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Discovering More about English with the Help of the CIDE

© Brenda Townsend Hall

The exercises below are to help you explore ways in which the Cambridge International Dictionary can help students learn more about English.

The dictionary has a phrase index at the back to help you find groups of words when you don't know which one to look up. Use the phrase index and the definitions it directs you to, to complete the following phrases with animals:

a ..... market- a time when the price of shares is falling and a lot of people are buying them;

a ... burglar- a thief who enters and leaves a building by climbing up walls to an upper window, door, etc;

..... years- a very long time;

a ..... breakfast- something or someone that looks very untidy;

to have other ..... to fry- to have something more important or interesting to do;

a ...... party- a party for women only;

..... toed- a person who is ..... toed bends their feet in towards each other when they walk;

a ...... in the grass- is an unpleasant person who cannot be trusted.

The dictionary can tell you whether a word is normally used to show the approval or disapproval of the speaker.

Find out about the following:

Is it more complimentary to call someone podgy or plump/ skinny or slim/ discerning or fussy / bossy or authoritative/ imposing or self-important/ meticulous or nitpicking/ wimpish or timid?

The dictionary can tell you about register (specialised areas in which words may occur). Sometimes the dictionary has illustrations to help in this area. Look at the illustrations for the word knife and then check the special uses for the following so that you can say who would use:

a scalpel; a bayonet; a palette knife. Check the definitions of the following words describing groups of people and find out who make up:

a congregation; an audience; a mob; a queue.

The dictionary can help you choose the right words to use in combination, e.g. bread is stale when it is not fresh but milk is 'off' What words combine with the main words in the phrases below:

a .... of soap; a ... tour (a holiday with all your travelling, hotels etc. pre-booked by the travel agent); a grass .... ( a woman whose husband is away for long periods); a beauty ... (a place in the countryside which is particularly attractive).

English is a language that is always developing and often accepts new words. See if you can find out what the following mean:

the Chunnel, a prequel, a NIMBY, to gazump, a sitcom, a soundbite.