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26/08/2026

Do you pronounce this word correctly? Don't forget to like, comment, share, and follow IJ's English Class for more English lessons.

Nominalisation is the process of changing a word, especially a verb or adjective, into a noun.The new noun is called a n...
26/08/2026

Nominalisation is the process of changing a word, especially a verb or adjective, into a noun.
The new noun is called a nominal.

1. Verb → Noun
A verb can be changed into a noun.
decide → decision
develop → development
inform → information
analyse → analysis
move → movement
fail → failure
Example:
▫️The committee decided to reject the proposal.
→ The committee made a decision to reject the proposal.
Here, "decision" is a nominalisation of the verb decide.

2. Adjective → Noun
An adjective can also be changed into a noun.
happy → happiness
kind → kindness
strong → strength
accurate → accuracy
different → difference
Example:
▫️She is accurate in her analysis.
→ Her accuracy in the analysis is impressive.

3. Why do We Use Nominalisation?
Nominalisation is particularly common in academic, formal, scientific, and professional writing.
It can make writing sound more formal and allow complex ideas to be expressed as nouns.
For example:
▫️The government implemented the policy.
can become:
▫️The implementation of the policy by the government...
The second version is more nominalised and can be useful when the idea needs to function as the subject or object of another clause.

4. Nominalisation can Make Writing Less Direct
Although nominalisation is useful, too much of it can make writing difficult to read.
Compare:
▫️The committee conducted an investigation into the problem.
with:
▫️The committee investigated the problem.
The second sentence is shorter and more direct.
Another example:
▫️The implementation of the new policy resulted in an improvement in students' performance.
A more direct version is:
▫️Implementing the new policy improved students' performance.

5. Common Nominalisation Endings
Nominalisations often end in:
-tion/-sion → educate → education; decide → decision
-ment → develop → development
-ness → happy → happiness
-ity → responsible → responsibility
-ance/-ence → perform → performance; differ → difference
-al → arrive → arrival; refuse → refusal
-er/-or → teach → teacher; act → actor

In simple terms
Nominalisation = turning another type of word, especially a verb or adjective, into a noun.
For example:
▫️analyse → analysis
▫️develop → development
▫️happy → happiness
▫️different → difference
It is especially important in academic writing, but it should be used carefully so that your writing remains clear and readable.

I hope you learnt something new. Don't forget to like, comment, share, and follow IJ's English Class for more English lessons.

Write your own example of nominalisation in the comment section. 👇

An article is a word placed before a noun to show whether we are talking about something specific or general. English ha...
25/08/2026

An article is a word placed before a noun to show whether we are talking about something specific or general.
English has three articles:
▫️A
▫️An
▫️The
They are divided into two types:
▫️Indefinite articles: a, an
▫️Definite article: the

1. The indefinite articles: A and An
We use "a" and "an" when we are talking about one person or thing in a general or non-specific way.
"A"
Use "a" before a word that begins with a consonant sound.
Examples:
▫️a book
▫️a teacher
▫️a car
▫️a university — /juː.../ begins with a consonant sound
▫️a European — /juː.../ begins with a consonant sound

"An"
Use "an" before a word that begins with a vowel sound.
Examples:
▫️an apple
▫️an egg
▫️an orange
▫️an hour — the h is silent
▫️an honest man — the h is silent
Note: The choice between a and an depends on the sound, not simply the letter.
Compare:
▫️a university ✅
▫️an umbrella ✅
▫️a European ✅
▫️an hour ✅

2. The definite article: The
"The" is used when we are talking about a specific person, thing, or group that the listener or reader can identify.
Examples:
▫️I saw a dog in the street. The dog was very big.
▫️Please close the door.
▫️The teacher who taught us yesterday is here.
▫️I visited the school you told me about.
In the first example, "a dog" introduces "the dog" for the first time. Once we know which dog we mean, we use the dog.

3. When we do not use an article:
Sometimes, we use no article, especially when talking about things in general.
Examples:
▫️Books are useful. (Books in general)
▫️Water is essential for life. (Water in general)
▫️Students need encouragement. (Students generally)
But when we mean something specific, we can use "the":
▫️The books on my table are mine.
▫️The water in this bottle is cold.
▫️The students in my class are hardworking.

A Simple Way to Remember 👇
A/An → one, but not specific
▫️I saw a man.
The → specific or already known
▫️The man was wearing a black shirt.
No article → things in general
▫️Men and women deserve equal opportunities.

A, An and The at a Glance 👇
▫️a → one, non-specific, before a consonant sound: a teacher
▫️an → one, non-specific, before a vowel sound: an engineer
▫️the → specific/known: the teacher
▫️no article → often used for general plural or uncountable nouns:
▫️Teachers need patience;
▫️Water is important.

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24/08/2026

Stop scrolling and test yourself!

​Did you say Epi-tome or E-pit-o-me?

​If you’ve been making this common mistake, don't worry, you're not alone! Watch till the end to get the correct pronunciation and start sounding like a pro.

​Tag a friend who needs to see this, and follow IJ's English Class for more English tips every day!

​

A noun phrase is a group of words that functions as a noun in a sentence. It has a main noun (head noun) and may include...
24/08/2026

A noun phrase is a group of words that functions as a noun in a sentence. It has a main noun (head noun) and may include words that describe or modify it, such as articles, adjectives, or determiners.

Structure:
Determiner + Adjective(s) + Noun
Example: the beautiful garden
the = determiner
beautiful = adjective
garden = head noun
Examples of noun phrases:
▫️"A red car" is parked outside.
▫️"The tall boy" won the race.
▫️"My best friend" lives nearby.
▫️"Those old books" belong to the library.
In each example, the highlighted words act as a single noun in the sentence.

Key points:
A noun phrase can be just one noun: dogs
Or it can contain several words: the three small dogs
It can be the subject, object, or complement of a sentence.

Functions of a Noun Phrase:
1. Subject of a sentence
A noun phrase can function as the subject, that is, the person, thing, or idea performing the action.
Examples:
▫️"The little boy" is sleeping.
▫️"My new English teacher" teaches very well.
Here, the little boy and my new English teacher are noun phrases functioning as subjects.

2. Object of a verb
A noun phrase can function as the object of a verb. It receives the action of the verb.
Examples:
▫️She bought "a beautiful dress."
▫️The teacher praised "the hardworking students."
Here, a beautiful dress and the hardworking students are noun phrases functioning as objects.

3. Object of a preposition/prepositional complement
A noun phrase can come after a preposition and function as its object or complement.
Examples:
▫️The book is on "the wooden table."
▫️We walked through "the narrow street."
Here, the wooden table and the narrow street are noun phrases functioning as objects/complement of the prepositions "on" and "through."

4. Subject complement
A noun phrase can follow a linking verb such as is, are, was, or became and identify or rename the subject.
Examples:
▫️My sister is "a talented musician."
▫️Mr. Okoro became "the new principal."
Here, a talented musician and the new principal are noun phrases functioning as subject complements.

5. Object complement
A noun phrase can identify or rename the object of a verb.
Examples:
▫️They elected him "class representative."
▫️The students called her "a great teacher."
Here, class representative and a great teacher are noun phrases functioning as object complements.

Remember
A noun phrase is identified not just by the number of words it contains, but by the fact that it functions like a noun in a sentence.
For example:
▫️The intelligent young student answered the difficult question.
▫️The intelligent young student → noun phrase functioning as the subject
▫️the difficult question → noun phrase functioning as the object of "answered."

I hope you learnt something new. Don't forget to like, comment, share, and follow IJ's English Class for more English lessons.

A prepositional phrase is a group of words that begins with a preposition and ends with a noun or pronoun (called the ob...
23/08/2026

A prepositional phrase is a group of words that begins with a preposition and ends with a noun or pronoun (called the object of the preposition). It provides extra information about place, time, direction, manner, or reason.

Structure:
Preposition + Object
▫️in the room
▫️on the table
▫️after school
▫️with my friends
Examples in sentences:
▫️The book is "on the table." (Shows place)
▫️We will meet "after school." (Shows time)
▫️She walked "through the park." (Shows direction)
▫️He came "with his brother." (Shows accompaniment)

Common prepositions:
▫️in
▫️on
▫️at
▫️under
▫️over
▫️between
▫️behind
▫️beside
▫️after
▫️before
▫️with
▫️without
▫️through
▫️into
▫️from

Functions of prepositional phrases:
1. As an adjective: It describes a noun.
▫️The girl "with the red bag" is my sister.
2. As an adverb: It describes a verb, adjective, or another adverb.
▫️He slept "on the couch."

Quick tip:
To identify a prepositional phrase, ask:
▫️Does it start with a preposition?
▫️Does it end with a noun or pronoun?
If the answer is yes, it is likely a prepositional phrase.

Note that a phrase does not contain a finite verb.

I hope you learnt something new. Don't forget to like, comment, share, and follow IJ's English Class for more English lessons.


Happy Sunday, beautiful people! Do enjoy the rest of your day.
23/08/2026

Happy Sunday, beautiful people! Do enjoy the rest of your day.

23/08/2026

In English language, any syllable of a word containing the schwa sound, /ə/ is not stressed.

An adverbial clause is a dependent clause that performs the function of an adverb. It modifies a verb, adjective, or ano...
23/08/2026

An adverbial clause is a dependent clause that performs the function of an adverb. It modifies a verb, adjective, or another adverb by telling us when, where, why, how, under what condition, or to what extent something happens.

Structure 👇
An adverbial clause usually contains:
▫️a subject
▫️a verb
▫️a subordinating conjunction
Common subordinating conjunctions include because, although, if, when, since, while, after, before, unless, until, and so that.

Types of Adverbial Clauses
1. Adverbial Clause of Time – tells us when something happens
▫️When the rain stopped, we went outside.
▫️We waited until the teacher arrived.

2. Adverbial Clause of Reason – tells us why something happens
▫️She stayed home because she was sick.
▫️Since it was late, we went home.

3. Adverbial Clause of Condition – tells us the condition under which something happens
▫️If you study hard, you will pass.
▫️We will go out unless it rains.

4. Adverbial Clause of Contrast – shows an opposing idea
▫️Although he was tired, he finished the work.
▫️She continued working even though she was sick.

5. Adverbial Clause of Purpose – tells us why something is done
▫️She studies hard so that she can succeed.

6. Adverbial Clause of Place – tells us where something happens
▫️Sit wherever you like.

7. Adverbial Clause of Manner – tells us how something happens
▫️He behaved as if he knew everything.

Important Point 👇
An adverbial clause cannot stand alone as a complete sentence because it is a dependent clause.
For example:
❌ Because she was sick.
This is incomplete.
✅ She stayed home because she was sick.

When an adverbial clause comes before the main clause, we normally use a comma:
▫️Because it was raining, we stayed indoors.
When it comes after the main clause, a comma is usually unnecessary:
▫️We stayed indoors because it was raining.

I hope you learnt something new. Don't forget to like, comment, share, and follow IJ's English Class for more English lessons.

22/08/2026

Let's settle this once and for all! 🗣️

Have you been pronouncing these two words correctly, or have you been making this common mistake?

​Debt is /ˈdet/ (that silent 'b' is doing a lot of heavy lifting!) 🤫

​Death is /ˈdeθ/ (with that clear, voiceless dental fricative sound at the end).

​Watch the video to hear the difference and see how to use both correctly in a sentence. Drop a comment below using the word "debt" or "death" in a sentence, and let me test your grammar! 👇

​✨If you found this helpful, don't forget to like, share, and follow IJ's English Class for your daily dose of fun, easy English grammar and pronunciation tips! 🚀📚

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