Use of English Part 1: What is genealogy?
0 C
A band of history = it doesn’t exist.
A set of history = it doesn’t exist.
But you could say: “A set of history books”
A branch of history = a part of a particular area of study. In this case, history.
“Genealogy is a branch of history“
A series of history = it doesn’t sound good.
But you could say: “I’m watching a series about history“
1 B
Instead of = used when one thing/person replaces another. In place of.
“I’ll study tomorrow instead of today”
“Josh will pay me instead of Anna”
*Rather than = used when one thing is preferred to another. Prefer to do.
“It concerns family history, rather than the national or world history…”
‘Rather than’ usually occurs between two things which are being compared. However, we can also use it at the beginning of a sentence.
“Rather than pay the taxi fare, he walked home”
or
“Rather than paying the taxi fare, he walked home”
(this form with -ing is less commonly used, but also correct)
*Also seen in Exam Essentials 1 (2015) Test 1. Part 6.
**Except for = used when the only person, thing, or fact is not included in something.
“I work every day except for Sundays”
Except that = used to give a reason why something is not possible or true.
“I want to go, except that I’m tired”
**Also seen in FCE Practice (Burlington books) (2015) Test 4. Part 1. Question 7B
Sooner (than) = it’s a comparative to say ‘before or earlier than’.
“We landed sooner than expected”
“We will land sooner”
2 C
Cause = to bring something about.
“Tell me some activities that can cause happiness”
Mean + verb with -ing = to involve.
“If you accept that job, it will mean commuting every day”
Mean + to + verb = to intend.
“I didn’t mean to hurt you”
Result in something = to cause a particular situation to happen. To make something happen. To lead to.
“Tracing your family history can also result in learning about your roots and your identity”
“Failing your exams will result in retakes”
Result from something = to be the outcome of something.
“Your marks will be the result from your efforts”
Lead to = to result in.
“Stress can lead to physical illness”
3 B
Accomplish something = to reach a goal.
“The policeman accomplished his mission”
Approach something or someone = to move closer.
“The teacher approached the students”
Admit = to confess.
“The burglar admitted breaking into the house”
Access something = to enter a computer/website to get information.
“…of people worldwide to access information about their family history”
“Use your laptop to access the internet”
“Passwords are used to access the online banking”
4 D
Fee = money charged for a service or the use of something. Admission charge.
“Swimming pool entrance fee”
“A lawyer’s fee can be expensive”
Price = the cost to purchase something.
“The price of fuel is rising”
Charge = to ask for money for something.
“I’ll charge you 10€ for editing your videos”
Expense = something that makes you spend money.
“…without great expense”
“My biggest expense is the electricity”
5 C
*Describe/d something = when you describe something, you give details about someone or something.
“The witnesses described the situation as dangerous”
*Also seen in FIRST FCE (178516). Part 1.
Define/d something = when you define something, you describe clearly and exactly what something is.
“Your duties are defined by your role”
Remark/ed (that) = to point out. To say.
“….their family history often remark that it’s a fascinating hobby…”
“I remarked (that) I’d come back earlier”
Regard/ed = this one is normally followed by ‘someone’ or ‘something’.
Regard someone as something = “I regarded you as a good person”
Regard something as something = “I regard this exam as my first priority”
6 A
Reveal/ed something = to show.
“…which reveals a lot about…”
“I don’t want to reveal the surprise!”
Open/ed something ≠ to close something.
“Can you open the window, please?”
Begin/began/begun something = to start.
“I’ll begin this YouTube channel in September”
Arise/arose/arisen = to occur.
“I’m sure no problems will arise while preparing these videos”
7 D
Older (than) = greater in age.
“Sam is older than me”
“Sam is older”
Greater (than) = bigger in quantity or larger in size.
“London is greater than Madrid”
Higher (than) = further from the ground.
“Birds can fly higher than insects”
Further away/back/ahead = at a greater distance away from a place.
“…that the further back you follow….”
“We need to look much further back in time to know their origin”
8 B
Attend something = to be present at.
“Will Smith won’t attend the Gala for 10 years”
Participate in something = to be part of.
“…who participated in the survey….”
“We all must participate in this project”
Include something = to contain.
“Do we need to include the tips?”
Associate something/someone with something/someone = to connect mentally.
“I always associate holidays with ice cream”
PRACTICE YOUR SPEAKING SKILLS
Listen to the following track.
You will be given questions related to this part, such as vocabulary and expressions.
Sometimes, there will also be things for you to notice, so you can highlight them and learn them better.
This section is designed so that you can practice OUT LOUD.
This will help you improve your speaking skills.
Pause the recording after the question. This will allow you more time to think and answer.
Once you have heard it and answered the questions, click on Transcript to read it if necessary.
Transcript
In this part I’m going to highlight a few things for you.
These highlighted parts are important because they can be used in your writing and speaking parts. And, of course, they can come up as questions in other exams.
At the end, I’ll also ask you one question. I recommend that you answer to all my questions out loud, so you can practice for the speaking part.
You can stop and play the recording as many times as you need.
Let’s start then.
Ok, in the 1st paragraph, at the end of the 3rd line. Can you see the verb ‘ENABLE’?
The construction of this verb is: ENABLE someone TO do something.
For example: ‘The internet ENABLES millions of people worldwide TO access information’
In the 2nd paragraph, at the end of the 2nd line. ‘ACCORDING TO‘.
‘According to’ is a phrase often used to introduce a source of information.
For example: ‘According to a survey involving 900 people who…’
At the end of the 3rd line, in the same paragraph. ‘THE CHANCES OF something‘.
This is a phrase that provides information about the probability or likelihood of something happening.
Remember that if after this phrase you use a verb, this has to come with ‘-ING’ because ‘of’ is a preposition.
For example: ‘The chances of discoverING…’
And finally, one last thing for you to notice. At the end of the 2nd paragraph. ‘THE VAST MAJORITY OF something‘.
This is a collocation, or a combination of words, that provides information about a large majority of a group or population.
For example: ‘The vast majority of people who…’
Ok, now I have a question for you. At the end of the text, can you see ‘BETTER OFF‘? Can you tell me what this means? or a synonym?
A synonym could be ‘MORE FORTUNATE‘. Both phrases, ‘better off’ or ‘more fortunate’ are used to describe someone who is in a more favourable or advantageous position than others.