Group Class Notes (Raph)

Original: 

Picking a Color for the House

Peter just moved to a new house. The house is white, but he thinks that color is too boring. He then decides to go to the paint store and try to find a new shade. He looks at the different colors and feels very undecided at first. Initially he sees a red bucket. Red is too daring. He then finds a blue bucket. Blue is too sad. What about yellow? Yellow is too bright. He finally sees a green bucket and thinks: green is absolutely perfect.

Upgraded:

Picking / choosing / deciding on / selecting a Color / shade / paint / dye for the house / apartment / building / household / property

Peter just / recently / newly moved / transferred / relocated / changed to a new / brand new / fresh house. The house is white, but he thinks / figures / believes / considers / guesses that color is too boring / uninteresting / unimaginative / tedious. He then decides / makes a decision / chooses / resolves / opts to go to the paint / color / dye store / shop / studio and try / attempt to find / look for / discover / search for a new shade. He looks / watches / sees / stares at the different / dissimilar / various / diverse colors and feels very/ really / quite / extremely / too undecided / unresolved / unsure at first. Initially / at first / in the beginning he sees a red bucket. Red is too daring / risky / bold / dangerous. He then finds a blue bucket. Blue is too sad / unhappy / gloomy. What about yellow? Yellow is too bright / shiny / vivid. He finally / in the end / at last sees a green bucket and thinks: green is absolutely / exactly / extremely / really / definitely perfect / flawless / great .

Vocabulary

Synonym (n): 1- a word or phrase that has the same or nearly the same meaning as another word or phrase in the same language.
E.g.: The words “small” and “little” are synonyms.

Antonym (n): 1- a word that means the opposite of another word:
E.g.: Two antonyms of “light” are “dark” and “heavy”.

Bucket (n): 1-  a container with an open top and a handle, often used for carrying liquids.
E.g.: We walked along the beach collecting small crabs in a bucket.
E.g.: I filled the bucket with water.

Shade (n): 1- a type or degree of a color:
E.g.: Their kitchen is painted an unusual shade of yellow.
E.g.: This hair coloring comes in several shades.

Initially (adv): 1- at first / in the beginning.
E.g.: Initially he didn’t like her, but after some time they became very good friends.
E.g.: Initially I didn’t like my job, but two months ago I fell in love with it.

Daring (adj): 1– bold, brave and taking risks:
E.g.: This is a daring new film (= one willing to risk criticism) by one of our most original modern directors.
E.g.: She was wearing a fairly daring (= short) skirt that barely covered her bottom.
E.g.: Chinese people have a much more daring sense of fashion than Western people.

Household (n): 1- a group of people, often a family, who live together; or the house where they live.
E.g.: By the 1960s, most households had a TV.

Attempt (v): 1- to try
E.g.: I am attempting to improve my English.
E.g.: I’m attempting to walk more, so I can improve my health.

Brand new (adj): 1-
E.g.: My mother just gave me a brand new watch for my birthday.
E.g.: Getting a brand new phone makes me happy.

Imaginative (adj): 1- new, original, and clever. (≠unimaginative)
E.g.: The architects have made imaginative use of glass and transparent plastic.
E.g.: The artist uses color in a very imaginative way.
E.g.: I think the house is nice, but the decoration is too unimaginative.

Opt (v): 1- to choose.
E.g.: Many students opt for business studies simply because it sounds like a guarantee for a good job.
E.g.: I had to opt for this car because it was cheaper.
E.g.: It’s hard for me to opt between two books.

Tedious (n): 1- boring.
E.g.: This professor is very smart, but his class is tedious!
E.g.: This movie is very tedious.

Stare (v): 1- to look for a long time with the eyes wide open, especially when surprised, frightened, or thinking.
E.g.: Don’t stare at people like that, it’s rude.
E.g.: It’s impolite to stare at people.
E.g.: Sometimes I stare at something, but I’m actually thinking of something else.

Dissimilar (adj): 1- different.
E.g.: The new house is not dissimilar (= is similar) to our old one, except that it’s slightly bigger.

Various (adj): 1- many different.
E.g.: We had various problems on our journey.
E.g.: The author gave various reasons for having written the book.

Diverse (adj): 1- including many different types of people or things.
E.g.: Students from countries as diverse as Colombia and China use Cambridge textbooks.
E.g.: New York is a very culturally diverse city.

Gloomy (adj): 1- unhappy and without hope.
E.g.: She had a very gloomy expression on her face.
E.g.: The cemetery is a gloomy place.

Vivid (adj): 1- very brightly colored.
E.g.: She was wearing a vivid pink shirt.

Flawless (adj): 1- perfect or without mistakes.
E.g.: The actress gave an absolutely flawless performance on that movie.
E.g.: Her boss was very happy about the flawless work she did.
E.g.: He looked flawless on the red carpet.