Heartland English School – Word of the Day

Theme: Vague Time Expressions

Expression: from time to time

Meaning: sometimes

Examples:            From time to time, he goes to the opera.

                              He goes to the opera from time to time.

                              Margaret visits Europe from time to time.

Related Expressions: sometimes, occasionally; infrequently

Theme: Vague Time Expressions

Expression: in a minute

Meaning: soon, but not specifically when

Examples:            Anna asked Ben, “Can you hurry up and get off the phone? I need to talk to you.”

                              Ben replied, “In a minute!”

                              The server said the food would come in a minute, but we’ve been waiting for almost half an hour.

                              She said she’d be here in a minute. Let’s wait for her.

Related Expressions: soon, pretty soon

Theme: Vague Time Expressions

Expression: practically never

Meaning: almost never

Examples:            We practically never order pizza because we prefer making our own food at home; we order pizza maybe once a year.

                              After the divorce, he practically never saw his ex-wife.

                              She practically never sees her dentist, so her teeth are terrible.

Related Expressions: rarely, seldom, almost never

Theme: Vague Time Expressions

Expression: all the time

Meaning: habitually; usually

Examples:            I see that little boy at the bus stop all the time. She plays that game all the time, and she’s getting really good at it.

                              Don’t be scared of flying. Planes take off and land safely all the time.

Related Expressions: usually, normally, regularly, generally, more often than not, habitually, almost always

Theme: At the casino

Word:  bluff (verb/noun)

Pronunciation: /blʌf/

Meaning: to deceive someone by making them think either that you are going to do something when you really have no intention of doing it

Examples:

• Is he going to jump or is he only bluffing?
• She bluffed the doorman into thinking that she was a reporter.

Theme: At the casino

Word:  bet  (verb/noun)

Pronunciation: /bet/

Meaning: to risk money on the result of a game, competition, etc

Examples:

• He lost all his money betting on horses.
• I bet him a dollar that I was right.

Theme: At the casino

Word:  Roll dice  (verb phrase)

Pronunciation: /roʊl daɪs/

Meaning: to throw or toss a pair of dice onto a something to see the resulting number

Examples:

• We need to roll the dice to see who has the highest number.

• He rolled dice and lost all his money.

Theme: At the casino

Word:  shuffle  (v)

Pronunciation: /ʃʌf.əl/

Meaning: to mix a set of playing cards without seeing their values before beginning a game, so that their order is not known to any of the players

Examples:

• It’s your turn to shuffle the cards.

• Always watch the person shuffling the cards because they might try to cheat.

Theme: At the casino

Word:  gamble  (v)

Pronunciation: /ɡæm.bəl/

Meaning: To do something that involves risks that might result in loss of money or failure, hoping to get money or achieve success

Examples:

• Anyone who gambles on the stock exchange has to be prepared to lose money.
• I like to gamble when I play cards – it makes it more interesting.

Theme: THE ACADEMIC WORD LIST – A

The Academic Word List has 570 words. These words frequently appear in academic writing.

https://www.victoria.ac.nz/lals/resources/academicwordlist

Word:  accommodate  (v)

Pronunciation: /əkɑmədet /

Meaning: To provide space for, to give what is needed

Examples:

• This car can accommodate up 7 people. It is good for large families.
• Many restaurants put effort into accommodating people with allergies and food sensitivities.

accommodation (n) – This word is often used to talk about finding a place to stay.

• I booked my flight, and now I need to find accommodation.