As you get better at English, there are some phrases that you may hear and wonder if they’re correct or even when they would be appropriate to use. An example of this is “according to me” — is it correct and, if so, when should one use it? The phrase “according to me” is not …

“Taken aback” is a well-known phrase you will hear quite often in the English language. But have you ever stopped to ask yourself, “Is it correct to say, ‘taken aback’?” Also, have you ever considered what it actually means and where it originally came from? It is correct to say “taken aback.” We use the …

Getting the mail can be exciting — until you receive a bill with a glaring red stamp marked, “past due.” But should it read “past due” or “passed due”?  “Past due” is grammatically correct in the case of an overdue bill, deadline, or if someone arrives after the time you expect. “Past” can be an …

There are several ways you can express your positive feelings or share your favor for something. In English, you might hear someone say that a person is “pro” something when weighing opposing sides of an argument. When torn between two options, you might also weigh the “pros and cons” of the situation, so is “pro” …

Choosing the correct phrase can be tricky, especially when words are very similar or expressed in different forms. The terms “began” and “begun” are two such words that can be challenging to master, especially when deciding whether you should say “has just begun” or “has just began.” The correct phrase is “has just begun.” When …

A noun can change form to indicate whether it’s possessive, plural, or both, so how does this apply to the noun “country”?  For example, what’s the difference between “countries” and “country’s”? The difference is that “countries” is the plural form of the singular noun “country,” and we use it to refer to many different countries …