Unit 10 Language structures: The future expressed by be about to e.g.: The talk is about to begin soon. The meeting is about to begin, you had better hurry up. be going to in the past expressing “implied intention” e.g.: I was going to finish my article last night but my friend arrived so I didn’t have time. I was going to the cinema last Saturday but it rained. The past perfect used in the hardly---when—pattern Hardly/scarcely---when--: no sooner---than; as soon as e.g.: No sooner/Hardly had I entered the classroom than /when the bell rang. Hardly had he arrived when she started complaining. No sooner had I entered the office than the meeting began. The past perfect of hope + infinitive expressing “an unfulfilled wish” had hoped/intended/meant/wanted/planed/supposed/expected + to do sth.: e.g.: I had intended to call on you yesterday, but someone came to see me just when I was about to leave. I had expected you to give me a phone call last weekend, but you didn’t. The simple past in the It’s time + subject + past-tense verb pattern It’s (high/about) time + subject + past-tense verb pattern: e.g.: It is about time we went to bed. (It is about time we should go to bed.) It is time we left. (It is time we should leave.) Dialogues: come on/upon: meet or find sb. or sth. by chance e.g.: I came upon the necklace in a tiny little shop on the ourtskirts of Paris. I came upon the key in my purse. 2. saunter: walk at a leisurely pace e.g.: saunter through the garden, saunter along the beach saunter through life sort / kind of : rather, somewhat e.g.: She kind of hoped to be invited. I am sort of being late today. 4. lookout: n. being careful; looking out e.g.: Keeping a lookout for the enemy. We were on the lookout for each other on the trip. Reading 1 Pre-reading questions: Why does the author compare a language with a living organism? Which language family does English belong to? What languages does the Indo-European family comprise? Language points pertaining to: be related to e.g.: the information pertaining to the accident his remarks pertaining to the question is inspiring. endeavor: v. n. (make) efforts e.g.: I will endeavor to pay the bill as soon as possible. We must always endeavor to improve our work. She made every endeavor to help us. account for: give an explanation for e.g.: His carelessness accounts for the failure. She could not account for her mistake. I want you to account for each sum of the money you spent. Reading 2 Pre-reading questions: When was old English used? What about Middle English? 2. What makes English unique? Language points variation: n. varying e.g.: The prices for food are subject to variation. Because these clothes are handmade there may be some variations in color. variety: n. a range of different things e.g.: We must apply a variety of teaching methods. 2. clarity: n. being clear e.g.: I’m deeply impressed by the clarity of the sea water in Hainan. clarity of thinking sound clarity transparency clarity Additional activities: Discuss the traffic problem and give some suggestions. Dictation Quiz I. Fill in the blanks with the given words. Change forms where necessary. accumulate, clarify, determine, endeavor, pertain, renown, specify, strenuous, thief，vary, 1. He _______________ a fortune through property speculation. 2. There are wide regional ___________ in house prices. 3. People call for establishing laws ___________ to employment rights. 4. The _______ and precision of his prose has been appreciated by the readers. 5. They are admired for their dogged ___________ to learn the language. 6. Xinjiang is _________ for the real Uygur flavor. 7. You said you live in the West Country, could you be a bit more ___________? 8. The doctor advised Tom to avoid __________ exercise. 9. Car ______ is on the increase. Despite our beat ____________, we couldn’t get the machine started. II. Translate the Chinese into English and make sentences with them. 警察马上采取行动抓获了这名杀人犯。 他们的故事可追溯到日本人占领中国东北的那个年代。 他才一出门大雨就倾盆而下。 她不知如何向父母解释而不知所措。 III. Paraphrase. Each language has its own strict grammatical rules pertaining to the ways words are formed and put together in sentences. Like a living organism, a language has an unbroken history which goes back so far in time that scholars are not able to find its ultimate origin. When one is endeavoring to learn a language, its grammatical rules may seem very strict, but actually the rules do permit slight variations that do not make a great deal of differences in meaning or seriously interfere with the clarity of communication. …there is enough tolerance within any language…. English is not unique in this respect.