Englich for Talking. Учебно-методическое пособие

d) Choose the right word from a couple of similar looking ones. Change word forms if necessary.

1.(slush, sleet)

a)The … under my feet was awful. I had an impression that I was walking through a muddy sea.

b)The rain changed into … . Wet snowflakes were falling on the ground and melted there.

2.(ice drift, snowdrift)

a)The path was hedged by two long … . They were like two mountain ranges.

b)The … started at night. In the morning the children ran to the river to look at the huge blocks of ice drifting across the water.

3.(icing, icicle)

a)There was heavy … on the road and all cars were moving very slowly.

b)After a thaw there appeared … on the edge of the roof; they looked like sparkling needless.

4.(frost, hoarfrost)

a)Tree branches were covered with … and the forest looked enchanting and somewhat mysterious.

b)The … was biting the nose and the cheeks. It was impossible to stay long in the street.

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5.(draught, drought)

a)Severe … killed the crops. Not a drop of rain fell on the ground for a month.

b)When the door opened, the … blew off the papers down on to the floor.

6.(freeze, to be freezing)

a)In winter all rivers and lakes in these parts always … .

b)The temperature was quite low and I felt that I … .

7.(blizzard, drizzle)

a)Boring … spoiled the day. It was too wet and dull.

b)The … was blinding us. Snowflakes were swirling in the air.

8.(light, lightning)

a)There is not enough … in the room. The table should be moved closer to the winter.

b)The … split the sky into two parts. A deafening thunder crack followed.

e) Explain the difference between the synonyms or analogous words:

Ex. 8. Which sets of adjectives a–h go with the nouns 1–8?

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Ex. 9. Read the text below and find words in the text which mean the following.

temperature, mean monthly temperature, annual precipitation

totals and seasonality. The climate of a place is affected by

several factors. Latitude affects the amount of solar radiation

received, with the greatest in equatorial regions and the least

in polar regions. Elevation affects both temperature and precipitation; mountainous areas are generally cooler and

wetter. Location close to the sea or to large bodies of water

moderates temperature; continental areas are generally more

arid and more affected by extremes of temperature.

Ex. 10. Put the words in the box into one of the categories below. Some of the words can go in more than one category. Then decide if the words can be used as nouns, verbs or adjectives.

• rain • wind • heat • cold • wet

damp freezing humid breeze drizzle snow pour boiling hail

gale shower warm chilly cool frost gust sunny mild

Ex. 11. Match each word with a word from the box.

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Ex. 12. Choose the correct alternative to fill each gap in the following sentences.

1.It's absolutely ………. outside, so wear your gloves.

A.cold В. chilly С. freezing

2.We had to postpone the match because it started to really……… .

A.drizzle В. pour С. shower

3.Tomorrow will be mild with the possibility of a few ………. in the evening.

A.rain В. showers С. sleet

4.It's only a bit of light ……….. .You won't need an umbrella.

A.sleet В. drizzle С. hail

5.Close to the Equator the weather is hot and ………. and there are often electrical storms.

A.damp В. mild С. humid

6.The old house was very cold and ………… in winter.

A.humid В. damp С. freezing

7.Open the window. There's a lovely cool ………. outside.

A.breeze В. gale С. gust

8.There was such a ……….. that my umbrella blew inside out.

A.rain В. breeze С. gale

9.The ground was completely white. I thought it was snow at first, but it was just a heavy …… .

A.hail В. frost С. sleet

Ex. 13. a. In your country, which months of the year are considered to be spring, summer, autumn and winter? Why? What are the differences in daylight and darkness hours, temperature and humidity? How do these affect living things? How do the differences affect you?

b. With which season(s) do you associate each of these words? What do they mean?

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c. Fill in the gaps with the words from the box in the appropriate form:

1.It was a … winter’s wind that blew through the streets.

2.The ice … when we put hot water on it.

3.Farmers … seeds in spring.

4.Florence was …. 1966 after the river Arno had burst its banks.

5.New leaves … from the trees in spring.

6.Most flowers … in summer.

7.Evergreen trees do not … their leaves in autumn.

8.The heat was … so we spent most of the day in the sea.

9.The … forced the climbers to take shelter in a cave.

10.The sky has become … and it looks as if it may rain later.

11.The weather is so … that my nose and ears are red.

12.Heavy clouds over the house make everything … .

13.After two hours in the … sun, I felt dizzy and dehydrated.

14.There was a … mist coming in from the sea and we could barely see the lights of the ship in the distance.

15.It was a cold, … day and the streets were deserted as people sat at home around their firesides.

Ex. 14. Read the following text and underline the English equivalents for:

1) Меня настигла гроза; 2) внезапно пошел дождь; 3) большие темные тучи, собравшиеся на северо-западе; 4) к сумеркам; 5) в нашем умеренном поясе; 6) дождь лил бурными потокам; 7) молния, которая ослепляла меня; 8) темные тучи быстро опускались вниз на лес; 9) удары грома отдавались в небе.

It chanced that one day towards dusk I was overtaken by a storm. I had seen the great dark clouds massed in the North-West but after a while I felt something strange in the air and looking up saw that the dark clouds were on a sudden charging down upon the forest. The rain came suddenly and then the thunder, not a single peal but roll upon roll reverberating down the sky, and lightning that blinded me, darting and slashing fiercely. I was deafened and confused by the noise, and the lightning startled me. The rain fell not as in our temperate zone, but with angry vehemence, in sheets, storming down as though the heavens were emptying themselves of flooded lakes.

(S. Maugham)

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Ex. 15. Weather conversations

a. Here are some more unusual but still useful words about weather so that you can have typical weather conversations where you agree with someone by using a synonym. In these examples В replies using more informal language.

b. Respond to these statements about the weather. Agree using slightly more formal language like that of speaker A in the dialogues.

с. Make your own dialogues using these expressions.

Ex. 16. a. It’s important to have a general understanding of the text before you start the task. Read the text quickly and answer these questions.

1.What are some of the bad effects the wind can have?

2.What good effects are mentioned?

Wind. The untameable weather machine

On 15 October 1987, the southern counties of Britain were struck, by the strongest winds they had experienced in 200 years. Gusts of over 130 kilometres per hour slammed across the region and £1.5-billion-worth of damage was caused in just a few hours.

Extreme weather events like this are dramatic reminders of the power of the wind. It's one part of the weather we generally don't give a second thought to in Britain but it plays a vital role in people's lives across the world. Without the formation and circulation of winds there would quite simply be no climate.

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Some parts of the world seem to suffer more than others from the effects of ill winds', and links between particular winds and psychological problems date back centuries. The Fohn, the hot dry wind that slides off the slopes of the Alps, is capable of boosting temperatures quite suddenly by 10°C or more. It affects as many as one in three people in its path, making them feel anxious, irritable and generally ill. In California, many people dread the arrival of the Santa Ana, which rushes down from the high Mojave desert Lyall Watson, in his book Heaven's Breath, claims that when the Santa Ana blows, murder rates soar.

The wind may get into the headlines when it comes in the form of tornadoes and hurricanes, but for the most part it goes about the job of shifting huge masses of air around the planet. Plants take advantage of this free ride to send their pollen grains far and wide. Trees rely оn it to remove old leaves and make way for new growth. Spiders have been caught hitching a lift at altitudes of almost 4.5 kilometres.

b. Find the English equivalents for:

1) сбрасывать старые листья для роста новых; 2) фен; 3) образование и перемещение ветров; 4) непокорный; 5) повышать температуру; 6) сильные порывы ветра; 7) бушевать по всей территории; 8) перемещающиеся массы воздуха.

Ex. 17. a. Divide the following words into two columns:

Snowdrift, to freeze, slush, to melt, muggy, mild, blizzard, scorching, close, a frost, boiling, sleet, humid, stifling, sweltering, chilly, thaw.

b. Fill in the gaps with the words above in the proper form:

In Scandinavia, the …………(1) days of autumn soon change to the cold days of winter. The first …………(2) arrive and the roads become icy. Rain becomes …………(3) and then snow, at first turning to

…………(4) in the streets, with severe …………(5) and …………(6) in the far north. …………(7) weather often continues in the far north until May or even June, when the ground starts to …………(8) and the ice

…………(9) again.

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c. Give the synonyms for:

Ex. 18. a. This wet weather scale gets stronger from left to right. damp → drizzle → pour/ downpour → torrential rain → flood

b. Fill in the gaps with the following words:

overcast foggy chilly flooded drizzle breeze storm drought misty hailstones shower gale pouring damp torrential rain rain gusts downpour hurricane blustery

1.Fall is usually …… and …… with …… and …… .

2.It was absolutely …… .

3.There was a real …… .

4.In the tropics there is often …… and the roads get …… .

5.This rain won’t last long; it’s only a …… . [short duration]

6.The …… damaged several houses. [high winds and rain together]

7.We got soaked in the …… . [thunder and heavy rain]

8.…… battered the roof of our car. [small balls of ice falling from the sky]

9.The sky’s …… , I think it’s going to rain. [very cloudy]

10.We had a …… last summer. It didn’t rain for six weeks.

11.The air was …… after the light rain. [particles of moisture in the air]

12.It was so …… that I could barely see ahead of me. [thick, heavy moisture in the air]

Wind

13.There was a gentle …… on the beach, just enough to cool us.

14.It’s …… day; the …… of wind will just blow the umbrella away.

15.There’s been a …… warning; it would be crazy to go sailing.

16.People boarded up their windows when they heard a …… was on the way.

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c.Fill in the blanks with the words from the box:

1.My first experience of real winter weather was when I went to Northern Canada. I was used to the kind of snow that falls back home, which quickly turns into brown ………(1) with all the people walking in it. In fact, most of the time I was growing up, it didn’t really snow at all – it was mostly ………(2). Otherwise, our winters meant a little bit of white ……...(3) in my garden and occasionally having to drive very carefully on icy roads early in the morning. I had never experienced the ………(4) and

………(5) that can paralyze a whole city in less than an hour and close roads completely. However, when the earth finally ………(6) and all the snow ………(7) away in spring, everything comes to life again and looks more beautiful than ever.

d.Recall one winter day and describe the weather in 10–15 sentences.

Ex. 19. Read the interview with Dr. Jenkins and fill in the chart below:

Weather and Mood

Presenter: We all like to talk about the weather. But how much do we know about how the weather affects us? Are you prone to headaches when there are thunderstorms about? Do you feel bad-tempered and irritable when it's hot and muggy? Or depressed when it's cold and grey? Well, you'll be interested to hear that the latest research is confirming what many of us have always believed – there really is a connection between the weather and the way we feel. Doctor Jenkins, could you tell us about this new research?

Dr. Jenkins: Yes, indeed. The findings clearly demonstrate that sudden changes in atmospheric pressure, humidity and temperature affect us in very real ways – both physically and mentally. Now, for example, if you have a sudden low pressure system with a lot of cloud cover, and that's combined with warm winds, then the effect is that our reflexes slow down. It's been shown that the number of road accidents increases significantly during periods of increased cloudiness and the passage of warm air currents. So if you're driving, for example, drive with care, because in an emergency – say, if you need to brake suddenly – your reactions are going to be that bit slower. Now, we get a different kind of effect when the same low pressure system is combined, not with warm winds, but with a sudden drop in temperature. Cold, damp weather doesn't slow us down, but we do tend to get odd aches and pains. As a doctor, in weather like this I get noticeably more patients coming in

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