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Gossip

Learn Contractions and Abbreviations

Date: Aug 15 2011

Themes: Friend

Grammar: Contractions and Abbreviations

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Intro

1. Learn Vocabulary - Learn some new vocabulary before you start the lesson.

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2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.

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Did you hear what John said about what Brad said to Jennifer about what Bill did to Tom? No? Sounds like you need to catch up on your gossip.

Gossip is talk or rumors about other people. Sometimes it’s harmless, but when it’s mean or untrue it can hurt people’s feelings or cause conflicts.

Some people only like to dish about people they know, but others are interested in celebrity gossip, or stories published in tabloids about famous people’s lives. Hear Jason and Ella gossip about gossip.

Dialog

1. Listen and Read - Listen to the audio and read the dialog at the same time.

2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Jason

Ella

Jason: I’ve seen you reading some gossip magazines lately.

Ella: Yeah, so?

Jason: Is that a subject of interest for you?

Ella: It’s entertaining. It’s like official gossip since it’s in print. You know, everyone knows them, so…

Jason: Oh, OK.

Ella: That’s why it’s OK to gossip in this manner.

Jason: But it’s not OK to gossip if everyone doesn’t know the person that’s being gossiped about?

Ella: I guess gossip in general, it just depends on how malicious the rumor is, and also how juicy the details are of that rumor.

Jason: Do you think it’s more likely to be true if it has juicy details attached to it?

Ella: I don’t know, I feel like it’s less likely to be true because of the juicy details. But it makes it definitely more interesting and you definitely want to spread it.

Jason: Have you ever known someone or had your own reputation damaged by gossip?

Ella: I’m not gonna lie, I definitely spread a lot of rumors when I was younger. But I saw the repercussions of that, and so even though I partake in gossip I’ve decided that anything I say behind someone’s back I have to be willing to say to their face.

Jason: Oh, wow, OK.

Ella: And so, that’s kind of my approach to gossip now.

Jason: I kind of enjoyed it. There were a lot of rumors about me and some of my friends in high school.

Ella: Like what?

Jason: Um, one of my friends was rumored to have been in a street fight in Japan.

Ella: Sometimes when you hear rumors about yourself you just want to keep it going because it’s interesting.

Jason: Exactly, we thought it was fun. We were like, yeah, let’s let these people believe these hilarious and untrue things.

Grammar Point

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Discussion

Go Super to Listen

Ella likes to read about celebrity gossip in the tabloids. She thinks it’s OK to follow gossip about celebrities because they have public lives and everybody knows who they are.

Jason asks Ella if she gossips about people who are not famous, too. She says it depends on how malicious the rumor is. She doesn’t like to spread mean gossip. She used to gossip more when she was younger, but now she won’t say anything behind someone’s back that she wouldn’t say to that person’s face.

People used to spread rumors about Jason and his friends in high school. But he didn’t mind it. In fact, he and his friends thought the rumors were funny. They liked to hear wild gossip about themselves.

Do you like to gossip? Has anyone ever spread a rumor about you? Do you pay attention to celebrity gossip?

Comments

1 through 20 of 46
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hemiao940512

China

it is my first time to ues English baby```

Hollly

Russian Federation

What a bore to read about celebrities!

ghoncheh

Iran, Islamic Republic Of

I never pay attention to celebrity gossip,they’re not important words and aren’t valuable to hear.

Manoona Khaled

Egypt

In our religion GOSSIP is not allowed, but there are some people can’t live without gossiping .. It’s like water for them !!

Learner of Life

Indonesia

I don’t like gossip!

Nobody is perfect, including me. I have my moments Too..

For me, sharing with me if I treated you bad or made mistakes is better than talk about it behind my back…

Summer-sun

Bulgaria

Unfortunately gossiping is part of our culture, of our live. I hate gossips! For me it is a way to show others how weakness are you actually! Ugly and really stupid.

I like to read celebrity gossip without thier intimate life, only news about new moves or new songs, concerts, parties… etc.

reemona

Oman

I hate gossip:@ I broke off a friendship becouse of this problem.

I never tell secrets I swear >only if I forgot it’s a secret

Bruce_zhou

China

gossiping is a problem in our life and work,gossiping is a bad habit just not polite,actually,I aways keep something a secret if someone who don’t want to be spreading,I never gossips and I don’t like gossiper,you know,if someone always gossips other’s secret with you ,maybe something the gossiper is going to share your secret with someone else.so you have to pay attention,so we have to keep our intimate life as a secret,don’t share to someone who like gossip.

ekidz220

China

gossip is just a part of human nature. everyone does it but like ella said, there are repercussions to that and u could really hurt someone’s reputations by spreading malicous rumors about that person. so we should restraint ourselves from gossiping.

Mickey123

United States

Everybody gossips. It depends on what kind of rumors I hear, when things are malicious I wouldn’t spread them because they are harmful to one’s reputation, but when it comes to juicy details and hilarious rumomrs I would tell people to make them laugh. I do read tabloids when there are some interesting topic that catch my attention but I don’t care as much when it comes to celebrity that I don’t know well.

Kotisha

Russian Federation

Frankly speaking I never gossip and also I hate when some people rumor about others. I think that when people start envying other people, they begin to gossip about them. Sometimes it can cause a bad reputation.

Also I never read tabloids, because there are a lot of untrue stories about celebrities.

Murun

Mongolia

Actually I like gossip about celebrities. Especially I like to dish about famous people who I like and want to meet them at least one time in my life. But for other people who are also known by a lot of people, I just don`t care.

jaynedayana

Colombia

gossip is like a lack of self-confidence, where you need find mistakes in others to feel good themeselves

Vina Novalina

Indonesia

Someone who talk gossip with u, will gossip about u with the others, so be carefull hehhe
Put the ear pump when someone make a gossip ;P LOL

Marcelolic

Brazil

Humm It depends…I interest about celebrities life gossip ‘cause their lives are “public”,now when the gossip is about life of our friends or even about ourselves I think pretty degrading!

Lately my name was envolved in a gossip,so unfortunately I lost a friend…So I hate gossip and who gossips!

rogeholl

Brazil

I don´t like to gossip . I like to take care my life .

saeedsirtex

Iran, Islamic Republic Of

please closed ur mouth when somebody speak u…these days flies in sky are searching for house…in becooming crowded population of flies everyplace maby the house of them…..

hay friends have u ever test any fly????he he he…

Ahshan

China

MONY----

Egypt

I know someone who loves to gossip later he speaks frankly to the one who he has dished about in order to get out out of guilt that’s how the other person take it easy and it the whole issue turn into kind of joke

I hate gossip it’s painful specially if it’s untrue