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Hi, I’m Sarah. This is The Daily English Show. More about articles today: when to use a and the.
This is another rule: when you’re telling a story, the first time you mention something you say a and the second time the.
For example: yesterday I saw a man and a woman having an argument at the train station – the man was shouting and the woman was crying.
And another rule: you can use the plus adjective to talk about a group of people.
For example: the young, the old, the rich, the poor, the injured, the dead.
Robin Hood stole from the rich and gave to the poor.
Now, how about names of places? Usually, no the.
So for: states, countries, regions, islands, mountains, cities, towns ... no the.
Africa, Switzerland, New York, Sicily, Madrid, Everest.
But with names with things like Republic, Kingdom or States, use the: the United States of America, the United Kingdom.
And plural names of places need the: the Netherlands, the Philippines, the Rocky Mountains, the Bahamas.
So if you see an s, the.
And oceans, seas and rivers have the: the channel, the Thames, the Amazon, the Mediterranean sea, the Nile.
Kia Ora. In Stick News today, the Prime Minister of New Zealand has advised people to consult their dictionaries after they took offence to a word she used.
Helen Clark is the Prime Minister of New Zealand. Don Brash is the leader of the opposition.
Recently, Helen hasn’t been happy with Don.
National accused Labour of corrupt election spending. Then they spread rumours that Helen Clark’s husband was gay.
This rarked Helen up and she described Dr. Brash as a “corrosive and cancerous person within the New Zealand political system”.
The New Zealand Herald spotted a story and decided to survey people to see if they cared or not.
73.6 percent said the comment was not OK. Some cancer patients didn’t like it either.
But Helen Clark said people should look the word up in their dictionaries.
"I'm sorry if people have taken offence, but clearly it is not a description one applies to people with cancer,” she said.
The Prime Minister is now choosing a different word to describe her political opponent: odious.
And that was Stick News for Tuesday the 3rd of October.
conversations with sarah
# 101 What do you listen to?
Kazuya and Sarah talk about housework.
Step 1: Repeat Kazuya’s lines.
Step 2: Read Kazuya’s lines on the screen and talk to Sarah.
Sarah Which housework do you hate the most?
Kazuya Um, probably laundry. How about you?
Sarah Yeah, I don’t mind laundry in summer when in dries quickly ... but in winter, it’s a pain the arse.
Kazuya And I hate folding washing.
Sarah Mmm, I don’t really mind it, actually ... I usually listen to the radio at the same time, so it’s kind of relaxing.
Kazuya What do you listen to?
Sarah Um, I usually listen to interviews from National Radio, or podcasts.
Kazuya That’s a good idea.
Music on the show used with permission from jamendo.com
Today's questionanswer music:
Artist: Keep Cool Vibration
From: Nancy-Metz, France
Album: Conquest of the empire
Track: Day after day
music at jamendo