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29. How long have you known your best friend? Where did you meet
and what did you have in common?
30. What type of people do you get along with best?
31. What behavior of others hurts you most? When you have upset
someone by your actions, what do you try to do?
32. Do you tell your best friend everything?
T e x t . M y b e s t f r i e n d H e l en
I have told you before that I have two best friends. And I have promised to tell you about Helen. Well, I have known my best friend Helen almost
all my life, but I can never forget our first meeting. It was in summer when
our families decided to rest in the south together. When we drove up to their
house my attention was attracted by a little tidy girl in a rose dress, who was
sitting to squat and playing with her long blond curl, but I can't say that my
first impressions were the same as my opinion about her now, because meeting people for the first time we always make a judgment based on their appearance though the proverb tells us not to make such a mistake. At first she
seemed to me so obedient and shy that I didn't like her, but when we began
to communicate closer I understood I was mistaken. I think it makes sense to
say that when we returned home we were loyal friends.
Today she has changed a lot but we are still best friends and now
I think Helen is a very charming and pretty nineteen-year-old girl. She
isn't tall and I can’t even say that she is of average height but she is always
smart and elegant. Helen has an attractive face which is broaden with
open and frank features. She is the owner of a blunt nose, large expressive
green eyes and radiant smile that immediately makes people smile in return. Her blond hair and soft voice make her similar to a little beautiful
princess from a fairy-tale.
My friend likes casual clothes. Helen hates skirts and formal blouses,
but adores tight-fitting trousers and casual T-shirts. She prefers low-heeled
shoes to high-heeled, because they are more comfortable to her mind.
I believe that Helen is a very amazing girl, because she is an optimist.
She is never bored but always smiles and laughs, that is why I like her fascinating smile very much. And I should say I can never be bored if my friend
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keeps company for me, because she is so cheerful and joyous. She is also
responsible and original, I think. Such friends like she can be characterized
as devoted, frank and careful, because she can never refuse if I need support
or a piece of advice, she is always eager to help me and to calm me with the
help of a tender word.
But like other people she isn't an ideal. Sometimes she is too lazy and
stubborn and I dislike it a bit. She is rather impatient, because she can't wait
for long. But these features of her character don't matter much for me; I try
not to pay attention to them because in general she is a wonderful person.
Though Helen is a busy girl and she doesn't have much free time, she
always tries to find spare time for her hobbies and interests, because she has
a lot of them. Most of all she likes to play computer games. When Helen
relaxes she likes to look through different interesting magazines and newspapers but she doesn't like to read books, especially large books like "War
and Peace" by Tolstoy.
Helen is fond of sport but this year she has very little time for it, because she is very busy with her studying, because she is a first year student.
Now she studies at Kazan Federal University at the Institute of Fundamental
Medicine and Biology. To my mind Helen is an intelligent, skillful and diligent girl, that's why her success in study is brilliant.
And unfortunately that is the main reason why we see each other quite
rarely, but we phone each other almost every day, we try to meet on our days
off and that’s why we don't feel separation from each other.
At these rare times when we see each other we like to attend cinema
or central park, but most of all we like to speak. When we meet each other
we can speak for hours, I can discuss with my best friend such problems that
I can't discuss with my parents. We speak about fellows and our relations
with them, we discuss our problems with parents and share our thoughts and
dreams. It doesn't mean that I can't say about all these things to my mother,
but I know that nobody can understand me better than Helen.
I know that only she can support me and help me in everything, because we are very alike, we think in the same way and our points of view
often coincide, but in spite of it I can't say that nothing worries me in our
relationships, though also I can't say there are some real problems or misunderstandings between us. We see each other rather rarely, because we live in
different districts and she is too busy even on days off and I dislike it a lot.
I consider she is a bit disorderly and she can't plan her day off in a right way,
that's why she doesn't manage to do everything she wants.
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As for our friendship, I’m sure it is strong enough because we trust each
other as ourselves, we always share the same joys and troubles together and we
support each other at difficult times. And it goes without saying that I like Helen
with all her positive and negative features of character and admire her a lot.
Exercise 2. Answer the questions from the text My best friend Helen:
1. How did Aliya meet Helen first?
2. What impression did Helen make on Aliya?
3. How old in Helen?
4. How can you describe Helen’s appearance?
5. What can you say about Helen’s character?
6. Where does Helen study?
7. Are Helen and Aliya alike?
8. How do they spend their free time?
9. Do they see each other often?
Exercise 3. Look at the film poster and guess what kind of film it is.
Have you seen the film the Untouchables? If yes, tell your class a little
about the film without giving too much away about the story.
Exercise 4. Read the text about the film The Untouchables and answer
the questions:
1. Why do you think people liked the film so much?
2. Who was Philippe?
3. How did he become disabled?
4. Why did Philippe hire Driss?
5. How can you describe Driss?
6. How did Driss help Philippe?
7. In what ways did Philippe help Driss?
8. How long did Driss work for Philippe?
9. What is their relationship like now?
10. Do you have a lot in common with your friends?
11. How long can a friendship last when you keep in touch but don’t
spend time together?
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Picture 3. “The Untouchables” film poster
T e x t . T h e U n t o u c h a b l e s
The Untouchables is a French comedy about two friends who have
almost nothing in common, has become the most viewed French film in the
world with 51 million tickets up to 2014. Let’s consider how exactly a rich
French aristocrat and an Algerian immigrant with a criminal past became
good friends.
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Picture 4. Movie still from the film “The Untouchables”
Philippe and Driss first met in Paris in 1993 when Philippe was looking for a nurse. Philippe discloses to Driss that he became disabled following
a paragliding accident – he lost the use of his arms and legs and that his wife
died without bearing children. Philippe was from a very wealthy family and
he had been a successful businessman, living a life of great luxury. But after
this accident his life in a wheelchair became lonely and boring. And Philippe
needed practical help with his day-to-day life.
Philippe interviewed many people for the job of nurse, but none of
them seemed right. Then he met Driss, who had quit a life of crime in Algeria
and moved to France to look for work. Driss had no ambitions to get hired.
He was just there to get a signature on a document showing he was interviewed and rejected so that he could continue receiving his welfare benefits.
But Driss was given the job on a trial basis and he did well in caring
for Philippe. In his turn Philippe said that he did not care about Driss's past
because he was the only one that did not treat him with pity.
Driss was lively, intelligent and quick-thinking, with a crazy sense of humour and they got on with Driss immediately. The two men didn’t have much
in common. Driss loved pop music, but Philippe preferred classical music.
Philippe loved modern art, but Driss hated it. Philippe’s family were sure that he
had made a bad choice. They believed that Philippe needed someone much more
sensible. Meanwhile, Driss wasn’t planning on staying in the job for long.
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However, their working relationship quickly developed into a close
friendship. Driss gave Philippe the support he needed. More importantly, his
energy and sense of humour brought fun and excitement back into Philippe’s
life. Driss helped Philippe make trips to other countries. Back home in Paris
their adventures included travelling around the streets of Paris with Driss on
the back of Philippe’s wheelchair or driving Philippe’s car often much too fast!
Thus, Driss worked for Philippe for ten years. Philippe believes it was
Driss’s energy and sense of fun that kept him alive. Philippe suddenly found
he was enjoying life again. He felt like he didn’t know what was coming
next. As for Driss, friendship with Philippe had kept him out of prison and
introduced him to a new way of life.
Philippe and Driss now live in different countries and they keep in touch
regularly. They both have a wife and family. Over the years they have learnt,
among other things, to enjoy each other’s favourite music. All that really mat-
ters to their friendship is their shared love of laughter and adventure.
Exercise 1. Read a conversation between two students at a university. Are the sentences true or false?
1. Education is the main topic of the conversation.
2. The conversation is a friendly chat.
3. One speaker describes his/her family.
4. Relationships are the main topic of the conversation.
5. The conversation is an interview.
D i a l o g u e . E m i l y a n d S t u a r t
Emily. Hi, my name's Emily and I’m a student here at the university.
Do you have a few minutes?
Stuart. Hi! Oh, uh, sure. What do you need?
Emily. Well, I’m doing a survey on friendship, so can I ask you some
questions?
Stuart. Yes, no problem.
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Emily. Nice! Thank you! Can you tell me your name and what you do?
Stuart. My name’s Stuart. And I’m a third-year engineering student.
Emily. And is your age group 18 to 24?
Stuart. Actually, a bit older. I’m 25. So you need to tick the 25 to 32 box.
Emily. Twenty-five. Great! So, the first question. Are you in a rela-
tionship?
Stuart. No, I’m single at the moment.
Emily. Come on!
Stuart. What?
Emily. Oh, nothing! Sorry – not married, no girlfriend. Next question:
when you meet people for the first time, do you find it easy to make friends
with them?
Stuart. Yes, I think so. I’m not shy. I think I’m generally quite confi-
dent.
Emily. OK. Next question: do you keep in touch with friends you made
at school?
Stuart. Yes, I've got a friend called Joseph. He’s from Australia.
Emily. And did you get on with Joseph straight away?
Stuart. No! Actually, that was the funny thing. Before we met, I’d been
the best football player in the whole school.
Emily. Oh, I'm sure you were.
Stuart. Sorry?
Emily. Nothing!
Stuart. Uh, so Joseph was such a good player that I really hated him at first.
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Emily. So how did you become friends?
Stuart. Well, we discovered that we had lots of things in common.
He’s also the eldest child in a big family and he also has two little sisters.
And we definitely share the same sense of humour.
Emily. How important is a sense of humour in friendship?
Stuart. Oh, really important!
Exercise 2. Read the conversation again and choose the correct answers.
1. What does Stuart study at university?
2. How old is he?
3. Does Stuart consider himself a confident person?
4. Does Stuart have girlfriend?
5. Where is Joseph from?
6. Why did Stuart not like Joseph when they first met?
7. How many sisters does Joseph have?
8. What do Stuart and Joseph have in common?
Exercise 3. Think about a trip you have recently been on with a friend.
Use these prompt questions: Who, Where, When, Why, What to ask and answer questions about the trip with your partner. Also discuss how the trips
might have been different with a family member instead of a friend.
Exercise 4. Complete this sentence in your own words: A true friend
is someone who... . Compare your sentences with your partner and discuss
what they’ve written.
Exercise 5. In pairs ask and answer these questions: Which of these
things do you prefer doing with friends? Which do you prefer doing with
family? Which do you prefer doing alone? Why?
Use these verbs for your answers: talk, laugh, watch sports, watch films,
watch TV, listen to music, do sports, eat, go on holiday, go shopping, study.
Say whether your answers were similar to or very different from their
partner’s.
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W ordb u i l d i n g . W o r d b u i l d i n g o f v e r b s
w i t h t h e h e l p o f a f f i x e s a n d p r e f i x e s
Study these examples of affixes:
1. -en – lighten, strengthen
2. -fy – electrify, classify
3. -ize – mechanize, organize
4. -ate – indicate, activate
Study these examples of prefixes:
1. de- decode
2. in- input
3. dis- disappear
4. inter- interact
5. co- cooperate
6. over- overestimate, overrate
7. re- rebuild, rewrite
Exercise 1. Form the verbs out of nouns using the suffix –ize:
vapour, character, oxygen, hydrogen, critic, general, real.
Exercise 2. Form the verbs meaning the repeated action using the suffix re- :
to establish, to do, to elect, to assure, to form, to cover, to store.
G r a m m a r . C o m p a r a t i v e a n d s u p e r l a t i v e
a d j e c t i v e s
1. We form comparatives and superlatives of one-syllable adjectives,
or those that end in -y, as follows.
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One-syllable adjectives and two-syllable adjectives ending in -y
high
cheap
safe
higher (than)
cheaper (than)
safer (then)
the highest
the cheapest
the safest
Most one-syllable adjectives form the
comparative and superlative with
-er and est.
large
larger (than)
the largest
One-syllable adjectives ending in -e
form the comparative and superlative
with -r and -st.
big
bigger (than)
the biggest
One-syllable adjectives ending in a
vowel and a consonant form the compar-
ative and superlative with a double con-
sonant.
tidy
early
tidier (than)
earlier (than)
the tidiest
the earliest
Two-syllable adjectives that end with -y
form the comparative and superlative
with -ier and -iest.
2. We make the comparative and superlative with more and the most for:
Most adjectives with two or more syllables.
modern / more modern/ the most modern
comfortable /more comfortable/the most comfortable
3. Adjectives with one syllable that end in -ed.
organized/more organized/ the most organized
4. We can use much or far to modify a comparative.
e.g. New York is much bigger than London.
This room is far more comfortable than the other one.
5. We use (not) as ... as and the simple adjective in comparisons of equality.
e.g. Is Amsterdam as big as London?
The hotel wasn't as good as we expected.
6. Irregular forms
good/better/the best
bad/worse/ the worst
far /further/the furthest
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