A sad soul can kill you quicker than a germ. (John Steinbeck)
Seated at the breakfast table in the kitchen of his luxurious villa on the Main Line in Philadelphia on this cold February morning, Dr. Samuel Newman drank up his orange juice, sipped his nice warm coffee and thought of the hard day’s work ahead. He smiled to himself: if he had been one of his patients, he’d have ordered him to slow down long ago. Because in truth his work at Jefferson Hospital, his classes at the University and the management of his Nursing Home meant all of a 10-hour working day for him. But he did not think of the work as a burden. It was the stress that he resented. The intolerable stress of a doctor’s life. The small victories, followed by the heavy defeats. The daily struggle against disease and death, which after almost 40 years of practice he had not quite got accustomed to. Anyway, it was only two years to his retirement and then he would devote himself entirely to the Nursing Home. The prospect appealed to him. It wasn’t yet six years since he, with two other colleagues, had started this residence for terminal cancer patients, and it was already famous. No euthanasia in their center; a man has a right to live and die with dignity. Suppression of pain, the avoidance of physical and mental pain, that was their line of research, and extraordinary progress had been achieved. They had discovered that there was a certain parallelism between the residents in their Nursing Home and schoolchildren: when you split a class by separating the good students from the bad, the differences soon reappear, and the best among the bad lot begin getting better results than the worst among the good; in the same way, when you put together a bunch of terminal cases, none of whom has more than two years to live, the same pattern will emerge, and it is not unusual for some of the patients to survive for three or four years, and in some “miraculous” cases for more than five. In fact the Nursing Home was his life’s work, and he would like one of his two children to carry on with it. But his son, Jacob, at 28 already a brilliant brain surgeon, had not shown the least interest in the residence, and Sarah, his daughter, the eminent biologist, was too absorbed in her research work at Harvard to think of taking over. But he didn’t give up hope, perhaps one day…
“You haven’t touched your toast, Sam”, he heard Helen say. Waving her kind fussing aside, he stood up to get his bag and raincoat, and looked tenderly at his wife. They would soon have been married for thirty years, but he loved her as much as the first day. At 52 – Helen was eleven years his junior – she was still as attractive as ever, and these days she was radiant, as Sarah had announced her visit next week. She was all aglow with plans: concerts, theater, shopping. Well, she had all the right in the world to a bit of distraction, poor soul. He could not remember when they had last enjoyed a vacation. But he would put a remedy to that. This summer they would spend 15 days in Florida where she could indulge in miniature golf and he could do some sailing. He hoped he had not completely lost his touch. He had not gone in for much sport lately, though he had never dropped his one or two sets of tennis on Sunday mornings…Helen’s words interrupted his flow of thoughts: “Come home early this evening, honey, we’re having dinner with the Thompsons.”
He kissed his wife goodbye and got into his gray Jaguar, bracing himself for the 40-minute drive through dense traffic to the hospital. Friday was a bad day for driving, almost as bad as Mondays when everybody seemed to oversleep. Finally he arrived at his consulting room, and he had hardly had time to change into his white coat and prescribed hospital shoes when he saw Katherine, the chief nurse, waiting to talk to him, and he immediately realized that there was something wrong. She had been working with him for over 15 years and he could read her like a book; he even knew the days when she had her period. “Dr. Newman, I can’t understand, an awful mistake, a stupid mix-up with some other patient. The X-ray is on your desk, with the clinical record. Mr. Willow’s lungs are okay, he doesn’t have cancer.” He remembered the guy quite well, although it had been about seven months before. A pale-faced, thin man of about 50, with a little mustache and a balding head. He could see him sitting there across his desk, his eyes full of sadness and resignation as the death sentence was delivered to him: cancer of the lung, inoperable. Six months to live, one year at the utmost. He’d never forget the man’s wife’s look of despair as she held her husband’s hand, trying in vain to fight back her tears. Oh, God that these things could happen on the threshold of the 21st century! “Don’t worry, Kate, mistakes are inevitable”, he reassured the shaking nurse as he fidgeted with the man’s record. He would phone him immediately and break the good news to him. But no, this deserved a personal visit, he’d call on the fellow this evening before going home. Today he didn’t have a class at the university, so he’d drop by at the residence after lunch, and later he’d drive to the guy’s place, he thought, scribbling down the address in his memo pad.
He went through the day’s routine as usual, but he couldn’t get the Willow case out of his mind. At the Nursing Home, he made the customary round of the residents and heard Dr. Bentley’s report. He admired the chief doctor’s efficiency and skill. He believed in recruiting the best only and he paid them splendidly. Theirs was indeed a select staff. From the doctors, the nurses and the wardens, to the doormen, the cook and the maids, they were the cream of their respective specialities. And all wholly dedicated to improving the quality of life of the residents. The atmosphere you breathed in the Home was really quiet and relaxing. The faint music in the background and the colorfulness of the decoration, including the impressive set of reproductions of his favorite French impressionists, all contributed to creating an ambiance of peace and tranquillity which was soothing to the senses. Logically, there was not much social life among the patients, but you could feel friendliness in the air, and there were even small tasks to keep them busy: picking flowers in the garden, arranging the vases, feeding the canaries, or classifying the books and magazines in the well-stocked library. Most of the time, of course, the patients were strongly sedated, for pain was banned from the Rest Home, as he liked the center to be called. “Poor Mrs. Wilmott’s life is flickering away. I don’t think she’ll live through the night”, Dr. Bentley was saying. Well, at 86, it was not really traumatic to see her pass away in such a painless, peaceful way, and he was sure the old dear was grateful for the four years she had spent in reasonably good health at the residence. He finished his round, read the mail, dictated a couple of letters to his secretary and got ready to go to Mr. Willow’s house. It meant a considerable detour on his way home, but he was longing to see the man’s wife’s face when he told them the wonderful news. A doctor’s work had its compensations after all.
It was a poverty-stricken area, the streets full of junkies and drug pushers, the houses plain and ungainly, the walls covered with filthy grafitti, but Dr. Newman hardly noticed the sordid surroundings as he drove through to the man’s apartment…The elevator was not working in the building, but he did not mind climbing to the fourth floor, and his heart was beating fast as he rang the bell on door 4B. He rang again and waited, but there was no reply. Then the door of 4A opened and a fat, ugly hag, with rollers on her hair and a cigarette hanging from her lips, stared at him with distrust and croaked: “Nobody in there, she’s gonna live with her mother for a while…took her brats with her”, she added as an afterthought. “And her husband?”, he asked weakly, knowing already what the answer would be. “He died last week. Had lung cancer.” Dr. Newman remained fixed on the spot, unable to react, long after the woman, all interest in him lost, had stepped back into her apartment, leaving him alone on the landing. Then he tore the man’s record to pieces and slowly, very slowly, his shoulders hunched up, feeling tired out, as if he had suddenly aged ten years, he plodded downstairs to his gray Jaguar that would take him home to his wife and dinner with the Thompsons.
(This story is based on fact, but the names of the people and places have been changed to protect identities).
SEMANTIC ANALYSIS (for help go here)
9.2.1 LEARNING NEW WORDS AND PHRASES
afterthought (ocurrencia tardía, algo que se te ocurre después de haber dicho algo)
aglow (resplandeciente, lit. and fig.)
at the utmost (como máximo)
balding (que se está quedando calvo)
to be X years sb’s junior (ser X años más joven que alguien)
brat (mocoso)
burden (carga)
clinical record (historial médico)
colorfulness (colorido)
to deserve (merecer)
doorman (portero, conserje) (for occupations and professions, see 10.2.5)
drug pusher (camello) (for drug-related terms, see 5.2.6f)
to fidget with sth (juguetear con algo)
friendliness (cordialidad)
to fuss (preocuparse demasiado)
graffiti (pintadas)
gray (AmE)/grey (BrE) (gris)
hag [bruja (mujer fea y desagradable)]
hunched up (encorvado)
junkie (drogata, yonqui) (for drug-related terms, see 5.2.6f)
line of research (línea de investigación)
memo pad (bloc de notas)
nursing home (residencia privada, esp. para la 3ª edad)
to oversleep (pegársele a alguien las sábanas)
pattern (modelo, patrón)
a poverty-stricken area (un área muy pobre)
prescribed hospital shoes (zapatos de hospital reglamentarios)
prospect (perspectiva)
to recruit (contratar)
Rest Home (Residencia de Ancianos)
rollers [rulos (para el pelo)]
the old dear (la querida viejecita)
the poor soul (la pobre criatura)
threshold (umbral)
unsightly (repulsivo, desagradable a la vista)
warden (encargado en un asilo, celador) (for occupations and professions, see 10.2.5)
waving her kind fussing aside (rechazando sus amables pero excesivas muestras de preocupación)
well-stocked (bien nutrido/surtido, muy completo)
(see also IDIOMS, 9.2.14 and PHRASAL VERBS, 9.2.15)
9.2.2 SYNONYMS AND NEAR-SYNONYMS
accustomed to (used to)
to appeal to (to like)
awful (dreadful, horrible, appalling, frightful)
to ban (to prohibit, to forbid, to proscribe)
to discover (to find out)
filthy (dirty)
soothing (calming, relaxing)
to split (to divide, to separate)
tenderly (lovingly, amorously)
tired out [worn out, exhausted, dead tired; (colloq.): knackered]
unsightly (ugly, unattractive, unprepossessing, awful-looking, repulsive)
9.2.3 ANTONYMS
distrust (trust)
filthy (clean)
grateful (ungrateful)
impressive (unimpressive)
painful (painless)
relaxing (tense)
9.2.4 POLYSEMOUS TERMS
book [libro; (exercise book) cuaderno; (address book) agenda con direcciones; (the books) los libros, la contabilidad; to book reservar, hacer una reserva; concertar cita (en el médico, etc.); multar (guardia civil de tráfico); amonestar, sacar tarjeta (árbitro)]
faint (tenue; ligero; débil; mareado; to faint desmayarse)
9.2.5 HOMONYMS
seal (foca), from OE. seolh/seal (sello) from Latin sigillum, diminutive of signum, a sign
sole (único) ME from Latin, sola, fem. of solus (alone)/sole (suela/lenguado) from OF, from Latin solea (sandal)
9.2.6 METONYMY AND METAPHOR
…when you put together a bunch of terminal cases… (terminal cases is a metonymy for persons with a terminal illness)
the cream of their respective specialities [cream (flor y nata) is a metaphor for ‘an elite group of people’]
9.2.7 LEXICAL FIELDS
- a) birds:
barn owl (lechuza)
bearded vulture (quebrantahuesos)
blackbird (mirlo)
blue tit (herrerillo)
budgerigar/budgie (periquito)
bustard (avutarda)
buzzard (águila ratonera)
canary (canario)
carrier pigeon (paloma mensajera)
carrion crow (cuervo carroñero)
cockatoo (cacatúa)
condor (cóndor)
coot (focha común)
crane (grulla)
crow/raven (cuervo)
cuckoo (cuco)
curlew (sarapito)
chaffinch/finch (pinzón)
dodo (dodo)
dove/pigeon (paloma)
duck (pato)
eagle (águila)
eagle owl (búho real)
emu (emú)
falcon/hawk (halcón)
flamingo (flamenco)
gannet (alcatraz)
goldfinch (jilguero)
grouse (urogallo)
guinea fowl (gallina de Guinea)
heron (garza)
hoopoe (abubilla)
hummingbird (colibrí)
jackdaw (grajilla)
jay (arrendajo)
kestrel (cernícalo)
kingfisher (martín pescador)
kite (milano)
kiwi (kiwi)
lapwing (avefría)
lark (alondra)
linnet (pardillo)
macaw (guacamayo)
magpie (urraca)
martin (avión)
mockingbird (sinsonte)
nightingale (ruiseñor)
nymph (ninfa)
ostrich (avestruz)
owl (búho)
parakeet (periquito)
parrot (loro)
partridge (perdiz)
peacock (pavo real)
pelican (pelícano)
penguin (pingüino)
pheasant (faisán)
plover (chorlito)
puffin (frailecillo)
quail (codorniz)
redwing (tordo alirrojo)
ringdove/wood pigeon (paloma torcaz)
robin/redbreast (petirrojo)
rook (corneja)
sandpiper (aguzanieves)
(sea)gull (gaviota)
snipe (agachadiza)
sparrow (gorrión)
sparrowhawk (gavilán)
starling (estornino)
stork (cigüeña)
swallow (golondrina)
swan (cisne)
swift (vencejo)
thrush (tordo, zorzal)
titmouse/tit (herrerillo)
turtle dove (tórtola)
vulture (buitre)
waterfowl (ave acuática)
woodcock (becada)
woodpecker (pájaro carpintero)
wren (reyezuelo)
- b) sports:
aerobics (aerobics)
angling (pesca con caña)
archery (tiro con arco)
athletics (atletismo)
badminton (badminton)
baseball (béisbol)
billiards (billar)
bowling/bowls (bolos)
boxing (boxeo)
bungee jumping (puenting)
canoeing (piragüismo)
canoe racing (carrera de canoas)
canyoning (barranquismo)
clay-pigeon shooting/skeetshooting (tiro al plato)
climbing (alpinismo)
cricket (críquet)
croquet (cróquet)
cycling (ciclismo)
darts (dardos)
diving (submarinismo, buceo)
fencing (esgrima)
fishing (pesca)
football (fútbol)
fox hunting (caza del zorro)
golf (golf)
handball (balonmano)
hang gliding/hang-gliding (ala delta)
hiking (excursionismo)
hockey (hockey)
horse racing (carrera de caballos)
hunting (caza, cacería)
ice hockey (hockey sobre hielo)
ice skating (patinaje sobre hielo)
judo (yudo)
karate (kárate)
miniature golf (minigolf)
motocross (motocross)
motorcycle racing (carrera de motos)
motor racing (carrera de coches)
mountaineering (montañismo)
parachuting (paracaidismo)
paragliding (parapente)
parkour (parkour)
pistol shooting (tiro con pistola)
polo (polo)
pool (billar americano)
potholing (espeleología)
roller skating (patinaje sobre ruedas)
rowing (remo)
rugby (rugby)
sailing (vela)
scuba diving (submarinismo con botellas de oxígeno)
shooting (caza con escopeta de pájaros, conejos, etc.)
show jumping (hípica)
skiing (esquí)
slalom (eslalon)
snooker (snooker)
snorkeling (buceo con tubo de respiración)
snowboarding/snowboard (snowboard)
squash (squash)
sumo (wrestling) (sumo)
surfing (surf)
swimming (natación)
table tennis (ping-pong)
target practice (tiro al blanco)
tennis (tenis)
trekking (trekking)
volleyball (balonvolea)
water polo (waterpolo)
waterskiing (esquí acuático)
weightlifting (levantamiento de pesas)
white-water rafting (descenso de aguas rápidas)
windsurfing (windsurf)
wrestling (lucha libre)
yoga (yoga)
- c) colours:
almond (color almendra)
almond green (verde almendra)
amber (ámbar)
amethyst (amatista)
apple green (verde manzana)
apricot (albaricoque)
aubergine (berenjena)
auburn (castaño rojizo)
azure (azul celeste)
baby blue (azul claro, celeste)
beige (beige)
black (negro)
blonde (rubio)
blue (azul)
bottle green (verde botella)
bright (vivo)
bronze (bronce)
brown (marrón)
burgundy (burdeos)
Cambridge blue (azul claro, azul celeste)
caramel (caramelo)
carmine (carmín)
carrot (zanahoria)
cherry (cereza)
chestnut (castaño)
chocolate (chocolate)
cinnamon (canela)
citron (limón)
coffee (café)
copper (cobrizo)
cream (crema)
crimson (carmesí)
damask (adamascado)
dark (oscuro)
dun (pardo)
ebony (ébano)
emerald (verde esmeralda)
fawn (color café claro)
fuchsia (fucsia)
ginger (jengibre)
gold (oro, dorado)
green (verde)
grenadine (granadina)
grey (gris)
hazel (avellana)
honey (miel)
indigo (añil)
iris (lirio)
ivory (marfil)
jade (verde jade)
jasmine (jazmín)
jet (azabache)
khaki (caqui)
lemon (limón)
lilac (lila)
maroon (granate)
mauve (malva)
mustard (mostaza)
navy blue (azul marino)
nutmeg (nuez moscada)
ochre (ocre)
old gold (oro viejo)
olive (green) (verde oliva)
opal (ópalo)
orange (naranja, anaranjado)
Oxford blue (azul oscuro)
pale (pálido)
pastel (tonos pastel)
peach (melocotón)
pearl (perla)
pink (rosa)
platinum (platino)
plum (ciruela)
poppy (amapola)
primrose (amarillo pálido)
purple (púrpura)
red (rojo)
rose (rosa)
royal blue (azul marino intenso)
ruby (rubí)
russet (rojizo, bermejo)
rust (color herrumbre)
saffron (color azafrán)
salmon (salmón)
sand (arena)
sapphire (zafiro)
scarlet (escarlata)
sea green (verde mar)
sepia (sepia)
sienna (color tierra de siena)
silver (plata, plateado)
sky blue (azul celeste, azul cielo, celeste)
snow-white (níveo)
sorrel (color alazán)
steel blue (azul acero)
steel grey (gris acero)
strawberry (fresa)
tan (canela)
tangerine (mandarina)
tawny (leonado, rojizo oscuro)
teak (teca)
terracotta (terracota)
topaz (topacio)
turquoise (turquesa)
vermilion (bermejo)
violet (violeta)
white (blanco)
wine (vino)
yellow (amarillo)
9.2.8 ANALYSIS BY DISTINCTIVE SEMANTIC FEATURES
- a) resulting linking verbs:
to become [ + change in people’s emotional, physical state or status] (llegar a ser, hacerse)
to get [ + change in state or condition] (volverse, ponerse)
to go [ + change for the worse] [volverse (peor), quedarse (ciego, sordo, calvo, etc.)]
to grow [ + gradual change] [hacerse, ponerse, volverse (de manera gradual)]
to turn [ + change in colour or the weather, abrupt change] (ponerse, volverse, cambiar de color o el tiempo, a menudo repentino)
to come (= to become in some contexts)
(see 9.2.10 for collocations)
- b) ways of drinking:
to drink (beber)
to drink off [ + the whole contents of, at once] (bebérselo todo, de un trago)
to drink up [ + the whole contents of, to empty] (bebérselo todo, terminar de beberse)
to sip [ + in small amounts] (sorber)
to gulp down [ + hastily, greedily or with effort] (beber rápidamente, engullir, tragar)
to drain [ + to the dregs] (apurar)
to toss off [ + quickly, at a draught] (antic.) (beber rápido, de un trago)
to swig [ + in large draughts, from a bottle] (beber a grandes tragos, pegarse un lingotazo)
to down [ + finish quickly] (tragarse, beber de un trago)
to knock back [ + quickly, in large quantities] (beber de un trago, de golpe)
to put away [ + consume in large quantities] (consumir en grandes cantidades)
- c) smiling:
to smile (sonreír)
to grin [ + broadly, showing the teeth, sometimes with a forced or stupid smile] (sonreír abierta/ampliamente, mostrando los dientes, a veces con sonrisa forzada o estúpida)
to beam [ + radiantly] (sonreír de oreja a oreja)
to leer [ + slyly, lasciviously or maliciously] (sonreír de forma lasciva o impúdica)
to smirk [ + unpleasantly, pleased by sb else’s bad luck, or with an affected, conceited or silly smile] (sonreír de manera afectada, con suficiencia, desagradable, alegrándose de la mala suerte ajena, etc.)
to simper [ + with an affected or silly smile] (sonreír de manera forzada, tonta o afectada)
(for ways of laughing, see 11.2.6)
- d) writing down:
to write down/put down (anotar, apuntar)
to note down [ + to be remembered or observed] (anotar, para recordar posteriormente)
to take down [ + spoken instructions] (anotar, poner por escrito)
to scribble (down) [ + carelessly or hurriedly] (garabatear)
to jot down [ + briefly or hastily] (apuntar rápidamente)
- e) child:
child (niño,-a)
baby [ + very young, esp one not yet able to walk] (bebé)
boy/lad [ + a male child or youth] (muchacho)
brat [ + ill-behaved] (mocoso)
girl/lass [ + a female child or youth] (muchacha)
infant [ + during the earliest period of its life (in Britain, a schoolchild below the age of seven)] (niño pequeño, párvulo)
kid [ + informal style] (chaval)
little one [ + said with tenderness or condescension] (pequeño)
newborn [ + recently born] (recién nacido)
toddler [ + just beginning to walk] (que da los primeros pasos)
9.2.9 GRAMMATICAL COLLOCATIONS
to appeal to sb (atraer a alguien)
to be absorbed in (estar absorto en)
to be based on (estar basado en)
to be dedicated to sth/doing sth [estar dedicado a (hacer) algo]
to be longing to do sth (estar deseando hacer algo)
to believe in sth/doing sth [creer en (hacer) algo]
to contribute to sth/doing sth [contribuir a (hacer) algo]
to devote oneself to sth/doing sth [dedicarse a (hacer) algo]
to get accustomed to sth/doing sth [acostumbrarse a (hacer) algo]
to indulge in [permitirse/darse (un gusto), disfrutar con]
not mind doing sth (no importar hacer algo)
9.2.10 LEXICAL COLLOCATIONS
resulting linking verbs:
to become:
a lawyer/a doctor/a teacher/ an architect/famous/king/queen/President/Prime Minister (hacerse/llegar a ser abogado/médico/profesor/arquitecto/famoso/rey/reina/primer ministro); friends (hacerse amigos); ill (ponerse enfermo/enfermar); extinct (extinguirse); clear/evident (verse claro/hacerse evidente); pregnant (quedarse embarazada); accustomed to (acostumbrarse a)
to get:
angry (ponerse furioso); upset (molestarse, alterarse); hungry/thirsty (entrar hambre/sed); tired (cansarse); lost (perderse); killed (ser muerto); brown (ponerse moreno); caught (ser cogido/atrapado); married (casarse); hot/cold (calentarse/enfriarse); dark (oscurecer, hacerse de noche); pregnant (quedarse embarazada); well/better/worse (ponerse bien/mejor/peor); late (hacerse tarde); dressed (vestirse); drunk (emborracharse); fat (engordar); old (envejecer); tired (cansarse); wet (mojarse); used to/accustomed to (acostumbrarse a); broken (romperse); lost (perderse); sacked (ser despedido de un trabajo)
to grow:
old (hacerse viejo/envejecer); fat (ponerse gordo, engordar); bored (with) [aburrirse(de)]; tired (of) [cansarse/hartarse(de)]; worse/better (ponerse peor/mejor, empeorar/mejorar); impatient (impacientarse); cold/hot) (enfriarse/calentarse); dark (hacerse de noche, anochecer, oscurecer); rich(er) (enriquecerse, hacerse más rico); big(ger) (crecer, hacerse/volverse más grande); smaller (empequeñecer, hacerse/volverse más pequeño); taller (crecer, ponerse más alto); weak(er) (debilitarse, volverse más débil); accustomed to (acostumbrarse a (algo/alguien) poco a poco)
to go: crazy/mad (volverse loco); blind/deaf/bald (quedarse ciego/sordo/calvo); bankrupt (arruinarse, quebrar/ir a la bancarrota); unnoticed (pasar desapercibido); white/pale (ponerse blanco/palidecer); wild (enloquecer, ponerse furioso); bad [estropearse/echarse a perder (alimentos)]; sour [ agriarse (vino/leche); cortarse (leche); estropearse (relaciones); wrong/right (salir mal/bien)
to turn:
red/blue/white/grey (ponerse, volverse colorado/azul/blanco/gris); brown [volverse doradas (hojas de los árboles)]; pale (ponerse pálido); sour [agriarse (leche)]; cold/hot [volverse frío/caluroso (el tiempo)]; windy (levantarse viento); nasty [ponerse fea (situación); volverse antipática/ponerse agresiva (persona); violent (volverse violento); traitor (volverse traidor); an actor turned politician (un actor que se ha hecho/vuelto político)
to come:
undone (a button, a knot, shoelaces) [desabrocharse (botón); desatarse (nudo/córdones)], loose (a door handle) [soltarse/aflojarse (pomo de una puerta)]; true (a dream) [ hacerse realidad (sueño)]; right (salir bien); clean (confesarlo todo, sincerarse); of age (llegar a la mayoría de edad)
9.2.11 FALSE FRIENDS
constipated does not mean ‘constipado’ (to have a cold), but ‘estreñido’
disgrace does not mean ‘desgracia’ (misfortune), but ‘deshonra, vergüenza’
diversion does not gen. mean ‘diversión’ (amusement, fun), but ‘desvío’
intoxicated does not mean ‘intoxicado’ (poisoned), but ‘ebrio, embriagado’
library does not mean ‘librería’ (bookshop), but ‘biblioteca’
librarian does not mean ‘librero’ (bookseller), but ‘bibliotecario’
to remove does not mean ‘remover’ (to stir), but ‘quitar’
(see also 2.2.9, 5.2.15 and 6.2.12)
9.2.12 DIFFERENCES BRE./AME.
colourfulness/colorfulness
holiday/vacation
post/mail
flat/apartment
lift/elevator
(see also 6.2.11 and 10.2.13)
9.2.13 WORD FORMATION
suffixes used to form abstract nouns: -age, -al, -ance, -ation, -ery, -ing, -ism, -ity, -ment, -ocracy, etc (see also 1.2.11a):
-age: bondage (esclavitud), coverage (cobertura), drainage (drenaje), mileage (kilometraje), pilgrimage (peregrinación), etc.
-al: refusal (negativa), dismissal (despido), revival (resurgimiento), survival (supervivencia), etc.
-ance: arrogance (arrogancia), avoidance (evitación), radiance (esplendor), relevance (relevancia), resemblance (parecido), etc.
-ation: exploration (exploración), consolation (consolación; consuelo), exaggeration (exageración), resignation (resignación; dimisión), education (educación), dedication (dedicación), compensation (compensación), etc.
-ery: bribery (soborno), flattery (adulación), slavery (esclavitud), etc.
-ing: banking (banca), driving (conducción), farming (agricultura), feeling (sentimiento), fishing (pesca), hunting (caza), etc.
-ism: capitalism (capitalismo), communism (comunismo), impressionism (impresionismo), racism (racismo), etc.
-ity: curiosity (curiosidad), purity (pureza), respectability (respetabilidad), elasticity (elasticidad), diversity (diversidad), rapidity (rapidez), similarity (similitud), etc.
-ment: agreement (acuerdo), amazement (asombro), arrangement (arreglo), retirement (jubilación), improvement (mejora), etc.
-ocracy: aristocracy (aristocracia), democracy (democracia), etc.
9.2.14 IDIOMS
all in a day’s work (gajes del oficio)
to be able to read sb like a book (conocer a alguien como la palma de la mano)
to brace oneself for sth (prepararse para algo, gen. díficil o desagradable)
the cream of (la flor y nata de)
to get/put sth out of one’s mind (quitarse algo de la cabeza, olvidar)
to lose one’s touch (perder facultades)
to tear sth to pieces (romper en mil pedazos)
9.2.15 PHRASAL VERBS
to call on sb (visitar a alguien)
to carry on with sth/doing sth (continuar con algo/haciendo algo)
to change into [cambiarse (de ropa)]
to drink up (bebérselo todo, terminar de beberse) (for ways of drinking, see 9.2.8b above)
to drop by (pasarse por)
to fight back [contener (sentimientos, lágrimas); contraatacar]
to flicker away/out (apagarse gradualmente)
to get up (levantarse)
to give up (hope) [abandonar (la esperanza)]
to go in for [practicar (un deporte)]
to go through (realizar, llevar a cabo)
to live through (sobrevivir un periodo de tiempo)
to pass away (morir) (see also 1.2.14)
to scribble down (garabatear, escribir/anotar rápidamente) (for other ways of writing sth down, see 9.2.8d above)
to slow down (aflojar el ritmo, trabajar menos; beber menos)
to stand up (ponerse de pie)
to step back (volver a meterse/entrar, retroceder, dar un paso atrás)
to take over (hacerse cargo de, asumir el control, tomar posesión de)
9.2.16 COLLECTIVE NOUNS:
an army (of soldiers) [ejército (de soldados)]
a bevy of women/girls/beauties (grupo de mujeres/chicas/bellezas)
a board of directors/examiners (junta directiva/tribunal examinador)
a bouquet/bunch of flowers (ramo de flores)
a brood of chickens (nidada de pollos)
a bunch of grapes/keys (racimo de uvas/manojo de llaves); a bunch of people (informal) (un grupo de personas)
a bundle of sticks/clothes (haz de leña/hatillo de ropa)
a choir (of singers) [coro (de cantores)]
a cloud of insects/journalists (nube de insectos/de periodistas)
a clump of trees (grupo de árboles, arboleda)
a cluster of grapes/stars (racimo de uvas/constelación de estrellas)
a covey of partridge/grouse (nidada de perdices/de urogallos)
a crash of rhinoceros (manada de rinocerontes)
a crew (tripulación)
a crowd of people (multitud de gente)
a fleet of ships/cars (flota de barcos/coches)
a flight of birds/pigeons/aircraft (bandada de pájaros/de palomas/escuadrilla de aviones)
a flight of steps/stairs (tramo de escalera)
a flock of sheep/birds (rebaño de ovejas/bandada de pájaros)
a gaggle/flock of geese/of noisy people (bandada de gansos/de gente ruidosa)
a galaxy of stars (elenco de estrellas)
a gang of thieves (banda de ladrones)
a grove of trees (arboleda)
a herd of cattle/goats/buffaloes/pigs (rebaño de ganado/cabras/búfalos/piara de cerdos)
a hive of bees (colmena de abejas)
a horde of savages (horda de salvajes)
a litter of pups/puppies/cubs (camada de cachorros de perros/oseznos)
a pack of dogs/hounds/wolves (jauría de perros/de perros de caza/de lobos)
a posse of policemen/journalists (legión de policías/periodistas)
a pride of lions (manada de leones)
a range of mountains (cordillera)
a school of whales/dolphins (banco de ballenas/delfines)
a sheaf of corn/papers/arrows (gavilla de trigo/fajo de papeles/haz de flechas)
a shoal of fish (banco de peces)
a stack of wood (montón de leña)
a staff of teachers/employees (plantilla de profesores/empleados)
a string of pear1s (sarta de perlas)
a swarm of insects/bees/wasps/flies/tourists (enjambre de insectos/abejas/avispas/moscas/turistas)
a team of horses/oxen (tiro de caballos/yunta de bueyes)
a team (of players) [equipo (de jugadores)]
a troop of monkeys (grupo/manada de monos)
a wad of banknotes (fajo de billetes)
9.2.17 CULTURAL NOTES
John Steinbeck (1902-1968) – famous American writer, author of the novel The Grapes of Wrath (Las Uvas de la Ira) (1939).
Harvard University (Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S.) – founded in 1636, it is the oldest university in America and one of the most prestigious in the world (eight U.S. Presidents have graduated from Harvard, and over 100 Nobel Prize winners have been associated with it as alumni, researchers or faculty).
The Main Line – a well-off district in Philadelphia.
9.3 GRAMMAR REVISION
9.3.1 Conditional sentences: type 3
…if he had been one of his patients he’d have ordered him to slow down long ago
9.3.2 Verbs of perception + infinitive without to
He heard Helen say
…to see her pass away
9.3.3 Contact clauses (see also 1.3.2 and 8.3.3)
The atmosphere you breathed in the Home…
9.3.4 To + -ing form
dedicated to improving…; contributed to creating….
9.3.5 What nominal clauses
…knowing already what the answer would be