Vocabulary and Grammar: Music, Finance, Relationships

Music Vocabulary

Movie (Pelicula) terms: one-hit wonder, manager, single, up-tempo song, opening act, label, snappy song, plug a song, encore, state fairs, shoot up the charts, mockumentary, low-budget, penny whistle, buskers, scheme, spotted, engaged, word-of-mouth, owing to, outrageous, uplifting, pitch, tune, bootleg, lyrics, filesharing.

Unit 1: Music and General Vocabulary

  • Play something by ear
  • It’s music to my ears
  • It rings a bell
  • You have to face the music
  • You sound like a broken record
  • I must blow the whistle
  • Venue
  • Gig
  • Backup singer
  • Deafening
  • Velvet
  • Wands
  • Parchment
  • Quill
  • Owl
  • Witch
  • Wizard
  • Spell
  • Hurling
  • Diehard fan
  • Twang
  • Tribute band
  • Shortage
  • Stuffed
  • Steaming
  • Peak
  • Ovation
  • Catchy
  • Note

Unit 2: Finance and Adjectives

  • A flashy new car
  • Designer clothes
  • A personal development course
  • Your retirement
  • A donation to charity
  • Interest
  • Conspicuous consumption
  • Go on a spree
  • Set a budget
  • Run out of cash
  • A sound investment
  • A nest egg
  • A treat
  • Shopaholic
  • In the red
  • A “must-have” item
  • A rainy day
  • Old-fashioned
  • Self-centered
  • Last minute
  • Far-fetched
  • Airtight
  • Long or short term
  • Level-headed
  • Quick-witted
  • So-called
  • Long-standing
  • Mass-produced
  • Self-made
  • Grab
  • Saving account
  • Backpacking
  • Stocks
  • Invest in
  • Sleepwalkers
  • Status seekers
  • Scrimpers
  • Shortcoming
  • Flaw
  • Mug
  • Nugget
  • Riverbed
  • Mutiny
  • Let alone
  • Bidders
  • Frank
  • Clutter up
  • Inherited
  • Save
  • Borrowed
  • Lent
  • Waste
  • Can’t afford
  • Charged
  • To draw
  • Cost
  • Owe
  • Earn
  • Worth
  • Note
  • Bill
  • Coin
  • Salary
  • Tax
  • Mortgage
  • Loan
  • Cash machine

Modal Verbs

Must, mustn’t, might, may, should, shouldn’t, could, couldn’t, have to, don’t have to, can, can’t, ought to.

Phrasal Verbs

  • Get on with (have a friendly relationship)
  • Fall out with (have a quarrel with someone)
  • Get fed up with (become annoyed or bored with someone)
  • Go for (tend to like a particular type of person)
  • Take to (start to like someone)
  • Break up with (separate from someone)
  • Stand up to (refuse to accept unfair treatment)
  • Fall for (start to love someone)
  • Get even
  • Get down

Unit 3: Relationships and Personality

Acquaintances, affectionate, aggressive, ambitious, annoy, arrogant, assertive, big-headed, calm, caring, charming, colleagues, committed, competitive, confident, confrontational, conscientious, contrary, curious, discerning, eager, empathetic, enable, extrovert, eye-contact, facial expressions, fallible, family, feuds, frank, idealistic, gestures, glib, good friends, guilty, hardworking, harassment, heartfelt, high-spirited, honest, impatient, independent, insecure, intake, lawsuits, loyal, narrow-minded, modest, obstinate, one-way street, open-minded, organized, outburst, perceptive, playful, positively, posture, practical, proud, proxemics, quick-tempered, rebellious, reliable, responsible, rewarding, seeking, self-conscious, self-righteous, sensitive, serious, siblings, sincere, sociable, spoilt, stable, stalk, strangers, stubborn, sulking, supportive, taciturn, telltale, tender, thereby, tone of voice, tolerant, trivial, trouble-shooter, truce, trustworthy, undisciplined, warm-hearted, well-organized.

Gerunds (-ing)

Enjoy, avoid, like, suggest, stop, practice, miss, think about, consider, quit, give up, feel like, finish, avoid, (can’t) help, (can’t) stand, (don’t) mind, regret, need, mean, remember, forget, stay, decorate, see, meet, dance.

Infinitive (to)

Able, attempt, hope, manage, avoid, plan, allow, decide, expect, want, agree, design, use, like, cause, promise, need, plan, learn, would like, get, go, intend, stop, to become, to speak.

Gerunds and Infinitive

Prefer, start, able, avoid, like, love, hate, continue, remember.

Unit 4: Science

Bounds, gadgets, hard science, social science, thrown up, mishaps, mold, fluke, carnation, lab, anesthetic, botanist, diagnostic, breakthrough.