Text 1. The english speak about the weather

There are many customs and habits in Britain. One of them is to speak about the weather when beginning a conversation with strangers. In fact, people talk about the weather more in Britain than in most parts of the world.

For one thing, the weather in Britain changes very quickly. One day may be fine and the next day may be wet. When you go to bed the stars may be shining brightly and when you wake up it may be raining heavily. You can never be quite sure what the weather is going to be like. The English often say: «Other countries have a climate, but in England we have weather.»

For another thing, the weather is a safe topic for conversa­tion. When two Englishmen meet, if they can’t of anything else to talk about or if they don’t know each other well enough to discuss personal matters, they talk about the weather.

If it’s nice and warn and the sun shining brightly, a person usually says. «It’s a lonely morning, isn’t it?» or «Isn’t it hot today?», and the answer is «Yes, it’s wonderful weather we’re haying.» After a night of heavy snowfall and hard frost he may say: «А cold morning, isn’t it?», and the answer is «Yes, we’re having a very cold winter.»

Or perhaps the day is dull; it’s raining a little, the sky is grey and cloudy, and everyone is wearing a raincoat or carrying an umbrella. As it gets darker a thick fog covers London. As one friend meets another the usual remark is, «Isn’t the weather awful!»

As the weather changes so often, it is of course quite impor­tant. It plays ‘a big part in the lives of the British people. Every daily newspaper publishes a weather forecast. Both the radio and television give the weather forecasts several times a day.

Vocabulary notes

custom, n звичай

habit, n звичка

stranger, n незнайома людина

for one thing по-перше, з одного боку

for another thing по-друге, з другого боку

it is raining heavily іде сильний дощ

a heavy snowfall сильний снігопад

a hard frost сильний мороз

a dull day похмурий день

a safe topic for conversation безпечна тема для розмови

awful, adj жахливий

a usual remark звичайне зауваження

an umbrella, n парасолька

to play a big part відігравати значну роль

'a weather forecast прогноз погоди

LEXICAL EXERCISES

I. Which of the adjectives given below will you use when speaking about: a) good weather; b) bad weather:

bright, dry, warm, cold, hot, thick, awful, heavy, sun­ny, rainy, wonderful, foggy, snowy, windy, dreadful; nice, hard, dull

II. Write out all the adjectives from the text and analyse the adjective- forming suffixes in them (see p.244).

III. Answer the following questions;

1. What is one of the customs in Britain? 2. How do the English people usually start a conversation with strangers? 3. Why is the weather always a safe topic for conversation? 4. What is the usual remark for good (bad, cold) weather? 5. What do the English people say about climate and weather? 6. What does London look like on a rainy day when a thick fog covers the city? 7. How often do radio and television give weather forecasts?

IV. Solve this crosswords. The majority of the words belong to the active vocabulary of the text (but the rest do not). In some cases the number of letters in a word is given in brackets ( ).

Across: 1, 3, 4, 6, 9, 13, 14, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 25, 27

Down: 2, 3, 5, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, 14, 15, 16, 17, 20, 24, 26

Across: 1. The weather is a (1) topic for conversation.

1. Proverb: A (3) in need is a (3) indeed. 3. Small children often (4). 4. (6) is an antonym to «high». 5. There are many (9) and tradition in England. 6. When it’s raining the (13) is grey and cloudy. 7. The (14) in Britain is changeable. 8. When two Eng­lishmen don’t know each other well enough to discuss (18) matters, they talk about the (19), 9. There is much snow in (20). 10. A domestic animal which gives milk, but it is not a cow (21).

11. Past Indefinite of «eat» (22). 12. Every daily newspaper publishes weather (23). 13. Both the (25) and television inform about the weather. 14. (27) was discovered by M.Curie.

Down: 1. There is sometimes hard (2) in winter. 2. Ann caught bad cold and fell down with a (3). 3. There is much (5) and fog in England in autumn. 4. As it gets darker, a thick (7) covers London. 5. When beginning a conversation with a (10),

the Englishman speaks about weather. 6. When it’s raining the sky is (8). 7. This book is not yours, it is (12). 8. At the end of each term (semester) students pass their (11) and exams. 9. The sky is (14) with heavy clouds. 10. (15) is an antonym to «outer».

10. Gases without active chemical properties are called (16) gases. 12. (17) is an object aimed at (something that is bombard­ed by bullets, electrons etc.). 13. (20) is an antonym to «correct, right». 14. If I had a (24), I should drive to the countryside in it.

15. A daily newspaper is published every (26):

		1	1		2
				3
	4	5		6			7
	8		9		10	11		12	13
14		15						16	17
			18							|
			19
			20
					21		22
		23				24
					25		26
						27

CONVERSATION PRACTICE

Read this dialogue on weather in Britain and try to reproduce it, then or make up a dialogue of your own, comparing the weather in Britain and Ukraine.

• What is the weather like in Britain?

• It changes in our country more often than in other coun­tries, that’s why we say: «Other countries have a climate, in Britain we have weather».

• Are all the days alike in autumn?

• Oh, no, one day may be fine and the next day may be wet.

• Look! The sky is covered with heavy dark clouds and it’s going to rain.

• It may, but you can never be sure about it.

• Does it often rain in October?

• It is a rainy month. You were quite right, it is raining already. The people in the street are opening their umbrellas and the pavement is wet with rain. But I don’t think it will last long.

• Do Englishmen always wear raincoats and umbrellas in Autumn?

• As a rule, they do.

• And what do they wear in winter?

• Wintercoats, if it is very cold.

• I see that weather is a good topic for conversation.

• It is. And we never get tired of it.

• What do you say to start a conversation?

• We say: «It’s a lovely day», or «a cold morning, isn’t it?»

• Now I see, that weather is really a good topic for conver­sation, but it’s raining heavily, and we’d better go home.

• Let’s go, then.

• Goodbye, see you tomorrow.

• Bye-bye.

to be sure бути впевненим

wet with rain мокрий від дощу

to get tired втотлюватися

raincoat плащ, дощовик

wintercoat зимове пальто

we’d better go home нам би краще піти додому

see you tomorrow до завтра