WORD STRESS 1 CHECK YOUR ENGLISH VOCABULARY FOR MEDICINE

CHECK YOUR ENGLISH VOCABULARY FOR MEDICINE

WORD STRESS 1

One of the keys to English pronunciation is stress - emphasis. There are three possible patterns for three-syllable words:

A		hos-pi-tal
B		pre-scrip-tion
C		rec-om-mend

Read these five conversations. Find all the three-syllable words and classify them by their pronunciation. There are 27 in total. Put them in the correct sections of the table on the right. The first one has been done for you as an example.

 

Dialogue 1
A	When was she admitted to hospital?
B	At about four o'clock.
A	Has there been any improvement?
B	No, her condition is stable. We're waiting to see how things develop.

Dialogue 2
A	What do you recommend?
B	Well, first of all: cut down on fatty foods.
A	And what else?
B	Take regular exercise, don't smoke and keep alcohol down to a minimum.

Dialogue 3
A	What's the problem?
B	I went to give him his injection and I saw that he'd started to haemorrhage.
A	We'll have to operate. Make sure all the equipment is prepared.
B	I'll go down to the theatre and check.

Dialogue 4
A	So, is it serious?
B	Don't worry. It's probably just an allergic reaction.
A	Are you just saying that to reassure me?
B	You're fine. Look, I'm going to give you a prescription for some painkillers…

Dialogue 5
A	Have you got the test results yet?
B	Well, they're still incomplete, but it's clear that it's positive.
A	Any idea when infection took place?
B	I'd say five or six weeks ago, but that's just an opinion. Do you want to see her medical history?

Extension. Practise the dialogues with a partner.

ANSWER KEY