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Smile - its newsletter time! 190
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John Finley
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Jul 20, 2009 12:50 PDT
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John Finley's Learn English newsletter
Monday 20 July 2009 © 2009 Issue No. 190
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Contents:
1. Welcome
2. Test
3. Idiom
4. Jokes
5. Test Answers
6. Subscribe/Unsubscribe information
7. That's all folks
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1. Welcome
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Hi
Oh my word, I haven't sent a newsletter now for over
a month!
But, hey, it's summer. Sometimes even I need a break.
Now, on with the show
;-)
john
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2. Test
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Select the sentence from each choice of three
which you think is correct. Then check your
answers at the end of the newsletter. Good luck!
1.
a I live at London.
b I live by London.
c I live in London.
2.
a They have been to Italy last year.
b They went to Italy last year.
c They had been to Italy last year.
3.
a The class starts on 10.30am.
b The class starts in 10.30 am.
c The class starts at 10.30am.
4.
a How many times did you go to France?
b How many times have you been to France?
c How many times go you to France?
5.
a My birthday is at March 21st.
b My birthday is March 21st.
c My birthday is on March 21st.
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3. Idiom
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#-# to split the difference #-#
This idiom is normally used when we are negotiating
with someone over the price for something, and find
it hard to reach agreement. The 'split the difference'
price is halfway between and the amount asked for and
the amount offered.
(It's very common to use this idiom when buying or
selling second-hand goods - especially cars.)
- - -
Mary: "It's a nice computer but I'll only pay you
$250 for it."
David: "Come on, this computer cost me over $800
less than a year ago. I want $450 for it."
Mary: "But there are faster models on the market.
Okay, I'll pay you $300."
David: "$400 is the least I will accept."
Mary: "Sorry, but that's just too much."
After a few minutes where neither person will
offer more or accept less, David tries to make
the sale...
David: "Okay, let's split the difference. $350?"
Mary: "It's a deal."
($350 is halfway between the $300 offered and the
$400 asked for - David and Mary split the difference.)
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4. Jokes
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Two young children were examining the bathroom
scales (also called weighing scales - you stand
on them to find out how heavy you are) on display
at the department store.
"Have you ever seen one of these before?" asked Jim.
"Yes, my mum and dad have one in the bathroom,"
Bob replied.
"What's it for?" asked Jim.
"I don't really know," answered Bob. "I think you
stand on it and it makes you mad."
#-#-# <http://www.angelfire.com/on/topfen> #-#-#
President Obama wants to find out which is the best
at catching criminals: the CIA, the FBI, or the New
York Police Department.
He decides to give them all a test. He releases a
rabbit into a forest and asks each of them to catch it.
The CIA goes in first. They take satellite photos,
send in animal spies and put microphones in all the
trees and plants. After three months they announce
that the rabbit does not exist.
The FBI goes in next. After two weeks with no
progress they burn the forest, killing everything in
it, and issue a press statement saying that the rabbit
was a terrorist.
Finally, the New York Police Department goes in.
They come out two hours later with a very badly
beaten bear, which is shouting,
"Okay! Okay! I'm a rabbit! I'm a rabbit!"
#-#-# <http://www.angelfire.com/on/topfen> #-#-#
An English teacher was explaining to his students
how hurricanes are normally given only female
names, and how ships and planes are usually
referred to as "she."
One of the students raised her hand and asked,
"What gender is a computer?"
The teacher wasn't certain so he divided the class
into two groups - males in one, females in the other -
and asked them to decide if a computer should be
masculine or feminine. Both groups were asked to
give four reasons for their recommendations.
The group of women concluded that computers
should be referred to as masculine because:
1. In order to get their attention, you have to turn
them on.
2. They have a lot of data but are still clueless.
3. They are supposed to help you solve your
problems, but half the time, they ARE the problem.
4. As soon as you commit to one, you realise that,
if you had waited a little longer, you could have
had a better model.
The men, on the other hand, decided that computers
should definitely be referred to as feminine because:
1. No one but their creator understands their
internal logic.
2. The native language they use to communicate
with other computers is incomprehensible to
everyone else.
3. Even your smallest mistakes are stored in
long-term memory for later retrieval.
4. As soon as you make a commitment to one, you
find yourself spending half your pay on
accessories for it.
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5. Test answers
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1.
c I live in London.
2.
b They went to Italy last year.
3.
c The class starts at 10.30am.
4.
b How many times have you been to France?
5.
c My birthday is on March 21st.
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6. Subscribe/Unsubscribe details
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learnenglish-@topica.com
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7. That's all folks!
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That's all for a couple of weeks.
;-)
john
<a href="mailto:topfe-@yahoo.com">
topfe-@yahoo.com
</a>
You can read all previous issues of the newsletter at:
<A HREF="http://www.topica.com/lists/learnenglish/read">
http://www.topica.com/lists/learnenglish/read
</A>
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