Using a Language, you must follow some set of rules which guide the use of the language, and ignoring those rules - e.g using " u" in place of " you " might be fine in a private context , but it is bad when it is been used in public context.At most it makes a person look lazy or even stupid.
Below is a list of internet tools that aid the use of English Language
Dictionary / Thesaurus
A dictionary will help you with basic vocabulary, definitions, and spelling. A thesaurus will help you to expand a basic knowledge of English into more sophisticated realms. Both are essential.
Online Slang Dictionary
Online slang helps you understand different types of words, idioms and slangs that is been used.It is also constantly updated.It also has a whole lot of features.
Grammar Girl
The most obvious difficulty that most people find in using English language are the rules that guides the different pronunciation for different words.
Pronunciation Book on YouTube
So, using English properly on the Internet is good and all, but what about in real life? You know, when you log off the Web and talk to people face-to-face? How’s your English then? In particular, I’m talking about your pronunciation. It’s no good if you know what a word means if people can’t understand you when you say it!
There’s a YouTube channel called Pronunciation Book that has hundreds of videos on how to pronounce certain words. These videos are divided into categories, like alphabet, days of the week, everyday phrases, prepositions, and more. Surprisingly, this channel is quite addicting.
If you ever get bored and need a break, you can always hop over to the parody channel, Pronunciation Manual. It’s always good for a laugh or two.
HowJSay
Along the lines of pronunciation, we have HowJSay which is more of a dictionary of pronunciations. If you want to know how to pronounce a particular word, this is the site you want. With over 160,000 entries, you’re more likely than not to find the words you need.
The cool part of HowJSay is that it has app versions for both iPhone and Android. If pronunciation on-the-go is what you’re looking for, then this will probably come in handy.
Readability Score
There’s another aspect of the English language – or language in general – that many of us seem to forget, myself included. Readability, or a qualitative gauge at how easy it is to read a particular piece of writing. Have you ever read a Wall of Text comprised of nothing more than run-on sentences and bulky phrases? That’s what I’m talking about.
Using Readability Score, you can take any chunk of your writing, paste it in, and have the website analyze your words according to a number of readability tests. The primary formula – the Fleisch-Kincaid Reading Ease test – will describe, on a scale of 0 to 100, how easy it is to read your writing.
Depending on your grasp of the English language, you should be able to tailor your words according to your audience. Readability Score is a useful tool in learning more on how to use English effectively.
These are just a few tools that deal with varying aspects of English: vocabulary, spelling, grammar, pronunciation, and readability.
What do you think? Any suggestions for similar websites that you think should be on here? Share your thoughts with us in the comments box below.
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