ESLPod398Guide.pdf

(238 KB) Pobierz
ESL Podcast 398 - Parts of a City
English as a Second Language Podcast
www.eslpod.com
ESL Podcast 398 – Parts of a City
GLOSSARY
residential neighborhood – an area in a city where many people live, with
many houses and/or apartments
* We’d like to move to a residential neighborhood closer to where my wife works.
alley – a narrow street between buildings that is not used by cars very much
* It isn’t safe to walk through the alleys alone at night. Stay on the busier streets.
to lose (one’s) bearings – to get lost; to become disoriented; to not know where
one is or how to get to where one wants to go
* She was reading a book on the bus, and when she looked out the window, she
realized that she had lost her bearings and didn’t know where she was.
to go in circles – to go around without getting to where one wants to go; to
travel but end up back where one started
* They rode the subway all morning to try to learn how it works, but they were
going in circles and always ended up back in the center.
downtown – the center of a city; the central part of a city where there are many
businesses and tall buildings
* Let’s meet at the café downtown on Third Avenue and Madison Street.
financial district – an area in a city where there are many banks, investment
firms, and other businesses related to money
* Wall Street is a famous financial district in New York City.
housing project – an area where houses and/or apartments are built
inexpensively so that people who do not have very much money can live there,
especially if they wouldn’t have enough money to live in other parts of the city
* The families living in this housing project make less than $35,000 per year.
historic district – an old part of town with many old buildings that have been
preserved or kept as they used to be
* The businessman wanted to build a new restaurant in the historic district, but it
isn’t allowed, so he had to change an existing old building instead.
uptown – the part of a city that is far from the center, usually where there are
many homes that are bigger and more expensive than homes in the center of the
city
* They bought a beautiful home in uptown, but now it will take them longer to
drive to work every day.
1
These materials are copyrighted by the Center for Educational Development (2008). Posting of
these materials on another website or distributing them in any way is prohibited.
English as a Second Language Podcast
www.eslpod.com
ESL Podcast 398 – Parts of a City
hazy – unclear, confusing, and difficult to understand; unclear and difficult to see
* Aisha’s understanding of physics and chemistry is great, but her understanding
of biology is a little hazy.
outskirts – the edge of a city, far from the center and near where the city ends
* There are a lot of trees and parks in the outskirts of the city because people
haven’t begun to build there yet.
city limits – the line drawn on a map around a city where the city ends and the
countryside begins
* The city ends at the river, but some people want to expand the city limits so that
they can begin building on the other side of the river.
back road – a small, narrow, and unimportant road where cars drive slowly; not
a main road
* You can reach our home in 15 minutes if you take the freeways, but if you
aren’t in a hurry, take the back roads which are slower but much more beautiful.
lay of the land – layout; physical arrangement; the geography of a place; where
things are located in an area
* How long did it take you to understand the lay of the land after you moved to
Los Angeles?
like the back of (one’s) hand – a phrase used to show that one knows
something well or is very familiar with something
* Drake grew up playing around in the woods, so he knows that forest like the
back of his hand.
the blind leading the blind – a phrase used to show that a person who doesn’t
know how to do something is trying to show other people how to do it
* I’ve never baked a cake before and neither has Shannon. When she tried to
teach me how to do it, it was like the blind leading the blind.
2
These materials are copyrighted by the Center for Educational Development (2008). Posting of
these materials on another website or distributing them in any way is prohibited.
English as a Second Language Podcast
www.eslpod.com
ESL Podcast 398 – Parts of a City
COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS
1. Which of these might be located downtown?
a) Alleys
b) Outskirts
c) Back roads
2. What does Tanya mean by saying that she lost her bearings?
a) She lost her tools on the tour bus.
b) She felt carsick.
c) She didn’t know where they were.
______________
WHAT ELSE DOES IT MEAN?
bearings
The phrase “to lose (one’s) bearings,” in this podcast, means to get lost: “I tried
to pay attention to where we were going, but the driver made so many turns that I
lost my bearings.” The phrase “to get (one’s) bearings” is the opposite and
means to figure out where one is: “Some sailors are very good at getting their
bearings by studying the stars on a clear night.” Finally, the phrase “to have a
direct bearing on (something)” means to affect or influence something or to be a
factor in something: “Hearing two languages when you are a child has a direct
bearing on your ability to learn to speak those two languages well when you are
older.”
hazy
In this podcast, the word “hazy” means unclear, confusing, and difficult to
understand: “I’m a little hazy on the concept of thermodynamics. Could you
please explain it again?” The phrase “to be hazy about (something)” means to
describe something very generally or very poorly, without providing details,
especially when one is keeping something a secret: “When we asked Sarah
where she had gone last night, she was very hazy about the details, just saying
that she went out to have dinner with a friend.” The word “hazy” is also used to
talk about air that is cloudy or dirty and difficult to see through, often because of
pollution: “The sky above the city is very hazy, but it provides beautiful sunsets!”
3
These materials are copyrighted by the Center for Educational Development (2008). Posting of
these materials on another website or distributing them in any way is prohibited.
English as a Second Language Podcast
www.eslpod.com
ESL Podcast 398 – Parts of a City
CULTURE NOTE
American cities are responsible for providing “basic services” (things like water,
electricity and garbage pick-up) within their city limits. The city provides the basic
things that people need for their homes and “maintains” (keeps in good condition)
the roads. Because most people live within the city limits, businesses also find
“advantages” (benefits or good things about something) to being located within
the city limits because that is where their “customers” (the people who buy things
from a business) live.
However, there are “disadvantages” (bad things about something) to being within
the city limits, especially for businesses. A business that “operates” (works or
does business) within the city limits must pay city “taxes” (money paid to the
government). But a business that is located in the “unincorporated area” (the
area outside of the city limits) does not have to pay city taxes. This can be a big
advantage, helping businesses to be more “profitable” (making more money).
In addition, businesses in the unincorporated area are not “subject to” (do not
have to follow) city “ordinances” (local laws). For example, if there is a city
ordinance against smoking in bars, then a bar within the city limits cannot let its
customers smoke, but a bar in the unincorporated areas can let its customers
smoke. “Likewise” (in the same way), if there is a city ordinance that makes it
difficult for businesses to get a “liquor license” (permission to sell alcohol),
businesses outside the city limits may be able to sell alcohol more easily.
When deciding where to live or open a business, it is important to consider
whether the advantages of being in a city, such as basic services and a good
location, “outweigh” (are greater than) the disadvantages, such as paying higher
taxes and being subject to city ordinances.
______________
Comprehension Questions Correct Answers: 1 – a; 2 – c
4
These materials are copyrighted by the Center for Educational Development (2008). Posting of
these materials on another website or distributing them in any way is prohibited.
English as a Second Language Podcast
www.eslpod.com
ESL Podcast 398 – Parts of a City
COMPLETE TRANSCRIPT
Welcome to English as a Second Language Podcast number 398: Parts of a
City.
This is English as a Second Language Podcast episode 398. I’m your host, Dr.
Jeff McQuillan, coming to you from the Center for Educational Development in
beautiful Los Angeles, California.
We have a website at eslpod.com. Go there today and download a Learning
Guide for this episode, a special 8 to 10 page guide that gives you all of the
vocabulary, definitions, sample sentences, additional definitions, comprehension
questions, cultural notes, and a complete transcript of every word we say on the
episode.
This episode is called “Parts of a City.” It’s a dialogue between Tanya and
Darren using vocabulary that we have to describe different parts of a city. Let’s
get started.
[start of dialogue]
Tanya: We’ve been here for three days and I’m still getting lost.
Darren: Here’s a map. These are the residential neighborhoods. See? This is
where we’re staying.
Tanya: I know, I know. But where were we today? The tour bus went down so
many alleys that I lost my bearings after 10 minutes. I thought we were going in
circles.
Darren: Look, we drove through downtown first, past the financial district. Next,
we drove past the housing projects to the historic district.
Tanya: I remember all that.
Darren: Okay, then. From the historic district, we drove through uptown. Got
that?
Tanya: Yeah, that’s where things get a little hazy. How did we get to the
outskirts of town? One minute we were in uptown, and the next minute, we were
at the city limits.
5
These materials are copyrighted by the Center for Educational Development (2008). Posting of
these materials on another website or distributing them in any way is prohibited.

Plik z chomika:

Inne pliki z tego folderu:

Inne foldery tego chomika:

Zgłoś jeśli naruszono regulamin