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audience:  the people who are listening or watching
After her performance, the audience cheered loudly.
During the school play, Susan saw her mother sitting in the audience.

beard:  the hair a man has on his cheeks and chin
The little girl pulled on Santa’s beard to see if it was real.
He shaved off his beard because his girlfriend didn’t like it.

building:  a structure with walls, a roof and usually windows used for activities such as living, entertainment and manufacturing
He works in the medical research building at the hospital.
There are many more buildings in the city than ten years ago.

edge:  the part where a surface drops off
The movie was so exciting everyone was sitting on the edge of their seats.
The car drove off the edge of a cliff and crashed into the ocean.

gasoline:  the liquid that is necessary for a motor to run
They canceled their trip across the country because of the price of gasoline.
Henry ran out of gasoline and had to walk to the nearest service station.

hanger:  a metal or plastic device used to hang shirts, coats and other clothing in a closet
All the coats are on hangers in the hall closet.
After she irons her blouses, she puts them on hangers.

island:  a piece of land totally surrounded by ocean or other water.
They own an island in Maine, where they have a summer camp.
Jamaica is an island in the Caribbean Sea.

marriage:  the official union of two people.
Paul asked his long-time girlfriend if he could have her hand in marriage.
Their marriage ended in divorce in 2007.

noise:  unpleasant or meaningless sound
Mom says to stop that noise.  She’s trying to study.
He knew there was a party next door because of all the noise.

piece:  part of something
For dessert I’ll take a piece of that blueberry pie.
She knocked the vase off the table and had to clean up all the broken pieces.

secret:  information that is known and shared by only a few people
Her surprise birthday party is a secret, so don’t tell anybody
Can you keep a secret?

video:  moving picture
The police have been given videos of the fight that people took with their smart phones.
You can upload your wedding video to YouTube so your relatives can see it.

Pronunciation Exercise: Listen and repeat the above vocabulary on the audio file below.

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When you think you’re ready, do the following exercise.

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abnormal:     not usual, not typical, exceptional
This past winter there was an abnormal amount of snowfall.
Some cats have an abnormal six toes on their paws.

adaptable:     able to change when the situation changes
She’s very adaptable and will have no trouble living in Spain for a year.
My grandparents are not adaptable to new technology.

annual:     happening every year, yearly
The school holds an annual fund-raising event to raise money for sports equipment.
He got a good job out of college with an annual salary of $65,000.

anonymous:     nameless, unknown
He received an anonymous phone call telling him to stay away from work tomorrow.
The donors for the new hospital wing want to stay anonymous.

audible:     able to be heard
The eruption of the volcano was audible for thousands of miles.
Her last words to him were not audible because of the train whistle.

decent:     right and good
The decent thing to do is to apologize to her and promise never to do it again.
That was very decent of you to help the girl find her mother.

improbable:     probably not happening, unlikely to occur
It is improbable that the earth will get hit by a large meteor anytime soon.
Mechanical failure is an improbable cause of the crash.

ineffective:     not causing the expected result
On the second day his deodorant became ineffective, and he started to smell bad.
Her efforts to stay above the water were ineffective, and she drowned.

infectious:     spreading from one person to another
Anita’s laughter was so infectious that everyone started to laugh with her.
AIDS is an infectious disease that is spread through sexual contact.

inseparable:     always together, not separating
She met her boyfriend three months ago, and since then they’ve been inseparable.
My iPhone and I have been inseparable since I bought it over a year ago.

minor:     not important, small
In her first movie, she had a minor role as a waitress in a diner.
He was lucky that his injury was minor; it could have been much worse.

premature:     happening too soon, before the right time
Many people die a premature death because of smoking.
My niece was born four weeks premature, but she’s doing well.

recent:     just happening, not long ago
In recent years real estate prices have fallen all over the world.
The police needed a recent photograph of the woman’s daughter.

toxic:     poisonous, very negative
The company had to pay the costs of cleanup after dumping toxic waste in the lake.
There’s a person at my club who is so toxic that I want to leave the room when he enters.

unconcerned:     not worried
He seemed unconcerned that his girlfriend hadn’t arrived yet.
My doctor seemed unconcerned about the dark spots on my skin.

Pronunciation Exercise: Listen and repeat the above vocabulary on the audio file below.

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When you think you’re ready, do the following exercises.

© 2013 Ambien Malecot

 

There are many expressions in English that have double words.  Here is a partial list with examples of how they’re used:

Time:

hours and hours – many hours

        It took him hours and hours to do his taxes.

days and days – many days

        It rained for days and days.

weeks and weeks – many weeks

       He had been working for weeks and weeks on the project.

months and months – many months

       They’ve been trying to sell their house for months and months.

years and years – many years

       She’s been renting that apartment for years and years.

time after time – every single time

       He keeps helping her time after time.

time and time again – periodically

       He returns to Vancouver time and time again.

hour after hour – one hour after another

       He studied hour after hour with no break.

day after day – one day after another

       It kept raining day after day.

day by day – each day

       She has no future plans; she’s just trying to live day by day.

week after week – one week after another

      Week after week she stays at home and doesn’t go out.

month after month – one month after another

      He would ask his parents for money month after month.

year after year – one year after another

      Year after year the rent on their condo went up.

little by little – gradually

      He started to lose his hair little by little.

again and again – repeatedly

       She called his name again and again, but there was no answer.

on and on – continuously without stopping

       He talked on and on about his adventures in Indonesia.

over and over – repeatedly

       She kept saying over and over how lucky she was.

Comparatives:

more and more – a little more each time

      Every day she likes him more and more.    

less and less – a little less each time [uncountable nouns]

      As time went on, he became less and less interested in art.

fewer and fewer – a little fewer each time [countable nouns]

      As time went on she made fewer and fewer typing mistakes.

better and better – a little better each time

      Every day he’s feeling better and better.

worse and worse – a little worse each time

      My stomachache is getting worse and worse.

harder and harder – a little harder each time

      It seems to be getting harder and harder to find a used CDs store.

bigger and bigger – a little bigger each time

      Vancouver is getting bigger and bigger.

longer and longer – a little longer each time

      The waiting time for a trial date is getting longer and longer.

smarter and smarter – a little smarter each time

      His grandson is getting smarter and smarter every year.

stronger and stronger – a little stronger each time

      By working out, you’ll get stronger and stronger.

Other expressions:

round and round – in circles

The children turned round and round until they fell over.

all in all – considering everything

      All in all, it wasn’t a bad movie.

word for word – each word the same, exactly

      She told him what her girlfriend told her word for word.

step by step – all the steps necessary

      There were step by step directions on the back of the package.

item by item – each and every item

      They had to clean everything item by item.

pound for pound – each and every pound

      He can match his brother pound for pound.

street by street – every street

      The police searched street by street for the missing children.

face to face – facing each other

       Their first face to face meeting was at Starbucks.

shoulder to shoulder – touching the shoulder of the one next to you

The union members stood shoulder to shoulder facing the angry mob.

 

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forbidden:    not allowed, against the rules or law
Smoking anywhere in this building is forbidden.
In some religions pork is a forbidden food.

fragrant:    having a nice smell
I only buy fragrant flowers that make my apartment smell nice.
This is one of the most fragrant wines I have drunk in a long time.

furious:     extremely angry
She was furious with him for lying to her.
They were furious that their table had been given to someone else.

greedy:    wanting all of it and not willing to share
Eating the whole pie is a greedy thing to do.
Don’t be greedy.  Leave me some of those potato chips.

hearty:    healthy or strong
We had a hearty breakfast of eggs, bacon, and pancakes.
They gave the soldier a hearty welcome when he arrived back home.

inferior:    not as good, poor in quality
Don’t buy that smart phone.  It’s inferior to the one I have.
Last year they put inferior tires on my car, and now I need new ones.

isolated:    separated from others, alone
The girl felt isolated in her new school.
There was one isolated tree in the middle of the field.

monotonous:    always the same, repeating and boring
His job in the box factory is monotonous.
She doesn’t enjoy the music because she feels it’s monotonous.

noticeable:    easily seen
The scar on his face is more noticeable in the morning.
The stain wasn’t very noticeable, so she didn’t have to change her dress.

outstanding:    better than all the others, excellent
Everyone agrees he’s an outstanding athlete.
The job you did on your last project was outstanding.

peculiar:    unusual and strange
She has a peculiar habit of twisting her hair with her fingers.
I think it’s peculiar that Susan missed our 4:00 meeting.

similar:     generally the same
The boys have a similar attitude toward their studies.
They both had similar experiences when they were young.

superior:    better in quality
That company builds cars that are superior in quality to other cars.
His writing is superior to his classmate’s.

unfamiliar:    not knowing about
We are unfamiliar with the customs of this country.
They found themselves in unfamiliar surroundings.

visual:    about seeing or sight
He will always carry a visual image of her in his mind.
It’s been a long time, and I have no visual memory of her face.

Pronunciation Exercise: Listen and repeat the above vocabulary on the audio file below.

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Use these flashcards to help you study.

 

When you think you’re ready, do the following exercises.

© 2013 Ambien Malecot

 

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artificial:    made by humans, not natural
This candy has artificial colors and flavors.
After the accident, he got an artificial leg.

circular:    in the shape of a circle
Be careful with that circular saw.  You can lose a finger.
He cleaned the windows using a circular motion.

daily:    happening every day
Do you read the daily newspaper?
I always take my daily vitamins .

enormous:    very large
His feet are enormous.
The Rocky Mountains are an enormous range.

entire:    all, whole
I can’t believe I ate the entire cake.
The entire school welcomed the returning war hero.

fancy:    much better than ordinary
She made a fancy dinner for her in-laws.
I think I’ll wear something fancy on my date.

forgetful:    not able to remember
She’s becoming more and more forgetful.
When I’m very busy, I sometimes become forgetful.

hilarious:    very funny
That was a hilarious speech you gave to the students.
It’s hilarious that you can’t remember your own phone number.

miserable:    very uncomfortable or uneasy
It’s been raining for 3 days.  I don’t like this miserable weather.
Everyone feels miserable when they have a cold.

narrow:    thin, not wide
His truck is too wide for these narrow streets.
Her hair is brown and her nose is narrow.

obedient:    doing what you are told to do
I trained my dog well, and now he’s very obedient.
What an obedient child you have!

plentiful:    lots, much, many
The apples on my tree are plentiful this year.
The fish are plentiful in this lake.

reckless:    careless, unconcerned about results
My friend is a reckless driver, and it scares me.
He is reckless with his money.

stubborn:    not wanting to change your mind
When she gets stubborn, she won’t listen to you.
He wants to have dinner at 6:00, and he’s stubborn about it.

wealthy:    rich, having a lot
There are many wealthy people living in Vancouver.
He has a wealthy knowledge of history.

Pronunciation Exercise: Listen and repeat the above vocabulary on the audio file below.

Audio Player

Use these flashcards to help you study.

 

When you think you’re ready, do the following exercise.

© 2013 Ambien Malecot