annoy:  to bother (someone)
When I check my email, all the spam really annoys me.
The flies at the beach were annoying us so much that we had to leave.

book:  to make a reservation
For our lunch I booked a table at the Japanese restaurant down the street.
It was impossible to book a room for this long weekend, so can I stay with you?

bruise:  to cause a black and blue mark under the skin
He fell off his bike and bruised his arm.
He was lucky. All he did was bruise his lip.

compare:  to say what is similar and different about two things
When I compare prices, Super Store’s are the lowest.
You can’t compare her present boyfriend to her last one.

contain:  to have inside
That bottle of pop contains a lot of sugar.
The fish tank contained a variety of colorful fish.

develop:  to become better.
I’ve watched you develop as a basketball player over the last few years.
She practices hard to develop her skills.

examine:  to look at very closely
Let the doctor examine you to find out what’s wrong.
When the detective examined the scene of the murder, he found a single earring.

forgive:  to no longer be angry at someone
It may take her a while to forgive you for lying to her.
Please forgive me. I should never have taken your bike without asking.

involve:  to be part of (an activity)
Your problems don’t involve me, so find a solution yourself.
Were you involved in that disturbance downtown on Friday?

matter:  to be important
It matters that she’s your sister and she needs help..
It doesn’t matter if I’m there tomorrow or not.

prefer:  to choose (over something else)
What day would you prefer to go out for dinner?
I prefer to stay quiet and keep my opinions to myself.

raise:  to grow, to mature
We were both raised in southern California.
They raise corn on that farm.

remain:  to stay behind (when most have left)
There were only two chocolates remaining in the box.
He remained after class to talk to the teacher.

spoil:  to go or make bad
She spoiled the surprise party by telling her sister.
By the time the fruit got to market, most of it had spoiled.

supply:  to provide with needed things:
That company supplies the army with boots.
The teacher supplied the answers to the test the following day.

Pronunciation Exercise: Listen and repeat the above vocabulary on the audio file below.

Use these flashcards to help you study.

When you think you’re ready, do the following exercise.

© 2013 Ambien Malecot

by Marco Tempest
a magician and performance artist from Zurich, Switzerland who combines video, computer graphics and other technology with his magic. He has a television series called “The Virtual Magician,” which has aired in some 49 markets worldwide.

First preview the vocabulary below.  Then do the exercise by first reading a single question and then listening for the answer.  When you hear the answer, pause the video and answer the question.  Then read the next question and do the same thing.  If you get the answer wrong, then go back to where the answer is given and listen again.

Vocabulary:

Victorian:  the period of British history from 1837 to 1901, the reign of Queen Victoria
illusionist:  a person who does what looks like magic
automaton:  robot
indistinguishable (from):  looking the same (as)
anticipate:  predict what’s going to happen
unpredictable:  surprising, unexpected
irrational:  not logical, not a result of good thinking
proximity:  nearness
abracadabra:  (a magical word)
pioneer:  one of the first people to do something
artificial intelligence:  a smart machine
code:  a set of rules that you must follow

© 2014 Ambien Malecot

by Louis Schwartzberg

an American director, producer, and cinematographer who is a pioneer in time-lapse cinematography. He has been filming time-lapse film non-stop for over three decades. He focuses on connections between humans and the subtleties of nature and environment.

First, preview the vocabulary below.  Then click the exercise below, read a question and then listen for the answer.  When you hear the answer, pause the video and answer the question.  Then read the next question and do the same thing.  If you get the answer wrong, then go back to where the answer is given and listen again.

Vocabulary:

intersection:  where things come together
curiosity:  wanting to know something
explore:  find out things we don’t know
portals:  entrances
the invisible:  things you can’t see
expands our horizons:  teaches us things we don’t know
transforms our perception:  makes us look at things differently
time lapse:  taking pictures over time so you can see movement
organisms:  living things
in motion:  moving
data:  information
imitate:  do the same thing
robotic:  machine
magnify:  make bigger
species:  kinds of animals
elastic:  able to stretch
patrol:  move around and look for problems
transform:  make totally different
© 2014 Ambien Malecot

Conversation:

Ken:  Hey Vince.  Do you want to go to that wilderness survival seminar this weekend?

Vince:  I can’t.  I’ve got this paper to do for biology class on Monday.  I’m going to have to work for days on end to finish it.

Ken:  Are you sure you can’t tear yourself away from it just this once?

Vince:  I don’t think so.  I’ve turned over a new leaf — work first, play afterwards.  Besides, I’m feeling a bit under the weather, so I’m afraid you’ll just have to go by yourself.

Ken:  I could never let my work tie me down and keep me from enjoying myself.  Tell me, what brought about this sudden change in your study habits?

Vince:  I realized I was wasting a lot of time and wasn’t prepared for classes, so I took the bull by the horns and made up a weekly schedule for myself.  I’ve planned some recreation time, but only in the late afternoons.  The rest of the time is study time.

Ken:  Do what you want, but when I look back on these years, I want to remember the good times I had.  Are you sure I can’t talk you into coming?

Vince:  Yes, I’m sure.  Now please leave me alone.  I’ve got to get on this paper.

Ken:  No problem.  I’ll give you a week with your new schedule, and then I’m sure you’ll be singing another tune.  Well, I’ve got to hit the road.  I’ll see you Sunday night.

Vince:  Sure.  You can fill me in on the seminar when you get back.

Vocabulary:

wilderness survival:  knowledge you need to live in nature
seminar:  a class or classes over a short time, such as a weekend
paper:  a piece of writing that requires research
besides:  here is a different reason
sudden:  quick
study habits:  the way you study
realize:  to figure out for the first time
waste time:  to let time pass doing nothing
schedule:  list and time of activities you must do
recreation:  activities that are done for fun

Idioms:

• on end:                                                                   without a break, consecutively
• tear oneself away (from something):    stop doing (something)
• turn over a new leaf:                                       start doing things more effectively
• under the weather:                                         not feeling well
• tie (someone) down:                                       limit (someone’s) activities
• bring about (something):                           cause (something) to happen
• take the bull by the horns:                         make a decision to do something
• look back (on something):                         remember (something) from long ago
• get on (an activity):                                        start working (on something) immediately
• sing another tune:                                          feel differently, change one’s opinion
• hit the road:                                                       leave by car or other vehicle
• fill (someone) in:                                            tell (someone) what happened

Notes:

Sing another tune can also be sing a different tune.
Get on (an activity) can also be get on with (an activity)

© 2004 Ambien Malecot

© 2013 Ambien Malecot

by Henry Lin

a freshman (Sept. 2013) at Harvard University.  At the age of 17 he won an Intel Foundation Young Scientist Award for his mathematical models of distant galaxy clusters.

First preview the vocabulary below.  Then do the exercise by first reading a single question and then listening for the answer.  When you hear the answer, pause the video and answer the question.  Then read the next question and do the same thing.  If you get the answer wrong, then go back to where the answer is given and listen again.

Vocabulary:

clusters:  collections, groups
mutual:  shared
mysterious:  unknown, with secrets
massive:  very, very large
laboratories:  places where discoveries happen
mass:  weight, largeness
isolated:  all alone with no neighbors
systems:  collections of stars
scaled down:  smaller
emitting:  causing, producing
accelerating:  causing something to go faster and faster
rough draft:  a beginning of understanding
properties:  qualities
probing:  examining
matter: stuff
atoms: very small particles
collide:  hit each other
compounded:  made larger
affect:  change
structure:  shape
ingenuity:  creativity
© 2014 Ambien Malecot

announce:  to say (something important) to everyone
She announced to her family that she was getting married soon.
We’d like to announce the birth of our first baby.

approve:  to say that something is okay with you
Everyone approved of Helen’s cooking.
Her parents disapprove of her new boyfriend.

choke:   to not be able to breathe because of something caught in your throat
He was so hungry he almost choked on the first bite of his steak.
He choked to death when a fishbone got stuck in his throat.

describe:  to give someone a picture of something using only words
Can you describe the person you saw running from the bank?
It’s hard to describe, but I felt like I was floating in the air.

doubt:  to not believe, to be uncertain about
I doubt he’s going to be on time; he’s always late.
He told her she should never doubt his love for her.

fade:  to slowly become lighter in color, to become less bright
I can no longer read outside because the sunlight has faded.
His blue jeans are faded because of repeated washings.

inform:  to give (someone) information
The doctor informed the parents that their son would be okay.
I must inform you that if you’re absent one more time, you’ll fail the course.

invent:  to create something for the first time
Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone in 1876.
The computer was invented at the University of Pennsylvania in 1946.

lighten:  to make lighter or brighter
When he walked into the room, her face lightened.
You need to lighten your hair a little.

produce:  to make, to manufacture
That company produces smart phones.
When you mix those chemicals together, they produce a very strong smell.

provide:  to supply, to give
The university provided all their undergraduates with a laptop computer.
The company will provide all the bottled water we need.

regret:  to be sorry about doing something
She regretted all the pain she caused her family.
I regret that I can’t come to your graduation, but I’ll be out of town.

remove:  to take away
She asked him politely to remove his feet from the coffee table.
His task was to remove all the graffitti from the wall.

separate:  to divide, to not be together
She told him to separate his dark clothes from his light clothes before washing.
John and Nancy Wells separated last week.

suspect:   to think that someone is guilty
I don’t know who took the money, but I suspect Robert.
She suspects her husband of cheating.

Pronunciation Exercise: Listen and repeat the above vocabulary on the audio file below.

Use these flashcards to help you study. 

When you think you’re ready, do the following exercise.

© 2013 Ambien Malecot

Here is an easy way to remember which consonants at the end of verbs are doubled before adding –ed, –ing, or –er.  If the verb is one syllable, and there is one vowel before one consonant at the end, then you double the consonant before adding an ending.

Examples:

stop            stopped             run            running            swim            swimmer

Don’t double when there are two consonants or two vowels.

Examples:

rest            rested                         dream            dreaming

NEVER double:  c, f, h, j, q, v, w, or x

With verbs of two or more syllables, only double when the accent is on the last syllable, in other words when the last syllable is stronger than the others.

Examples:

exit (accent on the first syllable)            exited

omit (accent on the last syllable)            omitted

One problem area is with verbs that end in –el such as travel and cancel.  In North American English the rule above is followed, but in British English it isn’t.  In North American English the ‘l’  is not doubled (traveled, traveling, traveler), but in British English it is (travelled, travelling, traveller.)

Click on the audio recording  below to hear the lesson.

© 2014 Ambien Malecot

by Carrie Underwood

an American country music singer, songwriter and actor.  Her career started when she won the fourth season of American Idol in 2005.  She has since won six Grammy Awards.  This song is from her second album, Carnival Ride, released in 2007.

What you got if you ain’t got love?
The kind that you just wanna give away
It’s okay to open up
Go ahead and let the light shine through

I know it’s hard on a rainy day
You wanna shut the world out
And just be left alone
But don’t run out on your faith

‘Cause sometimes that mountain you’ve been climbing
Is just a grain of sand
And what you’ve been out there searching for forever
Is in your hands

And when you figure out
Love is all that matters after all
It sure makes everything else
Seem so small

It’s so easy to get lost inside
A problem that seems so big at the time
It’s like a river that’s so wide
It swallows you whole

While you’re sitting around thinking about what you can’t change
And worrying about all the wrong things
Time’s flying by, moving so fast
You better make it count ’cause you can’t get it back

Sometimes that mountain you’ve been climbing
Is just a grain of sand
And what you’ve been out there searching for forever
Is in your hands

Oh, and when you figure out
Love is all that matters after all
It sure makes everything else
Seem so small

Sometimes that mountain you’ve been climbing
Is just a grain of sand
And what you’ve been out there searching for forever
Is in your hands

And then you figure out
Love is all that matters after all
It sure makes everything else
Oh, it sure makes everything else
Seem so small

Vocabulary:

ain’t got:  don’t have
wanna:  want to
open up:  let your feelings out
run out:  stop believing
faith:  beliefs
grain:  one small piece
figure out:  discover
matters:  is important
lost inside:  not know what to do
make it count:  do something with it

© 2015 Ambien Malecot for vocabulary lesson only

For many years historians thought the game of poker came from other games with a similar name, such as the Irish card game of Poka or the French game of Poque.  It is possible that these games influenced the modern game of poker, especially in the area of bluffing.  Because no other card game before the game of poker had the same betting rules, modern thought is that the game of poker originated in the mid 1700s in the southern United States and spread throughout the Mississippi River region by the end of that century.  An English actor by the name of Joseph Crowell reported that the game of poker, as played in New Orleans, Louisiana, in 1829, was played with a deck of 20 cards with four players who bet on which person held the best hand.  Poker was played up and down the Mississippi River on riverboats, which became quite lavish to attract players. When the gold rush started in 1849, the game was brought west by adventurous men who moved to California to find their fortune.  It was played everywhere and became part of the social fabric of the early West.  It was a serious game, however.  There are many tales of men losing their ranches or other valuable assets in poker games.  At this point the 52-card deck was used and the flush was introduced to the game.  Later during the American Civil War, 1861 to 1865, the straight was added.  Modern poker became popular after the WSOP began in 1970.  By the 1980s poker was considered a commonplace recreational activity.  There was a boom in new players at the beginning of the 21^st century when on-line poker was introduced and TV poker was made popular by little cameras showing the hole cards of each player to the audience.

Click on the audio recording below to hear the lesson.

Vocabulary:

historians:  people who study history
influenced:  had an effect on
bluffing:  making other players believe you have better cards than you really do
betting:  putting money on a possible result
originated:  started
region:  area
century:  one hundred year period
deck:  collection of playing cards
riverboats:  large boats with a rear paddle wheel powered by steam
lavish:  richly decorated
gold rush:  a migration of people to the gold fields of California
fortune:  riches, wealth
social fabric:  the collection of activities that people do together
tales:  stories
ranches:  land to raise animals
valuable assets:  things that you own that are worth lots of money
flush:   five cards of the same suit: spades, hearts, diamonds, or clubs.
introduced:  done for the first time
WSOP:  World Series of Poker
commonplace:  played everywhere
boom:  explosion, fast increase
on-line:  on the Internet
hole cards:  the two cards that only the player can see
audience:  people watching and listening

Pronunciation Exercise:  Listen and repeat the above vocabulary on the audio file below.

To learn the vocabulary of poker, click here.

© 2014 Ambien Malecot

by Sara Bareilles

an American singer-songwriter.  This song is from her fourth album, released in 2013, entitled The Blessed Unrest.   She wrote it with Jack Antonoff  from the band Fun.

an American musician, singer-songwriter and pianist.  This song, released in 2013 on her album The Blessed Unrest, was written by Bareilles and Jack Antonoff.

You can be amazing
You can turn a phrase into a weapon or a drug
You can be the outcast
Or be the backlash of somebody’s lack of love
Or you can start speaking up
Nothing’s gonna hurt you the way that words do
When they settle ‘neath your skin
Kept on the inside and no sunlight
Sometimes a shadow wins
But I wonder what would happen if you

Say what you wanna say
And let the words fall out
Honestly I wanna see you be brave
With what you want to say
And let the words fall out
Honestly I wanna see you be brave

I just wanna see you
I just wanna see you
Just wanna see you
I wanna see you be brave
I just wanna see you
I just wanna see you
Just wanna see you
I wanna see you be brave

Everybody’s been there, everybody’s been stared down
By the enemy
Fallen for the fear and done some disappearing
Bow down to the mighty
Don’t run, stop holding your tongue
Maybe there’s a way out of the cage where you live
Maybe one of these days you can let the light in
Show me how big your brave is

Say what you wanna say
And let the words fall out
Honestly I wanna see you be brave
With what you want to say
And let the words fall out
Honestly I wanna see you be brave

And since your history of silence
Won’t do you any good
Did you think it would?
Let your words be anything but empty
Why don’t you tell them the truth?

Say what you wanna say
And let the words fall out
Honestly I wanna see you be brave
With what you want to say
And let the words fall out
Honestly I wanna see you be brave

I just wanna see you
I just wanna see you
I just wanna see you
I wanna see you be brave
I just wanna see you
I just wanna see you
I just wanna see you
See you be brave

I just wanna see you
I just wanna see you
I just wanna see you
I just wanna see you
I just wanna see you
I just wanna see you

Vocabulary:

phrase:  words that you say
weapon:  something that can hurt you
drug:  something that makes you feel good
outcast:  someone who doesn’t belong there
backlash:  reaction
lack:  not having any
speaking up:  saying what you think
gonna:  going to
settle ‘neath your skin:  stay in your mind for a long time
shadow:  bad thing
wanna:  want to
brave:  able to do something that scares you
been there:  had bad experiences
stared down:  looked at until you feel bad
the enemy:  people who are against you
fallen for the fear:  let your fear control you
done some disappearing:  not tried to solve the problem
bow down:  accept your low position
the mighty:  people who are powerful
holding your tongue:  not saying what you should say
cage:  prison
one of these days:  some time in the future
let the light in:  understand what the right thing to do is
your brave:  your braveness
empty:  meaningless

© 2015 Ambien Malecot for vocabulary lesson only