Vocabulary Development

[scraps: bits and pieces, something left over, the left-overs, a scrap, a small piece; to snarl: to make threatening noises, showing anger, snarling; savage: the opposite of calm or peaceful or gentle; draw: a drawn game, the game ended in a draw]

Read through and give spoken answers to the questions that follow.

scraps
When they had finished eating, they gave the scraps that were left over to the dog.
There was very little left, only a few scraps.

snarl
The angry dog snarled at them: it growled, showing its teeth.
Dogs snarl or growl or bark; cats hiss or spit.

fire brigade
There is a fire in the kitchen: call the fire brigade.

savage
The dog was angry and uncontrollable: it was savage.

draw
When a score is nil-nil, or one-one, or two-two, a football game is said to be a draw. It is a drawn
game.
In American English, a draw is called a tie; a drawn game is a tied game.

Answer

1. Was there much left?
2. Did the dog show its teeth and growl?
3. What should I do if there’s a fire?
4. Was it angry and beyond control?
   



Answer guide
1.  No. There were only a few scraps.     2.  Yes. It snarled at them.  3.  Call the fire brigade.   4.  Yes. It was savage.  

Anecdote: Bad Luck

 Read through the anecdote aloud and give spoken answers to the questions that follow.

Two middle-aged Englishmen were talking.
“Did you hear what happened to Smith?”
“No. What happened to him?”
“He died. He dropped dead. In the street. Just outside the pub.”
“I’m sorry to hear that. Was he going in or coming out?”
“He was going in”
“Oh! Bad luck!”
 
Answer


1. Were the two men young?
2. Did he die suddenly?
3. Was he coming out of the pub?




Answer guide
1.  No. They were middle-aged.   2.  Yes. He dropped dead.   3.  No. He was going into it.   

   

Dialogue

You meet a friend who has just returned from holiday.  What questions did you ask in order to get the following answers? Say them aloud.

1.Q. .....................................................................................
A. I went to London.

2.Q. .....................................................................................
A. I quite enjoyed it.

3.Q. .....................................................................................
A. Quite close to the centre of the city.

4.Q. .....................................................................................
A. A week.

5.Q. .....................................................................................
A. I saw the Tower and the Palace. All the usual things.

6.Q......................................................................................
A. Yes. I went north to Scotland for a couple of days.

7.Q......................................................................................
A. Yes. There's still a lot of England I'd like to see.





Answer guide
1. Where did you go?   2. Did you like it? How was it? What was it like?   3. Where did you stay?   4. How long for?   5. What did you see?  6. Did you go anywhere else?   7. Would/Will you go (there) again?

  

Review Test

Complete.  One word is missing in each case.  Intermediate pass level: 75% Aim: 95% 

 

Jim White had worked hard (1).................... the past ten years. He thought it was time he had a holiday. So, that summer he closed (2).................... his shop in Victoria, British Columbia. He decided he needed to go (3).................... different, so he booked four weeks (4).................... romantic Paris.

But Jim did not have to wait (5).................... he arrived in romantic Paris before he fell in love. When he boarded the plane he found himself sitting (6).................... to Miss Veronica Bell. He didn’t hesitate. He didn’t stop to think. It was love (7).................... first sight.

But Mr White was a shy man. He couldn’t bring himself to ask (8).................... question. So he gave the stewardess, Miss Sophie Lee, a note. He asked her to give it to the pilot, (9).................... she did. Some time later, (10).................... the middle of the Atlantic, the pilot, Captain Otis Shredd, sent this announcement (11).................... the intercom:

“Will the lady who is sitting (12).................... seat number C-27 be so kind (13).................... to accept a proposal (14).................... marriage (15).................... the gentleman sitting (16).................... the seat (17).................... her right?”

Miss Bell accepted Mr White’s proposal. Then the passengers drank several bottles of champagne, bought (18).................... the crew (19).................... celebrate.

(20).................... their honeymoon in Paris, the happy couple will return to Victoria, British Columbia, and live happily ever after.




Answer guide 
1. hard 2. up 3. somewhere 4. in 5. until 6. next 7. at 8. the 9. which 10. over 11. over 12. in 13. as 14. of 15. from 16. in 17. on 18. by 19. to 20. After  
 

Preposition Review

Read aloud with the missing preposition.  Lower intermediate.


1. I am leaving for Paris........... Tuesday.
2. The match starts........... three.
3. She is having a party............. her birthday.
4. We are going away................ Christmas.
5. They don’t work.............. Sundays.
6. The cinema opens.............. two.
7. We eat too much................ Christmas Day.
8. We have a holiday............... Saturday.
9. My birthday is................ May 10.




Answer guide
1. on 2. at 3. on (for) 4. for (at) 5. on 6. at 7. on 8. on 9. on
 

Expressing Dislike: Having To

Example
Shy people do not like having to meet strangers.

In the same way, complete the following.

 1. Children ................................................ homework.

2. On Friday evening a manager................................. late at the office.
 
3. An active person ....................................................... down all day.
 
4. A modern secretary ..................................................... cups of tea.
 
5. Most men ............................................. in the kitchen.
 
6. The average Englishman .............................................. at the office after 5pm.
 
7. The lazy woman ........................................ housework.
 
8. Mean people ......................................... money.
 
9. Impatient people .................................................... in supermarket queues.




Answer guide
1. do not like having to do 2. does not like having to stay 3. does not like having to sit 4. does not like having to make 5. do not like having to work 6. does not like having to work 7. does not like having to do 8. do not like having to spend 9. do not like having to wait.
 

Emphasis: Use of Up

UP may be used for emphasis (of a completed action). It does not always indicate direction, as the opposite of "down".  

Example of emphasis: 
He closed up his shop. (see reading passage, Love at First Sight)
It was time to close. The barman called out: "Please drink up!" That is, empty your glass.
 
Give at least six similar verb + UP combinations.




Answer guide
For example: eat up, finish up, end up, open up, shut up, use up, clean up, wash up, dry up, break up, burn up, cut up, give up, settle up, pay up

Vocabulary: Antonyms

With reference to the passage, Love at First Sight, give the words or phrases which mean the opposite of the following.

1. take it easy
2. get off, disembark
3. act quickly, rush in
4. some distance away
5. confident
6. the same old place
7. reject
8. leave




Answer guide
 1. work hard; 2. board; 3. hesitate 4. next to 5. shy 6. somewhere different 7. accept 8. return

Passage: Love at First Sight

Read through the passage and give spoken answers to the questions that follow.  


Jim White had worked hard for the past ten years. He thought it was time he had a holiday so, that summer, he closed up his shop in Victoria, British Columbia. He decided he needed to go somewhere different, so he booked four weeks in romantic Paris.
 
But Jim did not have to wait until he arrived in romantic Paris before he fell in love. When he boarded the plane he found himself sitting next to Miss Veronica Bell. He didn’t hesitate. He didn’t stop to think. It was love at first sight.
 
But Mr White was a shy man. He couldn’t bring himself to ask the question, so he gave the stewardess, Miss Sophie Lee, a note. He asked her to give it to the pilot, which she did. Some time later, over the middle of the Atlantic, the pilot, Captain Otis Shredd, sent this announcement over the intercom:
 
“Will the lady who is sitting in seat number C-27 be so kind as to accept a proposal of marriage from the gentleman sitting in the seat on her right?”
 
Miss Bell accepted Mr White’s proposal. Then the passengers drank several bottles of champagne, bought by the crew to celebrate.
 
After their honeymoon in Paris, the happy couple will return to Victoria, British Columbia, and live happily ever after.
 
Answer
 
1. Had Mr White taken it easy for a long time?
2. Did he think he ought to go to the same old place?
3. Did he hesitate to make up his mind he liked Miss Bell?
4. Did she agree to marry him?
5. Did the crew buy champagne in order to be unhappy?





Answer guide  
1.  No. He had worked hard for the past ten years.   2.  No. He decided he needed to go somewhere different.   3.  No. It was love at first sight.   4.  Yes. She accepted his proposal.   5.  No. They bought it to celebrate.  

   

Vocabulary Development

[book: book a seat at the theatre, book a table at a restaurant; board: board a bus, board a ship; hesitate: you hesitate before you cross a busy road; shy: too shy to speak, too shy to go into the crowded room; celebrate: you celebrate your birthday, you celebrate New Year, you have a drink to celebrate]
 
Read through the vocabulary, preferably aloud, and give spoken answers to the questions that follow.   Lower intermediate.

book
If you want a seat, you must book in advance.
Seats at the cinema are not normally bookable.

board
The stewardess told them to board the plane.
The ship was about to sail. The cry went up, “All aboard!”
You can board the bus at that stop over there.
 
hesitate
He who hesitates is lost.
Don’t hesitate. Act. Do.
It is better to make the wrong decision than to hesitate.
 
shy
The young girl was shy: she didn’t speak to anyone, and if anyone spoke to her, she blushed.
Shy people do not like having to meet strangers.

celebrate
They had a cake to celebrate their birthday.
Scotsmen celebrate New Year. They drink a lot of whisky, and go from house to house, singing “Old Lang Syne”.

Answer

1. What must you do if you want a seat?
2. Where can I get on the bus?
3. Is it better to stop and think than to act quickly?
4. Why don’t they like having to meet strangers?





Answer guide
1.  You must book in advance.   2.  You can board it at that stop over there.   3.  No. It is better to act quickly than to hesitate.   4.  Because they are shy.   




   

Dialogue

With reference to the anecdote, Enterprise, you are chatting to Fred Harris. What questions do you ask him?

1.Q.
A. Three months.

2.Q.
A. I bought a platform ticket.

3.Q.
A. I hoped to get a quick snack.

4.Q.
A. To start serving lunches.

5.Q.
A. In an empty carriage.

6. Q.
A. Get on the first fast train that came by.




Answer guide
1. How long had you been unemployed?   2. How did you get on the train?   3. Why did you put on the waiter’s jacket?   4. What did the head waiter tell you to do?  5. Where did you sleep?   6. What would you do in the morning.

  

Anecdote: Enterprise

Read through the anecdote and give spoken answers to the questions that follow.

Mr Fred Harris decided to leave home. He had been unemployed for three months. His wife was getting more and more angry. He could not go on any longer. So, one Wednesday morning, he packed a small suitcase and left his home in Newcastle. He went on to the railway station and, after buying a platform ticket for five pence, boarded the express train to London.
 
Fred was hungry, so he borrowed a waiter's jacket he found hanging behind a door in the dining carriage. He went into a lavatory and put on the jacket. Then he went back to the dining car. He hoped, he said, to get a quick snack.
 
However, he was seen by the head waiter, who said to him: “Where have you been? Get on with serving the lunches, will you!”
 
This opened a new life for Fred. He travelled backwards and forwards for six weeks, all over the country. Then the police caught up with him. They found him sleeping in a train compartment half way between Glasgow and London.
 
He explained that after he had begun the job, he found that he liked it. In fact, it was the best job he had ever had. At night he slept in an empty carriage. Got his head down, as he put it. In the morning, he got on the first fast train that came by. He thought he had earned his keep because he had done a good job as a waiter.

Answer

1. Did he take a trunk?
2. Did he want a three-course dinner?
3. Did he take a train all over the place?




Answer guide
1.  No. He packed a small suitcase.   2.  No. He hoped to get a quick snack.   3.  Yes. He travelled backwards and forwards all over the country.