Word Choice

Concept controversy definition issue

Concept controversy definition issue

continued / continuing / long-standing / prolonged			big / burning / central /crucial / important / key / major / vital
bitter / fierce / violent			minor / side
fresh / new			basic / fundamental
considerable / great / major	…		real	…
public			contentious / controversial
academic / scholarly			difficult / thorny
			complex
			live / unresolved
			psychological

central / core / essential fundamental / important / key
basic / simple			careful / clear
broad / general / wider			exact / precise
entire / whole			comprehensive
clear / precise			adequate / satisfactory/ acceptable
ambiguous / vague			broad / wide / loose
complex / difficult	…		narrow / strict / rigid	…
abstract / theoretical			official
underlying			conventional / standard
useful			alternative
modern / new			working
old-fashioned / traditional			dictionary
scientific
psychological

Task 14. [individually]

(a) Match each noun with the group of verbs it can collocate with.

…	…	…	…
create / generate / produce / construct / give   include	raise debate / discuss address / consider / deal with touch on settle avoid   arise underlie	cause / provoke / create   arise exist center on	define / formulate introduce develop

(b) Translate the following into English choosing appropriate adjectives from the previous task and suitable verbs from the table above.

1. Дать полное определение

2. Это определение включает в себя

3. Иметь размытое понятие о

4. Дать определение понятию

5. Ввести в оборот новое понятие

6. Спровоцировать жаркие дебаты

7. Избегать разногласий

8. По этому вопросу возникли

серьезные разногласия

9. Поднимать и обсуждать спорный

вопрос

10. Разрешить вопрос о ч-л

11. Мы только коснулись этого вопроса, однако, в следующий раз следует рассмотреть его более подробно

12. Обращаться к актуальной проблеме

13. В основе этих дебатов лежит важная проблема

Task 15. [individually]

Choose the correct verb in these sentences. Explain your choice.

1. Quizzes are used to define / identify/ establish how much material students have learned.

2. Psychology was defined / identified / established as a separate, formal field of study in 1879.

3. First of all we must define / identify / establish the problem areas.

4. Before psychology became defined / identified / established in science, it was popularly associated with extrasensory perception (ESP) and other paranormal phenomena.

5. Scientists have defined / identified / established a link between diet and cancer.

6. Another reason for the broad definition is that by the late 1920s, psychology was becoming too complex to be defined / identified / established in one sentence.

7. In 1913 John B. Watson defined / identified / established psychology entirely in behavioral terms.

8. The earliest explorers of human nature produced a number of 'armchair' theories which became defined / identified / established as a branch of philosophy.

Task 16. [in pairs]

(a) Study the meanings of the words below. Note the difference between them.

утверждать

STATE		ASSERT		ARGUE		CLAIM
to formally give a piece of information or your opinion, esp. by saying it clearly		to state clearly and firmly that sth is true		to give reasons why you think that sth is right/wrong, true/not true, etc., esp. to persuade people that you are right		to say that sth is true although it has not been proved and other people may not believe it

(b) Look at the statement below. It was made in four different situations. Report the statement using the verbs above. Note: for each situation only one verb is appropriate.

‘Psychology is not a science,’	(1) said the lay person, but failed to give any reasons to support his position.	The lay person …	that psychology is not a science.
(2) said the professor of psychology, ‘because its methods are not purely scientific’.	The professor …
(3) said the student who thought that ‘science’ meant only ‘natural science’.	The student …
(4) said one of the students.	One of the students …

Task 17. [individually]

(a) Study the meanings of the English words below that can be used for the Russian СПОРНЫЙ. Note the difference between them.

		liking to argue; involving a lot of arguing
controversial		contentious
causing a lot of angry public discussion and disagreement		likely to cause disagreement between people

спорный

not certain; that you do not accept without question		not necessarily true; able to be questioned		that you have doubts about because you think it is not accurate or correct
arguable		disputable		questionable
that you can give good reasons for				likely to be dishonest or morally wrong

(b) The words above differ not only in their meanings but also in the patterns they occur in. Study these patterns.

It is arguable that = used in order to give good reasons why something might be true

It is arguable / questionable whether = used to show that something is not certain, or not definitely true or correct, and therefore easy to doubt

(Highly) controversial / contentious / questionable + noun,

but not highly arguable / disputable + noun

(c) Fill in the gaps with appropriate words from the diagram. Sometimes more than one choice is OK.

1. Even a decade ago, that would have been a __________ assertion.

2. It is __________ that careful study of reading strategies considerably improves one’s reading proficiency.

3. Her concern about my problems is __________, since we have never got along well with each other.

4. The meeting was highly __________ because the parties involved took radically different positions on the issue.

5. The results of his research are highly __________ because he is not the kind of person who would apply much effort to what he does.

6. The value of the picture is __________.

7. Whether the new system of admission to universities in our country is an efficient one is a highly __________ issue.

8. It is __________ whether the age of six is a reasonable one for children to start school.

Task 18. [in pairs]

(a) Study the words below and complete the diagram with Russian equivalents and

examples.

pure sciences		applied sciences
concerned with increasing knowledge of the subject rather than with using knowledge in practical ways		used in a practical way; not theoretical
…		…

science

natural sciences		the humanities / the Arts / liberal arts		social sciences		exact sciences
sciences concerned with studying the physical world		the subjects of study that are concerned with the way people think and behave		particular subjects connected with the study of people in society		sciences using accurate measurements and following set rules
естественные науки		…		…		…
chemistry … …		… … … …		… … … …		… … …

(b) Try to find out the difference between ‘scientist’ and ‘scholar’ and complete the diagram with the definitions of these words.

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