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SUPORT CURS ENGLEZA
ANUL I
SEMESTRUL I
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UNIT 1
NETWORKING ACROSS CULTURES
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
at the end of this unit the student should:
− have become more aware about national stereotypes
− have built an image of how to react in an intercultural context
− be able to distinguish between countable/uncountable nouns, collective nouns and
use them in specific contexts
PART I
READING
PART II
LANGUAUGE FOCUS 1
Adjectives and Nouns referring to nationalities
PART III
LANGUGAE FOCUS
The Noun
TIME NEEDED TO COVER THE TOPIC: 4 hours
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Ciuciuc, Olea, English for Business Purposes, Teora, Bucureşti 1999.

Emmerson, Paul, Business Grammar Builder, Macmillan, 2002.
Evans V. , Grammarway 4, Express Publishing House, 1999.
Paidos, Constantin, Gramatica limbii engleze, Institutul European, 1993.
Tullis, G., New Insights into Business, Express Publishing House, 2004.
Turcu, Fulvia, Limba engleză pentru întreprinzători şi oameni de afaceri, Editura
Sagittarius Iaşi, 1991.
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UNIT 1: NETWORKING ACROSS CULTURES
Part I. Read:
Now, more than ever before in human history, more people are coming into
contact with people from cultures other than their own. There is a whole range of reasons
for this. First, technology makes it possible for people to travel further and faster than ever
before. Second, the internet links people across national borders. Third, the international
labour force is more mobile and last but not least, the workforce is becoming more
diverse.
The main skills people need in such cases are intercultural communication skills to
be able to manage diversity and to deal with difference successfully. To be able to develop
such skills means first of all that you should try to build a correct picture on your foreign
partners’ economic and political background, their religion and the way it affects or not
their work habits and culture.
As well as this, you should be informed on the role gender plays in business, or on
the manager’s approach of management which may also vary across cultures. For
example, research conducted in an international computer company showed different
ways in which managers from Britain, USA, Germany and France reacted to a situation in
which a member of the department complained that a colleague is not doing his job
properly, and that this is having a negative effect on the performance of the team.
Representatives from each of the four cultures tended to say that action has to be taken,
and that it was important to hear both sides of the story. The British said that it was
important to be diplomatic and tactful, and suggested the need to find out whether the
colleague has any personal problems which might be affecting their performance at work.
The French and Germans agreed that it was important to check on the workload, and to
remove any obstacles. The Americans stressed the need to “coach and clarify”, and to take
the problem seriously.
Habits concerning food and drink or your behaviour as a guest are equally
important. If you are invited to someone’s house for a meal, it is usual to take a small gift,
though it may differ from one country to another; in the UK, for example, you should take
some flowers or a box of chocolates. If the party is informal, it is quite common to take a
bottle of wine but you should also keep in mind that people in Britain are generally quite
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careful about time, so you are expected either to arrive on time or no later than fifteen
minutes after the time arranged.
The aspects listed above are only a few of a broader range, which as we have
already mentioned differ across cultures and might raise communication barriers between
people. This might be overcome with good intercultural training that refers mainly to
becoming sensitive to what you observe and to developing a flexible approach to
diversity.
Activity 1
Intercultural communication is not only of importance for business people but for other
professionals too. In what way could intercultural communication be important for the
following people?
1. A doctor
2. An internet web-designer
3. A university lecturer.
Activity 2- Case study

What do you think is happening here?
A British businessman in Saudi Arabia is keen to secure an important deal. He has a tight
schedule, and can’t afford to waste any time. His frustration increases because he has to
wait for ages to get an appointment with his Saudi partner. Meetings never start on time,
and when they do, there are frequent interruptions, with people coming in to get papers
signed. The Saudi partner even takes phone calls when his visitor is in the room.
Activity 3- Vocabulary practice

A. Complete the idioms in the sentences below with the correct form of the missing
verb.
1. In many countries, people make a comment about the weather to …………….the
ice and start a conversation.
2. I didn’t know exactly how long I had for my presentation, and I knew nothing
about the audience. The organisers had really ……………me in at the deep end.
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3. We don’t agree what or when we should advertise. In fact, it seems we don’t
……………..eye to eye on anything at all.
4. I’d just told my host I hated fish when it turned out they’d spent the whole day
making fish soup, their national dish, especially for me. I had really ………….my
foot in it.
B. Put the words in the correct order to make idioms.

1. to/ water/ into/ hot/ get
2. to/opener/real/a /be/eye –
3. to/out/fish/feel/water/a/of/like
C. Use an idiom from exercise B to complete these sentences

1. That business trip to China ………………………for me. That’s when I began to
understand the culture.
2. Don’t be late for the departmental meeting, or you ……………with the boss.
3. I really ………………………at the reception. Very few people spoke English, and
those who did, didn’t have much to say.
D. Complete the sentences with a preposition from the box.
out; over; up; in; with; out
1. Leo’s been to Nigeria many times. He knows the culture inside out.
2. We’ve told you everything about this job opportunity in Uzbekistan. Now you tell
us what to think. The ball is ………………… your court.
3. Sometimes it doesn’t really matter if you don’t know the culture. You just need to
maintain a good-natures attitude and go ……………the flow.
4. I had all sorts of problems with my new colleague, but now I’ve had it
…………with her, and we work really well together.
5. If any of the presentations runs …………….schedule, we’ll be late for the final
plenary meeting.
6. With this conference next month, we’re all …………..to our eyes in work at the
office.
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E1. match the idioms from exercise D with the correct explanations.
1. the ball is in your court a) to be relaxed and not worry about what
you should do
2. to be up to one’s eyes in work b) it is your responsibility to take action
next
3. to go with the flow c) to be very familiar with something
4. to have it out with somebody d) to have a lot/ too much to do
5. to know something inside out e) to take more time than expected
6. to run over schedule f) to try and settle a dispute by talking about
it
II. Language focus 1

Adjectives and nouns that designate countries and nationalities
Country People Inhabitant Language Adjective
Australia the Australians an Australian English Australian

Austria the Austrians an Austrian German Austrian
Belgium the Belgians a Belgian French/Flemish Belgian
Brazil the Brazilians a Brazilian Portuguese Brazilian
Canada the Canadians a Canadian English/French Canadian
China the Chinese a Chinese Chinese Chinese
Denmark the Danes a Dane Danish Danish
Egypt the Egyptians an Egyptian Arabic Egyptian
England the English an Englishman/ English English
An English woman
Finland the Finns a Finn Finnish Finnish
France the French a Frenchwoman French French
A Frenchman
Germany the Germans a German German German
Holland, the Dutch a Dutchwoman Dutch Dutch
Netherlands A Dutchman
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The exercises included in Activity 3 (A-E) have been taken from the Activity book of the textbook Market Leader,
published by Pearson Longman, the new edition, 2005, pp. 28-29.
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Hungary the Hungarians a Hungarian Hungarian Hungarian
Italy the Italians an Italian Italian Italian
Japan the Japanese Japanese Japanese Japanese
New Zealand the New Zealanders a New Zealander English New
Zealander
Mexico the Mexicans a Mexican Spanish Mexican
Norway the Norwegians a Norwegian Norwegian Norwegian
Poland the Poles a Pole Polish Polish
Portugal the Portuguese a Portuguese Portuguese Portuguese
Romania the Romanians a Romanian Romanian Romanian
Russia the Russians a Russian Russian Russian
Spain the Spaniards a Spaniard Spanish Spanish
Sweden the Swedes a Swede Swedish Swedish
Switzerland The Swiss a Swiss German/ Swiss
French/Italian
Turkey the Turks a Turk Turkish Turkish
The USA the Americans an American English American
Activity 2
Complete each sentence below with an adjective or a noun of nationality, using the
information in the accompanying passages:
1. Packard Bell has already taken a significant share of the US computer market and
has performed better, in some areas, than its main national rivals Compaq and
Apple. Compaq, Apple and Packard Bell are ………..computer companies.
2. Nordak is currently recruiting a senior manager who will head up the UK office of
its first foreign subsidiary. Nordak is not of ……………….. origin.
3. The shares of Heineken NV have reached a record level in their home market in
Amsterdam, Holland. Heineken is a …………….. company.
4. Whenever we set up a foreign subsidiary, we always make sure that it is managed
by someone from the country concerned. That will be the case with our new
operation in Finland. Our new subsidiary will be managed by a ……………..
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5. The authorities in Japan now allow foreign firms to manage investments funds on
the Tokyo market. The Tokyo market was previously restricted to …………….
firms.
6. This year we have decided not to attend the trade fair in Milan as the date
coincides with a similar but more important in Vienna in Austria. We will be
attending the ……………………… trade fair.
7. Our main markets are Eastern Europe and North America. However, we also do
some business with Portugal. The ………………..are our best customers in
Western Europe.
8. Although our company was originally from Sweden, four years ago we transferred
all of our operations to Switzerland. The company is no longer ……………….
Today it is …………………
9. Next year the presidency of the commission will be taken by Spain. The
commission’s new president will be a ……………..
10. The country is one of the most attractive destinations for business investment in
the EU and its capital, Dublin has excellent facilities. Many companies are setting
up ………..operations.
III. Language focus 2: THE NOUN
Nouns may be classified according to what they designate: abstract notions (love,
freedom, etc), proper (Joe, Europe, etc.), group (family, team, crowd, group, etc.) or
common (chair, company, manager) or according to whether they may be counted or not
(countable/ uncountable).
Most nouns which refer to jobs, social status, etc. have the same form for men and women
e.g. doctor, teacher, engineer, etc.
Others have different forms:

actor- actress groom- bride
duke-duchess hero-heroine
host- hostess king-queen
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monk-nun prince- princess
waiter-waitress widower-widow, etc.
Countable nouns are nouns which we can count. They have singular and plural forms.
We usually form the plural by adding – s to the singular form.
manager-managers
The – s is pronounced /s/ after the sounds /p/, /k/ or /f/, otherwise it is pronounced /z/
brick – bricks manager- managers
Nouns that end in - o, -s, -x, -ch, -sh form the plural by adding -es
tomato – tomatoes watch- watches
crash- crashes dress-dresses
box-boxes
BUT piano-pianos
photo-photos
radio-radios
Nouns that end in consonant plus –y, change the y into “i” and add “es”.
delivery- deliveries
Nouns ending in – f or –fe add –ves for the plural form.

Calf- calves life- lives thief- thieves wolf-wolves
Half- halves loaf- loaves wife-wives
Exception from this rule: cliff- cliffs; handkerchief- handkerchiefs; safe-safes
Some nouns have irregular plurals: man- men, woman- women, foot- feet, tooth-teeth,
louce-lice, mouse-mice, child-children, goose-geese, ox-oxen.
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Some nouns have the same form in the singular and the plural. These are:
- some kinds of animals (sheep, deer) and fish (trout, salmon, cod etc.)
A sheep was grazing in the field. Some sheep were grazing in the field.
- the words aircraft, spacecraft, hovercraft, etc.
One hovercraft was approaching the port.
Two hovercraft were approaching the port.
- some nouns ending in – s: crossroads, means, series, species, works, etc.
This species of fish is very common. Those species are quite rare.
Uncountable nouns: are nouns which we cannot count. They do not have different plural
forms. Uncountable nouns include:
a) many types of food: flour, yoghurt, butter, meat, cheese, spaghetti, rice, sugar
b) liquids: coffee, lemonade, oil, petrol, wine, water, etc.
c) materials: crystal, wood, plastic, silver, china, glass, etc.
d) abstract nouns: knowledge, beauty, justice, help, freedom, education, love, etc.
e) others: research, luggage, baggage, hair, weather, behaviour, advice, news,
accommodation, information, fun, equipment, litter, furniture, crockery, cutlery,
jewellery, money, etc.
We use the following nouns with uncountable nouns to show quantity:
a piece of cake/paper/ news/ advice/ information/ furniture
a glass/ bottle of water, a jar of jam/ honey
a packet of rice/ tea
a loaf/slice of bread
a pot of yoghurt/honey
a pot/ a cup of tea,
a kilo of meat
a tube of toothpaste
a bar of chocolate/soap
a carton of milk
a bowl of sugar/soup
Some nouns can be used as countable or uncountable, with a difference in meaning.
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• Would you like a glass of lemonade?
Tina can’t see without her glasses. (spectacles)
The vase is made of glass. (the material)
• He went to the newsagent’s to buy a paper. (newspaper)
He wrote my phone number on a piece of paper. (the writing material)
Don’t forget to bring all the necessary papers. (documents)
• Susan has got short, dark hair. (all the hair on her head)
There is a hair in my soup!
• I’ve bought an iron as a wedding gift for Tom and Jane. (for ironing clothes)
This chair is made of iron. (the material)
• You shouldn’t eat too much chocolate.
We gave her a box of chocolates.
• Your room is a mess!
We haven’t got enough room to put you up. (space)
• The table is made of wood. (the material)
A lot of wolves live in the woods. (forest)
• Mr Davis has a lot of experience in accounting. (length of time doing it)
He had a few unpleasant experiences while living abroad. (events)
• I haven’t got any time to lose.
How many times did Rick phone? (occasions)
Irregular plural (nouns of Latin and Greek origin)

Nouns of Latin and Greek origin ending in –is/iz/, end in –es/i:z/ when plural
analysis- analyses ellipsis- ellipses synthesis-syntheses
crisis- crises hypothesis-hypotheses thesis-theses
Nouns of Latin and Greek origin ending in –us/-s, end in –i/ai/ and sometimes in –
es/iz/
fungus – fungi- funguses nucleus-nuclei
cactus-cacti-catuses stimulus-stimuli
bacillus-bacilli terminus-termini
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Nouns of Latin and Greek origin ending in –a/ə/, end in –ae /i:/ and sometimes –s /-z/
antenna-antennae-antennas formula-formulae-formulas larva-larvae
For the nouns of Latin and Greek origin ending in –on /n/, the plural morpheme is a /ə/
and –on is dropped, and sometimes it is – s, preserving – on.
criterion- criteria phenomenon-phenomena
automaton-automata-automatons
For the nouns of Latin and Greek origin ending in –um/ə/, the plural morpheme is –a
/ə/ -um being dropped, and sometimes it is also –s /s/ um being preserved:
datum - data medium-media
bacterium - bacteria sanatorium-sanatoria-sanatoriums
stratum - strata
Noun formation
Some words are only used as nouns: company, car, biscuit, etc. But nouns can also be
derived from other words such as
• verbs (recruit-recruitment, refer-reference, perform-performance, promote-

promotion, deliver-delivery prescribe-prescription, revise-revision, differ-
difference, refuse-refusal, accept-acceptance)
• adjectives (reliable-reliability, effective-effectiveness, important-importance,
vacant-vacancy, competent-competence, desolate-desolation, lonely-loneliness,
formal-formality, loyal-loyalty, modest-modesty)
• other nouns (capital-capitalism, partner-partnership)
We can form nouns referring to people by the help of the following suffixes:
verb+ er/or/ar
teach -teacher, sail-sailor, beg-beggar
noun/verb/adjective +ist
tour-tourist, national-nationalist, special-specialist
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verb+ant/ent
contest-contestant, study-student, assist-assistant
noun+ an/ian
republic-republican; library-librarian; technical-technician
verb+ee
train-trainee; employ-employee
Some nouns have the same form as verbs (budget, share, supply, claim, cost, offer,
import benefit etc.) The pronunciation differs most of the times since the verbs are
stressed on the second or last syllable whereas nouns receive their stress on the first
syllable:
Verb Noun
im’port import
re’cord record
ob’ject object
A/an, some, a lot of, any, many, much, few, little

• We use a/an with singular countable nouns only.
This is a good product. (NOT This is an interesting information)
With uncountable nouns we use some in place of a, or simply the noun by itself.
There is information/some information here that is important.
• Study this table for words before plural and uncountable nouns.
Used with both plural and uncountable nouns some/a lot/ lots of/ any
Used with plural nouns only many/few/a few
Used with uncountable nouns only much/little/a little
We don’t have many customers/ We only have a few customers at this time of the
year.
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There isn’t much information/ There’s very little information about this budget
item.
• Some is common in affirmative statements, and any is common in negative

statements and questions.
I’ve seen some things I like, but I don’t have any money.
But we can use some in a question if it is an offer or request.

Would you like some/any information about our investment funds?
We use any in affirmative sentences where we mean “it doesn’t matter which”.
I’m free all day. Call any time you like.
Activity 3
A. Complete the sentences using one of the following words. Sometimes the word
needs to be plural:
Air; country; day; friend; meat; language; letter; patience; people; queue; space.
1. I had my camera but I didn’t take many……………
2. There are seven ……………..in a week.
3. A vegetarian is a person who doesn’t eat……………….
4. Outside the cinema there was …………….of people waiting to see the film.
5. I’m not very good at writing……………….
6. Last night I went out with some ………………….. of mine.
7. There were very few ………………..in the shops today. They were almost empty.
8. I’m going out for a walk. I need some fresh ………………
9. George always wants things quickly. He’s got no…………….
10. Do you speak any foreign ……………………?
11. Jane travels a lot. She has been to many……………..
12. Our flat is very small. We haven’t got much ………………….
B. Fill in is or are:
1. Be careful! Those scissors …… very sharp.
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2. Maths ……. John’s favourite subject at school.
3. The police……… investigating the crime.
4. These trousers …… too big for me.
5. The stairs in my house …… made of wood.
6. His new furniture ….. very modern.
7. The weather… going to be bad this weekend.
8. My advice …….. that you get a new job.
9. His new clothes……. very fashionable.
10. The team …………… all training hard for Saturday’s match.
11. The money in the jar ….. for this week’s shopping.
12. My pyjamas ….. not on my bed. Where ….. they?
13. My luggage……. in the car already.
14. Your hair ……… very long again.
15. Tom’s gloves ……. made of soft leather.
C. What do we call the following things or people?
1. A person who drives a bus is ………………

2. The screen of a computer is ……………..
3. The juice from an orange is …………….
4. A stick for walking is ………………..
5. A curtain around the shower is ………….
6. Someone who cleans windows is …………..
7. Your husband’s mother is your ……………
8. A chair which rocks is……………..
9. A brush for your hair is ……………..
10. Someone who passes by a place or incident is …………….
D. Each pair of words contains one countable noun and one uncountable noun. Put the
words into the correct column and write a/an or some before the word.
accommodation/ flat; desk/furniture; bag/luggage; work/job; travel/trip
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trouble/problem; chance/ luck; equipment/ machines; dollar/ money; email/
correspondence; fact/information; advice/ suggestion; hour/time;
E. Complete the second sentence so that it has the same meaning to the first sentence and
contains the word in brackets.
1. The box isn’t empty (something)

……………………. the box.
2. Let me tell you what I think you should do. (advice)

Let me give you ……………………………………..
3. We travelled there on the train. (by)

We travelled there …………………………………
4. Every morning I walk to the office. (foot)

Every morning I come to the office ……………………………….
5. There is little travel in my job. (much)

There ……………………………….travel in my job.
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UNIT 2
A PERSONAL PROFILE
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
− be able to introduce themselves using the language tips in the unit
− write a personal profile of a business man that the know or heard of
− revise the use of the definite/indefinite and zero article
PART I
READ
PART II
LANGUAUGE FOCUS 1
Useful language to introduce oneself
PART III
LANGUGAE FOCUS
The article- Theory and Practice
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
BIBLIOGRAPHY:

Evans V., Upstream, Express Publishing House, 2002
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UNIT 2: A PERSONAL PROFILE
I. Read:
At 16 she was a shop assistant. At 20 she started her own fashion company. Today
at 35 she is one of the richest women in France. She is a company chairwoman from
France. She’s French. Sophie Durand is the chairwoman of boutique Sophie, the company
which sells men, women and children outfits as well as jewellery, hats, gloves, scarves,
purses, and other unique items.
Boutique Sophie is located in Paris, Rue de Seine but it manufactures most of its
products in Taiwan. The main reason for the success of the company is an excellent
marketing team which is always looking for, and finding, the right product at the right
time. Sophie Durand doesn’t have an office, but runs the company from home.
According to her turnover she is a rich woman, but she doesn’t like to show. She
drives a family car and lives in a medium-sized house in the suburbs of Paris, where she
was born. In fact she is quite different from the people who buy her products and are
willing to pay high prices just to become the owner of a unique clothing item or
accessory.
II. Useful Language: I’m…. I’m a….

I am 23 years old. I work for XBC as a …..
I’m from ….. XBC is a small /large company group.
I was born in…. It is based in….
I live near/ in… We produce/design/export/supply….
I am married/single I ‘m interested in…
I have three children I like….+verb in “-ing” (I like skiing,
reading..)
I have three children I play….
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Activity 1
Read the following questions and match them to an appropriate answer (A-L). If you can,
extend your response, but make sure you only add relevant information.
1 What sort of job do you do?
2 Can you tell me a bit about your work?
3 What opportunities are there for working abroad?
4 What is it about your job that you enjoy?
5 What aspects of your work are you not so keen on?
6 What qualifications do you need to do such a job as yours?
7 What skills are important for your sort of work?
8 What do you see yourself ding in a few years’ time?
9 Do you have any particular ambitions or hopes for the future?
A Yes. I hope that I will have a more interesting job with a higher salary.
B I don’t enjoy taking exams very much.
C I don’t particularly like keying in data.
D I’m the marketing manager for a small company.
E I spend a lot of time preparing for the meetings and dealing with correspondence.
F I like the people I work with.
G My home town is Novi Sad but I’m working in Belgrade at the moment.
H Probably much the same but with more responsibility.
I You have to have a degree in engineering.
J Lots. We have three factories in France and one in Spain.
K Let me see. I’m the eldest of four and the only one working.
L You need to be able to communicate well with people.
Match the following extended responses to the answers above (A-L).

1 I find it terribly boring but it has to be done.
2 We are all about the same age and we support each other a lot.
3 In fact, I’m going to our Madrid factory next week to see how they do things there.
4 I just get very nervous but I love studying.
5 And they like you have done some sort of management course.
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6 I suppose the main part of my job is to make sure everything in the office runs
smoothly.
7 My two brothers and my sister still live at home.
8 I like my job a lot and I don’t really want to do anything different.
9 It’s a food manufacturing company. We make yoghurts and dairy desserts. That
sort of thing.
10 It’s not a bad place but I miss my friends and family.
11 We have a lot of foreign visitors. You need to know how to make them feel
comfortable.
12 What I’m doing now is good experience but it’s not particularly challenging.
Activity 2
You are attending a one-week course on Personnel Management. It’s the first day. Say a
few words about yourself (personal details, your work, and interests).
III. Language focus:

THE ARTICLE
In English there are three types of article: definite (the), indefinite (a/an) and zero article
(no article at all)
1. The Indefinite Article: a/an

“A” is used with nouns starting with a consonant or a semi consonant:
a company; a professor; a unit
“An” is used with nouns starting with vowels or an h mute:

an engineer; an hour; an elephant
A/ an is called the indefinite article, and we use it to introduce new information. This
means that the listener does not know which person or thing we are talking about.
- we use a/an to refer to something for the first time.
We must have a meeting next week.
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I have an idea I’d like to discuss.
- we use a/an to refer to one of a group of things.
Can you pass me a paper clip from that box by your side?
- we use a/an to describe someone’s job, but not areas of business.
Fiona used to be a teacher, but now she is in management training.
- with nationalities and religions
John is an Englishman.
Kate is a Catholic.
- We use a/an to describe something
It’s an interesting idea. Cairo is a very big city. This is a better product.
- We use a/ an in expressions of measurement. Per can also be used.
twice a / per month; 3, 000 units an / per hour
- A/an mean „one”, so we cannot use a/ an with plural or uncountable nouns.
Can you give me some information? (Not an information)
A or an?
- We use a in front of a consonant sound, and an in front of a vowel sound.
consonant sounds: a manager, a job, a university, a one-way street, a European law
vowel sounds: an idea, an employer, an hour, an MBA
2. The Definite Article

The definite article in English is invariable, which means that they do not change
according to the gender or number of the noun they refer to, the company, the woman, the
man, the services
- We use the for information that has been already introduced or when it is clear
which person or thing we are talking about.
We must have a meeting next week. The meeting should focus on the auditors’ report.
Where is the fax they sent this morning? I can’t find it. (both the speaker and listener
know which fax)
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- We use the when we define or identify a particular person or object. It is clear
which one we are talking about.
I’ll speak to the boss when he gets back.
- We use the with nationalities and other groups.

I really admire the Italians for their sense of design.
The government is trying to do more to help the poor.
- We use the with superlatives.

This is the best quality material we have in stock.
- We use the before ordinal numbers

the first page, the twentieth century
- With decades, or group of years:

They got married in the seventies.
SPECIAL USES OF THE

- We use the with:
International institutions: The United Nations, The World Bank
Adjectives to refer to a group: The unemployed do not receive enough help.
the ...... of a/ the..... the end of an era, the start of the project
Some time phrases in the past, at the moment, in the future (but at
present), the 1960’s (decades), the 21st century
(centuries)
Points of the compass: in the north/ east/ south/west, in the south-west
Playing instruments: I play the piano/guitar.
Job titles and official titles: The Marketing Director, the Prime Minister said…..
(but NOT title + name: Prime Minister Tony Blair
said)
Objects we regard as unique: the Earth, the sky, the moon- The Earth travels around
the sun every 365 days.
22
3. The zero article
- No article is used when we are talking generally.
Cars are much safer these days.
How’s business?
- Plural Nouns
Compare: I sent the emails this morning. (we know which emails)
I usually reply to emails within 24 hours. (emails in general)
- Uncountable Nouns
Compare: The information in this report gives us the power to target our advertising.
(we know which information and power)
Information is power. (information and power in general)
- with proper nouns: Mark lives in Brighton.

- with the names of sports, games, activities, days, months, celebrations, colours,
drinks, meals and languages (when they are not followed by the word “language”).
I often play chess. We speak German but The German language is difficult to
learn.
Special uses of “no article”:

We use no article with:
Company names: I work for Accenture.
Years, months, days: in 2001, in July, on Thursday
Special times of the year: at Christmas/ Easter
Some parts of the day: at night/ midnight/ sunset (but the morning, the
afternoon)
Means of transport (in general) by car/taxi/train/bus, on foot (but on the train to
Rome)
Meals (in general) Dinner is at 7.30. (BUT There was a dinner at the
conference)
23
Practice
Activity 1
A. Underline the correct words:
1. Where’s a/ the fax they sent this morning? I can’t find it.
2. I have an/the appointment at a/ the bank.
3. I had a/he very good holiday. A/The weather was marvellous.
4. I’ve been working so hard that I need a /the break.
5. They are a/ the largest manufacturer of light bulbs in a/ the world.
6. A/ the presentation was a/ the great success.
7. Can I give you a/ the lift to the station?
8. I think I need a/ the new pair of glasses.
9. We need to reach a / the decision as soon as possible.
10. There must be an/the answer to a/ the problem.
11. Mike is an/the accountant. He works on another/ the other side of the town.
12. His office is a / the biggest one in a/ the building.
13. Where is a / the document that we were looking at just now?
14. The Portuguese/ The Portuguese people are very good negotiators.
B. Fill in a, an, or some where necessary:

1. We booked …. room in the Grand Hotel.
2. The police found…. glass from the broken window.
3. There is…. room for five people in my car.
4. She usually drinks ….. glass of orange juice in the morning.
5. There was……. hair in my soup.
6. I need ….. paper to write my letters on.
7. Her ……. hair is long and blonde.
8. The Eiffel Tour is made of …… iron.
9. He decided to buy ……. paper to read on the train.
10. I have got …….. iron, but it is very old.
C. Put either a/ an or a dash (-) to show no article.

1. ………….. money makes the world go round.
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2. Sheila drives …………….. French car.
3. Rita works in ……………. insurance agency in …………..Lisbon.
4. ……………..health is the most important thing in ………….life.
5. This is …………….. good time for …………….. sales of new cars.
6. This is the number to call for ………………. information.
7. I’ve got …………….. colleague who is ………………. system analyst.
8. ……………. product knowledge is very important for ………………. sales
representatives.
9. He is an engineer. He studied ……………. engineering at university.
10. We produce …………… full sales report four times…………… year.
D. Fill in a, an, or the where necessary:

Yesterday was ….. terrible day. I woke up …….. hour later than usual, so I was late for
….work. …. .. manager was angry with me and said I was ………bad employee. On the
way home that evening, I missed………..bus and had to take……….taxi. When I got
home, I found ………..invitation to ………..party. I went to ……….party, but it was
……….disaster. I didn’t know any of ………people there and I felt bored. I went home
again, but I had left ……..keys to my house at….. party, so I had to climb in through
…….. open window. I went to ……bed in ……. very bad mood.
E. Choose the correct alternative.
1. Catherine loves cats/ the cats.

2. Look at cats/ the cats! They are chasing a bird.
3. I don’t like coffee/ the coffee, but I like tea/ the tea.
4. You cut the cake/ cake and I’ll pour coffee/ the coffee.
5. I enjoy swimming/ the swimming in the sea.
6. Children/ the children usually like playing games.
7. All people/the people I this room are my relatives.
25
8. Breakfast/ The breakfast is the most important meal of day/the day.
9. In Stone Age/ the Stone Age, people lived I caves.
10. We travelled to London by plane/the plane.
11. I would like to travel to Spain/ the Spain.
12. Villages/ the villages in this part of the country are very beautiful.
F. Fill in the where necessary, justifying your answers. 2

HOLIDAY DESTINATIONS
1) ………..Venezuela is a beautiful country in 2)………. South America which
has something to offer to every visitor. There are tropical beaches where 3) …………..
land meets 4) ………… the Carribbean Sea and 5) ……………….Atlantic Ocean. To 6)
………….. easr there are the 7) ……………….. snow-capped peaks of 8) ……………….
Andes Mountains and in 9) ………………. South there is 10) ………………. Amazonian
forest.
Most tourists come into 11) ………… country by 12) ……………air, landing in
13) ……………..capital city, 14) …………….. Caracas. While you are there, 15)
……………..Plaza Bolivar with its architecture from 16) …………….17th century is well
worth a visit as is 17) …………….. busy 18) ………………….Parque Central.
Most people, however, come to see 19) …………….natural wonders on offer.
Two of 20) ...…….. favourite destinations are 21) ………..Angel Falls, 22)
………….highest waterfall in 23) ………………..world, and 24)……………Lake
Maracaibo. More adventurous travellers can take a canoe trip up 25) ……………Orinoco
River, climb 26) …………….Pico Bolivar, 27)………….country’s highest mountain, or
take a boat trip along 28) ……………. Carrao River to 29) ………………Hacha Falls. It
will be 30) …………..experience of a lifetime.
2
Evans V., Upstream, Teacher’s Book Express Publishing House, 2002, p. 43
26
UNIT 3
WHAT GOOD MANAGERS DO
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
− be able to discuss the qualities of a good manager
− make the difference between acquired skills and techniques and innate skills that
make a good manager
− revise the use of adjectives and adverbs as well as the degrees of comparison
− practice the language structures discussed in this unit
PART I
READ
PART II
LANGUAUGE FOCUS 1
Adjectives: types of adjectives and the formation of adjectives
PART III
LANGUGAE FOCUS
Adjectives and adverbs
PART IV
LANGUAGE FOCUS
The adjective: the degrees of comparison
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
BIBLIOGRAPHY:

27
UNIT 3: WHAT GOOD MANAGERS DO
Activity 1: Before you read:
1. What personal qualities are essential in a good manager?

2. What professional skills/ abilities are essential in a good manager?
3. What approach to people should a good manager have?
I. Read:
How do mangers occupy their time? Do they really have two hour lunch breaks,
get to go in style to all the major talks, conventions and sales meetings and play tennis at
least on afternoon a week? Well, a few do, but most do not.
Actually, it is difficult to say exactly what managers do because management is a
diverse job. But besides performing technical functions they also plan work schedules,
organize resources, control performance and make managerial decision. Managers must
be skilled at getting work done through others. At all times they must be concerned about
the effective use of human and non-human resources.
Individuals pursuing management careers move up in the organization in several
different ways. The most popular pattern is the path of progressive responsibility. While it
is true that not everyone achieves or desires progressive level of responsibility, the
following criteria were selected for rating individuals as managers.
Leadership means effectiveness in getting ideas accepted in guiding a group or an
individual to accomplish a task.
Judgement is defined like ability to reach sound, logical conclusions based on the
information at hand.
Accountability – Fulfilment – is nothing else but the ability to fulfil overall
performance accountabilities as shown on the job description.
Organization and Planning – means effectiveness in arranging own activities and
those of a group so as to provide effective courses of action.
Use of delegation- is the ability to involve others efficiently and to understand
where a decision can be made.
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Initiative- means actively influencing events rather than passively accepting acts
without specific instructions within the scope of the assigned accountabilities.
Decisiveness – is readiness to make decisions or to render proper judgements.
Ability to use problem –solving process.
Professional competence (expertise) – The manager must have a firm grasp of
fundamental principles and concepts in his/her profession. He can make good value
judgments and also knows sources for new information and keeps it up-to –date.
Problem analysis – actually is effectiveness in seeking out pertinent data in
determining the cause of the problems.
Although the tasks of a manager can be analysed and classified in this fashion,
management is not entirely scientific. It is human skill. Business professors obviously
believe that intuition and instinct are not enough; there are management skills that have to
be learnt. Peter Drucker, for example, wrote over 20 years ago that ‚Altogether my entire
book is based on the proposition that the days of the „intuitive” manager are numbered”,
meaning that they were coming to an end. But some people are clearly good at
management, and others are not.
Activity 1 Divide the adjectives referring to personal qualities listed below into two
separate columns: Strengths and Weaknesses and then write your own profile using at
least 5 adjectives to describe both your weak and strong points.
confident; thorough; arrogant; obsessive; enterprising, tolerant, humorous, opportunistic,
caring, frivolous, nosy, ruthless, ambitious, prudent, indecisive, helpful, focused,
controlling, tunnel-visioned, focused, forceful, supportive, bullying, interfering, forceful,
supportive, competitive, irresponsible, open to change, wishy-washy, generous, conceited.
Activity 2
A. Choose the right words from the box to complete the sentences
impulsive; adventurous; aggressive;
decisive; flexible; informal; motivating; passionate; persuasive;
1. He was rather impulsive –not the kind of person who plans what they say or do.
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2. His style of leadership was quite …………………… He was always so
competitive and so eager to succeed that many of us often found him ruthless.
3. If you want to get to the top, you have to be ………………., I mean be prepared to
take risks and to try new ways of doing things.
4. She doesn’t just tell us to do things – she makes us want to do them. We’re lucky
too have such a ……………..team leader.
5. She was a ……………….. chairwoman, with a very strong belief in the mission of
our organisation and very intense feelings about our achievements.
6. We always do what she wants us to because she gives us good reasons for doing it.
She is very …………..
7. What they need is a ……………….person, someone who can choose the right
course of action even in a very difficult situation.
B. Complete the text with the best words.

Without followers, there would be no leaders. The concept of leadership, and the
qualities needed for someone to become a leader, can probably best be understood by
studying the b between the leader and his or her followers.
Good leaders have …………….. 2– the ability to step into someone else’s shoes-
because they are good listeners. They are open, always willing to discuss and
……………3 problems.
Team-building is one of the top priorities of effective leaders. They work at
…………….4 an environment in which each team member, while contributing to the
team effort and to the purpose of the organisation, is able to improve on their
own……………….5.
Indeed, they are very good at ………………….6 their staff, enabling each of them
to become a creative and independent team player. This way, every individual
…………….7 the confidence and ability to …………….8 the kind of decisions which
will help the company ………………9 its long-term goals.
Good leaders are also inclusive, they like to involve everyone - and they
understand the importance of delegating ………………10.
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Finally, they have more than just targets: they have a …………….11. They can see
clearly where they would like the company to be in five or ten years’ time, and the are
able to ………………..12 this to their employees.
1 a) contract b) relationship c) report d) friendship

2 a) empathy b) charisma c) passion d) sympathy
3 a) deal b) solve c) ignore d) grapple (to fight with someone)
4 a) creating b) elaborating c) inventing d) designing
5 a) achievement b) programme c) appraisal d) performance
6 a) strengthening b) persuading c) caring d) empowering
7 a) rebuilds b) gains c) restores d) wins
8 a) do b) arrive c) make d) abide
9 a) work b) score c) achieve d) kick
10 a) energy b) aggressiveness c) informality d) authority
11 a) vision b) sight c) view d) scope
12 a) talk b) discuss c) communicate d) debate3
II. Language focus I: Adjectives: types of adjectives and the formation of adjectives
Adjectives describe nouns. They have the same form in the singular and plural.
They go before nouns (e.g. Last year we had a significant increase in profits) but after the
verbs be, look, smell, sound, feel, taste, seem, appear, become, get, stay (Last year profits
were much better than this year.)
There are opinion adjectives and fact adjectives. Opinion adjectives such as
boring, exciting, etc. show what a person thinks of somebody or something. Fact
adjectives such as tall, thin, new etc. give us factual information about age, size, colour,
origin, material, etc.
There are also compound adjectives which are formed with:
a) present participles: never-ending journey
b) past participles: broken-down washing machine
c) cardinal numbers + nouns: a three-hour delay (NOT a three hours delay)
3
The activities A and B have been taken from the Activity book of the textbook Market Leader, published by Pearson
Longman, the new edition, 2005, pp 48-49.
31
d) well, badly + past participle: well-behaved children, badly-made furniture
We can also use nouns as adjectives before other nouns. In this case the nouns have o
plural form. e.g. morning paper- morning papers; coffee table- coffee tables
There is a difference in meaning in the case of the following adjectives:
a) He gave her a gold ring. (= ring made of gold)
They walked on the golden sand. (= sand the colour of gold)
b) She bought a silk blouse. (= blouse made of silk)
This new shampoo promises to give you silky hair. (= hair which feels like silk)
c) They walked up the stone path. (= path made of stone)
The man had a stony look on his face. (= cold look, like stone)
ORDER OF ADJECTIVES
When there are two or more adjectives in a sentence, they usually go in the following
order:
Opinion adjectives size age shape colour origin material used for noun
It’s a fantastic small new round red Swiss plastic alarm
clock
Ordinal numbers (first, second, third, etc.) go before cardinal numbers (one, two three):
The first two weeks
The adjectives afraid, alike, alive, alone, ashamed, asleep, awake, content, glad, ill,
pleased, etc. are not followed by nouns.
The man was alive. Karen is ill today.
The adjectives chief, elder, eldest, former, indoor, inner, main, only, outdoor, outer,
principal, upper are always followed by nouns.
This my former superviser.
We do not usually use a long list of adjectives before a single noun. A noun is usually
described by one, two or three adjectives at the most.
a 10-page American legal contract (size, nationality, type)
an efficient worldwide distribution network (opinion, size, type)
a cheap clean energy source (quality, quality, type)
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Adjectives ending in –ing and -ed
Adjectives ending in –ing describe something we are reacting to (outside us).
Adjectives ending in –ed describe our feelings and reactions (inside us).
I found her comments quite surprising. I was surprised by her comments.
Practice
A. Underline the correct adjective:
1. I couldn’t do any more work last night. I was just so tired/ tiring.
2. I don’t think the audience liked the talk. They looked bored/ boring.
3. I don’t think the audience liked the talk. It was a bit bored/ boring.
4. Your new multimedia project sounds really excited/ exciting.
5. You look worried/ worrying. Is anything the matter?
6. Their profits last year were extremely large/enormous.
7. The sales figures last month were very bad/ terrible.
8. Warsaw is absolutely cold/ freezing at this time of the year.
B. Put each group of words into the best order.

1. Old-fashioned a large machine cutting ………………………………………………..
2. wooden square two cartons …………………………………………………….
3. new package an amazing software …………………………………………
4. period a transition three-month difficult ………………………………………….
5. chips computer Taiwanese high-quality ……………………………………..
6. a strategy well-planed investment …………………………………………
7. access cheap Internet high-speed …………………………………………….
8. a new revolutionary computer handheld ……………………………………..
9. a powder washing new wonderful ……………………………………………….
10. awful plastic cheap souvenirs ………………………………………………
C. Fill in : the + adjective or the + adjective + people.

1. This charity provides shelter for ………………………………..(homeless) of London.
2. It is important to look after ……………………………. (elderly), especially in winter.
33
3. Ambulances took …………………………(injured) to hospitals in the area.
4. ………………………. (old) in the village are upset about the new road.
5. They are changing the building to make it easier for ……………………….. (disabled)
to get around.
6. ………………………. (young) in the audience cheered loudly at the end of the concert.
7. ……………………… (poor) of our town receive help from the council.
8. Christine is a nurse who looks after ………………………….. (sick).
9. ………………………….. (strong) in the group carried the heavy equipment.
10. ………………………….. (rich) can afford to live in luxury.
D. Make compound adjectives to describe the following:

1. A walk that takes ten minutes.
……………………………………..
2. A story which is written well.
………………………………………
3. A building which has twelve storeys.
…………………………………………
4. A train which moves fast.
…………………………………….
5. A student who works hard.
……………………………………..
6. An office which has good lighting.
……………………………………….
7. A holiday which lasts two weeks.
…………………………………………
8. A report which has ten pages.
………………………………………….
E. Add the correct prefixes to form the opposite of the words in bold.
1. He’s an …….interesting person. In fact, he’s rather boring.
2. Driving a car without a licence is ……………… legal.
3. I can’t do this puzzle. It’s .........possible.
34
4. The cake was ………resistible, so she ate three pieces.
5. The waiting room is a …………smoking area.
6. He is ……..literate. He can’t read or write.
7. I am ……… decisive about where to go on holiday.
8. His comment was ……………. relevant to our discussion.
III. Language focus II: Adjectives and adverbs
Adverbs usually describe verbs, adjectives, other adverbs or sentences. An adverb can be
one word (carefully) or a phrase (in the morning). Adverbs can describe manner (how),
place (where), time (when), frequency (how often), degree (to what extent), etc.
a) He drives carefully.
b) Your bag is here.
c) They’ll leave tomorrow.
d) He sometimes goes fishing at the weekend.
e) She is very polite.
FORMATION OF ADVERBS
- We usually form an adverb by adding – ly to the adjective.
Serious- seriously
- Adjectives ending in –le drop the – e and take – y.
Gentle- gently
- Adjectives ending in consonant + y drop the –y and take -ily
Happy- happily
- Adjectives ending in –l take – ly.
Awful – awfully
- Adjectives ending in – ic usually take – ally
Dramatic- dramatically BUT: public- publicly
- Adjectives ending in – e take –ly
Polite – politely BUT: true- truly
35
The following words end in –ly, but they are adjectives: elderly, cowardly, friendly,
likely, deadly, lively, lonely, silly, ugly, lovely, etc.
She’s a lively child.
We use the words way/manner to form adverbs:
She greeted me in a friendly way/ manner.
She complained in a cowardly way/manner.
- The adverbs loud(ly), cheap(ly), quick(ly), tight(ly), fair(ly) and slow(ly) are often
used without –ly in everyday English.
Come here quick/ quickly.
- Some adverbs have the same form as adjectives. These include: hard, fast, free,
high, low, deep, early, late, long, near, straight, right, wrong. Also hourly,
daily, weekly, monthly and yearly.
The lake is deep (adjective)
They went deep into the forest (adverb)
These biscuits are very hard.
He tried hard in order to succeed.
- Some adjectives have two corresponding adverbs, each with a different meaning:
The treasure was buried deep underground. ( = a long way down)
He is deeply in love with her. (=very)
The hotel guests can use the swimming pool free. (= free)
The animals in the safari park can roam freely. (without limits or restriction)
The kite flew high in the sky. (= at/to a high level)
He is a highly respected doctor. (= very much)
She arrived late for the meeting. (= not early)
He hasn’t been feeling well lately. (= recently)
Which of his songs do you like most? (= superlative of much)
I’m mostly interested in modern art. (= mainly)
As he came near, I realised that something was wrong (= close)
She nearly fainted when she heard the news. (= almost)
He is a pretty strange man (= rather)
36
The bridesmaids were prettily dressed in pink. (= in a pretty way)
He is working hard these days. (= with a lot of effort)
They hardly go anywhere now that they have children. ( = almost never)
ORDER OF ADVERBS
When there are two or more adverbs in the same sentence, they usually come in the
following order: MANNER- PLACE- TIME
The baby slept quietly in his bed all night long.
If there is a verb of movement, such as go, come, leave in the sentence, then the
adverbs come in the following order: PLACE- MANNER- TIME
He came to work by bus this morning.
1) Adverbs of MANNER go before the main verb, after the auxiliary verb or at the
end of the sentence:
She easily passed the exam.
We are eagerly waiting for his letter.
He acted foolishly.
2) Adverbs of DEGREE (absolutely, completely, totally, extremely, very, quite,

rather, etc.) go before an adjective, an adverb or a main verb, but after an auxiliary
verb.
This is totally unacceptable.
They arrived rather early.
We absolutely love her sense of humour.
I don’t quite understand what you mean.
1) Adverbs of FREQUENCY go after auxiliary verbs and the verb to be, but
before the main verbs.
He is always ready to help.
Sam often complains about his salary.
37
2) Adverbs of PLACE and TIME usually go at the end of the sentence.
There is a café nearby.
I’ll meet you tomorrow.
Some one-syllable adverbs of time such as soon, now and then, go before the main
verb, but after the auxiliary verb or the verb to be.
She then told him what had happened.
He will soon inform us about his decision.
3) We can put an adverb at the beginning of a sentence if we want to emphasise it.

Slowly, he closed the door behind him. (MANNER)
In the living room, there is an antique grandfather clock. (PLACE)
Yesterday, I met the President. (TIME)
Some adverbs have the same form as adjectives. These adjectives include : hard,
fast, high, low, deep, early, late, long, long, near, straight, right, wrong.
This is a fast car. (adjective)
George drives fast. (adverb)
There is difference in meaning between the following pairs of adverbs:
She tried hard but she failed. (hard= with effort)
He can hardly see without his glasses. (hardly= scarcely)
Jessica lives quite near (near =close)
They nearly missed the bus. (nearly=almost)
Tim arrived late (late=not early)
She’s been going out a lot lately. (lately=recently)
The kite rose high in the sky. (high =at high level)
He’s highly respectable. (highly =very)
You can visit the museum free. (free= without charge)
EU citizens can travel freely within Europe.
(freely = without restraint)
QUITE AND RATHER

Quite and rather are adverbs of degree.
QUITE goes before a/an.
38
She’s quite a pretty woman.
We usually quite in favourable comments meaning ‘less than very’.
This watch is quite cheap. (It’s not very cheap)
We use quite before adjectives such as horrible, dreadful, ridiculous, brilliant, perfect,
amazing, extraordinary, useless, impossible, right, useless, impossible, right, sure ,
exhausted, false, wrong, different.
The idea was quite extraordinary. (totally extraordinary)
RATHER goes before or after a/an

I’m afraid it is rather a boring story.
I’m afraid it is a rather boring story.
− We usually use rather in unfavourable comments.
e.g Those clothes are rather old.
− We can also use rather in favourable comments when it means “to an unusual
degree”
e.g. I didn’t know Peter could cook. The meal was rather good. (The meal was better than
we expected)
− Rather can be used with comparative forms.
e.g. The second exercise was rather more difficult than the first.
Comparative and Superlative of Adverbs

The comparative and superlative forms of adverbs are formed in the same way as
those of adjectives.
Adverbs which have the form as the adjective usually take –er in the comparative
and –est in the superlative.
e.g. fast- faster-fastest early- ealier- earliest
Adverbs formed by adding – ly to the adjective take more in the comparative and
most in the superlative form.
e.g. smartly – more smartly- most smartly
Irregular Comparatives and Superlatives

well better best
39
badly worse worst
far further/farther furthest/farther
further/further (adv) a longer distance
e.g. His house is further/farther away from the post office than ours.
Practice
A. Complete the sentences with a word from the list below. At the end of each
sentence write adj. (adjective) or adv. (adverb) to show how the word in the gap is
being used.
good well fast hard hard hardly late late monthly

We’re going to introduce a ........................newsletter for all employees. .................
I’m sorry, your goods are going to arrive about a week ............... ................
That flight time is too .................... Haven’t you got anything earlier? .................
Everything’s fine. The meeting is going very ..................... .................
I was so tired that I could .................... keep my eyes open. .................
The hotel was ......................., but we didn’t like the food in the restaurant. .................
It’s a .......................... choice, but I think Clara is the best candidate. .................
I had to work very ............... to get everything finished on time. .................
I’m sorry, I don’t understand. You’re talking too....................... .................
We’ll have to make a ..................exit if things start going wrong. .................
B. Underline the correct item:
It was Lucy’s birthday and she was very sad/sadly. She had been waiting
hopeful/hopefully all morning for the postman to arrive. Sudden/ Suddenly, the
letterbox rattled gentle/gently and the envelope fell soft/softly onto the doormat. Picking
it up, Lucy noticed miserable/miserably that it was a bill. There were no cards, no
presents and no pretty/prettily bouquets of flowers. Lucy near/nearly burst into tears.
Just then, there was a loud/loudly knock on the door. Opening the door slow/slowly, Lucy
saw all her friends holding brightly/bright wrapped gifs and shouting ‚”Happy Birthday”.
Lucy immediatel/ immediately cheered up and greeted her friends warm/warmly.
40
C. For each gap, turn the adjective into an adverb.
Julia was walking ..................... (quick) down the street when she heard someone call
her name ........................ (loud). She looked ......................... (nervous) behind her, but
the street was ....................... (complete) empty. There was nobody there.
.......................... (Sudden), she heard her name again. She turned to see her brother
running towards her, smiling...................... (cheerful). Didn’t you hear me? ‘he
laughed …………….. (happy). Nick! gasped Julia. You …………….. (near)
frightened me to death!
D. Complete the second sentence so it has a similar meaning to the first sentence.
1. There was a slight fall in profits in April.
In April profits ..............................................
2. The was a dramatic improvement in our share price last month.
Last month our share price .....................................
3. There has been a significant drop in demand for oil over the last few months.
Demand for oil ..............................over the last few months.
4. Let’s have a brief pause for coffee.
Let’s .................................for coffee.
5. There has been a steady improvement in the inflation figures.
The inflation figures .................................
6. There was a slow recovery in consumer confidence last year.
Consumer confidence ............................last year.
7. There has been a gradual rise in unemployment.
Unemployment....................................
8. There has been a considerable growth in Korean GDP over recent years.
Over recent years Korean GDP..................................
41
III. Language focus III: The adjective: the degrees of comparison
The adjective – that speech part which expresses a quality of an object (an interesting
lecture; an old man), can be compared (He is taller than his brother) and which unlike in
Romanian, in English it does not change its form according to the gender, the number, and
the case. The category of the comparison is concretized in English, like in Romanian, in
three degrees of comparison:
The positive, unmarked, shows the existence of a quality, without any other comparison:
He is tall; She is beautiful.
The comparative: we use the comparative to compare two separate things, indicating the
presence of the quality in equal measure (the comparative of equality), or in a different
amount (the comparative of inferiority and of superiority);
The superlative shows that a member of a group possesses the compared quality in the
highest degree, by means of a direct comparison (relative superlative: She is the cleverest
of all.) or without direct comparison (the absolute superlative: She is very clever).
Sometimes very is replaced by: awfully; bitterly; exceedingly; extremely; mighty; most;
quite; terribly; tremendously.
It is bitterly cold today.
In English we have two types of comparison, according to the number of syllables the
adjectives are composed of : synthetic comparison specific to the monosyllabic adjectives
(except right, real, wrong) and to the disyllabic adjectives that end in – y, -le; -er; - ow,
marked by adding the suffixes ‚-er” for the comparative and „- est” for the superlative to
the positive form of the adjective; analytic, specific for the plurisyllabic adjectives and
which are formed with the help of the comparative and superlative forms of the adjectives
many (more and most) + the positive form of the adjective.
A. The synthetic comparison:

Monosyllabic adjectives: small – smaller- smallest
Short – shorter - shortest
Orthographical peculiarities:
42
1) single final consonants are doubled when the preceding vowel is stressed and spelled
with a single letter:
big- bigger- the biggest; hot- hotter- the hottest; fat- fatter- the fattest;
2) the final y is changed to –i when following a consonant: dry-drier- the driest, but it
remains unchanged when preceded by a vowel: grey- greyer- the greyest
3) adjectives ending in –e add only –r or -st: nice – nicer- nicest; free – freer- freest
Disyllabic adjectives: ending in –y, -le, -er, -ow and –some form the comparative
and the superlative with “-er” and “est”
Happy – happier- happiest; clever- cleverer – the cleverest; narrow- narrower- the
narrowest;
Exceptions: eager, proper, fertile, hostile, fragile are compared analytically. As well as
this, disyllabic adjectives that end in two consonants: correct, distinct, exact, intact, etc.
form the comparative and the superlative with more and the most.
B. The analytic comparison: formed of two or more syllables form the comparative and
the superlative analytically with the help of more and the most.
Careful – more careful - the most careful

Difficult- more difficult – the most difficult
Compound adjectives form the degrees of comparison as follows:

a) when the first element is an adjectives that keeps its meaning, it takes the comparative
and superlative forms:
well-known – better known- the best known

ill-paid- worse paid- the worst paid
intelligent looking- more-intelligent looking- the most intelligent-looking
43
b) when the two elements form a single unit, in terms of meaning, the comparison is made
with more and the most:
absent-minded – more absent –minded—the most absent-minded
C. The comparison of equality, superiority and inferiority: The comparison of equality is

made up of the positive degree of the adjective preceded and followed by the conjunction
as: My room is as large as hers.
The comparison of inferiority is made up using the positive degree of the adjective
preceded by not so/as and followed by as or with less ….. than; My assignment is not as
easy as yours. This lecture is less interesting than the previous one.
The comparison of superiority is made up with the comparative degree of the adjective
followed by the conjunction than: better than, more interesting than
D. The irregular comparison of the adjectives

Some adjectives form the comparative and the superlative irregularly:
POSITIVE COMPARATIVE SUPERLATIVE

good better The best
bad worse The worst
Much/many more The most
little less The least
old Older The oldest
Elder (folosit numai The eldest
atributiv) (mai batrin, mai în
vârsta, referitor la persoane
din aceeasi familie)
far Farther (mai departat) The farthest (cel mai
Further (mai departat; departat)
additional; suplimentar) The furthest (cel mai
depărtat)
44
late Later (mai târziu) The latest( cel mai târziu,
The latter (cel de-al doilea, cel mai recent, cel mai nou);
ultimul din doi) the last (ultimul)
near Nearer (mai apropiat) The nearest (cel mai
apropiat);
The next (următorul)
IV. Practice
A. Give the comparative and the superlative of the following adjectives:

Small; interesting; handsome; good; difficult; noisy; old; clever; patient; narrow; little;
thin; ignorant; cold; dirty; late; industrious; bad; faithful; gracious; many; far; wealthy;
rude; pleasant; beautiful; lucky; free;
B. Underline the correct words:

1. The new line should be so profitable as / as profitable as the old one.
2. This handset is the most profitable/ the more profitable we’ve ever made.
3. This version of the programme is the most recent/ recenter.
4. The guarantee is a year longer than/that with our older models.
5. Nothing is worse/ worst than missing a flight because of traffic.
6. This printer is one of the best/better on the market.
7. The meeting wasn’t as/long as I thought.
8. Today the share price is more bad/ worse than it was yesterday.
9. I’m sorry, the journey took longer than/ the longest we expected.
10. We’ll be there soon. It’s not much farer/ further.
C. Complete the following sentences with: better; elder; older; later; latter; less; farther;
further; worse. Use than where necessary:
1. I think I need some……… information if you want me to help you. 2. The weather is
not so bad for this time of the year. 3. It could have been much ……………. 4. If John is
fifteen, he is three years …………. his sister. 5. My brother is very tired so he can’t go
45
…………….. 6. My ……………..daughter has just graduated from university. 7. I know
that Jack and George are brothers, but I don’t know which of them is the …………. 8.
Since you are working harder this year, your results are …………….... they were last
year. 9. I am sure that she has ……….money……… I have. 10. Of the two solutions he
preferred the former to the……………… .
D. Work on the model:

My book is interesting. (yours)
My Book is as interesting as yours.
1. His pronunciation is good. (hers) 2. My work is important. (theirs) 3. Your suitcase is

full. (mine) 4. Her typewriter was new. (ours). My room is tidy. (yours) 6. Your uncle.
(theirs) 7. Your writing is legible. (mine) 8. This armchair is comfortable. (that) 9. her
watch is accurate (his).10. Her sweaters are well-made (mine).
E. Ask and answer questions using the words in brackets. Work on the model:
What/ high/ mountain/ Romania

What is the highest mountain in Romania?
The Moldoveanu is the highest mountain in Romania.
1. Who/ good/ football player/ Romania.

2. What / happy/event/ her life;
3. Who /hardworking student in the class;
4. Who/ pretty/ girl/you know;
5. What/ interesting /book/she has lent you
6. Who/ old/person/her family.
7. What/ short/ month /year.
F. Put the adjectives in brackets in the correct form:
1. Bucharest is (far) from Madrid than Paris. 2. George is the (tall) boy in his class. 3.
These books are not (expensive) as the other ones. 4. Your homework is (bad) than hers.
46
5. The Carpathians are the (high) mountains in Romania. 6. His car is (good) as mine. 7.
At last, I got (far) details about the incident. 8. Books are ……. and…… nowadays.
(expensive) 9. My (old) sister works in one of the (old) school in our town. 10. She was
very kind and gave me some (far) information about that man. 11. Lucy and Peter are in
their room: the (fore) is reading the late (late) is watching TV. 12. Alice was the (pretty)
of the twins. 13 This hotel manager was the (polite) we had ever met. 14. Her daughter
was the (graceful) dancer in the ballroom. 15. Yesterday’s weather was (bad) than today’s.
16. There were two roads leading to the monastery, the narrower road being the (short)
one. 17. The inn is the (old) building in the village. 18. Sir Winston Churchill was the
(famous) Englishman in World War II. 19. “The more, the (merry)” says an English
proverb. 20. A new house is much (expensive) than an old one.
G. Complete the sentences with a comparative or superlative form of the adjective in

brackets. Include any other necessary words like the, more, less, as or than.
1. Coca-Cola is …………….. (big) soft drinks manufacturer in the world.

2. This keyboard is quite difficult to use. It’s ……………….. (small) than the one I’m
used to.
3. The conference was a little disappointing. It was ………………… (interesting) I
expected.
4. Yesterday was one of …………………. (hot) days of the year.
5. I think this suggestion is ………………… (good) the other one.
6. It’s impossible to choose between these two products. One is ………………… (good)
the other.
7. The first round of negotiations was easy. The next will be ……………. (difficult).
8. We’re only a small company. We’re not ……………….(large) the market leader in our
sector.
9. This year our sales figures are ……………… (bad) last year.
10. This is …………………. (bad) case of corruption we’ve seen for years.
47
UNIT 4
THE TIME
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
− be able to use the structures that help us tell the time
− revise the use of cardinal and ordinal numerals
PART I
READ
PART II
LANGUAUGE FOCUS 1
The numeral: cardinal and ordinal numerals
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
BIBLIOGRAPHY:

Powell Mark, In Company, Macmillan, 2002
48
UNIT 4: THE TIME
I. Read and learn:

There are one thousand years in a millennium, one hundred years in a century, ten years in
a decade and 365 or 366 days in a year. A year has 12 months or 52 weeks. The names of
the months of the year are of Latin origin: January, February, March, April, May,, June,
July, August, September, October, November, December. A month has 30 or 31 days.
February has 28 days in an ordinary year and 29 days in a leap year.
There are four weeks in a month, fourteen days and nights in a fortnight and seven days in
a week; six week (working) days and a holiday. The names of the days of the week are of
English origin; Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday.
The day before today is yesterday and the day before yesterday is called the day after
tomorrow.
A day has 24 hours. The moments of the day are: morning, noon (midday), afternoon,
evening, midnight and night.
There are two twelve hour periods in a day. They are; a.m. (Latin ante meridian, or in the
morning), and p.m. (Latin post meridian, or in the afternoon).
We can tell the time by a clock or a watch.
An hour has 60 minutes and a minute has 60 seconds. There are 30 minutes in half and
hour and 15 minutes in a quarter of an hour.
“What time is it (by your watch)?”

“(By my watch) it is twenty –five to two, but my watch is wrong”
“Is your watch fast or slow?”
“My watch is five minutes fast.”
“So, the right time is half past one. What day is today? (What’s the date today)?
“Today it is 15th November 2006.
“When is your birthday?”
“It’s on 26th May.”
“What day is it?”
49
“It’s Friday. Today is Thursday.”
“When have you got the meetings with the shareholders?”
“We’ve got the meetings with the shareholders on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.”
II. Grammar:
The Numeral
Cardinal Numeral Ordinal Numeral
1 one The first
2 two The second
3 three The third
4 four The fourth
5 five The fifth
6 six The sixth
7 seven The seventh
8 eight The eighth
9 nine The ninth
10 ten The tenth
11 eleven The eleventh
12 twelve The twelfth
13 thirteen The thirteenth
14 fourteen The fourteenth
15 fifteen The fifteenth
16 sixteen The sixteenth
17 seventeen The seventeenth
18 eighteen The eighteenth
19 nineteen The nineteenth
20 twenty The twentieth
21 twenty-one The twenty-first
22 twenty-two The twenty-second
30 thirty The thirtieth
40 forty The fortieth
50 fifty The fiftieth
50
60 sixty The sixtieth
70 seventy The seventieth
80 eighty The eightieth
90 ninety The ninetieth
100 a (one) hundred The hundredth
101 a (one) hundred and one The hundred and first
125 a (one) hundred and twenty-five The hundred and twenty-fifth
200 two hundred The two hundredth
300 three hundred The three hundredth
1,000 a (one) thousand The thousandth
1,005 a (one) thousand and five The thousand and fifth
3,246 three thousand two hundred and The three thousand two hundred and forty-
forty-six six
10,000 ten thousand The ten thousandth
67,384 sixty-seven thousand three hundred The sixty seven thousand three hundred and
and eighty-four eighty-fourth
1,000,000 a (one) million
3,000,000,000 three billion
Dealing with numbers:

Numbers may be odd (impare) (3,5,7..) or even (pare) (2, 4,6….)
Saying “0”: TELEPHONE: 01022142486 oh one oh double two one four two four eight
six (Am. E. zero)
MATHEMATICS: 0.75 mm = nought point seven five of a millimetre
TEMPERATURE: -10 degrees= ten degrees below zero/minus ten degrees
FOOTBALL: 2-0 = two nil; tennis: 40-0 forty-love
Percentages: ½ a half; 1/3 a third; ¼ a quarter; 1/5 a fifth; 1/8 an eighth; 1/10 a tenth; 5/8
five-eights; 2/3 two thirds; ¾ three/quarters
Arithmetic : There are four basic processes for working out (calculating) a problem:
+= addition six plus four equals/is ten
-= subtraction six minus four equals/is two
x= multiplication six times/multiplied by four equals twenty-four
51
÷= division four divided by two equals/is two
Dates: we write 4 January (or 4th January) but we say; the fourth of
January or January the fourth;
1997: nineteen ninety-seven
1905: nineteen hundred and five; nineteen hundred oh five
III. Practice
A. Write the following numbers in letters:
462……………………………………………………
2 ½……………………………………………………
2,345……………………………………………….
6.75…………………………………………………..
0.25………………………………………………….
3 1/3……………………………………………………
1,250,000………………………………………………
10.04…………………………………………
47%..............................................................................
10 September……………………………………….
3 July…………………………………………………..
602 8477 (telephone number)……………………..
- 5centigrade
1903……………………………………………………..
1876…………………………………………………….
B. Correct the mistakes in these sentences.

1. After the game I heard the crowd was over twenty thousands.
2. We arrived on the ten September.
3. There were two hundred altogether.
4. I got twenty-five from forty in my test.
5. My birthday is thirty-one August.
6. My phone number is seven twenty three, six nought nine.
52
C. Write answers to these problems.
1. 23 and 36 is…………..
2. 24 times 8 is ……………..
3. 80 minus 20 is …………….
4. 65 divided by 13 is …………….
5. Add 10 and 6, multiply by 8, then subtract 40 and divide by 11. What have you got left?
6. Divide 33 by 11, multiply by 7, add 10, and subtract 16. What number is left?
D. Collocations.
a. Use words collocating with “time”.
Verbs: afford; consume; drag; fix; fly; lose; save; set; spare; take; take up; waste.
1. I think you are ………….. 1 your time, you can’t talk her over, she has made
up her mind.
2. He has …………….. 2 the time for the meeting.
3. Managers should think of time - ……………. 3 methods, and avoid time -
……………. 4 activities if these are not essential for them.
4. I won’t ……………. 5 much of your time. I am so busy that I can’t
……………… 6 the time to go to the conference.
5. He always ………….. 7 his time, he is never in a rush. When a theatre
performance is very boring and uninteresting you fell that time ……………..8
but you would like it to ………………. 9 to get out of the theatre sooner.
E14. Talking and Writing Points:

In Getting Things Done, management training specialist Roger Black talks about ‘the
magic hour’, an extra hour to catch up with everything you’ve been to busy to do. read the
text and do what he suggests.
THE MAGIC HOUR
Imagine you have one extra hour every week: your 169th hour. It occurs whenever you
want it to, and you can do whatever you want to see, or write letters to them, or do
anything that you’re currently feeling guilty about.
4
Activities E1-E4 have been taken from Powell Mark, In Company, Macmillan, 2002, pp.21-22.
53
− Write down five things that would make you happy in that hour (don’t give
yourself any restrictions or nagging guilt feelings about other jobs to be done).
− Write down five things that would give pleasure to someone else in that hour.
− Finally, write down five important things that you have been putting off, that yo
could at least start in the hour.
Then consider: If you could have last week all over again, where could you fit in the
magic hour? Resolve to fit it into this week at the same point. If you find that simply
the process of deciding to do this makes you feel good, you probably are not making
enough decisions of this nature. Make the magic hour a weekly habit.
E2. Compare what you wrote with other people in the class. Is there anything
everybody wanted to use the extra hour for?
E3. Listen to four business people talking about how being faster than the competition
affects their work. Which industry does each speaker belong to?
Speaker 1…………….. Speaker 3
Speaker 2…………….. Speaker 4
E4. Each speaker makes three main points from the list below. Write the number of
the speaker in each box.
a) The industry is more and more research-led.__________
b) You can’t stop competitors copying your ideas. __________
c) You need to move inventory very rapidly. _________
d) It’s the little details that add value to your product or service. ________
e) There’s no customer loyalty anymore. ___________
f) It’s very difficult to differentiate our product from the competition.
g) As much effort goes into branding as into technology.
h) Customers are better informed about the services you offer.
i) Product lead times are getting shorter and shorter.
j) Technology is advancing almost daily.
k) Costs are steadily falling.
l) You’re open for business all the time.
54
UNIT 5
COMPANY STRUCTURES
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
− become aware of a company’s basic organigram
− revise the use of the indefinite pronouns and adjectives
− revise the use of the genitive case
− be familiar with the key vocabulary specific to the topic
PART I
READ
PART II
LANGUAUGE FOCUS 1
The Indefinite pronouns and adjectives- Theory and practice
PART III
LANGUAGE FOCUS 2
The Genitive case – Theory and practice
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
BIBLIOGRAPHY:

Hollinger, Alexander, Test your Business English Vocabulary, Teora, 2006.
55
UNIT 5 COMPANY STRUCTURES
I. Warming-up:
a) If you are still studying:
1. What kind of organization do you want to work for?
2. In which department?
3. Do you think it will later be possible to change departments?
4. What do you think your first position will be?
5. Do you expect to have one immediate boss, to work for more than one superior, or to be
part of a team?
b) If you are already working:

1. What is your function or job title?
2. What are you responsible for?
3. Who are you responsible to (who do you report to)
4. Does anybody report to you?
5. What other units, departments or divisions do you regularly have to work with?
6. What other departments do you occasionally have conflicts with?
II. Reading:
Most organizations have a hierarchical or pyramidal structure, with one person or a
group of people at the top, and an increasing number of people below them at each
successive level. There is a clear line or chain of command running down the pyramid.
Everybody in the organization knows what decisions they are able to make, who their
superior (or boss) is (to whom they report), and who their immediate subordinates are (to
whom they can give instructions).
Some people in an organization have colleagues who help them: for example, there
might be an Assistant to the Marketing Manager. This is known as a staff position: its
holder has no line authority, and is not integrated into the chain of command, unlike, for
example, the Assistant Marketing Manager, who is number two in the marketing
department.
Yet the activities of most companies are too complicated to be organized in a
single hierarchy. Shortly before the first world war, the French industrialist Henry Fayol
56
organized his coal-mining business according to the functions that it had to carry out. He
is generally credited with inventing functional organization. Today, most large
manufacturing organizations have a functional structure, including (among others)
production, finance, marketing, sales, and personnel or staff departments. This means, for
example, that production and marketing departments cannot take financial decisions
without consulting the finance department.
Functional organization is efficient, but there are two standard criticisms. Firstly,
people are usually more concerned with the success of their department than that of the
company, so there are permanent battles between, for example, finance and marketing, or
marketing and production, which have incompatible goals. Secondly, separating functions
is unlikely to encourage innovation.
Yet for a large organization manufacturing a range of products, having a single
production department is generally inefficient. Consequently, most large companies are
decentralized, following the model of Alfred Sloan, who divided General Motors into
separate operating divisions in 1920. Each division had its own engineering, production
and sales departments, made a different category of car (but with some overlap, to
encourage internal competition), and was expected to make a profit.
An inherent problem of hierarchies is that people at lower levels are unable to
make important decisions, but have to pass on responsibility to their boss. One solution to
this is matrix management, in which people report to more than one superior. For
example, a product manager with an idea might be able to deal directly with managers
responsible for a certain market segment and for a geographical region, as well as the
managers responsible for the traditional functions of finance, sales and production. This
is one way of keeping authority at lower levels, but it is not necessarily a very efficient
one. Thomas Peters and Robert Waterman, in their well-known book In Search of
Excellence, insist on the necessity of pushing authority and autonomy down the line, but
they argue that one element-probably the product - must have priority; four-dimensional
matrices are far too complex.
A further possibility is to have wholly autonomous, temporary groups or teams that
are responsible for an entire project, and are split up as soon as it is successfully
completed. Teams are often not very good for decision-making, and they run the risk of
57
relational problems, unless they are small and have a lot of self-discipline. In fact they still
require a definite leader, on whom their success probably depends.
Activity 1:
Match up the words on the left with the definitions on the right.
1. autonomous A a system of authority with different levels, one above the
other
2. decentralization B a specific activity in a company, e.g. production, marketing,
finance
3. function C independent, able to take decisions without consulting a
higher authority
4. hierarchy D people working under someone else in a hierarchy
5. line authority E dividing an organization into decision-making units that are
not centrally controlled
6. report to F the power to give instructions to people at the level below in
the chain of command
7. subordinates G to be responsible to someone and to take instructions from
him or her
Vocabulary box (The most common verbs for describing structure or company
organization)
consists of; contains; includes; is composed of; is made up of;
is divided into; to be in charge of; to support or to be supported by; to be
accountable to; to be responsible for; to assist or to be assisted by
e.g.
The company consists of five main departments.
The marketing department is made up of three units.
The sales department is divided into two sections.
The marketing department is in charge of the sales force.
The five department heads are accountable to the Managing Director.
Activity 2:
Listen to a supervisor describing a company’s structure to a new intern and
complete the organigram:
58
Activity 3:
Listen again and answer the questions.
1. Why is the organization simple now?
2. Why does Bertram say it’s going to change?
3. Why does the Office Manager also take care of personnel matters?
4. What is the difference between the roles of the CEO and the COO at Warndar?
5. Who are Irysis? What happened about two years ago?
6. What happened to Roxane Pawle’s predecessor?
7. Which three departments are involved in development programs?
8. How are development programs coordinated?
Activity 4
Match the parts of the sentences from the listening to complete ways of describing
responsibilities.
1 You’re going to report a on a day-to-day basis.
2 She also looks b with strategy.
3 She has two accountants working c directly to me.
4 Davis runs the business d under her.
5 Merilyn deals e after finance.
6 Our Office Manager f to manage Marketing & Sales
7 He’s responsible g with me in Marketing.
8 Roxane is in charge h for building our product package.
9 My role is I takes care of personnel
10 He liaises j of IT and Technical Support.
Activity 5
Circle the word that does not belong in each horizontal group.
1 firm company society subsidiary
2 salary manager engineer employee
3 finance product planning marketing
4 ship assemble customer purchase
5 plant facility patent factory
59
Activity 6
Match the following definitions to the groups of three words that you identified
above
1 manufacturing sites ________
2 stages in the manufacturing process____________
3 people who work in a company ____________
4 types of business organization ____________
5 different departments in a company _____________
Activity 7
Match each of the words that you circled with the following definitions.
1___________________ payment for work, usually monthly
2___________________ an item that has been made
3 __________________ an organization or club with members who share similar interests
4 _________________ a document that gives the exclusive right to make or sell a new
product
5___________________ a person who buys goods or services
II. LANGUAGE FOCUS 1:

Indefinite Pronouns and Adjectives
The indefinite pronouns and adjectives: “some”; “any”, “no”, “every” and their
compounds
Affirmative sentences(+) Interrogative sentences (?) Negative sentences(-)

Some- ceva, nişte, câţiva, Any – ceva, nişte, câţiva, No- nici un, nici o, un fel
câteva, unii, unele câteva, unii, unele de, deloc
Any- orice, oricare Some- ceva, nişte, câţiva, Any- nici un, nici o, nici un
câteva fel de
The compounds of: “some”, “any”, “no”, “every”
60
body one thing where
some Somebody –cineva (+?) Someone - Something- ceva Somewhere-
cineva (+, ?) undeva (+?)
(+?)
any Anybody – cineva (?) Anyone – Anything – ceva Anywhere-
- nimeni (- cineva (?); (?), nimic (-), undeva (?);
) nimeni (-); orice (+) nicăieri (-);
- oricine oricine (+) oriunde (+)
(+)
no Nobody- nimeni (-) No one – Nothing – nimic Nowhere-
nimeni (-) (-) nicăieri (-)
every Everybody –fiecare, Everyone - Everything - totul Everywhere-
toţi, toată lumea fiecare, toţi, pretutindeni
toată lumea
Ex: There is some coffee in the cup. (indefinite adj)
Some of those clients are our friends. (indefinite pronoun)
Ask somebody about it. (indefinite pronoun)
Can you tell me something about it?
Is there any coffee in the cup? (indefinite adjective)
Are any of those clients your friends? (indefinite pronoun)
Is anybody at home? (indefinite pronoun)
There isn’t any coffee in the cup. (indefinite adjective) Nu este deloc cafea în
ceaşcă.
There isn’t anybody in the room. (indefinite pronoun)
Any manager can answer this question. (indefinite adjective) (oricare)
You may have anything on the table. (indefinite pronoun)
There is no coffee in the cup. (indefinite adjective)
There are no dictionaries on the table. (indefinite adjective)
Nobody can answer you questions (indefinite pronoun)
Every citizen has to pay taxes. (all citizens as a group) VS. Each member of the
football team must sign a contract. (Each person separately)
61
The values of everywhere:
a) adverb: We searched everywhere for them.
b) pronoun: Everywhere was very quiet.
c) conjunction: Everywhere I looked, there was death and destruction.
The use of everyone:

Everyone/ everybody wants to be happy. (the verb is in the singular)
Everyone should bring his/her own lunch. (formal speech)
Everyone should bring their own lunch (informal speech)
Practice:
A. Fill in the gaps with some, any, no or one of their compounds.
1. Is ………………….the matter with Dawn? She looks upset.
2. I think ……………… is trying to break into that house.
3. We’ve got ……………. time to make a cake before the party!
4. I’m thinking of moving to London.// Really? My boss has a house ……………near
London.
5. I suppose I should make……………….for dinner.
6. I looked in the TV guide. There’s hardly …………..good on tonight.
7. Do you like living in Brighton? // Yes, but ……………..will ever mean a much to me
as my home town.
8. Did you call Sarah this evening? // Yes, but ………………….was at home, so I left a
message on the answering machine.
9. There were …………….. very frightening rides at the fairground.// Really? I wish I had
come with you.
10. Oh no! I can’t think of ……………worse! Let’s go home!
B. Fill in the blanks with some, any, someone, anyone, none, somebody, anybody,
nobody, something, anything, and nothing:
1. I can’t see my wallet; ……………….must have taken it. 2. Do you have …………..to
add? 3. If you have o money, I can lend you…………….. 4. I rang the bell two or three
62
times, but …………. answered the door. Were you expecting…………..? 5. He must be
……………important. 6. ……………..is more important than good health. 7. You can
find practically …………………you want in this shop. 8. I think there’s ……………at
the door. Were you expecting …………….? 9, I have a very good wine. Would you like
……….? 10. The problem was so difficult that ……………could do it. 11. I want to show
you ……………interesting. 12. My younger sister has the television on every morning. It
doesn’t matter what’s on. She’ll watch ……………. 13. ………….. of us has ever heard
such an exciting story. 14. This time I can’t do ………….for you. 15. I’m going to the
supermarket since I want to buy ………………
C. Underline the correct word.

1 We can’t blame anyone/ no one but ourselves for this mess.
2 There’s anything/ nothing in the post for you this morning.
3 Anyone/Someone called for you earlier, but I don’t know who.
4 There isn’t anything/nothing in the post for you this morning.
5 Isn’t there anywhere/nowhere to go that’s open at this time of night?
6 Can I ask you anything/something?
7 There’s anyone/someone on the phone to speak to you.
8 You can do anything/something you want, it won’t make any difference.
9 Sorry, I don’t know anything/nothing about it.
10 No one/Someone knew what to do, so I used my own initiative.
III. LANGUAGE FOCUS 2

The Genitive case of the noun
The Genitive expresses possession, brand, authorship, origin, material, composition, and
measure: Mike’s company, Dickens’ book, the board of directors’ meeting
There are four Genitive forms in English:
The ‘S Genitive: The Chinese government’s national Audit Office held a press
conference in December to report on its work and auditors’ investigations in the country.
63
The auditors are among the central authorities’ most important weapons in their efforts
to clear up malpractice by business people and officials.
This genitive is formed as follows:
a) singular noun+ ‘s
My father’s company
b) plural noun + ‘
shareholders’ decision
c) irregular plural noun + ‘s
The women’s society.
Proper names ending in – s usually get only the apostrophe, although ‘s may also be used,
in either case the ending of the noun being normally pronounced /iz/:
Dickens’ novels
The ‘s Genitive is used with:

1) proper names: Deborah’s native town
2) name of persons: My sister’s dolls
When the “possessor” is represented by several words, the possessive ending is added
after the last one only: The employer and employee’s responsibility (they have the same
responsibility).
If each possessor is followed by ‘s, this means that the possessed objects differ:
The employer’s and the employee’s responsibility.
3) collective nouns: The Government’s decisions; Our team’s success
4) we can use the ‘s form without a following noun if the meaning is clear.
The project was a team effort, but the original idea was Helen’s.
5) A special use of ‘s is to refer to someone’s home, a shop name or a place name.
I’ll be at Jack’s this evening. (Jack’s house)
I’m going to Marks and Spencer’s. Do you want anything? (the shop)
I must go to the chemist’s/doctor’s/dentist’s. (the place where they work)
6) with names of chronological divisions or nouns denoting measurements, distance,
weight:
You must come to tomorrow’s meeting.
Have you read today’s newspaper?
64
She came back after a year’s absence.
6) in expressions for value/ quantity with worth
Could you give me a dollar’s worth of sugar?
7) with reference to the origin of something (where it comes from or who made it)
Oil is Saudi Arabia’s biggest export.
8) In certain fixed expressions:
For God’s sake!
For Heaven’s sake!
a minute’s delay
five cents’ worth
at arm’s length
The ‘of’ Genitive: It is made up with the help of the preposition of and it is used:
1) when the “possessor” is a thing: The roof of the house. The end of the street.
2) We can use of or apostrophe ‘s for places and organisations:
The historic centre of Prague OR Prague’s historic centre
The future of the company OR the company’s future
3) before substantivized adjectives: the needs of the poor
4) when the noun is followed by a verb phrase or clause which defines it:
This is the email address of the sales representative who came yesterday.
5) when we refer to a specific date
The old headquarters were destroyed in the bombing of 1995.
6) To show connection between people:
She is a friend of mine. OR She is my friend.
She is a colleague of Mary’s. OR She is Mary’s colleague.
7) In certain fixed expressions:
a choice of (flights); an error of (judgement); a flood of (complaints); a lack of
(funds); a method of (payment); a number of (factors); a waste of (time); the time of
(arrival); the strength of (the Euro);
The Double Possessive: It consists of the combined Analytical and Synthetical Genitives.
Notice the difference:
65
A portrait of Turner (=one portraying him)
A portrait of Turner’s (=one painted by him or belonging to him)
The Implicit Genitive: The Genitive relation is indicated, in this type of construction,
only by word order, having no other genitive markers:
Sun-rise (=the rise of the Sun)
The United Nations Organization (=The Organization of the United Nations)
The Student Hostel (=the hostel of the students)
The Union Square (the Square of the Union)
Practice:
A. Rewrite the sentences with apostrophes where necessary:
1. Susan should know that its Marys decision, not hers.
…………………………………………………………..
2. Alices friends names Bill. Hes one of Merrill Lynchs top analysts.
……………………………………………………………………..
3. Toyotas deal on its company cars is better than ours.
…………………………………………………………………..
4. I went to my doctors and hes computerised all the patients records.
……………………………………………………………………….
5. Its important to recognise that every company has its own particular culture, however
………………
…………………………………………………………………………….
6. Look at those two Mercedes. Ones our directors and the others a visitors.
…………………………………………………………………………………….
B. Complete the sentences with phrases from the list below.

error of flood of lack of level of method of piece of
range of stroke of waste of
1 I went there, but they were closed. It was a complete ……………. of time.
66
2 The product launch is a disaster. There’s a complete ……………….of interest.
3 You shouldn’t have told them that information. It was an ……………judgement.
4 Our hotel offers a wide ……………………facilities for the business traveller.
5 We have a relatively low ………………..unemployment in our country, just 4%.
6 I heard a very interesting…………………..information the other day.
7 We arrived just at the right time. What a …………… luck!
8 The advertisement has been very successful. There’s a ……………….inquiries.
9 The results must be correct. We used a very reliable ……………………data
analysis.
10 Things are moving so quickly in this field. The …………………change is very
fast.
C. Choose the correct version (a, b, or c) to complete the sentences below:

1 That’s ……………… house, isn’t it?
a) Jerry’s b) Jerry c) Jerrys
2 She can’t sit here. It’s ………….place.
a) Mike’s b) Mike c)Mike’s
3 I don’t find the …………..keys anywhere.
a) car’s b) car c) cars’
4 That’s Mr. Smith, the ………….husband.
a) teacher b) teachers’ c) teacher’s
5 Deborah is borrowing her ………….car today.
a) parent b) parents’ c) parent’s
6 My brother has been invited to a ……………..party this evening.
a) children’s b) childrens’ c) children
7 My father went to the ……………room to talk to my form teacher.
a) teacher b) teachers’ c) teacher’s
8 This is my ……………new dress.
a) daughter b) daughters c) daughter’s
D. Rephrase each of these by using an ‘s genitive form.

Ex. The responsibilities of the supervisors are distributed equally.
67
The supervisors’ responsibilities are distributed equally.
1. The policy of this company is to review salaries every six months.
2. The salaries of all employees are evaluated carefully
3. The performance of an employee of course, is most important.
4. The opinion of an immediate superior is also a major consideration.
5. The objectivity of the administration is reasonably high.
6. The loyal service of an employee is usually recognized.
7. A reward often follows the outstanding performance of someone
8. The employees of this company find the system fair.
9. The bosses know how to maintain the satisfaction of their workers.
68
SELF- ASSESSMENT TEST
I. Read the article below about doing business in Brazil.

Choose the best sentence from A to G to fill each of the gaps.
BUSINESS PROTOCOL IN BRAZIL

First things first: North Americans should never refer to their country as
‘America’. (0) ……………….South Americans, particularly Brazilians, find North
Americans arrogant when they refer to back home as ‘America’. After all, Brazilians live
in America, too.
Brazilians take pride in their Portuguese heritage, so to call locals Spanish-
Americans would be insulting. On the same note, Brazil’s official language is Portuguese,
not Spanish. Frequently, the spelling of Portuguese words is exactly the same as Spanish,
but the pronunciation differs greatly. (1) …………………………
If your business destination is Rio de Janeiro, land of carnival and the samba,
expect a somewhat casual environment. (2) ……………………..Bring comfortable semi-
casual clothes for business in Rio, and conservative dark suits or dresses for São Paolo
and lateness is considered rude and unbusinesslike. (3) ……………………. If you called
a meeting at four, a Rio citizen may interpret gathering time as around four (like maybe
four-fifteen or so). Whatever you do, don’t be put off or indicate that you were concerned
about the late arrival; your South American counterpart won’t understand.
Shaking hands and exchanging business cards begins any first business meeting in
Brazil. At that time, introductions are made. Formalize your contact’s first name by
preceding it with Senhor, Senhora or Senhorita (Mr, Mrs, Miss). The surname is not
generally used. (4) …………………… In that manner, once you’ve become friendly with
Senhora Astrud, you would expect to simply call her Astrud.
If you are indicating approval on a business matter, never give the OK sign of a
ring formed by the thumb and index finger. (5) ………………………… Instead, close
the fist and shoot the thumb up. During the business day you will most likely be offered
cafezinho, a very strong Brazilian coffee. Accept it graciously so as not to offend your
host. If you don’t like coffee, sip it slowly.
69
A In Rio on the other hand, your host may not always be so punctual.
B So, before opening your mouth in this country, learn to speak a few words and
avoid committing a cultural offence.
C This is a very impolite gesture in Brazil and likely to cause great offence.
D However, when scheduling meetings in São Paolo, you’ll find business settings
just the opposite: quite formal.
E Good manners and polite behaviour are highly valued in business dealings in
Brazil.
F Soon after this formality, the title is usually dropped at the request of your host.
G It is better to say you’re from the United States.
II.Answer the following questions:

1 Write down three countries where people speak French.
2 What languages are spoken in Belgium?
3 What are the people from Sweden called?
4 Write down three languages spoken in Switzerland.
5 What language is spoken in Egypt?
6 How do you call a person coming from Poland?
7 Where do people speak Cantonese?
8 What are the people from Finland called?
9 What language does a Dane speak?
10 Lisbon is the capital of ……….?
II. Put the adjectives in brackets in the comparative or superlative adding any other
necessary words.
Dear Leo,
I’m writing to tell you about my new house. It’s ….............…. 1 (big) house I’ve
ever lived in, but also…….............…. 2 (expensive). Still, it’s much ………......….3
(nice) than my last house. Although the garden is a little …................…… 4(small), the
70
rooms are much ………................ 5 (spacious) and there is much ……............6 (little)
noise. The area I live in now is …………......…. 7 (peaceful) place I’ve ever lived in. The
neighbours are …………… 8 (quiet) here than anywhere else, and they are ………......9
(friendly) people you will ever meet.
There are lots of flowers here, so it’s much ………......................…….. 10
(colorful) than my
previous home, and there is a bus stop near my house, so it’s ………………........ 11
(convenient) than before because I don’t have to take my car to work. All in all, I can say
that finding this house is …....................… 12 (good) thing that’s ever happened to me! I
hope you will visit me here soon.
Love,
Helen
III. Choose the right words from the box to complete the sentences
impulsive; adventurous; aggressive;
decisive; flexible; informal; motivating; passionate; persuasive;
8. He was rather …………. –not the kind of person who plans what they say or do.
9. His style of leadership was quite …………………… He was always so
competitive and so eager to succeed that many of us often found him ruthless.
10. If you want to get to the top, you have to be ………………., I mean be prepared to
take risks and to try new ways of doing things.
11. She doesn’t just tell us to do things – she makes us want to do them. We’re lucky
too have such a ……………..team leader.
12. She was a ……………….. chairwoman, with a very strong belief in the mission of
our organisation and very intense feelings about our achievements.
13. We always do what she wants us to because she gives us good reasons for doing it.
She is very …………..
7. What they need is a ……………….person, someone who can choose the right
course of action even in a very difficult situation.
IV. Write the following numbers in words:

a) 743
71
b) 4 2/3
c) 6,298
d) 1 May
e) In 1972
f) 60-30=
g) 0.75
h) 22nd
i) 68%
j) 205 971 (phone number)
V. Choose the correct answer:

1. I brush my teeth twice ……… day.
a. a b the c one
2. The advice you gave me …….. really useful.

a were b are c was
3. She spends …………..of her income on clothes.

a a large amount b many c a large number
4. The news………. on the radio this afternoon.

a announced b is announced c was announced
5. …………… president is coming on an official visit in the first week of May.

a An b A c The
6. A young porter helped me to carry my ………..

a luggages b piece of luggages c luggage d pieces of luggages
7. There were a lot of ……….. on the floor.

a. mouse b mouses c mice d mices
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8. I have no money in my purse; I have forgotten ……….. at home.
a they b it c them d its
9. A man whose wife is dead is a……..

a. widow b widower c spinster d bachelor
10. I’m so excited! It’s my first day ……

a at job b in job c in work d at work
73

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SUPORT CURS ENGLEZA

NETWORKING ACROSS CULTURES

TIME NEEDED TO COVER THE TOPIC: 4 hours

Ciuciuc, Olea, English for Business Purposes, Teora, Bucureşti 1999.

Activity 2- Case study

Activity 3- Vocabulary practice

B. Put the words in the correct order to make idioms.

C. Use an idiom from exercise B to complete these sentences

II. Language focus 1

Australia the Australians an Australian English Australian

III. Language focus 2: THE NOUN

Others have different forms:

brick – bricks manager- managers

Nouns ending in – f or –fe add –ves for the plural form.

Exception from this rule: cliff- cliffs; handkerchief- handkerchiefs; safe-safes

Some nouns can be used as countable or uncountable, with a difference in meaning.

Irregular plural (nouns of Latin and Greek origin)

• verbs (recruit-recruitment, refer-reference, perform-performance, promote-

A/an, some, a lot of, any, many, much, few, little

• Some is common in affirmative statements, and any is common in negative

But we can use some in a question if it is an offer or request.

C. What do we call the following things or people?

1. A person who drives a bus is ………………

accommodation/ flat; desk/furniture; bag/luggage; work/job; travel/trip

1. The box isn’t empty (something)

2. Let me tell you what I think you should do. (advice)

3. We travelled there on the train. (by)

4. Every morning I walk to the office. (foot)

5. There is little travel in my job. (much)

TIME NEEDED TO COVER THE TOPIC: 4 hours

Ciuciuc, Olea, English for Business Purposes, Teora, Bucureşti 1999.

II. Useful Language: I’m…. I’m a….

Match the following extended responses to the answers above (A-L).

III. Language focus:

1. The Indefinite Article: a/an

“An” is used with nouns starting with vowels or an h mute:

2. The Definite Article

- We use the with nationalities and other groups.

- We use the with superlatives.

- We use the before ordinal numbers

- With decades, or group of years:

SPECIAL USES OF THE

- with proper nouns: Mark lives in Brighton.

Special uses of “no article”:

B. Fill in a, an, or some where necessary:

C. Put either a/ an or a dash (-) to show no article.

D. Fill in a, an, or the where necessary:

E. Choose the correct alternative.

1. Catherine loves cats/ the cats.

F. Fill in the where necessary, justifying your answers. 2

WHAT GOOD MANAGERS DO

TIME NEEDED TO COVER THE TOPIC: 6 hours

Ciuciuc, Olea, English for Business Purposes, Teora, Bucureşti 1999.

Activity 1: Before you read:

1. What personal qualities are essential in a good manager?

B. Complete the text with the best words.

1 a) contract b) relationship c) report d) friendship

B. Put each group of words into the best order.

C. Fill in : the + adjective or the + adjective + people.

D. Make compound adjectives to describe the following:

III. Language focus II: Adjectives and adverbs

2) Adverbs of DEGREE (absolutely, completely, totally, extremely, very, quite,

3) We can put an adverb at the beginning of a sentence if we want to emphasise it.