Living English (10): What's the matter?
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
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Sarah finds out Anne’s secret mission.
SARAH: I’m sorry about my brother.
ANNE: Not at all. You have a lovely family. Everyone seems so happy.
ANNE: breaks down in tears. SARAH goes to her, concerned.
SARAH: Anne! What’s the matter?
ANNE: There’s something I haven’t told you.
SARAH: What is it?
ANNE: When I met your brother, I was thinking about my brother, David. I haven’t seen him in
two years.
SARAH: How come?
ANNE: He’s missing. One reason I came to Australia is to find him.
SARAH: I’m so sorry. Have you had any luck?
ANNE: Not yet. I’ve hired a private investigator.
SARAH: Goodness! Do you think he’ll find him?
ANNE: Perhaps. I don’t know. It’s been a long time since David last called.
SARAH: What do you think’s happened to him? Have you any idea?
ANNE: I really don’t know. I can’t help thinking the worst.
SARAH: I’m sure he’s alright. If something bad had happened, you would have heard.
ANNE: I guess so. I suppose you’re right.
But ANNE doesn’t look convinced.
Vocabulary :
secret (adj): that people don't know about
mission (n): the purpose for which a person or group is sent somewhere
concerned (adj): worried (He is very concerned about his health).
guess (v): give an answer you hope is right but you are not sure (Can you guess who wrote this song?)
Episode Note
1. Apologizing: Practice 1
Living English (9): The most beautiful city
Thursday, June 16, 2011
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Living English: Episode 9
They have lunch and talk about differences.
STEVE: So Anne, have you been to an Australian home before?
ANNE: No, never. It's a beautiful home Sarah. So big! The rooms are much bigger than at
home. There's more space here.
STEVE: Do you live in a house?
MARK: No Steve – she lives in an igloo.
ANNE: Actually, no. We live in an apartment. Most people do. Singapore is much busier than Adelaide, and more crowded.
STEVE: Yeah, and more exciting. It's so boring here.
SARAH: It's quieter. Some people like that.
ANNE: I don't think it's boring.
MARK: Adelaide is a very beautiful city. It's a better place to live than anywhere else I've been.
SARAH: But you haven't been anywhere. (to ANNE) Mark hates travelling. I love it.
MARK: I just don't see the point of it.
ANNE: What about you Steve? Do you like to travel?
STEVE: Yes. Yeah, I've been to Kula Lumpur, and to Bali. Bali's great!
LOUISE: I've been to the zoo!
They laugh. ANNE smiles
ANNE: You're lucky. I haven't been to the zoo. I'd love to go to the zoo.
STEVE: I'll take you!
There are raised eyebrows at the table.
Vocabulary :
space (n): (no plural) room
igloo (n): a house built by the Inuit (Eskimos) made from blocks of hard snow.
Episode Note
1. Comparing Two Things: Exercises 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.
2. Liking / Not Likings: Exercises 1, 2, 3, 4, 5.
3. Would Like To: Exercise 1.
Living English (8): This Is My Brother
Monday, March 7, 2011
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Living English is a 42-part series that looks at the English language used in everyday situations such as checking into a hotel or describing people.
This is my brother
Scroll down the page, press the button "play", and watch episode 8 . You can do an exercise to check your understanding of the simple present by clicking on the link below.ANNE goes to SARAH’s house for lunch.
ANNE arrives in a taxi.
ANNE arrives in a taxi.
TAXI-DRIVER Here we are.
ANNE How much is that?
TAXI-DRIVER That’ll be seventeen-fifty thanks love.
She gives him twenty dollars
ANNE Keep the change.
TAXI-DRIVER Thankyou. Have a nice day.
ANNE walks towards the house and knocks.
The door is opened by a little girl (LOUISE).
ANNE Hello. I’m Anne.
Louise turns and runs.
LOUISE Mummy!
SARAH comes to the door.
SARAH Come in Anne!
ANNE What a beautiful house!
SARAH It’s been a lot of work, but we’re getting there. This is the bathroom. This is my
daughter’s bedroom. And here’s the kitchen.
Louise is in the kitchen ‘helping’.
SARAH Anne’s here. You’ve met my daughter Louise.
ANNE Hello Louise.
LOUISE I’m helping.
ANNE Yes, I see…
SARAH And my husband Mark.
ANNE Hello again.
Mark pretends to have a pain in the back.
ANNE How much is that?
TAXI-DRIVER That’ll be seventeen-fifty thanks love.
She gives him twenty dollars
ANNE Keep the change.
TAXI-DRIVER Thankyou. Have a nice day.
ANNE walks towards the house and knocks.
The door is opened by a little girl (LOUISE).
ANNE Hello. I’m Anne.
Louise turns and runs.
LOUISE Mummy!
SARAH comes to the door.
SARAH Come in Anne!
ANNE What a beautiful house!
SARAH It’s been a lot of work, but we’re getting there. This is the bathroom. This is my
daughter’s bedroom. And here’s the kitchen.
Louise is in the kitchen ‘helping’.
SARAH Anne’s here. You’ve met my daughter Louise.
ANNE Hello Louise.
LOUISE I’m helping.
ANNE Yes, I see…
SARAH And my husband Mark.
ANNE Hello again.
Mark pretends to have a pain in the back.
ANNE Ooh! Sorry about my heavy bag.
MARK Just kidding.
SARAH But you haven’t met my little brother. This is Steve.
STEVE I was going to pick you up this morning. You wouldn’t let me.
ANNE I’m sorry. I like to find my own way around.
STEVE No worries. Maybe another time.
ANNE Yes, maybe
SARAH Come on. Let’s go outside.
Vocabulary :
change (n): (no plural) the money that you get back after you pay your bill
toward(s) (prep): in the direction of
pretend (v): try to make something appear to be true (He pretended not to hear.)
pain (n): something that hurts you
back (adj): farthest away from the front (The tallest pupils sit in the back row.)
earlier in time; belonging to the past
back numbers of the magazine.
back (adv): behind
kid (v): (informal) joke [kidded, kidding] (He's only kidding.)
pick up (v): come and get someone at a certain place and time (I'll pick you up at your house at 7:30.)
Episode Note
1. Paying
2. Rooms
3. Possessive Adjective (Practice)
4. Relations & Family (Practice)
MARK Just kidding.
SARAH But you haven’t met my little brother. This is Steve.
STEVE I was going to pick you up this morning. You wouldn’t let me.
ANNE I’m sorry. I like to find my own way around.
STEVE No worries. Maybe another time.
ANNE Yes, maybe
SARAH Come on. Let’s go outside.
Vocabulary :
change (n): (no plural) the money that you get back after you pay your bill
toward(s) (prep): in the direction of
pretend (v): try to make something appear to be true (He pretended not to hear.)
pain (n): something that hurts you
back (adj): farthest away from the front (The tallest pupils sit in the back row.)
earlier in time; belonging to the past
back numbers of the magazine.
back (adv): behind
kid (v): (informal) joke [kidded, kidding] (He's only kidding.)
pick up (v): come and get someone at a certain place and time (I'll pick you up at your house at 7:30.)
Episode Note
1. Paying
2. Rooms
3. Possessive Adjective (Practice)
4. Relations & Family (Practice)
Living English (7): Come to Lunch
Sunday, February 27, 2011
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Living English is a 42-part series that looks at the English language used in everyday situations such as checking into a hotel or describing people.
Come to lunch
Scroll down the page, press the button "play", and watch episode 5 . You can do an exercise to check your understanding of the grammar lessons by clicking on the link below.
SARAH invites ANNE to meet her family.
SARAH and ANNE taste a sample of wine.
ANNE Mmm. It’s very smooth. Good flavour too.
SARAH It sells well in restaurants here. I think these’ll sell well in Singapore.
ANNE The samples you sent me were very popular with our staff. You seem to understand
our tastes in Singapore.
SARAH Thankyou. It’s my job to know what my clients like.
ANNE seems distracted. SARAH observes her for a moment.
SARAH and ANNE taste a sample of wine.
ANNE Mmm. It’s very smooth. Good flavour too.
SARAH It sells well in restaurants here. I think these’ll sell well in Singapore.
ANNE The samples you sent me were very popular with our staff. You seem to understand
our tastes in Singapore.
SARAH Thankyou. It’s my job to know what my clients like.
ANNE seems distracted. SARAH observes her for a moment.
SARAH So, are you enjoying the city?
ANNE (unconvincingly)
It’s very nice.
SARAH What are you going to do tomorrow?
ANNE I don’t know. I’ll probably stay in the hotel and relax.
SARAH Why don’t you come to lunch with us at home?
ANNE Oh thankyou, but you have your family.
SARAH Yes, and they want to meet you. We’re going to have roast chicken – traditional
Aussie food.
ANNE Sounds good. Alright, I’ll come.
SARAH Great.
ANNE What time?
SARAH We eat at about one-o-clock. So about twelve-thirty? I’ll show you the house.
ANNE Okay. Thankyou
SARAH I’ll get my brother to pick you up.
ANNE No that’s okay. I’ll get a taxi.
SARAH Alright then. That’s settled!
Vocabulary :
smooth (adj): not rough on the surface; not bumpy (We had a smooth ride)
ANNE (unconvincingly)
It’s very nice.
SARAH What are you going to do tomorrow?
ANNE I don’t know. I’ll probably stay in the hotel and relax.
SARAH Why don’t you come to lunch with us at home?
ANNE Oh thankyou, but you have your family.
SARAH Yes, and they want to meet you. We’re going to have roast chicken – traditional
Aussie food.
ANNE Sounds good. Alright, I’ll come.
SARAH Great.
ANNE What time?
SARAH We eat at about one-o-clock. So about twelve-thirty? I’ll show you the house.
ANNE Okay. Thankyou
SARAH I’ll get my brother to pick you up.
ANNE No that’s okay. I’ll get a taxi.
SARAH Alright then. That’s settled!
Vocabulary :
smooth (adj): not rough on the surface; not bumpy (We had a smooth ride)
flavor (n): (Brit flavour) taste
taste (n): (no plural) one of the senses; the ability to feel or recognize something in your mouth
distract (v): take your mind off what you are doing
observe (v): watch carefully
roast (n): a large piece of roasted meat
unconvincingly (adv): In an unconvincing manner (he argued unconvincingly).
Episode Note
1. Going To (Practice)
2. Will (Practice)
3.Suggestions (Practice)
4. Days
5. Prepositions of Time (Practice)
taste (n): (no plural) one of the senses; the ability to feel or recognize something in your mouth
distract (v): take your mind off what you are doing
observe (v): watch carefully
roast (n): a large piece of roasted meat
unconvincingly (adv): In an unconvincing manner (he argued unconvincingly).
Episode Note
1. Going To (Practice)
2. Will (Practice)
3.Suggestions (Practice)
4. Days
5. Prepositions of Time (Practice)
Living English (6): He Didn't Write
Sunday, February 20, 2011
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Living English is a 42-part series that looks at the English language used in everyday situations such as checking into a hotel or describing people.
Episode 6: He Didn't Write
Scroll down the page, press the button "play", and watch episode 6 . You can do an exercise to check your understanding of the simple present by clicking on the link below.
ANNE My brother, David, worked in the family business too. But he didn’t like it. He wanted to
try something different.
JOHN So what happened?
ANNE My parents agreed. They let him come to Australia to study.
JOHN Where did he go?
ANNE He came here, to Adelaide. He studied computer science. We thought he was happy.
JOHN And then what happened?
ANNE I don’t know. He wrote every week, and then the letters stopped.
JOHN Do you know where he lived?
ANNE He stayed with an Australian family. He was a boarder. Here’s the address.
She passes JOHN a piece of paper.
JOHN Did you phone them?
ANNE Yes, of course. He left there a year ago. They don’t know where he went.
JOHN Does he have a mobile phone?
ANNE I don’t know. He did, but he doesn’t answer it now.
JOHN Don’t worry Ms Lee. I’ll find your brother. I’m on the case.
He shakes her hand and she leaves. JOHN looks at the photo. Now he looks worried.
try something different.
JOHN So what happened?
ANNE My parents agreed. They let him come to Australia to study.
JOHN Where did he go?
ANNE He came here, to Adelaide. He studied computer science. We thought he was happy.
JOHN And then what happened?
ANNE I don’t know. He wrote every week, and then the letters stopped.
JOHN Do you know where he lived?
ANNE He stayed with an Australian family. He was a boarder. Here’s the address.
She passes JOHN a piece of paper.
JOHN Did you phone them?
ANNE Yes, of course. He left there a year ago. They don’t know where he went.
JOHN Does he have a mobile phone?
ANNE I don’t know. He did, but he doesn’t answer it now.
JOHN Don’t worry Ms Lee. I’ll find your brother. I’m on the case.
He shakes her hand and she leaves. JOHN looks at the photo. Now he looks worried.
Vocabulary :
agree (v): think that an opinion or plan is correct
boarder (n): a person staying at a boarding house
case (n): the way things are. E.g: If that is the case, maybe I was wrong.
case (n): the way things are. E.g: If that is the case, maybe I was wrong.
Living English (5): Are You Married?
Saturday, January 29, 2011
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Living English is a 42-part series that looks at the English language used in everyday situations such as checking into a hotel or describing people.
ANNE describes her brother to the private investigator.
ANNE Can you help me?
JOHN Well I’ll try. Now tell me about your brother Ms Lee. How old is he?
ANNE He’s twenty-three.
JOHN Well that would make him your younger brother. What’s his name?
ANNE David.
JOHN And what does he do?
ANNE He’s a student. Or – he was a student. I don’t know where he is.
JOHN (looks at the photo)
Hmmm. How tall is he?
ANNE About a hundred and seventy-five centimetres.
JOHN Hmmm. And does he speak English?
ANNE Yes. He speaks English and Chinese. Mr Barbour – can you find him?
JOHN I’ll certainly try. Now, tell me a little about yourself Miss Lee. Where are you from?
ANNE I come from Singapore. I’m Singaporean.
JOHN Right, and how old are you?
ANNE I’m twenty-five.
JOHN What do you do?
ANNE I import wine. I’m a businesswoman. I work in my family’s business.
JOHN And are you married?
ANNE No, I’m single.
JOHN And..er..do you have a boyfriend?
ANNE Pardon?
JOHN Oh sorry. We private detectives are a naturally curious bunch. Ms Lee, perhaps you’d
better tell the whole story.
ANNE It all started two years ago...
Vocabulary :
businesswoman (n): a woman who is in business.
naturally (adv): from nature
curious (adj): eager to learn (A curious pupil reads more than just schoolbooks.)
wanting to know something
bunch (n): fruit that grows in a group (a bunch of grapes. a bunch of bananas.)
a group of things of the same kind that are fastened together
whole (adj): all of something (a whole week.)
in one piece; not broken (The plate fell, but it's still whole.)
whole (n): all of something
Episode Note
How to Read a Book You Don't Like to Read
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
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Sooner or later each one of us will have to read a book we don’t want to read. Sometimes we are reluctant to read a given for no other reason than it is an obligation to read it. To make reading such a book bearable, Jim Trelease suggests the leaning-pine tree approach. To get more insights about this approach, watch this video.
