VIP Class Notes (Nick)

Compare Shanghai and Tianjin, and talk about what you will do to move to Tianjin, and when.
(Use “later,” “after,” “from now,” etc.)

Vocabulary

Workday – the time when you are working
Day – usually when it is light, or 24 hours
e.g. I don’t do laundry on workdays, only when I’m off (not working).
e.g. I will come to SmartEnglish during the day once a week.

Weekend/Weekday – opposites
e.g. Monday through Friday are weekdays.
e.g. Saturday and Sunday are the weekend.
BUT, you might work on the weekend, so then you have a day which is BOTH a workday and on the weekend.
ALSO, if you don’t work on weekday, that is not a workday even though it’s a weekday.

After vs. Later vs. From Now
— “From now” is just to talk about when you will do something; it just relates it to now, not to another activity or a date
e.g. Two weeks from now, I will go to Xiamen.
— After relates two activities
e.g. I will go to the store after I eat lunch.
— Later is more general; you shouldn’t use it to give specific times; sometime in the future
e.g. I will do it later (I’m not saying when, or what else I will do before then)
Compare:
e.g. I arrived two hours after he did (one sentence, relating the actions)
e.g. He arrived at six, and I arrived two hours later (two ideas, related by context)

Slower pace of life
e.g. The pace of life in Tianjin is slower than in Shanghai.

Grammar

After two months I will go to Tianjin – Two months from now I will go to Tianjin

To back to my hometown – to go back to my hometown

Same with you – same as you / just like you / same with me
— “same as you” usually means that we are comparing people
e.g. He’s just the same as you! (you like the same things, or talk in the same way)
— “just like you” usually means that two people are doing the same thing
e.g. He lives in Shanghai, just like you.
e.g. He takes the train to work, just like you.
— “same with me” means that I have the same opinion or the same situation
e.g. I don’t like pineapple on pizza.
Same with me! I hate it.
e.g. I think that the new tax is going to be bad for me.
Same with me!

There are a few chances for what I am doing now – There are few opportunities to do what I am doing now
— “Chance” is about how likely something is to happen.
— “Chance” is measured as “high” or “low”
e.g. The chance that I can find an open position is high.
— “Opportunity” is about a specific thing you can do
e.g. I am hoping that an opportunity will open up.
e.g. I would like an opportunity to show that I can do this.
e.g. The chance that I would get the opportunity is high.

Few vs. A Few
— “Few” means not many
— “A few” means there are some
e.g. There are a few apples (there are some apples, so you can get one if you want; you can still choose)
e.g. There are few apples (there aren’t many, and finding them could be hard)