3.2 A LIFE IN SIX WORDS

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Question English Answer English
Which sentences probably come from a conversation
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and which from a written text?
I've never seen such a dramatic change! Her hair went white overnight!
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conversation
A collection of jokes and hilarious anecdotes. Guaranteed to make you laugh.
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written text
She told us some really moving stories about her life during the war.
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conversation or written text
It was incredible - the car hit her, but she was OK.
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conversation
This teacher was so inspiring that he changed each of his students' lives.
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written text
A poignant tale of heartbreak and loss. Don't miss it!
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written text
She was just too intense for me. I never felt I could relax.
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conversation
This woman's remarkable story of success at the age of eighty-five will amaze you.
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written text
Underline the adjective in each sentence above.
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Then match the adjectives with the meaning below.
dramatic
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sudden and extraordinary
hilarious
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very amusing
moving
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making you feel sadness
incredible
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not believable
inspiring
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making you want to achieve things
poignant
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making you feel sadness
intense
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concentrated/strong, e.g... heat
remarkable
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impressive, e.g... achievement
Choose three of the adjectives
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and outline a news or film story that fits each.
Poignant
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A film about two teenagers in love, but they know one of them is going to move to the other side of the world.
Read the text above
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and discuss the questions.
What do you think Hemingway's story is about?
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"For sale: baby shoes, never worn". The death of the baby.
Who is Larry Smith and why is he on Today?
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Larry Smith is the online magazine editor which has used the Hemingway's story to inspire its readers to write their life story in just six words. He's on Today because Today was inviting its listeners to send their own six-words stories.
Where does the title of the book come from?
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It comes from the six words of one of the submissions to the online magazine.
Predict the correct alternative in sentences 1-5.
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Then listen to the interview with Larry Smith and check your answers.
Larry didn't expect a large number of entries.
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They've been overwhelmed by the thousands who took up the challenge. It was incredible. In a couple of mounths we got 15,000 entries and I was just blown away.
People were very intense about the challenge.
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I was just so inspired by how serious and intense folks took the six-words memoir challenge.
People wrote about their own life.
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some folks clearly tried to tell a whole story of a life in six words,
Many stories had a sense of regret and disappointment.
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a lot of them are quite sad or there’s sort of sense of regret or disappointment in a lot of them.
A lot of people had had a tough life.
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People really told us, ‘It’s tough out there.’
Listen again
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and complete the six-word stories.
Not quite
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what I was planning.
Wasn't born
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a redhead. Fixed that.
Found
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true love. Married someone else.
Never
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should have bought that ring.’
Which adjectives could be used
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to describe the stories? Why?
Not quite what I was planning.
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dramatic
Wasn't born a redhead. Fixed that.
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hilarious
‘Found true love. Married someone else.’
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inspiring
‘Never should have bought that ring.’
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intense
Which story sounds most interesting? What do you think happened in this person's life?
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‘Never should have bought that ring.’ A story of regret and disappointment. Somebody who regrets his propose to Sarah. "I have already proposed to Sarah"
Look at these "short" stories.
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Which do you think is the most powerful?
Love climbing those hills.
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Hills. I love and hate hills in equal measure. Love rolling down ’em, hate riding up ’em,
Too much love.
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Where love is concerned, too much is not even enough.
Blankets, books, bottles, books, blankets.
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The blanket warms me. Now I read books. The bottle is here We study, we drink. I went to find a blanket
Found it. Lost it. Found it.
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Too much love.
Coughin; coffin.
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A coffin is the box that dead people are buried in. Coughing is the body’s natural response when there is a tickle in the throat and you try to clear it- you cough.
How have the writers above shortened their stories? What kinds of words have they left out or included?
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Only nouns or only verbs. Reduction of complementary elements.
Write your own six-word story about an aspect of your life, the life of someone famous or someone you know.
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birth, death, days between are mine. birth, study, war, work, retired, study.
Match the multi-word verbs
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with meanings.
turned up
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arrive
gave up
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stop (a hobby or habit)
took up
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start (a hobby or habit)
settled down
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start living a quiet life, e.g. get married and have children
set up
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start (a business)
ran out
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be completely used up.
Look at the extracts from a dictionary.
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Which verbs
can sometimes be used without an object?
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run out
must be used with an object
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set up
can be separated with an object
set sth <> up
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set sth up
She left the company to set up her own business.
can be followed by a preposition
We've run out of sugar.
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run our + of
I'm running out of ideas.
Look at the photo in the article on the right. What do you think this woman's life has been like?
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Maya Angelou is a poet and award-winning author known for her acclaimed memoir I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings and her numerous poetry and essay collections.
Did she have an easy life?
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No. She suffered violence and racism all life. She's a model for great courage and a huge appetite for life and expression.
What jobs did she have in her life?
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cable car conductor, waitress, cook, dancer, singer, writer, lecturer,
What were her major interests?
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Arts. Dancer, Singer, Writer.
Why is she a role model?
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Great courage and huge appetite for life and expression.
Read the article again
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and match meanings with the multi-word verbs in the infinitive.
spend your childhood
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grow up
learn by experience not study
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pick up
respect
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look up to
die
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pass away
continue to do something
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go on
pass (about time)
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go by
agree to do some work
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take on
represent
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stand for
stop doing (a course)
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drop out
be raised
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bring up
Look at the sentences
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and answer the questions about the multi-word verb bring up.
Where can you put a noun object?
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to bring up is separable or to bring sb up: We brought up Simon to be polite. or We brought Simon up to be polite.
Where must you put a pronoun object?
They brought me up to be cautious with money.
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We brought him up to be polite.
Which is the most useful way or ways for you to record this feature of a multi - word verb?
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Examples, but explanations are also useful.
Replace the noun in bold in each sentence
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with the pronoun in brackets.
Kieron wanted the job but they turned down Kieron. (him)
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Kieron wanted the job but they turned him down.
The shop had some great clothes but the loud music put off Lena. (her)
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The shop had some great clothes but the loud music put her off.
Fifty people wanted to be extras in the film and the director took on all fifty people. (them all)
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Fifty people wanted to be extras in the film and the director took them all on.
Señor Almeida isn't here at the moment. Can you ring Señor Almeida back? (him)
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Señor Almeida isn't here at the moment. Can you ring him back?
I finished the essay last night and gave in the essay this morning. (it)
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I finished the essay last night and gave it in this morning.
If I don't know new words, I just look up the words in my electronic dictionary. (them)
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If I don't know new words, I just look them up in my electronic dictionary.
The sound of the doorbell at 2a.m. woke up everyone. (us)
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The sound of the doorbell at 2a.m. woke us up.
Is that a new coat? Anyway, take off the coat and hang up the coat here. (it, it)
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Is that a new coat? Anyway, take it off and hang it up here.

Hemingway 6 word story

Hemingway 6 word story is an example of flash or sudden fiction. According to the story, Hemingway bet with other writers that he can create a story in six words while lunching with them at a restaurant. He wrote "For sale: baby shoes, never worn" on a napkin and won. The famous tale inspired people to write their own 6 word memoirs. People continue posting their life in six words on different platforms, including Reddit and Tumblr. There was an entire project dedicated to describing life in six words. Larry Smith and Rachel Fershleisger created a book series dedicated to six word stories. The authors asked the readers of Smith Magazine to submit the 6 word memoirs. They received many funny and sad stories. Learn more about it and describe the story of your life!

6 word memoirs examples

This lesson will teach you more about the six word stories and will help you describe your own life in six words. You will learn vocabulary on this topic, grammar and find examples of how other people described their life in six words. Here are some examples of describing life in six words and even less:
  • 1. Not quite what I was planning.
  • 2. Wasn't born a redhead. Fixed that.
  • 3. Found true love. Married someone else.
  • 4. Never should have bought that ring.
  • 5. Love climbing those hills.
Which story of life in six words was your favourite? Proceed to the flashcards to create your own story of your life in six words!

Describe your own life in six words

This lesson will give you examples of describing life in six words. Go through the flashcards and try to describe your own life in six words. Also, you will learn grammar, exercise and learn about Maya Angelou. Explore our site to find many more interesting lessons our users created! Take a look at the I wish, if only and Future me lessons! We are sure they will sparkle your interest and teach you many new things!

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