Idiom Focus: Common English Idioms 9

Every Saturday I’ll give you a couple of idioms to learn.  An idiom is a saying or phrase whose meaning cannot be taken from the literal meanings of the words.  Currently, we’re looking at some common English idioms.

fill in for someone:  substitute for someone, do someone’s job while they are unable to do it or absent

Example:

Mark’s going to fill in for Sarah while she’s on vacation next week.

fresh out of something:  when you have just used up the last of something

Example:

Oh, we are fresh out of milk.  Could you run to the store and get some more for me?

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Grammar Basics: Unit 8 – “I am doing” vs. “I do”

As we have already seen, Present Continuous is generally used to indicate that something is happening at the time of speaking. On the other hand, Simple Present is used for things that are generally true, things that repeat, or for things that happen sometimes/all the time.

We can also look at the difference between Present Continuous and Simple Present by considering “I am doing” (Present Continuous) versus “I do” (Simple Present).

Examples:

  • I’m doing the laundry. (right now)
  • I do the laundry every Monday. (repeating event)
  • Sam is washing the car. (right now)
  • Sam washes the car every week. (repeating event)
  • Mary is watching TV. (right now)
  • Mary watches TV whenever she’s bored. (generally true)

Note:
Certain words do not generally use a Present Continuous form:

  • believe
  • depend
  • forget
  • hate
  • know
  • like
  • love
  • mean
  • need
  • prefer
  • remember
  • understand
  • want

Exercises: In the following sentences, determine whether you should use Present Continuous or Simple Present form. Remember that the Present Continuous needs the correct form of “be”. If the sentence is a question, remember to include the correct form of “do” for question formation.

Example:
_____ tomatoes? (you / like) ==> Do you like tomatoes?

Please be quiet – _____ now. (the baby / sleep) ==> Please be quiet – the baby is sleeping now.

1. _____ a sweater for her cousin’s birthday. (Susan / knit)

2. _____ broccoli for dinner, but _____ that vegetable. (Mother / cook), (Steve / hate)

3. _____ so hard I can’t see across the street. (it / snow)

4. _____ your first day of school as a child? (you / remember)

5. Tonight _____ about rattlesnakes. (the lecturer / speak)

6. _____ lectures about rattlesnakes all over the country. (he / give)

7. Where _____? (you / go)

8. _____ tea over coffee. (she / prefer)

9. _____ three languages. (Paul / speak)

10. _____ in ghosts? (you / believe)

11. _____ always _____ my cousin’s birthday, so _____ it down on my calendar. (I / forget), (I / write)

12. _____ fast whenever he’s mad. (Jim / drive)

13. _____ in a golf tournament this weekend. (Tim / play)

14. _____ in tournaments every chance he gets. (he / play)

15. _____ a book for her literature class. (Karen / read)

16. _____ so much that the city park by the river is now flooded. (it / rain)

17. Why didn’t Bill study for his test? _____ better than that! (he / know)

18. After school _____ to the library. (he / go)

19. _____ to the movies tonight after dinner. (we / go)

20. _____ a letter to my nephew. (I / write)

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Culture Focus: US Presidential Elections, Part 1 – The Primary Process: Caucuses

For this week’s culture focus, I thought I’d give a brief introduction to the U.S. political system. Eligible American citizens have started the process of determining whom they want to see as the Republican nominee for the Presidential election to be held on November 6, 2012.  Each state holds either a primary or a caucus to determine which candidates will receive delegates to the national conventions that will be held later in the year. The Democratic Party and the Republic party each have separate primaries/caucuses, generally held on the same day. Democratic delegates will attend the 2012 Democratic National Convention from September 3 – 6 in Charlotte, North Carolina. The Republican delegates will attend the 2012 Republican National Convention from August 27 – 30 in Tampa, Florida.

Last week, Iowa officially started the 2012 Presidential election cycle by holding its caucuses.  Yesterday, New Hampshire held the nation’s first Presidential primary.  Caucuses and primaries are both used to select delegates for the Democratic and Republican National Conventions, but caucuses are quite different from primaries.  Primaries are conducted much like a regular election.  How about caucuses?

In a caucus, people in a certain area (usually some local political district, such as a township or a precinct) get together and discuss as a group which candidate they think deserves their support.  Different people may speak to the group on behalf of a particular candidate, seeking to persuade others to support that candidate as well.  After discussion, the caucus participants cast their vote for the candidate of their choice.  Properly speaking, the people vote for delegates for that particular candidate, and these are the delegates that will go to a county convention and/or the national convention.  (Some caucuses are more complicated than what I’ve just described here, but this description gives you the general idea.)

Perhaps one reason why caucuses are more complicated than primaries is because they are an older method of selecting delegates for the political conventions.  One drawback of such a system is that caucuses are more open to influence to control from party leaders.  Consequently, many states switched over to a primary system, beginning with Florida in 1901.  Today, only a handful of states still hold caucuses rather than primaries:  Alaska, Colorado, Hawaii, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana (Democrats, Republicans hold a Primary), Maine, Minnesota, Montana (Republicans, Democrats hold a Primary, Nebraska (Democrats, Republicans hold a Primary), Nevada, North Dakota, Washington, and Wyoming.

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Grammar Basics: Unit 7 – Simple Present, Questions (Solutions)

Exercises: Write questions from the following words. Be sure to put the “do” verb in the right form (do/does).

Example: eat / he / seafood / ? ==> Does he eat seafood?

1. Do you like kimchee?

2. Does Donald have an MP3 player?

3. Do I eat pizza for breakfast?

4. Where do your brothers live?

5. Do they like it there?

6. What does he eat for lunch?

7. Why do we celebrate Christmas?

8. When does the mail usually come?

9. What time does the plane come in?

10. How much does this pencil case cost?

11. How does Daniel feel today?

12. Do you often visit your parents?

13. Do we have any ice cream?

14. Whom do you usually watch on TV?

15. Do I have to go to bed now?

16. Why do you have a green sticker on your book?

17. Does she usually look like that?

18. Does it often rain in the summer?

19. Does Mike study a lot for math?

20. What does your father do?

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Grammar Basics: Unit 7 – Simple Present, Questions

The pattern for forming simple present questions is as follows:

Do/Does + subject + (adverb of frequency) + V (+….)?

where V is the dictionary form of the verb. “Does” is for third person singular, and all others use “Do.”

Examples:

  • I eat ==> Do I eat?
  • You drive ==> Do you drive?
  • We walk ==> Do we drive?
  • They talk ==> Do they talk?
  • He sings ==> Does he sing?
  • She runs ==> Does she run?
  • It rains ==> Does it rain?

Note that for third person singular, there is NO “s” after the end of the main verb. Instead, the “s” goes on DO: do ==> does.

Examples:

  • It always rains at night. ==> Does it always rain at night?
  • He works at a restaurant. ==> Does he work at a restaurant?
  • Tom studies after school. ==> Does Tom study after school?
  • We go on vacation every summer. ==> Do we go on vacation every summer?
  • She practices the piano three hours every day. ==> Does she practice the piano three hours every day?
  • They cut their grass on Saturdays. ==> Do they cut their grass on Saturdays?
  • Dad takes a shower every morning. ==> Does Dad take a shower every morning?
  • The schoolkids have their yearly picnic at the end of May. ==> Do the schoolkids have their yearly picnic at the end of May?
  • John likes skiing. ==> Does John like skiing?
  • He hates bowling. ==> Does he hate bowling?

For wh-questions, the wh- word comes first in the sentence, giving us the pattern:

Wh- do/does + subject + (adverb of frequency) + V (+….)?

Examples:

  • Whom do you think will win the game?
  • What does Tim want for Christmas?
  • Where do we go from here?
  • When does Jane do her homework?
  • Why do you take off your shoes when you come in?
  • How does a magician do his tricks?

Exercises: Write questions from the following words. Be sure to put the “do” verb in the right form (do/does).

Example: eat / he / seafood / ? ==> Does he eat seafood?

1. kimchee / like / you / ?

2. an / Donald / have / MP3 / player / ?

3. breakfast / eat / pizza / for / I / ?

4. brothers / live / where / your / ?

5. it / like / there / they / ?

6. eat / for / he / lunch / what / ?

7. celebrate / Christmas / we / why / ?

8. come / mail / the / usually / when / ?

9. come / in / plane / the / time / what / ?

10. case / cost / how / much / pencil / this / ?

11. Daniel / feel / how / today / ?

12. often / parents / visit / you / your / ?

13. any / cream / have / ice / we / ?

14. whom / you / usually / watch / on / TV / ?

15. bed / go / have / I / now / to / to / ?

16. a / book / green / have / on / sticker / why / you / your / ?

17. like / look / she / that / usually / ?

18. in / it / often / rain / summer / the / ?

19. Mike / study / a / lot / for / math / ?

20. do / father / what / your / ?

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Education Focus: American Education System, Part 2

Last week we looked at the American Educational System from Kindergarten through High School. Today we’ll take a brief look at post-secondary education in the U.S.: American colleges and universities.

After completion of high school, many students continue their education by attending a college or a university. Although most people use the terms interchangeably, there is a difference between a college and a university. A college generally has a smaller student enrollment and consists of one school (the college). On the other hand, a university usually has a larger student enrollment and consists of several schools: for example, a typical university can have a college of liberal arts and sciences, a college of engineering, and a college of education. For the student there is little practical difference; both colleges and universities are degree-granting institutions, enabling their graduates to have better job prospects than they would otherwise with only a high school education.

When a student attends college/university, he chooses a major, or area of concentration and specialization. Many different types of majors are available. Ideally, a student chooses his major first (or at least has some idea of what he’d like to concentrate on), and then chooses a school based on major he’d like to study. Typical majors would include: engineering (mechanical engineering, industrial engineering, electrical engineering, or chemical engineering), physics, chemistry, biology, pre-med, pre-law, history, English/literature, a foreign language, education, mathematics, statistics, computer science/IT, physical education, physical therapy, accounting, business, marketing, hotel and restaurant management, fashion design, fine arts (music, art, theater), and nursing. Each major has its own degree requirements in addition to the general education requirements of the college/university. Students can double major (complete the requirements for two majors simultaneously) or major in one area and minor in another.

Like high school, most students take four years to complete the degree requirements, and so we have the corresponding classes for college/university: first-year students are freshmen, second-year students are sophomores, third-year students are juniors, and fourth-year students are seniors. Freshmen and sophomores are underclassmen; juniors and seniors are upperclassmen. In reality, four years to complete the degree is an average. Some students may complete their degree early by taking summer school and interim classes; others may take longer than four years due to poor schedules, having to repeat courses, or by working on two majors. Consequently, in college, years are determined largely by how many credit hours one has. Each course is worth a set number of credit hours; for example, a course that meets three hours per week for the semester would be worth three credit hours. The more courses a student takes, the more credit hours he earns upon completion of the course. 12 – 15 credit hours are considered a normal (full-time) class load, and would be the equivalent of four or five classes of three credit hours each. In addition to the time spent in class, students are expected to spend a minimum of two hours study outside of class for every hour spent in class. Thus, 12 – 15 credit hours represent a minimum of 36 – 45 hours each week that a student should devote to his education.

After completing the degree requirements as set forth by the college/university, students are awarded a bachelor’s degree. A bachelor’s degree is the lowest post-secondary degree awarded by four-year institutions like colleges and universities. A student typically earns either a bachelor of arts degree (B.A.) or a bachelor of science degree (B.S.). There is little practical difference between a B.A. and a B.S., as most employers are satisfied that their employees have a degree. Accordingly, completion of college represents the final stage of education for most people: after graduation, students look for a job and enter the world of work.

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Crossword – Basic Vocabulary 2 (Solution)

crossword puzzle solution

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Crossword – Basic Vocabulary 2

crossword puzzle

 

Across

1. Not many

3. Say something to someone

6. Parks where wild animals can be seen

9. Not commonly

12. Guess

13. Giant lizard that is extinct (no longer living)

16. Preposition

17. Preposition

18. A show with wild animals and clowns

19. Holes through mountains or underground

20. Opposite of yes

21. Group

22. Opposite of beginning

24. Opposite of mornings

27. Wild African animal with a lot of hair; “King of the beasts”

29. Something used to help do something easier

31. Action

32. Perhaps

33. I ____, you are, he is

35. Eleventh month

38. In front of everyone/everything else

39. Required

40. Metal object used to open doors

41. Opposite of woman

42. People who possess something

45. Opposite of old

47. Opposite of away

Down

2. I ______, you were

3. Speaks

4. Put something down

5. The tops of something

7. Guessed

8. Spending a short time with someone

10. Comprehending

11. Your mother’s mother

12. Nicest

14. Misbehaving

15. Winter, spring, summer, _______

23. Parts of land completely surrounded by water

25. Not forgotten

26. Hanging and moving back and forth

28. Opposite of out

30. All right

34. Receive pleasure

36. Big cars that can hold a lot of people

37. Each

38. Enjoying

41. Object form of I

43. Negation

44. Horizontal line of something

46. Opposite of off

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Idiom Focus: Animal Idioms 3

Every Saturday I’ll give you a couple of idioms to learn. An idiom is a saying or phrase whose meaning cannot be taken from the literal meanings of the words. Here are some more animal idioms.

bull in a china shop: Someone who is not careful about what he says or thinks. Here, china refers to the high-quality porcelain that is used for making dishes. A bull in a china shop, therefore, would probably knock over and break many glass objects, making a big mess.

Example:

Henry has no manners at all. He’s like a bull in a china shop, irritating everyone with his lack of common courtesy.

buy a pig in a poke: To buy something without seeing it or checking it out first to make sure there is nothing wrong with it. Here, a poke is a bag or a sack. Someone who bought a heavy bag without first looking inside it might get home and find that he bought some other animal instead of the pig he thought he was getting.

Example:

I’m unhappy with the camera I bought online. The seller said it was in excellent condition, but when I got it, it was all scratched up, and the buttons are difficult to use. That’s the last time I buy a pig in a poke by getting something over the internet.

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Writing Assignment: The Restaurant (Solutions)

1. Is the restaurant completely full?
No, there are some empty tables.

2. Are the people in this restaurant dressed elegantly or simply?
The people are elegantly dressed.

3. What is the woman in the foreground drinking?
The woman in the foreground is drinking coffee.

4. What kind of food is on the table in the bottom left corner?
There is a slice of bread, a couple of pats of butter, some celery, and a bowl of peas.

5. What kind of seasonings do you usually find on the dinner table?
We usually find salt and pepper on the dinner table, as well as sugar.

6. What kind of silverware is to the right of the plate?
To the right of the plate is a spoon and a knife.

7. How many forks does each guest get in this restaurant?
In this restaurant, each guest gets two forks.

8. Do you begin eating with the left or the right fork?
We begin eating with the left fork.

9. What stands in the middle of each table?
In the middle of each table stand a vase with a rose.

10. At the second table does the man or the lady order the meal?
At the second table, the man is ordering the meal.

11. What is the man by the waiter reading?
The man by the waiter is reading the menu.

12. What is on the top of the stairs?
On the top of the stairs is a potted plant.

13. Who is setting the table in the background?
A waiter is setting the table in the background.

14. What is the couple in the middle waiting for?
The couple in the middle is waiting for a table.

15. Who is wearing a corsage?
The lady at the table in the lower right-hand corner is wearing a corsage.

16. What is the lady on the first table on the right eating?
She is eating a steak.

17. Where do you see a column in this picture?
We see a column on the right-hand side in this picture.

18. Do you say “cheers” when you’re drinking coffee or when you’re drinking wine?
We say “cheers” when we’re drinking wine.

19. Do you say “enjoy your meal” before or after you have eaten?
We say “enjoy your meal” before we’ve eaten.

20. When do the guests get the check from the waiter?
The guests get the check from the waiter after they’ve eaten dinner.

Paragraph: A Meal in a Restaurant

Write a paragraph about a meal you ate in a restaurant. What did you have to eat? How did you enjoy it? What kind of restaurant was it? Was the restaurant elegant and fancy, or was it plain and simple?
yummy appetizer

On New Year’s Eve we went out to eat at Chili’s. Chili’s is a mid-level, casual dining restaurant – it isn’t a fancy restaurant where people have to get dressed up, but neither is it a fast food place. This restaurant focuses on a “Tex-Mex” (Texan-Mexican) cuisine. Many of the flavorings of their dishes come from hot peppers, giving the restaurant its name.

The first thing that we had was an appetizer called an onion “blossom.” It is an onion that is cut to resemble a flower with its petals wide open. The onion is dipped into a batter and then deep-fried. The individual “petals” of the onion flower look like French fries, and can be dipped in a sauce that comes with the appetizer.

After the appetizer, we had our main meal. I ordered a grilled chicken breast, and my husband ordered steak. Hannah ordered chicken strips, as she usually does. We both enjoyed our dinner, but the steak seemed a little on the small side. I thought about having some dessert, but after finishing the meal I was full.

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