Lesson 12 Banks and their customers 

Key to Comprehension

Possible answers

1  It means that one (the customer) lends to the other and the other (the bank)
borrows from the customer.

2  One sentence which illustrates the statement is: ‘He gives the bank specimens
of his signature … on which its customer's signature has been forged.’ (11. 10---- 12)

3  He gives the bank specimens of his signature so that they know he has signed
a cheque, and not someone else.

Key to The paragraph

A  In the first paragraph, the writer makes it clear that the relationship between a
bank and its customer is a two-sided arrangement, both with obligations to each other
and with neither more important than the other.

B  Statement I expresses the main idea of the second paragraph because it

mentions a customer's instructions, not simply cheques and signatures.

C  See text.

Key to KS Exercises

A  When we combine sentences with a relative pronoun, we often have to

produce sentences with relative clauses and a preposition, clauses which are
introduced with, for example, about whom, in which, about which, for which, by
which, etc. Look:That person is the manager. + I complained to him . = The person to
whom I complained is the manager.

This is the car. + I paid ￡2,000 for it. = This is the car for which I paid ￡2,000.

Sentences joined in this way tend to be slightly formal.

1  The bank has no right or authority to pay out a customer's money on a cheque
on which its customer's signature has been forged.

2  The source from which I obtained this information is very reliable.

3  We have certain principles on which we should act.

 B  One way in which we can avoid repeating a word or phrase in English is to
use the replacement phrase that (of) or those (of)

The uniform he wore was that of a famous regiment. = The uniform he wore was
the uniform of a famous regiment.

The techniques she employed were those used by another famous artist. = The
techniques she employed were the techniques used by another famous artist.

1  I am not referring to our policy but to that of out opponents.

2  'The only system I know which will help you to remember what you have
heard at a lecture is that of keeping notes.

C  In complex sentences which contain a clause introduced by a relative pronoun

+ passive verb construction (The fish which was caught by the youngest angler won
the competition ), the relative pronoun and auxiliary verbs of the passive construction
(is/are/was/were/have been/has been) can be omitted leaving only the past participle
of the verb (The fish caught by the youngest angler won the competition ).

1  The exhibition consists entirely of pictures painted by young children.

2  The report on education prepared by a government committee will soon be

published.

3  According to the regulations, income earned overseas will be taxed.

Special difficulties

1  The two words current and currant are pronounced the same.

The adjective current means ‘belonging to the present, of the present day’: That
word is no longer in current use.

As a noun, a current is ‘a continuously moving mass of liquid or gas’ or ‘the

flow of electricity past a fixed point’: The current is strongest in the middle of the
river. This button switches the current on.

A currant is a ‘small dried seedless grape, especially used in baking cakes’: My

mother always puts a kilo of currants into a cake like this.

2  The verbs lend and borrow are easily confused.

To lend something to someone (or lend someone something) means to ‘give

someone the possession or use of something on the condition that it will be returned
later’, while borrow is to ‘take or receive something from another person, usually with
permission, and with the understanding that it will be returned after a certain time’:
 I lent a book to James./I lent James a book.

James borrowed a book from me.

3  In favour of = approving of, on the side of, in support of: She is very much in
favour of women managers.

For the sake of = in order to help, improve or bring advantage: He was advised to
go and live near the coast for the sake of his health.

4  Whether and weather are pronounced the same, but are very different in
meaning.

Whether is a conjunction meaning ‘if … or not’:I don't know whether to go

swimming.

The noun weather is the condition of wind, temperature, rain, sunshine, snow,
etc., at a certain time or over a period of time: If the weather is fine, we'll have the
party outside in the garden.

5  Loaded is the past tense of the verb load = ‘put (a load) on or in (a vehicle,
structure, etc.)’: They loaded their furniture into the van. It also means to ‘put bullets
into a gun or film into a camera’: This gun is loaded.

Laden is an adjective meaning ‘heavily loaded’: The lorry was fully laden. The
apple trees are laden with fruit this year.

6  The adverb else after question words and some pronouns means ‘besides,
also’: We need another helper.

Can you find anyone else?

The pronoun other means ‘the second of two, the remaining one of a set’: One of
you is right: the other is wrong. It also means ‘an additional person or thing’: Are
there any other problems?

7  A specimen is ‘a piece or amount of something for being shown, tested, etc.’:

The doctor will need a specimen of your blood.

An example is ‘something taken from a number of things of the same kind,

which shows the usual quality of the rest or shows a general rule’: Can you give me
an example of an adjective that ends in ‘-ive’?

8  A customer is ‘a person or organization who buys goods or services from a

shop, business, etc.’: That man spends ￡20 a week in our shop and is one of our best
customers.

A client is ‘a person who gets help and advice from a professional person, for
example from a lawyer, accountant, etc.’: That young accountant hasn't been in
business long, but he already has 50 clients.
 9  The two words cheque and check are pronounced the same, but in British
English have different meanings.

A cheque is ‘a written order to a bank, on special printed paper, to pay a certain

sum of money from one's bank account to oneself or to another person’: 1 haven't got
enough cash, I'm afraid, so will you take a cheque?

A check is ‘an examination or inspection to make certain that something is

correct or in good condition’:

They gave the car a thorough check before they bought it. (The verb check
means to ‘test, examine or inspect to see if something is correct, true, in good
condition, etc’: Their bags were checked by security guards as they entered the
building.)

In American English, the spelling check is used for the British English cheque.

10  The verb adopt /+'d%pt/ means to ‘take and use as one's own’: We adopted
their production methods because they were so much better than our own.

The verb adapt /+'d+$pt / means to ‘make suitable for new needs, new
conditions’: When they moved to France, the children adapted to the change very
well.

11  The verb print means to ‘press letters or pictures onto paper by using shapes
covered with ink, or copy letters etc. onto paper by using photographic methods’: This
new machine can print 60 pages a minute.

The verb type means to ‘operate a (typewriter or word processor) keyboard with
your fingers’: I can only type with two fingers.

1  account = a sum of money kept in a bank, which may be added to and taken
from

2  account = a bill, statement of money owed

3  account for = explain, give a satisfactory explanation for

4  account = a written or spoken report or description

5  on my account = for my advantage or benefit

6  on account of = because of

C  I don't know what to ask for my old bicycle, but how about, say, $100?

Farmers, unlike, say, office workers, are bound to get dirty at work.
 D  When they entered the house, no one said a word.

Let's discuss the problem like adults.

As soon as we reached the top of the mountain, we all had a drink.

I wouldn't leave your car here if I were you.

E  In addition to giving practice in speaking, the course also aims to help
students improve their writing skills.

A large number of people attended the concert at our local hall last Saturday.

The spelling of German, unlike English, is very easy to understand.

You will be paid ￡250 in respect of the work you have done so far.

She has been ill for a month, and for this reason she has had to stay away from
work.