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If elephants could write down their memories, they'd use their trunks. The Trunk is a collection of articles with advice on learning languages, writing, and communicating better in English.

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Do you have some beliefs about language learning that are holding you back from making progress in English?

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Category: Language Learning Tips

How do you make a snowball?

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Category: Healthcare EnglishLanguage Learning TipsWriting in English

Sticking to language learning in spite of busy days, long to-do lists and lots of commitments can be a challenge

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Category: Language Learning Tips

Another common confusion is the difference between the verbs rise and raise.

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Category: Common English ConfusionsHealthcare English

What do health professionals say about writing in English when it’s not their first language?

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Category: Healthcare EnglishLanguage Learning TipsWriting in English

From a patient’s perspective, dealing with health professionals who communicate well can make a huge difference.

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Category: Healthcare English

Who hasn’t left a medical appointment feeling only half understood?

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Category: Healthcare EnglishLanguage Learning Tips

Describing pain is sometimes hard enough in your own language, but a language barrier makes it even harder to be sure the right message is getting across.

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Category: Healthcare English

What do health professionals say about writing in English when it’s not their first language?

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Category: Healthcare EnglishLanguage Learning TipsWriting in English

Asking questions means you have to deal with answers, but that’s not always easy.

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Category: Healthcare EnglishLanguage Learning Tips

Questions can be tricky as different word order and tenses plus intonation come into play.

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Category: Healthcare EnglishLanguage Learning Tips

Ready to accelerate your English writing skills?

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Category: Language Learning Tips

At the end of the day, before going to bed, I usually read a novel in English or German or French for 30 minutes or more. Normally it’s a physical book.

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Category: Language Learning Tips

What do health professionals say about writing in English when it’s not their first language?

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Category: Healthcare EnglishLanguage Learning TipsWriting in English

Good enough means you can do what you have to do in English.

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Category: Healthcare EnglishLanguage Learning Tips

My mentor passed away three years ago, but six words still resonate.

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Category: Language Learning Tips

When you can’t recall the difference between common confusing pairs, your writing and speaking slow down.

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Category: Common English Confusions

Sometimes writing in English can feel like one step forward and two steps back.

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Category: Common English Confusions

When you’re ready to move from good enough English to mastery, an elephant can guide you.

 

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Category: Language Learning Tips

When someone has a problem or worry, how can you politely give the person some advice?

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Category: Common English ConfusionsHealthcare EnglishLanguage Learning Tips