Galimatias Blog

A good way to make your English livelier and improve your public speaking skills is to emphasise the keywords in an English sentence. This will really make them stand out and sound far more fluent and close to native. This can be challenging for Finns who sometimes sound a little flat when speaking English. This is usually due to using Finnish stress patterns when speaking English. However just learning a little about English stress and putting a few points into practice can make a big difference.

Aiheet: English language, English pronunciation, wordstress, StandOut, Make a good impression, Be more fluent

In English ”scene, scheme, and scenario” are three very common business words. Unfortunately, they also have a very tricky pronunciation pattern. Over the years I have heard many otherwise fluent Finns come unstuck on the horror trinity of ”scene, scheme, and scenario”. However, help is at hand if some key pronunciation rules are followed…

English pronunciation can indeed feel like chaos – but don’t despair, there is some method in the madness!
Let Galimatias show you how…

Aiheet: ääntäminen, English, pronunciation, English language, quiz, English pronunciation, key rules

On Tuesday, November 3 the United States will hold its elections. These will elect not only the president but also members of the Senate, the House of Representatives, thousands of state officials across the country and decide hundreds of local referendums.
The American electoral system differs from Finnish system in almost every single aspect and can be confusing.

Aiheet: us election, 2020 United States presidential election, trump vs biden, new president, your vote counts, every vote counts

With the pandemic having such a strong influence on people’s lives all over the world, it can feel important to mention this in emails with international partners. You may feel that you wish to show your concern and good wishes towards your clients or colleagues when writing in English. How can you do this in a caring but also business like way?

Aiheet: English, keep safe, take care, Yours from afar, see you soon, showing care, pandemic, keep in touch, keep well

The coronavirus pandemic has brought not only serious disruption and change to countries across the world but also a new range of terminology to help describe the disease and its effects.The epidemic will not be under control until there is at least a working vaccine. In this blog you have the chance to revise your English vocabulary related to this current matter.

Aiheet: English, English language, covid-19, korona, pandemic vocabulary

Although videoconferencing has shown steady growth over recent years the COVID-19 pandemic has vastly expanded its use. Daily users of Microsoft Teams have grown from 10 million at the end of 2019 to over 100 million in June 2020. Skype has also shown a notable upswing while Zoom has shown the strongest growth of all - from less than 10 million daily users to over 200 million daily users in the same period. At Galimatias we have already been using videoconferencing in language training for several years with very good learning results and client feedback. Here below we would like to share some useful hints for overcoming possible challenges in videoconferences in general and in English in particular.

Aiheet: English, videokokous englanniksi, videoconference, videoconferencing in English, video conferencing key phrases, usefull tips for videoconferences, vinkit videokokoukseen englanniksi

The 17^th of March marks St Patrick’s Day, traditionally the day of the death of St Patrick (c. AD 385–461), the patron saint of Ireland. However, this day celebrates far more than an ancient saint. The day has evolved into a celebration of Ireland and its culture. Furthermore, Ireland has developed an ever increasingly important role in the English-speaking world, in the EU, and in international business.

Aiheet: perinne, tradition, English-speaking world, EU, St Patrick´s Day, irish, brexit, international business, European Union, Ireland

The 14^th of February (celebrated as ystävänpäivä in Finland) is known as Valentine’s Day in English speaking countries and is also marked in many other countries around the world.

Aiheet: kielitaito, English, valentine´s day, ystävänpäivä, 14.2.

- Guidelines for good use of time expressions

Did you know that to “move something back” in English means to move it ahead, further away? How do you know for sure when your meeting will take place? Have a look at our blog and short animation and learn the secrets of time expressions in English in order to be on time.

Aiheet: englannin kieli, English, time expressions, ajan määreet, grammar, move back time, rules of thumb, kielioppi, bring forward time

English idioms, just like English spelling, can be confusing. While idioms are great for giving your language more expressiveness and helping it flow more naturally, English idioms can often be illogical. By using a range of these idioms you can ensure your English is both more naturalistic and expressive. So, some care needs to be taken!

Aiheet: English, englanti, English idioms, sujuva viestintä, idioms, englannin sanonnat, meetings in English, englanninkieliset kokoukset