I. Vocabulary and grammar list

“AN EDUCATION”

I. VOCABULARY AND GRAMMAR LIST

NO	LANGUAGE UNITS	NOTES
1.	The youth orchestra is a good thing, it shows you’re a joiner-inner.	join in to take part in something that a group of people are doing or that someone else does: In the evening there was a barbecue, with the whole village joining in the fun . joiner informal a person who joins many clubs, causes, etc.
2.	They don’t want a rebel at Oxford.	someone who refuses to do things in the normal way, or in the way that other people want them to: Alex has always been a bit of a rebel.
3.	Should I wear my Sunday best?	your Sunday best DCCold-fashioned your best clothes, which you only wear on special occasions
4.	To show my father you are un jeune home serieux, not a Teddy Boy.	un jeune home serieux = a serious young man Teddy Boy In Britain, especially during the 1950s, a tough youth wearing a modified style of Edwardian clothes. [From the name Teddy, nickname for Edward, after Edward VII ].
5.	I’m gonna go. It’s going to bucket down in a minute.	to rain very hard [= pour]: It's been bucketing down all day.
6.	There’s a terrible Brummie accent in there if you listen hard enough.	British English informal someone from the city of Birmingham in England
7.	Elgar and the Jews don’t mix very well.	Sir Edward William Elgar (2 June 1857 – 23 February 1934) was an English composer, many of whose works have entered the British and international classical concert repertoire. Among his best-known compositions are orchestral works including the Enigma Variations, the Pomp and Circumstance Marches, concertos for violin and cello, and two symphonies. He also composed choral works. Elgar felt himself to be an outsider, not only musically, but socially. In musical circles dominated by academics, he was a self-taught composer; in Protestant Britain, his Roman Catholicism was regarded with suspicion in some quarters; and in the class-conscious society of Victorian and Edwardian Britain, he was acutely sensitive about his humble origins even after he achieved recognition. not mix if two different ideas, activities etc do not mix, there are problems when they are combined: Smoking and babies don't mix.
8.	I only live round the corner. Worse luck.	worse luck British English spoken unfortunately: 'Would your boyfriend like a drink?' 'He's not my boyfriend, worse luck!'
9.	Concerts don’t help you get on.	to be successful in your job: You'll have to work hard if you want to get on.
10.	French singing wasn’t on the syllabus last time I looked.	a plan that states exactly what students at a school or college should learn in a particular subject: Two Shakespeare plays are on this year's English syllabus.
11.	Battenberg? – I actually like the crust, I’ll take it.	Battenberg cake is a light sponge cake. The cake is covered in marzipan and, when cut in cross section, displays a distinctive two-by-two check pattern alternately coloured pink and yellow. It was invented in 1884 by the chefs of the British Royal household to celebrate the marriage of Princess Victoria of Hesse and by Rhine and Prince Louis of Battenberg. crust the hard brown outer surface of bread: sandwiches with the crusts cut off
12.	-Where are you applying? -I’m not sure yet. -So, when will you be sure? You can’t let the grass grow under your feet, young man.	not let the grass grow under your feet to not waste time or delay starting something
13.	She’s going to Oxford if we get her Latin up to scratch.	up to scratch British English informal good enough for a particular standard: Some of this work isn't up to scratch. bring/get something up to scratch We spent thousands of pounds getting the house up to scratch.
14.	You’ll be the wandering Jew.	to walk slowly across or around an area, usually without a clear direction or purpose: She wandered aimlessly about the house. He was found wandering the streets of New York.
15.	Objection noted.	formalto notice or pay careful attention to something: He carefully noted the time when they left the building. It should be noted that parking without a permit attracts a charge of £5.
16.	That’s got to be ten bobs’ worth of luck here! (the flowers)	informal PECa shilling (=coin used in the past in Britain. There were 20 shillings in one pound): At last I'm making a few bob (=a reasonable amount of money).
17.	Even I’d burgle a house with flowers left outside.	British English to go into a building and steal things [= burglarize American English] We've been burgled three times.
18.	Oh, crikey!	British English spoken used to show that you are surprised or annoyed: Crikey, I'm late!
19.	I’m glad I ran into you. What are you doing on Friday?	informalto meet someone by chance: Guess who I ran into in town today!
20.	And probably go for a spot of supper afterwards, if you want to.	a spot of something British English informal a small amount of something: Do you fancy a spot of lunch? I've been having a spot of bother (=some problems) with my car.
21.	How do you propose to get there? RAF helicopter?	the Royal Air Force the British air force
22.	Helen is one of the more reluctant members of tonight’s audience.	slow and unwilling: She gave a reluctant smile. Maddox was reluctant to talk about it.
23.	He’s so garish.	very brightly coloured in a way that is unpleasant to look at: Many of the rugs are too garish for my taste. garish colors
24.	You may or may not have noticed I am trying to steer the subject away from Jenny’s lurid love life.	too brightly coloured: a lurid orange dress
25.	I vowed to myself that one day I would own one of these. And now I do own one, I never touch the bugger.	vow to make a serious promise to yourself or someone else [= promise]: I vowed that I would never drink again. Bugger not polite someone that you pretend to be annoyed with, although you actually like or love them: The poor little bugger got an awful shock.
26.	We should all go and spend a weekend in Oxford. Straw boaters, punting, cream teas …	a punt a long thin boat with a flat bottom that you move by pushing a long pole against the bottom of the river cream tea British English a small meal eaten in Britain, with small cakes and tea
27.	-How much do you bet? -Half a crown. -You’re on.	an old British coin. Four crowns made a pound.
28.	We became pals.	informal a close friend [↪ mate]: We've been pals since we were at school. an old pal (=a friend you have had for a long time)
29.	I’ll just be two ticks.	spoken especially British English a very short time [= moment]: I'll be with you in a tick (=soon). It'll only take two ticks.
30.	52%. That would just about scrape a pass in the exam proper.	to only just succeed in getting a job, a place at university, a position in government etc: Labour scraped in by a small majority. He just scraped into college.
31.	If she’s going to spend three years talking French to a bunch of beatniks, well, I’m just throwing good money after bad.	beatnik SSone of a group of young people in the late 1950s and early 1960s, who did not accept the values of society and showed this by their clothes and the way they lived throw good money after bad to waste money by spending more money on something that you have already spent money on and which is no good Trying to fix that old car would just be throwing good money after bad.
32.	That’s our savings down the drain.	down the drain informal if time, effort, or money goes down the drain, it is wasted or produces no results: Well that's it. 18 months' work down the drain.
33.	There’s a whole clump of trees surrounding the pocket money tree.	a group of trees, bushes, or other plants growing very close together: The roses were planted in clumps across the park.
34.	-You do all the Goons? -No, my Eccles is no good. - David does the most fantastic B luebottle.	Characters from The Goon Show, a British radio comedy programme, originally produced and broadcast by the BBC Home Service from 1951 to 1960.
35.	I’m only going on what I’ve seen for the last 16 years. (judge?)	go on something to base an opinion or judgment on something: Police haven't much to go on in their hunt for the killer.
36.	See, that’s what you need, Jenny. Someone on the inside track.	1DSOthe part of a circular track for racing that is nearest to the centre of the circle and is therefore shorter 2American English a position that gives someone an advantage over the people they are competing against: the inside track to success in business
37.	Well, to us he was just the old codger who taught Medieval Literature.	old codger informal not polite an offensive word for an old man
38.	I came to know him very well. We just got along.	two or more people get along, they have a friendly relationship: They seem to get along with each other.
39.	Jenny used to devour those books.	1DFto eat something quickly because you are very hungry: The boys devoured their pancakes. 2to read something quickly and eagerly, or watch something with great interest: He devoured science fiction books.
40.	Am I being slow on the uptake?	be slow/quick on the uptake informal to be slow or fast at understanding something
41.	You don’t want to get preggers, do you?	= pregnant (slang) Did you know that Kim is preggers?
42.	There must be something about these places to make you fat or spotty or short-sighted.	British EnglishinformalMIHBHsomeone who is spotty has small raised red marks on their skin, especially on their face: a tall, thin, spotty youth a spotty face
43.	I’m going to read English. (at Oxford)	British English to study a subject at a university: I read history at Cambridge. He wants to read for a law degree.
44.	Don’t worry, Jenny, you’re wasting your breath.	waste your breath spoken to say something that has no effect: Don't try to reason with Paul - you're wasting your breath.
45.	All those old ladies wandering around. This place is rife with stats.	rife with something full of something bad or unpleasant: The crowded factories are rife with disease. stat a medical notation meaning “immediately.” (From Latin “statim” = “immediately”): The order is marked stat, so do it now.
46.	Run along!	used to tell a child to leave, or to tell someone that you must leave: Run along now! I've got work to finish. Oh, it's late. I'd better be running along.
47.	Sorry about being a little brisk back there, Jenny.	quick, practical and showing that you want to get things done quickly: Her tone of voice is brisk.
48.	It’s an old map. A Speed.	John Speed (1552–1629) was an English cartographer and historian. He is known as England’s most famous cartographer.
49.	You’ll never see him swanning around with famous authors.	British Englishinformalto enjoy yourself and behave in a relaxed way that is annoying to other people He's gone swanning off to Rome for the weekend!
50.	Makes your dictionary look a little feeble.	not very good or effective: a feeble excuse a rather feeble committee
51.	I don’t think that would agree with me. The French don’t like us.	not agree with somebody DFMIif a type of food does not agree with you, it makes you feel ill: Green peppers don't agree with me.
52.	Jenny likes to joke how you’re a stick-in –the-mud and all this…	someone who refuses to try anything new - used to show disapproval
53.	I pushed the boat out and got us a suite. [swi:t]	push the boat out British English informal to spend more money than you usually do, on something special: Push the boat out and get tickets to the theatre or ballet.
54.	It’s because of people like you that I plough through illiterate essays.	plough through something to read all of something, even though it is boring and takes a long time: Most staff will never want to plough through the manuals that come with the software.
55.	I’ve never won anything before, not even at the Women’s Institute raffle.	a competition or game in which people buy numbered tickets and can win prizes: a woman selling raffle tickets
56.	Jenny got two A’s and a B in her mockA-levels.	mock not real, but intended to be very similar to a real situation, substance etc: a mock interview mock marble floors A-levels = Advanced level an examination that students in England and Wales take, usually when they are 18: She decided to stay on at school and do her A levels. I took maths, physics and chemistry at A level.
57.	Leave them in your potting shed.	British English DLGTBBa small building, usually made of wood, where garden tools, seeds etc are kept
58.	Why didn’t you just send me prowling round nightclubs? [pra4l]	if someone prowls, they move around an area slowly and quietly, especially because they are involved in a criminal activity or because they are looking for something: gangs of teenagers prowling the streets prowl around/about British English Irene prowled restlessly around the room.
59.	He wouldn’t want you if you were thick, now would he?	British English informal a thick person is stupid: He's a nice guy, but he's a bit thick.
60.	I don’t wish to be impertinent … But this argument is worth rehearsing.	rude and not respectful, especially to someone who is older or more important [= cheeky]: He was always asking impertinent questions. You are an impertinent young woman.
61.	That’s revolting. Stick to your own species.	extremely unpleasant [= disgusting]: The food was revolting! What a revolting colour!
62.	You won’t be laughing, David, when she goes all speccy and spotty.	slang wearing spectacles
63.	Eamonn Andrews is the posh est person that Jack can imagine being.	Eamonn Andrews (1922 – 1987), was an Irish radio and television presenter, based in the United Kingdom from the 1950s. From 1960 to 1964, he chaired the Radio Éireann Authority (now the RTÉ Authority), responsible for the introduction of state television to Ireland. posh British English upper class: Her parents are terribly posh.
64.	It’s just another one of David’s little muddles and misunderstandings.	when there is confusion about something, and things are done wrong as a result: There was a bit of a muddle over our hotel reservations.
65.	He’s helping himself to some Dutch courage before facing you.	Dutch courage DFDcourage or confidence that you get when you drink alcohol
66.	I’m not speaking to him now, if that’s any consolation.	something that makes you feel better when you are sad or disappointed: The only consolation for the team is that they get a chance to play the game again. If it's any consolation, things do get easier as the child gets older.
67.	I’ve made a mess of everything.	make a mess of (doing) something to do something badly: I feel I've made a real mess of my marriage. Many people make a mess of handling money.
68.	The life I want, there’s no shortcut.	1a quicker and more direct way of getting somewhere than the usual one: We were late for the game, but found a short cut through the fields. 2a quicker way of doing something: There aren't really any shortcuts to learning English.
69.	[You did it] through your own volition.	formal the power to choose or decide something without being forced to do it
70.	I probably looked as wide-eyed, fresh and artless as any other student.	literary natural, honest, and sincere: artless sincerity

SOURCES:
http://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary
http://en.wikipedia.org
http://www.thefreedictionary.com

II. DISCUSSION:

There will be an interactive assignment this time provided on the spot.

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