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18

Unit 18: Different ways of saying 'if'
How to say 'if' without using 'if'

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  1. 1 Go beyond intermediate with our new video course
  2. 2 Reported speech in 90 seconds!
  3. 3 If or whether?
  4. 4 5 ways to use 'would'
  5. 5 Let and allow
  6. 6 Passive voice
  7. 7 Unless
  8. 8 Mixed conditionals
  9. 9 The zero article - in 90 seconds
  10. 10 The indefinite article - in 90 seconds
  11. 11 The. That's right - the! Learn all about it in 90 seconds
  12. 12 The continuous passive
  13. 13 Future perfect
  14. 14 Need + verb-ing
  15. 15 Have something done
  16. 16 Wish
  17. 17 Word stress
  18. 18 Different ways of saying 'if'
  19. 19 Passive reporting structures
  20. 20 The subjunctive
  21. 21 When and if
  22. 22 Inversion
  23. 23 Phrasal verbs
  24. 24 The future
  25. 25 Modals in the past
  26. 26 Narrative tenses
  27. 27 Phrasal verb myths
  28. 28 Conditionals review
  29. 29 Used to - review
  30. 30 Linking words of contrast

Session 5

There's an important customer at The White Elephant restaurant - who Gordon wants to impress. Can he cook something that will 'exceed his expectations'? Watch and learn some phrases related to excellence.

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    Activity 1
  1. Activity 1

Activity 1

Drama: The White Elephant

Episode 18: Excellence

A VIP [Very Important Person] has decided to come and eat at The White Elephant and try out the food. Gordon cooks him something really special - but is it what the customer had in mind? Find out in this episode and listen out for phrases related to excellence.

Watch the video and complete the activity

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Ceilia
Do you know who we've got in the restaurant tonight?

Gordon
A customer?

Ceilia
Well yes… it's a VIP…

Peter
A 'V-I-P'… what's that?

Ceilia
A Very Important Person – it's the town mayor. I can't believe that he's decided to eat in our restaurant tonight.

Gordon
Yes, that's the type of top-notch customer I like to cook for. Royalty!

Mary
Well he's not royalty Gordon, but he is an important person so I'm going to give this plate an extra polish.

Peter
There's the order Gordon. He wants champagne too… I'll go and get some.

Ceilia
I hope you've sobered up after last week and I hope you're going to pull out all the stops to make an excellent dish.

Gordon
Excellence is what I excel at Ceilia, you know that. Right let's get to work… wow, he wants the steak surprise. I can tell this is a man with first-class taste.

Ceilia
Oh just get on with it Gordon.

Gordon
There finished – perfect! Peter!

Mary
Well done Gordon… you really have gone above and beyond your usual standards.

Gordon
Peter, I want you to take this to the mayor. Any bad view he has of our restaurant will be blown right out of the water when he tastes that food.

Gordon
Well, what did he say?

Peter
He said we had 'exceeded his expectations'.

Gordon
Good, good.

Peter
Yes… we are even worse than he had expected. And also, he is a vegetarian and has never eaten meat.

Gordon
But this order said steak surprise…

Peter
That one does… but this says mushroom risotto.

Ceilia
Excellent!

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You can download the drama from our Unit 18 downloads page.

Vocabulary

top-notch
high quality

pull all the stops out
make a big effort so that something is very successful

excel at
do something very well

first-class
best quality

gone above and beyond
done more than was expected

blown right out of the water
shown to be false

exceeded his expectations
be more extreme than what you thought would happen

White Elephant quiz

3 Questions

How much did you understand in The White Elephant: Episode 18?

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End of Session 5

Next time, love is in the air at The White Elephant restaurant when Mary gets a gift but she doesn't know who it's from.

Session Grammar

View full grammar reference

Session Vocabulary

  • top-notch
    high quality

    pull all the stops out 
    make a big effort so that something is very successful

    excel at 
    do something very well

    first-class 
    best quality

    gone above and beyond 
    done more than was expected

    blown right out of the water 
    shown to be false

    exceeded his expectations
    be more extreme than what you thought would happen

View full vocabulary reference

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