What Are You Excited About Learning?
2020-02-28
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1Hi everyone! Today, let's start the program with a question: What is your city famous for making?
2I'll tell you my answer. New York is famous for making great pizza.
3Here's another question that follows the same structure: What are you excited about learning?
4I hope your answer is "how to make sentences that use adjectives followed by prepositions and gerunds."
5That is the topic of today's Everyday Grammar program!
6Without even realizing it, you may already know several adjectives that use this sentence structure.
7Let's look at three of them today: interested, excited and bored.
8Now, listen to two sentences that use the adjective "bored" and think about which sounds more natural:
9Noemie was bored of doing the same job.
10Noemie was bored to do the same job.
11Hopefully, the first sentence sounds more natural to you.
12If so, your ears are probably accustomed to hearing the structure we are exploring today:
13BE + adjective + preposition + gerund
14In the sentence, "was" is the verb of being; "bored" is the adjective; "of" is the preposition; and "doing" is the gerund.
15You may remember that a gerund is a verb form that ends in -ing and acts as a noun.
16If the second example sounds more natural to you, you are likely in the habit of making the common mistake of using an infinitive after some adjectives.
17You may remember that the infinitive form of a verb is "to" plus its simplest form, as in "to do."
18But think of the adjective-plus-preposition structure as a signal that some kind of noun will follow, such as a gerund or noun phrase, not an infinitive verb.
19Okay, so I mentioned the adjectives "interested," "excited," and "bored."
20Now let's look at the prepositions that usually come after them.
21Listen for the word that follows "interested" in the next example:
22He is interested in studying abroad.
23The word "in" is the only preposition that can come after the adjective "interested."
24I cannot say, for example, "I am interested about studying abroad."
25The good news is that, even though the grammar is not correct, the listener would probably still understand my meaning.
26Now listen for the preposition in this example:
27I am excited about learning to play the guitar.
28I hope you noted the preposition "about." It almost always follows the adjective "excited."
29Finally, listen for the preposition in this example:
30They were bored of staying inside all day.
31That's right - "bored of" usually goes together.
32As you can see, in English specific prepositions follow specific adjectives.
33Before we go, let's briefly hear what today's examples sound like in the negative form. Here are the three examples:
34He is not interested in studying abroad.
35He plans to travel after he finishes school.
36Noemie was not bored of doing the same job.
37She learned something new every day.
38I am not excited about learning to play the guitar.
39My father is making me do it.
40Can you see how to form the negative? Simply add the word "not" between the BE verb and the adjective.
41But keep in mind that most native English speakers use contractions, so in real life the sentences would probably sound more like, "He's not interested in studying abroad" and "Noemie wasn't bored of doing the same job."
42So what can you do to practice the grammar we talked about today?
43Here's one idea:
44Try to familiarize yourself with a list of about 20 of the most common adjectives that are followed by prepositions.
45Then, listen and look for those adjectives whenever you hear and read English.
46Ask yourself if the speaker or writer is using the sentence structure from today's lesson.
47You can also practice writing your own sentences and then use them when you speak or write English to friends or practice partners.
48While today's topic is fresh in your mind, here's a great way to practice right now.
49Answer one, two or all of these questions:
50What is your city famous for making?
51What are you excited about learning?
52What are you not bored of doing?
53I am very, very interested in reading your answers.
54I'm Alice Bryant.
55And I'm Jill Robbins.
1Hi everyone! Today, let's start the program with a question: What is your city famous for making? 2I'll tell you my answer. New York is famous for making great pizza. 3Here's another question that follows the same structure: What are you excited about learning? 4I hope your answer is "how to make sentences that use adjectives followed by prepositions and gerunds." That is the topic of today's Everyday Grammar program! 5What's the structure again? 6Without even realizing it, you may already know several adjectives that use this sentence structure. Let's look at three of them today: interested, excited and bored. 7Now, listen to two sentences that use the adjective "bored" and think about which sounds more natural: 8Noemie was bored of doing the same job. 9Noemie was bored to do the same job. 10Hopefully, the first sentence sounds more natural to you. If so, your ears are probably accustomed to hearing the structure we are exploring today: 11BE + adjective + preposition + gerund 12In the sentence, "was" is the verb of being; "bored" is the adjective; "of" is the preposition; and "doing" is the gerund. You may remember that a gerund is a verb form that ends in -ing and acts as a noun. 13If the second example sounds more natural to you, you are likely in the habit of making the common mistake of using an infinitive after some adjectives. You may remember that the infinitive form of a verb is "to" plus its simplest form, as in "to do." But think of the adjective-plus-preposition structure as a signal that some kind of noun will follow, such as a gerund or noun phrase, not an infinitive verb. 14Which prepositions? 15Okay, so I mentioned the adjectives "interested," "excited," and "bored." Now let's look at the prepositions that usually come after them. 16Listen for the word that follows "interested" in the next example: 17He is interested in studying abroad. 18The word "in" is the only preposition that can come after the adjective "interested." I cannot say, for example, "I am interested about studying abroad." The good news is that, even though the grammar is not correct, the listener would probably still understand my meaning. 19Now listen for the preposition in this example: 20I am excited about learning to play the guitar. 21I hope you noted the preposition "about." It almost always follows the adjective "excited." 22Finally, listen for the preposition in this example: 23They were bored of staying inside all day. 24That's right - "bored of" usually goes together. 25As you can see, in English specific prepositions follow specific adjectives. 26Using the negative 27Before we go, let's briefly hear what today's examples sound like in the negative form. Here are the three examples: 28He is not interested in studying abroad. He plans to travel after he finishes school. 29Noemie was not bored of doing the same job. She learned something new every day. 30I am not excited about learning to play the guitar. My father is making me do it. 31Can you see how to form the negative? Simply add the word "not" between the BE verb and the adjective. But keep in mind that most native English speakers use contractions, so in real life the sentences would probably sound more like, "He's not interested in studying abroad" and "Noemie wasn't bored of doing the same job." 32Practice, practice, practice 33So what can you do to practice the grammar we talked about today? 34Here's one idea: 35Try to familiarize yourself with a list of about 20 of the most common adjectives that are followed by prepositions. Then, listen and look for those adjectives whenever you hear and read English. Ask yourself if the speaker or writer is using the sentence structure from today's lesson. 36You can also practice writing your own sentences and then use them when you speak or write English to friends or practice partners. 37While today's topic is fresh in your mind, here's a great way to practice right now. Answer one, two or all of these questions: 38What is your city famous for making? 39What are you excited about learning? 40What are you not bored of doing? 41I am very, very interested in reading your answers. 42I'm Alice Bryant. 43And I'm Jill Robbins. 44Alice Bryant wrote this story for Learning English. Kelly Jean Kelly was the editor. 45________________________________________________________________ 46Words in This Story 47bored - adj. feeling weary because you lack interest in your current activity 48accustomed - adj. familiar with something so that it seems normal or usual 49habit - n. something that a person does often in a regular and repeated way 50phrase - n. a group of two or more words that express a single idea but do not usually form a complete sentence 51mention - v. to talk about, write about, or refer to something or someone in a brief way 52specific - adj. precise or exact 53negative - adj. expressing denial or refusal 54contraction - n. a short form of a word or word group that is made by leaving out a sound or letter 55practice - v. to do something again and again in order to become better at it 56familiarize - v. to give someone knowledge about something 57______________________________________________________________ 58The following is a list of common adjectives that are followed by prepositions. 59addicted to 60afraid of 61ashamed of 62angry about 63bored of 64concerned about 65disappointed in / about 66excited about 67famous for 68good at 69guilty of 70happy about 71interested in 72known for 73mad about 74nervous about 75proud of 76scared of 77sick of 78tired of 79worried about