Unit 1 – People & places

Introduction (page 11)

1 and 2- soap opera viewers:

Fanatics: people who watch several soap operas avidly and regularly. ____

Ironics: people who watch one or more soap operas despite claiming not to like aspects of them. ____

Non-committed: people who watch one or more soap operas on a casual basis but don’t feel particularly strongly about them. ____

Dismissives: people who don’t watch any soap operas and consider them to be a waste of time. ____

2- (listening vocabulary):

appalling: /əˈpɔːlɪŋ/ (adj) 1 (North American English, formal or British English) shocking; extremely bad. E.g.: The prisoners were living in appalling conditions. 2- (informal) very bad. E.g.: The bus service is appalling now.

be off the mark: (idiom) not to be accurate in a guess, statement, etc. E.g.: No, you're way off the mark.

depict: /dɪˈpɪkt/ 1- to show an image of somebody/something in a picture. depict somebody/something (as somebody/something). E.g.: a painting depicting the Virgin and Child. depict somebody/something doing something. E.g.: The artist had depicted her lying on a bed. 2- to describe something in words, or give an impression of something in words or with a picture. depict somebody/something. E.g.: The novel depicts French society in the 1930s. depict somebody/something as somebody/something. E.g.: The advertisements depict smoking as glamorous and attractive. depiction /dɪˈpɪkʃn/ (n)E.g.: They object to the movie's depiction of gay people.

gritty: (adj) 3- showing something unpleasant as it really is. E.g.: a gritty description of urban violence; gritty realism.

hooked: /hʊkt/ (adj) 2 [not before noun] hooked (on something) (INFORMAL) needing something that is bad for you, especially a drug. 3 [not before noun] hooked (on something) (informal) enjoying something very much, so that you want to do it, see it, etc. as much as possible.

3- Collocations:

hackneyed storylines / situations / plot

mundane storylines / situations / characters / issues / plot

eccentric characters

compulsive viewing / acting

corny storylines / situations / endings / characters / acting / plot

cliffhanger endings

unconvincing storylines / situations / endings / characters / acting / settings / plot

atrocious storylines / endings / characters / acting / settings / plot

negative stereotypes / characters

glamorous situations / characters / settings

topical storylines / situations / issues

far-fetched storylines / situations / plot

contrived storylines / situations / endings / characters / settings / plot

atrocious: / əˈtrəʊʃəs/ (adj) very bad or unpleasant.

cliffhanger: /ˈklɪfhæŋə(r)/ (adj) a situation in a story, movie, competition, etc. that is very exciting because you cannot guess what will happen next or you do not find out immediately what happens next.

compulsive: / kəmˈpʌlsɪv/ (adj) behavior that is difficult to stop or control.

contrived: /kənˈtraɪvd/ (adj) planned in advance and not natural or genuine; written or arranged in a way that is not natural or realistic.

corny: (adj) not original; used too often to be interesting or to sound sincere.

eccentric: (adj) /ɪkˈsentrɪk/ considered strange or unusual.

far-fetched: (adj) very difficult to believe.

glamorous: (adj) expecially attractive and exciting, and different from ordinary things or people.

hackneyed: /ˈhæknid/ (adj) used too often and therefore boring. E.g.: a hackneyed phrase.

mundane: /mʌnˈdeɪn/ (adj) not interesting or exciting.

topical: (adj) connected with something that is happening or of interest at the present time.

unconvincing: (adj) not seeming true or real.

Reading & Use of English – Part 5

vocabulary – pages 12 and 13

conjure something up: (ph.v.) 1- to make something appear as a picture in your mind; evoke. E.g.: That smell always conjures up memories of holidays in France. He strained to conjure up her face and voice, but they had vanished.

copper = Cu

dash: (v) to go somewhere very quickly.

draw up: if a vehicle draws up, it arrives and stops. E.g.: The cab drew up outside the house.

flutter: /ˈflʌtə(r)/ (v) 1- to move lightly and quickly; to make something move in this way. 2- when a bird or an insect flutters its wings, or its wings flutter, the wings move lightly and quickly up and down

paramount: /ˈpærəmaʊnt/ (adj) 1- more important than anything else. E.g.: This matter is of paramount importance. Safety is paramount. The welfare of the child must always be the court's paramount consideration. 2- (formal) having the highest position or the greatest power. E.g.: China's paramount leader. paramountcy (n).

praiseworthy: /ˈpreɪzwɜːði/ (adj.; formal) deserving praise; commendable /kəˈmendəbl/

pursue: (v) /pəˈsjuː/ pursue sth: 2- to continue to discuss, find out about or be involved in something. pursue sb/sth: to follow or chase somebody/something, especially in order to catch them.

recall: (v) to remember sth.

swarm (of something): 1- a large group of insects, especially bees, moving together in the same direction. E.g.: a swarm of bees/locusts/flies. 2- a large group of people, especially when they are all moving quickly in the same direction.

stoker: /ˈstəʊkə(r)/ (n) a person whose job is to add coal or other fuel to a fire, etc, especially on a ship or a steam train.

straggle: /ˈstræɡl/ (v) to grow, spread or move in an untidy way in different directions. E.g.: Her hair was straggling over her eyes. The town straggled to an end and the fields began.

thrashing: /ˈθræʃɪŋ/ (v) 1- an act of hitting somebody very hard, especially with a stick. E.g.: to give sb/get a thrashing.

toss: (v) to throw something lightly or carelessly.

wail: (v)  to make a long loud high cry because you are sad or in pain. E.g.: The little girl was wailing miserably.

8-

a (duration) short-term / long-term / faded /lingering / fleeting

b (clarity) vivid / distant / faded / fuzzy / vague

c (positive) cherished / precious / nostalgic / treasured

d (negative) dreadful / bitter-sweet / haunting / disturbing / bitter / traumatic

bitter-sweet: (adj) bringing pleasure mixed with sadness.

cherished: /ˈtʃerɪʃt/ (adj) to keep an idea, a hope or a pleasant feeling in your mind for a long time.

fleeting: (adj) lasting only a short time.

fuzzy: (adj) /ˈfʌzi/ 4- confused and not expressed clearly. E.g.: fuzzy ideas/thinking. a somewhat fuzzy definition of ‘in the national interest’.

haunting: (adj) beautiful, sad or frightening in a way that cannot be forgotten.

lingering: slow to end or disappear.

9-

blot sth out: (ph.v.) 1 to cover or hide something completely. E.g.: Clouds blotted out the sun.2 to deliberately try to forget an unpleasant memory or thought. E.g.: He tried to blot out the image of Helen's sad face. She just wanted to sleep and blot out the terrifying events of the day.

push sth aside: (ph.v.) to avoid thinking about something. E.g.: He pushed aside the feelings of fear.

rekindle: /ˌriːˈkɪndl/ rekindle something (formal) to make something become active again; reawaken. E.g.: to rekindle feelings/hopes. The sight of her after so many years rekindled his passion.

spark: (v) 1- [transitive] to cause something to start or develop, especially suddenly. spark something: The proposal would spark a storm of protest around the country. Winds brought down power lines, sparking a fire. The organizers are hoping to spark some interest in young people. spark something off: The riots were sparked off by the arrest of a local leader.

stir (sb up): to encourage somebody to do something; to make somebody feel they must do something.

Grammar (pages 14 and 15):

at the crack of dawn: (informal, idiom) very early in the morning. E.g.: I have to get up at the crack of dawn.

light up: (ph.v.) 3- if sb's eyes or face light up, or something lights them up, they show happiness or excitement. E.g.: His eyes lit up when she walked into the room. A smile lit up her face.

sort something/somebody/yourself out: (ph.v.) (especially British English) to deal with somebody's/your own problems successfully. E.g.: If you can wait a moment, I'll sort it all out for you. You load up the car and I'll sort the kids out.

settle down: (ph.v.) 2- to start to have a quieter way of life, living in one place. E.g.: When are you going to get married and settle down? It's time I settled down.

work out: (ph.v.) 2- to develop in a successful way. E.g.: My first job didn't work out. Things have worked out quite well for us.

Writing – Part 2, Set text

Vocabulary

Literature Essays & Reviews

The theme at the heart of the book lies in the narrator’s relationship with his sister – a relatively square girl who joins the army after her marriage ends in tatters.

O’Grady breathes fresh life into the genre with a compelling/gripping and evocative novella, having one foot in the esoterically fogeyish world of eccentric men of letters.

Narrative suspense mounts around the seemingly trite question of who will lead her through this transformation from child to woman. Against this backdrop, questions of freedom and alienation emerge as all the more complex.

The power relation at play in the encounters described are mirrored in Paulo’s small rural community, helping to paint a lucid picture of turn of the century small town America.

The novel is laden with images of concealment, carefully placed within the first section and resonating throughout, culminating in a spine-chilling finale.

With more than a passing nod to history, this sentimental novel describes the doomed relationship between a young, impressionable farmhand and a sophisticated, but shallow countess.

Gilbert popularizes an intricate story well, marring it intermittently by a tendency to overdramatize an already interesting plot

backdrop: everything that can be seen around an event that is taking place, but which is not part of that event. E.g.: The mountains provided a dramatic backdrop for our picnic.

compelling: that makes you pay attention to it because it is so interesting and exciting; gripping. E.g.: Her latest book makes compelling reading.

concealment: /kənˈsiːlmənt/ the act of hiding something; the state of being hidden. E.g.: the concealment of crime. Many animals rely on concealment for protection.

doom: (v) [usually passive] doom somebody/something (to something)| doom somebody/something to do something to make somebody/something certain to fail, suffer, die, etc. E.g.: The plan was doomed to failure. The marriage was doomed from the start.

fogeyish: (adj) (informal) extremely fussy, old-fashioned, or conservative.

heart (of something): the most important part of something. E.g.: the heart of the matter/problem. The committee's report went to the heart of the government's dilemma. The distinction between right and wrong lies at the heart of all questions of morality.

in tatters: (idiom) 1- torn in many places. E.g.: His clothes were in tatters. 2- ruined or badly damaged; in shreds. E.g.: Her reputation was in tatters. The government's education policy lies in tatters.

intricate: / ˈɪntrɪkət/ having a lot of different parts and small details that fit together. E.g.: intricate patterns. an intricate network of loyalties and relationships.

laden: 2 (LITERARY) full of something, especially something unpleasant. E.g.: His voice was soft, yet laden with threat.

mar something: / mɑː(r)/ to damage or spoil something good

nod: a small quick movement of the head down and up again. E.g.: to give a nod of approval/agreement/encouragement.

resonate: (v) to make a deep, clear sound that continues for a long time. E.g.: Her voice resonated through the theatre.

shallow: 2- (disapproving) (of a person, an idea, a comment, etc.) not showing serious thought, feelings, etc. about something.

square: (informal, disapproving) (of a person) considered to be boring, for example because they are old-fashioned or work too hard at school.

trite: / traɪt/ (of a remark, an opinion, etc.)dull and boring because it has been expressed so many times before; not original; banal.

hornbill

molope

thorn trees

branches

REFERENCES: 

 

GUDE, Kathy; DUCKWORTH, Michael; ROGERS, Louis. Cambridge English Proficiency Masterclass. For the 2013 exam. Student's Book with Online Skills & Language Practice. Oxford University Press, 2012.

LINDSAY-CLARK, Jeanette; GREENE, Stephen. Cambridge English Proficiency Masterclass. For the 2013 exam. Teacher's Pack. Oxford, 2013.

Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. Available on https://oald8.oxfordlearnersdictionaries.com/

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