A Red Herring
A red herring is something that distracts us from our main concern or original argument.
This video explains the origin and examples of the expression.
Grammar Bank
PrevNext
very much vs a lot
Very much vs a lot
Both much and a lot can be used as adverbs meaning "to a great extent or...
Such meanings
Such
As well as the more common uses of such, it is used heavily in academic, literary or for...
needn't vs don't need to
Needn't - Don't need to
Needn't+verb and don't need to+ verb are synonymous and interchangeable in ...
Get passive
Get passive
We normally form the passive with the verb to be + participle; however, we can also use...
Should have - Could have
Should have - Could have
When it comes to modal verbs in the past tense, English is a lot more limi...
kind(s) of thing(s)
Kind(s) of thing(s)
A common confusion arises when translating tipo de from Spanish to English...
Get someone to do something
Get someone to / have someone do something
Both get and have can be used in a causative sense...
If + Would clause
If + Would clause
Learners of English are often taught that if should not be followed by would or w...
Much affirmative
Much - affirmative
Although we are generally taught that much should be avoided in affirmative sent...
She inanimate
She - boats, countries and others
When referring to inanimate objects, we sometimes use the fe...
his or her, their
His or her, their
When referring to antecedents of indeterminate gender, we have three options...
Gerund with possessive pronoun
his having
Gerunds can take either the genitive (his-less common/more formal) or the accusative (hi...
Will-present
Will - present
To talk about habitual actions in the present, we can use will+ infinitive. It indic...
Out-prefix
Out-prefix
The prefix out can be added to many verbs, especially action verbs, to mean "...
I.e. and E.g
I.e. and E.g.
The abbreviations e.g. and i.e. are used frequently in English. E.g. is for g...
word stress
word stress
In English we often stress particular words to emphasise them. Sometimes the pr...
Participle Clause
Participle Clause
In English we often avoid the relative clause by using the present partic...
-wise sufix
-wise suffix
In informal context especially, wise can be used as a suffix, meaning "as far as som...
Like-suffix
-like
A common way of forming an adjective from a noun is to add -like as a kind of suffix....
I think not
I think not
In most situations we would say "I don't think so"; however, I think not can also be us...
Subjunctive
Subjunctive forms
In English, the subjunctive is used less and less. It is mainly seen in lit...
Should-condition
Should-condition
In formal situations, should can be used instead of if to form a conditional...
Do-emphasis
Do-emphasis
Do can be used in affirmative sentences to emphasise or contrast something. ...
Ish-suffix
Ish-suffix
The suffix ish can be added to adjectives and nouns to mean "approximately" or "ch...
Types of Looking
Types of Looking
English has many verbs to describe the act of seeing and looking. They ofte...
Such as vs Like
Such as vs Like
Such as and like can be used interchangeably in most contexts, but...
Whether-uses
Whether-uses
Whether is similar to if. It be used interchangebly in certain contexts, bu...
Collective nouns
Collective Nouns
Collective nouns are those that are made up of a number of individuals. The verb c...
The conditional clause
The Conditional Clause
In English, the verb in the conditional clause is usually used in the ...
Prepositions of movement
Prepositions of movement
In English, movement is usually described using Verb of movement+Prep...
On-onwards
On=onwards
On is an abbreviated form of onwards= (más) adelante, posterior.
1. In time
From then ...
Would for past habits
Would in the past
Would is often used where the pretérito imperfecto would be in Spanish. Unlike us...
Changing English
Changing English
The English language has changed significantly over the last couple of decad...
Spelling Differences
British and American English have several variations in spelling and pronunciation.
Here are the mo...
By-Means and Conditions
By
By has dozens of meanings. Here we describe 2 of the less commonly explained ones.
Remember t...
- You are here:
-
Home
-
English
-
Grammar Bank
-
Word Usage
- Red Herring
Word Usage
PrevNext
of all things meaning
Of all things/places/people/etc.
The expression of all + noun is used to indicate that...
as of - meaning
as of (now, today, etc.)
The preposition as of, and its expressions (as of now, as of today...
affair meanings
Affair - meanings
The word affair has several closely related meanings:
1. a situa...
get one up/over on
get one up/over on (somebody)
The expressions get one up on or get one over on both have simi...
do for + noun
do for + noun
The construction do for + noun is like saying "manage" or "contrive" . It ...
work out phrasal verb
work out
The phrasal verb work out is one of those tricky ones that has several meanings...
might/may as well
Might/may as well
The expression might/may as well is very common in British English and ofte...
come into its own
Come into its own
When something comes into its own, it becomes especially useful or successful in ...
friendly suffix
-friendly suffux
As a suffix, friendly means "not harmful" or "suitable for".
E.g.
This is a do...
forgiven for thinking
Forgiven for
A common construction in English is subject+could/would/may be forgiven for+verb ...
See witness
See (characterized by/witness)
Among its many meanings, see can be used to say that a time or...
Point out - Point to
Point out - Point to - Point at
The verb point can take several prepositions. Three com...
come up with
Come up with
Come up with is one of those tricky phrasal verbs that encompasses several relat...
supposed to
be supposed to
A verb that many English learners struggle with is suppose. The adjective form...
Make a difference
Make a difference
The expression "make a difference" is very common in English and is used in sever...
How + adverb/adjective
How + adverb/adjective
To ask "to what degree?" we can use how+adverb/adjective. In Spanish the p...
Like crutch word
Like-crutch word
Among its many uses, the word like is often used as a kind of crutch word. It is...
On another note
On another note
A common error made by Spanish speaking learners is to translate "por otra par...
For That Matter
For that matter
The expression for that matter is used to emphasize that the second piece of inform...
Never Mind
Never mind / Let alone
Never mind and let alone are both used to emphasize that what foll...
if you will
If you will
If you will has two meanings, one of which is somewhat antiquated.
1) A formal...
Joe Bloggs
Joe Bloggs
In English, there are several ways to refer to an unspecified or average person:
Joe Bl...
Red Herring
A Red Herring
A red herring is something that distracts us from our main concern or original arg...
Onto a winner
be onto a winner
If you are onto a winner, you are doing something that is likely to succeed.
&nbs...
When the shit hits the fan
(When) the shit hits the fan
This expression is very common and rather vulgar. It means "when a sit...
Money Mouth
Put your money where your mouth is
This idiom means "to support what you say by paying for it, usua...
take it upon oneself to
Take it upon oneself to
This expression means: "to take on the responsibility for something wi...