C1 20-21/4/16

Homework: reading p.120 (1, 2, 3 and 4)

p.118-19

You and I go together like cookies and milk

have/play a part in sth

to be one of the people or things that are involved in an event or situation.

Did you have any part in this production?

Alcohol plays a part in 60 percent of violent crime.

probable /ˈprɒbəbl/ adjective

likely to be true or to happen

The probable cause of death was heart failure.

[ + (that) ] It's highly probable that he'll lose his job.

/ˈveəri/

reprimand [transitive]

to tell someone officially that something they have done is very wrong [↪ scold, tell off]

reprimand somebody for (doing) something

The military court reprimanded him for failing to do his duty.

tread past tense trod, past participle trodden

1

step in/on

[intransitive always + adverb/preposition] British English to put your foot on or in something while you are walking [= step]

tread in/on

Sorry, did I tread on your foot?

She trod barefoot on the soft grass.

2

tread carefully/warily/cautiously etc

to be very careful about what you say or do in a difficult situation:

If I wanted to keep my job, I knew I'd have to tread lightly.

David Attenborough

tolerant

1 allowing people to do, say, or believe what they want without criticizing or punishing them [≠ intolerant; ↪ tolerate]

tolerant of/towards

Luckily, my parents were tolerant of my choice of music.

a tolerant society

worse off [not before noun]

1 if you are worse off, you have less money [≠ better off]:

The rent increases will leave us worse off.

worse off than

I don't think we're any worse off than a lot of other people.

well-off /ˌwelˈɒf/ adjective

having a lot of money

His parents are very well-off.

clear-cut /ˌklɪəˈkʌt/ adjective

very certain or obvious

The issue is not very clear-cut.

wavelength [countable]

1 the size of a radio wave used to broadcast a radio signal

2 technical the distance between two points on energy waves such as sound or light

3 be on the same/a different wavelength

informal to have the same or different opinions and feelings as someone else:

Dad is just on a different wavelength from me.

/ˈʃʊəlɪ//ˈʃʊrli, ˈʃɝ-/ 

Ex. 9

I’m disturbing you, aren’t I?

Nothing bad happened, didn’t it?

Let’s go, shall we?

Don’t be late, will you?

A TAG QUESTION is a question we can add to the end of a statement.

The basic rules for forming the two-word tag questions are as follows:

* the subject in the statement matches the subject in the tag

* the auxiliary verb or verb to be in the statement matches the verb used in the tag

* if the statement is positive, the tag is usually negative and vice versa

Compare the following:

You've posted my letters, haven't you?

You won't forget to check my emails, will you?

You're sad that I'm going, aren't you?

You aren't going to cry when I leave, are you?

When present and past simple tenses appear in positive statements, normally no auxiliary verb is used, but we use the auxiliaries does, do or did in the tag. In negative statements in the present or past simple, the auxiliaries doesn't, don't or didn't are, of course, already present. Compare the following:

You play tennis on Thursdays usually, don't you?

And Jack plays with you, doesn't he?

You didn't play last Thursday, did you?

When we use the there is structure, there is reflected in the tag:

There's nothing wrong, is there?

There weren't any problems when you talked to Jack, were there?

Something / nobody /etc

When no one, somebody, something, etc is the subject in the statement, we use it for something or nothing and they for someone or nobody:

Something happened at Jack's house, didn't it?

No one phoned, did they?

Somebody wanted to borrow Jack's bike, didn't they? Who was it?

                          

When to use tag questions

We use tag questions, Ahmad, to check information or to ask for agreement. If we use a rising intonation in the tag, we do not know or are not quite sure of the answer. If we use a falling intonation in the tag, we are seeking the agreement of the person we are talking to.

We can reply to tag questions either with simple yes/no answers (negative tags normally expect a yes answer and positive tags normally expect a no answer) or by using yes/no + auxiliary verb.

In these examples, use a rising intonation in the tag. It is a genuine question. You are not sure what the answer will be.

You haven't seen my tennis shoes, have you? ~ No, I'm sorry. I haven't.

I couldn't borrow yours by any chance, could I? ~ No. They wouldn't fit you.

In these examples, use a falling intonation in the tag. You are simply seeking agreement.

It's been a lovely day today, hasn't it? ~ Yes, it has. Gorgeous.

It was a lovely wedding, wasn't it? ~ Wonderful!

I thought Sue looking stunning in her wedding dress, didn't she? ~ Yes, she did. Absolutely stunning.

It's a shame the day is over, isn't it? ~ Yes, it is.

tag questions - special features

positive statement - positive tag

We sometimes use a positive tag with a positive statement when we want to express surprise or particular interest:

    I shall be staying at my favourite hotel - the five-star hotel in Windsor. ~ Oh, you've stayed there before, have you?

    And I'm having supper there with the Australian tennis ace, Lleyton Hewitt. ~ Oh, so you know Lleyton Hewitt, do you?

imperative sentences and let's

After imperatives, we sometimes add will you? or won't you? when we want people to follow our advice:

Don't stay there long, will you?

And do take care, won't you?

After let's we sometimes add shall we? when we are making a suggestion:

Let's have buttered scones with strawberry jam for tea, shall we?

                   

Omission of pronoun subject and auxiliary verb

In very informal speech, we sometimes leave out pronoun subjects, auxiliary verbs and verb to be in the statement. Compare the following:

Awful weather, isn't it? (= It's awful weather, isn't it?)

Keeping well, are you? (=You're keeping well, are you?)

Nobody at home, is there? (=There's nobody at home, is there?)