Our character is going fishing. Does he look scary? Is he evil?
This boy is being more than mean by fishing in a goldfish bowl; he is being cruel! While being mean is to do something bad to someone else,
a cruel person is happy when hurting others. The boy in this
interactive flashcard knows that the fish has no chance and is
delighted by it. Don’t be cruel to others!
Does this character look excited? Is he looking forward to life? What
is he thinking about? In his hat we see an image of a church and
graveyard. The scene is dark and grim. While it’s easy to say that
this character looks sad, we want you to have fun using a more
colorful word like dejected! To be dejected is to feel very down.
Maybe he’s thinking about death. What’s in your hat?
Our next flashcard is a tricky one. Is the man rich? Is he well-known?
The man has an eye patch, so something terrible may have happened to
him. But he also has a thick mustache and a bow tie. Is he a spy? Is
he intelligent? We think he looks distinguished! To be distinguished
is to be marked by eminence or excellence. Maybe he’s a war hero! Do
you know anyone distinguished?
Have a look at our last character. Does he look like he’s having a
good time? Is he energetic? Is he positive? What happened to him? He’s
wearing the crown and robes of a king, but he is lost and floating at
sea far from his castle. He is alone, tired and helpless. You can say
he looks depressed, but a more colorful word would be despondent. To
be despondent means to be extremely sad and depressed. You are sad
when the movie you want to rent isn’t available. You are despondent
when your home is blown away by a tornado. Have you ever been
despondent?
Go back and watch this video many times so you remember the words and
get a good understanding of how subjects and verbs agree. Practice
repeating the sentences and then get out and use the words and phrases
with native speakers! Have fun and enjoy getting fluent in English!
Grow your English vocabulary and use more colorful language with our
interactive flashcards! Listen carefully to the questions and sentences.
Remember that subjects and verbs must agree! I cry. He cries!
Also remember that subjects and verbs can reverse in questions. How
are John and Tim? They are excellent!
Have a look at our first character. What is this man doing? Is he
enjoying himself? Is he captivated? Because he has some popcorn and a
drink, he’s probably at a movie theater. He’s focused on the movie
he’s watching and has no idea about the giant bugs that are sitting
right behind him. You could use the common English expression that
he’s “in trouble,” but we want you to use something more colorful like
“doomed.” You can get out of trouble, but there is no escape when you
are doomed.
What about this character? Does she look tired? Is she sad? Is she
having a great day? Happy is a very common English word, so we want
you to have fun with something more interesting to describe something
even more positive than happy. We think she looks ecstatic! To be
ecstatic means to be really, really happy and excited. Did she just
win 1 million dollars? Is she excited about a new car? When did you
last feel ecstatic?
Have a look at our next character. Is he in a positive mood? Is he
excited about his future? What is he thinking about? An alien invasion
is serious business for some people and he doesn’t look happy. You can
say he’s feeling scared, but a more colorful word would be “dread.”
Dread is great fear or anxiety. Have you felt dread before taking a
test you didn’t study for?
Our next interactive flashcard character doesn’t look very happy. Was
he fired from his job? Was he in a car accident? Whatever happened to
him, saying he looks angry doesn’t quite capture his emotional state.
Look at his hair! Look at his eyes! He looks exasperated! To be
exasperated is to be really frustrated and angry. Have you ever been
stuck in your car in traffic and become exasperated?
Have a look at the child in this interactive flashcard. Is the boy
happy? Is he thoughtful? What is he doing? The minds of children are
wide open, and they have some really cool ideas. So we think this
little guy looks imaginative! Creative is a good word, but imaginative
captures the playfulness and expression much better. He has created a
world in his mind and is having fun with the creatures in it. Be
imaginative today!
Our next character looks stressed out. Is he having a bad day at the
office? Are people yelling at him? Is he getting too many phone calls?
Stress is a good word, but when someone gets really stressed we call
them frazzled! You become frazzled when you need to do more than you
can and can no longer think straight. When you get frazzled, take a
moment to stop, relax and think.
Does this character look calm and peaceful? Is he relaxed? He has a
very sharp expression on his face and is looking at something that
he’s not happy about. Is he standing in the middle of a child’s
birthday party? Is there a snake by his feet? A good word for this
situation is irritated. You aren’t mad yet, but you are thinking about
becoming mad. Something is distracting you and you don’t like it when
you’re irritated. What irritates you?
Our last flashcard is a tricky one. Is this a monster or a tree? Is he
happy about the bird nesting on his head? The expression on the
character’s face is kind and loving. But these are both very common
words that don’t quite capture what’s happening in the scene. Whatever
the character is, it is giving part of itself to help to help the
bird. In this way, we describe the character as selfless. To be
selfless is to be more than kind. A selfless person forgets themselves
as they try to help someone else. Go out and do something selfless
today!
Go back and watch this video many times so you remember the words and
get a good understanding of how subjects and verbs agree. Practice
repeating the sentences and then get out and use the words and phrases
with native speakers! Have fun and enjoy getting fluent in English!