domingo, 30 de setembro de 2012

50 THINGS EVERYONE SHOULD KNOW


(or 50 Completely Useless Facts!)

The word "queue" is the only word in the English language that is still pronounced the same way when the last four letters are removed.
Beetles taste like apples, wasps like pine nuts, and worms  like fried bacon.


Of all the words in the English language, the word 'set' has the most definitions!


What is called a "French kiss" in the English speaking world is known as an "English kiss" in France.


"Almost" is the longest word in the English language with all the letters in alphabetical order.

"Rhythm" is the longest English word without a vowel.

In 1386, a pig in France was executed by public hanging for the murder of a child


A cockroach can live several weeks with its head cut off!


Human thigh bones are stronger than concrete.


You can't kill yourself by holding your breath


There is a city called Rome on every continent.

It's against the law to have a pet dog in Iceland!


Your heart beats over 100,000 times a day!

 
Horatio Nelson, one of England's most illustrious admirals was throughout his life, never able to find a cure for his sea-sickness.

 

The skeleton of Jeremy Bentham is present at all important meetings of the University of London


Right handed people live, on average, nine years longer than left-handed people


Your ribs move about 5 million times a year, everytime you breathe!


The elephant is the only mammal  that can't jump!


One quarter of the bones in your body, are in your feet!

 
Like fingerprints, everyone's tongue print is different!


The first known transfusion of blood was performed as early as 1667, when Jean-Baptiste, transfused two pints of blood from a sheep to a young man

 
Fingernails grow nearly 4 times faster than toenails!

 
Most dust particles in your house are made from dead skin!

 
The present population of 5 billion plus people of the world is predicted to become 15 billion by 2080.

Women blink nearly twice as much as men.

Adolf Hitler was a vegetarian, and had only ONE testicle.

 Honey is the only food that does not spoil. Honey found in the tombs of Egyptian pharaohs has been tasted by archaeologists and found edible.


Months that begin on a Sunday will always have a "Friday the 13th."

Coca-Cola would be green if colouring weren’t added to it.

On average a hedgehog's  heart beats 300 times a minute.


More people are killed each year from bees than from snakes.


The average lead pencil will draw a line 35 miles long or write approximately 50,000 English words.


More people are allergic to cow's milk than any other food.


Camels have three eyelids to protect themselves from blowing sand.


The placement of a donkey's eyes in its' heads enables it to see all four feet at all times!


The six official languages of the United Nations are: English, French, Arabic, Chinese, Russian and Spanish.

 
Earth is the only planet not named after a god.


It's against the law to burp, or sneeze in a church in Nebraska, USA.


You're born with 300 bones, but by the time you become an adult, you only have 206.


Some worms will eat themselves if they can't find any food!


Dolphins sleep with one eye open!

 
It is impossible to sneeze with your eyes open


The worlds oldest piece of chewing gum is 9000 years old!


The longest recorded flight  of a chicken is 13 seconds


Queen Elizabeth I regarded herself as a paragon of cleanliness. She declared that she bathed once every three months, whether she needed it or not


Slugs have 4 noses.


Owls are the only birds who can see the colour blue.

A man named Charles Osborne had the hiccups for 69 years!


A giraffe can clean its ears with its 21-inch tongue!


The average person laughs 10 times a day!


An ostrich's eye is bigger than its brain

sábado, 22 de setembro de 2012

Como se diz "pular de alegria" (estar muito feliz) em inglês?



to jump up and down |  (to) bliss |  to bliss out |   to be in cloud nine¹

 

I`m gonna jump up and down If I win the game.

[vou pular de alegria se eu vencer o jogo.]

 

My idea of bliss is to live near a beach.

[minha ideia de extrema felicidade é morar perto de uma praia.]

 

Mike is just blissed out, always laughing.

[Mike está extremamente feliz, sempre rindo.]

 

I`m in cloud nine, I won the lottery.

[estou muito feliz, ganhei na loteria.]

 

NOTE

  1. Uma possível explicação para esta expressão é que ela tenha haver com uma das classificações de nuvens definidas pelo departamento de clima dos EUA (US Weather Bureau), na década de 1950. Cloud Nine denota um tipo de nuvem que eles chamaram de “fluffy cumulonimbus type”, uma nuvem grossa, aquelas de tempestades, outros teorizam que a expressão vem do budismo e que “cloud nine” é uma das fases de processo de iluminação de um Bodhisattva, aquele que é destinado a se tornar um Buda.
mais dicas como este estão  no livro: STREET LANGUAGE: O inglês das ruas
 

WISH


 
The use of the verb wish indicates that the speaker wants reality to be different. As in unreal conditionals, the use of a past or past perfect tense verb indicates that the situation is impossible or unlikely. The use of hope, on the other hand, indicates that the speaker believes something is possible.

 

Wish can also be used with would to express a desire that someone do something differently. 

 

Wishes about the present and future

 

1. We use 'wish' + past simple to express that we want a situation in the present (or future) to be different.

 

I wish I spoke Italian. -- I don't speak Italian

I wish I had a big car. -- I don't have a big car

I wish I was on a beach. -- I'm in the office

Future: I wish it was the weekend tomorrow. -- It's only Thursday tomorrow

 

 

2. We use 'wish' + past continuous to express that we want to be doing a different action in the present (or future).

 

I wish I was lying on a beach now. -- I'm sitting in the office

I wish it wasn't raining. -- It is raining

Future: I wish you weren't leaving tomorrow. -- You are leaving tomorrow

 

Wishes about the past

We use 'wish' + past perfect to express a regret, or that we want a situation in the past to be different.

 

I wish I hadn't eaten so much. -- I ate a lot

I wish they'd come on holiday with us. -- They didn't come on holiday with us

I wish I had studied harder at school. -- I was lazy at school

 

Wish + would

We use 'wish' + would + bare infinitive to express impatience, annoyance or dissatisfaction with a present action.

 

I wish you would stop smoking. -- You are smoking at the moment and it is annoying me

I wish it would stop raining. -- I'm impatient because it is raining and I want to go outside

I wish she'd be quiet. -- I am annoyed because she is speaking

 

Important points

1. To simply express that you want something to happen in the future (not talking about wanting an action or situation to be different, and not talking about impatience or annoyance) we use 'hope', not 'wish'.

 

I hope it's sunny tomorrow.

I wish it was sunny tomorrow. x

I hope she passes her exam next week.

I wish she were passing her exam next week. x

I hope the plane doesn't crash tomorrow.

I wish the plane wouldn't crash tomorrow. x

 

 

2. We can use 'wish' + infinitive or 'wish' + object + infinitive to mean want in a formal situation.

 

I wish to leave now. (+ infinitive)

I wish to speak to your supervisor please. (+ infinitive)

I do not wish my name to appear on the list. (+ object + infinitive)

 

3. We can use '(I) wish  to express a greeting or a kind of blessing

 

I wish you a happy birthday.

We wish you good luck in your new job.

 

PAY ATTENTION

 

BE = WERE

 

I wish I were rich.

She wishes she were rich.

We wish we were rich.

 

EXERCISE

 

Rephrase the following sentences using wish or if.

 

ex :  I don't have a dog and I regret that.  → I wish I had a dog.



  1.           I don't speak Chinese and I regret that.

                _____________________________________________________________

 

  2.           Tom didn't work hard last year and now he's sorry.

                _____________________________________________________________



  3.           The children are shouting and I'd like them to stop.

                _____________________________________________________________


  4.           Caroline isn't rich enough to buy an apartment otherwise she would do that.

                _____________________________________________________________

 


  5.           My car broke down on Sunday and I regret that that happened.

                _____________________________________________________________

 

  6.           In your position I think you should have a check-up once a year.

                _____________________________________________________________

 

  7.           It would be better if the rain stopped.

                _____________________________________________________________

 
  8.           I don't have any cake to offer you and I'm sorry about that .

                _____________________________________________________________

 

CONDITIONAL CLAUSES



Type 1

→ It is possible and also very likely that the condition will be fulfilled.

if + Simple Present + will (Future)

If I find her address, I will send her an invitation.

Type 2

→ It is possible but very unlikely, that the condition will be fulfilled.

 if + Simple Past + would

If I found her address, I would send her an invitation.

Type 3

→ It is impossible that the condition will be fulfilled because it refers to the past.

if + Past Perfect + would + have + Past Participle

If I had found her address, I would have sent her an invitation.

 

EXERCISE

  1. If I ……………………..  (go) to the cinema, I will watch an interesting film.

   2. If I …………………….. (study) I would pass the exams.

   3. We wouldn't have swum if the weather ……………………..(be)  bad.

   4. If he …………………….. (have) a temperature, he would see the doctor.

   5. I will be very happy if my friends ……………………..(come)

   6. If I …………………….. (earn) a lot of money, I would have flown to New York.

   7. If we do not …………………….. (come) home in time, we would have missed the film.

   8. The teacher will not be happy if I …………………….. (forget) my homework again.

   9. If our class …………………….. (go) to England, I would visit the Tower of London.

   10. If our class had ……………………..(go) to England, I would have visited the Big Ben.

 

terça-feira, 4 de setembro de 2012

como falar os anos em inglês


Como muita gente já deve saber; pelo padrão da língua inglesa para ler um determinado ano separa-se em pares os números. Exemplo:

1996 – nineteen ninety-six

No meio das unidades pode ser colocado “hundred and”.

1996 – nineteen (hundred and) ninety-six

No caso aqui em cima é opcional. “hundred and” é mais necessário nos anos com terminação 00 até 09.

1706 - seventeen hundred and six

Também dá pra dizer desta forma:  seventeen oh six (1706)

Mas se os dois últimos dígitos forem zero pode deixar o “and” de fora; exemplo:

1300 – thirteen hundred

600 – six hundred


Como já vimos “hundred and” Pode ou não ser usado; mas caso “hundred and” não seja empregado e o penúltimo digito for zero deve-se ler “oh” ao invés de zero; exemplo:

1103 – “eleven oh three”

1808 – “eighteen oh eight”


Para falar do ano 2000 pra frente pode ser utilizada a forma normal.

2000 - two thousand

2013 - two thousand and thirteen  

2008 – two thousand and eight

Estas formas abaixo não são tão comuns mas podem ser usadas também:

2013 – twenty thirteen

2008 – twenty oh eight