THE STRENGTH OF THE WIND (Intermediate) (EXERCISE I102E291)

The international scale used to describe the strength of the wind was devised by Sir Francis Beaufort, a British admiral of the time of Nelson, and is known as the Beaufort scale. It rates wind from calm to hurricane.

Read the descriptions (not in order of strength) of the categories of wind and their effects on the land. Rate them on the Beaufort scale: 1-12.

	Character of wind	Effects of wind inland	Scale
(A)	Gale	Twigs broken from trees, movement in open difficult.
(B)	Light Air	Calm, smoke rises vertically.
(C)	Gentle Breeze	Leaves and thin twigs move, pennants extend fully.
(D)	Strong Breeze	Thicker branches move, whistling in telephone lines, umbrellas difficult to use.
(E)	Light Breeze	Wind felt on face, leaves whisper, flags move.
(F)	Storm	Trees uprooted, major damage to houses.
(G)	Fresh Breeze	Small trees in leaf begin to sway, white horses on lakes.
(H)	Hurricane	Severe Destruction
(I)	Near Gale	Whole trees moving, resistance to movement against wind perceptible.
(J)	Violent Storm	Widespread damage.
(K)	Moderate Breeze	Paper and dust lifted, twigs and thin branches move.
(L)	Strong Gale	Minor damage to houses (awnings and T.V. aerials).

ANSWERS: THE STRENGTH OF THE WIND

	Character of wind	Effects of wind inland	Scale
(A)	Gale	Twigs broken from trees, movement in open difficult.	8
(B)	Light Air	Calm, smoke rises vertically.	1
(C)	Gentle Breeze	Leaves and thin twigs move, pennants extend fully.	3
(D)	Strong Breeze	Thicker branches move, whistling in telephones line, umbrellas difficult to use.	6
(E)	Light Breeze	Wind felt on face, leaves whisper, flags move.	2
(F)	Storm	Trees uprooted, major damage to houses.	10
(G)	Fresh Breeze	Small trees in leaf begin to sway, white horses on lakes.	5
(H)	Hurricane	Severe Destruction	12
(I)	Near Gale	Whole trees moving, resistance to movement against wind perceptible.	7
(J)	Violent Storm	Widespread damage.	11
(K)	Moderate Breeze	Paper and dust lifted, twigs and thin branches move.	4
(L)	Strong Gale	Minor damage to houses (awnings and T.V. aerials).	9

TO PRINT

EPONYMS (Advanced) (EXERCISE A78E290)

New words enter a language in many ways. Below in the box are eight words which came into English because of unusual things someone did. Place a word next to its description.

Chauvinist      Bobbies     Leotard    Margarita    Guillotine    Casanova      Braille      Derby

(A)   _________________: a close-fitting garment worn by dancers, acrobats, and the like.     Named after Julius ______________ a 19^th  century French aerial gymnast. 

(B)   _________________: a machine for beheading people. Named after Joseph ________.

 A French physician who proposed its use in 1789 as more humane than hanging.

(C)   _________________: a man who is a promiscuous and unscrupulous lover. Named

 after Giovanni _________________ an Italian adventurer, and writer, 1725 -1798.

(D)   _________________: a stiff felt hat with a dome-shaped crown and rather narrowed rolled brim. Named after Edward Stanley, 12^th Earl of _______________ , who founded the ________________ horse race at Epson Downs, England.

(E)    _________________: excessively patriotic or devoted to an ideology. After Nicolas ________________ a legendary French soldier devoted to Napoleon.

(F)    _________________: in Great Britain, the nickname given to police officers. Named after Sir _____________ Peel, the statesman who organized the London police force in 1850.  

(G)  ________________: an alcoholic drink, made with tequila and lime juice. Invented by a bartender in El Paso, Texas, in honor of his girlfriend.

(H)   ________________: a system of writing for the blind. Named after Louis ___________, a French teacher of the blind who invented it in 1852.

Here are a few eponyms used in everyday speech:

The phrase “sideburns” actually comes from Ambrose Burnside, an American jack-of-all-trades and first president of the NRA. His unique hairstyling created a new word!

As tissues have come to be known as Kleenex, the brand name Kleenex is an eponym as well.

If you are said to have an “Achilles’ heel”, it means that you have a weakness of some kind. This eponym goes back to the Greek myths and to the Trojan War. The hero Achilles was dipped in the river Styx by his mother, making him invulnerable, except for the part of his heel where his mother held him. He was eventually killed by being wounded in his heel.

Europa was a woman in Greek mythology, after whom the continent of Europe is named.

             ANSWERS:       

EPONYMS  

                                                                         

New words enter a language in many ways. Below in the box are eight words which came into English because of unusual things someone did. Place a word next to its description.

Chauvinist      Bobbies     Leotard    Margarita    Guillotine    Casanova      Braille      Derby

(A)   Leotard: a close-fitting garment worn by dancers, acrobats, and the like.     Named after Julius Leotard a 19th-century French aerial gymnast. 

(B)   Guillotine: a machine for beheading people. Named after Joseph Guillotine.

 A French physician who proposed its use in 1789 as more humane than hanging.

(C)   Casanova: a man who is a promiscuous and unscrupulous lover. Named after

Giovanni Casanova an Italian adventurer, and writer, 1725 -1798.

(D)   Derby: a stiff felt hat with a dome-shaped crown and rather narrowed rolled brim. Named after Edward Stanley, 12^th Earl of Derby, who founded the Derby horse race at Epson Downs, England.

(E)    Chauvinist: excessively patriotic or devoted to an ideology. After Nicolas Chauvinist a legendary French soldier devoted to Napoleon.

(F)    Bobbies: in Great Britain, the nickname given to police officers. Named after Sir Bobbie Peel, the statesman who organized the London police force in 1850.  

(G)  Margarita: an alcoholic drink, made with tequila and lime juice. Invented by a bartender in El Paso, Texas, in honor of his girlfriend.

(H)   Braille: a system of writing for the blind. Named after Louis Braille, a French teacher of the blind who invented it in 1852.

TO PRINT

MEETING SOMEONE FOR THE FIRST TIME (Intermediate) (EXERCISE B91E289)

In North America when people meet each other for the first time, they talk about things like family, work, school, or sports. They ask questions like “Do you have any brothers or sisters?”, “Where do you work?”, “What school do you go to?”, and “Do you like sports?”, and “Where do you live?” These are polite questions. They are not personal or private.

But some things are personal or private, and questions about them are not polite. People don’t ask questions about a person’s salary. They don’t ask how much someone paid for something. It is OK to ask children how old they are, but it is not polite to ask older people their age. It is also not polite to ask people questions about politics or religion unless you know them well people don’t ask unmarried people “Why are you single?”, and they don’t ask a married couple with no children “Why don’t you have children?”

(1)  Look at the following questions. Are they polite (P) or not polite (NP) when you meet someone for the first time in North America?

(A)                       What does your wife do?      __________

(B)                        Do you believe in God?          __________

(C)                        How much money do you earn?  _________

(D)                       How many children do you have?   _________

(E)                       Do you like baseball?  __________

(F)                        How old are you, Mr. Lee?   ____________

(G)                       Are you a Democrat or a Republican?   ___________

(H)                       How much was your watch?    _____________

(2)  Look at the questions again. Are they polite or not polite in your country?

(3)  Read and practice the following conversation.

(A)            Hi! How are you?

(B)             Fine thanks. And you?

(A)            I am pretty good. How is your job?

(B)             Just fine. We are very busy at the moment.

(A)            We are too. We have a lot of new clients.

(B)             That’s great. We are in the same situation. All going well we should receive

            a good bonus at the end of the year!

(A)            You are lucky. If our company has a good year we only receive a larger

           Christmas hamper.

(B)             It was great talking to you! I have to go. See you!

(A)            See you. Until later.   

ANSWERS: MEETING SOMEONE FOR THE FIRST TIME

(1)  Look at the following questions. Are they polite (P) or not polite (NP) when you meet someone for the first time in North America?

(A)              What does your wife do?      P

(B)               Do you believe in God?          NP

(C)               How much money do you earn? NP

(D)              How many children do you have?   P

(E)               Do you like baseball?  P

(F)               How old are you, Mr. Lee?   NP

(G)              Are you a Democrat or a Republican?  NP

(H)              How much was your watch?    NP

TO PRINT