Talk to each other about some or all of the following. (7 minutes approx.)
1. What can citizens do when they are passionately committed to solving their neighborhood's problems?
2. What are young people understandably anxious about?
3. On what occasions may people become a bit tearful?
4. Why do some people feel extremely apprehensive about the effects of social media on young people?
5. What are grandparents often genuinely delighted about?
6. What can you say to a friend who is heartbroken?
7. What do students often feel on edge about?
8. What good news have you recently been overjoyed to hear?
9. When have people been overjoyed at your success?
10. Why do younger generations seem to struggle to focus on their studies?
11. What kind of situations there's no point in getting tense about?
12. Why do weddings always make people feel weepy? On what other occasions may people be on the verge of tears?
13. Have you experienced any event recently that you have felt utterly thrilled about?
PART 2. MONOLOGUE
Talk about at least two of the following ideas. (4 minutes approx.) The examiner may ask you further questions about the topic.
CANDIDATE A
1. Are people in your town intent on keeping traditions?
2. Apart from mosquito bites, what else can make life miserable?
3. When was the last time you felt absolutely elated at something?
CANDIDATE B
1. What do you enjoy doing when you feel in good spirits?
2. Have you ever come close to tears during an incredibly moving speech?
3. Has anybody ever tried to talk you out of doing something you are dead set on doing?
Vocabulary
Happiness
On cloud nine
(old-fashioned, informal) extremely happy.
Over the moon
(informal, especially British English) extremely happy and excited. E.g. They're over the moon about their trip to Japan.
In seventh heaven
extremely happy. E.g. Now that he's been promoted he's in seventh heaven.
Elated:
/ iˈleɪtɪd/ (at/by something) very happy and excited because of something good that has happened, or will happen. E.g. They were elated at the result. I was elated by the prospect of the new job ahead.
Ecstatic:
/ ɪkˈstætɪk / very happy, excited and enthusiastic; feeling or showing great enthusiasm. E.g. Sally was ecstatic about her new job.
Brimming with excitement:
Brim:
to be full of something; to fill something. E.g. Tears brimmed in her eyes. Her eyes brimmed with tears. The team were brimming with confidence before the game. On my first day at school I was brimming with excitement.
Bubbly:
/ˈbʌbli/ (informal) (of a person) always cheerful, friendly and enthusiastic. E.g. Julie's bright, bubbly personality. She is a lovely bright bubbly girl.
Effervescent:
/ˌefəˈvesnt/ (of people and their behaviour) excited, enthusiastic and full of energy. Bubbly. E.g. a warm effervescent personality. Effervescent young people.
Vivacious:
/vɪˈveɪʃəs/ (especially of a woman) having a lively, attractive personality. E.g. He had three pretty, vivacious daughters. Her vivacious and elegant mother. She was dark-haired and vivacious. A vivacious personality.
High-spirited:
very lively and active. E.g. a high-spirited child. High-spirited behaviour.
Spirits [plural]
a person's feelings or state of mind. E.g. to be in high/ low spirits. You must try and keep your spirits up (= stay cheerful). My spirits sank at the prospect of starting all over again. The team returned in high spirits (lively and cheerful)
Boisterous:
/ˈbɔɪstərəs/ noisy, energetic, and cheerful. E.g. a group of boisterous lads. It was a challenge, keeping ten boisterous seven-year-olds amused. The children and the dogs raced out of the house to give me a boisterous welcome. A boisterous crowd.
Exuberant:
/ɪɡˈzjuːbərənt/ full of energy, excitement and happiness. Sp desbordante de vida y entusiasmo. E.g. She gave an exuberant performance. An exuberant personality/ imagination. A picture painted in exuberant reds and yellows.
Ebullient:
/ɪˈbʌliənt/ /ɪˈbʊliənt/ full of confidence, energy and good humour. Sp. lleno de vida. E.g. The Prime Minister was in ebullient mood. He was accompanied by an ebullient, talkative blonde. The ebullient Mr Clarke was not to be discouraged.
Rapturous:
/ˈræptʃərəs/ expressing extreme pleasure or enthusiasm for somebody/something. E.g. He was greeted with rapturous applause. The Olympic team was given a rapturous welcome.
Exhilarated:
/ɪɡˈzɪləreɪtɪd/ happy and excited, especially after physical activity. E.g. She felt exhilarated with the speed. I felt exhilarated after a morning of skiing.
Uplifted:
/ˌʌpˈlɪftɪd/ [not before noun] feeling happy and full of hope. E.g. Everyone left the meeting feeling uplifted.
Uplifting:
/ˌʌpˈlɪftɪŋ/ making you feel happier or giving you more hope. E.g. an uplifting experience/ speech.
Inspiring:
/ɪnˈspaɪərɪŋ/exciting and encouraging you to do or feel something. E.g. an inspiring teacher.
Uninspiring:
/ˌʌnɪnˈspaɪərɪŋ/ not making people interested or excited. E.g. The view from the window was uninspiring.
Enticing:
/ɪnˈtaɪsɪŋ/ something that is enticing is so attractive and interesting that you want to have it or know more about it. Sp. tentador, atractivo. E.g. The offer was too enticing to refuse. An enticing smell came from the kitchen. The idea of two weeks in the sun sounds very enticing.
Captivating:
/ˈkæptɪveɪtɪŋ/ taking all your attention; very attractive and interesting. Enchanting. E.g.
He found her captivating. We spent a week relaxing on the captivating island of Capri.
pleasurable
/ˈpleʒərəbl/ giving pleasure. enjoyable. E.g. a pleasurable experience. We do everything we can to make your trip pleasurable.
enjoyable:
/ɪnˈdʒɔɪəbl/ giving pleasure. E.g. an enjoyable weekend/experience. highly/really/thoroughly/very enjoyable.
Enliven:
/ɪnˈlaɪvn/ to make something more interesting or more fun. To make someone more cheerful or animated. E.g. the wartime routine was enlivened by a series of concerts. The visit had clearly enlivened my mother.
Comforting:
/ˈkʌmfətɪŋ/ making you feel calmer and less worried or unhappy. E:g. her comforting words. It's comforting to know that you'll be there. Hearing all the familiar sounds around the house was strangely comforting.
Sadness
Subdued (of a person)
/səbˈdjuːd/ unusually quiet, and possibly unhappy. Sp. apagado. E.g. He seemed a bit subdued to me. She was in a subdued mood. The reception was a subdued affair.
Downcast:
/ˈdaʊnkɑːst/ (of a person or an expression) sad or depressed. Dejected. Sp. abatido, apesadumbrado, desalentado. E.g. A group of downcast men stood waiting for food. You mustn’t be downcast.
Despondent:
/dɪˈspɒndənt/ (about something) sad, without much hope. Dejected. Sp. abatido, descorazonado. E.g. She was becoming increasingly despondent about the way things were going. There are times when it is hard not to feel despondent. She grew more and more despondent.
Dejected:
/dɪˈdʒektɪd/ unhappy and disappointed. Despondent. Sp. abatido, desalentado. E.g. She looked so dejected when she lost the game. He stood in the street looking dejected.
Dispirited:
/dɪˈspɪrɪtɪd/ having no hope or enthusiasm. Sp. desanimado, abatido. E.g. She looked tired and dispirited. She was determined to appear unworried in front of her dispirited family.
Dishearten:
/dɪsˈhɑːtn/ to make somebody lose hope or confidence. Discourage. E.g. Don't let this defeat dishearten you. Disheartened (adj) E.g. a disheartened team.
Crestfallen:
/ˈkrestfɔːlən/ sad and disappointed because you have failed and you did not expect to. E.g. he came back empty-handed and crestfallen.
Deflate somebody/ something
/dɪˈfleɪt/ to make somebody feel less confident; to make somebody/ something feel or seem less
important. E.g. All the criticism had left her feeling totally deflated.
at a low ebb In a weakened or depressed state.
E.g.
the country was at a low ebb due to the recent war
I was recently divorced and feeling at a very low ebb.
Anxiety
Distressed:
/dɪˈstrest/ upset and anxious. E.g. He was too distressed and confused to answer their questions.
Distraught: /dɪˈstrɔːt/
extremely upset and anxious so that you cannot think clearly. E.g. She’s still too distraught to speak about the tragedy. The child’s distraught parents pleaded for witnesses to contact the police.
Uptight:
/ˌʌpˈtaɪt/ (about something) (informal) anxious and/ or angry about something. E.g. Relax! You're getting too uptight about it.
Get/ take a grip (on yourself)
to improve your behaviour or control your emotions after being afraid, upset or angry. E.g. I have to take a grip on myself, he told himself firmly. Get a grip! (= make an effort to control your emotions.
Apprehensive:
/ˌæprɪˈhensɪv/ worried or frightened that something unpleasant may happen. E.g. an apprehensive face/ glance/ look. E.g. I was a little apprehensive about the effects of what I had said.You have no reason to be apprehensive of the future. She was deeply apprehensive that something might go wrong.
Be on edge
to be nervous, excited or bad-tempered. E.g. She was always on edge before an interview.
Edgy:
/ˈedʒi/ nervous, especially about what might happen. E.g. She's been very edgy lately. After the recent unrest there is an edgy calm in the capital. I'm feeling a bit edgy about the exam tomorrow.
(be) on tenterhooks
(North American English also be on pins and needles) (to be) very anxious or excited while you are waiting to find out something or see what will happen. E.g. I've been on tenterhooks all week waiting for the results.
be brimming with trepidation
trepidation:
/ˌtrepɪˈdeɪʃn/ great worry or fear about something unpleasant that may happen. E.g. He knocked on the door with some trepidation.
Brim:
to be full of something; to fill something. E.g. Tears brimmed in her eyes. Her eyes brimmed with tears. The team were brimming with confidence before the game. On my first day at school I was brimming with excitement.
nail-biting:
making you feel very excited or anxious because you do not know what is going to happen. E.g. a nail-biting finish. It's been a nail-biting couple of weeks waiting for my results.
nerve-racking: (also nerve-wracking) /ˈnɜːv rækɪŋ/
making you feel very nervous and worried. E.g. It was a nerve-racking drive up the mountain. My wedding was the most nerve-racking thing I've ever experienced. It was a nerve racking moment as we weren't sure what to do.
scared/ worried stiff
stiff:
(adv) 1 (informal) very much; to an extreme degree. E.g. be bored/ scared/ worried stiff. 2 frozen stiff (of wet material) very cold and hard because the water has become ice. E.g. The clothes on the washing line were frozen stiff. I came home from the game frozen stiff (= very cold).
Jittery
(informal) anxious and nervous. E.g. All this talk of job losses was making him jittery. I felt jittery before going on stage.
Get (yourself)/ be in a stew (about/ over something)
(informal) to become/ feel very anxious or upset about something. E.g. There's no point getting in a stew about it.
Gnaw at somebody:
/nɔː/ to make somebody feel anxious, frightened or uncomfortable over a long period of time. Sp. roer, carcomer. E.g. The problem had been gnawing at him for months. Fear gnawed at her soul. The old woman's warning gnawed at me. Sp. La advertencia de la vieja anciana me carcomió.
gnawed by doubts/hunger Sp. atormentado por las dudas/el hambre
Gnawing:
/ˈnɔːɪŋ/ making you feel worried over a period of time. E.g. gnawing doubts.
gnaw:
/nɔː/ to keep biting something or chewing it hard, so that it gradually disappears gnaw something The dog was gnawing a bone.
Fluster somebody:
/ˈflʌstə(r)/ to make somebody nervous and/ or confused, especially by giving them a lot to do or by making them hurry. E.g. Don't fluster me or I'll never be ready. He was flustered by all the attention. You need to be able to work under pressure and not get flustered.
Weigh somebody down:
to make somebody feel worried or anxious. Burden. Sp. ahogar. E.g. The responsibilities of the job are weighing her down. He is weighed down with guilt.
Burden /ˈbɜːdn/ somebody/yourself (with something)
to give somebody a duty, responsibility, etc. that causes worry, difficulty or hard work. Sp. cargar, preocupar, agobiar. E.g. They have burdened themselves with a high mortgage. I don't want to burden you with my worries. To be burdened by high taxation. They were not yet burdened with adult responsibility.
Perfectionist:
/pəˈfekʃənɪst/ E.g. he was a perfectionist who worked slowly.
Laid-back:
calm and relaxed; seeming not to worry about anything. Easy-going. Sp. tranquilo, relajado, despreocupado. E.g. a laid-back attitude to life. She's very laid-back about her exams. He was being
very laid-back about it all. She's always so laid-back about everything.
loosen up: to relax and stop worrying.
E.g.Come on, Jo. Loosen up
Easy-going:
relaxed and happy to accept things without worrying or getting angry. E.g. I wish I had such easy-going parents!
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