Could, Could Have Been, Could Be

Hi! It's me, Professor Panda, PhD. Today I wanted to answer a question about the word "could" from a reader. Because this word and its uses can cause a lot of confusion, I thought I would share this question with everyone! So here it is!

Could is what is known as an AUXILIARY VERB; that is, a verb used to help form the tenses, aspects, or moods of other verbs such as, have, do , be, should must, can. The word could is used in verb phrases that have a past, present, or future time reference and is generally equal to can in meaning and use, with the following functions:

1. Expressing a shade of doubt or a smaller degree of ability or possibility such as in: It could be so.
2. Expressing permission, as in: Could I go?
3. Forming the present condition as in: It would help if he could wait.
4. Forming the past condition as in: He would have left if he could.
5. Expressing or suggesting politely less certainty than the word can, as in: Could you wait?

Now as to your question:

I often see or listen to the following phrase: " a could have been. " For example, “He is a could have been;” or, “It is a could have been story;” or “a could have been beauty Queen.” What is the meaning " a could have been? "

First let us look at the present tense of the world can, as it applies to your phrases:

1. He can be…
2. He is a can be…
3. It is a can be story…
4. … can be beauty queen

In these phrases, the subjects (he, it, and she (which is implied here) have the ability to do or to be something: he has the ability to be, the story can be, she can be a beauty queen. Could refers us back to the past. While your phrases are idiomatic, that is, they are used as idioms (the usual way in which words of a particular language are joined together to express a thought, with particular reference to a dialect of a population or community, region, social class, etc.) they are still acceptable forms of English for conversation as well as informal forms of writing (news articles, essays, short stories, etc. – almost everything except formal research papers or a high school and university thesis). What these phrases say are as follows:

1. He is a person who could have been (what ever it is, a ball player, actor, student, etc.).
2. It could have been a story (if/but…….).
3. (She) could have been a beauty queen (if/but…..).

although, each of these idioms tend to be a bit negative or critical in their use.

Next time, we will discuss the phrase “wanna be” or more clearly “want to be,” which is similar in its use.

P. Panda, PhD.

SIGHT WORDS

Hi! It's me - Professor Panda with a new and really important new English lesson. Today we are going to cover for the first time, SIGHT WORDS! What is a SIGHT WORD?

• A sight word is any word that should be known to a reader automatically. Sight words are pronounced without thinking about how the word is spelled. A common first sight word is a person's given name. Beginning readers are at an advantage when they learn to read sight words that occur frequently in print. However, it is possible to read a word on sight but not know the meaning of the word. For example, a student might be able to read on sight "there, their and they're" but not understand the differences in meaning. Thus, learning words by sight only, should not be seen as a complete reading solution.


• It is estimated that there are approximately 100 to 220 common words in English that require specific memorization.

So, here are the first group of sight words for you. Memorize them and if you are not clear on their meaning or use, look them up in a nice dictionary.

SIGHT WORDS I

a

and

away

big

blue

can

come

down

find

for

funny

go

help

I

in

is

it

jump

little

oak

make

me

not

one

play

red

run

said

see

the

three

to

two

up

we

yellow

you

MORE ABOUT NOUNS

More About Nouns

Hi! It's time for more fun with Professor Panda's English! I hope you enjoyed the last lesson on nouns. Did you practice the words and sentences? Good! Today, we will continue our study of naming words, or nouns, so let's get started! Today we will talk about two kinds of naming words or nouns. Some words name common things and these are called common nouns.

Here are some examples for you:

• child
• park
• story

Some words name special things. These words are called proper nouns. They begin with large or capital letters. Here are some examples:

• Sam
• Peace Park
• "The Red Pony"

Read each sentence below. Circle the special name in each sentence and then, write the special name on the line.

1. The boy is Chris.__________________________________

2. That girl is Lina.__________________________________

3. My friend is Lee Chin.______________________________

4. I live on Main Street._______________________________

5. I read "All About Worms."____________________________


Special Names of People and Places

The special name of a person begins with a capital letter. The special title of a person begins with a capital letter. The special name of a place begins with a capital letter.

Here are some examples for you:

• Katie
• Dr. Jones
• New York City

Read the sentences below. Then, write each special name or title correctly. Be sure to use capital letters.

1. This book is for sam.______________________________________

2. mr. Saito has a new car.____________________________________

3. My frined goes to parker school._______________________________

4. We live on baker road._____________________________________


Practice with Proper Names

A special name of a person begins with a capital letter. The special title of a person also begins with a capital letter. The special name of a place begins with a capital letter.

Here are some examples:

• Ms. Reed
• Chicago
• Lucy

On a piece of paper, answer each question using the special name of a person or a place. Remember to use capital letters.

1. What is your name?

2. What is your teacher's name?

3. What is the name of your school?

4. What is the name of your town or city?

5. What is your best friend's name?


Well, that is our lesson for today. Please read the sentences and nouns carefully. After you have done all the exercises, come back in a day or two and do it again. Then later on, try it again, and keep repeating the exercises until you feel comfortable with these kinds of nouns. When you are reading, look for new "naming words" or nouns, write them down, put them in sentences of your own, and make them part of your vocabulary.

See you next time!

~Professor Panda, PhD.~

PANDA ENGLISH BEGINNING GRAMMAR: NOUNS

Hi! It's me, Professor Panda!

Because so many pupils are just getting started in studying English, I thought it would be a good idea, for a while, to study the basic rules of English Grammar or Language Arts. Today we are going to look at what are commonly called "naming words". Let's get started!

NAMING WORDS

"Naming words" are called nounds. Nouns name people, places, and things.

Here are some examples for you:

• man


• house


• boat


• boy


• girl


• dog


• cat


• baby


• school


• store


• car


• fish

Try to write a simple sentence using each of the "naming words" or nouns that are listed above.

NAMING WORDS FOR PEOPLE

Some nouns name people. Here are some examples for you:

• farmer


• doctor


• cook


• worker


• nurse

Try to write some simple sentences using the nouns that name people that are listed above.

NAMING WORDS FOR ANIMALS

Some nouns name animals. Here are some examples:

• frog


• fish


• dog


• cat


• bird


• fox


• whale


• pig


• horse


• whale

Try to complete the following sentences using nouns from the list above. Then, make up your own sentences using the list of nouns.

1. A ____________________ swims in the sea.


2. A____________________ jumps out of a pond.


3. A____________________runs in the woods.


4. A____________________flies in the sky.


5. A____________________barks at strangers.


6. A____________________ meows.

NAMING WORDS FOR PLACES

Some nouns name places. Here are some examples:

• house


• farm


• lake


• park


• city


• beach


• library

Try to write some simple sentences using all the nouns listed above.

NAMING WORDS FOR THINGS

Some nouns name things. Here are some examples:

• toy


• chair


• shoes


• cup


• hat


• bed


• apple


• crayons


• box

Try to complete each sentence below using one of the nouns in the list above. Then write your own sentences using all the nouns in the list.

1. I drank juice from a _____________________________.

2. I use _______________________________________ for coloring.

3. I eat an ____________________________ for lunch.

4. I sleep in a ___________________________.

5. I wear a ___________________ on my head.

6. I keep my toys in a ___________________________.

Well, that is our lesson for today. Please read the sentences and nouns carefully. After you have done all the exercises, come back in a day or two and do it again. Then later on, try it again, and keep repeating the exercises until you feel comfortable with these kinds of nouns. When you are reading, look for new "naming words" or nouns, write them down, put them in sentences of your own, and make them part of your vocabulary.

Have fun! See you next time when we will talk more about nouns!

~Professor Panda, PhD.~

LOOK AND SEE: I AM SO CONFUSED! WHICH WORD TO USE?

Hi! It’s Professor Panda with another English lesson for you! Today I am writing in answer to two recent questions concerning the proper use of two common words: see and watch. Which to use and when to use? It really is confusing because often, especially in the West, both words seem to be used for the same thing in casual conversation; however, that is not really correct speech and definitely not correct for writing.

“Dear Professor Panda,

My son has a question for you. Recently a friend of his said, “I saw that movie. It was wonderful! You should watch that movie.”

“Dear Panda,

What word should I use in connection with a film or DVD? Watch or see?

In my English class we were taught that we use “watch” when we consciously pay attention to something like a film or TV or when we are closely examining something. They said that the word “see is used mostly to describe the use of your sense of vision. But, I have heard the word “see” being used just like “I watched a film.” I don’t know which is absolutely correct, but “watch a film” and “watch TV” seem to be the better ones.

What is right?”


Well then, the words “look”, “see” and “watch” are all very similar. Each word says a little something different about the ways in which you use your eyes. There are, however, important differences.

First of all, it depends on how you intend to look or watch, and how intense the looking is. Oh! Don’t panic! I will explain. When we say “see”, we are normally talking about things that we cannot avoid; so for example, in the sentence “I opened the curtains and saw some birds outside” I did not intend to see them, it just happened.

When we use the verb “look”, we are talking about intending to see something. So, “This morning, I looked in the cupboard for some breakfast.” I intended to look in the cupboard.

When we watch something we intend to look at it, but we are also looking at it rather intensely, mostly because it is moving. So, for example, “I watched the bus go through the traffic lights.” Or, “I watched the movie.” We want to se it, we are looking at it intensely, and it is normally moving.

When we use verbs that relate to our senses (hearing, sight, touch, smell, taste), and “look”, “see” and “watch are verbs of the visual sense, there is usually a difference between intending to do it and not intending to do it. “I heard the radio” means I didn’t intend to hear the ready, it just happened. “I listened to the radio” says that I turned it on to a program I was interested in.

“I felt the wind on my face” means I did not intend to feel it, but it just happened that way. “I touched the bug” means I intended to feel the bug.

It is important that when you find these verbs of senses, to group them together and try to find the differences between them.

Remember: When you look at words that seem to be similar, it is important to find out exactly the differences between them, because basically, you cannot really use them in place of one another.

Also remember that with “see”, you didn’t really intend to do it, it just happened. With “look”, you intended to do it, and with “watch” you intended to do it and you were looking intensely, usually because it was moving.

The word “look” when used without any prepositions (such as “look at” or “look for”) suggests that the attention is diverted from something to something else.

Here are some other things to help you decide which word is correct to use:

“See” is an inactive word. When your eyes are open, you do it without thinking: I see a car near the store.

“Look” is an active word. You must want to do it, but it is basically for only a short time: Look at this pen.

“Watch” is also an active word. You must want to do it, but it is for a longer period of time: Let’s watch television.

OK! Here is a small quiz to help you even more.

1. He is very shy and doesn’t __________ you in the eye.
a. look
b. see
c. watch
2. Did you ­­­­­­­­__________ the advertisement in the newspaper?
a. see
b. watch
3. I can’t __________ much in this light.
a. see
b. watch
c. look
4. The police are ­­­­__________ the house in case the criminals come back.
a. looking at
b. watching
5. I spent the evening ­­­­­­__________ TV.
a. seeing
b. looking at
c. watching
6. ­­­­__________ out! There is some water on the floor.
a. Look
b. See
7. Did you __________the football game last night?
a. look at
b. watch
8. I __________ in the shop window, but I didn’t see anything I liked.
a. looked
b. saw
c. watched
9. I can’t __________ any milk in the refrigerator.
a. see
b. look
c. watch
10. I have never liked it. I don’t know what you ­­­­__________ in it.
a. look
b. watch
c. see



Answers (Don’t peak until you have done the quiz!)

1. look
2. see
3. see
4. watching
5. watching
6. Look
7. watch
8. looked
9. see
10. see


Well, I hope that clears up a question that I am sure a lot of us have had! See you next time!

P. Panda

PROFESSOR PANDA'S QUESTION CORNER

Hi! It's me again, Professor Panda, PhD. Today we have a question from one of our students so let's get right to it!

Recently I tried to buy at online shop of USA but there were many difficult English for me in the web page. Please look at the following English:”Express airmail delivery to most major European destinations within 1-2 working days and Worldwide within 2-3 working days.”I used dictionary and I tried to understand the meaning but I can't understand 100% because, I don't know where subject and verb are in this sentence.
Please tell me.
When I translate such sentence, is there good way?

Good Morning Lee-san!

This was a case when a dictionary could not be a complete help to anyone. “Express airmail delivery to most major European destinations within 1-2 working days and Worldwide within 2-3 working days”.

This is an incomplete sentence or sometimes called a “sentence fragment”. It does not have a verb! It is common in advertising, which some people think is a good excuse to use bad English! I have seen terrible English on signs and buildings here in Gifu Prefecture and it makes me a bit nuts!!!!! Also it makes me laugh. They should ask me for proper English for their signs – I won’t charge them much! (hee hee)

Ok, as to the meaning of the “sentence fragment” or incomplete sentence.

It means that they can provide airmail delivery of items purchased from them to most places in Europe within 1 or 2 working days. A working day in the West typically means, Monday through Friday, when businesses are generally open. They, except for many stores, tend to be closed on Saturday and Sunday.

It goes on to say that they can provide “Worldwide”, meaning that they can provide worldwide delivery, to places other than most places in Europe, within 2-3 working days.

So, if you were in Europe, and it was Monday, you might get your package Tuesday or Wednesday. If it was Friday when you made your order, then you might get your package on Monday or Tuesday, because Saturday and Sunday do not count.

By the way, my experience is that you need to add an extra day!

Anou…there is no rule or good guidelines for finding the meaning of incomplete sentences or “sentence fragments”. To get the meaning one needs to understand basic English grammar, have a good vocabulary, and some experience in using English. The key is, practice, practice, practice. Read everything you can get your hands on, from USA magazines to The Japan Times!

Ok, watch out for the flu.

-P. Panda

QUIZ ANSWERS

Here are the answers to the quiz. No cheating now!!!!

1. China, tiger, jungle, something
2. men
3. man, tre, book, man, piece, paper
4. tiger, man, book
5. tiger, readers, writers

The puns are:
a. "readers digest" which is the name of a popular English language magazine as well as meaning that readers can be easily absorbed or taken into the tiger's system.
b. "writer's cramp" which can mean that eating writers can cause cramps or it is also the term for the pain you get in your hand if you write too much.

MORE ABOUT NOUNS

MORE ABOUT NOUNS

So, as we learned last time, a noun is a word that names or refers to a person, a place, or a thing. To make things even more clear, I hope, a thing, can actually be not just an object or a person, but also a quality or even a concept.

We also leaned about common nouns, which name any one of a class of persons, places or things, and proper nouns, which name a specific person, place, or thing.

Let’s talk for just a moment about “number”. Number means that a word can be singular (which means that it referrs to one person, place or thing) or plural, which means that it refers to more than one person or place or thing. Of course, in Japanese, we don’t bother with number because the same word can be used for one or for more than one person, place, or thing. Here are some examples:

· Hon = book or books
· Shinbun = newspaper or newspapers
· Uchi = house or houses
· Ki = tree or trees
· Te = hand or hands
· Hon o motte imasu. ( I have a book) or
· Hon o motte imasu. (I have some books).

We should also begin to think a little bit about articles! In Japanese we do not use articles before nouns. There are no words in Nihongo that correspond to the English a, an, or the. For right now, just be aware that English does use articles a lot and that they are an important part of learning to both speak and write in English well. A major mistake that is often made is to forget to use articles when speaking or writing in English because Japanese people don’t normally use them or even give them a thought.

Some English nouns also show gender. Not so much in Japanese right? There are no special endings to show masculine, feminine, or neuter forms, but there are in English, so for now, just be aware that they exist.

Now, let’s talk a little bit about two “new” kinds of nouns. The are compound nouns and collective nouns. Please don’t be intimidated by these new names. The ideas behind them are pretty simple.

Compound nouns are two or more nouns that function or work together as a single unit. They are partners! A compound noun can be two individual words, words that are joined by a hyphen (-), or two words that are combined into one “new” word.

· Individual words: time capsule
· Hyphenated words: great-uncle
· Combined words: basketball (basket + ball)
Collective nouns name groups of people or things.

· Audience
· Family
· Herd
· Crowd.

Don’t forget, as you learn to read, write and to speak English, a really good dictionary is an important thing to have close by to refer to. My favorite is the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language which I always keep at my desk (yes, even I need a dictionary, often!!!). You can see it here for yourself:

http://www.amazon.co.jp/American-Heritage-Dictionary-English-Language/dp/0618701737/ref=sr_1_26?ie=UTF8&s=english-books&qid=1209238747&sr=8-26

Another really good dictionary is the Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, available in several forms:

http://www.amazon.co.jp/s/ref=nb_ss_fb/250-4870713-0556251?__mk_ja_JP=%83J%83%5E%83J%83i&url=search-alias%3Denglish-books&field-keywords=webster+collegiate+dictionary

Well, we have covered a lot of material today so take a minute to relax! After you have done that, we have a short quiz for you! Oh, it’s not too hard and it is good practice for you.

QUIZ

If you can, print out a copy of this quiz onto paper. Underline the nouns in each of the following sentences.

1. In ancient China, a hungry tiger was roaming through the jungle looking for something to eat.

2. He came across two men.

3. One man was sitting under a tree and reading a book; the other man was writing on a piece of paper.

4. The tiger quickly pounced on the man reading the book and devoured him.

5. Even a tiger knows that readers digest and writers cramp.

Give yourself 5 points for each noun you find. Also, there are two puns in this quiz. Yes, even English speaking people have fun with puns. Can you find them? If you can, give yourself an extra 5 points for each one.

NEW BOOKS AND ESSAYS

Hi everybody! We did not forget about you, but we have been very busy indeed. We just began a new publishing company called Shisei-do Publications and it has kept us too busy with no time for anything else. Sometimes not even time for eating!

Anyway, we are going to be publishing what we hope are interesting books on Japanese history, culture, and literature, including many old books about Japan that are no longer published but have lots of good information and some very interesting stories, etc.

Our first book coming out soon is The Annotated Bushido, by Inazo Nitobe, edited by H. Tokugawa. It will tell all about samurai philosophy and lots of things about samurai and Japanese history and culture. It was published in 1895 but the English in it is very hard to understand, even for me, so I have "translated" it to modern English and put in lots of illustrations.

Please visit us at http://360.yahoo.com/shiseido publications


Also, if you like to practice reading in English, we have published an essay on a great Japanese scholar and some Japanese history. HIs name is Shoin Yoshida and you can read this essay at:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/11997930/A-Most-Audacious-Young-Man


Please visit and enjoy it. Soon there will be some even more interesting essays about interesting people in Japanese history.

As to English lessons - later this week there will be a nice and new lesson for everyone!

See you then!

-Prof. Panda, PhD.

THE PARTS OF SPEECH

Hi everybody! I thought it would be fun to begin to study the basic "parts of speech": all the words we use to speak and write English well. They are like our basic tools and we can't do a good job on something unless we know our tools well. So let's get started!

THE PARTS OF SPEECH

Words in English or divided into eight parts of speech, each one different, according to their “job” in a sentence. Oh yes indeed, there are different kinds of words and each kind of word has a specific function in a sentence. They are:

Adjectives
Adverbs
Conjunctions
Interjections
Nouns
Pronouns (No, these are not nouns that have given up amateur status to become professionals!)
Prepositions
Verbs

These are some of the “nuts and bolts” (the basic parts) that make up English, and to speak and write English well, we must have a good understanding of them and their jobs. I say “some”, because there are other parts of speech, but I do not want you to go running away into the night, screaming in terror, so I will keep them to myself for a while until you are comfortable with the parts I have mentioned above.

So, let’s get started!

NOUNS

A noun is simply a word that names a person, place, or thing. A good way to remember nouns is this:

NOUN = NAMAE

A noun is a name and they come in different varieties; and just like names, there are some what we like, some that maybe we don’t like so much, and some that we are stuck with no matter what. The varieties of nouns are:

Common nouns
Proper nouns
Compound nouns
Collective nouns.

Don’t panic! It’s not as complicated as in sounds, as you will soon see. For today’s lesson, we will explore two types of nouns: common nouns and proper nouns.

Common nouns – nouns that name any one of a group, or class, or type of person, place or thing.

girl
city
food

Easy right?

Proper nouns – nouns that name a specific or certain person, place, or thing.

· Mitusko
· Osaka
· California Roll

Until next time, look through your favorite magazines or books, and see if you can pick out common nouns and proper nouns. I am sure you will find lots of them and suddenly you will discover that you have a new way of thinking about the words you see.

Ok, now let's relax and have some tea!

MORE ABOUT VOWEL SOUNDS

Hi! It's me again - Professor Panda! I hope everyone is fine. Did you have fun over the Lunar New Year? I sure did!

Today I want to talk a little more about vowel sounds in English. I know just about everybody who comes to this blog is studying English as a second language - a language they want to speak in addition to the language spoken in their home or country. Even Mrs. Panda is studying English as a second language and she says our cat is learning it as well! I guess the kitty will speak three languages, Kitty, Kitty Japanese, and Kitty English! Busy cat!

Whenever we are learning a new and different language, how the language sounds, especially what sounds the vowels make is extremely important to us. Unfortunately, here in this blog, it's very hard to teach much about the actual sounds, especially in a way that you can practice them. But have no fear! I have some fun tools I am going to share with you, that can make learning and practicing English vowel sounds much easier and fun.

The first one is from an organization called fonetiks.org.They offer vowel sounds for 9 varieties of English and also 9 other languages. You can study vowel sounds for American English, British English, Irish English, and several other styles. And the offer the sounds that one vowel make, two vowels together, three vowels together, and several other kinds of sounds that you will encounter in speaking and listening to English, Just follow the link below, and then click on the kind of sounds you want to hear, like American English Single Vowel Sounds or British English Two Vowel Sounds and so on. A new page will open up. just place your cursor over the letters at the left and someone will pronounce the sound. To the right are examples of words with that particular sound.

http://www.fonetiks.org/

Now the second tool, and I think it is the best one, is an online dictionary. Actually, it's a lot of things, a full Webster's New World Dictionary, which is one of the best, a full Roget's Thesaurus, plus audio pronunciations for each word you look up in the dictionary. If you look up "dog" there will be a small icon at the top with the shape of a speaker. Click on it and you will hear the word. Also there are many examples of how the word is used. So this is a really useful thing to have and I hope you will use it often.

http://www.yourdictionary.com/

Just be a bit careful with both of these fun sites, not to have your computer sound up too loud or it might make it so you can't understand the word or the sound. If you experiment a little, you can figure it out! I did!!!!

Ok, that's it for today! Have lots of fun listening to and practicing making the vowel sounds you hear on these two sites and have fun finding new words in your new dictionary!