Oral Practice
I. Name and Family Vocabulary
nickname, common, have a special meaning, literal translation of the Chinese name, frank, independent, personality, upright, character, gentle and understanding, hardworking, rational, modest, get married, retire from, extended family, a family of three, single-parent family, caring parents, capable husband, genial and devoted wife, relative, divorced, raise a child, one-child policy, enjoy the happiness of family life, generation gap, do housework, take out the trash, wash the dishes
Typical Sentence Patterns
1. My name is … but you can just call me by… 2. Everybody calls me…
3. … gave me the name with the meaning of … 4. …means …in Chinese. 5. I live with my parents.
6. There are … people in my family. 7. My family means a lot to me.
8. My father works as a …, while my mother is a…. 9. I got married in the year …
10. My … always does most of the housework at home.
II. Hometown Vocabulary
in the north/south/west/east of…, natural environment, scenic spot, attraction, historic place, summer resort, all-the-year-round tourist resort, speciality, natural resources, Spring Festival, open-minded, hospitable, worldly person, ambitious, general quality, pace of life, ideal, prosperous, economic development, traffic jam, pleasant weather, foggy, scorching, small town, narrow street, reform and opening-up policy, outside world, living standard, skyscraper, shopping centre
Typical Sentence Patterns
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1. I’m from…/ I come from…/ I was born in… 2. My hometown is located…
3. My hometown covers an area of …square kilometers and has a population of… 4. There are many historic places such as… 5. Major scenic spots there include… 6. My hometown is famous for…
7. My hometown has a history of more than … years.
8. On the whole, public transportation facilities here are… 9. My hometown used to be…
10. There isn’t much change in temperature in different seasons. 11. Great changes have taken place since… 12. People may pay more attention to… 13. It is now undergoing great changes.
III. Hobbies and Interests Vocabulary
be crazy about…, be fond of …, leisure activity, go to discos, play mah-jong /cards, time-consuming, interesting and informative program, release sb. a bit, mould one’s temperament陶冶性情, make sb. energetic and vigorous, train sb. to have a quick response, make sb. stay fit and healthy, stimulate appetite and exercise muscles, badminton, rope skipping / cycling / jogging, gymnasium, sports field, relieve tension and pressure, literature, detective/ historical/ romance/ popular novel, an exciting and absorbing book引人入胜的书, an informative and instructive book使人增长知识并有教育意义的书, make a novel into a movie, classical/ folk/ country/ light/ pop music, rock and roll, Peking Opera, concert tour巡回演唱会, pleasing to listen to, remove one’s bad mood, kill one’s leisure time, remind sb. of the past, traveling / journey / tour / trip, splendid scenery, picturesque scenery风景如画, scenery with hills and rivers 山水风景, a good view of green mountains and blue waters, expand one’s knowledge, broaden one’s horizons, magic of nature and wonders of mankind, protect old buildings and historical relics
Typical Sentence Patterns
1. 2. 3. 4. 5.
My favourite hobby is … In my spare time, I usually… Whenever I have free time, I…
I didn’t like… at first, but the more I do it, the more I become interested in it. I like authors that write about life, that is …
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6. I sometimes read…
7. I try to read something just before I go to bed. 8. The story strikes a chord in me…拨动了我的心弦 9. …is a kind of music with …beat. 10. It is usually played by…
11. You can get inspiration from…
12. I got to know this kind of music when I was…
13. I enjoy playing basketball / football…in my spare time. 14. I like …because it is / can…
15. I think hobbies are advantageous to social life. 16. I try to collect stamps as many as I can.
17. I go traveling about once a year. My favourite place is… 18. The place I’d like to visit the most is… 19. I prefer remote places like…
20. I like taking photos especially when I go traveling.
IV. Job and Study Vocabulary
primary school, junior / senior high school, junior college, university / college / institute, graduate school, academy of fine arts, undergraduate / postgraduate, Bachelor of Arts / Master of Arts, Bachelor’s / Master’s degree, main subject主科, specialized courses, required course, optional course, major / specialize in… , school transcript学生成绩单, extracurricular activity, adviser导师, credit, scholarship, tuition, more competitive in job seeking, carve out a career 规划职业, run a company of one’s own, lay off, job-hopping, quit a job, colleague, joint venture合资企业, wholly-owned全资的, client / customer
Typical Sentence Patterns
1. I am a student at … and my major is…
2. I am going to spend my third year in…University. 3. I am studying to be a…
4. I hope my time in…can prepare me well for…
5. I’ve always been interested in history / classical literature 6. I graduated from …in…
7. There are about …courses, including…
8. More opportunities are available while you are studying abroad. 9. Its educational system is highly reputable. 10. I am dreaming of…
11. In my opinion, …is an ideal job because…
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12. I am working for…
13. I have worked for…for…years. 14. I am in charge of the…
15. I am mainly involved in the area of… 16. My major is…/ I major in…
17. The best thing about my work is that… 18. I earn…every month.
19. My annual income is about…
20. I think I will keep that job at least for some time.
V. Describing Persons Vocabulary
height, tall, short, well-built, thin, fat, overweight, straight / curly / wavy hair, dyed hair, have got a fair / dark / pale complexion, freckle, wrinkle, beard, moustache, whisker, in one’s 30’s, in one’s early 40’s, about / around forty, caring, gentle, considerate, stingy, generous, humorous.
Typical Sentence Patterns
1. I resemble my…in many ways. 2. I would like to meet… 3. …is known as…
4. …was born in…and educated in… 5. I really admire his / her…and… 6. …is unusual in that he / she…
7. …is my best friend as well as my…
8. He / She is of medium height, wearing… 9. His / Her hair is… 10. He / She is good at..
11. …is my favorite sports star / actor / actress / singer… 12. He / She has achieved a lot of accomplishments. 13. I like him for the following reasons. 14. He / She sets a good example for…
15. …is the person who has influenced me most. 16. One memorable person in my life was…, my… 17. He / She was top of the class in all subjects. 18. I got to know him / her in…when…
19. The first impression he / she gives me is that… 20. …was famous for …
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