Speaking Skills
CPE Speaking Paper Parts 2 & 3
- Language for describing pictures without pointing.
N.b. The difference between foreground and forefront when used as nouns. Foreground refers to the elements of an image which lie closest to the picture e.g. "In the foreground you can see 5 apprentices gathered around a workbench." Forefront, however, means the leading or influential position e.g. "He is at the forefront of his profession."
- Phrases for introducing deductions and guesses (rather than just repeating maybe or I think) E.g. I get the impression that, I suspect, The way I see it
Correction
According to me is a false friend, use in my view/opinion instead.
Vocabulary query
Boilerplate
The term boilerplate, meaning phrases or units of text used repeatedly, as in correspondence produced by a word-processing system, probably originates from metaphorical usage. The term was used in the 1840s to describe metal rolled in large flat plates which was then used for making steam boilers. This idea of something sturdy and reusable probably led to its new meaning but there is also a literal meaning as from the 1890s to the 1950s publicity items were cast or stamped in metal ready for the printing press. I knew boilers were involved somewhere.
See also: http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-boi1.htm
See also: http://www.worldwidewords.org/qa/qa-boi1.htm
Going further
Invisible Ink
In my humble opinion, Aimee Mann is an exceptionally literate singer/songwriter whose lyrics reward close inspection. In this song, from her 2002 album Lost In Space, she uses several interesting metaphors to convey the frustration of not being able to communicate what you want to say.
Listen out for the collocations, idioms and fixed phrases she uses, for example:
Jump in the drink
At first glance
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