Short, practical lessons that explain one rule at a time, show it in real sentences and finish with a quiz (and, where it helps, a deck of flashcards) so you can check that it stuck.
Nouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs and the jobs words do in a sentence.
Good or well? Bad or badly? Learn the simple test for adjectives and adverbs, the linking-verb trap, and the -ly words that break the pattern.
Beginner to intermediate 2 min 5-question quiz
Subject pronouns do the action; object pronouns receive it. Learn the "remove the other person" test for I and me, the he/him test for who and whom, and how to avoid "myself" mistakes.
Beginner to intermediate 3 min 7-question quiz
Nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions, conjunctions and interjections. Learn what each one does, how to spot it, and why the same word can change jobs.
Beginner 3 min 6-question quiz
Commas, apostrophes, colons, dashes, quotation marks and capital letters used with confidence.
Where does the apostrophe go in James's, the players' and it's? A clear guide to apostrophes for possession and contractions, plus the plurals that never need one.
Beginner to intermediate 2 min 5-question quiz
Capitalize the first word of a sentence, proper nouns, the pronoun I and the main words in titles. Learn the rules for days, seasons, directions, job titles and family words, then check yourself with a quiz.
Beginner 3 min 7-question quiz
Lists, compound sentences, introductory phrases, extra information, direct address and more. Learn the comma rules that matter and the comma splice to avoid.
Intermediate 3 min 5-question quiz
The hyphen joins words, the en dash shows ranges and the em dash sets off a thought. Learn when to use each, how compound adjectives work and how to type them, then take the quiz.
Intermediate 4 min 7-question quiz
A semicolon links two closely related sentences; a colon introduces what comes next. Learn when to use each, with clear examples and a quick quiz.
Intermediate 2 min 5-question quiz
How verbs show time, irregular verb forms, and when to use active or passive voice.
Learn to spot the passive voice, turn it into the active voice and back again, and decide which one makes your sentence clearer.
Intermediate 2 min 5-question quiz
Regular verbs add -ed; irregular verbs do not. Learn the patterns that group English irregular verbs, the mistakes to avoid (brung, swum, have went) and drill 18 key verbs with flashcards.
Beginner to intermediate 3 min 7-question quiz 18 cards
Past, present and future, each in simple, continuous, perfect and perfect continuous forms. See how all 12 English tenses are built and when to use each one.
Beginner to intermediate 3 min 5-question quiz
Building complete sentences: agreement, clauses, and fixing run-ons.
A run-on joins two complete sentences with nothing between them; a comma splice joins them with only a comma. Learn five easy fixes and practise with a quiz.
Intermediate 3 min 6-question quiz
Learn how independent and dependent clauses combine into simple, compound, complex and compound-complex sentences, with flashcards for the joining words and a quiz.
Beginner to intermediate 3 min 6-question quiz 12 cards
A singular subject takes a singular verb and a plural subject takes a plural one. Learn how to find the real subject, handle "each", "none" and collective nouns, then test yourself with a quiz.
Beginner to intermediate 4 min 7-question quiz
Prefixes, suffixes and plurals: how English builds new words from old ones.
Learn the most useful prefixes and suffixes, what they mean, the spelling rules for adding them, and how they help with vocabulary and word games. Includes flashcards and a quiz.
All levels 3 min 7-question quiz 14 cards
Most English nouns add -s or -es, but hundreds do not. Learn the patterns behind irregular plurals (-f to -ves, -o to -oes, Latin and Greek endings) with flashcards and a quiz.
Beginner to intermediate 4 min 7-question quiz 15 cards
Similes, metaphors, idioms and other figures of speech.
Learn the figures of speech you meet every day (simile, metaphor, personification, hyperbole, idiom, alliteration and onomatopoeia), with examples and a quiz.
All levels 3 min 6-question quiz
Learn 16 everyday English idioms with clear meanings and example sentences, why idioms cannot be translated word for word, and how to use them naturally. Flashcards and a quiz included.
Intermediate 3 min 7-question quiz 16 cards
Look-alike and sound-alike words and how to keep them apart.
Affect is usually a verb and effect is usually a noun. Learn the RAVEN trick, the rare exceptions (effect change, a flat affect) and test yourself with a quiz.
All levels 2 min 5-question quiz
Use fewer with things you can count and less with things you measure. Learn the rule, the everyday exceptions (time, money, distance) and the related pairs many/much and number/amount.
All levels 3 min 7-question quiz
Lay needs an object (you lay something down); lie does not (you lie down). Learn both verbs in every tense, why "lay" is also the past of "lie", and practise with flashcards and a quiz.
Intermediate 3 min 7-question quiz 9 cards
Their, there and they're sound the same but mean different things. Learn what each one means, a quick test for each, and the similar pairs your/you're and whose/who's.
Beginner 2 min 5-question quiz
Read the lesson once straight through, then do the quiz without scrolling back up. The questions are written to catch the most common slip-ups, so a wrong answer usually points straight at the rule that needs another look. Each explanation tells you why the right answer is right.
Grammar sticks best when you use it. After a lesson, find three sentences in something you wrote recently and check them against the rule. The word counter is handy for editing, and the misspellings library covers the spelling side of the same problems.
Knowing your parts of speech pays off on the board, too. Plurals, past tenses and comparatives (-S, -ED, -ER, -EST) are the hooks that turn a one-word play into two. Our blog post on anagrams shows how strong players use word families to find more moves.