Tuesday 19 May 2020

Time: once in a blue moon CAMBRIDGE ENGLISH VOCABULARY IN USE ADVANCED


CAMBRIDGE ENGLISH VOCABULARY IN USE ADVANCED
UNIT 60
Time: once in a blue moon

A
Informal expressions relating to time

We only meet once in a blue moon. [very infrequently]
He’s spent all his born days in the village. [all his life]
I’ll be with you in a mo / in a sec / in a tick / in less than no time / in a jiffy. [very soon] (mo and sec are short for ‘moment’ and ‘second’)
Clive’s been working here for donkey’s years / since the year dot. [for a long time]
We can talk about this till the cows come home, but I’m not going to change my mind. [for ever]
Are you sure she gave you the book for keeps / for good? [to keep for ever]
She turned up just in the nick of time – she very nearly missed the train. [only just in time]
He was a famous athlete but now he’s over the hill / past it. [too old]
She was a child film star but was already a has-been by the age of 20. [person who is no longer famous]
Sue did her homework in a flash / at a rate of knots. [very quickly]
B
Adjectives relating to the passing of time

adjective
meaning
common collocations
fleeting
brief or quick
glimpse, visit, smile, moment, appearance
lengthy
continuing for a long time
process, investigation, discussions, negotiations, delays
transient
lasting for only a short time; formal
effect, population, feeling, pleasure
persistent
lasting for a long time or hard to stop or get rid of
cough, problems, rumour, smell, accusations, critic, offender, failure, gossip
inexorable
continuing without hope of being
stopped; formal
rise, slide, decline, pressure, advance of time
incipient
just beginning; formal
panic, rage, rebellion, stages, wrinkles, dementia
protracted
lasting for a long time or made to last longer; formal
negotiations, discussions, argument
lingering
taking a long time to leave or disappear
perfume, kiss, smile
C
Other useful time words

Terrorists carried out simultaneous attacks on three places in the capital. [happening at the same time]
Schools were closed for the duration of the President’s visit. [amount of time that it lasted]
We shouldn’t prolong the meeting; we’ve already discussed the matter for an hour. [make it last longer]
I’m sorry, I can’t change the date at such short notice. [just a short time before it is due to happen]
The teacher repeatedly warned the student that she would fail her exam. [many times]

EXERCISES

60.1
Put the words in the correct order to make sentences.

1 since / they’ve / same / living / the / house / year / the / been / in / dot
2 you / sec / I’ll / with / a / in / be
3 to / keeps / Magda / it / John / for / gave
4 no / we / time / in / together / get / less / can / done / it / than
5 never / all / he’s / his / been / than / nearest / born / town / further / days / in / the
6 nick / we / hospital / got / in / to / time / the / of / the
60.2
Which of the adjectives in B would you be most likely to use to describe the following?

1 a scent that remains in the room after its wearer has left
2 a feeling of joy that is short-lived
3 criticism that seems to go on and on
4 a headache that is beginning
5 a process that takes a long time
6 the never-ending ageing process – you can’t stop its progress
7 a grin that lasts only for a moment
8 an investigation that takes a long time to complete
60.3
Match the adjectives on the left with the words on the right to make collocations.

1
lingering


a
events
2
fleeting


b
population
3
incipient


c
glimpse
4
inexorable


d
smile
5
persistent


e
peace negotiations
6
simultaneous


f
refusal
7
protracted


g
stages
8
transient


h
advance of time
60.4
Rewrite these sentences so that they keep the same meaning, using a form of the word in brackets.

1 We’ll be ready to leave in a mo. (less)
2 Most of the members of the band may be in their sixties, but they’re certainly not past it. (hill)
3 You can argue with him for ever, but he’ll never see sense. (cow)
4 Harry promised he’d get here at a rate of knots and he kept his word. (flash)
5 I’ve told her many times not to phone me at work. (repeat)
6 The two events happened at the same moment. (simultaneous)
7 The hotel staff were very good; they let me cancel the reservation just a short time before. (notice)
8 I didn’t want to make the meeting last longer. (long)
9 He had his moment of fame. Now he’s no longer famous. (be)
10 The press were excluded during the delicate negotiations. (duration)
60.5
Over to you

• Would you like to work for the same company for donkey’s years?
• What could you personally do happily till the cows come home?
• Do you think it’s a good thing to spend all your born days in one place?
• Can you think of something that you do once in a blue moon?

ANSWER KEY

60.1
1 They’ve been living in the same house since the year dot.
2 I’ll be with you in a sec.
3 John gave it to Magda for keeps. / Magda gave it to John for keeps.
4 Together we can get it done in less than no time. / We can get it done together in less than no time.
5 He’s never been further than the nearest town in all his born days.
6 We got to the hospital in the nick of time.

60.2
1 a lingering scent
2 a transient (feeling of) joy
3 persistent criticism
4 an incipient headache
5 a lengthy process / a protracted process
6 the inexorable ageing process
7 a fleeting grin
8 a protracted investigation / a lengthy investigation

60.3
1 d 2 c 3 g 4 h 5 f 6 a 7 e 8 b

60.4
1 We’ll be ready to leave in less than no time.
2 Most of the members of the band may be in their sixties, but they’re certainly not over the hill.
3 You can argue with him till the cows come home, but he’ll never see sense.
4 Harry promised he’d get here in a flash and he kept his word.
5 I’ve told her repeatedly not to phone me at work.
6 The two events happened simultaneously. / The two events were simultaneous.
7 The hotel staff were very good; they let me cancel the reservation at short notice.
8 I didn’t want to prolong the meeting.
9 He had his moment of fame. Now he’s (just) a has-been.
10 The press were excluded for the duration of the delicate negotiations.

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