EF C1.1 p 50. Mary Beard. Listening

Part 1 

Mary Beard believes that the use of (1)__________ and challenging literature excerpts does not catch people's attention.

If a place name ends with -chester or -caster, it means that it once had a Roman (2)__________ or military (3)__________ there.

People may lose interest when taught about (4)_________ literary writers, whom people consider (5)_______.  

In 63 BC there was a terrorist (6)_________ in Rome to (7)___________ the political leaders, to (8)_________ the city and to (9)_________.

Marcus Tullius Cicero was a great (10)___________ and (11)__________ of Roman culture.

No sooner had Cicero discovered the secret plan than he laid it (12)____________ the Senate. 

The leading (13)______________ are soon after executed without (14)____________, which is called (15)_______________.

Mary Beard compares this situation with present-day (16)_______________ to terrorism.

Mary Beard wonders where the (17)_____________ lies between national security and an individual's freedom. 


Part 2: T/F p 50

Part 3

Mary Beard complains that programme makers can be somewhat (18)____________ about accuracy.

Mary Beard's friend, who worked as an (19)____________ for a Roman film, was often called by the (20)__________. 

He thought that the film-makers were getting the whole of Roman history (21)__________ wrong.

Mary Beard loved Gladiator despite its (22)____________ plot.

One thing that history has got (23)_______________ is that the best stories are the true stories.

According to Mary Beard, non-fiction is a better (24)__________ than fiction. 

It's not always necessary to be (25)___________ serious about history.

If they show that history can be (26)___________, funny, surprising, and enjoyable, it will be all (27)_____________.
 






KEY


1. arcane

arcane: /ɑːˈkeɪn/ secret and mysterious and therefore difficult to understand.

E.g.

the arcane language of the law

the arcane rules of cricket


 

 

2. fort

fort: a building or buildings built in order to defend an area against attack.

E.g.

the remains of a Roman fort 



 

3. camp




4. remote




5. boring



6. plot

plot: a secret plan by a group of people to do something harmful or illegal.

E.g.

plot to do something  a plot to bomb the UN headquarters.




7. assassinate 



8. torch

torch: to deliberately make a building, vehicle etc start to burn. Set fire to sth.

Rioters torched several abandoned cars.



9. take over

take over: to take control of something.

E.g.

His only reason for investing in the company was to take it over.

 

 

10. orator

orator /ˈɒrətə(r)/ 

a person who makes formal speeches in public or is good at public speaking 

E.g.

a fine political orator

 

 

11. wit 

wit: a person who has the ability to say or write things that are both clever and humorous. Sp. persona ingeniosa.

E.g.

a well-known wit and raconteur

 

 

12. before

lay something before someone: To present some topic, issue, case, etc., to someone or some group. 

E.g.

The local government secretary laid the bill before parliament last week. 




13. conspirators




14. trial




15. summary execution

summary execution: an execution in which a person is accused of a crime and immediately killed without the benefit of a free and fair trial.

 

 

 

16. responses 



17. boudary



18. nerdish

nerdish: (also nerdy) boring and unfashionable.

 

 

19. advisor

 

 

20. crew 

crew: /kruː/ a group of people with special skills working together.

E.g.

a film/camera/TV crew



21. utterly



22. schmaltzy

schmaltzy: /ˈʃmɔːltsi/ too sentimental. 

E.g. a schmaltzy love song.

 

 

 

23. going for it



have (got) going for it: has to its advantage. If something has something going for it, there are certain advantages that will make the end result successful.

E.g. What does Rochester have going for it? Festivals and entertainment.

 

 

 

24. yarn

yarn /jɑːn/ 

1. thread that has been spun, used for knitting, making cloth, etc.

E.g.

    The sweaters are hand-knitted in cotton, linen or wool yarns.
    There's a knot in the yarn. 

A skein /skeɪn/ of yarn 

A ball of yarn

2. a long story, especially one that is exaggerated or invented.

    He used to spin yarns (= tell stories) about his time in the army. 

 

 

25. deadly



deadly: extremely 

E.g.

deadly serious/dull

 

 

26. larky

larky: full of or creating enjoyment and entertainment: The movie has its larky moments, but the dominant mood is melancholy, even dark. As larky and carefree as Poppy is, she's certainly no airhead.

 

 



27. to the good

be (all) to the good: used to say that something that happens is good, especially when it is in addition to or as the result of something else. Sp. para el bien.

E.g.

If further improvements can be made, that would be all to the good.
 

 


 




EF C1.1 p 48. Ex 5c. Spartacus and Braveheart. Sentence Completion Listening

Generally speaking, to decide whether a film is too historically inaccurate or not is a matter of (1)_______. However, problems may arise if the viewer doesn't know anything about a certain historical event and the film becomes the (2)____________ of the truth. A case in point would be if a film is (3)_____________ irresponsible or fantastic, which could be controversial.

For instance, Spartacus's friends standing up shouting 'I am Spartacus, ' which (4)____________ for freedom of individual choices, may never have happened.

Incidentally, Spartacus is a film that has had a (5)_________________ in current times.

Another example is the film Braveheart, which some viewers thought was pushing (6)__________ . As a matter of fact, it was felt that it was dealing more with the (7)______________ of independence than with the genuine history of what really happened.

 

KEY

1. taste 




2. received version

received: accepted by most people as being correct.     

E.g.

The received wisdom is that they cannot win.     

They challenged received ideas about education.

 

 

3. grossly

grossly: /ˈɡrəʊsli/ (used to describe unpleasant qualities) extremely.

E.g.

grossly overweight/unfair/inadequate     

Press reports have been grossly exaggerated

 

 

 

4. stands

stand for:  to support or represent something      

E.g.

I hated the organization and all it stood for (= the ideas that it supported)

 

 

5. resonance 

resonance /ˈrezənəns/  the special meaning or importance that something has for you because it relates to your own experiences. Significance, relevance.

E.g.

a tradition that has little resonance in the 21st century  

His words will have resonance for many musicians

 

 

 

6. the limits

push the boundaries/limits:      ​to attempt to go beyond what is allowed or thought to be possible.

E.g.

We aim to push the boundaries of what we can achieve.         

She pushes her physical limits through various endurance challenges 

 

 

 

7. notion 

EF p 44. Four Possible Ways of Meeting a Partner. Listening

3.5

Anna's friend told her that a bookshop would be a far more appropriate place to meet men than a (1)____________________.

Instead of obtaining the contact details of the men she met, Anna ended up with (2)___________________ on her shelves.

Hayley suggested she avoid using (3)________________________ like "Do you come here often?"

Anna managed to catch the attention of a man who was (4)_____________ a pint of beer. 

Anna thinks it's a good idea to experience something outside (5)__________________.

Despite sensing an (6)________________ atmosphere which was not only painful, but also (7)__________________, Anna (8)_________________ the courage and approached two men.

Anna asked her friends to (9)________ her (10)__________ with men she didn't know. 

Anna enjoyed finding out stuff from each other on (11)________________.


The Verdict (3.6)

Getting the attention of a total stranger gave Anna a real (12)____________.

Anna was astounded to see she had been able to (13)___________________ for the first time.

The texts messages with Rob and Tom have sadly (14)___________________.

Anna doesn't exclude face to face (15)__________________ from now on.

Despite finding the experience (16)___________________ she is not totally convinced yet.

Anna feels more comfortable knowing that the other person is looking for a (17)___________ too.




KEY

1. packed Tube train



2. more books to gather dust.



3. conventional chat-up lines




4. sipping




5. (of) your comfort zone




6. awkward 



7. embarrassing

 

 

 

8. plucked up 

pluck up (the) courage (to do something)      ​to make yourself do something even though you are afraid to do it. Sp. armarse de valor.

E.g.

I finally plucked up the courage to ask her for a date.


9. set

10. up

set somebody up (with) informal to arrange for two people to meet, because you think they might start a romantic relationship. Sp. arreglar una cita a alguien, poner en contacto

E.g.

  ‘How did you meet Nick?’ ‘A friend set us up.’




11. equal terms




12. buzz

buzz: a strong feeling of pleasure, excitement or achievement. Sp. entusiasmo

E.g.

a buzz of excitement/expectation     

She gets a buzz out of her work.     

Flying gives me a real buzz.     

You can sense the creative buzz in the city.     

The marketing campaign created extraordinary buzz



13. chat someone up

chat somebody up      ​(British English, informal) to talk in a friendly way to somebody you are sexually attracted to, perhaps hoping to start a relationship with them         

E.g.

She went straight over and tried to chat him up.         

John was in the bar chatting up the barmaid




14. dried up

dry up: if a supply of something dries up, there is gradually less of it until there is none left. Sp. agotarse.

E.g.

I found that offers of acting work started to dry up.     

Funds have completely dried up




15. flirting

flirt: to behave towards someone in a way that shows that you are sexually attracted to them, although you do not really want a relationship with them. Sp. coquetear, totear, ligar

E.g. flirt with  She accused him of flirting with other women.  She was flirting outrageously (=a lot) with some of the managers




16. confidence-boosting

boost something to make something increase, or become better or more successful.

E.g.

to boost somebody’s confidence/morale 

Getting that job did a lot to boost his ego (= make him feel more confident).




17. match

match: suitable partner. Sp. pareja

EF C1.1 p 32. Tips to become an expert language learner. Written Mediation

You are an advanced English learner at the C1 level at the EOI. Your friend John has decided to take up Spanish classes this year. He has never learnt a foreign language before and he has been placed in the A1 Spanish class. He has asked you for some advice on how to learn vocabulary. Send him an email giving him some tips based on the infographic below. (150 words)

Tips to become an expert language learner

1. Select and record


 


 

2. Contextualise and personalise


 

3. Review


 

4. Use  


 

Sample answer: 




Hi John!

I am so glad you decided to start learning Spanish. And of course I would love to give you some helpful (1)__________.

First of all, select the most useful words in Spanish. And then write them down in a notebook (2)__________ that you can access them later.

Secondly, try to learn new vocabulary in context. (3)___________, what I advise is that you look at some examples where the word is (4)_____________ used and then try to create your own.

Thirdly, you need to revisit newly learnt words (5)_________ time intervals. That (6)___________, it becomes less and (7)________ easy to forget them.

Finally, to effectively memorise new words, you've got to use them in interaction (8)__________ others. In other (9)__________, you need to make (10)____________ you effectively incorporate them (11)_________ your conversation.

So, there you (12)___________ it John. The basic principles which I have followed to learn English.

Good luck!

 

KEY

 

1. advice/tips 

 

 

 

2. so

 

 

 

3. Therefore

 

 

 

4. being

 

 

 

5. at

 

 

 

6. way

 

 

7. less

 

 

 

8. with

 

 

9. words

 

 

10. sure

 

 

11. into/ in

 

 

 

12. have