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Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
I. Read aloud
Read aloud
Read the following passage aloud, making a pause between sense
Audiovisual supplements groups.
Self-Reliance
(Excerpt)
Ralph Waldo Emerson
I read the other day some verses written by an eminent painter/
which were original and not conventional./ The soul always hears an
admonition in such lines,/ let the subject be what it may./ The
sentiment they instill/ is of more value than any thought they may
contain./ To believe your own thought,/ to believe that what is true
for you in your private heart/ is true for all men,/ — that is genius./
Speak your latent conviction,/ and it shall be the universal sense;/ for
the inmost in due time becomes the outmost,/ — and our first
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
thought is rendered back to us/ by the trumpets of the Last
Judgment./ Familiar as the voice of the mind is to each,/ the highest
Read aloud merit we ascribe to Moses,/ Plato,/ and Milton/ is,/ that they set at
Audiovisual supplements
naught books and traditions,/ and spoke not what men but what they
thought./ A man should learn to detect and watch that gleam of light/
which flashes across his mind from within,/ more than the lustre of
the firmament of bards and sages./ Yet he dismisses without notice
his thought,/ because it is his./ In every work of genius/ we
recognize our own rejected thoughts:/ they come back to us with a
certain alienated majesty./ Great works of art have no more affecting
lesson for us than this./ They teach us to abide by our spontaneous
impression/ with good-humored inflexibility then most/ when the
whole cry of voices is on the other side./ Else,/ tomorrow/ a stranger
will say with masterly good sense precisely/ what we have thought
and felt all the time,/ and we shall be forced to take with shame our
own opinion from another./
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
II. Audiovisual supplements
Read aloud David Beckham’s World Cup Preparations
Audiovisual supplements
Questions:
1. Why did one of the boys show his back to us?
2. Are you one of Beckham’s fans? If you are, in what way does
he charm you?
Answers for reference:
1. Because he wanted to show off Beckham’s signature on his back.
2. Reference words and phrases:
the symbol of England’s World Cup ambitions
his enthusiasm in his career — football playing
be responsible for his fans and his family and some others who
support him in his football career
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
BBC News
David Beckham’s World Cup Preparations
Read aloud
Anna Ford: “We can win on Sunday against Sweden.” David
Audiovisual supplements Beckham had that positive message for England fans
this morning just three days before their first World
Cup match. And the captain revealed that among all the
good luck messages the team’s received, is one from
the Queen. Our sports correspondent Daniela Relph is
with the England team in Japan, Daniela.
Daniela Relph: Well Anna, David Beckham has become the symbol of
England’s World Cup ambitions. When he was injured
there was gloom, now he’s back, there is a real mood of
optimism here. And as he spoke today the England
captain seemed extremely at ease with himself, and
more than ready for the task ahead.
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
Fans: Beckham! Beckham!
Daniela Relph: There is one name dominating the headlines and just
Readaloud one man the local schoolchildren want to see. No
Audiovisual supplements other England player is under the same kind of
pressure as the captain. The return of an injury-free
David Beckham has lifted the whole squad. Today he
admitted there were times that he thought his World
Cup was over. And he spoke of the two months of
anguish he’d suffered over his injured foot.
David Beckham: There’s been, obviously, a lot of hype around it. I’ve
had a lot of well-wishes, from you know, from family,
friends, up to the Queen, which has been nice. But, no,
it’s, it’s been good. You know, it’s, it’s been hard at
times. Because you know, I wanted to be fit so badly.
And it’s just finally, this last week, it’s all come
together.
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
Daniela Relph: Few players can rival Beckham in popularity here in
Japan. The lucky children who got an autograph were
Read aloud
the envy of their friends and keen to show it off. The
Audiovisual supplements
England captain now takes the adulation in his stride.
David Beckham: I’m a grounded person. You know, I’ve been brought
up well by my mum and dad. And you know I have
got a lovely wife behind me, and a son, and that’s,
that’s the sort of things that keep your feet on the
ground. You know, it’s, it’s hard because, you know,
there are so many people looking at you and taking
pictures, and you know, I’ve got used to it, you know,
and at times, most of the time, you enjoy it.
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
Read aloud
Audiovisual supplements
■
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
I. Text analysis
Text analysis
Structural analysis
The author tells of his frustrating experiences as a toupee
model, his problems, progress and success in broadcasting. He
Cultural background
has learned from his experiences that one’s success largely lies in
the discovery of one’s real potential.
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
II. Structural analysis
Text analysis
Structural analysis Paragraph 1 — reasons for his job transfer
Cultural background
Paragraphs 2 – 13 — his frustrating experience as a toupee
model
Paragraphs 14 – 27 — his problems, progress and success in
broadcasting
Paragraph 28 — comments on his successful career
transition
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
III. Cultural background
Text analysis American Men Don’t Cry
Structural analysis American men don’t cry because it is
Cultural background considered not characteristic for men to do so.
Only women cry. To cry is a characteristic
“weakness” of the female, and no American
male wants to be identified with anything in
the least weakness or feminine. Crying, in
A m e r i c a n c ul t ur e , i s i de n t i f i e d wi t h
childishness, with weakness and dependence.
No one likes a crybaby, and Americans
disapprove of crying even among children, discouraging it in them as
early as possible. On a land so devoted to the pursuit of happiness as
theirs, crying is really un-American. Adults must learn not to cry in
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
situations in which it is permissible for a child to cry. Women,
although being the “weaker” and “dependent” sex, it is only natural
Text analysis
that they cry under certain emotive situations. For women, crying is
Structural analysis excusable. But for men, crying is a mark of weakness. So it goes the
Cultural background American belief with regard to crying.
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
Me and My Big Mouth
When my football-playing career ended, I had no idea how I wanted
to spend the rest of my life. Fortunately for me, there is a fine tradition
in this country that if you are a successful athlete or performer, people
supposedly want to eat the same peanut butter that you do, drink the
same beer, wear the same pants, etc.
That’s how I got involved in the worst product endorsement I ever
did. I am bald and I agreed to be the spokesman for a toupee company.
The basic concept of the campaign was that if a he-man football
player like Terry Bradshaw was not embarrassed to wear a toupee, no
one else should be. To show potential customers how good I looked
with hair, the company made and distributed to salons all over the
country a plastic model of my head. These salons then stuck a toupee on
the model and put it on the counter or in the front window.
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
They made the mold for my head at a Holiday Inn near the
Shreveport Regional Airport. I lay down on a bed while people stuck
straws up my nose so I could breathe, and then covered my entire
head with plaster.
The plaster began drying too quickly, and they had trouble
getting it off my head. In the meantime I was having difficulty
breathing.
There were lots of bad ways to die, but being suffocated by
plaster while getting your head duplicated for a toupee display is
high on the list.
Eventually, they mass-produced my head, and it did look just like
me. The toupee people were so proud of the plastic bust that they
mailed one to my dad. The problem was I didn’t tell him it was
coming.
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
This big box arrived at my parents’ house, and my father opened it
up. He was shocked to see me looking right back at him. “Novis,” he
yelled to my mother, “you better get in here. They sent us Terry’s head in
a box.”
It bothered my mother so much that they put it back in the box and
stored it in the attic.
As another part of the deal, I filmed several toupee commercials. In
one, I swam with a hairpiece on as an announcer said, “You, too, can
have a full robust life with our toupee. Look how natural it looks.” Then
I surfaced with what looked like road kill stuck to my head.
Maybe the worst part of the deal was that I agreed to wear a toupee
whenever I appeared in public. One day I was playing in a pro-am golf
tournament on a hot afternoon. Sweat was pouring out from under the
dense synthetic wig. Finally I just couldn’t take it anymore; I went
behind a tree, ripped off the hairpiece and shoved it into my back pocket.
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
What I didn’t realize was that I had cut my head when I took it
off, so my scalp was bleeding. I spent the rest of the tournament
walking around with blood running down my face and the hairpiece
hanging out of my pocket like a squirrel’s tail.
After that, for some reason, the company decided I was not a
proper spokesman for their toupee and fired me. I had to hand in my
hair.
Once again I needed to find a way to make a living. Talking is
what I can do best, and I like to make people smile. When I was
playing, reporters like to interview me because I gave them good
sound bites.
Luckily, this had attracted the attention of TV network executives.
One day my phone rang. A CBS executive asked, “Want $5,000 for
just talking?” and that is how I got into the broadcasting business
long term.
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
When I signed with CBS, Terry O’Neil, the executive producer
of CBS Sports, teamed me with veteran play-by-play announcer
Verne Lundquist. Verne was facing a big challenge; he had to teach
me how to do my job before I destroyed his career.
My first broadcast was a preseason game in San Diego between
the Chargers and some other team. As a quarterback, the big picture
had been the only thing that mattered to me, but as a broadcaster I
soon learned it was the small frames that made up the big picture.
I didn’t know the players and their assignments; I didn’t know
when to talk and when to keep quiet. I didn’t know what to look at,
how to describe what I was seeing.
There was so much I didn’t know and I didn’t even know it.
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
I would not describe my first game as a disaster, mostly
because that would be understating how truly bad I was. For
example, in about the middle of the first quarter it became obvious
to me that in addition to a lack of knowledge and preparation, I had
a serious problem.
“Verne,” I said, “I can’t see a thing down there.” I had never
watched a football game from that distance in my life. All I could
see was a bunch of people with numbers I couldn’t read running
around.
“Really,” said Verne, amazingly calm, considering that the
broadcasting partner he was depending on for insightful
commentary had just announced he was basically useless. “We’ve
got to get you binoculars for the next game.”
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
Gradually I got better. Very, very gradually. The first few games
I was probably more nervous than at any time during my entire
playing career. I would always bring two clean shirts with me,
because I knew I was going to sweat through one of them. Maybe I
was so nervous because I really cared. I worked hard. I wanted to
be good, to please the viewers. And I needed that job.
With a lot of help from Verne, I guess I did okay because CBS
eventually offered me another job as co-host of “The NFL Today”
with Greg Gumbel. I’d be the analyst. Before the first show I was
extremely nervous. Then, minutes before we went on the air, a
heavy boom microphone smacked me upside the head so hard it
nearly knocked me out. I felt dizzy, sick to my stomach, and my
ears rang.
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
In a strange way, that hit in the head relaxed me. Being in the
studio was brand-new to me, but I could relate it to a pain in my
head. During my playing career, there had been many games when
I had to play hurt, but as one reporter wrote, this was the first time I
had to talk hurt.
Fortunately all went well. Since then I’ve gone from CBS to
Fox, and have made the transition from football player to football
entertainer. My role on TV is not to be serious. People do not want
to hear me speak football, things like “That’s the old sixty-six
inside release.” They expect to hear me say things like “The Giants
are having a bad offensive day, and they’ve got to make some
changes. It’s like when I went fishing with my dad last week and
we were catching a lot of fish and all of a sudden we couldn’t catch
mud. ”
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
“Then my daddy said to me, ‘Son, either these fish got real
bright all of a sudden or they are not interested in these lures. We got
to change lures.’ When the defensive isn’t biting, you’ve got to
change your offensive at half-time. You got to change lures.”
For a man who thought his best talent was throwing an inflated
ellipsoid a long way, I’ve been fortunate in my career. In the end I
discovered my real talent — just being myself.
1,373 words
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
Me and My Big Mouth
When my football-playing career ended, I had no idea how I wanted
to spend the rest of my life. Fortunately for me, there is a fine tradition
in this country that if you are a successful athlete or performer, people
supposedly want to eat the same peanut butter that you do, drink the
same beer, wear the same pants, etc.
That’s how I got involved in the worst product endorsement I ever
did. I am bald and I agreed to be the spokesman for a toupee company.
The basic concept of the campaign was that if a he-man football
player like Terry Bradshaw was not embarrassed to wear a toupee, no
one else should be. To show potential customers how good I looked
with hair, the company made and distributed to salons all over the
country a plastic model of my head. These salons then stuck a toupee on
the model and put it on the counter or in the front window.
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
They made the mold for my head at a Holiday Inn near the
Shreveport Regional Airport. I lay down on a bed while people stuck
straws up my nose so I could breathe, and then covered my entire
head with plaster.
The plaster began drying too quickly, and they had trouble
getting it off my head. In the meantime I was having difficulty
breathing.
There were lots of bad ways to die, but being suffocated by
plaster while getting your head duplicated for a toupee display is
high on the list.
Eventually, they mass-produced my head, and it did look just like
me. The toupee people were so proud of the plastic bust that they
mailed one to my dad. The problem was I didn’t tell him it was
coming.
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
This big box arrived at my parents’ house, and my father opened it
up. He was shocked to see me looking right back at him. “Novis,” he
yelled to my mother, “you better get in here. They sent us Terry’s head in
a box.”
It bothered my mother so much that they put it back in the box and
stored it in the attic.
As another part of the deal, I filmed several toupee commercials. In
one, I swam with a hairpiece on as an announcer said, “You, too, can
have a full robust life with our toupee. Look how natural it looks.” Then
I surfaced with what looked like road kill stuck to my head.
Maybe the worst part of the deal was that I agreed to wear a toupee
whenever I appeared in public. One day I was playing in a pro-am golf
tournament on a hot afternoon. Sweat was pouring out from under the
dense synthetic wig. Finally I just couldn’t take it anymore; I went
behind a tree, ripped off the hairpiece and shoved it into my back pocket.
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
What I didn’t realize was that I had cut my head when I took it
off, so my scalp was bleeding. I spent the rest of the tournament
walking around with blood running down my face and the hairpiece
hanging out of my pocket like a squirrel’s tail.
After that, for some reason, the company decided I was not a
proper spokesman for their toupee and fired me. I had to hand in my
hair.
Once again I needed to find a way to make a living. Talking is
what I can do best, and I like to make people smile. When I was
playing, reporters like to interview me because I gave them good
sound bites .
Luckily, this had attracted the attention of TV network executives.
One day my phone rang. A CBS executive asked, “Want $5,000 for
just talking?” and that is how I got into the broadcasting business
long term.
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
When I signed with CBS, Terry O’Neil, the executive producer
of CBS Sports, teamed me with veteran play-by-play announcer
Verne Lundquist. Verne was facing a big challenge; he had to teach
me how to do my job before I destroyed his career.
My first broadcast was a preseason game in San Diego between
the Chargers and some other team. As a quarterback, the big picture
had been the only thing that mattered to me, but as a broadcaster I
soon learned it was the small frames that made up the big picture.
I didn’t know the players and their assignments; I didn’t know
when to talk and when to keep quiet. I didn’t know what to look at,
how to describe what I was seeing.
There was so much I didn’t know and I didn’t even know it.
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
I would not describe my first game as a disaster, mostly
because that would be understating how truly bad I was. For
example, in about the middle of the first quarter it became obvious
to me that in addition to a lack of knowledge and preparation, I had
a serious problem.
“Verne,” I said, “I can’t see a thing down there.” I had never
watched a football game from that distance in my life. All I could
see was a bunch of people with numbers I couldn’t read running
around.
“Really,” said Verne, amazingly calm, considering that the
broadcasting partner he was depending on for insightful
commentary had just announced he was basically useless. “We’ve
got to get you binoculars for the next game.”
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
Gradually I got better. Very, very gradually. The first few games
I was probably more nervous than at any time during my entire
playing career. I would always bring two clean shirts with me,
because I knew I was going to sweat through one of them. Maybe I
was so nervous because I really cared. I worked hard. I wanted to
be good, to please the viewers. And I needed that job.
With a lot of help from Verne, I guess I did okay because CBS
eventually offered me another job as co-host of “The NFL Today”
with Greg Gumbel. I’d be the analyst. Before the first show I was
extremely nervous. Then, minutes before we went on the air, a
heavy boom microphone smacked me upside the head so hard it
nearly knocked me out. I felt dizzy, sick to my stomach, and my
ears rang.
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
In a strange way, that hit in the head relaxed me. Being in the
studio was brand-new to me, but I could relate it to a pain in my
head. During my playing career, there had been many games when
I had to play hurt, but as one reporter wrote, this was the first time I
had to talk hurt.
Fortunately all went well. Since then I’ve gone from CBS to
Fox, and have made the transition from football player to football
entertainer. My role on TV is not to be serious. People do not want
to hear me speak football, things like “That’s the old sixty-six
inside release.” They expect to hear me say things like “The Giants
are having a bad offensive day, and they’ve got to make some
changes. It’s like when I went fishing with my dad last week and
we were catching a lot of fish and all of a sudden we couldn’t catch
mud. ”
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
“Then my daddy said to me, ‘Son, either these fish got real
bright all of a sudden or they are not interested in these lures. We got
to change lures.’ When the defensive isn’t biting, you’ve got to
change your offensive at half-time. You got to change lures.”
For a man who thought his best talent was throwing an inflated
ellipsoid a long way, I’ve been fortunate in my career. In the end I
discovered my real talent — just being myself.
1,373 words
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
Fortunately for me, there is a fine tradition in this country that if you
are a successful athlete or performer, people supposedly want to eat
the same peanut butter that you do, drink the same beer, wear the
same pants, etc.
令我感到幸运的是，在我们国家有一个很好的传统。那就
是，如果你是一位成功的体育健将或者杰出的艺人，人们往
往会模仿你的饮食习惯以及穿着打扮。
Explanation:
The expression “fine tradition” here refers to people’s social
value. Terry Bradshaw lives in a society that worships idols.
Successful people, such as sports champions, pop singers and
movie stars, receive focal attention of the society. It is common
practice to follow their life styles. People try to imitate them,
such as wearing the same brand of jeans, having the same hair
style, etc. In this way they feel they are more or less accepted as
successful people too.
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
I am bald and I agreed to be the spokesman for a toupee company.
Paraphrase:
I am bald and I agreed to accept the job as a wig-model for the
toupee company.
我本来就秃顶，所以也就同意了为一家假发公司做形象代
言人。
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
There were lots of bad ways to die, but being suffocated by plaster
while getting your head duplicated for a toupee display is high on the
list.
糟糕的死亡方式很多，但被一个完全仿造自己头部制作的塑料
模型窒息而死则是最糟糕的。
Paraphrase:
1) … while getting your head duplicated ...: while an exact copy
of your head is being made.
2) … is high on the list: is near the top of the list. Here it means
that “being suffocated by plaster while getting your head
duplicated for a toupee display” was one of the worst ways to
die.
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
Then I surfaced with what looked like road kill stuck to my head.
Explanation:
“road kill” refers to whatever animals killed on roads. The
sentence means that the toupee he was wearing looked extremely
unnatural, just like a dead animal killed by a car stuck to his bald
head.
于是我戴上了那个假发套。发套制作得极不自然，像一只在
马路上被车撞死的动物一样粘在我的头上。
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
When I was playing, reporters like to interview me because I gave
them good sound bites.
Explanation:
Sound bite refers to a very brief broadcast statement, as by a
politician during a news report.
当我还是球员时，记者们就因为我在广播里的精彩发言而乐
意采访我。
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
As a quarterback, the big picture had been the only thing that mattered
to me, but as a broadcaster I soon learned it was the small frames that
made up the big picture.
Paraphrase:
When I was a quarterback I only cared about the winning of the games
I played, while as a broadcaster I had to present a detailed account of
what is going on in the field to the audience, which are the actions and
moments that make up the whole view of the game.
Explanation:
“Quarterback” is a position for a football player. It is an offensive
back who stands directly behind the center in a football match. In a
football game, the quarterback calls on offense. Figuratively, a
quarterback refers to a person who directs any group or activity. Here
the expression “the small frames” refers to a series of actions taking
place at particular moments (i.e. details) during a game. “The big
picture” refers to the general situation of the game (i.e. whether the
team is winning or losing).
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
We’ve got to get you binoculars for the next game.
Explanation:
Verne intentionally took what Terry said at face value. Note a
touch of humor here.
下场我们一定会给你准备一副望远镜。
Me and My Big Mouth
Section One: Section Two: Section Three: Section Four: Section Five:
Pre-reading Activities Global Reading Detailed Reading Consolidation Activities Further Enhancement
For a man who thought his best talent was throwing an inflated
ellipsoid a long way, I’ve been fortunate in my career. In the end I
discovered my real talent—just being myself.
Paraphrase:
I thought my only talent was playing American football. (Of
course, it was one of my best talents.) But now I realize that my
real talent lies in how to make the best use of my potential
(“Talking is what I can do best, and I like to make people
smile”) and adapt myself to the changed situation.
Explanation:
“Inflated ellipsoid” is a substitute term for American football
with the shape of an ellipsoid that is inflated with air.
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involve v.
1) to engage as a participant
e.g. He involved the bystanders in his dispute with the police.
2) to contain as a part; to include
e.g. This lesson involves a lot of work.
Collocation:
1) be involved in
2) be involved with
3) become involved in
4) get involved with
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Practice:
Translate the following sentences into English:
1) 他陷入了不幸。
He has been involved in disaster.
2) 所有的孩子都参加了学校组织的戏剧演出。
All the children were involved in the school play.
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endorsement n.
expressing one’s approval or support, especially publicly
e.g. I got involved in the worst product endorsement.
Derivation:
endorse v.
e.g. endorse one’s opinions
The application was endorsed by the governors’ board.
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Practice：
Translate the following sentences into English:
1) 这名运动员为产品代言，得到高额报酬。
The athlete was highly paid to do endorsements of products.
2) 候选者们力争联盟的支持。
The candidates competed for the union’s endorsement.
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toupee n.
1) a piece of patch or false hair for covering a bald spot
2) a man’s wig
Practice：
Translate the following sentences into English:
1) 他不得不戴假发来遮掩住他的秃顶。
He has to wear a toupee to cover his bald spot.
2) 我同意当一家男士假发公司的代言人。
I agreed to be the spokesman for a toupee company.
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embarrass vt.
1) to cause sb. to feel self-conscious or ill at ease; to disconcert
e.g. Meeting adults embarrassed the shy child.
2) to involve in or hamper with financial difficulties
e.g. He was embarrassed by debts.
3) to hinder with obstacles or difficulties; to impede
e.g. Embarrassed by his heavy luggage, he could not walk fast.
Derivation:
embarrassment n.
embarrassedly adv.
embarrassingly adv.
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Comparison:
abash; discomfit; disconcert
abash: to make ashamed or uneasy
discomfit: to thwart the plans of; to frustrate
disconcert: to upset the self-possession of; to ruffle
Practice:
Choose the proper word to fill in each of the following blanks.
___________
1) I was embarrassed by their compliments.
2) I stood _______ at his rebuke.
abashed
__________
3) He was discomfited by the unexpected questions.
___________
4) Forgetting his speech disconcerted the speaker.
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potential customer
Paraphrase:
a person who may become a customer in the future
potential
1) adj. possible when the necessary conditions exist
e.g. A number of potential buyers have expressed interest in
the company.
Many potential customers are waiting for a fall in prices
before buying.
2) n. someone’s or something’s ability to develop, achieve or
succeed
e.g. The region has enormous potential for economic development.
I don’t feel I’m achieving my full potential in my present job.
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Derivation:
potentially adv.
Practice:
Translate the following sentences into English:
1) 每粒种子都可能长成植物。
Every seed is a potential plant.
2) 在那台机器中有很多潜在的问题。
There are many potential problems in that machine.
3) 你要在本职工作中发挥你的潜力。
You should work out your potential in your present work.
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distribute v.
1) to divide or dispense in portions
e.g. In the 19th century the government distributed land to settlers
willing to cultivate it.
2) to deliver or pass out
e.g. distribute handbills on the street
3) to spread or diffuse over an area; to scatter
e.g. distribute grass seeds over the lawn
4) to apportion so as to evenly spread throughout a given area
e.g. 180 pounds of muscle that were well distributed over his 6-foot
frame
Collocation:
1) distribute ... over ...
2) distribute sth. to / among sb
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Practice:
Translate the following sentences into English:
1) 农民们正在田间播种。
The farmers are distributing seeds over the field.
2) 请把书分发给学生。
Please distribute the books to the students.
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suffocate vt .& vi.
1) to kill or destroy by preventing access of air or oxygen
e.g. He was suffocated by plaster at last.
2) to cause discomfort by or as if by cutting off the supply of
fresh air
e.g. It was red-hot and all the windows were closed—she felt as
though she was going to suffocate.
Collocation:
be suffocated by/with sth.
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Practice:
Translate the following sentences into English:
1) 听到好消息，他兴奋得透不过气来。
Hearing the good news, he was suffocated with excitement.
2) 此地死板教条、拘泥形式，把她压得喘不过气来。
The rigid formality of the place suffocated her.
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duplicate v.
1) to make an exact copy of
e.g. to duplicate a key
2) to make twofold; to double
e.g. to duplicate expenses
3) to make or perform again; to repeat
e.g. He duplicated his former mistakes.
Derivation:
duplication n.
Synonym:
copy
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Practice:
Translate the following sentence into English:
他们想知道他们儿子的头部怎么会被仿制成这样的模型。
They wondered how their son’s head could be duplicated like
this.
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mass-produce v.
to make large quantities of something, esp. so that it can be sold
cheaply
Practice:
Translate the following sentence into English:
那些产品原本在当地加工，现在大部分在远东地区成批生产。
The products used to be made locally, but now they are mostly
mass-produced in the Far East.
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bust n.
a sculpture representing a person’s head, shoulders, and upper chest
e.g. the bust of Pallas
Practice:
Translate the following sentence into English:
雕塑家对自己的杰作——那个美丽女郎的半身大理石雕像十分
满意，于是给她本人邮寄了一个。
The sculptor was so proud of his work—the marble bust of
that beautiful lady that he mailed one to her.
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open up v.
1) to spread out; to unfold
e.g. A green valley opened up before us.
2) to begin operation
e.g. The new store is to open up next month.
3) to begin firing
e.g. The artillery opened up at dawn.
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Practice:
Translate the following sentences into English:
1) 这个大箱子到达了我父母家，父亲把它打开了。
This big box arrived at my parents’ house, and my father opened
it up.
2) 我一进办公室，便迫不及待地启用关于目前这项工作的一
个新计划。
I couldn’t wait to open up my new plan of the present work
when I stepped into my office.
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be shocked to
1) shock vt.
to strike with great surprise and emotional disturbance
e.g. I was shocked when I heard about your accident.
2) shock n.
a violent collision or impact; a heavy blow
e.g. That shock almost finished him.
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Practice:
Translate the following sentences into English:
1) 这情景使我大为震惊。
I was very much shocked at the sight.
2) 两列火车相碰，撞坏了窗户。
The two trains collided and the shock broke the windows.
3) 他妻子的死对他是一个沉重的打击。
It was a great shock for him when his wife died.
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yell
1) yell vi.
to cry out loudly, as in pain, fright, surprise, or enthusiasm
e.g. We yelled together for our team.
2) yell vt.
to utter or express with a loud cry; to shout
e.g. We yelled our good-byes as the bus left.
3) yell n.
a loud cry; a shout
e.g. a yell of pain
Comparison:
cry; shout
cry: to call loudly
shout: to say with or utter a cry
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Practice:
Translate the following sentences into English:
1) 他大声叫她注意。
He yelled at her to be careful.
2) 他痛得叫喊。
He yelled with pain.
3) 在我们停留地不远处，传来了一阵痛苦的叫声。
We heard a yell of pain not far from our stay.
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hairpiece n.
(often euphemistic) a piece of false hair used to make one’s own
hair seem thicker
e.g. He appeared with a hairpiece on.
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robust adj.
strong and healthy; hardy; vigorous
e.g. a robust football player
Comparison:
healthy
healthy: in good health
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Practice:
Translate the following sentences into English:
1) 他是一个精力充沛的孩子，他喜欢运动。
He is a robust boy; he enjoys sports.
2) 如果你经常锻炼且饮食得当，你会保持健康的。
If you exercise regularly and eat properly, you’ll stay fit and
healthy.
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surface v.
1) to emerge after concealment
2) to rise to the surface
e.g. A submarine surfaced outside the harbor.
Comparison:
emerge
Explanation:
1) to come forth from obscurity
2) to rise from or as if from immersion
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Practice：
Translate the following sentences into English:
1) 我们期待着这个公司新领导的出现。
We expect the new leaders who may emerge to run this company.
2) 海洋哺乳动物必须定时浮出海面呼吸。
Sea mammals must emerge periodically to breathe.
3) 在港外，一艘潜水艇浮出水面。
A submarine surfaced outside the harbor.
4) 真相开始浮出水面。
The truth began to surface.
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pro-am n.
Explanation:
pro(fessional), am(ateur)
a competition, esp. in golf in which those taking part include both
professionals and amateurs
Explanation:
pro n.
1) an argument or a consideration in favor of something
e.g. weighing the pros and cons
Antonym:
con
2) a professional, especially in sports
e.g. He is a pro in sports.
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Explanation:
pro adj.
1) professional
e.g. a pro footballer
2) affirmative; supporting
e.g. a pro vote
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synthetic adj.
of or relating to compounds, materials, etc., made by a chemical
process; not of natural origin
e.g. This synthetic dress material does not crush.
e.g. synthetic leather
Comparison:
artificial; synthetic; simulated
artificial is broadest in meaning and connotation
synthetic often implies the use of a chemical process to produce a
substance that will look or function like the original,
often with certain advantages, such as enhanced
durability or convenience of use or care
simulated refers to what is made to resemble or substitute for
another often costlier substance
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Practice:
Choose proper words to fill in the blanks.
1) an ________ smile
artificial
2) a ________ fabric
synthetic
3) a purse of _________ alligator hide
simulated
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wig n
an artificial covering of hair for the head, used to hide one’s
real hair or lack of hair
Synonyms:
hairpiece, toupee
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scalp n.
the skin on the top of the human head, where hair grows
Collocation:
1) be out for sb’s scalp
2) call for sb’s scalp
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Practice:
Translate the following sentences into English:
1) 听了这个故事，王子决定出去猎杀巨人。
Hearing this story, the Prince decided to go out for the giant’s
scalp.
2) 造反者们叫嚣着让执政党下野。
The insurrectionists are calling for the ruling party’s scalp.
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tournament n.
a competition in a sport or game in which each player or team
plays several matches, and the winner is the one who wins the
most matches
e.g. Thirty matches were played during the chess tournament,
which lasted three weeks.
Collocation:
friendship invitational tournament
open tournament
Comparison:
championship
championship: a competition to find the best player or team in a
particular sport especially one that involves several stages or games
e.g. We beat the Dodgers in the semifinals, and went on to win the
championship.
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fire vt & vi.
to discharge from a position; to dismiss
e.g. You’re fired.
Comparison:
lay off
lay off: to make workers, especially workers in a large factory
or organization, leave their jobs, because there is not enough
work for them to do, or not enough money to pay their salaries
e.g. Where demand for goods was shrinking, firms would close
down or lay off workers.
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Practice:
Translate the following sentences into English:
1) 根据劳动法，老板们再也不可以随心所欲地解雇工人了。
According to the Law of Labor, bosses can’t fire workers at will
any longer.
2) 你不能因为他们加入工会而开除他们，但是如果他们要罢
工，那就另当别论了。
You couldn’t fire someone for joining a union, but you can if they
go on strike.
1
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make a living
to maintain one’s life
e.g. They made their living by hunting.
Collocation:
1) earn/gain/get/make one’s living
2) eke out a living
3) good living
4) scrape a living
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Practice:
Translate the following sentences into English:
1) 因父亲早逝，需要赡养瘫痪在床的母亲，他生活十分艰难。
It was a hard struggle to make a living because of the early death
of his father and the support for his paralyzed mother.
2) 我需要自谋生路。
I need to make a living by myself.
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CBS
It is the abbreviation for Columbia Broadcasting System (哥伦
比 亚 广 播 公 司 ). It is one of the three most popular
broadcasting companies in the United States. The other two
companies are ABC (American Broadcasting Company, 美国
广播公司) and PBS (Public Broadcasting Service, 公共广播公
司).
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in addition to
over and above; besides
e.g. He had few friends in addition to us.
Practice:
Fill in the following blanks with in addition, in addition to.
1) Not only the editors but the proofreaders __________ are
in addition
working overtime.
2) ____________ milk and cheese, we need vegetables.
In addition to
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lack n.
a deficiency or an absence
e.g. a lack of money
Collocation:
1) for lack of
2) no lack of
3) supply the lack
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Practice:
Translate the following sentences into English:
1) 由于缺乏休息，他的脸色很苍白。
The lack of rest makes him look pale.
2) 这里什么也不缺。
There is no lack of anything.
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that
(usu. in negatives) so; to such a degree
e.g. He can’t walk that far.
Practice:
1) 别把他的话那么当真。
Don’t take what he says that seriously.
2) 你的问题那样复杂吗?
Is your problem that complicated?
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a bunch of
(an informal American expression) a lot of (people or things)
e.g. I went to a bunch of stores but none of them sold the kind of coat
that I want.
bunch
1) (informal) a group of people usually having a common interest
or association
e.g. My brother and his bunch are basketball fanatics.
2) (informal) a considerable number or amount; a lot
e.g. a bunch of trouble
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Practice:
Translate the following expressions into Chinese:
1) a whole bunch of food
丰盛的食物
2) a bunch of sheep
一群羊
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viewer n.
someone who is watching a particular television program
e.g. viewers of prime-time shows
Comparison:
audience; spectator
audience: the people listening to or watching a performance,
speech, television show, etc.
spectator: a person who watches esp. an event or sport
without taking part
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Practice:
Fill in the blanks with the proper forms of the following words.
viewer; audience; spectator
1) That is a weekly show aimed at teenage _______ .
viewers
2) The tenor expanded his ________ by recording popular songs
audience
as well as opera.
3) I attended the horse race as a ________ .
spectator
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go on the air
to broadcast
e.g. We went on the air. ( We began to broadcast it on television or
radio.)
Explanation:
air v.
to broadcast on television or radio
e.g. The ad was submitted to CBS, which accepted and aired it.
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Practice:
Translate the following sentences into English:
1) 这节目每日播放。
The program airs daily.
2) 趣闻将在今晚6点的新闻节目中播出。
Tidbits will air on tonight’s 6 o’clock news.
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smack v.
1) to collide sharply and noisily
e.g. The ball smacked against the side of the house.
2) to strike or hit
e.g. She smacked him with her open hand.
Collocation:
smack against/into
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Practice:
Translate the following sentences into English:
1) 他生气了，啪的一声把书摔在桌子上。
He smacked the book angrily on the table.
2) 他打了她一个耳光。
He smacked her in the face.
3) 我不小心撞到了桌子。
I smacked into the desk carelessly.
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knock out v.
1) to hit someone so hard that they fall down and become
unconscious
e.g. Jackson hit Brian hard with his left fist and knocked him out
instantaneously.
2) to render useless or inoperative
e.g. The storm knocked out the telephones.
Comparison:
knock someone cold: to render someone totally unconscious;
to knock out
knock off : (informal) to take a break or rest from; to stop
knock down : (informal) to reduce, as in price
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Practice:
Fill in the blanks with the proper forms of the following phrases:
knock out (cold), knock off, knock down
1) We ___________ work at noon.
knocked off
2) The manager decided to ______ all the radios _____ 20 percent.
knock down
3) After she knocked her head _______ she was unconscious for
_______ out/cold
several minutes.
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offensive a.
1) disagreeable to the senses
e.g. an offensive odor
2) making an attack
e.g. The offensive troops gained ground quickly.
Synonyms:
disgusting, loathsome, nasty
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Practice:
Translate the following sentences into English:
1) 一句冒犯性的话
an offensive remark
2) 令人作呕的语言
disgusting language
3) 令人讨厌的疾病
a loathsome disease
4) 一股恶心的气味
a/an nasty/offensive smell
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inflate v.
to fill (something) with air or gas so as to make it swell
e.g. to inflate a tire
Synonyms:
blow up, swell
Antonym:
deflate
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Practice:
Translate the following sentences into English:
1) 骄傲而得意洋洋
inflate with pride
2) 给气球充气
inflate a balloon
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Vocabulary analysis
Vocabulary analysis
Grammar exercises 1. Word comparison
Translation exercises 2. Word derivation
Exercises for integrated 3. Collocation practice
skills
Oral activities
Writing practice
Listening exercises
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Word comparison
Vocabulary analysis Group 1: A. gather B. stand C. form D. perform
Grammar exercises Explanation:
Translation exercises A. Gather means to bring or come together in a group or mass.
Exercises for integrated
e.g. The tour guide gathered the visitors in the hotel lobby.
skills
B. Stand means to maintain an upright position on the feet.
Oral activities e.g. We stood outside the shop.
Writing practice C. Form means to arrange oneself in; serve to make up.
e.g. Holding out his arms, the cheerleader formed a T.
Listening exercises
The acrobats formed a pyramid.
D. Perform means to carry out an action, an undertaking, or a
procedure. The word often connotes observance of due form
or the exercise of skill or care.
e.g. The ship’s captain performed the wedding ceremony.
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Vocabulary analysis Compare execute; accomplish; achieve
Grammar exercises Execute implies performing a task or putting something into effect in
Translation exercises accordance with a plan or design.
Exercises for integrated Accomplish connotes the successful completion of something, often
skills
of something that requires tenacity or talent.
Oral activities
Writing practice
Achieve means to accomplish something especially by dint of effort
or despite difficulty; the term often implies a significant result.
Listening exercises
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Vocabulary analysis Group 2: A. pain B. hit C. hurt D. harm
Grammar exercises Explanation:
Translation exercises
A. Pain means to cause pain to; to hurt or injure.
Exercises for integrated
skills
e.g. My tooth is paining.
Oral activities B. Hit means to come into contact with sth. forcefully; to strike.
Writing practice e.g. The car hit the guardrail.
Listening exercises C. Hurt means to cause physical damage or pain to; to injure.
e.g. Many people were hurt when the bus and a truck collided.
D. Harm means to do harm to; to injure.
e.g. Our dog won’t harm you.
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Group 3: A. receive B. accept C. take D. catch
Vocabulary analysis Explanation:
Grammar exercises A. Receive means to take or acquire (something given, offered, or
Translation exercises
transmitted); to get.
e.g. I received a good report of the group’s activities.
Exercises for integrated
skills B. Accept means to receive (something offered), especially with
Oral activities gladness.
Writing practice
e.g. I’ve received a gift from him, but I’m not going to accept it.
C. Take means to carry, convey, lead, or cause to go along to
Listening exercises
another place.
e.g. Don’t forget to take your umbrella.
D. Catch means to take hold of, especially forcibly or suddenly; to
grasp.
e.g. He caught me by the arm.
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Group 4: A. separate B. divide C. scatter D. space
Vocabulary analysis
Explanation:
Grammar exercises A. Separate means to set or keep apart; to disunite.
Translation exercises
e.g. The child’s parents have separated.
Exercises for integrated
B. Divide means to cause separation by or as if by cutting,
skills splitting, or branching into parts, portions, or shares; the term
Oral activities
is often used to refer to separation into opposing or hostile
groups.
Writing practice
e.g. We divided the orange into segments.
Listening exercises
C. Scatter means to cause to separate and go in different directions.
e.g. The farmer scattered the corn in the yard for the hens.
D. Space means to separate with spaces between.
e.g. Words should be double spaced.
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Group 5: A. miss B. lose C. loosen D. slip
Vocabulary analysis Explanation:
Grammar exercises A. Miss means to let go by; to let slip.
Translation exercises
e.g. I have missed the best chance to go to that university.
Exercises for integrated
B. Lose means to let (oneself) become unable to find the way.
skills Lose one’s place means to let a reader become unable to find
Oral activities
the exact place of the reading materials where he/she stopped
reading last time.
Writing practice
e.g. Because the children kept interrupting her when she read the
Listening exercises
book, she lost her place.
C. Loosen means to untie or make looser.
e.g. My belt is too tight; I must loosen it.
D. Slip means to slide out of place; to shift position.
e.g. The gear slipped.
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Group 6: A. affect B. result C. effect D. attack
Vocabulary analysis Explanation:
Grammar exercises A. Affect means to have an influence on or effect a change in.
e.g. Inflation affects the buying power of the dollar.
Translation exercises
B. Result means the consequence of a particular action, operation,
Exercises for integrated
skills
or course; an outcome.
e.g. As a result, there is often trouble in American families.
Oral activities
C. Effect means the power to produce an outcome or achieve a
Writing practice
result; influence.
Listening exercises e.g. The drug had an immediate effect on the pain.
Side effect means a peripheral or secondary effect, especially an
undesirable secondary effect of a drug or therapy.
D. Attack means an episode or onset of a disease, especially an
occurrence of a chronic disease.
e.g. an asthma attack
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Word derivation
Vocabulary analysis 1. athlete
Grammar exercises Derivatives of athlete: athletic; athletically; athleticism; athletics
Translation exercises
Chinese-English translation
Exercises for integrated 1) 身强力壮的女孩
skills an athletic girl
Oral activities 2) 田径运动
Writing practice
athletic sports
3) 她看起来像个运动健将。
Listening exercises
She looks very athletic.
Compare athletic; muscular
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2. insight
Vocabulary analysis Derivative of insight: insightful
Grammar exercises Chinese-English translation
Translation exercises 1) 富有洞察力的讨论
Exercises for integrated insightful discussions
skills
Oral activities
2) 她所撰写的关于中医的文章非常有见地。
Writing practice
Her essay on traditional Chinese medicine is insightful.
Listening exercises 3) 他对于这首诗歌的理解很有见地。
His understanding of this poem is very insightful.
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3. potential
Vocabulary analysis Derivatives of potential: potentially; potentiality
Grammar exercises Chinese-English translation
Translation exercises 1) 肝炎是一种潜在的致命疾病。
Exercises for integrated Hepatitis is a potentially fatal disease.
skills
2) 他极有可能成为我们最好的网球球员，但他需要更加刻苦
Oral activities 地训练。
Writing practice He’s potentially our best tennis player, but he needs to practise
Listening exercises much harder.
3) 这次危机极有可能是此机构历史上最为严重的一次。
This crisis is potentially the most serious one in the
organization’s history.
Compare potentially; likely; possibly
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4. please
Vocabulary analysis Derivatives of please: pleasant; pleased; pleasure; pleasurably
Grammar exercises Chinese-English translation
Translation exercises 1) 令人愉快的风景
Exercises for integrated a pleasant scene
skills
2) 舒适的感觉
Oral activities pleasant sensations
Writing practice 2) 晴朗的天气
Listening exercises pleasant weather
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5. offend
Vocabulary analysis Derivatives of offend: offensive; offending; offenseless
Grammar exercises Chinese-English translation
Translation exercises
1) 一股刺鼻的气味
Exercises for integrated an offensive odor
skills
2) 冒犯性的手势
Oral activities
an offensive gesture
Writing practice
3) 攻击性的武器
Listening exercises
offensive weapons
Compare offensive; disgusting; loathsome; nasty; repellent
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6. suppose
Vocabulary analysis Derivatives of suppose: supposed; supposedly; supposing;
Grammar exercises supposition; suppositional
Translation exercises Chinese-English translation
Exercises for integrated 1) 他大概是个美国人。
skills
He was supposedly an American.
Oral activities
2) 噢，车票大概就在邮件里。
Writing practice
Well, the tickets are supposedly in the mail.
Listening exercises
3) 他似乎是在给她送报纸，但我认为那只不过是他想见她的
一个借口而已。
He was supposedly delivering some papers to her but I think
it was just an excuse to see her.
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7. announce
Vocabulary analysis Derivatives of announce: announcement; announceable;
Grammar exercises announcer; announcing
Translation exercises Chinese-English translation
Exercises for integrated 1) 发布通知
skills
make an announcement
Oral activities
2) 她每说一句话，大家便报以哄堂大笑。
Writing practice
Every new announcement of hers was greeted with shouts of
Listening exercises
laughter.
3) 他屏息静气地等待宣布竞赛结果。
He waited for the announcement of the result of the competition
with bated breath.
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8. challenge
Vocabulary analysis Derivatives of challenge: challenging; challenger
Grammar exercises Chinese-English translation
Translation exercises
1) 一门挑战性的课程
Exercises for integrated a challenging course of study
skills
2) 对于一个无经验的演员而言颇具挑战性的角色
Oral activities
a challenging role for an inexperienced performer
Writing practice
3) 一个富于挑战性的观点
Listening exercises
a challenging idea
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Collocation practice
Vocabulary analysis 1. potential customers
Grammar exercises Explanation: those people who might become a customer in the
Translation exercises
future
Examples:
Exercises for integrated
skills
1) Many potential customers are waiting for a fall in prices before
Oral activities buying.
Writing practice 许多潜在客户都在等着降价后再买。
Listening exercises 2) A number of potential buyers have expressed interest in the
company.
一些潜在买家表达了对这家公司的兴趣。
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2. commercials
Vocabulary analysis Explanation: advertisements on TV or radio
Grammar exercises Examples:
Translation exercises 1) The aim of the repetitions of the same commercial on television
Exercises for integrated
is nothing but to brainwash consumers into compulsive
skills consumption.
Oral activities 电视上反复播放同一个广告的目的无非是通过宣传使消费者
Writing practice 认为非用不可。
Listening exercises 2) a commercial break
广告间歇时间
3) Commercials help to sell goods.
广告（能）帮助推销货品。
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3. disaster
Vocabulary analysis Explanation: complete failure
Grammar exercises Examples:
Translation exercises 1) The dinner party was a disaster.
Exercises for integrated 宴会彻底失败。
skills
2) They were afraid of risking disaster because they didn't want to
Oral activities
lose face.
Writing practice
他们怕冒失败的风险,因为他们不愿意丢脸。
Listening exercises
3) After the disaster of electricity supplies the city was in chaos.
停电后城市陷入一片混乱。
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4. a bunch of
Vocabulary analysis Explanation: (an informal American expression) a lot of (people or
Grammar exercises things)
Examples:
Translation exercises
Exercises for integrated
1) They’re a bunch of hooligans.
skills
他们是一群流氓。
Oral activities
2) Your friends are a nice bunch.
Writing practice
你的这群朋友不错。
Listening exercises
3) My brother and his bunch are basketball fanatics.
我兄弟和他的伙伴们都是篮球迷。
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5. knock out
Vocabulary analysis Explanation: to render unconscious; to defeat (a boxing opponent)
Grammar exercises by a knockout; to render useless or inoperative; to
Translation exercises
exert or exhaust (oneself or another) to the utmost
Examples:
Exercises for integrated
skills 1) Jackson hit Tom hard with his left fist and knocked him out
Oral activities instantaneously.
Writing practice 杰克逊用左拳一下子就把汤姆打昏了过去。
Listening exercises 2) The storm knocked out the telephones.
风暴使电话中断。
3) To be ready on time, she knocked herself out.
为及时作好准备, 她已筋疲力尽。
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Grammar exercises
Vocabulary analysis I. The connective-clause as the noun-clause
Grammar exercises
II. It in the subject-clause, which is introduced by the connective
Translation exercises that, functions as an anticipatory subject
Exercises for integrated
skills III. The usage of as
Oral activities
Writing practice
Listening exercises
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Vocabulary analysis The connective clause refers to a clause that is introduced by
Grammar exercises the connectives that, whether, if, who, whom, whose, what, which,
when, where, why or how.
Translation exercises
Exercises for integrated The noun-clause includes the subject clause, the object clause,
skills the predicative clause, and the appositive clause, which functions as
Oral activities a noun in a sentence.
Writing practice
Listening exercises
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Practice:
Vocabulary analysis
Note the use of the italicized parts in the following sentences.
Grammar exercises
1. I had no idea how I wanted to spend the rest of my life.
Translation exercises key: The how-clause functions as the appositional clause.
Exercises for integrated
skills 2. The basic concept of the campaign was that if a he-man football
player like Terry Bradshaw was not embarrassed to wear a
Oral activities
toupee, no one else should be.
Writing practice
key: The that-clause functions as the subject complement.
Listening exercises
3. There were lots of bad ways to die, but being suffocated by
plaster while getting your head duplicated for a toupee display
is high on the list.
key: Being ... functions as the subject.
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4. What I didn’t realize was that I had cut my head when I took it
Vocabulary analysis off, so my scalp was bleeding.
Grammar exercises key: The what-clause functions as the subject.
Translation exercises
5. After that, for some reason, the company decided I was not a
Exercises for integrated proper spokesman for their toupee and fired me.
skills
Oral activities
key: I was ... functions as the object.
Writing practice 6. I didn’t know when to talk and when to keep quiet.
Listening exercises key: When-clause functions as the object.
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Vocabulary analysis
It in the subject-clause, which is introduced by the connective
Grammar exercises that, functions as an anticipatory subject.
Translation exercises e.g. It is certain that they will win.
Exercises for integrated It is unfortunate that we have run out of stock.
skills
It is hoped that the report will go out to shareholders no later
Oral activities than June 1.
Writing practice
Listening exercises
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Vocabulary analysis
However, a complex sentence with a subject-clause, in which
Grammar exercises it functions as an anticipatory subject, can be transformed into a
Translation exercises simple sentence with a disjunctive (sentence adverb).
Exercises for integrated e.g. It is certain that they will win.
skills
Certainly, they will win.
Oral activities It is unfortunate that we have run out of stock.
Writing practice Unfortunately, we have run out of stock.
Listening exercises
It is hoped that the report will go out to shareholders no later
than June 1.
Hopefully, the report will go out to shareholders no later than
June 1.
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The Subject Clause
Vocabulary analysis
The Subject Clause: A clause introduced by the connective,
Grammar exercises such as that, what, when, whether, or which functions as the subject
Translation exercises in a complex sentence.
Exercises for integrated e.g. That the moon moves round the earth is well-known to all of us.
skills
What they are after is profit.
Oral activities When the meeting is to be held has not yet been decided.
Writing practice
Listening exercises
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Practice:
Vocabulary analysis Rewrite the following sentences according to the model.
Grammar exercises Model: It was lucky that this had attracted the attention of TV
Translation exercises network executives.
Exercises for integrated
Luckily, this had attracted the attention of TV network
skills executives.
Oral activities 1. It was apparent that her sister had warned her time and again to
Writing practice play hard to get.
Listening exercises
Key: Apparently, her sister had warned her time and again to play
hard to get.
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Vocabulary analysis 2. It is odd enough that he did not raise any objection to the plan.
Grammar exercises Key: Oddly enough, he did not raise any objection to the plan.
Translation exercises
3. It was foolish of the boy not to say a single word.
Exercises for integrated
skills Key: Foolishly, the boy did not say a single word.
Oral activities 4. It was right that you returned the money.
Writing practice
Key: Rightly, you returned the money.
Listening exercises
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The usage of as
Vocabulary analysis Explanation:
Grammar exercises
in the role, capacity, or function of
Translation exercises
e.g. As a student, grade was the only thing that mattered to me, but
Exercises for integrated
skills as a teacher I have come to realize that it is only one of the ways
Oral activities
to evaluate one’s learning.
Writing practice
Listening exercises
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Practice
Vocabulary analysis Fill in the blanks with proper prepositions.
Grammar exercises 1. ___ a quarterback, the big picture had been the only thing that
As
Translation exercises mattered to me, but __ a broadcaster I soon learned it was the
as
Exercises for integrated
small frames that make up the big picture.
skills 2. ___ a breadwinner, money was the only thing that mattered to
As
Oral activities me, but ___ a father I soon learned it was love that makes a
as
Writing practice
family happy.
Listening exercises
As to the other usage of as, please refer to Grammar Exercises in
Unit One.
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Translation exercises
Vocabulary analysis Translate each of the following sentences into English, using the
Grammar exercises
word or phrase given in the bracket. Inflect the word or phrase where
necessary.
Translation exercises
Exercises for integrated 1. 新的体制将在六个月的过渡期内逐步推行。 (transition)
skills
Notes：
Oral activities
Transition here means movement, passage, or change from one
Writing practice position, state, stage, subject, concept, etc., to another. Introduce here
Listening exercises means to bring in and establish in a new place or environment.
Introduce is often followed by some adverbs or prepositions, such as
from, over, etc.
The new system will be introduced over a six-month transition
period.
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Chinese-English translation
Vocabulary analysis 1) 天气的变化无常
Grammar exercises the frequent transition of weather
Translation exercises
2) 过渡因素
Exercises for integrated
skills transition factor
Oral activities 3) 转变（临界）点
Writing practice transition point
Listening exercises
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2. 警员声称他们在暴乱中所采取的行动纯属防卫。 (defensive)
Notes：
Vocabulary analysis
Claim means to state to be true, especially when open to question; to
Grammar exercises
assert or maintain. Purely means completely, absolutely, but free of
Translation exercises extraneous elements. Defensive means intended to withstand or deter
Exercises for integrated aggression or attack, while protective means intended or appropriate
skills
for defending.
Oral activities
The police officers claimed that their actions in the riots were
Writing practice purely defensive.
Listening exercises Chinese-English translation
1) 防御性武器系统
a defensive weapons system
2) 我们在谈判时采取守势。
We took a defensive attitude in the negotiation.
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3. 价值大约250, 000美元的医疗物资被分发到遭受流行病侵袭的
Vocabulary analysis 家庭。(distribute)
Grammar exercises Notes：
Translation exercises
Verbs distribute, divide, and dispense mean to give out in portions or
Exercises for integrated shares. Among these, distribute is the least specific. Divide implies
skills
giving out portions, often equally, on the basis of a plan or purpose.
Oral activities
Dispense stresses the careful determination of portions, often
Writing practice according to measurement or weight. Epidemic means an outbreak of
Listening exercises a contagious disease that spreads rapidly and widely.
About $250,000 worth of medical supplies has been distributed
among families affected by the epidemic.
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Chinese-English translation
Vocabulary analysis 1) 在19世纪，政府将土地分配给愿意耕种的定居者。
Grammar exercises In the 19th century the government distributed land to settlers
Translation exercises willing to cultivate it.
Exercises for integrated 2) 班长把书分发给了同学们。
skills
The monitor distributed books to the students.
Oral activities
Writing practice
Listening exercises
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4. 那些产品原本在当地加工，现在大部分在远东地区成批
Vocabulary analysis
生产。 (mass-produce)
Grammar exercises Notes：
Translation exercises The phrase used to do something indicates a former state, habitual
Exercises for integrated practice, or custom. Mass-produce means to make large quantities
skills of something, esp. so that it can be sold cheaply.
Oral activities
The products used to be made locally, but now they are mostly
Writing practice
mass-produced in the Far East.
Listening exercises
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Vocabulary analysis
Grammar exercises
Chinese-English translation
Translation exercises
1) 他们大量生产挂毯，挣了不少钱。
They mass-produced tapestries, and thus earned good money.
Exercises for integrated
skills 2) 大量生产小汽车和卡车的工厂多数都破产了。
Oral activities Most of the factories that mass-produced cars and trucks went into
Writing practice
bankruptcy.
Listening exercises
3) 那家工厂大量生产小汽车。
That factory mass-produces cars.
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5. 在联邦赤字问题上总统所持的立场得到了参议院多数议员的
Vocabulary analysis
赞同。(endorse)
Grammar exercises Notes：
Translation exercises Deficit means the amount by which a sum of money falls short of
Exercises for integrated the required or expected amount; a shortage. Endorse, sanction and
skills approve mean to express a favorable opinion or to signify
Oral activities satisfaction or acceptance. Though approve, the most widely
Writing practice
applicable one, often means simply to consider right or good, it can
also denote official consent. Endorse implies the expression of
Listening exercises
support, often by public statement. Sanction usually implies not
only approval but also official authorization.
The President’s position on the federal deficit was endorsed by a
large majority of the Senate.
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Chinese-English translation
Vocabulary analysis
1) 参议员将发表演讲，支持其所在党派州长候选人。
Grammar exercises
The senator will give a speech endorsing her party’s gubernatorial
Translation exercises
candidate.
Exercises for integrated
skills 2) 公众意见不应赞同使用武力。
Oral activities Public opinion ought not to endorse the use of force.
Writing practice
Listening exercises
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6. 萨拉看着窗外，对街上正发生的一切向我们作实况报道。
(commentary)
Vocabulary analysis Notes：
Grammar exercises Running commentary refers to a series of explanations or
Translation exercises interpretations that are ongoing over a period of time.
Exercises for integrated Sarah was looking out of the window and giving us a running
skills commentary of what was happening out in the street.
Oral activities Chinese-English translation
Writing practice 1) 评论最后的结论十分中肯,说得一点不错。
Listening exercises
The conclusion of the commentary really hit the bull’s eye; it was
exactly right.
2) 他常常作些实事评论。
He often makes commentary on current affairs.
3) 这件丑闻是对国内政治一笔可悲的注脚。
The scandal is a sad commentary on national politics.
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7. 我们正面临历史上最严峻的挑战，我们要依靠你们——我们的
盟友——的支持。(challenge)
Vocabulary analysis Notes：
Grammar exercises Challenge means an act or statement of defiance; a call to
Translation exercises confrontation; or a competition.
Exercises for integrated We are now facing the most serious challenge in our history and
skills are dependent on you, our allies, for support.
Oral activities Chinese-English translation
Writing practice 1) 那是对政府权威的挑战。
Listening exercises
That is a challenge to the government’s authority.
2) 这次考试是一次真正的挑战。
This examination is a real challenge.
3) 他不敢应战。
He dared not accept/take the challenge.
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8. 关于各种犯罪，有太多详尽的电视节目和报刊报道，以致于连
小孩子都知道怎样模仿他们的所见所闻。(duplicate)
Vocabulary analysis Notes：
Grammar exercises In detail means with attention to particulars; thoroughly or
Translation exercises meticulously. Duplicate means to make an exact copy of.
Exercises for integrated There has been too much shown on TV and too much reported in
skills newspapers of all kinds of crimes — described in such detail that
Oral activities even children know how to duplicate what they have seen or read.
Writing practice
Chinese-English translation
Listening exercises
1) 他得到了一把复制的钥匙。
He got a duplicate key.
2) 他又犯了和以前一样的错误。
He duplicated his former mistakes.
3) 请把这份文件打成一式两份。
Please type the document in duplicate.
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Exercises for integrated skills
Vocabulary analysis Fill in each blank in the passage below with ONE word you think
Grammar exercises
appropriate.
Translation exercises Students all (1) ____ the world have to work for their
over
Exercises for integrated
education. A college education in the United States is (2)
skills ________
expensive . The costs are so high that most families begin to (3)
Oral activities
____ for their children’s education when their children are babies.
save
(4) _____so, many young people cannot
Even _____
(5) afford to pay the
Writing practice
expenses of full time college work. They do not have enough money
Listening exercises
to pay for school costs. Tuition for (6) ________ the university,
attending
books for ______
(7) classes , and dormitory costs are high. There are
other expenses (8) ____ as chemistry and biology laboratory fees
such
and special student activity fees (9) ___ such things as parking
for
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permits and football tickets. The (10) ____ of a college
cost
Vocabulary analysis education increases every year. _______
(11) However , campuses are still
Grammar exercises
crowded with students. Some American students (12) ______ on
depend
their family support to pay for college. Perhaps some of the students
Translation exercises
have (13) scholarships or money grants, but many do (14) ___.
__________ not
Exercises for integrated
skills
How do the rest of the students (15) _______ ?
manage
Oral activities
Writing practice
Listening exercises
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over
Vocabulary analysis
Explanation:
Grammar exercises
All over the world means existing everywhere.
Translation exercises
Exercises for integrated
skills
Oral activities
Writing practice
Listening exercises
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expensive
Vocabulary analysis
Explanation:
Grammar exercises
Expensive means requiring a large expenditure; costly.
Translation exercises
Exercises for integrated
skills
Oral activities
Writing practice
Listening exercises
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Vocabulary analysis
save
Grammar exercises Explanation:
Translation exercises Save means to set aside for future use; to store.
Exercises for integrated
skills
Oral activities
Writing practice
Listening exercises
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Vocabulary analysis
Even
Grammar exercises Explanation:
Translation exercises Even so is used as an emphasis.
Exercises for integrated
skills
Oral activities
Writing practice
Listening exercises
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Vocabulary analysis
afford
Grammar exercises Explanation:
Translation exercises Afford means to have the financial means for; to be able to meet
the cost of.
Exercises for integrated
skills
Oral activities
Writing practice
Listening exercises
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Vocabulary analysis
attending
Grammar exercises Explanation:
Translation exercises Attend means to be present.
Exercises for integrated
skills
Oral activities
Writing practice
Listening exercises
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Vocabulary analysis
classes
Grammar exercises Explanation:
Translation exercises Class means the period during which a group of students meets.
Exercises for integrated
skills
Oral activities
Writing practice
Listening exercises
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Vocabulary analysis
such
Grammar exercises Explanation:
Translation exercises Such as means for example.
Exercises for integrated
skills
Oral activities
Writing practice
Listening exercises
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Vocabulary analysis
for
Grammar exercises Explanation:
Translation exercises For is used to indicate the object, aim, or purpose of an action or
activity.
Exercises for integrated
skills
Oral activities
Writing practice
Listening exercises
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Vocabulary analysis
cost
Grammar exercises Explanation:
Translation exercises Cost means an amount paid or required in payment for a purchase;
a price.
Exercises for integrated
skills
Oral activities
Writing practice
Listening exercises
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Vocabulary analysis
However
Grammar exercises Explanation:
Translation exercises However means in spite of ; nevertheless; yet.
Exercises for integrated
skills
Oral activities
Writing practice
Listening exercises
Me and My Big Mouth
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Vocabulary analysis
depend
Grammar exercises Explanation:
Translation exercises Depend on means to rely on, especially for support or maintenance.
Exercises for integrated
skills
Oral activities
Writing practice
Listening exercises
Me and My Big Mouth
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Vocabulary analysis
scholarships
Grammar exercises Explanation:
Translation exercises Scholarship means a grant of financial aid awarded to a student, as
for the purpose of attending a college.
Exercises for integrated
skills
Oral activities
Writing practice
Listening exercises
Me and My Big Mouth
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Vocabulary analysis
not
Grammar exercises Explanation:
Translation exercises Not is used to express negation, denial, refusal, or prohibition.
Exercises for integrated
skills
Oral activities
Writing practice
Listening exercises
Me and My Big Mouth
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Vocabulary analysis
manage
Grammar exercises Explanation:
Translation exercises Manage means to continue to get along; carry on.
Exercises for integrated
skills
Oral activities
Writing practice
Listening exercises
Me and My Big Mouth
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Oral activities
1. Suppose your football-playing career comes to an end. You are
Vocabulary analysis
considering how to spend the rest of your life. You have a choice:
Grammar exercises to be a coach for the local teenage football club or to be a sports
Translation exercises announcer for a well-known TV station. Now talk to one of your
Exercises for integrated parents and exchange your ideas with her (him). You and your
skills partner can take turns playing the roles of the player and his/her
Oral activities parent respectively.
Writing practice Suggestions:
Listening exercises The discussion can be based on the following aspects.
1) Your reasons for your job choice: either to be a coach or to be
a sports announcer, such as your personalities are more
suitable for a coach/ a sports announcer; your interest in either
of them; what influence your choice will exert on your life.
2) Your parent’s advice on your job choice.
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2. With the professionalism of football playing, players’ incomes
Vocabulary analysis
have dramatically increased in recent years. Some people do not
think they have proved themselves worthy of so much money,
Grammar exercises
while others think that they have contributed a lot. Organize
Translation exercises yourselves into groups of five or six and debate on this issue.
Exercises for integrated
skills Suggestions:
Oral activities Words and expressions suggested for this topic:
Writing practice the significant professionalism of football playing
Listening exercises
make great contribution to
material life
spiritual life
the elites of the society
deserve the reward
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A sample discussion on the second topic:
Vocabulary analysis The recent years have witnessed the significant professionalism
Grammar exercises of football playing, which brings about the dramatic increase in
Translation exercises
players’ income. Confronted with this phenomenon, people’s
opinions are various. Some people do not consider these players
Exercises for integrated
skills worthy of the money they earn. However, we should acknowledge
that their seemingly exaggerated incomes are reasonable in several
Oral activities
aspects.
Writing practice
First of all, the football players are making great contributions to
Listening exercises the society, though their achievement may be not as salient as that in
other fields. What they are working for does not provide material
products, but spiritual accomplishments are definitely realized.
Therefore, we cannot justify ourselves by thinking that football
playing is not as important as other sections of the society, such as
factories, companies, hospitals and so on.
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Secondly, to be worthy of the money they get, the players have to
Vocabulary analysis suffer a lot. Like the elites in other fields, they are supposed to work
Grammar exercises
hard before they gain outstanding social status and respect from
others. They have to conquer the difficulties that most of us cannot
Translation exercises
bear at all. What’s more, it is inevitable that only a small portion of
Exercises for integrated
skills
them can get renowned. Thus, they deserve the reward they have got.
Like other great men, football players are also the heroes in our
Oral activities
hearts. Both the respect and fortune enjoyed by them need to be
Writing practice deemed as natural.
Listening exercises
Me and My Big Mouth
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Writing practice
Vocabulary analysis Write a 250-word composition on the topic “My Ideal
Grammar exercises Occupation”. In the first part, tell the reader what you wanted to be
Translation exercises when you were a child. In the second part, describe what is your ideal
occupation now. And in the third part, explain why your choice is
Exercises for integrated
skills ideal.
Oral activities
Writing practice
Listening exercises
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A sample essay:
My Ideal Occupation
Vocabulary analysis From as early as I can remember, I determined to be an actress.
Grammar exercises My reasons were simple and naïve: actresses are beautiful and often
Translation exercises
greeted by people with rapturous applause. I was so fascinated by
their performance in the film or on the stage that it became a dream
Exercises for integrated
skills for me to materialize. Encouraged by this ambition, I enthusiastically
took part in all sorts of performances held by my primary school,
Oral activities
which veritably enriched my childhood.
Writing practice
As I grow up, my interest in this domain subsides. The
Listening exercises distraction from it owes to the fact that I have more opportunities to
know other subjects during the process of learning in schools.
Moreover, my respect for the teachers who have enlightened me
consistently increases day by day. Therefore, a learned teacher
becomes my ideal occupation. Several reasons cement my resolve to
strive for this goal.
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Firstly, like what I have said above, I hold a strong worship for
Vocabulary analysis the career of a teacher who enlighten students with knowledge. They
Grammar exercises
are not only cultured but also generous people, from whom we can
always obtain a lot. Secondly, I have been taught by many excellent
Translation exercises
teachers who have set perfect examples for me to develop my
Exercises for integrated
skills
teaching career. Last but not least, there is still a great demand for
teachers in many areas of China nowadays. A lot of children cannot
Oral activities
afford to go to school and my help may benefit them.
Writing practice
Listening exercises
Me and My Big Mouth
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Listening exercises
Do You Enjoy Your Work?
Vocabulary analysis
Grammar exercises You will hear three people talking about their work:
Translation exercises A. Listen to each speaker and answer the questions:
— What is the speaker’s job?
Exercises for integrated
skills — Where does he or she work?
Oral activities
Job Workplace
Writing practice
1st Speaker an area sales manager /
Listening exercises
2nd Speaker manager of the Banking a large multi-
and Portfolio Department national corporation
a commercial bank in
3rd Speaker a commercial lender
a suburb of Chicago
■ script
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B. Listen to each speaker again and note down your answers to the
Vocabulary analysis questions about their work:
Grammar exercises — What does each speaker enjoy or find rewarding?
— What does each speaker find annoying or frustrating?
Translation exercises
Exercises for integrated Rewarding Frustrating
skills
the pay/customers that
Oral activities 1st Speaker the travel
leave one waiting
Writing practice
2nd Speaker you get to take decision the company is still
Listening exercises
very bureaucratic
restrictions as to what
3rd Speaker variety of work you can do or not do for
a customer
■ script
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C. Ask your partner the following questions:
Vocabulary analysis — Which of the jobs that you have heard about would you
Grammar exercises
most like to do yourself? Why?
— Which would you least like to do? Why?
Translation exercises
Exercises for integrated Words and expressions suggested:
skills
have (no) interest in …
Oral activities be enthusiastic/unenthusiastic about
Writing practice certain personalities (not) suit the qualifications of a profession
Listening exercises
the significance/insignificance of …
make great/least contribution to the society
■ script
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Do You Enjoy Your Work?
Vocabulary analysis
Interviewer: What do you do?
Grammar exercises 1st Speaker: I’m described as an area sales manager. Um … that
Translation exercises would normally imply that one has somebody to
Exercises for integrated manage. In my case, it’s just a glorified sales rep. I go
skills round visiting shops, maybe five or six per day when
Oral activities I’m traveling. The rest of the time I spend in the office,
Writing practice
answering queries from customers about sales and
planning the next trip. My trips usually last about two
Listening exercises
to three weeks and I go mostly to Germany, Austria
and Switzerland.
Interviewer: What do you find rewarding about the work?
■
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1st Speaker: Well, the travel as much as anything else. Um … the
Vocabulary analysis
job is fairly badly paid, but the fact that I get free trips
to the foreign countries more or less of my choice for
Grammar exercises
most of the year does in some measure recompense
Translation exercises for that.
Exercises for integrated Interviewer: What do you find frustrating or annoying about it?
skills
1st Speaker: Well, I’ve already mentioned the pay. Um …
Oral activities obviously frustrating is also customers that leave one
Writing practice waiting … um … I have been known to get my own
Listening exercises
back on customers who leave me waiting for half an
hour or so simply by selling them twice as much as I
know they need. Um … it’s not a trick that I would
recommend using all that often, but on the whole the
frustrations of the job are minimal.
■
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2nd Speaker: I’m the manager of the department called the Banking
Vocabulary analysis
and Portfolio Department for a large multi-national
corporation. The responsibility of that department is
Grammar exercises
to handle all the banking matters … er … relationship,
Translation exercises credit issues, opening and closing accounts. We also
Exercises for integrated manage the investment of the company’s excess funds.
skills
The best thing about working in the department that
Oral activities we have is that you get to take decision at a relatively
Writing practice low management level in the company — you get to
Listening exercises
watch the decisions come, follow through and you get
to see the effect on the bottom line profit of the
company. We are one of the few areas within a
world … er … within a headquarters-type atmosphere
where there is a profit centre, bottom line.
■
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2nd Speaker: One of the things I find the most frustrating is that …
er … the company is still very bureaucratic. We tend to
Vocabulary analysis
produce a lot of paperwork and reports that don’t seem
Grammar exercises
to have any fit with the … today’s company business.
Translation exercises And they’ve been generated for years and we continue
Exercises for integrated to generate them … er … because management has
skills
asked for them. We are attempting to change that but it
Oral activities continues to be a source of frustration for myself and
Writing practice my staff.
3rd Speaker: I’m a commercial lender at the First National Bank of
Listening exercises
Lake Forest, which is a commercial bank in a suburb of
Chicago with assets of about $400 million. It has
recently been purchased by the Northern Trust Bank in
the city of Chicago, which has assets of about $7.7
billion. ■
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3rd Speaker: We are very much a community-oriented bank and my
lending will be diverse … er … working with
Vocabulary analysis individuals, making mortgages and home construction
Grammar exercises
loans as well as making personal loans and business and
industrial loans. So very much of a general-purpose
Translation exercises
broad area of lending.
Exercises for integrated
skills
What is enjoyable about what I do is the opportunity to
work with the owners of companies in the area and with
Oral activities
professional people that reside in the community. Er …
Writing practice I’m working with owners of steel companies, with
Listening exercises popcorn producers, with individuals that make washers
for many purposes. And it allows me the variety of
work that working at a large multi-billion bank does not
have to offer as you’ll be working in narrow job
description handling one type of lending.
■
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3rd Speaker: Some of the frustrations with the job are restrictions
Vocabulary analysis
as to what you can do or not do for a customer, as
many of the requests that we receive are either too
Grammar exercises
small or too large for us to handle and at that point we
Translation exercises don’t really have the product to sell them, we have to
Exercises for integrated defer them to our competition.
skills
Oral activities
Writing practice
Listening exercises
■
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Lead-in questions
Lead-in questions 1. Would you like to be a professional when you graduate? If
Supplementary reading you’d like to, what profession will you choose?
Memorable quotes
2. If some day you are in a dilemma as to whether it is worthwhile
to quit a highly-powered job in favor of a balanced life for the
sake of your family, what choice will you finally make? Why?
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Sam’s Wake-Up Call — and Mine
Lead-in questions Robert Reich
Supplementary reading A few years ago I had a problem: I couldn’t wait to get to the
Memorable quotes office in the morning and only left it at night reluctantly. Being a
member of US President Bill Clinton’s Cabinet was so much better
than any job I’d had. I couldn’t get enough of it.
Not surprisingly, the rest of my life shriveled into a dried raisin.
I lost contact with old friends. I saw little of my wife and even less
of our two sons, Adam, then 15, and Sam, 12.
One evening, for the sixth time in a row, I phoned home to tell
the boys that once again I’d miss their bedtime. That’s OK, said
Sam. But could I wake him up when I did get home? That would be
really late, I said; he would have gone to sleep long before. It was
probably better if I saw him the next morning.
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Sam listened, but insisted. He said he just wanted to know I was
Lead-in questions there.
To this day I can’t explain precisely what happened at that
Supplementary reading
moment. But I suddenly knew, with utter finality, that I had to leave
Memorable quotes
my job.
A number of ordinary citizens wrote to me after I announced my
resignation. Most were sympathetic. A few were not.
Many women on the fast track, they wrote, were already battling
a culture that criticized them for sacrificing too much — and here I
was, seemingly agreeing that a balanced life was incompatible with a
high-powered job. Others said while it may be easy for me to find
another well paying job that gave me more time for my family, others
didn’t have that option. I was sending the wrong message to people
like them, too.
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I should have expected that my career decision would carry
symbolic weight — after all, I was the Secretary of Labor. But I had
Lead-in questions
no intention of sending a message to others about how they should
Supplementary reading lead their lives. Sam’s simple request was, rather, the wake-up call I
Memorable quotes needed to tell me how I should live mine.
Still, my choice was troubling because many of us face the
problem of balancing work and family life.
While many of us make more money than our parents, the
average, middle income married couple with kids now work far
longer hours than they did two decades ago — the equivalent of more
than two months a year.
What’s going on? Partly it’s technology from stable mass
production towards continuous innovation. To become more nimble,
companies are tying even the typical, mid-level salaried employee’s
pay to profits.
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What we earn increasingly depends on bonuses, share options and
overtime pay — all of which can rise or fall or disappear. We
Lead-in questions
reconcile unpredictable incomes with predictable bills by going full
Supplementary reading out when work is available.
Memorable quotes A friend of mine, a new father, is putting in 14-hour workdays.
He’d rather not be working so hard, and no one had asked him to. But
his pay is directly related to the firm’s profits. He thinks he’d better
make hay while the sun shines.
My friend’s situation helps explain why so few of us take longer
holidays or use family leave. We feel that if we opt out even a little,
we may be opting out permanently. So we’re tempted to work harder.
I faced that temptation after I left Washington. Adam was running
in a big cross-country race at school. Then someone called me about a
project. The pay was generous, but I’d have to begin the day of the
race.
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I turned the project down and, judging from his big wave and
bright smile, Adam was glad I did. He won the race, and I like to think
Lead-in questions
my presence there may have caused him to push himself a bit harder.
Supplementary reading I wish I could say I had no regrets about the project I passed up.
Memorable quotes But not a few times on that Saturday my mind drifted, thinking about
what it was “costing” me to be there. Then I saw Adam’s face as he
crossed the finish line. It was worth it.
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Me and My Big Mouth
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About the author Robert Reich was a member of the Clinton
Lead-in questions economic team which helped sustain the longest period of economic
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growth in the history of the US.
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Me and My Big Mouth
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... the rest of my life shrivelled into a dried raisin. my life lost
Lead-in questions much of its vitality, like a dried and wrinkled raisin
Supplementary reading
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Me and My Big Mouth
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Many women on the fast track Many women who are too busy
Lead-in questions with their work.
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Me and My Big Mouth
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share options 认股权
Employee share options can be like a license to print money. In
Lead-in questions fact, share options have turned thousands of Americans into
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millionaires almost overnight. That’s why more and more American
employers have been offering options in order to attract and keep good
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workers. Share options allow workers to buy their company’s stock at
a certain price. Let’s say you just joined XYZ Company. You liked
their offer to let you buy 10,000 shares at 10 dollars per share. When
the market price of XYZ reaches 20 dollars, you decide to “exercise”
your option. For 200,000 dollar worth of shares, you pay only 100,000
dollars.
At some companies, stock options have made ordinary workers
rich. In 2001 and 2002, however, many stocks nosedived. Many
employees who exercised stock options are now “underwater”. This
means the market price of their shares is lower than the price they paid.
That’s like having license to burn money!
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We reconcile unpredictable incomes with predictable bills by going
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full out when work is available. In order to enable our
unpredictable incomes to meet our predictable bills, we have to work
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as hard as possible.
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He thinks he’d better make hay while the sun shines.
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He thinks he’d better try to make as much money as
possible while he is still able to work so hard.
Supplementary reading
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Me and My Big Mouth
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... after I left Washington Here “Washington”, the capital of the
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United States, refers to the author’s official position in the US
Government. The figure of speech employed here is called
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metonymy, which consists of using the name of one thing for that of
Memorable quotes another with which they are closely associated.
e.g. from the cradle to the grave (from birth to death)
He spent the whole day reading Shakespeare. (“Shakespeare”
stands for the works of Shakespeare.)
Me and My Big Mouth
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Lead-in questions Questions for discussion:
Supplementary reading 1. How did the author balance work and family life? If you were him,
Memorable quotes what would you do?
2. Can you explain precisely what happened at that moment in
Paragraph 5?
3. What does “the wrong message” in Paragraph 7 refer to?
4. Why did he say that “my career decision would carry symbolic
weight”?
5. How do you interpret the title?
Answers for reference:
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1. On the one hand, the job was very important to him and he
really enjoyed his work. On the other hand, he realized that family
Lead-in questions life was even more important. He’d rather give up his job for his
Supplementary reading family life. Though occasionally he felt regretful, he thought his
decision was worthwhile when he saw his son’s big smile.
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2. It occurred to the author that no matter how much he liked his job,
family life was his first choice, or his life would shrivel into a
dried raisin.
3. It is worthwhile to quit a highly-powered job in favor of a balanced
life for the sake of one’s family.
4. He was a public figure. His decision would exert some influence on
many other people, because they would follow him.
5. By “Sam’s wake-up call”, the author means that Sam wanted his
father to wake him up when he came home no matter how late it
was. By “my wake-up call”, the author means that his son’s simple
request awakened him to the importance of one’s family life.
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Lead-in questions Please paraphrase the following quotes:
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God brings men into deep waters, not to drown
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them, but to cleanse them.
— Aughey
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Unrest of spirit is a mark of life; one problem
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after another presents itself and in the solving
Supplementary reading of them we can find our greatest pleasure.
Memorable quotes — Karl Menninger
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Lead-in questions Adversity introduces a man to himself.
Supplementary reading — Anonymous
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