November 30, 2016　=========

☆   relentless  厳しい

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You can use “relentless” in two ways. Firstly, to describe something that is bad, that never stops or never becomes less intense. For example, “The pain in my leg was relentless.”

However, a more positive way to use this word, is to describe a person who is determined to do something and refuse to give up, even if what they are doing is unpleasant or hard. For example, in the Q&A at the end of this month, the question is “How do you make each day count?” One answer is “I am relentless when working on my goals.” In other words, they keep working on their goalsRead more about relentless 厳しい[…]

November 29, 2016　=========

☆   needless  必要のない

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Something that is needless is completely unnecessary. For example, “I don’t want to take any needless risks.” Or “The company is not growing at the moment, so hiring another staff member was needless.”

There is another way to use this word, and that is in the phrase, “needless to say”. Have you heard of this? We use this phrase when we want to emphasize that what we are about to say is obvious and to be expected. It is similar to saying, “of course.” Here are some example sentences:

Needless to say, he didn’t believe me.  
Needless to say, I’m excited to be going to Hawaii next year!
NeedlessRead more about needless 必要のない[…]

November 28, 2016　=========

☆   critical  重大な

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If something is described as critical, it means that it is extremely important or crucial. For example, Environmentalists says that a critical factor in pollution is population increase. Or, Her boss says that setting priorities is critical to success. 

Critical is also used to describe a person who is seriously ill. If you say that someone is in a critical condition in hospital, you mean that they are very ill and may not recover. It’s common to hear this in news reports about accidents. For example, The driver of the car is in a critical condition. When the person is in a critical condition but not gettingRead more about critical 重大な[…]

November 27, 2016　=========

☆   assumption  仮定

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An assumption is an idea or belief that something is true or will happen, that you accept without real proof. For example, yesterday, I was talking about writing my business plan for my studies. In my plan, I used the acronyms, ESL, TOEFL and TOEIC throughout my plan. I made the assumption that everyone reading my business plan would know what these words meant.

It turns out that not many of my lecturers did know! So, I got in trouble for making that assumption, and then I had to go through my entire business plan and write in the meaning whenever these words appeared! That assumption costRead more about assumption 仮定[…]

November 26, 2016　=========

☆   clarity  明晰さ

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Clarity is the ability to think clearly, and something that has clarity is well explained and easy to understand.

Clarity is so important for me right now! I have about one month left of my business studies, and then I will need to get started on really working my business plan. Writing down the business plan to be checked by my lecturers and mentor was a great way to get clarity – writing it down really helped me think clearly, and make the ideas easy to understand.

What do you need clarity about right now? Is there something in your life that you need to think more clearlyRead more about clarity 明晰さ[…]

November 25, 2016　=========

☆  wild goose chase  無駄骨

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If you are on a wild goose chase it means that you waste a lot of time searching for something that you have not much chance of finding, because you have been given incorrect information. For example:

We’ve been on a wild goose chase, looking for a café that has closed down!
Don’t waste your money on that wild goose chase!

I’m curious about the kanji for this translation. I can read this, and think it says “needless bone” is that right?? Sometimes the kanji for a word makes sense to me, but this doesn’t really make sense, in fact, trying to understand why these kanji translateRead more about wild goose chase 無駄骨[…]

November 24, 2016　=========

☆  request  要求

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Request can be used as either a noun or a verb. When it is used as a noun, we can say that someone makes a request. For example:
My friend made a polite request.
I’m going to make a request that the meeting be postponed.

You can say that someone makes a request “for” something. For example:
My boss granted my request for leave over the Christmas holidays.
She agreed to my request for help.
The government made a request for the return of important missing documents.

However, when request is used as a verb, you do not need to use “for” after it. Looking at the previous example, “The government requested theRead more about request 要求[…]

November 23, 2016　=========

☆   commitment 約束

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If you make a commitment to do something, you promise that you will do it. This is a formal word, but you will still hear it used in everyday English. Here are some sentence examples:

We made a commitment to keep working together.
They made a commitment to peace.
She made a commitment to study English for five minutes each day. 🙂
When I make a commitment to someone, I always feel obligated to fulfil it.

Have you made a commitment recently? What was it? My friend recently started teaching personal training classes, and as it is near my house and before work, I made a commitment to her to goRead more about commitment 約束[…]

November 22, 2016　    =========

☆  suggestion  提案

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A suggestion is an idea or plan that you put forward to someone for them to think about. For example, the doctor might give you suggestions on how to lose weight or improve your diet. Or, the local area government might ask the residents who live in that area to come up with suggestions on how to improve the area.

Or, in this daily ezine, I sometimes offer suggestions on how to study English or learn new words more easily. One suggestion I often make is to find words with similar meanings. So, let’s do that today too, what are some alternative words for “suggestion”?

recommendation
plan
idea
proposal
proposition

Do youRead more about suggestion 提案[…]

November 21, 2016　    =========

☆  morale  士気

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“Morale” is the amount of confidence and cheerfulness that a group of people have. Interestingly, this word is often used when talking about groups that do NOT have good morale. For example, during the invasion of Iraq, US army troops suffered from low morale, but this morale was boosted by a visit from the President.

Often groups of workers that work hard for little pay get demoralized and suffer from low morale. In Australia and the US, commonly this is teachers as their salary is very low compared to the work they do. Also, train drivers often go on strike in order to get a payRead more about morale 士気[…]

November 20, 2016　    =========

☆  sharpen  磨く

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When we talk about sharpening our skills or understanding, it means that we are doing things that will improve our skills or understanding. In Stephen R. Covey’s book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, he talks about sharpening the saw. This is the 7th habit, the idea that we need to take care of ourselves (we are the “saw”) and we need to be continuously improving and growing; sharpening our skills.

He suggests that we sharpen the saw in four areas: physical (eating well, exercising, and getting enough rest), social (making meaningful social connections with others), mental (lifelong learning) and spiritual (meditation, expanding our spiritualRead more about sharpen 磨く[…]

November 19, 2016　    =========

☆  classify  分類する

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When you classify things, you divide them or sort them into groups of similar characteristics. Other words with a similar meaning are: categorize, arrange, catalogue, rank, and sort.

One other word that has a similar meaning, but usually a negative nuance, is “pigeonhole.” If you pigeonhole someone it means that you decide they belong to a particular group or category, without really considering their abilities or characteristics. In the world of Hollywood, actors can get pigeonholed into certain types of movies, for example, “He was pigeonholed as a TV actor, so he couldn’t find work in movies.”

The above example is not very serious, but of course,Read more about classify 分類する[…]

November 18, 2016　    =========

☆  stick to  ～し続ける

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When you stick to something, you continue doing, using, saying, or talking about it, rather than changing to something else. There are a few common times when you would use this. For example, if you want to recommend that someone keep doing X, rather than quitting.

A: I’m trying to get my book published, but no one wants to look at my draft. I’m thinking of quitting and working at a company.
B: Don’t quit! You should stick to writing, you’re really good at it. You’ll find a publisher eventually.

You might use it when you have quit and regret it. Continuing from the last example:
A: IRead more about stick to ～し続ける[…]

November 17, 2016　    =========

☆   resurface  再浮上する

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Resurface can of course be used to talk about something that has been under the water and then comes back up to the surface again. For example, “he dived deep into the pool, and it was a few seconds before he resurfaced.”

However, this word is also used to talk about ideas or problems that become important or noticeable again. For example, the useful phrase this week, “This problem keeps resurfacing at work.” This sentence could be referring to a problem that the manager thought was fixed, but it has happened again. In this situation, it could be a physical problem with a product, or aRead more about resurface 再浮上する[…]

November 16, 2016　    =========

☆  move forward  行動する

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Today’s word is can mean just moving in a forward direction, but it can also mean not just about physically moving, but also to make progress or advance something. After the recent US election, this phrase has been used a bit in the news. Here are some examples I found:

“Buffett willing to help Trump, says US will move forward.”

Tim Cook, Apple CEO, send an email to employees, “Regardless of which candidate each of us supported as individuals, the only way to move forward is to move forward together.”

Tim Cook also referred to this famous quote by Martin Luther King Jr. from 50 years ago,Read more about move forward 行動する[…]

November 15, 2016　    =========

☆  apply  当てはまる

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Today’s word has a few different ways you can use it, but the meaning today is that if something such as a rule or principle applies to a person or a situation, then it is relevant to the person or the situation. For example:

You can apply this principle to all aspects of your life.
This law only applies if the CEO also owns stock in the company.
I don’t think this applies to us.
The product recall applies to all products sold during October 2016.

Other words you could use instead of apply are: be relevant, be applicable, be appropriate, fit, refer, or relate.

Bye,

Chris

November 14, 2016　    =========

☆  recognize  （顔を）覚えている

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When you recognize someone, you know who that person is. I am generally good at recognizing people when I see them, even if I haven’t seen them for a long time. As you know I do a lot of running events, but the running community in my hometown is quite small, so I often see the same people at events. I always recognize them, but sometimes it’s strange because I don’t actually know them – I’ve just seen their name and face on Facebook so I recognize them! It’s a weird feeling! It’s hard to know whether you should say hello or not!

When this happensRead more about recognize （顔を）覚えている[…]

November 13, 2016　    =========

☆  obligated  必須の

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Although it’s not part of the word, today’s word is generally used with “to” as in, obligated to… If you feel obligated to do something, you feel that it is your duty to do it. If you are obligated to someone, you feel it is your duty to look after them.

For example:

Her host mother felt obligated to take her to all the sightseeing spots in Tokyo.
If you don’t want it, don’t feel obligated to take it.
He felt obligated to protect her somehow.
I believe the government is obligated to protect its citizens.
I’m feeling much better now, so don’t feel obligated to stay and keep me company.

IsRead more about obligated 必須の[…]

November 12, 2016　    =========

☆  fundamental   基本的な

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Fundamental can be used in a couple of ways, but the main meaning is: essential, basic, key, or primary. Here are some example sentences:

This is a fundamental human right.
All artists need the fundamental technical skills to create great art.
We believe in the fundamental principles of democracy.

Another common way to use fundamental is when it means describes something that exists at a deep and basic level and is therefore likely to continue. For example:

There are many fundamental differences between Trump and Clinton.
The court case result shows that there are fundamental flaws in the justice system.

Can you use fundamental in a sentence?

Bye,

Chris

November 11, 2016　    =========

☆  common  よくある

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If something is common, it happens a lot or is found in large numbers. For example, Suzuki is a common name in Japan. Or earthquakes are not common in Australia, however they do happen.

One thing that many students confuse is “popular” and “common”. For example, we talk about colds being common during wintertime, but obviously, colds are not popular, just common! Some things could be both common and popular. For example, in Australia, during November, it is common for men to grow a moustache or beard to raise money for charity (for men’s health), this event is called “Movember”. It started in 2003 in AustraliaRead more about common よくある[…]

November 10, 2016　    =========

☆  clear  明らかな

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When something is clear, it is obvious and impossible to be mistaken about. Something that is clear is obvious, blatant, plain, apparent, and unmistakable. So this week’s useful phrase, “We need to make our priorities clear” could be something that a boss says to his staff so that everyone knows what the priorities are for the company.

“We need to make our priorities clear” could be something that parents say to each other when talking about their teenagers. For example, it is a priority to them that their kids go to the top university? Or that they play sport? Or that they learn an instrument? OrRead more about clear 明らかな[…]

November 9, 2016　    =========

☆  incredibly  ものすごく

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Most of the words in the Eigo Techo fall into one of three groups; adjectives, nouns, and verbs. However, sometimes we have an adverb. An adverb, as you know, is a word that adds information about the action, event or situation.

Adverbs in English, are mostly formed by adding -ly, such as today’s word, changing incredible to incredibly. Let’s look at a good example of why you would use the adverb and not the adjective:

He is incredibly handsome. (Adverb)
His handsomeness is incredible. (Adjective)
It was incredibly hard work. (Adverb)
The hardness of this work is incredible. (Adjective)

In the adjective examples, the sentence becomes awkward and it is difficultRead more about incredibly ものすごく[…]

November 8, 2016　    =========

☆  dedicated  献身的な

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You can use dedicated to describe someone who enjoys a particular activity very much and spends a lot of time doing it. In other words, they are devoted, committed, single-minded, and enthusiastic when it comes to that particular activity. Here are some example sentences:

She works at the dog shelter and is a dedicated volunteer.
He is a dedicated follower of classical music.
He was so dedicated to his work; I rarely saw him.
She’s a really dedicated mom.

Do you know anyone that you would describe as dedicated? What are they dedicated about?

Bye,

Chris

November 7, 2016　    =========

☆  precise  ぴったりの

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Something that is precise is exact and accurate in all its details. Have you heard of this word? It isn’t used that much in everyday conversation, however, it is a common way to describe someone’s language. For example, “She speaks very precise English.” Or, “He doesn’t talk very much, but what he does say is very precise and to the point.”

My two sons speak very differently. My 8-year-old son speaks very vague English, and always uses words like “thing” or “this”, as in, “remember that thing we saw yesterday.” Of course, I cannot remember that “thing” we saw!! What are you talking about?! On theRead more about precise ぴったりの[…]

November 6, 2016　    =========

☆  miscommunication  誤解

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A lot of my friends here in Adelaide are Japanese. Mostly Japanese women, who have married men from Adelaide. Usually, they are communicating in English with their husbands as they met here, or even if they met in Japan, their husband doesn’t speak a lot of Japanese. Of course, using two different languages as a couple can be very difficult and easily leads to miscommunication.

But, I was actually thinking about this the other day. When both people speak the same language, there is still miscommunication, right? And in fact, when someone speaks a different language to us, we expect to have miscommunications, so we areRead more about miscommunication 誤解[…]

November 5, 2016　    =========

☆  catalyst  きっかけ

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A catalyst can be a thing or a person, and it is what causes an event or change to happen. In the business, or even politics, you might hear that people hope “XYZ will be a catalyst for change.” In this case, they might be talking about a new product, or a new CEO, or in the case of politics, a new policy or a new president.

In my life, there have been a few quite big catalysts! The biggest catalyst would have to be the teacher that I had in high school that suggested I apply for a home stay during the school summer holidays.Read more about catalyst きっかけ[…]

November 4, 2016　    =========

☆  grit  根性

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Happy birthday to me 🙂 I wonder if people would describe me as having grit?! Maybe…

Someone who has “grit” has the determination and courage to continue doing something even though it is very difficult. In Australia, we have an obstacle challenge that is based on the training that people in the army do, and it is called, True Grit. It involves lots of running and climbing and mud, basically! And to finish, obviously you need to have a lot of grit.

I guess this event is similar to the Saskue/American Ninja style obstacle courses, but much easier as most people have enough grit to complete theseRead more about grit 根性[…]

November 3, 2016　    =========

☆  courage   勇気

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Courage is the quality of deciding to do something difficult or dangerous, even though you might be afraid. There can be many levels of courage, and it might be different for different people. For example, it might take a lot of courage for you to speak English, but for your friend, maybe they don’t need courage.

Do you ever feel like you have more courage to speak English after drinking alcohol? When I lived in Tokyo, if I caught the late-night trains home, there were often many people who spoke English to me! I think it was because they had more courage after drinking beer afterRead more about courage 勇気[…]

November 2, 2016　    =========

☆  combination  組み合わせ

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A combination of things is a mixture of them. You can use positive or negative adjectives with combination. For example: interesting, fascinating, terrible, awkward, bad, beautiful, good, and so on. For example, “I love his art work as he always has a fantastic combination of colors.” Or “Her high school provides a good combination of science and art as part of the curriculum.”

As you know, I do a lot of running, so I tend to think I am pretty healthy and fit, but I only run, so the other day when I tried a strength training class, I almost died – it hurt so much!Read more about combination 組み合わせ[…]

November 1, 2016　    =========

☆  ability  才能

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It’s my birthday month! And the topic for November is “Make each day count”… that sounds like a good topic for the month. 🙂

Your ability is the quality or skill that you have that makes it possible for you to do something. We usually talk about this kind of ability in terms of things like sport or music or art. However, what about this month’s topic and making each day count – do you think this is a skill that we possess when we are born, or something that we can learn?

Do you think some people naturally have the ability to see the positives andRead more about ability 才能[…]