23 horas, Active or Passive? Had better - Relief or relieved?
Active or Passive?
We usually try to write in active voice because it’s easier to understand.
In the active voice the subject ‘does’ the action:
...
We usually try to write in active voice because it’s easier to understand.
In the active voice the subject ‘does’ the action:
...
Notice how the subject in these examples is 'doing' the verb's action.
'The boy ate the cake.' [The boy is the subject and he is doing the eating]
'The girl kicks the ball.'
'I wrote the essay.'
But in passive voice the action is performed 'on' the subject. So we can say the subject is 'acted on.'
'The cake was eaten by the boy.' [The cake is the subject and it is acted upon]
'The ball is kicked by the girl.'
'The essay was written by me.'
'The boy ate the cake.' [The boy is the subject and he is doing the eating]
'The girl kicks the ball.'
'I wrote the essay.'
But in passive voice the action is performed 'on' the subject. So we can say the subject is 'acted on.'
'The cake was eaten by the boy.' [The cake is the subject and it is acted upon]
'The ball is kicked by the girl.'
'The essay was written by me.'
Had better
When we want to give someone advice we can use the phrase ‘had better’.
‘You had better be careful up there.’
We often use the contraction ‘you’d’: ...
‘You’d better be careful up there.’
When we want to give someone advice we can use the phrase ‘had better’.
‘You had better be careful up there.’
We often use the contraction ‘you’d’: ...
‘You’d better be careful up there.’
Although ‘had’ is the past form of ‘have’, we use ‘had better’ to give advice about the present or future.
‘We’d better talk about buying this car, I’m not sure it’s the right decision.’
The negative form is ‘had better not’.
‘You’d better not tell her you ate all the cake.’
‘I’d better get home before dinner.’
‘She’d better not try to copy my answers again.’
‘We’d better talk about buying this car, I’m not sure it’s the right decision.’
The negative form is ‘had better not’.
‘You’d better not tell her you ate all the cake.’
‘I’d better get home before dinner.’
‘She’d better not try to copy my answers again.’
Relief or relieved?
'Relief' is a noun, it refers to the good feeling you get when something bad has stopped, or has not happened.
‘What a relief, my leg has finally stopped hurting.’
‘It is a relief to know you are feeling better. I was very worried.’
...
'Relief' is a noun, it refers to the good feeling you get when something bad has stopped, or has not happened.
‘What a relief, my leg has finally stopped hurting.’
‘It is a relief to know you are feeling better. I was very worried.’
...
'Relieve' is a verb, it describes the act of making something painful or unpleasant go away, or feel better.
‘The medication relieved my pain.’
‘I am relieved to see that you are healthy.’
‘The medication relieved my pain.’
‘I am relieved to see that you are healthy.’
Jes Sy asked: How can I use 'as is' properly?
As is' is a short way of saying 'as it is.'
We use in mainly when talking about buying a second-hand item. It means you will have to accept the item 'as it is', including any problems it has.
'I'll give it to you for $100, as is.'...
‘You can buy the dress for $5 but it does have a hole in it, so you’ll have to take it as is.’
- See more at: http://www.australiaplus.com/international/2015-12-18/learn-english-travel/1525002#sthash.NcqmmgV5.dpuf
As is' is a short way of saying 'as it is.'
We use in mainly when talking about buying a second-hand item. It means you will have to accept the item 'as it is', including any problems it has.
'I'll give it to you for $100, as is.'...
‘You can buy the dress for $5 but it does have a hole in it, so you’ll have to take it as is.’
Bon voyage!
Well-wishers waving goodbye (Flickr CC:Jasn)
As the end of the year approaches, many Australians will take time out for a holiday.
Some people travel to broaden the mind, or increase their knowledge about the world.
But you might just want to put your feet up, or relax.
‘I’ve had a stressful month so I’m just going to put my feet up this weekend.’
Many travel idioms include reference to the feet. For example, if you’ve got itchy feet you have a strong desire to travel.
‘The photos of her trip to Thailand have really given me itchy feet.’
When you’re ready to leave you can say ‘Let’s hit the road.’
‘OK kids, put your toys in the car, it’s time to hit the road.’
Before you leave, your friends may wish you bon voyage.
Perhaps it is the romantic notion of holidays, but the French phrase ‘bon voyage’ is used to wish someone a good journey. Bon voyage can be heard at airports and train stations as we bid farewell to our loved ones.
‘Bon voyage! Have a safe trip!’
Types of travel
Camping in a field (Flickr CC: Wasim Muklashy)
There are many types of holiday.
A popular summer holiday in Australia is camping, either in a National Park or at a caravan park, where you can rent a caravan or put up your own tent.
But camping isn’t for everyone – you might hear people joke about glamping. That’s short for ‘glamorous camping’, where modern comforts might include bathrooms, showers, and maybe even hair dryers or an internet connection!
If this sounds like you, you might prefer to stay in a B&B, that is, a bed and breakfast. A B&B is private accommodation, often a big house, where you can book a room for an overnight stay. The owners will usually provide breakfast, but because it's not a hotel there's usually no room service or restaurant.
Travelling in Australia
Backpackers (Flickr CC:Siim Teller)
Older people who travel around Australia, often retired couples with a caravan, are sometimes referred to as grey nomads.
Young people who set off on longer trips are sometimes called backpackers, after the large bags, or backpacks, they carry. The verb is backpacking.
She is backpacking around Australia this summer.
A backpacker’s is also a shortened form of backpacker’s hostel, a place where backpackers can get accommodation, often in shared rooms.
There’s a backpacker’s next door so it is quite noisy at night.
When backpacking it is a good idea to travel light, that is, to make sure that you only take what you need.
Travel tales
Flickr CC: Gioia De Antoniis
If you’re a regular traveller you might call yourself a jetsetter. That’s someone who regularly flies from place to place, often a wealthy tourist travelling for pleasure.
On the other hand if you're driving to your destination you might say you're going on a road trip.
If you’re hoping to enjoy some outdoors activities on your trip you might be up for some adventure tourism, like rock climbing, white water rafting or bungee jumping.
But if you’re concerned about the environmental costs of all this travel, maybe you’d prefer some ecotourism. That’s ecologically aware tourism, where efforts are made to visit pristine environments without leaving any negative impacts.
Then again, maybe you’re more interested in some voluntourism? That’s volunteer travel, where you travel somewhere in order to volunteer your time helping out with a good cause, like assisting with scientific research or helping to build infrastructure.
Summer shack
Beach shack (ABC: Jake Heinrich)
For a simpler Australian holiday you might choose to stay in a shack by the beach.
A shack is a house located close to beach (or river) and is traditionally very basic. It is used as a place to take holidays or visit on long weekends. You could call it a holiday house or a weekender.
These days the term beach house is also common, although these tend to be more luxurious and expensive houses.
If you are staying at a real beach shack chances are that you have gone off the beaten track. The beaten track refers to the road that most people take: beaten indicates that the track is heavily used and worn into the ground. So to go off the beaten track means that you have deviated from the route that most people take to follow a more adventurous path.
A shack is a house located close to beach (or river) and is traditionally very basic. It is used as a place to take holidays or visit on long weekends. You could call it a holiday house or a weekender.
These days the term beach house is also common, although these tend to be more luxurious and expensive houses.
If you are staying at a real beach shack chances are that you have gone off the beaten track. The beaten track refers to the road that most people take: beaten indicates that the track is heavily used and worn into the ground. So to go off the beaten track means that you have deviated from the route that most people take to follow a more adventurous path.
Live it up
The Colosseum in Rome, Italy (Flickr CC: vgm8383)
Once you arrive at your destination, it’s always a good idea to take advice from locals about what to see and do.
If you do try and follow the lead of the locals then someone may suggest ‘when in Rome, do as the Romans do', or a shortened version, ‘when in Rome’.
They mean that you should adjust to your surroundings in order to live like the local people. This phrase is used more broadly to talk about adapting to the people around you, and joining in with their activities.
I don’t usually go out dancing on a Monday, but when in Rome!
If you do try and follow the lead of the locals then someone may suggest ‘when in Rome, do as the Romans do', or a shortened version, ‘when in Rome’.
They mean that you should adjust to your surroundings in order to live like the local people. This phrase is used more broadly to talk about adapting to the people around you, and joining in with their activities.
I don’t usually go out dancing on a Monday, but when in Rome!
