Дружеские встречи с английским языком (4-е издание)

Умереть: to go pop; to conk out, to go West, to kick the bucket, to croak, to cash the chip, to be out the road.

Различные слова и выражения: to game, to crank it on — врать; to spin a yarn — рассказывать («плести»); to get the needle — беспокоиться, тревожиться; pen-pusher — журналист, писака; Limey — англичанин; Doughboy — американец; bull, bobby, copper, blue boy, Big John — полицейский; batchy, dotty, loony — ненормальный, «псих»; to spoon — ухаживать; spoony — глуповатый, влюбленный; togs — одежда; duds — одежонка; undies — нижнее белье; crib, digs — дом, квартира; blood-waggon — машина скорой помощи; to stick up, to pinch — красть; to crack a crib — совершить кражу со взломом; cracksman, crook — вор; shakedown artist — мошенник.

Ознакомившись с этим любопытным лексиконом, вы сможете увидеть, какими различными средствами образуются новые слова и выражения, какие остроумные сравнения кроются в словосочетаниях. Надо отметить, что проблема сленга интересовала и интересует лингвистов как за рубежом, так и в нашей стране, ведь в живом языке нет ничего второстепенного — все важно, все интересно!

А ну-ка, повторим глагольные времена!

Active Voice

Present Indefinite. The journalist L. Sidorovsky writes in the Leningrad newspaper “Smena”.

Past Indefinite. Valentin Pikul wrote a very good novel about the participation of Murmansk fishermen in the Second World War.

Future Indefinite. We expect that General Lagutkin will write his memoirs.

Future Indefinite in the Past. The men and girls of the Leningrad Red Banner Air Raid Defence hoped that K. Simonov would write a novel about the heroic activities of the whole population of Leningrad regardless of age and health.

Present Continuous. I am writing to you, I cannot help it.

Past Continuous. Everybody left the Editorial Office, but I was still writing my account.

Future Continuous. Children, don’t be noisy, father will be writing a very important article in his study.

Future Continuous in the Past. I thought I should be writing letters the whole afternoon, but I had a headache and had to lie down and take some pills.

Present Perfect. Dora has never written such nonsense in her letters!

Past Perfect. Kitty had written “An Open Letter to the Readers” before the manager rang up and said it was unnecessary.

Future Perfect. The director of the printing shop says he will have written the promised editorial by six p.m.

Future Perfect in the Past. The poet D. said he would have written an epigram by the beginning of the evening party.

Present Perfect Continuous. You have been writing this litile fairy tale for a month and cannot bring yourself to finish it.

Past Perfect Continuous. I had been writing this exercise for three hours but the electricity went out and I could not finish it.

Future Perfect Continuous. Mother will have been writing the New Year greeting-cards the whole afternoon till it is time to go to the theatre.

Future Perfect Continuous in the Past. She insisted that I should have been writing for two hours by the time she came home from the cinema.

Passive Voice

Present Indefinite Passive. The best poem about Lenin is written by Mayakovsky.

Past Indefinite Passive. The script of the TV film transmitted yesterday was written by an unknown author.

Future Indefinite Passive. Lots of poems and songs will be written for the great Anniversary by our poets and composers.

Future Indefinite Passive in the Past. The teacher said that the next test paper would be written in a week.

Present Continuous Passive. Wait a moment, the article is being written, it will be ready in ten minutes.

Past Continuous Passive. This document was being written by the lawyer during half an hour.

Present Perfect Passive. The letter of condolence has just been written and I feel like going for a walk.

Past Perfect Passive. Many diaries that had been written by Leningrad journalists, students and even schoolchildren during the war were destroyed by bombing and fire.

Future Perfect Passive. Answers to three business letters from Manchester will have been written by 3 p.m.