English 1 Week 4: Sentence Structure & Comprehension
1. Phrasing and Pausing
When reading or speaking long sentences, we break them into “chunks” or “phrases” to make them understandable. Rule: Pause at logical boundaries, not just random words.
Logical Boundaries
- Punctuation: Comma, Period, Semicolon.
- Conjunctions: And, But, Because, That.
- Subject / Verb / Object: Separate the actor from the action.
- Prepositional Phrases: “In the morning”, “On the table”.
Example Analysis
Sentence: “Our difficulty is how to make the heterogeneous mass that we have today take a decision in common.”
Bad Phrasing: “Our difficulty is how / to make the heterogeneous / mass that we have…” (Breaks the noun phrase “heterogeneous mass”).
Good Phrasing: “Our difficulty is / how to make / the heterogeneous mass / that we have today / take a decision / in common…“
2. Telephone Etiquette & Vocabulary
Specific phrases used in phone conversations.
| Phrase | Meaning | Context |
|---|---|---|
| Pick up | Answer the call | ”Please pick up the phone.” |
| Hang up | End the call | ”Don’t hang up yet.” |
| Hang on | Wait / Hold | ”Could you please hang on a minute?” |
| Speak up | Speak louder | ”I can’t hear you, please speak up.” |
| Cut off | Connection lost | ”We got cut off.” |
| Get through | Connect successfully | ”I can’t get through to him.” |
| Jarring | Unpleasant noise | ”Your voice is jarring.” |
| Echoing | Voice repeating | ”Your voice is echoing.” |
Formal vs. Informal
- Formal: “Who is calling, please?”, “How may I help you?”, “Make an appointment”.
- Informal: “What’s up?”, “It’s me”.
3. Practice Set
- “Deepthi is not here. Could you please ____.”: Ring her later (or Message her).
- “Your voice is echoing.”: True if voice is resurfacing.
- “Speak up”: Means speak louder, NOT tone down.
🧠Level Up: Advanced Practice
Question 1: Phrasing and Pausing
Problem: “Let us leave aside slogans let us leave aside words which frighten people” Correct Pause: “Let us leave aside slogans / let us leave aside words which frighten people //” Logic: Group meaningful chunks. Don’t break “leave aside” or “words which”.
Question 2: Telephone Etiquette
Problem: “Deepthi is not here. Could you please ______.”
- (a) Hang up
- (b) Ring her later Answer: Ring her later. (“Hang up” is rude/abrupt).
Question 3: Vocabulary in Context
Problem: “Your voice is jarring.” Meaning: Unpleasant, vibrating, harsh noise. Contrast: “Echoing” means repeating.