Used to/ Be Used to (I used to/ I am used to)

Patrick is an expatriate working for an international company in Indonesia. He has spent his entire life in the USA. Therefore, he had never eaten spicy food before. At first, he found the food is too spicy for him.

• Patrick was not used to eating spicy. <---- it means that he could not tolerate spicy food in the past.
• After a year living in Indonesia, Patrick got used to eating spicy food. <---- it means that he now could tolerate spicy food
• Three years later, Patrick is used to eating spicy food. <---- he can tolerate spicy food now.

"get/ be + used + to +V-ing" is to show that someone is getting accustomed to something. In the case above, Patrick is now accustomed to spicy food.

How about "Used to"?
"Used to" and "be/get used to" are completely different meaning. See below for illustration

• I am used to smoking. <--- this means that you smoke now. or you get accustomed to smoke.
  
• I used to smoke. <--- this means that you stop smoking now. or you are no longer a smoker. But before you were a smoker.
  

Exercise

1. Hans was a vegetarian. Now, he is no longer a vegetarian.
   Hans (used to/ be used to) (eat) only vegetable. Now, he (used to/ be used to) (eat) beef.
2. Jenny weighted at 100 kg and was considered fat. She exercised a lot and lose weight. She is slim now.
   Jenny (used to/ be used to) (eat) a lot of junk food. Now, she (used to/ be used to) (eat) healthy food.
   

Prefer...to... and would rather ... than ...

Prefer and would rather are used to show our preference over something. Lets learn how to use each of them in sentences that indicate our preference.

Prefer
Four ways to use prefer:

• I prefer fish(Noun) to chicken(Noun).
• I prefer eating fish to eating chicken. <----- prefer + V-ing + noun + to +V-ing + noun.
• I prefer to eat fish rather than chicken. <---- prefer to + verb(base form) + noun + rather than + noun.
• I prefer to eat fish rather than eat chicken. <---- prefer to + verb(base form) + noun + rather than + verb(base form) noun.

Would Rather

• I would rather eat chicken than eat fish. <----- would rather + verb(base form) + noun + than + verb(base form) + noun
  
• I would rather eat chicken than fish. <----- would rather + verb(base form) + noun + than + noun

Exercise
Use I prefer ... to .... for the following. The preference is up to you

1. (walk/ drive)
2. (water/milk)
3. (McDonald/ KFC)
4. (Basketball/Football)

Now use "I prefer to .... rather than ...." to no 1 to 4

Now use "I would rather ...... than ........"

1. (car/bus)
2. (eat at home/ at restaurant)
3. (sit at aisle seat/ at window seat)

Answer:



1. I prefer walking to driving a car.
2. I prefer water to milk.
I prefer drinking water to drinking milk.
3. I prefer KFC to McDonald.
I prefer eating KFC to eating McD.
4. I prefer basketball to football.
I prefer playing basketball to playing football

I prefer to ... rather than ...
1. I prefer to walk rather than drive a car.
2. I prefer to drink water rather than milk.
3. I prefer to eat KFC rather than eat McD.
4. I prefer to play basketball rather than football.

I would rather ... than ...

1. (car/bus)
2. (eat at home/ at restaurant)
3. (sit at aisle seat/ at window seat)

1. I would rather drive a car than ride taxi.
I would rather drive a car than taxi.
2. I would rather eat at home than at restaurant.
I would rather eat at home than eat at restaurant.
3. I would rather sit at aisle seat than at window seat.

Vocabulary Practice 012110

Exercise 1

Use the vocabulary listed below in the sentences

Vocabulary

descend	dodge	conveys	relocated	defected
embarks	commute	transmitted	conduct	dislocated

1. The boxer swayed quickly to the right to _________ his opponent's punch.
2. The submarine began to ________ underwater.
3. Ms Jane slipped while in the bathroom. She has got her shoulder joint _________
4. I ________ by car to work everyday.
5. The ship finally ________ on its journey to Atlantic
6. A soldier ________ to the enemies during the war because he felt discontented with his country.
7. The police _________ random search for terrorist suspect in the airport.
8. Our office has been ___________ to a new location at Alexandra street.
9. The speaker ________ his message very well.
10. The new flu strain can be easily ___________ by air.

Answer in reverse order: transmitted, conveys, relocated, conduct, defected, embark, commute, dislocated, descent, dodge




Exercise 2

articulate	accent	translate	jargon	dialects
grammar	colloquial	linguist	vocabulary	fluently

1. He is such an _________ speaker. He could easily mesmerize his audience.
2. When writing an article, do not use a lot of _______ that most people might not understand the meaning.
3. He speaks German ___________.
4. We were encouraged to read daily newspaper to expand our __________ of english words.
5. India has many _________, spoken by people of different region.
6. You have to ___________ the documents to english by tomorrow morning!
7. Many beginner english students use ___________ words and phrases which are acceptable for conversation but not for writing english.
8. Based on his _________, he might be from Australia.
9. A __________ is someone who could speak a lot of languages.
10. You need to do more exercise on ________. This is to improve your basic tenses.

Answer in revers: grammar, linguist, accent, colloquial, translate, dialects, vocabulary, fluently, jargons, articulate.

Mengenai TOEFL IBT

TOEFL adalah sarana untuk menguji kemampuan bahasa inggris anda. Nilai TOEFL digunakan sebagai tolak ukur kemampuan and kesiapan anda untuk belajar atau bekerja di negara yang menggunakan bahasa Inggris: Amerika. Hampir semua universitas di Amerika menerima nilai TOEFL anda.

TOEFL dibagi menjadi 3: Paper based, CBT (computer based) dan IBT (internet based). TOEFL pada saat ini adalah IBT. Pertanyaan grammar yang terdapat pada CBT dan paper based tidak akan lagi muncul dalam TOEFL-IBT.

TOEFL IBT menguji anda dalam 4 area:

• reading - 30 points. 3 bacaan, 12-14 pertanyaan setiap bacaan, 60 menit total
  


• listening - 30 points. 2 conversation, 4 short lectures, 45 menit total
  


• speaking - 30 points. Berbicara mengenai pengalaman/ pendapat anda. Anda juga akan mengutarakan pendapat anda setelah membaca/ mendengarkan sebuah materi. 20 menit total
  


• writing - 30 points. Baca dan dengarkan sebuah materi yang disediakan, kemudian tulis karangan anda berdasarkan pertanyaan seputar materi yang telah anda dengar dan baca. Bagian ke-2 anda akan diminta menulis karangan berdasarkan topik yang disediakan. 50 menit total
  

Score yang diperlukan untuk masuk universitas kira-kira adalah 77 (Purdue University). Anda harus cek universitas yang anda ingin daftar untuk melihat permintaan minimum nilai TOEFL anda.

Reading
Untuk reading disarankan anda untuk memahami ide dan point-point dari seluruh bacaan. Anda juga bisa harus memahami arah pembicaraan dalam bacaan. Apa hubungan paragraf 1 dan 2.. Pertanyaan-pertanyaan adalah sbb:

• vocabulary questions - anda akan ditanya kosa kata.
  


• paraphrase kalimat yang ada dibacaan. Anda harus memilih kalimat yang artinya sama dengan kalimat yang di tandai di bacaan anda.


• pertanyaan yang jawabannya bisa anda temukan langsung dibacaan.


• pertanyaan yang jawabannya anda harus bisa men-deduksikan dari bacaan.


• pertanyaan dimana anda diminta untuk merangkum seluruh isi bacaan.

Listening
Dalam listening, anda diperbolehkan mencatat selagi mendengarkan pembicaraan. Sering kali sepotong bagian pembicaraan akan di ulang sebelum pertanyaan. Jangan kuatir untuk menghafal istilah atau detail dari pembicaraan yang anda dengar. Sama seperti reading, dengarkanlah dan tangkaplah makna dan alur pembicaraan secara keseluruhan.

Speaking
Anda akan diminta berbicara mengenai pertanyaan-pertanyaan yang diberikan. Jangan kuatir karena anda diberi waktu untuk mempersiapkan topik-topik yang akan anda bicarakan. waktu persiapan kira-kira 15-30 detik. Tulislah point-point penting saja.

Jangan kuatir mengenai aksen/logat bicara anda. Gunakalah logat bicara natural anda. Penilai tidak melihat logat anda tetapi melihat apakah pengucapan anda benar dan jelas.

Writing
Ketika menulis untuk TOEFL anda tidak perlu menggunakan kosa-kata yang tidak lazim. Jangan menggunakan kosa-kata yang anda tidak terlalu yakin penggunaannya.

Inti penting dari sebuah writing adalah:

• grammar yang baik dan benar
  
• isi yang relevant dengan topik
  
• kata-kata atau kalimat penguhubung antara paragraf yang satu ke berikutnya

Mohon melihat blog tentang cara menulis essay argumentatif yang baik dan benar.

Subject-Verb Agreement

Basic rule of subject-verb:

• Countable
• Singular - Use Singular Verb
  An apple is priced at $5.00
  
• plural - Use Plural Verb
  Two apples are priced at $7.00
• Uncountable - always use singular very
  
  Water is very important if you want to survive.

Identify which is the subject

	The effects of the terrorist attack are seen even today.	subject: effects - plural
Noun1 + and + Noun2	The apples offered by Jane are very crispy and delicious.	subject:apples - plural
Two nouns joined with the following: together with as well as accompanied by with/along with The first noun is the subject	His boss and colleague encourage him to open a bakery. Danny and Jane invite you to their wedding. His mother as well as his friends encourages him to study engineering. The english professor, together with his assistants, is going to attent the seminar	subject: boss+colleague(plural) subject: Danny and Jane (plural) Subject: His mother (singular) Subject: The english professor (singular)
With certain expression of quantity: some of, two thirds of, most of, a lot of, lots of, ninety percent of depend on the noun that follow	Some of the book is boring. Some of the books are boring. A lot of equipment is purchased. A lof of machines are damaged during the riot.	Subject: Equipment (singular) Subject: Machines(plural)
"There is/ are" depends on the noun that follow	There is nobody There are many books on the table.
who, which, what ...	He is the president who approves the new law. I want a computer which is very light and portable She is one of my teachers who punish me all the time	president(singular) - approves a computer(singular) - is my teachers(plural) - punish

Some Subject is Always SINGULAR

Indefinite pronouns: one, each every, everyone, everybody, somebody, no one, nobody, anyone, either, neither	Everyone is required to wear a shoe. No one is going to receive special treatment. Either of the men is lying. Neither of the boys is telling the truth.
The following collective nouns: equipment, machinery, furniture, ammunition, installation, electricity, information, advice, feedback, software, advertising, mail, postage, update, education, housing, nutrition, pollution, contamination, conservation, clothing, foods, health, manpower, leadership, evidence, justice, violence, peance, tolerance, honesty, reliability	Violence has always resulted in destruction. Electricity is very unstable in certain remote regions. The furniture is dirty. The equipment needs to be replaced.
Some nouns end with -s, but they are singular: news, economics, politics, statistics, mathematics, physics, the United States	Statistics is the most hated subject in collage. Physics has been my interest. The news is boring. The United States does not tolerate the use of drug.
The number of + ........	The number of people is 1000.
Anything about money, time and distance	One dollar is a lot in some countries. 20 dollars is too much for that kind of item. One mile is easy to run. Two miles is quite easy. 10 minutes is all the time I need to fix the problem.
Two nouns that naturally comes together: Bread and butter, Bed and breakfast	Fish and chips is my favourite snack. Bed and breakfast in that county costs only $70.

Some Subjects are Always SINGULAR

Indefinite pronouns: one, each every, everyone, everybody, somebody, no one, nobody, anyone, either, neither	Everyone is required to wear a shoe. No one is going to receive special treatment. Either of the men is lying. Neither of the boys is telling the truth.
The following collective nouns: equipment, machinery, furniture, ammunition, installation, electricity, information, advice, feedback, software, advertising, mail, postage, update, education, housing, nutrition, pollution, contamination, conservation, clothing, foods, health, manpower, leadership, evidence, justice, violence, peance, tolerance, honesty, reliability	Violence has always resulted in destruction. Electricity is very unstable in certain remote regions. The furniture is dirty. The equipment needs to be replaced.
Some nouns end with -s, but they are singular: news, economics, politics, statistics, mathematics, physics, the United States	Statistics is the most hated subject in collage. Physics has been my interest. The news is boring. The United States does not tolerate the use of drug.
The number of + ........	The number of people is 1000.
Anything about money, time and distance	One dollar is a lot in some countries. 20 dollars is too much for that kind of item. One mile is easy to run. Two miles is quite easy. 10 minutes is all the time I need to fix the problem.
Two nouns that naturally comes together: Bread and butter, Bed and breakfast	Fish and chips is my favourite snack. Bed and breakfast in that county costs only $70.

Some Subjects are Always PLURAL

staff, personnel, police	The staff are working together to solve the problem. The police are on the way here.
A number of ....	A number of people do not have proper housing
The following nouns referring to general group of people: the rich, the educated, the sick, the poor,	The poor are given free food yesterday. The rich are richer in third world country.

Some Subjects denpend on the context

the following nouns: board, committee, company, management, family, jury, audience If the sentence show that they are in unity, they are considered as singular.	The family have different tastes in food. The family works together to fix the house. The management are in arguement against one another. The management is doing well with the hotel.
Some nouns become uncountable	Some nouns become countable
Sound travels faster than cars. Crime does not solve your economic problem.	Sounds of laughter fill the room as the comedian appear. His crimes are serious

Exercise 1

1. East Indies (refer/refers) to Indonesia today.
2. The jury (is/are) unable to make decision.
3. Some of the furniture (is/are) damaged.
4. The statistics (is/are) not accurate.
   
5. A number of houses (was/were) destroyed during the hurricane.
6. Everyone (is/are) terrified by the dictator.
7. There (is/are) a lot of criticism in the new movie.
8. Some of the machinery (is/are) rusty.
9. The rich (has/have) always received special treatment in my country.)
10. Neither of the witnessess (is/are) willing to testify.
11. One of the houses in that new area (is/are) mine.
12. Two-thirds of the student (is/are) hospitalized after eating contaminated food.
13. The number of students at the meeting (is/are) twenty.
14. 30 minutes (is/are) all the time needed to fix the broken radio.

Exercise 2

Sleep apnea ______ (be) a commong sleeping disorder. A number of adults ______ (be) affected. There _______ (be) three different types of sleep apnea. A number of factors __________ (contribute) to this disoder. Children _____ (be) also at risk of getting one.

Cara Menulis Surat Business Dalam Bahasa Inggris

Dalam menulis surat business, ingatlah hal-hal berikut dalam penulisan anda:

• Jangan berbelit-belit


• Kalimat yang mudah dimengerti dan jelas


• Sopan dalam penulisan


• Tetapi jangan ragu untuk mempertahankan pendapat anda

ISI SURAT

Salutation/ Pemberian Hormat: Awali surat anda dengan kata-kata pemberian hormat. Gunakan panduan sbb: Dear .........

1. Dear Ms Jane:
   Gunakan "Ms" bila surat anda ditujukan ke wanita, baik sudah menikah atau belum.


2. Dear Mr Jane:
   Gunakan "Mr" bila sang penerima surat adalah laki-laki.


3. Dear Sir or Madam: or Dear Sir(s)
   Gunakan ini jika anda tidak kenal dengan orang yang akan menerima surat anda.


4. Dear Solar Technology:
   Anda juga bisa menggunakan nama perusahaan jika anda tidak kenal atau tahu siapa yang akan membaca surat anda

Jalan lupa menggunakan : diakhir kata-kata salutan pembuka! Contoh) Dear Mr Benny:

Body: Tulis tujuan atau permintaan anda pada paragraph pertama. Hal ini membantu si pembaca surat untuk segera mengetahui apa tujuan anda menulis surat. Anda boleh menambahkan hal-hal lain yang masih berhubungan dengan tujuan anda, TETAPI buatlah sesingkat mungkin. Dengan menulis paragraph pembuka yang singkat dan jelas, anda telah menunjukan bahwa anda menghargai waktu dan tenaga si pembaca.

Penutup: Gunakan kata-kata salut penutup sbb:

• Best Regards, <-------- (lebih tidak formal)
  
  
  Teddy B
  


• Sincerely, <--------- (sedikit lebih formal)
  
  
  Teddy B
  


• Yours faithfully, <---------(sangat formal. Gunakan jika anda memulai dengan "Dear Sir:")
  
  
  Teddy B

"Sincerely" dan "Best Regards" adalah kata-kata salut penutup yang formal dan aman digunakan dalam segala situasi.

Dalam bisnis saya sering melihat kata-kata salut penutup: Cheers, Warmly etc... Simpanlah kata-kata tersebut untuk kekasih atau teman baik anda. Menggunakan kata-kata tersebut dalam business context baik surat atau email sangatlah tidak profesional.

LETTER FORMAT (FORMAT SURAT)

Saya sudah mengerti panduan menulis surat, lalu bentuk format bagaimana yang harus saya pakai? ada berbagai macam format surat: Full-block(paling formal), Semi-block(lebih tidak formal)

BLOCK FORMAT

<----jarak setengah halaman----> Your address (alamat anda)	1400 Northwestern Av, #05 One College Av, IN 47906 March 4, 2009
Jerry Green, Project Coordinator ABD MACHINERY 1500 Howard Street, #08 Lafayette, IN 47702 Dear Mr. Green Please accept my application as an intern in your company. I am currently a senior at Purdue University, with a major in Physics and Mechanical Engineering. During my studies as undergraduate, I have been participating in various mechanical design projects. Please see enclosed resume for further detail. I am proficient in the use of Matlab, 3D modelling and heat analysis. I have read your company's achievements in the field of food processing equipment. Joining your company would not only be an honor for me but also an opportunity to broaden my engineering horizon. Please kindly consider my application. I am available for an interview any time and can be reached at 761-555-5995. My e-mail address is thomas_gerald@yahoo.com I look forward to your reply.
---setengah halaman---	Sincerely, (signature) Thomas Gerald
Enc

Berikan margin sekitar 1" di sekeliling surat.

"Enc" - Enclosed. "Enc" menunjukan bahwa ada dokumen lain yang anda sertakan bersama surat anda.

Conditional Sentences/ Kalimat Pengandaian (If and Unless)

Conditional Sentence/ Kalimat Pengandaian

If and Unless (unless = if + not)

Bagaimana cara menggunakan if dan unless dalam kalimat? Tenses apa yang harus dipakai dan untuk kondisi apa?

Conditional sentences could be categorized as such: Factual, Predictive and Speculative
(Kalimat konditional dalam bahasa inggris dapat dibagi menjadi 3: Factual, Prediktif dan Speculatif)

Factual
This type is used to state facts: scientific fact, something that is true or happen in a regular basis etc.. (Digunakan untuk menyatakan fakta: fakta ilmiah, kebiasaan dll)

Use present tense in both clauses for factual conditional sentence that is still valid at the time of speaking(gunakanlah present tense untuk kalimat factual jika yang dibicarakan masih berlaku sampai saat ini)

Contoh:

If water reaches to 100 deg C, it boils. (Jika air mencapai 100 C, air akan mendidih)

If Jane opens her door in the morning, her dog runs inside immediately (Ketika Jane membuka pintu di pagi hari, anjingnya selalu segera masuk)

Speculative

Three types of speculative sentence: (tiga macam bentuk kalimat spekulatif:)

The First Conditional	Things that are likely to happen	high probability
The Second Conditional	Things that are not likely to happen	low probability
The Third Conditional	Things that could never happen	zero probability
	(because the opportunity is gone)

The First Conditional - High Probability

Present Tense	Future Form
If it rains,	I will take a taxi home
If he comes,	I will give him the book
If she receives her yearly bonus,	she will buy a new shirt

note:

This type is used to express the following: (Digunakan untuk menyatakan sbb:)

• what happen in the future (apa yang akan terjadi di masa depan)
• possibilities (kemungkinan-kemungkinan yang dapat terjadi di masa depan)
  

The Second Conditional - Low Probability

Past Tense	(would, could, should, might)
If all my classes were cancelled tomorrow,	I would accompany you.
If he got a perfect score in his math,	he should buy us all dinner.
Unless I got 3 month bonus,	I would not go to Europe travelling.

To state or suggest something that is very unlikely to happen.
Ex: If all my classes were cancelled tomorrow, I would accompany you.

The chances that all classes will be cancelled tomorrow is very unlikely. But it might happen altough you could be 97% sure that they will not be cancelled.


(untuk menyatakan sesuatu yang kemungkinan terjadinya sangat kecil
Contoh: Jika semua kelas saya dibatalkan besok, saya akan menemani kamu

Kemungkinan bahwa semua kelas akan dibatalkan sangatlah kecil. Tetapi siapa yang tahu bahwa mungkin saja hal ini bisa terjadi walaupun 97% kemungkinan besok kelas berjalan seperti biasa)

The Third Conditional - Zero Probability

Past Perfect	would have + past participle
If I had saved more money last year,	I would have bought a new laptop now.
If he had changed the lock to his room,	the buglar would have difficulty breaking in.
If I were a billionare,	I would have donated a million to the poor.

*When using "I", use "were" for conditional sentences.
wrong: If I was a president...............
correct: If I were a president..............

(*jangan pernah menggunakan "was" untuk subject "I" di kalimat pengandaian, selalu gunakan "WERE". I were. He were. We were)

---

Exercise 1

1. If you __________ (study) harder, you could score better in TOEFL.
2. If I _____ (be) a king, I would rule wisely.
3. If he _____ (spare) a bit of his salary, he will be able to buy new shirt by next month.
4. If the traffic had been less crowded, I _________ (arrive) at the meeting on time.
5. Unless you give your workers minumum wages, they __________ (continue) their strike.
6. If water ______ (cool) to 0 deg C, it _______ (freeze).
7. If my parent ________ (alive) today, they would have been very proud.
8. If you sleep earlier everyday, you ____________ (not, have) difficulty waking up in the morning.
9. If you had read the instruction carefully, you _____________ (not, damage) your computer.
10. Unless he takes his job seriously, he ________ (not get) his promotion.
11. If my parents ______ (give) me some money, I might go to visit your town next holiday.
12. Unless my fieldtrip ______ (get) canccelled tomorrow, I would have to prepare the report by the day after tomorrow.

---

Exercise 2

Study each situation here. Create a sentence using conditional that is appropriate for the condition described

Situation 1:
Darren entered his room and found his roomate, Jack, looking frustrated.
Darren: What is going on with you Jack?

Jack: I have this calculus exam in two days. I have been sick last week and missed a lot of classes. So I am kind of behind the topic now.

Darren: _________________________________________________

Fill in the blank above what should Darren say to his roomate to encourage him.
Hint: practice, succeed

Situation 2:

Steve has been playing games too much for the past few weeks. Today he realized that tomorrow is a very important math exam. He is too stressed because he could not understand anything.

Steve: Tom, I am really frustrated with the math exam tomorrow.

Tom: It is good that you finally realized that you need to study. I have noticed you playing that new video games almost non-stop.

Steve: If I _________________ (play) less, I ___________________ (not be) so stressed now!

Writing a newspaper report

When you want to write a newspaper report or article, please keep in mind the following:

• Try to use striking headline
• Your report should contain a few short paragraphs. The first paragraph gives a summary of your overall report. The next few paragraphs are where you elaborate by providing more information.
• Please ensure smooth idea transition between your paragraphs.
• Factual and impartial report of the incident
• Do not state your opinions unless you are writing editorial review

Below is a sample

DR SOLL HURT BY FALLING CEILING

A most unusual accident took place recently at the Singapore Conference Hall in which the Minister for Education, Dr Soll, was slightly injured when a piece of the ceiling fell on him. This happened while he was giving a speech on "Education Reform"

Dr Soll arrived at 7.00pm sharp in pouring rain. He was escorted to the stage by two ministry officials. The large crowd of school principals, ministry officials and other invited guests greeted his introduction by the Director of Education, Dr Paul, with loud applause.

There was silence in the hall when Dr Soll began his speech. After about five minutes, some members of the audience were seen looking at the ceiling directly above the speaker. There was a damp patch there and drops of water were falling from it. Suddenly, an unexpected downpour from the wet patch soaked Dr Soll thoroughly.

There was confusion on stage as people rushed to his aid. Before anyone could move him away, a huge piece of the ceiling collapsed and a fragment hit Dr Soll on his left shoulder.

When this happened, there was panic in the hall, Some people immediately left their seats and made for the exits. There was a general feeling that the hall was in imminent danger of collapse.

Dr Soll was hurt. He was given first aid and escorted off the stage to his waiting car which drove immediately to the Singapore General Hospital.

Everyone left the hall talking loudly about the unusual accident and criticizing the organisers for not investigating the damp patch on the ceiling.

He is reported to be recovering at home. Investigation into the accident is continuing.

Reported By,

Benny H