English usage

If you're trying to improve your conversational English, you're in the right place.  The sections below include a variety of references on everyday English usage from an American English perspective. Whether you need to expand your vocabulary, master some new idioms, or pick a good English name, these pages will serve you well.

Vocabulary

Building your English vocabulary is an essential part of learning to speak English. These lists will help you spend your time strategically.

Idioms

Learning idioms and expressions is one of the fun parts of studying a language. Idioms and proverbs are common in spoken English.

Punctuation

Using punctuation marks correctly in your English writing is essential in both academic and professional situations.

 

Quotes

These are the quotes that are most familiar to native English speakers. You can be sure that if you refer to them, you'll be understood.

Names

These charts of the most common first and last names in English-speaking countries are based on the latest available data.

Tongue twisters

Work on your English pronunciation with this list of English tongue twisters of different levels of difficulty, from easy to maddeningly hard.