GRAMMAR AND CHRISTMAS

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Many Americans experience surprise (or disappointment) when they wake up on Christmas Day.

They might be surprised or disappointed by a family member's actions. They might be happy or unhappy about a Christmas gift.

Imagine a child expects to get an Xbox or PlayStation for Christmas. On Christmas morning, they quickly open their gift …. Inside is an English grammar book.

They might feel disappointed.

The Everyday Grammar team would prefer the new English grammar book. But if you are like most young people, you would probably rather have a new videogame system.

Today, we are going to explore those feelings – feelings of surprise and disappointment. In other words, we are going to explore how speakers show that reality was better or worse than their expectations.

Counter expectation

Many languages use words to express expectation. Speakers also use words to express how events are not happening as expected. This idea is known as "counter expectation."*

Do not worry about the term. Just remember that it means that speakers use words to show that reality is going against (or countering) their expectations.

English has many words that serve this purpose. Three of the most common are the words "even," "still," and "actually." You will often hear them in casual, everyday speech.

Speakers use these words to show surprise or disappointment. The pitch of their voice tells you what they mean.

Let's study examples of each word.

#1 Even

Speakers often use the word "even" to show disappointment or surprise.

Imagine a young child that expects a phone call from a family member – perhaps an uncle or grandparent. The phone call never comes. The child might say the following:

"What's wrong with him? He didn't even call me on Christmas day."​

​

Here, the child is expressing disappointment. She could have expressed the same idea in a much longer statement, such as: "I was expecting him to call on Christmas Day, but I didn't hear from him. Why didn’t he give me a call?"

"Even" highlights the child's disappointment because it emphasizes that the family member did not try to call.

"Even" does not always have a sad meaning. It can have a happy meaning too.

Imagine a man named Ted. Ted is a forgetful man. He forgets to send letters or gifts to his parents.

Ted's parents might have the following talk after they get a Christmas letter from him:

"Did you see Ted's letter?

Yeah – he even sent us a gift!"

Here, the word "even" shows a pleasant surprise. Ted's mother did not expect a gift from him. By saying "he even sent us a gift" she is suggesting that Ted has gone beyond her expectations.

#2 Still

Americans sometimes use "still" for showing how reality does not quite meet their expectations.

Consider this example, from the 1986 film, Ferris Bueller's Day Off. At the end of the film, Ferris says the following lines. A different speaker might say similar lines after a lengthy, tiring, and disagreeable family Christmas party:

You're still here? It's over! Go home. Go!"

In the film, you can see the surprised look on Ferris' face. When he says, "You're still here," you can tell he did not expect people to still be around. He is a little disappointed.

Now, imagine a different situation. A family is having a Christmas dinner. They are looking for one family member, Uncle Bob. They wonder if he left without saying goodbye.

"-Have you seen Uncle Bob?

-No. Did he leave? Wait! There he is! He's still here!"

The way the final speaker says "still" shows that she is surprised to learn he was still at the dinner. She expected otherwise.

#3 Actually

A third common word that shows surprise or disappointment is "actually."

"Actually" suggests something is true – even when it differs from what might have been thought or expected.

Remember Uncle Bob? Bob has always been a nice guy.

Imagine Uncle Bob sees a Christmas present he likes, and then runs away with it. A speaker might say:

"I can't believe it! Uncle Bob actually stole her Christmas gift."

Here, the speaker uses “actually” to emphasize the unexpectedness of a happening – Uncle Bob stealing the present. She does not sound very happy!

Speakers can use "actually" to show positive feelings, too.

Think back to our character Ted – the guy who always forgets to give gifts for Christmas.

His parents could have shown their surprise at receiving a gift from Ted by saying the following:

"Ted actually gave us a gift!"

Here, the word "actually" shows that they are pleasantly surprised at this strange happening: Ted remembered Christmas!

What can you do?

The next time you are listening to an English speaker, try to find examples of words that show "counter expectation." Is the speaker expressing surprise or disappointment? How does the speaker change the pitch of their voice?

By answering these questions, you will start to learn how English speakers communicate emotions in subtle ways.

-"Excuse me, John, are you still recording your show?"

-"Yes!"

-"You're still recording? We have to go to the Christmas party!"

-"Oh no! I had actually forgotten about that! And that's Everyday Grammar."

I'm John Russell.

I'm Anna Mateo.

And I'm Ashley Thompson.

John Russell wrote this story for Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor.

We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section.

*John McWhorter. Why English Won't - and Can't - Sit Still (Like, Literally). Picador. 2016 pgs. 37-41

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Words in This Story

prefer – v. to like (someone or something) better than someone or something else​

rather – adv. used to indicate what you want or prefer to do, have, etc.​

pitch – n. the highness or lowness of a sound​

emphasize – v. to give special attention to (something) : to place emphasis on (something)​

disappointment – n. a feeling of sadness or displeasure when one's hopes or expectations are not fulfilled

casual – adj. not formal

positive – adj. thinking about the good qualities of someone or something : thinking that a good result will happen: hopeful or optimistic​

subtle – adj. hard to notice or see : not obvious

VERBOS AUXILIARES- AUXILIAR VERBS

 PARA COMPRENDER MEJOR LOS VERBOS AUXILIARES, DAMOS UNA DEFINICIÓN. VERBOS AUXILIARES EN INGLÉS SON LOS QUE ACOMPAÑAN AL VERBO PRINCIPAL PARA FORMAR ORACIONES INTERROGATIVAS Y NEGATIVAS.  DIGAMOS QUE PARA HACER ORACIONES INTERROGATIVAS Y NEGATIVAS EN INGLÉS, NO PODEMOS HACER COMO EN ESPAÑOL, INVIERTIENDO EL ORDEN DE LAS ORACIONES Y EMPEZAR CON EL VERBO LUEGO EL PRONOMBRE PERSONAL Y FINALIZAMOS CON EL COMPLEMENTO (LAS DEMÁS PALABRAS QUE LAS ACOMPAÑAN) O EN ALGUNOS CASOS SIMPLEMENTE, LA ORACIÓN INTERROGATIVA, ES LA MISMA ORACIÓN AFIRMATIVA, PERO CON ACENTO DIFERENTE. POR EJEMPLO YO DIGO:

¿VAS TÚ A LA ESCUELA?

VAS=VERBO

TÚ=PRONOMBRE PERSONAL

A LA ESCUELA=COMPLEMENTO

EN ESTA ORACIÓN SE COLOCÓ PRIMERO EL VERBO [IR] EN LA FORMA DE INFLEXIÓN VERBAL(CONJUGADO) = VAS  LUEGO EL PRONOMBRE PERSONAL DE SEGUNDA PERSONA DEL SINGULAR [TÚ] Y FINALMENTE EL COMPLEMENTO= [A LA ESCUELA]  

EN ESTA ORACIÓN AL FINAL TAMBIÉN TIENE UN ACENTO DE FORMA INTERROGATIVA, ES DECIR QUE EN LA PALABRA ESCUELA SUBE EL TONO DE VOZ

PERO TAMBIÉN PUEDO HACER UNA ORACIÓN INTERROGATIVA, ÚNICAMENTE CAMBIANDO LA ENTONACIÓN, ES DECIR TOMAR LA MISMA ORACIÓN AFIRMATIVA Y SIMPLEMENTE SUBIR EL TONO DE LA VOZ AL FINAL DE LA ORACIÓN. EJEMPLO:

¿TÚ VAS A LA ESCUELA?

PARA VER LOS VERBOS EN INGLÉS, TOMAMOS LA SIGUIENTE PÁGINA DONDE VERÁS ESTE TEMA CON MAYOR AMPLITUD

https://myenglishgoals.com/la-guia-definitiva-sobre-los-verbos-auxiliares-en-ingles/

US Withdraws Planned Visa Restriction for International Students

TOMADO DE

SOBRE LAS VISAS A ESTUDIANTES INTERNACIONALES
The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has withdrawn planned visa restrictions for international students. The restrictions would have forced international students to leave the country if their schools held classes online because of the coronavirus crisis. The surprise announcement came during a federal court hearing on Tuesday in Boston, Massachusetts. Both Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) had filed the legal action seeking to overturn the rule. Judge Allison Burroughs said federal immigration officials had agreed to cancel the planned restrictions, which were announced July 6, and “return to the status quo.” A lawyer representing the U.S. government confirmed that the judge’s announcement was correct. The decision means that international students are again permitted to attend classes online and keep their visas during the health emergency “exemption.” Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had established the exemption on March 13, when the coronavirus was spreading across the country. But on July 6, the agency said international students must take at least some of their college classes in person during the upcoming autumn term. If they could not, they must transfer to another school offering in-person classes or leave the country. The agency added that students would have to leave the country even if a health emergency forces their classes online after the school year begins. The restriction came on the same day that Harvard and several other colleges said they would hold all of their classes online in the fall. On July 8, Harvard and MIT filed legal action against the new restriction. Harvard University President Lawrence Bacow said at the time that the restriction “comes at a time when the United States has been setting daily records for the number of new infections.” More than 200 colleges and at least 17 states have supported the action. Some colleges also filed their own legal action against the rule. About 5,000 international students at Harvard and nearly 4,000 attending MIT could have lost their visas under the restriction. Across the United States, nearly 400,000 international students received the F-1 or M-1 visa in the 12-month period ending in September 2019. “I feel relief,” said Andrea Calderon, a biology student from Ecuador. The City College of New York student told the Associated Press, “It would have been a very big problem if I had to leave the country right now.” I'm Jonathan Evans. Hai Do wrote this story for Learning English with additional information from the Associated Press. Ashley Thompson was the editor. _______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story status quo - n. the way things are now exemption - n. freedom from being required to do something transfer - v. to move from one school to another fall - n. the season between summer and winter

USO DE LAS PREPOSICIONES: ON - IN - AT

TOMADO DE YOUTU BE.COM

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VOA- READING AND NEWS

TOMADO DE VOA

Catching Plastic: Fishermen on Frontline of Ocean Clean-up

A group of Spanish fishermen will receive financial support to catch plastic as well as fish. It is part of a new project aimed at fighting the huge amount of waste left in the world’s oceans.

About 12 million tons of plastic waste are entering the oceans every year. This garbage pollutes the water, kills wildlife and breaks down into small particles -- called microplastics -- that fish and other creatures eat.

Carlos Martin is one of the fishermen taking part in the project. Martin is captain of the ‘Bonamar 2,’ a boat based at the Spanish port of Barcelona. VOA joined him and his crew early one morning as they began removing pieces of plastic from their fishing nets.

Martin blames rivers for carrying a lot of plastic to the sea.

Martin says he and his crew collect the solid plastic and bring it back to land. He adds that wood-based cellulose plastic often gets caught in the nets.

He says, “The net does not function properly in relation to its height in the water, and it takes on mud, causing the net to break because it weighs so much.”

Under the new programs, one million euros of taxpayer’s money will support ocean cleanup efforts for fishermen like Martin. The money is coming from the European Union and the Catalan government.

Sergi Tudela, the General Director of Catalonia Fisheries, is supervising the cleanup project.

“With these funds, they can improve what they need to carry onboard - the boxes, all the facilities they need to cope with the problem…We are hopeful that if we are successful in this project, this project could be replicated in other areas in the Mediterranean.”

Government reports that the amount of plastic waste washing up along the Spanish coastline has grown by 65 percent in just six years. Martin says the fishing community now understands how big the problem is.

He says, “Before we didn't see it that way, we took it and threw it back into the water, we had no conscience. I think that a few years here we have become very aware, nothing is thrown into the water, we collect everything and bring it to shore.”

Fishing equipment makes up a large part of the estimated 8 to 12 million tons of plastic left in the world’s oceans every year. Martin and his fishing community look to become part of the international effort to clean up the oceans.

I’m Jonathan Evans.

Henry Ridgwell reported this story for VOA News. Jonathan Evans adapted it for Learning English. George Grow was the editor.

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Words in This Story

conscience – n. the part of the mind that makes you aware of your actions as being either morally right or wrong

function – v. to work or operate

funds – n. an amount of money that is used for a special purpose

mud – n. soft, wet dirt

net – n. a fabric made of strands of thread, cord, rope, or wire that weave in and out with much open space

onboard – adj. carried or happening on a vehicle

properly – adv. in a way that is acceptable or suitable

replicate(d) – v. to repeat or copy something exactly

UN NIÑO GENIO EN ESPAÑA

Una maravilla, resultó la presentación de un niño de dos años en España