Notes, summaries, assignments, exams, and exercises for English for Competitive examination

Essential Vocabulary: Definitions for Modern Life

Expand your understanding of key terms across various domains, from fashion and social interactions to careers and global issues.

Fashion & Style Terminology

• Stud: A small, decorative metal object used as an embellishment for clothing or accessories.
• Baggy: Loose-fitting, often referring to clothing.
• Fringe: Hair cut short and worn over the forehead; also, a decorative border of hanging threads.
• High Heels: Shoes with a raised heel, typically worn by women.
• Plain Denim: Denim fabric without embellishments or patterns, offering a simple aesthetic.
• Tie-Dyed Cotton: Cotton fabric decorated with a tie-dye pattern.
• Striped Silk: Silk fabric featuring a pattern of stripes.
• Flowy Velvet: Velvet fabric with

The Passive with Reporting Verbs

We can use passive reporting verbs in two ways:

1. Subject of the subordinate clause + verb in the main clause is the passive + to + infinitive of the verb in the subordinate clause.

The university is said to be one of the best in the country. (= Se dice que la universidad es una de las mejores del país.)

The exam is expected to be really difficult this year. (= Se espera que el examen sea más difícil este año.)

2. It + passive form of the reporting verb + that + subject + verb

It is believed that the class will be very popular. (= Se cree que la clase será muy popular.)

It's thought that boys prefer exams to coursework. (= Se cree que los chicos prefieren los exámenes al trabajo diario.)

Reporting Verbs:

• accept
• hope
• say
• believe
• know
• think
• claim

Vocabulary

1.

• 1. Trash
• 2. Voyage
• 3. Avoid
• 4. Landfills
• 5. Shortcut
• 6. Amount
• 7. Harmful
• 8. Halfway
• 9. A drop in the ocean

2.

1. E
2. F
3. D
4. C
5. A
6. B

3.

1. Carbon footprint
2. Renewable energy
3. Litter
4. Fuel

Grammar

4.

1. Could do / Could have done
2. Shouldn’t wear
3. May / Can / Could … have
4. Can’t believe
5. May / Might not have seen
6. Needn’t / Don’t have to pay

5.

1. Susan shouldn’t / needn’t have brought so many bottles. / Susan didn’t have to bring so many bottles.
2. Otherwise, I would have mentioned it.
3. That’s why I didn’t have to get up so early.
4. Could / Can we give you a lift?

6.

1. We had better leave immediately.
2. He shouldn’t wear pale colors.
3. You had better not say a word to anyone!

Vocabulary

1.

1. Went bald
2. Picked up
3. Ingest
4. Inhabit
5. Used up
6. Emits
7. Fool

2.

1. Caught the waiter’s eye
2. Pick up so many languages
3. Cut

Essential English Irregular Verbs

Here's a list of common irregular verbs in English, with their base form, past simple, and past participle, along with a Spanish translation.

• Be - Was/Were - Been - Ser, Estar
• Beat - Beat - Beaten - Golpear
• Become - Became - Become - Llegar a ser
• Begin - Began - Begun - Empezar
• Bend - Bent - Bent - Doblar
• Bet - Bet - Bet - Apostar
• Bite - Bit - Bitten - Morder
• Bleed - Bled - Bled - Sangrar
• Blow - Blew - Blown - Soplar
• Break - Broke - Broken - Romper
• Bring - Brought - Brought - Traer
• Build - Built - Built - Construir
• Burn - Burnt/Burned - Burnt/Burned - Quemar
• Burst - Burst - Burst - Reventar, Estallar
• Buy - Bought - Bought - Comprar
• Catch - Caught - Caught - Coger
• Choose - Chose - Chosen - Elegir
• Come - Came - Come - Venir
• Cost

Alice Munro Short Story Summaries

Nettles

"Nettles": In "Nettles", the unnamed narrator is recently divorced and making a new life for herself in Toronto. This life is supposed to be one "freed from domesticity", but the narrator is overly aware of the new outward forms her life takes and seems to hope that her consciousness might match this show of independence.

Post and Beam

"Post and Beam"

Lorna, a young mother who, like more than one woman in the book, has married an older man and is beginning to resent his tendentious ways. Lorna, the wife, has escaped the straitened circumstances of her family, but her cousin Polly hasn't, and when Polly comes to Toronto for a visit, Lorna's two lives collide painfully. She fears the worst, she makes a bargain...

be - was, were - been - ser o estar

fight - fought - fought - luchar

beat - beat - beaten - golpear - find - found - found - encontrar

become - became - become - llegar a ser - fly - flew - flown - volar

being - began - begun - empezar - forget - forgot - forgotten - olvidar

bend - bent - bent - doblarse - forgive - forgave - forgiven - perdonar

bet - bet - bet - apostar - freeze - froze - frozen - congelar

bite - bit - bitten - morder - get - got - got - conseguir

bleed - bled - bled - sangrar - give - gave - given - dar

blow - blew - blown - soplar - go - went - gone - ir

break - broke - broken - romper - grow - grew - grown - crecer

bring - brought - brought - traer - hang - hung - hung - colgar

build - built - built - construir - have - had - had -...

Predictions

Impossible: People DEFINITELY WON’T live on Mars. / Unlikely: People PROBABLY WON’T choose to have holidays in space. / IT’S UNLIKELY that the earth WILL be hit by a meteorite. / I DON’T THINK the use of smartphones WILL increase. / Possible: Food MAY become more expensive. / Tablets MIGHT replace textbooks. / IT’S POSSIBLE that everyone WILL speak English. / Likely: IT’S LIKELY that in the future we’LL import more. / The cost of mobile technology WILL PROBABLY fall. / I THINK the use of smartphones WILL increase. / Certain: The use of smartphones WILL DEFINITELY increase. / I AM SURE the use of smartphones WILL definitely increase.

Usage

Will: predictions about the future.
Might/May/Be Likely/Unlikely/Possible: degree...

1. Grimm's Law

Jacob Grimm formulated a law in 1822 by which he accounted for an explanation about Indo-European and Germanic consonants and their corresponding development. In other words, he explained how certain consonant sounds changed and developed. According to him, the original Indo-European voiceless stops p/t/k were changed to the fricatives f/þ/h in the Germanic languages. Also, the aspirates bh/dh/gh became voiced fricatives β/đ/y, and then, the voiced stops b/d/g. The original voiced stops b/d/g changed later to voiceless stops in the Germanic languages so b/d/g turned into p/t/k (h). The Germanic Sound Shift is the most distinctive feature marking off the Germanic languages from the languages to which they are related.

2. Verner'

Essential Vocabulary List and Definitions

This comprehensive glossary provides clear definitions for a variety of descriptive English words, categorized by their part of speech for easy reference and improved understanding of context.

Nouns and States of Being

• Creek (n): A stream smaller than a river.
• Soaring (n): The sport of flying a sailplane.
• Shack (n): A rough cabin or shanty.
• Aloofness (n): The quality or state of being distant, reserved, or indifferent.
• Plea (n): An appeal or entreaty.
• Foyer (n): The lobby of a theater, hotel, or apartment house.
• Spool (n): Any cylindrical piece or device on which something is wound.
• Gust (n): A sudden, strong blast of wind.
• Lurch (n): An act or instance of swaying abruptly.
• Loafer (n): A person who loafs; a lazy

Literary Opposites and Vocabulary

• Beauty: Ugliness
• Dangerous: Safe
• Evil: Pleasant
• Good-looking: Ugly
• Loved: Hated
• Terrible: Good
• Ugly: Beautiful / Good-looking
• Young: Old

Analysis of Chapters 12 and 13: Basil Hallward's Fate

Instruction: Review the following questions and answers based on Chapters 12 and 13 of The Picture of Dorian Gray.

1. Where was Basil going?

   Basil was planning to go to Paris, but Dorian murdered him that night.

2. What had Basil heard about Dorian?

   Basil had heard terrible things about Dorian's reputation.

3. Where did Dorian take Basil?

   Dorian took Basil to his home (specifically, the locked room where the portrait was kept).

4. How did Basil feel when he saw the picture?

   He felt afraid and horrified because the portrait had changed, reflecting Dorian'