sábado, 3 de mayo de 2014

Planning a day Out.- English Vocab.

Planning a day out:


Here are some words and phrases to talk about a day out that you plan with friends or family.

Activities

a day trip = a journey somewhere just for the day: "They're going on a day trip to London."
a day at the seaside = a day at the beach
a day at the races = a day when you go to see horse racing (very popular in the UK!)
a day in a theme park = a day in a place like Disneyland
a shopping trip = a day in a big city or a shopping centre
a day at the sales = when you go shopping when prices are cheap

Travelling arrangements

go by coach = go in a big, comfortable bus (a coach is for long journeys; a bus is for short journeys)
go by train / take the train
take a bus
drive = go by car
hire a minibus = pay for a small bus (for about 10 – 15 people) for the day
set off / leave at — (sharp) = the time you leave
"We are going to set off at 8am."
sharp = punctual: "We are leaving at 7.30am sharp!"
get back at = the time you return: "We get back at 8pm."
pick-up point = the place where you get on the coach: "There are two pick-up points. One at the Reading roundabout, and one outside the Red Lion pub."
time for shopping / sightseeing: "We'll have time for shopping in the afternoon."
"We're going sightseeing in the afternoon."
a guided tour: "There will be a guided tour of the museum."
a pitstop = a stop in the journey (for a toilet break): "The coach will make a pitstop at the motorway services."
on the way = during the journey: "On the way there, we'll stop at Stonehenge."
"On the way back, we'll take a detour into Oxford."
take a detour = not go straight to your destination, but go to another place.
the scenic route = a journey with beautiful views: "We'll take the scenic route on the way back."

Essentials

These are the things you'll need to bring:
an umbrella = because in the UK it can rain a lot!
your camera = so you can take photos
a raincoat = to protect you from the rain
comfortable walking shoes = so you can walk a lot
a packed lunch = sandwiches, a bag of crisps, a piece of fruit etc
a bottle of water = lots of walking makes you thirsty!
a guidebook = so you can find out information about the place you are visiting
a small backpack = so you can carry everything easily

Evening activities

Here are some typical activities you plan with your friends.
a night out with friends = when you go out in the evening with your friends to a pub, club, restaurant, etc: "I'm having a night out with friends next Saturday."
an evening at home = when you stay in: "I'd like a quiet evening at home tonight."
come over for drinks / a barbecue / dinner = an invitation to come to your house: "Why don't you come over for drinks on Friday evening?"

Other useful phrases

Why don't you…? = a suggestion: "Why don't you come over at about 8pm?"
Why don't we …? = a suggestion for us all: "Why don't we go on a day trip to London?"
Remember "Why don't you / he…" etc is followed by the verb without 'to'.
Let's … = a suggestion: "Let's go to London for the day!"
Remember: "Let's…" is followed by the verb without 'to'.

Talking About the News in English.- Useful phrases

TALKING ABOUT THE NEWS IN ENGLISH:

We often talk and comment about the news in conversation with other people. Here are some English phrases you can use to refer to the news and to give your opinion about how it's reported.

Introducing the subject
Have you seen the story about…?
Have you heard about the guy who…?
Did you read the story of…?
I've just read about…
The paper's reporting a story about…

Commenting on a news item you're reading
Wait till you hear this!
I can't believe this…
You'll never believe it, but…

Headlines and announcements
In both newspapers and on TV news, headlines in English are frequently in a present tense. This is because we consider the news to be happening almost now.
"Man dies in fire." (Newspaper heading.)
"A man has died in a house fire caused by a faulty gas oven." (Announcement on TV news.)
When we comment on the news, we also often use a present tense, such as the present perfect.
They've just said on the news that…
They've just announced…
Remember: when we give more detail about the story, we move to past tenses and reported speech:
They've just said that a man was killed in a house fire. Apparently it started when … The fire brigade said that the man had bought the gas oven from …

Judging the news
If we have a negative opinion of how the news is reported, we can say:
That's just sensationalist!
They should check their facts!
I think they're completely biased.
They shouldn't be allowed to say / write things like this!
You shouldn't believe everything you read in the paper!
If we have a positive opinion, we can use adjectives like well-balanced, fair (reporting), objective, impartial, or in-depth.
"The World Today" usually has well-balanced coverage of the news.
There's some very fair reporting about the protests.
"News at Nine" is usually objective / impartial.
This is a really in-depth article about the economy.

Useful verbs to talk about the news

to report (to report a story, to report that…)
to announce (announce a result, announce a decision)
to state (= more formal equivalent of "say)
to go on the record as saying (to say something publicly)
to be off the record (to not be "official")
to leak (to make public certain information which should be confidential – especially political strategy)
to publish (publish findings, publish the results of a survey, publish financial results)
to publicise (make something public, often to increase awareness – publicise the risks, publicise a new film)
to broadcast (a TV channel broadcasts programmes)