Unit 3

People in Business
Grammar Present Simple
The Verb be
Vocabulary Daily Activities
Communication Skills Introductions
Pronunciation Alphabet

A. Listening
Lorella Braglia is a designer. She lives in the North of Italy between Milan and Bologna. Her
company makes clothes, which sell all over the world.

« (Track 02)
1. Two journalists are talking about Lorella. Listen and write down the information.

Name …………………………………………………………………………………………
Nationality …………………………………………………………………………………………
Home …………………………………………………………………………………………
Age …………………………………………………………………………………………
Company …………………………………………………………………………………………
Job …………………………………………………………………………………………
Languages …………………………………………………………………………………………

2. Listen again. Complete these sentences.

1 Her name ……………………….. Lorella Braglia.

2 She ……………………….. in Reggio Emilia.
3 She ……………………….. a designer.
4 She ……………………….. foe Dielle.
5 Her Husband ……………………….. the Marketing Director.
6 They ……………………….. Italian.
7 They ……………………….. English and Italian.
8 They ……………………….. together.

B. Speaking
1. Ask a partner these three questions. Write down the answers. Then ask other
people.

Name …………………………………………………………………………………………
Nationality …………………………………………………………………………………………
Job …………………………………………………………………………………………

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 2. Now tell the class about the people you talked to.
e.g Her name is Gabrielle. She is a French. She is a teacher.
LANGUAGE NOTE
The Verb be
1. The verb be is irregular and is often contracted. We use it to talk about age, nationality, job,
and status.
 I’m (I am) Italian.  She’s (she is) married.
 You’re (you are) my line manager.  They’re (they are) German.
 He’s (he is) thirty.  We’re (we are) both engineers.

2. To make a question with the verb be we invert the subject and the verb.
 Are you married? Yes, I am.
 Is She American? No, she isn’t.
 What is his job and where is he from? He is a designer. He’s from Greece.

C. Reading
1. Look at the article about Lorella Braglia. Complete the article using the verbs in the
box.

makes presents works

produces eat are
designs Plays do
travel live play
employs uses is

DIELLE

Lorella Braglia …………………………. (1) the founder of Dielle, and also the main designer. Her
husband, Danilo …………………………. (2) for the company as Marketing Director. Lorella
…………………………. (3) two collections every year and …………………………. (4) them at fashion
shows in London, Paris, and New York. Dielle …………………………. (5) everything in Italy, and
…………………………. (6) very modern equipment in its workshops. The company
…………………………. (7) the services of seventy workshops in and around Reggio Emilia. It
…………………………. (8) 100.000 units per year. Lorella and her husband …………………………. (9)
in a house in the centre of Reggio Emilia, not far from the office. They …………………………. (10)
not often there, because they both …………………………. (11) a lot. How do they relax? ‘I
…………………………. (12) yoga and Danilo …………………………. (13) golf, ‘says Lorella. At the
weekends they …………………………. (14) golf together and …………………………. (15) out at local
restaurants with their children.

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« (Track 03)
2. Listen to the first part of the passage (up to 8). How is the final s of the verbs
pronounced – /s/, /z/, or /ɪz/?

/s/ as in likes …………………………………………………………………………………………………

/z/ as in plays …………………………………………………………………………………………………
/ɪz/ as in uses …………………………………………………………………………………………………

3. Listen again and check. Read the passage aloud, paying attentions to the
pronunciation of the verb endings.
LANGUAGE NOTE
The Present Simple
1. When we talk about regular actions or permanent states we use the present simple tense.
 I work for Dielle.  We speak English and French.
 You live in London.  They travel a lot.

2. We add s to the end of the verb in the third person singular (he, she, or it).
 He plays golf.  It takes two hours to get to work.
 She works at home  She knows a lot about computers.

D. Pronunciation
« (Track 04)
1. Listen to the alphabet in English. Write the letters in the correct sound groups, as
in the examples.

/eɪ/ /iː/ /e/ /əʊ/ /aɪ/ /uː/ /ɑː/

A B F O I Q R
H C L …… …… …… ……
…… …… …… …… …… …… ……
…… …… …… …… …… …… ……
…… …… …… …… …… …… ……
…… …… …… …… …… …… ……
…… …… …… …... …... …... …...
…... …... …... …... …... …... …...

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 2. Listen again and check your answers. Practice saying the letters aloud.

E. Listening
« (Track 05)
Listen to the following dialogues and write the letters you hear.

1. …………………. 2. …………………. 3. …………………. 4. ………………….

5. …………………. 6. …………………. 7. …………………. 8. ………………….

F. Speaking
« (Track 06)
Listen to this interview and complete the notes below.

Name …………………………………………………………………………………………
Company …………………………………………………………………………………………
Job …………………………………………………………………………………………
Nationality …………………………………………………………………………………………
Home …………………………………………………………………………………………

LANGUAGE NOTE
Meeting someone for the first time
1. Introducing yourself
 Let me introduce myself. My name’s…. How do you do? Pleased to meet you.
 Hello. I’m…. Nice to meet you.

2. Introducing another person

 Let me introduce you to…. How do you do? or Nice / Pleased to meet
 This is my colleague…. you.

 Nice to meet you. Nice to meet you too

3. Other questions
 Where are you from? I’m from …… (but I work in……)
 What do you do? I’m a ….. What about you?
 Who do you work for? I work for ….. And you?

G. Listening
« (Track 08)

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1. Sally Kent is the editor of Business Monthly Magazine. She introduces Simon
Hasting to two other people. Listen and fill in the gaps in the table below.

A B C D
Sally Kent Simon Hastings Alessandra Boni Akiko Takajima
American British …Italian……..…. (3) ……………………… (6)
Editor ……………………… (1) ……………………… (4) ……………………… (7)
Business Monthly ……………………… (2) …….SAP…………. (5) ……………………… (8)

2. What expressions do A, B, C, D use to make introductions? Listen again and fill in

the gaps.

A: Alessandra, let me introduce you to my colleague, Simon Hasting

B: How ,……………………………………………………..(1) ? Pleased to ………..(2) you.
C: How do you do?
B: Do you work here, Alessandra?
C: No, I work for SAP. I’m a consultant. ………………..(3) my colleague Akiko Takajima.
D: Nice ,……………………………………………………..(4)
B: Nice to meet you too.
D: I’m from Osaka, in Japan.
B: Where do you work?
D: I work for SAP in Frankfurt. I’m a ………………………………..(5). And you?
B: I’m ,………………… (6) I work here at Business Monthly. Sally’s my boss.

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