Touchstone 2nd Edition • Language summary • Level 4

Unit 10 • Lesson A: The rise to fame

Vocabulary
Becoming famous
enter a contest (v)
find a way to (become a singer) (v)
get an early start (as an actor) (v)
have enough nerve to (to sing in public) (v)
have the confidence to (be a singer) (v)
produce a video (v)
receive media attention (v)
take off (a career takes off) (v)
win a talent show / talent contest (v)

Performing
online sensation (n)
opera voice (n)
tenor (n)
viral star (n)
be onto something (v)
get a standing ovation (v)
have a singing career (v)
sing a set of pop songs (v)

Hypothetical statements in the past

If he had / hadn't (won), he . . .
. . . could have (gotten) . . .
. . . might (not) have (had) . . .
. . . would have (done) . . .
. . . wouldn’t have (become) . . .

© Cambridge University Press 2014 Unit 10, Lesson A, Page 1

Touchstone 2nd Edition • Language summary • Level 4

Other words
English-born (adj)
most-watched (adj)
music critic (n)
publicity (n)
video-sharing website (n)

Grammar
Talking hypothetically about the past
When you talk hypothetically about the past, you talk about things that didn't happen, but
were possible. You can use sentences with if to talk hypothetically about the past.

Statements

Use the past perfect form in the if clause and a past modal with would have, could have or
might have, etc. in the main clause:

If Watson had stayed in school, maybe he would have done something entirely
different.
(= Watson didn't stay in school, and he didn't do something different.)

If he hadn't won the talent contest, he might not have had the confidence to
become a singer.
(= He did win, and he did have the confidence to become a singer.)

The if clause describes a hypothetical situation in the past. The main clause describes a
possible result in the past.

Information questions

What would have happened if he had stayed in school?

(= He didn't stay at school, and we know what happened to him.)

What would he have done if he hadn't won the talent contest?

(= He did win, and we know what he did.)

Yes-No questions

© Cambridge University Press 2014 Unit 10, Lesson A, Page 2

Touchstone 2nd Edition • Language summary • Level 4
Would he have become a singer?

© Cambridge University Press 2014 Unit 10, Lesson A, Page 3