31 Expand your vocabulary: Informal short forms Study the highlighted words in the following sentences. Rewrite them using the full forms. 1 “Gimme your phone, lemme look at it. I wanna know if it’s any good.” 2 “I gotta go – gonna meet Kareem now. Dunno why he wants to see me.” 3 “Shoulda seen this coming. Coulda done something about this sooner.” Have you come across any of these short forms in written texts? Do you use them yourself when you speak or write? In which of the following situations would it be appropriate to use these forms? a a chat with a friend b a presentation about your project for the headteacher of a partner school c an essay in an English exam d creative writing Study the questions and statements below and decide whether they are rather formal (F) or informal (I). Are they written (W) or spoken (S) language? Circle the correct answers. Sometimes there is more than one correct answer. Situation 1: You are interested in a job and ask a friend who works there about the salary. 1 Could you let me know how much I’d earn? F / I W / S 2 Oh, by the way, how much would I make? F / I W / S 3 And what will I take home at the end of the month? F / I W / S 4 I would like to enquire about the salary. F / I W / S 5 How much?? F / I W / S 6 Could you please tell me what the salary is? F / I W / S Situation 2: You want to complain about a burger you had at a restaurant. 1 This burger was just horrible. F / I W / S 2 Eww! How gross! F / I W / S 3 I didn’t enjoy my meal at all. F / I W / S 4 Burger: Yuk! F / I W / S 5 Ugh! This burger was really crap. F / I W / S 6 The burger tasted extremely unpleasant. F / I W / S Compare your answers with a partner and give reasons for your choices. What makes these statements formal/informal? Highlight the elements that distinguish formal language from informal language in different colours. LANGUAGE 22 a b c 23 a b Discuss with a partner which of the phrases below you would rather use to tell a teacher or a friend that you don’t like the book you are currently reading in class. SPEAKING 24 a a bit tedious b a real drag c a real pain d can’t stand it e dead boring f hardly motivating g it really sucks h not especially enjoyable i suitable for younger children j not inspiring k rubbish l a waste of time Use expressions from above to write two short texts: a a feedback note to a teacher complaining about a school trip you didn’t enjoy b a text message to a friend while on the trip WRITING 25 Nur zu Prüfzwecken – Eigentum des Verlags öbv
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