You probably know the meaning of individual words like ‘flight’, ‘tour’ and ‘view’. However, the key to showcasing your advanced English is to show you are able to use these individual words in combination with other words to form set phrases and expressions. Much of the work we'll do at C2 level will have to do with learning these fixed combinations, called "collocations", and expressions, called "idioms".
Take a familiar topic, such as, holidays, for example. If you are asked to speak or write about holidays, you first need to think of specific advanced vocabulary you can use to do so. Think of the kind of holidays you like. See what this C2 level student came up with in answer to the question:
What kind of holiday do you like?
"I try to avoid tourist traps … I like to get away from it all and prefer going somewhere off the beaten track … last year I had the holiday of a lifetime … a two week wildlife safari in Kenya.
*In this answer, how many collocations and idioms can you identify?
*What about the answer to the following question?
What do you like to do when you’re on holiday?
"I enjoy visiting the local places of interest … I like to go sightseeing and always sign up for guided tours as it’s a chance to be shown around and take photographs … one of my hobbies."
*And the one below?
"Yes … we have a lot of holiday resorts along the coast that are popular with tourists … most people come on package holidays and stay in one of the many hotels and self-catering apartments."Do you have many tourists in your country?
Practice Task:
*Describe a beautiful place you once visited. You should say:
- when you went to this place
- where it was
- who you went with
Say why you liked it so much trying to use some advanced vocabulary in your answers, as in the example below:
"I'm not at all fond of long package holidays or guided tours, so a few years ago I decided to go on a long weekend to the Lake District in the UK in order to get away from it all and have a short break … it’s a very popular holiday destination in the north of England, not a far-off place in the middle of nowhere … I went on my own and had a wonderful time … I stayed in a youth hostel and met some really nice people … but the most memorable thing about the holiday were the breathtaking views … and lovely picturesque villages … it can get very busy with hordes of tourists so I decided to go out of season in the autumn … the weather was fantastic and the shops were full of local crafts … a really great holiday … it’s certainly not the kind of short break for someone looking for a busy nightlife but if you want to relax in the middle of stunning landscape I would certainly recommend a holiday to the Lake District."
Definitions
- all-in package/package holiday: a holiday where you purchase the travel and accommodation together
- breathtaking view: an extremely beautiful view
- far-off destination: somewhere a long way away
- to get away from it all: to take a holiday to escape a busy or stressful lifestyle
- guided tour: an organised group shown around a place of interest by an expert
- holiday destination: where you go for a holiday
- holiday of a lifetime: a special holiday that you are unlikely to repeat
- hordes of tourists: crowds of tourists
- local crafts: objects produced locally
- long weekend: an extended weekend holiday including Friday or Monday
- out of season: outside of the main holiday period
- the middle of nowhere: far away from any towns and cities and where few people live
- picturesque village: very pretty village
- places of interest: sites of interest to tourists
- wildlife safari: a holiday, often in Africa, to observe wild animals
- short break: a short holiday
- to go sightseeing: to look around the tourist sites
- stunning landscape: extremely beautiful countryside
- travel agent: a shop that specialises in booking holidays
- tourist trap: somewhere where too many tourists go
- youth hostel: a cheap form of accommodation
Writing task: Write an email to an English-speaking friend you made on your last holiday telling him/her about your travelling experience, your life now,the first classes of your senior year and your plans and expectations for this year.
