Dutch to English and English to Dutch – 15 False Friends (part III)
This is part III of a series, find part I and II here.
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What's in a sound?
When learning a second language, it is important to be open to different sounds that are not present in your native language. There are some fairly obvious ones such as tones in Chinese and clicks in Zulu and Xhosa but most languages will contain some sounds that you are not familiar with. I remember spending quite some time in French class at school trying to replicate the nasal n, the r and the eu sounds.
When you engage a translation app, don’t disengage your brain!
Translation apps and online thesauruses are very helpful for those of us working with a second language; however, we must be alert to the mistakes that can arise from their use.
Dutch to English and English to Dutch – 10 False Friends (part II)
This is part II of a series, find part I here.
Dutch to English and English to Dutch – 10 False Friends (part I)
The Chaos, and the use of articles in English
The Chaos
Have you heard of The Chaos?
Every Letter is Silent, Sometimes
For anyone who enjoys reading about the vagaries of English spelling and pronunciation.
Noun verb pairs with different syllable stress in English
I found another interesting article related to English pronunciation. This is something I was aware of instinctively but I am surprised just how often it occurs.
10 English phrases that people get wrong
10 Common English Word Choice Errors
When writing an email or letter, whether private or professional, it is a good idea to do a review before you send it off. This is your chance to make sure the tone is right; not too aggressive for example. It is also an opportunity to check for some of these easy to make errors.
Do you need a Copyeditor?
Whatever your document is, website content, advertising material, a proposal, or report, it is always worth having your document reviewed by a second person. It is hard to review your own work as your eyes skip over the errors because of over-familiarity and you may be blind to your style issues such as overusing a particular word. This becomes even more important if English is not your first language.