English in Madrid

Image created by Chat GPT 'If you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain': The wit and wisdom of Dolly Parton Dolly Parton, the much-loved US singer-songwriter who has died at the age of 80, was known for her pearls of wisdom and humour as well as her music. She regularly offered her perceptive and witty insights about life, music, fame and equal rights. Here are some of her most memorable quotes from down the years : Philosophy " The way I see it , if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain." "I always just thought if you see somebody without a smile, give 'em yours!" "I'm not going to limit myself just because people won't accept the fact that I can do something else." "If you don't like the road you're walking, start paving another one ." "Don't get so busy making a living that you forget to make a life." "Storms make trees take deeper roots ." "Sometime...

Silvio Berlusconi’s memorable quotes and quips Silvio Berlusconi, the outspoken four-time Italian prime minister and billionaire media mogul who died on Monday at the age of 86, had a sense of humour that often landed him in trouble . Here are some of his memorable quotes and quips: DEC 2022: Berlusconi tells players of his Monza soccer team he would bring "a bus of whores into the locker room " if they managed to beat a top Serie A rival. OCT 2022: Despite anger in the West over the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Berlusconi stood resolutely by his old friend , President Vladimir Putin: "Putin for my birthday sent me 20 bottles of vodka and a very sweet letter. I replied with bottles of Lambrusco and an equally sweet letter." NOV 2010: "As always, I work without interruption and if occasionally I happen to look a beautiful girl in the face, it's better to like beautiful girls than to be gay," he tells a meeting at a motorcycle industry show in M...

Source: Wikipedia   French history myths: Marie-Antoinette said ‘Let them eat cake’ It's one of history's most famous quotes , synonymous with the French revolution, but there's little evidence that any real-life royal actually said it. The Myth: French queen Marie-Antoinette, on be ing told that an ongoing famine meant that many people did not even have bread to eat, said “Let them eat cake”. It’s the perfect symbol of the out-of-touch French royalty who would shortly be deposed and executed in the French Revolution, but there are two problems with this ‘fact’.  In response to be ing told about the famine, the Austrian queen supposedly answered “Qu’ils mangent de la brioche” dismissing the widespread hunger and making it obvious she did not understand the gravity of the situation.  However , even the English translation of ‘Let them eat cake’ on its own might merit a fact check, as brioche is in fact a sweet bread made with butter and egg, so it is not ex...

Source: Wikipedia (Archives New Zealand) Prince Philip on royal duty: In his own words   Despite the DoE's many achievements in a long life of service, some will remember him as a man who was often blunt , sometimes to the point of giving offence.  His supporters always said his sense of humour was misunderstood and his remarks often taken out of context. And he himself was not unaware of his reputation - he once described himself as a " cantankerous old sod ".  Here are some of his most well-known lines, in chronological order. You may find some of the quotes below offensive.  2. "Dontopedalogy is the science of opening your mouth and putting your foot in it , a science which I have practised for a good many years."  According to Time magazine, the duke coined a new term for his verbal missteps - incorporating the Latin words for "mouth" and "foot" - in a speech to the General Dental Council in 1960.  3. " Looks like the k...

Source: Nelson Ndongala on Unsplash Here are some of Muhammad Ali's quotes. Complete them. Think what kind of word is missing - none of them are difficult words.  If you are struggling , at the end of the post I have put the answers (though in the wrong order). And you have to choose between two options. "When will they ever have another fighter who writes poems, predicts rounds, beats everybody, makes people laugh, makes people cry, and is (1) tall and extra pretty (1) me? In the history of the world and from the beginning of time, there’s never been another fighter like me. Eat your words! Eat your words! I am the greatest." "I am the greatest, I (2) that even before I knew I was. I figured that if I (2) it enough, I would convince the world that I really was the greatest."  "I'm so fast that last night I turned off the light switch in my hotel room and was in bed (3) the room was dark."  "If you even dream of beating me, you'...

Can you guess the words to complete these quotations from Nelson Mandela? ___ is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world. I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The ___ man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear. It always seems ___ until it's done. After ___ing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to ___. Money won't create ___, the freedom to create it will. There can be no keener revelation of a society's ___ than the way in which it treats its children. To ___ people their human rights is to challenge their very humanity. Unlike some politicians, I can admit to a ___. It is ___ to persuade people to do things and make them think it was their own idea. It is better to lead from behind and to put others in front, especially when you celebrate when nice things occur. You take the front line when there is ___. Then people will appreciate your leadershi...

Here is a selection of Margaret Thatcher's. What is the right way to complete the quotes? " To be / Being  powerful is like being a lady. If you have to tell people you are, you aren't."  "In politics, if you want anything said, ask a man. If you want anything done / made , ask a woman." "Don't follow the crowd , let the crowd follow / to follow  you." "I am extraordinarily patient, provided I get my own way in the end / at the end ." "Standing in the middle of the road is very dangerous; you get knocked down by / for  the traffic from both sides." "If my critics would see / saw me walking over the Thames, they would say it was because I couldn't swim." "I always cheer up immensely if an attack is particularly wounding because I think, well, if they attack one personally, it means they have not a single political argument / discussion   left ." "If you just set out to be liked, you...

A: "I 'm sorry. I made a mistake. It won't happen again" B: The King said that he was sorry and he had made a mistake. He also said that it wouldn't happen again. C:  The King apologized for go ing on a safari trip during a financial crisis. He admitted mak ing a mistake. He promised not to do it again. A is a quote from the King. See more posts on quotes here . B is an example of reported speech. See more posts on reported speech here . C is an example of reporting verbs/verb patterns. See more posts on reporting verbs  here . Don't forget that you can find related labels at the end of every post. If you want further practice on reported speech or verb patterns, click on the labels below this post.

Source: You Tube (Rick Steve's Europe)    Key Words: London mad and trad "Why, Sir, you find no man, at all intellectual, who is willing to leave London. No, Sir, when a man is tired of London, he is tired of life; for there is in London all that life can afford ." - Samuel Johnson Have you ever been to London? What did/didn't you like about it? What was the highlight of your trip? What memories do you have? What struck you most ? Would you like to live there? Why/why not? Compare life in London to life in Madrid. Source:  Jack Finnigan on Unsplash If you haven't been, would you like to go? What would you like to do and see? How do you imagine London? Source: Laurenz Kleinheider on Unsplash Try to complete the lyrics to London Calling by The Clash . Source: You Tube (Wolters World) Key Words: 5 hates lioves London

Source: Enrico Tavian en Unsplash If you have men who will exclude any of God's creatures from the shelter of compassion and pity, you will have men who will deal likewise with their fellow men . ~ St. Francis of Assisi God loved the birds and invented trees. Man loved the birds and invented cages . ~Jacques Deval, Afin de vivre bel et bien I care not much for a man's religion whose dog and cat are not the better for it. ~Abraham Lincoln Hunting is not a sport. In a sport, both sides should know they're in the game. ~Paul Rodriguez The animals of the world exist for their own reasons. They were not made for humans any more than black people were made for white, or women created for men. ~Alice Walker Life is life - whether in a cat, or dog or man. There is no difference there between a cat or a man. The idea of difference is a human conception for man's own advantage. ~Sri Aurobindo Deer hunting would be fine sport , if only the deer had guns. ~Will...

Source: aboodi vesakaran en Unsplash "The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated"  I like to think the above quote from Mahatma Ghandi is true. Here are some more Ghandi quotes: An eye for eye only ends up making the whole world blind. In a gentle way, you can shake the world. Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever. The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong. There is a sufficiency in the world for man's need but not for man's greed . Read more Ghandi quotes here . What are your favourites? Read the quotes of other famous people here . What are your favourites and why? Source: Brainy Quote