Objective Proficiency p 76. Reality TV. Extra Listening

KEY



1 D



2 A



3 B



4 C



5 C



Vocabulary

thorny: /ˈθɔːni/ causing difficulty or disagreement. E.g. a thorny question/issue/problem. There are still some thorny questions to be answered. They must tackle the thorny issue of refugees to negotiate a final settlement.

runner-up: /ˌrʌnər ˈʌp/ (pl. runners-up) a person or team that finishes second in a race or competition; a person or team that has not finished first but that wins a prize. E.g. Winner: Kay Hall. Runner-up: Chris Platts. They finished runners-up behind Sweden. The runners-up will all receive a £50 prize.

drop: 
drop something to stop doing or discussing something; to not continue with something. E.g. I dropped German (= stopped studying it) when I was 14. Drop everything and come at once! Look, can we just drop it (= stop talking about it)? I think we'd better drop the subject. Let's drop the formalities—please call me Mike. The police decided to drop the charges against her.

take off: 
(of an idea, a product, etc.) to become successful or popular very quickly or suddenly. E.g. The new magazine has really taken off. Her singing career took off after her TV appearance.

kick off something: to start a discussion, a meeting, an event, etc.

get your head round something

(British English, informal) to be able to understand or accept something. E.g. She's dead. I can't get my head round it yet. 

hindsight: /ˈhaɪndsaɪt/ the understanding that you have of a situation only after it has happened and that means you would have done things in a different way. E.g. With hindsight it is easy to say they should not have released him. What looks obvious in hindsight was not at all obvious at the time. It's easy to criticize with the benefit of hindsight.

dumb something down

(disapproving) to make something less accurate or educational, and of worse quality, by trying to make it easier for people to understand. E.g. The BBC denies that its broadcasting has been dumbed down.

 

bent on something/on doing something

determined to do something (usually something bad). E.g. She seems bent on making life difficult for me.

 

hell-bent on something/on doing something determined to do something even though the results may be bad. E.g. He seems hell-bent on drinking himself to death. 

 

lowest common denominator: /ˌləʊəst ˌkɒmən dɪˈnɒmɪneɪtə(r)/ (North American English also least common denominator)

1. the smallest number that the bottom numbers of a group of fractions can be divided into exactly. 

2. something that is simple enough to seem interesting to, or to be understood by, the highest number of people in a particular group; the sort of people who are least intelligent or accept something that is of low quality. E.g. The school syllabus seems aimed at the lowest common denominator. 

 

misnomer:  /ˌmɪsˈnəʊmə(r)/
a name or a word that is not appropriate or accurate E.g. ‘Villa’ was something of a misnomer—the place was no more than an old farmhouse.

 

unscripted: /ʌnˈskrɪptɪd/ (of a speech, broadcast, etc.) not written or prepared in detail in advance.

 

compelling: /kəmˈpelɪŋ/
that makes you pay attention to it because it is so interesting and exciting Her latest book makes compelling reading.

 

shrewd: /ʃruːd/ clever at understanding and making judgements about a situation. Astute /əˈstjuːt/. E.g. a shrewd businessman.  She is a shrewd judge of character.

 

warts and all (wart: verruga)

(informal) including all the bad or unpleasant features of somebody/something. E.g. The documentary shows the life of a fashion model, warts and all. She still loves him, warts and all.

 

play to the gallery

to behave in an exaggerated way to attract people’s attention.

 

fall out of favour (with one) To no longer be supported, accepted, approved of, or regarded highly by one. E.g. John fell out of favour with his boss ever since he managed to drive away the firm's most lucrative client. Those stupid toys are just a fad—they'll start falling out of favour sooner or later. 

 

wear off:  to gradually disappear or stop. E.g. The effects of the drug will soon wear off. The novelty of married life was beginning to wear off.

 

crave: 

 crave (for) something | crave to do something to have a very strong desire for something. E.g.  She has always craved excitement. to crave alcohol/drugs/sweet food/carbohydrates/cigarettes/coffee.

 

pave the way (for somebody/something)

to create a situation in which somebody will be able to do something or something can happen. E.g. This decision paved the way for changes in employment rights for women.

 

vlog: a blog in which most of the content is in the form of videos. E.g. I just finished watching Bob’s vlog. Impressive! 

 

the ratings [plural] a set of figures that show how many people watch or listen to a particular television or radio programme, used to show how popular a programme is. Sp. índice de audiencia. E.g. The show has gone up in the ratings. The BBC is currently ahead in the ratings war. 

 

franchise: /ˈfræntʃaɪz/ formal permission given by a company to somebody who wants to sell its goods or services in a particular area; formal permission given by a government to somebody who wants to operate a public service as a business. E.g. a franchise agreement/company. a catering/rail franchise. In the reorganization, Southern Television lost their franchise. to operate a business under franchise.

 

squeeze somebody/something out (of something)

to prevent somebody/something from continuing to do something or be in business. E.g. Supermarkets are squeezing out small shops.

 

prime time: (British English also peak time, peak viewing time) the time when the greatest number of people are watching television or listening to the radio. E.g. prime-time television.

 

cringeworthy:  /ˈkrɪndʒwɜːði/ making you feel embarrassed or uncomfortable. E.g. It was a cringeworthy performance from start to finish.

 

feed the belief: substantiate the hypothesis. Perpetuate a rumour.

 

hasten something (formal) to make something happen sooner or more quickly. E.g. The treatment she received may, in fact, have hastened her death. News of the scandal certainly hastened his departure from office.

 

demise:  /dɪˈmaɪz/ the end or failure of an institution, an idea, a company, etc.

 

on-demand: done or happening whenever somebody asks. E.g. The new network promises lightning-fast access to on-demand video.

 

be on your/its last legs

to be going to die or stop functioning very soon; to be very weak or in bad condition.