Writing

Formerly called manacles or shackles, handcuffs consist of two metal rings joined bya short chain; once fastened shut, it requires a key to open.

အထက္ပါ စာေၾကာင္း မွန္ပါသလား။ မွန္လွ်င္ မွန္သည္ ေျဖပါ။ မွားလွ်င္ မည္သည္႕ေနရာ မွားသနည္း ေျဖပါ။

Writing

Reading maps involve several abilities, including the ability to locate places, to ascertain directions, to measure distances, and to interpret the mapmaker's symbols.

Choose the appropriate answer for the underlined word.

1. involve

2. involves

3. will involved

4. has involved

5. have involved

Writing

Fill in the blanks.

Despite their .................... proportions, the murals of Diego Rivera give his Mexican compatriots the sense that their history is ..................... and human in scale, not remote and larger than life.

A. monumental ... accessible

B. focused ... prolonged

C. vast ... ancient

D. realistic ... extraneous

E. narrow ... overwhelming

Reading

"The rock was still wet. The animal was glistening, like it was still swimming," recalls Hou Xianguang. Hou discovered the unusual fossil while surveying rocks as a paleontology graduate student in 1984, near the Chinese town of Chengjiang. "My teachers always talked about the Burgress Shale animals. It looked like one of them. My hands began to shake." Hoe had indeed found a Naraoia like those from Canada. However, Hou's animal was 15 million years older than it's Canadian relatives.

In the passage,

"Surveying" most nearly means:

a) calculating the value of

b) examining comprehensively

c) determining the boundaries of

d) polling randomly

e) conducting a statistical study of

Answer:

The Time of 2008 First quarter

The days I could not be smarter and stronger.

The days I could get up 3:30 or 4:00 a.m without the help of Alarm clock or phone.

The days I could have a bath anytime with no heater.

The days I could finish my breakfast with 4 slices of plain bread and a cup of coffee.

The days any one could see me any time with a book in hand.

The days I were not more believe in Buddha and Love.

Writing

Today, also representing nations and other political entities, flags are used to represent youth groups, athletic competitions and international bodies.

Please find the error.

1. also

2. and other

3. flags are used

4. to represent

5. no error 

Some expressions in business

1) put on the map - it means well known.
(we can put this in the sentence like this:)
This new product will put us on the map.
(that means that new product will make us well known.)

2) savvy - means knowlegeable, smart in certain area (s.a.v.v.y)
(here is an example)
We hired Tom because he is computer savvy.
(It means We hired Tom because he knows a lot about computers or he is smart and knowledgeable about computers.)

3) Play hardball - in a tough situation or dealing sb in a hard way.
(here's an example)
If our competitors won't comply, we are going to have to play a hardball.
(means if our compititors won't comply, we are going to have to go through a tough situation or we are going to have to go in a hard way.)

4) Power lunch - do business over lunch (normally used for business people)
eg., Today our boss and our finance department went out for a power lunch.
(means Our boss and finance department went out to disucss business over lunch)

5) The bottom line - means final result, outcome, in the end.
e.g, We worked hard on our sales pitch but the bottom line is that we didn't make the sale.
(means, As the end result, we didn't make the sale though we worked hard for it.)

6) Tweak (something) - adjust, fine-tune, amend, make a slight adjustment
e.g, I just have to tweak my report a little bit and then it will be finished.
(means I just need to amend / adjust my report a little bit to finish it.)

7) flying by the seat of (sb) pants - (has a negative connotation that you don't prepare or plan flying by the seat of your pants / off the cuff) means do something with no preparation or planning
e.g, Tom's presentations are bad. He is always flying by the seat of his pants. (ျဖစ္သလုိလုပ္ / ႀကဳံသလုိ လုပ္ရတာ / လုပ္တာ)
means Tom's presentations are bad. He always doesn't prepare in advance.

Last expression:
8) number crunching - analyze something
e.g, I am going to go back to my office and crunch some numbers.
means I am going to go back to my office to analyze some financial figures or budgeting or some thing like that.

all the best,

Writing

A judgement made before all the facts know must be called .....................

a) sensible

b) delibrate

c) harsh

d) premature

e) fair

Choose an answer

Ray was .......................... gambler who had seldom gone a day without indulging his expensive habit.

a) an inveterate

b) a dubious

c) an occasional

d) a novice

e) obnoxious

အေျဖဟာဘာျဖစ္မလဲခင္ဗ်ာ။

Fill in the blanks

Let's fill the appropriate pair of words in to the sentence.

Demographers and anthropologists have corrected the notion that European explorers in North America entered a --------- territory by showing that the land in some areas was already as densely ---------- as parts of Europe.

a) fertile . . settled

b) colossal . . wooded

c) desolate . . populated

d) valuable . . exploited

e) hostile . . concentrated

Writing example

I will write some using some vocabulary.

Mark's lack of experience made him often seem credulous.

Her attitude was credulous, even in the face of such an obvious womanizer.

The general apathy of the American voters has been documented for decades, but this may change.

Barely able to suppress a yawn, Joan showed complete apathy toward her old boyfriend.

Despite her best efforts to appear positive, she could not hide her antipathy.

A new vegetarian, she launched into a diatribe against meat at the grocery store.

The woman was always diffident in confrontations, having been mistreated as a child.

Writing

Although the conference speakers disliked one another and might have been expected to ------- , it turned out that on several substantive issues they were in complete ------- and were able to avoid petty squabbling.

A.     argue . . disagreement

B.     bristle . . apathy

C.     debate . . dissonance

D.     concur . . denial

E.     bicker . . accord

What will be the answer?

Vocabulary

Abscond (v)

to depart clandestinely; to steal off and hide

Aberrant (adj) Aberration (n)

deviating from the norm

Alacrity (n)

eager and enthusiastic willingness

Anomaly (n) Anomalous (adj)

deviation from the normal order, form, or rule; abnormality

Approbation (n)

an expression of approval or praise

Arduous (adj)

strenuous, taxing; requiring significant effort; hard to accomplish; laborious; operose; toilsome

assuage (v)

to ease or lessen; to appease or pacify;  mollify; gruntle; conciliate; gentle; lenify; placate; propitiate

Vocabulary

Some meaning of the previous section words:

LASSITUDE

- A feeling of lack of interest or energy.

- Weakness characterized by a lack of vitality or energy

- A state of comatose torpor (as found in sleeping sickness)

- (syn) inanition; languor; lethargy; listlessness; slackness; sluggishness

ABRASION

- The wearing down of rock particles by friction due to water, wind or ice

- Erosion by friction

- An abraded area where the skin is torn or worn off

Derived:

- abrade (v.)

- abrasive (adj.)

Synonyms:

- attrition; corrasion; detrition; excoriation; grinding; scrape; scratch

MISER

- A stingy hoarder of money and possessions (often living miserably)

e.g. A grasping of old miser (grasping means understanding with difficulty; immoderately desirous of acquiring e.g. wealth)

Testing

Hi This is testing.

ANALOGIES

Now I want to learn about Analogy which is a famous part in SAT or GRE or GMAT etc.
I need to guess the relationship between the given stem words. Let's get started:

ORGAN : KIDNEY
- The kidney is a type of organ.

CENTRIFUGE : SEPARATE
- A centrifuge is used to separate.

LASSITUDE : ENERGY
- Lassitude means lack of energy.

FERVOR : ZEALOT
- A zealot is characterized by fervor.

AGONY : PAIN
- Agony is a greater degree of pain.

MISER : THRIFT
- A miser uses excessive thrift.

COMPLIANT : SERVILE
- Servile means excessively compliant.

LUBRICANT : ABRASION
- Lubricant prevents abrasion.

WILD : RESTRAINT
- Wild means without restraint.

LAUDABLE : PRAISE
- Laudable means worthy of praise.

BED : RIVER
- Bed is the bottom of a river.

OPTIMISTIC : SUCCESS
- No relation

DISORDER : PANDEMONIUM
- Pandemonium is a great amount of disorder.

SCRUTINIZE : TEXT
- No relatioin

POSTHUMOUS : DEATH
- Posthumous means occurring after one's death.

MALINGER : WORK
- Malinger means to avoid work.

PRECIOUS : STONE
- No relation

FAMOUS : WEALTH
- No relation

SOPORIFIC : SLEEP
- Soporific means causing sleep.

Tree Climbing - Together we listen

Hi Everyone, this time, let's learn listening together.

Play the audio Here.

And here under is the transcript. But I'd like to suggest you to listen the audio 3 times without looking at the transcript first. Then listen again while looking at the transcript; that will improve your listening and understanding faster.

OK, Let's get started.

Dan:

Hello and welcome to this week’s 6 Minute English. I’m Dan Walker Smith and today I’m joined by Kate.

Now in today’s programme and in next week’s programme we’re talking about tree climbing. So I want to ask you Kate when was the last time you climbed a tree?

Kate:

Ooh I think it was quite a few years ago now actually; probably when I was a child, around 10 years old. We used to live in the countryside and I remember climbing a tree in the garden with my brother. But it’s been a long long time; I haven’t climbed a tree for years.

Dan:

Exactly, climbing trees is usually an activity that’s associated with childhood. But these days it’s also a growing sport for adults as well. And there are professional tree climbers, and competitions and tree climbing centres across the world.

So this week's question for you Kate is: In what year was the first ever International Tree Climbing Championship held? Was it:

a) 1964

b) 1971

c) 1976

Kate:

Well I’m going to guess that this is quite a recent sport. So I’m going to go for the latest date, which is c) 1976.

Dan: OK, well we’ll see if you’re right at the end of the programme. Now the benefits of climbing are well-documented; it’s great exercise in the open air, and gives you a sense of attachment to the natural environment.

Let’s listen to the professional tree climber James Aldred, as he explains how he developed his love for climbing. Where did he live as a child, and how did it help him decide to start climbing trees?

Extract 1

Well I’ve been into climbing from a very early age. And I was never into rocks or mountaineering; it was always trees. I grew up in a forest, and if I was going to climb anything, by default it was always going to be trees.

Kate:

OK, so James grew up in a forest. To grow up is to change from being a child to being an adult. So, because he spent his early years surrounded by trees, by default, he learnt to climb them. The phrase by default here means that there were no alternative choices or competitors, so trees were the natural things to climb.

Dan:

And what did he mean there Kate when he said he’d ‘been into’ climbing from an early age?

Kate:

Well, to be into something is a slang way of saying you’re interested in something or that you’re a fan of it. For example, you could be into football or into watching tennis.

Dan:

OK well, let’s have a listen to James again as he describes his first experience of climbing a tree. He says he was terrified, which means he was extremely frightened or scared. And he also uses the word scampered – he says that his friends ‘scampered like squirrels’ up the tree. What does he mean here Kate?

Kate:

Well, to scamper means to run with quick short steps. It’s a term that’s usually used to describe animals. So when James says his friends scampered like squirrels he means they were moving quickly, like the furry-tailed little animals that live in trees.

Dan:

So have a listen to the next extract; how long did James stay on the lower branches of the tree?

Extract 2:

I was absolutely terrified the first time I climbed this tree. And the two friends I was with, they just scampered up like squirrels, went right to the top, and left me on the lowest branches for about two hours, absolutely terrified.

Kate:

Well James said that he stayed in the lowest branches for around two hours. A tree’s branches are the woody arms that grow from the trunk. And the trunk is the name of the central part of the tree.

Dan:

Now before we listen to the final extract, I just want to talk about the different parts of a tree. You mentioned there the trunk and the branches, and I want to know what the other parts of a tree are?

Kate:

Well the parts below the ground are called the roots, which keep the tree in place and absorb water and nutrients. Above the roots you have the trunk, as we said, and at the end of the branches you have leaves. A leaf is the flat green part of a plant.

You also have bark, which is the outer covering of a tree. And the thick sweet liquid you find inside the trunk is called sap or resin.

Dan:

OK, let’s have a listen to the final extract for today. This is tree expert Tony Russell, describing the fragrance of a tree, that is the smell or the aroma. He uses some quite complicated words here Kate, so could you please explain some of them?

Kate:

Of course.

Dan:

What does he mean by the foliage and cones, for example?

Kate:

Well foliage is the term for the leaves or the green parts of a plant. And the cones here are the hard woody fruits of a pine tree.

Dan:

Also listen out for the word resinous, which he uses to describe the aroma from the tree; what particular part of the tree does this refer to?

Extract 3

It has this great fragrance to it as well, which comes off the bark, but it also comes off the foliage and off the cones. And on a really warm day you get this tremendous fragrance which is sort of resinous.

Kate:

By resinous, he means it smells like resin or sap.

Dan:

OK Kate, well we’re almost out of time for this week, so let’s go over some of the vocabulary we’ve come across today:

• to grow up
• to choose something by default
• to be into something
• to scamper
• trunk
• branch
• roots
• leaf
• bark
• sap or resin
• foliage
• cones

Kate:

Wow, that’s a lot of words we’ve had this week, but all very useful when talking about trees.

Dan:

Exactly, and we’re coming back to this topic next week for the second part of our tree climbing programme.

Kate: Oh good, I can’t wait.

Dan:

Exactly. And there’s just time as well for today's question. I asked you Kate; in what year was the first ever International Tree Climbing Championship?

Kate:

And I went for the latest date, which was 1976.

Dan:

Exactly, 1976. It was set up by the Californian businessman Dick Alvarez to make sure that people in his tree surgery business had the skills to prepare them for tough climbs. The competition grew, until it’s now a worldwide event.

Kate:

Gosh that’s very interesting. I had no idea people took this sport so seriously.

Dan:

Well it’s a growing sport, and I think it’s one which is becoming more popular as the years go by.

But we’ll hear more about it next week. For this week, from all of us here at BBC Learning English, thanks for listening, and goodbye!

Kate:

Goodbye!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

I hope everyone notices the strange pronunciation of some words:

climbing

default

Enjoy learning together!

On the button

Hi Everyone, I am sorry for my lack of continuity as I had difficulties with inconsistencies of connection and having no computer to stay tune. :) OK, Let's start again from now on. Better late than never.

Now I am going for a new phrase which is "On the Button". What does it mean? What button is that?

OK. Its part of speech is Phrase. (part of speech ဆုိတာ ျမန္မာလုိ ၀ါစဂၤ၊ စကားလုံး အမ်ဳိးအစားကုိ ဆုိလုိျခင္းပါ).

It means: exactly on target, exactly on the right time, Just right (ကြက္တိပဲ၊ ခ်က္ေကာင္း)

Sample:

Moran is a one-punch fighter. He packs a mighty mean crusher in his right hand. If it ever lands on the button Morris will prove himself a superman if he doesn't go down.

၁၉ ရာစုက အေရးအသားပါ။

မုိရမ္ဟာ ပြဲသိမ္းလက္သီးကုိ ပုိင္ဆုိင္ထားတဲ့ လက္ေ၀ွ႔သမားတစ္ေယာက္ပါ။ သူ႔ညာဘက္လက္ထဲမွာ ဖ်က္အားျပင္းတဲ့ ခြန္အားေတြ ပုိင္ဆုိင္ထားတယ္။ တကယ္လုိ႔သာ သူ႔လက္သီးက ေမာရစ္ရဲ႕ ခ်က္ေကာင္းကုိ ထိသြားခဲ့ရင္ ေမာရစ္ဟာ သာမာန္လူသား မဟုတ္မွသာလွ်င္ လဲက်မသြားဘဲ ေနႏုိင္လိမ့္မယ္။

The Kid floored him with a right cross to the button of the jaw.

အဲဒီကေလးဟာ ဟုိလူရဲ႕ ေမးရုိးခ်က္ေကာင္းကုိ ၀ုိက္လက္သီးနဲ႔ အလဲထုိးခဲ့တယ္။

(ဒီစာေၾကာင္းမွာေတာ့ to the button လုိ႔သုံးထားတယ္ ဘာေၾကာင့္လဲဆုိရင္ အေရွ႕က right cross ဆုိတဲ့ action နဲ႔ ေမးရုိးဆုိတဲ့ တိက်တဲ့ ေနရာကုိ ညႊန္းထားေသာေၾကာင့္ ျဖစ္ပါတယ္)။

Let me stop here.

So if someone ever tries to harass you, just give him on the button. :)