Online English Dictionaries

Using an English-English dictionary can be tricky. A paper dictionary can be heavy and expensive, and you have to know how to use it! Here, we recommend two free online dictionaries, which are easy to use, and have a variety of useful features.

Macmillan Dictionary

The first is www.macmillandictionary.com This is not an app, but a free website. When you enter a word into the search box it can show you all these things:

  • The pronunciation
    • Click on the X))) and you can hear someone saying the word
  • The meaning (in simple English)
  • How to use it in a sentence
  • Any words that are related to it
  • How common the word is in English text and speech: the red words are the most common (the black ones are less common). There are stars after the red words too:
    • « quite common
    • «« common
    • ««« very common

(This is explained in the video here: https://www.macmillandictionary.com/learn/red-words.html)  

You can also choose UK or US English – click on the flags at the bottom of the page

Word Hippo

The second is www.wordhippo.com.

This is a similar site, and like Macmillan, it has pronunciation, definitions and sample sentences as well. It also has a translation feature and some other useful features too, including opposites and rhymes. These can be really useful for creative writing.

Easter Time Travels

Easter Time Travels

This Easter we once again hosted our Juniors School Integration Programme and it was a packed schedule. We visited so many exciting places, and really showcased the best Britain has to offer to our wonderful group of students.

How to write a good story in English

How to write a good story in English

Stories are all around us – we engage with stories and storytelling in many aspects of our daily lives – talking to friends, watching TV, reading books, even historical study is told through stories. We all have a storyteller inside us, and here are our top tips on how to translate the stories from your mind onto the page.

6 Ways Reading Can Improve Your English Skills

6 Ways Reading Can Improve Your English Skills

We all lead busy lives and finding time to practice your English can be difficult. It can seem impossible to fit practicing a language in between work, family life and exercising! If this is the case podcasts may be the answer. This blog will look at why podcasts can be beneficial to English language learners and provide recommendations on where to find the best podcasts.

5 Tips for Networking in English

5 Tips for Networking in English

• Many admit to feeling uncomfortable when networking. This is understandable when facing the daunting task of attending an event full of strangers, while at the same time knowing how important it is to establish some useful contacts. This feeling is intensified further if you aren’t a native English speaker and don’t feel very confident if English is the main language used (I’ve included some suggestions in the tips below to help with this) or if you are unfamiliar with the etiquettes of networking.

Christmas at Severnvale Academy

Christmas at Severnvale Academy

Spending Christmas in a country that is not your own can be an eye-opening experience. At Severnvale we very much enjoy sharing Christmas traditions with our students and love hearing about celebrations from around the world. This blog is all about how we share...

Best Podcasts for English Learners

Best Podcasts for English Learners

We all lead busy lives and finding time to practice your English can be difficult. It can seem impossible to fit practicing a language in between work, family life and exercising! If this is the case podcasts may be the answer. This blog will look at why podcasts can be beneficial to English language learners and provide recommendations on where to find the best podcasts.

Why study Business English?

Why study Business English?

Why choose a Business or Executive course? Many of our clients need to speak English with other non-native, as well as native, speakers. Taking part in a course here in the UK gives you the chance to work together with like-minded people from all over the world. For...

On the Tip of my Tongue.

Unspoken words are usually better than words spoken in anger, and yet, they lie awake at night, weeping, wanting to be set free. They are like flowers that will never open, denied of their moment of glory in the morning sun.
They are the dusty manuscripts that never get read, let alone published. They can be the key to unlock the revolution that is going on inside your head. They can be your path to Eldorado.

They can be simply, No, or stop, or I don’t think that’s a great idea, lads. If let fly, they might save someone’s life.

Drabble source: https://www.writing.ie/members_blog/a-sample-of-drabbles-and-short-stories/