Learning a Language
Enhance Your Language Awareness
Words in Action
▆Working with Words and Expressions
1.Listed in the boxes below are some of the words that you need to be very familiar with. Now work in
pairs and make sentences with each of them to see if you have really mastered their usages. You are encouraged to consult a dictionary if you are still not quite sure about their meanings and usages.
▆ Sample sentences for reference:
1) If Jane is not here in 10 minutes, we’ll assume that she is n’t coming and we won’t wait for her any longer.
2) The case was fully argued before an agreement was reached.
3) They claim that they have discovered a cure for the disease, but this has not yet been proved.
4) Some Chinese words have no equivalents in English.
5) The rights of the individual are perhaps the most important rights in society.
6) If you want my personal opinion, I don’t think you should go there.
7) The train leaves at about half past eight — 8:32, to be precise.
8) After years of hard work, she became qualified as a doctor last year.
9) Her new novel is based on her adventures in Africa.
10) The house is too small for a family of five; furthermore, it is in a bad condition.
11) Human beings are much more intelligent than animals.
12) She promised solemnly that she would not say a word about it to anyone.
2.In the box below are some of the words you have learned in this unit. Complete the following sentences
with them. Change the form where necessary.
▆ Answers:
1)obtain
2)confident
3)communicate
4)advantage
5)relevant
6)helpful
7)extreme
8)enjoyable
9)means
10)process
11)particularly
12)characters
13)astonished
14)apparently
3.In the box below are some of the expressions you have learned in this unit. Do you understand their
meanings? Do you know how to use them in the proper context? Now check for yourself by doing the blank-filling exercise. Change the form where necessary.
▆ Answers:
2)is … related to
3)find out
4)To a certain extent
5)vice versa
6)no doubt
7)rid … of
8)cleared up
9)or else
10)at all costs
11) sure enough
12)let alone
13) In his hurry
14)It’s no use
15) in my view
16) was worth
▆Increasing Your Word Power
https://www.wendangku.net/doc/d417007732.html,plete the multiple choice exercise by choosing the right answer.
▆ Answers:
1) C
2) D
3) B
4) B
5) B
6) D
2.Adverbs are used to modify adjectives. What adverbs listed in the box below can be used to modify the
adjectives in the sentences? Put as many adverbs as you think suitable before each of the adjectives.
1)highly / very
2)quite / very
3)quite / very / increasingly
4)quite / simply / very
3.Did you notice the suffix -er in words such as teacher, grader in this unit? The suffix -er can be put at
the end of verbs or nouns to denote people who perform the action expressed by the stem word. In addition to -er, the suffixes -or, -ist, -ian also fall into this category. Now form nouns by adding -er/-or/-ist/-ian to the words given:
Answers for reference:
1) logician
2) magician
3) mathematician
4) journalist
5) industrialist
6) environmentalist
7) laborer
8) murderer
9) conqueror
10) survivor
GRAMMAR IN CONTEXT
Study the following sentences from both Text A and Text B, paying special attention to the modal auxiliaries would, must, might, can’t, should.
Task 1: Fill in the following blanks with appropriate modal auxiliaries.
▆ Answers for reference:
1) would/should
2) should/would
3) might
4) would
5) must
6) can’t
7) should, would
8) must
Task 2: Translate the following sentences into English, using the modal auxiliaries given in brackets.
▆ Answers for reference:
1) The expedition might have reached the top of the mountain by now.
2) If there should be any change in the schedule, please let me know in time.
Or: Should there be any change in the schedule, please let me know in time.
3) Passengers must check in (no later than) 45 minutes prior to flight departure.
4) Hurry up! It would be a pity to miss the concert.
5) The man standing in the distanc e can’t be Mr. Li, for he left for New York yesterday afternoon.
Cloze
▇Complete the following passage with words chosen from this unit. The initial letter of each is given.
▆ Answers:
1)doubt
2)efficient
3)where
4)advantage
5)afford
6)claim
7)fluently
8)qualified
9)extent
10)ridiculous
11)perfect
12)as
13)because
14)individual
Translation
1. Translate the following sentences into English, using the words given in brackets.
▆ A nswers for reference:
1)The baby can’t even crawl yet, let alone walk.
2)Will claimed he was dining with a group of friends at the time of the murder, but in my opinion he told
a lie.
3)To a certain extent the speed of reading is closely related to reading skills; and with reading skills you
can cope with outside class reading better.
4)Can you take a look at the engine to see what’s wrong?
5)Some people assume that there is a Chinese equivalent for every Japanese word.
6)We have passed all relevant information on to the police.
7)There is no use asking me any more questions about that matter because I won’t answer.
8)It was a mistake on Jim’s part to sign the contract without reading it care fully.
9)They refused to provide us with all the information we need.
10)This accident is very similar to the one that happened three years ago.
11)The film is based on a play by Shakespeare.
12)If you have a good command of English and computer skills, you will surely have an advantage over
others in finding a job.
Theme-Related Writing
▆Write a passage in about 100-120 words, taking either of the following titles:
1) Why I like to learn English
2) Why I hate to learn English
▆ S ample essay for Task 1:
Why I like to learn English
I have learned English for about seven years. I should say that I am highly motivated to master English. First of all, learning English is useful, as it is becoming a world language and people from different countries often communicate with one another in English. If I am good at English, it will be much easier for me to communicate with them. Secondly, I like traveling a lot. A good mastery of English will make things much easier for me when traveling around the world. Finally, I like literature a lot. If I am very good at English, I can read great works by Shakespeare and Dickens and many other English writers instead of reading the translated versions.
▆ S ample essay for Task 2:
Why I hate to learn English
I have learned English for about seven years. I should say the more I learn English, the more I hate it.
First of all, learning English is boring. I have to memorize many new words or rely on a dictionary to frequently check unknown words. Doing so wastes a lot of my precious time. Secondly, I don’t understand why we have to learn a foreign language. I don’t want to go abroad and I can always find a job that doesn’t need English in China. Finally, I can always read translated versions of the books I want to read. So, if I don’t have to learn English, I would rather use the time I spend on English to do things I like.