UG 5

Module1: Vocabulary

Definition of vocabulary in English:

NOUN (plural vocabularies)

(1) The body of words used in a particular language.

(2) The words used in a particular subject or sphere of activity or on a particular
occasion.
(3) The body of words known to an individual person.
(4) A list of difficult or unfamiliar words with an explanation of their meanings,
accompanying a piece of specialist or foreign-language text.

Origin:

Mid 16th century (denoting a list of words with definitions or translations):

from medieval Latin vocabularius, from Latin vocabulum.

The importance of vocabulary:

Why is vocabulary so important?

Vocabulary, much more than grammar, is the key to your child understanding what
she hears and reads in school; and to communicating successfully with other
people. For this reason it is very important for her to quickly build up a large store
of words. Research studies have shown the strong links between having an
extensive vocabulary and achieving school success

Which words should my child learn?

I have collected together about 1,500 of the words that your child needs to learn in
the first two years at Frankfurt International School. These words are taught

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through different vocabulary worksheet exercises. And they can be seen and
practised on the vocabulary section of this website.

As well as this, your child has to collect about 15 words of her own each week.
These are the words she meets in her reading or other school situations, and which
seem useful or interesting to her. She keeps a record of these words, either in a
vocabulary journal, or on vocabulary cards. I then select from these words the ones
that I consider to be worth learning. Your child is tested 4 times each school year
on these selected words.

How can I help my child learn words?

Research studies have shown that in most cases words have to be met 5-7 times
before they are admitted to long-term memory. This is how, through reading, we
learn the words of our own language. Words are also more easily learned if your
child is active - drawing a picture of the word, writing her own definition of it in
English or the mother tongue, thinking of an example sentence to use it in. This is
better than simply writing the word and its native language equivalent.

You can help by encouraging your child to read at home. More than this, you can
test your child on the words she has collected on cards or in a vocabulary book.
Your child has been instructed in the various ways that words can be tested, and
can instruct you.

One Word Substitution:

One word can often express the idea of a phrase or a clause and can help in writing
or communicating precisely. List of some common one-word substitutions are
given below. Please learn it to improve your word power.

One Word Substitution

1. One who is out to subvert a government Anarchist

2. One who is recovering from illness Convalescent

3. One who is all powerful Omnipotent

4. One who is present everywhere Omnipresent

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5. One who knows everything Omniscient

6. One who is easily deceived Gullible

7. One who does not make mistakes Infallible

8. One who can do anything for money Mercenary

9. One who has no money Pauper

10. One who changes sides Turncoat

11. One who works for free Volunteer

12. One who loves books Bibliophile

13. One who can speak two languages Bilingual

14. One who loves mankind Philanthropist

15. One who hates mankind Misanthrope

16. One who looks on the bright side of things Optimist

17. One who looks on the dark side of things Pessimist

18. One who doubts the existence of god Agnostic

19. One who pretends to be what he is not Hypocrite

20. One incapable of being tired Indefatigable

21. One who helps others Good Samaritan

22. One who copies from other writers Plagiarist

23. One who hates women Misogynist

24. One who knows many languages Polyglot

25. One who is fond of sensuous pleasures Epicure

26. One who thinks only of himself Egoist

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27. One who thinks only of welfare of women Feminist.

28. One who is indifferent to pleasure or pain Stoic

29. One who is quite like a woman Effeminate

30. One who has strange habits Eccentric

31. One who speaks less Reticent

32. One who goes on foot Pedestrian

33. One who believes in fate Fatalist

34. One who dies without a Will Intestate

35. One who always thinks himself to be ill Valetudinarian

36. A Government by the people Democracy

37. A Government by a king or queen Monarchy

38. A Government by the officials Bureaucracy

39. A Government by the rich Plutocracy

40. A Government by the few Oligarchy

41. A Government by the Nobles Aristocracy

42. A Government by one Autocracy

43. Rule by the mob Mobocracy

44. That through which light can pass Transparent

45. That through which light cannot pass Opaque

46. That through which light can partly pass Translucent

47. A sentence whose meaning is unclear Ambiguous

48. A place where orphans live Orphanage

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49. That which cannot be described Indescribable

50. That which cannot be imitated Inimitable

51. That which cannot be avoided Inevitable

52. A position for which no salary is paid Honorary

53. That which cannot be defended Indefensible

54. Practice of having several wives Polygamy

55. Practice of having several husbands Polyandry

56. Practice of having one wife or husband Monogamy

57. Practice of having two wives or husbands Bigamy

58. That which is not likely to happen Improbable

59. People living at the same time Contemporaries

60. A book published after the death of its author Posthumas

61. A book written by an unknown author Anonymous

62. A life history written by oneself Autobiography

63. A life history written by somebody else Biography

64. People who work together Colleagues

65. One who eats too much Glutton

66. That which cannot be satisfied Insatiable

67. One who questions everything Cynic

68. A flesh eating animal Carnivorous

69. A grass eating animal Herbivorous

70. One who lives in a foreign country Immigrant

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71. To transfer one's authority to another Delegate

72. One who is a newcomer Neophyte

73. That which is lawful Legal

74. That which is against law Illegal

75. One who is unmarried Celibate

76. A game in which no one wins Draw

77. A study of man Anthropology

78. A study of races Ethnology

79. A study of the body Physiology

80. A study of animals Zoology

81. A study of birds Ornithology

82. A study of ancient things Archaeology

83. A study of derivation of words Etymology

84. Murder of a human being Homicide

85. Murder of a father Patricide

86. Murder of a mother Matricide

87. Murder of an brother Fratricide

88. Murder of an infant Infanticide

89. Murder of self Suicide

90. Murder of the king Regicide

91. To free somebody from all blame Exonerate

92. To write under a different name Pseudonym

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93. A thing no longer in use Obsolete

94. A handwriting that cannot be read Illegible

95. Words written on the tomb of a person Epitaph

96. One who is greedy for money Avaricious

97. Something that cannot be imitated Inimitable

98. One who doesn't know how to read and write Illiterate

99. A person's peculiar habit Idiosyncrasy

100. An animal who preys on other animals Predator

101. Violating the sanctity of a church Sacrilege

102. One who can throw his voice Ventriloquist

Synonym:
Definition of synonym in English:
NOUN
(1) A word or phrase that means exactly or nearly the same as another word or
phrase in the same language, for example shut is a synonym of close.

Origin:

Late Middle English: via Latin from Greek sunōnumon, neuter (used as a noun) of
the adjective sunōnumos, from sun- 'with' + onoma 'name'.

Adjectives Synonyms
big large
blank empty
broad wide

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center middle
cunning clever
dangerous risky
eatable edible
false untrue
fertile fruitful
gay cheerful
glad happy
hard difficult
high tall
huge enormous
intelligent clever
lazy indolent
little small
loving fond
loyal faithful
mad crazy
new modern
nice kind
noisy rowdy
old ancient
oral verbal
polite courteous
poor destitute
quick rapid/fast
rare scarce
ready alert

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 real genuine
rich wealthy
rude impolite
sad unhappy
safe secure
sleepy drowsy
slim slender
thin lean
usual normal
vacant empty
weak feeble
well-known famous

Antonym:

Definition:

A word having the meaning opposite to that of another word.

absence presence

accept refuse

accurate inaccurate

advantage disadvantage

alive dead

always never

ancient modern

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answer question, query

approval disapproval

approached receded, departed

abundant scarce

admit deny

advance retreat, retire

artificial natural

arrival departure

ascend descend

attack defense

attractive repulsive

attention inattention

asleep awake

ally enemy

agree disagree

bad good

backward forward, onward

bend straighten

beautiful ugly

beginning ending

below above

bent straight

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big small, little

blunt sharp

better worse

best worst

blame praise

bless curse

bitter sweet

borrow lend

bravery cowardice

build destroy, demolish

bold timid, meek

bright dull

broad narrow

clear vague, cloudy

careful rush, careless

calm troubled

capable incapable

captivity freedom, liberty

cellar attic

cheap dear, expensive

close distant

clever stupid

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cold hot

combine separate

clockwise anti-clockwise

correct incorrect

conceal reveal

come go

common rare

comfort discomfort

courage cowardice

cruel kind

courteous discourteous, rude

cunning simple

dainty clumsy

danger safety

dark light

deep shallow

decrease increase

definite indefinite

demand supply

despair hope

disappear appear

disease health

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discourage encourage

dismal cheerful

doctor patient

dry wet

dull clear, bright

dusk dawn

early late

easy difficult

ebb flow

East West

economise waste

encourage discourage

entrance exit

employer employee

empty full

excited calm

end beginning

expand contract

expensive inexpensive, cheap

export import

exterior interior

external internal

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fail succeed

false true

feeble sturdy, strong, powerful

foolish wise

fast slow

few many

famous unknown

forelegs hind legs

fat thin

find lose

first last

freedom captivity

fold unfold

frequent seldom

forget remember

found lost

fresh stale

friend enemy

fortunate unfortunate

frank secretive

full empty

generous mean

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gentle rough

gather distribute

glad sorry

gloomy cheerful

giant dwarf, pygmy

granted refused

great minute, small, little

guardian ward

guest host

guilty innocent

happy sad, miserable

hard soft

harmful harmless

hasten dawdle

hate love

healthy unhealthy, ill, diseased

here there

heavy light

height depth

hero coward

hill valley

horizontal vertical

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hinder aid, help

honest dishonest

humble proud

hunger thirst

imitation genuine

immense tiny, minute

imprison free

include exclude

increase decrease

inhabited uninhabited

inferior superior

inside outside

intelligent unintelligent, stupid

inhale exhale

interior exterior, outside

interesting uninteresting, dull

internal external

intentional accidental

join separate

junior senior

justice injustice

king subject

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knowledge ignorance

laugh cry

lawful unlawful

lazy industrious, energetic

land sea

landlord tenant

large little, small

last first

lawyer client

lecturer student

lender borrower

lengthen shorten

left right

less more

light dark, heavy

like dislike, unlike

likely unlikely

leader follower

little large, much, big

lofty lowly

long short

loud soft

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loss find, win

low high

loyal disloyal

mad sane

magnetize demagnetize

master servant

mature immature

maximum minimum

me you

merry mirthless, sad

minority majority

miser spendthrift

misunderstand understand

narrow wide

near far, distant

neat untidy

new old

night day

noisy quiet

North South

obedient disobedient

odd even

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offer refuse

open shut

optimist pessimist

out in

parent child

past present

patient impatient

peace war

permanent temporary

please displease

plentiful scarce

poetry prose

possible impossible

poverty wealth

powerful feeble, weak

polite impolite, rude

private public

prudent imprudent

pretty unsightly, ugly

pure impure

qualified unqualified

rapid slow

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regularly irregularly

rich poor

right wrong, left

rigid pliable, soft

rough smooth

satisfactory unsatisfactory

security insecurity

scatter collect

serious trivial

second-hand new

sense nonsense

shopkeeper customer

singular plural

simple complicated

slim thick, stout

solid liquid

sober drunk

speaker listener

sour sweet

sorrow joy

sow reap

stand lie

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straight crooked

strong weak

success failure

sunny cloudy

take give

tall short

tame wild

teacher pupil

thick thin

tight slack, loose

top bottom

transparent opaque

truth untruth, lie

up down

vacant occupied

valuable valueless

victory defeat

virtue vice

visible invisible

voluntary compulsory

vowel consonant

wax wane

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wisdom folly

within without

Idioms and Phrases:

Definition: The common phrase 'idioms and phrases' refers to commonly used
groups of words in English. Idioms are used in informal situations, whereas
phrases may also be rather formal. Learning idioms and phrases is an important
part of learning English as it's common to string phrases together rather than
individual words. These idioms and phrases are used in specific situations and
often used in an idiomatic, rather than a figurative sense. Idioms are often full
sentences. Phrases, however, are usually made up of a few words and are used as a
grammatical unit in a sentence. Here are some examples of common idioms and
phrases:

A Chip on Your Shoulder

Being angry about something that happened in the past; a grudge.

A Dime a Dozen
When something is extremely common and simple to acquire.

A Fool and His Money Are Soon Parted

Someone acting foolish can easily lose his or her money through carelessness or
trickery.

A Piece of Cake
A task that is simple to complete; similar to the common phrase "as easy as pie."

An Arm and a Leg

Something that is extremely expensive; an idiom meaning the price paid was
costly, excessively so.

All Greek To Me
When something is incomprehensible due to complexity.

Back to Square One

To go back to the beginning; a popular saying that suggests a person has to start
over.
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Back To the Drawing Board
Similar to the phrase above, it means starting over again from a previously failed
attempt.

Barking Up The Wrong Tree

To make a wrong assumption about something.

Beating Around the Bush

Avoiding the main point; a common phrase meaning a person is failing to get to
the bottom line.

Beating a Dead Horse

Something that is seen as futile; a popular saying used to describe how bringing up
older issues that have already been resolved is pointless.

Between a Rock and a Hard Place

Being faced with two difficult choices; a dilemma.

Break The Ice

Breaking down a social stiffness or awkardness.

Burst Your Bubble

To ruin someone's happy moment or mood, usually by telling them disappointing
news or information.

Close But No Cigar

Coming close to a successful outcome only to fall short at the end.

Cry Over Spilt Milk

One shouldn't worry over things that have already happenend and that cannot be
changed.

Cry Wolf
Lying; a common phrase meaning someone is calling for help when it's not really
needed.

Cup Of Joe
A cup of joe is an American nickname for a cup of coffee.

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Curiosity Killed The Cat
An idiom meaning mind your own business, as too much poking and prodding
could lead to harm.

Cut The Mustard

Meeting expectations; used as a way to describe how someone has met the required
standards that were set.

Cut To The Chase

To get to the point, leaving out all of the unnecessary details. Similar to popular
sayings such as "beating around the bush."

Homophone:

Definition:
Two or more words (such as knew and new or meat and meet) that
are pronounced the same but differ in meaning, origin, and often spelling.
Adjective: homophonous or homophonic.
A homophone is generally considered a type of homonym.

1. ad, add
2. ail, ale
3. air, heir
4. aisle, I'll, isle
5. all, awl
6. allowed, aloud
7. alms, arms
8. altar, alter
9. arc, ark
10.aren't, aunt
11.ate, eight
12.auger, augur
13.auk, orc
14.aural, oral
15.away, aweigh
16.awe, oar, or, ore
17.axel, axle

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18.aye, eye, I
19.bail, bale
20.bait, bate
21.baize, bays
22.bald, bawled
23.ball, bawl
24.band, banned
25.bard, barred
26.bare, bear
27.bark, barque
28.baron, barren
29.base, bass
30.bay, bey
31.bazaar, bizarre
32.be, bee
33.beach, beech
34.bean, been
35.beat, beet
36.beau, bow
37.beer, bier
38.bel, bell, belle
39.berry, bury
40.berth, birth
41.bight, bite, byte
42.billed, build
43.bitten, bittern
44.blew, blue
45.bloc, block
46.boar, bore
47.board, bored
48.boarder, border
49.bold, bowled
50.boos, booze
51.born, borne
52.bough, bow
53.boy, buoy
54.brae, bray
55.braid, brayed
56.braise, brays, braze
57.brake, break
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58.bread, bred
59.brews, bruise
60.bridal, bridle
61.broach, brooch
62.bur, burr
63.but, butt
64.buy, by, bye
65.buyer, byre
66.calendar, calender
67.call, caul
68.canvas, canvass
69.cast, caste
70.caster, castor
71.caught, court
72.caw, core, corps
73.cede, seed
74.ceiling, sealing
75.cell, sell
76.censer, censor, sensor
77.cent, scent, sent
78.cereal, serial
79.cheap, cheep
80.check, cheque
81.choir, quire
82.chord, cord
83.cite, sight, site
84.clack, claque
85.clew, clue
86.climb, clime
87.close, cloze
88.coal, kohl
89.coarse, course
90.coign, coin
91.colonel, kernel
92.complacent, complaisant
93.complement, compliment
94.coo, coup
95.cops, copse
96.council, counsel
97.cousin, cozen
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 98.creak, creek
99.crews, cruise

Homograph:

Noun
Each of two or more words spelled the same but not necessarily pronounced the
same and having different meanings and origins (e.g. bow1 and bow2).

There are 40 examples of homographs:

 accent - stress or emphasis/a manner of speaking or pronunciation influenced

by the region in which one lives or grew up
 agape - wide open/a Greek word meaning “love”
 attribute - a characteristic or quality/to think of as belonging to or originating in
some person, place or thing
 axes - the plural of ax or axe/the plural of axis
 bass - a deep voice or tone/a kind of fish
 bat - a piece of sporting equipment used in baseball/a winged animal associated
with vampires
 bow - to bend at the waist/the front of a boat/a pair of tied loops
 buffet - to hit, punch or slap/a self-serve food bar
 bustier - an undergarment/more busty
 compact - small/to make small/a small case for holding makeup
 compound - to mix or combine/an enclosed area with a building or group of
buildings inside
 content - happy or satisfied/all that is contained inside something
 contract - an agreement/to get, acquire or incur
 coordinates - brings into proper place or order/a set of numbers used to
calculate position
 desert - a hot, arid region/to leave
 digest - a condensed version of some information/to change food in the
stomach into a form that can be absorbed by the body
 discount - a reduction in price/to underestimate the significance of or give no
credence to
 does - female deer (plural)/present, third person singular form of the verb “do”

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 down - in a lower position/soft, furry feathers
 entrance - the place of entry/to bewitch, delight or enrapture
 evening - late afternoon/making more even
 fine - very good/sharp or keen/delicate or subtle/a sum of money paid to settle
a matter
 frequent - occurring regularly/to visit a place with regularity
 incense - a substance that produces a pleasant odor when burned/to infuriate or
make very angry
 lead - to go first with followers behind/a type of metal
 minute - 60 seconds or 1/60th of an hour/extremely small
 moped - acted sad or gloomy/a bicycle with a motor
 object - a thing you can see or touch/a goal/a noun that receives the action of a
verb/to be opposed to
 proceeds - advances or continues on/the money or profit gained from some sale
or venture
 produce - to create or make/fresh fruits and vegetables
 project - a plan or proposal/to throw or hurl forward/to cause a shadow or
image to fall upon a surface
 putting - the present participle of put/the present participle of putt
 number - a numeral/to count/more numb
 refuse - waste or garbage/to reject or decline to accept
 row - a fight/to propel a boat forward using oars/a line
 second - 1/60th of a minute/after the first
 subject - under some authority or control/to bring under authority or control/to
make liable or vulnerable/a topic/the noun in a sentence about which something
is said in the predicate
 tear - to rip/a drop of water from the eye
 wind - to turn/moving air
 wound - turned/an injury

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 MODULE II: COMPREHENSION SKILLS

TIPS FOR WRITING A PRECIS

 A well-written précis should be a serviceable substitute for the original
work. The goal is to preserve the core essence of the work in a manner that
is both clear and concise. At a minimum, the précis should include the topic
or main thesis, the purpose of the research, what was studied, what methods
were used, what results (or insight) were gained, and a conclusion.

Goals of the Précis

 Compress and clarify a lengthy passage, article, or book, while retaining
important concepts, key words, and important data.
 Remove what is superfluous and retain the core essence of the work.
 Give a brief description of key terms
 Give a brief description of methods – an idea of the general approach used
by the researchers.
 State the purpose of the research or piece of writing (why was it important
to conduct this research or write on this topic?)

When finished, the précis should clearly state:

 This is what was studied (argued, discussed).
 This is how it was done (this was the focus).
 This is what was learned.
 This is what it means (why it is important).

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MODULE 3: PRESENTATION SKILLS
The material of your presentation should be concise, to the point . In addition to the obvious
things like content and visual aids, the following are just as important as the audience will
be subconsciously taking them in:

 Your voice - how you say it is as important as what you say

 Body language - a subject in its own right and something about which much has
been written and said. In essence, your body movements express what your attitudes
and thoughts really are.
 Appearance - first impressions influence the audience's attitudes to you. Dress
appropriately for the occasion.

As with most personal skills oral communication cannot be taught. Instructors can only
point the way. So as always, practice is essential, both to improve your skills generally and
also to make the best of each individual presentation you make.

Preparation

Prepare the structure of the talk carefully and logically, just as you would for a written
report. What are:

 the objectives of the talk?

 the main points you want to make?

Make a list of these two things as your starting point .

Write out the presentation in rough, just like a first draft of a written report. Review the
draft. You will find things that are irrelevant or superfluous - delete them. Check the story is
consistent and flows smoothly. If there are things you cannot easily express, possibly
because of doubt about your understanding, it is better to leave them unsaid.

Never read from a script. It is also unwise to have the talk written out in detail as a prompt
sheet - the chances are you will not locate the thing you want to say amongst all the other
text. You should know most of what you want to say - if you don't then you should not be
giving the talk! So prepare cue cards which have key words and phrases (and possibly
sketches) on them. Postcards are ideal for this. Don't forget to number the cards in case
you drop them.

Remember to mark on your cards the visual aids

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that go with them so that the right OHP or
slide is shown at the right time

Rehearse your presentation - to yourself at first and then in front of some colleagues. The
initial rehearsal should consider how the words and the sequence of visual aids go together.
How will you make effective use of your visual aids?

Making the presentation

Greet the audience (for example, 'Good morning, ladies and gentlemen'), and tell them who
you are. Good presentations then follow this formula:

 tell the audience what you are going to tell them,

 then tell them,
 at the end tell them what you have told them.

Keep to the time allowed. If you can, keep it short. It's better to under-run than over-run. As
a rule of thumb, allow 2 minutes for each general overhead transparency or Powerpoint
slide you use, but longer for any that you want to use for developing specific points. 35mm
slides are generally used more sparingly and stay on the screen longer. However, the
audience will get bored with something on the screen for more than 5 minutes, especially if
you are not actively talking about it. So switch the display off, or replace the slide with
some form of 'wallpaper' such as a company logo.

Stick to the plan for the presentation, don't be tempted to digress - you will eat up time and
could end up in a dead-end with no escape!

Unless explicitly told not to, leave time for discussion - 5 minutes is sufficient to allow
clarification of points. The session chairman may extend this if the questioning becomes
interesting.

At the end of your presentation ask if there are any questions - avoid being terse when you
do this as the audience may find it intimidating (i.e. it may come across as any questions? -
if there are, it shows you were not paying attention). If questions are slow in coming, you
can start things off by asking a question of the audience - so have one prepared.

Delivery

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Speak clearly. Don't shout or whisper - judge the acoustics of the room.

Don't rush, or talk deliberately slowly. Be natural - although not conversational.

Deliberately pause at key points - this has the effect of emphasising the importance of a
particular point you are making.

Avoid jokes - always disastrous unless you are a natural expert

To make the presentation interesting, change your delivery, but not too obviously, eg:

 speed
 pitch of voice

Use your hands to emphasise points but don't indulge in to much hand waving. People can,
over time, develop irritating habits. Ask colleagues occasionally what they think of your
style.

Look at the audience as much as possible, but don't fix on an individual - it can be
intimidating. Pitch your presentation towards the back of the audience, especially in larger
rooms.

Don't face the display screen behind you and talk to it. Other annoying habits include:

 Standing in a position where you obscure the screen. In fact, positively check
for anyone in the audience who may be disadvantaged and try to accommodate
them.
 Muttering over a transparency on the OHP projector plate an not realising that
you are blocking the projection of the image. It is preferable to point to the
screen than the foil on the OHP (apart from the fact that you will probably
dazzle yourself with the brightness of the projector)

Avoid moving about too much. Pacing up and down can unnerve the audience, although
some animation is desirable.

Keep an eye on the audience's body language. Know when to stop and also when to cut out
a piece of the presentation.

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Visual Aids

Visual aids significantly improve the interest of a presentation. However, they must be
relevant to what you want to say. A careless design or use of a slide can simply get in the
way of the presentation. What you use depends on the type of talk you are giving. Here are
some possibilities:

 Overhead projection transparencies (OHPs)

 35mm slides
 Computer projection (Powerpoint, applications such as Excel, etc)
 Video, and film,
 Real objects - either handled from the speaker's bench or passed around
 Flip~chart or blackboard - possibly used as a 'scratch-pad' to expand on a point

Keep it simple though - a complex set of hardware can result in confusion for speaker and
audience. Make sure you know in advance how to operate the equipment and also when you
want particular displays to appear. Sometimes a technician will operate the equipment.
Arrange beforehand, what is to happen and when and what signals you will use. Edit your
slides as carefully as your talk - if a slide is superfluous then leave it out. If you need to use
a slide twice, duplicate it. And always check your slides - for typographical errors,
consistency of fonts and layout.

Slides and OHPs should contain the minimum information necessary. To do otherwise risks
making the slide unreadable or will divert your audience's attention so that they spend time
reading the slide rather than listening to you.

Try to limit words per slide to a maximum of 10. Use a reasonable size font and a typeface
which will enlarge well. Typically use a minimum 18pt Times Roman on OHPs, and
preferably larger. A guideline is: if you can read the OHP from a distance of 2 metres
(without projection) then it's probably OK

Avoid using a diagram prepared for a technical report in your talk. It will be too detailed
and difficult to read. Use colours on your slides but avoid orange and yellow which do not
show up very well when projected.

Avoid adding to OHPs with a pen during the talk - it's messy and the audience will be
fascinated by your shaking hand! On this point, this is another good reason for pointing to

34
the screen when explaining a slide rather than pointing to the OHP transparency.

Room lighting should be considered. Too much light near the screen will make it difficult to
see the detail. On the other hand, a completely darkened room can send the audience to
sleep. Try to avoid having to keep switching lights on and off, but if you do have to do this,
know where the light switches are and how to use them.

Finally ...

Enjoy yourself. The audience will be on your side and want to hear what you have to say!

Presentations --- a few more tips :

Before you start planning your presentation, find out from the organizers how much time
you have and what format they envision for your talk. Will you be part of a panel or will
you be speaking alone? Will you be in a regular session or are you the dinner speaker? Do
you have 15 minutes or an hour? Do they prefer to leave time for questions? If yes, does
that come out of the allocated time you have been quoted? It is important to know what is
expected of you so you can be well prepared and not have to scramble last minute to
readjust your talk due to unanticipated logistics.

Audience
Get information about who will be attending your presentation. Will the head of the
company be there or just co-workers? Are all participants experts at the topic or will there
be novices present? Is there a mixed group of people representing different backgrounds or
is everyone on the same page regarding technicalities? Depending on the audience, you will
have to spend some time giving varying degrees of background on the material and
explaining certain concepts.

Location
If you have the opportunity,
take a look at the location before the time of the talk. It will help you visualize the context
of the event and ensure that you are not caught off guard by peculiarities of the space.

The take-away message

If someone who missed your talk were to ask an audience member in the elevator to sum it
up, what would you like that person to say? Focus on that message. Start out with this
summary statement in mind and build your presentation around it.

35
Outline
Once you have an idea of your presentation's main message, spend some time thinking
about the structure of the entire talk. All of the material you cover should contribute toward
communicating your core message effectively. Start by writing an outline of the talk
including main sections and subsections.

Strong start
The first couple of minutes of your talk should be the most prepared and polished. You
want to get off to a good start. Those are likely to be the most nervous moments so it is best
not to leave anything to chance. By being well prepared, you can convey your messages
with confidence. It is important to establish early on that you are prepared and are worth
people's attention.

Motivation
Spend a bit of time up front talking about the inspiration and importance of your message.
Listeners should get a bit of background on what motivated your work or project in the first
place. What may be a fascinating topic to you may not be to the next person so don't take
for granted people's interest in the issues you are discussing. Explain why they should pay
attention and why your comments matter.

Timing
People rarely want to listen to someone for longer than the allotted time. Few people are
such amazing speakers that an audience can't get enough of them. Do not assume you are
one of those few. Wrap up your talk on time. To achieve this goal, ask someone to give you
time cues by indicating when you have five minutes left, two minutes and when you have
run out of time. Once you get the last notice, you should stop talking.

A common pitfall for presenters is to add unprepared introductory remarks to their talk. The
temptation of addressing previous speakers is great, but beware. If your total alloted time is
15 minutes (a frequent limit with many speaking engagements), adding a 3 minute intro (not
to mention longer!) will use up 20 percent of your time. However, this is something no one
ever builds into their talk. Either prepare for this or let go of the temptation to add
commentary at the last minute.

Flexibility
Organize your talk and know it well enough to have the flexibility to skip certain parts or
expand on others depending on the circumstances. For example, if you do add a last- minute
introduction (as per the previous point), be flexible to skip a part of the prepared content.

36
Confidence and enthusiasm
You have been chosen as a speaker because you know your topic. Make sure that you exert
confidence during your presentation. Don't apologize for what you don't have with you to
present or what you do not know. Rather, focus on what you can talk about and discuss the
material with confidence. This does not mean that you should be arrogant or patronizing. It
means that you should look comfortable covering the material.Be sure to enjoy your talk
and show your enthusiasm about the content. Your interest in the topic will be contagious
and will likely result in a more engaged audience.

Question-and-answer session
If there is a Q&A segment then be sure to keep a polite demeanor throughout. Thank people
for their questions and feel free to praise them for good points. If you are not sure how to
respond to a query then express your appreciation for the insightful comment and note that
you will look into it.

Practice makes you perfect

Practice the presentation a few times: more if you have less experience, less if you are a
more seasoned public speaker. It can be especially helpful to give the talk to someone who
is not in your field and is not intimately familiar with the material. This is helpful in seeing
whether you have made the talk too narrowly focused or overly technical. Such a practice
session does not have to involve the entire talk, it can consist of telling someone about your
presentation outline.

Don't write out the material word-by-word and don't plan on reading text even if you do
have it all written down. Having the text written out and parts of it memorized will
constrain you. Memorize the structure of the talk and the outline, but not every word.

Contact information
Finish by giving the audience some contact information, including an email address and
Web site when applicable. Mention that you welcome people's feedback and they should
feel free to ask you questions either after the session or by sending you email.

Effective Communication at the Workplace

1. Be specific in formulating your complaints. "I'm never invited to meetings" is not as

effective as "I believe I would have been able to contribute some ideas at last
Thursday's marketing meeting."

2. Resist the temptation to involve yourself in conflicts that do not directly involve

37
 you or your responsibilities. Even if someone has clearly been wronged, allow him or
her to resolve the situation as he/she chooses.

3. Try to depersonalize conflicts. Instead of a "me versus you" mentality, visualize an

"us versus the problem" scenario. This is not only a more professional attitude, but it
will also improve productivity and is in the best interests of the company.

4. Be open and listen to another's point of view and reflect back to the person as to
what you think you heard. This important clarification skill leads to less
misunderstanding, with the other person feeling heard and understood. Before
explaining your own position, try to paraphrase and condense what the other is saying
into one or two sentences. Start with, "So you're saying that..." and see how much you
really understand about your rival's position. You may find that you're on the same
wavelength but having problems communicating your ideas.

5. Don't always involve your superiors in conflict resolution. You'll quickly make the
impression that you are unable to resolve the smallest difficulties.

6. If an extended discussion is necessary, agree first on a time and place to talk.

Confronting a coworker who's with a client or working on a deadline is unfair and
unprofessional. Pick a time when you're both free to concentrate on the problem and
its resolution. Take it outside and away from the group of inquisitive coworkers if
they're not involved in the problem. Don't try to hold negotiations when the office
gossip can hear every word.

8. Limit your complaints to those directly involved in the workplace conflict.

Character assassination is unwarranted. Remember, you need to preserve a working
relationship rather than a personal one, and your opinion of a coworker's character is
generally irrelevant. "He missed last week's deadline" is OK; "he's a total idiot" is
not.

9. Know when conflict isn't just conflict. If conflict arises due to sexual, racial, or
ethnic issues, or if someone behaves inappropriately, that's not conflict, it's
harassment. Take action and discuss the problem with your supervisor or human
resources department.

10.Consider a mediator if the problem gets out of control, or if the issue is too
emotional to resolve in a mutual discussion. At this step, your supervisor should be
involved. You can consider using a neutral third party mediator within your own

38
 company (human resources if available) or hiring a professional counsellor.

Non-Verbal Communication:

1. Introduction

It is quite usual to forget about many aspects of non-verbal communication when

hearing this notion. In fact, what comes to mind immediately are body gestures or
facial expressions. However, there are many more aspects.

For this reason, chapter two begins with a definition of non-verbal communication
and chapter three illustrates these definitions with examples. They also show the
importance of non-verbal communication in daily life.

39
In the following paper, the task of the interpreter is analysed in two steps: first, the
transfer of a message from the speaker to the interpreter and secondly, the transfer
of this message from the interpreter to the audience.

The first step is discussed in chapter four, which deals with certain neuroscientific
aspects of the process of interpreting non-verbal communication. It is also about
the importance of face-to-face situations and shared culture with respect to
interpreting non-verbal communication. Furthermore it is mentioned, which role
emotional intelligence plays in the understanding process for non-verbal
communication.

Finally, chapter five talks, with reference to the examples in chapter three, about
the difficulties of non-verbal communication for the interpreter. Chapter five
describes what possibilities the interpreter is given to reproduce non-verbal
communication.

Sign-language, one form of non-verbal communication, is not discussed in this

essay. In fact, this is a language in itself. Even if body gestures and facial
expressions are part of this language, which would correspond to the definition of
non-verbal communication in chapter two, it cannot be regarded as non-verbal
communication. Sign-language is a system closed in itself and needs special
training as well as for any other natural language. Therefore, this aspect of
interpretation was not taken into account for our essay.

2. Definition of non-verbal communication

There are scores of definitions that researchers and scholars use to define non-
verbal communication. Among the definitions we have studied, we chose and
developed the points that seemed essential to us with respect to the frame of
interpretation that is given for this essay.

Non-verbal communication consists of all the messages other than words that are
used in communication. In oral communication, these symbolic messages are
transferred by means of intonation, tone of voice, vocally produced noises, body
posture, body gestures, facial expressions or pauses (see chapter 3. examples).

When individuals speak, they normally do not confine themselves to the mere
emission of words. A great deal of meaning is conveyed by non-verbal means
which always accompany oral discourse – intended or not. In other words, a

40
spoken message is always sent on two levels simultaneously, verbal and non-
verbal.

Non-verbal behaviour predates verbal communication because individuals, since

birth, rely first on non-verbal means to express themselves. This innate character of
non-verbal behaviour is important in communication. Even before a sentence is
uttered, the hearer observes the body gestures and facial expressions of the
speaker, trying to make sense of these symbolic messages. They seem to be
trustable because they are mostly unconscious and part of every-day behaviour.
People assume that non-verbal actions do not lie and therefore they tend to believe
the non-verbal message when a verbal message contradicts it. This was proven in
tests in which subjects were asked to react to sentences that appeared friendly and
inviting when reading them but were spoken angrily. In short, people try to make
sense of the non-verbal behaviour of others by attaching meaning to what they
observe them doing. Consequently, these symbolic messages help the hearer to
interpret the speaker’s intention and this indicates the importance of non-verbal
communication in the field of interpretation. In daily conversations it often
happens that we do not understand what the other person wants to say. Thus we
ask questions such as “What do you mean by this” so that the speaker clarifies his
message. The interpreter is deprived of this possibility and therefore has to fall
back on other means allowing him to understand the speaker. This is the moment
when non-verbal communication comes in, giving him subtle hints on how the
message is to be understood.

From the speaker’s point of view, however, there are numerous functions of non-
verbal behaviour – even if he or she is not aware of them. Human beings use non-
verbal means to persuade or to control others, to clarify or embellish things, to
stress, complement, regulate and repeat verbal expressions. They can also be used
to substitute verbal expression, as this is the case with several body gestures (see
3.4. emblem). Non-verbal communication is emotionally expressive and so any
discourse appealing to the receiver’s emotions has a persuasive impact.

Although many non-verbal means are innate and universal, (i.e. people in different
cultures have a common understanding of these cues), the contribution of non-
verbal communication to the total meaning of a discourse can be culturally
determined and differ in different countries (see 3.4. use of the zero shape made by
the fingers).

41
3. Examples

3.1. Intonation

Intonation is the way that the sender’s pitch of voice rises and falls when speaking.
For example, it shows the interpreter whether the speaker expresses his or her
message in the form of a question or statement. In the first case, the voice rises at
the end of the phrase or the sentence and in the second case, it falls. At the same
time, intonation indicates the end of an entity of information, which – in written
communication – is shown by means of a comma, semicolon, point, exclamation
mark or question mark. Another function of intonation is to lay emphasis on a
particular word or idea, a detail that the interpreter must not fail to be aware of.

3.2. Tone of voice

The tone of voice is a means by which the speaker implies his or her attitude to the
message. It is also a means by which he seeks a reaction from the hearer. In a
political debate, for instance, the tone of voice is likely to be rousing, whereas on
television the daily news is communicated in a more factual tone. Other examples
of tone of voice are: aggressive, critical, nervous, disappointed, monotonous,
friendly, enthusiastic, vivid, persuasive, etc.

3.3. Vocally produced noises

Spoken discourse can be accompanied by vocally produced noises that are not
regarded as part of language, though they help in communication for the
expression of attitude or feeling. Such non-lexical expressions differ in important
respects from language: They are much more similar in form and meaning, i.e.
universal, as a whole in contrast to the great diversity of language. Vocally
produced noises include laughter, shouts, screams of joy, fear, pain, as well as
conventional expressions of disgust, triumph, etc., traditionally spelled “ugh!”, “ha
ha!”…

3.4. Body posture

Body posture is the bearing or the position of the speaker’s body. It is a more or
less stable state and thus not to be confused with body gestures which are
movements. Body posture can be characteristic and assumed for a special purpose
or it can correspond to the normal expectations in the context of a particular
situation. Obviously one can be lying down, seating, or standing. Normally, these

42
are not the elements of posture that convey messages. However, when the speaker
is slouched or erect, his or her legs crossed or arms folded, such postures convey a
degree of formality or relaxation. Once more, they can also transfer symbolic
messages on the orator’s attitude or intention with regard to the message.

3.5. Body gestures

A body gesture is a movement made with a limb, especially the hands, to express,
confirm, emphasize or back up the speaker’s attitude or intention. This non-verbal
activity is regularly used in oral discourse. If a body act requires no verbal
accompaniment, it is called an “emblem”. Examples are: hand signals such as
waving good-bye, the “V” for victory sign or the “high five” signalling victory.
While some emblems, for example a clenched fist, have universal meaning, there
are others that are idiosyncratic or culturally conditioned. The use of the zero shape
made by the fingers, for instance, does not mean the same thing in different
cultures. Standing for “OK” in the UK, it may be a vulgar expression in South
American cultures, sometimes embarrassingly so… Body gestures are always
perceived and interpreted together with facial expressions.

3.6. Facial expressions and eye movement

Facial expressions are dynamic features which communicate the speaker’s attitude,
emotions, intentions, and so on. The face is the primary source of emotions. During
oral communication, facial expressions change continually and are constantly
monitored and interpreted by the receiver. Examples are: a smile, frown, raised
eyebrow, yawn or sneer.

Eye movement is a key part of facial behaviour because the eyes are invariably
involved in facial displays. The different forms are observed to be cross-cultural.
The frequency of eye contact may suggest either interest or boredom or may even
betray dishonesty. The direct stare of the speaker can show candour or openness.
Downward glances are generally associated with modesty; eyes rolled upwards are
conveyed as a sign of fatigue. Researchers have discovered that certain facial areas
reveal our emotional state better than others. For example the eyes tend to show
happiness, sadness or even surprise. The lower face can also express happiness or
surprise; a smile, for instance, can communicate friendliness or cooperation. As for
the lower face, brows and forehead are known to reveal mostly anger.

3.7. Pause

43
A pause can have two different functions:

1. It can be a brief suspension of the voice to indicate the limits and relations of
sentences and their parts. A pause then assumes a similar function in oral discourse
to intonation (see chapter 3.1.).

2. It can consist of a temporary vocal inaction revealing the speaker’s uncertainty,

hesitation, tension or uneasiness. In this context, a pause can also be judgmental by
indicating favour or disfavour, agreement or disagreement. Consequently, the non-
verbal cue of a pause can give rise to problems when interpreting it because its
meaning can vary considerably. It can have a positive or negative influence on the
process of communication.

4. Interpreting non-verbal communication

It has been stated that non-verbal communication plays a role in every kind of
discourse, and in professional interpretation, it is crucial as well. This chapter
discusses the following problems: in what situations and to what extent can the
professional interpreter make sense of non-verbal communication? Where exactly
in the brain is this interpretation of non-verbal communication located? For this
chapter, websites were studied, since they are often more recent than books.
Similar to the act of translation, the act of interpretation is influenced by many
factors. This is why this chapter tries to give a different view by mentioning
aspects from the fields of sociology, neurophysiology and psychology,

4.1. The importance of face-to-face situations

Non-verbal communication does not only play a role in face-to-face situations. It is

also important in mediated communication, for example, as this is the case for
telephone interpreting, where the interpreter does not see the speaker. Non-verbal
communication is also crucial for every other kind of professional interpreting
where the speaker cannot be seen. It is important, because even in such situations
the voice itself can express non-verbal paralinguistic messages. Those messages,
for example, are intonation, tone of voice, vocally produced noises or pause (see
chapter 3). Then again, it has to be considered that non-verbal, communicative acts
might only be fully expressed and observed in face-to-face situations, where
rhetorical sensitivity is accompanied by visually perceivable emotions. As a result,
this chapter will mainly consider face-to-face situations.

4.2. The importance of a shared culture

44
The differences between the use of verbal elements and the use of non-verbal
elements can be described as the difference between doing and communicating
about doing. It is believed that non-verbal communication is continuous, while
verbal communication is discontinuous. Furthermore, as we have seen, verbal
activity never stands alone – it is always joined by non-verbal action. Non-verbal
action can be dynamic and spontaneous, but usually it is patterned by the
respective culture. A successful interpretation of non-verbal elements conveyed by
the speaker requires the same understanding of the symbols shared between
interpreter and speaker. That means, for the understanding and for the correct
interpretation of an utterance and its simultaneously conveyed non-verbal
elements, it is crucial that there is a shared knowledge of the rules and codes of
non-verbal communication, which are embedded in the participants’ culture.
Therefore, if the participants have a shared understanding of non-verbal meanings,
the interpreter can also predict the non-verbal action of the speaker. Predictability
is extremely important for interpreters. That is, thanks to the interpreters’
unconscious or conscious knowledge of the culturally determined non-verbal
elements, they are able to predict what exactly is going to be said, or are able to
detect the meaning in an early stage of the discourse. Thus, predictability of
meaning in the field of interpretation is not only a result of the interpreter’s general
culture, but also a result of his ability to interpret non-verbal communication.

4.3. Interpreting non-verbal elements: neurophysiologic aspects

What is the biological explanation for the process of interpreting non-verbal

elements, for the interpretation of gestures or other signs, as well as for the
supposition that this process happens even before the act of interpreting utterances?
It has been proved that emotional areas of the brain fire up even as cognitive areas
fire up when discussing emotional topics. That means that the emotional areas of
an interpreter’s brain will work as well as the cognitive areas, when the interpreter
listens to an angry speaker who raises his voice. Of course, “good” interpreters
should not show emotions and must remain impartial. However, it is clear that they
are not machines, but human beings who also feel emotions and who can detect
those emotions which are embedded in non-verbal communication. But how do
human beings feel emotions? What are the neurophysiologic conditions for this
process? The right hemisphere of the brain is also called the emotional brain, or
limbic system. It is the oldest part of the human’s brain, the size of a walnut. The
prefrontal cortex is a part of the neocortex, the so-called thinking brain. The
neocortex is responsible for analytic processes, comparisons or considerations, for
problem-solving, planning, organisation and rational thought. It also processes
emotionally relevant stimuli. Both prefrontal cortex and neocortex developed

45
during the process of human evolution and are therefore younger than the limbic
system. The prefrontal cortex as well as the neocortex interact with the
evolutionary older limbic system. Part of the limbic system is called the amygdale.

The process of understanding non-verbal and verbal elements can be described as

follows: Neural pathways bring information to the brain through the senses.
Information entering through eyes or ears goes first to the thalamus, to the large
part of the limbic system. The thalamus could be compared to a mail sorter. It
decides to which parts of the brain to send the information. If the incoming
information is emotional, the thalamus sends out two signals – the first to the
amygdale and the second to the neocortex. As a result, the emotional brain, the
limbic system, receives the information first. For the biological aspect of a species’
survival, here human beings, this point is very important: hypothetically, in the
event of a crisis (attack of a wild animal, confrontation with an enemy etc.) the
interpreter could react (flee or fight) before the thinking brain has even received
the information and had a chance to weigh the options. Today, the interpreter must
not fear to be confronted with such dangerous attacks or confrontations. Today’s
interpreter can generally react in a “cooler” way than his or her ancestors. The
amygdale and the rest of the limbic system is a remnant of times when emotions
like anger or anxiety were much more useful to the survival of the species than
nowadays. However, today, interpreters can be confronted with an angry speaker,
on whom more or less violent body gestures can be observed (for example when he
or she bangs a fist on the table). In consecutive interpretation, thanks to the limbic
system, the interpreter experiences the anger first, can then analyse it, and express
the message with less violent body gestures, but, with a severe tone of voice.

4.4. The role of emotional intelligence

The ability of interpreting the meaning of the discourse, the messages that the
speaker truly wanted to convey, does not only concern the notion of Intelligence
Quotient, but also the Emotional Quotient. The Emotional Quotient stands for
emotional intelligence. People who are emotionally intelligent know their strong
points and weaknesses. They are able to motivate themselves and others in
negative situations. They can work in teams, have leadership-capacities, a good
management of time and resources, and most important, they can detect and
understand their own as well as other peoples’ emotions. The Emotional Quotient
and the Intelligence Quotient are two different notions. However, in the act of
interpreting, they join together. Thus, the interpretive process is not only a rational,
cognitive activity, but also involves emotions, which are associated with ideas. Of
course, interpreters can vary in their abilities to interpret human behaviour. It can

46
be said that sometimes they lack emotional intelligence. Though, considering that
people are deeply influenced by psychological, social, cultural processes, by
gender, ethnicity and age, as well as by the media, interpreters should be aware of
the hidden, inner dynamics that influence behaviours. Those who are able to think
critically and to investigate the behaviour of the speaker are able to ferret out the
nature of those symbols.

However, communicative behaviour can be studied and learned. Interpreters can

become increasingly skilled at interpreting human behaviour simply by keen
observation. Furthermore, the more interpreters are mindful and pay attention to
details and nuances in behaviour, to gestures, intonation, facial expressions, and
body signals, the more they will detect the true meanings of the speaker’s
discourse.

5. The transfer of non-verbal elements from the interpreter to the audience

As mentioned above, non-verbal communication is emotionally expressive as

people from all cultures smile, cry, caress, or then repress their emotions through
body or facial action. Many emotional expressions seem to be displayed
universally. However, non-verbal behaviour varies from culture to culture, which
means it is specific to each culture and may be interpreted differently.

What reactions do these non-verbal elements evoke among an audience when

being transferred by an interpreter? Referring to the examples of non-verbal
communication listed in chapter 3, the following text deals with the transfer and
reception of such elements with special regard to cultural characteristics.

5.1. Intonation

Ideally, interpreters should reproduce the same intonation as the speaker. However,
intonation is not always used correctly. For instance, the fact that simultaneous
interpreters do not know how the speaker is going to proceed in his or her speech
may lead the interpreters’ intonation to indicate their state of expectation. In that
case, the voice tends to go up at the end of a sentence. In many languages, a rising
intonation is a sign of surprise or a question, but when being used systematically
by the interpreter it becomes very difficult for the audience to listen and understand
where sentences begin and end, or to distinguish what is affirmative and what is
interrogative.

47
Furthermore, interpreters should not emphasize words where there is no need for it.
Especially in rather vacuous texts, the actual emptiness of the text is highlighted by
stressing too many words and the interpreter will come across as a poor public
speaker.

5.2. Tone of voice

The interpreters’ choice of the adequate tone of voice can give rise to serious
problems. They can only be guided, in each case, by their tact and intuition. For
example, an overreaction to being under pressure might manifest itself by an
exaggerated attempt to sound calm. This can lead to a monotonous interpretation
that sounds totally bored or even supercilious and will probably fail to
communicate, as it might be rather irritating for the audience.

5.3. Vocally produced noises

Some speakers make often use of vocally produced noises such as “eh” when they
hesitate between two words or two sentences. Yet the interpreters should bear in
mind that the use of these noises is not allowed in all languages. Therefore, they
should only transmit what is part of the message.

5.4. Body posture

The simultaneous interpreters might not be able to reproduce the speaker’s body
postures (for example, due to the positioning of the booth) whereas interpreters that
are visible to the audience may do so. However, one must take into account that the
audience usually looks at the speaker while listening to a simultaneous
interpretation. In this case, there is a rather small need for the interpreter for
transferring body gestures.

5.5. Body gestures

Body gestures can only be transferred if the interpreter is visible for the audience
(see chapter 5.4.). Body gestures vary considerably according to cultural regions. A
speaker, for example, agrees on a proposal - which is reproduced by the
simultaneous interpreter - but shakes his or her head several times. This might be a
sign of consent in the speaker’s culture. However, a European audience will
consider this gesture as a sign of refusal and is probably confused not knowing,
which information might be correct – the positive one (by the interpreter) or the
apparent negative one (visually). If the simultaneous interpreters could express

48
themselves visually, they would support the verbal reproduction of consent by
nodding their head.

It is generally not recommended that interpreters imitate or exaggerate (striking)

gestures as they run the risk to make fools of themselves.

5.6. Facial expressions and eye movement

Likewise, body gestures, facial expressions and eye movement differ from culture
to culture. A speaker from a far Eastern country may report on a rather depressing
subject but at the same time may be smiling or even laughing. Consequently, a
European audience will be puzzled by these apparent contradictions. Once again,
simultaneous interpreters are limited in their opportunities of cultural transfer for
they cannot communicate visually in their booth and clarify the situation.

5.7. Pause

Appropriate pauses do add to the meaning of a speech and give interpreters time to
gather their thoughts in order to provide a better interpretation. However, some
interpreters may feel under pressure to keep up a continuous flow of sound. The
interpreters think the audience will become impatient and lose confidence in them
because the hearers seem to be missing something. Indeed, there are some people
who encourage this belief, who turn round and frown or make gestures indicating
they feel their headphones are no longer working if they do not hear something for
a few seconds.

Conclusion

Non-verbal communication is not only crucial in a plain daily communication

situation but also for the interpreter. Non-verbal communication can take various
forms, each of which illustrates or replaces a certain part of the verbal
communication. It includes many more elements than one might think at first.

When interpreters are in a working situation where the audience will not see them,
non-verbal communication can represent a problem. The audience might even be
tempted to believe that the interpreters have not done a good job.

In order to be able to work properly, interpreters need to make sense of non-verbal

cues. This is only possible because a special part of our brain deals with the

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emotional part of the message. Not only intelligence but also emotional
intelligence is needed for interpreting non-verbal elements.

Whether non-verbal communication supports the interpreters in their task or

presents a difficulty, it will always play an important role.

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