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silent_sam

silent_sam

Canada

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November 30, 2007

Hello everyone,

 

Many students on this site have asked me to talk about “Modals”

 

Students are confused and don’t know how to use modals at first.  Well I guess we will have to do a series on Modals to help you relax and use them with confidence. J

 

First, you need to know why we use modals in English …

 

Modals let us know the feeling, attitude or mood of the speaker.  They help us understand the deeper meaning of a sentence even if we don’t hear the other person’s voice.

 

This is a list of modals in English:

 

May, Might, Should, Ought to, Had better, Be supposed to, Must, Have to, have got to, Will, Be going to, Can, Could, Be able to, Would, Used to

Now you should remember that each modal can have more than one meaning.

 

We will start with May:

 

1) “May” can be used as a polite request: this form is very polite and not used in day to day conversation very much … but it is good to know ;)

 

May I borrow your pen?

May I ask you name?

 

2) “May” can also be used to talk about certainty (when you are sure about something).  When we use “may” in a sentence it mean 50% sure.  Also remember Might has the same meaning  … look at these examples:

 

John may be in the library. 

(This means I am not sure if John is in the library or not. There is a 50% chance he is there)

Sarah might call you tonight.  

(This means there is a 50% chance of a Phone call)

 

Kiyoko might visit Beijing next summer.

Kumar may be at home.

 

Ok this is the end of part one on modals.  Hope this is helpful and I will post part two in a few days.

Have fun learning Wink

02:05 PM Mar 16 2008

Renito

Renito
Bulgaria

that's a nicely inspired lecture  :)))

Reni Bg

05:14 AM Jan 01 2008

Sea gull
China

Hello,Sam.nice to see you,i'm a student.please forgive my pool english. i want to improve it but i always fail.can you give me a hand.By the way,i just read you blog and realiy like it.Let make a friend

02:01 AM Dec 21 2007

Thyago

Thyago
Brazil

Hey Sam!

I've just read this blog and I really liked it!

There are very important tips =)

Thank you very much

12:59 AM Dec 20 2007

Gud

Gud
China

hi!!!sam.please forgive my pool english. i want to improve it but i always fail.can you give me a hand.

05:17 PM Dec 02 2007

AL Kindi

AL Kindi
United Arab Emirates

thanx man

Laughing

keep going

07:27 AM Nov 30 2007

elliott2918
China

Thx for ur help! Smile

November 18, 2007

Hello everyone,

Today we will talk about the difference between Hear and Listen.

Many students confuse these words so let’s see what the difference is.

We use Hear to talk about one of our senses, like See you don’t need to do anything it just happens naturally.  It’s just a natural ability.

 

I can hear the rain.

I heard this song on the radio.

Can you hear me?

 

We use Listen the same way we use Watch.  When you pay attention to a noise, song or someone talking.  Here are some examples.

 

I listen to the news on the radio every morning.

I like to listen to Ebaby lessons.

I listened to their album when I was in High School.

 

I hope this explanation was useful to some.  I will have another lesson for you in a couple of days.  Have fun learning and don’t be shy to ask questions J

 

Sam

05:29 PM Dec 06 2007

Yammi
China

Dear silent sam .

 thank you for your lesson . it is useful to me .

i find it is lessone in NOV.

  Could you tell me how i study the newest  lesson ?

 

best regards

 

yammi

03:21 AM Nov 25 2007

kebingka

kebingka
China

It is too useful to me,thank you ,looking forword to your next lesson~~

It will be great honor if I can make friend with you ~~Can I ? I am sure!

07:24 AM Nov 21 2007

yuanweiliang
China

yes,sam,it's great and very helpful,I want to learn more from you,thank you very much,you are a good teacher and good friend to all of us.

02:59 AM Nov 19 2007

jackiewan
China

After reading ur article,I do wanna make friends with you.can you send msn address to me?So I can talk to you directly,ok?Thanks.Mine is jackiewan@live.cn join me

08:47 AM Nov 18 2007

sweta_cher
Russian Federation

waiting for your next lessons! I like these kinds of details, thanks)

07:43 AM Nov 18 2007

silent_sam

silent_sam
Canada

Huum  interesting comment ... Too bad he forgot to read my profile to find out I'm not a woman :D  HA HA HA!!!

 Anyway i hope the rest of you are enjoying this quick lesson :)

 

Cheers 

07:12 AM Nov 18 2007

segzyworld02
Canada



I like what I read and saw, let us talk.
Something about me? I'm a Petrochemical engineer, very calm and steady, sociable and easy-going with people of any age and profession. I'm open and compassionate. It's natural for me to take care of others. I am a very responsible man who values the laws of ethic and good taste both in myself and others. For me, honesty, sincerity and mutual respect are very important. I'm serious and practical but at the same time I'm very romantic and I won't deny of seeing a night sky and stars, morning sunrise, sitting at the fire and listening to romantic and rock music, eating a wonderful dinner with candles with my righful beloved darling who is yet to be known, with numerous wonderful moments together. My dearest dream is to have a wealthy and prosperous family of my own, loving beautiful wife and good looking and healthy children. I want to realize my huge desire to have a cozy and harmonic home. I want to take care, love and to be loved by my wife. I dream about finding my second half. I'd like to meet tender and faithful lady like you who would be gorgeous, intelligent, emotional and with good sense of humor and at the same time be responsible, independent, decisive and self-assured. I'd like to have a family with a woman who would be a fan and support for me, for life.
hihi! that was just little about me wanna know more try reply this mail of mine. love to hear from you soon. my email address are: segzyworld02@yahoo.com
cheers!
segzy.

November 16, 2007

Hi everyone,

I have been away on my first vacation in 4 years.  My wife and I went to Japan for two weeks.  What a great trip!  I will add some pictures for you guys to see later.  

 I missed all my friends here and all who wrote to me while I was away.  Thank you all for your kind comments I will continue to add lessons here and help out as much as I can.

For my Japanese friends on Ebaby!  Konichiwa, O genki desuka?  I had a great time in Japan and loved the people and history.  I specially like the fact that every where I went people were polite and places were very clean.  Oh, and I love the food.  

Anyway, i will end this quick hello and promise to have a lesson and some pictures in the next couple of days.

Now, I am off  to answer my messages.  Have a great day,

Silent_Sam