRecently I have been sweating buckets. Maybe you can imagine already that this idiom means to sweat, A LOT!
Buckets can be used to collect water, and often in an emergency. When a boat (a small boat) is filling with water this is a problem, the boat could sink. We use a small bucket to take the water out of the boat.

Another problem is if we have a leak in our roof or ceiling and water is dripping down on the floor. When this happens we usually use a bucket to collect the water.

If we need a 'bucket' there is too much water. If we are sweating a lot the feeling is not good, and we are uncomfortable. We use 'bucket' to mean it's too much.
"It's so hot today! I'm sweating buckets!!!!!"

英会話レッスン　吉祥寺、新宿、渋谷

]]><![CDATA[Vocabulary opposite practice - adjectives(形容詞)]]>Wed, 15 Jul 2015 08:53:47 GMThttps://www.english808.com/blog/vocabulary-opposite-practice-adjectivesThis is a list of 20 adjectives and their opposites.
Can you match all 20?

英会話レッスン　吉祥寺、新宿、渋谷

]]><![CDATA[自然な英語 Go out for a drink...]]>Thu, 09 Jul 2015 02:53:13 GMThttps://www.english808.com/blog/-go-out-for-a-drinkHere is a natural English sentence: “Last night I went out for a drink with some friends.” The main point is spending time with friends, we had a drink together.

We don’t say “Last night I went drinking with my friends.” It sounds too serious. The main point here sounds like drinking, your main mission is to drink alcohol! 危ない！

"I went out with some coworkers for a few drinks last night.
We had a great time!"

英会話レッスン　吉祥寺、新宿、渋谷

]]><![CDATA[Give a present - NOT (I present you...) INCORRECT!]]>Sat, 27 Jun 2015 02:17:22 GMThttps://www.english808.com/blog/give-a-present-not-i-present-you-incorrectWe don't "present" someone a gift. We give them a gift. OR we give them a present. Present and gift are both nouns and they have the same meaning. Give needs an object, we have to give someone something. Study these examples:

“I gave my girlfriend a birthday present.”

“My brother gave me his old guitar.”

“Henry's company gave him a gold watch and a $5000 bonus after 25 years with the company.”

This present is a noun (名詞) not a verb (動詞)!

英会話レッスン　吉祥寺、新宿、渋谷

]]><![CDATA[真っ白 and 真っ黒 pure white and pitch black]]>Wed, 10 Jun 2015 23:27:15 GMThttps://www.english808.com/blog/-and-pure-white-and-pitch-blackLast week I bought a new pair of shoes. They are 真っ白. My shoes are PURE WHITE, but they will get dirty soon I think!

I was walking through the park one evening and it was very dark. I heard someone say 真っ黒です. In English we say it's PITCH BLACK.

Why aren’t 真っ白 and 真っ黒 the same in English?

真っ is an adjective, it means totally or completely. We use PURE with colors in English. Pure red means completely red. But when we talk about how dark it is (闇) we use the expression PITCH BLACK.

You mean pitch?

No no. Pitch is a kind of tar used to fix roads or holes in a roof and it is very black. "Pitch black" means it's as dark as pitch.

"We lost power during the thunderstorm. My house was pitch black."

英会話レッスン　吉祥寺、新宿、渋谷

]]><![CDATA[Use - 2 meanings, 2 pronunciations - 使う and 用途]]>Wed, 03 Jun 2015 02:55:59 GMThttps://www.english808.com/blog/use-2-meanings-2-pronunciations-andUSE can be a verb or a noun and the pronunciation is slightly different. Look at these examples:

The word 'USE' can be a verb (使う) ~ "May I use your telephone? I have to call my Mom." The verb form has a Z (zee) sound at the end. YOUZ

The word 'USE' can also be a noun (用途) ~ "Studying English is a great use of your time." The noun form has an S (ess) sound at the end. YOUS

英会話レッスン　吉祥寺、新宿、渋谷

]]><![CDATA[2 English idioms that use the word SHEEP - 羊のイディオム]]>Sun, 24 May 2015 13:26:41 GMThttps://www.english808.com/blog/2-english-idioms-that-use-the-word-sheep2015 is the year of the sheep! Here are 2 idioms with the word sheep

black sheep (of the family)

= the worst member of a family or group.

"Brenda is the black sheep of the family. She always gets in trouble with the police."

A: "My brother has been kicked out of school 3 times in 4 years!"

B: "What do you expect from the black sheep of the family?"

*It's common to just say (the) black sheep to mean the worst person in a family/group. In the example above you could also say:

A: "My brother has been kicked out of school 3 times in 4 years!"

B: "What do you expect from the black sheep?"

wolf in sheep's clothing

= a dangerous person pretending to be harmless.

"My new coworker seemed to be a very friendly guy, but we later found out that he was a wolf in sheep's clothing. He lied to us and was caught stealing from the company."

英会話レッスン　吉祥寺、新宿、渋谷

]]><![CDATA[Often confused English words (間違えやすい) famous/popular]]>Fri, 15 May 2015 11:35:11 GMThttps://www.english808.com/blog/often-confused-english-words-famouspopularThe words 'famous' and 'popular' are sometimes confused by many of my private students. These 2 words can often describe the same thing or person...

BUT

...they do not mean the same thing. Both are adjectives and although they are similar, they are used differently. Look at these definitions with examples:

famous (有名な) = known about by many people

～ a famous artist/hotel

～ the most famous lake in Italy

"One day, I'll be rich and famous."

～ famous for something "He became internationally famous for his novels."

～ famous as something "She was more famous as a writer than as a singer."

popular (人気) = liked or enjoyed by a large number of people

～ a hugely popular singer

"This is one of our most popular designs."

"Skiing has become very popular recently."

～ popular (with somebody) "These policies are unlikely to prove popular with middle-class voters."

"I'm not very popular with my parents at the moment." (= they are annoyed with me)

Try this example:

"Tokyo Disneyland is a famous family theme park, but Tokyo Disney Sea is more popular with couples and adults. Probably because you can drink beer there!"

英会話レッスン　吉祥寺、新宿、渋谷

]]><![CDATA[New vocabulary for holidays! ゴールデンウイーク来る！]]>Thu, 30 Apr 2015 00:54:39 GMThttps://www.english808.com/blog/new-vocabulary-for-holidaysGolden week

National holiday 祝日
Vacation 旅行
Consecutive (in a row) 連続した
　　
A: "What will you do for golden week?"
B: "I will use 2 of my paid holidays together with the national holidays to get 9 consecutive days off. It's a good chance to take a vacation with my family."

Saturday May 2nd to Sunday May 10th is 9 days in a row.

英会話レッスン　吉祥寺、新宿、渋谷

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