Kenapa pronunciation penting? Lucu – Funny …..grrr

Apakah kita harus memiliki pengucapan yang sempurna seperti para bule Inggris (native speakers)? Saya kira tidak semestinya demikian. NAMUN apabila pengucapan kita berantakan dan pemahaman kita terhadap pengucapan bahasa Inggris juga agak kurang, bisa-bisa ……..

Satu video LUCU banget dari YouTube, tentang pentingnya pengucapan/pronunciation yang baik.

Latihan Tenses Bahasa Inggris Online

Dibawah ini ada 60 links yang dapat anda click untuk meningkatkan pemahaman anda terhadap Tenses bahasa Inggris. Pada links tersebut, anda bisa mengecek sendiri secara online kesalahan-kesalahan pemahaman tenses anda.

Semoga Bermanfaat.Tenses Quiz From English Page dot com.

1. Verb Tense Exercise 1 Simple Present and Present Continuous

2. Verb Tense Exercise 2 Simple Present and Present Continuous

3. Verb Tense Exercise 3 Simple Past and Past Continuous

4. Verb Tense Exercise 4 Simple Past and Past Continuous

5. Verb Tense Exercise 5 Simple Past and Present Perfect

6. Verb Tense Exercise 6 Simple Past and Present Perfect

7. Verb Tense Exercise 7 Present Perfect and Present Perfect Continuous

8. Verb Tense Exercise 8 Present Perfect and Present Perfect Continuous

9. Verb Tense Exercise 9 Present Continuous and Present Perfect Continuous

10. Verb Tense Exercise 10 Present Continuous and Present Perfect Continuous

11. Verb Tense Exercise 11 Simple Past and Past Perfect

12. Verb Tense Exercise 12 Simple Past, Present Perfect, and Past Perfect

13. Verb Tense Exercise 13 Past Perfect and Past Perfect Continuous

14. Verb Tense Exercise 14 Present Perfect, Past Perfect, Present Perfect Continuous,

BELAJAR BAHASA INGGRIS sulit? (Masalah dan Solusi)

Banyak yang mengatakan bahwa belajar bahasa Inggris tidaklah sulit, ada juga yang bilang belajar bahasa Inggris sangat-sangat dan sangat sulit. Ya, mungkin itu tergantung pada motivasi masing masing ya, atau bisa jadi karena kita tidak punya bakat untuk bisa bilingual atau multilingual, bisa jadi. Tapi rasa-rasanya belajar bahasa Inggris itu tidaklah sesulit seperti yang dibayangkan tapi tidak lah mudah seperti yang diharapkan.
Saya masih ingat ketika ambil short course bahasa Inggris (English for Business Communication – Advanced) di UNSW, Australia, salah satu teman dari Mesir dan Turkey bilang English is Crazy Language. Itu terucap oleh mereka ketika mereka menemukan kata-kata yang sangat membingungkan untuk di ucapkan.
Dari pengalaman saya yang masih terbatas, saya mencoba untuk mengumpulkan beberapa kesulitan orang dalam mempelajari bahasa Inggris, ya termasuk saya sendiri, dan terkadang saya tidak bisa mendapatkan solusi yang tepat untuk terapi masalah-masalah yang saya coba kumpulkan dibawah ini:

1. Sulit mengingat kata-kata.
Kadang kata yang baru saja kita peroleh dengan gampangnya lenyap dari otak kita. Mungkin salah satu factornya adalah daya konsentrasi kita dan kekuatan menghafal “we are getting older and older”

Solusinya:
Sebelum membuka kamus, coba dulu untuk menebak kira-kira apa maksud dari kata tersebut sesuai dengan context kalimat. Selain tidak disibukan oleh kamus cara ini juga dapat membantu memperkuat ingatan kita
Cobalah buat sebuah kalimat sederhana (lisan dan tertulis) dari kata-kata yang baru saja kita dapatkan itu.

2. Pengucapan yang berbeda dari tulisan
Inilah yang selalu dikeluhkan oleh banyak orang termasuk saya. Dan ini yang membuat teman saya bilang English is Crazy Language. Kita sudah sangat terbiasa dengan pengucapan seperti yang tertulis. Ini pernah kami tanyakan kepada guru kami di Aussie, dia pun bingung juga menjawab. Dia cuman bisa bilang ‘consult to your dictionary’. Ternyata tidak ada aturan yang sangat baku bagaimana mengucapkan kata-kata English itu. Semuanya itu terjadi begitu adanya. Language is arbitrary.

Solusinya:
Apa ya. Selain kamus, kayaknya nonton film dari DVD (yang original) bisa membantu, as long as you set subtitle nya dalam bahasa Inggris juga, dan boleh juga secondary subtitle nya diset dalam bahasa Indonesia, jadi ada dua subtitle (kalo nggak salah secondary subtitle hanya tersedia jika kita nonton film DVD itu dari computer). Selain itu lyric lagu berbahasa Inggris juga bisa membantu. Kalau you sering connect to internet ada software yang bisa lansung menampilkan lyric di winamp asalkan judul lagu dan artist nya tertulis dengan benar (pada file mp3 kita). Itu bisa didonlot kok. Saya juga pake, tapi lupa namanya kalo ndak salah lyric plugin

3. Bunyi sama tapi ternyata kata-katanya berbeda
Ini membuat kita ragu, kata mana yang disebutkan oleh pembicara, karena bunyi yang yang disebutkan tersebut kemungkinan berbeda dengan yang kita fahami, misalanya too, to dan two; whether and weather; hear and here; buy and by; there and their; witch and which; threw and through. Ini akan membuat kita salah memahami apa yang pembicara maksudkan.

Solusinya:
Saya kira kalo kita sudah bisa memahami context yang dibicarakan persamaan bunyi tersebut tidak akan jadi masalah bagi kita. Usahakan untuk memahami context pembicaraan tidak dengan kata per kata tapi keseluruhan context yang pembicara bicarakan.

4. Tidak dapat membedakan kata benda dengan kata kerja atau yang lain
Misalnya saja smoke itu bisa kata benda, bisa juga jadi kata kerja. Contohnya Smoke on the water (kata benda – dikutip dari diparpel, yang artinya asap) tapi kalo I smoke everyday (sudah jadi kata kerja, dan artinya sudah lain lagi, merokok) sedangkan kata rokok sendiri dalam bahasa Inggris itu cigarette. Jadi yang lucunya, ada siswa saya yang buat kalimat I am cigarette everyday instead of I smoke everyday.
Ada lagi misalnya The accountant at the music store records1 records2 of the records3. Mencatat (1), Catatan/transaksi (2), kaset/rekaman (3)

Funny – “lucu” – Funny (Joke in English)

Driver and Officer

A man was pulled over for driving too fast, even though he thought he was driving just fine.
Officer : You were speeding.
Man : No, I wasn’t.
Officer : Yes, you were. I’m giving you a ticket (surat tilang).
Man : But I wasn’t speeding.
Officer : Tell that to the judge! (The officer gives man the ticket.)
Man : Would I get another ticket if I called you a jerk (tolol)?
Officer : Yes, you would.
Man : What if I just thought that you were?
Officer : I can’t give you a ticket for what you think.
Man : Fine, I think you’re a jerk!

by: Nick Henry, ESL teacher in Korea

Mouse

A : I’m in a big trouble!
B : Why is that?
A : I saw a mouse in my house!
B : Oh, well, all you need to do is use a trap.
A : I don’t have one.
B : Well then, buy one.
A : Can’t afford one (tidak punya uang untuk membeli).
B : I can give you mine if you want.
A : That sounds good.
B : All you need to do is just use some cheese in order to make the mouse come to the trap.
A : I don’t have any cheese.
B : Okay then, take a piece of bread and put a bit of oil in it and put it in the trap.
A : I don’t have oil.
B : Well, then put only a small piece of bread.
A : I don’t have bread.
B : Then what is the mouse doing at your house?!

by: Genti Biraci

Business English Expression (2)

“24/7″

“24/7″ is another way of saying “all the time” or continuous. Literally, it means 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. A business may use the term to express they are always open for business. For example, “we are open 24/7.” An individual may say, “I work 24/7″ as a way of expressing that they work all the time.

“Talk is Cheap”

We mentioned ‘talk is cheap” in an earlier segment entitled “Show me the money.” This expression is used when referring to people who talk alot about doing things but never really do much. In other words, they do not have much of a record of accomplishment. It is always used to refer to people who make empty promises. Empty promises are promises to do something but there is no intention to carry out the promise. So “talk is cheap” means that it is easy to talk about things, but more difficult to do something about it, whether that something is keeping a promise or taking appropriate action.

“Cash is king,” “Cash is trash”

These two expressions mean exactly the opposite. You will often hear them when talking about financial investments. When the stock market is declining, investors want to preserve their cash so stocks are sold and cash is held in their portfolio. Since cash does not generally lose value except to inflation, then “cash is king” in a down stock market. However, in a rising stock market or in inflationary times, investors can make more money by investing their cash in stocks and bonds. Investors lose by holding cash in their portfolio because of the lost opportunity from rising stocks or the loss of purchasing power from inflation. Investors refer to cash as trash in this scenario.

“Purchasing Power”

Purchasing power is a concept that expresses the true value of currency. Currency by itself has no value. The value comes from how much one can buy with the currency. If a currency can buy more today than in the past, then purchasing power has increased. If a currency can buy less today than in the past, then the purchasing power of that currency has decreased. As an example, the US Dollar has lost one-third of its purchasing power or value since early 2001. As a result, US goods are cheaper abroad while imported goods are more expensive in the US.

Business English Expressions (I)

1. 800 pound gorilla – the biggest, most powerful group or company
Example: “If we follow our plan to make this new software, we’re going to have a lot of competition, including from the 800 pound gorilla, Microsoft.”

2. (a rising tide that) lifts all boats – something that helps all people or all groups
Example: “We’re only number three, but the current economic growth will lift all boats, so we’re sure to make a profit this year.”

3. an old hand – a person who has long experience, especially in one place
Example: “He can help us set up a company in Beijing. He’s been working in China for many years and speaks Chinese fluently. He’s an old China hand.”

4. at the 11th hour – very late, at the very last minute
Example: ” .”

5. on a shoestring – with limited money
Example: “They started their company on a shoestring and built it up to one of the largest companies in the world!”

6. bring to the table – whatever you can possibly offer
Example: “I will meet with Teacher Joe’s new company to show him what we can bring to the table.”

Golden Watermelon (Semangka Emas)

Melayu Online dot Com

“So many countries, so many customs”, (Even though people might have similarities physically, yet the characteristics, attitudes and hearts are different one another). The meaning of this saying is reflected in one of folklores from Sambas, West Kalimantan, Indonesia. It is a story of two brothers, Muzakir and Dermawan. Both were the sons of a prosperous merchant in that area. The story tells that the two brothers shared the same amount of inheritance as their parents passed away. However, since the two were contradictory in approaching life so they treated the inheritance in a different way. Muzakir was a greedy man that he was reluctant to share his belongings and also money to anyone for any reason. Different to his brother, Dermawan (as is seen from the name, dermawan, which literally means a philanthropist), is a kind man. He sincerely shared his money or belongings to help the people in needs. It is told that one day Dermawan ran out of money for giving most of his money for charity that he left nothing more for himself. The brother Muzakir felt entertained by the fact that his brother was a fool sharing his money with others and was becoming poor.

The misfortune of Dermawan didn‘t last long; Muzakir came to know soon that his brother was no longer poor. Dermawan suddenly gained back his prosperity; owned a big house with a wide nice garden. This intrigued Muzakir that he wanted to know the secret behind his brother sudden fortune. What made Dermawan become suddenly rich? The answer is in the whole story of The Golden Watermelon as told below.

Belajar Bahasa Inggris on-line (Part II) Online English Video

next videos click here  http://wahyudienglish.wordpress.com/english-video/

Leadership Quotes (Kepemimpinan)

Managers are people who do things right, while leaders are people who do the right thing. Menejer adalah orang-orang yang melakukan hal-hal dengan baik, sementara pemimpin adalah orang-orang yang melakukan hal-hal yang baik. Warren Bennis, Ph.D. “On Becoming a Leader”

The best example of leadership, is leadership by example. Contoh kepemimpinan yang paling baik adalah kepemimpinan dengan memberikan contoh. Jerry McClain of Seattle, WA

If it’s a good idea, go ahead and do it. It is much easier to apologize than it is to get permission. Jika kita mempunyai ide yang mantap, teruskan dan kerjakan. Lebih mudah meminta maaf daripada untuk mendapatkan izin. Admiral Grace Hopper

The most important quality in a leader is that of being acknowledged as such. Kualitas yang paling penting dari seorang pemimpin adalah mendapatkan pengkuan Andre Maurois

You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing you think you cannot do. Anda memperoleh kekuatan, semangat dan percaya diri dari setiap pengalaman dimana anda benar-benar berhenti menatap rasa takut dihadapan. Anda harus melakukan hal-hal yang anda anggap tidak bisa anda lakukan. Eleanor Roosevelt

Leadership in today’s world requires far more than a large stock of gunboats and a hard fist at the conference table. Kepemimpinan diera sekarang ini membutuhkan tidak sekedar peralatn perang dan bentrokan di meja rapat. Hubert H. Humphrey

All of the great leaders have had one characteristic in common: it was the willingness to confront unequivocally the major anxiety of their people in their time. This, and not much else, is the essence of leadership. Sebenarnya semua pemimpin besar memiliki karakter yang biasa biasa saja; namun kemauan besar yang dimilikinya untuk menghadapi ketakutan dan kegelisahan rakyat. Dan ini lah sebenarnya esensi dari kepemimpinan John Kenneth Galbraith, U.S. economist ìThe Age of Uncertaintyî

The real leader has no need to lead – he is content to point the way. Pemimpin sebenarnya tidak perlu memimpin, tapi mengarahkan Henry Miller

Leadership consists not in degrees of technique but in traits of character; it requires moral rather than athletic or intellectual effort, and it imposes on both leader and follower alike the burdens of self-restraint. Kepemimpinan bukan terdiri derajat-derajat teknis, tapi merupakan pembawaan karakter. Kepemimpinan lebih membutuhkan moralitas ketimbang usaha-usaha fisik dan intelektual, dan memberikan pembebebanan kepada pemimpin itu sendiri dan bawahannya untuk dapat menahan dan mengendalikan diri sendiri. – Lewis H. Lapham

I am a leader by default, only because nature does not allow a vacuum. Saya menjadi pemimpin karena kegagalan, hanya karena alam ini tidak menginginkan kevakuman. - Bishop Desmond Tutu

If one is lucky, a solitary fantasy can totally transform one million realities. Jika seseorang beruntung, sebuah fantasi dapat berubah menjadi jutaan kenyataan.
- Maya Angelou

People ask the difference between a leader and a boss. . . The leader works in the open, and the boss in covert. The leader leads, and the boss drives. Orang bertanya tentang perbedaan antara pemimpin dan boss. Pemimpin bekerja secara terbuka sedangkan boss bekerja dengan cara mengkonfersi atau merubah. Pemimpin itu memimpin, sedangkan boss menyetir atau mengemudi.
- Theodore Roosevelt

The final test of a leader is that he leaves behind him in other men the conviction and the will to carry on. . . . The genius of a good leader is to leave behind him a situation which common sense, without the grace of genius, can deal with successfully. Test akhir dari seorang pemimpin adalah dia tinggalkan kepada orang-orang sebuah keyakinan dan kemauan untuk terus dilanjutkan. Kejeniusan dari seorang pemimpin adalah meninggalkan suasana dapat mebuat kesuksesan, tanpa ada kesan bahwa itu adalah sesuatu yang jenius.
- Walter Lippmann

There is no such thing as a perfect leader either in the past or present, in China or elsewhere. If there is one, he is only pretending, like a pig inserting scallions into its nose in an effort to look like an elephant. Tidak ada yang sempurna didunia ini baik dari masa lalu atau sekarang, di Cina atau dimana saja. Jika ada orang yang sempurna, dia hanya berpura-pura seperti seekor babi yang memasukan sesuatu kedalam hidungnya agar kelihatan seperti seekor gajah.
- Liu Shao-ch’i