What-is-noun

Being is a word that can be hard to master for English as a Second Language speakers. It can be used as a gerund, or in present or past continuous tenses. In a present or past continuous tense, being says that it is happening now, or was happening before, in a continual manne ...more

Today's word is "alumni". This is a noun and the plural form of "alumnus" which means a graduate of a specific school. For example, you can say, "The alumni of the school gathered at the reunion ceremony."

Today's word is "entrepreneur". This is a noun which means someone who owns and manages a business, taking on financial risks to do so. For example, you can say, "There are hundreds of successful technology entrepreneurs in the Silicon Valley."

Today's word is "queue". This is both a verb and a noun. As a noun, it means a line of people waiting their turn. For example, you can say, "People waited for hours in a long queue to buy the latest video game console."

Today's word is "faux pas". This is a noun of French origin which means a social slip in etiquette or manners. For example, you can say, "She didn't introduce herself to the host, a terrible faux pas, considering she'd never met her."

Today's word is "hyperbole". This is a noun which means an exaggerated statement. For example, you can say, "Jane said to her sister, 'Your butt is as big as the State of Wisconsin.' She used hyperbole to emphasize her point that her sister is overweight."

Today's word is "rendezvous". This is a noun and a verb. As a verb, it means to come together or meet by arrangement. For example, you can say, "Let's rendezvous at 6 o'clock at Jake's bar."

Today's word is "facade". This is a noun which means a face of a building or a superficial appearance. For example, you can say, "Under the tough facade of a streetwise teenager, Ricky is still a 13-year-old kid who loves Disneyland."

Today's word is "pause". This is both a noun and a verb. As a verb, it means to stop an action temporarily. For example, you can say, "Let's pause what we're doing for this special announcement." Pronunciation accent american accent american slang american teacher education e ...more

Today's word is "aesthetic". This is both a noun and an adjective. As an adjective, it means relating to a sense of beauty. For example, you can say, "Aesthetic salons are my mother's favorite place to be; she loves getting facial treatments and massages in beautiful salons."

Today's word is "bourgeois". This is both a noun and an adjective. As an adjective, it means characteristic of the middle class, or materialistic. For example, you can say, "Bourgeois beliefs generally do not benefit the lower and working classes."

Today's word is "hierarchy". This is a noun which means a system of people, organizations, or things that have ranks. For example, you can say, "The famous psychologist, Abraham Maslow demonstrated people have a hierarchy of needs."

The presenter, Ms. Jennifer explains how compound words are formed from phrasal verbs. With examples she explains how the meaning and pronunciation differs when compound words are formed from phrasal verbs. She explains the difference between 'show' and 'show off' by showing h ...more

Today's word is "panacea". This is a noun which means a remedy to cure all diseases or a solution for all difficulties. For example, you can say, "Solar power is a promising alternative energy source; however, it's not a panacea. There are advantages and disadvantages to solar ...more

Today's word is "lyrics". This is a noun in its plural form which means words to a song. For example, you can say, "My dad is a huge fan of the Beatles. He knows the lyrics to all of their songs."

This video tutorial is in the Language category which will show you how to describe problems in English. When describing problems in English, many people use the word trouble. When you frame a question, you can frame it in the present or the present continuous tense. For examp ...more

Today's word is "despot". This is a noun which means a tyrant or someone who abuses his power. For example, you can say, "Hitler was perhaps one of the most notorious despots in the 20th century."

Learn the Dutch alphabet, definite articles, noun plurals, personal pronouns and the verb "to walk" in this 4 part video series. Part 1 of 4 - How to Learn to speak Dutch in this beginner lesson. Part 2 of 4 - How to Learn to speak Dutch in this beginner lesson. Part 3 of 4 ...more

Today's word is "endeavor". This is a noun as well as a verb. As a noun, it means an effort or attempt to accomplish something. As a verb, it means to strive or attempt. For example, you can say, "Beth made all endeavors to make her mother-in-law happy."

Today's word is "scenario". This is a noun which means an imagined sequence of events. For example, you can say, "Jill and I discussed the scenario of what would happen if Jim asked her out on a date."

Today's word is "nuance". This is a noun which means a subtle degree of difference in meaning and expression. For example, you can say, "To truly understand the nuances between synonyms, you often have to see how those similar words are used in various situations."

For those who don't know, a gerund is a noun whose root word is formed from a verb. Anyone interested in brushing up on their grammar skills should view this video by Yossarian on how to diagram gerunds and gerund phrases. Yossarian uses various sentence examples to break down ...more

Today's word is "status quo". This is a noun which means the existing state or condition. For example, you can say, "They were only concerned with the status quo, not changing anything for the better."

Today's word is "incognito". This is a noun, adjective and adverb. As an adverb it means without revealing one's identity. For example, you can say, "The movie star traveled incognito in Europe on her honeymoon."

Today's word is "zephyr". This is a noun which means a light, gentle breeze. For example, you can say, "The day was beautifully sunny with a nice zephyr blowing through the air."

Today's word is "virtuoso". This is a noun which means an expert, often in music. For example, you can say, "Few people would dispute that Itzhak Perlman is the reigning virtuoso of the violin today."

Today's word is "cadence". This is a noun which means the rhythmic flow of words or sounds. For example, you can say, "The French language has a lovely

Adobo is a Spanish word for sauce, seasoning or marinade, mainly used in Latin American- and Southwest U.S.-style cooking as well as in the Philippines. The noun form "Adobo" generally describes a marinade or seasoning mix. Adobo is also a style of cooking used in Filipino cui ...more

Today's word is "zenith". This is a noun which means the highest point above the observer's horizon attained by a celestial body, or the peak. For example, you can say, "After becoming the chairman of the board, Michael felt he reached the zenith of his business career."

Today's word is "vertigo". This is a noun which means dizziness. For example, you can say, "When I woke up this morning, I felt vertigo; I had the sensation of spinning out of control."

Today's word is "chicanery". This is a noun which means trickery or the act of deceiving someone. For example, you can say, "The new governor was accused of chicanery after raising sales tax despite his campaign promise of tax cuts."

The verb "stop" in the English language can be used with a gerund and an infinitive. The word "stop" has different meanings depending on how it's used. Look at the sentence, "I stopped eating fast food." Stopped is used in the past tense and eating is a gerund, or a word that ...more

Today's word is "jacuzzi". This is a noun which means a bath tub with underwater jets. For example, you can say, "The house we recently bought came with a jacuzzi. Now we spend a lot of time in the hot tub, relaxing and having fun."

This is the tenth part of my video series on learning Hindi. We come to more verbs, simple present and present continuous and imperative, as well as postpositions (prepositions which come after the noun). Pronunciation and gender (masc or fem) is stressed and is in IPA.

Today's word is "usher". This is both a noun and a verb. As a verb, it means to escort. For example, you can say, "The man will usher you to your seat."

Today's word is "guffaw". This is both a noun and a verb. As a noun, it means a big burst of laughter. As a verb, it means to laugh loudly. For example, you can say, "When my teacher, Mr. Jones bent over to pick up his pen, the back of his pants split open. Everyone in the cla ...more

It is easy to make grammatical mistakes when there are, what seems like, endless rules to memorize. Focusing on a few rules at a time is helpful and today’s lesson can be on how to use subject and object pronouns. If you don’t know whether to use “I” or “me,” it’s easy to lear ...more

Today's word is "fervor". This is a noun which means great enthusiasm. For example, you can say, "He spoke to the crowd with incredible fervor."

Do you know what an idiom is? If you don't, this English lesson is sure to make you an expert on idiom usage. idiom (noun) a group of words established by usage as having a meaning not deducible from those of the individual Basically, idioms are expressions that are natural ...more

Today's word is "obesity". This is a noun which means excessive fatness. For example, you can say, "During the past 20 years there has been a dramatic increase in obesity in the United States; about two-thirds of American adults were considered overweight in 2006."

In this video, we learn how to use indirect objects & object pronouns in Spanish. When you have a noun that is coming after a pronoun, you will have to change the first word that comes after it. If you are saying "yo compro", then you will use "las" after this, to describe the ...more

Today's word is "paucity". This is a noun which means scarcity or a lack of something. For example, you can say, "There is a paucity of computer savvy teachers in our school. We should offer computer training for the teachers."