Today, I’m going to talk about the family of ‘there is’! At first, that might seem very basic English grammar. Indeed, the phrase ‘there is’ is A1 level. However, at B1 and even B2 level, I must admit there are few students who talk about this family. Why? Because it’s not a structure that has a literal word for word translation in many other languages.

Anyway, let’s meet some of the family first of all. I can’t name all of them because it’s a very extended family tree. But here are some you might often meet while reading or listening to native English speakers.

There is, there are, there was, there were, there has been, there had been, there will be, there won’t be, there can be, there can’t be, there may be, there could be, there might be, there must be, there would be, there should be…

Read the transcript: https://www.practisingenglish.com/podcast-246.htm

At https://www.practisingenglish.com/ I offer learners of intermediate-level English, grammar help and exercises and other English learning pages.
https://www.practisingenglish.com/

My latest novel for learners of B2 English is called The Tudor Conspiracy. You can see it on Amazon here: https://amzn.to/33Axu2N
https://amzn.to/33Axu2N

Be back soon with another podcast!
Mike Bilbrough (Secondary school English teacher and Doctor in English philology)

B1 Linking Words

Linking words join two sentences together. Here are the ones I mention during the podcast:

A Rainy Adventure

Tom wanted to go hiking. The sky looked grey but he didn’t mind – no problem

With linker: Tom wanted to go hiking, although the sky looked grey.

He packed his bag. He wanted to be ready the moment his friend Anna called.

With linker: He packed his bag in order to be ready as soon as his friend Anna called.

Anna wasn’t sure if they should go or not. The weather looked bad.

With linker: Anna wasn’t sure whether they should go or not because of the weather.

It was raining. So what? They decided to try. They wore boots and jackets. They didn’t wear their normal clothes.

With linker: Despite the rain, they decided to try. They wore boots and jackets instead of their usual clothes.

The rain was heavy. The trail was wet and muddy. If they walked slowly it would be safe. If they walked fast they might risk falling.. They chose to go slow.

With linker: Due to the heavy rain, the trail was wet and muddy. They could either walk slowly and be safe, or go fast and risk falling. They chose to go slow.

They reached the top. The rain stopped. The view was beautiful! They took photos and ate lunch.

With linker: Once they reached the top, the rain stopped. The view was beautiful! They took photos and ate lunch.

They were tired. They sat down and rested. They hoped the weather didn’t get worse. They wanted to stay longer.

With linker: Since they were tired, they sat down to rest. Unless the weather got worse, they planned to stay longer.

In the end, they were happy they went, the rain at the start wasn’t a problem. It was a fun day full of adventure.

With linker: In the end, they were happy they went, despite the rain at the start. It was a fun day full of adventure.

See the full transcript of the second story at my website: https://www.practisingenglish.com/podcast-245.htm

At https://www.practisingenglish.com/ I offer learners of intermediate-level English, grammar help and exercises and other English learning pages.
https://www.practisingenglish.com/

My latest novel for learners of B2 English is called The Tudor Conspiracy. You can see it on Amazon here: https://amzn.to/33Axu2N
https://amzn.to/33Axu2N

Be back soon with another podcast!
Mike Bilbrough (Secondary school English teacher and Doctor in English philology)

For health reasons, I'm afraid I cannot share a new podcast with you today. I include instead, one of my favourite stories that I wrote for students studying for B1 English level: The Breath of the Mosquito as a complete version.

This extract will help you understand what the story is about...

'If… if something went back in time and existed in the past, something or somebody who was not there before, he/she/it would change time in the present. Things would not be the same when he or she returned. It would take just a moment, the tiniest movement in the past would have the effect like a stone thrown into a pond. The circles of effect would move out, growing and growing
for ever and changing the world as they go.'

'But, Emil,' interrupted his friend. 'I was only there for a minute or so.'

'Mathew, a minute is a long, long time. Listen to me, even the breath of a mosquito 33 million years ago would change the world and events in history as we know them today. Just one breath of a mosquito. Imagine how incredibly small that would be.'

Has time changed in the present? If so, in what ways?

Enjoy the story!

At https://www.practisingenglish.com/ I offer learners of intermediate-level English, grammar help and exercises and other English learning pages.
https://www.practisingenglish.com/

My latest novel for learners of B2 English is called The Tudor Conspiracy. You can see it on Amazon here: https://amzn.to/33Axu2N
https://amzn.to/33Axu2N

Be back soon with another podcast!
Mike Bilbrough (Secondary school English teacher and Doctor in English philology)

Here are the B1 words we're studying today:

acceptable

accurate

amusing

annoyed

convenient

embarrassed

forbidden

grateful

hopeless

miserable

To see the transcript of the story:

https://www.practisingenglish.com/podcast-243.htm

At https://www.practisingenglish.com/ I offer learners of intermediate-level English, grammar help and exercises and other English learning pages.
https://www.practisingenglish.com/

My latest novel for learners of B2 English is called The Tudor Conspiracy. You can see it on Amazon here: https://amzn.to/33Axu2N
https://amzn.to/33Axu2N

Be back soon with another podcast!
Mike Bilbrough (Secondary school English teacher and Doctor in English philology)

In today's B2 FCE story, you'll be listening to this B2 vocabulary:

heading for Paris
his hands were trembling
both thrilled and terrified him
doubting every shot
gazing out of the window
an old woman wiped her eyes.
the crowd clapped enthusiastically
as he nervously walked up
his anxiety forgotten

To read an annotated version of the full story audioscript go to: https://www.practisingenglish.com/podcast-242.htm

At https://www.practisingenglish.com/ I offer learners of intermediate-level English, grammar help and exercises and other English learning pages.
https://www.practisingenglish.com/

My latest novel for learners of B2 English is called The Tudor Conspiracy. You can see it on Amazon here: https://amzn.to/33Axu2N
https://amzn.to/33Axu2N

Be back soon with another podcast!
Mike Bilbrough (Secondary school English teacher and Doctor in English philology)

How to write the FCE story (B2 level) for the Cambridge exam. If you're not taking this exam, this episode will be useful for learning how to express yourself at B2 level in written prose.

You can see the transcript at https://www.practisingenglish.com/podcast-241.htm

At https://www.practisingenglish.com/ I offer learners of intermediate-level English, grammar help and exercises and other English learning pages.
https://www.practisingenglish.com/

My latest novel for learners of B2 English is called The Tudor Conspiracy. You can see it on Amazon here: https://amzn.to/33Axu2N
https://amzn.to/33Axu2N

Be back soon with another podcast!
Mike Bilbrough (Secondary school English teacher and Doctor in English philology)

I apologise for not bringing you a new podcast this week. I leave you with chapter 1 of the Tudor Conspiracy (from an audio book and reader I published a few years ago). Hope to be with you next week with a new podcast episode!

At https://www.practisingenglish.com/ I offer learners of intermediate-level English, grammar help and exercises and other English learning pages.
https://www.practisingenglish.com/

My latest novel for learners of B2 English is called The Tudor Conspiracy. You can see it on Amazon here: https://amzn.to/33Axu2N
https://amzn.to/33Axu2N

Be back soon with another podcast!
Mike Bilbrough (Secondary school English teacher and Doctor in English philology)

These are the words I discuss today. They are linking words, essential for your B1 and B2 writing papers in the Cambridge exam.

Moreover
In addition,
Besides
What is more,
Furthermore,
Yet
To begin with,
In the same way,
Similarly,
Consequently,

See audioscript of story at: https://www.practisingenglish.com/podcast-239.htm

At https://www.practisingenglish.com/ I offer learners of intermediate-level English, grammar help and exercises and other English learning pages.
https://www.practisingenglish.com/

My latest novel for learners of B2 English is called The Tudor Conspiracy. You can see it on Amazon here: https://amzn.to/33Axu2N
https://amzn.to/33Axu2N

Be back soon with another podcast!
Mike Bilbrough (Secondary school English teacher and Doctor in English philology)