Статистика ВК сообщества "Видео и аудиоматериалы для изучения английского"

​British English. Elementary level. Audio.

Amy Winehouse.

Amy Jade Winehouse was an English singer and songwriter. She was known for her marvelous voice and controversial private life. She debuted in 2003 at the age of 20 with the album ‘Frank’. It set her on the road to fame. Music lovers everywhere were excited about her talents and how her career would progress. She was one of music’s hottest stars but constantly battled against drugs and alcohol.

She grew up in a family that loved jazz. Her musical talents were clear to see from a very young age. Aged ten, she formed a rap group called Sweet 'n' Sour with a childhood friend. She got her first guitar when she was 13 and she began writing music. She signed to a major record label after they heard her distinctive voice.

Winehouse’s second album “Back To Black” made her an acclaimed international star. She won dozens of awards, including five at the 2008 Grammy’s. Some of the biggest names in rock were waiting to collaborate with her. George Michael said: "Amy is the best female vocalist I have ever heard in my entire career, as well as one of the best writers."

Winehouse was constantly the focus of media attention. She couldn’t escape the reporters who followed her every move. She has given them good reason to write about her. Her battles with drug and alcohol abuse and her self-destructive behaviour was often tabloid news. The world has lost an amazing talent who had so much more incredible music to offer. She died in July, 2011, aged 27.

Harnaam Kaur is a bearded lady who is an Instagram star. Despite having a full beard, Harnaam is now a bona fide Instagram personality and model.

You can’t look away from Harnaam, who splashes color all over herself with lipstick, a bright turban, and decadent, richly ornamental clothing and jewelry. Instead of hiding herself away, she adorns herself and puts herself out there. She is an example of positivity and variance in beauty in a world that so often expects women to look, weigh, and act a certain way.

Harnaan has overcome bullying from her peers and other adults as well and takes pride in the way she looks and the beauty that she exudes, which seems somehow enhanced by rather than marred by her luscious beard.

Bona fide [bəʊnəˈfaɪdi] истинный, настоящий.

Adorn [əˈdɔːn] украшать, приукрашивать.

Bullying [bullying] запугивание, травля, издевательство.

Exude [ɪgˈzjuːd] излучать, сочиться, источать.

Enhance [ɪnˈhɑːns] усилить, укрепить, повысить, улучшить.

luscious [ˈlʌʃəs] пышный, роскошный.

Идиомы о деньгах.

Go Dutch — платить за себя, раздельный счёт.

They decided to go Dutch. — Они решили платить каждый за себя.

Cook the books — подделывать бухгалтерию, приукрашивать финансовые отчёты, предоставлять ложную отчётность.

The CFO went to prison for cooking the books. — Главный финансовый директор отправился в тюрьму за подделку финансовой документации.

To be in the red — нести убытки, быть в долгах.

This year the company is in the red. — В этом году компания в убытке.

Bet my bottom dollar — зуб даю, ставлю голову на отсечение, мамой клянусь.

I can bet my bottom dollar, we will win. — Зуб даю, мы выиграем.

Make ends meet — сводить концы с концами, мало зарабатывать.

He can hardly make ends meet. — Он едва сводит концы с концами.

Почти все знают слово strange. Однако существуют ещё несколько слов с похожим значением. Они все часто переводятся на русский "странный", но имеют немного отличающиеся значения. И чтобы их различать, их нужно заучивать другим словом, которое отличается от "странный".

Weird [ˈwɪəd] странный, чудно́й, сверхестественный, фантастический.

She is a really weird girl. - Она очень чудна́я девушка.

Bizarre [bɪˈzɑː] странный, причудливый, экстравагантный, вычурный.

She was wearing a bizarre outfit. - Она была одета в экстравагантную одежду.

Odd [ɒd] странный, необычный, непонятный, необъяснимый. Есть ещё одно значение - нечётный, непарный.

That's odd. - Это непонятно.

Queer [kwɪə] странный, необычный, чудной. Чудак. И есть ещё одно значение - относящийся к ЛГБТ.

It's queer, he hasn't arrived yet. - Это необычно, что он ещё приехал.

Peculiar [pɪˈkjuːlɪə] странный, своеобразный, особенный, специфический.

You've got a peculiar taste. - У вас своеобразный вкус.

Quaint [kweɪnt] странный, необычный, затейливый, старомодный.

He had a quaint accent. - У него был затейливый акцент.

6 вариантов английского произношения. Audio.

​Kate, New Zealand
Between cats and dogs I definitely prefer dogs. Although cats are very cute, but dogs also, I like to be active. I like to run around the lawn and take them for walks, and actually, the dogs are more like a little kid, and I actually have a dog. I own a dog in New Zealand and every day I take him for a walk and feed him just like my own little child.

Tres, United States
Let's see, cats or dogs. I think I would prefer a dog over a cat and the reason being, cats make me sneeze, and they make my eyes itch, whereas dogs I'm not too allergic too. On the other hand, dogs have personality. Cats seem to be a bit smarter at times, more like humans but I think a dog is a lot more fun to be around, plus, you know, if you're ever in a time of need, a dog may save your life, where a cat will just watch you die.

Ruth, England
Cats or dogs, that's a good question. Well, I think I would have to say cats because although I like both, cats are more independent and they can find their own food and they don't need to be taken for walks, and generally they're less needy, so I think I would say cats.

Jim, England
I prefer dogs to cats because I think they're loyal and always pleased to see you. I think cats are a little bit selfish, but I have to say I've never had neither. I've only had a tortoise.

Eucharia, Ireland
I think cats are better pet than dogs because cats don't need to be minded. You don't have to worry about feeding a cat, walking a cat. A cat is independent and will walk itself, so um, also they don't require as much training as dogs so they're a much nicer pet I think.

Alan, Canada
I prefer cats. Cats are clean, quite, low maintenance animals. You feed them. You let them out once in awhile. You give them attention, and they're happy. I used to have a cat and I was quite happy with it.

The penguin joke.

There was once a man who had a pet Penguin.
One day, he took his Penguin for a walk.
A Policeman saw him and walked over.
He said “What are you doing with that Penguin?”
The man said “I’m taking him for a walk, officer” The Policeman stared at the man and said “I’m sorry.
You have to take him to the Zoo!”
So the man agreed to take his Penguin to the Zoo, and the officer walked away satisfied.
The next week the Policeman was walking down the same street, and he saw the same man with the Penguin .
Angry, the officer walked over to the man and yelled “I thought I told you to take that Penguin to the Zoo” The man replied…..
“I did officer! And he liked it so much that I’m taking him again today!”
HA HA HA BOOM BOOM! Go away Basil. I’m sorry about my foxy friend, ladies and gentlemen.
Look at the last sentence in this joke. It contains the construction SO…THAT… Look it up in a dictionary if you dont know what it means. More SO…THAT…sentences next time.

6 вариантов английского произношения:

Adrienne, The United States
Do I believe in ghosts? Yes, I think I do. I struggle with it, but I actually think I lived with one time. There were a lot of really strange events happening in this house where I lived and my roommates and I were convinced that we had a ghost in the house. It was hard to think about but yeah, I think I do believe in ghosts.

Barbara, Australia
Do I believe in ghosts? In a word, no! I don't. I believe that there are many things which people don't understand and things that perhaps can't be explained by science – yet – but, no, I don't believe in ghosts.

Conrad, The United States
Do I believe in ghosts? Absolutely not! I'm kind of the type of person that only believes in things that I can see or that can be proven and until I see a ghost, I won't believe in them. Of course there might be Casper the friendly ghost, but I don't believe in ghosts as a scary being or anything like that.

Phil, England
Do I believe in ghosts? To be honest I don't believe in ghosts. Maybe it's my imagination or lack of imagination or, why, but I just don't believe in ghosts. However when I go to the movies and watch a ghost movie, sometimes I do get very scared by them.

Simone, Sweden
Do I believe in ghosts? Well, I have seen ghosts. I saw my grandfather once when he was dead, but I don't believe them. I think it was my own mind who conjured the image, so, no, I don't.

Simon, Canada
Do I believe in ghosts? No way. Yeah, that there's some supernatural beings that are floating everywhere and scaring everybody, I don't think so. Yeah, some members of my family believe in ghosts, and I always have to laugh at them. Come on. There's not such thing as ghosts.

​The story about a college girl.

A young college girl liked studying late, and thus spent a lot of time in the library instead of her dorm room. During a late night of studying, she realized that she had forgotten something in her dorm room, so she decided to make a trip back to go get it.

When she opened the door she found the room dark, but figured that her roommate was either asleep or out studying like her. Not wanting to disturb her in case she was asleep, she left the light off, grabbed what she needed, and went back to the library.

Upon returning to her room, she found her roommate lying on the floor with a slit throat. But the worst part was the message written in lipstick on the bathroom mirror that read simply, “Aren’t you glad you didn’t turn on the light?”

Dorm [dɔːm] общежитие.

Realize [ˈrɪəlaɪz] осознавать, отдавать себе отчет, понимать.

Figure [ˈfɪgə] полагать, понять.

Slit [slɪt] разрезать, перерезать.

Grab [græb] хватать, схватить, ухватить.

3 tips to boost your confidence - 3 способа поднять уверенность в себе.

"All this buttoning and unbuttoning.”

— Anonymous 18th-century suicide note, cited in The Oxford Dictionary Of Quotations.

"Все эти застегивания и расстегивания пуговиц".

- Анонимная предсмертная записка самоубийцы 18 века, процитированная Оксфордской Энциклопедией Цитат.