According to the Global Language Monitor, which tracks language usage trends, English has more than a whopping 1 million distinct words in current use.1 Many of these words look, sound, or are even spelled alike but have different meanings and are used in different contexts. Some words sound and look different …
It is quite common to see PhD students and researchers be fairly comfortable with conversational English but then feel overwhelmed when it comes to using more academic vocabulary. It stands to reason that academic writing requires a degree of familiarity with academic and technical terms. And the sooner one is …
An important part of any academic discussion is citations. It highlights the existing works on a particular topic, enabling readers to track relevant research1 to develop their arguments. Though the function of citation is simple, the learning process of correctly citing other articles can be challenging. There is an increased …
What are sentence fragments? To put it simply, sentence fragments are incomplete thoughts. When writing research papers in English, it is common for your incomplete thoughts to be translated into sentence fragments. Although these fragments look like sentences – they start with a capital letter and end with a period …
Academic vocabulary refers to the words and phrases used in academic contexts, such as scholarly articles, reports, and lectures/seminars.1 While general academic words are usually learnt through exposure to academic texts,2 navigating the world of global scholarly literature and academic discourse necessitates a certain level of proficiency in English. This …
Homophones tend to trip writers more than fascinate them – ensure and insure, though and although, advise and advice – the list of confusing words is endless. These are words that sound alike but are spelled differently and have different meanings. But this doesn’t give one the excuse to use …
Have you ever found yourself stumbling over two confusing words in English while trying to express something? Well, English is a precise language that has multiple words with similar, if not almost identical, meanings. Therefore, for any writing in English, especially in academic writing, the devil lies in the details, i.e., …
Publication in a string of high-profile academic journals is the Holy Grail of a researcher’s career. Naturally, this is not an easy achievement. Not only must academics be experts in their field, they must also be able to communicate their research ideas succinctly in writing — this is a big …
While writing your research manuscript, you must have come across words with a difference in meaning so slight that it made you wonder which one to choose. In some cases, authors may not even realize there is a difference, for instance, in the words although and though. So what is …
Imagine reading a research paper that not only offers you some great insight but is written and presented in the most engaging way. The language is polished, the grammar impeccable, the punctuation perfect, and the vocabulary correct and sophisticated. What a pleasurable read it would be! But it’s not easy …
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