Umpteen is used for a relatively large amount or number. We use it when we want to show that there are very many / a lot of something when we don't know the exact number. It is a casual / informal word that is used in spoken English.
"I've met him umpteen times and I still can't remember his name."
"She's given me umpteen reasons why she couldn't do her homework."
Read the following paragraph paying attention to the phrasal verbs.
Many people learning English find modal verbs confusing, especially their specific meanings. Here's a basic introduction to some modal verbs with examples.
Can is used in three ways. It is used to show that something is possible:
"You can come to the party if you want."
Can is also used when making a request or when asking for permission:
Take a look at these ten sentences and complete them with the correct forms of the verbs.
There are four choices for each sentence, but only one is correct.
This exercise is intermediate level. Let's see how many of you can get 10 out of 10.
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Make a mistake? Do a mistake? Take a mistake?
Which is the correct verb to use with 'a mistake'. I hope you said 'make'. But why is that right? Well, the fact is that the verb and noun combination just sounds right in English.
The difficulty for English learners is that these 'collocations' must be learned, usually without any rules to help them remember. Collocations are best understood and learned through practice.
Read these ten sentences. Are they OK? Do they have any mistakes? There are some, but how many? When you think that you have found all the mistakes click on Show Answers (below) for a full explanation.
1 - I have a lot of informations to remember.
2 - She speaks English good.
3 - Have you ever drank German beer?
4 - In the summer we always go to swimming.
5 - Each of these chocolates are tasty.
Meaning: There is no more to be said or done; the matter is finished.
"Father said he wouldn't buy you a new car, and that's that." - I won't discuss it any longer.
"I've finished packing all the boxes, and that's that." - The task of packing the boxes is now finished.
In English there are a number of words that share a pronunciation but have a different meaning. For example:
"I can see the sea."
In the above sentence see and sea have different spellings and meanings, but have the same pronunciation. They are examples of homophones.
Take a look at these ten sentences. Decide which is the correct word to complete the sentence. Each of the words have the same pronunciation.
Prefix: an placed before a base or another prefix, as un- in unkind, un- and re- in unrewarding.
Post-: a prefix meaning after or later than
Here are five examples of prefixes using post-:
