Talk Famous quotes Benjamin Disraeli (1804-1881) Match the beginnings of the quotations in box A to their endings in box B. a) There is nothing so annoying as to have two people talking b) People who know little are usually great talkers, c) There is one thing in the world worse than being talked about, d) The guilty think all talk e) The nice thing about egotists is that f) Talk to a man about himself B 1 while men who know much say little. (Jean Jacques Rousseau) 2 and that is not being talked about. (Oscar Wilde) 3 and he will listen for hours. (Benjamin Disraeli) 4 when you're busy interrupting. (Mark Twain) 5 is of themselves. (Chaucer) 6 they don't talk about other people. (Lucille S. Harper) Expressions 1 Match these expressions to their meanings. a) to talk back to (someone) b) to talk down to (someone) c) to talk (someone) into (something) d) to talk (someone) out of (something) e) to talk over (something) f) to talk shop 1 to discuss thoroughly 2 to discuss your work 3 to answer rudely 4 to persuade someone to do something 5 to persuade someone not to do something 6 to speak condescendingly to someone Complete these sentences with the correct form of the expressions in 1. You will need to add an object in some of the sentences. a) I'm sorry Paul talked me into seeing that film. It was really boring. b) Bruce and I were up late last night ___________________our problems, but we didn't solve anything, c) Don't__________ to me or I'll send you to bed without any supper. d) It's so frustrating when you go out for a drink with a colleague and all they want to do is e) Oh, Anne, I'm glad I buying that hat. It looked ridiculous. f) He acts like he's so important, always ___________________everybody. Grammar 1 There are mistakes in some of these sentences. Correct the sentences that are wrong. a) Yesterday I'd go to the cinema with my father. b) The teacher was so boring. He'd spend the first ten minutes of class calling the register and then he'd tell us to copy an exercise from - the board.______________________________ c) Remember what Robert was like? He'll be angry for a while, then he'll forget all about it. Talk 2 d) When he was younger he would break his leg climbing a tree._________________________ e) You watch. He'd come in, sit down, drink his coffee and he wouldn't even bother to say hello._________________________________ f) He was a lovely man. He would always have time for you and he'd always ask about the family._________________________________ g) I've been so tired recently, I'd put something down and forget where I've left it. 2 Change the present simple verbs to a form of ivill whenever possible. He (a) 's a great talker, he (b) knows so much about so many different things, it (c) 's amazing! And the nice thing (d) is he (e) doesn't patronise you. He (f) listens carefully to your questions, no matter how stupid and he (g) answers them really patiently and he (h) takes time to make sure you (i) understand. I think he (j) 's probably one of the best teachers I've ever met. a) b) c) d) e) f) h) I) Change the past simple verbs and the verbs with used to to a form of would whenever possible. When we (a) were kids we (b) played football out in the street in front of our house. I (c) was small and not really very good so I (d) was never picked to play and I (e) had to go and stand at the corner to watch for cars coming. When a car (f) came along I (g) ran back and shouted to the others. Then they (h) moved the goals out of the way to let the car go by. As soon as it had gone by they (i) went back to their game and they (j) forgot all about me! No wonder I hate football now! a) b) c) d) e) f) h) 4 Complete this conversation between two friends with an appropriate form of the verb in brackets. Use will or would whenever possible. Jayne: Becky: Jayne: Becky: Jayne: Becky: Jayne: Becky: Jayne: Do you remember Bill? He (a)___________(be) a real terror in school. Do you remember how he (b)___________(chase) the girls in the playground, and that time when he (c)___________(find) an old toad and (d)___________(try) to put it down the back of your shirt? Yes, of course I do, how could I forget! And he (e)___________(always / get) his friends into trouble, he and his mates (f)___________(smoke) behind the bike sheds and they (g)___________(always / get caught) by Old Robbins ... Yeah, and they (h)___________(be) on detention for a week! So what (i)___________(make) you bring him up in the conversation? Well, I (j)___________(bump) into him a couple of weeks ago down the pub and we (k)___________(have) a drink and (1)___________(catch up) with all the gossip. He (m)___________(not / change) that much, he (n)___________ (still / talk) for hours and he (o)___________(still / tell) those terrible jokes of his, but to be fair to him he (p)___________(always / insist) on paying for the drinks ... 'Always' you say? Yeah, we've been seeing quite a lot of each other, we (q)___________(usually / go) to the cinema once or twice a week, and sometimes we (r)___________ (have) a game of squash or tennis. Mmm ... is it getting serious? I'm not sure, you can judge for yourself, he (s)___________(join) us later! 22 Talk Vocabulary 1 Complete these sentences with the correct form of conversation. a) I never got a chance to speak to her because she was deep in_____________________all night b) _____________________he's totally inept. He never says a word. But when it comes to computer programming it's a different matter. c) I want to improve my_____________________ French before going to Paris for the holidays. d) They say he's a great_____________________. Well, I didn't think so. We sat chatting about all sorts of things and he just sat in the corner drinking brandy. 2 Put very or absolutely in the correct place in these sentences. a) The discussion was animated. b) A: Did you like the party? B: Yes, I did. It was enjoyable. c) The show was hilarious. We haven't laughed so much for a long time. d) His speech was fascinating. I never knew employment law would interest me. e) Yes, that was a memorable holiday. I wish I was still there. f) It was frustrating trying to explain the problem to him. He just wouldn't listen. g) The discussion we had on the future of the company was in-depth and we felt that we'd made some progress. h) She thought the meeting was pointless. They hardly covered any of the points they planned to discuss. i) It was a lengthy conversation but in the end we did manage to come to an agreement. 3 Complete the sentences with the correct form of the words and expressions from the box. get a conversation going mumble aimlessly awkward silence get a word in edgeways interrupt never have anything to say hold up her end of the conversation a) He doesn't really speak that clearly. He sort of ___________________________the words. b) I was really embarrassed when he asked her if she'd lost her job. There was an ___________________________for about ten c) I've told you before, David. Don't ___________________________me when I'm speaking to someone else. It's very rude. d) They seemed to be talking about nothing in particular. They were chatting ___________________________about old school days. e) She never stops talking. It's pretty difficult to f) Kevin's going through that moody teenager period. Whenever I ask him about school, he just grunts. It's really hard to ___________________________with him. g) She did her best to________________ ___________. She asked him all sorts of questions, but he asked nothing in reply. h) She is so quiet. She________________ ___________. She often sits there in silence throughout the whole evening. 4 Use vowels to complete the expressions so that they have the same meaning as the phrases given. Example He really talks a lot. You can never shut him up. He's very talkative. a) Everyone is talking about you. You're the t_lk _f th_ t_ wn. b) It was a very short presentation. It was a br___f t _ Ik. c) It was a very funny presentation. It was a h_l_r____s t_lk. d) It was a very interesting presentation. It was a r_v_t_ng t_lk. e) A hot topic of conversation. The m___n t _ Ik _ ng p___nt f) To start discussions again. To have f r _ s h t _ lks. 5 Complete these sentences using your answers in 4. Example He's pretty quiet really. He's not the talkative type. a) The unions and the management have decided that after a month of strikes they are going to sit down and begin_______________________. seconds. b) They discussed all sorts of things but the ________________________was the new athletic stadium and how it would be financed. c) It was a really________________________. He had the whole audience captivated with his stories of crossing Central Africa. d) Well, after her fantastic appearance on the show she's become the__________________ Pronunciation . She's in the papers, in all the gossip columns and on the TV. They had a_________________ about the future of the team, but time was limited and so they plan to meet again. f) It was a________________________about her failed attempts to marry a millionaire. We were all roaring with laughter in the end. Match the words from column A with words from column B to make complete phrases. A B a) all sweetness 1 rant b) caught 2 next door to c) have a sit 3 down d) a bite 4 my eye e) shout and 5 and light f) live 6 to eat 7 Rewrite the phrases in italics in the following sentences using the expressions in 6. a) She was in such a bad mood the other day but now she's so cheerful and smiley. b) It's been a really hard day today. Let's have a break for five minutes. c) She was feeling a bit hungry so she had a snack. d) All of a sudden he lost his temper and began to complain about this and that. e) Did you see that gold watch in the shop down the road? It really drew my attention. It's so unusual. f) We are neighbours to a football-mad family. Look at the anecdote below. You are going to listen to someone telling it. Before you do, mark where you think the speaker will pause. The first pause has been marked for you. Sir Winston Churchill was known as being a little outspoken at times, / / and he certainly didn't suffer fools gladly. One evening at a dinner party he had been particularly scathing about the 'fairer sex' when one of the women present decided she could take it no longer. 'Sir Winston,' she said, 'If I were your wife, I'd put poison in your tea!'. Without stopping to take breath, the great man turned to her and said, 'My dear lady, if I were your husband, I'd drink it.' Listen to check your answers. Listen again and mark the main stresses. Then repeat the anecdote in time with the speaker. Listening & reading A shaggy dog story is a long-winded anecdote whose sole purpose is to build up to a punchline. Cover the tapescript, listen to this shaggy dog story and choose the correct punchline. a) ... we've got a good selection of ties. b) ... we can't let you in without a tie. c) ... we haven't got any water. d) ... we're closed right now. Have you heard the one about the man in the desert? 1 There's this man who wins a jeep in a competition and decides he wants to put it through its paces. So he plans a five day trip in the desert. The first couple of days the jeep's performing fine and the man's having a whale of a time, charging up and down dunes, chasing along old river beds and even happening across a couple of oases. But on the third day he runs into trouble. The jeep breaks down in the middle of nowhere and he's forced to abandon it and set off on foot. He takes a couple of water bottles with him and sets off towards the nearest village. 2 He walks all day and all night with no sign of the village. His water is starting to run low but he keeps going. He knows he'll get there sooner or later. However, another day and another night pass by and his water has run out totally. By now he's forgotten all about rescuing his jeep, or even about getting to the village. His only thought now is to find water or he'll die of thirst. Talk in the distance he sees the figure of a nomad walking towards him across the desert. To start with he can't believe his eyes, he thinks it must be a mirage, but no, the nomad comes closer and closer and finally appears there in front of him. He greets the nomad and asks him if he has any water to sell him. The nomad apologises, explaining that he's just finished the last of his water but offers to sell him a tie. The man finds it hard not to laugh in his face, why should he want a tie in the desert? He refuses the offer very politely and asks the nomad for directions to the nearest village. They part and go their separate ways. A few hours later the man sees a small group of women sitting by the side of the road. He asks them for water, but curiously their answer is the same as the nomad's; they have no water, but they do have a wide selection of ties. The man walks on, beginning to fear for his sanity. As he climbs over the top of a dune, he spies a tent. He walks towards it as quickly as his tired legs can take him. His only thought is water. But the answer he receives is the same as before. Exasperated, he wanders on, having almost given up all hope. He's on his last legs when he sees a hotel on the horizon. It glimmers in the heat of the sun. It must surely be a mirage. But no, as he drags himself painfully towards the main entrance, he sees that it's real. He has finally reached civilisation. His nightmare is over. He can quench his thirst, hire a car, rescue his jeep and set off back home. With his last ounce of strength he straightens up, walks up the stairs to the front door, and asks the doorman for a drink of water. The doorman shakes his head sadly and says, 'I'm sorry sir, but...' b) How long has the man been in the desert when he meets the nomad? c) How many times does he ask for water? d) Why does he think the hotel is a mirage? e) Does he eventually get a drink of water? 3 Match the two halves of the phrases. Then check your answers with the text. A a) put it through b) having c) a wide d) quench e; f) set off run g) fear for h) on B 1 selection 2 his thirst 3 its paces 4 his last legs 5 a whale of a time 6 low 7 on foot 8 his sanity 4 Match each phrase in 3 to its definition below. be worried that he is going mad try something out to see how well it performs stop him feeling thirsty start walking coming to the end of a supply of something really enjoying himself a lot of things to choose from Complete these sentences with some of the expressions in 3. Make any necessary changes. a) I hadn't played for ages. I was practically ________________________by the end of the match. b) The kids were running around, shouting and playing and________________________. c) The new coach really the team in his first training session. d) The class had been misbehaving all day and the teacher's patience was beginning to 2 mm Listen to the story again or read the tapescript and answer these questions. e) Tell John to try some of this lemon juice. It'll really________________________. a) Why was the man in the desert? Writing 1 You are going to write a shaggy dog story about a librarian. Before you do so, look back at the story about the man in the desert and answer the following questions: a) What tense is used throughout?____________ b) What is the main topic of each paragraph? Match the paragraph with the summaries below: 1 the first attempt to buy water [_ 2 building up the drama of the situation 3 the climax of the story as the man comes across the hotel , 4 subsequent attempts to buy water 5 an explanation of why he was stuck in the desert c) Find three examples of inflated or dramatic language which add to the build up of the story. Example Exasperated, he wanders on ... 2 Look at the cartoon below and complete the punchline. Have you heard the one about the librarian and the chicken? a) The chicken puts the book down at the frog's feet and the frog says, '________________'. 3 Here are the topics for the five main paragraphs of the story. Put them in order. a) The repeated daily visits and the librarian's suspicions |_ b) An introduction to the librarian c) The librarian follows the chicken and unveils the solution to the mystery d) The chicken's second visit e) The first time the chicken visits the library [_ 4 Write the full story of the librarian and the chicken. Remember to build up slowly to the climax. 1992 Barcelona The first Olympic anthem to top the charts 1996 Atlanta Approximately 2.3 billion people watched the games on TV daily. 2000 Sydney The most successful Olympic games ever? 4 a) fierce b) prestige c) emblem d) reinstated e) claim f) exceeding g) staging h) lucrative Pronunciation 1 a) really b) actually c) really d) just e) really f) actually g) Just h) really 2 A: No, I totally agree. It's too much. How could they possibly expect you to put up with that! B: I know, it's truly awful, isn't it? Such a cheek. You'd honestly think I was running a hotel! A: Well, quite frankly, I think you should tell them exactly how you feel. That's sure to put an end to it. Writing 1 a) Furthermore b) For instance c) On the other hand d) However, e) Nonetheless 4 a) 4 b)l c)2or3 d) 3 or 4 e) 2 f) 3 g) 2 h) 1 4 Talk Quotes a) 4 b)l c)2 d)5 e)6 f) 3 Expressions 1 a) 3 b)6 c)4 d) 5 e) 1 f) 2 2 b) talking over c) talk back d) talk shop e) talked you out of f) talking down to Grammar 1 a) ... Yesterday I went b) correct c) He'd be angry for a while, then he'd forget all about it. d) When he was younger he broke his leg e) He'll come in/he won't even bother ... f) correct g) I'D. put something down ... 2 e) won't patronise f) will listen g) will answer h) will take 3 b) used to/would play d) never used to be picked/would never be picked e) used to/would have to g) used to/would run back and shout h) would move i) would go j) would forget 4 a) was / used to be b) would chase c) found d) tried e) would always get f) would smoke g) would always get caught h) would be i) made j) bumped k) had 1) caught up m) hasn't changed n) will still talk o) will still tell p) will always insist q) will usually go r) will have s) is joining Vocabulary 1 a) conversation b) Conversationally c) conversational d) conversationalist 2 a) very animated b) very enjoyable c) absolutely hilarious d) absolutely fascinating e) very memorable f) very frustrating g) very in-depth h) absolutely pointless i) very lengthy 3 a) mumbles b) awkward silence c) interrupt d) aimlessly e) get a word in edgeways f) get a conversation going g) hold up her end of the conversation h) never has anything to say 4 a) talk of the town b) brief talk c) hilarious talk d) riveting talk e) main talking point f) fresh talks 5 a) fresh talks b) main talking point c) riveting talk d) talk of the town e) brief talk f) hilarious talk 6 a) 5 b)4 c)3 d) 6 e) 1 f) 2 7 a) She was in such a bad mood the other day but now she's all sweetness and light b) It's been a really hard day today. Let's have a sit down for five minutes. c) She was feeling a bit hungry so she had a bite to eat. d) All of a sudden he lost his temper and began to shout and rant. e) Did you see that gold watch in the shop down the road. It really caught my eye. It's so unusual. f) We live next door to a football-mad family. Pronunciation Sir Winston Churchill was known as being a little outspoken at times, / / and he certainly didn't suffer fools gladly. / / One evening at a dinner party / / he had been particularly scathing about the 'fairer sex' / / when one of the women present decided she could take it no longer. / / 'Sir Winston,' / / she said, / / 'If I were your wife, / / I'd put poison in your tea!'. / / Without stopping to take breath, / / the great man turned to her and said, / / 'My dear lady, / / if I were your husband, / / I'd drink it.' 84 Answer key Listening & reading 1 b) '....we can't let you in without a tie'. 2 a) He won a jeep in a competition and wanted to see how it performed in the desert. b) Two days c) Four times d) Because the heat of the sun makes everything hazy and he's so exhausted he thinks he must be imagining things. e) No. 3 a) 3 b)5 c)l d) 2 e) 7 f) 6 g) 8 h) 4 4 lg 2a 3d 4e 5f 6b 7c 8h 5 a) on my last legs b) having a whale of a time c) put the team through its paces d) run low e) quench his thirst Writing 1 a) the present simple b) 1 paragraph 3 2 paragraph 2 3 paragraph 5 4 paragraph 4 5 paragraph 1 c) Any three of the following suggested answers: paragraph 2 - all day and all night, he'll die of thirst paragraph 4 - as quickly as his tired legs can take him, his only thought is water, having almost given up hope paragraph 5 - on his last legs, he drags himself painfully towards the main entrance, his nightmare is over, with his last ounce of strength 2 'I've read it, I've read it' 3 b, e, d, a, c 4 Model answer: There's a young librarian who's just started working in a country library. It's a quiet library and she doesn't have many customers, but she loves her job. Every morning she goes to work bright and early, sorts out the returned books, orders some new ones and generally makes sure that everything is kept neat and tidy. It isn't a very exciting job, but it makes her happy. Then one day, as she's sorting through the returned books, a chicken walks into the library and walks right up to the counter. It stands at the counter and starts pointing at the books with its beak, saying 'buk, buk, buk, buk' as chickens are wont to do. The librarian turns round slowly to look at the chicken, not quite sure what to do, and the chicken just keeps pointing at the books, saying 'buk, buk, buk'. It occurs to the librarian that, bizarre as it may seem, the chicken is actually asking for a book. So, she offers one of the books to the bird. To her surprise, it takes it in its beak, turns around and leaves the library. The librarian really doesn't know what to think and is more than a little worried that she'll never see the book again. The next morning, however, the chicken comes back and returns the book. The librarian is very surprised, but thanks the chicken very politely and turns back to her work. But the chicken starts pointing at another book on the counter, so the librarian gives it the book, which it takes in its beak, and waddles away with, looking very pleased with itself. The same thing happens every morning for over a week. The chicken brings back the book it's borrowed from the day before and takes a new one. Each day the book is bigger and more difficult, but each day the chicken comes back, leaves it on the counter and asks for another. The librarian starts to get suspicious. She can't believe that the chicken is actually reading all these books. She starts testing it, giving it philosophical treaties in Latin and ancient Greek, giving it the great Russian novels in the original version, but nothing throws the chicken. Every day it comes back, returns the book and asks for another. In the end the librarian decides to follow the chicken to see what it does with all these books. So, the next day, when the chicken has taken its book and left, the librarian puts on her coat, locks up the library and sets off to follow the chicken. She follows the chicken down the main street, dodging behind cars and into shop windows so that the chicken doesn't see her. She follows the chicken out of the village, dodging behind trees and hedges so that the chicken doesn't see her. The chicken reaches a gate, opens it and goes into a field. The librarian follows it. It crosses the field, skirts around a clump of trees and comes to a pond. The librarian hides behind a tree, feeling sure that she's close to solving the mystery. The chicken goes up to the pond and there at the edge of the pond, sitting on a log, is a frog. The chicken goes up to the frog, with the book in its beak, and drops the book at the frog's feet. The frog takes one look at it, looks up at the chicken and says ... 'Read it! Read it!'. 5 Luck Superstitions a) a mirror b) a rabbit's foot c) a ladder d a falling leaf e) a black cat f) your left hand Grammar 1 a) The builders wouldn't have knocked down the wall if it hadn't been absolutely necessary. b) If they hadn't knocked down the wall, they wouldn't have discovered the secret room. c) If they hadn't discovered the secret room, the sketches would never have been found. d) The sketches wouldn't be on display in the museum if the builders hadn't found them. Answer key