Hello to all of you who joined this English conversation last Saturday. I so enjoyed seeing you all again and thank you for working so hard on the English Worksheet, the research and contributing throughout the walk.
I've posted the vocabulary (see below). If I've missed anything, please do add it!
I look forward to seeing you all on the next walk. I'll sort out the next date very soon ...
Best Wishes
Gail
Vocabulary: Heroes and executions – Saturday 19th January 2013
to scratch (verb): When something sharp makes a shallow cut in our skin. E.g. my cat scratched my hand this morning.
an itch (noun): a) When we feel an irritation on our skin that makes us so uncomfortable that we want to scratch it!
to itch (verb): a) E.g. that mosquito bite itched like mad! b) (expression): I’m itching to go on holiday (means = can’t wait, restless, really wants to do something)
you scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours (proverb): If you do me a favour, I’ll do one for you too
to start (something) from scratch (phrase): To begin or learn something from the very beginning. E.g. I’m learning Spanish from scratch. E.g. I cooked this dinner from scratch.
on hold (phrase): E.g. I put my career on hold while the children were very small.
rife with (adjective): Usually used in as a negative, something not wanted or pleasant. Widespread, of common occurrence. Full of (something) e.g. We saw this word outside St Sepulchre’s church when we read the history of the area. It said that Newgate Prison was ‘rife with ghost stories’. E.g. Chicken Pox is rife at my daughter’s school.
circa (preposition): approximately. It is usually used with a date E.g. The Hall was built circa 1600.
it’s a drag (noun informal): When something or someone is boring. E.g. I found that class this morning a real drag!
tunnel vision (noun informal): When we focus (think about) only on the things we want to.
dead quiet: When a place is really, really quiet. E.g. I went to Covent Garden yesterday and it was dead quite because of the snow. Usually, there are crowds of people there!
mishmash (noun): A confused mixture. E.g. London is a real mishmash of buildings and styles. The old historical buildings are mixed up with the new, modern ones.
hodgepodge (noun): The same as mishmash.
ish (adverb): E.g. We’re meeting at 6ish, aren’t we? E.g. A: Are you hungry? We could find somewhere to eat, if you like. B: I couldn’t eat a huge meal but I am peckish. E.g. A: Are you busy? I could do with some help. B: Yes, ish. Give me another 10 minutes and I’ll help you then.
to pelt (verb): To throw something at someone or thing. E.g. when the prisoners from Newgate Prison were executed, the crowds pelted them with tomatoes and rotten fruit.
pelting with rain: When it rains very heavily, we use this expression. We say ‘it’s pelting with rain’ or ‘the rain is pelting down’.
a bailey (noun): A wall used to protect a city. The original City of London was surrounded by a bailey (wall), some of which can still be seen today.
a hostage (noun): When a person (or lots of people) is held by one group in a conflict as a way to fulfil certain conditions. E.g. They said that they won’t free the twenty hostages until the government frees the prisoners. N.B.: you can only use ‘hostage/s’ with certain verbs i.e. a group has taken hostages in Algeria. i.e. to take someone hostage.
stationery (noun): writing and other office materials e.g. envelopes, paper, pens etc.
stationary (adjective): When something is still and not moving, it is ‘stationary’. E.g. the car was stationary when the accident happened.
a frieze (noun): A horizontal strip of paper or clay or wood (any material) that is mounted on a wall. It can be painted or sculpted to create a series of pictures that tell a story or show a process. E.g. We looked at the frieze above Cutlers’ Hall. It shows the traditional process of making knives and other sharp instruments.
To demolish (verb used with an object). a) When we pull down a building or other structure, we say us the verb ‘to demolish’. E.g. They demolished the building next to the library and built a new hotel.
b) We also use ‘to demolish’ informally. E.g. If we are very hungry and eat our dinner very quickly, we might say ‘I demolished that lot quickly!’ or ‘he demolished his meal in no time!’ or ‘she demolished that chocolate bar!’
c) demolition (noun). The act of demolishing something. E.g. Demolition work began on the old office building this morning.
To destroy (verb): When we ruin something (a building, painting, dinner or any other object or thing), we use the verb ‘to destroy’. E.g. During the riots, the toy shop was destroyed in the fire. E.g. She poured paint everywhere and destroyed my work.
Pronunciation:
Note that comb, thumb, bomb, tomb, dumb all have a silent ‘b’.
Other:
A: did he erect all the tablets?
B: I think no. (Correction: ‘I don’t think so’ ü or ‘I think not’ ü
///
A two bedroom flat no plurals – because
A four lane motorway all these nouns are being used as adjectives
A 95 year old woman
I've posted the vocabulary (see below). If I've missed anything, please do add it!
I look forward to seeing you all on the next walk. I'll sort out the next date very soon ...
Best Wishes
Gail
Vocabulary: Heroes and executions – Saturday 19th January 2013
to scratch (verb): When something sharp makes a shallow cut in our skin. E.g. my cat scratched my hand this morning.
an itch (noun): a) When we feel an irritation on our skin that makes us so uncomfortable that we want to scratch it!
to itch (verb): a) E.g. that mosquito bite itched like mad! b) (expression): I’m itching to go on holiday (means = can’t wait, restless, really wants to do something)
you scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours (proverb): If you do me a favour, I’ll do one for you too
to start (something) from scratch (phrase): To begin or learn something from the very beginning. E.g. I’m learning Spanish from scratch. E.g. I cooked this dinner from scratch.
on hold (phrase): E.g. I put my career on hold while the children were very small.
rife with (adjective): Usually used in as a negative, something not wanted or pleasant. Widespread, of common occurrence. Full of (something) e.g. We saw this word outside St Sepulchre’s church when we read the history of the area. It said that Newgate Prison was ‘rife with ghost stories’. E.g. Chicken Pox is rife at my daughter’s school.
circa (preposition): approximately. It is usually used with a date E.g. The Hall was built circa 1600.
it’s a drag (noun informal): When something or someone is boring. E.g. I found that class this morning a real drag!
tunnel vision (noun informal): When we focus (think about) only on the things we want to.
dead quiet: When a place is really, really quiet. E.g. I went to Covent Garden yesterday and it was dead quite because of the snow. Usually, there are crowds of people there!
mishmash (noun): A confused mixture. E.g. London is a real mishmash of buildings and styles. The old historical buildings are mixed up with the new, modern ones.
hodgepodge (noun): The same as mishmash.
ish (adverb): E.g. We’re meeting at 6ish, aren’t we? E.g. A: Are you hungry? We could find somewhere to eat, if you like. B: I couldn’t eat a huge meal but I am peckish. E.g. A: Are you busy? I could do with some help. B: Yes, ish. Give me another 10 minutes and I’ll help you then.
to pelt (verb): To throw something at someone or thing. E.g. when the prisoners from Newgate Prison were executed, the crowds pelted them with tomatoes and rotten fruit.
pelting with rain: When it rains very heavily, we use this expression. We say ‘it’s pelting with rain’ or ‘the rain is pelting down’.
a bailey (noun): A wall used to protect a city. The original City of London was surrounded by a bailey (wall), some of which can still be seen today.
a hostage (noun): When a person (or lots of people) is held by one group in a conflict as a way to fulfil certain conditions. E.g. They said that they won’t free the twenty hostages until the government frees the prisoners. N.B.: you can only use ‘hostage/s’ with certain verbs i.e. a group has taken hostages in Algeria. i.e. to take someone hostage.
stationery (noun): writing and other office materials e.g. envelopes, paper, pens etc.
stationary (adjective): When something is still and not moving, it is ‘stationary’. E.g. the car was stationary when the accident happened.
a frieze (noun): A horizontal strip of paper or clay or wood (any material) that is mounted on a wall. It can be painted or sculpted to create a series of pictures that tell a story or show a process. E.g. We looked at the frieze above Cutlers’ Hall. It shows the traditional process of making knives and other sharp instruments.
To demolish (verb used with an object). a) When we pull down a building or other structure, we say us the verb ‘to demolish’. E.g. They demolished the building next to the library and built a new hotel.
b) We also use ‘to demolish’ informally. E.g. If we are very hungry and eat our dinner very quickly, we might say ‘I demolished that lot quickly!’ or ‘he demolished his meal in no time!’ or ‘she demolished that chocolate bar!’
c) demolition (noun). The act of demolishing something. E.g. Demolition work began on the old office building this morning.
To destroy (verb): When we ruin something (a building, painting, dinner or any other object or thing), we use the verb ‘to destroy’. E.g. During the riots, the toy shop was destroyed in the fire. E.g. She poured paint everywhere and destroyed my work.
Pronunciation:
Note that comb, thumb, bomb, tomb, dumb all have a silent ‘b’.
Other:
A: did he erect all the tablets?
B: I think no. (Correction: ‘I don’t think so’ ü or ‘I think not’ ü
///
A two bedroom flat no plurals – because
A four lane motorway all these nouns are being used as adjectives
A 95 year old woman
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