Sources: www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish
Column: Words in the news
My scores: 4/5 5/5 4/5 5/5
Space shuttle's final mission
The US space shuttle Atlantis will blast off for the last time on Friday 8 July ending NASA's 30-year programme.
Four crew members will be dropping off a year's worth of supplies at the International Space Station. They'll be in orbit for 12-days and travel 6.5 million kilometres during the sortie.
In total, 355 astronauts will have flown on the shuttle since the inaugural mission in 1981.
_______________________________________
blast off: launch, take off like a rocket
dropping off: delivering
in orbit: in a position in space, travelling around the earth
sortie: mission
inaugural: the first in a series of important events or activities
Four crew members will be dropping off a year's worth of supplies at the International Space Station. They'll be in orbit for 12-days and travel 6.5 million kilometres during the sortie.
In total, 355 astronauts will have flown on the shuttle since the inaugural mission in 1981.
_______________________________________
blast off: launch, take off like a rocket
dropping off: delivering
in orbit: in a position in space, travelling around the earth
sortie: mission
inaugural: the first in a series of important events or activities
Exercise
Use one of the words or phrases below to complete each of these sentences from a BBC news report.
Note that you may have to change the form of a word to complete the sentence correctly.
blast off / dropping off / in orbit / sortie / inaugural
1.
Their work will ensure the good "housekeeping" of the satellites, including the maintenance and correct positioning of the spacecraft __________ .
2.
Speaking at an event in Dakar, Senegal, Luc Gnacadja - a UN desertification expert - said the ___________ Africa Drylands Week had ended with a very simple, yet stark, message.
3.
Mr Tito ___________ on 28 April 2001, but only after a struggle to get anyone to take him - the US space agency Nasa refused on the grounds that he was not a trained astronaut, so it was the Russians who facilitated the trip.
4.
A recycling barn will also be set up for festival goers to _______ cans, bottles and packaging.
5.
Nato says it has carried out over six thousand __________ over Libya since the bombing campaign began nearly two months ago.
Note that you may have to change the form of a word to complete the sentence correctly.
blast off / dropping off / in orbit / sortie / inaugural
1.
Their work will ensure the good "housekeeping" of the satellites, including the maintenance and correct positioning of the spacecraft __________ .
2.
Speaking at an event in Dakar, Senegal, Luc Gnacadja - a UN desertification expert - said the ___________ Africa Drylands Week had ended with a very simple, yet stark, message.
3.
Mr Tito ___________ on 28 April 2001, but only after a struggle to get anyone to take him - the US space agency Nasa refused on the grounds that he was not a trained astronaut, so it was the Russians who facilitated the trip.
4.
A recycling barn will also be set up for festival goers to _______ cans, bottles and packaging.
5.
Nato says it has carried out over six thousand __________ over Libya since the bombing campaign began nearly two months ago.
Hong Kong's hive of business
- It may be a concrete jungle but Hong Kong has more similarities with the great outdoors than you might think. 14 storeys up a skyscraper, you can find one of the 11 urban beehives around the city. Like many conurbations, Hong Kong has enough flora for bees to pollinate and harvest nectar from. Following Chinese tradition beekeepers in Hong Kong don't wear any protective gear.
- concrete jungle
- a phrase to describe a city with many large buildings and skyscrapers and few green areas
- storeys
- different levels of a building
- beehives
- structures where bees live together
- conurbations
- large urban areas where different towns have grown and joined together
- to pollinate
- to enable plants to produce seeds and therefore reproduce. Pollination happens when bees, other insects or the wind carry pollen from one plant to another.
Exercise
Use one of the words or phrases below to complete each of these sentences from a BBC news report. Note that you may have to change the form of a word to complete the sentence correctly.
concrete jungle / storeys / beehives / conurbations / to pollinate
1.
The biggest city close to the epicentre is Concepcion, which forms part of the second largest ______________________ in the country with a population of about one million.
2.
The Magnolia genus is an ancient group of more than 100 plants, and is considered to be among the first flowering plants to have evolved.
Their arrival on the planet pre-dated the emergence of bees, so the early species of magnolia were believed to have been __________________ by beetles.
3.
A toddler who fell 10 ________________ and survived after being caught by a passer-by has been making headlines around the world. But what is the best way to catch a falling child?
4.
In popular culture, New York is the city that never sleeps, the ____________________ in which dreams are made, a place to walk on the wild side.
5.
A Toronto museum is investigating the sudden death of thousands of bees in a glass-enclosed ___________________ exhibit.
concrete jungle / storeys / beehives / conurbations / to pollinate
1.
The biggest city close to the epicentre is Concepcion, which forms part of the second largest ______________________ in the country with a population of about one million.
2.
The Magnolia genus is an ancient group of more than 100 plants, and is considered to be among the first flowering plants to have evolved.
Their arrival on the planet pre-dated the emergence of bees, so the early species of magnolia were believed to have been __________________ by beetles.
3.
A toddler who fell 10 ________________ and survived after being caught by a passer-by has been making headlines around the world. But what is the best way to catch a falling child?
4.
In popular culture, New York is the city that never sleeps, the ____________________ in which dreams are made, a place to walk on the wild side.
5.
A Toronto museum is investigating the sudden death of thousands of bees in a glass-enclosed ___________________ exhibit.
Destination Afghanistan
- The turquoise waters of Afghanistan's very first national park. The authorities here are trying to attract tourists to Bamian, the same place where the Taliban blew up a giant Buddha ten years ago. It's hoped once security concerns are addressed tourism can form the backbone of the Afghan economy. Last year even saw ski slopes open for business and the country's first international skiing competition.
- the authorities
- the group of people with official power in an area, like the government
- blew up
- destroyed with a bomb or explosives
- security concerns
- worries about safety and the threat of terrorism
- the backbone of
- the most important part of something which holds the rest together
- ski slopes
- areas on the sides of mountains, hills and artificial hills used for the sport of skiing
Exercise
Use one of the words or phrases below to complete each of these sentences from a BBC news report.
Note that you may have to change the form of a word to complete the sentence correctly.
the authorities / blew up / security concerns / the backbone of / ski slopes
1.
And, in another mysterious and high-profile case in 2003, US pizza delivery man Brian Wells was killed when a collar bomb he was wearing __________ after he robbed a bank in Pennsylvania.
2.
Saif al-Islam, one of the Libyan leader's sons, sought to rally regime forces earlier on Tuesday by making a defiant appearance and claiming the regime had broken ___________ the rebel advance.
3.
His beating-up by security forces shows that he has hit home and that __________ tolerance for dissent is touching zero.
4.
Glasgow Caledonian University's Moffat Centre, which monitors visitor attractions, said Scotland's __________ benefited most from heavy snowfalls.
5.
Brazil had been scheduled to play African champions Egypt on Tuesday 6 September, but the game was cancelled due to __________ in Cairo.
Note that you may have to change the form of a word to complete the sentence correctly.
the authorities / blew up / security concerns / the backbone of / ski slopes
1.
And, in another mysterious and high-profile case in 2003, US pizza delivery man Brian Wells was killed when a collar bomb he was wearing __________ after he robbed a bank in Pennsylvania.
2.
Saif al-Islam, one of the Libyan leader's sons, sought to rally regime forces earlier on Tuesday by making a defiant appearance and claiming the regime had broken ___________ the rebel advance.
3.
His beating-up by security forces shows that he has hit home and that __________ tolerance for dissent is touching zero.
4.
Glasgow Caledonian University's Moffat Centre, which monitors visitor attractions, said Scotland's __________ benefited most from heavy snowfalls.
5.
Brazil had been scheduled to play African champions Egypt on Tuesday 6 September, but the game was cancelled due to __________ in Cairo.
Giraffe on the High Seas
- Travelling long distances can be a pain in the neck... But Jelani the giraffe didn't seem to mind as he took to the seas inside a custom-made, 4.2 metre-high shipping crate. It took five days to transport him from Auckland Zoo in New Zealand to Melbourne, Australia. After a few days in quarantine, Jelani will take part in a breeding programme.
- a pain in the neck
- idiom meaning 'very annoying'
- took to the seas
- started travelling across the ocean
- custom-made
- designed according to special needs
- shipping crate
- large box designed especially for delivering items
- in quarantine
- isolation period for an animal which might be carrying a disease
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