Learn how to use inversion and cleft sentences to add emphasis
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Intro |
|---|
| Barbara: Good morning! |
| Braden: Braden here. Invert Your English Sentences for Extra Emphasis! |
| Barbara: In this lesson, you’ll learn about Cleft sentences, inversion, and more and The keynote speech. |
| Braden: This conversation takes place in the afternoon, at the office. |
| Barbara: And it’s between Jonathan and Jennifer, who are both on the committee. |
| Braden: They are co-workers and know each other well so the conversation will be relaxed but because they are at work, it will be semi-professional. |
Lesson conversation |
| Jonathan: Okay Jennifer, what we need to do is get this schedule mapped out in the next half-hour. |
| Jennifer: Sounds great! So, the seminar is going to be for three days. During those three days, we need three workshops, three panel discussions, a keynote speaker, and someone to give the Robert Forester lecture. |
| Jonathan: And don't forget the food! They're always forgetting to reserve the food. |
| Jennifer: I know! Last time, it was I who reserved the banquet hall and I wasn't even a member of the committee. |
| Jonathan: Okay so, we need to set up breakfast, lunch, and dinner for all the delegates. |
| Jennifer: What we also need is a snack buffet between the events. I think it was Sarah who suggested we have something like bagels, brownies, water, juice, maybe some cheese; things like that. |
| Jonathan: That's a good idea. We should propose that in the next meeting. |
| Jennifer: How about you propose it? They're going to be tired of hearing me by the end of the meeting. I have a lot to report on. |
| Jonathan: Sounds good. Next, we need to deal with the transportation to and from each event. |
| POST CONVERSATION BANTER |
| Braden: So, we wanted to talk a little bit about Workshops. |
| Barbara: The word “workshop” can have many meanings. During the industrial age, a workshop was a building or room within a building which provided the area and tools required for manufacture, repair, or construction of goods. |
| Braden: Workshops were typically smaller than factories. |
| Barbara: Nowadays, the term workshop tends to be used to describe a meeting intended to create or generate plans, analysis, or train individuals or groups how to apply principles learned at other times. |
| Braden: For example, at a seminar, there may be a speech or meeting about the principles of sales and later on a workshop training the individual salespersons how to apply the principles taught in the speech. |
| Vocabulary and Phrases |
| Braden: Let's take a look at the vocabulary for this lesson. |
| : The first word we shall see is: |
| Barbara: workshop [natural native speed] |
| Braden: meeting where a group of people engage in discussion |
| Barbara: workshop [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Barbara: workshop [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Barbara: panel [natural native speed] |
| Braden: a small group of people brought together to discuss a particular matter |
| Barbara: panel [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Barbara: panel [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Barbara: discussion [natural native speed] |
| Braden: the action or process of talking about something |
| Barbara: discussion [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Barbara: discussion [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Barbara: map out [natural native speed] |
| Braden: plan a course of action |
| Barbara: map out [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Barbara: map out [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Barbara: keynote [natural native speed] |
| Braden: introductory speech given at the beginning of a conference |
| Barbara: keynote [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Barbara: keynote [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Barbara: lecture [natural native speed] |
| Braden: an educational talk to an audience |
| Barbara: lecture [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Barbara: lecture [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Barbara: reserve [natural native speed] |
| Braden: retain or hold for someone |
| Barbara: reserve [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Barbara: reserve [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Barbara: delegate [natural native speed] |
| Braden: a person who represents others in a conference |
| Barbara: delegate [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Barbara: delegate [natural native speed] |
| : Next: |
| Barbara: transportation [natural native speed] |
| Braden: process of being transported |
| Barbara: transportation [slowly - broken down by syllable] |
| Barbara: transportation [natural native speed] |
| KEY VOCABULARY AND PHRASES |
| Braden: Let's have a closer look at the usage for some of the words and phrases from this lesson. |
| Barbara: The first word/phrase we’ll look at is.... |
| Barbara: In the dialogue, we heard the phrase" mapped out" |
| Braden: This phrase refers to the idea of a map. Maps identify the major points of a particular area of interest. |
| Barbara: In the same sense, “mapping out” a schedule, is synonymous with creating an outline for the schedule. |
| Braden: That’s right. They aren’t going to write down everything, just the structure and enough detail for the schedule to be useful. |
| Barbara: The entire phrase is, “to get (something) mapped out.” This phrase can be used in any context except the very formal. For example, you could, “get your wedding mapped out,” or “get your semester mapped out,” or “did your job duties mapped out.” |
| Braden: In formal situations you would say “organize your wedding,” or “plan your semester.” instead of "map out our wedding. But in casual conversation the meanings are the same. Could you break this down? |
| Barbara: (slowly) |
| Braden: And one time fast? |
| Barbara: (fast) |
| Braden: Our next phrase is "keynote speaker" |
| Braden: A keynote speaker is the person who gives a keynote speech. We already talked about the keynote speech, but the keynote speaker is just as important. |
| Barbara: Since the keynote speech is so important to the success of the seminar, the keynote speaker is typically a dynamic yet professional speaker. |
| Braden: The keynote speaker is often held in high regard throughout the seminar. In many situations, the keynote speaker can become a kind of delegate leader. Could you break this down? |
| Barbara: (slowly) |
| Braden: And one time fast? |
| Barbara: (fast) |
| Braden: Let’s take a look at the grammar point. |
Lesson focus |
| Braden: What’s the focus of this lesson? |
| Barbara: The focus of this lesson is adding emphasis in English. |
| Braden: In the dialogue, we heard the phrase |
| Barbara: They’re always forgetting to reserve the food. |
| Braden: There are a number of ways to add emphasis to your sentences in English. |
| Barbara: Three specific tools you can use are the passive, inversions, and cleft sentences. |
| Braden: Use these forms to emphasize your statements when you are expressing your opinions, disagreeing with someone, making strong suggestions, expressing annoyance, etc. |
| Barbara: First let’s look at the Use of the Passive. The passive voice is used when focusing on the person or thing affected by an action. |
| Braden: Generally, more emphasis is given to the beginning of a sentence. By using a passive sentence, we emphasize what happens to something rather than who or what does something. |
| Barbara: For example, “Reports are expected by the end of the week.” |
| Braden: In this example, attention is called to what is expected (reports) instead of when it is expected. |
| Barbara: Now let’s take a look at inversions. To create an inversion, invert the word order by placing a prepositional phrase or other expression at the beginning of the sentence followed by inverted word order. |
| Braden: Some useful prepositional phrases are “at no time,” “suddenly into,” “seldom,” “hardly,” and “never.” |
| Barbara: For example, “Hardly had I arrived at work when he started complaining.” and “Seldom have I felt so alone.” |
| Braden: You can also use the word “little” in a negative sense in inversions. For example, “Little did she know they'd planned a surprise party for her.” |
| Barbara: Note that the auxiliary verb is placed before the subject which is followed by the main verb. |
| Braden: Let’s move on to Expressing Annoyance. To express annoyance or irritation, use the continuous form modified by 'always', 'forever', etc. to express annoyance at another person's action. |
| Barbara: This form is considered an exception as it used to express a routine rather than an action occurring at a particular moment in time. |
| Braden: For example, “Martha is always getting into trouble.” and “Peter is forever asking tricky questions.” |
| Barbara: Note that this form is generally used with the present or past continuous (he is always doing, they were always doing). |
| Braden: George was always being reprimanded by his teachers. |
| Barbara: Now let’s look at Cleft Sentences. First we have Cleft Sentences introduced by 'It is' or 'It was.' These are often used to emphasize a specific subject or object. |
| Braden: The introductory clause is then followed by a relative pronoun. For example - “It was I who received the promotion.” and “It is the awful weather that drives him crazy.” |
| Barbara: Now let’s look at Cleft Sentences that are introduced by “what.” Sentences introduced by a clause beginning with 'What' are also used to emphasize a specific subject or object. |
| Braden: The clause introduced by 'What' is employed as the subject of the sentence and is followed by the verb 'to be.' |
| Barbara: For example, “What we need is a good long shower.” and “What he thinks isn't necessarily true.” |
| Braden: A quick tip here is that in some dialects of American English you’ll hear things like, “What’s wrong here is that there are too many computers.” What I’m focusing on is the repeated “is.” |
| Barbara: This is incorrect and the sentence makes perfect sense without the doubled “is.” If you’ve picked up that habit, It's a good idea to try to remove it. It is a grammar error not kindly looked on in the business world. |
Outro |
| Braden: That just about does it for today. Thanks for listening! |
| Barbara: Bye! |
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