Unit 1

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When you need extra time before answering a question, these are useful expressions:
Thats a difficult one. Uh
Well, lets see
Thats a good question. Well
Hmm, let me think
Uh, it depends on the context.
Hmm, Im not sure. Id have to think
about that

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World of English

Approximately 50% of the 3000 most common

words in English are cognates in Romance languages.
But in some contexts Latin origin words can be too
formal. For example, I think you should terminate
your relationship with him. Fluent speakers use a lot
of phrasal verbs, which sound more natural.

Compound adjectives are very common. Here are two

types:
1 Adjective / adverb + past participle:
kind-hearted: someone with a kind heart.
well-written: something that has been written well.
2 Adjective / adverb + present participle (-ing):
good-looking: someone who looks good.
long-lasting: something that lasts for a long time.

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World of English

On average, we spend about 45% of

our communicating time listening,
30% speaking, 16% reading and 9%
writing. Try to listen to English as often
as you can, ideally a little every day. In
conversation, use gestures and phrases
to show you understand or check details.

In anecdotes, people often use the present tense, this and these so people
and objects seem closer to the listener.
As a language learner, telling stories about the past using the present tense
can make your life easier. But, please, dont do this in written English, nor
mix the two tenses in one sentence! And if youre not sure, use the past.

Unit 2
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Remember!
Adjectives in English only have one form.
They dont change for gender or plural
and they always come before the noun.

No + or noun means not a or not any.

Its often used to give extra emphasis.

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Two common ways to express small
quantities:
Theres
almost no coral
left.
There are hardly any pandas

Ads often remove articles, auxiliary verbs or subjects

to make sentences shorter and more exciting. This
kind of omission is called an ellipsis. For example:
(You can) feel the power of the sun.
(Our new car is) faster than you thought.
(The) offer (is) limited to the United States.
(Are you) tired of losing whats left of your hair?

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Over 10% of the sounds of spoken English is the
schwa //. Auxiliary verbs, articles, pronouns
and prepositions are usually unstressed, and
their vowels are often reduced to //.

Unit 3
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World of English

Try to remember new words

together, not in isolation. To
help remember pronunciation,
create sentences with rhyming
soundseven if theyre a
little strange!
I live in a dangerous
ancient Asian skyscraper.

Have is the third most common verb

in English, after be and do. It can be a
main verb, an auxiliary or a participle.
I had an extra portion and later realized
that I had had too much to eat.

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Use though, although and even though to express
contrast. Use them at the beginning or in the
middle of sentences. Though can also be used at
the end of a sentence.

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The Past Simple is the most common past tense. In general, use the others like this:
Past Continuous: an action in progress at a point in the past.
I was watching TV when you called. Sorry!
Past Perfect: one action that happened before another.
By 8 p.m. Jo had done all her work, so she went home.
Past Perfect Continuous: action in progress or repeated before a point in the past.
But shed been working so hard she fell asleep in the car.

Unit 4
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World of English

Stress the penultimate syllable on words ending in

-sion, -tion and -ic (except in politics).
Stress the antepenultimate syllable when they end in
-al, -cy, -gy, -phy, -try and -ty.

The suffix -ate is usually pronounced /t/ in

verbs and /t/ in nouns and adjectives.
Is Bill Gates a university graduate?
Mark Zuckerberg didnt graduate from Harvard.
Sue finally got her intermediate certificate.

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The main differences between U.S. and UK English
are in pronunciation, spelling and vocabulary.
Theater / color (U.S.) but theatre / colour (UK).
College and university can be used as synonyms
in the U.S. In the UK college means any
institution after high school, but not university.
To graduate in the U.S. means to pass the final
exams from any education institution, but it is
only used for university in the UK.

Unit 5
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World of English

The suffix -holic describes people who do things compulsively:

Confessions of a Shopaholic was a great movie.
Singer Rihanna has confessed to being a chocoholic.
Others include alcoholic, bookaholic, workaholicand you can
even invent your own!

gh is usually silent but it can be

pronounced:
/f/ = cough, enough, laugh
/g/ = Afghanistan, ghetto, ghost
Pronounce both letters separately in
compound words, e.g. big head.

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World of English

There are lots of ways to refer to U.S. money:

A grand (a thousand dollarsinformal), a buck (a dollarinformal),
a quarter (25 cents) and a dime (10 cents).
Dead presidents is slang for cash. Thats because most U.S. bills show
images of dead presidents, except Alexander Hamilton (on $20 bills)
and Benjamin Franklin (on $100s), who were not U.S. presidents.

We often use extra phrases with it

could be to emphasize our uncertainty.
Im not sure but
Who knows?...
I guess
I dont know but

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English has many portmanteau wordstwo
words combined to make a new word. information + commercial = infomercial
Other examples include:
affluence + influenza = affluenza (getting richer but not getting happier)
anticipation + disappointment = anticipointment (strong disappointment when something you waited for is not so good)
You can google portmanteau words to find some other examples.

Unit 6
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Compound nouns combine two words.

The stress is usually on the first part.
live gigs
billboards
soap operas
smartphone
talk shows
cable TV
coursebook
crime dramas

There are many different types of surprise.

The emotion in your voice will show the
difference, but the interjections are important
too. Look at these examples:
Eek! Help! Its a snake!
Huh? Did you say left? Really? But its on
the right.
Wow! We won a vacation in Florida! Yeah!
Whoa, dude! That skateboard is so cool.
Huh, its raining again.

To show surprise, echo

information using a questioning
intonation. Use word stress to
highlight the really surprising
information.
Did you know Chuck Norriss
real name is actually Carlos?
Huh? His names Carlos? No
way! (not Chuck?)
Notice the use of actually to
show something is really true.

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World of English

Use on + digital / electronic media.

on Facebook on the Internet
on CD / DVD on a memory stick
on video
on the radio
on TV
Use in + paper.
in print
in a magazine
in a (note)book
in the (news)paper in a photo
Exception:
Please, write it on (a piece of) paper.

As and like are often confused. Both are used to compare actions,
people or situations. Use like + noun to express similarity.
She looks like Taylor Swift.
He wants his hair like Supermans.
Use as for jobs, or functional uses.
I worked as a taxi driver for three years. (job)
We used our coats as umbrellas. (use)

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Pausing when you speak gives you time to
think, express emotions, and breathe!
You can sometimes fill pauses with
phrases like let me see... or just um....

Unit 7
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World of English

Double C is pronounced:
/k/ (according, occur)
/ks/ before e or i (accent, vaccine)
Does the accommodation have Internet access?

Say and tell are both in the top 25 most common verbs.
Common collocations include:
Do you always say please and thank you?
Are you good at telling jokes and stories?
Can you tell if someone is telling the truth or a lie?

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World of English

There are lots of ways to ask someone to wait:

Please hold. (on the phone only)
Just a minute, please.
Wait a sec. (informal)

Indirect questions begin with phrases like:

Do you know / remember?
Do you have any idea?
Can / Could you tell me?
I wonder
They make questions and requests softer or
more polite.

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The /h/ in he, him and her is very weak or may not be pronounced at all.
Does he like to hang out with his girlfriend and her friends?
Learning to recognize words like this makes it easier to understand fluent
speakers. Try it and youll sound more fluent too.

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Young people often use like in informal speech. Here are some examples:
The party was, like, so cool. (filler speech)
I was like What are you doing? and he was like Nothing. (quotative)
It took, like, forever to get here. (to signal exaggeration)
Remember these usages arent appropriate in many contexts.

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Point is the 33rd most common noun in English. Use it in different
ways to help you express your views.
Whats your point exactly? (What are you trying to say?)
OK, point taken. (I accept what youre saying.)
Please, get to the point! (Say what you really need to.)

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Note-taking is a useful learning skill to develop. When taking notes
you should write as fast and economically as possible. Here are three
ways to do that:
Focus on the most important info (facts, dates, numbers) + ignore
less relevant details.
Omit articles, aux. verbs + prepositionsnot usually important info.
Use figures for numbers (7 out of 10 = 70%), symbols ( > = more
than) + abbreviations (sts = students).

Unit 8
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When the object is the same as the subject, use one of the eight reflexive
pronouns:
self or
selves.
Be careful! Youre going to cut yourself!
We have to help ourselves.

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Students tend to avoid using modal perfects because its easier to
use adverbs.
Maybe / Perhaps he got upset. = He might / may have gotten upset.
Im almost certain she saw us. = She must have seen us.
Im almost certain they didnt know. = They cant have known.
These expressions are fine, of course, but if you use modals youll
sound more natural and more sophisticated too.

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In causatives, have and get mean the same, but get
is a little more common in spoken English.
To emphasize that you did something without help,
use a reflexive pronoun.
Where did you get your hair cut?
Oh, I cut it myself actually.

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Tag questions are very common in spoken English, but not in formal writing. Use
them to ask the listener to make a comment and so keep the conversation open.
They can have two different functions depending on your intonation.
Rising intonation is usually a real question. It means Im not sure, so Im checking.
Falling intonation is more like a statement. It means Im not really asking. I
just want you to agree.

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Predicting what the speaker is about to say is a very useful listening strategy.
Here are three clues to listen for:
1 Use of adverbs:
Dad was rushed to the hospital. Fortunately You know its good news.
2 Use of linking words:
The economy was good last year. However You know its a contrast.
Electric cars are greener. In addition
You know its another point.
3 Intonation:
Would I like to live abroad? Hmm
You know the answer is probably no.

Unit 9
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World of English

English verbs fall into four categories or aspects:

1Simple (states, habits, single actions): I study
English.
2Continuous (progress): I am studying English.
3Perfect (links a point in time with a previous
action): I have studied English.
4Perfect Continuous (progress before a point in
time): I have been studying English.
Knowing how each aspect works can help you
to make different past, present and future verb
combinations more easily.

The passive voice is often used to move important information

to the front of the sentence. Clauses can also be linked more
clearly by using the passivee.g., this sentence! Use it when
the doer of a verb is unknown, unimportant or obvious.

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By is the 30th most common word in English. It can
be used in lots of different ways.
1Before a point in time:
By 2030, printed books will have disappeared.
2To say who did the action in passive sentences:
The iPhone was created by Steve Jobs.
3To explain how something can be done:
You can refresh the page by pressing F5.

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Its hard to remember prepositions and use them
correctly. Here are three tips to help you:
1Notice and learn prepositions in chunks or
phrases. E.g., try to remember was charged
with rather than just charged.
2Try to visualize preposition phraseseven if
your picture doesnt make sense!
3Memorizing and reusing a personal example
really helps.

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Detecting sarcasm in writing, without intonation or
facial expressions, isnt easy. Four tips:
If a sentence looks sarcastic, read it out loud.
You might hear the sarcasm.
Ask yourself Does it make sense in this context?
Thanks, American Air, for losing my bags again
this year! is a clear example of sarcasm.
Look for examples of exaggeration: Arent you
the greatest cook in the world!
Consider the style. Informal writing usually
contains more sarcasm.

Unit 10
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World of English

Binomials are pairs of words connected by a

conjunction or a preposition. Their word order is
usually fixed, so learn them as chunks. They are
formed by:
1 Repeating the word or a synonym:
This program will teach you how to control
your anger step by step.
We will help you deal with each and every
one of your problems.
2 Using opposites:
Its more or less like intensive meditation.

Try to remember prepositions in personalized phrases:

Im really good at learning languages. (adj. + prep.)
Whats your excuse for not doing your homework this
time? (noun + prep.)
My dads always complaining about waking up early!
(verb + prep.)

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If you use two verbs together, the second one can be either a gerund or an infinitive.
Sometimes theres no difference in meaning. Look:
I began to study / studying English when I was six.
I like to listen to / listening to classical music while Im driving.
But there are a few important exceptions, which youll learn later in this lesson. Stay tuned!

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When a phrasal verb (PV) needs an object, sometimes you can separate the verb and
particle (you can split them up) and sometimes you cant (nothing can come between
them). Four tips to help you:
1 Most PVs with one particle are separable. If you use a pronoun, it always goes in the
middle: Turn on the TV. / Turn the TV on. / Turn it on.
2 But some common PVs with one particle are inseparable: Im looking for a job.
If youre not sure, say it out loud, separating the verb and the particle. If the verb is
inseparable, the sentence will sound really strange! Im looking a job for (!)
3 PVs with two particles are usually inseparable: She cut down on sugar.
4 To remember new PVs, create a useful, personal example. Get out of here ! You couldnt
make that up ! Use them as often as you can until they become friends.

World of English
Congratulations! Youve finished intermediate level. Most learners dont get this far! To keep improving, speak more often,
watch more videos, read things youre interested in. The Internet is a fabulous resource. Maybe take an international exam,
too. It will motivate you to study more, youll feel great when you pass and it might help you get a better job. Good luck!