VOCABULARY

1. Online Dictionary with Sound Files
http://www.m-w.com/
Thw Merriam-Webster online dictionary and thesaurus is an indispensable tool for all ESL students. Here, you can easily look up definitions or synonyms of English words and listen to sound files to hear to hear their correct pronunciation.

2. Medical terminology Glossary
http://users.ugent.be/~rvdstich/eugloss/welcome.html
Here, learners can find definitions of medical terms, or find terms by looking up their popular synonyms or definitions. Unusual features include translations of terms in several languages, and grouping of terms by lemmas, which are categories based on root words. Created by two European universities, this site is authoritative.

3. Medical Terminology: Quizzes and Pronunciation
http://ec.hku.hk/mt/
This excellent, well-designed site offers rare medical vocabulary quizzes, useful links, tips on the pronunciation of unusual letter combinations found in medical terminology, and much more. The glossary search engine includes audio files of correct pronunciations of terms.

4. Medical terms, plural and abbreviations
http://www.mtworld.com/tools_resources/medicalabbreviations.php
This useful site intended for medical transcriptionists includes glossaries of medical root words, prefixes and suffixes, as well as information on medical abbreviations, forming plurals of medical terms, and more. It is informative, well-organized and user-friendly.

5. General Vocabulary: Sound and Image Files
http://www.languageguide.org/english/
This terrific site includes a highly effective tool that lets you learn general English vocabulary directly, through image and sound files. You can also set the interface to one of several languages to learn through translation, or activate sound files of concealed terms to check your knowledge in 'test mode'.

6. Memory Games
http://www.offshore-english.co.nz/games.asp
Improve your general English vocabulary on this fun site where you can play memory and other games to test your knowledge of synonyms, opposites, verb tenses, and more. It also includes a dictionary, a picture dictionary of mostly food items, and beginner level vocabulary quizzes.

7. English Word Collocations
http://132.208.224.131/concordancers/concord_e.html
This site is a must for any ESL student wishing to better understand how English terms are used. It is an invaluable tool for anyone learning vocabulary or writing essays. The system is very well-designed and easy to use: just enter any word to see its collocations
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1. UVIC's ESL Reading Texts and Exercises
http://web2.uvcs.uvic.ca/elc/studyzone/490/wchild/index.htm
Here you will find reading-related exercises such as sentence-ordering activities and comprehension questions. This site from the University of Victoria is well organized and user-friendly. The texts offer good general English reading practice to learners at all ESL levels.

2. Medicine-Related Reading Practice
http://www.patienthealthinternational.com/node/listofconditions.aspx
This is a good site to visit if you want to practice reading about diseases and conditions. Texts contain important terminology and phrasing but should not be too difficult for learners with ESL skills at the intermediate level or higher. The glossary feature is also useful.

3. Adapted texts: Issues of Interest
http://www.cdlponline.org/index.cfm?fuseaction=stories&topicID=3
This fun, interesting site offers adapted reading texts on a wide array of news topics. Some are provided alongside transcriptions of the original TV news reports, along with audio files of both versions. Video files of original news clips are included with some texts; others come with vocabulary exercises.

ENCYCLOPEDIAS

1. Illustrated Encyclopedia of the Human Body
http://www.innerbody.com/image/skelfov.html
This is an amazing tool for anyone studying medicine or medical terminology. This site offers illustrations of all body systems, from overviews to details, with the names of anatomical structures, accompanied by tutorial reading texts. It is well-organized, with clear instructions on how to use the system.

2. Illustrated Medical Encyclopedia
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/encyclopedia_A-Ag.htm
This authoritative U.S. government site is updated daily and includes a comprehensive, illustrated encyclopedia of medicine-related topics. The detailed texts provide good, informative reading practice and include links to more information on mentioned terms.


3. Wikipedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page
This vast, user-created encyclopedia is a great online research tool and provides good reading practice on virtually any subject. Pages include links to related Wikipedia articles and external websites. You can also join discussions and edit or contribute articles.

1. Academic Writing
http://www.uefap.com/writing/writfram.htm
This is a helpful site for anyone learning or teaching English for academic purposes. It includes detailed explanations of all the stages and aspects of essay writing. Also included is information on reporting, researching, paraphrasing, writing lists of references, and more.

2. Essay Writing
http://www.eslbee.com/
This useful site contains explanation, tips and advice about writing all kinds of essays, provides links to sites where you can practice reading, and more. Students can learn about effective sentence and essay construction, see many good example texts and take quizzes to test their sentence-level writing ability.

3. Online Discussion for ESL Learners
http://www.eslcafe.com/discussion/
Have fun here practicing writing and meeting other ESL learners from around the world. It is easy to register and use the system and you can read and post comments in discussion threads on a wide variety of topics. If you like online discussions but don't feel ready for those intended for native speakers, you will enjoy this site.

4. AOL Instant Messenger
http://site.aol.com/community/chat/allchats.html
Sign up for free AOL IM and follow the links to chats on just about every topic you can imagine, from celebrity gossip to the war on terror. This is an excellent site that offers a fun way to practice your written communication skills and make new friends at the same time. The site is very well managed and updated.

5. Typing Tutor
http://www.typingmaster.com/individuals/pro/downloading.asp?idl=n
Here you can practice your English language typing skills by downloading the effective, user-friendly sample typing tutor program. It includes several drills that time your typing speed and measure your accuracy, which afford good practice in reading and typing quickly in English.

SEARCH ENGINES

13. Yahoo Search Engine
http://www.yahoo.com/
This is a terrific site where you can search the web, chat, open an e-mail account and more. The site is very well designed and maintained and is a wonderful resource for ESL students, where you can practice reading, written communication skills, and using the Internet.