Flowchart: Present Perfect or Past Simple?

Inviting and making arrangements

To be able to invite your business partners or arrange meeting with foreign friends you need to learn some phrases.

1.Learn the phrases:

Checking someone is free

Are you free?

Are you doing anything?

Is (Sunday) any good for you?

Making invitations

Would you like to…?

Do you fancy + verb + ing?

Accepting invitations

Sounds great!

Yeah, I’d like/love to…

That’s be lovely!

Refusing invitations (apology + reason)

I’m afraid I can’t make it because…

I’m really sorry, but I can’t … because…

Suggesting a time/place to meet

Shall we meet outside the restaurant at eight?

Suggesting a different time/place to meet

How about +  ing… instead?

Could we meet… instead?

Nationality idioms

 Sometimes English people use the name of nationalities in their common everyday phrases.

1. Learn these idioms:

to go Dutch

=everyone pays for himself in a pub or a restaurant.

Dutch courage

= confidence gained after you drink some alcohol

Idioms for ordering food in a restaurant

1.  When you eat in a restaurant with your friend, do you usually:

• go Dutch (split the bill  in half) 
• treat your friend (pay for him/her) ?

2. Listen and read the conversation. Pay attention to the words in bold.

  

How to describe objects

   1. Which three possessions are very important to you?

________                Somebody special gave it to me.
________                It makes me feel happy.
________                It makes my life easier.

2.  Look at these pictures and learn the words.  If you are not sure about their meaning, look up the new words in the dictionary.

brand new

antique /ænˈtiːk/

heavy /ˈhev.i/

Idioms for making small talk

1. Listen and read the conversation. Pay attention to the words in bold.

A: What’s eating you?

B: What do you mean? I’m fine.

A:No,you aren’t. Come on,whatever it is, get  it off your chest.

B:Well… see that woman over there?Her name is Elizabeth. I’ve been trying to find a way to meet het for months, and now, here she is. But I don’t have the guts to walk over there.

A: Come on,Bill! This is your chance. Just give it shot. What do you have to lose?

Do something new for 30 days

1.  Look at Matt Cutts, a top manager at Google.

Matt Cutts

What changes has he made to his lifestyle?

He:

• has written a novel
• has climbed a famous mountain
• has learnt a new language
• has given up eating meat
• has given up sugar
• has started cycling to work  ?

2. Watch and check your ideas.