Speakout Advanced p 15. London Museums and Galleries. Extra Listening

Tate Modern - 10 - World War I
Listen and fill in the gaps:
1) What was green and pleasant is now a _____________ landscape of mud and water.
2) Nothing is alive in this _________ place.
3) Orpen wants us to be _________.
4) The bird’s beak is wide open and its eyes __________ as it swallows a fish.
5) Is this natural struggle being used to symbolize the predatory action of a large country ___________ a smaller one?
6) Max Beckann was ___________ from the German army.
7) He had a nervous breakdown ___________ by the horrors he’d seen.
8) Even after peace was declared, new problems ____________.
9) In Beckmann’s Carnival, the characters are dressed as clowns, _______________ people who might be here to celebrate the end of the war.
10) They are ____________________ into a tiny, cluttered space.
11) The __________________ of the objects leads our eyes to a strange creature writhing on the floor.


KEY:
1. bleak /bliːk/ exposed (not protected), empty, or with no pleasant features. E.g. a bleak landscape/hillside. Bleak concrete housing.



2. desolate /ˈdesələt/ empty and without people, making you feel sad or frightened. E.g. a bleak and desolate landscape.



3. disgusted: feeling revulsion or strong disapproval aroused by something unpleasant or offensive. E.g. I was disgusted at/by the sight. I was disgusted with myself for eating so much. He was disgusted to see such awful living conditions.



4. bulging /ˈbʌldʒɪŋ/ that sticks out from something in a round shape. E.g. bulging eyes



5. taking over
Take over: to gain control of a political party, a country, etc. E.g. The army is threatening to take over if civil unrest continues.
Predatory: /ˈpredətri/ 1. living by killing and eating other animals. 2. using weaker people for their own financial or sexual advantage. E.g. a predatory insurance salesman. A predatory look.



6. discharged
discharge somebody (from something) to give somebody official permission to leave a place or job; to make somebody leave a job. E.g. Patients were being discharged from the hospital too early. He was discharged from the army following his injury. She was discharged from the police force for bad conduct.



7. brought on
bring something on: to make something develop, usually something unpleasant. Cause. E.g. He was suffering from stress brought on by overwork.

nervous breakdown: a period of mental illness in which somebody becomes very depressed, anxious and tired, and cannot deal with normal life. E.g. to have a nervous breakdown

8. loomed
loom: /luːm/ to appear important or threatening and likely to happen soon. E.g. There was a crisis looming.



9. happy-go-lucky: not caring or worrying about the future. E.g. a happy-go-lucky attitude. A happy-go-lucky sort of person.



10. awkwardly squashed
awkwardly /ˈɔːkwədli/ with difficulty or in a way that shows you are not comfortable. E.g. He fell awkwardly on his right ankle.
awkward: not moving in an easy way; not comfortable. E.g. He tried to dance, but he was too clumsy and awkward. I must have slept in an awkward position—I'm aching all over.

Squash: /skwɒʃ/ to push somebody/something or yourself into a space that is too small. E.g. We all squashed into the back of the car. How many people are they going to try and squash into this bus?

cluttered: /ˈklʌtəd/ covered with, or full of, a lot of things or people, in a way that is untidy. E.g. a cluttered room/desk.



11. downward slant

downward: moving or pointing towards a lower level. E.g. the downward slope of a hill. She was trapped in a downward spiral of personal unhappiness.

slant: a sloping position. Sp. inclinación, pendiente, cuesta. E.g. The sofa faced the fire at a slant. Cut the flower stems on the slant.

writhe: /raɪð/ to twist or move your body without stopping, often because you are in great pain. E.g. She was writhing around on the floor in agony.

 


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