PANGRAMS A pangram is a sentence that includes all the letters of the alphabet and is still meaningful.

Several 26letter pangrams have been created, but all of them contain obscure words, abbreviations, initials or Roman numerals. The exclusion of those words led to the shortest panagram of 30 letters. How quickly daft jumping zebras vex. Jackdaws love my big sphinx of quartz. (31 letters) Pack my box with five dozen liquor jugs. (33 letters) A quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog. (33 letters) Xylophone wizard begets quick jive form. (34 letters) Lazy movers quit hard packing of jewelry boxes. (39 letters) By Jove, my quick study of lexicography won a prize. (41 letters) Sexy zebras just prowl and vie for quick hot matings. (43 letters) Six plump boys guzzled cheap raw vodka quite joyfully. (45 letters) Sixty zippers were quickly picked from the woven jute bag. (48 letters) Crazy Fredericka bought many very exquisite opal jewels. (48 letters) Freight to me sixty dozen quart jars and twelve black pans. (48 letters) How razorback-jumping frogs can level six piqued gymnasts! (49 letters)

PALINDROMES A palindrome is a word, phrase or sentence that reads the same backwards as forwards. For example, the word level is a palindrome. The shortest palindromic words in English are nun, ewe and pip, among others. The longest is redivider. Other palindromes are: God! A dog! Dennis sinned. Dennis and Edna sinned. Dennis, Nell, Edna, Leon, Noel and Ellen sinned. Don't nod. Sad? I'm Midas. Step on no pets. Live not on evil. Do geese see God? Madam, I'm Adam. Never odd or even. Pull up if I pull up. No, it is opposition.

RHYMES

Aqu recopilamos algunas rimas sencillas que tambin resultan muy tiles para aprender ingls. Read them and then try to remember them! "My happy family" (using the fingers) This is my happy family. This is my father. This is my mother. This is my sister. This is my brother. And this is the baby. "Five green frogs" Five green frogs sitting in the sun. Five green frogs swimming in the pool. Five green frogs cool in the pool. Five green frogs having fun.

ANAGRAMS An anagram is a word or phrase that forms a different word or phrase when the letters are rearranged. For example, percussion is an anagram of supersonic. Other one-word anagrams are: solemn - melons despair - praised nameless - salesmen carthorse - orchestra intoxicate - excitation legislators - allegorists conversation - conservation containerised - inconsiderate interrogatives - tergiversation point - on tip twinges - we sting enormity - more tiny funeral - real fun uniformity - I form unity astronomer - moon-starer revolution - love to ruin legislation - is it legal? No militarism - I limit arms considerate - care is noted mesaurements - man uses meter schoolmaster - the classroom presbyterian - best in prayer alphabetically - I play all the ABC a telehone girl - repeating 'hello' French revolution - violence run forth police protection - let cop cope in riot the man who laughs - he's glum, won't ha-ha Roma was not built in a day - any labour I do wants time

PUNS A pun is a play on words that sound similar but have different meanings. They are often found in the playground, in the pub, in everyday conversation or at parties. Read the following puns and try to understand where is the joke. Some of them may take longer to be understood by non-native speakers. What did the grape say when the elephant stepped on it? Nothing. It just gave a little whine. What do you call a deer with no eyes? No idea. Why is the desert a good place for a picnic? Because of the sand which is there. My wife's gone to the West Indies. Jamaica? No, she went of her own accord.

RIDDLES Riddles are very useful to learn a language. Many of them are the same in other languages but others are specially British or American. Many of them play with words, meanings and similar sounds. Try to guess the answer to these riddles without translating them!

Why was Cinderella taken off the basketball team? She always ran away from the ball. What is the difference between a jeweller and a jailer? One sells watches and the other one watches cells. What do you call a deer with no eyes? No idea. (No-eye deer). What goes dot-dash-squeak-dash-dot-squeak-squeak? Mouse code. Why do bees always have sticky hair? Because they have honeycombs. What is at the end of everything? The letter G. What starts with "t", ends with "t" and is full of "t"? A teapot. What starts with "e", ends with "e" but only has one letter? An envelope. If you drop a white hat into the Red Sea, what does it become? Wet. Why are pianos difficult to open? Because the keys are inside. How do you stop a cock from crowing on Sunday morning and waking you up? Have it for dinner on Saturday night. What bone will a dog never eat? A trombone. Why are Saturdays and Sundays strong days? Because the other five are weak days.

When is a door not a door? When it's ajar. ("ajar" significa entornada) What kind of animal can jump higher than a house? All animals can jump. House cannot. What do you serve that you cannot eat? A tennis ball. What do you call a great dog detective? Sherlock Bones. How can you tell if someone is jealous of the Irish? They are green with envy. How does Easter end? With the letter R. What do you call a fish without an eye? A fsh. What do sea monsters eat? Fish and ships. Brothers and sisters have I none, but that man's father is my father's son. Who is that man? My son. Why do white sheep eat more than black sheep? There are more white sheep. Which word becomes shorter when you add a syllable to it? Short. Where does Friday come before Thursday? In the dictionary. What goes up and down stairs without moving? A carpet. Who can shave 20 times a day and still have a beard? A barber. What has many keys but can't open any door? A piano. What word is always pronounced wrong? The word "wrong".

What has two hands and a face, but no arms and legs? A clock. What goes up and down stairs without moving? The carpet. What Christmas carol is a favourite of parents? Silent Night. Take off my skin. I won't cry, but you will. What am I? An onion. What nail should you never hit with a hammer? Your fingernail. What is in the middle of water but is not an island? The letter T. I can help keep things safe, keep the unwanted at bay; but if you forget me, you may be outside all day. What am I? A key. I run all day but I'm always at the same place. What am I? A clock. They come at night without being called and are lost in the day without being stolen. What are they? The stars.

TONGUE-TWISTERS A tongue-twister is a phrase or sentence that is difficult to say because it contains many similar sounds. The object is to repeat it as many times as possible, as quickly as possible, without mispronunciation. They are often used to practice pronunciation. Read the following tongue-twisters and try to repeat them many times. Greek grapes. Mixed biscuits. Red lorry, yellow lorry. A proper copper coffee pot. Whistle for the thistle sifter.

They're thirsty every Thursday. (Sent by Vicky Oliva Navarro from Barcelona, Spain) A noisy noise annoys an oyster. Twelve twins twirled twelve twigs. I can catch cats, cats can't catch me. (Sent by Noelia Torrecillas from Ceuta, Spain) Freddy thrush flies through thick fog. Check the children's shirts and shorts. (Sent by Vicky Oliva Navarro from Barcelona, Spain) Spanish school is on Smiths Street. (Sent by Carmen Blanco from Gijn, Spain) Nine nice night nurses nursing nicely. The mink mixed a medicinal mixture. Sister Susie's sewing shirts for soldiers. Vincent vowed vengeance very vehemently. (Sent by Yani Corti from Banfield, Argentina)