Study newsletter 2015, week 18 Content
Language level
Page
Phrase of the week – Out of the picture
All levels
1
Mind map – Taxes
All levels
2
Czenglish – Abortion vs. Interruption
Pre-intermediate (B1-) – Advanced (C1)
3
Business Writing – Easily Misused and Confused Words Part 2
Pre-intermediate (B1-) – Advanced (C1)
4–5
Test – Most Common Legal Mistakes Small Businesses Make
Pre-intermediate (B1-) – Advanced (C1)
6–7
Phrase of the week Out of the picture No longer included in a matter, not relevant or necessary for a particular situation You can use this phrase in ………… language. Spoken Written Informal Example 1 “Simon won’t be joining us?” “No, he’s got fired, so he’s out of the picture now.” Example 2 The museum’s manager is stepping out of the picture leaving the younger generation to take over. She was in charge of the institution for whole 21 years, but admits that it is time for someone else to do the job. 1
Mind map Learning new vocabulary in the most effective way
Vyzkoušejte si interaktivní Mindmapy zde: http://www.jazykovka.info/studujeme-jazyky/mindmap/taxes/ Klikejte na slova, uslyšíte jednotlivá slovíčka namluvená rodilým mluvčím.
Slovíčka Slovo Taxpayer Enviromental tax Corporate tax Property tax Income tax Direct tax VAT Indirect tax Tax return Social insurance
Význam slova daňový plátce ekologická daň korporátní daň majetková daň daň z příjmů přímá daň DPH nepřímá daň daňové přiznání sociální pojištění 2
Czenglish WRONG: RIGHT:
My friend got pregnant when she was 15 so she decided to have an interruption. My friend got pregnant when she was 15 so she decided to have an abortion.
This week’s Czenglish error is not a particularly pleasant one, but it‘s a common enough word that almost all Czech speakers use incorrectly. The word ‘interruption’ is wrongly used to describe the act when a pregnancy is terminated. This doesn’t work in English. The correct word should be abortion. The verb ‘to abort’ means to stop something and has a wider use for things like operations and military missions, but the noun, abortion, is almost always connected with pregnancy termination. The word interruption does exist in English, and means to cause an activity to be stopped. It is most commonly used in connection with conversation, where someone would say, “I’m sorry to interrupt, or I’m sorry for this interruption.” The interruption is a disturbance to the normal flow of things. Here are both words used together in a short dialogue. A: Did you hear about Sarah? Unfortunately, she had to have an abortion. B: Really? I didn’t know she was pregnant. C: I’m sorry to interrupt your conversation but the meeting starts in 2 minutes.
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Business Writing Business Writing Tip #70—Easily Misused and Confused Words Part 2 In the last tip we looked at some easily misused and confused words. Today I thought I would continue with some more of the most common errors I see.
Disinterested/Uninterested Regularly abused and misused! Uninterested means that you have no interest in something. ‘The budget t-shirt manufacturer is uninterested in breaking into the luxury goods segment of the market.’ Disinterested means that a party is independent. ‘Since the CEO stands to profit from the sale of the company, she cannot be considered a disinterested party in the current dispute.’
Ironic If a remark is ironic it conveys a meaning that is the opposite of its literal meaning. It does not mean ‘coincidental’. For example on a dull, rainy, windy day one might say, ‘What fabulous weather we’re having.’ This is irony. ‘This is the fourth time we’ve run into each other today. How ironic!’ is not irony.
Everyday/Every day Everyday is an adjective used to describe something that is used or encountered typically. ‘Tourists milling around in Old Town Square, viewing the sights through their camera lenses, is an everyday scene in Prague.’ Every day refers to something that happens day after day. ‘Every day the sound of birds wakes me at 5 am.’
Enormity/Enormous Enormity means excessive wickedness or monstrous evil. If you talk about the ‘enormity of the issue’ you are not talking about its size. Enormous is very large (as in ‘An elephant is enormous when compared with a mouse.’
Noisome Noisome is not a word about noise. If something is noisome it is offensive to the senses, perhaps to the point of disgust (a noisome odour), or harmful (noisome fumes).
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Discreet/Discrete Discrete means having separate parts. ‘The paper is very long, but because it’s divided into discrete, clearly marked sections, it’s easy to find the results of the committee’s deliberations.’ Discreet means that someone is judicious in their conduct or speech. It’s often used in the context of keeping silent about a delicate matter. ‘I need you to be discreet about what you heard at today’s meeting because we don’t want the press getting hold of the information before we’ve told the staff.’
DALICE TROST, původem z Austrálie, je absolventkou magisterského studia managementu lidských zdrojů na University of Canberra v Austrálii. Lektorka je držitelkou certifikátu TEFL opravňující k výuce cizích jazyků. V rámci své profesní praxe zastávala vysoké manažerské pozice jako personalistka, senior supervizorka, HR manažerka, a to mimo jiné ve společnostech v Dubaji a Austrálii. Aktivně se věnuje publikační práci v oboru vzdělávání a anglického jazyka. Lektorka je autorkou knihy, ze které čerpáme tyto tipy: Business Writing-A Tip a Day for 30 Days
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TEST: Most Common Legal Mistakes Small Businesses Make One of the last things that is on people‘s mind when they start a company are legal issues. Unfortunately, exactly these types of things often ……… (1) their company. Far too many businessmen fail to establish the right legal structure for their company. And this usually hurts them, when they get ……… (2) by a customer or an employee or want to get outside investors. You should make a thorough research on which legal structure fits you best. Also, small companies often fail to make an agreement, which states how issues will be decided between ……… (3) and what happens if one leaves, dies or gets divorced. They often get in trouble, because they do not have clearly stated company ……… (4) and regulations which would guide their team. If you get advice of a human resource professional, how to formulate these, you might prevent lawsuit with your former employee, which in the worst case scenario can lead to company ……… (5) bankrupt. Another mistake is to criticize your competitors publically or anonymously on the web. You need to make the difference between what is ……… (6) and what is freedom of speech. By negligence of getting a patent, copyright or trademark, you fail to take the necessary steps to prevent another company from taking over your ideas. Have an inventory of the company’s intellectual ……… (7) done and you’ll avoid this. Small companies also tend to fill too many lawsuits. It’s natural that people get angry, but suing each other costs both sides a lot of money and takes the decision out of your hands. So, try to ……… (8) first. You need to secure the site and the customer’s data before as well. By protecting your website, small businesses can avoid putting themselves and their customers ……… (9) great risk. Also, you might regret bringing in outside investors only because you’re desperate for cash, for that often leads to disagreement on how the company is to be run. However, the most serious error is not collecting payroll and sales ……… (10) for government agencies. The best option for you is to set up a separate account for the collection of these and avoid your company shutting down.
1.
A drain
B drown
C sink
D go out
2.
A sued
B charged
C sentenced
D lawsuit
3.
A management
B shareholders
C stockbrokers
D directors
4.
A executive
B shares
C administration
D policy
5.
A going
B getting
C taking
D becoming
6.
A lie
B libel
C gossip
D snub
7.
A legacy
B work
C property
D copyright
8.
A neglect
B negotiate
C bargain
D settle
9.
A in
B on
C up to
D at
10.
A taxes
B profit
C margin
D income 6
Správné odpovědi se dozvíte ihned po dokončení on-line testu zde: http://www.jazykovka.info/studujeme-jazyky/minitest/most-common-legal-mistakes-smallbusinesses-make/ Správné odpovědi z minulého týdne (Brain 'can be trained to prefer healthy food'): 1A, 2A, 3C, 4C, 5B, 6D, 7D, 8C, 9B, 10A.
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