Tag: English

Friends at A Smokey Izakaya

From Twitter

Clerk: I __ go. I __ get up early; I’m __ to meet my boss early–and, I __ stop drinking, eating so much pork.

Clerk’s Foreign Friend (a vegetarian wearing a gas mask who sipped one beer all night): Cool.

① must
② have to
③ supposed to
④ should

Answers And Explanation:
I have to go. (Answer 2) Have to shows obligation.
I should get up early; (Answer 4) Should shows obligations we want to resist
I’m supposed to meet my boss early (Answer 3) Supposed to precedes obligations others are expecting.
–and, I must stop drinking, eating so much pork. (Answer 1) Must introduces intentions or obligations with moral- or beneficial- imperatives.

Flat Earth?

From Twitter:

A. You think Earth is flat?
1. B. Yes. __ it isn’t.
2. A. I can show you the __.
3. B. What’s your __?
A. Ever seen a lunar eclipse?
B. Sure.
A. Earth’s shadow is curved on the moon.
B. That’s the moon’s curve!
A. Ug. So–fly to 13,624 ft, or higher!
B. Oh.

a. proof
b. evidence
c. prove

Answers and Explanation:
1. c., prove (a verb)
2. a., proof or b., evidence (both nouns)
3. a., proof or b., evidence (both nouns)

Obviously

Choose the best answer:
1. ‘Obviously’ means:
a. odd
b. stubborn in a way of action
c. easily apparent
Answer: C, easily apparent
When something is obvious it very easy to see, understand or conclude.

Choose the best answer:
2. John brought chopsticks to an Italian restaurant.
a. He’s obviously not a golfer.
b. He’s obdurate about his eating utensils.
c. He’s obviously not Italian.
d. He’s French.

Answer: He’s French… no, I’m just kidding; The answer is C: ”He’s obviously not Italian.” An Italian wouldn’t eat spaghetti with chopsticks (except this Italian (American); I, Carl.)

The other choices:
a. He’s obviously not a golfer.
This has nothing to do with it, but it is a reference to a funny scene in a famous movie; The Big Labowski.

b. He’s obdurate about his eating utensils.
`Obdurate’means stubbornly adhering to (sticking to/following) a certain way of doing something with no chance of changing due to suggestions by others. The story in the sentence does not say this about the subject.

d. He’s French. There is no indication of John’s nationality. Although, I wouldn’t be surprised were he French. Just kidding.

News

From Twitter:

News
Choose the best answers:
Jan: What’s new?
Joe: Not much; and with you?
Jan: I have __ news.
Joe: Really?; __ to hear that.
Jan: Snoobie __.
Joe: Really? Damn. __ too __.

a. good
b. sad
c. that
d. That’s
e. bad
f. glad
g. sorry
h. apologize
j. puppy
k. it is
l. It’s
m. died
______
Answers:

Jan: What’s new?
Joe: Not much; and with you?
Jan: I have _b_ news.
Joe: Really?; _‘sorry_ to hear that.
Jan: Snoobie _died_.
Joe: Really? Damn. _That’s_ too _bad_.

Explanation:
We say “what’s new” when meeting old friends.

We answer with the news of our lives or we say “not much”, meaning “not much is new.” In Jan’s case, she has “sad news” or “bad news”.

Joe answers about Jan’s sad news saying: ‘sorry to hear that. It is a reduction of “I’m sorry to hear that“meaning he is sorry to learn such news.

Joe precedes his statement of regret with “damn”, a word that was at one time considered to be an expletive (a “curse” word), and which is not the most polite response, but which is accepted now as being very heartfelt. He uses this word probably because he and Jan are close friends.