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Character and personal qualities A
Talking about negative qualities Leah
What do you make of Natasha’s new boyfriend? He’s getting on1 a bit, isn’t he?!
Naomi Yes. He must be at least 20 years older than her. I must say I didn’t like him very much. His eyes were boring into2 me and it made me feel uncomfortable. Leah
I’m glad you felt like that too. He really scared me.
Naomi Scared you? You need to toughen up3 a bit! You shouldn’t let anyone scare you. It’s not just his eyes, though, is it? He’s so outspoken4! In fact, he’s rude. Leah
He swore at me the other day. I didn’t answer back though. I wouldn’t descend to5 his level. And how about the way he speaks about his sister?
Naomi No wonder she’s a bit odd. Having a brother like that would screw me up6! Leah
I’m amazed Natasha’s so keen on him. I had her down as7 a sensible person.
Naomi You know, sometimes I think she’s like a teenage girl who needs to grow out of8 needing a father figure. I mean, she’s 30, not 13! 1
6 (informal, always continuous) becoming old (informal) make someone feel confused and looking very hard at unhappy about their life 3 7 become stronger and more able to deal with (informal) thought that they were a particular problems (also transitive: toughen sb up) type of person (especially when they are not 4 having a tendency to express opinions even in fact like that) 8 though they may offend people stop doing something as you get older 5 behave so badly 2
B
Talking about positive qualities Look at this speech by a company manager at a party for a colleague who is retiring. Jack is leaving us today and I want to wish him a happy retirement. Having worked closely with him, I can personally vouch for1 his unswerving loyalty to the company over the last 21 years and his extraordinary skills as a personnel manager. Right from the beginning, his ability to handle people shone through2. He prided himself on3 the good relations he enjoyed with junior staff; he knew that good relationships mean everything in the workplace. It was always such a pleasure to see how his face would light up4 whenever he managed to solve a tricky personnel issue; for him, resolving a difficult situation was its own reward. Jack was also excellent at drawing out5 younger, less experienced members of staff, and he showed that rare talent for bringing out6 the best in all his colleagues. I’m sure everyone would agree that he always came across7 as calm, professional and committed to his staff. His departure will be a great loss to the company. 1
say that you know someone and that you can promise that they have a good character or good skills 2 became apparent 3 took pride in
4
6 7 5
look very happy helping people to feel more confident making qualities more noticeable appeared to be
Tip Note how the meaning of a phrasal verb can sometimes vary depending on whether it is used with an object or not. For example, come across (see above), when it is used with an object means ‘find or meet something/somebody by chance’: I came across an old photo of us when we were at university the other night. Make a note of any verbs whose meanings change in this way. 84
English Phrasal Verbs in Use Advanced
