Hello, I’m Sourov — Greetings & Introductions in Real English
When I landed in Sydney Airport in 2005 with one carry-on bag and what I thought was decent English, the first stranger I spoke to said 'How ya going?' I had no idea what that…
Blog
Every lesson, essay and journal entry, newest first. 726 published posts.
- English Teaching 678
- Resources 20
- Travel Journal 17
- Philosophy & Mental Health 14
- Photography & Software 9
- Career & Professional Development 4
- Writing & Books 1
Telephone and Video Call English
From Sourov's world: My first phone call in French after moving to La Réunion was about a gas bill. No face to read. No body language. No way to point at anything. Just words and…
Skimming and Scanning — Two Different Reading Speeds
From Sourov's world: As a sommelier at The Ivy in Sydney, I held dozens of wine labels every shift. When a guest asked about a wine, I did two completely different things in about four…
Future Forms — Will, Going To and Present Continuous (B1)
Three ways to talk about the future — and each one sends a different signal
Writing a Short Story — PEEL Structure
From Sourov's world: One night at The Ivy in Sydney, a champagne glass slipped from a tray. I caught it mid-air, less than a metre from a dress that would have cost more than my…
Describing Emotions — Beyond Happy and Sad (A1/A2)
From Sourov's world: My daughter is about 18 months old. She can only say a few words — but her face says everything. One morning she discovers a snail in our garden in Saint-Pierre, La…
Gerunds and Infinitives — Enjoyed Working vs Wanted to Teach (B1)
Two verb forms, one big difference — know which one to use after every key verb
Connected Speech — Why Native Speakers Are Hard to Understand
Natural English is not four separate words — it is one flowing sound
MAKE vs DO — Which One Do You Use? (A2)
From Sourov's world: On my very first shift at The Ivy in Sydney, I went up to the floor manager and told him confidently: "I did an effort to arrive early today." He looked at…
Comparatives and Superlatives — From Busy Nights to Beautiful Islands (A2)
Compare two things or find the extreme — the essential tools of everyday English
False Friends — English and French Words That Lie (B1)
Words that look the same — but mean something completely different
Intonation — Questions That Sound Like Questions
Rising and falling tones carry meaning your words alone cannot
Reported Speech — Saying What Someone Said (B2)
Pass on what someone said — accurately, naturally, and without quoting word-for-word
Idioms with COME — The Journey Word (B2)
From Sourov's world: When I first came across English idioms in Australia, they didn't come naturally at all. I remember sitting in the break room at Star Casino and my colleagues speaking — I could…
Word Stress — The Secret Pattern
Why photograph, photography, and photographer sound so different
Passive Voice (Present and Past) — The Language of Professional Settings (B1)
Shift focus from who does it to what gets done — a key skill for professional English
Writing Formal Emails
From "Bye" to professional — the structure that works every time
Restaurant and Food Vocabulary — The Words Every Diner Needs (A2)
From Sourov's world: In my early days at Uccello in Sydney — a fine Italian restaurant in the Merivale group — a guest pointed at the menu and said: "Can I have the thing with…
Past Perfect — Telling Stories in the Right Order (B2)
Tell stories about two events in the past — and show which one happened first
Speaking Fluency — Buying Time Strategies
From Sourov's world: Job interviews in French in La Réunion were terrifying. I needed 3 seconds to translate my thoughts from English or Bengali into French before I could speak. In French I used Euh...…