Welcome to this week’s Sparks Plus — your quick, practical boost for clearer, more confident English.
Five short sections, all easy to read and use right away.

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1️⃣ Quick Win

People is already plural.

❌ People is friendly here.
✔ People are friendly here.

If you mean one person, use a person or someone.

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2️⃣ Real-World English in Action

Denglish rescue:
A client said: I become a new laptop from my company.

In English, we say:
✔ I’m getting a new laptop from my company.
✔ My company is giving me a new laptop.

We don’t “become” something — we “get” or “receive” it.

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3️⃣ Christine’s Pick

VOA Learning English – Everyday Grammar
Short, clear grammar tips in slow English. Easy to follow, and great for B1/B2 learners who want to build accuracy step by step.

(I know some of you actually love grammar — this one’s for you!)

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4️⃣ Reader Question

Q: Is it the police is or the police are?

A: In English, police is plural.
✔ The police are investigating the case.

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5️⃣ Spotlight

Want more quick wins for your English?
My guide 50 English Tips gives you short, powerful boosts you can use every day to sound clearer and more natural.
Get your copy here.

Ever notice how polite German-style emails can sound weak in English? A few small words are often to blame.

❌ “I just wanted to…”
❌ “I think we could maybe…”
❌ “Sorry, but…”

Each one makes you sound less confident than you are.

Try this instead:
“I wanted to follow up…”
“We could…”
“Could you please…”

Clear. Professional. Confident.

Small edits change how your whole message is received.

💬 Which word do you overuse in your emails?

Quick test. Which sentence sounds right in English?

❌ “I have visited the trade fair yesterday.”
✅ “I visited the trade fair yesterday.”

If you picked the first one, congratulations — you’ve just joined the 90%. 😉

Here’s the deal: in German, “ich habe gestern … besucht” feels perfectly natural. So German professionals often carry that structure straight into English. The problem? In English, yesterday = past simple. Always.

I once had a client laugh and say, “Christine, I’ve been making this mistake for 20 years. I thought it was my personal style!”

The fix is simple:
👉 Use present perfect for no time (“I have visited the fair many times”).
👉 Use past simple for specific time (“I visited yesterday”).

💬 Next time you say “I have yesterday…” — smile. You’ve just spoken classic Denglish.

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Germans love long sentences. Verbs at the end. Clauses stacked on top of each other. Like a linguistic game of Jenga.

And yes, I caught the habit too. When I wrote my Master’s thesis, my professor said:
“Christine, your English looks like it’s been on holiday in Germany for too long.”

He was right. I’d written sentences that went on forever — true ‘Bandwurmsätze’.

❌ “In reference to our last meeting, where we discussed the budget, which still needs approval, I would like to ask if you have already spoken to the finance department.”

The fix?
One idea. One sentence.

✅ “In our last meeting, we discussed the budget. It still needs approval. Have you already spoken to the finance department?”

Shorter. Clearer. Easier.

It’s like swapping a heavy ‘Bandwurm’ for a light snack — easier to digest. 😅

💬 Be honest: do your English sentences sometimes turn into ‘Bandwurmsätze’ too?

Nobody warns you that small talk feels harder than a presentation.

Or that you’ll spend more time doubting yourself than actually practising.

Or that “fluent” people still make mistakes — they’ve just stopped apologising.

And yes… you’ll probably feel less intelligent in English than you actually are. Spoiler: you’re not.

The good news? You don’t need perfect grammar. You need courage. And maybe a sense of humour when things go wrong.

💬 What’s the funniest “truth” you’ve discovered about speaking English?