Knowing the English language acts as an asset in the professional world. While English as a language offers many perks, but it is a tough language to learn. The grammar can be a little overwhelming for the learners. Also the there are many concepts in the language ranging from collocations to sentence structures.
When it comes to India, the public finds it challenging to learn English as a second language due to lack of familiarity, tough grammar, and improper guidance. People often search for resources to learn this language properly but, they often end up hitting the dead end. This article will help you pick the best books to learn English and also mention the ten best books to learn English from, including Cambridge, Oxford, etc.
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Table of Contents
Grabbing the perfect book to learn English can be a big challenge. To get the best result one must consider points like finding the purpose of buying it, type of the book, practice exercises, etc. In this section, we will discuss these points in proper detail to help you find the best book for learning the language.
Native Indian speakers are often seen overusing the continuous tense, this is because of the absence of correspondence in the way different tenses are used in Hindi. Learning from a specific grammar book will show the exact instances where these tenses should be used, thus saving the person from making big blunders.
Another problem is the language Hindi doesn't follow the rules of a preposition, instead of the preposition, it uses what is known as “postpositions.”. This means that instead of the preposition coming after the noun or pronoun it qualifies, it comes after it. A good Grammar book can help the learner to differentiate between the two languages.
Collocations are combinations of words that appear together in the English Language. For example, 'Strong tea' and 'Heavy Lifter' are both examples of collocations. Mastering collocations can drastically improve your fluency and helps you sound more natural. Applying collocations perfectly can help you shine in official presentations, group discussions, and grilling interviews. Many Indian speakers struggle with pronunciation and accent in English, and learning collocations will largely help speakers learn professional English.
Books on collocations reveal which words can go together and which words do not. Unlike grammar rules, collocations depend on probability rather than being rigid and fixed. Publications houses like Cambridge and Oxford have books that explain collocations with different situations and examples. Thus, making the learning easy.
On the other hand, vocabulary is extremely crucial for both working professionals and students; having a good vocabulary allows you to express clearly in a language. In corporate settings, people often panic when writing a report or drafting a proposal, as they don't know the words that can fit perfectly. Vocabulary building books help add more words to your arsenal and help you be on top of your game.
In any form of communication, it is always important to convey the message right, without the scope of any misconceptions or doubts. Native Indians often face big problems with the accent which affects the pronunciation of simple English words like honest, doubt, etc. that are used pretty often during conversations.
Making errors in pronunciations can drastically twist the message that we as a speaker are trying to convey. People notice whether your pronunciation is good or bad when it comes to professional spheres as soon as you start speaking the simplest of words. People often think having a good vocabulary alone can make them express themselves better in conversations, but what is the point of knowing a word if you can't pronounce it well.
The pronunciation books come in; these books are filled with examples that break complicated words into parts to help the reader pronounce better. They also come with audio CDs that help the reader to get familiar with how the word sounds. These books are great for both personal and professional growth.
One of the major problems in learning English is the lack of familiarity speakers have with the language. From our childhood, we converse in regional languages, which leaves little room for us to be familiar with English as a language. While many books focus on providing details on the language structure, very few books go the extra mile to provide practice questions and exercises to keep the learner in touch with the practical exposure.
These books work great for people who learn English as an important language, as it allows the user to practice alongside learning new topics. The questions also test the understanding of the user on what they've been reading about. These books are filled with definitions and exercises that can help the user memorize points and grammar rules.
₹824.00
English for Everyone English Grammar Guide beautifully explains the rules of grammar with eye-catching illustrations, great graphics, and comprehensive explanations. This is great for beginners as the illustrations help to learn more realistically.
Be it getting being puzzled by prepositions, comparatives, or modals, this guide solves all of the problems. It also actively deals with tenses, verbs, adjectives, clauses, superlatives, etc. The exercise in the end is a great way to test your learning. This book is a must-buy for both beginners and advanced learners.
₹2,450.00
Mastering collocations is a crucial thing for people looking to ace English speaking. The Cambridge English Collocations in Use contain collocations in a detailed manner for beginners as well the advanced learners. The book throws light on how and where to use collocations while speaking.
Along with detailed explanations, the book is filled with exercises to help understand the core concept well. There is a separate section for the corporate sector where it talks about details on presentation skills. Highly useful for learning business English.
₹599.00
This book by Cambridge is a complete guide to learn English Grammar. Unlike other basic grammar books, this one is filled with fun examples and exercises like using daily life actions to explain sentence formation, to help the user learn with practical exposure.
Each section of the book looks carefully at every area of grammar, and the examples highlight why and where a grammatical rule is followed. The best part is that every page contains a set of exercises, this makes the comprehension process easy. This is an ideal book for teachers and students both as they can equally benefit from the practice exercises.
₹600.00
The Oxford advanced learner's dictionary is the world's bestselling advanced-level dictionary for learners of English. This dictionary not only contains the meanings of various words but sentences where these words are used. This creates a better learning experience for the learner.
To give practical exposure to the readers, the dictionary comes with 1-year access to Oxford advanced learner's dictionary premium online and 1 year's access to the oxford advanced learners dictionary 10th edition app. In this portal, they can see how the words in the dictionary are pronounced. This is a great option for beginners and learners as they strengthen the foundation.
₹2,519.00
It's often hard to come across an easy-to-use guide to English grammar. Usually, the books in the Indian market miss hitting some crucial points like subject-verb agreement, Clauses, etc. But, this book on grammar covers all the topics in English using a straightforward style.
Learners will find it highly comprehensive due to its simple language. People with no prior knowledge of English grammar can also refer to this book, as the information is presented in small steps, with objective techniques to help the reader understand better. The only drawback is the absence of practice questions. But, students will find this book useful as it helps to learn grammar from scratch.
₹111.00
There are few books in the market that concentrate on all the areas of a language, and this book is one of them. The Thirty Days to Better English deals with weak vocabulary, improper grammar, and misspellings, and mispronunciation of words of average difficulty.
The book contains 30 well-detailed chapters with exercises that help you monitor your daily progress. The chapters are designed to teach you a new skill every day. The book helps to improve the communication skills required to gain success in school or a job. Due to its easy language, this book can be read by both students and professionals.
₹745.00
The Oxford A-Z Grammar & Punctuation deals with the advanced skills of grammar. Very often people preparing for competitive exams like Cat, IELTS, GMAT, etc need a deeper understanding of the complex side of English grammar. This book not only looks at those complexities but also contains information to correct punctuations, be it the apostrophe or the semi-colon.
The beginners will find this book too hard to understand as it jumps straight into the more advanced tiers of the language. The absence of practice exercises is a thing to worry about. This is a great book for students who are preparing for competitive exams.
₹599.00
When it comes to giving business pitches or writing a great essay, people always fail to press due to the lack of flair in their language. The Words You Should Know to Sound Smart deals with this exact problem. With an arsenal of over 1200 words, this book guides the user to get a top-notched essay or speech.
Readers can lace their writeups with fancy words like “descant,” and “autodidactic” This will not only help to charm your superiors but will also make you sound knowledgeable. This book is great for people who seek a touch of sophistication in their speech and writings.
₹9,867.00
The Oxford Primary Grammar, Punctuation, and Spellings Dictionary is a great option for early learners. The curriculum is designed specialized for primary schoolers. The book is filled with friendly graphics which help to understand the concepts better.
The high price of the book is a major hiccup in terms of its ratings. Reviewers have found the book good but at the same time, they feel that the cost is a little too high for a 160 pages grammar book. Premium customers can consider buying this book.
₹132.00
Students often face big problems when it comes to writing essays as they are unaware of their ideal structure, idea, and type. This book gives A-Z knowledge about writing a powerful essay from scratch that can easily impress anyone at the preliminary level.
This is also great for people preparing for competitive exams as the essays are divided systematically according to the various topics like current affairs, sports, history, etc. The book can be highly beneficial for learners who struggle with the descriptive writing part.
Apart from reading academic books novels are always a great way to learn and improve the language. Reading a novel gets you familiar with the language, and also gives you an idea of how conversations happen. Below are the links to some interesting novels that you can read.
Learning English opens many doors to great opportunities for people. The task can be a little tough and long, but it is equally rewarding in the end. We hope that after reading this article, you will be able to learn English better and make better choices when it comes to buying books.
Author: Reet Jakharia
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