English in Madrid

Who was Robert Burns and why do we celebrate Burns Night? https://t.co/LSFLKVV02a — BBC News (UK) (@BBCNews) January 22, 2024 Six-minute English - Burns Night Here are  three examples of his works: To A Mouse Wee, sleekit, cow'rin, tim'rous beastie,                   O, what a panic's in thy breastie!  Thou need na start awa sae hasty,  Wi' bickering brattle!  I wad be laith to rin an' chase thee,  Wi' murd'ring pattle!  I'm truly sorry man's dominion,  Has broken nature's social union,  An' justifies that ill opinion,  Which makes thee startle  At me, thy poor, earth-born companion,  An' fellow-mortal!  I doubt na, whiles, but thou may thieve;  What then? poor beastie, thou maun live!  A daimen icker in a thrave  'S a sma' request;  I'll get a blessin wi' the lave,  An' never miss't!  Thy wee bit housie, too, in ruin!  It's silly wa's the win...

Source: You Tube (The Daily Wire) Key words: Trump YMCA pre-inauguration Young man, there's no need to feel down , I said Young man, pick yourself off the ground , I said Young man, 'cause you're in a new town There's no need to be unhappy Young man, there's a place you can go, I said Young man, when you're short on your dough you can Stay there and I'm sure you will find Many ways to have a good time [Chorus] It's fun to stay at the Y.M.C.A.  It's fun to stay at the Y.M.C.A.  They have everything for young men to enjoy You can hang out with all the boys It's fun to stay at the Y.M.C.A.  It's fun to stay at the Y.M.C.A.  You can get yourself clean, you can have a good meal You can do whatever you feel [Verse 2] Young man, are you listening to me? I said Young man, what do you want to be? I said Young man, you can make real your dreams But you 've got to know this one thing No man does it all by himself, I said Young man, put your pr...

Spain proposes 100% tax on homes bought by non-EU residents Pedro Sánchez announces measure in response to anger over rising housing costs Spain has announced plans to impose a tax of up to 100% on real estate bought by non-residents from countries outside the EU, such as the UK, in an aim to tackle the country’s housing crisis. The measure was one of a dozen unveiled on Monday by the country’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, as the government seeks to quell mounting anger over housing costs that have soared far beyond the reach of many in Spain. Sánchez sought to underline the global nature of the challenge, citing housing prices that had swelled 48% in the past decade across Europe, far outpacing household incomes . “The west faces a decisive challenge : to not become a society divided into two classes, the rich landlords and poor tenants ,” he told an economic forum in Madrid. The proposed measures include expanding the supply of social housing, offering incentives...

Remind yourselves of the #WOTD: Week 1 Week 2 Week 3 Week 4   and then test your knowledge with this Quizlet Week 1-4:       The following story contains 10 #WOTD from above. Use these words to rewrite the 10 sentences. It had been a long day at work, and Elena’s feet were sore after standing for hours. To make matters worse, she had to drag herself through the rain to catch the last bus home. Normally, she wouldn’t bother anyone for help, but tonight, she decided to call her friend Jake for a ride . Jake was a bit fussy about his schedule but agreed to pick her up . On the way home, he reminded her that she still owed him dinner for helping her move last month. They joked about splitting the cost of a parking fine they once shared after parking in a no-parking zone. When they arrived at Elena’s house, she said, “I fancy a warm meal right now. Want to join me for some takeout ?” Jake smiled and agreed. They chatted about how their favourite cafe had decided to ...

Source: You Tube (The80sJukebox )   Key words: Billy Ocean tough When The Going Gets Tough (Billy Ocean) When the going gets tough  / Cuando el ca mino se pone difícil, The tough get going, tough, tough, huh, huh, huh / Los fuertes se ponen en marcha. When the going gets tough, the tough get ready / Los fuertes se preparan Yeah, ooooh, du da du da (When life becomes challenging , strong and determined people rise to the occasion and take action. They don't back down ; instead , they prepare themselves to face difficulties head-on . I got something to tell you / Tengo algo que decirte/contarte I got something to say / Tengo algo que decir (The singer wants to share their thoughts and emotions with someone, emphasising that what they have to say is important and heartfelt .) I'm gonna put this dream in motion / Voy a poner este sueño en movimiento Never let nothing stand in my way / Nunca dejaré que nada se interponga en mi camino. (The s...

Image created by Chat GPT Losing your mind looking at memes ? The dictionary has a word for that Are you spending hours scroll ing mindlessly on Instagram reels and TikTok? If so, you might be suffering from brain rot , which Oxford University Press has named its phrase or word of the year. It is a term that captures concerns about the impact of consuming excessive amounts of low-quality online content, especially on social media. The usage saw an increase of 230% in its frequency from 2023 to 2024. Psychologist and Oxford University Professor Andrew Przybylski says the popularity of the word is a "symptom of the time we're living in". Brain rot beat five other phrases or words on the dictionary publisher's shortlist , including demure, Romantasy and dynamic pricing. What is brain rot? Brain rot is defined as the supposed deterioration of a person's mental or intellectual state, especially viewed as the result of overconsumption of material considered to ...

Muhammad overtakes Noah as most popular boy's name Muhammad was the top choice for parents naming their baby boys in England and Wales in 2023, with more than 4,600 children registered with the name. It has been among the top 10 names for baby boys since 2016, but has now overtaken the previous favourite, Noah, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS). There is , however , a level of regional variation with Muhammad not appearing in the top 10 for three regions of England. Other spellings of the name Mohammed and Mohammad also made the top 100 list for England and Wales. The ONS considers each spelling as a separate name, with different variations of Muhammad proving popular in previous years. Olivia remains the most popular choice for baby girls, followed by Amelia and Isla. These top three have remained unchanged since 2022. Hyphenated names jumped in popularity for girls last year, standing at more than 19,140 names, up from around 12,330 the year before. ...