 Six peculiarities of the English language that are mind-boggling for English From the days of Chaucer and Shakespeare to the present the English language has been filled with some amazingly peculiar and bizarre examples of speech and grammar as the English sailed around the globe colonizing it to the extent the Sun never set on the British Empire the number of words that were adopted by the language could not help but grow Along with this vocabulary growth so to did the number of expressions and grammatical rules that seem to make no sense when actually Examined one could say that English has been beating up other languages in dark alleys Then going through their pockets for loose grammar in spare vocabulary for centuries This post was written by our ITTT graduate John C. Chop down or chop up English can be a confusing method of communication even for native speakers one chops down a tree But then chops up firewood trying to explain the different uses of up and down to a non-native Speaker of English can be one of the more daunting exercises one can subject themselves to Oh words then imagine why a new learner might be confused when being confronted with words that have a win them The fact that oh can be pronounced many different ways cough rough bow through thorough thought While other words are spelled differently But pronounce the same way such as sell and sell wheel and wheel new and new Then there is the classic there there aren't there read or read further Confusion arises from words that are spelled the same but are pronounced differently Brute being pronounced either router out read being pronounced reader read Other words that also fall into this special class of confusion are either content tear dough in ballad Desert and so are Silent letters then we find ourselves in a special little minefield the world of words that have a silent letter in them Some examples from this world of pain are in at knife. I'll debt soften and dumb Do words our next stop on this train ride into the absurd are words that contain you but sound different Blood and flood sound like cutter mud good hood stood wood shook brook Crook look all sound alike food boot mood scoot roof and tooth all have a long you sound Floor and door have long oh sounds Buffalo what we are now possibly at the deepest pit of grammatical hell with the following sentence Buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo buffalo This sentence is grammatically correct because buffalo is a noun all hoofed animal That is sometimes incorrectly called a bison It is a city in New York state and it is also a verb that means to intimidate her overall someone So to paraphrase the sentence so that it does not hurt your brain here goes Bison from Buffalo, New York that are intimidated by other bison in the community also Intimidate other bison in Buffalo. What are you favorite English peculiarities? How these peculiarities came about are as organic and ever-evolving as the English language continues to adapt to our ever-changing World native speakers take these types of expressions and stride generally not even thinking about the actual word Structure being used these peculiarities can be maddening for someone trying to learn English However, are you ready to teach English abroad? Apply now for your TEFL test all certification course and start teaching in a matter of months Speak with an ITTT advisor today to put together your personal plan for teaching English abroad Send us an email or call us toll-free at 1-800-490-0531 to speak with an ITTT advisor today