The number-one magazine for learning and teaching English! @LEARNHOTENGLISH No.245 www.learnhotenglish.com KILLER CATS IN THE UK! US CULTURE: NEW YORKERS! 15 JOKES TO INCREASE YOUR VOCABULARY! ISSN 15777898 9 771577 789001 00245 PLUS… phrasal verbs, grammar, idioms, vocabulary, useful expressions… and much, much more. English Classes ...for your employees! Language classes for companies! E E R Four trial pcalansys! s, m s -h one your cofree cla for t your ct: e onta glish.com c To g oten h learn ss@ usine b Are you looking for English classes for your company? Finding an academy that can keep students motivated, provide excellent materials, and offer a professional service isn’t easy. But Learn Hot English has the solution! Our dynamic courses and materials will give employees the language they need at work! Face-to-face classes in Spain and online classes all over the world. Why not try us for FREE? We’ll give you a FREE one-hour trial class (with no obligation) with one of our English teachers. If you love our materials, why don’t you sign up for company classes and get them for FREE? TAP HERE for your FREE trial class! ’ve s weglish . e s s cla t En tive “Thewith Hoally effective had been rer innova, our i a th h ve ith theg system W rnin have bnojoyed lea dents and e stu essed elves.” ector. r ir s prog them ancial D ersity n Univ i F d Daviambridges. Iberia C Pres Wherever your company is based, we can help. Contact us NOW and put us to the test! (00 34) 91 421 7886 [email protected] www.learnhotenglishcorp.com FREE subscription if you recommend Hot English Language Services to your company. E-mail [email protected] / www.learnhotenglish.com / 2 EDITOR’S INTRO Magazine Index How you learn English with Hot English magazine Pre-Intermediate (CEF level: A2) Why are you learning English? To get a better job, to pass an official English exam, to travel, or just to communicate in English? Hot English magazine helps with all this. Travel English. Want to travel to English-speaking countries? With Hot English you’ll learn the words and expressions you need for international travel! 1 Increase your vocabulary. In every issue of Hot English you’ll learn over 350 English words and expressions! Plus you’ll learn lots of idioms, phrasal verbs, grammar and more. 5 2 Improve your listening. Every magazine has 60 minutes of spoken English audio. You’ll learn to understand English, plus you can hear lots of different accents! 6 Social English. How do native English 3 4 Exam English. Hot English helps prepare you for official English exams (First Certificate, IELTS, TOEFL, etc.). How? Exams test your ability to speak and your range of vocabulary. Hot English improves your communication skills and your knowledge of words and expressions. Business English. Practical English for the office, for meetings, for talking to clients – it’s all in Hot English. Plus, read business tips from entrepreneurs. speakers really talk? Learn with our natural English conversations. Also, learn English slang. Plus, in Hot English you’ll read about current events (news, culture, music, films) so you can make conversation with native English speakers. 7 Want to learn even more? Get an English Unlocked book. You’ll learn extra vocabulary, grammar, social English and business English. The English Unlocked books are linked to the topics in Hot English magazine. Visit our website for more details. Hi, and welcome to another issue of Learn Hot English – the fun magazine for learning English. In this month’s issue, we’re looking at some little jokes that will really increase your range of vocabulary. Read over them, understand them and then try to use them in conversations with your friends. Of course, that’s not all and we’re also looking at New Yorkers, big cats in the UK, international customs, kissing in public, train vocabulary, phrasal verbs, idioms, slang, vocabulary, UK-US word differences, a business topic, and lots, lots more. Well, we hope you enjoy reading and listening to this issue of Learn Hot English. Have fun, learn lots of English and see you all next month! 3 Editorial 4 Dr Fingers’ Error Correction Clinic 6 Video: A Tour of Harrods 8 Listening: One of America’s Most Famous Shops 10 Fingers’ Pronunciation Intermediate (CEF level: B1) 12 Story Time 14 Crank Calls 16 15 Jokes to Increase Your Vocabulary! 18 Joke Explanation Page 19 15 Jokes to Increase Your 16 Vocabulary!Exercises 20 Book Review - Three Men in a Boat 22 Trivia - International Customs Upper Intermediate (CEF level: B2) 24 Business Talk - Booking a Hotel Conference Room 22 26 Vocabulary - The Train 27 Typical Dialogues - The Train Inspector 28 Crossword 29 Wordsearch & Matching 30 Fingers’ Grammar Clinic 31 Business Dialogues - 34 PS Remember to sign up for our newsletter so you can receive lots of FREE language lessons, and find out what we’re doing. Just visit our website (www.learnhotenglish.com) and enter your name and e-mail address in the box on the right-hand side of the page. Don’t forget to check out the blog on our website: www. learnhotenglish.com/blog for free lessons and articles on how to learn English. Or “like” us on Facebook or Twitter (@LearnHotEnglish)so you can keep up with our latest news. COMPANY CLASSES LearnHotEnglish The Staff Review 30 Idioms – Colours 34 Amazing World - New York 36 Become a New Yorker 38 Weird World - Big Cats in Britain 40 Weird World - Cartoon Advanced (CEF level: C1) 38 (00 34) 91 421 7886 learnhoteng HotEnglishMagazine 42 Strange But True 44 US Bar Chat 45 Dictionary Of Slang 46 In The News 47 Phrasal Verbs - Call All material in this publication is strictly copyright, and all rights are reserved. Reproduction without permission is prohibited. The views expressed in Hot English Magazine do not necessarily represent the views of Hot English Publishing SL, although we have seen some very large cats in Britain, and New Yorkers are obsessive egomaniacs. 48 Answers and Scripts For great private language classes, e-mail [email protected] / www.learnhotenglish.com / 3 AUDIO DR FINGERS’ ERROR CORRECTION CLINIC In this section Dr Fingers identifies and corrects typical errors… and ensures that they are NEVER, EVER repeated. DR FINGERS’ ERROR CORRECTION CLINIC Hello everybody, and welcome to my “Error Correction” clinic. You know just the other day I heard and recorded the following conversation in one of my classes. There are some errors. See if you can find them. Dr Fingers: Good morning, class. Ivan, there is a time and a place for that kind of behaviour, and now is not the place. Put it away! Yes, back where it belongs, there’s a good boy. OK, class, we’re going to do a little exercise. Class: Oh, no! Dr Fingers: Yes, now settle down. Right, Gnocci, come to the front of the class. Now, Gnocci, I want you to make three sentences with the word “during”. Gnocci: OK, that’s easy: “I was working during four hours last night”; “She told me the answer during the film”; and, “I lived in Paris during three months”. Dr Fingers: OK, class… (fades out) Today ’s class: DURING & FOR Solutions Later, I disciplined my student privately for a few hours, and now I think he understands the rule. Let’s listen to him again: Gnocci: “I was working for four hours last night”; “I lived in Paris for three months.” OK, that’s all for today, bye for now and may you have an error-free month. Problems Did you hear the mistakes? Gnocci made two mistakes: “I was working during four hours last night”; and, “I lived in Paris during three months.” These are very typical errors. You have to remember that we use “during” with a noun. For example: “I played a lot of tennis during the holidays.” “I fell asleep during the exam.” “I left during the meeting.” And we use “for” to introduce periods of time. For example: “She was talking for three hours.” “I lived there for six years.” “The water was boiling for ten minutes.” 4 For fantastic Video-Phone classes, e-mail [email protected] / www.learnhotenglish.com / Teacher’s Packs Ready-to-go lessons for busy teachers! Are you an English language teacher? Do you need some new material for your classes? If so, the Teacher’s Packs are perfect for you! The Teacher’s Packs are full of fun, ready-to-go lessons that will help your students learn lots of useful English…and save YOU loads of time! THERE ARE FIVE TEACHER’S PACKS: And each PACK comes with over 20 ready-to-go lessons that include warmers, listening exercises and follow-up speaking and writing activities. All this will make your life as a teacher so much easier! Your students will love these classes and learn lots of useful English. Guaranteed! TAP HERE FOR A FANTASTIC OFFER ON ALL 5 TEACHER’S PACKS, AND SAVE YOURSELF LOTS OF TEACHER PREPARATION TIME! TAP HERE Great ideas for busy teachers! AUDIO A TOUR OF HARRODS! VIDEO A TOUR OF HARRODS! 1 Pre-viewing You’re going to watch a video about Harrods, a famous shop in London. Before watching the video, make a list of 10 things you think you could buy in the shop. 2 First viewing Watch the video once. Did you notice (or hear mentioned) any of the objects you thought of for the previous task? What were they? 3 Second viewing Watch the video again. Then, choose the correct answers. 1. Harrods’ motto is, “All things for all people, anywhere / everywhere.” 2. On busy days, it has 200,000 / 300,000 shoppers (over the course of the day). 3. It employs more than 5,000 / 6,000 people from over 50 countries. 4. The woman thinks that if you leave London without a Harrods toy / bag, you’ve failed as a tourist. 5. The presenter mentions three important tourist attractions: Buckingham Palace, Big Ben / The Tower of London and Harrods. 6. The boss at Harrods mentions that you can buy things from £4.95 to up to £4 million / £5 million. 7. There are seven / eleven floors in the shop. 8. He also says that they can get you anything you want from an elephant to a plane / helicopter. Discussion Ask and answer the questions. Is there a shop like Harrods in your country? What is it called? What can you buy there? How many floors are there? What different departments are there? Have you ever been to Harrods? What did you see there? Did you buy anything there? What was it? If you had a million pounds, what would you buy? Where would you buy it? Have you ever had a pet? What was it? How easy was it to take care of? Why do you think someone would want to buy an elephant? Who would buy an elephant? What do you think it’s like to take care of an elephant? What would you need to do? Watching videos in English – top tips! The most important thing to remember when watching a video in English is this: you won’t understand every word. But this isn’t a problem. Simply listen out for the key words – the most important words in the conversation: the nouns, verbs, adjectives, etc. By doing this, you’ll be able to guess what the speakers are saying. Also, before watching the video, think about the topic. If you do this, you’ll be able to predict what the speakers might say, and also guess the meaning of words or expressions, even if you don’t understand them! 6 / www.learnhotenglish.com / Contact us for fantastic online classes for your company, wherever you are: [email protected] HAVE YOU GOT ALL THE COPIES OF LEARN HOT ENGLISH MAGAZINE? You can get backissues and some fantastic offers with packs of magazines! Buy packs of 12 or 24 magazines with great discounts! These packs, complete with lots of audio files and great learning material that will really improve your English! Tap here for the 12-pack! Tap here for the 24-pack! Happy learning! www.learnhotenglish.com VIDEO LISTENING: ONE OF AMERICA’S MOST FAMOUS SHOPS LISTENING ONE OF AMERICA’S MOST FAMOUS SHOPS 1 Pre-listening (The answers to the exercise are on page 48) Write the name of a shop next to each description. a department store a butcher’s a newsagent a greengrocer’s an estate agent an ironmonger’s / a hardware store (US) It’s a shop that sells… 1. …meat = 2. …nails, tools, DIY material = 3. …newspapers, chocolate, sweets = 4. …houses / flats. 5. …just about everything: clothes, food, etc. = 6. …fruit and vegetables = The pronunciation of regular past simple verbs [See the resource section for a more detailed explanation.] There are three ways of pronouncing regular past simple verb endings. A 2 Listening I The /t/ sound (for verbs ending in unvoiced consonant sounds*): a) watched: She watched it. b) laughed: I laughed a lot. c) walked: He walked home. d) dropped: She dropped it. e) washed: He washed the dog. 3 Listening II The /d/sound (for verbs ending in voiced* consonant sounds): a) informed: They informed us. b) rained: It rained a lot. c) lived: She lived here. d) showed: He showed it to us. You’re going to listen to someone talking about a famous American department store: Macy’s. Think of three questions to ask about the department store. For example: Where is it? When was it founded? etc. Then, listen once. Were any of your questions answered? Listen again. Then, answer the questions. 1. How many Macy’s stores are there ? 2. Which famous building is close to the store in Herald Square? 3. When were the first Macy’s shops opened? 4. When was the Herald Square store opened? B C The /id/ sound: a) wanted: I wanted the red one. b) needed: I needed two. D Discussion Ask and answer the questions. Are there any famous shops in your country? What are they called? What do they sell? Have you ever shopped there? What did you buy? What are some of your favourite shops? What do you buy there? Why do you like them? Write /t/, /d/ or /id/ next to each sentence according to the pronunciation of the past tense verbs. Then, listen to check your answers. 1. They wanted to leave. 2. She finished early. 3. We cleaned the house. 4. They landed at six. 5. She loved the present. 6. They managed to fix it. 7. We watched a film. *Unvoiced consonant sounds An unvoiced consonant sound doesn’t create a vibration in your throat. For example, if you touch your throat and say “kiss”, you won’t feel a vibration from the /k/ sound. A voiced consonant sound creates a vibration in your throat. For example, if you touch your throat and say “very”, you’ll feel a vibration from the /v/ sound. 8 / www.learnhotenglish.com / Contact us for fantastic online classes for your company, wherever you are: [email protected] Listen & learn! Download the audio files for this magazine! In order to get the downloadable audio files for this magazine, go to www.learnhotenglish.com/ learn-hot-english-magazine-audio-files And enter this code: HotMP3s2019 Tap here for the MP3s! Download the audio files for your magazine so you can improve your listening and speaking skills. Then, you can listen to Learn Hot English as you're... ...driving! ...walking! ...doing exercise! ...relaxing at home! AUDIO DR FINGERS’ PRONUNCIATION DR FINGERS’PRONUNCIATION Hello everyone and welcome to my English pronunciation course! OK, let’s get pronouncing! (The answers to the exercise are on page 48) Irregular Past Tense Verbs Listen & Repeat This is the third part in our series on irregular past tense verbs and their pronunciation. Due to popular demand, I have been persuaded to write another one of my famous poems. But this is the very last one, I promise… unless there is a national emergency. Right, here goes. This poem will clearly demonstrate the lack of logic, coherence and general stupidity regarding the pronunciation of irregular past tense verbs in English. Now let’s get on with some pronouncing. Listen and repeat these verbs and their irregular pasts: Infinitive Past Choose Drive Break Ride Speak Wake Write Chose Drove Broke Rode Spoke Woke Wrote Dr Fingers’ Poem “It’s Just Not Fair” Tell Sell Told Sold There are some things that don’t make sense, And for which there is just no defence, When “o” in boss is just like “sock”, But “o” in “chose” it sounds like “goes”. Wear Tear See Wore Tore Saw Find Bind Found Bound Lose Shoot Lost Shot It drives me mad to see that “wore”, Is pronounced the same as “more” and “law”, And how the “o” and “u” in the past tense “bound”, Rhyme with the beast that we all call “cow”. It makes me stop and start to choke, When the “o” of “spoke” is just like “coke”, But when it comes to the past tense “tore”, The “o” will rhyme with “door” and “poor”. By Dr Fingers - copyright, 2004. Exercise Now let’s try an exercise. Listen to the following sentences and repeat them with me. Then, listen again and try to write the sentence in two ways: the first time normally; and the second time as it sounds in connected speech. We’ve done the first one for you. Good luck!: 1. She told a lie = she tol da lie. 2. ____________________________ 3. ____________________________ 4. ____________________________ 5. ____________________________ 6. ____________________________ 7. ____________________________ 8. ____________________________ 9. ____________________________ 10. ____________________________ OK, that’s all for today. Bye for now, and happy talking! GLOSSARY Connected Speech I know you think I am a bore, And that you’d rather hear no more, But I just must say it is not fair, As all I want to do is help, I swear. “I found it”, which sounds like this in connected speech, “I foun dit”. Listen to some more examples. Notice how the final “e” in many cases is not pronounced, and also how the “w” is like an “r” sound: 1. I chose it = I cho s(e)it. 2. She wrote it = she wro t(e)it. 3. They told a child = they tol da child. 4. I saw a dog = I sa wa dog. Now let’s look at these verbs in connected speech. Many of these irregular past tense forms end with a consonant sound. Now, when the following word starts with a vowel, the consonant sound connect with the vowel to form a new sound. For example: to bind vb (past: bound) to tie with a cord or rope to choke vb if you “choke”, you can’t breathe - usually because you have something in your throat that is obstructing it a bore vb a boring person to swear vb to promise 10 / www.learnhotenglish.com / Contact us for fantastic online classes for your company, wherever you are: [email protected] Clases de inglés... Language classes for companies! ¡para sus empleados! ISrueba T A GR a de p sa! hor mpre ase ¡una ra su e r su cl : pa btene tacte o on .com Para ratis, c hotenglish g learn ess@ busin ¿Está buscando clases de inglés para su empresa? Encontrar una academia que mantenga a sus estudiantes motivados, que provea excelentes materiales, y que ofrezca un servicio profesional no es tarea fácil. Sin embargo, ¡Learn Hot English tiene la solución! ¡Nuestros dinámicos cursos al igual que nuestros materiales le darán a sus empleados el lenguaje necesario para comunicar en inglés! ¡Clases presenciales en España y clases virtuales en todo el mundo! ¿Por qué no intentarlo con nosotros? Le daremos una hora de prueba GRATIS (sin obligación) con uno de nuestros profesores de inglés. Si le gustan nuestros materiales, ¿por qué no se registra con nosotros para obtenerlas GRATIS para su empresa? PULSE AQUÍ !para su clase gratis¡ s n clase do co y “Lass cursasido mu de a o hem han stem r, que English n su si novadoan Hottivas. Coje tan inantes hdo efec rendizas estudidisfruta ap estro do y cia.” ro, nu ogresa perien nancie pr la ex ector fi ersity iv ir d - d e Un Davi ambridgs, Iberia C Pres Donde sea que se encuentre tu empresa, nosotros te podemos ayudar. ¡Contáctanos ahora y ponnos a prueba! (00 34) 91 421 7886 [email protected] www.learnhotenglishcorp.com FREE subscription if you recommend Hot English Language Services to your company. E-mail [email protected] / www.learnhotenglish.com / 11 AUDIO STORY TIME Jokes, stories and anecdotes as told by native English speakers e m i t y r o t S In this section you can hear two native English speakers telling each other a joke. This authentic conversation will really help with your listening skills. Listen to the conversation and answer these questions. The Train Ride 1. Where did the man want to go to? 2. Why did he pay the ticket inspector ten thousand lire? 3. What is the punch-line? John: Hey, I heard this great joke the other day. Nigel: Oh really, tell me it. John: Yeah, well, it’s about this guy, this Italian guy he’s on this… and he needs to go to Rome. Nigel: OK. John: Yeah, he’s, he’s going, and, well, he’s on, no, sorry, he doesn’t need to go to Rome, he needs to go on the train to Rome, he needs to get off at this town called Prato, or something like that. Nigel: Oh really, why? John: Yeah, he’s going to a wedding anyway. Anyway, he’s a bit worried cos he’s, like, really, really tired. So he gets on the train and he finds the ticket inspector, and he goes, “ah, here is ten thousand lire. I want to…”. Nigel: Ten thousand lire! Wow! That’s a lot of money. John: Nah, it sounds like a lot. It’s not a lot really [OK]. Anyway, he says, “please wake me up in Pr…, when we get to Prato”. You know, he’s really worried he going to fall asleep and miss the station. Nigel: Alright, so what happens? John: Yeah, the ticket inspector says, “yeah, no problem”. So the guy gets on his seat and he falls asleep almost immediately cos he’s, he’s been up working for about 24 hours. And next thing he wakes up and he’s in Rome. Nigel: He’s in Rome! Wow! What happened? John: He’s missed, he’s missed the station so he’s like really, really angry. So he goes to find the ticket inspector, and he goes, “hey, I told you, I gave you ten thousand lire to wake me up in Prato”. Nigel: So, what does the conductor say? John: He goes, “oh, I’m very sorry. I can see you are angry,” and the, “but you are not as angry as the other guy I threw off at Prato”. Nigel: (laughter) That’s, that’s pretty lame. John: Yeah, it’s pretty lame. Erm, you know, he, like, threw off another guy and, not the right guy… (laughter). Oh, it’s stupid. Never mind. GLOSSARY a punch-line n the end of a joke or story, and the part that makes it funny this guy exp notice how we use “this” to refer to people or things when we are telling jokes or stories yeah exp yes to get off phr vb to leave a train anyway exp this expression is often used to change the topic of a conversation. People often use in order to stop what they are saying and to start something new cos abbr because like exp people often use this when they are thinking about what to say next. It is wused to fill space in a conversation and doesn’t mean anything nah exp no to miss vb if you “miss” a station, you don’t see the station, or you forget to get off at the station, etc he goes exp inform he says pretty mod quite lame adj bad, poor, weak erm n this is the sound that people make when they are thinking about what to say you know exp people often use this expression when they are thinking about what to say next USEFUL VOCABULARY to help you with the story: a train a wedding a ticket inspector sleeping a seat 12 / www.learnhotenglish.com / Want to do an internship with Hot English? For more information, e-mail [email protected] SUBSCRIBE TO... LEARN 500 NEW WORDS In every monthly issue of Learn Hot English, you will: - Learn 500 new words, idioms, phrasal verbs and expressions. - Get lots of listening practice + hear lots of different accents. - Read about the latest in culture, business, music, films, travel and news. - Learn “real” English so you can talk to native English speakers. - Learn faster because the material is motivating and fun. - Save money! Hot English is much cheaper than English classes or textbooks. BIG discounts on 6-month or 12-month subscriptions! Tap here to subscribe Learn better English for your future… FAST! www.learnhotenglish.com AUDIO Phone conversations to help improve your listening skills. CRANK CALLS Crank Calls Here are some more crank calls for you to enjoy. Crank Call I Crank Call II For this call we chose someone out of the phone book at random. We pretended to be from a market research company, interviewing people about their opinions for the next election. Notice how our questions get sillier and sillier: This time we decided to phone up a restaurant and have a bit of fun. We chose one out of a guide book and started to wind up our victim. In this case, our objective was to waste time… and I think we managed to do it very well: Victim: Hello? Hot: Oh, hi, this is Roger, I’m calling from a market research company, Timeshare. I was wondering if you just had a minute to spare? Victim: Yeah, OK, but I’m running late. Hot: Oh, thank you so much. Basically, we’re getting people’s opinions on the candidates for the election. Would you mind telling me which party you are going to vote for, please? Victim: Democrat. Hot: Very well. Now we just need a few bits of information for our database. Would you mind answering a few personal questions? Victim: Yeah, sure. Go ahead. Hot: Age, approximately? Victim: 35. Hot: Profession? Victim: I’m a freelance designer. Hot: Hair colour? Victim: Erm, dark brown, er… Hot: Hair type: fuzzy, straight, curly or wavy? Victim: Are you for real? Hot: Distinguishing features? Victim: Are you serious? Hot: No, not really. Bye. Victim: Hello, welcome to Benny’s Burger Bar, hold on, please. Sorry about that. How may I help you? Hot: Hi, yes, I’d like to order some food to take away, please. Victim: OK, I’ll take your order. Hot: I’ll have three hamburgers without tomato or ketchup. Victim: That’s no problem. Any fries with that? Hot: Yes, three portions of fries… no, four. No, no, no three. Yes, three. Victim: So just three orders of fries. Hot: No, sorry, could you make that four - my brother’s a bit of a pig. Victim: OK, four orders of fries. Anything to drink with that? Hot: Yes, three Cokes, please. Victim: Three Cokes? Hot: Yes, three. Victim: OK, three Cokes… Hot: No, I mean, yes, three, three. Victim: Would you like any dessert with that? Hot: No. Victim: OK, that’ll be… Hot: Sorry, did I say no. I meant, yes. Victim: You would like a dessert? Hot: Yes. Victim: What would you like, Sir? Hot: What do you recommend? Victim: Well, we’ve got… Hot: Actually, sorry, I’ve just changed my mind. I think we’ll be cooking tonight. Bye. More next month. GLOSSARY a crank call n a funny phone call that you make in order to irritate someone. Literally, a “crank” is a mad, crazy insane person. These calls are also known as prank calls to put the phone down exp to take the phone away from your mouth and ear and to put it back on the box. Ths stops the communication a surname n a last name. Also known as a family name speaking exp this is like saying, “yes, that’s correct”. It is used on the phone when someone asks you to confirm your name at random exp spontaneously - not selected or specifically chosen a market research company n a company that asks people questions in order to get information about opinions, habits, etc to wonder vb to ask yourself a question about something a minute to spare n a free moment I’m running a bit late exp I’m late for an appointment or date a database n a file on the computer with information about people: their address, age, etc fuzzy adj hair that has lots of little circles in it very close to your head curly adj hair that has little circles in it wavy adj hair that is almost straight but not completely are you for real? exp are you serious? distinguishing features n marks or things on your body or face to phone up phr vb to telephone to wind someone up phr vb inform to make someone angry by irritating them or playing jokes on them food to take away n food that you buy from a restaurant but that you don’t eat there - you take it home fries n small, rectangular pieces of potato that are fried in oil. “Chips” in British English 14 / www.learnhotenglish.com / Contact us for fantastic online classes for your company, wherever you are: [email protected] h… t i w lish g n E r u o y k Unloc h s i l g ! n E ocked l n U Learn over 500 words and move up a level with the course book English Unlocked! Your complete, self-study English learning pack. Learning guaranteed! Reading, listening, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, progress tests, listen-and-repeat and much, much more. Increase your range of vocabulary! Improve your listening skills! Perfect your pronunciation! Develop your reading skills! English Unlocked! will give you the English you need for travel, work, exams (FCE, IELTS, TOEFL…) and life! 6 books to choose from! More than 50 hours of learning material! Over 100 pages divided into 8 units! 3 hours of listening material! Videos with exercises! A variety of English accents! Read and listen to this product on an iPad, iPhone, smartphone, tablet computer, PC, Mac…TOEFL…) and life! “Best money I ever spent on an English course. My English is so much better now because of this English Unlocked. Thanks Hot English!” - Daniel K (Cologne, Germany) www.learnhotenglish.com Tap here to buy! 15 JOKES TO INCREASE YOUR VOCABULARY! 15 JOKES TO INCREASE YOUR VOCABULARY! Jokes are a great way to improve your English. The language is really practical because it’s informal spoken English. Also, jokes are motivating because they’re funny (hopefully). And finally, you can use the jokes when you’re chatting to friends. First, read these jokes and see if you can understand them – check the Joke Explanation Page if you need any help. In some cases, the joke is based on the double meaning of a word, or there’s a homophone – a word with the same pronunciation as another word but with a different meaning. When you’re ready, do the exercises on the following page to check your understanding. Good luck! 1 A: What’s an astronaut’s favourite part on a computer? B: I don’t know. What is an astronaut’s favourite part on a computer? A: The space bar. 2 A man tells his doctor, “Doctor, please help me. I’m addicted to Twitter!” And the doctor replies, “I’m sorry, but I don’t follow you.” 3 A: What did the left eye say to the right eye? B: I don’t know. What did the left eye say to the right eye? A: Between you and me, something smells. 4 Two artists had an art contest. It ended in a draw! 5 A: What did the shark say when he ate the clownfish? B: I don’t know. What did the shark say when he ate the clownfish. A: This tastes a little funny. 6 A: Why couldn’t the pony sing in the concert? B: I don’t know. Why couldn’t the pony sing in the concert? A: Because she was a little hoarse. 16 / www.learnhotenglish.com / Contact us for fantastic online classes for your company, wherever you are: [email protected] 8 Last night, my dog ate all the Scrabble tiles. He keeps leaving little messages around the house. 9 A: What did one hat say to the other? B: I don’t know. What did one hat say to the other? A: You wait here. I’ll go on a head. 10 A: Where does Batman go to the toilet? B: I don’t know. Where does Batman go to the toilet? A: The batroom. 11 I got my husband a fridge for his birthday. I can’t wait to see his face light up when he opens it. 12 A: What do you call a magic dog? B: I don’t know. What do you call a magic dog? A: A labracadabrador. 13 A: Why did the hipster burn his mouth? B: I don’t know. Why did the hipster burn his mouth? A: Because he drank his coffee before it was cool. 14 When I told my wife she was drawing her eyebrows too high, she looked at me with surprise. 15 A: Did you hear about the two robbers who stole a calendar? B: No, what happened? A: They each got six months. For fantastic Video-Phone classes, e-mail [email protected] / www.learnhotenglish.com / 17 15 JOKES TO INCREASE YOUR VOCABULARY! 7 A: What did one traffic light say to the other? B: I don’t know. What did one traffic light say to the other? A: Stop looking! I’m changing! JOKE EXPLANATION BOX JOKE EXPLANATION PAGE Here are some definitions to help you understand each joke. 1 The “space bar” is the object on a computer keyboard that you use to make a space between words or letters. “Space” is the area outside the Earth’s atmosphere with stars and planets: “The rocket travelled into space.” 2 If you can’t “follow” what someone is saying, you don’t understand them: “It was difficult to follow what he was saying.” If you “follow” someone on social media, you can see everything they post on their social media page: photos, text, stories, information… 3 If something “smells” good, it has a nice quality that you like; if something “smells” bad, it has a bad quality that you don’t like: “This food smells delicious.” If you “smell” something, you notice or discover it by using your nose: “I can smell smoke.” 4 If you “draw” a picture, you create it with a pen or pencil: “She drew a picture of a cat.” If there’s a “draw” in a competition, both contestants or teams have the same points in the end. If you go “on ahead”, you go in front of other people: “She went on ahead to see if the cinema was open.” 10 The “bathroom” is the place where you have a shower, brush your teeth, go to the toilet… A “batroom” is an invented word that’s a combination of “Batman” and “bathroom”. 11 A fridge is a piece of kitchen equipment that keeps food cold: “I put the milk in the fridge.” If someone’s face “lights up”, they suddenly look very happy: “His face lit up when he saw the present.” If an object “lights up”, the lights inside it are turned on and it becomes bright. 12 A “Labrador” is a type of dog with yellow or black fur that’s often used as a guide dog for blind people. When magicians perform magic, they often say “abracadabra” as they do the trick. A “labracadabrador” is an invented word that’s a combination of “Labrador” and “abracadabra”. 5 A “shark” is a large fish eats other fish or even humans. A “clownfish” is a tropical fish that’s usually red and orange with white stripes. If something is “funny”, it makes you laugh: “That joke was really funny.” If something tastes “funny”, it has a strange or unusual flavour: “This food tastes funny.” 6 A “pony” is a type of small horse. If you’re “hoarse”, your voice is rough (not smooth) because you’re sick with a cold or cough. The words “hoarse” and “horse” (the animal) are homophones – they have the same pronunciation, but different meanings. 7 If a traffic light is “changing”, it’s going from red to green, green to amber (orange), etc. If someone is “changing” their clothes, they’re putting on different clothes: “He’s changing at the moment so you can’t go into the room.” 8 “Scrabble” is a word game that you play by creating words on a board. A Scrabble “tile” is a small plastic square with a letter on it that you use to create words in the game Scrabble. 9 If you put a hat “on a head”, you place it on your head. 13 A hipster is a person who knows about the latest styles, fashions, music… If liquid is “cool”, it’s a little bit cold. If someone is “cool”, people like or admire that person and think they’re very fashionable. 14 Your eyebrows are the thin lines of hair above your eyes. If you “draw your eyebrows”, you use make-up to create new eyebrows, or to make the existing ones darker. We often raise our eyebrows (make them go high) when we’re surprised or shocked. 15 If a criminal “gets” 6 months, he/she is sent to prison for 6 months. Yearly calendars have 12 months on them, so if you “get” 6 months of a calendar, you receive half a calendar. 18 / www.learnhotenglishcorp.com/en / Contact us for fantastic online classes for your company, wherever you are: [email protected] EXERCISES! Answers on page 48 1 Joke completion 2 Gap fill Complete the jokes with the words from below. Complete the joke with the correct words. 1. What did one traffic light say to the other? Stop looking! I’m ! 2. Patient: “Doctor, please help me. I’m addicted to Twitter!” Doctor: “I’m sorry, but I don’t you.” 3. Two artists had an art contest. It ended in a ! 4. Last night, my dog ate all the Scrabble tiles. He keeps leaving little _______ around the house. 5. Where does Batman go to the toilet? The . 6. I got my husband a fridge for his birthday. I can’t wait to see his face up when he opens it. 7. What’s an astronaut’s favourite part on a computer? The bar. 8. When I told my wife she was drawing her eyebrows too high, she looked at me with . cool hoarse smells funny Labracadabrador head months 1. What did the left eye say to the right eye? Between you and me, something . 2. What did the shark say when he ate the clownfish? This tastes a little . 3. Why couldn’t the pony sing in the concert? Because she was a little . 4. What do you call a magic dog? A . 5. What did one hat say to the other? You wait here. I’ll go on a . 6. Why did the hipster burn his mouth? Because he drank his coffee before it was . 7. Did you hear about the two people who stole a calendar? They each got six . PRACTISE ENGLISH CONVERSATION S! This practical book for intermediate to advancedlevel students will: Improve your ability to socialise in English! Help you get a better job! Teach you 1,000 words to help your spoken English! Tap here to buy! FREE subscription if you recommend Hot English Language Services to your company. E-mail [email protected] / www.learnhotenglish.com / 19 15 JOKES TO INCREASE YOUR VOCABULARY! EXERCISES! 15 JOKES TO INCREASE YOUR VOCABULARY! AUDIO BOOK REVIEW Book review “THREE MEN IN A BOAT” By Laura Warrell The one sentence review Three men and a dog go on a trip down the River Thames and have a lot of adventures. The Thames This book is all about three friends, Jerome, Harris, and George, who decide to go on a trip down the Thames with their dog, Montmorency. As they travel along the water, they get into all sorts of trouble. The thing you’ll love about this book is the humour. It’s written in a light, ironic tone. Let’s see some extracts from the book. life are also great. On their first day of the trip, all three of them oversleep and get up late. Harris is still sleeping and this is how George describes him: There he lay - the man who had wanted to know what time he should wake us - on his back, with his mouth wide open, and his knees stuck up. I don’t know why it should be, I am sure, but the sight of another man asleep in bed when I am up, maddens me. And in this scene they put on the kettle for a cup of tea. Here’s what the writer has to say on the art of boiling water: Swimming In this the three men are talking about swimming and eating: We all talked as if we were going to have a long swim every morning. George said it was so pleasant to wake up in the boat in the fresh morning, and plunge into the river. Harris said there was nothing like a swim before breakfast to give you an appetite. He said it always gave him an appetite. George said that if it was going to make Harris eat more then Harris ordinarily ate, then he should protest against Harris having a bath at all. Sleep & Tea The writer’s descriptions and observations on If the kettle sees that you are waiting for it and are anxious, it will never even sing. You have to go away and begin your meal, as if you were not going to have any tea at all. You must not even look round at it. Then you will soon hear it spluttering away, mad to be made into tea. It is a good plan, too, if you are in a great hurry, to talk very loudly to each other about how you don’t need any tea, and are not going to have any. You get near the kettle, so that it can overhear you, and then you shout out: “I don’t want any tea; do you, George?” to which George shouts back: “Oh no, I don’t like tea; we’ll have lemonade instead - tea’s so indigestible.” Upon which the kettle boils. 20 / www.learnhotenglish.com / Looking for a quality English-language course abroad? Contact [email protected] BOOK REVIEW A Toothbrush The objective of the trip was to have a nice, pleasant, relaxing time, but nothing ever seems to go right for them. In another scene, George describes why it’s so hard to pack a bag: “Yes, it must be,” replied the cousin, “because we’ve walked a good two miles already.” Harris began to think it rather strange himself. Our Opinion I opened the bag and packed the boots in; and then, just as I was going to close it, a horrible idea occurred to me. Had I packed my toothbrush? I don’t know how it is, but I never do know whether I’ve packed my toothbrush. My toothbrush is a thing that haunts me when I’m travelling, and makes my life a misery. I dream that I haven’t packed it, and wake up in a cold perspiration, and get out of bed and hunt for it. And, in the morning I pack it before I have used it and have to unpack again to get it, and it is always the last thing I turn out of the bag; and then I repack and forget it, and have to rush upstairs for it at the last moment... And Harris is even worse at packing as he puts a pot of jam on top of a tomato. Later they have to pick the tomato out of the bag. And in our final extract, the three men stop at a pub for lunch. After eating, they go to the maze at Hampton Court. Of course, they all get lost. Harris acts as a guide as he thinks he knows how to get out: There must have been twenty people following him, in all; and one woman with a baby, who had been there all the morning, insisted on taking his arm, for fear of losing him. Harris kept on turning to the right, but it seemed a long way, and his cousin said he supposed it was a very big maze. “Oh, one of the largest in Europe,” said Harris. This is a great book, which also gives you an insight into the life of rich English gentlemen in the beginning of the 19th century. It’s written in a light, ironic style and has lots of examples of the dry, British sense of humour. Highly recommended. GLOSSARY a trip n a journey to get into all sorts of trouble exp to have many problems an ironic tone n a style of writing that makes fun of someone, or that makes something trivial sound very serious as a way of being funny to plunge vb to jump into water to oversleep vb to sleep longer than you wanted to stick up phr vb (past: stuck up) to push something in an upwards direction to be up exp to be awake and out of bed to madden vb to make really angry to put on phr vb to start cooking food by putting a pan over the gas or electricity a kettle n an object for making water hot. You use the water to make tea to boil vb to make water hot (100ºC) to sing vb many kettles make a noise (sing) when the water reaches 100ºC. This “sin-ging” is caused by the water vapour to splutter away phr vb when water is boiling, it often jumps out - it is “spluttering away” to overhear vb to secretly hear a conver-sation to pack a bag exp to put clothes in a bag or suitcase to haunt vb if something “haunts” you, it worries and irritates you to unpack vb to take clothes or things out of a bag to repack vb to put things in a bag again. Previously you had taken them out to rush vb to go to a place very quickly to pick out phr vb to use your fingers to take something out of a place a maze n a labyrinth an insight n an understanding For fantastic Video-Phone classes, e-mail [email protected] / www.learnhotenglish.com / 21 AUDIO TRIVIA INTERNATIONAL CUSTOMS Trivia INTERNATIONAL CUSTOMS This is the second part of our series on strange, weird and unusual practices from around the world. In ancient Rome, people found guilty of murdering their fathers were executed in a bizarre manner. The punishment was to be put in a sack with a rooster, a viper, and a dog, then drowned along with all three animals. In some remote parts of South America a man must kiss a woman if she trips him and makes him fall during a ceremonial dance. Apparently, men are notoriously bad dancers in areas where this custom is practised. When gentlemen in medieval Japan wished to seal an agreement, they held hands and went to the bathroom together. During the time of Peter the Great, any Russian who wore a beard was required to pay a special tax. Apparently, facial hair was considered a sign of wealth. In most countries the cure for stress, tension and high blood pressure is rest, a change or a doctor’s prescription. In Britain it’s a cup of tea. In ancient Rome it was considered a sign of leadership to be born with a hooked nose. In many European countries it is seen as rude to make any references to someone’s age - particularly if the person is elderly. However, in Vietnam it is polite and respectful to address an elderly woman as “ba”, which is a way of saying “old woman”. In medieval Britain there was a very unusual way of discovering whether someone was a witch or not. The suspected witch was tied to a chair and then lowered into a river. If she died, she was innocent; and if she survived, she was a witch and was subsequently burnt at the stake. And that’s what is known as a “no-win situation”. 22 / www.learnhotenglish.com / Contact us for fantastic online classes for your company, wherever you are: [email protected] In the kingdom of Bhutan, all citizens officially become one year older on New Year’s Day. During the special New Year celebrations in Bhutan, families are obliged to spend all their savings in order to keep the spirits happy. Belgium is the only country that has never censored a single adult film. So now you know where to go for the best in adult entertainment! In most countries around the world smoking is more or less tolerated. However, in the US if you light up in public, you may find yourself surrounded by an angry mob eager to lynch you. GLOSSARY In some African countries some tribes hold trials against animals. In one famous case, a tortoise was sentenced to death after “causing the death of six people through magic”. However, none of the villagers were prepared to carry out the execution, and the poor beast was chained to a tree. It was eventually pardoned and released. In ancient China women had the size and shape of their feet altered because small feet were considered more beautiful. In Turkey during the 16th and 17th centuries, anyone caught drinking coffee was put to death. People considered the “black liquid” the devil’s drink. In medieval Britain the way to find out if someone was guilty of a crime or not was to burn their hand. If the wound healed, they were innocent; and if it didn’t heal, they were guilty. There was a custom in ancient Greece that permitted a father to sell his daughter into slavery if she had sex before marriage. In the Pacific islands there is a belief that the soul escapes through the mouth or nose when a person is ill. As a result, sick people often attach fish hooks to their nose so the soul can’t get out. guilty adj if you are “guilty” of a crime, you have committed that crime a sack n a big bag made of material a rooster n an adult, male chicken. A “cockerel” in British English a viper n a type of poisonous snake to drown vb to die in water to trip vb if you “trip” someone, you hit them with your foot and make them fall notoriously adv if someone is a “notoriously bad dancer”, they are well-known for dancing badly to seal an agreement exp to confirm an agreement a hooked nose n a large, curved nose a witch n a woman who can do magic to tie vb to fix two things together with string, rope, cord, etc to lower vb to move something to a lower level to burn someone at the stake exp to kill someone by tying them to a wooden construction and burning them a no-win situation n a bad situation from which no one will benefit a trial n a legal process to decide if someone is innocent or guilty a case n another word for a trial - see above to pardon vb if you “pardon” a guilty person, you say that the person can go free to release vb to permit someone to leave a prison to put to death exp to kill a wound n a large cut on your body to heal vb if a cut in your body “heals”, it closes and becomes better a soul n your mind and spirit a fish hook n a curved piece of metal used to catch fish a lower caste person n in India people are divided into “castes”. There are upper-caste people (the important, rich people), and lowercaste people (the poor people) to cast a shadow exp if you “cast a shadow”, you make a dark shape on the ground because you have obscured the light savings n the money you have saved in the bank to censor vb to cut or eliminate scenes from a film to light up phr vb to light a cigarette a mob n a gang of angry, violent people to lynch vb if someone is “lynched”, a group of people kill that person by putting a rope around their neck and hanging them. Here it is used in the abstract sense For fantastic Video-Phone classes, e-mail [email protected] / www.learnhotenglish.com / 23 TRIVIA INTERNATIONAL CUSTOMS In ancient India lower-caste people were prohibited from all forms of contact with the Brahman (the upper class), including casting their shadows on anyone from the privileged class. AUDIO BUSINESS DIALOGUES BUSINESSTALK BOOKING A HOTEL CONFERENCE ROOM In this phone conversation, Sam, the head of marketing for a large multi-national company, is phoning a hotel. Listen to the conversation and answer these two questions: 1. What does Sam want? 2. In your opinion, why doesn’t Sam want to stay at the hotel? Give three reasons. (Phone rings) Receptionist: Good morning, this is the “Sunny Days Hotel”, how can I help you? Sam: Oh good morning. I was wondering whether your conference room was available for the weekend of the 30th May. Receptionist: Let me just check… erm, yes, yes, it’s free for that weekend. Sam: Oh great. I saw your webpage and your conference hall is just what we’re looking for. I was also wondering if you had twelve single rooms free for that weekend. Receptionist: Yes, yes, 12 rooms, no problem. Sam: Well, then I’d like to reserve the rooms, please. Erm… sorry, but I couldn’t help noticing all that noise. Receptionist: Noise? Oh, that, it’s just a bit of building work that’s going… Sam: I beg your pardon? Receptionist: It’s just a bit of building work that’s going on. It’s nothing to worry about. Sam: Well it does sound very loud. Another thing, how close is the hotel to the beach? The conference participants would like the opportunity to visit the beach during their free time. On your website there’s a photo of the sea, so I was just wondering… Receptionist: Oh, the beach. It’s just ten minutes away. Sam: Walking? Receptionist: Erm, yes, after you’ve parked the car. Sam: You have to go by car? Receptionist: Yes, but it only takes about half-an-hour… when the traffic is light. Sam: Oh. I’ll have to think about this. Receptionist: Oh, don’t go. The rooms are really nice, and the bathrooms are only down the corridor. Sam: You mean there aren’t any en-suite bathrooms. Receptionist: Erm, no. Sam: Look, I’ll get back to you when I’ve taken a decision. OK? bye. Receptionist: Oh, OK. Bye. Exercise Now listen to some extracts from the conversation again. You will notice there are some missing words and a beeping sound. See if you can write the missing word. (The answers are on page 48.) 1. I was wondering whether your conference room was __________. 2. Yes, it’s free _________ that weekend. 3. It’s nothing to worry _____________ . 4. How close is the hotel __________ the beach? 5. The bathrooms are only __________ the corridor. 6. I’ll get _________ to you when I’ve taken a decision. GLOSSARY I was wondering exp this expression means: I would like to know, I wanted to know a conference room n a large room used for very big business meetings available adj if a room is “available”, you can use it I couldn’t help… exp we use this expression as a polite way of making an observation that may be 24 / www.learnhotenglish.com / Want to do an internship with Hot English? For more information, e-mail [email protected] considered rude or inappropriate. It’s like saying, “I’m sorry, but…” I beg your pardon? exp this is a polite way of saying “what?” traffic is light exp there is not much traffic an en-suite bathroom n a bathroom that is connected directly to a hotel room and for the private use of the person in that room PHRASAL VERB CONVERSATIONS! Do you find it hard to understand native English speakers when they’re talking? This is because they often use phrasal verbs! With our Phrasal Verb Conversations! course, you’ll learn 250 phrasal verbs quickly and easily so you can: Speak more naturally Understand native speakers! Pass exams such as IELTS, CAE or TOEFL. www.learnhotenglish.com Are you ready to learn 100s of English phrasal verbs quickly and easily? Tap here to buy Learn better English for your future… FAST! www.learnhotenglish.com VOCABULARY THE TRAIN VOCABULARY THE TRAIN Here is some useful vocabulary related to TRAINS. Trains - at British train stations Window - most windows have you will often hear that British trains are “late”, “delayed” or “cancelled”… but very rarely “on time”. signs next to them that say, “DO NOT LEAN OUT OF THE WINDOW”. However, most British people ignore this and stick their heads out to see what’s going on. The “window seat” is the one next to the window. This has a very handy arm-rest, which makes sleeping so much easier. Luggage holder - this is the place you can put your bags. It’s usually just above the seats. British luggage holders are made out of old fishing nets. Buffet car - this is the carriage that sells really expensive drinks and sandwiches. It’s also where you can sample some of the delights of British cuisine, such as the soggy ham sandwich and the smelly egg one. Carriage - a train often has several carriages with seats for about fifty people in each one. If you are in a rush, you can be guaranteed that your carriage will be the one at the end of the platform. Drinks trolley - this is the Sleeping car - this is the part little “vehicle” that comes round full of drinks and cakes that you can buy. It saves you making the trip to the buffet car. of the train where you can sleep in bunk beds. Always ask for a nonsmoking carriage… and preferably one with no snorers. Passenger No-smoking - there are these are the people who travel on the train with you. They have a tendency to crowd onto the train on those days when you are feeling especially tired, stressed and irritable. no-smoking signs everywhere on trains, and as a clever train advertisement once said: “our trains don’t smoke, so neither can you.” Ticket inspector - this is the person who comes around to check your ticket and charge you excess fare if you haven’t got one. They take delight in waking up sleeping passengers. Seat - typical British train seats are often covered in a bright, colourful tartan material. They look nice when they’re new but after a few months they get very dirty and dusty. Try hitting one and watch the cloud of dust that goes up in the air. Aisle - this is the corridor that runs through the carriage. The aisle is often very narrow and very difficult to walk along whilst carrying things. The “aisle seat” is the one next to the corridor. It’s useful if you want to go to the toilet, but very uncomfortable if you want to sleep as there’s nowhere to rest your head. GLOSSARY delayed adj late a fishing net n a material with holes in it that is used to catch fish in a rush exp if you are “in a rush”, you have to go somewhere very quickly a bunk bed n two beds, one on top of another non-smoking adj if a room is “non-smoking”, it is not permitted to smoke in that room a snorer n a person who snores (makes a noise through their nose at night while breathing) to smoke vb in the past, the trains in Britain had steam (vapour) engines (motors). They produced lots of “smoke” excess fare n extra money you must pay if you don’t have a ticket on a train to take delight in some-thing exp to really enjoy something tartan material n a type of material with a Scottish 26 / www.learnhotenglish.com / Want to do an internship with Hot English? For more information, e-mail [email protected] pattern of coloured squares on it dusty adj with lots of dust (very small pieces of dirt) a cloud of dust n if there is a “cloud of dust”, there is lots of dust in the air a carriage n each train has about 5 or 6 carriages with about 50 people in each one handy * Theseadj words are all in British English. useful an arm-rest n an object next to a chair on which you can put your arm the delights of British cuisine n the “best” British food. In this case, it is used sarcastically soggy adj very wet smelly adj that smells bad it saves you making the trip exp it is not necessary to go to that place to crowd onto a train exp if people “crowd onto a train”, many, many people go onto that train AUDIO TYPICAL DIALOGUES TYPICALDIALOGUES THE TICKET INSPECTOR Here’s a typical dialogue with lots of useful vocabulary and expressions to use when you’re travelling on a train. In this scene, Miss Hardcastle is just boarding a train with her pet dog, Poochykins. Announcement: The next train on platform three is the through-train to Wokering. Miss Hardcastle: Guard! Guard! Just come here. What did that man say? I didn’t understand a thing - can’t they speak in English? Guard: The next train on platform one is not stopping here, madam. Miss Hardcastle: Oh, but when is my train arriving? I’m going to Sheringham. Guard: Your train is the one after this. Miss Hardcastle: Here, take my bag! It’s very heavy. Guard: There is no porter service in this train station. Good afternoon. Miss Hardcastle: What a rude man! (five minutes later) Announcement: The train approaching platform one is the fast train to Sheringham. Change at Petering for all stations to Nexham. (the train arrives and Miss Hardcastle and her dog get on) Miss Hardcastle: (to a passenger) You! Is this the train to Sheringham? Passenger: Yeah, I hope so cos I’m going there too. Miss Hardcastle: Good. Now, I see this seat is occupied by a very dirty pair of boots belonging to you. Please remove them and extinguish that cigarette. I don’t like smoke! Passenger: OK, no problem. (looking at the dog) Nice dog. (Poochykins gets angry) Miss Hardcastle: Stop upsetting him! He is very nervous. Passenger: Oh right. Sorry. (five minutes later) Ticket inspector: Tickets, please. Miss Hardcastle: Guard. I did not have time to get a ticket, and the ticket machine wasn’t working. Ticket inspector: Then you’ll have to pay excess fare. Miss Hardcastle: I will not. (Poochykins starts to growl again) Ticket inspector: And may I remind you that dogs are not permitted on our trains. (Poochykins gets angrier) Miss Hardcastle: I refuse. I will pay you the standard rate. Ticket inspector: In that case I’m afraid you will have to leave at the next stop. (Poochykins starts to bark) Miss Hardcastle: Look what you’ve done now. Ticket inspector: Madam, we are approaching the next station. I would kindly request that you and your dog to… (Poochykins jumps on the inspector) Help! Help! Please, stop! Get that dog off me! Miss Hardcastle: Poochykins! Stop! Bad boy! (to the inspector) You silly man. They should teach you how to treat dogs properly. Now how much was that ticket to Sheringham… Ticket inspector: Don’t worry about it. I’m going to another carriage. GLOSSARY a platform n the area in a train station where you wait to get on a train a through-train n a train that doesn’t stop at the station where you are waiting - it’s goes “through” the station a guard n a person who works in a train station helping passengers, etc I didn’t understand a thing exp I didn’t understand anything a porter n a person who works in a train station carrying bags to approach vb if a train is “approaching” a station, it is arriving at the station cos abbr because to upset vb to make sad or angry excess fare n extra money you must pay if you are on a train with no ticket to refuse vb if you “refuse” to do some-thing, you say that you will not do that thing I’m afraid exp an expression we use before giving sad or bad news a stop n the stations where a train stops on its journey I would kindly request… exp this expression is used as a polite way of asking for something FREE subscription if you recommend Hot English Language Services to your company. E-mail [email protected] / www.learnhotenglish.com / 27 ANSWERS ON PAGE 48 CROSSWORD CROSSWORD Across Down 3: To choose something spontaneously without carefully selecting. To do something at r__________ 5: Your younger brother. Your k_____ brother 9: To take the phone from your mouth and ear and put it back on the box. To put the _____________ down 10: To cut or edit scenes from a film. To ____________ a film 12: Useful 13: To kick someone and make them fall down 15: To move something to a lower level 16: To make a cigarette burn so you can smoke it. To _________ up 18: To eliminate someone from a competition. To _____________ someone out 20: Very wet 22: A big bag made of material 23: Two beds, one on top of another. __________ beds 24: A break in a journey. When talking about trains, it can refer to a train station 1: Money you have saved 2: A group of angry or violent people 4: A group of = a __________ of 6: To take a part of someone’s salary as a punishment 7: A train that doesn’t stop at a station. A __________ train 8: A person who carries your bags in a train station 11: An American word to describe a piece of paper money 14: A large cut on your body 17: Disgusting, horrible, revolting (an informal word) 19: A pain in your leg because your muscle has contracted 21: To open your mouth wide because you are tired 18: Frightening Practice English Conversations 1,000 words & expressions in 30 typical English conversational situations. Improve your English speaking and skills! 28 / www.learnhotenglish.com / Contact us for fantastic online classes for your company, wherever you are: [email protected] Tap here to buy! See if you can identify the word below. Then, try to find these words (here on the right) in the Wordsearch. Good luck! Answers on page 48. MATCHING A: A host B: A round C: A contestant D: A single E: Wanna F: A coin G: A flyer H: To rise I: A shot J: To smash K: A tantrum L: A bully M: To yell N: Obscenities HOST RISE ROUND SHOT CONTESTANT SMASH SINGLE TANTRUM WANNA BULLY COIN YELL FLYER OBSCENITIES See if you can match the two columns. Answers on page 48. 1. To go up; to increase 2. Rude words, taboo words 3. Want to 4. In tennis, to hit the ball very hard 5. A metal piece of money 6. A section of a competition 7. A person who organises and controls a competition 8. To shout 9. A piece of paper with information or publicity on it 10. A CD with just one or two songs 11. A person who participates in a competition 12. In tennis, this is each time you hit a ball 13. If you have one of these, you become very, very angry 14. A strong person who attacks a weaker person Travel English Travel English eBook don’t leave home without it! Tap here to buy! For fantastic Video-Phone classes, e-mail [email protected] / www.learnhotenglish.com / 29 WORDSEARCH & MATCHING WORDSEARCH AUDIO DR FINGERS’GRAMMAR CLINIC DR FINGERS’GRAMMAR CLINIC Dear readers, Last month I told you all about indirect objects. And I showed you how the following sentence, “I gave my brother a bicycle”, can be written like this, “I gave a bicycle to my brother.” Notice how we add a preposition (“to” in this case) when the indirect object (my brother) goes at the end of the sentence. Now, you may be wondering why we would want to change the order of the sentence and put the indirect object at the end, making our lives even more complicated. Well, there are basically two reasons for doing this: firstly, for emphasis; and secondly, if the indirect object is too long. Let’s look at each of these reasons in detail. Emphasis Sometimes we may want to give special importance to the indirect object. In order to do this, we put it at the end of the sentence. Let’s see an example: A: Did you give the bicycle to Tom? B: No, I gave the bicycle to Mary. In this little conversation, the focus of the exchange is the person who received the bicycle (“Tom” and “Mary” - the indirect objects). We put them at the end of the sentence in order to give them special importance. And, of course, we have to add the appropriate preposition, which in this case was “to”. Here are some more examples with the appropriate prepositions: A: Did you buy the flowers for John? B: No, I bought the flowers for Michael. A: Did she bring the food for me? B: No, she brought the food for Susan. Today ’s class: INDIRECTS OBJECT Long Objects We also change the order of the sentence if the indirect object is relatively long and complicated. Look at the following example: “She sent the person in charge of marketing a letter.” In this example, the indirect object (“the person in charge of marketing”) is fairly long and complex, and this sentence sounds a bit unnatural. It would sound much better if we put the indirect object at the end of the sentence, with the appropriate preposition, which in this case is “to”. Now let’s see what it looks like: “She sent a letter to the person in charge of marketing.” That’s much better. Here are some more examples with the indirect object at the end: “They gave the money to the person who most needed it.” “She bought the car for her brother who lives in Canada.” “They sent the packet to the head of personnel in the city branch.” Well, I hope that has cleared up any doubts you may have had. See you all next month and happy talking, Dr Fingers. JOKE - THE SANDWICH by Daniel Coutoune GLOSSARY starving n very, very hungry 30 For fantastic Video-Phone classes, e-mail [email protected] / www.learnhotenglish.com / AUDIO BUSINESS DIALOGUES BUSINESSDIALOGUES THE STAFF REVIEW In this dialogue, Mr Stevens, the head of human resources, is talking to one of her employees, Jack Braynes. This is part of the annual staff appraisal meeting in which each employee’s achievements are discussed. Listen to the dialogue and see if you can answer these two questions: 1. During the meeting, what problems is Jack having? 2. What does Mr Stevens have to keep repeating? Mr Stevens: So, we’re just going to go through this form to help us set targets for the future and evaluate your performance in general. Jack: Yeah, whatever. Mr Stevens: So, first of all, how do you feel you’ve been performing? Jack: Don’t know. Mr Stevens: Well, the options are “well”, “adequately”, “to some extent” and “not too well”. Jack: Erm, sorry, what was the question? Mr Stevens: Your general performance in the company, how do you think it’s been going? Jack: Erm, what were the options again? Mr Stevens: “Extremely well”, “adequately”, “to some extent” and “not too well”. Jack: Alright. Mr Stevens: Which option would you like to choose? Jack: I can’t remember the options. Mr Stevens: Here, I’ll write them on this piece of paper. (she writes) Now which one would you like to choose? Jack: “Extremely well”. Mr Stevens: Erm, didn’t you just say that you thought it was “alright”. Now you’re saying “extremely well”. Are you sure about that? Jack: OK, “adequately”. Is that better? Mr Stevens: Mr Braynes, it’s not a question of being right or wrong. I just want you to give me your honest opinions. Now, let’s get on to the second question, what do you see as your strengths and weaknesses in the company? Jack: Erm, I’m a good communicator. Mr Stevens: OK, very good. And your weaknesses? Jack: Well, I haven’t been to the gym for a while, so… Mr Stevens: No, no, I mean, which areas do you feel you need to make an improvement in? Jack: Oh, well, I think I’m not very good at getting my ideas across, and I tend to get angry and frustrated easily, in fact, you know, my psychiatrist said that I’m a bit of a failure… Mr Stevens: Your psychiatrist? You’re seeing a psychiatrist? Jack: Only three times a week. Mr Stevens: OK, now, why don’t you just fill out this form yourself and we’ll discuss it at a later date. Jack: OK. Exercise Now listen to some extracts from the conversation again. You will notice there are some missing words and a beeping sound. See if you can write the missing word. (The answers are on the page 48.) 1. We’re just going to go ___________ this form. 2. Here, I’ll write them ___________ this piece of paper. 3. Are you sure ___________ that? 4. Now, let’s get __________ to the second question. 5. I’m not very good at getting my ideas _____________. GLOSSARY a staff appraisal meeting n a meeting to talk about your work and how you are doing in a company to go through something phr vb if you “go through” a form, you read the form and answer the questions a form n a piece of paper with questions on it to set targets exp to establish objectives a performance n your “performance” is how well you are doing and how successful you are at your job whatever exp people use this expression as a way of saying that they don’t care about something to perform vb the way you “perform” is the way you work or act how do you think it’s been going? exp do you think things are going well or badly? a strength n something you are good at a weakness n something you aren’t good at to make an improvement exp to start to do things better to get your ideas across exp to communicate well and effectively to tend vb if you “tend” to do something, you usually do that thing a failure n a person who is not successful to fill out phr vb to complete FREE subscription if you recommend Hot English Language Services to your company. E-mail [email protected] / www.learnhotenglish.com / 31 COLOURS IDIOMS COLOURS IDIOMS This month we are looking at some more idioms related to various colours. Illustrations by Jorge Tarruella To see someone in their true colours If you see someone in their true colours, you realise what they are really like: “When she is under stress she loses control - and that’s when you see her in her true colours.” To pass with flying colours To pass an exam with a very high score, or to complete a difficult activity very successfully: “He took his medical exams and passed with flying colours.” To see the colour of someone’s money To make sure that someone can pay for something before you let them have that thing: “I don’t think he’s got enough money to pay for the car. I want to see the colour of his money before I give it to him.” To lend colour to a story To see things through rose-coloured spectacles/glasses To exaggerate a story and add details in order to make the story sound more interesting: “Geoffrey made our holiday experience sound a lot more frightening than it really was - he lent a lot of colour to it.” To see things in a positive and optimistic way, even if the situation is really bad: “Her life is a disaster: she has no job, her partner has left her and her car has broken down but she still seems to think that things are going really well - she sees her life through rose-coloured spectacles.” To nail your colours to the mast To say in public what you think about a subject: “We are thinking of moving the business to either the Czech Republic or Slovakia. Most of us want to go to Slovakia, but so far the president has refused to nail his colours to the mast.” 32 For fantastic Video-Phone classes, e-mail [email protected] / www.learnhotenglish.com / GLOSSARY Please note that some of the words in this glossary box are literal translations of parts of idiomatic expressions. to lend vb if you “lend” something to someone, you give it to them for a limited period of time to nail vb a “nail” is a thin piece of metal used for fixing pieces of wood together. If you “nail” something onto another thing, you use nails to fix those things a mast n the central pole on a sailing ship Learn better English for your future… FAST Tap here to buy! Tap here to buy! Tap here to buy! Tap here to buy! This eBook will make conversations in English so much easier. There are over 30 audio files with typical conversations, and exercises with answers at the back so you can practise what you’ve learnt. Learn over 1,000 English words and expressions so you can speak English fluently when you travel outside your country! Learn the language for over 30 typical situations and make travelling abroad easy with this eBook! Learn over 500 words and expressions to improve your business English! This eBook comes with audio files and videos so you can learn the language you need to do business in English! Learn 500 more words and expressions to really improve your business English! The words and expressions you learn in this eBook will help you do business all over the world! Tap here to buy! Tap here to buy! Tap here to buy! Tap here to buy! Learn 250 idioms and really improve your speaking and listening skills. This eBook will make learning idioms easy and fast! Start improving this important area of English NOW! Learn 250 more idioms with audio files, example sentences and images. This eBook will help you understand the meaning of the most useful idioms in English. Learn the language easily and quickly with our fun method. Learn over 250 phrasal verbs with audio files, example sentences and images. Native English speakers use phrasal verbs all the time, so you need to learn them too. Start improving this important area of English NOW with our fantastic eBook! Learn 250 more phrasal verbs and learn how to say them with the audio files. This eBook will help you go from being an Intermediate student to an Advanced one. Learn the language easily and quickly with our super effective method. www.learnhotenglish.com A look at some cool places from around the world NEW YORKERS Amazing World NEW YORKERS By Laura Warrell What has 8 million people and thirty million visitors every year? New York City, the center of the universe! Politics, arts, business - the Big Apple has it all. But what does it take to live there? And what are New Yorkers really like? The Five Boroughs Mention New York and most people think of the island of Manhattan, which is only part of the city. Actually, New York City (NYC) is made up of five boroughs (districts): immigrants who used to live there. Some of America’s greatest treasures come from Brooklyn, including rap music, Woody Allen and the phrase, “in da House”. Manhattan The Bronx This area is notorious for being the toughest borough. It’s the birthplace of Jennifer Lopez and the home to the Bronx Zoo, the largest in the nation. The giant pandas are delightful, but you’re still advised to avoid the Bronx. Queens With more than 1.9 million residents, this borough was named the “most diverse county in America”. Queens has much to offer the traveller, including Shea Stadium, home to baseball’s New York Mets and Riker’s Island, New York City’s largest jail. Staten Island Only five points of interest are listed on Staten Island’s official website. There isn’t much to say about Staten Island, except that it’s an island… and you can take a ferry to get there. Brooklyn Mention Brooklyn, and many people think of poor immigrants living in dirty flats. But there’s lots more to Brooklyn, with arts festivals, museums, universities and street fairs. In South Brooklyn, wealthy artists and yuppies buy beautiful apartments, send their children to yoga classes and push out the poor Some experts believe “Manhattan” is an Indian word for “island of hills”, while others believe it means “city of neurotic egomaniacs addicted to anti-depressants”. No one knows for sure, but one thing is certain, Manhattan is the world’s coolest island. At its top is Harlem, a historically black neighborhood, famed for its artistic renaissance of the 1920s. On either side of Central Park are two areas: Upper East Side, and Upper West Side. The East Side is one of the country’s wealthiest neighborhoods and is where New York’s high society lives in Fifth Park and Park Avenue mansions. You can find names like Rockefeller and Vanderbilt there, and titles like Lady Astor, plus lots of billionaires. People from this area host charity events, buy Picassos for their homes, drive Bentleys, appear in the party pages of Vogue magazine and send their maids to Madison Avenue to buy from Yves Saint Laurent. Their children usually become alcoholics and snort coke because being ridiculously rich makes one spiritually empty. The Upper West Side is wealthy too, but not so much and is more accessible to commoners like John Lennon, who used to live there. West Siders have “new” money, and go to trendy restaurants, debate liberal politics and look down on anyone who doesn’t know the difference between Brie and Camembert cheese. The East Side has the city’s best museums, like the Guggenheim; the west has 34 / www.learnhotenglish.com / Looking for a quality English-language course abroad? Contact [email protected] NEW YORKERS the Lincoln Center, which is the world’s largest cultural complex and performance hall. In midtown there is Times Square and the Empire State Building, at the top of which you can see the city and admire the seven layers of pollution that hover there. It’s also home to Broadway, where some of the world’s greatest theater is produced. New Yorkers complain about the “Disneyfication” of Times Square, which used to be filled with prostitutes and drug addicts but is now home to Planet Hollywood and the “Lion King” musical. Without the hookers and crack, they say, New York just doesn’t feel like home. Hip people hang out on the island’s southern end in Greenwich Village and the Lower East Side, which is filled with bohemians who don’t know what year it is. Lenny Kravitz, Robert DeNiro and David Bowie all live here, enjoying the restaurants, art galleries and night- life. Further down, is Wall Street, where stock brokers do coke and jump out of windows when the market drops. So you wanna be a New Yorker? Living happily in New York is easy. All you need is a six-figure salary and an ego the size of the Statue of Liberty. The average New Yorker comes from another city in search of fame, fortune, or both. Artists live in Brooklyn or the Village, if they can afford it, and hang out in Soho’s trendy bars. Wall Street types, lawyers and investment bankers live near Wall Street or on the Upper West Side where they can live in tiny apartments with rents high enough to cause a heart attack. Therapists Almost everyone in New York has a therapist. Therapists charge $100 an hour to stare at you and ask how your week has been. Without one, you won’t be able to get a prescription for Prozac (for depression) or Xanax (for “social anxiety,” a clever marketing term for shyness) which is obligatory. So why are there so many crazy people in New York? Well, for a start, the city makes you crazy because there’s not enough space, money and fame for everyone, so New Yorkers constantly compete. Second, the traffic and general pace of the city makes everyone aggressive and self-absorbed. The Subway New Yorkers love the subway. It gives them a chance to read their newspaper. It’s crowded, covered with graffiti, everyone on it smells and, quite often, a homeless person will be sitting bareassed on the seat next to you. The subway is great as it gets you where you want to go in record time. Never, ever try to drive in New York City as the traffic is horrendous and taxi drivers have been sent from hell to kill us. Clubs & Pubs The best way to identify a good club is to look for long lines of stylish people waiting behind a velvet rope where a doorman with the appearance of an ape decides who goes inside. What makes ultra-chic NYC clubs so fun is that everyone acts like they’re already famous even though their last acting job was a bit-part in a commercial. And now you’re ready for our simple guide on how to become a New Yorker. Good luck! (Please turn the page for our guide on how to become a New Yorker) GLOSSARY the Big Apple n New York what does it take to live there? exp what type of person do you need to be to survive there? what are New Yorkers really like? exp what is the true character of New Yorkers? notorious adj famous (for negative reasons) tough adj violent the birthplace n the place where someone was born delightful adj wonderful, lovely to avoid vb if you “avoid” a place, you don’t go to that place a jail n a prison a ferry n a ship that takes you (and your car) on short journeys a yuppy n a rich, successful young person cool adj fashionable, nice, attractive famed for exp famous for to host vb to organise and control an event a charity event n a planned and organised occasion for making money for a charity a maid n a person who works in your house doing the cleaning, etc to snort/do coke exp to take the drug cocaine through your nose one exp you can use “one·” to refer to people in general. In this case, it is like “you” trendy adj fashionable to look down on someone phr vb to think that someone is inferior to hover vb to remain in an area without moving Disneyfication n making everything more like Disney World a hooker n inform a prostitute crack n a type of cocaine hip people n fashionable and stylish people to hang out phr vb to go to an area and stay there with friends a bohemian n a person who lives a very “artistic” life to drop vb to fall, to decrease a six-figure salary n a very big salary with six numbers: $600,000 per year, for example an ego the size of the Statue of Liberty exp a very big ego = a very positive opinion of yourself to stare vb to look at something continuously shyness n being timid the pace n the rhythm to smell vb if you “smell”, you have a bad smell on you or your clothes homeless adj with no home bare-assed adj offens with no clothes. An “ass” is the part of your body that you sit on hell n the place where the devil lives velvet n a soft, smooth fabric an ape n a large monkey chic adj fashionable a bit-part n a small part in a film. It is usually a part with no talking a commercial n a piece of publicity on the television For fantastic Video-Phone classes, e-mail [email protected] / www.learnhotenglish.com / 35 BECOME A NEW YORKER Living Abroad Become a NEW YORKER You’ve read our article on New Yorkers, and now here’s a useful guide on how you can become a New Yorker. In order to do this you have to: Get obsessed with yourself Become completely self-absorbed. When someone talks about themselves, let them know that your life is ten times more interesting, and that your problems are far more serious. If the other person won’t stop talking, you should begin yawning. about this with your expensive New York therapist. Get an attitude On the subway, learn how to ignore people and stare into space even when there’s a madman in front of you. It takes years to master this skill but try your best. Get a sense of indifference When you see famous people, pretend you don’t notice. New Yorkers are never impressed by fame. Act with complete indifference. Perhaps, even, bump into them. And now you are ready to be a true New Yorker. Good luck! Get a dog How New York Got Its Name Try to get the biggest dog imaginable, even though your apartment’s the size of a laptop. All trendy New Yorkers own enormous dogs. By Ferdi The story of how New York got its name is very interesting. Originally, New York was called New Amsterdam. This is because many of the first immigrants there were from Amsterdam in Holland. These days, many areas of New York still have Dutch names, such as Harlem and Brooklyn. In the 17th century, the British bought this colony for just $1 (how generous). They also gave the Dutch a British colony in South America (Surinam, which Holland still has today). Later on, the British changed the name to New York. Get a good job Get a top job with a large salary, preferably as a stockbroker. You’ll need the money as New York is expensive. GLOSSARY Get a therapist to yawn vb to open your mouth involuntarily and very wide, usually because you are tired to pretend vb to act as if something is true, even though it isn’t true indifference n a lack of interest to bump into someone phr vbto accidentally crash against someone Develop a mental illness or paranoia and spend lots of time talking 36 / www.learnhotenglish.com / Looking for a quality English-language course abroad? Contact [email protected] a laptop n a portable computer trendy adj fashionable, cool to stare into space exp to ignore what is happening around you and to concentrate on looking at just one thing to master a skill exp to become very good at something THE COMPLETE METHOD SAVE UP TO 34%! 16 books to really improve your English! If you’re serious about improving your English, this is the BEST option for you! The Complete Learn Hot English Method includes the following books: THIS IS A GREAT INVESTMENT IN YOUR ENGLISH LEARNING FUTURE! TAP HERE TO BUY! www.learnhotenglish.com BIG CATS IN BRITAIN Weird World BIG CATS IN BRITAIN Have you been to Britain? If you have, you’ll have soon noticed that it’s a very safe country. There are no tornadoes, no snow storms and no serious floods. And there aren’t any poisonous snakes, killer spiders or dangerous animals… or are there. Some people claim to have seen extremely large and dangerous cats, better known as “Alien Big Cats” (or ABCs); and many farmers say these cats have eaten their sheep and cows. The press have given these unusual animals lots of different names: the “Surrey Puma”, the “Beast of Bodmin” and the “Beast of Exmoor”; and many people are absolutely convinced that they exist. What are these unusual cats? And where did they come from? Jumping Cats Over the years many people claim to have seen Alien Big Cats. The first sighting was in 1860 and was reported in the Times newspaper. A farmer called Nigel Pussman was walking across a field when he suddenly saw a big, black cat run across the grass and jump over a wall. “I was petrified,” he claimed. Since then there have been many more sightings. One of the more recent sightings was in 1988 when Pauline Purrer was walking in the hills. After a couple of hours, she stopped for a rest and sat down on a rock, putting her bag on the ground. Just then, the bag shot up into the air. Here’s Pauline to explain what happened: “I suddenly saw this large black animal that looked like a cat appear in front of me. Luckily it ran off, but for a second I thought it was going to eat me. It had horrible yellow eyes and a very long tail. It looked like a puma to me, but the shape of the head was different, it was sort of bigger and more square-shaped. I hope I never see it again.” Hidden Cats So far no one has captured any of these cats, but there are lots of photos. One of the most famous photos is of a large black cat sitting in a tree. Unfortunately, many of the rest of the photos are too blurred to be conclusive. Perhaps the best piece of evidence was a video, which was shot in 1987. The film lasts about threeand-a-half minutes and shows a large black cat walking slowly across an open field. Later, the cat can be seen carrying a freshlykilled rabbit. In 1989 a television presenter tried to trap one of the cats. He set up some sophisticated monitoring equipment on one of the farms where sheep had been killed. That very night another sheep was attacked, but unfortunately the presenter had fallen asleep and was unable to do anything. He later said: Cats & Sheep Many farmers claim that these cats have been killing their sheep. In 1982, three sheep were found dead at a farm in the village of Little Weighton. One week later two more were killed. In 1987 a farmer discovered four of his sheep had been killed. The ground was wet and there were numerous paw-prints. These were later analysed by experts who said that they were from “a large cat”. 38 / www.learnhotenglish.com / Looking for a quality English-language course abroad? Contact [email protected] BIG CATS IN BRITAIN “That poor sheep! If only she could speak, she could tell us what she saw.” Cats In Zoos So what are these Alien Big Cats? There are a number of theories. Some say they could be lions, pumas, panthers or leopards that have escaped from private zoos. For centuries, rich British people have been collecting wild animals; and until recently you could even buy them in Harrods. And sometimes, these animals manage to get out of their cages. In the early 1500s an escaped panther was shot in the West Midlands. In the 18th century four lions from a private zoo escaped and caused panic in a town in west Yorkshire. In 1903 an escaped puma was trapped in Surrey; and in 1932 an escaped leopard was captured after surviving for more than nine months in a British forest. Things got particularly bad in the late 1970s. A new law was passed in 1976 called the “Dangerous Wild Animals Act”. This made it illegal to keep a big cat without a licence. These licences were very expensive so many people just dumped their pets outside. Fake Cats Other people claim that these Alien Big Cats are just over-sized ordinary cats. In 1973 there was a report of a “lion” near a rail track. The police were sent to investigate, and they discovered that it was just a normal cat. And some of photos that have been GLOSSARY FOR CARTOON I can’t stand exp I hate what a pain exp how annoying, how irritating the hell exp offens this expression is used to show you are angry get lost! exp inform go away! gonna exp inform going to to puke vb inform to vomit to mess about phr vb to act in a silly way a moment’s peace n a few minutes of calm and quiet I’ll show them exp we often use this as a way of expressing anger, and if we are about to demonstrate something to someone an optician n a doctor who looks at your eyes there’s no way exp we use this expression to say that we will never, ever do something printed in newspapers have turned out to be fakes. In 1987 the Daily Recorder published a photo of a “Big Cat” sitting on a fence. Later on, the person who took the photo admitted it was just a photo of his pet cat, John. Cats In Forests Some historians say that the large cats were brought to Britain in the 18th century. At that time, sailors often kept large wild cats on their ships in order to kill rats. Some of these cats may have jumped ship in Britain. And others think the cats could be examples of the British native wild cat Felis Sylvestris Grampia. This cat supposedly became extinct in prehistoric times. But some experts believe that some of these cats may have survived and are hiding in forests. So far, no one can be sure where these cats came from, or if they even exist. But just for now, we advise you to be extremely careful; and the next time you find yourself in the British countryside and you see an unusually large cat watching you, run! GLOSSARY a tornado n violent weather with really strong wind a flood n if there is a “flood”, it rains a lot and there is water in the street a sighting n if there is a “sighting” of an animal, someone sees that animal to shoot up phr vb to increase rapidly a paw-print n a mark in the ground from an animal’s paw (foot) blurred adj not clear, not in focus to shoot vb to make a film freshly-killed adj killed recently to trap vb to catch to set up phr vb if you “set up” equipment, you put the equipment in place and connect it together monitoring equipment n electronic devices to detect animals, things, movement, etc a cage n a little room with metal bars for keeping animals to survive vb if a person “survives” in a dangerous situation, they do not die to dump vb to put something in a place using no care or attention over-sized adj bigger than normal to turn out phr vb if something “turns out” a particular way, it is that way in the end a fake n not real, false a fence n a barrier between two areas of land a sailor n a person who works on a ship to jump ship exp to leave a ship without permission For fantastic Video-Phone classes, e-mail [email protected] / www.learnhotenglish.com / 39 (GLOSSARY ON PREVIOUS PAGE) (glossary on previous page) Illustration by Jorge Tarruella BIG CATS IN BRITAIN CARTOON Weird World Cartoon 40 / www.learnhotenglish.com / Looking for a quality English-language course abroad? Contact [email protected] Let’s be friends Tap here to join the language-learning community! and learn lots of new words www.facebook.com/LearnHotEnglish For fantastic Skype/Telephone classes, e-mail: [email protected] / www.learnhotenglish.com / 41 True stories from around the world that are hard to believe! STRANGE BUT TRUE AUDIO e u r T T U B Strange Up In Smoke All about a lawyer, a cigar and a prison sentence A 39-year-old lawyer, Sean Fumes, thought he was really clever… until he ended up in prison. Here he is to tell us what happened: Where is my brain? “I’m a lawyer working in Dubrani, Tennessee, and just recently I thought I’d invented a great way to make money. A few weeks ago, a friend who works in an import-export company got a shipment of very rare and very expensive cigars. He offered a few boxes to me at a very low price and I bought four of them with six cigars in each box. I’m a great lover of the finer things in life and these cigars were just what I had always dreamt of. And being a careful man, I also insured them against fire and theft.” Where are my cigars? “About a month afterwards, I had smoked all the cigars; and it was at this point that I had my “great idea”. Firstly, I filed a claim against the insurance company for the loss of my cigars. In my claim, I said that the cigars were lost ‘in a series of small fires’, which is true - even though it was me who started the ‘small fires’. Of course, at first the insurance company refused to pay me. They cited the obvious reason that it was me who had burnt the cigars. But I knew that was what they would say, so I went ahead with the next part of my plan: to sue the insurance company.” Where is my money? “The trial started well, and in the end the insurance company lost, and I won. The judge who delivered the ruling agreed that the claim was ‘frivolous’. However, he also conceded that the policy from the company warranted that the cigars were insured against fire. At first I couldn’t believe that I’d won, but when they handed me the cheque for $55,000 I realised what a genius I was… or was I?” Where is the jail? company. They had reported me to the police, and I was arrested on 24 counts of arson - one count for each of the cigars that I had smoked. I was eventually convicted of ‘intentionally burning my insured property’, and I was sentenced to 24 months in jail and a $76,000 fine. So, in the end it didn’t work out as well as I had planned, so I wouldn’t recommend this scam to anyone else.” Mr Fumes is currently serving his prison sentence. GLOSSARY to end up phr vb if you “end up” somewhere, you go to that place even-tually a shipment n goods and objects that are sent to you by boat, plane or train the finer things in life n good quality food and drink to insure something against fire and theft exp to pay a small amount of mo-ney to an insurance company to protect an object. If that object burns or is stolen, the company will pay you enough money to buy another similar object to file a claim exp to tell the insurance company that you have lost something, and to demand money to refuse vb if you “refuse” to do some-thing, you don’t do that thing to cite vb to mention to go ahead with something exp to continue doing something to sue vb to start a legal process against “Just three days later I received a letter from the insurance 42 / www.learnhotenglish.com / Looking for a quality English-language course abroad? Contact [email protected] someone a judge n a person who controls a legal process and who decides who is innocent or guilty to deliver a ruling exp the judge does this at the end of the trial when he or she gives their opinion and decides who is innocent or guilty the policy n the legal document that explains the insurance terms and conditions to warrant vb to guarantee, to promise to hand vb to give a count n a charge that is brought against you in a court of law arson n the crime of illegally burning things a fine n money you must pay for committing a crime to work out phr vb to happen, to finish a scam n a trick in order to get money SUBSCRIBE TO... LEARN 500 NEW WORDS In every monthly issue of Learn Hot English, you will: - Learn 500 new words, idioms, phrasal verbs and expressions. - Get lots of listening practice + hear lots of different accents. - Read about the latest in culture, business, music, films, travel and news. - Learn “real” English so you can talk to native English speakers. - Learn faster because the material is motivating and fun. - Save money! Hot English is much cheaper than English classes or textbooks. BIG discounts on 6-month or 12-month subscriptions! Tap here to subscribe Learn better English for your future… FAST! www.learnhotenglish.com Authentic conversations by native American speakers AUDIO US BAR CHAT t a h c r a b S U KISSING IN PUBLIC This month we are going to listen to two young Americans, Carrie and John, talking about kissing in public (otherwise known as PDA: Public Display of Affection). Listen to the conversation and answer these two questions: 1. One of the speakers doesn’t like people kissing in public. Why? 2. Who do they see kissing in the park? Roger: Kelly: Roger: Kelly: Roger: Kelly: Roger: Kelly: Roger: Kelly: Roger: Kelly: Roger: So, what do you think of PDA? What’s PDA? Public Display of Affection. Oh, you mean when people are groping each other all the time, ugh, disgusting. What, you don’t think that’s lovely? No, I think it’s gross and immature. I mean if I want to sit and swap spit I’d do it in my own home, instead of in public. Swap spit, hey, that’s funny. [laughs] I think it’s lovely and I think it shows people’s affection toward one another. Yeah, but I see the same guy giving his affection to all these different women, he’s just trying to cop a feel. Maybe he’s just a player. Maybe he’s a player, but it just makes me want to gag. Well, I think, I think it’s sweet, especially a nice afternoon at the park on a little bench, a little romance, a little kissing. Uh, it’s a little disgusting. OK, I’m fine with a little kissing and maybe holding hands, but when they start grabbing each other’s butts and other parts, please, get a room! I’m all for grabbing butts. Kelly: You would be. Roger: I am. Kelly: Right, well OK, check this couple out right here in this bar, I mean, they’re cute and all, but, I mean, come on! Roger: They look like they’re so in love. Kelly: Right, in love, uh huh, well wait they just, I mean, look at them, they just keep going at it. But, isn’t that your mom? And who’s that guy? He’s not your dad, is he? Roger: Mom? GLOSSARY to grope vb to touch someone in a sexual way disgusting adj horrible, revolting gross adj inform not nice, disgusting immature adj like a child I mean exp this expression is used to change the course of the conversation to swap spit exp inform to kiss. Literally, if you “swap” something with someone, you give that person something, and they give you another thing in exchange; and “spit” is the liquid that comes out of your mouth to cop a feel exp inform to touch someone in a sexual way a player n inform in this context, a gigolo to gag vb to almost vomit a bench n a long chair in a park where you can sit I’m fine with… exp I agree with; I can accept to grab vb to suddenly take something in your hands a butt n US offens the part of your body that you sit on get a room! exp this expression means: find a room so you can kiss I’m all for exp I really like; I agree with check this… out exp look at this a couple n two people in a relationship cute adj nice and attractive come on! exp people use this expression when they are angry about something, or they don’t agree with something to go at it exp kissing, etc mom n inform mother LOTS OF FREE CONTENT WHEN YOU FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK! www.facebook.com/LearnHotEnglish LOTS OF FREE CONTENT WHEN YOU FOLLOW US ON TWITTER! www.twitter.com/LearnHotEnglish 44 / www.learnhotenglish.com / Looking for a quality English-language course abroad? Contact [email protected] AUDIO Here we’ve got some examples of how to say things in different situations. > Situation Formal Relaxed Informal A friend told the police that you were doing something illegal: My friend informed the police My friend went to the police My friend grassed me up; my friend snitched on me; my friend ratted on me; my friend ratted me out (US) Your old car has stopped working: My car has ceased functioning My car has broken down My car has conked out; my car has given up the ghost You are playing roulette in a casino and you keep winning: I am having a lot of luck Things are going well I’m on a roll A friend really wants to invest in your company: She is desperate to invest She’s up for investing She is gagging for it A friend does nothing, has no job and spends his time in front of the television: He has no sense of organisation He’s lazy He’s a waster; he’s a loser Your friend is boring and never does anything interesting. You tell her to do something: Get up and engage in some more stimulating activities! Get up and do something interesting! Get a life!; sort yourself out! You tell your friend a secret, which must be kept a secret: This is top secret Keep your mouth shut about this; this is just between you and me Keep stumm; keep mum Please note that the words in this glossary box are literal translations of parts of idiomatic expressions. GLOSSARY to gag vb to almost vomit to waste vb if you “waste” something, you use more of that thing than you really need to lose vb not to win to sort out phr vb to find a solution to a problem For fantastic Video-Phone classes, e-mail [email protected] / www.learnhotenglish.com / 45 DICTIONARY OF SLANG Dictionary of slang AUDIO IN THE NEWS In The News... Phone Call A journalist was secretly trying to take photos of Paul McCartney and his wife when his mobile phone went off. The reporter had managed to crawl through a bush and evade security guards. However, just as he was about to start shooting his phone started ringing. Security guards hauled out the unfortunate reporter. The Naming Game Naming children after popular products or places is quite new, and very popular. Just recently there have been cases of children being called “Seven Up”, “Times Square” and “Mickey Mouse”. However, Michael Quirkland, a historical researcher, made a remarkable discovery: a 14th century British family named their daughter “Diet Coke”. But how is this possible when “Diet Coke” is a relatively new product? Well, apparently, the name “Diet” comes from the Greek [name] Dionisia; and the surname “Coke” is a variation on the name Cook. Well I never! Article Of Faith A woman was arrested last month after trying to use a fake $1 million dollar bill. Police later searched her and found two more of the bills in her purse. “The bill looks real, but of course there’s nothing genuine about it,” a police officer told journalists. “People do crazy things all the time. I think it’s just another example of some odd things that occur.” A clerk at a store, Jennifer Sharpeye, immediately noticed the bill was fake: “I can’t believe that woman thought she could get away with this. I mean, everyone knows that the Treasury doesn’t make $1-million-dollar bills - it would be crazy,” The woman had tried to use the bill to pay for goods with a value of just $2.32. 46 / www.learnhotenglish.com / For great private language classes, e-mail [email protected] GLOSSARY to go off phr vb if your phone “goes off”, it starts to ring to crawl through phr vb to move through a place with your body on the ground a bush n a small tree to evade vb if you “evade” a guard, you move past the guard without the guard seeing you to shoot vb to take photos to haul out phr vb to take someone in your hands and pull them out of a place well I never exp an expression you can use when you hear something incredible and unbelievable fake adj not real a bill n a piece of paper money to search vb if the police “search” you, they look for things in your clothes and pockets a purse n US a bag that women use to carry their things with them a clerk n a person who works in a shop or an office a store n US a shop to get away with some-thing exp if you do something bad and “get away with it”, you escape the consequences of your bad action The verb “call” can be used in many different ways. One common use is related to the telephone, and if you “call” someone, you telephone that person. For example: “I called you last night”, which is the same as, “I telephoned you last night”. Now let’s see some phrasal verbs with the verb “call”. Call at (a train) Call away If a train “calls at” a station, it stops there: If you are “called away”, someone asks you to leave a place in order to do something else: This train calls at Brighton, Shipton, Wolton, Bington, Badton, Samton, Parton... Dinnertime! Come and get it! Sorry, but I’ve been called away on urgent business. Oh God, this is the slow train. We’re never going to get to the wedding on time. I told you to get up earlier. Call off Call by To cancel or suspend an event: To visit someone at their home, usually without an invitation: Sorry but the concert has been called off. The lead singer is sick. “I just thought I would call by. I haven’t come at a bad time, have I?” Called off! But I drove 300 kilometres to see them play. Call for (a celebration) Call for (telephone) If a situation “calls for” a celebration, you think you should celebrate that situation: If you “call for” someone, you telephone them and ask them to come - usually a doctor, plumber, electrician, etc: Hey, dad, I killed my first beast today. I think we should call for a professional plumber. V.C. Well done, son. This calls for a celebration For fantastic Video-Phone classes, e-mail [email protected] / www.learnhotenglish.com / 47 PHRASALVERBS PHRASALVERBS CALL Hot Staff Directors Managing Director Thorley Russell (00 34 91 543 3573) [email protected] ANSWERS Answers & scripts A TOUR OF HARRODS 1 PRE-LISTENING we’ve got Madison who’s going to tell us all about Macy’s. 1. a butcher’s; 2. an ironmonger’s; Madison: Hi, John. Well, one of 3. a newsagent; 4. an estate agent; the most famous department stores in New York City is Macy’s. 5. a department store; There are over 850 Macy’s stores 6. a greengroce’s all over the United States but Video script the flagship store is in Herald Welcome back as we take you Square, Manhattan – just around on a tour now of the world’s the corner from the Empire State most famous department store, Building. Interestingly, Rowland Harrods. Of course, no visit to Macy, the company founder, London is complete without a opened his first shops in the walk through the store that’s moto is, “All things for all people town of Haverhill, Massachusetts, between 1843 and 1855, but they everywhere.” On busy days, it weren’t successful. However, attracts 300,000 shoppers, and employs more than 5,000 people Macy learned from his mistakes, and in 1858 he moved to New from over 50 countries. So, York. He opened his first New let’s go shopping! Here’s David York store on 18th October Eccleston. 1858 and was immediately Doorman: “Good morning, sir. successful. The Herald Square Welcome to Harrods.” store was opened in 1902. Woman: “If you leave London without a Harrods bag, then you’ve Macy’s is especially famous for its Thanksgiving Day Parade, failed really as a tourist.” which marks the beginning of the “You do notice the people that haven’t been here before because Christmas season. John: That’s great, Madison. they sort of walk around in awe.” Thanks a lot. If there was an Olympics for department stores, you’re looking DR FINGERS’ PRONUNCIATION at the unbackable favourite for gold. When people visit London, 1. She told a lie = the top tourist attractions in order she tol da lie. are Buckingham Palace, Big Ben 2. He drove across it = and here, Harrods, the most he dro v(e)a cro ssit. famous department store on Earth. 3. They saw it = We have everything here, from they sa wit. something for £4.95, up to £4 4. We found a big one = million pounds. The brief is we foun da big one. simple: the more extraordinary, 5. She lost it = exquisite and excessive the better. she los tit. From fine Pharaoh’s chocolates 6. They shot a dozen = to champagne even their own they sho ta dozen. signature beer. Seven floors of 7. We sold it for ten pounds = adult retail indulgence, and the we sol dit for ten pounds. world’s most exclusive designer 8. She wrote a book = brands. Mark Briggs is in charge she wro ta book. of the Harrods image. “The 9. They broke a car = whole thing that we actually do they bro k(e)a car. at Harrods here is to make sure 10.He wore a dress = that someone can come in to he wo r(e)a dress. shop and buy something and get a souvenir of their visit to the STORY TIME store. But also we will actually get 1. The man wanted to go to the you anything you want from an town of Prato, in Italy. elephant to a helicopter.” Reporter: “And you really have had 2. He paid the ticket inspector ten thousand lire to wake him up a request for an elephant?” when they reached Prato. Mark: “We have indeed!” 3. The punch-line is that the ticket inspector woke up the wrong ONE OF AMERICA’S MOST person and threw that person FAMOUS SHOPS off the train at Prato, and not the LISTENING II man who paid the money. 1. 850; 2. the Empire State Building; 3. between 1843 and 15 JOKES TO INCREASE YOUR 1855; 4. 1902; PRONUNCIATION: 1ID 2T 3D 4ID 5D 6D 7T Audio John: And live from New York City, VOCABULARY! 1 JOKE COMPLETION 1. smells; 2. funny; 3. hoarse; 4. Labracadabrador; 5. head; 6. cool; 7. months COMPANY CLASSES 2 GAP FILL 1. changing; 2. follow; 3. draw; 4. messages; 5. batroom; 6. light; 7. space; 8. surprise BUSINESS TALK BOOKING A HOTEL CONFERENCE ROOM 1. Sam wants to book the conference centre and 12 rooms. 2. He probably doesn’t want to stay at the hotel because the hotel is noisy, it’s far from the beach and there are no en-suite bathrooms. Exercise: 1. available; 2. for; 3. about; 4. to; 5. down; 6. back CROSSWORD Finance Financial Director Leigh Dante (00 34 91 549 8523) [email protected] Classes Department (00 34 91 455 0273) [email protected] Teacher Coordinator [email protected] Accounts manager [email protected] Administration Department Subscriptions (9:30-13:00) [email protected] [email protected] Credit control and administration 9:00 - 2pm (by e-mail thereafter) Office hours 10am to 6pm (Spanish time) Barcelona office (Hot English) [email protected] Seville office (Hot English) [email protected] Editorial Department WORDSEARCH James Conway assistant editor Vanesa Carosia design Patrick Dempster writer Steve Brown writer Christine Saunders writer Louisa Staines writer Contributors MATCHING A7 B6 C11 D10 E3 F5 G9 H1 I12 J4 K13 L14 M8 N2 BUSINESS DIALOGUES THE STAFF REVIEW 1. Jack can’t remember the questions or the options. 2. Mr Stevens has to keep repeating the questions and the options. Exercise: 1. through; 2. on; 3. about; 4. on; 5. across US BAR CHAT 1. Kelly says that she thinks it’s gross and immature; 2. They see Roger’s mum with a man who isn’t his dad. (00 34) 91 421 7886 LearnHotEnglish learnhoteng Editorial Director Andy Coney (00 34 91 543 3573) [email protected] HotEnglishMagazine 48 / www.learnhotenglish.com / Contact us for fantastic online classes for your company, wherever you are: [email protected] Magnus Jones proof reading Marcie Peters proof reading Natalia Smith proof reading Laurent Guiard French depart. Peter Time proof reading Danielle Ott intern Georgina Brown intern Rayner Taylor intern Vanessa Simmonds writer Petra Bates writer Slim Pickens special intern Nick Hargreaves writer Printing Printerman Audio Production HEP ISSN 1577-7898 Depósito Legal M.14277.2001 October 2022 Published by Hot English Publishing, S.L. 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