English C2

INDICE

BLOQUE 1 .....................................................................................................................................5
MODULE 1: LEARNING THINGS ....................................................................................................5
Learning about clauses .............................................................................................................5
1. CONCESSION CLAUSES..................................................................................................5
2. PARTICIPLE CLAUSES ....................................................................................................7
3. INFINITIVE CLAUSES....................................................................................................10
Let’s practice! .................................................................................................................13
1. READING: MEANS OF COMMUNICATION ...........................................................13
2. WRITING .............................................................................................................16
GLOSSARY ...............................................................................................................17
MÓDULO 2: FIVE WAYS TO SAVE THE PLANET ...........................................................................19
Funny Structures ....................................................................................................................19
1. INVERSION AFTER NEGATIVE ADVERBS ......................................................................19
2. CLEFT SENTENCES .......................................................................................................22
3. ELLIPSIS .......................................................................................................................26
Let’s practice! .................................................................................................................28
1. READING: FORTUNE...........................................................................................28
2. WRITING .............................................................................................................28
GLOSSARY ...............................................................................................................29
MÓDULO 3: UNDER PRESSURE...................................................................................................30
About unreality ......................................................................................................................30
1. SUBJUNCTIVE AND CONDITIONALS ............................................................................30
2. I WISH / IF ONLY .........................................................................................................39
3. UNLIKELY, UNREAL AND PAST CONDITIONS ...............................................................42
Let’s practice! .................................................................................................................45
1. READING: FAST LIFE ............................................................................................45
2. WRITING .............................................................................................................46
GLOSSARY ...............................................................................................................47
BLOQUE 2 ...................................................................................................................................48
MÓDULO 1: THE WIDE WORLD OF SPORTS................................................................................48
Linking ....................................................................................................................................48

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 1. PRONOUNS: BOTH, EITHER AND NEITHER ..................................................................48
2. LINKING SENTENCES AND CLAUSES ............................................................................55
3. OTHER ADVERBIAL LINKING EXPRESSIONS .................................................................58
Let’s practice! .................................................................................................................62
1. READING: POLITICS .............................................................................................62
2. WRITING .............................................................................................................64
GLOSSARY ...............................................................................................................65
MÓDULO 2: DECISIONS ..............................................................................................................66
Emotions and Thoughts..........................................................................................................66
1. ADVERBIAL CLAUSE OF TIME ......................................................................................66
2. EMPHATIC FORMS IN SPEECH ....................................................................................71
3. HYPOTHESIZING IN SPEECH ........................................................................................76
Let’s practice! .................................................................................................................79
1. READING: PLANS AND DECISIONS ......................................................................79
2. WRITING .............................................................................................................80
GLOSSARY ...............................................................................................................81
MÓDULO 3: WAYS OF TALKING ..................................................................................................83
Language features ..................................................................................................................83
1. WORDS AFTER INFINITIVE ..........................................................................................83
2. SOME UK ENGLISH VARIETIES.....................................................................................85
3. OTHER SPOKEN FEATURES .........................................................................................89
Let’s practice! .................................................................................................................91
1. READING: TABOO WORDS ..................................................................................91
2. WRITING .............................................................................................................95
GLOSSARY ...............................................................................................................96
BLOQUE 3 ...................................................................................................................................97
MÓDULO 1: THE WORLD OF FASHION .......................................................................................97
1. ADVANCED KNOWLEDGE OF ADVERBS ......................................................................97
2. ADJECTIVE PATTERNS ...............................................................................................102
3. GRADABLE / NON-GRADABLE ADJECTIVES ...............................................................107
Let’s practice! ...............................................................................................................112
1. READING: FASHION AND CLOTHES ...................................................................112
2. WRITING ...........................................................................................................114
GLOSSARY .............................................................................................................115

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MÓDULO 2: ALL ABOUT BOOKS ...............................................................................................116
CONDITIONS AND UNREALITY ..............................................................................................116
1. EXCEPTIONS FOR CONDITIONAL SENTENCES ...........................................................116
2. IF AND ALTERNATIVES, PRESENT AND FUTURE CONDITION .....................................118
3. SUBJUNCTIVES AND THE "UNREAL" PAST .................................................................122
Let’s practice! ...............................................................................................................125
1. READING: BOOKSHOP .......................................................................................125
2. WRITING ...........................................................................................................126
GLOSSARY .............................................................................................................127
MÓDULO 3: BULLYING .............................................................................................................128
Connecting and collocating ..................................................................................................128
1. CONNECTORS IN A SENTENCE OR BETWEEN SENTENCES.........................................128
2. DEPENDENT PREPOSITIONS ......................................................................................132
3. COMMON COLLOCATIONS .......................................................................................135
Let’s practice! ...............................................................................................................138
1. READING: RECYCLING .......................................................................................138
2. WRITING ...........................................................................................................140
GLOSSARY .............................................................................................................141

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BLOQUE 1
MODULE 1: LEARNING THINGS

WARMING UP
What are we going to see in this lesson?

 What’s the most important thing you have learnt?

 Learning about clauses
 Concession clauses
 Participle clauses
 Infinitive clauses

 Learning words and expressions in context

 Expressing purpose and effect
 Agreeing and disagreeing

Learning about clauses

1. CONCESSION CLAUSES

Introduction

In this part of the course, you are going to learn how to express concession in
English. We usually express concession by using some adverbs such as while,
although, despite, etc in a subordinate clause. Continue reading in the next page
to know more about this topic.

Explanation

Concession clauses give information that contrasts with the fact in the main clause.
These clauses are introduced with conjunctions such as although, though, however…
These words or phrases can introduce:

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Background information

Although, though, even though  She´s decided to travel alone, even though she´s
been warned.

While/Whilst (formal)  While I see your point, I still think you are wrong.

Pattern

[adjective/adverb + as/though + subject + verb]  Hard as they tried, the two sides
couldn´t agree. Difficult though it was, they managed to reach a compromise.

Much as + Subject + like/hate/detest (to talk about strong feelings)  Much as I

detest the idea of punishing children, I can see that it´s useful.

In spite of/Despite  In spite of the price, I have decided to buy the dress. / Despite
feeling terrible, I went to the birthday party.

Unexpected contrast

Most common word  She may be annoying sometimes, but I love her.

To strengthen the contrast  I know standards have changed, but still / but even so
such scenes on TV are not acceptable.

Adverbs and adverbial phrases  I felt really tired. Nevertheless (even so, however,
all the same), I continued dancing.

EXERCISE 1
Put the correct word into the blank:

Nevertheless / even so/ even / much / however

1. We are very happy ______if we have no money.

2. The wind blew all the time. _________we still managed to enjoy ourselves.

3. I like her new boyfriend, ________I don’t trust him.

4. ___________I like REM’s music, I still think his latest CD is disappointing.

5. My grandad is over 90, but ______ he still manages to remain active.

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 2. PARTICIPLE CLAUSES

Introduction

In this part of the module, we are going to learn about participle clauses. Participle
clauses are a form of adverbial clause which enables us to say information in a more
economical way. We can use participle clauses when the participle and the verb in
the main clause have the same subject. For example:

 Waiting for Mary, I made some coffee.

Explanation

We can use participle clauses after a noun in the same way as relative clauses. This
gives more information about the noun. We sometimes call this a 'reduced relative
clause'. We can distinguish between present, past and perfect participle clauses.

A present participle (verb + ing) can be used in the same way as an active relative
clause:

 The man driving the car is a friend of mine. (= The man who is driving the car is
a friend of mine).

The present participle can replace any active tense, not just the present continuous
tense:

 Lorries coming over the bridge have to be careful of the wind.(= Lorries that
come over the bridge have to be careful of the wind).

 Who was the girl wearing the red dress?(= Who was the girl who was wearing
the red dress?).

 Students handing in their essays late will lose ten marks.(= Students who hand
in their essays late will lose ten marks).

A past participle can be used in the same way as a simple passive relative clause:

 We read the email sent by the manager.(= We read the email that had been
sent by the manager).

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  This vase, made in China in the 14th century, is very valuable.(= This vase,
which was made in China in the 14th century, is very valuable).

 She only eats cakes made by her mother.(= She only eats cakes that are
made by her mother).

'Being + past participle' can be used in the same way as a continuous passive relative
clause:

 The poem being read by the actor was written by my brother (= The poem that
is being read by the actor was written by my brother).

 The strawberries being eaten at the wedding were grown in

Scotland (= The strawberries that are being eaten at the wedding…).

Perfect Participle Phrase

Used in the active form with "Having" + a Past Participle. It shows that the action
takes place before the action described in the main clause.

 Having brushed my teeth, I went to bed.

In the above sentence, the action "brushed" takes place before the action "went'.

Used in the passive form with "Having been" + a Past Participle. It shows that
the action is done to the subject, not by the subject.

 Having been trained for 2 years, he has become very skilful in the trade.

TO REMEMBER: We can't use this kind of participle clause if we're talking about one
finished action which is not repeated:

Not: Who was the girl dropping the coffee? Instead, we use a normal relative clause:

 Who was the girl who dropped the coffee?

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EXERCISE 1

Match the sentences in the most likely way, and write them as one sentence using
an –ing clause.

1. Some wooden beams hold up the roof. A. They waved to us.

2. Some teachers attended the meeting. B. He was dressed in protective
clothing.
3. Some people were driving past. C. They decided to go on strike.
4. A man was operating the equipment. D. They are dangerous.
5. A girl is waiting for the bus. E. They have been damaged.
6. Some steps lead down to the river. F. She is Jack's daughter.

EXERCISE 2

Complete these sentences with the past participle form of the verb between
brackets and one of these phrases.

from the jeweler on the label to the players on the motorway

to represent Britain in the storm

EXAMPLE: The road repairs carried out on the motorway might delay traffic. (CARRY)

1. The building ____________________will have to be demolished. ( DESTROY)

2. Jack Sullivan was the man____________________ in the 100 metres.( CHOOSE)
3. The warning_____________________ about their behaviour on the pitch was
ignored. (MAKE)
4. All the rings and necklaces______________________ have now been
recovered. (STEAL)
5. The instructions _____________________say it should only take a few minutes
to cook. (WRITE)

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 3. INFINITIVE CLAUSES

Introduction

In this part of the module you are going to learn about infinitive clauses. An infinitive
clause is a clause whose verb is in the infinitive form.

Explanation

An infinitive clause is a clause whose verb is in the infinitive form.

In older English, it was common to use an infinitive clause as the subject of a sentence.

 To find fault with others is easy.

 To wait for people who are never punctual makes me angry.

In modern English, this is unusual in an informal style. We more often use it as an

‘introductory subject’ and put the infinitive clause later.

 It is easy to find fault with others.

 It makes me angry to wait for people who are never punctual.

Infinitive clause as complement

An infinitive clause can be used as subject complement after be and other copular
verbs.

 His goal was to become a well known writer.

 Your duty is to finish the work in time.

Sentences like these can also be written with an introductory it.

 It was his goal to become a well known writer.

 It is your duty to finish the work in time.

Infinitive as object

An infinitive clause can be used as the object of a verb.

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  I want to go.
 I would like to have cornflakes for breakfast.

Here is a list of common verbs that can be followed by infinitives.

Afford, agree, appear, arrange, ask, attempt, beg, begin, care, choose, consent,
continue, dare, decide, expect, fail, forget, happen, hate, help, hope, intend, learn,
like, love, manage, mean, neglect, offer, prefer, prepare, pretend, promise, propose,
refuse, regret, seem, start, trouble, try, want and wish

 I decided to quit smoking.

 I forgot to post the letter.
 I managed to do it.

EXERCISE 1
Combine the sentences in each pair by forming an infinitive phrase.

1. Civil libertarians took to the streets and the courts. They wanted to achieve their
goal.

_____________________________________________________________________

2. They fought for the rights of all Americans. Now all Americans have voting rights.

_____________________________________________________________________

3. Now each American has a responsibility. Every American must exercise that right to
vote.

_____________________________________________________________________

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EXERCISE 2

Match the phrases in A with the infinitive phrases in B to complete the sentences:

1. You have two choices, …. a) To warn them of the problem.

b) To send the message to her brother.
2. Bill tried…
c) To resign from the position.
3. Jim had no choice except…
d) To make money.
4. The child was afraid…
e) To offer their service.
5. The teachers came…

6. Joan had a scheme… f) To stay or to go.

7. I sat down… g) To tell the truth.

8. Ginger and her sister’s plan was… h) To see a lawyer.

9. The scouts stopped… i) To buy some supplies.

10. The boss asked me… j) To rest.

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Let’s practice!
1. READING: MEANS OF COMMUNICATION

The End of Mass Media

Coming full circle

News is becoming a social medium again, as it was until the early 19th century—only more
so

Jul 7th 2011 | article from The Economist.

THERE IS A great historical irony at the heart of the current transformation of news. The
industry is being reshaped by technology—but by undermining the mass media's business
models, that technology is in many ways returning the industry to the more vibrant,
freewheeling and discursive ways of the pre-industrial era.

Until the early 19th century there was no technology for disseminating news to large numbers
of people in a short space of time. It travelled as people chatted in marketplaces and taverns
or exchanged letters with their friends. This phenomenon can be traced back to Roman times,
when members of the elite kept each other informed with a torrent of letters, transcriptions of
speeches and copies of the acta diurna, the official gazette that was posted in the forum each
day. News travelled along social networks because there was no other conduit.
The invention of the printing press meant that many copies of a document could be produced
more quickly than before, but distribution still relied on personal connections. In early 1518
Martin Luther's writings spread around Germany in two weeks as they were carried from one
town to the next. As Luther and his supporters argued with his opponents over the following
decade, more than 6m religious pamphlets were sold in Germany. “News ballads”, which
spread news in the form of popular songs, covered the defeat of the Spanish Armada in 1588,
among many other events.

In January 1776 Thomas Paine's pamphlet “Common Sense”, which rallied the colonists against
the British crown, was printed in a run of 1,000 copies. One of them reached George
Washington, who was so impressed that he made American officers read extracts of Paine's
work to their men. By July 1776 around 250,000 people had been exposed to Paine's ideas.
Newspapers at the time had small, local circulations and were a mix of opinionated editorials,
contributions from readers and items from other papers; there were no dedicated reporters.
All these early media conveyed news, gossip, opinion and ideas within particular social circles
or communities, with little distinction between producers and consumers of information. They
were social media.

The rise and fall of mass communications

The invention of the steam press in the early 19th century, and the emergence of mass-market
newspapers such as the New York Sun, therefore marked a profound shift. The new
technologies of mass dissemination could reach large numbers of people with unprecedented
speed and efficiency, but put control of the flow of information into the hands of a select few.

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For the first time, vertical distribution of news, from a specialist elite to a general audience,
had a decisive advantage over horizontal distribution among citizens. This trend accelerated
with the advent of radio and television in the 20th century. New businesses grew up around
these mass-media technologies. In modern media organisations news is gathered by specialists
and disseminated to a mass audience along with advertising, which helps to pay for the whole
operation.
In the past decade the internet has disrupted this model and enabled the social aspect of
media to reassert itself. In many ways news is going back to its pre-industrial form, but
supercharged by the internet. Camera-phones and social media such as blogs, Facebook and
Twitter may seem entirely new, but they echo the ways in which people used to collect, share
and exchange information in the past. “Social media is nothing new, it's just more widespread
now,” says Craig Newmark. He likens John Locke, Thomas Paine and Benjamin Franklin to
modern bloggers. “By 2020 the media and political landscapes will be very different, because
people who are accustomed to power will be complemented by social networks in different
forms.” Julian Assange has said that WikiLeaks operates in the tradition of the radical
pamphleteers of the English civil war who tried to “cast all the Mysteries and Secrets of
Government” before the public.
News is also becoming more diverse as publishing tools become widely available, barriers to
entry fall and new models become possible, as demonstrated by the astonishing rise of
the Huffington Post, WikiLeaks and other newcomers in the past few years, not to mention
millions of blogs. At the same time news is becoming more opinionated, polarised and
partisan, as it used to be in the knockabout days of pamphleteering.
Not surprisingly, the conventional news organisations that grew up in the past 170 years are
having a lot of trouble adjusting. The mass-media era now looks like a relatively brief and
anomalous period that is coming to an end. But it was long enough for several generations of
journalists to grow up within it, so the laws of the mass media came to be seen as the laws of
media in general, says Jay Rosen. “And when you've built your whole career on that, it isn't
easy to say, ‘well, actually, that was just a phase'. That's why a lot of us think that it's only
going to be generational change that's going to solve this problem.” A new generation that has
grown up with digital tools is already devising extraordinary new things to do with them,
rather than simply using them to preserve the old models. Some existing media organisations
will survive the transition; many will not.

The biggest shift is that journalism is no longer the exclusive preserve of journalists. Ordinary
people are playing a more active role in the news system, along with a host of technology
firms, news start-ups and not-for-profit groups. Social media are certainly not a fad, and their
impact is only just beginning to be felt. “It's everywhere—and it's going to be even more
everywhere,” says Arianna Huffington. Successful media organisations will be the ones that
accept this new reality. They need to reorient themselves towards serving readers rather than
advertisers, embrace social features and collaboration, get off political and moral high horses
and stop trying to erect barriers around journalism to protect their position. The digital future
of news has much in common with its chaotic, ink-stained past.

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Reading comprehension.

EXERCISE 1
Check your understanding, write if the following sentences are TRUE or FALSE. Write
in the gaps a T for true and an F for False:

1. The industry is being remodeled by technology—but by undermining the mass

media's business models,….
2. Until the early 19th century there was technology for disseminating news to
large numbers of people in a short space of time.
3. News travelled along social networks because there was no other ways of
communication.
4. When the printing press was released distribution still relied on personal
connections.
5. Around 1776, there were dedicated reporters who wrote for specific
newspapers.
6. vertical distribution of news, had a decisive advantage over horizontal
distribution among citizens.
7. In the past decade the internet has enlighten this model and enabled the social
aspect of media to reassert itself.
8. According to Craig Newmark: ‘ By 2020 the media and political landscapes will
be very different’
9. At the same time news is disappearing and not becoming more opinionated,
polarised and partisan, as it used to be in the knockabout days of
pamphleteering.
10. the laws of the mass media came to be seen as the laws of media in general.
11. The biggest shift is that journalism is no longer the exclusive preserve of
journalists.

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EXERCISE 2

Match the synonyms. Match the words in A with their synonym in B.

1. embrace
2. To Disseminate
3. To be traced back
4. To Rely on
5. To gather
6. to reassert
7. knockabout
8. to devise
9. a fad,
10. To Undermine

a) to diffuse
b) to back on
c) to arrange
d) to be reduced/ to be removed.
e) To Blunt
f) crude, rough and tumble
g) to acknowledge
h) grasp, encircle
i) to assemble
j) fantasy, innovation

2. WRITING
Read 2 articles on each of the following links and compare and contrast them:

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/

Answer the following questions and Write an opinion essay between approximately
100 and 150 words and send it to you tutor:

*What kind of news do you find in both websites?

*Have you found any difference between the use of vocabulary?
*What kind of press do you usually read?

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 GLOSSARY

ENGLISH SPANISH EXAMPLE

we should all be hungry for a
Lifetime toda una vida
lifetime
All the great scientific
Geniuses genios discoveries made by all the
great geniuses
People into their late 60s and
Neural networks sistema neurológico 70s can form new neural
networks
None of us ever use even close
Brainpower capacidad mental/cerebro
to half of our brainpower
An attack from outer space will
Outer space espacio exterior
immediately unite us all.
It's important to keep on
Keep on continuar
learning.
Your brain begins to shrink in
Shrink reducir
your 30s
All the brain scanning
Measure medida technology is part of the
scientific measure
to lead down
conducen hasta, llevan a (en descenso) the steps lead down to the river
(escaleras)
There is a great historical irony
at the heart of en el fondo at the heart of the current
transformation of news
Spain is being undermined by
to undermine socavar, minar
its political class.
This can be traced back to
be traced back to remontarse
Roman times.
to rely on basarse, confiar, depender You can rely on me
to reassert reafirmar I don´t need to reassert myself.
they liken John Locke to
to licken to comparar
modern bloggers.
knowabout tumultuoso, bullicioso
Not surprisingly Evidentemente, sin lugar a dudas, Not surprisingly,...
Social media are certainly not a
fad moda
fad.
They giggled as they rode the
merry-go-round tiovivo, carrusel/torbellino, tiovivo
horses on the merry-go-round.
funfair parque de atracciones, feria Let´s go to the funfair!
to bounce off rebotar (contra) The ball bounced off the wall

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EXPRESSIONS
Largely made when they were in their
20s
I happened to go to a bigger high school
Kind of rigors
However much I thought I knew…
We're most likely to form new neural
networks
You should stay hungry
I was determined to understand
printed in a run of
SPANISH
En gran parte hechos cuando tenían 20 años
Resulta que fuí a un instituto más grande
Tipo de rigurosidad/severidad
Por mucho que pensara que sabía…
Somos más propensos a crear nuevos sistemas
neuronales
Deberías permanecer hambriento (de conocimiento)
Estaba decidido a entender
con una tirada de
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MÓDULO 2: FIVE WAYS TO SAVE THE PLANET

WARMING UP
What are you going to see in this lesson?

 Five ways to save the planet

 Funny structures
 Inversion after negative adverbs
 Cleft sentences
 Ellipsis
 Learning words and expressions in context
 Floods
 Environment

Funny Structures
1. INVERSION AFTER NEGATIVE ADVERBS

Introduction

Not until I speak perfect English will I stop studying hard.

In this lesson we are going to learn what inversion refers to from a grammatical
point of view. It consists basically of changing the order of the subject and the
auxiliary verb of a sentence in a particular circumstance; particularly we are going to
study this structure after negative adverbs, when these are placed at the
beginning of the sentence.

We have to take into account that this structure is usually found in formal or literary
English. In a less formal style, sentences begin with the subject.

Explanation

INVERSION

It occurs when the word order of a sentence changes. When to use inversion:

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- Time Relationship:

With negative adverbs:

 No sooner/hardly/scarcely/barely had I got my breath back when it

was time to go again.

With phrases that use not:

 Not until/Not since/Not for one minute. Not for a minute do I

imagine they´ll come back.

With time phrases that use only:

 Only after/only then/only later/only when. Only later did she

realice what had happened.

- Frequency:

With negative adverbs which emphasise frequency at the beginnig of the

sentence.

 Never/ Rarely/ Seldom/ Hardly ever. Never did he wear a suit.

Rarely do they fail their exams.

With negative adverbs at the beginning of a sentence to emphasise how

infrequently things happen.

 Little/ Nowhere. Little did he know that it would be the last time.
Nowhere was a replacement to be found.

- General Emphasis:

With phrases that use only:

 Only by/ only in this way. Only by hard work will we finish the task.

With phrases that use no:

 In no way/ On no account/ Under no circumstances. Under no

circumstances can you go to visit them. On no account will you
say this again.

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NO INVERSION

We use inversion when the adverb modifies the verb, but not when it modifies the
noun:

 Rarely seen during the day, the badger is a famously shy animal (no
inversion).

 Hardly anyone knows about it (no inversion).

EXERCISE 1
Underline the phrases that can start these sentences:

Sentence 1 …she will come

a. Rarely if ever
b. Not only
c. Only if it’s convenient
d. Hardly anyone expects that
e. Under no circumstances
f. Under such circumstances
g. Only by asking her directly
h. No way
i. Unless something unusual happens

Sentence 2 …did she come in

a. Little did anyone notice
b. Only if he wasn’t available
c. Barely had I sat down when
d. On no occasion I recall
e. Only when it was convenient
f. Not until we were all ready
g. Never did she knock before
h. Only then
i. It was then that

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EXERCISE 2
Fill each blank with a suitable word.

Memo to teaching staff

We have a problem. Rarely _____________ (1) we had a student population like this
one. ________ (2) since the 1980s can I remember so many troublesome students in
our school at any one time. Not only __________ (3) some of them treat the staff with
absolute scorn, ________ (4) they are also clearly __________ (5) on causing as much
trouble as possible among their peers.

On __________ (6) account can such behaviour be allowed to continue. And not for
one __________ (7) should the ringleaders think they will not be punished. Only
__________ (8) such punishment is carried out will confidence return to the student
body and ___________ (9) then will school life return to some kind of normality.
Under no circumstances _________ (10) we allow the present state of affairs to
continue.

2. CLEFT SENTENCES

Introduction

It is my English what I’m trying to improve.

What are cleft sentences?

A cleft sentence is a type of sentence which results of the change of the usual
structure of an ordinary sentence in order to emphasize a particular piece of
information; this process consists of dividing (‘cleft’) a message into two clauses,
which lets us focus on a particular or new information.

Explanation

In English we have several resources to emphasize a piece of information. One of

these resources is the so called cleft-sentence, which can be of two different
types: it-cleft sentence and Wh-cleft sentence

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IT-CLEFT SENTENCES

Structure:

IT + VERB TO BE + PHRASE + DEFINING RELATIVE CLAUSE

In order to form the defining relative clause, we have to use a relative pronoun
(who, whom, whose, which, that) or a relative adverb (where, when, why). Also, we
will use that in the case that we bring the whole adverbial clause into focus; see the
following examples:

The girl bought an expensive car last year.

 It was the girl who bought an expensive car in 2010.

 It was an expensive car which /that the girl bought in 2010.
 It was 2010 when the girl bought an expensive car.
 It was in 2010 that the girl bought an expensive car.

Here you have some rules which you have to take into account:

- If you use a personal pronoun after it + to be, use an object pronoun:

 It was the girl who bought an expensive car in 2010

 It was her who bought an expensive car in 2010

- When a personal subject is the focus, we can omit the relative pronoun in
informal situations when it is the object of the verb. See the following
examples:

 You spoke to my brother yesterday

 It was my brother who you spoke to yesterday
 It was my brother you spoke to yesterday (informal style)

- Finally, when the plural subject is the focus, we use a plural verb but
it+be remains singular:

 It was my friends who were at the party last night

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WH-CLEFT SENTENCES
Structure:

WH-CLAUSE + BE + EMPHASIZED WORD/PHRASE

These sentences are introduced by a wh-clause, usually what, but we can also
use why, where, how, etc… Normally, the information included in the wh-clause is
already-known (or mentioned) information, whereas the one in the following clause
is new information.

Look at the following example:

 I don’t know what to buy for his birthday; I don’t know what he needs.
 What he needs is a new mobile phone.

(Old information: we already know that there is something they need; new
information: now we know that we need a new mobile phone).

If the emphasized phrase contains a verb, it is usually a bare infinitive of TO

infinitive:

 What he needs is (to) work less and enjoy more.

To highlight the action we use a form of DO in the WH-clause. If the highlighted verb
is in the continuous or perfect, the form of DO matches it.

 My co-workers are having a meeting to discuss the project.

 What my co-workers are doing is having a meeting to discuss the project.

OTHER CLEFT SENTENCES

 The thing that I most disliked was the colour of her dress.
 The only thing I won’t do is phone her again.
 All you need is love

EXERCISE 1

Rephrase the following sentences using the cleft-sentence structure to emphasize

the piece of information which is underlined. We give you the first sentence as an
example.

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(Note: pay attention to the verb tense)

1. Peter admitted that I was not responsible of the accident

_It was Peter who__ admitted that I was not responsible of the accident

2. I began to shout at Anthony when the fire started

____________________ that I started to shout at Anthony.

3. Unemployment is the issue people are worried about nowadays

____________________ which is the issue people are worried about
nowadays.

4. His attitude towards animals really bothers me

____________________ which really bothers me

5. The presenter didn’t introduce the band to the audience.

____________________ which the presenter didn’t introduce to the audience.

6. His unhealthy diet is what I can’t accept

____________________ is his unhealthy diet.

7. We travelled by plane to arrive earlier

The reason ____________________ was to arrive earlier

8. My best friend is fond of wild animals

____________________ is wild animals

9. Having a good organization of ideas is the key to make a good speech

____________________ is having a good organization of ideas.

10. The conference room was where I last saw Martin.

____________________ was the conference room.

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 3. ELLIPSIS

Introduction

In this lesson we are going to study ellipsis, which is a construction that we use
when we want to leave out items which would be normally used in an ordinary
sentence according to the grammatical rules.

Explanation

As we said before, we can omit certain parts of the sentence by means of

ellipsis.

 I was to rent the bigger car and Mary was to rent the smaller car.
 I was to rent the bigger car and Mary, the smaller.

It is common to both formal and informal English, but there is a difference which
must be taken into account: in formal English, the omitted words in the elliptical
sentence must be ones that would be repeated in the full sentence, whereas
this requirement does not exist when referring to formal style. Thus, in formal
English, we are only allowed to omit only what would be duplicated in the normal
sentence. Look at the following examples:

Formal English:

 She was the best tennis player at that time and remains the best tennis
player ever. (full sentence)

 She was, and remains, the best tennis player ever. (elliptical sentence) Informal

English:

 Do you fancy a beer? (full sentence)

 Fancy a beer? (elliptical sentence)

Finally, in formal English the only way to use unduplicated ellipsis is in quotations,
represented by a series of dots (…) which substitutes the words that the writer has
chosen to omit in his/her quotation.

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  The days that followed the flight of James saw even greater confusion in
England than the months which preceded the Restoration … Then there
had been too many claimants to legal authority; now there was no legal
authority at all.

The use of dots to indicate unfinished spoken sentences is a feature of narrative and
informal English only.

 ‘Well! I mean…’

EXERCISE 1

Read the following sentences, identify the elliptical expression and write down the
full sentence.

1. The economic downturn affected me more than her.

2. I liked the theatre play more than she.
3. The song sung by U2 became very popular.
4. I visited Notting Hill after coming back from Dublin.
5. They don’t review the exams, and neither her friend.
6. The police has found the car stolen yesterday.
7. By nine o’clock, he had finished his work and gone home.
8. Peter looked for a long time, but never found the money.
9. At that time, I was working in a restaurant at night and going to school during
the day.
10. Before her accident, Martha had been swimming on Saturday mornings, and
running in the park.

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Let’s practice!
1. READING: FORTUNE

BAD LUCK, GOOD LUCK. WHO KNOWS?

From "Healing Words for the Body, Mind and Spirit" by Caren Golman:

An old Zen story goes like this: An old Chinese farmer had a mare that broke through
the fence and ran away. When his neighbors learned of it, they came to the farmer and
said, "What bad luck this is. You don't have a horse during planting season." The
farmer listened and then replied, "Bad luck, good luck. Who knows?"

A few days later, the mare returned with two stallions. When the neighbors learned of
it, they visited the farmer. "You are now a rich man. What good fortune this is," they
said. The farmer listened and again replied, "Good fortune, bad fortune. Who knows?"

Later that day, the farmer's only son was thrown from one of the stallions and broke
his leg. When the neighbors heard about it, they came to the farmer. "It is planting
season and now there is no one to help you," they said. "This is truly bad luck." The
farmer listened, and once more he said, "Bad luck, good luck. Who knows?"

The very next day, the emperor's army rode into the town and conscripted the eldest
son in every family. Only the farmer's son with his broken leg remained behind. Soon
the neighbors arrived. Tearfully, they said, "Yours is the only son who was not taken
from his family and sent to war. What good fortune this is..."

EXERCISE

Answer the following questions related to the text above:

(Send your answer to your tutor)

1. What is the moral of the story?

2. How would you define the farmer according to his attitude towards life?

2. WRITING

Give your own opinion about the topic of the text (180-250 words). Send your
composition to your tutor.

Página 28
 GLOSSARY

PALABRA SIGNIFICADO EJEMPLO

bank orilla the rivers break their banks
Carbon
emisiones de dióxido de carbono Carbon emission is causing global warming
emissions
cuppa (informal) taza de té/té Enjoy your cuppa!
heating calefacción Turn on the heating
ice cap casquete polar If the ice caps melt, the sea levels rise
mare yegua My grandpa had a mare
oil rig plataforma petrolífera They scaled the oil rig
Sea level nivel del mar the sea levels rise
Socket enchufe Switch them off at the socket
to conscript reclutar, llamar a filas I have been conscripted and sent to war
Willies botas de agua I wear willies when it rains

EXPRESIONES SIGNIFICADO

Day-to-day needs Necesidades diarias

won’t be much use at all No serán de mucha utilidad

That will not do No podemos seguir así

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MÓDULO 3: UNDER PRESSURE

WARMING UP
What are you going to see in this lesson?

 Under pressure

 About unreality

 Subjunctive and conditionals

 I wish and if only

 Unlikely, unreal and past conditions

 Learning words and expressions in context

 Healthy food

 Stress

About unreality
1. SUBJUNCTIVE AND CONDITIONALS

Subjunctive

FORM

Use the simple form of the verb. The simple form is the infinitive without the
"to." The simple form of the verb "to go" is "go." The Subjunctive is only
noticeable in certain forms and tenses.

USE

The Subjunctive is used to emphasize urgency or importance. It is used after certain

expressions.

 I suggest that he study.

 Is it essential that we be there?
 Don recommended that you join the committee.

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 NOTICE

The Subjunctive is only noticeable in certain forms and tenses. In the examples
below, the Subjunctive is not noticeable in the you-form of the verb, but it is
noticeable in the he-form of the verb.

 You try to study often. YOU-FORM OF "TRY".

 It is important that you try to study often. SUBJUNCTIVE FORM OF "TRY"
LOOKS THE SAME.
 He tries to study often. HE-FORM OF "TRY".
 It is important that he try to study often. SUBJUNCTIVE FORM OF "TRY" IS
NOTICEABLE HERE.

Verbs Followed by the Subjunctive

The Subjunctive is used after the following verbs:

- to advise (that)
- to ask (that)
- to command (that)
- to demand (that)
- to desire (that)
- to insist (that)
- to propose (that)
- to recommend (that)
- to request (that)
- to suggest (that)
- to urge (that)

 Dr. Smith asked that Mark submit his research paper before the end of the
month.
 Donna requested Frank come to the party.
 The teacher insists that her students be on time.

Expressions Followed by the Subjunctive

The Subjunctive is used after the following expressions:

- It is best (that)
- It is crucial (that)
- It is desirable (that)
- It is essential (that)
- It is imperative (that)

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 - It is important (that)
- It is recommended (that)
- It is urgent (that)
- It is vital (that)
- It is a good idea (that)
- It is a bad idea (that)

 It is crucial that you be there before Tom arrives.

 It is important she attend the meeting.
 It is recommended that he take a gallon of water with him if he wants to
hike to the bottom of the Grand Canyon.

Negative, Continuous and Passive Forms of Subjunctive

The Subjunctive can be used in negative, continuous and passive forms.

Negative Examples:

 The boss insisted that Sam not be at the meeting.

 The company asked that employees not accept personal phone calls during
business hours.
 I suggest that you not take the job without renegotiating the salary.

Passive Examples:

 Jake recommended that Susan be hired immediately.

 Christine demanded that I be allowed to take part in the negotiations.
 We suggested that you be admitted to the organization.

Continuous Examples:

 It is important that you be standing there when he gets off the plane.
 It is crucial that a car be waiting for the boss when the meeting is over.
 I propose that we all be waiting in Tim's apartment when he gets home.

Should as Subjunctive

After many of the above expressions, the word "should" is sometimes used to
express the idea of subjunctiveness. This form is used more frequently in British
English and is most common after the verbs "suggest," "recommend" and "insist."

 The doctor recommended that she should see a specialist about the problem.

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  Professor William suggested that Wilma should study harder for the final
exam.

Conditionals

Conditional Clause and Main Clause

If I have enough money, I will go to Japan.

Conditional clause Main clause

I will go to Japan, if I have enough money

Main clause Conditional clause

First, Second, and Third Conditional

First conditional: If I have enough money, I will go to Japan.

Second conditional: If I had enough money, I would go to Japan.

Third conditional: If I had had enough money, I would have gone to Japan.

Conditional clause Main clause

1. If + Present Tense will + inf / present tense / imperative
a) If you help me with the dishes (if + pres),
b) If the sum of the digits of a number is divisible by three, the number is
divisible by three (Pres. tense)
c) If you see Mr Fox tonight, tell him I am ill. (Imperative).

2. If + Past Tense would + inf

3. If + Past Perfect Tense would have + past participle
We do not normally use will or would in the conditional clause, only in the main clause.

Uses of the Conditional

First conditional

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Nature: Open condition, what is said in the condition is possible.
Time: This condition refers either to present or to future time.

 If he is late, we will have to go without him.

 If my mother knows about this, we are in serious trouble.

Second conditional

Nature: unreal (impossible) or improbable situations.

Time: present; the TENSE is past, but we are talking about the present, now.

 If I knew her name, I would tell you. If I were you, I would tell my father.
 Compare: If I become president, I will change the social security system.
(Said by a presidential candidate)
 If I became president, I would change the social security system. (Said by
a schoolboy: improbable) If we win this match, we are qualified for the
semifinals.
 If I won a million pounds, I would stop teaching. (Improbable)

Third conditional
Nature: unreal
Time: Past (so we are talking about a situation that was not so in the past.)

 If you had warned me, I would not have told your father about that
party.(But you didn't, and I have).

Should in conditional sentences

Should is often used in conditional clauses expressing possibilities, suppositions etc.

By using should in the if-clause we are suggesting that something is unlikely or not
Particularly probable.

 If you should run into Mathews, tell him that he owes me $100. (= Your
chances of meeting Mathews are rather slim, but if you MEET him, tell him
that he owes me some money.)

More examples are given below:

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  If she should come, ask her to wait. (She is unlikely to come, but if she
COMES, ask her to wait.)
 If they should attack us again, we will give them a warm reception. (They are
unlikely to attack us again, but if they DO, we will make it memorable for
them as well.)

Should can also go at the beginning of the sentence. In this case, if is dropped.

 Should it rain, there will be no picnic today. (= If it should rain, there will be
no picnic today.)
 Should she arrive, ask her to wait.
 Should she fail the test, she will lose her job. (= If she should fail the test, she
will lose her job.)

Instead of should we can use happen in the if-clause.

 If you happen to meet John, tell him that the meeting has been postponed.
 If you should meet John, tell him that the meeting has been postponed.

Should and happen to can be used together.

 If you should happen to lose your job, what will you do?

Remember!

- The conditional construction does not normally use will or would in if-
clauses. EXCEPTION: If will or would express willingness, as in requests,
they can be used in if-clauses.

 If you will come this way, the manager will see you now. I
would be grateful if you would give me a little help. (= ±
please, come this way; please, give me...)

- For the second conditional, were replaces was:

 If I were a rich man...

- After if, we can either use "some (-one, -where...)" or "any (-one, -
where...)”.

 If I have some spare time next weekend....or: If I have any

spare time...

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 - Instead of if not, we can use unless.

 I'll be back tomorrow unless there is a plane strike.

 He'll accept the job unless the salary is too low.

- There is a "mixed type" as well, for the present results of an unreal

condition in the past: If + Past Perfect - would + inf.

 If you had warned me [then], I would not be in prison [now].

EXERCISE 1

Fill in the blanks below with the correct form of the verb in parentheses. Negative,
passive and continuous subjunctive forms are possible.

1. It's important that she (remember) _______ to take her medicine twice a day.

2. I suggest that Frank (read) ______ the directions carefully before assembling the
bicycle. He doesn't want the wheels to fall off while he is riding down a hill.

3. Mrs. Finkelstein demanded that the heater (repair) _______ immediately. Her
apartment was freezing.

4. It's vital that the United States (focus) _________ on improving its public education
system. What we do now will affect our country for generations to come.

5. The monk insisted that the tourists (enter) ______ the temple until they had
removed their shoes.

6. I am not going to sit here and let her insult me. I demand that she immediately
(apologize) _________ for what she just said.

7. Judy asked that we (attend) _________ her graduation ceremony next week.

8. Was it really necessary that (sit) I _________there watching you the entire time
you were rehearsing for the play? It was really boring watching you repeat the scenes
over and over again.

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9. It is important to remember that Janine (think) ________ very differently from you.
She may not agree to the changes you have made in the organization of the
company.

10. It's a little difficult to find the restaurant. I propose that we all
(drive)_______ together so that nobody gets lost along the way.

11. The woman insisted that the lost child (take) ________ to store's information
desk so his parents could be paged.

12. The nutritionist recommended that Sally (reduce) _______ her daily fat intake.

13. The environmental leader felt it was extremely important that the people of the
city (allow) __________ to voice their concerns over the new hotel being built on the
bay.

14. She told me that the government (regulate) _______ the airline industry. I don't
know if that is true.

15. The sign at the pool recommended that you (swim) _________ after eating a
large meal.

16. It is necessary that a life guard (monitor) ________ the summing pool while the
children are taking their swimming lessons.

17. The sun is scorching today. I suggest you (put) ______ on sunblock immediately
before you get a sun burn.

18. John insists that Sarah (invite) ________ to the wedding; otherwise he will not
attend.

19. I think it's an interesting fact that she (come) _______ from Estonia.

20. It is imperative that the world (work) __________ towards a solution to global
warming before the weather patterns of the world are disrupted irreparably.

Página 37
EXERCISE 2

Choose the most appropriate answer.

1. I like this coat. If it ____cheaper, I would buy it.

- is
- were
- had been
- would be
2. If I ____you, I would call him.

- Am
- were
- had been
- would be
3. She would write to him if she ________his address. Do you know his address?

- knew
- had known
- knows
- would know
4. Even if I had enough money, I _________buy this car.

- Could
- Might
- Would
- would not
5. What would happen if someone _____this button accidentally?

- will press
- would press
- pressed
- had pressed
6. What would you do if you _____a million dollars?

- Had
- had had
- have
- would have
7. If I had a bicycle, I_____ for a ride with you tomorrow.

- can go
- could go
- could have gone
- would have gone
8. I hope she _______mind if I stayed here.

- doesn't

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 - won't
- would
- wouldn't
9. Mrs. Green ________call, tell her I'll be back around four o'clock.

- Could
- Might
- Should
- Would
10. She would be disappointed if we ______her a present.

- didn't bring
- hadn't brought
- won't bring
- wouldn't bring

2. I WISH / IF ONLY

USE

Wish and If only can be used:

- To wish for an ability now or in the future.

 I wish I could play the guitar!

 If only I could dance like that!

 I wish I could go to your wedding next week, but I can’t.

 If only I could see my grandmother more often, but I can’t.

- To wish that something could be true at the moment.

 I wish I had long hair!
 If only I were taller!

- To wish that something was happening at the moment.

 I wish I was lying on the beach right now!

 If only I was lying on the beach right now!

- To wish that something kept happening again and again, or to wish it

could stop happening.
 I wish you wouldn’t shout so loudly.

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  If only he wouldn’t shout so loudly.

- To wish that something in the past had happened in a different way.

 I wish I had studied for my exam!
 If only I hadn’t argued with him!

FORM

- To wish for an ability now or in the future. I wish (that) / If only + subject +
could + infinitive verb.

 I wish that I could sing.

 If only I could come to Australia too!

- To wish that something could be true at the moment. I wish (that) / If only +
subject + past simple.
 I wish I had a pony. I wish I was rich.

- When using the verb ‘be’, you can use ‘were’ for all persons.

 I wish I were rich.

 If only I were rich.

- To wish that something was happening at the moment. I wish (that) / If

only + subject + past continuous.
 I wish that this traffic was moving.

 If only this traffic was/were moving!

- To wish that something kept happening again and again, or to wish it

could stop happening. I wish (that) / If only + subject + would + past
participle.
 I wish you would tidy up more often.

- Often: I wish (that) / If only + subject + would stop + verb-ing.

 I wish he would stop shouting.

- I wish (that) / If only + subject + wouldn’t keep + verb-ing.

 I wish you wouldn’t keep hitting me.

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 - To wish that something in the past had happened in a different way. I
wish (that) / If only + past perfect.
 I wish I had studied for my exam! If only I hadn’t argued with him!

EXERCISE 1
Which word completes the sentence?

1. I wish I ____ come to the zoo with you next weekend, but I’m going to be
busy.
- will
- had
- could

2. Which sentence is NOT correct?

- I wish I were stronger.
- I wish you wouldn’t do that.
- I wish could do that!

3. I’m sorry I made you angry. I wish I ____ shouted at you.

- wouldn’t
- hadn’t
- weren’t

4. Which sentence is correct?

- I wish we live in a bigger house.
- I wish I were going to the beach with my friends!
- I wish you wouldn’t keep shout at me!

5. Your colleague talks a lot and you don’t like it. What could you say?
- If only he had been quiet!
- If only he would be quiet!
- If only he is quiet!

6. What CANNOT go in the space?

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 He’s really handsome! If only I ___ ten years younger!
- were
- would be
- was

7. Your computer isn’t working. What could you say?

- If only this computer works!
- I wish this computer had worked!
- If only this computer were working!

8. You want to go to Sally’s party, but you can’t. What can you say?
- I wish I would go to your party.
- I wish I went to your party.
- I wish I could go to your party.

9. You saw a great cell phone on sale but you didn’t have enough money. The
next day, you go to the shop. It has been sold. What do you say?
- If only I’d had more money with me yesterday!
- If only I had more money with me yesterday!
- If only I would have more money with me yesterday!

10. Your friend keeps hitting you. What do you say?

- I wish you’d stopped doing that!
- I wish you stopped doing that!
- I wish you’d stop doing that!

3. UNLIKELY, UNREAL AND PAST CONDITIONS

SECOND CONDITIONAL

CONDITION if + past simple RESULT would (not) + infinitive

If we moved out of the city, we would (we´d) be safer.
If he wasn´t so miserable, he might* have more friends
If you lived in the country, you´d be able to go/you could go horse- riding.
*We use might in the result clause to make the result less certain.

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Unlikely future conditions

We use the second conditional for future actions or situations that are posible, but
UNLIKELY. Compare:

- FIRST CONDITIONAL: My boss is pleased with my work. If I get a pay rise this
year, I´ll buy a new car. (I think I might get a pay rise.)
- SECOND CONDITIONAL: I know I´ve made a lot of mistakes at work, but if I
got a pay rise this year, I´d buy a new car. (I don´t think I´ll get a pay rise.)

Unreal present conditions

We can use the second conditional for present situations that are imaginary, not
real:

 If they had stricter laws against crime, we wouldn´t have to move! (They
don´t have these laws.)
 We wouldn´t go abroad if we had hot summers here. (We don´t have hot
summers.)

Advice

We often use the expression If I were you, I´d… to give personal advice:

 If I were you, I´d get a taxi home from the party. (=I think you should get a
taxi.)

NATURAL ENGLISH Many people use was in the expression. Some people
think this is incorrect:

 [I´d get more exercise if I was you.] → I´d get more exercise if I were you.

Alternatives to if

We can also introduce unlikely/unreal condition clauses with

- unless for unlikely conditions:

 I wouldn´t ask for your help unless I needed it.
But not unreal conditions:

 I would be more active X unless I had arthritis. √ if I didn´t have

arthritis.
Imagine/suppose to ask about imaginary situations:

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  Imagine you had a million dollars, what would you spend i ton? (You
don´t have a million dollars.)
 Suppose they lived in the country, would they feel safer? (They don´t
live in the country.)

FORMALITY CHECK. In informal British English, we can also use say:

 Say you could live anywhere in the world, where would you live?

EXERCISE 1

Choose the correct answer, A or B.

1. If house prices rise, we´ll sell our flat and buy a cottage in the country.
A-The speaker thinks house prices will probably rise.
B-The speaker thinks house prices probably won´t rise.

2. If I were you, I´d take the train to Cornwall; it´s more relaxing than driving.
A-I´m giving advice.
B-You´ve taken the train before.

3. If I had a mobile phone, I´d call the police.

A-I might call the police.
B-I can´t call the police.

4. Suppose you had a yacht, where would you sail to?

A-You have a yacht.
B-You don´t have a yacht.

5. Pablo would be very disappointed if he didn´t pass the exam.

A-Pablo expects to pass the exam.
B-Pablo doesn´t expect to pass the exam.

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Let’s practice!
1. READING: FAST LIFE

I was on a business trip in Rome a few years ago. I'd been having dinner with a client
all evening, and afterwards I found myself desperately looking for a late-night Internet
cafe to check my emails from the office. So there I was at midnight, wandering around
one of the most beautiful cities in the world, and I was tearing my hair out trying to get
access to a computer. Anyway, I went back to the hotel, crashed out on my bed and
thought, do I really have to live like this? Are those emails really so important? So I
started to reappraise my life.

The world is one stressed-out place. When I go to cities now, I see everybody rushing
around with their mobile phones and their Personal Organisers and everyone's scared
they're going to miss something. You know, just before we die, no one ever says, 'Ooh,
I wish I'd spent more time working in the office.'
After leaving my job, I moved to the coast. I sell surfing gear now. It doesn't make
much cash, but then money isn't the be-all and end-all, I'm happier than ever before
because I think living by the sea gives you a certain perspective on life. The waves will
be rolling in every morning long after we're gone. And it makes you realize all that
rushing around isn't going to make any difference.

I've been working in an investment company for about four years. It's a very
competitive business, of course, and you have to know about every fluctuation in the
market even as it's happening. So I live a very fast-paced, high-pressure lifestyle.
Actually, my friends tell me I suffer from a disease called 'running out of time
syndrome'.
A lot of my work is done on the move, so I carry my office around with me: laptop,
phone, Blackberry, electronic Notepad. I suppose you could call these my weapons of
war! They're a security blanket really. I don't live a particularly healthy lifestyle: I grab
a sandwich when I can, and drink far too much coffee. But it's not going to be like this
forever. Most people in my profession burn out after three and a half years. So now,
I'm forty-five, I am going to slow down a bit. But I don't think I'll ever live on a farm in
the middle of nowhere with my slippers on, growing vegetables. I'd hate that. I enjoy
the buzz too much.

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EXERCISE

What do you think these idiomatic expressions mean? Match expressions 1-6 to the
phrases a-f.

1. Tearing my hair out a. the most important thing.

2. Crashed out b. lay down, exhausted.
3. The be-all and end-all c. be too exhausted to continue a long-term
action.
4. Security blanket d. something that makes you feel safe/confident.
5. Burn out e. the excitement.
6. The buzz f. getting into panic because of frustration.

2. WRITING

Write a dialogue including some of the expressions you have studied in this
section. Send it to your tutor.

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 GLOSSARY

INGLÉS ESPAÑOL EJEMPLO

Release lanzar, publicar a study has just been released by the Families
there is not enough time to balance family homework
Balance equilibrar
and obligations
Warp speed velocidad endiablada She is living at warp speed

Deadline fecha límite She is trying to meet the deadlines

Work out entrenar I work out everyday to avoid stress

to be
estar hecho polvo I went back home and I was crashed out
crashed out
trajinar, correr de un lado
to rush out We rushed out ot buy the medicine
para otro
buzz ruido, agitación I enjoy the buzz too much

EXPRESIONES SIGNIFICADO

Meet deadlines Cumplir plazos

life at warp speed Vivir a toda velocidad

To be more likely to… Ser más probable de que…

tear my hair out + ING tirarse de los pelos (por desesperación, frustración)

to be the be-all and the end-all ser el elemento esencial

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BLOQUE 2
MÓDULO 1: THE WIDE WORLD OF SPORTS

WARMING UP

What are you going to see in this lesson?

 Betting sports
 Linking
 Pronouns (both, neither, either)
 Linking sentences and clauses
 Adverbial linking expressions
 Learning words and expressions in context
 Sports
 Politics

Linking
1. PRONOUNS: BOTH, EITHER AND NEITHER

Introduction

We use both, either and neither to refer to two people or things.

This is the general rule for the use of BOTH, EITHER AND NEITHER: Both = this AND
that.
- Either = this OR that
- Neither = NOT this and NOT that.

In this lesson, we are going to learn what the correct uses are for each one.

Explanation

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BOTH (Uses)

- Both can be used as a pronoun to refer to two things that we have already
mentioned.

 Do you want to buy the blue shirt or the red one?

 I’ll buy both (= the blue shirt AND the red shirt = both shirts)

- Both can also be used following this formula: Both + Adjective + and + Adjective.

 He’s both tall and handsome.

 I’m both happy and confused at the same time!

- Both can be used with a singular noun + and + singular noun.

 She speaks both English and Arabic.

 They have both a cat and a dog.

- We can also use Both + plural noun.

 She speaks both languages.

 He uses both guitars

Both or Both of?

Both or Both of can be used without a difference in meaning though Both of is more
common in the United States.

You can use Both or Both of before a determiner (my, his, these, the etc.) and a plural
noun.

Example: Both (of) + determiner + plural noun.

 Both (of) my friends arrived late to class.

 A prize was given to both of the players.

When we use Both (without of), we drop the article the.

 Both of the parents were nervous.

 Both parents were nervous.

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Both of + Object Pronoun

When using Both with an object pronoun (me, you, him, her, it, us them), we need
the preposition OF before that pronoun.

 He has invited both us. (incorrect)

 He has invited both of us. (correct)
 I’ll take both of them. (correct)
 I need to speak to both of you. (correct)

Verb + Object pronoun + both

We can use both after an object pronoun.

 I hope they invite us both (= I hope they invite both of us)

 Do you need them both? (= Do you need both of them)
 The teacher sent them both to the principal’s office.

To be + both

Both comes after To Be (or an auxiliary such as have or modal verbs).

 He is both intelligent and agile.

 My sister and I are both ready for the trip.

Use of both with modal verbs:

Modal verb + both + verb

 My parents can both speak French.

 They should both try harder.

Both + other verbs

Both goes before the other verbs. If there is an accompanying auxiliary verb, then it
goes in the middle of the two verbs (i.e. auxiliary + both + verb)

 We both wanted to stay in bed and not go to work.

 They both liked the surprise.

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Both - Negative

We don’t use both in negative structures. Instead, we normally use Neither.

 We don’t say: Both of them are not ready (incorrect).

 We say: Neither of them are ready (correct).
 We will learn more about neither in the next lesson.

Neither+ Singular Noun

We use “neither” before a singular noun to mean “not one and not the other (or two)”.

 Can you come on Monday or Tuesday? I am afraid neither day is possible.

Neither of + plurals

We use neither of before a determiner (for example: the, my, these) and before a
pronoun. The noun or pronoun is plural.

 Neither of my brothers can sing .

 Neither of us saw it happen.

After “neither of” + noun /pronoun , we use a singular verb in a formal style.

 Neither of my sister is married.

In a formal style a plural verb is possible.

 Neither of my sisters are married.

Neither used alone

We can use “neither” without a noun or pronoun, if the meaning is clear!

 Which one do you want? - Neither.

Neither… nor

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This structure is used to join two negative ideas.

 The film was neither well made nor well acted.

Sometimes more than two ideas are connected by neither… nor.

 He neither smiled, spoke, nor looked at me.

EITHER (uses)

Either is accompanied by an affirmative singular verb and if mostly used in questions or

negative sentences. Either is used as a conjunction. It is used to express alternatives and or a
choice between two (and sometimes more) things.

It is used with a verb in singular form (Sometimes you will hear it used in the plural form
though it is not grammatically correct).

 Either you or John has to finish the report before 5pm.

Either = any one of the two = this one or the other one.

Either X or Y (Either … or …)

 You can have either the red shirt or the blue shirt. (= but not both)
 Either you leave the building now or I call the security guards.

Either + singular noun

Either is used as a determiner before a single noun.

 There are only two options and I’m not interested in either film.
 A: Do you want it ready for Thursday or Friday? B: Either day is fine for me.

Either of + determiner + plural noun

You can use either of before a determiner (my, his, these, the etc.) and a plural noun.

 We’ve been dating for 6 months and I haven’t met either of her parents.
 I haven’t read either of these books.

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Either + of + Pronoun

When using either + of + object pronoun (you, us, them), we need the preposition OF before
that pronoun.

 I don’t think he is going to invite either of us.

 A: Which photo do you prefer? B: I don’t like either of them

Either can also be used alone

It means it doesn’t matter which alternative. Sometimes it is accompanied by the pronoun

“one”.

 A: Would you like a coffee or a tea?

 B: Either (one). (= I don’t mind if it’s coffee or tea, both alternatives are fine)

Either in short responses

Either can be used at the end of a negative sentence when you agree with something
negative someone else has said. It is similar to meaning TOO and ALSO (which are used in
affirmative sentences).

 A: I wasn’t thirsty. B: I wasn’t either. (You cannot say “I wasn’t too”)

 A: I’ve never been to Portugal. B: I haven’t either.

EXERCISE 1

1. Choose the correct answer:

- I don't like Italian nor Indian food so I don’t really want to go to both restaurants.
- I don't like Italian nor Indian food so I don’t really want to go to neither restaurant.
- I don't like Italian nor Indian food so I don’t really want to go to either restaurant.

2. Choose the correct answer:

- I love either of my sisters equally!

- I love neither of my sisters equally!
- I love both of my sisters equally!

3. Choose the correct answer:

- Both me nor my brother like mushrooms.

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 - Neither me nor my brother like mushrooms.
- Either me nor my brother like mushrooms.

4. Choose the correct answer:

- Please will either you or Steven buy some milk later?

- Please will both you or Philippa buy some milk later?
- Please will neither you or Philippa buy some milk later?

5. Choose the correct answer:

- Do neither of you have a black dress I can borrow?

- Do both of you have a black dress I can borrow?
- Do either of you have a black dress I can borrow?

6. Choose the correct answer:

- Both of them want to come with me so I suppose I will have to go by myself.

- Neither of them want to come with me so I suppose I will have to go by myself.
- Either of them want to come with me so I suppose I will have to go by myself.

EXERCISE 2

Choose the correct answer.

1. Would you like red or white wine with your first course? _________________

- Both will do for me.

- Either will do for me.
- Neither will do for me

2. __________ were ill, so they stayed at home instead of going to work.

- Both
- Either
- Neither

3. __________ Steve nor Peter turned up today. They will probably be fired.

- Both
- Either
- Neither

4. I didn't like _________ of the choices I was given.

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 - both
- either
- neither

5. I couldn't decide between the Ferrari or the Maserati - I liked them ___________.

- both
- either
- neither

6. You can take __________ the number 3 train or the number 7 to get to Chicago.

- both
- either
- neither

7. I don't think much of ___________ of the teams.

- both
- either
- neither

8. I took the exam twice and failed _______ times.

- both
- either
- neither

9. She didn't like ________ of them.

- either
- neither
- both

2. LINKING SENTENCES AND CLAUSES

Introduction

Some words and phrases (sentence connectors) are used to connect one sentence with a
previous sentence or sentences. Often (but not always) these go at the beginning of the
sentence:

 There was no heating in the building. As a result, the workers had to be sent home.
(Or the workers had to be sent home as a result)

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Other words and phrases (conjunctions) are used to connect clauses within a single sentence:

 While I was waiting, I read a magazine

 I’ll be wearing a red jumper so that you can see me easily

We can’t use a comma to connect ideas joined by a sentence connector. However, these
words and phrases can be used to connect two clauses in one sentence if the clauses are
joined with and, but, or, a semi-colon (;), colon (:), or dash(-):

 The building was extremely well constructed and, as a result, difficult to demolish.
You could fly via Singapore; however, this isn’t the only way.

Explanation

EXPLANATION TABLE

Type of connection Example sentence connectors Example conjunctions

Comparing, After all, all the same, alternatively, Although, though, yet,
contrasting, and anyway, by contrast, even son, however even though,
indicating that a (but see D), in any case, in contrast, whereas, while
situation (in the rain instead, nevertheless, on the contrary, on
clause) is the other hand
unexpected

Reasons and results As a consequence, as a result, As, because, for, in,

consequently, for one thing, so; hence, that, since, insofar as,
in consequence, therefore, thus (the last so, so that.
four are rather formal)

Adding information Above all, after all, also, besides, in addition, likewise, moreover,
similarly, what’s more, as well, too (the last two are not used at the
beginning of a sentence)

Condition If not, if so, otherwise As long as, assuming

(that), if, on condition
that, provided (that),
so long as, supposing
(that), unless

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Time: one event at At the same time, at that time, meanwhile As, when, whenever,
the same time as while
another

Time: one event After, after that, afterwards, before, After, as soon as,
before, or after before that, earlier, later, before, since, until
another previously, soon, subsequently, then

Even though is a conjunction used to say that a fact doesn’t make the rest of the sentence
untrue. It connects ideas within a sentence:

 Even though it was midday, I put on the light.

Even so is a sentence connector used to introduce a fact that is a surprising in the

context of what was just said. It connects ideas between sentences.

 It was midday. Even so I turned on the light.

However is often used as a sentence connector, but it can also be used as an adverb
when it is followed by an adjective, adverb, or much/many.

 We just don’t have the money to do the work, however necessary you think it is.

As a conjunction when it means “in whatever way”

 However she held a mirror, she couldn’t see the back of the neck.

EXERCISE 1

Choose the correct answer:

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 1. Your essay is badly organised and full of spelling mistakes. Though /
Nevertheless, it contains some very interesting ideas.
2. To the east the trees were left standing, while / in contrast to the west
they were cut down.
3. I felt guilty about leaving the company even so /even though I knew I
had made the right decision.
4. The course taught me a lot about jewellery design. Even though /Even so,
there is still a lot I need to learn.
5. I had expected my mother to be happy with the news. Instead /
Although tears carne to her eyes and she starred to cry.
6. Herbs are usually grown in temperate climates, whereas / on the other
hand spices are mainly from tropical areas.
7. We were very short of money so /as a consequence we had to spend the
night on a park bench.
8. I turned the ignition, but the car refused to start. As / Meanwhile the
lions were getting ever closer.
9. She wrote the questions en the blackboard while / at the same time the
students copied them into their books.
10. Previously / Before I went to Australia, I'd never seen a koala.
11. Modern farming methods have destroyed the habitat of many birds. As a
result1 So that their numbers are in decline.
12. I'll have to buy some ladders unless / if not I can borrow a pair from Ray.
13. I first met Kevin in the 1970s. At that time / When he had long hair and a
beard.

3. OTHER ADVERBIAL LINKING EXPRESSIONS

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Introduction

We use linking adverbials to explicitly state relationships between sentences, paragraphs, and
ideas. The result is increased cohesion of text.

These extra linking adverbials can show 3 different categories of relationships:

- Enumeration
- Summation
- Apposition

Explanation

Enumerative Linking Adverbials

Enumerative linking adverbials can be used to show the order of pieces of information.
Enumeration can follow logical or time sequences, or they can simply be used to move on to
the next piece of information.

A few enumerative linking adverbials are:

- Ordinal numbers
first, second, third, etc.
- Adverbs
finally, lastly
- Phrases
for one thing, to begin with, next

 “This new structure must accomplish two special purposes. First, to house all the
new immigrants. Second, To provide office space for the administrative staff”.

 “I have completed my four years at University; finally all I have to do now is take
my Masters Degree”.

 “They have just won the Premiership Football League. Next, they want to win
the Champions League in Europe.”

Summative Linking Adverbials

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Summative linking adverbials explicitly state that the text is concluding. They often signal
that the author will summarize the information he or she has already presented, hence the
name "summative." Some summative linking adverbials are:

- In sum “In sum, all the players are quite good”.

- In conclusion “She had many good qualities and a few bad ones. In conclusion, she
wasn´t good enough to make the team”.

- To conclude “Will had seen the weather forecast for that weekend, rain and
storms were on their way. He concluded that he would go no matter what the
weather”.

- All in all “I have seen many great female singers in my time. All in all, Whitney
Houston had the most soulful voice ever”.

- Overall “The overall UK figures showed a fall of 0.8 % in unemployment, the

smallest decline for nearly two decades”.

- To summarize “I can't attempt to summarize four years in a few sentences, many

things have happened”.

We often see these types of linking adverbs in conclusion or at the end of sections.

 “…the war ended in 1945. To conclude, we know that the Second World War was
the bloodiest conflict to date”.

Appositive Linking Adverbials

Appositive linking adverbials can show that the following piece of information is a
restatement of the previous information by expressing it in a slightly different manner to
make it more explicit. A few examples of appositive linking adverbials are with this
function are:

- Which is to say “There are journalists who cover the world of ideas, which is to say
they report on the lives and work of people who have them”.

- In other words “Does she have the right work experience and skills - in other
words, can she do the job?”

- That is “I'll meet you in the city, that is, I will if the trains are running”.

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In addition, appositives are used to introduce an example that is the equivalent of the
first piece of information:

- For example “She likes bright colours, for example fluorescent pink and bright yellow”.

- For instance “Some birds, penguins for instance, cannot fly at all”.

- Namely “Only one student passed the exam, namely John”.

- Specifically “Of all the thing i mentioned, I specifically told you not to do that!”

EXERCISE 1

Two football commentators are discussing a match between Real Madrid C.F. and F.C.
Barcelona. Put the answers into their correct place in the text.

- Tom: Good afternoon Steve and welcome to the Spanish League football show.

- Steve: Hello Tom, a pleasure to be here!

- Tom: Well Steve, we´ve got one great match to comment on today, Spain´s “el
Clásico”.

- Steve: Yes Tom, one incredible game for the fans and for us here in the studio
today. (1)________, I´d like to say that these matches are always hard to
predict, and (2)_________that the result is always close, maybe 1-1 or 2-1,
don’t you think?

- Tom: Yes Steve, I predict a draw for today (3)_____________I think the match
will be very equal.

- Steve: There are also some of the best all-time footballers in the world on the
pitch, (4)__________Leo Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
- (5)_____________I think we are going to see one of the best matches ever
today Tom.

- Tom: We certainly are Steve! Well, time for the match to start and for the
referee to blow the starting whistle. (6)_____________we would like to thank
all our viewers today and wish you all the best!

a) To conclude b) first c) namely d) all in all e) in other words f) second

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Let’s practice!
1. READING: POLITICS
David Cameron and Angela Merkel set for UK talks
The economy and EU reforms are expected to be the focus of talks between David
Cameron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Downing Street later.

Security issues, including counter-terrorism and the response to the Ebola epidemic,
are likely to be discussed as part of Germany's presidency of the G7.

No 10 said the prime minister's agenda for future changes to the European Union was
also likely to be raised.

Labour has complained that it was not informed in advance of the visit.

The visit, one of a number Mrs Merkel is making to world leaders as part of Germany's
year-long presidency of the G7 group of nations, is likely to be her last to the UK before
May's general election.

If he remains in power after the election, Mr Cameron has pledged to re-negotiate the
UK's membership of the 28-member bloc and hold a referendum by 2017 on the UK's
future participation in the EU.

The Conservatives have called for a far-reaching shake-up of welfare and employment
rules across the EU, including requiring migrants to have a job offer before coming to
the UK, making them wait four years before they can receive certain benefits and
ending the payment of child benefit to dependents of EU migrants overseas.

'Avoiding misunderstanding'
Mr Cameron has said the proposals will, in some cases, require changes to existing
treaties and therefore require the support of all 28 members - most of whom have said
they are fundamentally opposed to anything will infringing the principle of the
freedom of movement across the EU.

In a joint statement, the two leaders said their talks would focus on tackling instability
in the global economy and securing long-term growth, including the prospect of a
trade deal between the EU and US.

"We must do more to make the EU more stable and competitive than it is today," they
said. "We must do more to harness the potential of the single market and reduce
regulation that is hampering business."

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The BBC's assistant political editor Norman Smith said both sides were playing down
the prospect of any progress on Mr Cameron's specific re-negotiation demands on
Wednesday.

Former Conservative Chancellor Ken Clarke said there would no discussion of the
"minutiae" of Britain's membership, telling BBC Radio 5 Live the two leaders "will not
waste their time on these" at a time of serious economic challenges across Europe.

Leading Tory Eurosceptic John Redwood said that while the focus would rightly be on
problems in the eurozone and the situation in Ukraine, he did expect some discussion
of immigration and welfare issues.

Focus. A main purpose or interest.

Counter-terrorism. Fight against terrorism.

No 10. The Prime Minister’s official residence. It corresponds to 10 Downing Street

(London)

Labour. Political party. Its full name is Labour party.

28-member bloc. Politico-economic union of 28 member states, as known as

European Union.

Far-reaching. Affecting many people of things, having a wide range of influence.

Shake-up. An important change or series of changes in the way a company or other

organization is organized or run.

Welfare. A government program for poor or unemployed people that helps pay for
their food, housing, medical cost, etc.

EU. European Union.

US. United States .

Hamper. To slow the movement, progress, or action of someone of something.

Eurosceptic. Having or expressing doubt about European relationships or EU.

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Reading comprehension: Choose if the following questions are True or False:

1. The economy and EU reforms are expected to be the focus of the talks.
2. Security issues are unlikely to be discussed.
3. Merkel’s visit to UK is likely to be the last one before May’s general elections.
4. The Conservatives proposal would benefit migrants.
5. The two leader states that they must do more to make the EU more stable and
competitive.

2. WRITING

Did you read the text? Ok, answer these questions: Send it to your tutor.

a) What are the issues of the meeting?

b) What do you think about welfare? Where is the line between helping people
and fraud?
c) However UK doesn’t use Euro, it is an important member of the EU. Do you
think EU is good or bad for us?

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GLOSSARY

ENGLISH SPANISH EXAMPLE

I saw a betting ad in a sporting
ad anuncio
broadcast
sporting
I saw a betting ad in a sporting
broadcas programa de deportes
broadcast
t
The sporting clubs are pretty much
hub centro
the hub of those communities
team
trabajo en equipo learning about team work
work
Transferir, trasladar, trasbordo (en medios
Real Madrid paid a lot of money for
Transfer de transporte), traspaso o fichaje (en
Cristiano Ronaldo's transfer
fútbol)
Midfield Centrocampista, en fútbol jugador que He didn't score many goals last
er juega en el centro del campo season, he is a midfielder
In VIII Th century a Islamization
Islamisat
Islamización. process in Iberian Peninsula was
ion
started
Número 10 de Downing Street. Residencia
No 10 The Prime Minister lives in No 10
en Londres del Primer Ministro Británico
Enfocar, centrarse sobre algo, concentrarse We have to focus on this problem, it
Focus
en un asunto is very important
Labour had a list of objections about
Labour Labour Party. Partido Laborista
the new law
Euroscep Euroescéptico, que no cree o confía en la Eurosceptics think UK should leave
tic estructura de la Unión Europea European programs
The Administration has a far-
Far-
De amplio alcance, trascendental reaching program to help
reaching.
unemployed people
I have to fill in some forms for a
Welfare Prestaciones, ayudas sociales
welfare request
EU Unión Europea There are 28 countries in the EU
US and UK have an excellent
US Estados Unidos
relationship
The traffic jam is hampering us, we
Hamper Enlentecer, dificultar, obstaculizar
will be late

EXPRESSIONS SPANISH
pay attention to… Prestar atención a
I’m not a fan of… No soy partidario de…
To be more likely to… Ser más probable de que…
28-member bloc La Europa de los 28
Counter-terrorism Lucha antiterrorista
Be mad at somebody estar enfadado con alguien

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MÓDULO 2: DECISIONS

WARMING UP

What are we going to see in this lesson?

 Making a smart decision

 Emotions and thoughts
 Adverbial clauses of time
 Emphatic forms in speech
 Hypothesising in speech
 Learning words and expressions in context
 Regretting decisions
 Planning a vacation

Emotions and Thoughts

1. ADVERBIAL CLAUSE OF TIME

Introduction

Adverb clauses are clauses that function as adverbs. Since they are dependent clauses,
they must have a subordinating conjunction to connect them to the other clause.
Subordinating conjunctions can be arranged according to the purpose of the clause they
begin.

In this section, we will talk about adverb clauses of time. An adverb clause of
time shows when something happens. It is usually introduced by time adverbs such
as AS, WHEN, WHILE, BEFORE, AFTER, UNTIL, HARDLY, NO SOONER or SCARCELY.

Explanation

As, when and while

We can often use as, when or while to mean “during the time that”, to talk about something
that happens when something else takes place.

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  As/when/while Dave was eating, the doorbell rang.

We use when (not as or while) to introduce a clause which talks about an event that takes
places at the same time as some longer event (in the main clause).

 They were playing in the garden when they heard a scream.

In the circumstances in which the event in the main clause happens.

 When they are fully grown these snakes can be over two metres long.

And we prefer when to talk about past periods of our lives.

 His mother called him Robbie when he was a baby.

We prefer when to emphasize that one event happens immediately after another,
particularly if one causes the other.

 You’ll see my house on the right when you cross the bridge.
 When the lights went out, I lit some candles.

In the first sentence, as or while would suggest “during the time that” and the continuous
tense would be more likely (… as /while you are crossing…).

In the second sentence as or while would be very unlikely because lights usually go out
instantaneously.

We prefer as to say that when one thing changes, another thing changes at the same time.

 As the cheese matures, it improves. (Rather than when the cheese…)

We prefer while or as (rather than when) to talk about two longer actions that go at the
same time, although while is more common than as in a informal speech.

 I went shopping while Linda cleaned the house. (Or as Linda cleaned the house)

We use while or when (rather than as) to avoid ambiguity where as could mean “because”.

 While you were playing golf, I went to the cinema. (As you were playing golf could
mean “Because you were playing golf”).

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Before, after, until

We use before or after to talk about an event happening earlier or after than another event.

 I put my coat before I went out.

 The message arrived after I’d left.

We can often use either until or before when a situation continues to happen up to a lime
indicated in the adverbial clause.

 I had to wait six weeks until/before the parcel arrived.

We use until to talk about an action that confirms to a particular time and then stops.

 They sat on the beach until the sun sank below the horizon, and then they went
home.

And when the adverbial clause describes the result of an action in the main clause.

 He cleaned his shoes until they shone (“Shinning” is the result of “cleaning”)

Hardly, no sooner, scarcely

When we say that one event happened immediately after another we can use
sentences with hardly, no sooner, and scarcely. After hardly and scarcely the second
clause begins with when or before; after no sooner it begins with than or when.

 The concert had hardly begun before all lights went out.
 I had no sooner lit the barbecue that/when it started to rain.

As we mentioned before, these expressions can be used (often with a past perfect tense) to
talk about two events that happen one after another.

NOTE THE SENTENCE STRUCTURE

- …no sooner… than…

- …hardly… when/before….

- …scarcely…when/before…

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No sooner can come after the subject. In this case, we use the normal word order.

 No sooner had she read the letter than she started screaming. (NOT no sooner had she
read the letter when she started to screaming).

 No sooner had I closed the door than someone knocked. (NOT no sooner had I closed
the door before/when someone knocked).

Or:

 I had no sooner closed the door than someone knocked.

 Scarcely had I solved one problem when/before another popped up Scarcely had I
reached the station when the train steamed out Hardly had I closed my eyes when the
telephone rang.

Scarcely and hardly can come after de subject. In this structure, we use normal word order.
You can replace “hardly” with “scarcely”.

 I had scarcely solved one problem when another popped up. I had scarcely closed my
eyes when the telephone rang.

It is wrong to use than instead of when or before this structure.

 Incorrect: Hardly I had closed my eyes when the telephone rang. (Correct: Hardly had I
closed…)

 Incorrect: Scarcely I had stepped out when it started to raining. (Correct: Scarcely had I
stepped...)

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EXERCISE 1

Enter one of these adverbs, before - until - while - when, in the text box to join the
actions in the right order.

1. First: You arrive. Then: We will go to the cinema.

We will go to the cinema _______you arrive.

2. First: The postman goes to that neighbourhood. Then: Your letter will arrive.
Your letter will not arrive _______the postman goes to that neighbourhood.

3. I will love you __________ I die.

4. Laura makes some mistakes __________she writes.

5. _________I saw you, I was very happy.

6. First: Mary washes the dishes. Then: She watches TV.

Mary washes the dishes ________she watches TV.

7. Mike brushes his teeth ______he goes to bed.

8. First: Mike washes his hands. Then: He eats dinner.

Mike washes his hands ______he eats dinner.

9. Lucy was at school _________her mother had the accident.

10. ___________you read the newspaper, I clean the house!

EXERCISE 2
Rewrite each sentence using the italicized negative expression at the beginning:

Example:
I had hardly taken my seat when I felt sick
Hardly had I taken my seat when I felt sick

1. She had hardly left the room when the phone rang
2. The meeting had no sooner started than the police arrived
3. He had scarcely entered the house when somebody knocked
4. I had hardly started my work when the guests arrived
5. The party had no sooner begun when the lights went out

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 2. EMPHATIC FORMS IN SPEECH

Introduction

We can shape our use of English to add emphasis in a number of different contexts. For
example, to give strong advice, to express opinions clearly, to disagree, to show concern, to
entertain.

Explanation

On particular occasions, we can give special emphasis to a part of sentence by stressing

the pronunciation of a word, or words, that we consider important. Such a way of
adding emphasis is common:

1. When we give short answers. For example:

A: Do you study English here?

B: Yes, I do.

A: Are you interested in literature?

B: Yes, I am.

2. When we contradict what someone has said (in this latter case, if the sentence is
affirmative, we stress the auxiliaries, among them do, does, did, is, are, am, was, has,
etc.). For example:

A: You broke the window. A: You didn’t see us.

B: I didn’t; John did it. B: I did see you. You were at McDonald’s.

A: Mary doesn’t speak German.

B: Mary does speak German! She lived in Germany for 10 years.

The auxiliary do is used for emphasis in positive statements:

 "I do like this beer!"

Emphatic tenses:

Present emphatic tense: I do take medicine for an allergy.

Past emphatic: I did take medicine for an allergy.
Future emphatic: I will take allergy medicine.

The emphatic form of the verb infers the speaker's degree of determination. The
construction of the verb changes when the emphatic form is used. However, the sense

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of time does not change when the emphatic verb form is used in place of the less
emphatic form.

Emphatic tense is used in a popular ceremony.

Question: Do you take this (person) to be your lawful wedded (spouse)?

Answer: I do. (Emphatically, I do!)

You shall return.

This type of emphasis is usually indicated in written English by means of italics or

underlining.

We can also add emphasis by transforming a sentence, or part of it, into a subordinate
clause. Here are some of the most common patterns.

NOUN CLAUSE + CONJ. VERB (usually is/was) + NOUN PHRASE (subj. of sentence) or
NOUN PHRASE + ADJ. CLAUSE (subject complement)

NOTICE: CONJ. VERB = “conjugated verb”, i.e., a verb with the endings –es (3rd
person), -ed (past), etc.

 Discipline and organization made it an army. ⇒ What made it an army was

discipline and organization.
 Conceited people annoy me. ⇒ What annoys me is people who are conceited.
 She wants to live in the United States. ⇒ Where she wants to live is in the
United States.
 I saw John last night. ⇒ Who I saw last night was John.

NOUN CLAUSE (=subject of sentence) + CONJ. VERB (usually is/was) + THE WAY or THE
FACT + (THAT) ADJ. CLAUSE (subject complement)

 Some teachers treat their students badly. I hate that. ⇒ What I hate is the way
some teachers treat their students.

 Many people are starving. The government does not realize that. ⇒ What the
government does not realize is the fact that many people are starving.

 My friends always celebrate my birthday. I appreciate this. ⇒ What I appreciate

is the fact that my friends always celebrate my birthday.

 The way it was organized made it an army. ⇒ What made it an army was the
way it was organized.

NOTICE that the way that refers to the manner in which something is done; the fact
that refers to a thing or object (usually to the direct object of a second sentence).

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NOUN PHRASE (=(subj. of sentence) + CONJ. VERB (usually is/was) + NOUN CLAUSE
(=subj. compl.)

 Drill transformed these men into an army. ⇒ Drill is what transformed these
men into an army.
 Listening to the radio entertains me. ⇒ Listening to the radio is what entertains
me.
 Helen works in a book store ⇒ Helen is who works in a bookstore.

NOTICE that the predicate is transformed into a noun clause (i.e., a subject
complement).

IT (subject)+ CONJ VERB (usually is/was) + NOUN PHRASE + ADJ. CLAUSE [subj.
complement]

 Pairs of individuals thrust at each other. ⇒ It is pairs of individuals who thrust

at each other.
 His bragging annoys me. ⇒ It is his bragging that annoys me.
 John broke the window. ⇒ It was John who broke the window.

NOTICE that the whole sentence is transformed into a noun phrase followed by an
adjective clause (which is a subject complement).

Sometimes, we can add emphasis by moving a sentence element to the beginning of

the sentence, which causes an inversion in the position of the subject and the auxiliary
verb (Note: if the sentence does not have an auxiliary, you must supply it: either do,
does or did). This is common in writing and in formal speaking. Here some common
cases of inversion.

When we begin the sentence with a negative adverbial, such as never, never again,
nowhere, not for one minute, not since, not until, rarely, seldom, no sooner...(than),
hardly...(when), hardly ever, at no time, in no way, on no account, not only...(but also).
For example:

 He had never eaten such a huge meal. ⇒ Never had he eaten such a huge meal.

 I rarely go to the cinema. ⇒ Rarely do I go to the cinema.

 We had no sooner sat down to dinner than there came an explosion from the
kitchen. ⇒ No sooner had we sat down to dinner than there came an explosion
from the kitchen.

 I did not allow myself to consider the issue until I reached home. ⇒ Not until I
reached home did I allow myself to consider the issue.

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  You will come across a more hospitable nation nowhere. ⇒ Nowhere will you
come across a more hospitable nation.

 The two strangers had hardly arrived when the majority of the guests left. ⇒
Hardly had the two strangers arrived when the majority of the guests left.

 I will on no account compromise my ideals. ⇒ On no account will I compromise

my ideals.

 Mr. Smith was never informed at any time. ⇒ At no time was Mr. Smith ever
informed.

 The government can in no way deny its guilt. ⇒ In no way can the government
deny its guilt.

When we begin the sentence with the restrictive expressions little, only when, only
after. For example:

 I realized the value of my parents’ advice only when I myself became a parent.
⇒ Only when I myself became a parent did I realize the value of my parents’
advice.

 Mary admitted that she had stolen the jewellery only after her father was
imprisoned. ⇒ Only after her father was imprisoned did Mary admit that she
had stolen the jewellery.

 We realized little the seriousness of the situation. ⇒ Little did we realize the
seriousness of the situation.

When we begin a conditional sentence with either the auxiliary had, should or were.
For example:
(Note: if is omitted.)

 If you had arrived a minute earlier, you would have seen a most remarkable
sight. ⇒ Had you arrived a minute earlier, you would have seen a most
remarkable sight.

 If you should ever come to London, come to visit me. ⇒ Should you ever come to
London, come to visit me.

 If he were to realize the danger he was in, he would not proceed with his plan.
⇒ Were he to realize the danger he was in, he would not proceed with his plan.

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EXERCISE 1

Rewrite the following sentences so as to place emphasis on the underlined words.

Use subordinate clauses and make any necessary changes in the form of the new
sentences. Look at the examples.

Example:
Mary wants to marry a millionaire man.
Who wants to marry a millionaire man is Mary. OR Mary is the woman who wants
to marry a millionaire man.

Some students want to pass without studying. I hate that.

What I hate is the way some students want to pass.

Dancing makes me happy.

Dancing is what makes me happy.

My friends always remember my birthday. I appreciate that.

What I appreciate is the fact that my friends always remember my birthday.

His bragging annoys me.

It is his bragging that annoys me

Now you:

1. Venezuela’s economy depends mostly on its oil revenues.

2. John lives in a poor house.
3. The third midterm exam will be on Wednesday.
4. Paul’s mannerisms draw everybody’s attention.
5. My students are hardworking. I love that.

EXERCISE 2

Rewrite the following sentences putting the underlined word(s) as the first elements
of the new sentences.
Please make any necessary changes.

Examples:

I had never eaten such a huge meal.

Never had I eaten such a huge meal.

We knew little about his evil plans.

Little did we know about his evil plans.

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 If I had seen John, I would have invited him to the party.
Had I seen John, I would have invited him to the party.

Now you:

1. Mary hardly ever goes to the cinema.

2. The teacher will not rest until his students understand the lessons.
3. If you should have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact me.
4. The teacher had no sooner left than the students began to make noise.
5. The children were rescued only after the firemen arrived.

3. HYPOTHESIZING IN SPEECH

Introduction

Acording to most dictionary entries, a hypothesis is an `idea or explanation for

something that is based on known facts but has not yet been proved´.

In English, there are a few familiar ways of hypothesizing by means of particular verbs
and verb tense patterns to express the things that we imagine.

Explanation

Expressing Wishes

We use past tense forms to talk about wishes:

- We use past tense modals would and could to talk about wishes for the future:

 I don’t like my work. I wish I could get a better job.

 That’s a dreadful noise. I wish it would stop.
 I always have to get home early. I wish my parents would let me stay out
later.

- We use past tense forms to talk about wishes for the present:

 I don’t like this place. I wish I lived in somewhere more interesting.

 These seats are very uncomfortable. I wish we were travelling first class.
 Everyone wishes they had more free time.
 John wishes he wasn’t so busy.
 I wish it wasn’t so cold.

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 - We use the past perfect to talk about wishes for the past:

 I wish I had worked harder when I was at school.

 Mary wishes she had listened to what her mother told her.
 I wish I hadn’t spent so much money last month.

Expressing hypotheses

- We use present tense forms after phrases like what if, in case and suppose to
talk about the future if we think it is likely to happen:

 Those steps are dangerous. Suppose someone has an accident.

 We should leave home early in case we are late.

- We use a past tense form to talk about the future after suppose and what if to
suggest something is not likely to happen:

 It might be dangerous. Suppose they got lost.

 What if he lost his job. What would happen then?

- We use modals would, could for a hypothesis about the future:

 We can’t all stay in a hotel. It would be very expensive.

 Drive carefully. You could have an accident.

- We use would in the main clause and the past in a subordinate clause to talk
about the imagined future:

 I would always help someone who really needed help.

 I would always help someone if they really needed it.

- We use modals with have to talk about something that did not happen in the
past:

 I did not see Mary, or I might have spoken to her.

 It’s a pity Jack wasn’t at the party. He would have enjoyed this party.
 Why didn’t you ask me. I could have told you the answer.

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EXERCISE 1

Match the sentences of the two columns to make a correct wish or hypothesis.

I wish I hadn't silghtly taller.

I wish you were shared a taxi.
I wish the neighbours would stop arguing.
Do you ever wish you there's a lot of traffic.
I sometimes wish I eaten so much. I can hardly move!
I do wish you wouldn't do that!
I think he wishes he had a sister
I wish I was hadn't come.
This club is very small. Suppose it rains?
I didn't know you lived so close. We could have look good.
We can't all leave at the same time. It wouldn't coming with me.
Are you sure you want the party outside? What if there were a fire.
We should take the underground in case were more ambitious?

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Let’s practice!
1. READING: PLANS AND DECISIONS

DECISIONS AND SOLUTIONS

Hans Brokaw, head of a company making garden furniture, is announcing to his senior
staff plans he is making to move the business exclusively to the Internet.

As you know, for some time now we've been toying with the idea of
transferring all our business to Internet-only sales as a long-term solution to
the problem of finding good retail outlets. You'll remember that at the last
team meeting Rob unveiled a plan to move the line to the web in three
phases over nine months. And Philipp did a great job drumming up support 3
for the move among the sales and marketing people. Since then, as you also
know, we've had a slight change of plan, and, acting on a suggestion from the
logistics team, we've now decided that the move should happen over 12
months. In order to implement such a plan, we need to draw up a schedule
and stick to that schedule.
So I'd like to make a tentative suggestion. Before we launch the scheme, I
think we should invite the web designers to come here and take us through
the process from their side. That will give us the opportunity to exercise
water control over things. I don't think we should just leave everything to
their discretion8. I'm just aware of how important it's going to be to cover
every eventuality9 before we commit 100% to the Internet.
We propose to end our relationship with the garden centres where we
currently sell. We've reached this decision after careful consideration. We do
believe that realistically it's the only option open to us. The deciding factor
was losing our biggest customer — the Greenway garden centre chain. After
that, we really had no choice.

MAKING PLANS
Good morning, friends, and welcome to our summit, the first of what we plan as
an annual event! I have been waiting for this day with eager anticipation for a long
time. We came up with the idea five years ago and preparations have been
underway ever since. There was a certain amount of necessary groundwork to do,
of course, before our sponsors were able to reach the decision to support us. But
then we were able to turn our attention to how best to put our ideas into practice.
REJECTING PLANS

Someone may declare outright opposition or outright hostility to a plan. [say they
are completely opposed/hostile]. A plan can be rejected out of hand. [totally
rejected]. Those who do not like a plan or piece of work may offer constructive
criticism. [Criticism which is useful and intended to help or improve]

**NOTE: We come to or we arrive to a conclusion. We do NOT make a conclusion.

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 2. WRITING
What was the most important decision you have ever made? Did people criticize you?
Do you regret the decision?

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GLOSSARY

ENGLISH SPANISH EXAMPLE

Colleagues colega/compañero(trabajo) My colleagues make more money than me

The data suggests that you would tend to choose
Data Datos
the first job
Social comparison is one of the factors that derail
Derail arruinar/ estropear
our decisions
Groundwo Trabajo preliminar, We haven't done the groundwork for the
rk preparativos presentation yet
Implementar, llevar a cabo un If we want to do this right, we must implement the
Implement
plan plan carefully
Our travel was awesome, we had an excellent
Lodging Alojamiento Temporal
lodging in a luxury hotel
Máster en Administración de
MBA Imagine you're an MBA student
Empresas
Peers colega We look at others our peers

Program Programa/ curso people who graduated from your own program
A recent research shows that pigs are more
Research investigación/estudio
intelligent than human beings
Stick to Atenerse Stick to the plan, and everything will be all right.
knowing that you fare as well when comparing
To fare Irle a uno (bien o mal)
yourself to others
To join Unirse/ alistarse you'll be joining a different company

Toying Darle vueltas a algo I am toying with the idea of making a tattoo
the social comparison is triggered by the second
Trigger Desencadenar
job
En progreso, que está I don't know exactly what, but something is
Underway
pasando underway
Uneasy Incómodo/ molesto It makes you feel uneasy

Unveil Revelar, descubrir The spy didn't unveil his true identity

EXPRESIONES SIGNIFICADO
Decision makers Responsable/ encargado
To be good at solving problems Ser bueno resolviendo problemas
In order to Para
To come in the way manifestarse/ resultar en algo
Tend to... Tender a/ hacia...
Social comparisons are trickling Las comparaciones sociales se están filtrando

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in
Daily spending money
Rack up
drumming up support
Act on a suggestion
Tentative suggestion
Leave something to their
discretion
To cover everything eventuality
Eager anticipation
Outright opposition
Reject out of hand
Constructive criticism
Dinero que puedes permitirte gastar al día
Acumular, juntar, cosechar
Promocionar, buscar apoyos, incrementar apoyos
Hacer algo como resultado de una sugerencia
Una sugerencia de la que no estás seguro de si se tendrá en
cuenta
Dejar algo en manos de otros
Considerar en una situación todas las dificultades posibles
Esperar algo con entusiasmo
Completamente en contra, en total desacuerdo
Rechazar completamente
Crítica constructiva
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MÓDULO 3: WAYS OF TALKING

WARMING UP

What are we going to see in this lesson?

 Internet acronym
 Language features
 Words after infinitives
 Spoken questions and responses
 Other spoken features
 Learning words and expressions in context
 Bad words
 Abbreviations

Language features
1. WORDS AFTER INFINITIVE

To avoid repeating words from a previous clause or sentence we use an auxiliary verb (be,
have, can, will, would, etc). Instead of a whole verb group (e.g. “has finished”) or instead of a
verb and what follows it (e.g. to go to Paris):

 She says she’s finished, but I don’t think she has. (instead of…has finished).
 Would any of you like to go to Paris? I would. (instead of I would like to go to Paris).

If there is more than one auxiliary verb in the previous clause or sentence, we leave out all the
auxiliary verbs except the first one instead of repeating the main verb. Alternatively, we can
use two (or more) auxiliary verbs:

 Mex hadn’t been invited to the meal, although his wife had (or had been).
 They could have been delayed bu the snow. Yes, they could (or could have been).

If there is no auxiliary verb in the previous clause or sentence, or if the auxiliary is a form
of do, we can use a form of do instead of repeating the main verb. We use do when the main
verb is a present simple form and did when it is a past simple form:

 Mónica plays golf on Saturdays, and I do too. (Instead of and I play golf

Página 83
 on Saturdays too and so do I is also possible).
 I didn’t steal the money. No-one thinks that you did. (Instead of thinks that
you stole it; No one thinks so is also possible).

If to be is the main verb in the previous clause or sentence, we repeat a form of the verb to
be:

 The children are noisy again. They always are.

If have or have got is the main verb in the previous clause or sentence, we can usually use a
form of either do or have:

 Do you think I have a chance of winning? Yes, I think you have. (Or you do, yes, I think
so is also possible).
 Even if he hasn’t got a map himself, he may know someone who has. (or who
does).

However, if we use have + noun in the previous clause or sentence to talk about actions (have
a shower, have a shave, have a good time, etc). We prefer do:

 I wasn’t expecting to have a good time at the party, but I did.

Notice that sometimes we can use either do, be or have with a similar meaning:

 I asked Suzie to tidy her room, and she has/did (has replaces has tidied her
room, did replaces tidied her room).

If we use have as an auxiliary verb, we can often follow it with done instead of repeating the
main verb. This happens particularly in spoken English:

 She’s never made a mistake before. Well, she has done this time. (However, this is
usually not possible when the verb being substituted is intransitive).
 They’ve already gone. I don’t think Bob has. (not Bob has done)

Similarly, after a modal auxiliary verb (can, could, may, might, must, ought to, shall, should,
will, would) we can use do particularly in spoken English:

 Will you be seeing Tony today? I might (do).

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 2. SOME UK ENGLISH VARIETIES

The UK is a rich landscape of regional accents and dialects, each evidence of our
society’s continuity and change, our local history and our day-to-day lives. With countless
accents shaped by thousands of years of history, there are few English- speaking nations with
as many varieties of language in such a small space.

Received Pronunciation
Received Pronunciation is the closest to a “standard accent” that has ever existed in the UK.
Although it originally derives from London English, it is non-regional. You’ve probably heard
this accent countless times in Jane Austen adaptations, Merchant Ivory films, and Oscar Wilde
plays. It emerged from the 18th- and 19th-Century aristocracy, and has remained the “gold
standard” ever since.

Features:

- Non-rhoticity, meaning the r at the ends of words isn’t pronounced (mother

sounds like “muhthuh”).

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 - Trap-bath split, meaning that certain a words, like bath, can’t, and dance are
pronounced with the broad-a in father. (This differs from most American
accents, in which these words are pronounced with the short-a in cat.
- The vowels tend to be a bit more conservative than other accents in Southern England,
which have undergone significant vowel shifting over the past century.

Cockney
Cockney is probably the second most famous British accent. It originated in the East End of
London, but shares many features with and influences other dialects in that region.

Features:

- Raised vowel in words like trap and cat so these sounds like “trep” and “cet.”
- Non-rhoticity: see explanation above under Received Pronunciation, above.
- Trap-bath split: see explanation above under Received Pronunciation.
- London vowel shift: The vowel sounds are shifted around so that Cockney “day” sounds
is pronounced dæɪ (close to American “die”) and Cockney buy verges near bɒɪ (close to
American “boy”).
- Glottal Stopping: the letter t is pronounced with the back of the throat (glottis) in
between vowels; hence better becomes be´ə (sounds to outsiders like “be’uh”).
- L-vocalization: The l at the end of words often becomes a vowel sound Hence
pal can seem to sound like “pow.”
- Th-Fronting: The th in words like think or this is pronounced with a more
forward consonant depending on the word: thing becomes “fing,” this becomes
“dis,” and mother becomes “muhvah.”

Estuary English (Southeast British)

Estuary is an accent derived from London English which has achieved a status slightly similar to
“General American” in the US. Features of the accent can be heard around Southeast England,
East Anglia, and perhaps further afield. It is arguably creeping into the Midlands and North.

Features:

- Similar to Cockney, but in general Estuary speakers do not front th words or raise the
vowel in trap. There are few hard-and-fast rules, however.
- Glottal stopping of ‘t’ and l-vocalization (see above) are markers of this accent, but
there is some debate about their frequency.

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West Country (Southwest British)
West Country refers to a large swath of accents heard in the South of England, starting about
fifty miles West of London and extending to the Welsh border.

Features:

- Rhoticity, meaning that the letter r is pronounced after vowels. So, for example,
whereas somebody from London would pronounce mother as “muthah,” somebody
from Bristol would say “mutherrr“. (i.e. the way people pronounce the word in
America or Ireland).
- Otherwise, this is a huge dialect area, so there’s tons of variation.

Midlands English
Midlands English is one of the more stigmatized of Englishes. Technically, this can be divided
into East Midlands and West Midlands, but I won’t get into the differences between the
two just now. The most famous of these dialects is Brummie (Birmingham
English).

Features:

- The foot-strut merger, meaning that the syllable in foot and could is
pronounced with the same syllable as strut and fudge. (ʊ).
- A system of vowels otherwise vaguely reminiscent of Australian accents, with short i in
kit sometimes verging toward kit (“keet”) and extremely open “loose” dipthongs.
- A variety of unusual vocabulary: some East Midlands dialects still feature a variant of
the word “thou!”

Northern England English

These are the accents and dialect spoken north of the midlands, in cities like Manchester,
Leeds, and Liverpool. Related accents also found in rural Yorkshire, although there are some
unique dialect features there that I won’t get into now.

Features:
- The foot-stut merger: (see the Midlands description above).
- Non-rhoticity, except in some rural areas.
- The dipthong in words like kite and ride is lengthened so that kite can become
something like ka:ɪt (i.e. it sounds a bit like “kaaaait”)

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 - Unique vocab includes use of the word mam to mean mother, similar to Irish English.

Geordie
Geordie usually refers to both the people and dialect of Newcastle-Upon-Tyne, in Northeast
England. The word may also refer to accents and dialects in Northeast England in general. I
would classify this as a separate region from the rest of Northern England because it’s so
radically different from the language spoken in nearby cities.

Features:
- The foot-stut merger (see the Midlands description above).
- Non-rhoticity (in the cities at least)
- The /ai/ dipthong in kite is raised to ɛɪ, so it sounds a bit more like American or
Standard British “kate.”
- The /au/ dipthong in “about” is pronounced u: (that is, “oo”) in strong dialects. Hence
bout can sound like “boot.”

Welsh English
This refers to the accents and dialects spoken in the country of Wales. The speech of this
region is heavily influenced by the Welsh language, which remained more widely spoken in
modern times than the other Celtic languages.

Features:
- Usually non-rhotic.
- English is generally modelled after Received Pronunciation or related accents, but with
many holdovers from the Welsh language.
- Syllables tend to be very evenly stressed, and the prosody of the accent is often very
“musical”.
- The letter r is often trilled or tapped.
- Some dialect words imported from the Welsh language.

Scottish English
This is the broad definition used to describe English as it is spoken in the country of Scotland.
Note that Scottish English is different than Scots, a language derived from
Northumbrian Old English that is spoken in Scotland as well. That being said, Scots have a
strong influence on how English in Scotland is spoken.

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Features:

- Rhotic, with trilled or tapped r’s.

- Glottal stopping of the letter t when in between vowels (similar to Cockney and related
accents).
- Monopthongal pronounciations of the /ei/ and /ou/ dipthongs, so that that face
becomes fe:s and goat becomes go:t.

3. OTHER SPOKEN FEATURES

The main features of spoken English grammar:

Spoken language often involves false starts, incomplete utterances, ellipsis and reformulation.
Where communication is achieved, such features are not penalised.

Ellipsis
Omission of one or more words in clause.

 Any luck? Instead of “Did you have any luck?”

Repetition
Spoken language is produced spontaneously, in real time, and we do not have time to plan
what we are going to say. This often results in repetition and additions. For example, a
quantifier is often placed after its noun or pronoun:

 Parisians, most of them speak some English.

Or we often add a "tail” at the end:

 It’s a funny place, this town.

Vagueness
Vague language is more likely to be the sign of a skilled and sensitive speaker than a lazy one.
Some examples of vagueness in spoken English include:

 -ish, kind of / kinda, .., or something, … and things like that.

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Historical present
The use of present tenses to narrate past events in order to achieve a more dramatic and vivid
effect.

 I get to my car and then I realise that I’ve left my car keys at home so I go back
home and guess what?…

Discourse markers
Discourse markers used in Spoken English are quite different than those in written English

 Well…, anyway…I mean… You know.

 NB. "You know" is the most frequent word combination in English.

Formulaic language
Exchanges in a conversation often consist of formulaic expressions rather than full sentences.

 That’s fine. What time? What about…?

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Let’s practice!
1. READING: TABOO WORDS

TABOO WORDS AND SWEARWORDS

TABOO WORDS
Many languages have words which are considered dangerous, holy, magic or shocking
and which are only used in certain situation by certain people. For instance, in African
tribes the name of dead chiefs must not be said!
The following are some of the most common English taboo words, with explanations of
their literal meaning where necessary. Their approximate ¨strength¨ is shown by stars:
one-star words like ¨hell¨, ¨damn¨ or ¨balst¨ (which are scarcely taboo in modern
English) will not upset many people, while a three-star word may be very shocking.

Religion:
Damn* (condemned to hell)
Blast* (strike with divine punishment)
Hell*
God*
Jesus*
Christ*

Sexual activity:
Bastard** (child of unmarried parents)

Lavatory:
Piss***

SWEARWORDS
All of the words listed above, and a few others, are used in swearing. The meaning of a
swearword is always different from its literal (taboo) meaning

Exclamation of annoyance
- Damn (it)!
- God damn it!
- God damn!
- Hell!
- My God!
- Jesus!
- Christ!
- Jesus Christ!

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Examples of use:
 Damn it! Can´t you hurry up?
 Christ! It´s raining again!

Exclamation of surprise:
- (My)God!
- Jesus!
- Well, I´ll be damned!
- Son of a bitch! (mostly American English)

Examples of use:
 My God! Look at that!
 Well, I´m damned! What are you doing here?

surprised questions

- Who/What/Why etc. the hell…?

Example of use:
 What the hell do you think you´re doing?

Insult
Note that these nouns generally have no real meaning. They simply express a strong
emotion such as hatred, anger, envy or contempt.
- Bastard
- Shit

Examples of use:
 You bastard!

Insult (imperative verb + object)

- Damn…..!

Examples of use:
 Damn that child!

Insulting request to go away

- Piss off!

Examples of use:
 If Andy comes asking for money tell him to piss off!
*In British English ¨pissed¨ means ¨drunk¨ and ¨pissed off¨ means ¨fed up¨
 I´m getting pissed off with London!
*In American English ¨pissed¨ is annoyed, ¨angry¨.
 I´m pissed at him because of what he´s been saying about me.

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Expression of unconcern (meaning : ¨I don´t care¨)
- I don`t / couldn´t give a damn

Examples of use:
 They can come and arrest me if they want. I don´t give a damn!

Intensifying adjective/adverb
- damn(ed)
- bloody
- goddamn

Examples of use:
 That car´s going damn(ed) fast!
 Where´s the bloody switch?
 It´s bloody raining again!
*When these words are used before verbs, the word ¨well¨ is often added in British
English:
 I damn well hope you never come back!
 It´s bloody well raining again!

Just for your entertainment, here´s a video you full of taboo and swearwords, in case
you want to watch it! (AWARNING: IT CAN GET A BIT BLOODY)

Read the following text:

How Swearing Works
by Tracy V. Wilson
We all know what "bad words" are. Unlike most other language rules, we learn about
swearwords and how to use them without any real study or classroom instruction.
Even very young children know which words are naughty, although they don't always
know exactly what those words mean.
But swearwords aren't quite as simple as they seem. They're paradoxical -- saying
them is taboo in nearly every culture, but instead of avoiding them as with other
taboos, people use them. Most associate swearing with being angry or frustrated, but
people swear for a number of reasons and in a variety of situations. Swearing also
serves multiple purposes in social interactions. Not only that, your brain treats
swearwords differently than it treats other words.
People learning a new language often learn its swearwords first or learn and use
swearwords from a variety of languages. Anyone who learns through immersion rather
than in a classroom tends to use more swearwords and colloquialisms. People who
speak more than one language often use swearwords from different languages, but
feel that the words from their primary language have the most emotional impact. For
this reason, some multilingual speakers will switch to a second language to express
taboo subjects.

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Most researchers agree that swearing came from early forms of word magic. Studies
of modern, non-literate cultures suggest that swearwords came from the belief that
spoken words have power. Some cultures, especially ones that have not developed a
written language, believe that spoken words can curse or bless people or can
otherwise affect the world. This leads to the idea that some words are either very good
or very bad.
While spoken swearwords from different languages don't sound alike, they generally
fall into one of two categories. Most of the time, they are either deistic (related to
religion) or visceral (related to the human body and its functions). Some swearwords
also relate to a person's ancestry or parentage. While some linguists classify racial
curses and epithets as swearwords, others place them in a separate category. So the
words themselves are similar, but in different cultures people swear at different times
and in different contexts.
In the Western, English-speaking world, people from every race, class and level of
education swear. In America, 72 percent of men and 58 percent of women swear in
public. The same is true for 74 percent of 18 to 34 year olds and 48 percent of people
who are over age 55. Numerous language researchers report that men swear more
than women, but studies that focus on women's use of language theorize that
women's swearing is simply more context specific.

EXERCISE

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS.

Choose if each sentence below is TRUE or FALSE according to the text above:

1. People generally tend to avoid swearwords.

- TRUE
- FALSE
2. Young children use naughty words when they know what they exactly mean.
- TRUE
- FALSE
3. We don’t only swear when we are angry or frustrated.
- TRUE
- FALSE
4. Our brain treats swearwords differently.
- TRUE
- FALSE
5. People who are bilingual or multilingual switch to their primary language to
express taboo subjects.
- TRUE
- FALSE

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6. Men swear more than women.
- TRUE
- FALSE
7. All the students of a second language who learn through immersion are more
likely to use more swearwords and colloquialisms
- TRUE
- FALSE

2. WRITING
Taboo Words

Write a dialogue including some of the expressions you have just studied in this section
and send it to your tutor.

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GLOSSARY

INGLÉS ESPAÑOL EJEMPLO

Damn maldita sea Damn it! Can you hurry up?
Damned jodido I'm damned! What are you doing here?
tocar las narices,
Piss off perderse, mandar al If Andy comes again asking for money tell him to piss off
carajo
Bloody jodido, maldito Where is the bloody switch?
goddamn de mierda This goddamn car won't start!
Curse words palabrotas Young children are suppposed no to say curse words
Poultry aves de corral In poultry, the legs show many cursorial adaptations.
Arrange these on a hot dish and place the venison
Venison carne de venado
cutlets on top.
catártico,
The writing, he said, had been a very cathartic
Cathartic purificador,
experience for him.
liberador
maldecir, decir
Cuss He also tends to curse and blaspheme a lot.
palabrotas
despectivo, Members of the audience were shouting derogatory
Derogatory
peyorativo. remarks
An incoming call produces a short bleep initially, then a
Bleep pitido
full ringing sound.
garabato, The squiggle at the border represents an emotional
Squiggle
garabatear rollercoaster.
His death was due to blood poisoning caused by a nail in
Nail clavo
his cricket boot.
Griffiths, it has to be said, is a highly unstable and
Mercurial voluble
mercurial character politically.
debilidad, dolencia, modern medicine gives us better lives now but
Infirmity
enfermedad. condemns future generations to genetic infirmity.
Gross repugnante. There was a gross smell coming from the drains
Whereby spectators can report uncouth behaviour by
Uncouth ordinario.
SMS.
raíz, tener la raíz de, Many of the accusations seem to stem from an
Stem
venir de. acrimonious divorce.
The threat of further terror strikes in the capital has not
Threat amenaza, amenazar
abated.
Startle asustar, alarmar. "I didn't mean to startle you," he said.
incremento,
It 's a kind of pause for breath after the spurt of activity
Spurt incrementar,
over the last couple of weeks.
acelerar,
Lame soso, aburrido Nate left the party early because it was lame

EXPRESIONES SIGNIFICADO
Meet deadlines Cumplir plazos
life at warp speed Vivir a toda velocidad
To be more likely to… Ser más probable de que…

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BLOQUE 3
MÓDULO 1: THE WORLD OF FASHION

WARMING UP
What are you going to see in this lesson?

 LFC Careers
 Characteristics
 Advanced knowledge of adverbs
 Adjective patterns
 Gradable and non-gradable patterns
 Learning words and expressions in context
 Paying compliments
 Criticizing people

ADVERBS AND ADJECTIVES

1. ADVANCED KNOWLEDGE OF ADVERBS

Definition

Adverbs describe how an action happens.

 Jill walks slowly.

Explanation

Adverbs:

- describe the action of a verb.

- usually end in "ly".
- have irregular forms.
- usually follow the verb they describe.

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Definition

An adverb clause is a dependent clause that modifies or describes a verb, adjective, or

adverb in the independent clause.

 When it rains, I wear my hat.

Explanation

An adverb clause:

- shows the relationship between the independent clause and the dependent
clause. For example, an adverb clause can show:
 time order.
 cause and effect.
 contrast.
 condition.
- is introduced by a subordinate conjunction (a kind of linking word).
- can be placed before or after the independent clause.
- is followed by a comma when the adverb clause is placed before the
independent clause.
- uses present tense, NOT future tense, when it is showing time order in the
future.

Definition

An adverb phrase does the same job as an adverb clause. It modifies a verb, adjective,
or adverb in the independent clause. The adverb phrase does not have a subject and
verb. It is a "reduced" adverb clause.

Sentence with adverb clause: While I was waiting for the bus, I saw my neighbour drive
by.

 Independent clause: I saw my neighbour drive by.

 Adverb clause: While I was waiting for the bus.

 Adverb phrase: While waiting for the bus.

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Sentence with adverb phrase: While waiting for the bus, I saw my neighbour drive by.
Adverb phrase: no subject or verb.

Explanation

An adverb phrase:

- is a reduced adverb clause. Adverb clauses can be reduced in ONLY one

situation. Reduce an adverb clause only when the subject of the adverb clause
is the same as the subject of the independent clause.
- has the same meaning as the adverb clause.
- has no subject.
- does not have a complete verb.
- follows two general rules:
1. When the adverb clause has a "be" verb form, omit the subject and the "be"
verb form.
2. When the adverb clause does not have a "be" verb form, omit the subject
and change the verb to its participle (-ing) form.

EXERCISE 1

What kinds of adverb clauses are used in the following sentences?

1. When the ski season is over, Janet is going to Mexico for a holiday.
- adverb clause showing contrast
- adverb clause showing condition
- adverb clause showing time

2. Instead of going out to a movie tonight, why don't we stay at home and watch
a video?
- adverb clause showing contrast
- adverb clause showing cause and effect
- adverb clause showing condition

3. I wouldn't watch a romantic comedy movie even if you paid me to watch it.
- adverb clause showing time
- adverb clause showing cause and effect
- adverb clause showing condition

4. Since we missed the deadline, we will have to pay a penalty.

- adverb clause showing contrast

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 - adverb clause showing cause and effect
- adverb clause showing time

5. Which sentence uses the correct verb tense?

- By the time I complete this course, I will have written over ten essays.
- By the time the course will finish, I will have written over ten essays.
- By the time the course ends, I have written over ten essays.

6. Which sentence uses the correct verb tense?

- We go to the beach when Sharon will get here.
- We go to the beach when Sharon is getting here.
- We will go to the beach when Sharon gets here.

7. Which sentence uses the correct verb tense?

- When the game is over, we went home.
- When the game was over, we went home.
- When the game was over, we will go home.

8. Which of the following sentences has an adverb clause?

- The increase in the cost of gas may result in people driving less.
- People may drive less because the cost of gas has increased.

9. Which of the following sentences has an adverb clause?

- First of all, you should renew your passport.
- Before you do anything else, renew your passport.

10. Which sentence has the correct punctuation?

- When it is snowing, I like to go for a walk through the forest.
- I like to go for a walk through the forest, when it is snowing.

EXERCISE 2

For each sentence, choose the best word or phrase to complete the gap from the
choices below.

1. Thanks for the weekend. We had ____ a wonderful time.

A so B such C very D absolutely

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2. The weather at the beach on Saturday was __________ gorgeous.
A such B extremely C absolutely D awfully

3. Try that restaurant. The food is ______ marvelous.

A such B very C terribly D simply
4. I was _________ annoyed when he said that.
A much B absolutely C totally D extremely

5. He told me a/an __________ unbelievable story.

A completely B extremely C nearly D very

6. You probably feel quite cold today but actually, fifteen degrees is ______ hot
for England in October.
A simply B pretty C completely D absolutely

7. What they told the police was _______ untrue.

A extremely B very C totally D rather

8. Both sisters were _______ brilliant students.

A relatively B totally C almost D wholly

9. That's a wonderful ring. It must have been ______ expensive.

A really B absolutely C simply D totally

10. I need to sit by the fire. I'm __________ freezing!

A rather B wholly C absolutely D very

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 2. ADJECTIVE PATTERNS

Adjectives with prepositions

Main points

- Some adjectives used after link verbs can be used alone or followed by a prepositional
phrase.
- Some adjectives must be followed by particular prepositions.
- Some adjectives can be followed by different prepositions to introduce different types
of information.

When you use an adjective after a link verb, you can often use the adjective on its own or
followed by a prepositional phrase.

 He was afraid.

 He was afraid of his enemies.

Some adjectives cannot be used alone after a link verb. If they are followed by a prepositional
phrase, it must have a particular preposition:

aware of unaware of fond of

accustomed to unaccustomed to used to

 I've always been terribly fond of you. He is unaccustomed to the heat.

Some adjectives can be used alone, or followed by a particular preposition.

- Used alone, or with ‘of ’ to specify the cause of a feeling:

afraid critical jealous suspicious

ashamed envious proud terrified
convinced frightened scared tired

 They may feel jealous of your success. I was terrified of her.

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- Used alone, or with ‘of ’ to specify the person who has a quality:

brave good polite thoughtful

careless intelligent sensible unkind
clever kind silly unreasonable
generous nice stupid wrong

 That was clever of you!

 I turned the job down, which was stupid of me.

- Used alone or with ‘to’, usually referring to:

similarity: close equal identical related similar

marriage: married engaged

loyalty: dedicated devoted loyal

 My problems are very similar to yours. He was dedicated to his job.

- Used alone, or followed by 'with' to specify the cause of a feeling:

bored displeased impatient pleased

content dissatisfied impressed satisfied

 I could never be bored with football. He was pleased with her.

- Used alone or with ‘at’, usually referring to:

strong reactions: amazed astonished shocked surprised

ability: bad excellent good hopeless useless

 He was shocked at the hatred they had shown. She had always been good at
languages.

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 - Used alone, or with ‘for’ to specify the person or thing that quality relates to:

common essential possible unusual

difficult easy important unnecessary
usual necessary

 It's difficult for young people on their own.

 It was unusual for them to go away at the weekend.

Some adjectives can be used alone, or used with different prepositions.

- Used alone, with an impersonal subject and ‘of ’ and the subject of the action, or with
a personal subject and ‘to’ and the object of the action:

Cruel good nasty rude

friendly kind nice unfriendly
generous mean polite unkind

 It was rude of him to leave so suddenly. She was rude to him for no reason.

- Used alone, with ‘about’ to specify a thing or ‘with’ to specify a person:

angry delighted fed up happy

annoyed disappointed furious upset

 She was still angry about the result. They're getting pretty fed up with him.

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Adjectives with ‘to’-infinitive or ‘that’-clauses

Main points

- Adjectives used after link verbs are often followed by ‘to’-infinitive clauses or ‘that’-
clauses.
- Some adjectives are always followed by ‘to’-infinitive clauses.
- You often use ‘to’-infinitive clauses or ‘that’-clauses after adjectives to express feelings
or opinions.
- You often use ‘to’-infinitive clauses after adjectives when the subject is impersonal ‘it’.

After link verbs, you often use adjectives that describe how someone feels about an action or
situation. With some adjectives, you can add a ‘to’-infinitive clause or a ‘that’- clause to say
what the action or situation is.

afraid disappointed happy sad

anxious frightened pleased surprised
ashamed glad proud unhappy

If the subject is the same in both clauses, you usually use a ‘to’-infinitive clause. If the subject is
different, you must use a ‘that’-clause.

 I was happy to see them again.

 He was happy that they were coming to the party.

You often use a ‘to’-infinitive clause when talking about future time in relation to the main
clause.

 I am afraid to go home.
 He was anxious to leave before it got dark.

You often use a ‘that’-clause when talking about present or past time in relation to the main
clause.

 He was anxious that the passport was missing.

 They were afraid that I might have talked to the police.

You often use ‘sorry’ with a ‘that’-clause. Note that ‘that’ is often omitted.

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  I'm very sorry that I can't join you.
 I'm sorry I'm so late.

Some adjectives are not usually used alone, but have a ‘to’-infinitive clause after them to say
what action or situation the adjective relates to.

able due likely unlikely

inclined prepared unwilling bound
liable ready willing apt

 They were unable to help her.

 They were not likely to forget it.
 I am willing to try.
 I'm prepared to say I was wrong.

When you want to express an opinion about someone or something, you often use an
adjective followed by a ‘to’-infinitive clause.

difficult easy impossible possible right wrong

 She had been easy to deceive.

 The windows will be almost impossible to open.
 Am I wrong to stay here?

Note that in the first two examples, the subject of the main clause is the object of the ‘to’-
infinitive clause. In the third example, the subject is the same in both clauses.

With some adjectives, you use a ‘that’-clause to express an opinion about someone or
something.

awful extraordinary important sad

bad funny interesting true
essential good obvious

 I was sad that people had reacted in this way.

 It is extraordinary that we should ever have met!

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You can also use adjectives with ‘to’-infinitive clauses after ‘it’ as the impersonal subject. You
use the preposition ‘of ’ or ‘for’ to indicate the person or thing that the adjective relates to.

 It was easy to find the path.

 It was good of John to help me.
 It was difficult for her to find a job.

3. GRADABLE / NON-GRADABLE ADJECTIVES

Gradable

Gradable adjectives are adjectives like ‘cold’ ‘hot’ and ‘frightened’. You can be very
cold or a bit cold. Gradable adjectives show that something can have different degrees.

Non-gradable

Non-gradable adjectives are adjectives like ‘married’ or ‘wooden’. You can’t be very
married or a bit married. Non-gradable adjectives do not have different degrees.

Adjectives like ‘terrifying’, ‘freezing’ ‘amazing’ are also non-gradable adjectives. They
already contain the idea of ‘very’ in their definitions – ‘freezing’ means ‘very cold’ etc.

Using adverbs of degree

When we use adverbs of degree to modify adjectives we usually have to use different adverbs
for gradable and non-gradable adjectives.

With gradable adjectives

 It’s a bit cold in here. Shall I turn the fire on?

 He’s very interested in history. Why don’t you buy him a history book?
 This exercise is really difficult. I don’t know any of the answers.
 I’m extremely tired. I’m going to bed.

The adverbs a bit, very, really, extremely and quite can all be used with gradable
adjectives.

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With non-gradable adjectives

 It’s absolutely freezing in here. Shall I turn the fire on?

 He’s completely fascinated by history. Why don’t you buy him a history book?
 This exercise is absolutely impossible.
 That film is really terrifying. Don’t go and see it on your own.

The adverbs absolutely and completely can be used with non-gradable adjectives.

Notice that really can be used with both gradable AND non-gradable adjectives.

NOTE: There are other adverbs of degree that we haven’t covered in this section. The ones
included here are some of the most common.

Really

The word really is a very useful word in informal English for two reasons:

As you can use it with both gradable and non-gradable adjectives, you don't have to worry
about the grammar side of things.

It has more emotional content than very. Look at these sentences:

 Thanks for the party, I had a very good time.
 Thanks for the party, I had a really good time.

The first is polite enough, but the second sounds as though you really mean it. As if it came
from the heart.

In formal writing, however, it is best to try and find more specific intensifiers.

How can we tell if an adjective is gradable or not?

There is no hard and fast way that we can tell whether an adjective is gradable just by looking
at it, but there are a couple of tests we can do.

Can we make comparative and superlative versions of the adjective?

 It's hotter today than it was yesterday. (gradable)

 It's more boiling today than it was yesterday. (strong)
 This house is more unique than that one. (absolute)

Usually we only make comparisons with gradable adjectives. So try using a comparative and if
it sounds OK, then the adjective is probably gradable. But notice that:

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Some adjectives normally considered strong or extreme, for example, tiny, do in fact
have comparative and superlative versions, although they aren't used very often.

 Smallest Frogs Found—Each TinierThan an M&M (National Geographic).

We sometimes use a comparative after even with strong adjectives, especially when
we are not directly comparing something with something else, but in a more abstract
way. –

 The view from here is even more amazing than I remember it.

Can we use the determiner very before the adjective?

 I'm very tired. (gradable)

 She's very exhausted. (strong)
 It's very unique. (absolute) If so, it's probably gradable.

Why do we use intensifiers with non-gradable adjectives?

Grading adverbs such as quite, very and extremely are used to put an adjective somewhere on
a scale.

 quite tired
 very popular
 extremely cold

But absolute and strong adjectives cannot be given a degree like this. When we use intensifiers
like absolutely, completely and totally, we are using them for emphasis rather than degree.

 completely exhausted
 absolutely right
 totally unique

Not all gradable adjectives have strong equivalents

Many gradable adjectives don't really have strong equivalents. These include:

- describing people - busy, friendly, popular, rich

- intermediates - warm, cool
- attributes - fast, slow, strong, weak, young
- dimensions - deep, shallow, high, low, long, short, tall, wide, narrow

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Unique

This little word raises passions like few others. Unique is relatively new to the English language
(it was considered a foreign word until the middle of the 19th century). It's original meaning
was being 'the only one of its kind', and therefore impossible to grade or compare, and so
absolute.

 Stonehenge is (absolutely) unique.

 We sell totally unique jewellery. Nobody else makes anything like it.
 This painting is unique in the history of British art.
In this use, I think emphasizers like absolutely and totally etc are OK.

Most people would also allow almost, nearly and practically with this meaning.

 This diamond is almost unique. There are only two others like it in the world.
 The influence of the private education system in Britain is practically unique.
 A nearly unique experience.

But there are some purists who believe that unique should remain totally unadorned -
'It is either unique or it isn't'!

From this came a secondary absolute with to, meaning - 'belonging only to somebody,
something or somewhere'.

 The Mudéjar style of architecture is unique to Spain.

 This type of cooking is unique to one part of India.
 Having stamps without the name of the country is unique to Britain.

In this use, I think any intensifiers, even absolutely or totally, would sound a bit strange, and so
are best avoided.
Very soon, however, it started to be used with the sense of 'very special or unusual', and so to
a certain degree, at least, gradable.

 He has a rather unique sense of humor.

 Chicago is no less unique an American city than New York or San Francisco.
 This trip offers a really unique opportunity to explore the Borneo rainforest.

The Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary allows the use of the words like more and very in
this meaning, and Merriam-Webster says that 'In modern use both comparison and
modification are widespread and standard'.

But be careful. Not everybody accepts this third usage, and consider the use of expressions like
very unique and more unique to be incorrect. They sound strange, but you can happily use
absolutely, totally and possibly really.

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EXERCISE 1
Match the gradable adjectives on the left with their strong equivalents on the right.

1. Angry 1. ecstatic

2. Embarrassed 2. starving

3. Excited 3. astonished

4. Frightened 4. exhausted

5. Happy 5. thrilled

6. Hungry 6. mortified

7. Interested 7. delighted

8. Pleased 8. fascinated

9. Shocked 9. devastated

10. Surprised 10. furious

11. Tired 11. horrified

12. Upset 12. terrified

EXERCISE 2
Cross out the wrong option. Choose an option to cross it out it. If you change your
mind, choose one of the other options.

1. It's a(n) absolutely / really / very nice day, isn't it?

2. I thought the film was absolutely / quite / extremely amazing.
3. It's absolutely / very / really marvelous news.
4. The forecast is looking pretty / quite / totally promising.
5. We were really / totally / very unlucky at the races.
6. I'm getting absolutely / quite / really bored with this book.
7. She was extremely / pretty / totally amazed to see him there.
8. We got really / totally / very soaked in the rain.
9. He's absolutely / extremely / pretty clever for his age.

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 10. Her first day at work as extremely / pretty / quite disastrous.
11. We had a really / totally / very pleasant day by the seaside.
12. They were really / totally / very astonished at the news.

Let’s practice!
1. READING: FASHION AND CLOTHES

Interview with a fashion model

Reporter: Would you say that fashion has always been important to you?
Beth: Well, ever since I was a child, I've loved reading glossy magazines, looking at the
photos and finding out what's in fashion.
Reporter: And as you grew up, did you buy designer label clothes?
Beth: Oh, no! I couldn't afford them, and I was actually quite happy with high-street
fashion. But I loved looking at fashion shows on TV, especially when Paris or Milan
designers launched their new collections.
Reporter: And now you are the one showing us the new season's look and setting the
trend4!
Beth: That's right. I still can't quite believe it.
Reporter: So what should we be wearing this year?
Beth: Well, there is a stunning range of new leisurewear about to hit the high
street. It's based on the new adventure-influenced trend we saw coming out of
Paris and I think it's going to be a hugely popular look. And it's going to be
comfortable to wear too.
Reporter: That's good. So, have you ever let yourself become a fashion victim?
Beth: Well, I must admit I've worn some excruciatingly uncomfortable shoes in the
past, so I'm happy to report that flat shoes are definitely back in fashion!

Glossy magazines: magazines printed out on high quality paper with lots of
photos and adverts
High-street fashion: clothes bought in ordinary shops rather than special fashion
designer
Season’s look: the new fashion style
The trend: starting the fashion
Hit the high street: become available in chainstores
Fashion victim: a person who always wears fashionable clothes even if it makes
them look ridiculous and do not suit them.

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EXERCISE 2

Vocabulary match. Match the words in column A with the words in column B.

1. glossy magazines

2. in fashion

3. designer label

4. high-street fashion

5. to launch a new collection

6. a season´s look

7. a trend

8. a stunning range

9. to hit the high street

10. a popular look

11. fashion victim

12. back in fashion

a) a certain tendency or fashion.

b) a lavishly produced publication on shiny paper and usually with many
colour photographs.
c) when a certain style or fashion returns.
d) someone who always wears whatever is considered fashionable, even if it
does not suit them.
e) The prevailing style or custom, as in dress or behavior.
f) the popular look for a particular season.
g) fashionable clothing sold in high street shops, trendy but affordable.
h) to start selling a certain line of clothing in general stores.
i) an impressive range of clothing.
j) a look that is common at a certain moment in time.
k) a famous company that makes expensive clothes, bags, etc (Armani,
Gucci…)
l) to present a new selection of clothing or accessories.

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 2. WRITING

YOU CAN´T JUDGE A BOOK BY ITS COVER

Beautiful actresses that are somehow much more than just film stars, are women who
always manage to look ahead of fashion, chic and sexy, cool and confident. One of
them is 23-year-old Doris Decker who proved even more stylish, beautiful and self-
assured in the flesh than on the screen.

Nothing extraordinary at first sight. A simple red duffel coal over a smart jacket, faded
black jeans tucked into alligator skin boots, and incredible long curly hair pulled back
with a stylish headband. No make-up, no hair gel, no jewellery.

¨Oh, I hate wearing make-up¨, she said. Being an actress means I have to wear it all
the time, so when I´m not working I prefer just to let my face breathe.

I never use dye for my hair, except of course, for the sun, which lightens it
wonderfully. My duffel coat was a present from my mother, who worries about me
keeping warm in winter, and I do wear it lot because I love walking around.

¨I like to think I choose my own style. I certainly don´t spend my days looking for ideas
in magazines. Although I do like to go to the collections, if I´m not shooting, just to see
what´s new. I don´t believe that people should make a conscious effort to ¨follow
fashion¨. I hate the idea of being loyal to a single fashion or designer. Whenever I see
something I like, I just buy it straight away. And I dress according to my mood. I never
wear earrings and I don´t like jewellery because I think a woman can end up looking
overloaded. ¨

Adapted from ¨Bella¨ magazine

What do you think the title means? In what situation do people use it?

What are the important criteria for you when you buy clothes?

Now, skim the text and decide if:

 Doris Decker is obsessed by fashion

 She has good dress sense
 She is independent in her attitude to fashion
 Her strong will is shortcoming

Write your answers and send them to your tutor.

Página 114
GLOSSARY

ENGLISH SPANISH EXAMPLE

I wouldn’t have got the placement if it hadn’t been
placement puesto de trabajo for the careers
advisors
sastrería, tienda de Urban Outfitters specifically is targeted in young
outfitter
ropa people
trabajador en
intern We don’t treat our interns as interns
prácticas
to deceive engañar, embaucar She has been easy to deceive

ecstatic eufórico I'm ecstatic

glossy
revista de moda My aunt is always reading glossy magazines
magazine
dick capullo, gilipollas don´t be a dick!

EXPRESSIONS SPANISH
they’re getting on and doing it Se ponen manos a la obra y lo hacen
we have a catch up. Nos ponemos al día
designer label marca de diseño ( Versace, Gucci, etc...)
Moda a precio asequible, tipica de grandes cadenas de
high-street fashion
tiendas
to hit the high street cuando se lanza una nueva línea de moda
a trend una tendencia
fashion victim una persona que sigue la moda con extremo interés
back in fashion estar de nuevo de moda
You look smashing! Estás despampanante!
You look absolutely gorgeous Estás guapisimo/a
You grow more and more
Cada vez estas mas guapo/a
beautiful
It´s a pleasure looking at you! ¡Da gusto mirarte!
Such a beautiful couple Hacen tan buena pareja
This colour suits you Este color te sienta bién
I like your outfit Me gusta lo que llevas puesto
make a good impression on Dar una buena impresión
everyone knows everybody Todo el mundo se conoce
in fashion de moda

Página 115
MÓDULO 2: ALL ABOUT BOOKS

WARMING UP

What are you going to see in this lesson?

 The girl who hated books

 Conditions and unreality
 Exception for conditional sentences
 If and alternatives, present and future conditions
 Subjunctive and the ‘unreal’ past
 Learning words and expressions in context
 e-books
 idiomatic expressions

CONDITIONS AND UNREALITY

1. EXCEPTIONS FOR CONDITIONAL SENTENCES

So far you have only learned the basic rules for Conditional Sentences. It
depends on the context, however, which tense to use. So sometimes it's
possible for example that in an IF Clause Type I another tense than Simple
Present is used, e.g. Present Progressive or Present Perfect.

Conditional Sentences Type I (likely)

Condition IF Clause Main Clause

refers to:
Future I …I will buy it.

If the book Imperative …buy it.

future action Simple Present
is
interesting, Modal
…you can buy it.
… Auxiliary

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 Future I …I will wake him up.

Present Imperative …wake him up.

action going on If he is snoring, …
Progressive
now Modal
…you can wake him
Auxiliary
up.
Future I …we will visit him.

If he has moved into Imperative …visit him.

finished action Present Perfect
his new flat, …
Modal
…we can visit him.
Auxiliary

Future I …I will congratulate

her.
should + If she should win Imperative …congratulate her.
improbable
Infinitive this race, …
action Modal
…we can congratulate
Auxiliary
her.
If he gets what Simple
present facts Simple Present …he is very nice.
he wants, Present
…

Conditional Sentences Type II (unlikely)

IF Clause Main Clause

Condition refers to:

Simple If I had a lot of …I would travel around

present / future event Conditional I
Past money, … the world.

consequence in the Simple Conditional

If I knew him, … …I would have said hello.
past Past II

Conditional Sentences Type II (impossible)

Condition refers IF Clause Main Clause

to:

Past …I would not be here

present If I had known it, … Conditional I
Perfect now.

Past If he had learned for Conditional …he would not have

past
Perfect the test, … II failed it.

Página 117
EXERCISE 1

Complete the Conditional Sentences Type I according to the information in brackets.

1. If it (rain /still - action going on now) ______, (stay – imperative)_______ here

for another while.
2. If it (stop - completed action)______ raining, we (go - future) _______.
3. If it (start – fact)_________ raining, we always (close – fact)_________ the
windows.
4. If it (rain / should - not very likely)_________, please (close –
imperative)________ the windows.
5. If it (rain - future action)__________, the windows (must / close - passive
voice)________.

2. IF AND ALTERNATIVES, PRESENT AND FUTURE CONDITION

Conditionals: if, unless, in case, provided that, as long as, so that

If and unless

Unless means the same as if ... not. It always refers to the conditional part of the
sentence and not the result part of the sentence:

 If he doesn't get here soon, we will have to start the meeting without him.
 Unless he gets here soon, we will have to start the meeting without him.

We often use not + unless, which means only ... if, when we want to emphasize a
condition:

 They will only sign the contract if we give them an additional discount.
 They won't sign the contract unless we give them an additional discount.

If and in case

We use in case to talk about precautions we will take before a problem happens.
We use if to talk about what we will do after a problem happens:

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  We are going to insure the shipment in case the goods get damaged in
transit. (We will take our insurance first; the problem may or may not
happen afterward.)
 If the goods get damaged in transit, we'll make a claim.
(The damage may happen, and we will make a claim afterward.)

Note that that in sentence with in case, we often use going to rather than will
because we are often talking about something that we have already decided to do.

Provided that vs as long as, etc

We can use provided that/providing, as long as, and so long as when we want to
emphasize condition. Provided that and as long as mean if and only.

If (providing and so long as are a little less formal):

 I will agree to these conditions provided that they increase my salary. (I will
only agree if they give me more money.)
 The strike will be successful as long as we all stay together. (It will only
succeed if we all stay together.)

So that

We use so that to say what the result or purpose of an action will be:

 I'll take a credit card so that we don't run out of money.

(The credit card will stop us from running out of money)

Only if

Both an if and an only if clause may be placed at the beginning of a sentence. A

comma separates the condition clause from the outcome clause.

Note that he outcome of the only-if clause has the auxiliary verb placed before the
subject.

 If you dry your dishes with a towel, they will be spotless!  Only if you dry
your dishes with a towel, will they [will] be spotless!

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  If you use Zing dish soap, you get really clean dishes.  Only if you use Zing
dish soap, would you [will] get really clean dishes.

Condition for Success vs Failed Outcome

An if clause poses a condition in order to achieve an outcome: if, only if, unless,
provided that. In contrast, the outcome of an otherwise or an or else clause states
the likely outcome if you do not do the action in the clause or sentence before it.

 If you use a thermometer, you will know when your turkey is done. Use a
thermometer. Otherwise, you won't know when your turkey is done.
(Introduces an independent clause)
 Only if you use a thermometer, will you know when your turkey is done.
(Auxiliary verb goes before subject) Use a thermometer, or else you won't
know when your turkey is done.
 Unless you use a thermometer (+) you won't know when your turkey is done.
(–)
 Provided that you use a thermometer, you will have a delicious turkey. (+)

Even if & Whether or not

An even if clause states a challenging or negative condition. "No condition will
change the outcome" Even if emphasizes the speakers intent to achieve the outcome
or goal without regard for a difficult or negative condition. A whether or not clause
states that no condition (or its alternative) will stop the completion of the
outcome in the main clause. That is, if the condition exists or if the condition
does not exist, the outcome will or must happen anyway.

 I'll help you even if I don't have much time. I'll help you whether or not I have
much time.
 I like to walk to work even if it is raining. I like to walk to work whether it is
raining or not.

Página 120
Omitting "if"

Offer advice on hypothetical situations : Were / Had / Should

If is commonly used to introduce a conditional clause. If can be omitted from a

conditional clause to shorten the sentence and place more emphasis on the result
clause. Were, had and should may be used without if by moving the auxiliary verb in
front of the subject. (Should is also used to mean in case.)

 If I were you, I wouldn't get involved. Were I you, I wouldn't get involved.
 If I had known, I would have said something. Had I known, I would have said
something.
 If you should see him again, walk the other way! Should you see him again,
walk the other way!

Subject–Verb Inversion
In a conditional clause, use normal subject verb word order after if. In a conditional
clause using were, had or should, move the auxiliary verb or be (main) verb before
the subject. Omit if.

 If I were you, I would have asked him to pay me back. Were I [were] you, I
would have asked him to pay me back.
 If the police had come, they would have stopped him. Had the police [had]
come, they would have stopped him.
 If he comes back, call me. Should he [should] return, call me.

EXERCISE 1

Complete the sentence with the conditional connector that is logical (+ / -).
If / if not/ unless / only if
1. Most drivers will let you change lanes _______you signal well in advance.
2. You shouldn't change lanes __________you signal first.
3. A driver may change lanes _____it is safe to do so.
4. A driver should stop and check for oncoming traffic before making a right turn
on a red light; _______, he will cause an accident.
5. A driver may make a right turn on a red light ______it is a one-way street and
the traffic is oncoming.

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EXERCISE 2

Select the response from the list that best completes the sentence.

1. If you should need some more money, take an extra twenty.

____________take an extra twenty.

- Should you need some more money

- were you need some more money.
- Had you need some more money

2. If I were your teacher, I would insist you try harder. ____________, I would
insist you try harder.

- Were I your teacher

- I were your teacher.

3. If my boss calls, please let me know right away.

______________, please let me know right away.

- Should my boss call

- Should my boss calls

3. SUBJUNCTIVES AND THE "UNREAL" PAST

Present Subjunctive

Infinitive without to in all persons. It is common in formal British English.

 I suggest she pHone as soon as she arrives.

In less formal English, we use a present tense form or should. When to use present
subjunctive.

- That-clauses after report verbs, adjectives or nouns to express plans,

urgency intentions or suggestions.

 The judge insisted that he pay/pays/should pay alimony.

Verbs usually followed by present subjunctive: insist, suggest, request, order,

recommend, propose, think.

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 - After if

 If he be found/is found guilty, he´ll go to prison.

- After whether

 We will continue whether he agree/agrees or not.

- After whatever

 Whatever his reasons be/are, they are insufficient to excuse him.

Past Subjunctive

It exists only in were in all persons. We use it in formal English.

 If the minister were here, he would not agree.

However, it is more common to use was and were in their usual way.

 I wish you were more extroverted, I wish he wasn´t so shy (informal).

Were is more common only in the phrase If I were you, and for all persons in the
pattern were+subject+infinitive.

 I wouldn´t argue if I were you.

 Were the vote to go against me, I would resign.

Unreal past tenses

The unreal past is similar to the Past Subjunctive. It involves using past tenses
to propose impossible, unlikely, hypothetical conditions, to discuss imaginary
situations, to express wishes, and to make proposals and polite requests.

 I wish I wasn´t so shy (but I am).

 I wish I didn´t have to take the exam (but I do).
 If only I had listened to you (but I didn´t).

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We use unreal past to discuss imaginary situations, to express impossible wishes, and
to make proposals and polite requests. We can also use past subjunctive in the
following cases:

- After if when we think it is impossible that the condition will be fulfilled.

 If she weren´t to eat/didn´t eat meat so often, she would be able to

lower her blood pressure.

- To replace an if-clause when we imagine past, present or future events

being different.

 Had he agree, he would have become a champion.

 Were he to agree, he would become the next coach.

- After if only to express regrets and frustration.

 If only he was/were more adventurous.

- After wish when we are wishing for the virtually impossible. For more
reasonable wishes, we commonly use would or could.

 I wish I weren´t/wasn´t having the injection tomorrow.

 I wish I had listened to you. I wish you wouldn´t shout all the time.

EXERCISE1
Fill in the gaps with one suitable word.

1. I can’t tell you how much I wish the architect ________ here to see the results
of his work.
2. It is time you _________ able to take full responsibility for your own actions.
3. If he _________ so self-righteous, he would realise he was wrong.
4. Imagine you ___________ completely blind, how would that affect your life?
5. If only she ____________ so impossibly beautiful.

Página 124
Let’s practice!
1. READING: BOOKSHOP

Five reasons to support your local indie bookshop

Independent Booksellers Week is coming to an end, and there's been a great deal of
noise about how virtuous little bookshops are in danger of being trampled by wicked
Goliath online retailers. Authors are being pilloried for linking their websites to online
retailers, and well-meaning publishers are coming up with initiatives to raise the indie
profile. This week I learned that 60% of shoppers use bookshops to browse for their
online purchase, and that a few authors – presumably ones with ethically impeccable
websites – are taking to manning the tills of their local bookstores. (I find this faintly
alarming, given just how many weeks it took me to get to grips with the credit card
machine and the scanning system.)

I have mixed feelings about all this. As part-owner of a small bookshop (which is thus
far being kept afloat by a band of angels posing as loyal customers), I find myself
getting into this conversation far more often than I would like, and it turns out to be
much harder to make the case for small bookshops when you actually own one. A
friend who is currently struggling to find a publisher for her wildly experimental novel
announced the other day that she bought everything, "absolutely everything" online
and I found myself getting quite shrill. But even as the usual old arguments left my lips
I realised I didn't believe a lot of what I was saying. I've thought it all through a little
more clearly now, so here, in order from worst to best, are the reasons why I think you
should think before you click.

5. To maintain property prices in your area. The argument that little independent
shops make your neighbourhood a nicer place to live, so add to the value of your
house, is one that I am fond of, but mainly because it feels like very imaginative special
pleading.

4. To keep us from folding. How strong an argument is this? Sure, an idiosyncratic

little bookshop can be a great thing to have on your local high street, but perhaps not
so great that you should feel morally obliged to prop it up if there are significant
savings to be had from buying the same product elsewhere.

3. Ethical shopping. If you buy a £10 book from us, a percentage of that money will
end up going to the government to spend on education, the NHS, and sending troops
to Iraq and keeping us under surveillance at all times. If you buy exactly the same book
online for £6, virtually nothing (as we have recently discovered) will contribute to the
general good, and you might have to steer clear of articles in the Guardian about the
poor conditions in the online retailers' fulfillment centres. But then again, you will have
an extra £4 in your pocket.

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2. Variety. This is counterintuitive, but you are far more likely to discover a new
favourite writer in a small, curate shop with a well-read bookseller who knows your
taste than you are in the mind-numbing virtual city of books that online retailers offer.
I have yet to meet anyone whose cockles are warmed by the words "customers who
bought items in your recent history also bought …".

1. To make sure that good writers continue to be published. This is the reason that
matters most to me. Now that the vast majority of books are sold online, the words
"your last book only really sold in bookshops – most of which no longer exist" have
become commonplace as publishers reject new books from even previously successful
authors, particularly if the author is trying something different. If we look at, say, Hilary
Mantel's career across a quarter of a century, there is consistency neither in the
kind of books she has written (it's hard to think of two more different high-wire acts
than A Place of Greater Safety and Beyond Black) nor in her success with critics and
readers (The Giant, O'Brien anyone?). It's far from certain that Mantel's publishers
would have been able to keep the faith and reap the rewards of her triumphant
Thomas Cromwell series without traditional bookselling.

Earlier this week, the American novelist Ruth Ozeki appeared at an event in our shop.
She put the point more elegantly: "Shops like this keep a place in their shelves for the
books I write – without them I wouldn't have readers."

So this is why you should continue to support your local bookshop (but only if they are
doing their job well – no one should have to support an unimaginative or bad-
tempered retailer just because they are endangered). Without them, your reading
matter will get blander and blander, and if you write a wildly experimental novel, the
chances are you will be publishing it yourself. Which is not necessarily a bad thing, but
that's a different subject altogether …

Reading comprehension: send your answers to your tutor.

1. From the point of view of social awareness which book would be better to
purchase a paper book or an e-book? Why?
2. What is the role of the bookseller according to the author?
3. What’s the main reason to support local bookshops according to the author?

2. WRITING

1. Write a 150 words essay about your favourite bookshop and what you feel
when you are buying books.
2. Write a 150 words essay about the different bookshops we can nowadays
find in a city.

Send your composition to your tutor.

Página 126
GLOSSARY

PALABRA SIGNIFICADO EJEMPLO

Dumb tonto She thinks it is dumb
Mesita de
Bedside table There were books even in the bedside table
noche
pillored ridiculizados Authors are being pilloried
pleading súplica it feels like very imaginative special pleading
prop (sth) up apoyar you should feel morally obliged to prop it up
surveillance vigilancia keeping us under surveillance at all times
counterintuitive ilógico This is counterintuitive
mind-numbing bodrío you are in the mind-numbing virtual city of books
holistic holístico view reading printed books is a more holistic experience.

EXPRESIONES SIGNIFICADO
To be in the way Estorbar
Call for someone Llamar a alguien/animal
Once upon a time Érase una vez
coming up with elaborar
To keep us from evitar que nosotros
To be up to something Estar haciendo algo
Figure it out for yourself Descúbrelo tu misma
coming to an end terminando

Página 127
MÓDULO 3: BULLYING

WARMING UP
What are we going to see in this lesson?

 Childhood bullying
 Connecting and collocating
 Connectors
 Dependent prepositions
 Common collocations

 Learning words and expressions in context

 Cause and effect collocations
 Greenhouse effect

Connecting and collocating

1. CONNECTORS IN A SENTENCE OR BETWEEN SENTENCES

I think, therefore I am

Introduction

In this unit, we are dealing with connectors, that is, those linking words or phrases
which are used to join words, sentences, or ideas. Particularly we are going to learn
about sentence connectors, which allow us to give paragraphs coherence.

Explanation

Sentence connectors, as we mentioned before, are used to join ideas and,

therefore make your discourse coherent. These sentence connectors can be of
different types, depending on their function, so they are used to introduce, order,
contrast, etc… They are placed at the beginning of the sentence.

So here you are given a classification of different connectors, their function and
some examples:

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Logical/sequential order

- Firstly, secondly, thirdly etc

- Next, last, finally
- In addition
- Furthermore
- Also
- At present / presently
- Afterwards
- Eventually

 First(ly) the sodium chloride is dissolved in the water and heated gently.
Second(ly) a dye is added to the solution.
 In addition to being a great person, the physician was an excellent professional
 Furthermore it’s illegal to do this.
 At present there are six students enrolled in the English course.

Order of importance

- Most / more importantly

- Most significantly
- Above all
- Primarily
- It is essential / essentially

 Above all, don’t ever look up from your notes when people are around.
 Most significantly, avoid eye-contact at all costs.
 You’ll have to focus on your immediate surroundings. Primarily, on your
computer screen.
 How can I put this? Essentially, having an affair with one of your colleagues
should be the last thing on your mind.

Contrast

- However
- On the other hand
- On the contrary
- By (in) comparison
- In contrast

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  This restaurant has the best kitchen in town. However, their staff is quite rude.
 England has the best language schools. On the other hand, it has the worst
weather.
 I don’t hate Jim. On the contrary, I’m rather fond of him.
 House prices have gone up this year. In contrast, car prices seem to be
stagnating.

Result

- As a result
- As a consequence
- Therefore
- Thus
- Consequently
- Hence

 I’ve done a healing course. As a result, I’ve been able to cure my neighbour’s
sick cat.
 You didn’t tell me you wanted to come. Thus, we won’t be taking you with us.
 Your grammar is weak, hence the low mark I’ve given you.
 I think, therefore I am.

Comparison

- Similarily
- Likewise
- Also

 You’re not allowed to use your phone here. Similarly, you have to switch it off
when you’re in the library.
 You can’t give your phone number to every man who asks for it. Likewise, you
can’t go out with everyone who fancies you.
 I want to talk to Prince Harry when I’m in England. Also, I want to meet his
sister-in-law.

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EXERCISE 1

Choose the connector which is more appropriate for each one of the sentences.

1. There is no more food left. _______ there is plenty of drinks.

2. The Interact Club has done well to help the poor. _______the Welfare Club
has done well too.

3. The documents will be scrutinized by the police. _____ they will be sent
back to the relevant authority.

4. The retailer has been making losses. _______ he intends to wind up his
business.

5. Wash the potatoes first. _______ you can boil them.

6. We have been trying to contact Michael for the past few days. _______ we
managed to trace him to a hotel in town.

7. Life in the country may not be as exciting as life in the city. ________ you
are close to nature which provides peace and quietness.

8. The dog will bark without fail every time the ice-cream man passes by.
_____ some time it will start howling.

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 2. DEPENDENT PREPOSITIONS
In the English language there are many verbs, nouns and adjectives which are
followed by specific prepositions. The prepositions are called dependent
because their choice depends on the particular word and its meaning.

Prepositional verb and object + preposition + object

- agree about sth with sb

- depend on sb/sth for sth
- agree with sb about/over sth
- disagree with sb about/over sth
- apologise to sb for sth
- quarrel with sb about/over sth
- complain about sth to sb
- rely on sb/sth for sth
- complain to sb about sth
(sb =somebody; sth = something)

Verb and direct object + preposition + indirect object (* These verbs can
also follow the pattern: verb + direct object + preposition + ing form)

accuse sb of sth* deprive sb of sth rid sb of sth

acquit sb of sth
advise sb against sth*
advise sb of sth
aim sth at sb
arrest sb for sth*
beat sb at sth*
blame sb for sth*
blame sth on sb
bother sb with sth
compensate sb for sth*
describe sth to sb rob sb of sth
discuss sth with sb save sb/sth from sth
explain sth to sb starve sb of sth
help sb with sth steal sth from sb
lend sth to sb stop sb from –ing
make sth for sb strip sb of sth
persuade sb of sth supply sb with sth
praise sb for sth* supply sth for/to sb
present sb with sth suspect sb of sth
present sth to sb throw sth at sb (=in order
to hit them)

congratulate sb for sth* prevent sb from –ing throw sth to sb (=in order
for them to catch it)

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congratulate sb for sth* protect sb from sth warn sb about/against
(US English) sth*
congratulate sb on sth* provide sb with sth welcome sb to sth

convict sb of sth* provide sth for sb

convice sb of sth reassure sb of sth
criticise sb for sth release sb from sth
cure sb of sth rescue sb from sth

Noun + preposition + noun/ing form (* These nouns can only follow the pattern:
noun + preposition + noun)

advantage of/in effect of prelude to

aim of/in excitement about/at problem of/in
amazement at expense of proof of
anger about/at fear of prospect of/for
annoyance about/at gratitude for purpose of/in
answer to* hope of question about/of
anxiety about idea of reason for
apology for increase in* relationship with
attack on increase of (+ quantity) satisfaction with
awareness of insistence on sequel to
belief in insurance against solution to*
boredom with interest in success in
craving for job of surprise at
damage to* lack of task of
danger of/in matter of taste for
decrease of (+ quantity) matter with* thought of
decrease in* method of way of
delay in objection to work of
delay of (+ duration) pleasure of/in worry about
demand for* point of/in
difficulty in possibility of

Adjective + preposition (* These adjectives can also be followed by to + infinitive)

according to accustomed to afraid of

annoyed with/about/at anxious about ashamed of
astonished at attached to aware of
crazy about delighted at/about different from
dissatisfied with doubtful about enthusiastic about
envious of excited about famous for
fed up with fond of frightened of
friendly with good at guilty of
incapable of interested in jealous of

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 keen on kind to mad at/about
opposed to pleased with popular with
proud of puzzled by/about safe from
satisfied with sensitive to(wards) serious about
sick of similar to sorry for/about
suspicious of sympathetic to(wards) unaware of
tired of typical of
used to

EXERCISE 1

Test yourself with the following ten questions.

1. Mary is pretty good ___ tennis.

- in
- at
- of

2. We're worried ___ her behaviour.

- in
- of
- about

3. Aren't you tired ___ walking yet?

- of
- to
- by

4. You know drinking alcohol is bad ___ you.

- for
- at
- of

5. She's excited ___ going on holiday.

- in
- about
- to

6. David is proud ___ his son's success.

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 - of
- at
- by

7. I think I'm addicted ___ chocolate!

- at
- to
- in

8. He's been short ___ confidence since his accident.

- with
- of
- by

9. Picasso was famous ___ his art.

- with
- for
- about

10. I am very pleased ___ my exam results.

- of
- with
- at

3. COMMON COLLOCATIONS

have do make
have a bath do business make a difference
have a drink do nothing make a mess
have a good time do someone a favour make a mistake
have a haircut do the cooking make a noise
have a holiday do the housework make an effort
have a problem do the shopping make furniture
have a relationship do the washing up make money
have a rest do your best make progress
have lunch do your hair make room
have sympathy do your homework make trouble

take break catch

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take a break break a habit catch a ball
take a chance break a leg catch a bus
take a look break a promise catch a chill
take a rest break a record catch a cold
take a seat break a window catch a thief
take a taxi break someone's heart catch fire
take an exam break the ice catch sight of
take notes break the law catch someone's
take someone's place break the news to attention
take someone's someone catch someone's eye
temperature break the rules catch the flu

pay save keep

pay a fine save electricity keep a diary
pay attention save energy keep a promise
pay by credit card save money keep a secret
pay cash save one's strength keep an appointment
pay interest save someone a seat keep calm
pay someone a compliment save someone's life keep control
pay someone a visit save something to a disk keep in touch
pay the bill save space keep quiet
pay the price save time keep someone's place
pay your respects save yourself the trouble keep the change

come go get
come close go abroad get a job
come complete with go astray get a shock
come direct go bad get angry
come early go bald get divorced
come first go bankrupt get drunk
come into view go blind get frightened
come last go crazy get home
come late go dark get lost
come on time go deaf get married
come prepared go fishing get nowhere
come right back go mad get permission
come second go missing get pregnant
come to a compromise go on foot get ready
come to a decision go online get started
come to an agreement go out of business get the impression
come to an end go overseas get the message
come to a standstill go quiet get the sack
come to terms with go sailing get upset
come to a total of go to war get wet
come under attack go yellow get worried

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Other collocations
Collocations related to time

- Bang on time
- Dead on time
- Free time
- From dawn till dusk
- Great deal of time
- Early/late 15th century
- Make time for
- Next few days
- Past few weeks
- Right on time
- Run out of time
- Time goes by
- Time passes
- Waste time

EXERCISE 1

Do Or Make Collocations Quiz.

1 What do you_____ for a living?

2 Have you ________your homework yet?

3 Have you _______a decision yet?

4 Amber _______badly in her geography exam.

5 The children ________a mess in the kitchen.

6 We are having guests tonight, so please ________your bed.

7 I only ______one mistake in my English test.

8 I'd like to ask you to ________me a favour.

9 My husband _______the grocery shopping.

10 Please excuse me while I _______a phone call.

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Let’s practice!
1. READING: RECYCLING

UK councils could be required to recycle 70% of waste by 2030

Proposals from European commission would require a significant increase in the

proportion of UK waste diverted from landfill

Councils will have to recycle 70% of household waste by the end of the next decade,
under proposals unveiled on Wednesday by the European commission. This would
require a significant increase in the proportion of UK waste diverted from landfill.

At least 80% of packaging waste will also have to be recycled by 2030, as Brussels
toughens its stance on the amount of rubbish buried underground. By 2025, there
would be a total ban on sending waste to landfill that could have been recycled.

The new targets will be difficult for the UK to meet, as recycling rates have recently
stagnated after a period of rapid growth in the past decade. According to figures
released by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) in
November, 43.2% of waste in England was recycled in 2012-13. That figure was just
12% in 2001 but the UK is still well behind Austria and Germany, which recycle 63%
and 62% of their waste respectively.

The coalition government has been notably hostile to moves to try to improve
recycling rates through fortnightly bin collections and charges on unrecycled rubbish.
Eric Pickles, secretary of state for communities and local government, declared in
2012: “I firmly believe that it is the right of every English man and woman that their
chicken tikka masala, the nation’s favourite dish, the remnants can be put in the bin
without the worry that a fortnight later it is rotting and making life unpleasant.”

Green campaigners said the plans did not go far enough, and that more ambitious
targets would stimulate the industry and provide greater economic benefits, and
sooner.

But the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs sent a strong signal that it
could resist the targets when they are debated. A spokesman told the Guardian: “We
think the commission’s proposals may have underplayed the potential costs to
business, householders and local authorities and will want to consider the impacts fully
before we respond.

“While we support efforts to reduce waste we need to ensure that any new legislation
would meet our priorities to protect the environment, incentivize growth and avoid
unnecessary burdens.”

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Steve Lee, of the Chartered Institute of Waste Management, said meeting the targets
for the UK would be a challenge requiring “leadership and ambition” from the
government. He called on ministers to create “a stable framework” to encourage the
investment that would be needed from the private sector in the UK’s waste-
management infrastructure, including new recycling plants.

A key part of the plan is to develop better markets for recycled materials. At present,
much of what is recycled is returned to use in a low-grade manner – for instance,
recycled glass in the UK is often used as a component in road-building materials, rather
than turned back into bottles. This assigns a low value to the waste. If markets were
better developed, then recyclates from metals to plastics could be sold as a resource in
place of virgin materials.

Janez Potocčnik, European commissioner for the environment, said: “We are living
with economic systems inherited from the 19th century [while today’s world is
characterized by] emerging economies, millions of new middle-class consumers and
interconnected markets. If we want to compete we have to get the most out of our
resources, and that means recycling them back into productive use, not burying them
in landfills as waste.”

The commission believes that the new targets could create more than half a million
new jobs in waste management across the EU.

The targets will also encompass plans to combat marine litter, which is a serious
hazard to aquatic life including seabirds, whales and dolphins, and food waste, which
can be used to create compost and fertilizer or to generate energy from capturing the
methane it produces as it rots.

Wednesday’s proposals, which will have to be debated by member states and MEPs
before they can come into force, are part of an EU-wide move to a “circular economy”,
in which materials once used are turned back into something productive. This involves
processes that are harder to put in place than simply dumping rubbish, such as
providing ways for products - from consumer electronics to cars - to be reused and
repaired rather than simply broken up for scrap.

Potočnik warned that although this would create profitable businesses, the “circular
economy” was unlikely to spring into being if simply left to the market: “It is profitable,
but that does not mean it will happen without the right policies. The 2030 targets that
we propose are about taking action today to accelerate the transition to a circular
economy and exploiting the business and job opportunities it offers.”

The commission has also pledged to support new research and development in the
waste management and recycling industries, and in improving the design of products
to make them easier to reuse, repair and recycle. This will be done through the
Horizon 2020 programme which funds innovative technology and new business
processes, but officials did not say how much this funding was likely to be worth.

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At present, many companies have a vested interest in ensuring their products are
difficult to reuse, in order to encourage consumers to buy new models. Some existing
legislation, including the directive on electronic waste, aims to counter this by forcing
manufacturers to take responsibility for their products throughout their life cycle,
including what happens to them when they are thrown away.

Questions: send your answers to your tutor.

1. Can you find a synonym for “stop”?

2. Which is the European country which recycles most?
3. What is recycled glass used for in England?
4. According to the text, is recycling also a way to create job opportunities?
Please, give some sentences found in the article.

2. WRITING
Now write your opinion about the importance of recycling in our society (100-150
words). Send your composition to your tutor.

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GLOSSARY

INGLÉS ESPAÑOL EJEMPLO

we were able to categorize them as either victims
Bullies Acosadores
or bullies
bullying behavior has gone on since the beginning
Bullying Acoso
of time
Disruptive Desorden They may be have problems with disruptive sleep,
eating/sleep alimenticio/del sueño disruptive eating
Disruptive
Trastorno del sueño Some kids have problems with disruptive sleep
sleep
They tend to be more truant and drop out more
Drop out Abandonar
often
Follow up Hacer seguimiento we followed up over time for two decades
Outcomes Resultados There are all sorts of academic outcomes.
Panic disorder Trastorno de ansiedad the victims had elevated rates of panic disorder
Prevention programs are available to
Policymakers Legislador
policymakers
reused and repaired rather than simply broken up
scrap chatarra
for scrap.
Self-esteem Autoestima Thay have low self-esteem
Brussels toughens its stance on the amount of
stance postura
rubbish buried underground
Brussels toughens its stance on the amount of
to toughen endurecer
rubbish buried underground
holgazán/alumno que
truant he´s a truant
hace piardas

EXPRESIONES SIGNIFICADO
Emotional/behavioral functioning funcion emocional y de comportamiento
Pueden tener un rendimiento bajo en el
They may do poorly in school
colegio
The bully-victims really seemed to be the worst Las victimas de bulling parecen ser las
off peor paradas
A great resource put out by the Department of Una gran fuente publicada por el
Health Departamento salud
Actually there's an interesting body of literature De hecho existe una interesante biografía
about the topic sobre el tema

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