VOCABULARY TO DESCRIBE PEOPLE

WORDS TO DESCRIBE PEOPLE

A very tall and thin man is a lanky man. 

Some people are skinny, with bony elbows. They're skin and bones.

A stocky man has a very short, strong-looking body.

A wiry man is thin but strong. 

A chubby person is a slightly fat person.

Professional models have a well-built body. Sometimes they’re skinny, with slender legs, slim hips and narrow waist and they look gorgeous.

Some men used to wear sideburns but didn’t wear beard, goatee or moustache.

People who swim are usually broad-shouldered and broad-chested.

My daughter wears a ponytail. 

Peter’s so skinny that’s got bony elbows. He’s skin and bones. 

A hunky man is a strong and attractive man. 

A petite woman is a small and slim woman. 

WORDS TO TALK ABOUT CHARACTER AND PERSONALITY

You look jolly. Have you had some good news? 

He is a moody person. He has moody swings. 

He’s bad-tempered / surly. You need to be careful with him because he can be very rude. He’s a bit off-hand with people.

She’s so conscientious / thorough that she always does her best in everything. 

Tom is so vain / conceited / boastful. He’s full of himself.

An arrogant person tends to think he’s better than other people. 

It’s easy to empathise with someone who has been through the same experience as you. 

She’s trustworthy / dependable and supportive. You can rely on her.

A mean / tight-fisted / stingy person is the one who never buys their friends a drink in a bar. 

A sly / cunning / crafty person is clever and good at deceiving people. 

A glum person the one who always feels unhappy. 

She always tries to be sensible / level-headed, showing good judgement. 

If you judge something unfairly because of your personal opinion, you are a biased / even-handed person. I don’t like grumpy people, who are always complaining about everything. 

You‘ve to be very careful with her because she’s very touchy. She’s easily offended or annoyed. 

My son’s a fussy eater, he only likes a few things. 

He’s a courageous person because he takes brave decisions. 

You can’t withhold anything to Mary. She’s quick-witted person. 

The children were constantly on the go when we lived in the country. 

I’m afraid that his girlfriend is a bit anti-social. 

she’s always thinking how to make other people happy. She’s a thoughtful person. 

A thoughtless / inconsiderate person doesn’t think about other people. They’re selfish / self-centred because they only think about themselves. 

An ambitious and single-minded person is the one who knows exactly what he / she wants to achieve in life and how to get there.

IS YOUR LEVEL C1?

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WORDS TO TALK ABOUT FOOD TEXTURE

 

EITHER AND NEITHER

 

We use 'either + a singular noun' to mean 'this one or that one' when we are talking about two things of the same kind (like two drinks or two t-shirts).

Either drink is fine. I like both kinds.

We could go to either restaurant.

Julie might buy either t-shirt.

We use 'neither + a singular noun'' to mean 'not this one and also not that one' when we are talking about two things of the same kind.

Neither drink is fine. John hates both of them.

Neither restaurant is good. Let's go somewhere else.

We use 'either of + plural noun' and 'neither of + plural noun' before a pronoun or a word like 'this' or 'the' or 'my'.

Either of my dresses is good. (= this dress is good and also that dress is good.)

Either of us can get the key.

Neither of my dresses will do. (both of my dresses are not good.)

Neither of us will be on time.

We can use 'either' and 'neither' on their own when we have already said the noun.

Which drink would you like? Either is fine.

Which cake do you want? Neither! I'm going to have an apple.

If we want to talk about two different things, we can use 'either + noun + or + noun'. We don't need to use 'of' in this case.

Either coffee or tea is fine.

We could use either blue paint or red paint.

She will buy either some apples or some oranges.

We can also use 'neither + noun + nor + noun'. This tells us about two negative ideas, but it's quite formal. It's more normal just to use 'not + or'.

I don't like coffee or tea.

I like neither coffee nor tea.

We can also use 'neither' at the beginning of a sentence or clause. It means 'also not'. We need to use inverted word order afterwards.

I'm not at home. Neither is John.

This is often used to answer someone.

A: I don't like coffee. B: Neither do I.

In an informal style we can use 'me neither'.

A: I don't like coffee. B: Me neither.

We use 'not... either' to mean the same thing, but we use normal word order.

A: I don't like coffee. B: I don't either.

Revision activities

https://test-english.com/grammar-points/b1/both-either-neither/

https://www.perfect-english-grammar.com/either-and-neither-exercise-2.html

https://www.ego4u.com/en/cram-up/vocabulary/both-either-neither-nor

A GRAMMAR REVIEW FOR C1

 A grammar revision at the touch of a key.

EITHER OR/NEITHER NOR

Either/or and neither/nor

1.Either / or - used in a sentence in the affirmative sense when referring to a choice between two possibilities

We can either eat now or after the show - it's up to you.

2. Neither / nor - used in a sentence in the negative sense when you want to say that two or more things are not true

Neither my mother nor my father went to university.

When using either/or and neither/nor, note the following rules:

1. If both elements are singular, then the verb is singular too.

Either the father or the mother has to attend the meeting. (The nouns 'father' and 'mother' are singular; so the verb 'has' is singular too).

Neither Leila nor Nancy is going to write the report. ('Leila' and 'Nancy' are singular; so the verb ' is' is singular too).

2. However, if one of the elements is plural, then use a plural verb.

Either Sue or the girls are going to prepare dinner tonight. (The noun 'girls' is plural; so the verb 'are' is plural too).

Neither the teacher nor the students were in the classroom this morning. (The noun 'students' is plural; so the verb 'were' is plural too).

Revision activities

https://www.myenglishpages.com/english/grammar-exercise-either-or-neither-nor.php

https://www.engblocks.com/grammar/exercises/either-or-neither-nor/either-or-neither-nor-exercise-1/

LESS VS. FEWER

 

Fewer and less can be confusing. Although both words are used as comparatives, they are used differently. 

FEWER

Fewer is used with countable nouns, things that can be counted or that normally have a plural such as friends, books, students..

Examples:

There are fewer customers theses days than last summer.

I should eat fewer candies.

There are fewer cookies in the box

LESS

Less is used with uncountable nouns, things that can't be counted or that don't normally have a plural such as money, bread, water...

Examples:

He has less money

There is less drinking water in the village because of the drought.

You should spend less time playing video games.

Less with numbers

Less is normally used with uncountable nouns and fewer with countable nouns. There are some exceptions; less can also be used with counting nouns that denote distance, amount, or time.

Examples:

Less than two weeks

Less than two miles.

Less than three kilos.

Revision activities

https://www.englishgrammar.org/less-and-fewer/

https://www.myenglishpages.com/english/grammar-exercise-fewer-less.php

THE USE OF "SURELY"

Surely does not mean the same as certainly.

Surely is used to say that the speaker believes something in spite of reasons to believe the opposite.

Compare: That is certainly a plain-clothes policeman. (= I know that is a plain-clothes policeman.)
Surely that is a plain-clothes policeman? (= He does look like a plain-clothes policeman and I find it very surprising.)

They are certainly coming. (= I know they are coming.)

Surely they are coming? (= It looks like they are coming and I can’t believe it.)

sentences with surely often have question marks:

Surely you are quitting? I thought you would continue. (= I can’t believe that you are quitting.)

Surely that’s Peter over there? I thought he was in Switzerland.

When used with heavy stress, surely suggests that the speaker would like to believe something, but is beginning to lose hope.

Surely she is going to get a job? (= I would like to believe that she will get a job, but it looks like she will never.)

Surely there is somebody in the house? Why don’t they answer the phone?

Surely not is used to express difficulty in believing something.

Surely you are not quitting that job? (= I can’t believe that you are quitting that job.)
Surely you are not going out in that coat? (= I can’t believe that you are going out in that coat.)

American English
In American English, surely is used in replies to mean ‘certainly’.

Could you lend me some money? Surely.
Do you want something to eat? I surely do.

The results are surely encouraging.

Revision activities

https://www.englishgrammar.org/adverbs-exercise-9/

https://www.englishgrammar.org/adverbs-adjectives-exercise/

ALLOW, ADVISE AND PERMIT

All these verbs can be followed by either an –ing form or an infinitive. There is no difference of meaning, but the structures are different.

These verbs are followed by –ing forms if there is no object. If there is an object, we use an infinitive.

I wouldn’t advise buying a used car. (NOT I wouldn’t advise to buy a used car.)

Here the –ing form is used because the verb advise has no object.

I wouldn’t advise you to buy a used car. (NOT I wouldn’t advise you buying a used car.)

The college doesn’t allow / permit smoking on the campus. (NOT The college doesn’t allow / permit to smoke on the campus.)

The college doesn’t allow / permit students to smoke on the campus. (Here the infinitive to smoke is used because the verbs allow / permit has an object.)

These structures can be changed into the passive. 

Buying a used car is not advised. (Here the –ing form becomes the subject of the passive verb.)

Smoking is not permitted on the campus. (Here again the –ing form becomes the subject of the passive verb.)

You are not advised to buy a used car.

Students are not allowed to smoke on the campus.

Revision activities

https://test-english.com/grammar-points/b2/modal-verbs-permission-obligation-prohibition-necessity/

https://www.englishpage.com/gerunds/gerunds_infinitives_11.htm

PRESENTATION

 Hi!!

After a few years leading the school blog "When there's a will there's a way" at englisheoicaravaca.blogspot.com, I've decided to start this new experience devoted exclusively to advanced learners of English.

My idea is to offer explanations on different grammar points, vocabulary about topics of interest, practice by means of links to pages with listening and a variety of activities, news articles, readings, podcasts, videos, information about cities and towns in the English speaking world and any other aspect that can help you with your English for those of you who are studying the advanced levels (C1 and C2 CEFR).

If there's anything you'd like me to deal with, just leave a comment and I'll try to help.

I hope this blog helps you, that's why I've started it. 

See you around!

FUNNY IDIOMS

A BAN ON SLANG

 

Do you know these slang terms?

Peng = someone who is good-looking
Bare = lots of or a large amount of
Fam = short for family or a close friend
Bruv = short for brother
Bait = when something is blatantly obvious
Calm = no problem

Fam, imagine if man said you couldn't use words like "peng", basically and "dem tings dere" in your classroom.

Didn't understand any of that? This might be because you were born in a different generation.

Just imagine if you were not allowed to use slang words that meant "beautiful" or "lots" when you were in school. That is the case for some students, who are being urged to ditch slang words in lessons in order to teach them how to use formal English.

In fact, some schools have even introduced anti-slang posters and stickers, grammar police badges and word jails, where slang is written on posters with jail images.

Does that mean that pupils studying there have to tell their classmates they look "jolly well splendid" rather than a "peng ting"?

However, a linguistics expert is warning that slang bans may actually cause more harm than good. "There's no incorrect or correct way of using language," says Ian Cushing, a lecturer in education at Brunel University London. He carried out a study by visiting schools and speaking to teachers in England over a year and found examples of slang being banned and policed in lessons. These included words such as "peng", "bare" or abbreviations such as "emosh" for emotional.

There were slang bans at about 20 of the schools he visited, which were mostly located in urban areas.

"Language is just one part of your identity - just the same way you wear your hair and clothes," said Dr Cushing. "Young people will police their own language - they don't need other people to police it for them, they understand the context of their situation, and know when to shift it accordingly. "Shakespeare is full of slang and we don't see teachers banning that - there's a hypocrisy here, which is rooted in cultural and linguistic snobbery."

The linguistics academic says slang is a natural way of speaking, and banning it may be a threat to a person's identity. It may also make students feel discriminated against and less motivated to take part in lessons. "Young people are typically the innovators of language change, so actually we should be celebrating that rather than banning it in the classroom," said Dr Cushing.

Francesca, a student at South Thames College, a further education college in Wandsworth, south-west London, says she is allowed to use slang in her lessons. But the idea of a slang ban on students does not appeal to her. "It's like taking away their voice in a way," says the business student, warning that young people might feel they were unable to "express themselves". "I think it will end up driving more students to not want to communicate. "I would probably end up getting in trouble for things that would slip out, not by purpose," she says, adding that a slang ban could stop students wanting to "interact" in the classroom.

Fellow student Tomas migrated to England five years ago and could not speak English. He started learning slang in secondary school and now uses it with his friends. "I think if slang was banned in primary or secondary, it would be understandable, because that's when children are growing and start listening to slang," he says. "On the one hand I think it should be banned, because it will help children and young adults to learn and be prepared for the working world. But banning it can also mean that the freedom of speech for some people can be affected."

Another student, Imran, says: "If my teacher told me that I cannot use slang words, I will feel a bit uncomfortable, mainly because it's not harming anybody. "Slang is something that I've grown up with and it's just something that I wouldn't be able to finish the sentence with, without using it. "There are cultures that use slang as a language, and if it's being stopped, they wouldn't be able to communicate with people the way they previously did when slang was involved."

Maybe using slang in school ain't that bad after all, innit? However, other people argue that a slang ban is indeed necessary.

Chris McGovern, chairman of Campaign for Real Education, says allowing slang is not doing any favours for underprivileged children. He says they are left in an "employment gutter" because of their "linguistic impoverishment". "Nurturing street slang is fine for linguistic acrobats such as Cambridge graduate Sacha Baron Cohen's alter ego, Ali G," he says. "It is much more difficult for that 20% of school leavers who, according to employers' organisations, are largely unemployable because of poor literacy. "In the UK today, around nine million adults are functionally illiterate, and many of them suffer under-employment, unemployment or destitution as a consequence."

Source: BBC News