Food Idioms I (a-b)

apple of her/his eye
MEANING: someone or something that one likes a lot
EXAMPLE: The little girl is the apple of her grandfather’s eye.
bad egg
MEANING: a bad person, bum
EXAMPLE: That man is a bad egg so you should try and avoid him if you can.
big cheese
MEANING: an important person, a leader
EXAMPLE: He is a big cheese in his company so you should be very nice to him.
bread and butter
MEANING: basic needs of life (food,shelter,clothing)
EXAMPLE:The voters are worried about bread and butter issues like jobs and taxes.
bring home the bacon
MEANING: earn your family’s living
EXAMPLE: Recently he has been working very hard trying to bring home the bacon. He has no time to do anything else.
butter up
MEANING: flatter someone to try to get their favor or friendship
EXAMPLE: He spends most of his free time trying to butter up his boss so that he won’t have to work so hard.

Paraphrasing Exercise I

1) There will be a few changes around in the office.

The boss announced that    in the office.

 

2) They will have to take a taxi to get there in time. (need)

They  in time

 

3) You ought to write to your parents more often. (better)

You  more often.

 

4) You weren't careful, so you made so many mistakes (had)

If   so many mistakes.

 

5) You shouldn't listen to anything she says.

If  anything she says.

 

6)I am almost sure there was a party at the neighbors' last night. (must)

There  last night.

 

7) Do you have any plans for tomorrow?

Are    tomorrow?

 

8) He seems well-educated, however  he's not very bright. (Although)

 

9) He drank a cup of tea.  He felt dizzy afterwards. 

After

 

10) He doesn't write to me as frequently as I wanted.

I wish

 

11) They broke into a warehouse last night.  (was)

     

 

12) I was not paying attention to the screen so I accidentally deleted some important file on my computer. (Because)

 

13) I am so sorry I broke your favourite cup.

She apologized

 

14) "I don't have enough time", he complained.

He complained

 

15) It was Mary who stole money.

He accused

 

16) "I completely forgot!" he admitted.

He admitted

 

17) The new manager seems to be a very capable woman.  I met her last week (who)

The new manager  a very capable woman.

 

18) They repaired my watch last week.  (Had)

I   last week.

 

19) Susan has less energy than Mia. (as)

Mia doesn't Susan.

 

20)  Peter has more cars than Joe. (as)

Joe doesn't  Peter

Reported Speech III (SAY vs. TELL)

En español podemos traducir "say"o "tell" como "decir", pero en inglés se usan estos verbos de maneras distintas. Hay unas reglas que indican el uso de uno sobre el otro en inglés, aunque en general usamos "say" para "decir algo" y "tell" para "decir algo a alguien."

Say

Se usa "say" en el estilo directo y el indirecto. Si queremos usar "say" con un objeto personal, necesitamos usar el preposicion "to". Examples:
Estilo directo:
  "I'm hungry," he said. ("Tengo hambre," él dijo.)
  "I need your help," Glen said to Mike. ("Necesito tu ayuda," Glen dijo a Mike.)
  She said, "Do you like to dance?" (Ella dijo, "¿Te gusta bailar?")
Estilo indirecto:
  He said he was hungry. (Él dijo que tenía hambre.)
  Glen said to Mike that he needed his help. (Glen dijo a Mike que necesitaba su ayuda.)
  She asked me if I liked to dance. (Me preguntó si me gustaba bailar.)

Tell

También se puede usar "tell" con el estilo directo y el indirecto, aunque el uso con el estilo directo no es tan común. Cuando usamos "tell" necesitamos usar un objeto indirecto que va detrás del verbo.
Examples:
Estilo directo
  He told me, "I'm hungry." (Me dijo, "Tengo hambre.")
  Glen told Mike, "I need your help." (Glen dijo a Mike, "Necesito to ayuda.")
Estilo indirecto
  He told me that he was hungry. (Me dijo que tuvo hambre.)
  Glen told Mike that he needed his help. (Glen dijo a Mike que necesitaba su ayuda.)
Otros usos de "tell":
Se usa "tell" con ordenes o instrucciones.

• Ejemplos:
• I told him, "Stop complaining." (Le dije, "Deja de quejarte.")
• She told us to hurry. (Nos dijo de darnos prisa.)

Usamos "tell" cuando damos o pedimos información.

• Ejemplos:
• "Can you tell me your name please." ("Dime tu nombre, por favor.")
• You told him the address of the office? (¿Le dijiste la dirección de la oficina?)

Se usa "tell" con cuentos o bromas. En esto caso, se puede traducir "tell" como "contar" en español.

• Ejemplos:
• He told us a great story. (Nos contó un cuento maravilloso.)
• "Tell me a joke," she said. ("Cuéntame un chiste," ella dijo.)

Con la verdad y las mentiras, se usa "tell."

• Ejemplos:
• "Tell me the truth," she said. ("Dime la verdad," ella dijo.)
• Keith never tells lies. (Keith nunca miente.)

Usamos "tell" con el tiempo o la fecha.
Ejemplos:
"Could you tell me the time, please?" she asked. ("Podrías decirme la hora, por favor?" me preguntó.)
Bob told me the date. (Bob me dijo la fecha.

Reported Speech II (MODAL VERBS)

Direct Speech	Indirect Speech
Will	Would
"I'll go to the movies tomorrow," John said.	John said he would go to the movies tomorrow.
"Will you help me move?" she asked.	She asked me if I would help her move.
Can	Could
Debra said, "Allen can work tomorrow."	Debra said Allen could work tomorrow.
"Can you open the window, please?", he asked.	He asked me if I could open the window.
Must	Had to
"You must wear your seatbelt," mom said.	My mom said we had to wear my seatbelt.
She said, "You must work tomorrow."	She said I had to work tomorrow.
Shall	Should
"Shall we go to the beach today?" Tom asked.	Tom asked if we should go to the beach today.
"What shall we do tonight?" she asked.	She asked me what we should do tonight.
May	Might/Could
Jane said, "I may not be in class tomorrow."	Jane said she might not be in class tomorrow.
"May I use the bathroom, please?" the boy asked.	The boy asked if he could use the bathroom.

Nota: Con "would", "could", "should", "might" y "ought to", el tiempo no cambia.

Reported Speech I

Cuando queremos comunicar o informar de lo que otra persona ha dicho, hay dos maneras de hacerlo: utilizando el estilo directo o el estilo indirecto. 

   Example: Chris asked, "Would you like to have dinner with me tomorrow night?"

Direct Speech	Reported Speech
Present Simple	Past Simple
"He's American" she said.	She said he was American.
"I'm happy to see you," Mary said.	Mary said that she was happy to see me.
He asked, "Are you busy tonight?"	He asked me if I was busy tonight.
Present Continuous	Past Continuous
"Dan is living in San Francisco," she said.	She said Dan was living in San Francisco.
He said, "I'm making dinner."	He told me that he was making dinner.
"Why are you working so hard?" they asked.	They asked me why I was working so hard.
Past Simple	Past Perfect Simple
"We went to the movies last night," he said.	He told me they had gone to the movies last night.
Greg said, "I didn't go to work yesterday."	Greg said that he hadn't gone to work yesterday.
"Did you buy a new car?" she asked.	She asked me if I had bought a new car.
Past Continuous	Past Perfect Continuous
"I was working late last night," Vicki said.	Vicki told me she'd been working last night.
They said, "We weren't waiting long."	They said that they hadn't been waiting long.
He asked, "Were you sleeping when I called?"	He asked if I'd been sleeping when he called.
Present Perfect Simple	Past Perfect Simple
Heather said, "I've already eaten."	Heather told me that she'd already eaten.
"We haven't been to China," they said.	They said they hadn't been to China.
"Have you worked here before?" I asked.	I asked her whether she'd worked there before.
Present Perfect Continuous	Past Perfect Continuous
"I've been studying English for two years," he said.	He said he'd been studying English for two years.
Steve said, "We've been dating for over a year now."	Steve told me that they'd been dating for over a year.
"Have you been waiting long?" they asked.	They asked whether I'd been waiting long.
Past Perfect Simple	Past Perfect Simple (*NO CHANGE)
"I'd been to Chicago before for work," he said.	He said that he'd been to Chicago before for work.
Past Perfect Continuous	Past Perfect Continuous (*NO CHANGE)
She said, "I'd been dancing for years before the accident."	She said she'd been dancing for years before the accident.

Nota: Cuando hablamos de algo que no ha cambiado (todavía es verdad) o que es en el futuro, no tenemos que cambiar el tiempo verbal. Example: Dave said, "Kelly is sick." → Dave said Kelly is sick.