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“I” BEFORE “E” EXCEPT AFTER “C”?

Today’s question is, “Teacher, can you explain the ‘i before e except after c’ rule?”
There's a rhyme that English speakers often use to remember whether to spell
words with IE or EI, and it goes: "I before E except after C, or when sounded as A
as in neighbor and weigh."
Let's look at the words that follow this rule... and the exceptions to it!
These words follow the "i" before "e" rule. In all of them, IE is pronounced like EE:
• achieve
• belief
• cashier
• chief
• field
• niece
• piece
• shield
• thief
• yield
But we do have some exceptions:

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 • weird
• seize
• leisure
• either/neither
• caffeine
• protein
These words show that when after "c," it is "e" before "i"
• ceiling
• conceit
• deceit
• perceive
• receipt
But wait! There are exceptions:
• the word species (referring to a type of animal)
• the word policies (plural of "policy")
A few more common words that end in -cy and become -cies in the plural:
• pharmacies
• deficiencies
• vacancies
When the vowel sounds like "A" as in "day," then it is EI:
• neighbor
• weigh/weight
• beige
• vein
IE and EI can have many other sounds as well. This is where the rule starts to fall
apart, and you just need to remember the spelling of each word individually:
• height (rhymes with "might")
• lie (rhymes with "why")
• friend (rhymes with "end")

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 • foreign ("eign" sounds like "in")
• efficient (rhymes with "mint")
• counterfeit / forfeit (last syllable sounds like "fit")
• glacier (last syllable rhymes with "her")
• science (here the "i" and the "e" are in separate syllables)

WHEN DO WE USE ANYMORE VS. ANY MORE?

Anymore (one word) refers to time and means “any longer” or “at present.” Here
are some examples:

• I used to run a lot, but then I injured my knee, so I don’t run anymore.
• Prices have gone up; you can’t buy a carton of eggs for $1 anymore. (you
could in the past, but not anymore, not at present)

Any more (two words) refers to quantities or things:

• Do we have any more cookies? – I’m asking if there’s some additional

quantity of cookies in the house.
• I lent you $100 last week – I’m not giving you any more money. – You will
not get an additional amount of money from me.

A HISTORIC EVENT OR AN HISTORIC EVENT?

We use a or an depending on the first SOUND of the next word:

• a hat (because h is a consonant sound)

• an hour (because here the h is silent, so it starts with the OW sound, a
vowel sound).

Historic starts with the h sound; the h is not silent – we say historic, not istoric –
so it should be “a historic event.”

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But some native English speakers do say “an historic event” – you will hear it from
time to time.

IN SCHOOL OR AT SCHOOL?
We actually use both, for slightly different situations.

At school means the person is literally, physically, inside the school.

• My daughter is at school right now. I have to go pick her up after lunch.

In school means the person is studying in general (usually at college or university),

but not necessarily inside the school building at that moment.

• My husband isn’t working because he’s in school. He’s studying law.

I can say this sentence even if my husband is not at school right now.

SEE A MOVIE VS. WATCH A MOVIE?

A student asks: “Is there a difference between see a movie and watch a movie?”

Yes, there’s a tiny one!

If I say “Let’s see a movie tonight” – it implies we’ll go to the movie theater.

If I say “Let’s watch a movie tonight” – it means we’ll watch a movie at home.

However, when asking “Have you seen (a certain movie)?” – we always ask “have
you seen?” and not “have you watched?”

In this case it doesn’t matter if the person saw it in a movie theater or watched it
at home; they could reply “Yes, I’ve seen it” or “No, I haven’t seen it.”

EspressoEnglish.net © Shayna Oliveira 2023

EVERYBODY “IS” OR “ARE” HAPPY?
Even though “everybody” means multiple people, it takes a singular verb –
everybody is happy. Everybody likes pizza. (Not “everybody like pizza”).

It’s the same for somebody, anybody, and nobody:

• Somebody is stealing money from the store.

• Does anybody want coffee? (Not “Do anybody”)
• Nobody was ready for the test. (Not “Nobody were”)

It’s the same for everyone, someone, anyone, and no one; there’s no difference.

WHEN TO USE HAVEN’T VS. DON’T HAVE?

When “have” is the MAIN verb, the negative is don’t have / doesn’t have:

• I don’t have a dog.

• He doesn’t have any children.

When “have” is the HELPING verb as in the present perfect, then the negative is
haven’t / hasn’t:

• I haven’t finished my homework.

• She hasn’t been living here very long.

Why don’t you try making your own example sentences? Give it a try.

DO WE GET “ON” OR “IN” A BUS?

The answer is “on”!

We get on or get onto a bus, train, subway, airplane, bicycle, and motorcycle.

But we get in or get into a car, truck, or taxi.

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So use get on for mass public transportation, like buses and trains, as well as
bicycles and motorcycles, where you are sitting on a seat but not in an enclosed
space. And use get in for entering a smaller vehicle like a car.

When we leave, we get off a bus, train, subway, airplane, bike, and motorcycle –
but we get out of a car, truck, or taxi.

WHAT DOES AIN’T MEAN, AND WHEN TO USE IT?

Ain’t is an extremely informal (some people would say incorrect) word for isn’t,
am not, or aren’t.

You might hear ain’t in songs, like Bon Jovi’s “This ain’t a love song” (This isn’t a
love song).

It can even mean there isn’t / there aren’t, like in the lyric “Ain’t no sunshine
when she’s gone” (There isn’t any sunshine when she’s gone)

If you have a friend who is hoping to get back together with her ex-boyfriend, but
you very much doubt this will happen, you could say: “That ain’t gonna happen.”
(which means, in more formal/correct English, “That isn’t going to happen.”)

Ain’t should only be used in VERY INFORMAL situations… and even then, most
people don’t use it too frequently.

HAVE A GOOD LOOK VS. BE GOOD-LOOKING?

Are they the same? Nope! Let me explain.

To have/get/take a good look means to see something closely and in detail.

• If you’re planning to buy a house, you would visit it to get a good look at all
the rooms and examine the condition of everything.

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 • Before signing a contract, you should take a good look at the text – read it
closely.

To be good-looking means to be attractive, beautiful, nice to look at. Maybe

you’re at a party and ask a friend, “Who’s that good-looking guy over there?”
because you think he’s handsome.

SPEAK WITH OR SPEAK TO SOMEONE?

If you’re having a conversation, there’s no difference; you can use either one:

• I spoke to the manager. = I spoke with the manager.

Or we could use “talk”:

• Let’s talk to the teacher. = Let’s talk with the teacher.

The only special situation is when you are giving a speech to an audience. In that
case, we can only use “speak to”:

• I’ll be speaking to a group of college students about financial planning.

SHOULD VS. SUPPOSED TO?

“Should” is used more for general advice, and “supposed to” is used more for
when something needs to follow a rule.

If you feel sick, you should go to the doctor. There’s no “rule” about going to the
doctor when sick, but it would be a good thing to do.

Bicycles are supposed to be parked in this area. This means there’s a rule or
expectation that this happens.

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“Supposed to” is often used when the rule exists but isn’t being followed. For
example, bicycles are supposed to be parked in this area, but most people leave
them out on the sidewalk instead.

FACE PROBLEMS OR FACE WITH PROBLEMS?

In this case the verb “face” means to encounter or confront.

When the sentence is in the active voice, we say you face a problem, difficulty, or
issue.

• Parents of twins face a lot of challenges.

When the sentence is in the passive voice, then we say you are faced with a
problem, difficulty, challenge, etc.

• Parents of twins are faced with a lot of challenges.

They mean the same thing, but I guess there’s a slight difference in emphasis. The
active form places a bit more emphasis on YOU encountering and confronting the
problems, and having to take an active role in dealing with them, and the passive
form puts a bit more emphasis on the problems, as if the problems came to you
and found you.

CALL SOMEONE OR CALL TO SOMEONE ON THE PHONE?

When using the phone, we call someone. For example:

• I called my mom last night.

• Let’s call the restaurant and make a reservation.

“Call to” means to shout so that someone who is a distance away can hear you. I
might call to my kids if they go to far away on the playground. A soccer coach
would call to the players on the field, giving them instructions from a distance.

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IN A LONG TIME OR FOR A LONG TIME?
Both can be used in different cases.

We typically use in a long time in negative present perfect sentences:

• I haven’t seen him in a long time.

• She hasn’t played tennis in a long time.

And we tend to use “for a long time” when something DID happen or WILL
happen:

• We lived there for a long time.

• The murderer will be in jail for a long time.
• I’ve been teaching English for a long time.

Got it? Go ahead and try making your own example sentences using each phrase.

I LIKE READING OR I LIKE TO READ?

Unfortunately there’s no rule for this! You just need to remember it for each verb.

Some verbs that are followed by the infinitive are decide, hope, need, offer, plan,
promise, and want. You decided to learn English (not “decided learning English”).

Some verbs that are followed by the -ING form are avoid, enjoy, finish, practice,
don’t mind, and can’t stand. I avoid eating fast food (not “avoid to eat”).

Like and love can be followed by both:

• I like reading. I like to read.

• I love teaching. I love to teach.

Would like and would love can ONLY be followed by the infinitive:

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 • I’d like to travel more.
• I’d love to join you for dinner.

I highly recommend making your own example sentences with each verb from
this lesson!

GROUND FLOOR VS. FIRST FLOOR?

Excellent question!

In American English, the first floor is the one that’s the same level as the street,
and then going up, we have second floor, third floor, etc.

But in British English, they call that level the ground floor – again, same level as
the street – and then the first floor is above it, followed by the second floor, and
so on.

So when you walk into a building from the street, you enter the first floor in
American English and the ground floor in British English.

Then, when you go up the stairs, you go to the second floor in American English
and the first floor in British English. Super confusing, I know!

WHY CAN’T WE SAY “I’M GOING TO HOME”?

The correct way is “I’m going home” (we don’t use “to.”)

We go to school, go to work, go to the doctor, go to the park, and go to another

city/country – but we go home.

I’m not actually sure why that’s the case in English – that’s just how it is!

And some other words are the same way:

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 • go outside/inside
• go upstairs/downstairs
• go here/there
• go downtown
• go abroad/overseas
• go somewhere
• go away
• go back

Again, those words don’t use “to.” So make sure always to say go home, going
home, went home, without using “to.”

HOW TO PRONOUNCE -STS AT THE END OF WORDS?

One student said she has difficulty with –STS at the end of words, as in costs and
guests – how can she pronounce it better?

Well, the way I do it is while making the SSS sound, I just quickly touch my tongue
to the back of my teeth to interrupt the S and make a tiny T sound.

When speaking fast, we only hear a tiny hint of the T. In fact, sometimes it just
turns into a long –SSS sound!

Here are some examples:

• costs – It costs forty dollars.

• guests – We’re guests at this hotel.
• scientists – The scientists made a discovery.
• tests – I have two tests tomorrow.
• wrists – My wrists hurt.
• trusts – He trusts you.

CLEVER VS. SMART VS. WISE?

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“Smart” simply means intelligent. Someone who is smart knows a lot and is
usually a fast learner. Being smart is a good thing.

The word “clever” also means intelligent, but in a creative way or in a tricky way.
Depending on the context, being clever might be a good thing if you’ve
discovered a “clever solution” to a problem, meaning a creative and intelligent
solution. Or being clever can be a bad thing, like if a criminal discovers a “clever
way to break into a house,” using creativity and intelligence for bad purposes.

The word “wise” is like intelligent, but it’s deeper. Someone who is wise has good
judgment; they can distinguish between right and wrong and know what is best in
a situation. Being wise often comes from life experience and/or deep study.

So the words smart, clever, and wise all have to do with intelligence, but there are
some small differences in their connotations.

WHY DO PEOPLE SAY “A COFFEE” AND “A BEER”?

A student asked, “Why do people say ‘a beer’ or ‘a coffee’ if beer and coffee are
uncountable?”

Great question! Liquids are uncountable, and with uncountable nouns we usually
don’t use “a” or “an.” We never say “an information” or “a blood,” for example.

But with drinks, native English speakers do say “I’ll have a beer” or “Can I get a
coffee?” as a short form for saying “a bottle/can/glass of beer” or “a cup of
coffee.”

So this is a bit of an exception – a good example of how spoken English doesn’t

always follow the strict grammar rules.

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO “TAKE SOMEONE FOR

GRANTED”?

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It means you don’t appreciate the real value of that person.

Let’s say your company has a secretary who works very hard, and her work is very
valuable to the company. But the other employees don’t really appreciate her.
They don’t say thank you, and they don’t recognize her hard work. The employees
take the secretary for granted – they fail to appreciate her true value.

We usually take a person for granted when we are accustomed to that person.
Often, you only realize that you’ve been taking someone/something for granted
when that thing/person goes away.

For example, if you’ve always been healthy but you suddenly get sick, you might
realize you’d been taking your good health for granted – you never before
appreciated the value of good health, but when you lost it, then you understood
how important it was.

INCOMING VS. UPCOMING?

We use upcoming to talk about events or things that will happen soon:

• the upcoming elections

• an upcoming conference
• the upcoming holiday weekend

Upcoming is used for things that are approaching in time.

The word incoming is used for things that are approaching in space, or things that
are arriving, things that you are receiving:

• incoming missiles
• an incoming flight
• an incoming news report
• incoming phone calls

Upcoming – things that will happen soon; incoming – things that are coming in
space or that you are receiving.

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HOW TO PRONOUNCE ACRONYMS IN ENGLISH?
Today’s question is about how to pronounce acronyms – terms like CEO – do we
say their letters, or do we pronounce them as a word?

It depends!

I’d say most of them we say their letters – like CEO, BBC, UFO, and Ph.D.

But there are some that are pronounced like a word – such as NASA, UNESCO,
and AIDS.

Can you think of more examples?

Here is a good list of different types of acronyms!

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A COOK AND A CHEF?

A cook is anyone who makes or prepares food. When you make food at home,
you are a cook. If someone is very skilled at making food, you can say “he’s a good
cook” or “she’s a good cook.”

The word chef is more specific, meaning someone who cooks professionally. A
chef works in a restaurant making food for customers.

Cook is more general – anybody who prepares or makes food – and chef is more
specific, describing somebody who cooks as their job.

I’M TRAVELING, I WILL TRAVEL, OR I WILL BE

TRAVELING?
Our question of the day is about the future in English. Should we say:

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 • I will be traveling next month.
• I am traveling next month.
• I will travel next month.

The two best options are “I will be traveling next month” and “I am traveling next
month.”

We could also say “I’m going to travel next month.” Three correct ways for talking
about future plans.

Why DON’T we say “I will travel next month”?

We tend not to use will + verb for established plans. We use this structure more
for promises, offers, and decisions made at the moment of speaking:

• “I’ll give you a ride.” (that’s an offer)

• “I’ll have a large coffee.” (that’s a decision made in the moment)

So, what are you doing tomorrow? I’ll be making more videos!

Go ahead and write your own examples using one of these 3 future forms.

“IN” THE END OR “AT” THE END?

Should we say “in the end” or “at the end”?

The answer is both, in slightly different situations.

“In the end” is more metaphorical, and “at the end” is more literal.

We use “at the end” to refer to the final part of something:

• There was a big surprise at the end of the book.

• At the end of class, our teacher always asks if anyone has any questions.
• I’m always out of money at the end of the month.

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We use “in the end” to mean “finally,” or “after a long time,” or “after everything
is considered”:

• We had a lot of arguments, but in the end we came to an agreement.

= we finally came to an agreement
• Although that book had a few interesting parts, in the end, I wouldn’t
recommend it.
= after everything is considered

Can you write your own example sentences? Give it a try!

CAN YOU END A SENTENCE WITH A PREPOSITION?

The answer is YES in everyday, informal English, and NO in more formal English.

In casual, informal English we often say things like:

• There’s nothing to be scared of.

• What are you thinking about?
• This is the book she’s famous for.

It’s especially common when the preposition is part of a phrasal verb:

• The meeting was called off. (= canceled)

• What time do you wake up?
• I have a lot of stuff to deal with. (= handle)

In formal written English, we should avoid ending sentences with prepositions –

so we would write sentences like these instead:

• The meeting was canceled.

• This is the book for which she is famous.
• There is no reason to be scared.

But when having everyday conversations and even when writing in an informal
way, it’s perfectly OK to end a sentence with a preposition.

EspressoEnglish.net © Shayna Oliveira 2023

IS “LOOK” AN ACTION VERB OR A STATE VERB?
Our question of the day – is “look” a state verb or an action verb? It can be both.

When a person is doing the action of looking, it is an action verb:

• I’m looking around the store.

• He’s looking at the painting.

Action verbs can be used in continuous form.

When talking about an object’s appearance, then it is a state verb, and can’t be
continuous, so we say:

• This painting looks very old.

This painting is looking very old.
• Those books look interesting.
Those books are looking interesting.

HOW TO PRONOUNCE “CON” AT THE BEGINNING OF

WORDS?
It depends – there are two pronunciations depending on whether that syllable is
stressed.

We pronounce it CON (rhyming with “gone”) in words like CONfident, CONcept,

and CONstant – when the stress is on that syllable.

But we pronounce it more like “cun” (rhyming with “gun”) in words like con-FUSE,
con-DI-tion, and con-CERN – when the stress is on a different syllable.

Pronounce it CON when the syllable is stressed, and “cun” when that syllable is
not stressed.

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DIFFERENCE BETWEEN “RARE” AND “SCARCE”?
Both of them describe things that are uncommon or hard to find, but there are
two differences.

The word “rare” can be used for events, but the word “scarce” cannot. For
example, “It’s rare for a comet to pass this close to the Earth.” It’s an event that
doesn’t happen frequently – only rare, not scarce, is used for events.

For things or resources, “rare” means not commonly found, and “scarce” has the
connotation of insufficient. A person might have a rare disease. This disease is not
common; only a few people in the world have it. Water is scarce in the desert. It’s
difficult to find, and there’s not enough of it.

The opposite of rare is common or frequent, and the opposite of scarce is

abundant, to have a lot of something.

WHAT DOES “AWFULLY GOOD” MEAN?

Well – the adjective “awful” always means “very bad”:

• That was an awful restaurant = a very bad restaurant

And the adverb “awfully” means “very badly” when it comes after a verb:

• She performed awfully on the test.

But the adverb “awfully” just means “very” when it comes before an adjective:

• It’s awfully good to see you = It’s very good to see you.
• They’re awfully excited to travel. = They’re very excited to travel.

Got it? Awful = very bad, awfully = very badly when it comes after a verb, but
awfully = very when it comes before an adjective – so awfully good means very
good.

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