English Course · Level 5 (B2) · Week 3 of 12
Media and Advertising
Grammar: Cleft sentences for emphasis · What I need is… · It was… that…
This week's plan
| Day | Learn | Listen / Watch | Practise |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Words: Advertising · Sentences 1–2 | BBC 6 Minute English: “How advertisers make us spend money” (podcast) | Exercise 1 |
| Day 2 | Words: News media · Sentences 3–4 | TED: Rory Sutherland, “Life lessons from an ad man” (video) | Exercise 2 |
| Day 3 | Words: Online media · Sentences 5–6 | BBC 6 Minute English: “How are influencers affecting politics?” (podcast) | Exercise 3 |
| Day 4 | Words: Persuasion verbs · Sentences 7–8 | BBC 6 Minute English: “How to talk about conspiracy theories” (podcast) + BBC The English We Speak: “Hot take” (podcast) | Exercise 4 |
| Day 5 | Words: Describing ads · Sentences 9–10 | TED: Eli Pariser, “Beware online ‘filter bubbles’” (video) | Write & Speak |
| Day 6 | Review all 30 words + 10 sentences | British Council B2: “Instant messages” (reading) | Redo mistakes |
| Day 7 | Free day ☺ | BBC 6 Minute English: “Nudges: The secrets of persuasion” (podcast) | Tick your tracker |
30 minutes a day: review, learn, listen, practise, speak. Day 7 is a free day. Tap a resource to find it.
30 words to learn
Set 1 · Advertising
- an advertإعلان
- a sloganشعار
- the target audienceالجمهور المستهدف
- a brandعلامة تجارية / ماركة
- a campaignحملة
- a commercialإعلان تلفزيوني
Set 2 · News media
- a headlineعنوان رئيسي
- coverageتغطية إعلامية
- the pressالصحافة
- a tabloidصحيفة شعبية / صحافة صفراء
- biasedمنحاز
- broadcastيبثّ / بثّ
Set 3 · Online media
- an influencerمؤثّر / إنفلونسر
- sponsored contentمحتوى مموَّل / إعلان مدفوع
- clickbaitعناوين مضلِّلة لجذب النقرات
- go viralينتشر بسرعة / يعمل تريند
- an algorithmخوارزمية
- fake newsأخبار كاذبة / مفبركة
Set 4 · Persuasion verbs
- persuadeيُقنع
- manipulateيتلاعب بـ
- appeal toيستهوي / يخاطب
- exaggerateيبالغ
- misleadيضلّل
- promoteيروّج لـ
Set 5 · Describing ads
- catchyجذّاب وسهل الحفظ
- eye-catchingلافت للنظر
- memorableلا يُنسى
- misleadingمضلِّل
- persuasiveمُقنِع
- subtleخفي / غير مباشر
10 sentences to memorise
- 1What I love about this advert is its catchy slogan.ما أحبّه في هذا الإعلان هو شعاره الجذّاب.
- 2It was the headline that made me click on the article.العنوان هو الذي جعلني أضغط على المقال.
- 3What advertisers really want is our attention.ما يريده المعلنون حقًا هو انتباهنا.
- 4The campaign was aimed at teenagers.كانت الحملة موجّهة إلى المراهقين.
- 5It's not the product that people buy; it's the lifestyle.ليس المنتج هو ما يشتريه الناس، بل أسلوب الحياة.
- 6Her video went viral overnight.انتشر الفيديو الخاص بها انتشارًا واسعًا بين ليلة وضحاها.
- 7Some influencers don't make it clear when their content is sponsored.بعض المؤثّرين لا يوضّحون متى يكون محتواهم مموَّلًا.
- 8What worries me is how easily fake news spreads.ما يقلقني هو مدى سهولة انتشار الأخبار الكاذبة.
- 9The newspaper's coverage of the match was clearly biased.كانت تغطية الصحيفة للمباراة منحازة بوضوح.
- 10All I wanted was a phone that works, not one with fifty features.كل ما أردته هو هاتف يعمل، لا هاتف بخمسين ميزة.
Grammar: Cleft sentences for emphasis · What I need is… · It was… that…
Cleft sentences split one idea into two parts to emphasise the most important information. What-cleft: What + clause + is / was + focus (What I need is a holiday). It-cleft: It + is / was + focus + that / who + clause (It was Omar who called).
في العربية نُبرز المعلومة بتقديمها أو بقول «هو الذي / هي التي»، فيحاول المتعلم نقلها حرفيًا ويقول: The headline it made me click ✗ أو What I need it is a holiday ✗. لا تضف ضميرًا زائدًا! الصحيح: It was the headline that made me click · What I need is a holiday. وتذكّر أن الفعل بعد جملة What يكون مفردًا (is / was) حتى لو جاء بعده اسم جمع: What we need is more teachers.
| Normal sentence | What-cleft | It-cleft |
|---|---|---|
| I need a long holiday. | What I need is a long holiday. | It's a long holiday that I need. |
| The slogan made the advert famous. | What made the advert famous was the slogan. | It was the slogan that made the advert famous. |
| Mona told me the news. | — | It was Mona who told me the news. |
| They want to sell us a lifestyle. | What they want is to sell us a lifestyle. | It's a lifestyle that they want to sell us. |
Other useful openings: All I want is… · The thing that annoys me is… · The reason why… is that… · The place where… is…
To emphasise an action, use do / did: What she did was (to) call the police. · What you should do is complain.
In it-clefts use who for people (It was Ahmed who…); that is possible for both people and things.
Exercises
Exercise 1 · Rewrite as What-clefts.
- 1) I need some peace and quiet.
- 2) The price surprised me.
- 3) We want honest advertising.
- 4) She hates clickbait.
- 5) He told the truth. (use did)
- 6) The ending of the film annoyed me.
Show the answers
Exercise 2 · Rewrite as It-clefts to emphasise the words in [brackets].
- 1) [Nour] designed the logo.
- 2) I met him [in Aswan].
- 3) The advert was shown [last night].
- 4) [The music] makes this commercial memorable.
- 5) [Teenagers] spend the most time online.
Show the answers
Exercise 3 · Correct the mistake.
- 1) What I want it is a new job.
- 2) It was my brother which bought the tickets.
- 3) What they need are more time.
- 4) The thing what annoys me is the noise.
- 5) What did she was call the manager.
Show the answers
Exercise 4 · Translate into English.
- 1) ما أحتاجه هو نصيحة صادقة.
- 2) أمي هي التي شجّعتني.
- 3) ما يقلقني هو أن الأطفال يصدّقون كل الإعلانات.
- 4) الإعلان الذي انتشر بسرعة كان مضلِّلًا.
Show the answers
Do each exercise in pencil first, then open the answers to check.
Write & Speak
Example: A Ramadan advert that everyone is talking about Every Ramadan, Egyptian TV is full of adverts, but this year it was one particular commercial for a mobile network that caught my attention. It lasts about three minutes and tells the story of an elderly man in Alexandria who learns to video-call his grandson abroad. What makes the advert so memorable is its simplicity. There are no celebrities, no loud music and no list of special offers. Instead, the camera follows the old man as he struggles with his new phone, gets help from a neighbour's daughter and finally sees his grandson's face on the screen. It was that final scene, with the old man's tears, that made millions of viewers share the video online. The target audience is clearly families, especially young people who live far from their parents. The advert appeals to our emotions rather than to logic, which is a subtle but very persuasive technique. However, the advert is not completely innocent. What it actually sells is not love or family, but a data package. The emotional story hides the fact that the prices are rather high, and the details appear on the screen for only two seconds. Overall, I think the campaign is extremely effective and beautifully made. What viewers should remember, though, is that a touching story is still a sales tool. Enjoy the advert, but read the small print before you buy. Rating: 4/5