Showing posts with label weather. Show all posts
Showing posts with label weather. Show all posts

Sunday, 2 February 2020

Weather

Below are the commonly asked questions in the IELTS speaking test.

  1. What's the weather like today?
    It's really freezing (or sunny, cool, breezy, chilly, warm, humid, hot) today. If I didn't have to take the IELTS exams, I would prefer to stay at home watching my favourite TV series.
  2. What kind of weather do you like (best)?
    Actually, I prefer cloudy days, because then it's neither too hot nor too cold. And what's more important to me is that this weather is perfect for photography as the light is so soft. So at this time of day, I like to go out with my camera to take photos.
  3. What's the weather (usually) like in your hometown?
    In my hometown, the weather is quite pleasant, neither too hot nor too cold most of the time. Even in winter, the temperature is still quite mild, but the summer is often hot and humid.
  4. Do you like that weather (ỏ, that kind of climate)?
    One thing I am not happy about the weather in my hometown is that it doesn't snow at all. There are places with snowfalls in Vietnam, like Sapa, but only just a little bit. Every time I see children having a snowball or making a snowman on TV, I genuinely envy them.  
  5. Can you give any examples of unusual weather?
    As for the unusual weather, global warming has really become a trendy topic around the world. It is caused by the greenhouse effect as the sheer volume of carbon dioxide emitted into the air, prevents the atmosphere from cooling off at night.
  6. Would you prefer to live in a place that has just one, warm season, that lasts the whole year or a place with different seasons?
    Well, if I had to choose between the two, I'd probably go with the distinct seasons in each year because each season has its own metrics. I think I would get bored if it was warm all year round.
  7. Do people in Vietnam play the same sports in a different season of the year?
    No, in spring and autumn, when the temperature is neither too cold nor too hot, people in Vietnam tend to hike in the mountains or go running. When it comes to summer, camping in the forests and playing balls, etc. But in winter, people believe it not suitable for outdoor exercises, so they prefer to either play indoor games like swimming in indoor swimming pools, badminton, volleyball or stay at home to keep warm.

Wednesday, 21 December 2016

Snow falls in Sahara for first time within 37 years


Bài báo gần đây trên tạp chí CNN nói về hiện tượng thời tiết bất thường: tuyết rơi ở Saraha, sa mạc nóng nhất, rộng nhất trên trái đất này. Đây là lần tuyết rơi trong vòng 37 năm qua.

Một số câu từ trong bài viết này có thể học:

Dĩ nhiên, nói tới sa mạc phải dùng từ desert. Lưu ý từ này, có hai cách phát âm tùy theo từ loại
desert
(noun) /ˈdez.ət/
* run away: to leave the armed forces without permission and with no intention of returning: đào ngũ
Soldiers who deserted and were caught were shot.
How many people desert from the army each year?
* leave behind:
- to leave someone without help or in a difficult situation and not come back:
He deserted his wife and family for another woman.
- If a quality deserts you, you suddenly and temporarily lose it:
All my confidence/courage deserted me when I walked into the exam.
(verb) /dɪˈzɜːt/
* an area, often covered with sand or rocks, where there is very little rain and not many plants:
  • They were lost in the desert for nine days.
  • We had to cross a large area of arid, featureless desert.
  • the desert sun
* cultural, intellectual, etc. desert: a place that is considered to have no cultural, intellectual, etc. quality or interest:
This town is a cultural desert.

Một từ phát âm giống với desert ở dạng động từ nhưng khác cách viết. Đó là từ dessert.
dessert /dɪˈzɜːt/
(A2) sweet food eaten at the end of a meal: thức ăn ngọt được ăn lúc cuối buổi ăn
a dessert fork/spoon: muỗng/nĩa dùng cho món tráng miệng
For dessert there's apple pie or fruit.
If you make the main course, I'll make a dessert.
Ain Sefra in the Sahara desert was hit by a freak snowfall on December 19.
Ain Sefra ở sa mạc Sahara bị xảy ra một trận tuyết rơi không bình thường (kì quái) vào ngày 19 tháng 12.
Bob Geldof and Midge Ure are better musicians than they are meteorologists.
meteorologist /,mi:tjə'rɔlədʤist/ someone who studies meteorology = nhà khí tượng học
Bob Geldof and Midge Ure là những nhạc sĩ tốt hơn là nhà khí tượng học.
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Cách chơi chữ khá giống với TV:
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These incredible pictures by amateur photographer Karim Bouchetata show the town's red dunes dramatically capped with white snow.
The last time flakes are reported to have fallen here was when a brief blizzard hit town in February 1979.
One of several towns to claim the moniker "Gateway to the Desert," Ain Sefra is 1,078 meters above sea level and is surrounded by the Atlas Mountains.
dune (n) /dʒuːn/ a hill of sand near a beach or in a desert = một đồi cát gần một bãi biển hoặc trong một sa mạc = đồi cát
The Pilat dune near Arcachon beach in Bordeaux is one of the longest ones in Europe.
cap = to cover the top of something = che phủ, đội mũ
- The mountain was capped with snow. Tuyết phủ trên núi.
- have your teeth capped (= protected with an artificial covering) răng của bạn bọc lớp bảo vệ
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The Sahara is the world's largest hot desert and its more than 9 million square kilometres cover most of North Africa.
As well as being one of the driest places in the planet, it's one of the hottest -- temperatures here can reach more than 50 C (122 F).
Cũng là một trong những nơi khô nhất trên trái đất (hành tinh này), nó là nơi nóng nhất -- nhiệt độ ở đây có thể lên đến hơn 500C.


Monday, 14 November 2016

Weather Vocabulary

Using Adjectives to describe the weather:
scorching
Sweltering = It's sweltering. or It's a sweltering day.
Trời nóng oi ả, oi bức
freezing
Freezing = It's freezing. or It's a freezing day.
Trời lạnh cực như đóng băng.
warm
Warm = It's warn. or It's a warm day.

cold
Cold = It's cold. or It's a cold day.
sunny
Sunny = It's sunny. or It's a sunny day.
cloudy
Cloudy = It's cloudy. or It's a cloudy day.
clear
Clear = It's clear. or It's a clear day.
storm
Stormy = It's stormy. or It's a stormy day.
mist
Misty = It's misty. or It's a misty day.
Sương mù
foggy
Foggy = It's foggy. or It's a foggy day.
Sương mù dày đặc
breezy
Breezy = It's breezy. or It's a breezy day
Gió hiu hiu, gió nhẹ
windy
Windy = It's windy. or It's a windy day.
showery
Showery = It's showery. or It's a showery day.
rainy
Rainy = It's rainy. or It's a rainy day.
jack frost
Frosty = It's frosty. or It's a frosty day.
Lạng giá như đóng băng
snowy
Snowy = It's snowy. or It's a snowy day.
icy
Icy = It's icy. or It's an icy day.
Đóng băng
drizzle
Drizzly = It's drizzly. or It's a drizzly day.
Mưa phùn
sunshine
. Dry = It's dry. or It's a dry day.
wet
Wet = It's wet. or It's a wet day.

Using verbs to describe the weather: 
sunny
The sun is shining
drizzle
It's drizzling
windy
The wind is blowing
rainy
It's raining (The rain is falling.)
hail
It's hailing
Mưa đá
pouring
It's pouring (The rain is pouring down.)
snowy
It's snowing (The snow is falling.)
storm
It's thundering
Other things associated with the weather:
sunshine
sunshine
lightning
lightning
puddle
puddles
Vũng nước
raindrop
raindrops
hail
hailstones
snowflake
snowflakes
jack frost
frost
forecast
The weather forecast
flood
flood
drought
drought
tidal wave
tidalwave
tornado
tornado / twister
hurricane
Atlantic / Eastern Pacific = a hurricane
Northwest Pacific = a typhoon
Rest of the world = a cyclone
hurricane
Describing the weather generally:
scorchinghot, scorchingrainywet, miserable, damp
sunnywarm, mild, fine, drymistdull, grey
clearcool, refreshingcoldcold, chilly
A lot of nouns about the weather are UNCOUNTABLE, so we have create or add a counting word:
Fog / MistA wisp of mist / fog.
HailA hailstone
Rain
A drop of rain A raindrop
SnowA snowflake
SunshineA ray of sunshine
WindA gust of wind
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