Unit 1

Using the dictionary

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A. What information does a dictionary give me?

1. Match the descriptions on the right with the dictionary terms on the left.

1. different senses a) how to say a word

2. note b) what a word means
3. example c) a group of words with a special meaning
4. abbreviation d) whether the word is a noun, verb, etc
5. idiom e) a word from the same word family
6. part of speech f) a word which means something completely different
7. pronunciation g) the different meanings of a word
8. opposite h) more information about a word
9. derivative i) a phrase that shows you how a word is used
10. definition j) the short form of a word

2. Now find an example of each type of information in the page below and write the number of the
correct term in the box.

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B. Spelling and pronunciation

• How do you spell .........? / • I’m sorry, could you spell that, please?

Knowing how to pronounce and understand the letters of the alphabet can be very important.

1. Look at the words below and match the sounds with the sounds of the letters of the alphabet. Some
have already been done for you.

okay deep see visa piece are eye end why effort

easy jail you zed queue jeans essay empty be open expert

A day J S
B K T tea
C L elephant U
D M V
E N W “double you”
F O X
G P Y
H “aytch” Q Z “……” (UK)
I R “ zee” (USA)

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2. Silent letters

2.1. In the word island / ˈailənd /, the letter ‘s’ is silent (=not pronounced). Use the pronunciation guide

in your dictionary to find the silent letters in each of these words. (Do not include the letter ‘e’ at the end
of a word).

a) knowledge b) bomb c) psychology d) receipt

e) castle f) doubt g) wrist h) calm

a) _____________ b) _____________ c) _____________ d) _____________

e) _____________ f) _____________ g) _____________ h) _____________

C. Alphabetical order

1. In order to find words in the dictionary, you need to know alphabetical order. Put the words below
into alphabetical order.

reference raise rewarding experience recruit

skills degree training qualified wages

1. __________ 2. __________ 3. __________ 4. __________ 5. __________

6. __________ 7. __________ 8. __________ 9. __________ 10. _________

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D. Finding the right meaning

1. In the sentences below, the underlined word has a number of different meanings. Choose the word
which best fits the meaning in the sentence. In the dictionary words with several different meanings
have GUIDEWORDS to help you find the right meaning.

1. Which top do you think I should wear - the red one or the blue one?

a. HIGHEST PART b. SURFACE c. LID d. CLOTHING

2. She’s suffering from a bad case of flu.

a. SITUATION b. COURT OF LAW c. CRIME d. ILLNESS

3. I’m quite fair like my Mum, so I try to keep out of the sun.

a. EQUAL b. RIGHT c. HAIR/SKIN d. WEATHER

4. Why not have a second line put in so that the kids can surf the Internet?

a. MARK b. ROW c. ROPE d. TELEPHONE

5. A party of schoolchildren have been reported missing in the mountains.

a. EVENT b. POLITICS c. GROUP d. LEGAL

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E. Abbreviations

1. Look at the abbreviations below. How do you pronounce them and what do they mean?

COD asap AOB B2B

PA PO Box c/o CEO

1. __________ 2. __________ 3. __________ 4. __________

5. __________ 6. __________ 7. __________ 8. __________

F. Parts of speech

1. Some words, for example LIGHT, keep the same form as a noun, verb and adjective:

I’ll just switch the light off first. NOUN

Shall I light the candles? VERB
We should go home now while it’s still light. ADJECTIVE

2. Some words have different forms:

We will know their decision next week. NOUN They carried out a detailed chemical
analysis.

They have to decide by Thursday. VERB We need to analyse the figures.

It was a decisive 5-1 victory. ADJECTIVE He has a very analytical approach.

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3. In the following sentences choose the correct label for the word in CAPITALS. Look up the words in
the dictionary and look for the labels noun, verb and adj if you are not sure.

e.g. I waited for nearly an hour at the bus STOP. (Noun)

a) I STUDY every day for about an hour.

b) Many shops are CLOSED in the afternoon.
c) They gained INDEPENDENCE from Britain in 1965.
d) The company EMPLOYS around 500 people.
e) Many people have private HEALTH insurance.
f) The new government promised tax CUTS.
g) Is there a station CLOSE to where you live?
h) There has been a DROP in house prices.

G. Word formation

Many words belong to ‘word families’: they are formed from a core word, and their meaning
is related to its meaning (for example, the words disagree, agreeable, agreed and
disagreement, are all formed from the word agree, and their meanings are related to its
meaning).

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1. Put the following words into groups of related words. Then decide what the core word is for each
group.

decision clarity continuous defensive

indecisive unclear indefensible continuity

undecided clearly discontinue clarification

defendant defenceless decidedly continually

1. ______________ 2. ______________ 3. ______________ 4. ______________

2. Fill in the gaps in the sentences below using words that come from the core words in brackets.

a) Make yourself ____________ (comfort) and I’ll be back in a minute.

b) We’re full of ____________ (admire) for all your hard work.
c) Many people have doubts about the ____________ (necessary) of these measures.
d) Part-time ____________ (employ) will now have the same rights as full-timers.
e) We must work to prevent the ____________ (destroy) of the rainforests.
f) They listened to his speech in ____________ (respect) silence.

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H. Idioms

Idioms can be found within the individual dictionary entries, generally after the symbol IDM.

1. The following sentences all contain idioms. In each case, the missing word is a part of the body. Fill
in the blanks. Looking up the underlined word in the dictionary will help if you do not know the answers.

a) Have I done something wrong? They all seem to be giving me the cold _________.
b) You need a thick _________ in order to be a politician.
c) He sat there looking all innocent – as if butter wouldn’t melt in his _________.
d) I’m sure she’ll help if you twist her _________.
e) I’m not very impressed with their behaviour but I’ll turn a blind _________ this time.
f) What’s got into him? He’s like a bear with a sore _________ this morning.

I. Grammar

The dictionary helps you with many aspects related to grammar and if you make good use
of all the information in it, you should easily be able to improve your written skills.

1. What are the past tense forms of...

a) rely? ___________
b) lean? ___________
c) take? ___________

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2. What is the plural of...?

a) crisis? ___________
b) veto? ___________
c) criterion? ___________

3. What is the comparative form of...?

a) common? ___________
b) easy? ___________
c) stupid? ___________

4. Read the job application letter below. Which underlined preposition is correct?

Dear Ms Downing

I am writing to apply for / to the job of sales assistant advertised in last week’s Messenger. I think I
would be suitable to / for this post for a number of reasons. Firstly, my present job involves helping
customers, so I am good at / in dealing with people. Although I do not have much experience of sales
work, I learn quickly. I also have a good knowledge in / of the range of products that you sell. I would
be available to attend an interview at any time.

I look forward to hearing from you soon.

Yours sincerely,
J. Jones

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J. Final dictionary quiz

Look at the extract below and answer the following questions:

a) What kind of food is a scone? __________________________________

b) What is a synonym for scold? __________________________________
c) Is the following sentence correct? Why / Why not?
Please can you pass me a scissors? _________________________________
d) Which letter is not pronounced in the word scion? __________________________
e) How many parts of speech can the word scoop be?
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f) Which of these sentences is correct?

• She scolded them that they had arrived so late.
• She scolded them for arriving so late.
g) You are in an important business meeting. Would it be appropriate to say: I’ll scoot now. I’m late for
my next meeting.? Justify your answer.
h) Where in the dictionary can you find a picture of a scooter? __________________
i) What does a newspaper do when it scoops its rivals? ________________________
j) Add the correct preposition: They scoffed __________ all my suggestions.

SOURCES:

• Cambridge Dictionaries (2007), Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Worksheets. Disponível em URL:

http://www.cambridge.org/elt/dictionaries/resources.asp (14.08.2007).
• Cornelsen Verlag (2007), Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary Worksheets. Disponível em URL:
http://www.cornelsen.de/oald/1.c.121362.de?pdl=1&file=%2Fsixcms%2Fmedia.php%2F8%2F12_key.pdf (14.08.2007).
• Longman Dictionaries (2007), Longman General Dictionary Worksheets. Disponível em URL:
http://www.longman.com/dictionaries/teachers/gen-worksheet.html (14.08.2007).
• Macmillan Publishers Limited (2003), Macmillan Essential Dictionary Worksheets. Disponível em URL:
http://www.macmillandictionary.com/essential (14.08.2007).

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FORMATIVE TEST

I. Use your dictionary to answer the questions below.

1. Which letter is not pronounced in the word ‘foreign’?

2. What is the synonym of ‘emphasize’?
3. What does ‘MEP’ stand for?
4. Which of the following words sounds like ‘threat’? 1) treat 2) meat 3) get
5. “This was the best room we could get in such short notice”. Explain the meaning of ‘short notice’.
6. If somebody holds back information, what does that mean?
7. List four words one can create from ‘national’.
8. Complete the following sentence: “She really started off on the wrong ____ with the new Human
Resources Director.” 1) foot 2) hand 3) knee
9. Which letter is not pronounced in the word ‘listen’?
10. Which of the following words sounds like ‘though’? 1) tough 2) rough 3) know
11. In the sentence “I would like to apply for the position of Marketing Director”, look for a synonym of
the underlined word.
12. Complete the sentence “The strike was cancelled at the eleventh _________” and explain what this
idiom means.
13. How would you classify ‘hard’ in each one of the following sentences as far as the part(s) of speech
is/are concerned?
a) “This is a hard decision”.
b) “Anna has been working hard in the last few weeks.”
14. What does ‘www’ stand for?
15. What is the opposite of ‘heavy’?
16. Which letter is not pronounced in the word ‘sight’?
17. What is the synonym of ‘located’?
18. What does ‘MBA’ stand for?
19. “I went over to see if I could lend a hand”. Explain the meaning of ‘lend a hand’.

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II. Fill in the gaps in the sentences below using words that come from the core words in
brackets.

1. The Marketing _______________ (manage) is in his office.

2. Our ________________ (compete) have created a new product and it looks very good.
3. After a long negotiation, we finally reached ______________ (agree).
4. The World Bank is an international ________________ (organize) that supports development projects around
the world.
5. The Human Resources Department has received over forty ______________ (apply) for the position of
assistant supervisor.
6. The __________________ (employ) agency has scheduled an interview with you on Tuesday morning.
7. Our CEO wants to be a _________________ (politics) and join the government.
8. You have to have a lot of ____________________ (patient) in order to become a competent manager.
9. Harry asked for a __________________ (receive) and the cashier gave him one.
10. The stock market crash of 1929 left my grandfather _________________ (penny)!

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