Tom: John Blake was trying to find out more about a certain pendant. The pendant had been stolen from a museum. With his friend, Mary Green, he went to see a collector of old things, Anthony Forset. On their way they were nearly killed by a car. At Anthony Forset’s house they were nearly killed by one of Anthony Forset’s dangerous pets, a snake. Forset told them about the pendant, but Mary and John knew that he was hiding something. “We’ll find out what it is,” Mary said. They went home. John arrived home at 10 o’clock.
Cathy: “Arrived home”? I thought that after the verb “to arrive” there should be a preposition.
Tom: That’s quite right.
Cathy: But you said “John arrived home”.
Tom: Well, “arrive home” is an exception. The verb “to arrive” is followed by the prepositions “at” or “in”.
Cathy: And when do I have to use “at” and when “in”?
Tom: You arrive at a small place or a building, for example, “We arrived at the station very early.” Or “He always arrives at the university at 9 o’clock.” But you arrive in a city, a large town or a country, that is, in a big place.
Woman: Bye-bye, darling, have a nice journey!
Man: Thank you. Good-bye.
Woman: When’ll you arrive at Dover?
Man: I’ll arrive at Dover at 1 o’clock.
Woman: And when’ll you arrive in London?
Man: In London? At 3 o’clock.
Woman: I see. So, you’ll arrive at Dover at 1, and in London at 3 o’clock. And when’ll you arrive at the hotel?
Man: At the hotel? Darling, why are you asking all these questions? How should I know when I’ll arrive at the hotel? At half past three or four o’clock.
Woman: Oh, darling, run, run, the train is already pulling out.
Man: Bye. Bye.
Man: Now, here you are. All your silly questions. “When’ll you arrive at Dover? When’ll you arrive in London? When’ll you arrive at the hotel?” I won’t arrive in England at all. Neither in London. Nor at the hotel. I’ve missed the train.
Tom: When John arrived home, his landlady was waiting for him. “There’s a visitor in your room,” she said angrily. Who was it? John went up to find out.
John: Oh, hello. Please sit down.
Mr. Egg: If you don’t mind, I’ll stand. My name is Egg.
John: Mr. Egg, the bookseller?
Mr. Egg: I sell books, yes. You know me then.
John: I know your shop. It’s full of old books.
Mr. Egg: Yes, I sell old books.
John: Of course. You’re a bookseller.
Mr. Egg: And I buy old books.
John: Of course.
Mr. Egg: I buy other things, too.
John: Other things, Mr. Egg?
Mr. Egg: Yes, other things. I pay for them. I pay well for them.
John: I’m sure you do.
Mr. Egg: You know what I’m talking about, don’t you?
John: I’m sorry, but I don’t know what you’re talking about.
Mr. Egg: I’m talking about a certain thing.
John: A certain thing?
Mr. Egg: A certain thing. I’ll buy it.
John: What is it?
Mr. Egg: You know what it is.
John: Perhaps you know what it is, but I don’t know what it is.
Mr. Egg: Are you pulling my leg?
John: No, I’m not pulling your leg.
Mr. Egg: If you pull my leg, you’ll be sorry.
Tom: The man who was waiting for John was Mr. Egg, the bookseller. But this time he didn’t want to sell anything. He wanted to buy something. “A certain thing,” he said. He didn’t want to use the word “pendant”. He didn’t want anyone to overhear them. He said “a certain thing”, but at first John didn’t understand what he was talking about. Mr. Egg didn’t believe him. “Are you pulling my leg?” he asked, that is, “Are you joking?”
Child1: Listen to what happened to me today.
Child2: What?
Child1: I was coming along the street when a big dog came up to me. He wagged his tail and said, “Good afternoon, Miss. You’ve dropped your handkerchief.” And the dog picked up my handkerchief and gave it to me.
Child1: Do you think I believe you? You’re pulling my leg! You’re joking. You’re pulling my leg.
Tom: At first John didn’t understand what Mr. Egg was talking about. “Are you pulling my leg?” Mr. Egg asked. Then he warned John: “If you pull my leg, you’ll be sorry.”
Mr. Egg: If you pull my leg, you’ll be sorry.
John: It’s 10 o’clock. If you don’t go soon, my landlady will come up.
Mr. Egg: If your landlady comes up, I’ll talk to her. Now, listen to me. You were in a certain place this afternoon, weren’t you?
John: I was in the museum this afternoon.
Mr. Egg: Ah, the museum. Why were you in the museum this afternoon?
John: Because I wanted a job.
Mr. Egg: Something happened at the museum. Now, what happened at the museum? That’s why I’m here.
John: Oh, the pendant.
Mr. Egg: Shh! Don’t shout. If you shout, somebody’ll hear you.
John: The pendant was stolen from the museum.
Mr. Egg: And where is it now, ah? We understand each other, don’t we?
John: Hm?
Mr. Egg: I understand you; you understand me. If you sell it to me, I won’t ask questions.
John: Ah, you’ll buy the pendant.
Mr. Egg: A hundred pounds. I’m offering a hundred pounds.
John: Hm. Go away, you’re a criminal.
Mr. Egg: Oh, I’m a criminal, am I?
John: If you buy that pendant, you’ll be a criminal. That pendant was stolen. If you don’t go away, I’ll call the police. I’ll tell them about you.
Mr. Egg: If you tell anybody, you’ll be sorry. You stole that pendant, didn’t you? You stole it and you’re hiding it.
John: I didn’t steal it and I’m not hiding it.
Mr. Egg: I can turn nasty. If I turn nasty, you’ll be sorry.
Cathy: “Turn nasty”? What is “to turn nasty”?
Tom: Suddenly become unpleasant. There are other expressions with the verb “to turn”, which also mean a sudden change.
Man1: Phew! It’s terribly hot. (thunder)
Man2: There’s a storm coming. (raining like cats and dogs)
Man1: Brr! It’s very cold. It was so hot, and it’s turned very cold in five minutes. What weather!
Woman: There’s someone in the next room.
Man: Are you frightened? You turned quite pale.
Woman: Can’t you hear? There’s someone there. Go and have a look.
Man: (laughs) Come here and see, what it is.
Woman: Oh, it’s only a mouse.
Man: Fancy turning pale over a mouse.
Tom: Do you see, Cathy? “She turned pale”, that is, she suddenly became pale. Her face became white. It turned cold, that is, it suddenly became cold.
Cathy: So, “turn” means a sudden change, doesn’t it? But I remember another expression. John used it when he and Mary were going to Anthony Forset’s house, and a red sports car nearly killed them. John wanted to go home. He said, “It’s getting late. It’s getting dark. It’s getting cold.”
Tom: Oh, yes, it’s an interesting contrast. While “to turn pale”, or “to turn red in the face” or “to turn nasty” as Mr. Egg said mean a sudden change, the expressions with “get” mean a slow, gradual change. “He’s getting old”, I can see that in a few years he’ll be an old man. “It’s getting cold”, soon I shall have to go indoors. “It’s getting dark”, slowly, within an hour or two it’ll be dark.
Cathy: I must tell you something.
Tom: I’m all ears.
Cathy: I’m getting bored. Slowly. Gradually. Within a few minutes I’ll be very bored, that is, I’m getting bored.
Tom: I suppose I should be angry now. But I must admit that you used the new expression so well, that I shall allow you to exercise your English. Well,
EXERCISE YOUR ENGLISH.
Exercise 1
Listen to the example:
A: Suddenly he became pale.
B: He turned pale.
Use the verb “turn” in each of your sentences.
Listen, speak, listen.
A: Suddenly he became pale.
[Your response]
B: He turned pale.
A: Suddenly it became cold.
[Your response]
B: It turned cold.
A: Suddenly he became nasty.
[Your response]
B: He turned nasty.
A: Suddenly she became hysterical.
[Your response]
B: She turned hysterical.
A: Suddenly he became rude.
[Your response]
B: He turned rude.
A: Suddenly they became angry.
[Your response]
B: They turned angry.
A: Suddenly it became stormy.
[Your response]
B: It turned stormy.
Exercise 2
Listen to the example:
A: There’re lots of old books in your shop.
B: It’s full of old books.
Listen, speak, listen.
A: There’re lots of old books in your shop.
[Your response]
B: It’s full of old books.
A: There’re lots of new dresses in her wardrobe.
[Your response]
B: It’s full of new dresses.
A: There’re lots of flowers in his garden.
[Your response]
B: It’s full of flowers.
A: There’re lots of students in the cinema.
[Your response]
B: It’s full of students.
A: There’re lots of mosquitoes in the living room.
[Your response]
B: It’s full of mosquitoes.
A: There’re lots of mistakes in your homework.
[Your response]
B: It’s full of mistakes.
A: There’re lots of foreigners in the museum.
[Your response]
B: It’s full of foreigners.
Exercise 3
Listen to the example:
A: Next year we’ll travel to England.
B: That’s why we’re learning English.
Listen, speak, listen.
A: Next year we’ll travel to England.
[Your response]
B: That’s why we’re learning English.
A: Next year we’ll travel to Poland.
[Your response]
B: That’s why we’re learning Polish.
A: Next year we’ll travel to France.
[Your response]
B: That’s why we’re learning French.
A: Next year we’ll travel to Spain.
[Your response]
B: That’s why we’re learning Spanish.
A: Next year we’ll travel to Greece.
[Your response]
B: That’s why we’re learning Greek.
A: Next year we’ll travel to Sweden.
[Your response]
B: That’s why we’re learning Swedish.
Exercise 4
Listen to the example:
A: What is it?
B: We’ll find out what it is.
Listen, speak, listen.
A: What is it?
[Your response]
B: We’ll find out what it is.
A: Who is he?
[Your response]
B: We’ll find out who he is.
A: What is it made of?
[Your response]
B: We’ll find out what it’s made of.
A: Where are they?
[Your response]
B: We’ll find out where they are.
A: Where’s he from?
[Your response]
B: We’ll find out where he’s from.
A: When was it?
[Your response]
B: We’ll find out when it was.
A: How much was it?
[Your response]
B: We’ll find out how much it was.
A: What is he?
[Your response]
B: We’ll find out what he’s.
Tom: And now, let’s jump back to our story once again. There was a man waiting for John in his room. John went to see who he was.
John: Oh, hello. Please sit down.
Mr. Egg: If you don’t mind, I’ll stand. My name is Egg.
John: Mr. Egg, the bookseller?
Mr. Egg: I sell books, yes. You know me then.
John: I know your shop. It’s full of old books.
Mr. Egg: Yes, I sell old books.
John: Of course. You’re a bookseller.
Mr. Egg: And I buy old books.
John: Of course.
Mr. Egg: I buy other things, too.
John: Other things, Mr. Egg?
Mr. Egg: Yes, other things. I pay for them. I pay well for them.
John: I’m sure you do.
Mr. Egg: You know what I’m talking about, don’t you?
John: I’m sorry, but I don’t know what you’re talking about.
Mr. Egg: I’m talking about a certain thing.
John: A certain thing?
Mr. Egg: A certain thing. I’ll buy it.
John: What is it?
Mr. Egg: You know what it is.
John: Perhaps you know what it is, but I don’t know what it is.
Mr. Egg: Are you pulling my leg?
John: No, I’m not pulling your leg.
Mr. Egg: If you pull my leg, you’ll be sorry.
John: Ah, it’s 10 o’clock. If you don’t go soon, my landlady will come up.
Mr. Egg: If your landlady comes up, I’ll talk to her. Now, listen to me. You were in a certain place this afternoon, weren’t you?
John: I was in the museum this afternoon.
Mr. Egg: Ah, the museum. Why were you in the museum this afternoon?
John: Because I wanted a job.
Mr. Egg: Something happened at the museum. Now, what happened at the museum? That’s why I’m here.
John: Oh, the pendant.
Mr. Egg: Shh! Don’t shout. If you shout, somebody’ll hear you.
John: The pendant was stolen from the museum.
Mr. Egg: And where is it now, ah? We understand each other, don’t we?
John: Hm?
Mr. Egg: I understand you; you understand me. If you sell it to me, I won’t ask questions.
John: Ah, you’ll buy the pendant.
Mr. Egg: A hundred pounds. I’m offering a hundred pounds.
John: Hm. Go away, you’re a criminal.
Mr. Egg: Oh, I’m a criminal, am I?
John: If you buy that pendant, you’ll be a criminal. That pendant was stolen. If you don’t go away, I’ll call the police. I’ll tell them about you.
Mr. Egg: If you tell anybody, you’ll be sorry. You stole that pendant, didn’t you? You stole it and you’re hiding it.
John: I didn’t steal it and I’m not hiding it.
Mr. Egg: I can turn nasty. If I turn nasty, you’ll be sorry. You know what this is.
John: A knife.
Mr. Egg: Where is that pendant?
John: Put that knife down.
Mr. Egg: If you don’t tell me, I’ll use this knife. I’ll use it on you.
(theme music)