Learn how to use the English preposition "at"
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| INTRODUCTION |
| Natalie: Hi there! |
| Braden: Braden here. Going Shopping at an American Boutique. |
| Braden: In this lesson, you will learn about Using the preposition “at." |
| Natalie: This conversation takes place on a city street in the afternoon. |
| Braden: And it’s between Ashely and Jessica. |
| Natalie: Ashley and Jessica have worked together for years and are good friends so they are speaking casually. |
| Braden: Let’s listen to the conversation. |
| DIALOGUE |
| Ashley: Look at this blouse, Jess! |
| Jessica: Wow. That's a nice color. It looks very pretty on you, Ashley. |
| Ashley: Thank you. I really like it. |
| Jessica: Are you going to buy it? |
| Ashley: I think I am, but I wish it were on sale. It's a bit expensive. |
| Jessica: Well, there's no sales tax in Portland. Is that considered "on sale?" |
| Ashley: Ha! That sealed the deal. I'll buy it. |
| Bradent: Let’s hear the conversation one time slowly. |
| Ashley: Look at this blouse, Jess! |
| Jessica: Wow. That's a nice color. It looks very pretty on you, Ashley. |
| Ashley: Thank you. I really like it. |
| Jessica: Are you going to buy it? |
| Ashley: I think I am, but I wish it were on sale. It's a bit expensive. |
| Jessica: Well, there's no sales tax in Portland. Is that considered "on sale?" |
| Ashley: Ha! That sealed the deal. I'll buy it. |
| POST CONVERSATION BANTER |
| Braden: So, in this cultural section, you'll learn about the city of Portland. |
| Natalie: Portland is the largest city in the state of Oregon with nearly 600,000 inhabitants. The Portland Metropolitan area has nearly 2. 3 million and is considered one of the most environmentally friendly cities in the world. |
| Braden: Portland is also the major headquarters for Intel which provides more than 15,000 jobs in the area. More than 1200 other technology companies can be found within the metropolitan area of Portland. |
| Natalie: Portland is also home to the North American headquarters for Adidas, Nike, Columbia Sportswear, and Leather man. These are big companies with lots of employees and many opportunities for employment and advancement within the company. |
| Braden: Within the realm of education, two of the largest universities are Portland State University and the University of Portland. However, the main education attraction in the city of Portland is the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry. |
| Natalie: This museum is one of the largest of its kind and includes many hands-on activities and laboratories for adults and children. It has daily tours of the last American diesel submarine, the USS Blueback, the Omnimax Dome Theater (which is similar to an iMax, only bigger), and the Kendall planetarium. |
| Braden: Sounds like a pretty cool place and it is because I've been there and it's awesome! Let’s take a look at the vocabulary for this lesson. |
| VOCAB LIST |
| Braden: Let's take a look at the vocabulary for this lesson. The first word we shall see is... |
| Natalie: blouse [natural native speed] |
| Braden: a woman’s loose upper garment resembling a shirt |
| Natalie: blouse [slowly - broken down by syllable] blouse [natural native speed] |
| Braden: Next |
| Natalie: color [natural native speed] |
| Braden: the appearance something has because of the way it reflects light |
| Natalie: color [slowly - broken down by syllable] color [natural native speed] |
| Braden: Next |
| Natalie: pretty [natural native speed] |
| Braden: visually pleasing, attractive |
| Natalie: pretty [slowly - broken down by syllable] pretty [natural native speed] |
| Braden: Next |
| Natalie: buy [natural native speed] |
| Braden: to get something in exchange for money |
| Natalie: buy [slowly - broken down by syllable] buy [natural native speed] |
| Braden: Next |
| Natalie: sale [natural native speed] |
| Braden: the exchange of a commodity for money |
| Natalie: sale [slowly - broken down by syllable] sale [natural native speed] |
| Braden: Next |
| Natalie: tax [natural native speed] |
| Braden: compulsory contribution to state revenue |
| Natalie: tax [slowly - broken down by syllable] tax [natural native speed] |
| Braden: Next |
| Natalie: considered [natural native speed] |
| Braden: thought carefully about |
| Natalie: considered [slowly - broken down by syllable] considered [natural native speed] |
| Braden: Next |
| Natalie: sealed [natural native speed] |
| Braden: the state of being joined or rendered impervious |
| Natalie: sealed [slowly - broken down by syllable] sealed [natural native speed] |
| Braden: Next |
| Natalie: deal [natural native speed] |
| Braden: agreement or transaction between people |
| Natalie: deal [slowly - broken down by syllable] deal [natural native speed] |
| VOCAB AND PHRASE USAGE |
| Braden: Let's have a closer look at the usage for some of the words and phrases from this lesson. |
| Natalie: In the dialogue, we heard the phrase “on sale.” |
| Braden: This phrase is often used by stores and in advertisements to inform consumers that the prices on typical commodities are lower than usual. |
| Natalie: Interestingly, there are many people who purchase things simply because they are on sale. |
| Braden: They may not even need those things and we saw in the dialogue how the fact of the blouse not being on sale was a severe deterrent to purchase. |
| Natalie: For this reason, most stores have something “on sale” at all times. |
| Braden: Could you break this down for us? |
| Natalie: (slowly) on sale |
| Braden: And one time fast? |
| Natalie: (fast) on sale |
| Braden: Perfect! What’s next? |
| Natalie: Our next phrase is "sealed the deal." |
| Braden: This phrase is an idiom in English. Hundreds of years ago, when a contract was agreed upon it would be written down and then the people involved would use their own family “seal” to confirm the contract. |
| Natalie: Over the past few hundred years this basic form is changed into many different ways and now in the dialogue, this idiom is used in very casual situations. |
| Braden: For example, in the dialogue Sarah just needed some kind of confirmation in order for her to justify purchasing the blouse. |
| Natalie: Seeing that there was no sales tax was enough for her to seal the deal or for her to purchase the blouse. Beyond that, it's also kind of fun to say because it rhymes. "Sealed the deal." |
| Braden: That is fun. Could you break this down for us? |
| Natalie: (slowly) sealed the deal |
| Braden: And one time fast? |
| Natalie: (fast) sealed the deal |
| Braden: Excellent! Let’s take a look at the grammar point.Natalie |
Lesson focus |
|---|
| Braden: So Natalie, what’s the focus of this lesson? |
| Natalie: The focus of this lesson is the preposition "at." |
| Braden: In the dialogue we heard the phrase |
| Natalie: Look at that blouse, Jess! |
| Braden: The word "at" is a preposition and it has many different meanings and uses. |
| Natalie: The dictionary lists at least twelve ways that "at" can be used. "At" is often difficult for English learners because it's meaning can overlap with the preposition "to." |
| Braden: So, we're going to look at three meanings and uses of the preposition "at." |
| Natalie: It can be used for locations or arrival at a specific place or position, to tell the time when an event takes place, and to tell a particular state or condition. |
| Braden: Let’s start with Locations and Arrival. The preposition "at" is used for locations or arrival at a specific place or position. For example, |
| Natalie: "They live at the Stratford Manor." |
| Braden: Here, "at" indicates a specific place, "at" "the Stratford manor." Another example would be – |
| Natalie: "She is going to work at Microsoft." |
| Braden: Here, "at" shows which company she will be working for, which is Microsoft. "Work 'at' Microsoft." |
| Natalie: Next we'll look at telling time. When saying specific times, use the word "at"." For example – |
| Braden: "She'll start work at 7 o'clock." or "I called you at noon." |
| Natalie: So, whenever you're telling time, you'll use the preposition "at." |
| Braden: Yeah pretty much. Last let’s look at States or Conditions. The preposition "at" can also be used to tell states or conditions of things. For example – |
| Natalie: "The new data put the employees at a disadvantage." |
| Braden: Here, "at" shows the condition of "the employees" which is "at a disadvantage." It's describing their state or position or condition. Another example would be – |
| Natalie: "We don't know who's at fault." |
| Braden: Again their state or condition is "at fault." In other words, who's fault is it? Theirs. |
| Natalie: Okay so, let's review this lesson. |
| Braden: The preposition "at" is used for arrival or specific locations. |
| Natalie: It can also be used for locations or arrival at a specific place or position, such as "at home." |
| Braden: Tell the time when an event takes place, such as "at eight thirty." |
| Natalie: Or tell a particular state or condition, such as "they are at fault." |
Outro |
| Braden: That just about does it for this lesson. Thanks for listening. |
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