Intro
If an
item or a location is connected to religion or used in a religious ceremony, we
say that it is sacred. When a thing or a place is treated with great respect
and highly valued, we might say that it is sacred, too. To call something
sacred is to show how important it is and how worthy it is of respect. Most
people take special care of sacred things and places, even if they’re part of a
religion that’s different than their own.
The
expression nothing is sacred is used when talking about someone who isn’t very
respectful or thoughtful. If you say that nothing is sacred to your friend
Mike, for example, then he doesn’t respect what’s important or of value to
others. To Mike, it’s OK to do or say anything, no matter where he is, who he’s
with, or what is expected of him. Whether he’s at school, in a church, or
sitting next to President Obama, Mike is going to do or say whatever he wants!
Why is
Jeff saying that nothing is sacred to Gary and Brian? What did they do? Find
out by reading today’s English lesson.
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Dialogue
Marni: OK. We’re just about ready here. Can you
hear us? OK.
Jeff: We just need our chairs, and we’re ready
to go.
Marni: OK. What did you do?
Jeff:
What was I supposed to do? I hung up! Just tell them we got disconnected.
Marni: Oh my gosh. I just… I can’t… what?
Whoopie cushions?
Jeff:
You! Hey, you! It was you. You just… Nothing is sacred with you
two. Don’t think we won’t retaliate.
Marni:
Seriously. You’d better watch
your backs.
Gary: Hey, so did you do anything fun this
weekend?
Brian: Not really. Just watched a movie.
Gary: Oh,
yeah? What did you watch? What
the heck? What is this? What the heck is this?
Brian: It’s on my stapler and on my binder
clips, too.
Gary: Dude, this is honey. It’s on everything!
Brian: It is on everything.
Gary: This means war.
Rafael: What is going on here?
Jeff: Just having some fun!
Marni:
Yeah, pick a side!
Gary: Yeah, you have to pick a side.
Rafael: Do I have to?
Gary: Yes, you have to!
Rafael:
Who started it?
Jeff: They did!
Marni: They did!
Rafael: Nothing is sacred for you two, is it?
Marni:
Come on, Rafael, you’re wasting
time!
Discussion
Jeff and
Marni are about to participate in a business phone call. But just before they
can begin, they both sit on something that makes a rude noise! Jeff is so
embarrassed that he ends the call. That’s when they notice that Brian and Gary
are laughing in their office.
Marni and Jeff decide to retaliate for
being embarrassed during their call, so they put honey all over Gary and
Brian’s desk. This
means war to the owners of StarScoop.com,
and Rafael next finds them throwing balls of paper at Marni and Jeff. Rafael
decides to join in on the fun even though he doesn’t know what’s really going
on.
Do you
agree that nothing is sacred to Brian and Gary? Do you know someone who acts
like nothing is sacred to him or her? How do they behave?
Grammar Point
Tag Questions
Rafael
asks Brian and Gary, “Nothing is sacred for you two, is it?” He uses atag
question.
Tag questions are two word tags added to
the end of a statement to make a question. Tag
questions give the other person a chance to reply to something that
has been said. Although we can use different words to make tag questions, they all mean the same thing:
“Do you agree?” or “Am I right?”
We can
make tag questions with both
positive and negative statements. Positive statements will always have negative
question tags, and negative statements will always have positive question tags.
To make
a tag for a positive statement, use the
negative form of the first auxiliary verb + subject (or its
pronoun), as in, “Jane has already seen the movie, hasn’t she?” or, “You are studying tonight, aren’t you?”
To make
a tag for a negative statement, use the
positive form of the auxiliary verb + subject (or pronoun), as in,
“We didn’t eat very much, did we?”
or, “He isn’t interested, is he?”
For
sentences that do not have auxiliary verbs, use
do, does or did. Like other tag questions, make a negative tag for a
positive sentence and make a positive tag for a negative sentence. For example,
“They don’t have a car,do they?” or, “I
forgot my lunch again, didn’t I?”
Tag
questions can be used in past, present, or future tense, so it’s important
to match the tense of the tag question to
the tense of the original statement. For example, “We didn’t get very
far, did we?” or, “They will be
there, won’t they?”
Which
sentence is correct, “Rob has been to Paris, has he?” or, “Rob has been to
Paris, hasn’t he”?
Vocab
____________
what the heck expr.
Definition
I don’t understand this
Example
What the heck are you wearing on your head? Is that a hat or a
melon?
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this means war expr.
Definition
expression of anger, meaning that an attack is planned in
exchange for another attack
Example
Every time my sister gets mad she says, “This means war,” but
she never does anything to me.
__________________
pick a side expr.
Definition
choose who one will support during an argument or fight
Example
Our parents wanted us to pick a side during their divorce, but
we said no.
___________________
started it expr.
Definition
caused a fight or argument
Example
The teacher asked who started it, but none of the students would
answer.
___________________
hang up v.
Definition
end a telephone conversation
Example
You need to hang up now. You can talk to your boyfriend at
school!
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disconnect v.
Definition
undo or break the connection of or between
Example
I hate it when my computer disconnects from the internet.
____________________
nothing is sacred expr.
Definition
it’s OK to do or say anything
Example
My mom always says that nothing is sacred with my brothers and
me. We’ll do anything!
__________________
retaliate v.
Definition
make an attack in return for a similar attack
Example
My brother put a spider in my bed. I’m going to retaliate by
putting a snake in his bed!
____________________
waste time v.
Definition
use time poorly; spend too much time doing something
Example
I don’t want to waste time dating someone I’m not really
interested in.
_____________________
watch your back expr.
Definition
be cautious; protect oneself from others
Example
I always watch my back around Jenna because I don’t trust her.
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