CAMBRIDGE
ENGLISH VOCABULARY IN USE ADVANCED
UNIT 59
Space: no room to swing a cat
A
|
Things occupying a lot of space
I like Canada because I love wide
open spaces. [large areas without buildings or trees]
Little white cottages were scattered
across the landscape. [randomly across a wide area]
The problem with this university is
that the buildings are rather spread out and it takes a long time to
get from one place to another. [not close to one another]
Jack’s bedroom is large, with ample
room for all his things. [more than enough space]
Language help
Room can be used as an uncountable noun to mean space, e.g. Can
you make room/space for me? There’s plenty of room/space here. The
sofa takes up a lot of room/space.
|
||||||||||
B
|
Insufficient
space or things occupying too small a space
*compact
has positive connotations, whereas the other words in the table suggest
negative connotations.
|
||||||||||
C
|
Other
words and expressions
I
saw her at the carnival, but I couldn’t get to her because I was hemmed in
by the crowds. [surrounded by people and not able to move]
The
city centre is always bustling with tourists at this time of year. [lots
of people busily moving around]
There
isn’t enough room to swing a cat in his flat. [the flat is very small;
informal]
We
were packed in like sardines on the bus. [too many people in a small
space; informal]
The
government offices are an absolute labyrinth. [/ˈlæbərɪnθ/ vast and complex]
The
river marks the boundary of the estate. [the edge of a large space]
We
created more space by building an extension at the rear of our
property. [back]
In
these conversations, speaker B paraphrases what speaker A says. Note the
verbs in bold.
A:
There were 16 of us in a minibus that seated 10, and it was a long journey.
B:
Yes, we were all crammed into that tiny space for over five hours!
A:
There’s not much room, is there? Can I sit between you and Mark?
B:
Yes, you can squeeze in between us.
A:
You’ve invited a lot of people to your party and it’s only a small room.
B:
Yes, it might be a bit of a squash!
A:
Shall I put all those old papers into this rubbish bag?
B:
Yes, just stuff them all in and we’ll take it away later. (it
suggests doing something quickly and without much care)
|
EXERCISES
59.1
|
Choose
the most likely word from the box to fill the gaps, based on the typical
contexts given in A and B opposite.
|
|||||||
59.2
|
Imagine
you are an estate agent writing a description of a house for sale. Decide
which of the words in italics is most suitable to persuade someone to buy the
house. Use a dictionary for any words you are not sure of.
|
|||||||
59.3
|
Rewrite
the sentences using the words in brackets.
|
|||||||
59.4
|
Using
words from B and C opposite, rewrite the underlined parts of these sentences.
|
ANSWER KEY
59.1
1 poky (suitable in this informal
context)
2 roomy (often used for cars) 3 compact (in fact, a whole class of small cameras is referred to as ‘compact cameras’ by manufacturers and advertisers) 4 cramped (suitable in this slightly more formal context – compare with 1) 5 spacious 6 extensive
59.2
The property is spacious, with
a compact garden, and is situated only ten minutes away from the
bustling town centre. There are extensive leisure facilities nearby. Notes on the incorrect choices: Rambling usually suggests a rather chaotic collection of rooms. A labyrinth suggests they are confusingly laid out. Cramped and poky suggest that somewhere is too small to be comfortable. Congested and crowded are negative. Bustling suggests that somewhere is busy, interesting and full of life. Excessive means too many. No one wants expensive facilities.
59.3
1 The kitchen is so small you can’t
/ couldn’t swing a cat / there isn’t enough room to swing a cat
in it. 2 There’s ample space / room for your clothes in this wardrobe. 3 I got / was hemmed in in the office car park the other day. 4 Holidays in Australia are great if you love wide open spaces. 5 I hate the London underground during rush hour. Everyone is packed in like sardines in the trains. 6 I dropped a glass and tiny pieces (were) scattered all over the floor. 7 The buildings in the holiday complex are (quite / rather) spread out. 8 The train was very full but I just managed to squeeze in before the doors closed.
59.4
1 It might be a bit of a squash on
the bus at this time of day – I hope you don’t mind.
2 I quickly stuffed a few clothes and a couple of books in a rucksack and set off at once. 3 The Ural Mountains mark the boundary between Europe and Asia. 4 We’ll all have to try and squeeze into my little car; Larry hasn’t got his with him today. 5 Your room is at the rear of the hotel, so you won’t hear any traffic. 6 I don’t think we should try and cram / squeeze / stuff everything into one suitcase. Let’s take two. |
No comments:
Post a Comment
thank you for visiting my blog and for your nice comments