Easy English!
By Adrian Wallwork
Word Games,
Riddles
and Logic Tests
Tax Your Brain
and Boost Your English
Easy English!
Series Editor
Adrian Wallwork
English for Academics SAS
Pisa, Italy
Easy English is a series of books intended for students and teachers of English as a
foreign language.
More information about this series at http://www.springer.com/series/15586
Adrian Wallwork
Word Games, Riddles and
Logic Tests
Tax Your Brain and Boost Your English
Adrian Wallwork
English for Academics SAS
Pisa, Italy
ISSN 2522-8617
ISSN 2522-8625 (electronic)
Easy English!
ISBN 978-3-319-67240-3
ISBN 978-3-319-67241-0 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0
Library of Congress Control Number: 2017963151
© Springer International Publishing AG 2018
This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of
the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation,
broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information
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now known or hereafter developed.
The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication
does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant
protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.
The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book
are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or the
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Introduction to the Student
What Is Easy English?
Easy English is a series of books to help you learn and revise your English with
minimal effort.
There are two main strands of the series. Readers who wish to improve their English
by
• reading texts in English that you might well normally read in your own language
e.g. word and logic games (this book) personality tests, jokes, word searches.
• doing short exercises to improve specific areas grammar and vocabulary, i.e. the
areas that tend to lead to the most mistakes - the aim is just to focus on what you
really need rather than overwhelming you with a mass of rules, many of which
may have no practical daily value.
Who Is the Book for?
Anyone, whether a native or non-native speaker of English, who is interested in the
English language, word games and logic games.
Which Is the Best Format to Buy this Book in?
Paper, without any doubt. The exercises involve you writing or underlining directly
onto the page. With an e-reader this would be much more difficult. However, an
e-book provides a dictionary which will occasionally be useful for you.
v
vi
Introduction to the Student
What Level of English Do I Need In Order
to Benefit from this Book?
The level of vocabulary required to understand this book is the highest of all the
books in the series. This means that you may come across words that you may not
be familiar with. This is because the vocabulary is authentic English - you are reading the real thing! In any case, the difficulty of some of the vocabulary is compensated for by the shortness of the texts and the simplicity in understanding the point
of the exercises.
If your level is intermediate and above, then you should be able to do most of the
exercises, though not necessarily all the questions within an exercise.
If you need a dictionary to check the meanings of some words, two good online
dictionaries are:
• Word Reference
• The Cambridge Online Learners Dictionary
Alternatively, if you are using an e-reader, you can use the dictionary provided by
the e-reader.
What Kind of Exercises this Book Contain?
This book contains various exercises connected with some of the more unusual
aspects of the English language. There is also has a series of mathematical/logic and
lateral thinking games.
The book contains an incredible variety of exercises on areas of the English language that are not normally found for non-native speakers. Thus in many cases you
will be exposed to games that typically a native English speaker would do. I have
merely tried to adapt these games into a manageable format, but the actual vocabulary contained has not been changed. This is authentic English!
Where Are the Keys to the Exercises?
The keys to the exercises from one chapter are all grouped together at the end
of that chapter. The keys all have a light grey background.
For ease of comprehension, keys often contain the full text of the exercise.
The idea is that also you will thus be able to re-read the exercise along with its
answer, and this should help you to revise and remember the vocabulary contained in the exercise.
Introduction to the Student
vii
How Do the Exercises Work?
Below is an explanation how each of exercise type in Chapters 2-12 works. For full
details see Chapter 1.
Ambiguous Headlines
You will read a series of headlines from newspapers. These headlines are ambiguous which means they have more than one meaning.
Task: Understand the ambiguity
Anagrams
In this exercise you will see a word or set of words in one column, and another set
of words in the other column.
The words in the second column are anagrams of the words in the first column. The
words in the second column also act as a (humorous) description, explanation or
comment on the the first words.
Example: astronomer - moon starer
Moon starer uses the same letters as astronomer, but also describes the work of an
astronomer who is someone who stares (in this case, looks at through a telescope)
at the moon.
Task: To find a connection between the first column and the second column.
Funny Book Titles
You will be presented with five books titles and five authors. The authors’ names
need to be spoken aloud in a rapid manner for you to be able to understand their
meaning.
Task: Match the titles with authors.
Limericks
Task. Practise reading them aloud and hear/find the rhythm.
viii
Introduction to the Student
Logic/Mathematical
Task: Solve the problem.
Riddles
There are several types of exercises using riddles.
1) You will be presented with ten riddles. Each riddle consists of a question and an
answer.
Task: Match the questions with the answers.
2) You will be given a riddle with three possible answers.
Task: Choose the best/right answer. You may not always agree with the answers
given in the key.
3) You will be presented with a riddle and its answer. However, some words have
been removed either from the riddle or from the answer. These words are contained in the box under the riddles.
Task: Insert the words from the box into the correct spaces.
Tongue Twisters
Task: Practise reading the tongue twister aloud. Then see if you can memorize and
say it quickly without getting your tongue tied!
Word Combinations
You will be presented with two columns of words.
Task: Combine a word from the first column with a word from the second column.
Note that the word in the first column is not necessarily the first word in the combination and there may appear to be more than one possible combination.
Introduction to the Teacher
How Can I Use this Book?
The exercises in this book can be used as:
•
•
•
•
warm up exercises at the beginning of the lessons
fillers if you’ve used up all the content you had planned for a lesson
simply for fun at any point during the lesson
a means for improving students knowledge of areas of English typically not
taught in course books - these areas include idiomatic expressions, proverbs,
word combinations
• a means for introducing your students to areas of English that are part of the
culture of the language - riddles, limericks, tongue twisters, palindromes etc
What Are the Other Books in this Series? Which One Should
I Read Next?
Currently there are six books in the series.
Word games, riddles and logic tests - tax your brain and boost your English
Test your personality - have fun and learn useful phrases
Wordsearches - widen your vocabulary in English
Jokes - have a laugh and improve your English
Top 50 grammar mistakes in English - how to avoid them
Top 50 vocabulary mistakes in English - how to avoid them
ix
x
Introduction to the Teacher
What Other Similar Books Might I Find Useful?
If you teach children and young teenagers, they you might be interested in my book
of word games called Mindtwisters (published by Scholastic).
Various games and discussion exercises (including various quizzes/personality
tests) for older teenagers and adults can be found in Discussions AZ (two volumes:
intermediate and advanced, published by Cambridge University Press).
There is also a series of discussion, warm up exercises, fillers etc published by SEFL
(sefl.co.uk).
Ideas for Other Books for this Series
If you have any ideas for other books that could be part of the Easy English series
then please email me.
The Author
Since 1984 Adrian Wallwork has been teaching English as a foreign language - from
General English to Business English to Scientific English. Although he lives and
works in Pisa (Italy), through his university work he has taught students of all
nationalities. Adrian is the author of over 30 textbooks for Springer Science+Business
Media, Cambridge University Press, Oxford University Press, the BBC, and many
other publishers. He can be contacted at: adrian.wallwork@gmail.com
Acknowledgements and Sources
A big thanks to all my students (including various maths professors) who have provided me over the years with many of the logic and mathematical games that appear
in this book.
Particular thanks to Robert Parks at Wordsmyth and Prabhav Jain at EasyDefine,
who gave me permission to use the definitions that are automatically generated by
their websites.
EasyDefine definitions are taken from
https://wordnet.princeton.edu/wordnet/citing-wordnet/
Some of the anagrams were created at:
Quickworksheets.net
Some of the riddles were taken from:
https://savagelegend.com/misc-resources/classic-riddles-1-100/
Most of the funny book titles were taken from:
http://allowe.com/laughs/book/Funny%20Book%20Titles.htm
Some palindromes and anagrams were taken from:
http://www.fun-with-words.com/palin_word_palindromes.html
http://www.anagrammy.com/anagrams/faq2.html
I also consulted the following books:
Good Word Guide: The fast way to correct English - spelling, punctuation,
grammar and usage, Martin Manser, A&C Black; 2007
More Puzzles and Curious Problems, Henry Ernest Dudeney, Fontana, 1970
Palindromes and Anagrams, Howard W. Bergerson, Pan American, 1973
xi
xii
Acknowledgements and Sources
Puzzles & Brainteasers Gyles Brandreth, Hennerwood Publications, 1982
Radio Times Puzzle Book Clive Doig, Penguin, 1984
Radio Times Brainbox Puzzle Book Vol. 3, Clive Doig, BBC, 1993
Solve it! James F Fixx, Frederick Muller, 1978
The Pan Pocket Puzzler, Michael Holt, Pan, 1985
The World’s Most Challenging Puzzles, Charles Barry Townsend, Sterling
Publishing, 1988
What’s the Name of this Book? Raymond Smullyan, Pelican, 1981
Finally, thanks to Edward de Bono whose books have inspired three generations of
lateral thinkers.
The chapter titles come from the following authors and we would like to acknowledge their contribution for their wonderful chapters.
2) We do not stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop
playing! (Benjamin Franklin)
3) The scientist should treasure the riddles he can’t solve. (Roberto Unger)
4) Play up! play up! And play the game. (Sir Henry Newbolt)
5) Thanks to words, we have been able to rise above the brute. (Aldous Huxley)
6) Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind. (Rudyard Kipling)
7) Words are illusions. (Bodidharma)
8) Language exists as songs, riddles, or epics that are chanted. (F. Sionil Jose)
9) Life is more fun if you play games. (Roald Dahl)
10) Words outlive people, institutions, civilizations. (Inga Muscio)
11) Have fun and play as many word games as possible. ( Sophie Winkleman)
Contents
1
Introduction to the games, riddles and verses used in this book
Acronyms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ambiguous Headlines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Anagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Funny Book Titles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Lewis Carroll. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Limericks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Palindromes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Proverbs and Idioms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Riddles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Rhyming Forms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Similes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tongue Twisters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1
1
2
3
4
5
7
8
9
10
12
12
14
2
We do not stop playing because we grow old,
we grow old because we stop playing!
Riddles 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Anagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Funny Book Titles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Limericks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Proverbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Logic 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Logic 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Word Combinations 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Word Combinations 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tense Challenge 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ambiguous Headlines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Riddles 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tongue Twisters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Logic 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
15
15
16
16
16
17
17
17
18
18
19
19
20
21
21
xiii
xiv
Contents
Anagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tense Challenge 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Word Ladder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
21
22
22
3
The scientist should treasure the riddles he can’t solve
Rhyming Forms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tongue Twister . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Riddles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Cryptic Meaning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Funny Book Titles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Animal Idioms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Anagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Limericks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mathematical 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mathematical 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mathematical 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Pseudodromes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tense Challenge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Word Ladder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
29
29
30
30
31
31
31
32
32
32
32
33
33
33
34
4
Play up! play up! and play the game
Numbers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Word Ladder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Proverbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tongue Twisters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Riddles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Funny Book Titles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Limericks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Preposition Challenge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
On a Mat up Here . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Anagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mathematical 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mathematical 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mathematical 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Rhyming Words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Anagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Logical Ladies? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ambiguous Headlines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
39
39
40
41
42
42
43
43
43
44
44
44
45
45
45
46
46
47
5
Thanks to words, we have been able to rise above the brute
Acronyms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Rhyming Words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Limericks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Word Ladder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Riddles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ambiguous Headlines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
53
53
54
54
55
55
56
Contents
xv
Palindromes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Anagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Colorful Idioms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mathematical 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mathematical 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mathematical 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
QWERTY or CWAZY? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Grammar Challenge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Similes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Smileys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Proverbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
56
57
58
58
58
59
59
59
60
60
61
6
Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind
Symbols. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Contractions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Riddles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Word Ladder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Anagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Rhyming Words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Proverbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Limericks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Rhyming Forms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Special Words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tense Challenge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Riddles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mathematical 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mathematical 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mathematical 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Similes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Riddles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Anagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Palindromes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
69
69
70
70
71
72
72
73
73
74
74
75
76
76
77
77
77
78
78
79
7
Words are illusions
Funny Book Titles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Word Ladder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Limericks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ambiguous Headlines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Proverbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Rhyming Words . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Contractions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Riddles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Anagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Logical Thinking . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Anagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Buzz-phrase Generator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
87
87
88
88
88
89
90
90
91
91
92
92
93
xvi
Contents
Mathematical 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mathematical 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mathematical 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Animal Farm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Grammar Challenge 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Grammar Challenge 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Grammar Challenge 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Grammar Challenge 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Grammar Challenge 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Idioms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
93
93
94
94
94
95
95
95
95
95
8
Language exists as songs, riddles, or epics that are chanted
Riddles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Short Forms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Acronyms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Grammar Challenge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Rhyming Pairs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Funny Book Titles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Anagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mathematical 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mathematical 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mathematical 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mathematical 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mathematical 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mathematical 6 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Palindromes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Proverbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Anagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Word Ladder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
103
103
104
104
104
105
105
106
106
106
106
107
107
107
107
108
109
110
9
Life is more fun if you play games
Irregular Verbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Anagrams 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Unusual Paragraph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Word Ladder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Riddles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tongue Twisters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Anagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Proverbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Limericks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mathematical 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mathematical 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mathematical 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Mathematical 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
117
117
118
118
118
119
120
120
121
121
122
122
122
122
Contents
xvii
Mathematical 5 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Txt mssg . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Grammar Challenges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Play Your Cards Right ... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
122
123
123
124
10
Words outlive people, institutions, civilizations
Word Ladder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Smileys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Limericks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Grammar Challenge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Word Combinations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Proverbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Illogical? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Anagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Logical 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Logical 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Logical 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Rhyming Forms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Riddles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Idioms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Add an -e. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
131
131
132
132
133
133
134
134
135
135
135
136
136
137
138
138
11
Have fun and play as many word games as possible
Grammar Challenge 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Grammar Challenge 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Similes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Word Ladder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Riddles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Add an -e. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Idioms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Funny book titles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Lewis Carroll Logic Games 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Lewis Carroll Logic Games 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Lewis Carroll Logic Games 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Anagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Limericks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Proverbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Grammar Challenge 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Grammar Challenge 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Grammar Challenge 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Grammar Challenge 4 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
145
145
145
146
146
147
148
148
149
149
150
150
150
151
151
152
152
152
152
Chapter 1
Introduction to the games, riddles and verses
used in this book
This chapter explains the origin of the games, how they work, and/or the people
who invented and collected them.
Acronyms
An acronym is a word formed from the initial letters of other words, e.g. pdf stands
for portable document format, ASAP stands for as soon as possible. Some acronyms have become so much part of the language that most people don’t even realise
that they are acronyms. For example, radar is formed from radio detection and
ranging and laser derives from light amplification by the stimulated emission of
radiation. There are now so many acronyms in the language that there are specialised dictionaries on the subject. Chat rooms have spawned hundreds of acronyms,
e.g. IMHO = in my humble opinion.
© Springer International Publishing AG 2018
A. Wallwork, Word Games, Riddles and Logic Tests, Easy English!,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0_1
1
2
Ambiguous Headlines
A sentence or phrase is ambiguous or vague when it has more than one interpretation or its interpretation is not obvious. Newspapers are notorious for producing
ambiguous headlines. For example:
Police found drunk in shop window.
Magistrates act to keep theaters open.
The key words in the two cases above are drunk and act. The real meaning of the
first one is that the police found a drunk (i.e. a drunk man) lying in a shop window.
The other, humorous, interpretation, is that a police officer was found drunk (i.e. the
officer had been drinking). The intended meaning in the second headline is that the
magistrates acted (i.e. took legal measures) to ensure that theaters would not be
closed. The humorous meaning is that the magistrates acted (i.e. were actors and
actresses) in theater productions designed to raise money to keep the theaters open
(i.e. not shut down).
Some famous ambiguous headlines include:
1)
2)
3)
4)
Girl with a detective in her boot.
Kids make nutritious snacks.
Milk drinkers are turning to powder.
Drunk gets nine months in violin case.
Below are the explanations.
1) Intended meaning (IM): A female was being investigated. While she was driving, there was a detective in the boot of her car. Humorous meaning (HM): A girl
has a detective in her shoe (boot).
2) IM: Children have been cooking snacks that contain beneficial ingredients. HM:
If you want a snack, try eating a child.
3) IM: Consumers who use milk have started to use powdered milk. HM: Milk
consumers are being transformed into powder.
4) IM: A drunk man who is involved in a criminal case that regards a violin has
been sentenced by a court to nine months in prison. HM: A drunk man is to
spend nine months enclosed in a violin case (i.e. a case for carrying a violin).
3
Anagrams
What do cheating and a teaching have in common?
They are anagrams of each other: the letters in cheating can be rearranged to form a
new word, in this case teaching. Anagrams can be of individual words, or even of
phrases or the names of people. The basic rule is that the letters of the first words or
phrase must be used once and only once in the anagrammed word or phrase.
According to some historians, the first anagram was created by the Greek poet
Lycophron in 260 B.C. A collection of anagrams in English published in 1925 and
entitled Anagrammasia contained around 5,000 anagrams.
The most inventive anagrams are meaningful and relate in some way to the original
subject. Below are some examples:
admirer = married
an alcoholic beverage = gal, can I have cool beer?
American = the main race
angered = enraged
the answer = wasn’t here
contemplation = on mental topic
Over the centuries anagrams have been:
•
•
•
•
•
believed to have mystical or prophetic meanings
created around religious texts
adopted by famous people to anagram their own name
used to record the results of scientists
used in cryptic crosswords and puzzles journals
Before the advent of radio and the TV, educated people would pass their evenings
creating anagrams. Anagrams then fell out of fashion, but have been revived by IT
experts who have created anagram-creating software enabling us to create anagrams
of the most bizarre words and names.
4
If you like anagrams then try www.anagrammy.com which contains anagrams such
as the following, which have all been created (by humans not software!) since 2000.
A carton of cigarettes = I got a taste for cancer.
A crisis on Wall Street = Will start a recession.
Adult novels = Love and lust!
Archaeologists = Goal is to search.
Italian crime boss = A Sicilian mobster.
Metamorphosis = Promises a moth.
Military weapon = Employ it in a war.
New Year’s Resolution = Notions we rarely use.
The National Rifle Association = Fanatical loonies are into this.
The Pope’s view on contraception = It is one concept he won’t approve.
The President of the United States of America = Incompetent, hated head of state
terrifies us.
Funny Book Titles
Funny book titles work by having a plausible title with an author’s name that in
some way relates to the title. Here are some examples:
Danger by Luke Out
Blood on the Coffin by Horace Tory
Good Works by Ben Evolent
Often when we want to alert someone that there is an imminent danger we say
‘Look out’. Luke (a male first name) and look are pronounced very similarly, so the
author’s name (Luke Out) fits nicely with the name of the book. A coffin is where a
dead person is placed by before being buried. Blood on the Coffin gives the idea that
the book will be a horror story (try saying Horace Tory quickly!). The word benevolent (Ben Evolent) refers to someone who wishes to do good things for other
people.
5
In all cases the author’s name is designed to look realistic. Then, when it is read
quickly its other meaning becomes apparent.
Here are a few more with the explanation of the author in brackets.
Artificial Clothing by Polly Ester (polyester)
At the Eleventh Hour by Justin Time (just in time)
French Overpopulation by Francis Crowded (France is crowed)
If I Invited Him... by Woody Kum (would he come?)
Mensa Man by Gene Yuss (genius)
Stop Arguing by Xavier Breath (save your breath)
The Excitement of Bird Watching by I. M. Board (I am bored)
Lewis Carroll
Lewis Carroll is often considered as some slightly eccentric character who wrote
children’s stories set in a wonderful make believe land that appealed both to kids
and adults alike.
His real name was the Reverend Charles Dodgson and he was far more than a writer.
He was born in 1832 and spent much of his childhood doing magic shows for his
brothers and sisters. He then went away to school at Rugby before getting his degree
at Oxford University.
His most famous books are Alice in Wonderland, written in 1865, and Through a
Looking Glass which he wrote seven years later. Alice was based on the daughter of
the Dean of Christ Church, which was the college at Oxford where Carroll later
became Professor of Mathematics. He was in fact a terribly boring professor, so bad
in fact that his students asked for him to be replaced.
Besides writing children’s stories and mathematical treatises, he also wrote an
incredible number of letters. In fact from the age of 29 to his death in 1898, he wrote
no less than 98,271 letters. Many of these letters were written in mirror language, or
back to front, so that they had to be read from the end to the beginning, and most
contained some kinds of puzzles.
In Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Alice is a little girl who dreams that she
pursues a White Rabbit down a rabbit-hole and there meets with strange adventures and odd characters: the Cheshire Cat, the Mad Hatter and the March Hare
amongst others.
6
Carroll enjoyed converting one word into another by changing one letter at a time.
For example, he transformed hate into love in just two links:
HATE
have
hove
LOVE
And fish into bird in four links:
FISH
fist
gist
girt
gird
BIRD
In Through the Looking Glass 1872, Alice walks in a dream through the looking
glass into Looking-Glass House, where she finds that the people from the chessboard, particularly the red and white queens, are alive. She also meets with
Tweedledum and Tweedledee and Humpty Dumpty etc.
There are various logic games in his two Alice books. Here is one:
Someone had stolen the salt. It was found that the culprit was either the Caterpillar,
Bill the Lizard, or the Cheshire Cat. The three were tried and made the following
statements in court:
Caterpillar: Bill the Lizard at the salt.
Bill the Lizard: That is true!
Cheshire Cat: I didn’t eat it!
As it happened, at least one of them lied and at least one told the truth. Who ate
the salt?
For the solution to this game and the one below, see the key at the end of this
section.
Carroll also had a habit of seeking out young girls and challenging them with a
mental exercise. He apparently met ‘a nice girl of about fifteen’ on her train, got her
address and later sent her this puzzle:
Make sense of this sentence:
It was and I said not all.
7
When he wasn’t writing, inventing puzzles or listening to his musical box being
played backwards Carroll invented all kinds of things including a prototype travelling chess set, double-sided sticky tape, and a new Proportional Representation
scheme for electing members of parliament. In Carroll’s system each candidate
could give the votes given to him to another candidate. He might well have been
the first person to make a self-photographing device and he later became one of
the leading portrait takers of his time - notably of young girls like Alice.
key
If the Cheshire Cat ate the salt, then all three are lying. If Bill ate it, then all three
are telling the truth. So the Caterpillar must have eaten it.
It was ‘and’ I said, not ‘all’.
Limericks
A limerick is a humorous five-line poem. It normally follows this rhyme scheme
aabba, which means that the first two lines rhyme with each other and with the last
line. The original limericks were written over 200 years ago, and were often quite
vulgar for the time:
While Titian was mixing rose madder,
His model reclined on a ladder.
Her position to Titian
Suggested coition,
So he leapt up the ladder and had ‘er.
Because of this supposed vulgarity, such limericks were whispered rather than
recounted aloud!
The Encyclopedia Britannica tells us that the origin of this very popular type of
nonsense-verse is lost in obscurity. The first collector of limericks was Langford
Reed who compiled a book entitled “The Complete Limerick” (published in 1924)
after sifting through a staggering sixteen thousand limericks, before settling on the
few hundred that he felt were worthy of his book.
Limerick is actually the name of a town in Ireland and Langford Reed suggests that:
this peculiar form of verse was brought direct to Limerick by the returned veterans of the Irish brigade, who were attached to French army for a period of
nearly 100 years from 1691.
The brigade was organized in Limerick, and when disbanded was no doubt
responsible for giving currency to many rude barrack-room songs.
Limericks have been translated into many languages.
8
Palindromes
What do you notice about this word: redivider? Well it reads the same backwards
and forwards. It is a palindromic word.
Palindromes have been around for centuries, and the Greeks and Romans often
inscribed them on monuments and fountains. The inventor of the palindromic verse
was apparently Sotades of Maroneia (in Thrace, Greece) who invented a palindrome
to publicly criticize the king of Egypt. The king subsequently had Sotades sealed in
a lead box and thrown into the sea.
A 17th century English poet, John Taylor, is credited with creating the first English
palindromic sentence:
Lewd did I live, evil I did dwel.
Taylor’s palindrome basically means that he lived an improper life in improper
surroundings.
The most-quoted palindromes in English are probably:
Madam, I’m Adam.
A man, a plan, a canal: Panama.
Able was I ere I saw Elba.
The first supposedly reports Adam’s first words to Eve in Genesis. The second is a
comment on the origin of the Panama Canal which was opened in 1914. And the last
was supposedly Napoleon’s (the French emperor) response (in English!) on being
asked whether he had the power to continue fighting.
Another form of palindromes is with whole words rather than letters. Here are some
examples
Blessed are they that believe they are blessed.
King, are you glad you are king?
Please me by standing by me please.
Says Mom, “What do you do? – You do what Mom says”.
You can cage a swallow, can’t you, but you can’t swallow a cage, can you?
9
Proverbs and Idioms
Proverbs are words of wisdom or advice that have been passed down from one generation to the next. Some come from the Bible, for example:
All that glisters is not gold.
The love of money is the root of all evil.
The above proverb is actually very often misquoted as simply ‘Money is the root of
all evil’.
Several English proverbs have a literary origin, for example those made famous by
Shakespeare:
All’s well that ends well.
Hoist by his own petard.
The true course of love never did run smooth.
Too much of a good thing.
But most are simply derived from folk wisdom, i.e. the experience of our ancestors
encapsulated into a short expression:
Variety is the spice of life.
Prevention is better than cure.
It takes all sorts to make a world.
You can’t tell a book by its cover.
Familiarity breeds contempt.
Two heads are better than one.
Some proverbs contradict each other, so we have:
Many hands make light work. vs Too many cooks spoil the broth.
Absence makes the heart grow fonder vs Out of sight, out of mind.
More haste, less speed. vs He who hesitates is lost.
Nothing venture, nothing gain. vs Better safe than sorry.
10
Riddles
Riddles are common to all cultures. Probably the most famous riddle in Europe
from a historical point of view is the one derived from a Greek legend in which the
Sphinx (a mythical creature with the head of a human and the body of a lion) would
devour all travellers who could not answer it.
This riddle has come down to us in many forms, the most common English form
being:
What goes on four feet in the morning, two feet at noon, and three feet in the
evening?
According to the legend, the hero, Oedipus, gave the right answer: Man. So angry
was the Sphinx that she killed herself - according to some by throwing herself off a
cliff, and according to others by devouring herself.
Another famous riddle is:
A man looking at a portrait says: “Brothers and sisters have I none, but that
man’s father is my father’s son.”
The related question is “Who is the subject of the portrait”? The answer is the son
of the speaker.
The above riddle highlights two aspects of the traditional format of riddles in
English. First they rhyme (none rhymes with son). Second, they often contain
archaic grammar forms: Today no one would say or write brothers and sisters have
I none, but rather I don’t have any brothers or sisters.
Most of the riddles in the chapters of this book are related to the double meaning of
a word.
Here are some explanations for various riddles to give you an idea of how they
work.
Why are the pages of a book like the days of men?
Because they are numbered.
11
The key word is numbered. In terms of books, each page has a number. In terms of
men (i.e. humans in general), we all have a limited number of days (years) in our
life - numbered in this case means finite rather than infinite.
Why is a room packed with married people like an empty room?
Because there is not a single person in it.
The key word is single person, which means both no one (empty room) and
unmarried.
Why is a mirror like a resolution?
Because it is so easily broken.
The key word here is broken, but in this case it is not a double meaning but simply in the case of a mirror the word broken is used in a real concrete sense,
whereas in relation to a resolution broken has a metaphorical sense. If for example you say “I will stop eating chocolate” you have made a resolution, if then
after a couple of weeks you start eating chocolate again, then you have ‘broken’
your resolution.
Which is the strongest day of the week?
Sunday, because all the rest are week days.
What’s black and white and red all over?
A newspaper.
The above two cases rely on homophones, i.e. words that have the same pronunciation but a different spelling and meaning. You need to remember that riddles are
basically part of an oral tradition - so the listener hears the words without knowing
how they are spelled. The key words in the above cases are week (and its homophone weak), and red (and its homophone read). A week day in the case of this
riddle is any one of the days from Monday to Saturday. Sunday is thus not a week
day, nor is it a weak day (it is ‘stronger’ than the others). In the case of the newspaper, the color is of the paper is white with black print. It is read all over in the sense
that the reader reads every page.
In some cases in the sections on riddles I have put the key words in italics, so that
you can then focus on working out what the double meaning is.
12
Rhyming Forms
Did you ever have a walkie talkie as a child and did you play ping pong? walkie
talkie and ping pong are examples of what is known as ‘reduplication’.
Rhyming word combinations like these have been around since the 14th century.
Some examples that would seem to have been of recent coinage have actually been
around for centuries. For example hip hop and flip flop appeared at the end of the
17th century, though obviously with different meanings from today’s meanings of a
type of music and a type of beach sandal.
Rhyme and alliteration are frequently used by newspapers in English-speaking
countries. In the tabloid press they may be used to describe someone’s sexual
orientation:
gender bender (person who seeks to define gender expression outside of the
binary terms of man and woman)
toy boy (a male partner who is significantly younger than his partner)
randy andy (a man who doesn’t waste opportunities for having sex)
hanky panky (typically sexual behavior that is humorously considered as being
improper)
Similes
A simile is a figure of speech that compares two supposedly similar objects or
describes a similar property that two different objects each possess. Some reflect the
observations of our ancestors and thus represent actions that are no longer commonly made. For example we say:
As clean as a whistle.
As clear as a bell.
As dry as a bone.
As stiff as a poker.
Such expressions, although clear in meaning, don’t actually make much sense in the
modern age.
The origin of some is obscure:
As cool as a cucumber.
This common expression means: Extremely calm, relaxed and in control of your
emotions. Why a cucumber? Perhaps because of the sound. Or maybe, as Bloomsbury
International tells us:
13
This phrase may have originated from the fact that even in hot weather, the inside of
cucumbers are approximately 20 degrees cooler than the outside air.
Others have been made famous by particular books or authors. For example, to
describes something as being completely crazy you can say:
As mad as a hatter.
or
As mad as a March hare.
which are both found in Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. For
more on Lewis Carroll see the earlier section.
Not all similes follow the as ... as formula. Some similes also begin with like:
Like a bat out of hell.
Like a bull in a china shop.
Like ships that pass in the night.
Like nothing on earth.
Like a lamb to the slaughter.
Like a ton of bricks.
Like a rolling stone.
Others use like plus a verb.
It’s like talking to a brick wall.
It’s like watching paint dry.
It’s like trying to scratch your ear with your elbow.
And others are found with look like. Below are some expressions to describe what
someone looked like on a particular occasion:
Like a drowned rat.
Like something the cat brought in.
Like a million bucks.
Like death warmed up.
14
Tongue Twisters
A tongue twister is a phrase or short verse that is designed to be difficult to say. On
other hand, it is relatively easy to read.
A tongue twister can be a very short, but difficult to articulate, phrase such as:
Red lorry, yellow lorry.
The Leith police dismisseth us.
The sixth sick sheik’s sixth sheep’s sick
Alternatively it can be a verse:
Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.
Did Peter Piper pick a peck of pickled peppers?
If Peter Piper Picked a peck of pickled peppers,
Where’s the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?
How much wood would a woodchuck chuck
If a woodchuck could chuck wood?
He would chuck, he would, as much as he could,
And chuck as much as a woodchuck would
If a woodchuck could chuck wood.
Betty Botter bought a bit of butter.
The butter Betty Botter bought was a bit bitter
And made her batter bitter.
But a bit of better butter makes better batter.
So Betty Botter bought a bit of better butter
Making Betty Botter’s bitter batter better.
Some tongue twisters when mispronounced can produce humorous (and often vulgar) results. Here is an example:
I’m not a pheasant plucker, I’m a pheasant plucker’s son,
I’m only plucking pheasants till the pheasant plucker comes.
In the above case the humor or vulgarity arises from inadvertently reversing the
initial sounds of pheasant and plucker.
Chapter 2
We do not stop playing because we grow old,
we grow old because we stop playing!
Riddles 1
Match the questions (1-10) with the answers (a-j).
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
What is at the end of a rainbow?
What occurs once in a minute, twice in a moment and never in one thousand years?
What word becomes shorter when you add two letters to it?
What is the longest word in the dictionary?
We see it once in a year, twice in a week, and never in a day. What is it?
What is the center of gravity?
What starts with the letter “t”, is filled with “t” and ends in “t”?
Take away my first letter, and I still sound the same. Take away my last letter, I
still sound the same. Even take away my letter in the middle, I will still sound
the same. I am a five letter word. What am I?
9. What has 4 eyes but can’t see?
10. What starts with “P” and ends with “E” and has more than 1000 letters?
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
g)
h)
i)
j)
A post office!
A teapot!
EMPTY
Mississippi
Short
Smiles, because there is a mile between each ‘s’
The letter E
The letter M
The letter V
The letter W
© Springer International Publishing AG 2018
A. Wallwork, Word Games, Riddles and Logic Tests, Easy English!,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0_2
15
16
Anagrams
Can you work out the connection between the two columns?
Eskimos
Families
Incompetents
Pirates
Schoolmaster
Shop lifter
some ski
life’s aim
inept men cost
sea trip
the classroom
has to pilfer
Vocabulary: inept = no skill at all, pilfer = steal
Funny Book Titles
Match the titles with the authors.
titles
I Didn’t Do It!
The Great
Escape
Under Arrest
Unsolved
Mysteries
It’s a Shocker
authors
Alec Tricity
Freida
Convict
Ivan Alibi
N. Igma
Watts E Dunn
Limericks
Practise reading the limericks aloud and hear/find the rhythm.
There was an old man of Madrid
Who ate sixty eggs - yes, he did!
When they asked ‘Are you faint?’
He replied ‘No, I ain’t
But I don’t feel as well as I did.’
There was a young man from Japan
Whose limericks never would scan.
When asked why that was,
He replied ‘It’s because
I always try to cram as many words into
the last line as I possibly can’.
17
Proverbs
Insert the words from the box into the spaces. The sentences in brackets are a brief
explanation of the meaning of the proverb.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Don’t ______ off your nose to spite your face. (don’t overreact to a situation)
Don’t ______ your dirty linen in public. (keep your private affairs private)
It’s no use ______ over spilt milk. (what is done is done)
There’s no point ______ a dead horse. (don’t continue because the outcome has
already been decided.
Necessity ______ the mother of invention. (if you need something you will find
a way)
Once ______ twice shy. (when you are scared to do something because you had
a negative experience the first time you did it)
A rolling stone ______ no moss. (constantly changing thus never becoming
attached to anything)
Some people can’t ______ the wood for the trees. (unable to see the overall
point)
A watched pot never ______ . (a process appears to take longer if we only focus
on that and do not engage in other activities)
You can’t have your cake and ______ it. (you can’t have the best of both worlds)
bitten, boils, crying, cut, eat, flogging, gathers, is, see, wash
Logic 1
Three boxes contain two coins each. One contains two nickels, one contains two
dimes, and one contains a dime and a nickel. All three boxes are mislabeled.
If you are permitted to take out only one coin at a time, how many must you take out
in order to be able to label all three boxes correctly?
Logic 2
Two barmen in London were looking at a barrel, which was partly filled with beer.
One barman said to the other: “Look, it’s more than half full.” To which the other
barman replied: “You’re wrong, it’s actually less than half full.” How could they find
out, without using any measuring devices or any equipment of any kind, if it was
more or less than exactly half?
18
Word Combinations 1
Combine a word from the first column with a word from the second column.
arm
back
ear
eye
finger
hair
hand
head
lip
neck
bag
brow
chair
lace
line
nail
ring
stick
style
wards
Word Combinations 2
Combine a word from the first column with a word from the second column. The
first part of the word combination may be in the second column.
back
face
hand
head
knee
leg
spine
tooth
voice
wrist
brush
cap
end
first
flash
in
less
lift
some
watch
19
Tense Challenge 1
Underline the correct form of the verbs in italics.
The Queen of Sheba was desperate - her best friend, Rowenna, was captured/had
been captured by the terrible Bingoid tribe, and she needed/had needed someone to
rescue her. She had three faithful knights, all of whom were equally courageous.
But she needed/had needed to find a way of discovering which of these three knights
was the the most intelligent and could rescue Rowenna.
So she decided/had decided to set the knights a test. She blindfolded each man and
put a cap on each of their heads.
“Knights listen to your queen,” she said, “each of you is now wearing a red or a blue
cap. When I take off your blindfolds, you are to raise your hand as soon as you see
a black cap. But as soon as you know what color cap you yourself are wearing, put
your hand down.”
She took off their blindfolds and straightaway all the knights put up their hands,
because in fact the Queen put/had put a black cap on all of them. After a few minutes, one of the knights, Sir Galawas, dropped/had dropped his hand and proclaimed: “My cap is black”.
Question: How did Sir Galawas know that his cap was/had been black?
Ambiguous Headlines
Try to understand what makes the headlines ambiguous.
Panda mating fails; vet takes over
Miners refuse to work after death
Juvenile court to try shooting defendant
Killer sentenced to die for second time in 10 years
Red tape holds up new bridge
Astronaut takes blame for gas in spacecraft
Plane too close to the ground, crash probe told
Local high school dropouts cut in half
Sex education delayed, teachers request training
20
Riddles 2
Insert the words in the box into the blank spaces.
1. If you were in a _____ and passed the person in second place, what place would
you be in?
Second place!
2. What goes up, but never comes down?
Your _____ !
3. What gets bigger and bigger the more you _____ away from it?
A hole!
4. How many _____ have 28 days?
All of them!
5. Which weighs more, a ton of _____ or a ton of bricks?
Neither, they both weigh a ton!
6. What is full of _____ but can still hold water?
A sponge!
7. What has two hands, a _____ face, always runs, but stays in place?
A clock!
8. Where does _____ come before work?
In the dictionary!
9. If a man is born in Turkey, grows up in Italy, comes to England and dies in
Manchester what is he?
_____ .
10. What is it that no one wishes to have, yet no one wishes to _____ ?
A bald head.
age, dead, feathers , holes , lose, months, race, round, success, take
21
Tongue Twisters
Practise reading the tongue twister aloud. Then see if you can memorize and say it
quickly without getting your tongue tied!
A tutor who tooted the flute
Tried to tutor two tooters to toot.
Said the two to their tutor:
“Is it harder to toot,
Or to tutor two tooters to toot?”
Logic 3
An Englishman was up in Edinburgh on business. One night he decided to go into
the local pub for a pint of beer. The publican, a canny old man, said that if the
Englishman could drink four pints of the local beer, he would give him another pint
free. Otherwise, the Englishman would have to buy all the people in the pub a free
round. The Englishman’s eyes lit up and he agreed. The publican then produced a
full eight pint jug of beer and two smaller empty ones - one five pint and one three
pint. He then told the Englishman that if he wanted to get his free pint he would have
to measure out exactly four pints using the three different jugs.
How did the Englishman win his fifth pint and avoid buying a round for the rest of
the pub?
Anagrams
Create an anagram from the letters of the words in the first column. The anagram
should correspond to the definition.
anagram
cures
diary
deals
early
earth
there
field
gates
grown
sweat
definition
profane or obscene expression usually of surprise or anger
a farm where milk products are produced
electric wires, cables
single thickness of usually some homogeneous substance
the most important human organ
the number after two
archived
section or portion of a journey or course
based on or acting or judging in error
any materials unused and rejected as worthless or
unwanted
22
Tense Challenge 2
An American scientist wanted to prove that the Loch Ness monster exists so he
decided/was decided to prove it. All his photographic equipment sent/was sent from
the USA to Loch Ness in Scotland where the scientist and his team put/was put it on
a large boat. The scientist then spent/was spent a week on the Loch waiting for the
monster to appear. Suddenly one night there was a terrible crash and the scientist
found/was found himself face to face with the monster under the water . His boat
smashed/was smashed to pieces by the monster, and the oil, which powered the
boat, leaked onto the Loch. Every day the oil slick doubled/was doubled in size and
Scottish environmental groups became/were become very worried. After 13 days
half the Loch covered/was covered by the oil slick.
How many more days did it take to cover the entire Loch?
Word Ladder
Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice in Wonderland, enjoyed converting one word into
another by changing one letter at a time. For example: H A T E > h a v e > h o v e >
LOVE
See if you can convert BREAD into WHEET. You can use the clues in brackets to
help you.
BREAD
______ (have/raise young animals)
______ (someone unpleasantly strange or eccentric)
CHEEP (sound a small bird makes)
______ (not expensive)
______ (copy during an exam)
WHEAT
Keys to Chapter 2
Keys to Chapter 2
Riddles
What is at the end of a rainbow? The letter W!
What occurs once in a minute, twice in a moment and never in one thousand
years? The letter M
What word becomes shorter when you add two letters to it? Short
What is the longest word in the dictionary? Smiles, because there is a mile
between each ‘s’
We see it once in a year, twice in a week, and never in a day. What is it? The
letter “E”
What is the center of Gravity? The letter V.
What starts with the letter “t”, is filled with “t” and ends in “t”? A teapot!
Take away my first letter, and I still sound the same. Take away my last letter,
I still sound the same. Even take away my letter in the middle, I will still
sound the same. I am a five letter word. What am I? EMPTY
What has 4 eyes but can’t see? Mississippi
What starts with “P” and ends with “E” and has more than 1000 letters? A
post office!
Funny Book Titles
I Didn’t Do It! by Ivan Alibi = I have an alibi
The Great Escape by Freida Convict = freed a convict (i.e. a convict was
freed)
Under Arrest by Watts E Dunn = What has he done?
Unsolved Mysteries by N. Igma = Enigma (mystery)
It’s a Shocker by Alec Tricity = Electricity
23
24
Keys to Chapter 2
Logic 1
Only one. Take it from the box labeled “Dime and Nickel”. Since you know
all three boxes are mislabeled, the box contains two coins of the denomination
you withdrew. Put the proper label on that box. Then simply switch the two
remaining labels.
Logic 2
All they need to do is tilt the barrel at 45 degrees. If the edge of the surface of
the beer touches the lip of the barrel at the same time as it touches the bottom
of the barrel, then it must be half full/empty.
Proverbs
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Don’t cut off your nose to spite your face.
Don’t wash your dirty linen in public.
It’s no use crying over spilt milk.
There’s no point flogging a dead horse.
Necessity is the mother of invention.
Once bitten twice shy.
A rolling stone gathers no moss.
Some people can’t see the wood for the trees.
A watched pot never boils.
You can’t have your cake and eat it.
Word Combinations 1
armchair, backwards, earring, fingernail, hairstyle, headline, lipstick,
necklace
Word Combinations 2
flashback, facelift, handsome, headfirst, kneecap, legend, spineless, toothbrush, voiceless/invoice, wristwatch
Keys to Chapter 2
Tense Challenge 1 (Simple Past vs Past Perfect)
The Queen of Sheba was desperate - her best friend, Rowenna, had been captured by the terrible Bingoid tribe, and she needed someone to rescue her. She
had three faithful knights, all of whom were equally courageous. But she
needed to find a way of discovering which of these three knights was intelligent enough to rescue Rowenna.
So she decided to set the knights a test. She blindfolded each man and put a
cap on each of their heads.
“Knights listen to your queen,” she said, “each of you is now wearing a red or
a blue cap. When I take off your blindfolds, you are to raise your hand as soon
as you see a black cap. But as soon as you know what color cap you yourself
are wearing, put your hand down.”
She took off their blindfolds and straightaway all the knights put up their
hands, because the Queen had in fact put a black cap on all of them. After a
few minutes, one of the knights, Sir Galawas, dropped his hand and proclaimed: “My cap is black”.
How did Sir Galawas know that his cap was black?
# If Sir Galawas’s cap had been white, either one of his rivals would have
known that his own was black, for the remaining man’s raised hand showed
that he saw a black cap, and that couldn’t be Sir Galawas’s if his were white.
Neither of the other two knights put their hands down to show they knew the
color of their own cap, so Sir Galawas’s couldn’t have been white.
Ambiguous Headlines
Panda mating fails; vet takes over = It seems like the vet decided to mate with
the panda.
Miners refuse to work after death = The ‘death’ in reality refers to a fellow
miner. But here it seems like the miners have voted not to work after they have
died.
Juvenile court to try shooting defendant = The ‘shooting defendant’ is someone who has been accused of shooting someone. To ‘try’ means to decide if
someone is guilty or innocent. But here it seems that the members of the court
are going to attempt to shoot the defendant.
Killer sentenced to die for second time in 10 years. = It seems like this is the
second time the killer is going to die.
25
26
Keys to Chapter 2
Red tape holds up new bridge = ‘red tape’ is a metaphor for bureaucracy. The
real meaning is that bureaucracy is delaying the construction or opening or a
bridge. But it seems that the new bridge is being held together by red tape (i.e.
a narrow strip of material).
Astronaut takes blame for gas in spacecraft = Gas also means the gas produced by the human body.
Plane too close to the ground, crash probe told = This is not really ambiguous
but simply ridiculous: if it crashed, it was obviously too close to the ground.
Local high school dropouts cut in half = A ‘dropout’ is someone who drops
out of school, i.e. stops going to school. The real meaning is that the number
of dropouts has fallen by 50%, but it seems that the poor students have had the
top half of their body removed from the bottom half.
Sex education delayed, teachers request training = The training should refer
to the teacher’s skills in teaching sex education, but it seems like the teachers
want to learn how to have sex themselves.
Riddles 2
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
race
age
take
months
feathers
holes
round
success
dead
lose
Keys to Chapter 2
Logic 3
A = the 8-pint jug, B = 5, C = 3
The English starts with the following situation:
ABC
800
He then continues as follows
ABC
3 5 0 (5 from A to B)
3 2 3 (3 from B to C)
6 2 0 (3 from C to A)
6 0 2 (2 from B to C)
1 5 2 (5 from A to B)
1 4 3 (1 from B to C)
4 4 0 (3 from C to A)
Anagrams 2
curse
dairy
leads
layer
heart
three
filed
stage
wrong
waste
27
28
Keys to Chapter 2
Tense Challenge 2 (Active vs Passive)
An American scientist wanted to prove that the Loch Ness monster exists so
he decided to prove it. All his photographic equipment was sent from the USA
to Loch Ness in Scotland where the scientist put it on a large boat. The scientist then spent a week on the Loch waiting for the monster to appear. Suddenly
one night there was a terrible crash and the scientist found himself face to face
with the monster under the water. His boat was smashed to pieces by the monster, and the oil, which powered the boat, leaked onto the Loch. Every day the
oil slick doubled in size and Scottish environmental groups became/were
become very worried. After 13 days half the Loch was covered by the oil slick.
Answer: One more day.
Word Ladder
BREAD
BREED (have/raise young animals)
CREEP (someone unpleasantly strange or eccentric)
CHEEP (sound a small bird makes)
CHEAP (not expensive)
CHEAT (copy during an exam)
WHEAT
Chapter 3
The scientist should treasure the riddles
he can’t solve
Rhyming Forms
The words below may look very strange but they are actually used in every day
conversation. Can you match the word (1-10) with its meaning (a-j)?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
g)
h)
i)
j)
hotch potch
humdrum
itsy bitsy
jet set
knick knack
mumbo jumbo
namby pamby
okey dokey
pooper scooper
prime time
device for collecting dog excrement
insipid character
meaningless mystical nonsense
mixture
monotonous routine
OK
period when TV audience viewing is at its highest
rich elite
useless device
very small
© Springer International Publishing AG 2018
A. Wallwork, Word Games, Riddles and Logic Tests, Easy English!,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0_3
29
30
Tongue Twister
Practise reading the tongue twister aloud. Then see if you can memorize and say it
quickly without getting your tongue tied!
She sells seashells by the seashore.
The shells she sells are surely seashells.
So if she sells shells on the seashore,
I’m sure she sells seashore shells.
Riddles
Match the questions (1-10) with the answers (a -j).
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
What’s the best thing about Switzerland?
What is the color of the wind?
Who earns a living by driving his/her customers away?
What breaks when you say it?
What instrument can you hear but never see?
What do you call a fish with no eyes?
What comes down but never goes up?
A lawyer, a plumber and a hat maker were walking down the street. Who had
the biggest hat?
9. If two’s company and three’s a crowd, what are four and five?
10. Can you name the two days starting with T besides Tuesday and Thursday?
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
g)
h)
i)
A fsh.
A taxi driver.
Blew.
I don’t know, but the flag is a big plus.
Nine!
Rain
Silence!
The one with the biggest head.
Today and tomorrow.
j) Your voice!
31
Cryptic Meaning
What does the following mean? Hint: Try to read it aloud. YY = two Ys
YY UR
YY UB
ICUR
YY 4 ME
Funny Book Titles
Try to understand why the author of the book is appropriate to the title/topic of the
book.
I Lived in Detroit by Helen Earth
I Love Mathematics by Adam Up
I Was a Cloakroom Attendant by Mahatma Coate
I Win! by U. Lose
I Say So! by Frank O. Pinion
Animal Idioms
A famous English idiom is ‘It’s raining cats and dogs’, but where does it come
from? It goes back to Norse mythology and to sailors who associated cats with
heavy rain and dogs with storms and the wind.
See if you can match the idiom with its meaning.
1. a dark horse
2. a little bird told me
3. a night owl
4. a white elephant
5. donkey’s years
6. not enough room to swing a cat
7. till the cows come home
8. to have a bee in one’s bonnet
9. to make a pig’s ear of something
10. to smell a rat/something fishy
a) have an obsession about something
b) something expensive and worthless
c) do something very badly
d) avoids saying directly how you heard
news
e) very little space
f) going back a long time into the past
g) for an indefinitely long time into the
future
h) someone who stays up late
i) person whose true value is unknown
j) suspect that something is wrong
32
Anagrams
Create an anagram from the letters of the words in the first column. The anagram
should correspond to the definition.
lakes
anagram
definition
loss of water
steal
smart
warms
miles
items
means
melon
needs
newer
stories
means of transport in a town
a group of bees altogether
something on your face that shows that you are happy
x as in 5 x 5 = 20
something that is given to use by our parents
a citrus fruit
thick
make new again
Limericks
Practise reading the limericks aloud and hear/find the rhythm.
There was an old dame of Dunbar,
Who took the 4.4 to Forfar;
But went on to Dundee,
A canner exceedingly canny,
One morning remarked to his granny:
“A canner can can
So she travelled, you see
Too far by 4.4. from Forfar.
Anything that he can
But a canner can’t can a can, can he?”
Mathematical 1
Arrange the figures 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 0, in a way that the total comes to 100.
Each figure can only be written once.
Mathematical 2
Three friends to a restaurant and have a really good meal. The bill comes to £30, so
they each pay £10. But because they are regular customers, the manager gives them
a discount of £5. They decide to leave the waiter a £2 tip and then they divide the
rest equally between them. Thus they have only spent £9 each = £27 + £2 tip = £29.
So where has the other £1 gone?
33
Mathematical 3
A little girl is getting dressed to go out to a birthday party. Her mother has bought
her a new dress and she looks very pretty indeed. She is just about to take her socks
out of the drawer when there’s a blackout and she’s left completely in the dark. In
the drawer there are only white and black socks. How many socks will she have to
pull out before getting a pair of the same color?
Pseudodromes
Pseudodrome are palindromes in which words, rather than individual letters, read
the same backwards or forwards.
Bores are people what say people are bores.
Women understand men, few men understand women.
Dollars make men covetous, then covetous men make dollars.
Girl, bathing on Bikini, eyeing boy, finds boy eyeing bikini on bathing girl.
Tense Challenge
Underline the correct form of the verbs in italics.
In Medieval times jesters were very much a part of the royal courts of Europe. One
particular court jester made a fortune traveling from country to country playing the
following trick on unsuspecting monarchs.
On seeing the king, queen or whoever he would say: “I bet/will bet that if I tell/will
tell you a really big lie, you give/will give me a pot of gold.”
One day he decided to go to England and arriving at His Majesty’s palace he
demanded to see the king, he then announced his challenge and added:
“If you agree/will agree to my proposal, you end/will end up giving me a pot of
gold. I am/will be the best liar in the world you know!
“OK then,” replied the king wearily, “if you tell/will tell me a really big lie, I will
give you a pot of gold”.
The jester smiled and continued:
“You owe/will owe my father a pot full of gold. You lost it to him 25 years ago at
poker and you never paid him back.”
“But I’ve never even met your father,” protested the king, “that’s the biggest lie I’ve
ever heard.”
The king then realised that he had been fooled and that he would have to pay the
jester. Why?
34
Word Ladder
Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice in Wonderland, enjoyed converting one word into
another by changing one letter at a time. For example: H A T E > h a v e > h o v e >
LOVE
See if you can convert MICE into RATS. You can use the clues in brackets to help
you.
MICE
_____ (staple diet of much of the world)
_____ (competition)
_____ (assign a rank or rating to)
RATS
Keys to Chapter 3
Keys to Chapter 3
Rhyming Forms
hotch potch - mixture
humdrum - monotonous routine
itsy bitsy - very small
jet set - rich elite
knick knack - useless device
mumbo jumbo - meaningless mystical nonsense
namby pamby - insipid character
okey dokey - OK
pooper scooper - device for collecting dog excrement
prime time - period when TV audience viewing is at its highest
Riddles 1
What’s the best thing about Switzerland? I don’t know, but the flag is a big
plus.
What is the color of the wind? Blew.
Who earns a living by driving his customers away? A taxi driver.
What breaks when you say it? Silence!
What instrument can you hear but never see? Your voice! You can sing with
your voice like an instrument and hear it, but no one can see it!
What do you call a fish with no eyes? A fsh.
What comes down but never goes up? Rain
A lawyer, a plumber and a hat maker were walking down the street. Who had
the biggest hat? The one with the biggest head.
If two’s company and three’s a crowd, what are four and five? Nine!
Can you name the two days starting with T besides Tuesday and Thursday?
Today and tomorrow.
35
36
Keys to Chapter 3
Cryptic Meaning
YY UR - too wise you are
YY UB - two wise you be
I C U R - I see you are
YY 4 ME - too wise for me
Funny Book Titles
I Lived in Detroit by Helen Earth = Hell on earth (i.e. a horrible place)
I Love Mathematics by Adam Up = Add them (i.e. numbers) up
I Was a Cloakroom Attendant by Mahatma Coate = My hat, my coat
I Win! by U. Lose = You lose
I Say So! by Frank O. Pinion = frank (sincere) opinion
Animal Idioms
a dark horse - person whose true value is unknown
a little bird told me - avoids saying directly how you heard news
a night owl - someone who stays up late
a white elephant - something expensive and worthless
donkey’s years - going back a long time into the past
not enough room to swing a cat - very little space
till the cows come home - for an indefinitely long time into the future
to have a bee in one’s bonnet - have an obsession about something
to make a pig’s ear of something - do something very badly
to smell a rat`something fishy - suspect that something is wrong
Keys to Chapter 3
Anagrams 2
leaks
tales
trams
swarm
smile
times
names
lemon
dense
renew
Mathematical 1
# 57+23=80+1+4+6+9 = 100
Mathematical 2
#
Mathematical 3
#3
Tense Challenge - Present Simple vs Will
In Medieval times jesters were very much a part of the royal courts of Europe.
One particular court jester made a fortune traveling from country to country
playing the following trick on unsuspecting monarchs.
On seeing the king, queen or whoever he would say: “I bet that if I tell you a
really big lie, you will give me a pot of gold.”
One day he decided to go to England and arriving at His Majesty’s palace he
demanded to see the king, he then announced his challenge and added:
37
38
Keys to Chapter 3
“If you agree to my proposal, you will end up giving me a pot of gold. I am
the best liar in the world you know!
“OK then,” replied the king wearily, “if you tell me a really big lie, I will give
you a pot of gold”.
The jester smiled and continued:
“You owe my father a pot full of gold. You lost it to him 25 years ago at poker
and you never paid him back.”
“But I’ve never even met your father,” protested the king, “that’s the biggest
lie I’ve ever heard.”
The king then realised that he had been fooled and that he would have to pay
the jester. Why?
#If the king admits that it was a lie, he will have to pay the jester a pot of gold
(this was part of the challenge). But if it’s not a lie, then he really does owe the
jester’s father a pot of gold and so he will have to pay the jester anyway.
Word Ladder
MICE
RICE (staple diet of much of the world)
RACE (competition)
RATE (assign a rank or rating to)
RATS
Chapter 4
Play up! play up! and play the game
Numbers
Numbers occur quite frequently in the abbreviations used in the social media. Due
to the bizarre spelling system of English, numbers can be used in many different
ways:
1) /won/, 2) /tu/, 3) /thri/ or /fri/, 4) /for/, 8) /eit/
Match the ‘numbers’ in the first column with the meanings in the second column.
1ce
every1
ne1
sum1
2day
f2f
im2gud4u
lk2ul8r
wan2
b4
plz 4gv me
cul8er
w8in4u
anyone
before
everyone
face to face
I’m too good for you
once
please forgive me
see you later
someone
talk to you later
today
waiting for you
want to
© Springer International Publishing AG 2018
A. Wallwork, Word Games, Riddles and Logic Tests, Easy English!,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0_4
39
40
Word Ladder
Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice in Wonderland, enjoyed converting one word into
another by changing one letter at a time. For example: H A T E > h a v e > h o v e >
LOVE
See if you can convert FIRE into HEAT. You can use the clues in brackets to help you.
FIRE
_____ (engage for work)
HERE (not there)
_____ (a group of cattle or sheep or other domestic mammals)
_____
HEAT
41
Proverbs
Match the proverbs (1-10) with their explanations (a-j).
1. A bad workman always blames his tools
2. A bird in hand is worth two in the bush
3. A change is a good as a rest
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
A leopard can’t change his spots
A miss is as good as a mile
A stitch in time saves nine
Absence makes the heart grow fonder
Actions speak louder than words
All good things must come to an end
Beauty is only skin deep
a) Rather than recognizing that we have done something badly, we attribute the
responsibility to the tools we are working with.
b) It’s better not to lose something that you already have by trying to get something extra that you cannot be certain of.
c) If you start doing something different, then this is equivalent to having a period
of rest.
d) You cannot change human nature.
e) It doesn’t matter by how far you have missed your target.
f) If you fix something or solve a problem straight away you will save time later.
g) When you are away from your loved one, you fall even more in love.
h) What you do is more important than what you say.
i) Enjoyable experiences don’t last forever.
j) What is important is someone’s character not their appearance.
42
Tongue Twisters
Practise reading the tongue twisters aloud. Then see if you can memorize and say
them quickly without getting your tongue tied!
Which wristwatches are Swiss wristwatches?
Unique New York.
Many an anemone sees an enemy anemone.
Freshly-fried flying fish.
Riddles
Can you answer the questions of the following riddles?
1. In a one-storey pink house, there was a pink person, a pink cat, a pink fish, a
pink computer, a pink chair, a pink table, a pink telephone, a pink shower–
everything was pink! What color were the stairs?
2. If you were forced to go through one of the following doors, which door do you
go through with 100 % certainty you’d stay alive: a door with a man with a gun
behind it, a door with a tiger who hasn’t eaten in 7 years behind it, or a door
with an electric chair behind it?
3. Jack rode into town on Friday and rode out 2 days later on Friday. How can that
be possible?
4. A man was cleaning the windows of a 25 storey building. He slipped and fell
off the ladder, but wasn’t hurt. How did he do it?
5. Two fathers and two sons go on a fishing trip. They each catch a fish and bring
it home. Why do they only bring three fish home?
6. A monkey, a squirrel, and a bird are racing to the top of a coconut tree. Who
will get the banana first, the monkey, the squirrel, or the bird?
7. Mr. Blue lives in the blue house, Mr. Pink lives in the pink house, and Mr.
Brown lives in the brown house. Who lives in the white house?
8. If a blue house is made out of blue bricks, a yellow house is made out of yellow bricks and a pink house is made out of pink bricks, what is a green house
made of?
9. How many months have 28 days?
10. You walk into a room with a match, a kerosene lamp, a candle, and a fireplace.
Which do you light first?
11. What is as light as a feather, but even the world’s strongest man couldn’t hold it
for more than a minute?
12. Mary’s father has 5 daughters – Nana, Nene, Nini, Nono. What is the fifth
daughters name?
43
Funny Book Titles
Match the titles with the authors.
titles
Cry Wolf
authors
Al Armist
It’s Unfair!
Surprised!
Without Warning
Cooking Spaghetti
Al Dente
Oliver Sudden
Omar Gosh
Y. Me
Limericks
Practise reading the limericks aloud and hear/find the rhythm.
There was a faith-healer of Deal
Who said “Although pain isn’t real,
If I sit on a pin
And it punctures my skin
I dislike what I fancy I feel.
There was a young man from Bengal
Who went to a fancy dress ball.
He went just for fun
Dressed up as a bun
And a dog ate him up in the hall.
Preposition Challenge
Choose the correct preposition - in or to.
There is a night watchman who works in/to a small factory in/to Pisa in/to Italy. His
job is to make sure that there are no intruders in/to the factory during the night time.
One night he had a dream about his boss. The next morning he went to see his boss
and said in/to him: “Last night I had a dream. I dreamt that the plane crashed that
you are taking in/to London today”. The boss got very angry and told him to go
away.
There was terrible traffic and the boss arrived too late in/to the airport to catch his
plane. So he caught the next one instead. When he arrived in / to London he bought
the evening newspaper and read: “Pisa - London plane crashes - all dead!” A week
later he flew back in/to his factory in/to Pisa. He immediately called in the night
watchman and told him that he was sacked.
Why did the boss sack his night watchman?
44
On a Mat up Here
What do the following words have in common?
moo, buzz, neigh, quack
burp, clang, click crash, hiss, pop, squelch, jingle, snap, thud
Anagrams
Can you work out the connection between the two columns?
a telephone girl
Clint Eastwood
French revolution
Madame Curie
police protection
silver and gold
the countryside
the nudist colony
William Shakespeare
praise
repeating hello
old west action
violence run forth
radium came
let cop cope in riot
grand old evils
no city dust here
no untidy clothes
we all make his
Vocabulary notes: Clint Eastwood was a famous film star in westerns; run forth =
flow, cop = police officer, cope = manage, evil = opposite of good, untidy = not in
order, praise = say good things about
Mathematical 1
A farmer had two and a half haystacks in one corner of a field and three and a half
haystacks in another corner of the same field. If he put them together how many
haystacks would he have?
45
Mathematical 2
A train which is 1 km long is moving at 100 km an hour. It goes into a 1 km long
tunnel. How long will it take to pass through the tunnel completely?
Mathematical 3
A woman worked on her farm where she had a lot of chickens. She went to the
market to sell the chickens’ eggs. The first person bought half her eggs and half an
egg more. The second and third people did exactly the same thing. When she had
given them all their eggs, she had none left and hadn’t had to break a single egg all
day. How many eggs did she have at the beginning?
Rhyming Words
These pairs of words look as if they should rhyme, but not many of them do. Which
ones do rhyme?
aid
arm
eat
even
his
hole
laughter
lose
now
on
said
farm
heat
seven
this
whole
slaughter
close
know
son
46
Anagrams
Create an anagram from the letters of the words in the first column. The anagram
should correspond to the definition.
break
anagram
definition
a professional bread maker
stale
thing
orals
ought
swore
outer
parts
peach
paler
the opposite of the most
the opposite of day
related to the sun
hard
the opposite of better
the path followed to get from A to B
the part of the bag that you put over your shoulder
not expensive
precious object found in a shell
Logical Ladies?
Below are four cases (1-4) all involving women. There are eight possible solutions
(a-h) to the cases. Match the most appropriate solution to each case.
1. Laura had not been seen for 24 hours. The police sent out a search party. They
discovered her in a couple of hours covered in blood in an abandoned building.
A few hours later, it was confirmed that she had been shot twice. Even though the
police had no other physical evidence, they arrested the murderer. How did the
police know the identity of the murderer?
2. Martha decides to buy a new mobile phone and to sell her old one to a stranger.
The stranger wants to pay in cash. Teresa accepts but says that the stranger must
give her the money in front of a bank clerk in a bank. Why?
3. Mrs Jones, who lives alone with her daughter Kate, suspects that Kate’s boyfriend has been staying in their house. But her daughter says that she has spent
the day by herself and that her boyfriend was out with his friends. In reality, the
boyfriend has spent the day in the house, so Kate has made sure that he has not
left anything behind. But Mrs Jones soon finds evidence that Kate’s boyfriend
really has spent the day with Kate in the house. What evidence did Mrs Smith
find?
4. Patricia wakes up in the middle of the night and smells smoke. She knows she is
in danger from the fire. She makes no attempt to leave the room where she is
sleeping. Why?
47
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
She was not alone.
She lives next door to the bank.
She is in a prison cell.
She can smell perfume.
She is blind.
She wasn’t dead when she was found. So she was able to reveal the identity
of her killers.
g) She sees that the toilet seat is up.
h) She is a fire officer.
Ambiguous Headlines
Try to understand what makes the headlines ambiguous.
Two sisters reunited after 18 years at checkout counter
Dealers will hear car talk at noon
Enraged cow injures farmer with axe
Include your children when baking cookies
Lawyers from Mexico barbecue guests.
48
Keys to Chapter 4
Keys to Chapter 4
Numbers
1ce = once,
every1 = everyone,
ne1 = anyone
sum1 = someone,
2day = today
f2f = face to face
im2gud4u = I’m too good for you
lk2ul8r = talk to you later
wan2 = want t
b4 = before
plz 4gv me = please forgive me
cul8er = see you later
w8in4u = waiting for you
Word Ladder
FIRE
HIRE (engage for work)
HERE (not there)
HERD (a group of cattle or sheep or other domestic mammals)
HEAD
HEAT
Proverbs
A bad workman always blames his tools - Rather than recognizing that we
have done something badly, we attribute the responsibility to the tools we are
working with.
A bird in hand is worth two in the bush - It’s better not to lose something that
you already have by trying to get something extra that you cannot be certain.
Keys to Chapter 4
A change is a good as a rest - If you start doing something different then this
is equivalent to having a period of rest.
A leopard can’t change his spots - You cannot change human nature.
A miss is as good as a mile - It doesn’t matter by how far you have missed
your target.
A stitch in time saves nine - if you fix something or solve a problem straight
away you will save time later.
Absence makes the heart grow fonder - When you are away from your loved
one, you fall even more in love.
Actions speak louder than words - What you do is more important than what
you say.
All good things must come to an end - Enjoyable experiences don’t last
forever
Beauty is only skin deep - What is important is someone’s character not their
appearance.
Riddles
1. There weren’t any stairs, it was a one storey house!
2. The one with the tiger behind it, because if it hasn’t eaten in 7 years it’s
dead.
3. Friday is his horse’s name!
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
He fell off the 2nd step.
The fishing trip consists of a grandfather, a father and a son.
None of them, because you can’t get a banana from a coconut tree!
The president!
Glass
All 12 months!
The match.
His breath!
If you answered Nunu, you are wrong. It’s Mary!
49
50
Keys to Chapter 4
Funny Book Titles
Cry Wolf by Al Armist - to cry wolf means to claim that something bad has
happened when in reality it hasn’t. The author’s name is alarmist.
It’s Unfair! by Y. Me - why me?
Surprised! by Omar Gosh - oh my gosh (a typical exclamation. gosh is used
instead of god)
Without Warning by Oliver Sudden - all of a sudden (an idiom meaning
‘suddenly’)
Cooking Spaghetti by Al Dente - al dente is an Italian expression indicating
the correct hardness of cooked pasta (literally ‘to the tooth’)
Preposition Challenge
There is a night watchman who works in a small factory in Pisa in Italy. His job
is to make sure that there are no intruders in the factory during the night time.
One night he had a dream about his boss. The next morning he went to see his
boss and said to him: “Last night I had a dream. I dreamt that the plane crashed
that you are taking to London today”. The boss got very angry and told him to
go away.
There was terrible traffic and the boss arrived too late to the airport to catch
his plane. So he caught the next one instead. When he arrived in London he
bought the evening newspaper and read: “Pisa - London plane crashes - all
dead!” A week later he flew back to his factory in Pisa. He immediately called
in the night watchman and told him that he was sacked.
Why did the boss sack his night watchman? Because he was sleeping (dreaming) on the job when he should have been checking that there were no
intruders.
On a Mat up Here
The words are all onomatopoeic, i.e. they imitate the sound that they are supposed to represent. The first set are all animal noises (cow, bee, horse, duck).
The others are all just sounds made by humans, animals or objects - you may
have seen them in comics.
Keys to Chapter 4
Mathematical 1
1
Mathematical 2
2 minutes
Mathematical 3
The total is seven: first person four eggs (three and a half plus a half), the
second 2 (there were three left at this stage, so the second person had one and
a half plus a half), and the third person had one egg (half plus a half).
Rhyming Words
The following pairs rhyme: arm/farm, eat/heat, hole/whole
Anagrams 2
baker
least
night
solar
tough
worse
route
strap
cheap
pearl
51
52
Keys to Chapter 4
Logical Ladies?
1) f
2) 2
3) g
4) c
Ambiguous Headlines
Two sisters reunited after 18 years at checkout counter - It seems like they had
both spent 18 years at the checkout counter, whereas in fact the counter was
the place where they were reunited.
Dealers will hear car talk at noon - Dealers, in this case, are car salespeople.
The ambiguous word is talk which in reality means a presentation/speech (i.e.
a presentation on cars), but seems like it is a car that can speak.
Enraged cow injures farmer with axe - The farmer has the axe not the angry
cow.
Include your children when baking cookies - The idea is that parents should
get their children to participate when cooking, but instead it sounds the children are part of the ingredients.
Lawyers from Mexico barbecue guests. The guests are the lawyers, but it
seems like the lawyers are cooking the guests.
Chapter 5
Thanks to words, we have been able to rise
above the brute
Acronyms
A quick way of writing is to use acronyms, where each letter stands for a word.
Match the acronyms with their meanings.
aka
asap
atb
bbn
bf
bfn
btdt
btw
eom
fyi
end of message
for your information
as soon as possible
all the best
bye bye now
boy friend
bye for now
also known as
been there done that
by the way
© Springer International Publishing AG 2018
A. Wallwork, Word Games, Riddles and Logic Tests, Easy English!,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0_5
53
54
Rhyming Words
These pairs of words look as if they should rhyme, but not many of them do. Which
ones do rhyme?
are
ear
ever
hall
nose
how
ill
new
raw
word
care
wear
fever
shall
chose
show
kill
knew
draw
sword
Limericks
Practise reading the limerick aloud and hear/find the rhythm.
There was a young fellow of Perth
Who was born on the day of his birth;
He married, they say,
On his wife’s wedding day,
And he died when he quitted the earth.
55
Word Ladder
Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice in Wonderland, enjoyed converting one word into
another by changing one letter at a time.
For example: H A T E > h a v e > h o v e > L O V E
See if you can convert SLEEP into DREAM. You can use the clues in brackets to
help you.
SLEEP
______ (a short high tone produced as a signal or warning)
______ (lose blood)
______ (have/raise young animals)
DREED (not a recognized word)
______ (causing fear or terror)
DREAM
Riddles
Choose the correct answer. In some cases more than one answer may be correct.
1. The more it dries, the wetter it becomes. What is it?
a) a towel b) a cloud c) a sponge
2. What can you catch but not throw?
a) a train b) a star c) a cold
3. What loses its head in the morning but gets it back at night?
a) a mad man b) a tortoise c) a pillow
4. What gets broken without being held?
a) a mirror b) a promise c) silence
5. What is always coming but never arrives?
a) the next bus b) tomorrow c) true love
6. What goes through towns and over hills but never moves?
a) electricity b) the earth c) a road
7. What has 88 keys but can’t open a single door?
a) a prison guard b) a piano c) a computer
56
8. What has a neck but no head?
a) a bottle b) a dead chicken c) a cabbage
9. What has one eye but cannot see?
a) a needle b) a bat c) a mole
10. What has hands but can not clap?
a) a six-month old baby b) clock c) a murderer
11. What has 50 heads but can’t think?
a) a centipede b) a box of matches c) Cerberus, the mythical creature
Ambiguous Headlines
Try to understand what makes the headlines ambiguous.
Stolen painting found by tree.
Safety experts say school bus passengers should be belted.
A quarter of a million Chinese live on water.
Old school pillars are replaced by alumni.
Palindromes
The five sentences below are all palindromes, i.e. sentences that can be read letterby-letter either starting at the beginning or starting from the end. The only problem
is that in each case an extra word has been inserted. Can you find the extra word?
(e.g. Madam I’m not Adam = in this case not is the extra word)
No lemons and no melon.
Ten animals I now slam in a net.
Some men interpret the nine memos.
Evil is a not name of a foreman, as I live.
Marge lets Norah to see Sharon’s telegram.
57
Anagrams
Create an anagram from the letters of the words in the first column. The anagram
should correspond to the definition.
meals
anagram
definition
not females
pears
slept
prose
prods
quite
ports
stare
worth
hears
extra
alternative spelling of spelled
cord used to tie things
lets something fall
not noisy
examples of this are football, tennis, skiing
liquid that comes out of your eyes
propel something through the air
give a portion of something to other people
58
Colorful Idioms
Match the color idiom with its definition.
1. be in someone’s black books
2. have the blues
3. be not as green as one’s cabbage looking
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
a grey area
a golden handshake
red tape
see red
as white as a sheet
be yellow
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
g)
h)
i)
j)
something which seems unidentifiable
not as inexperienced as one looks
a substantial sum of money given to someone leaving a company
feel depressed or sad
when a person is angry with you
very pale, in a state of shock
bureaucratic formalities
act in a cowardly way
be rather ill
be extremely angry
Mathematical 1
You have ten stacks of ten silver dollars in each. They are identical, except that one
stack consists entirely of counterfeit dollars. You know the weight of an authentic
dollar, and you also know that a counterfeit dollar weighs one gram less. How many
weighings are needed to reveal which stack is counterfeit?
Mathematical 2
You have the same amount of money in your wallet as your friend. How much do
you need to give her so that she has 10 euros more than you?
59
Mathematical 3
An art dealer bought a painting for $7000, then sold it for $8000. She then bought
back the same painting for $9000, and sold it again for $10,000. How much profit
did she make?
QWERTY or CWAZY?
What do the following strange sentences all have in common?
A large fawn jumped quickly over white zinc boxes.
Jack amazed a few girls by dropping the antique onyx vase
Playing jazz vibe chords quickly excites my wife.
The five boxing wizards jump quickly.
Turgid saxophones blew over Mick’s jazzy quaff.
Grammar Challenge
Underline the correct form of the words in italics.
Some time the/Ø last year in a/the small town on a/the east coast of an/the island
somewhere in the/Ø Pacific Ocean, a/the kidnapping took place. It all went exactly
to plan. The/Ø kidnappers drew up to Mr X, an/the/Ø important judge, just as he
was leaving court, bundled him into a/the stolen car, blindfolded him and took him
out to a/the hiding place in a/the/Ø country. A/The ransom note, made from newspaper cuttings, was sent to the/Ø police. However after three days of waiting, the/Ø
police had made no contact and there was no money to be seen.
After a/the week, the/Ø terrorists, tired and disappointed, condemned Mr X to
death. But a/the terrorist leader was not completely cold-hearted and left a/the/Ø
choice of death to Mr X.
Mr X, despite a/the week of tension, had not lost his sense of humor and in a/the bid
for time asked a/the/Ø terrorist leader: “What deaths have you got in stock?”
“Anything from the/Ø electric chair to the/Ø arsenic,” replied a/the leader.
Mr X refused all the leader’s suggestions - electrocution was too “shocking”, being
starved “rather tasteless”, hanging was out of the question as he hated being “kept
in suspense”, poisoning made his “stomach turn” and drowning just left him “cold”.
He had virtually decided on the/Ø quickest solution, being shot, when he had a/
the/Ø brain-wave. He got up, told the leader of his choice of death and walked away
a/the free man.
Question: What death did he choose?
60
Similes
Insert the words in the box into the correct spaces
as quick as ______
as quiet as a ______
as safe as ______
as sharp as a ______
as sly as a ______
as steady as a ______
as sweet as ______
as thick as a ______
as ugly as ______
as white as a ______
brick, fox, honey, houses, lightning, mouse, needle, rock, sheet, sin
Smileys
Match the smileys (i.e. a group of keyboard characters that taken on a facial expression) with their meanings.
:<>
:-ll
(((H)))
:-X
:-C
:-S
:’-(
:-@!
:-e
:-|
:*)
:#)
Drunk
Big Kiss
Can’t believe it
Cursing
Confused
Disappointed
Disgusted
Drinking every
night
Crying
Big Hug
Angry
Amazed
61
Proverbs
Match the proverbs (1-10) with their explanations (a-j).
1. Beggars can’t be choosers
2. Better the devil you know than the devil you don’t
3. Blood is thicker than water
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Do as I say, not as I do
Don’t count your chickens before they hatch
Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth
Don’t put all your eggs in one basket
Every cloud has a silver lining
Fools rush in where angels fear to tread
Give someone an inch and they will take a mile
a) Do not automatically assume that something will turn out right before it actually happens.
b) Don’t be critical of something that you are going to get for free.
c) Don’t criticize a present that you receive.
d) Family ties are stronger than other relationships.
e) Follow my advice rather than looking at my actions.
f) If you give a little to someone they will then ask for more.
g) Spread your options.
h) The current situation, however bad, may be better than a change for some thing
that may be worse.
i) The inexperienced often become involved in difficult situations that more intelligent people would avoid.
j) There is always something positive in every apparently bad event.
62
Keys to Chapter 5
Keys to Chapter 5
Acronyms
aka = also known as
asap = as soon as possible
atb = all the best
bbn = bye bye now
bf = boy friend
bfn = bye for now
btdt = been there done that
btw = by the way
eom = end of message
fyi = for your information
Rhyming Words
The following pairs rhyme: nose/chose, ill/kill, new/knew, raw/draw
Word Ladder
SLEEP
BLEEP (a short high tone produced as a signal or warning)
BLEED (lose blood)
BREED (have/raise young animals)
DREED (not a recognized word)
DREAD (causing fear or terror)
DREAM
Keys to Chapter 5
Riddles
The more it dries, the wetter it becomes. What is it? A towel.
What can you catch but not throw? A cold.
What loses its head in the morning but gets it back at night? A pillow.
What gets broken without being held? A promise. Silence
What is always coming but never arrives? Tomorrow.
What goes through towns and over hills but never moves? A road.
What has 88 keys but can’t open a single door? A piano.
What has a neck but no head? A bottle
What has one eye but cannot see? A needle.
What has hands but can not clap? A clock.
What has 50 heads but can’t think? A box of matches.
Ambiguous Headlines
Stolen painting found by tree. It sounds like the tree found the painting.
Safety experts say school bus passengers should be belted. The ambiguous
word here is belted which means i) ‘with their safety belts on’, ii) hit with a
belt as a form of corporal punishment.
A quarter of a million Chinese live on water. In reality these Chinese have
constructed housing on the water, but ‘live on water’ sounds like they survive
simply by consuming water and nothing else.
Old school pillars are replaced by alumni. The alumni have removed the old
pillars and put new pillars in their place. But it sounds like the alumni are now
being used as pillars.
63
64
Keys to Chapter 5
Palindromes
The extra words are in italics.
No lemons and no melon.
Ten animals I now slam in a net.
Some men interpret the nine memos.
Evil is a not name of a foeman, as I live.
Marge lets Norah to see Sharon’s telegram.
Anagrams 2
males
spare
spelt
ropes
drops
quiet
sport
tears
throw
share
Colorful Idioms
be in someone’s black books - when a person is angry with you
have the blues - feel depressed or sad
be not as green as one’s cabbage looking - not as inexperienced as one looks
a grey area - something which seems unidentifiable
a golden handshake - a substantial sum of money paid to someone leaving a
company
red tape - bureaucratic formalities
see red - be extremely angry
as white as a sheet - very pale in a state of shock or very ill
be yellow - act in a cowardly way
Keys to Chapter 5
Mathematical 1
Only one. Weigh one coin from the first stack, two from the second, and so
forth. The number of grams by which the total is light will correspond to the
number of the counterfeit stack.
Mathematical 2
5 euros. Imagine you initially both have 10 euros. If you give her 5 you will
now only have 5 yourself and she will have 15, giving the 10 euros difference
that you require.
Mathematical 3
$2000. The total amount of money she spends is £7000 + $9000 = $16,000.
The money she receives is $8000 and $10,000 = $18,000. The difference
between them is $2000.
QWERTY or CWAZY?
Each sentence contains every letter of the alphabet. The sentences are grammatically correct, but have little real meaning.
Grammar Challenge: Articles
Some time Ø last year in a small town on the east coast of an island somewhere in the Pacific Ocean, a kidnapping took place. It all went exactly to
plan. The kidnappers drew up to Mr X, an important judge, just as he was
leaving court, bundled him into a stolen car, blindfolded him and took him out
to a hiding place in the country. A ransom note, made from newspaper cuttings, was sent to the police. However after three days of waiting, the police
had made no contact and there was no money to be seen.
After a week, the terrorists, tired and disappointed, condemned Mr X to death.
But the terrorist leader was not completely cold-hearted and left the choice of
death to Mr X.
Mr X, despite a week of tension, had not lost his sense of humor and in a bid
for time asked the terrorist leader: “What deaths have you got in stock?”
65
66
Keys to Chapter 5
“Anything from the electric chair to Ø arsenic,” replied the leader.
Mr X refused all the leader’s suggestions - electrocution was too “shocking”,
being starved “rather tasteless”, hanging was out of the question as he hated
being “kept in suspense”, poisoning made his “stomach turn” and drowning
just left him “cold”.
He had virtually decided on the quickest solution, being shot, when he had a
brain-wave. He got up, told the leader of his choice of death and walked away
a free man.
What death did he choose?
Answer: Old age.
Similes
as quick as lightning
as quiet as a mouse
as safe as houses
as sharp as a needle
as sly as a fox
as steady as a rock
as sweet as honey
as thick as a brick
as ugly as sin
as white as a sheet
Keys to Chapter 5
Smileys
:<>
:-ll
(((H)))
:-X
:-C
:-S
:’-(
:-@!
:-e
:-|
:*)
:#)
Amazed
Angry
Big Hug
Big Kiss
Can’t believe it
Confused
Crying
Cursing
Disappointed
Disgusted
Drinking every
night
Drunk
Proverbs
Beggars can’t be choosers Don’t be critical of something that you are going to
get for free.
Better the devil you know than the devil you don’t The current situation, however bad, may be better than a change for something that may be worse.
Blood is thicker than water Family ties are stronger than other relationships.
Do as I say, not as I do Follow my advice rather than looking at my actions.
Don’t count your chickens before they hatch Do not automatically assume that
something will turn out right before it actually happens.
Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth Don’t criticize a present that you receive.
Don’t put all your eggs in one basket Spread your options.
Every cloud has a silver lining There is always something positive in every
apparently bad event.
Fools rush in where angels fear to tread The inexperienced often become
involved in difficult situations that more intelligent people would avoid.
Give someone an inch and they will take a mile If you give a little to someone
they will then ask for more (an inch is a very small measurement, a mile is
very big)
67
Chapter 6
Words are, of course, the most powerful
drug used by mankind
Symbols
Can you work out why the words in the second column are an explanation of the
letters and symbols in the first column?
cu@
l&n
pl&
po$bl
s^
th@
ura*
x
xoxox
see you at
landing
planned
possible
what’s up?
that
you are a star
kiss
hugs and
kisses
© Springer International Publishing AG 2018
A. Wallwork, Word Games, Riddles and Logic Tests, Easy English!,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0_6
69
70
Contractions
Match the contractions in the first column with their full forms in the second column.
ain’t
betchu
betta
coulda
a cup of (tea)
could have
give me
has not, am
not
cuppa
have you got
..?
dunno
hi there
gimme
I am going to
gonna
I bet you
gotta ...? I don’t know
gotta
I had better
hiya
is he
izzy
kind of
kinda
I have got to
Riddles
Choose the correct answer. In some cases more than one answer may be correct.
I’m the part of the bird that’s not in the sky. I can swim in the ocean and yet remain
dry. What am I?
a) a shadow b) a nest c) the water
I went into the woods and got it. I sat down to seek it. I brought it home with me
because I couldn’t find it. What am I?
a) a ring b) a fairy c) a splinter
I am weightless, but you can see me. Put me in a bucket, and I’ll make it lighter.
What am I?
a) hydrogen b) a hole c) the man on the moon
I’m as light as a feather, yet the strongest man can’t hold me for much more than a
minute. What am I?
a) breath b) fire c) life
71
I’m where yesterday follows today, and tomorrow’s in the middle. What am I?
a) a time machine b) a dictionary c) the future
The man who needs me doesn’t know it. What am I?
a) a woman b) religion c) a coffin
I run over fields and woods all day. Under the bed at night I sit not alone. My tongue
hangs out, up and to the rear, awaiting to be filled in the morning. What am I?
a) shoe b) grass c) a politician.
Throw me off the highest building, and I’ll not break. But put me in the ocean, and
I will. What am I?
a) an egg b) a regret c) a tissue
Lighter than what I’m made of, more of me is hidden than is seen. What am I?
a) an iceberg b) an ice cream c) a nice dream
I fly, yet I have no wings. I cry, yet I have no eyes. Darkness follows me; lower light
I never see. What am I?
a) a magician b) a short story c) a cloud
Forward I’m heavy, backwards I’m not. What am I?
a) a ton b) a gram c) a kilo
Word Ladder
Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice in Wonderland, enjoyed converting one word into
another by changing one letter at a time.
For example: H A T E > h a v e > h o v e > L O V E
See if you can convert BLACK into WHITE. You can use the clues in brackets to
help you.
BLACK
______ (with nothing written on it)
______ (rapid movement with eyes)
LINK (short light metallic sound)
CHINK (a narrow opening)
CHINE (cut of meat or fish)
______ (noise made by animal or child when unhappy)
WHITE
72
Anagrams
Create an anagram from the letters of the words in the first column. The anagram
should correspond to the definition.
anagram
shout
edits
tales
slope
spare
spark
fiber
canoe
react
swing
definition
Opposite of north.
Movement of the seas.
Synonym of ‘rob’.
These are found at the extreme north and south of the
earth.
A kind of fruit.
Public green areas.
Short.
The Pacific and Atlantic are examples of this.
Find by investigation.
What birds use to fly with.
Rhyming Words
These pairs of words look as if they should rhyme, but not many of them do. Which
ones do rhyme?
age
and
ash
aunt
eased
eight
host
limb
loud
one
cage
wand
wash
haunt
ceased
weight
ghost
climb
cloud
bone
73
Proverbs
Match the proverbs (1-10) with their explanations (a-j).
1. God helps those who help themselves
2. His/her bark is worse than his/her bite
3. If at first you don’t succeed try, try again
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
g)
h)
i)
j)
It takes two to tango
Let bygones be bygones
Let sleeping dogs lie
Look after number one
Love is blind
Make hay while the sun shines
Many hands make light work
A job is done more quickly if a lot of people share in the work.
Avoid making trouble if you do not need to.
Don’t rely on other people.
Forget about unpleasant things or problems that happened in the past.
He or she may not be as bad-tempered as they appear.
If you are patient and persevere you will eventually achieve your goal.
Some things you can’t do just by yourself.
Sometimes it pays to put yourself in first position.
Take advantage of opportunities and good conditions while you can.
Your positive emotions towards someone are not always rationale.
Limericks
Practise reading the limericks aloud and hear/find the rhythm.
There was an old man of Madrid
There was a young man from Japan
Who ate sixty eggs - yes, he did!
Whose limericks never would scan.
When they asked ‘Are you faint?’
When asked why that was,
He replied ‘No, I ain’t
He replied ‘It’s because
But I don’t feel as well as I did.’
I always try to cram as many words into
the last line as I possibly can’.
74
Rhyming Forms
The words below may look very strange but they are actually used in every day
conversation. Can you match the word (1-10) with its meaning (a-j)?
1. back pack
2. big wig
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
g)
h)
i)
j)
boob tube
brain drain
chit chat
clap trap
fat cat
fuddy duddy
higgledy piggledy
hot shot
bag worn on the back
boring person who is stuck in their ways
important person
item of clothing worn by woman over her chest
light conversation
nonsense
not straight
rich, successful person
someone destined for success
tendency for highly qualified people (typically scientists) to leave their country
Special Words
What is special about this word?
NOON
75
Tense Challenge
A basketball manager needed 30 million dollars rebuilding/to rebuild his club’s
stadium. Hoping finding/to find the finances he needed, the manager went to a rich
business man, Mr Dollar, whose whole life had been dedicated to making/make
money. Mr Dollar, spotting an opportunity to make a good return on this investment,
agreed lending/to lend the manager the money.
It took six months rebuilding/to rebuild the stadium. But on the first day of the new
basketball season, some rival fans burnt down part of the stadium.
Mr Dollar, worrying/to worry about this situation, immediately telephoned the manager asking/to ask him for the 20 million dollars. But the manager said he didn’t
have the money. So Mr Dollar told the manager meeting/to meet him at his office car
park and coming/to come with his best player, Micky Jordan.
The three men met at the car park and Mr Dollar said to the manager: “If you give
me your best player, I will cancel your debt.”
Looking/To look at Mr Dollar right in the eye, the manager replied. “If I give you
Micky Jordan, no one will come to watch my team play”.
“OK” said Mr Dollar. “Look at these stones on the ground. They are all black and
white. I will pick up two stones, a black one and a white one and put them into this
little bag. If Micky picks out a black stone from this bag, then you will have to give
him to me. But if he picks out the white one, then he will be free and I will cancel
your debt.” Not being/to be in a position to argue, the manager reluctantly agreed.
Mr Dollar picked up two stones and put them in his bag, but Micky noticed that Mr
Dollar had put two black stones in his bag. How did Micky find a way resolving/to
resolve the situation?
76
Riddles
Match the questions (1-10) with the answers (a-j).
1. What is at the end of a rainbow?
2. What occurs once in a minute, twice in a moment and never in one thousand
years?
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
What word becomes shorter when you add two letters to it?
What is the longest word in the dictionary?
We see it once in a year, twice in a week, and never in a day. What is it?
What is the center of gravity?
What starts with the letter “t”, is filled with “t” and ends in “t”?
Take away my first letter, and I still sound the same. Take away my last letter, I
still sound the same. Even take away my letter in the middle, I will still sound
the same. I am a five letter word. What am I?
9. What has 4 eyes but can’t see?
10. What starts with “P” and ends with “E” and has more than 1000 letters?
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
g)
h)
i)
j)
A post office
A teapot
EMPTY
Mississippi
Short
Smiles, because there is a mile between each ‘s’
The letter “E”
The letter M
The letter V.
The letter W!
Mathematical 1
Bob the chauffeur always arrives at the train station at exactly five o’clock to pick
up his boss and drive her home. One day Bob’s boss arrives an hour early, starts
walking home some of the way home before Bob picks her up. She arrives at home
twenty minutes earlier than usual. How long had she walked before she met Bob the
chauffeur?
77
Mathematical 2
It was a windy day and ten people wearing hats were walking towards a supermarket. Suddenly the wind blew all their hats off. A young girl, who was passing by,
picked up all the hats and without asking who the hats belonged to, gave each person a hat. What are the chances of exactly nine people getting their own hat back?
Mathematical 3
Where do you often see the fraction 24/31?
Similes
Match the simile with the definitions below.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
g)
h)
i)
like a beached whale
like a bolt out of the blue
like a book
like a broken record
like a cat on hot bricks
like a deer in (the) headlights
like a dog’s dinner
like a fish out of water
like a flash
like a headless chicken
Completely stuck and unable to move or escape from the situation.
Suddenly and unexpectedly
Very easy to understand
To repeat and repeat ad nauseam.
To be nervous and unable to keep still
To be so frightened or surprised that you cannot move or think
Very messy and/or disorganized.
Appearing to be completely out of place.
Very quickly.
j) You do it very quickly and without thinking carefully about what you are doing
78
Riddles
Choose the best answer.
What do hippos have that no other animals have?
a) enormous jaws b) baby hippopotamuses c) three stomachs
What does a hen do when she stands on one foot?
a) meditates b) lifts up the other one c) goes to sleep
What has four legs and flies?
a) a lightning bird b) a low cost airline plane c) a dead horse
What is the best way to keep a fish from smelling?
a) keep it on ice b) cut off its nose c) spray it with an organic deodorant
Why does a hen cross the road?
a) to get to the other side b) whenever she wants c) when she is henpecked
Anagrams
Can you work out the connection between the words (e.g. conversation) and the
explanations (e.g. voices rant on)?
Conversation - voices rant on
Declaration - an oral edict
Desperation - a rope ends it
Saintliness - Least in sins
Suggestion - It eggs us on
Nostalgia - Lost again
Marriage - a grim era
Misfortune - oft ruins me
Prosperity - Is property
Punishment - Nine thumps
Revolution - I love to run
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Palindromes
The five sentences below are all palindromes, i.e. sentences that can be read letterby-letter either starting at the beginning or starting from the end. The only problem
is that in each case an extra word has been inserted. Can you find the extra word?
(e.g. Madam I’m not Adam = in this case not is the extra word)
Draw a pupil’s lip upward.
Do nine men interpret it? Nine men, I nod.
Rise to vote, you sir.
Now, Ned, I am a maiden nun; Ned nod, I am a maiden won.
Are we not drawn onward, oh we few, drawn onward to new era?
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Keys to Chapter 6
Keys to Chapter 6
Symbols
In the first column & stands for and, and @ for at, even in the middle of
words. * is known as an asterisk or the ‘star’ symbol. An x has been used for
decades at the end of a letter to signify a kiss, and and o means a hug (embrace).
cu@
l&n
pl&
po$bl
s^
th@
ura*
x
xoxox
see you at
landing
planned
possible
what’s up?
that
you are a star
kiss
hugs and
kisses
Contractions
ain’t
has not, am
not
betchu I bet you
betta
I had better
coulda could have
cuppa a cup of (tea)
dunno I don’t know
gimme give me
gonna I am going to
gotta
have you got
...?
..?
gotta
I have got to
hiya
hi there
izzy
is he
kinda
kind of
Keys to Chapter 6
Riddles
I’m the part of the bird that’s not in the sky. I can swim in the ocean and yet
remain dry. A shadow.
I went into the woods and got it. I sat down to seek it. I brought it home with
me because I couldn’t find it. A splinter.
I am weightless, but you can see me. Put me in a bucket, and I’ll make it
lighter. A hole.
I’m light as a feather, yet the strongest man can’t hold me for much more than
a minute. Breath.
I’m where yesterday follows today, and tomorrow’s in the middle. A dictionary.
The man who needs me doesn’t know it. A coffin.
I run over fields and woods all day. Under the bed at night I sit not alone. My
tongue hangs out, up and to the rear, awaiting to be filled in the morning. A shoe.
Throw it off the highest building, and I’ll not break. But put me in the ocean,
and I will. A tissue.
Lighter than what I’m made of, More of me is hidden than is seen. An
iceberg.
I fly, yet I have no wings. I cry, yet I have no eyes. Darkness follows me; lower
light I never see. A cloud.
Forward I’m heavy, backwards I’m not. A ton (the letters of not reversed).
Word Ladder
BLACK
BLANK (with nothing written on it)
BLINK (rapid movement with eyes)
CLINK (short light metallic sound)
CHINK (a narrow opening)
CHINE (cut of meat or fish)
WHINE (noise made by animal or child when unhappy)
WHITE
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Keys to Chapter 6
Anagrams
south
tides
steal
poles
pears
parks
brief
ocean
trace
wings
Rhyming Words
age/cage, eight/weight, host/ghost, loud/cloud
Proverbs
God helps those who help themselves Don’t rely on other people.
His/her bark is worse than his/her bite He or she may not be as bad-tempered
as they appear
If at first you don’t succeed try, try again If you are patient and persevere you
will eventually achieve your goal.
It takes two to tango Some things you can’t do just by yourself.
Let bygones be bygones Forget about unpleasant things or problems that happened in the past.
Let sleeping dogs lie Avoid making trouble if you do not need to.
Look after number one Sometimes it pays to put yourself in first position.
Love is blind Your positive emotions towards someone are not always
rationale.
Make hay while the sun shines Take advantage of opportunities and good
conditions while you can
any hands make light work A job is done more quickly if a lot of people share
in the work.
Keys to Chapter 6
Rhyming Forms
back pack - bag worn on the back
big wig - important person
boob tube - item of clothing worn by woman over her chest
brain drain - tendency for highly qualified people (typically scientists) to
leave their country
chit chat - light conversation
clap trap – nonsense
fat cat - rich, successful person
fuddy duddy - boring person who is stuck in their ways
higgledy piggledy - not straight
hot shot - someone destined for success
Special Words
You can read NOON backwards and forwards and even upside down and it
still looks the same.
Tense Challenge (-inf Form vs Infinitive)
A basketball manager needed 30 million dollars to rebuild his club’s stadium.
Hoping to find the finances he needed, the manager went to a rich business
man, Mr Dollar, whose whole life had been dedicated to making money. Mr
Dollar, spotting an opportunity to make a good return on this investment,
agreed to lend the manager the money.
It took six months to rebuild the stadium. But on the first day of the new basketball season, some rival fans burnt down part of the stadium.
Mr Dollar, worrying about this situation, immediately telephoned the manager to ask him for the 20 million dollars. But the manager said he didn’t have
the money. So Mr Dollar told the manager to meet him at his office car park
and to come with his best player, Micky Jordan.
The three men met at the car park and Mr Dollar said to the manager: “If you
give me your best player, I will cancel your debt.”
Looking at Mr Dollar right in the eye, the manager replied. “If I give you
Micky Jordan, no one will come to watch my team play”.
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Keys to Chapter 6
“OK” said Mr Dollar. “Look at these stones on the ground. They are all black
and white. I will pick up two stones, a black one and a white one and put them
into this little bag. If Micky picks out a black stone from this bag, then you
will have to give him to me. But if he picks out the white one, then he will be
free and I will cancel your debt.” Not being in a position to argue, the manager
reluctantly agreed.
Mr Dollar picked up two stones and put them in his bag, but Micky noticed
that Mr Dollar had put two black stones in his bag. How did Micky find a way
to resolve the situation?
# Micky said nothing. He then put his hand in the bag, picked out a stone, and
dropped it onto the ground amongst all the other stones, so that it was impossible to identify which stone he had dropped. He then said: “Oh dear, I’ve
dropped the stone. But no worries. Let’s see what the other stone is, and if it’s
black, then the stone I dropped must have been white”.
Riddles
What is at the end of a rainbow? The letter W
What occurs once in a minute, twice in a moment and never in one thousand
years? The letter M
What word becomes shorter when you add two letters to it?
Short
What is the longest word in the dictionary? Smiles, because there is a mile
between each ‘s’
We see it once in a year, twice in a week, and never in a day. What is it? The
letter E
What is the center of gravity? The letter V.
What starts with the letter “t”, is filled with “t” and ends in “t”? A teapot
Take away my first letter, and I still sound the same. Take away my last letter,
I still sound the same. Even take away my letter in the middle, I will still
sound the same. I am a five letter word. What am I? EMPTY
What has 4 eyes but can’t see? Mississippi
What starts with “P” and ends with “E” and has more than 1000 letters? A post
office
Keys to Chapter 6
Mathematical 1
50 minutes. The boss saved Bob the chauffeur ten minutes of travelling time
each way and thus was picked up at 4.50 PM rather than the usual time.
Mathematical 2
The chances are 0. If nine people get their hat back, then the tenth person must
too.
Mathematical 3
On a calendar where these two days are sometimes squeezed together on certain months.
Similes
like a beached whale - Completely stuck and unable to move or escape from
the situation.
like a bolt out of the blue - Suddenly and unexpectedly
like a book - Very easy to understand
like a broken record - To repeat and repeat ad nauseam.
like a cat on hot bricks - To be nervous and unable to keep still
like a deer in (the) headlights - To be so frightened or surprised that you cannot move or think
like a dog’s dinner - Very messy and/or disorganized.
like a fish out of water - Appearing to be completely out of place.
like a flash - Very quickly.
like a headless chicken - You do it very quickly and without thinking carefully
about what you are doing
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Riddles
What do hippos have that no other animals have? baby hippopotamuses
What does a hen do when she stands on one foot? lifts up the other one
What has four legs and flies? a dead horse
What is the best way to keep a fish from smelling? cut off its nose
Why does a hen cross the road? to get to the other side
Anagrams
Conversation - voices rant on (rant - speak at length in an angry impassioned
way
Declaration - an oral edict (edict - official proclamation)
Desperation - a rope ends it (a rope is often used when someone hangs
themself)
Saintliness - Least in sins (sin - bad things done)
Suggestion - It eggs us on (egg on - encourage)
Nostalgia - Lost again (lost in thoughts about the past)
Marriage - a grim era (grim era - an unhappy period)
Misfortune - oft ruins me (oft - often)
Prosperity - Is property
Punishment - Nine thumps (to thump - to hit someone, a thump is a blow)
Revolution - I love to run
Palindromes
The extra words are in italics.
Draw a pupil’s lip upward.
Do nine men interpret it? Nine men, I nod.
Rise to vote, you sir.
Now, Ned, I am a maiden nun; Ned nod, I am a maiden won.
Are we not drawn onward, oh we few, drawn onward to new era?
Chapter 7
Words are illusions
Funny Book Titles
Match the titles with the authors.
titles
Sea Birds
Hypnotism
Philosophy for Beginners
Parachuting
Robots
authors
N. Tranced
Hugo First
Anne Droid
Al Batross
Ivan I Dear
© Springer International Publishing AG 2018
A. Wallwork, Word Games, Riddles and Logic Tests, Easy English!,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0_7
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Word Ladder
Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice in Wonderland, enjoyed converting one word into
another by changing one letter at a time.
For example: H A T E > h a v e > h o v e > L O V E
See if you can convert TEA into HOT. You can use the clues in brackets to help you.
TEA
____
____
SOT (a chronic drinker)
HOT
Limericks
Practise reading the limericks aloud and hear/find the rhythm. Note: thunk is not a
real word but looks like it could be the past of the verb to think.
There was an old man in a trunk,
Who inquired of his wife, ‘Am I
drunk?’
She replied, with remorse,
“Yes darling, of course,”
And he answered, “That’s just as I
thunk”.
There was an old man of Vancouver
Whose wife got sucked into the hoover.
He said, “There’s some doubt
If she’s more in than out
But whichever it is, I can’t move her.”
Ambiguous Headlines
Try to understand what makes the headlines ambiguous.
The bride wore a long white lace dress which fell to the floor.
For those of you who have small children and don’t know it we are now serving
ice cream.
When properly stewed, I really enjoy apricots.
I plan to mow the lawn with my husband.
You should never crumble your bread or roll in your soup.
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Proverbs
Match the proverbs (1-10) with their explanations (a-j).
1. Money doesn’t grow on trees
2. Necessity is the mother of invention
3. Never speak ill of the dead
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Once bitten, twice shy
One man’s meat is another man’s poison
Practice what you preach
The proof of the pudding is in the eating
Put your money where your mouth is
Talk of the devil
The grass is always greener (on the other side of the fence)
a) Actively do what you said you would do.
b) Another place or scenario always seems better than your current situation.
c) If something goes wrong, then you will think twice before doing the same thing
again.
d) If you really need something you will be motivated to get it.
e) Said when a person appears just when you are talking about them
f) The real value of something can be judged only by practical experience and not
from appearance.
g) What may be good for you may be unsuitable for someone else.
h) When someone is no longer alive, they deserve some respect.
i) You have to work in order to earn.
j) You should act in accordance with the advice that you give to others
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Rhyming Words
These pairs of words look as if they should rhyme, but some don’t. Which ones do
not rhyme?
ate
car
come
here
high
law
mile
mind
hate
scar
home
there
thigh
flaw
smile
wind
Contractions
Match the contractions in the first column with their full forms in the second
column.
lemme
lotta
mighta
outta
shaddup/
shadap
shoulda
sorta
soundsa
sup, wazzup
wanna
watcha,
wotcha
wouldna
a lot of
it sounds like a
let me
might have
out of
should have
shut up
sort of
want to
what are you, what do
you
what’s up
would not
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Riddles
See if you can understand these riddles.
1. What bone will a dog never eat? A trombone.
2. What can you hold without ever touching it? A conversation.
3. What did one magnet say to the other? I find you very attractive.
4.
5.
6.
7.
What did the carpet say to the floor? Don’t move, I’ve got you covered.
What do you call a calf after it’s six months old? Seven months old.
What do you call a song sung in an automobile? A cartoon.
What do you call a country where everyone has to drive a red car? A red
carnation.
8. What would the country be called if everyone in it lived in their cars? An
incarnation.
9. What’s round and bad-tempered? A vicious circle.
10. Where do fortune tellers dance? At the crystal ball.
Anagrams
Match the phrases with their anagrams.
The eyes
The centenarians
The check is in the
mail
The countryside
The earthquakes
The meaning of life
The Morse code
Statue of Liberty
Built to stay free
Claim “Heck, I sent it
(heh)”
Here come dots
I can hear ten “tens”
No city dust here
That queer shake
The fine game of nil
They see
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Logical Thinking
In medieval France the beautiful daughter of an extremely rich baron was in love
with the handsome son of a poor peasant family. Unfortunately, the baron wanted
his daughter to marry someone from an aristocratic background. So he stopped his
daughter from seeing the peasant boy.
However the daughter was as intelligent as she was beautiful. She told her father
that she wanted to marry the richest of her suitors. In order to discover which of
these suitors was the richest, she suggested that her father should give a large present
to each man. This would enable her father to judge how rich the man was by seeing
how much difference the gift made to his way of life.
In order to test whether the method worked well, the present (a substantial quantity
of gold) would be given to each of the suitors, including the poor peasant boy. All
the suitors - and the boy - received the gold.
What did the daughter do next?
Anagrams
Create an anagram from the letters of the words in the first column. The anagram
should correspond to the definition.
anagram
loves
sonic
tired
tread
tutor
waits
crude
zoned
laxer
definition
find a solution
you can pay for inexpensive things with these
attempted
classified
a kind of fish
important to know the size of this when you are buying
trousers or skirts
successfully treated medically
another word for twelve
what you should do at the weekends
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Buzz-phrase Generator
A buzz phrase is that sounds important and technical, but through overuse often
loses its original power. Often organizations, academics, or anyone who wants to
sound perhaps more intelligent than they are, or to show off their vast knowledge,
or simply just to hide something negative behind a string of positive words, will use
a buzz phrase.
The Canadian Defense Department devised a buzz-phrase generator to provide
‘instant expertise’ on defense matters and to impart ‘that proper ring of decisive,
progressive, knowledgeable authority’.
To use the generator:
• choose any three digit number, e.g. 235
• take one word from each column corresponding to the numbers you have
chosen
• this should give you an ‘authoritative’ phrase e.g. in the case of 235: overall
monitored programming
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
COLUMN A
integrated
overall
systematised
parallel
functional
responsive
optimal
synchronised
compatible
COLUMN B
management
organisational
monitored
reciprocal
digital
logistical
transitional
incremental
third generation
COLUMN C
options
flexibility
capability
mobility
programming
concept
time-phase
projection
hardware
Mathematical 1
There are two clocks: one loses an hour a day; the other has stopped altogether.
Which one is more accurate?
Mathematical 2
An important horse race was about to start. The five jockeys were at the line up and
a journalist asked them to make two predictions each about the outcome of the race.
94
Archie Arslic: Dodging Dastardly will win. I’ll be second.
Bernie Barsteward: Dodging Dastardly will be second. I’ll come fourth.
Crafty Charlie: I’ll be third. Eddie Egghead will be last.
Dodging Dastardly: Crafty Charlie will win. I’ll come in last.
Eddie Egghead: I’ll be second and Dodging Dastardly will be third.
The race was held and it turned out that each jockey had made only one true prediction. None of them had got both their predictions right. So, in what order did the
jockeys come in the race?
Mathematical 3
A train leaves Villetown at 12.00 at a steady 120 km an hour. One hour later, at
13.00, another train leaves Newcity at 80 km an hour. The distance between
Villetown and Newcity is 1200 km. How far apart are the trains one hour before they
pass each other?
Animal Farm
Combine a word from the first column with a word from the second column. Note
that the word in the first column is not necessarily the first word in the
combination.
ant
bull
cock
cow
hen
toad
sheep
worm
book
boy
doze
heat
inform
skin
stool
tail
Grammar Challenge 1
A very very superstitious man is driving his car in the middle of town. There are a
few/few/a little/little people on the road because it is a public holiday. After a few/
few/a little/little time, a black cat suddenly crosses the road a few/few/a little/little
meters in front of him. The man drives on, he doesn’t go left or right up a side street.
Why?
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Grammar Challenge 2
I have five letters and five addressed envelopes. If I place/will place the letters in the
envelopes at random, what are the chances that only four letters are/will be in their
correct envelopes?
Grammar Challenge 3
What number gives/will give the same result when it is/will be added to five as when
it is/will be multiplied by five?
Grammar Challenge 4
Seven men arrive at a meeting, and each/every of them shakes hands once with
each/every of the others. How many handshakes does that make?
Grammar Challenge 5
If you put a coin in an empty bottle and insert a cork into the neck of the bottle, how
could you remove the coin without taking/to take the cork out or breaking/to break
the bottle?
Idioms
Match the expression in column 1 with the related word(s) in column 2. The relationship between the two columns is not necessarily straightforward.
A near thing ...
How are things going?
Poor thing.
She knows a thing or two about...
She’s got a thing about...
That’s quite another thing.
The thing is ...
The very thing.
We’ve got to talk things over.
Well, of all things!
Almost
Discuss
Exact
Experienced
Life
Obsessed
Point
Sorry
Surprise
Totally different
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Keys to Chapter 7
Keys to Chapter 7
Funny Book Titles
Sea Birds by Al Batross (an albatross is a very large seabird)
Hypnotism by N. Tranced (entranced = when someone has cast a spell on you,
when you are filled with wonder)
Philosophy for Beginners by Ivan I Dear (I have an idea)
Parachuting by Hugo First (you go first)
Robots by Anne Droid (android)
Word Ladder
TEA
SEA
SET
SOT (a chronic drinker)
HOT
Ambiguous Headlines
The bride wore a long white lace dress which fell to the floor. (it seems like
the dress came off the bride, so that was left without the dress)
For those of you who have small children and don’t know it we are now serving ice cream. (don’t know it sounds like there are people who don’t know that
they have children)
When properly stewed, I really enjoy apricots. (stewed is a cooking term but
also means completely drunk)
I plan to mow the lawn with my husband. (The wife and husband are planning
to mow the lawn together, but it sounds like the wife is going to use her husband as a grass cutter)
You should never crumble your bread or roll in your soup. (roll refers to a type
of bread, but it is also a verb meaning to turn oneself over and over)
Keys to Chapter 7
Proverbs
Money doesn’t grow on trees - You have to work in order to earn.
Necessity is the mother of invention - If you really need something you will be
motivated to get it.
Never speak ill of the dead - When someone is no longer alive, they deserve
some respect.
Once bitten, twice shy - If something goes wrong one time then you will think
twice before doing the same thing again.
One man’s meat is another man’s poison - What may be good for you may be
unsuitable for someone else.
Practice what you preach - You should act in accordance with the advice that
you give to others
Proof of the pudding is in the eating - The real value of something can be
judged only by practical experience and not from appearance.
Put your money where your mouth is - Actively do what you said you would
do.
Talk of the devil - Said when a person appears just when you are talking about
them
The grass is always greener (on the other side of the fence) - Another place or
scenario always seems better than your current situation.
Rhyming Words
These words do not rhyme: come/home, here/there, mind/wind (i.e. windy,
however the irregular verb to wind - wound - wound is pronounced the same
as mind)
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Keys to Chapter 7
Contractions
lemme
lotta
mighta
outta
shaddup/
shadap
shoulda
sorta
soundsa
sup, wazzup
wanna
watcha,
wotcha
wouldna
let me
a lot of
might have
out of
shut up
should have
sort of
it sounds like a
what’s up
want to
what are you, what do
you
would not
Riddles
What bone will a dog never eat? A trombone. (A trombone is a musical instrument, not a type of bone)
What can you hold without ever touching it? A conversation. (The associated
verb with ‘conversation’ is hold)
What did one magnet say to the other? I find you very attractive. (Magnets are
designed to attract opposites)
What did the carpet say to the floor? Don’t move, I’ve got you covered. (to have
something covered also means to have something within the target of a gun)
What do you call a calf after it’s six months old? Seven months old.
What do you call a song sung in an automobile? A cartoon. (a car tune)
What do you call a country where everyone has to drive a red car? A red carnation. (a red-car nation)
What would the country be called if everyone in it lived in their cars? An
incarnation (an in-car nation).
What’s round and bad-tempered? A vicious circle. (vicious also means angry)
Where do fortune tellers dance? At the crystal ball. (a ball is a formal dance
event, a crystal ball is what fortune tellers look in to in order to be able to
predict the future)
Keys to Chapter 7
Anagrams
The eyes = They see
The centenarians = I can hear ten “tens”
The check is in the mail = Claim “Heck, I sent it (heh)”
The countryside = No city dust here
The earthquakes = That queer shake
The meaning of life = The fine game of nil
The Morse code = Here come dots
Statue of Liberty = Built to stay free
Logical Thinking
The daughter ran away with the now enriched peasant boy. (Based on a story
told in The Mechanism of Mind by Edward de Bono, published by J Cape)
Anagrams
solve
coins
tried
rated
trout
waist
cured
dozen
relax
Mathematical 1
The clock which has stopped is more accurate as it will tell the correct time
twice a day, whereas the other one will only be right every 12 days.
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100
Keys to Chapter 7
Mathematical 2
Crafty Charlie, Archie Arslic, Dodging Dastardly, Bernie Barsteward, Eddie
Egghead
Mathematical 3
The trains approach each other at their combined speeds (120 + 80 = 200 km
an hour). So, one hour before they pass they are 200 km apart.
Animal Farm
informant, bulldoze, cocktail, cowboy, heathen, toadstool, sheepskin,
bookworm
Grammar Challenge 1
A very very superstitious man is driving his car in the middle of town. There
are few people on the road because it is a public holiday. After a little time
black cat suddenly crosses the road a few meters in front of him. The man
drives on, he doesn’t go left or right up a side street. Why?
He didn’t see the cat.
Grammar Challenge 2
I have five letters and five addressed envelopes. If I placet he letters in the
envelopes at random, what are the chances that only four letters will be in their
correct envelopes?
Nil. If four are corect, all five must be.
Grammar Challenge 3
What number gives the same result when it is added to five as when it is multiplied by five?
One and a quarter.
Keys to Chapter 7
101
Grammar Challenge 4
Seven men arrive at a meeting, and each of them shakes hands once with each
of the others. How many handshakes does that make?
21.
Grammar Challenge 5
If you put a coin in an empty bottle and insert a cork into the neck of the
bottle, how could you remove the coin without taking the cork out or breaking
the bottle?
Push the cork into the bottle and shake the coin out.
Idioms
A near thing ... Almost (It was a near thing ... we almost had an accident)
How are things going? Life (How is life treating you at the moment?)
Poor thing. Sorry (Poor thing - he failed his driving test for the third time,
I feel sorry for him)
She knows a thing or two about... Experienced (She is very experienced in this
area)
She’s got a thing about... Obsessed (She has got a thing about tidiness)
That’s quite another thing. Totally different (Seeing is quite a different thing
from believing)
The thing is ... Point (The thing is it’s more difficult than you think - My point
is that it is ...)
The very thing. Exact (That’s the very thing I was looking for = That’s exactly
what I was ...)
We’ve got to talk things over. Discuss
Well, of all things! Surprise (She’s won the lottery again! Well, of all things!)
Chapter 8
Language exists as songs, riddles, or epics
that are chanted
Riddles
Match the questions (1-10) with the answers (a-j)
1. The more you take away form it the larger it becomes, the more you add to it
the smaller it becomes? What is it?
2. What is put on a table, cut, but never eaten?
3. What holds water yet is full of holes?
4. What word is spelled wrong in every dictionary?
5. What goes up and down the stairs without moving?
6. What is that you want, but when you have it you don’t know that you have it?
7. What was the largest island before Australia was discovered?
8. What goes through all the house without touching a thing?
9. What turns everything round but never moves?
10. What is very light but can never be lifted?
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
g)
h)
i)
j)
A bubble
A hole
A loud voice
A mirror
A pack of cards
A rug
A sponge
Australia
Sleep
Wrong
© Springer International Publishing AG 2018
A. Wallwork, Word Games, Riddles and Logic Tests, Easy English!,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0_8
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Short Forms
Do you know what the full form of the following words is? e.g. ad = advert = advertisement, brill = brilliant
convo
cred
info
min
sec
tel
def
fav
mos def
prob
typo
uni
Acronyms
A quick way of writing is to use acronyms, where each letter stands for a word.
Match the acronyms with their meanings.
hth
hwru
imho
jk
lol
sohf
tafn
tgif
wrt
wysiwyg
just kidding
hope this helps
sense of humor failure
with regard to/with respect to
laughing out loud
how are you?
in my humble opinion
thank god it’s Friday
what you see is what you get
that’s all for now
Grammar Challenge
Underline the correct form.
A man drove/was driving his car when one of the tires punctured/was puncturing.
He got/was getting out of his car and while he changed/was changing one of the
wheels, all five of the nuts fell/were falling down a drain. He sat/was sitting there
thinking about what he was going to do when his young niece arrived/was arriving
on her bicycle. She stopped/was stopping and asked him why he sat/was sitting at
the side of the road doing nothing. He explained/was explaining to her what had
happened. She said: “I am not really sure what the problem is. Just take one nut
from each of the other three wheels, and put them on the wheel that had/was having
the puncture. That should be enough to get you to the next garage”.
105
Rhyming Pairs
These pairs of words look as if they should rhyme, but not many of them do. Which
ones do rhyme?
head
beard
bone
foot
nose
face
throat
voice
hair
tooth
read
heard
done
boot
lose
pace
goat
choice
chair
smooth
Funny Book Titles
Try to understand why the author of the book is appropriate to the title/topic of the book.
The Housing Problem by Rufus Quick
House Construction by Bill Jerome Holme
I Need Insurance by Justin Case
Teach Me! by I. Wanda No
More for Your Money by Max Amize
106
Anagrams
Create an anagram from the letters of the words in the first column. The anagram
should correspond to the definition.
grease
anagram
definition
to be of the same opinion
ideals
nailed
wander
teaser
assume
buries
caress
cashed
direct
_____ and gentlemen
negating the probably true facts
made aware of a danger
consumers of food
has fun
comparative of ‘busy’
frightens
quickly following someone
the opposite of debit
Mathematical 1
A tramp makes his own cigarettes by collecting cigarette ends. He needs seven cigarette ends to make one cigarette. How many cigarettes can he make from 49 ends?
Mathematical 2
On her first birthday she turned eight. How could this be?
Mathematical 3
A cat and a half eat a rat and a half in an hour and a half. How long will it take ten
cats to eat 10 rats?
107
Mathematical 4
Adam and Bill are farmers. Adam says to Bill: “If you give me 100 of your sheep,
I’ll have twice as many sheep as you.” Bill says: “No, give me 100 of your sheep,
then we’ll have the same amount.” Explain.
Mathematical 5
Superman always goes around with a load of chewing gum in his pockets. The other
day he said to Superwoman: “If I take a piece of gum from my left trouser pocket
and put in tin the right one, I’ll have the same number of pieces in each. But if I take
a piece from the right pocket and put it in the left, I’ll have twice as many pieces in
the left pocket as in the right”. How many pieces of gum must Superman have in (a)
his left pocket, and (b) in his right pocket?
Mathematical 6
A bar of chocolate is three pieces wide by eight pieces long. If you are not allowed
to double up pieces, what is the minimum number of breaks you will have to make
to separate them all.
Palindromes
The five sentences below are all palindromes, i.e. sentences that can be read letterby-letter either starting at the beginning or starting from the end. The only problem
is that in each case one or more extra words have been inserted. Can you find the
extra word(s)? (e.g. Madam I’m not Adam = in this case not is the extra word)
Sums are not set as a test on Erasmus.
Was it Eliot’s toilet I saw?
Was it a car or it a cat that I saw?
Yawn a more Roman way.
Ten animals I slam in a net.
108
Proverbs
Match the proverbs (1-10) with their explanations (a-j).
1. There are plenty of other fish in the sea
2. There’s a time and a place for everything
3. There’s no smoke without fire
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
g)
h)
i)
j)
There’s no time like the present
There’s no use crying over spilled/spilt milk
Third time lucky
(This is) just what the doctor ordered
Time is a great healer
Time is money
To kill two birds with one stone
If there are rumors of something then there is probably a reason for the rumors.
Now is the best time to do something.
Pain or sorrow will be felt less strongly as time passes.
Said when someone is behaving in a way that you do not think is suitable for
the situation they are in.
Something that is good for someone to have or to do.
The third time that you try something you will be successful.
There are many potential substitutes in the world.
There is no point in worrying or complaining about something that you cannot
change.
Time is valuable and wasting time is like wasting money.
To accomplish two goals with one action.
109
Limericks
Practise reading the limericks aloud and hear/find the rhythm.
Said Queen Isabella of Spain,
“I like it just now and again;
But I wish to explain
That by ‘Now and again’
I mean now and again and again.
There was an old man at the Cape
Who made himself garments of crape;
When asked “Will they tear?
He replied “Here and there
But they keep such a beautiful shape”.
There was a young girl of Majorca
Whose aunt was a very fast walker;
She walked sixty miles
And leaped fifteen stiles
Which astonished that girl of Majorca.
Anagrams
Match a word from the first column with its anagram in the second column.
adverts
close-up
declared
stained
hardest
pleased
praised
dignity
nearest
empires
cleared
couples
despair
eastern
elapsed
instead
premise
starved
tidying
trashed
110
Word Ladder
Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice in Wonderland, enjoyed converting one word into
another by changing one letter at a time. For example: H A T E > h a v e > h o v e >
LOVE
See if you can convert LIVE into DEAD. You can use the clues in brackets to help
you.
LIVE
_____
LIND (not a recognized word, but used by Carroll in any case)
_____
_____
DEAD
Keys to Chapter 8
Keys to Chapter 8
Riddles
1. The more you take away form it the larger it becomes, the more you add
to it the smaller it becomes? What is it? A hole.
2. What is put on a table, cut, but never eaten? A pack of cards
3. What holds water yet is full of holes? A sponge
4. What word is spelled wrong in every dictionary? Wrong
5. What goes up and down the stairs without moving? A rug
6. What is that you want, but when you have it you don’t know that you have
it? Sleep.
7. What was the largest island before Australia was discovered? Australia.
8. What goes through all the house without touching a thing? A loud voice.
9. What turns everything round but never moves? A mirror.
10. What is very light but can never be lifted? A bubble.
Short Forms
convo = conversation, cred = credibility, def = definitely, fav = favorite, info =
information, min = minute, mos def = most definitely, prob = problem, sec =
second, tel = telephone, typo = typography mistake, uni = university
Acronyms
hth = hope this helps
hwru = how are you?
imho = in my humble opinion
jk = just kidding
lol = laughing out loud
sohf = sense of humor failure
tafn = that’s all for now
tgif = thank god it’s Friday
wrt = with regard to/with respect to
wysiwyg = what you see is what you get
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Keys to Chapter 8
Grammar Challenge
A man was driving his car when one of the tires punctured. He got out of his
car and while he was changing one of the wheels, all five of the nuts fell down
a drain. He sat/was sitting there thinking about what he was going to do when
his young niece arrived on her bicycle. She stopped and asked him why he
was sitting at the side of the road doing nothing. He explained to her what had
happened. She said: “I am not really sure what the problem is. Just take one
nut from each of the other three wheels, and put them on the wheel that had
the puncture. That should be enough to get you to the next garage.
Rhyming Pairs
head rhymes with read when read is the past tense of to read
Other pairs that rhyme are: face/pace, throat/goat, voice/choice, hair/chair
Funny Book Titles
The Housing Problem by Rufus Quick (roof house quick)
House Construction by Bill Jerome Holme (build your own home)
I Need Insurance by Justin Case (just in case)
Teach Me! by I. Wanda No (I want to know)
More for Your Money by Max Amize (maximize)
Anagrams
agrees
ladies
denial
warned
eaters
amuses
busier
scares
chased
credit
Keys to Chapter 8
113
Mathematical 1
Eight. He makes seven to start with, smokes them, and then makes the eighth
from their ends.
Mathematical 2
She was born on February 29, 1896. Since only centuries divisible by 400 are
leap years, the year 1900 was not a leap year. Thus, the next February 29th
was in 1904, when she turned eight.
Mathematical 3
An hour and a half.
Mathematical 4
a + 100 = 2(b-100)
b + 100 = a - 100
a = b + 200
b + 200 + 100 = 2b - 200
b = 500
500 + 100 = a - 100
a = 700
Mathematical 5
7, 5
Mathematical 6
23
114
Keys to Chapter 8
Palindromes
Sums are not ever set as a test on Erasmus.
Was it Thomas Eliot’s toilet I saw?
Was it a car or was it a cat that I saw?
Yawn a much more Roman way.
Ten animals did I slam in a net.
Proverbs
There are plenty of other fish in the sea There are many potential substitutes
in the world.
There’s a time and a place for everything Said when someone is behaving in
a way that you do not think is suitable for the situation they are in
There’s no smoke without fire If there are rumors or signs of something then
there is probably a reason for the rumors
There’s no time like the present Now is the best time to do something
There’s no use crying over spilled/spilt milk There is no point in worrying or
complaining about something that you cannot change
Third time lucky The third time that you try something you will be
successful
(This is) just what the doctor ordered Something that is good for someone to
have or to do
Time is a great healer Pain or sorrow will be less strongly felt as time passes
Time is money Time is valuable and wasting time is like wasting money
To kill two birds with one stone To accomplish two goals with one action
Keys to Chapter 8
Anagrams
adverts/starved
close-up/couples
declared/cleared
stained/instead
hardest/trashed
pleased/elapsed
praised/despair
dignity/tidying
nearest/eastern
empires/premise
Word Ladder
LIVE
LINE
LIND (not a recognized word, but used by Carroll in any case)
LEND
LEAD
DEAD
115
Chapter 9
Life is more fun if you play games
Irregular Verbs
How many irregular verbs can you get out of these letters?
RFT
AWS
EIL
Each letter can be used more than once in the same verb.
Score 14: genius
10-13: Excellent
6-9: Intermediate
1-5: low
© Springer International Publishing AG 2018
A. Wallwork, Word Games, Riddles and Logic Tests, Easy English!,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0_9
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Anagrams 1
Can you work out the connection between the first phrase/word and the second
phrase/word?
A divorce suit - I advise court
The eyes - they see
Ignorant - no rating
Lionesses - noiseless
Our destiny - It’s your end
This ear - it hears
Violet - love it
Unusual Paragraph
This is a most unusual paragraph. How quickly can you find out what is so unusual
about it? It looks so ordinary you’d think nothing was wrong with it – and in fact,
nothing is wrong with it. It is unusual though. Why? Study it, think about it, and you
may find out. Try to do it without coaching. If you work at it for a bit it will dawn
on you. So jump to it and try your skill at figuring it out. Good luck – don’t blow
your cool!
Word Ladder
Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice in Wonderland, enjoyed converting one word into
another by changing one letter at a time.
For example: H A T E > h a v e > h o v e > L O V E
See if you can convert MINE into COAL. You can use the clues in brackets to help
you.
MINE
_____
MIST (a thin fog with condensation near the ground)
_____
MOAT (ditch dug as a fortification and usually filled with water)
_____
COAL
119
Riddles
Match the questions (1-10) with the answers (a-j).
1. It walks on four legs in the morning, two legs at noon and three legs in the evening. What is it?
2. I am the beginning of the end, and the end of time and space. I am essential to
creation, and I surround every place. What am I?
3. What always runs but never walks, often murmurs, never talks, has a bed but
never sleeps, has a mouth but never eats?
4. I never was. I am always to be. No one ever saw me, nor ever will. What am I?
5. At night they come without being fetched. By day they are lost without being
stolen. What are they?
6. What is in seasons, seconds, centuries and minutes but not in decades, years or
days?
7. The one who makes it, sells it. The one who buys it, never uses it. The one that
uses it never knows that he’s using it. What is it?
8. The more you have of it, the less you see. What is it?
9. Three women went walking under one umbrella, but none of them got wet.
Why?
10. What can you hear but not touch or see?
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
g)
h)
i)
j)
A coffin
A river.
Darkness
It wasn’t raining.
Man
The letter ‘n’.
The letter e. End, timE, spacE, Every placE
The stars.
Tomorrow or the future.
Your voice.
120
Tongue Twisters
Practise reading the tongue twister aloud. Then see if you can memorize and say it
quickly without getting your tongue tied!
truly rural
red lorry, yellow lorry
strange strategic statistics
the minx mixed a medical mixture
the city sweep shook his sooty sheet in the city street
Anagrams
Create an anagram from the letters of the words in the first column. The anagram
should correspond to the definition.
anagram
ageism
sexist
longed
height
iceman
nicest
slight
marine
seldom
neural
definition
pictures
is
made of gold
a measurement of altitude
where you go to watch a movie
a small but very visible form of animal life
at night without them you can’t see much
not go away
the top ones get paid a lot of money
not reflecting reality
121
Proverbs
Insert the words from the box into these proverbs.
A bird in hand is ______ two in the bush.
It’s better to be born ______ than to be born rich.
The end justifies the ______ .
Every man is his own worst ______ .
Forbidden ______ is sweetest.
A leopard cannot ______ its spots.
A little learning is a dangerous ______ .
Sticks and stones may break my ______ , but words will never hurt me.
There’s no pleasure without ______ .
Tomorrow is another ______ .
bones, change, day, enemy, fruit, lucky, means, pain, thing, worth
Limericks
Practise reading the limericks aloud and hear/find the rhythm.
There was a young lady of Jarrow
Whose mouth was exceedingly
narrow,
Though times without number
She chewed a cucumber
She never could manage a marrow.
There was a young man from Peru,
Who dreamt he was eating his shoe,
He woke in the night
In a terrible fright
And found it was perfectly true.
122
Mathematical 1
A man went to the hardware store to buy items for his house.
1 would cost $.25
12 would cost $.50
122 would cost $.75
When he left the store he had spent $.75, what did he buy?
Mathematical 2
Three men are blindfolded and a red or blue cross chalked on the forehead of each.
As soon as the blindfold is removed, any of the three who sees a red cross on the
forehead of one of the others must raise his right hand. From that, it is possible for
each man to declare the color of his own cross. How?
Mathematical 3
When the Brooklyn Breakdancers do a routine in which they perform in threes, one
member has to sit and watch. When they dance in fours, two watch; in fives, three
watch; and in sixes, four watch. How many members of the team are there?
Mathematical 4
Richard Smith had three sons and each of these three sons had three sons too. How
many men were there altogether? How many pairs of grandfathers and grandsons?
How many pairs of brothers?
Mathematical 5
Mark is three times as old as Adrian. But in four years’ time, he’ll only be twice as
old. How old is Mark now?
123
Txt mssg
Match the forms in the first column with their meanings in the second column.
1. 2nite
2. im2gud4u
3. bbs
4. fyi
5. gf
6. cya
7. gonna
8. wotcha
9. footie
10. def
11. luv
12. pls
13. cuz
14. :-ll
15. :-(
a) angry
b) be back soon
c) because
d) definitely
e) football
f) for your information
g) girlfriend
h) going to
i) I’m too good for you,
j) love
k) please
l) sad
m) see you,
n) tonight
o) what are you
Grammar Challenges
Underline the correct form.
1. An archeologist claims he found/to have found/to find some gold coins dated 46
B.C. Do you believe him?
2. Divide 30 by/for 1/2 and add 10. What is the answer?
3. How can you take 1 by/from 19 and leave 20?
4. An assistant in a butcher’s shop is 1.80 m tall/is tall 1.80 m. What does he weigh?
5. How much soil is there in a hole in the ground that’s two meters wide/wide two
meters, three meters long/long three meters, and four meters deep/deep four
meters?
124
Play Your Cards Right ...
Match the words in the first column with the explanation in the second column.
a pack/deck/stack
a suit which wins over others irrespective of how
high those other cards are
a pair
the highest card of a suit normally wins one of these
a run
often the highest card of a suit, the two being the
lowest
a trick
the king, the queen and the jack (also known as the
knave)
a trump
a full one of these has 52 cards
ace
two cards of the same number
court cards
a numerical series of cards, e.g. eight, nine, ten, jack,
queen
dealer
the person who gives out the cards
hand
a wild card which can generally substitute any other
card
joker
to play a card of the same suit as the previous player
suits
to mix the cards together before dealing
to bid
to split the pack into two stacks before dealing
to cut
spades, hearts, diamonds, clubs
to deal
to play the first card
to follow suit
the cards you hold
to lead
to declare how many tricks you think you will win
to shuffle
to give the cards to each player at the beginning of
the game
Keys to Chapter 9
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Keys to Chapter 9
Irregular Verbs
arise (arose, arisen)
eat (ate, eaten)
fall (fell, fallen)
feel (felt, felt)
lie (lay, lay)
rise (rose, risen)
see (saw, see)
sell (sold, sold)
sew (sewed, sewn)
sit (sat, sat)
steal (stole, stolen)
tear (tore, torn)
wear (wore, worn)
write (wrote, written)
Anagrams
A divorce suit - I advise court (a divorce suit is between a married couple who
no longer wish to be married, so to become unmarried they need to go to
court)
The eyes - they see
Ignorant - no rating (no rating means no classification because the person
knows nothing)
Lionesses - noiseless (lions make no noise when catching their prey)
Our destiny - It’s your end (end in this case means the point/meaning of the
course you follow in life; end also means ‘termination’)
This ear - it hears
Violet - love it (a violet is a beautiful flower)
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Keys to Chapter 9
Unusual Paragraph
The most common letter in the English language, the letter e, is not found in
this paragraph.
Word Ladder
MINE
MINT
MIST (a thin fog with condensation near the ground)
MOST
MOAT (ditch dug as a fortification and usually filled with water)
COAT
COAL
Riddles
It walks on four legs in the morning, two legs at noon and three legs in the
evening. What is it? Man
I am the beginning of the end, and the end of time and space. I am essential to
creation, and I surround every place. What am I? The letter e. End, timE,
spacE, Every placE
What always runs but never walks, often murmurs, never talks, has a bed but
never sleeps, has a mouth but never eats? A river.
I never was. I am always to be. No one ever saw me, nor ever will. Tomorrow
or the future.
At night they come without being fetched. By day they are lost without being
stolen. What are they? The stars.
What is in seasons, seconds, centuries and minutes but not in decades, years
or days? The letter ‘n’.
The one who makes it, sells it. The one who buys it, never uses it. The one that
uses it never knows that he’s using it. What is it? A coffin
The more you have of it, the less you see. What is it? Darkness
Three women went walking under one umbrella, but none of them got wet.
Why? It wasn’t raining.
What can you hear but not touch or see? Your voice.
Keys to Chapter 9
Anagrams
images
exists
golden
eighth
cinema
insect
lights
remain
models
unreal
Proverbs
A bird in hand is worth two in the bush.
It’s better to be born lucky than to be born rich.
The end justifies the means.
Every man is his own worst enemy.
Forbidden fruit is sweetest.
A leopard cannot change its spots.
A little learning is a dangerous thing.
Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.
There’s no pleasure without pain.
Tomorrow is another day.
127
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Keys to Chapter 9
Mathematical 1
House numbers
Mathematical 2
A man must raise his hand ONLY if he sees a RED cross chalked on the forehead of ONE of the other two. So, if no hands are raised, a man can tell
whether he is red or blue by observing the markings of the other two.
Supposing A and B raise their hands but not C. This means that A and B see
red on ONE of the others, and as they see that C is blue, A and B know themselves to be red. C doesn’t raise his hand because he can see red on BOTH A
and B, and as they have raised their hands C know he must be blue. (This
solution works for any combination of colors).
Mathematical 3
58
Mathematical 4
13, 9, 12
Mathematical 5
2
Txt mssg
1) tonight, 2) I’m too good for you, 3) be back soon, 4) for your information
[also commonly used in a more formal context], 5) girlfriend, 6) see you, 7)
going to 8) what are you 9) football 10) definitely 11) love 12) please [also
commonly used in a more formal context],13) because, 14) angry, 15) sad
[A variation of this exercise appeared in Chapter 13 of English for Interacting
on Campus, Springer]
Keys to Chapter 9
129
Smileys
:”)
:-)
:0
:-*
:-D
:-S
8-O
:-(
:-D
:-O
:-\
;-)
Embarrassed
Happy
Hungry
Kiss
Laughing
Makes no sense
Oh my god!
Sad
Side splitting
laughter
Surprised/shocked
Undecided
Winking
Grammar Challenges
1. An archeologist claims he found/to have found some gold coins dated 46
B.C. Do you believe him?
# In 46 B.C., they wouldn’t have known how many years before Christ it was.
2. Divide 30 by 1/2 and add 10. What is the answer?
# 70. (30 divided by 2 is 15, but 30 divided by 1/2 is 60.)
3. How can you take 1 from 19 and leave 20?
# When the numbers are expressed in Roman numerals, this works out: If
you take I from XIX, you are left with XX.
4. An assistant in a butcher’s shop is 1.80 m tall. What does he weigh?
# Meat.
5. How much soil is there in a hole in the ground that’s two meters widethree
meters long/long three meters, and four meters deep?
# None.
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Keys to Chapter 9
Play your cards right ...
a pack/deck/stack
a full one of these has 52 cards
a pair
two cards of the same number
a run
a numerical series of cards, e.g. eight, nine, ten,
jack, queen
a trick
the highest card of a suit normally wins one of
these
a trump
a suit which wins over others irrespective of how
high those other cards are
ace
often the highest card of a suit, the two being the
lowest
court cards
the king, the queen and the jack (also known as the
knave)
dealer
the person who gives out the cards
hand
the cards you hold
joker
a wild card which can generally substitute any
other card
suits
spades, hearts, diamonds, clubs
to bid
to declare how many tricks you think you will win
to cut
to split the pack into two stacks before dealing
to deal
to give the cards to each player at the beginning of
the game
to follow suit
to play a card of the same suit as the previous
player
to lead
to play the first card
to shuffle
to mix the cards together before dealing
Chapter 10
Words outlive people, institutions, civilizations
Word Ladder
Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice in Wonderland, enjoyed converting one word into
another by changing one letter at a time.
For example: H A T E > h a v e > h o v e > L O V E
See if you can convert FOUR into FIVE. You can use the clues in brackets to help
you.
FOUR
_____ (an act that violates of the rules of a sport)
_____ (an idiot)
_____
_____ (a fortified defensive structure)
FORE (in a forward position)
_____
FIVE
© Springer International Publishing AG 2018
A. Wallwork, Word Games, Riddles and Logic Tests, Easy English!,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0_10
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132
Smileys
Match the smileys (i.e. a group of keyboard characters that taken on a facial expression) with their meanings.
:”)
:-)
:0
:-*
:-D
:-S
:-(
:-D
:-O
:-\
;-)
Sad
Hungry
Embarrassed
Happy
Side splitting
laughter
Kiss
Laughing
Makes no sense
Winking
Surprised/shocked
Undecided
Limericks
Practise reading the limericks aloud and hear/find the rhythm.
There was a young man from Bagdad
An inquisitive sort of a lad
Who said “I will see
If a sting has a bee”
And very soon found that it had.
There was an old man of
Blackheath,
Who sat on his set of false teeth,
Said he with a start
“Oh Lord bless my heart,
I’ve bitten myself underneath”.
133
Grammar Challenge
Underline the correct form in these riddles.
1. What stays/does stay at the bottom of the sea and shakes? A nervous wreck.
2. Who owns/does own all the dairy cows in the Middle East? The Milk Sheik.
3. Why elephants have/do elephants have grey trunks? They all belong to the
same swimming club.
4. How an Inuit builds/does an Inuit build his house? Igloos it together.
5. What goes/does go round the house and in the house but never touches the
house? The sun.
6. What it is/is it that you can keep after giving it to someone else? Your word
7. The more you take, the more you leave behind. What they are/are they?
Footsteps.
8. Who spends/does spend the day at the window, goes to the table for meals and
hides at night? A fly.
9. It’s been around for millions of years, but it’s no more than a month old. What
it is/is it? The moon.
10. What belongs/does belong to you but others use it more than you do? Your
name.
Word Combinations
Combine a word from the first column with a word from the second column.
air
country
earth
light
rain
sea
sky
snow
sun
water
ball
bow
fall
house
port
quake
rise
scraper
sick
side
134
Proverbs
Insert the words from the box into spaces in these proverbs,
All is fair in ______ and war.
All that glitters is not ______ .
A ______ workman always blames his tools.
The exception that proves the ______ .
God helps ______ who help themselves.
Let sleeping ______ die.
There’s no place like ______ .
There’s no ______ without fire.
When the ______ is away the mice will play.
Why keep a ______ and bark yourself?
bad, cat, dog, dogs, gold, home, love, rule, smoke, those
Illogical?
Can you explain why the following are nonsense?
He murdered his parents and then pleaded for mercy because he was an
orphan.
Her feet are so big that she has to put her skirt on over her head.
She hasn’t had any children and she’s going to make sure her mother doesn’t
either.
She’s still writing books. Autobiographical mainly.
We saw an iceberg that had completely melted.
135
Anagrams
Create an anagram from the letters of the words in the first column. The anagram
should correspond to the definition.
arches
anagram
definition
What Google does
arrest
course
danger
debits
design
erects
iciest
rested
sailed
The most uncommon
Origin
Where flowers and plants grow
A very small flat
With a signature
What you shouldn’t tell anyone else
Bigger than towns
A place where there is a lot of sand and very little water
___ and gentlemen
Logical 1
Jack gave John the following challenge: “If you sit down in that chair, I bet I can
make you get out of it before I run around the chair three times,” he said.
“That’s not fair,” John said. “You’ll just prick me with a pin or something.”
“No,” Jack said. “I won’t touch you, either directly or with any object. If you get out
of the chair, it’ll be by your own choice.”
John thought and accepted the challenge but Jack won the bet. How did he do it?
Logical 2
A rapper and his sister were out one morning shopping. The rapper suddenly pointed
across the road to a boy and said: “That boy is my nephew”.
To which his sister replied: “Well, he isn’t my nephew.”
Well , who was he?
136
Logical 3
To get into a top secret arm training camp, you have to say the password to the
guard. There is a certain system that you must always follow:
If the guard says 1, 2, 6 or 10, you say ‘three’.
If he says 4, 5 or 9, you say ‘four’.
If he says 3, 7 or 8 you must say ‘five’.
and if he says 11 or 12 you must say ‘six’.
What do you have to say if he says 13?
Rhyming Forms
The words below may look very strange but they are actually used in every day
conversation. Can you match the word (1-10) with its meaning (a-j)?
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
flower power
handy andy
heebie jeebies
pub grub
riff raff
sin bin
super duper
topsy turvy
willy nilly
wishy washy
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
hippy peace movement
good with manual work
fear
food served in bars
term of abuse used by upper and middle classes to describe undesirable
people
f) a box or bench to which offending players in a sports contest can be sent for a
period as a penalty , especially in ice hockey.
g)
h)
i)
j)
very good
upside down
whether one likes it or not
feeble character or idea
137
Riddles
Insert the words in the box into the blank spaces.
Where are ____ usually crowned?
On the head.
If two is company and three is a crowd, what are ____ and five?
Nine.
What ____ bigger the more you contract it?
Debt.
What is it that no one wishes to have, yet no one wishes to lose?
A ____ head.
What is that you must ____ after giving it to someone else?
Your word.
Captain Cook made three voyages around the world and was killed on one of them?
Which one?
The ____ one.
A woman had ____ children and half of them were boys. How could that be?
The other half were boys too.
A duck was swimming in a pond and a dog was sitting on its tail. How could that
be?
The dog was on the ____ , sitting on its own tail.
What teacher wears the biggest hat?
The one with the biggest ____ .
What always happens at the end of a ____ spell?
It rains.
bald, dry, five, four, grows, head, keep, kings, last, shore
138
Idioms
Match the idioms in the first column with their explanations in the second column.
that was a bit below the belt
be too big for one’s boots
at the drop of a hat
I’ll eat my hat
a kick in the pants
line one’s own pockets
keep your shirt on
wear one’s heart on one’s
sleeve
I wish I were in your shoes
pull one’s socks up
strong criticism to shock someone into
positive action
what you said was unfair/sarcastic/nasty
think oneself very important
envious
only interested in personal (monetary) gain
stay calm/cool
let everyone see your emotions
immediately and willingly
make more effort
convinced that something won’t happen
Add an -e.
If you add an e to the end most of the words below this will produce another word.
But not in all cases - which?
hum
not
rat
rip
scar
set
star
them
two
win
Keys to Chapter 10
139
Keys to Chapter 10
Word Ladder
FOUR
FOUL (an act that violates of the rules of a sport)
FOOL (an idiot)
FOOT
FORT (a fortified defensive structure)
FORE (in a forward position)
FIRE
FIVE
Smileys
Match the smileys (i.e. a group of keyboard characters that taken on a facial
expression) with their meanings.
:”)
:-)
:0
:-*
:-D
:-S
:-(
:-D
:-O
:-\
;-)
Embarrassed
Happy
Hungry
Kiss
Laughing
Makes no sense
Sad
Side splitting
laughter
Surprised/shocked
Undecided
Winking
140
Keys to Chapter 10
Grammar Challenge
Underline the correct form in these riddles.
1. What stays at the bottom of the sea and shakes? A nervous wreck.
[wreck = a ship that has broken up; a nervous wreck: a person who is
emotionally exhausted]
2. Who owns all the dairy cows in the Middle East? The Milk Sheik.
3. Why do elephants have grey trunks? They all belong to the same swimming club.
4. How does an Inuit build his house? Igloos it together. [Igloos = he glues]
5. What goes round the house and in the house but never touches the house?
The sun.
6. What is it that you can keep after giving it to someone else? Your word
7. The more you take, the more you leave behind. What are they? Footsteps.
8. Who spends the day at the window, goes to the table for meals and hides
at night? A fly.
9. It’s been around for millions of years, but it’s no more than a month old.
What is it? The moon.
10. What belongs to you but others use it more than you do? Your name.
Word Combinations
airport
countryside
earthquake
lighthouse
rainbow
seasick
snowball
sunrise
waterfall
Keys to Chapter 10
Proverbs
All is fair in love and war.
All that glitters is not gold.
A bad workman always blames his tools.
The exception that proves the rule.
God helps those who help themselves.
Let sleeping dogs die.
There’s no place like home.
There’s no smoke without fire.
When the cat is away the mice will play.
Why keep a dog and bark yourself?
Illogical?
He murdered his parents and then pleaded for mercy because he was an
orphan. He cannot claim to be an orphan (someone who has lost both parents)
if he killed them himself.
Her feet are so big that she has to put her skirt on over her head. Being able to
put on a skirt and the size of one’s feet have no relation.
She hasn’t had any children and she’s going to make sure her mother doesn’t
either. She is the child of her mother.
She’s still writing books. Autobiographical mainly. An autobiography is book
written by an author regarding the same author’s life. Generally an author
will only write one autobiography.
We saw an iceberg that had completely melted. If it is completed melted it is
no longer an iceberg.
141
142
Keys to Chapter 10
Anagrams
search
rarest
source
garden
secret
bedsit
signed
cities
desert
ladies
Logical 1
John sat down in the chair. Jack ran around it twice, then said, “I’ll be back in
a week to run the third time around!”
Logical 2
Her son.
Logical 3
8 (it relates to the number of letters in the number)
Rhyming Forms
flower power hippy peace movement
handy andy good with manual work
heebie jeebies fear
pub grub food served in bars
riff raff term of abuse used by upper and middle classes to describe undesirable people
Keys to Chapter 10
143
sin bin a box or bench to which offending players can be sent for a period as
a penalty during a game, especially in ice hockey
super duper very good
topsy turvy upside down
willy nilly whether one likes it or not
wishy washy feeble character or idea
Riddles
Where are kings usually crowned? On the head.
If two is company and three is a crowd, what are four and five? Nine.
What grows bigger the more you contract it? Debt.
What is it that no one wishes to have, yet no one wishes to lose? A bald head.
What is that you must keep after giving it to someone else? Your word.
Captain Cook made three voyages around the world and was killed on one of
them? Which one? The last one.
A woman had five children and half of them were boys. How could that be?
The other half were boys too.
A duck was swimming in a pond and a dog was sitting on its tail. How could
that be? The dog was on the shore, sitting on its own tail.
What teacher wears the biggest hat? The one with the biggest head.
What always happens at the end of a dry spell? It rains.
Idioms
that was a bit below the belt what you said was unfair/sarcastic/nasty
be too big for one’s boots think oneself very important
at the drop of a hat immediately and willingly
I’ll eat my hat convinced that something won’t happen
a kick in the pants strong criticism to shock someone into positive action
144
Keys to Chapter 10
line one’s own pockets only interested in personal (monetary) gain
keep your shirt on stay calm/cool
wear one’s heart on one’s sleeve let everyone see your emotions
I wish I were in your shoes envious
pull one’s socks up make more effort
Add an -e.
hum
not, note
rat, rate
rip, ripe
scar, scare
set
star, stare
them, theme
two
win, wine
Chapter 11
Have fun and play as many word games as
possible
Grammar Challenge 1
A man who was the owner of a winery died. In his will, he choose/chose to leave 21
barrels (showed/shown in the figure below) between his three sons. Seven of the
barrels are filled with wine, seven are half full, and seven are empty. However he set/
setted a series of rules: the wine and barrels must be split/splitted so that each son
has the same number of full barrels, the same number of half-full barrels, and the
same number of empty barrels. Note that there are no measuring devices. How can
the barrels and wine be evenly divided?
Grammar Challenge 2
You have three boxes of fruit. One contains/is contained just apples, another just
oranges, and the other both oranges and apples. Each box labels/is labeled. One
says "apples," one says "oranges," and one says "apples and oranges." However, it
knows/is known that none of the boxes label/are labeled correctly. How can you
label the boxes/can the boxes be labeled correctly if you only allow/are only allowed
to take and look at just one piece of fruit from just one of the boxes?
© Springer International Publishing AG 2018
A. Wallwork, Word Games, Riddles and Logic Tests, Easy English!,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0_11
145
146
Similes
Insert the words in the box into the spaces.
as _____ as coal
as _____ as a bat
as busy as a _____
as fat as a _____
as _____ as a pancake
as free as a _____
as _____ as gold
as _____ as lead
as light as a _____
as _____ as the hills
bee, bird, black, blind, feather, flat, good, heavy, old, pig
Word Ladder
Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice in Wonderland, enjoyed converting one word into
another by changing one letter at a time. For example: H A T E > h a v e > h o v e >
LOVE
See if you can convert REST into SOFA. You can use the clues in brackets to help
you.
REST
LEST (in case)
____
____ (floor consisting of open space at the top of a house just below roof)
____
SOFA
147
Riddles
Choose the best answer. Some of the answers are subjective.
The more there is of it, the less you see. What is it?
a) darkness b) a black hole c) death
What has four fingers and a thumb, but neither flesh nor bone.
a) a mutant frog b) a glove c) fear
What would you call something with two mouths, three noses and four eyes?
a) an English teacher b) a monster b) very very ugly
Where is everyone equally beautiful?
a) in the cemetary b) in the dark c) in the imagination
What question can never be answered 'yes'?
a) are you asleep? b) do you know the meaning of life? c) are you joking?
What would you do if you saw an elephant sleeping in your bed?
a) call the local zoo b) sleep somewhere else c) push him/her out
How many planets are there out in space?
a) seven b) six thousand three hundred and twenty four million c) all of them
If you had five cakes and the boy next to you took three, what would you have?
a) one b) two c) a big fight
If I’m holding five apples in my right hand, and six apples in my left hand, what do
I have?
a) a problem b) very big hands c) a miracle
What most resembles half a cheese?
a) a full moon b) the other half c) the truth
148
Add an -e.
If you add an e to the end most of the words below this will produce another word.
But not in all cases - which?
art
big
bit
bar
fat
fir
her
hug
low
mad
Idioms
Match the proverbs (1-10) with their explanations (a-j).
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
a one off
the number one
one foot in the grave
one for the road
one night stand
in two minds
kill two birds with one stone
put two and two together
thick as two short planks
two-faced
149
a)
b)
c)
d)
e)
f)
g)
h)
i)
j)
a casual sexual relationship
a final drink before leaving for home
a single occurrence or example of something
do one thing and solve another at the same time
hypocritical
the most important or popular
uncertain, undecided
understand, realise
very ill, nearly dead
very stupid
Funny book titles
Match the titles with the authors.
titles
authors
Daddy Are We There Yet?
Get Out There!
Highway Travel
Why Cars Stop
Where to Find Islands
Dusty Rhodes
Miles Away
M.T. Tank
Archie Pelago
Sally Forth
Lewis Carroll Logic Games 1
"Here's another," said the Red Queen. "A little girl named Alice had a brother named
Tony."
Alice interrupted: "I don't have a brother named Tony."
"I wasn't talking about you," the Red Queen retorted sharply. "I was talking about
another Alice!"
"Oh." replied Alice.
"Now," continued the Red Queen, "Tony has as many brothers as sisters. How many
boys and how many girls are in the family?"
150
Lewis Carroll Logic Games 2
If a grandfather clock takes thirty seconds to strike six, how long does it take to
strike twelve? asked the Red Queen.
"Why, sixty seconds of course!" exclaimed Alice. "Oh, no," she suddenly realised,
"that was wrong!"
What is the correct answer?
Lewis Carroll Logic Games 3
Alice practically stumbled on Tweedledum and Tweedledee, who were grinning
under a tree. "I'm afraid I can't very well tell you apart without your embroidered
collars," remarked Alice.
"You'll have to used logic," said one of the brothers. At this point he pulled out a
playing card from his pocket - it was the queen of diamonds - and showed it to Alice.
"As you see, this is a red card. Now a red card signifies that the one carrying it is
telling the truth, whereas a black card signifies that the speaker is telling a lie.
"Now, my brother there is also carrying either a red or a black card in his pocket. He
is about to make a statement. If his card is red, he will make a true statement, but if
his card is black, he will make a false statement. Then your job is to work out
whether he is Tweedledee or Tweedledum."
At this point, the other brother said: "I am Tweedledum, and I am carrying a black
card."
Anagrams
Create an anagram from the letters of the words in the first column. The anagram
should correspond to the definition.
anagram
creams
drawer
dynamo
please
elects
stripe
purest
softer
lifter
finder
definition
the cry you make during a horror film
prize for doing something
first day of the week
not awake
chooses
someone who works for the Catholic church
what a volcano does
bigger than a wood
coffee goes through this
someone you would find on Facebook
151
Limericks
Practise reading the limericks aloud and hear/find the rhythm.
A wonderful bird is the pelican,
His beak hold more than his belly can;
He takes in this beak
Enough food for a week,
But nobody knows how the hell he can.
There was a long lady of Malta
Who strangled her aunt with a
halter.
She said, "I won't bury her,
She'll do for my terrier:
She'll keep for a month if I salt
her.
Proverbs
Match the proverbs (1-10) with their explanations (a-j).
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Too many cooks spoil the broth
Truth is stranger than fiction
Two wrongs don't make a right
Two's company, three's a crowd
Variety is the spice of life
When in Rome, do as the Romans do
Where there's a will, there's a way
You can cross that bridge when you come to it
You can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink
You shouldn't judge a book by its cover
a) If too many people try to do something then often the job will not be done well
b) Real life is sometimes stranger than fiction
c) You cannot justify doing something wrong or bad just because somebody else
has done the same thing to you
d) Two people (often two people on a date) are happier when nobody else is
around
e) Life is made more interesting by doing new or different things
f) You should adjust your habits to match the customs of the people or place
where you live
g) If you are sufficiently determined you can overcome difficulties and do what
you want to do
h) Face a problem or challenge when you come to it or when it arises
i) You can give someone the opportunity to do something but you can't get him or
her to do it if they do not want to
j) You cannot judge something by how it looks on the outside
152
Grammar Challenge 1
An explorer was trekking through a remote jungle when he was captured by
logic-loving cannibals. He was brought before the chief and told, "You may now
speak your last words. If your statement is/will be true, then we burn/will burn
you at the stake. If your statement is/will be false, we boil/will boil you in oil."
The man thought for a moment, then made his statement. Perplexed, the clever
cannibals realized they could do nothing but let him go. What did the explorer
tell them?
Grammar Challenge 2
You have two slow-burning fuses, each of which will burn up in exactly one hour.
They are not necessarily of the same length and width as each other, nor even necessarily of uniform width. Consequently, you can't measure a half hour by/thus/when/
while noting when one fuse is half burned. Find a way to use these two fuses, by/
thus/when/while enabling you to measure 45 minutes?
Grammar Challenge 3
You must cut a birthday cake into exactly eight pieces, but the rules only allow to
make/allow you to make three straight cuts, and pieces of the cake are not allowed
to move/to be moved as you cut them. What method will enable to do/you to do it?
Grammar Challenge 4
Bill is in the middle of a/an/one desert, dying of thirst. He comes across two men
who know where there is water. Bill knows that a/an/one man always tells the truth,
the other always lies. What a/an/one question should Bill ask to find out which is the
road to water?
Keys to Chapter 11
153
Keys to Chapter 11
Grammar Challenge 1
A man who was the owner of a winery died. In his will, he chose to leave 21
barrels (shown in the figure below) between his three sons. Seven of barrels
are filled with wine, seven are half full, and seven are empty. However he set
a series of rules: the wine and barrels must be split so that each son has the
same number of full barrels, the same number of half-full barrels, and the
same number of empty barrels. Note that there are no measuring devices.
How can the barrels and wine be evenly divided?
# Two half-full barrels are dumped into one of the empty barrels. Two more
half-full barrels are dumped into another one of the empty barrels. This results
in nine full barrels, three half-full barrels, and nine empty barrels. Each son
gets three full barrels, one half-full barrel, and three empty barrels.
Grammar Challenge 2
You have three boxes of fruit. One contains just apples, another just oranges,
and the other both oranges and apples. Each box is labeled -- one says
"apples," one says "oranges," and one says "apples and oranges." However, it
is known that none of the boxes are labeled correctly. How can you label the
boxes correctly/can the boxes be labeled correctly if you are only allowed to
take and look at just one piece of fruit from just one of the boxes?
# Take a piece of fruit from the box marked "apples and oranges." Suppose the
fruit you take is an apple. Then that box must be the box containing just
apples. Therefore, the box marked "oranges" can't be the box containing just
apples, and it can't be the box containing just oranges either -- so it must be
the box containing apples and oranges. The remaining box is therefore the
box containing just oranges. If the fruit you take out is an orange, the solution
is derived in a similar fashion: the box marked "apples and oranges" is the box
containing just oranges; the box marked "apples" is the box containing both
apples and oranges; and the box marked "oranges" is the one containing just
apples.
154
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Similes
as black as coal
as blind as a bat
as busy as a bee
as fat as a pig
as flat as a pancake
as free as a bird
as good as gold
as heavy as lead
as light as a feather
as old as the hills
Word Ladder
REST
LEST (in case)
LOST
LOFT (floor consisting of open space at the top of a house just below roof)
SOFT
SOFA
Riddles
The more there is of it, the less you see. What is it? Darkness.
What has four fingers and a thumb, but neither flesh nor bone. A glove.
What would you call something with two mouths, three noses and four eyes?
Very very ugly.
Where is everyone equally beautiful? In the dark.
What question can never be answered 'yes'? Are you asleep?
What would you do if you saw an elephant sleeping in your bed? Sleep somewhere else.
How many planets are there out in space? All of them.
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Keys to Chapter 11
If you had five cakes and the boy next to you took three, what would you
have? A big fight.
If I’m holding five apples in my right hand, and six apples in my left hand,
what do I have? Very big hands.
What most resembles half a cheese? The other half.
Add an -e.
art
big
bit, bite
bar, bare
fat, fate
fir, fire
her, here
hug, huge
low
mad, made
Idioms
a one off
the number one
one foot in the grave
one for the road
one night stand
in two minds
kill two birds with one stone
put two and two together
thick as two short planks
two-faced
the most important or popular
a final drink before leaving for home
a single occurrence or example of
something
a casual sexual relationship
very ill, nearly dead
hypocritical
very stupid
uncertain, undecided
do one thing and solve another at the same
time
understand, realise
156
Keys to Chapter 11
Funny Book Titles
Daddy Are We There Yet? by Miles Away (i.e. we still have a long way to go)
Get Out There! by Sally Forth (to sally forth means to depart)
Highway Travel by Dusty Rhodes (dusty roads)
Why Cars Stop by M.T. Tank (empty gas tank)
Where to Find Islands by Archie Pelago (archipelago = a group of islands)
Lewis Carroll Logic Games 1
4 boys, 3 girls. Tony has 3 brothers and 3 sisters, Alice has 4 brothers and 2
sisters.
Lewis Carroll Logic Games 2
Between the first and sixth stroke there are five intervals of time, and it takes
30 seconds to cover those five intervals; so the interval between any two consecutive strokes is six seconds. Between the first stroke and the twelfth, there
are 11 time intervals; therefore it takes the clock 66 seconds.
Lewis Carroll Logic Games 3
The speaker cannot be telling the truth and also carry a black card. Therefore,
he must be lying. So his card really is black, and since his statement was false,
he is not really Tweedledum, but Tweedledee.
Keys to Chapter 11
157
Anagrams
scream
reward
Monday
asleep
select
priest
erupts
forest
filter
friend
Proverbs
Too many cooks spoil the broth If too many people try to do something then
often the job will not be done well
Truth is stranger than fiction Real life is sometimes stranger than fiction
Two wrongs don't make a right You cannot justify doing something wrong or
bad just because somebody else has done the same thing to you
Two's company, three's a crowd Two people (often two people on a date) are
happier when nobody else is around
Variety is the spice of life Life is made more interesting by doing new or different things
When in Rome do as the Romans do You should adjust your habits to match
the customs of the people or place where you live
Where there's a will there's a way If you are sufficiently determined you can
overcome difficulties and do what you want to do
You can cross a bridge when you come to it Face a problem or challenge
when you come to it or when it arises
158
Keys to Chapter 11
You can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink You can give
someone the opportunity to do something but you can't get him or her to do it
if they do not want to
You shouldn't judge a book by its cover You cannot judge something by how
it looks on the outside
Grammar Challenge 1
An explorer was trekking through a remote jungle when he was captured by
logic-loving cannibals. He was brought before the chief and told, "You may
now speak your last words. If your statement is true, then we will burn you at
the stake. If your statement is false, we boil you in oil." The man thought for
a moment, then made his statement. Perplexed, the clever cannibals realized
they could do nothing but let him go. What did the explorer tell them?
# "You will boil me in oil."
Grammar Challenge 2
You have two slow-burning fuses, each of which will burn up in exactly one
hour. They are not necessarily of the same length and width as each other, nor
even necessarily of uniform width, so you can't measure a half hour by noting
when one fuse is half burned. Find a way to use these two fuses, thus enabling
you to measure 45 minutes?
# Light one fuse at both ends and, at the same time, light the second fuse at one
end. When the first fuse has completely burned, you know that a half hour has
elapsed, and, more relevantly, that the second fuse has a half hour left to go. At
this time, light the second fuse from the other end. This will cause it to burn
out in 15 more minutes. At that point, exactly 45 minutes will have elapsed.
Grammar Challenge 3
You must cut a birthday cake into exactly eight pieces, but the rules only allow
you to make three straight cuts, and pieces of the cake are not allowed to move
as you cut them. What method will enable you to do it?
# Use the first two cuts to cut an 'X' in the top of the cake. Now you have four
pieces. Make the third cut horizontal, which will divide the four pieces into
eight.
Keys to Chapter 11
159
Grammar Challenge 4
Bill is in the middle of a desert, dying of thirst. He comes across two men who
know where there is water. Bill knows that one man always tells the truth, the
other always lies. What one question should Bill ask to find out which is the
road to water?
# Bill can ask either of them: "If you were him, what would you say?" He
should then do the opposite of what they say.
Easy English!
轻松英语！
By Adrian Wallwork
阿德里安·沃尔
沃克
Word Games,
文字游戏，
Riddles
and Logic Tests
谜语和逻
辑测试
Tax Your Brain
消耗你的大脑
and Boost Your
English
提高你的英语水平
Easy English!
轻松英语！
Series Editor
系列编辑器
Adrian Wallwork
阿德里安·沃尔沃克
English for Academics SAS
Pisa, Italy
学术英语 SAS Pisa，意大
利
Easy English is a series of books intended for students and teachers of English as a
foreign language.
《简易英语》是为英语作为外语的学生和教师准备的一系列书籍。
More information about this series at http://www.springer.com/series/15586
有关本系列的更多信息，请访问 http://www.springer.com/series/15586
Adrian Wallwork
阿德里安·沃尔沃克
Word Games, Riddles and
Logic Tests
文字游戏、谜语和逻辑测试
Tax Your Brain and Boost Your English
开动脑筋，提高英语水平
Adrian Wallwork
阿德里安·沃尔沃克
English for Academics SAS
Pisa, Italy
学术英语 SAS Pisa，意大
利
ISSN 2522-8617
ISSN 2522-8625 (electronic)
ISSN 2522-8617 ISSN 2522-8625(电子版)
Easy English!
轻松英语！
ISBN 978-3-319-67240-3
ISBN 978-3-319-67241-0 (eBook)
ISBN 978-3-319-67240-3 ISBN 978-3-319-67241-0(电子书)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0
Library of Congress Control Number: 2017963151
美国国会图书馆控制编号:2017963151
© Springer International Publishing AG 2018
施普林格国际出版公司 2018
This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of
the material is concerned, speci!cally the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation,
broadcasting, reproduction on micro!lms or in any other physical way, and transmission or
information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar
methodology now known or hereafter developed.
该作品受版权保护。出版者保留所有权利，无论涉及材料的全部或部分，特别是翻译、重印、
插图再利用、背诵、广播、缩微胶片或任何其他物理方式的复制、传输或信息存储和检索、电
子改编、计算机软件或通过现在已知或以后开发的类似或不同方法的权利。
The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this
publication does not imply, even in the absence of a speci!c statement, that such names are exempt
from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.
通用描述性名称、注册名称、商标、服务标记等的使用。即使没有具体声明，也不意味着这些
名称不受相关保护性法律法规的保护，因此可以自由使用。
The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this
book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the
authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein
or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to
jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional af!liations.
出版商、作者和编辑可以放心地假设，本书中的建议和信息在出版之日被认为是真实和准确
的。出版商、作者或编辑均不对本文包含的材料或可能出现的任何错误或遗漏做出任何明示或
暗示的保证。出版商对已出版地图和机构的管辖权主张保持中立。
Printed on acid-free paper
印刷在无酸纸上
This Springer imprint is published by Springer Nature
这个施普林格印记是由施普林格自然杂志出版的
The registered company is Springer International Publishing AG
注册公司是施普林格国际出版公司
The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland
注册公司地址为:瑞士查姆市 Gewerbestrasse 11，6330 号
Introduction to the Student
对学生的介绍
What Is Easy English?
什么是简易英语？
Easy English is a series of books to help you learn and revise your English with
minimal effort.
《轻松英语》是一系列帮助你用最少的努力学习和复习英语的书。
There are two main strands of the series. Readers who wish to improve their
English by
这个系列有两个主要部分。希望通过以下方式提高英语水平的读者
• reading texts in English that you might well normally read in your own language
• 阅读你通常用自己的语言阅读的英文文本
e.g. word and logic games (this book) personality tests, jokes, word searches.
例如单词和逻辑游戏(这本书)性格测试，笑话，单词搜索。
• doing short exercises to improve speci!c areas grammar and vocabulary, i.e.
the areas that tend to lead to the most mistakes - the aim is just to focus on what
you really need rather than overwhelming you with a mass of rules, many of
which may have no practical daily value.
• 做简短的练习来提高特定领域的语法和词汇，即容易导致最多错误的领
域——目的只是关注你真正需要的东西，而不是用大量的规则来淹没
你，其中许多规则可能没有实际的日常价值。
Who Is the Book for?
这本书是给谁的？
Anyone, whether a native or non-native speaker of English, who is interested in
the English language, word games and logic games.
任何对英语、文字游戏和逻辑游戏感兴趣的人，无论母语是英语还是非英
语。
Which Is the Best Format to Buy this Book in?
购买这本书的最佳格式是什么？
Paper, without any doubt. The exercises involve you writing or underlining
directly onto the page. With an e-reader this would be much more dif!cult.
However, an e-book provides a dictionary which will occasionally be useful for
you.
纸，毫无疑问。这些练习要求你直接在纸上书写或划线。有了电子阅读器，
这将更加困难。然而，电子书提供了一本偶尔会对你有用的字典。
v
v
vi
Introduction to the Student
vi 对学生的介绍
What Level of English Do I Need In Order
to Bene!t from this Book?
为了从这本书中受益，我需要什么样的英
语水平？
The level of vocabulary required to understand this book is the highest of all the
books in the series. This means that you may come across words that you may not
be familiar with. This is because the vocabulary is authentic English - you are
read- ing the real thing! In any case, the dif!culty of some of the vocabulary is
compen- sated for by the shortness of the texts and the simplicity in understanding
the point of the exercises.
理解这本书所需的词汇水平是该系列所有书中最高的。这意味着你可能会遇
到你可能不熟悉的单词。这是因为这些词汇是地道的英语——你在读真正的
东西！无论如何，课文的简短和理解练习要点的简单性弥补了某些词汇的困
难。
If your level is intermediate and above, then you should be able to do most of the
exercises, though not necessarily all the questions within an exercise.
如果你的水平是中级以上，那么你应该能够做大部分的练习，虽然不一定是
一个练习中的所有问题。
If you need a dictionary to check the meanings of some words, two good online
dictionaries are:
如果你需要一本字典来检查一些单词的意思，两个好的在线字典是:
• Word Reference
• 单词引用
• The Cambridge Online Learners Dictionary
• 剑桥在线学习词典
Alternatively, if you are using an e-reader, you can use the dictionary provided by
the e-reader.
或者，如果你使用电子阅读器，你可以使用电子阅读器提供的词典。
What Kind of Exercises this Book Contain?
这本书包含哪种练习？
This book contains various exercises connected with some of the more unusual
aspects of the English language. There is also has a series of mathematical/logic
and lateral thinking games.
这本书包含了各种与英语的一些不寻常的方面有关的练习。还有一系列数
学/逻辑和横向思维游戏。
The book contains an incredible variety of exercises on areas of the English language that are not normally found for non-native speakers. Thus in many cases
you will be exposed to games that typically a native English speaker would do. I
have merely tried to adapt these games into a manageable format, but the actual
vocabu- lary contained has not been changed. This is authentic English!
这本书包含了大量英语领域的练习，这些练习对于非英语母语者来说是不常
见的。因此，在很多情况下，你会接触到一些典型的以英语为母语的人会玩
的游戏。我只是试图将这些游戏改编成一种易于管理的格式，但实际包含的
词汇并没有改变。这是地道的英语！
Where Are the Keys to the Exercises?
练习的答案在哪里？
The keys to the exercises from one chapter are all grouped together at the
end
that chapter.
keys all have
a light
background.
The ofkeys
to theThe
exercises
from
onegrey
chapter
are all grouped
together
at
the
end
of
that
chapter.
The
keys
have a
For ease of comprehension, keys often contain the full text ofall
the exercise.
light
grey
background.
The idea is that also you will thus be able to re-read the exercise along with
its
should help you
to revise
andcontain
remember
the full
vocabulary
Foranswer,
ease and
of this
comprehension,
keys
often
the
text
contained
in
the
exercise.
of the exercise. The idea is that also you will thus be able
to re-read the exercise along with its answer, and this
should help you to revise and remember the vocabulary con-
Introduction to the Student
vii
学生介绍 vii
How Do the Exercises Work?
练习是如何进行的？
Below is an explanation how each of exercise type in Chapters 2-12 works. For
full details see Chapter 1.
下面是对第 2-12 章中每种练习方式的解释。详情见第 1 章。
Ambiguous Headlines
模糊的标题
You will read a series of headlines from newspapers. These headlines are ambiguous which means they have more than one meaning.
你会从报纸上读到一系列的标题。这些标题含糊不清，意味着它们有不止一
个意思。
Task: Understand the ambiguity
任务:理解歧义
Anagrams
字谜
In this exercise you will see a word or set of words in one column, and another set
of words in the other column.
在这个练习中，你会在一栏中看到一个单词或一组单词，在另一栏中看到另
一组单词。
The words in the second column are anagrams of the words in the !rst column.
The words in the second column also act as a (humorous) description, explanation
or comment on the the !rst words.
第二栏中的单词是第一栏中单词的变位词。第二列中的单词也作为对第一列
单词的(幽默的)描述、解释或评论。
Example: astronomer - moon starer
例子:天文学家-月球恒星
Moon starer uses the same letters as astronomer, but also describes the work of an
astronomer who is someone who stares (in this case, looks at through a telescope)
at the moon.
Moon starer 使用与天文学家相同的字母，但也描述了天文学家的工作，天
文学家是凝视(在这种情况下，通过望远镜)月亮的人。
Task: To !nd a connection between the !rst column and the second column.
任务:找出第一列和第二列之间的联系。
Funny Book Titles
有趣的书名
You will be presented with !ve books titles and !ve authors. The authors’ names
need to be spoken aloud in a rapid manner for you to be able to understand their
meaning.
你将会看到五本书和五个作者。作者的名字需要以快速的方式大声说出来，
以便你能够理解他们的意思。
Task: Match the titles with authors.
任务:将标题与作者配对。
Limericks
打油诗
Task. Practise reading them aloud and hear/!nd the rhythm.
任务。练习大声朗读它们，并听到/找到节奏。
viii
Introduction to the Student
八学生简介
Logic/Mathematical
逻辑/数学
Task: Solve the problem.
任务:解决问题。
Riddles
谜语
There are several types of exercises using riddles.
有几种使用谜语的练习。
1) You will be presented with ten riddles. Each riddle consists of a question and
an answer.
2) 你将会得到十个谜语。每个谜语由一个问题和一个答案组成。
Task: Match the questions with the answers.
任务:将问题和答案配对。
3) You will be given a riddle with three possible answers.
4) 你将得到一个有三个可能答案的谜语。
Task: Choose the best/right answer. You may not always agree with the
answers given in the key.
任务:选择最佳/正确的答案。你可能不总是同意答案中给出的答案。
5) You will be presented with a riddle and its answer. However, some words have
been removed either from the riddle or from the answer. These words are contained in the box under the riddles.
6) 你将会看到一个谜语及其答案。然而，有些词已经从谜语或答案中删除
了。这些单词包含在谜语下面的盒子里。
Task: Insert the words from the box into the correct spaces.
任务:将方框中的单词插入正确的空格中。
Tongue Twisters
绕口令
Task: Practise reading the tongue twister aloud. Then see if you can memorize and
say it quickly without getting your tongue tied!
任务:练习大声朗读绕口令。然后看你能不能背下来，快速说出来，不至于
舌头打结！
Word Combinations
单词组合
You will be presented with two columns of words.
您将看到两列单词。
Task: Combine a word from the !rst column with a word from the second column.
Note that the word in the !rst column is not necessarily the !rst word in the
combi- nation and there may appear to be more than one possible combination.
任务:将第一列中的一个单词和第二列中的一个单词组合起来。请注意，第
一列中的单词不一定是组合中的第一个单词，可能会出现不止一种可能的组
合。
Introduction to the Teacher
对老师的介绍
How Can I Use this Book?
我如何使用这本书？
The exercises in this book can be used as:
本书中的练习可以用作:
• warm up exercises at the beginning of the lessons
•
•
•
•
•
•
开始上课时做热身运动
!llers if you’ve used up all the content you had planned for a lesson
如果你已经用完了你为一节课计划的所有内容
simply for fun at any point during the lesson
只是为了在课程中的任何时候玩玩
a means for improving students knowledge of areas of English typically not
taught in course books - these areas include idiomatic expressions, proverbs,
word combinations
• 一种提高学生英语知识的方法，这些知识通常不在教科书中教授——这
些领域包括习语、谚语、单词组合
• a means for introducing your students to areas of English that are part of the
culture of the language - riddles, limericks, tongue twisters, palindromes etc
• 向你的学生介绍英语文化的一部分——谜语、打油诗、绕口令、回文等
What Are the Other Books in this Series? Which One Should
I Read Next?
这个系列还有哪些书？接下来该读哪本？
Currently there are six books in the series.
目前该系列有六部书。
Word games, riddles and logic tests - tax your brain and boost your English
文字游戏、谜语和逻辑测试——消耗你的大脑，提高你的英语水平
Test your personality - have fun and learn useful phrases
测试你的个性——享受乐趣，学习有用的短语
Wordsearches - widen your vocabulary in English
单词搜索——扩大你的英语词汇量
Jokes - have a laugh and improve your English
笑话——开怀大笑，提高你的英语水平
Top 50 grammar mistakes in English - how to avoid them
英语 50 大语法错误——如何避免
Top 50 vocabulary mistakes in English - how to avoid them
英语 50 大词汇错误——如何避免
ix
离子交换
x
Introduction to the Teacher
十、老师介绍
What Other Similar Books Might I Find Useful?
还有哪些类似的书我可能会觉得有用？
If you teach children and young teenagers, they you might be interested in my
book of word games called Mindtwisters (published by Scholastic).
如果你教儿童和青少年，你可能会对我的名为《智力游戏》的书感兴趣。
Various games and discussion exercises (including various quizzes/personality
tests) for older teenagers and adults can be found in Discussions AZ (two volumes:
intermediate and advanced, published by Cambridge University Press).
针对年龄较大的青少年和成人的各种游戏和讨论练习(包括各种测验/个性测
试)可以在 Discussions AZ(两卷本:中级和高级，由剑桥大学出版社出版)
中找到。
There is also a series of discussion, warm up exercises, !llers etc published by
SEFL (se".co.uk).
还有一系列的讨论，热身练习，填充等由 SEFL (sefl.co.uk)发布。
Ideas for Other Books for this Series
本系列其他书籍的创意
If you have any ideas for other books that could be part of the Easy English series
then please email me.
如果你对《简易英语》系列的其他书籍有任何想法，请发邮件给我。
The Author
作者
Since 1984 Adrian Wallwork has been teaching English as a foreign language from General English to Business English to Scienti!c English. Although he lives
and works in Pisa (Italy), through his university work he has taught students of all
nationalities. Adrian is the author of over 30 textbooks for Springer
Science+Business Media, Cambridge University Press, Oxford University Press,
the BBC, and many other publishers. He can be contacted at:
adrian.wallwork@gmail.com
自 1984 年以来，阿德里安·沃尔沃克一直从事英语作为外语的教学——从
普通英语到商务英语再到科技英语。虽然他在比萨(意大利)生活和工作，但
通 过 他 的 大 学 工 作 ， 他 教 过 所 有 国 籍 的 学 生 。 Adrian 是 Springer
Science+Business Media、剑桥大学出版社、牛津大学出版社、BBC 和许多
其 他 出 版 社 的 30 多 本 教 科 书 的 作 者 。 可 以 通 过 以 下 方 式 联 系
他:adrian.wallwork@gmail.com
Acknowledgements and Sources
鸣谢和来源
A big thanks to all my students (including various maths professors) who have
pro- vided me over the years with many of the logic and mathematical games that
appear in this book.
非常感谢我所有的学生(包括各种数学教授)，这些年来他们为我提供了本书
中出现的许多逻辑和数学游戏。
Particular thanks to Robert Parks at Wordsmyth and Prabhav Jain at EasyDe!ne,
who gave me permission to use the de!nitions that are automatically generated by
their websites.
特别感谢 Wordsmyth 的 Robert Parks 和 EasyDefine 的 Prabhav Jain，他们
允许我使用他们网站自动生成的定义。
EasyDe!ne de!nitions are taken from
https://wordnet.princeton.edu/wordnet/citing-wordnet/
EasyDefine 的定义取自 https://
wordnet.princeton.edu/wordnet/citingwordnet/
Some of the anagrams were created at:
Quickworksheets.net
一些字谜创造
于:Quickworksheets.net
Some of the riddles were taken from:
一些谜语取自:
https://savagelegend.com/misc-resources/classic-riddles-1-100/
Most of the funny book titles were taken from:
https://savage legend . com/misc-resources/classic-谜
语-1-100/大部分搞笑的书名都取自:
http://allowe.com/laughs/book/Funny%20Book%20Titles.htm
Some palindromes and anagrams were taken from:
http://allowe.com/laughs/book/Funny%20Book
%20Titles.htm 一些回文和字谜取自:
http://www.fun-with-words.com/palin_word_palindromes.html
http://www.anagrammy.com/anagrams/faq2.html
http://www.fun-with-words.com/
palin_word_palindromes.htmlhttp://www.anagrammy.com/anagrams/
faq2.html
I also consulted the following books:
我还查阅了以下书籍:
Good Word Guide: The fast way to correct English - spelling, punctuation,
grammar and usage, Martin Manser, A&C Black; 2007
好词指南:纠正英语的快速方法——拼写、标点、语法和用法，马丁·
曼瑟、A&C·布莱克；2007
More Puzzles and Curious Problems, Henry Ernest Dudeney, Fontana, 1970
更多的困惑和好奇的问题，亨利·欧内斯特·杜登尼，丰塔纳，1970 年
Palindromes and Anagrams, Howard W. Bergerson, Pan American, 1973
回文和变位词，霍华德 w .伯格森，泛美航空公司，1973 年
xi
xi
xii
Acknowledgements and Sources
十二、鸣谢和来源
Puzzles & Brainteasers Gyles Brandreth, Hennerwood Publications, 1982
《谜题与脑筋急转弯》,盖尔斯·布兰德瑞斯，亨纳伍德出版社，1982
年
Radio Times Puzzle Book Clive Doig, Penguin, 1984
《广播时报》解谜书克莱夫·多伊格，企鹅出版社，1984 年
Radio Times Brainbox Puzzle Book Vol. 3, Clive Doig, BBC, 1993
广播时代智力拼图书第 3 卷，克莱夫·多伊格，英国广播公司，1993
Solve it! James F Fixx, Frederick Muller, 1978
解决它！詹姆斯·菲克斯，弗雷德里克·穆勒，1978 年
The Pan Pocket Puzzler, Michael Holt, Pan, 1985
潘口袋拼图，迈克尔霍尔特，潘，1985 年
The World’s Most Challenging Puzzles, Charles Barry Townsend, Sterling
Publishing, 1988
《世界上最具挑战性的难题》，查尔斯·巴里·汤森，斯特林出版
社，1988 年
What’s the Name of this Book? Raymond Smullyan, Pelican, 1981
这本书叫什么名字？雷蒙德·斯穆利安，鹈鹕，1981 年
Finally, thanks to Edward de Bono whose books have inspired three generations of
lateral thinkers.
最后，感谢爱德华·德·波诺，他的书激励了三代横向思想家。
The chapter titles come from the following authors and we would like to acknowledge their contribution for their wonderful chapters.
章节标题来自以下作者，我们要感谢他们对精彩章节的贡献。
2) We do not stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop
playing! (Benjamin Franklin)
3) 我们不会因为变老而停止玩耍，我们会因为停止玩耍而变老！(本杰明
·富兰克林)
4) The scientist should treasure the riddles he can’t solve. (Roberto Unger)
5) 科学家应该珍惜他无法解答的谜题。(罗伯托·昂格尔)
6) Play up! play up! And play the game. (Sir Henry Newbolt)
7) 打起来！打起来！玩游戏。(亨利·纽博尔特爵士)
8) Thanks to words, we have been able to rise above the brute. (Aldous Huxley)
9) 感谢文字，我们已经能够超越兽性。(阿尔多斯·赫胥黎)
10) Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind. (Rudyard
Kipling)
11)
当然，语言是人类使用的最有效的药物。(拉迪亚德·吉卜林)
12)
Words are illusions. (Bodidharma)
13)
文字是幻象。(菩提达摩)
14)Language exists as songs, riddles, or epics that are chanted. (F. Sionil Jose)
15)语言以被吟唱的歌曲、谜语或史诗的形式存在。(西尼尔·何塞)
16)Life is more fun if you play games. (Roald Dahl)
17)如果你玩游戏，生活会更有趣。(罗尔德·达尔)
18) Words outlive people, institutions, civilizations. (Inga Muscio)
19) 文字比人类、制度、文明更长久。(因加·穆斯乔)
20) Have fun and play as many word games as possible. ( Sophie Winkleman)
21) 玩得开心，尽可能多的玩文字游戏。(索菲·温克曼)
Contents
内容
1
Introduction to the games, riddles and verses used in this book
Acronyms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ambiguous Headlines. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Anagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Funny Book Titles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Lewis Carroll. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Limericks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Palindromes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Proverbs and Idioms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Riddles . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Rhyming Forms. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Similes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tongue Twisters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1
1
2
3
4
5
7
8
9
10
12
12
14
2
We do not stop playing because we grow
old, we grow old because we stop playing!
Riddles 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Anagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Funny Book Titles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Limericks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Proverbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
15
15
16
16
16
17
Logic 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Logic 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Word Combinations 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Word Combinations 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tense Challenge 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Ambiguous Headlines. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Riddles 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Tongue Twisters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Logic 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
17
17
18
18
19
19
20
21
21
xiii
1 介绍本书中使用的游戏、谜语和诗句
缩略
语。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
模糊的标
题。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。。
字
谜。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
有趣的书
名。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
刘易斯·卡罗
尔。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
打油
诗。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
回
文。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
谚语和成
语。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。。。
谜
语。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
押韵形
式。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
明
喻。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
绕口
令。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
我们不会因为变老而停止玩耍，我们会因为停
止玩耍而变老！
谜语
一
一
2
3
四
5
七
8
9
10
12
12
14
15
15
1。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
字
谜。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
有趣的书
名。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
打油
诗。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
谚
语。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
逻辑
1。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
逻辑
二。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
单词组合
1。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。
单词组合
2。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。
紧张挑战
1。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。。。。
模糊的标
题。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。。
谜语
2。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
绕口
令。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
逻辑
3。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。。
16
16
16
17
17
17
18
18
19
19
20
21
21
罗马
数字
13
xiv
Contents
十四目录
Anagrams........................................................................................................21
Tense Challenge 2..........................................................................................22
Word Ladder...................................................................................................22
3
The scientist should treasure the riddles he can’t solve
29
Rhyming Forms..............................................................................................29
Tongue Twister...............................................................................................30
Riddles............................................................................................................30
Cryptic Meaning.............................................................................................31
Funny Book Titles..........................................................................................31
Animal Idioms................................................................................................31
Anagrams........................................................................................................32
Limericks........................................................................................................32
Mathematical 1...............................................................................................32
Mathematical 2...............................................................................................32
Mathematical 3...............................................................................................33
Pseudodromes.................................................................................................33
Tense Challenge.............................................................................................33
Word Ladder...................................................................................................34
4
Play up! play up! and play the game
39
Numbers..........................................................................................................39
Word Ladder...................................................................................................40
Proverbs..........................................................................................................41
Tongue Twisters.............................................................................................42
Riddles............................................................................................................42
Funny Book Titles..........................................................................................43
Limericks........................................................................................................43
Preposition Challenge.....................................................................................43
On a Mat up Here...........................................................................................44
Anagrams........................................................................................................44
Mathematical 1...............................................................................................44
Mathematical 2...............................................................................................45
Mathematical 3...............................................................................................45
Rhyming Words..............................................................................................45
Anagrams........................................................................................................46
Logical Ladies?...............................................................................................46
Ambiguous Headlines.....................................................................................47
5
Thanks to words, we have been able to rise above the brute
53
Acronyms........................................................................................................53
Rhyming Words..............................................................................................54
Limericks........................................................................................................54
Word Ladder...................................................................................................55
Riddles............................................................................................................55
Ambiguous Headlines.....................................................................................56
Contents
xv
Palindromes....................................................................................................56
Anagrams........................................................................................................57
Colorful Idioms...............................................................................................58
Mathematical 1...............................................................................................58
Mathematical 2...............................................................................................58
Mathematical 3...............................................................................................59
QWERTY or CWAZY?.................................................................................59
Grammar Challenge........................................................................................59
Similes............................................................................................................60
Smileys...........................................................................................................60
Proverbs..........................................................................................................61
6
Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind
69
Symbols..........................................................................................................69
Contractions....................................................................................................70
Riddles............................................................................................................70
Word Ladder...................................................................................................71
Anagrams........................................................................................................72
Rhyming Words..............................................................................................72
Proverbs..........................................................................................................73
Limericks........................................................................................................73
Rhyming Forms..............................................................................................74
Special Words.................................................................................................74
Tense Challenge.............................................................................................75
Riddles............................................................................................................76
Mathematical 1...............................................................................................76
Mathematical 2...............................................................................................77
Mathematical 3...............................................................................................77
Similes............................................................................................................77
Riddles............................................................................................................78
Anagrams........................................................................................................78
Palindromes....................................................................................................79
7
Words are illusions
87
Funny Book Titles..........................................................................................87
Word Ladder...................................................................................................88
Limericks........................................................................................................88
Ambiguous Headlines.....................................................................................88
Proverbs..........................................................................................................89
Rhyming Words..............................................................................................90
Contractions....................................................................................................90
Riddles............................................................................................................91
Anagrams........................................................................................................91
Logical Thinking............................................................................................92
Anagrams........................................................................................................92
Buzz-phrase Generator...................................................................................93
xvi
Contents
Mathematical 1...............................................................................................93
Mathematical 2...............................................................................................93
Mathematical 3...............................................................................................94
Animal Farm...................................................................................................94
Grammar Challenge 1.....................................................................................94
Grammar Challenge 2.....................................................................................95
Grammar Challenge 3.....................................................................................95
Grammar Challenge 4.....................................................................................95
Grammar Challenge 5.....................................................................................95
Idioms.............................................................................................................95
8
Language exists as songs, riddles, or epics that are chanted
103
Riddles..........................................................................................................103
Short Forms..................................................................................................104
Acronyms......................................................................................................104
Grammar Challenge......................................................................................104
Rhyming Pairs..............................................................................................105
Funny Book Titles........................................................................................105
Anagrams......................................................................................................106
Mathematical 1.............................................................................................106
Mathematical 2.............................................................................................106
Mathematical 3.............................................................................................106
Mathematical 4.............................................................................................107
Mathematical 5.............................................................................................107
Mathematical 6.............................................................................................107
Palindromes..................................................................................................107
Proverbs........................................................................................................108
Anagrams......................................................................................................109
Word Ladder.................................................................................................110
9
Life is more fun if you play games
117
Irregular Verbs..............................................................................................117
Anagrams 1...................................................................................................118
Unusual Paragraph........................................................................................118
Word Ladder.................................................................................................118
Riddles..........................................................................................................119
Tongue Twisters...........................................................................................120
Anagrams......................................................................................................120
Proverbs........................................................................................................121
Limericks......................................................................................................121
Mathematical 1.............................................................................................122
Mathematical 2.............................................................................................122
Mathematical 3.............................................................................................122
Mathematical 4.............................................................................................122
Contents
xvii
Mathematical 5.............................................................................................122
Txt mssg.......................................................................................................123
Grammar Challenges....................................................................................123
Play Your Cards Right..................................................................................124
10
Words outlive people, institutions, civilizations
131
Word Ladder.................................................................................................131
Smileys.........................................................................................................132
Limericks......................................................................................................132
Grammar Challenge......................................................................................133
Word Combinations......................................................................................133
Proverbs........................................................................................................134
Illogical?.......................................................................................................134
Anagrams......................................................................................................135
Logical 1.......................................................................................................135
Logical 2.......................................................................................................135
Logical 3.......................................................................................................136
Rhyming Forms............................................................................................136
Riddles..........................................................................................................137
Idioms...........................................................................................................138
Add an -e......................................................................................................138
11
Have fun and play as many word games as possible
145
Grammar Challenge 1...................................................................................145
Grammar Challenge 2...................................................................................145
Similes..........................................................................................................146
Word Ladder.................................................................................................146
Riddles..........................................................................................................147
Add an -e......................................................................................................148
Idioms...........................................................................................................148
Funny book titles..........................................................................................149
Lewis Carroll Logic Games 1.......................................................................149
Lewis Carroll Logic Games 2.......................................................................150
Lewis Carroll Logic Games 3.......................................................................150
Anagrams......................................................................................................150
Limericks......................................................................................................151
Proverbs........................................................................................................151
Grammar Challenge 1...................................................................................152
Grammar Challenge 2...................................................................................152
Grammar Challenge 3...................................................................................152
Grammar Challenge 4...................................................................................152
Anagrams....................................................21
Tense Challenge 2...........................................22
Word Ladder.................................................22
12 The scientist should treasure the riddles he can’t solve
29
Rhyming Forms...............................................29
Tongue Twister..............................................30
Riddles.....................................................30
Cryptic Meaning.............................................31
Funny Book Titles...........................................31
Animal Idioms...............................................31
Anagrams....................................................32
Limericks...................................................32
Mathematical 1..............................................32
Mathematical 2..............................................32
Mathematical 3..............................................33
Pseudodromes................................................33
Tense Challenge.............................................33
Word Ladder.................................................34
13 Play up! play up! and play the game
39
Numbers.....................................................39
Word Ladder.................................................40
Proverbs....................................................41
Tongue Twisters.............................................42
Riddles.....................................................42
Funny Book Titles...........................................43
Limericks...................................................43
Preposition Challenge.......................................43
On a Mat up Here............................................44
Anagrams....................................................44
Mathematical 1..............................................44
Mathematical 2..............................................45
Mathematical 3..............................................45
Rhyming Words...............................................45
Anagrams....................................................46
Logical Ladies?.............................................46
Ambiguous Headlines.........................................47
14 Thanks to words, we have been able to rise above the brute 53
Acronyms....................................................53
Rhyming Words...............................................54
Limericks...................................................54
Word Ladder.................................................55
Riddles.....................................................55
Ambiguous Headlines.........................................56
Contents
xv
Palindromes.................................................56
Anagrams....................................................57
Colorful Idioms.............................................58
Mathematical 1..............................................58
Mathematical 2..............................................58
Mathematical 3..............................................59
QWERTY or CWAZY?............................................59
Grammar Challenge...........................................59
Similes.....................................................60
Smileys.....................................................60
Proverbs....................................................61
15 Words are, of course, the most powerful drug used by mankind69
Symbols.....................................................69
Contractions................................................70
Riddles.....................................................70
Word Ladder.................................................71
Anagrams....................................................72
Rhyming Words...............................................72
Proverbs....................................................73
Limericks...................................................73
Rhyming Forms...............................................74
Special Words...............................................74
Tense Challenge.............................................75
Riddles.....................................................76
Mathematical 1..............................................76
Mathematical 2..............................................77
Mathematical 3..............................................77
Similes.....................................................77
Riddles.....................................................78
Anagrams....................................................78
Palindromes.................................................79
16 Words are illusions
87
Funny Book Titles...........................................87
Word Ladder.................................................88
Limericks...................................................88
Ambiguous Headlines.........................................88
Proverbs....................................................89
Rhyming Words...............................................90
Contractions................................................90
Riddles.....................................................91
Anagrams....................................................91
Logical Thinking............................................92
Anagrams....................................................92
Buzz-phrase Generator.......................................93
xvi
Contents
Mathematical 1..............................................93
Mathematical 2..............................................93
Mathematical 3..............................................94
Animal Farm.................................................94
Grammar Challenge 1.........................................94
Grammar Challenge 2.........................................95
Grammar Challenge 3.........................................95
Grammar Challenge 4.........................................95
Grammar Challenge 5.........................................95
Idioms......................................................95
17 Language exists as songs, riddles, or epics that are chanted103
Riddles....................................................103
Short Forms................................................104
Acronyms...................................................104
Grammar Challenge..........................................104
Rhyming Pairs..............................................105
Funny Book Titles..........................................105
Anagrams...................................................106
Mathematical 1.............................................106
Mathematical 2.............................................106
Mathematical 3.............................................106
Mathematical 4.............................................107
Mathematical 5.............................................107
Mathematical 6.............................................107
Palindromes................................................107
Proverbs...................................................108
Anagrams...................................................109
Word Ladder................................................110
18 Life is more fun if you play games
117
Irregular Verbs............................................117
Anagrams 1.................................................118
Unusual Paragraph..........................................118
Word Ladder................................................118
Riddles....................................................119
Tongue Twisters............................................120
Anagrams...................................................120
Proverbs...................................................121
Limericks..................................................121
Mathematical 1.............................................122
Mathematical 2.............................................122
Mathematical 3.............................................122
Mathematical 4.............................................122
Contents
xvii
Mathematical 5.............................................122
Txt mssg...................................................123
Grammar Challenges.........................................123
Play Your Cards Right......................................124
19
Words outlive people, institutions, civilizations
131
Word Ladder................................................131
Smileys....................................................132
Limericks..................................................132
Grammar Challenge..........................................133
Word Combinations..........................................133
Proverbs...................................................134
Illogical?.................................................134
Anagrams...................................................135
Logical 1..................................................135
Logical 2..................................................135
Logical 3..................................................136
Rhyming Forms..............................................136
Riddles....................................................137
Idioms.....................................................138
Add an -e..................................................138
20
Have fun and play as many word games as possible
145
Grammar Challenge 1........................................145
Grammar Challenge 2........................................145
Similes....................................................146
Word Ladder................................................146
Riddles....................................................147
Add an -e..................................................148
Idioms.....................................................148
Funny book titles..........................................149
Lewis Carroll Logic Games 1................................149
Lewis Carroll Logic Games 2................................150
Lewis Carroll Logic Games 3................................150
Anagrams...................................................150
Limericks..................................................151
Proverbs...................................................151
Grammar Challenge 1........................................152
Grammar Challenge 2........................................152
Grammar Challenge 3........................................152
Grammar Challenge 4........................................152
Chapter 1
第一章
Introduction to the games, riddles and verses
used in this book
介绍本书中使用的游戏、谜语和诗句
This chapter explains the origin of the games, how they work, and/or the people
who invented and collected them.
这一章解释了游戏的起源，它们是如何工作的，和 /或发明和收集它们的
人。
Acronyms
首字母缩略词
An acronym is a word formed from the initial letters of other words, e.g. pdf
stands for portable document format, ASAP stands for as soon as possible. Some
acro- nyms have become so much part of the language that most people don’t even
realise that they are acronyms. For example, radar is formed from radio detection
and ranging and laser derives from light ampli!cation by the stimulated emission
of radiation. There are now so many acronyms in the language that there are
special- ised dictionaries on the subject. Chat rooms have spawned hundreds of
acronyms,
首字母缩略词是由其他单词的首字母组成的单词，例如 pdf 代表可移植文档
格式，ASAP 代表尽快。一些首字母缩写词已经成为语言的一部分，以至于
大多数人甚至没有意识到它们是首字母缩写词。例如，雷达是由无线电探测
和测距形成的，激光是由辐射的受激发射产生的光放大而成的。现在这种语
言中有如此多的首字母缩略词，以至于有专门针对这一主题的词典。聊天室
产生了数百个首字母缩写词，
e.g. IMHO = in my humble opinion.
依我拙见。
© Springer International Publishing AG 2018
施普林格国际出版公司 2018 年 1 月
A. Wallwork, Word Games, Riddles and Logic Tests, Easy
English!, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0_1
A.沃尔沃克，文字游戏，谜语和逻辑测试，简单英
语！，https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0_1
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2
2
Ambiguous Headlines
模糊的标题
A sentence or phrase is ambiguous or vague when it has more than one interpretation or its interpretation is not obvious. Newspapers are notorious for producing
ambiguous headlines. For example:
当一个句子或短语有一个以上的解释或解释不明显时，这个句子或短语就是
歧义的或模糊的。报纸因制造模棱两可的标题而臭名昭著。例如:
Police found drunk in shop window.
Magistrates act to keep theaters open.
警察发现醉汉在商店橱窗里。地方
法官采取行动让剧院继续营业。
The key words in the two cases above are drunk and act. The real meaning of the
first one is that the police found a drunk (i.e. a drunk man) lying in a shop
window. The other, humorous, interpretation, is that a police officer was found
drunk (i.e. the officer had been drinking). The intended meaning in the second
headline is that the magistrates acted (i.e. took legal measures) to ensure that
theaters would not be closed. The humorous meaning is that the magistrates acted
(i.e. were actors and actresses) in theater productions designed to raise money to
keep the theaters open (i.e. not shut down).
上面两个案例的关键词都是醉和行为。第一个的真正含义是警察发现一个醉
汉(即一个喝醉了的人)躺在一家商店的橱窗里。另一种幽默的解释是，一名
警官被发现喝醉了(即该警官一直在喝酒)。第二个标题的本意是治安法官采
取行动(即采取法律措施)确保剧院不会被关闭。幽默的意思是，治安官在戏
剧作品中扮演角色(即男女演员)，旨在筹集资金保持剧院开放(即不关闭)。
Some famous ambiguous headlines include:
一些著名的模糊标题包括:
1) Girl with a detective in her boot.
2) 靴子里穿着警探的女孩。
3) Kids make nutritious snacks.
4) 孩子们做有营养的小吃。
5) Milk drinkers are turning to powder.
6) 喝牛奶的人正在转向奶粉。
7) Drunk gets nine months in violin case.
Below are the explanations.
8) 醉汉在小提琴案中被判九个月。以
下是解释。
1) Intended meaning (IM): A female was being investigated. While she was driving, there was a detective in the boot of her car. Humorous meaning (HM): A
girl has a detective in her shoe (boot).
2) 本意(IM):一名女性正在接受调查。她开车时，她的汽车行李箱里有一名
侦探。幽默含义(HM):一个女孩的鞋子(boot)里有一个侦探。
3) IM: Children have been cooking snacks that contain beneficial ingredients.
HM: If you want a snack, try eating a child.
4) IM:孩子们一直在烹饪含有有益成分的零食。嗯:如果你想吃零食，试着
吃一个孩子。
5) IM: Consumers who use milk have started to use powdered milk. HM: Milk
consumers are being transformed into powder.
6) IM:用牛奶的消费者已经开始用奶粉了。HM:奶消费者正在被转化为粉。
7) IM: A drunk man who is involved in a criminal case that regards a violin has
been sentenced by a court to nine months in prison. HM: A drunk man is to
spend nine months enclosed in a violin case (i.e. a case for carrying a violin).
8) IM:一名醉酒男子因涉及一把小提琴的刑事案件被法院判处九个月监
禁。HM:一个喝醉的人要在一个小提琴盒子里呆九个月 (也就是一个装小
提琴的盒子)。
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3
Anagrams
字谜
What do cheating and a teaching have in common?
作弊和教书有什么共同点？
They are anagrams of each other: the letters in cheating can be rearranged to form
a new word, in this case teaching. Anagrams can be of individual words, or even
of phrases or the names of people. The basic rule is that the letters of the first
words or phrase must be used once and only once in the anagrammed word or
phrase.
它们是彼此的变位词:作弊中的字母可以重新排列形成一个新单词，在这种
情况下是教学。变位词可以是单个单词，甚至是短语或人名。基本规则是，
第一个单词或短语的字母必须使用一次，并且在编程的单词或短语中只能使
用一次。
According to some historians, the first anagram was created by the Greek poet
Lycophron in 260 B.C. A collection of anagrams in English published in 1925 and
entitled Anagrammasia contained around 5,000 anagrams.
根据一些历史学家的说法，第一个变位词是希腊诗人 Lycophron 在公元前
260 年创造的。1925 年出版的英文变位词集《Anagrammasia》包含大约 5000
个变位词。
The most inventive anagrams are meaningful and relate in some way to the
original subject. Below are some examples:
最有创意的字谜是有意义的，并在某种程度上与原始主题相关。以下是一些
例子:
admirer = married
仰慕者=已婚
an alcoholic beverage = gal, can I have cool beer?
酒精饮料= gal，能给我来杯凉啤酒吗？
American = the main race
angered = enraged
美国人=主要种族被激
怒了=被激怒了
the answer = wasn’t here
contemplation = on mental topic
答案不在这里沉思
Over the centuries anagrams have been:
几个世纪以来，字谜一直是:
• believed to have mystical or prophetic meanings
• 被认为有神秘或预言的意义
• created around religious texts
• 围绕宗教文本创作
• adopted by famous people to anagram their own name
• 被名人采用来变位他们自己的名字
• used to record the results of scientists
• 用来记录科学家的成果
• used in cryptic crosswords and puzzles journals
• 用于神秘的纵横字谜和字谜杂志
Before the advent of radio and the TV, educated people would pass their evenings
creating anagrams. Anagrams then fell out of fashion, but have been revived by IT
experts who have created anagram-creating software enabling us to create
anagrams of the most bizarre words and names.
在收音机和电视出现之前，受过教育的人会在晚上创造字谜。后来变位词不
再流行，但又被 IT 专家复兴，他们创造了变位词创造软件，使我们能够创
造出最奇怪的单词和名字的变位词。
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四
If you like anagrams then try www.anagrammy.com which contains anagrams
such as the following, which have all been created (by humans not software!)
since 2000.
如果你喜欢字谜，那就试试吧 www.anagrammy.com 它包含了如下的字谜，
这些字谜都是由人而不是软件创造的！)从 2000 年开始。
A carton of cigarettes = I got a taste for
cancer. A crisis on Wall Street = Will start a
recession. Adult novels = Love and lust!
一盒香烟=我尝到了癌症的滋味。华尔街的
危机=将引发经济衰退。成人小说=爱欲！
Archaeologists = Goal is to search.
Italian crime boss = A Sicilian mobster.
Metamorphosis = Promises a moth.
考古学家的目标是寻找。意大利犯罪
头目=西西里岛的暴徒。蜕变=许诺一
只飞蛾。
Military weapon = Employ it in a war.
军事武器=在战争中使用。
New Year’s Resolution = Notions we rarely use.
新年决心=我们很少使用的观念。
The National Rifle Association = Fanatical loonies are into this.
全国步枪协会=狂热的疯子对此很感兴趣。
The Pope’s view on contraception = It is one concept he won’t approve.
教皇对避孕的看法=这是他不会赞同的一个概念。
The President of the United States of America = Incompetent, hated head of
state terrifies us.
美国总统=无能的，令人讨厌的国家元首让我们害怕。
Funny Book Titles
有趣的书名
Funny book titles work by having a plausible title with an author’s name that in
some way relates to the title. Here are some examples:
有趣的书名的工作原理是有一个看似合理的标题，标题上有一个在某种程度
上与标题相关的作者的名字。以下是一些例子:
Danger by Luke Out
危险由卢克出来
Blood on the Cof!n by Horace Tory
霍勒斯·托里的《棺材上的血》
Good Works by Ben Evolent
Ben Evolent 的优秀作品
Often when we want to alert someone that there is an imminent danger we say
‘Look out’. Luke (a male first name) and look are pronounced very similarly, so
the author’s name (Luke Out) fits nicely with the name of the book. A coffin is where
a dead person is placed by before being buried. Blood on the Cof!n gives the idea
that the book will be a horror story (try saying Horace Tory quickly!). The word
benevo- lent (Ben Evolent) refers to someone who wishes to do good things for
other people.
通常，当我们想提醒某人有迫在眉睫的危险时，我们会说“小
心”。Luke(男性名)和 look 的发音非常相似，所以作者的名字(Luke Out)
非常符合这本书的名字。棺材是死人下葬前放置的地方。棺材上的血给人的
感觉是这本书将是一个恐怖故事(试着快速说出霍勒斯·托里！).benevolent 这个词指的是希望为他人做好事的人。
5
5
In all cases the author’s name is designed to look realistic. Then, when it is read
quickly its other meaning becomes apparent.
在所有情况下，作者的名字都被设计得看起来很真实。然后，当它被快速阅
读时，它的另一个意思就变得明显了。
Here are a few more with the explanation of the author in brackets.
下面再来几个，括号里是作者的解释。
Arti!cial Clothing by Polly Ester (polyester)
Polly Ester(聚酯)人造服装
At the Eleventh Hour by Justin Time (just in time)
在贾斯汀时间的最后一刻(刚好及时)
French Overpopulation by Francis Crowded (France is crowed)
弗朗西斯拥挤的法国人口过剩(法国是拥挤)
If I Invited Him... by Woody Kum (would he come?)
如果我邀请他...伍迪·库姆(他会来吗？)
Mensa Man by Gene Yuss (genius)
Gene Yuss(天才)的 Mensa Man
Stop Arguing by Xavier Breath (save your breath)
停止争论由泽维尔呼吸(保存你的呼吸)
The Excitement of Bird Watching by I. M. Board (I am bored)
在 I. M .板边观鸟的兴奋(我很无聊)
Lewis Carroll
路易斯·卡罗尔
Lewis Carroll is often considered as some slightly eccentric character who wrote
children’s stories set in a wonderful make believe land that appealed both to kids
and adults alike.
刘易斯·卡罗尔经常被认为是一个有点古怪的人物，他写的儿童故事背景是
一个奇妙的虚构世界，对孩子和成年人都有吸引力。
His real name was the Reverend Charles Dodgson and he was far more than a
writer. He was born in 1832 and spent much of his childhood doing magic shows
for his brothers and sisters. He then went away to school at Rugby before getting
his degree at Oxford University.
他的真名是牧师查尔斯·道奇森，他不仅仅是一个作家。他出生于 1832
年，童年的大部分时间都在为他的兄弟姐妹表演魔术。在牛津大学获得学位
之前，他去了拉格比的学校。
His most famous books are Alice in Wonderland, written in 1865, and Through a
Looking Glass which he wrote seven years later. Alice was based on the daughter
of the Dean of Christ Church, which was the college at Oxford where Carroll later
became Professor of Mathematics. He was in fact a terribly boring professor, so
bad in fact that his students asked for him to be replaced.
他最著名的书是 1865 年写的《爱丽丝梦游仙境》和 7 年后写的《透过镜
子》。爱丽丝是以基督教堂院长的女儿为原型的，这是牛津大学的一所学
院，卡罗尔后来在那里成为了数学教授。事实上，他是一个非常无聊的教
授，糟糕到他的学生要求换掉他。
Besides writing children’s stories and mathematical treatises, he also wrote an
incredible number of letters. In fact from the age of 29 to his death in 1898, he
wrote no less than 98,271 letters. Many of these letters were written in mirror
language, or back to front, so that they had to be read from the end to the
beginning, and most contained some kinds of puzzles.
除了写儿童故事和数学论文，他还写了数量惊人的信件。事实上，从 29 岁
到 1898 年去世，他写了不下 98271 封信。这些信中有许多是用镜像语言写
的，或者是从后到前写的，所以必须从头到尾读一遍，而且大部分都包含一
些谜题。
In Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland, Alice is a little girl who dreams that she
pursues a White Rabbit down a rabbit-hole and there meets with strange adventures and odd characters: the Cheshire Cat, the Mad Hatter and the March Hare
amongst others.
在《爱丽丝漫游奇境记》中，爱丽丝是一个小女孩，她梦见自己在一个兔子
洞里追逐一只白兔，在那里遇到了奇怪的人物和古怪的角色:柴郡猫、疯帽
子和三月兔等等。
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6
Carroll enjoyed converting one word into another by changing one letter at a time.
For example, he transformed hate into love in just two links:
卡罗尔喜欢通过一次改变一个字母来将一个单词转换成另一个单词。比如，
他只用了两个环节就把恨转化成了爱:
HATE
heave
-
举起
哈亚特
have
h o v e 世分)
LOV
E
h
e
v
O
a
h
e
V
v
o
L
E
And !sh into bird in four
links: F I S H
和鱼变成鸟的四个环节:fish
, fist
拳头
虧
f i s t
2 g i s t 准备
girt
gird
年
g i
s t
g i
r t
g i
r d
BIRD
B I 研发中心
-
In Through the Looking Glass 1872, Alice walks in a dream through the looking
glass into Looking-Glass House, where she finds that the people from the chessboard, particularly the red and white queens, are alive. She also meets with
Tweedledum and Tweedledee and Humpty Dumpty etc.
在《透过镜子》1872 中，爱丽丝在梦中透过镜子走进镜子屋，在那里她发
现棋盘上的人，尤其是红皇后和白皇后，还活着。她还会见了特威丹、特威
丹和汉仆·邓普蒂等。
There are various logic games in his two Alice books. Here is one:
他的两本爱丽丝书里有各种各样的逻辑游戏。这里有一个:
Someone had stolen the salt. It was found that the culprit was either the
Caterpillar, Bill the Lizard, or the Cheshire Cat. The three were tried and made
the following statements in court:
有人偷了盐。人们发现，罪魁祸首要么是毛毛虫，要么是蜥蜴比尔，要么
是柴郡猫。这三人接受了审判，并在法庭上作了如下陈述:
Caterpillar: Bill the Lizard at the salt.
Bill the Lizard: That is true!
毛毛虫:比尔在盐旁的蜥蜴。蜥蜴
比尔:这是真的！
Cheshire Cat: I didn’t eat it!
柴郡猫:我没有吃！
As it happened, at least one of them lied and at least one told the truth. Who ate
the salt?
事实上，他们中至少有一个撒谎了，至少有一个说了实话。谁吃了盐？
For the solution to this game and the one below, see the KEY at the end of this
section.
关于这个游戏和下面这个游戏的答案，请参见本节末尾的答案。
Carroll also had a habit of seeking out young girls and challenging them with a
mental exercise. He apparently met ‘a nice girl of about fifteen’ on her train, got
her address and later sent her this puzzle:
卡罗尔也有一个习惯，寻找年轻女孩，用智力练习来挑战她们。他显然在火
车上遇到了“一个大约 15 岁的漂亮女孩”，得到了她的地址，然后给她发
了这个字谜:
Make sense of this sentence:
It was and I said not all.
理解这句话:我说的不是
全部。
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When he wasn’t writing, inventing puzzles or listening to his musical box being
played backwards Carroll invented all kinds of things including a prototype travelling chess set, double-sided sticky tape, and a new Proportional Representation
scheme for electing members of parliament. In Carroll’s system each candidate
could give the votes given to him to another candidate. He might well have been
the first person to make a self-photographing device and he later became one of
the leading portrait takers of his time - notably of young girls like Alice.
当他不写作、不发明谜题或不听音乐盒倒着播放时，卡罗尔发明了各种各样
的东西，包括一套原型旅行象棋、双面胶带和一种选举议会成员的新比例代
表制。在卡罗尔的系统中，每个候选人都可以把他的选票给另一个候选人。
他很可能是第一个制作自拍装置的人，后来他成为他那个时代的主要肖像摄
影师之一——特别是像爱丽丝这样的年轻女孩。
KEY
键
If the Cheshire Cat ate the salt, then all three are lying. If Bill ate it, then all three
are telling the truth. So the Caterpillar must have eaten it.
如果柴郡猫人吃了盐，那么这三个人都在撒谎。如果是比尔吃的，那三个人
说的都是实话。所以一定是毛毛虫吃了。
It was ‘and’ I said, not ‘all’.
我说的是‘和’，不是‘全部’。
Limericks
打油诗
A limerick is a humorous five-line poem. It normally follows this rhyme scheme
aabba, which means that the first two lines rhyme with each other and with the
last line. The original limericks were written over 200 years ago, and were often
quite vulgar for the time:
一首五行打油诗是一首幽默的诗。它通常遵循这种押韵模式 aabba，这意味
着前两行彼此押韵，并与最后一行押韵。最初的打油诗写于 200 多年前，在
当时通常相当粗俗:
While Titian was mixing rose madder,
His model reclined on a ladder.
提香在搅拌茜草的时候，他的模特斜
靠在梯子上。
Her position to
Titian Suggested
coition,
她和提香的位置暗
示了性交，
So he leapt up the ladder and had ‘er.
所以他跳上梯子。
Because of this supposed vulgarity, such limericks were whispered rather than
recounted aloud!
因为这种所谓的粗俗，这样的打油诗被低声吟唱，而不是大声朗诵！
The Encyclopedia Britannica tells us that the origin of this very popular type of
nonsense-verse is lost in obscurity. The first collector of limericks was Langford
Reed who compiled a book entitled “The Complete Limerick” (published in 1924)
after sifting through a staggering sixteen thousand limericks, before settling on the
few hundred that he felt were worthy of his book.
《大英百科全书》告诉我们，这种非常流行的无意义诗的起源已经湮没无
闻。第一个收集打油诗的人是兰福德·里德，他在筛选了令人震惊的 16000
首打油诗后，最终选定了几百首他认为配得上这本书的打油诗，编撰了一本
名为《打油诗全集》(1924 年出版)的书。
Limerick is actually the name of a town in Ireland and Langford Reed suggests that:
利默里克实际上是爱尔兰一个城镇的名字，兰福德·里德认为:
this peculiar form of verse was brought direct to Limerick by the returned
veter- ans of the Irish brigade, who were attached to French army for a
period of nearly 100 years from 1691.
这种特殊的诗歌形式是由爱尔兰旅的归国老兵直接带到利默里克的，他
们从 1691 年起跟随法国军队近 100 年。
The brigade was organized in Limerick, and when disbanded was no doubt
responsible for giving currency to many rude barrack-room songs.
该旅是在利默里克组建的，解散后，毫无疑问，它传播了许多粗鲁的军
营歌曲。
Limericks have been translated into many languages.
打油诗已被翻译成多种语言。
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8
Palindromes
回文
What do you notice about this word: redivider? Well it reads the same backwards
and forwards. It is a palindromic word.
你对这个词有什么注意:redivider？它前后读起来是一样的。这是一个回文
单词。
Palindromes have been around for centuries, and the Greeks and Romans often
inscribed them on monuments and fountains. The inventor of the palindromic
verse was apparently Sotades of Maroneia (in Thrace, Greece) who invented a
palindrome to publicly criticize the king of Egypt. The king subsequently had
Sotades sealed in a lead box and thrown into the sea.
回文已经存在了几个世纪，希腊人和罗马人经常把它们刻在纪念碑和喷泉
上。回文诗的发明者显然是马罗尼亚(在希腊色雷斯)的索塔德斯，他发明了
一种公开批评埃及国王的回文。国王随后将索塔德斯密封在一个铅盒中，扔
进了大海。
A 17th century English poet, John Taylor, is credited with creating the first
English palindromic sentence:
17 世纪的英国诗人约翰·泰勒创造了第一个英语回文句子:
Lewd did I live, evil I did dwel.
我活得淫荡，我做得邪恶。
Taylor’s palindrome basically means that he lived an improper life in improper
surroundings.
泰勒的回文基本上意味着他在不合适的环境中过着不合适的生活。
The most-quoted palindromes in English are probably:
Madam, I’m Adam.
英语中引用最多的回文大概是:夫人，我是亚当。
A man, a plan, a canal: Panama.
Able was I ere I saw Elba.
一个人，一个计划，一条运
河:巴拿马。在我见到厄尔巴
岛之前，我是能干的。
The first supposedly reports Adam’s first words to Eve in Genesis. The second is a
comment on the origin of the Panama Canal which was opened in 1914. And the
last was supposedly Napoleon’s (the French emperor) response (in English!) on
being asked whether he had the power to continue fighting.
第一个据说是《创世纪》中亚当对夏娃说的第一句话。第二是对 1914 年开
通的巴拿马运河的起源的评论。最后一个据说是拿破仑(法国皇帝)的回应
(英语！)当被问及他是否有能力继续战斗时。
Another form of palindromes is with whole words rather than letters. Here are some
examples
回文的另一种形式是用整个单词而不是字母。这里有一些例子
Blessed are they that believe they are blessed.
King, are you glad you are king?
相信自己有福的人有福了。国王，你高兴你
是国王吗？
Please me by standing by me please.
请站在我身边取悦我。
Says Mom, “What do you do? – You do what Mom says”.
妈妈说，“你是做什么的？-你照妈妈说的做”。
You can cage a swallow, can’t you, but you can’t swallow a cage, can you?
你能把一只燕子关在笼子里，不是吗，但你不能吞下一个笼子，不是吗？
9
9
Proverbs and Idioms
谚语和成语
Proverbs are words of wisdom or advice that have been passed down from one
gen- eration to the next. Some come from the Bible, for example:
谚语是代代相传的智慧或忠告。有些来自圣经，例如:
All that glisters is not gold.
闪光的不都是金子。
The love of money is the root of all evil.
贪财是万恶之源。
The above proverb is actually very often misquoted as simply ‘Money is the root
of all evil’.
上述谚语实际上经常被误引为“金钱是万恶之源”。
Several English proverbs have a literary origin, for example those made famous by
Shakespeare:
有几个英语谚语有文学渊源，例如莎士比亚著名的谚语:
All’s well that ends
well. Hoist by his own
petard.
结局好就一切都好。搬
起石头砸自己的脚。
The true course of love never did run smooth.
Too much of a good thing.
真正的爱情之路从来都不是平坦的。过犹不
及。
But most are simply derived from folk wisdom, i.e. the experience of our ancestors
encapsulated into a short expression:
但大多数只是来自民间智慧，即我们祖先的经验被浓缩成一个简短的表达:
Variety is the spice of life.
Prevention is better than cure.
变化是生活的调味品。预防胜于
治疗。
It takes all sorts to make a world.
You can’t tell a book by its
cover.
Familiarity
breeds
contempt.
世界是由各种各样的人组成
的。你不能通过封面来判断一
本书。熟悉滋生轻视。
Two heads are better than one.
三个臭皮匠顶个诸葛亮。
Some proverbs contradict each other, so we have:
有些谚语互相矛盾，所以我们有:
Many hands make light work. vs Too many cooks spoil the broth.
Absence makes the heart grow fonder vs Out of sight, out of mind.
More haste, less speed. vs He who hesitates is lost.
淡人多力量大。厨师太多，烧坏汤。离别使心更亲，而眼不
见，心不烦。欲速则不达。犹豫不决的人会迷失方向。
Nothing venture, nothing gain. vs Better safe than sorry.
没有冒险，就没有收获。安全总比后悔好。
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10
Riddles
谜语
Riddles are common to all cultures. Probably the most famous riddle in Europe
from a historical point of view is the one derived from a Greek legend in which
the Sphinx (a mythical creature with the head of a human and the body of a lion)
would devour all travellers who could not answer it.
谜语在所有文化中都很常见。从历史的角度来看，欧洲最著名的谜语可能是
源于希腊传说的一个谜语，在这个谜语中，狮身人面像 (一种神话中的生
物，有着人的头部和狮子的身体)会吞噬所有回答不出的旅行者。
This riddle has come down to us in many forms, the most common English form
being:
这个谜语以多种形式流传下来，最常见的英文形式是:
What goes on four feet in the morning, two feet at noon, and three feet in the
evening?
什么东西早上四英尺，中午两英尺，晚上三英尺？
According to the legend, the hero, Oedipus, gave the right answer: Man. So angry
was the Sphinx that she killed herself - according to some by throwing herself off
a cliff, and according to others by devouring herself.
根据传说，主人公俄狄浦斯给出了正确的答案:人。斯芬克斯非常生气，她
自杀了——有人说是从悬崖上跳下去，也有人说是吞食自己。
Another famous riddle is:
另一个著名的谜语是:
A man looking at a portrait says: “Brothers and sisters have I none, but that
man’s father is my father’s son.”
一个男人看着画像说:“我没有兄弟姐妹，但是那个男人的父亲是我父亲的
儿子。”
The related question is “Who is the subject of the portrait”? The answer is the son
of the speaker.
相关的问题是“肖像的主体是谁”？答案是说话人的儿子。
The above riddle highlights two aspects of the traditional format of riddles in
English. First they rhyme (none rhymes with son). Second, they often contain
archaic grammar forms: Today no one would say or write brothers and sisters
have I none, but rather I don’t have any brothers or sisters.
上面的谜语突出了英语谜语传统格式的两个方面。首先它们押韵(没有一个
和 son 押韵)。第二，它们通常包含古老的语法形式:今天没有人会说或
写“我没有兄弟姐妹”,而是说“我没有任何兄弟姐妹”。
Most of the riddles in the chapters of this book are related to the double meaning
of a word.
这本书的章节中的大多数谜语都与一个词的双重含义有关。
Here are some explanations for various riddles to give you an idea of how they
work.
以下是对各种谜语的解释，让你了解它们是如何运作的。
Why are the pages of a book like the days of men?
Because they are numbered.
为什么一本书的书页像人类的日子？因为他们
是有编号的。
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11
The key word is numbered. In terms of books, each page has a number. In terms of
men (i.e. humans in general), we all have a limited number of days (years) in our
life - numbered in this case means finite rather than infinite.
关键词是编号。就书而言，每一页都有编号。就人类而言，我们一生中的天
数(年数)都是有限的——在这种情况下，数字意味着有限而不是无限。
Why is a room packed with married people like an empty room?
Because there is not a single person in it.
为什么一个挤满已婚人士的房间像一个空房间？因为里面
没有一个人。
The key word is single person, which means both no one (empty room) and
关键词是单人，意思是没有人(空房间)和
unmarried.
未婚。
Why is a mirror like a resolution?
Because it is so easily broken.
为什么镜子像分辨率？因为它
很容易被打破。
The key word here is broken, but in this case it is not a double meaning but simply in the case of a mirror the word broken is used in a real concrete sense,
whereas in relation to a resolution broken has a metaphorical sense. If for example you say “I will stop eating chocolate” you have made a resolution, if then
after a couple of weeks you start eating chocolate again, then you have ‘broken’
your resolution.
这里的关键词是破碎，但在这种情况下，它不是双重含义，而是简单的。在
镜子的情况下，破碎一词用于真正具体的意义，而与解决方案有关，破碎具
有隐喻意义。例如，如果你说“我将停止吃巧克力”你已经下定决心，如果
几个星期后你又开始吃巧克力，那么你就“违背”了你的决心。
Which is the strongest day of the week?
Sunday, because all the rest are week
days. What’s black and white and red all
over? A newspaper.
一周中哪一天最强？星期天，因为其余
的都是工作日。什么东西全身都是黑白
色和红色？一份报纸。
The above two cases rely on homophones, i.e. words that have the same
pronuncia- tion but a different spelling and meaning. You need to remember that
riddles are basically part of an oral tradition - so the listener hears the words
without knowing how they are spelled. The key words in the above cases are week
(and its homo- phone weak), and red (and its homophone read). A week day in the
case of this riddle is any one of the days from Monday to Saturday. Sunday is thus
not a week day, nor is it a weak day (it is ‘stronger’ than the others). In the case of
the newspa- per, the color is of the paper is white with black print. It is read all
over in the sense that the reader reads every page.
上述两种情况依赖于同音词，即具有相同发音但不同拼写和含义的单词。你
需要记住谜语基本上是口头传统的一部分——所以听者听到单词时并不知道
它们是如何拼写的。以上案例中的关键词是 week(及其同音弱)和 red(及其
同音读)。在这个谜语中，星期是从星期一到星期六的任何一天。因此，星
期天不是一个工作日，也不是一个虚弱的日子(它比其他日子更“强壮”)。
就报纸而言，纸张的颜色是白底黑字。从读者阅读每一页的意义上来说，它
是通读的。
In some cases in the sections on riddles I have put the key words in italics, so that
you can then focus on working out what the double meaning is.
在某些情况下，在关于谜语的部分，我会用斜体字来表示关键词，这样你就
可以专注于找出什么是双重含义。
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12
Rhyming Forms
押韵形式
Did you ever have a walkie talkie as a child and did you play ping pong? walkie
talkie and ping pong are examples of what is known as ‘reduplication’.
你小时候有过对讲机吗，你打过乒乓球吗？对讲机和乒乓球就是所谓“重
叠”的例子。
Rhyming word combinations like these have been around since the 14th century.
Some examples that would seem to have been of recent coinage have actually
been around for centuries. For example hip hop and "ip "op appeared at the end
of the 17th century, though obviously with different meanings from today’s
meanings of a type of music and a type of beach sandal.
像这样押韵的单词组合从 14 世纪就已经存在了。一些看起来是最近创造的
例子实际上已经存在了几个世纪。例如，hip hop 和 flip flop 出现在 17 世
纪末，尽管显然与今天一种音乐和一种沙滩凉鞋的含义不同。
Rhyme and alliteration are frequently used by newspapers in English-speaking
countries. In the tabloid press they may be used to describe someone’s sexual
orientation:
英语国家的报纸经常使用押韵和头韵。在小报上，它们可能被用来描述某人
的性取向:
gender bender (person who seeks to define gender expression outside of the
binary terms of man and woman)
性别弯曲者(试图在男人和女人的二元术语之外定义性别表达的人)
toy boy (a male partner who is significantly younger than his partner)
randy andy (a man who doesn’t waste opportunities for having sex)
玩具男孩(明显比他的伴侣年轻的男性伴侣)兰迪·安迪(不浪费
做爱机会的男人)
hanky panky (typically sexual behavior that is humorously considered as being
improper)
调情(典型的被幽默地认为是不恰当的性行为)
Similes
明喻
A simile is a figure of speech that compares two supposedly similar objects or
describes a similar property that two different objects each possess. Some reflect
the observations of our ancestors and thus represent actions that are no longer
com- monly made. For example we say:
明喻是一种比喻，用来比较两个假定相似的物体或描述两个不同物体各自拥
有的相似属性。有些反映了我们祖先的观察结果，因此代表了不再常见的行
为。例如我们说:
As clean as a whistle.
As clear as a bell.
非常干净。非常清
楚。
As dry as a bone.
干透了。
As stiff as a
poker.
像拨火棍一样僵
硬。
Such expressions, although clear in meaning, don’t actually make much sense in the
modern age.
这样的表达，虽然意思很明确，但实际上在现代没有多大意义。
The origin of some is obscure:
As cool as a cucumber.
有些人的来历不明:镇定自
若。
This common expression means: Extremely calm, relaxed and in control of your
emotions. Why a cucumber? Perhaps because of the sound. Or maybe, as
Bloomsbury International tells us:
这个常用表达的意思是:极度冷静，放松，控制自己的情绪。为什么是黄
瓜？也许是因为声音的缘故。或者，正如布卢姆斯伯里国际公司告诉我们
的:
13
13
This phrase may have originated from the fact that even in hot weather, the inside
of cucumbers are approximately 20 degrees cooler than the outside air.
这个短语可能源于这样一个事实，即使在炎热的天气里，黄瓜的内部也比外
面的空气低大约 20 度。
Others have been made famous by particular books or authors. For example, to
describes something as being completely crazy you can say:
其他人则因特定的书籍或作者而出名。例如，要形容某事完全疯狂，你可以
说:
As mad as a hatter.
像帽匠一样疯狂。
or
或者
As mad as a March hare.
像三月兔一样疯狂。
which are both found in Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. For
more on Lewis Carroll see the earlier section.
两者都出现在刘易斯·卡罗尔的《爱丽丝漫游奇境记》中。欲了解更多关于刘
易斯卡罗尔看到前面的部分。
Not all similes follow the as ... as formula. Some similes also begin with like:
Like a bat out of hell.
并非所有的明喻都跟在 as 后面...作为公式。一些明喻也以 like 开头:
像一只从地狱里出来的蝙蝠。
Like a bull in a china shop.
就像瓷器店里的公牛。
Like ships that pass in the night.
Like nothing on earth.
就像夜晚航行的船只。无与伦
比。
Like a lamb to the slaughter.
Like a ton of bricks.
像待宰的羔羊。像一吨砖。
Like a rolling stone.
像一块滚石。
Others use like plus a verb.
其他人用 like 加一个动词。
It’s like talking to a brick wall.
It’s like watching paint dry.
就像对着砖墙说话一样。就像
看着油漆变干。
It’s like trying to scratch your ear with your elbow.
就像想用手肘挠耳朵一样。
And others are found with look like. Below are some expressions to describe what
someone looked like on a particular occasion:
而其他人被发现长得很像。下面是一些描述某人在特定场合的表情:
Like a drowned rat.
像落汤鸡一样。
Like something the cat brought in.
Like a million bucks.
像是猫带进来的东西。像一百
万美元。
Like death warmed up.
就像死亡升温一样。
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14
Tongue Twisters
绕口令
A tongue twister is a phrase or short verse that is designed to be difficult to say.
On other hand, it is relatively easy to read.
绕口令是一个被设计成难以启齿的短语或短诗。另一方面，它相对容易阅
读。
A tongue twister can be a very short, but difficult to articulate, phrase such
as: Red lorry, yellow lorry.
绕口令可以是很短但很难发音的短语，如:红色卡车，黄色卡车。
The Leith police dismisseth us.
利斯警方解雇了我们。
The sixth sick sheik’s sixth sheep’s sick
第六个生病的酋长的第六只羊生病了
Alternatively it can be a verse:
或者，它可以是一首诗:
Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.
Did Peter Piper pick a peck of pickled peppers?
If Peter Piper Picked a peck of pickled peppers,
彼得·派珀挑选了许多腌辣椒。彼得·派珀
挑了很多腌辣椒吗？如果彼得·派珀挑了一
大堆腌辣椒，
Where’s the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?
彼得·派珀挑的泡菜在哪里？
How much wood would a woodchuck chuck
If a woodchuck could chuck wood?
如果土拨鼠会扔木头，它会扔多少木头？
He would chuck, he would, as much as he could,
And chuck as much as a woodchuck would
他会尽可能多的扔东西，他会尽可能多的扔东
西，就像土拨鼠一样
If a woodchuck could chuck wood.
如果土拨鼠会扔木头。
Betty Botter bought a bit of butter.
贝蒂·波特买了一些黄油。
The butter Betty Botter bought was a bit
bitter And made her batter bitter.
贝蒂·波特买的黄油有点苦，使她的面糊
变苦了。
But a bit of better butter makes better
batter. So Betty Botter bought a bit of better
butter Making Betty Botter’s bitter batter
better.
但是一点点好的黄油可以做成更好的面
糊。所以贝蒂·波特买了一些更好的黄
油，让贝蒂·波特的苦面糊味道更好。
Some tongue twisters when mispronounced can produce humorous (and often vulgar) results. Here is an example:
一些绕口令在发音错误时会产生幽默的效果。这里有一个例子:
I’m not a pheasant plucker, I’m a pheasant plucker’s son,
I’m only plucking pheasants till the pheasant plucker comes.
我不是拔野鸡毛的人，我是拔野鸡毛的人的儿子，我只
是在拔野鸡毛的人来之前拔野鸡毛。
In the above case the humor or vulgarity arises from inadvertently reversing the
initial sounds of pheasant and plucker.
在上面的例子中，幽默或粗俗源于无意中颠倒了野鸡和拔毛者最初的声音。
Chapter 2
第二章
We do not stop playing because we grow old,
we grow old because we stop playing!
我们不会因为变老而停止玩耍，我们会因为
停止玩耍而变老！
Riddles 1
谜语 1
Match the questions (1-10) with the answers (a-j).
将问题(1-10)与答案(a-j)配对。
1. What is at the end of a rainbow?
2. 彩虹的尽头是什么？
3. What occurs once in a minute, twice in a moment and never in one thousand
years?
4. 什么事情一分钟发生一次，一瞬间发生两次，一千年都不会发生？
5. What word becomes shorter when you add two letters to it?
6. 什么单词加了两个字母就变短了？
7. What is the longest word in the dictionary?
8. 字典里最长的单词是什么？
9. We see it once in a year, twice in a week, and never in a day. What is it?
10.我们一年见一次，一周见两次，一天见不到一次。这是什么？
11.What is the center of gravity?
12.重心是什么？
13.What starts with the letter “t”, is !lled with “t” and ends in “t”?
14.什么东西以字母“t”开头，以“t”填充，以“t”结尾？
15.Take away my !rst letter, and I still sound the same. Take away my last letter,
I still sound the same. Even take away my letter in the middle, I will still
sound the same. I am a !ve letter word. What am I?
16.拿走我的第一封信，我听起来还是一样。拿走我最后一封信，我听起来
还是一样。即使中途拿走我的信，我的声音还是一样。我是一个五个字
母的单词。我是什么？
17.What has 4 eyes but can’t see?
18.什么东西有四只眼睛但看不见？
19. What starts with “P” and ends with “E” and has more than 1000 letters?
20. 什么东西以“P”开头，以“E”结尾，有 1000 多个字母？
a) A post of!ce!
b) 一个邮局！
c) A teapot!
d) 一个茶壶！
e) EMPTY
f) 空的
g) Mississippi
h) 密西西比河
i) Short
j) 短的
k) Smiles, because there is a mile between each ‘s’
l) 微笑，因为每个“s”之间有一英里
m)The letter E
n) 字母 E
o) The letter M
p) 字母 M
q) The letter V
r) 字母 V
s) The letter W
t) 字母 W
© Springer International Publishing AG 2018
施普林格国际出版公司 2018 15
A. Wallwork, Word Games, Riddles and Logic Tests, Easy
English!, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0_2
A.沃尔沃克，文字游戏，谜语和逻辑测试，简单英
语！，https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0_2
15
16
16
Anagrams
字谜
Can you work out the connection between the two columns?
你能找出这两列之间的联系吗？
Eskimos
some ski
Eskimos
some ski
Families
life’s aim
Families
life’s aim
Incompetents
inept men cost
Incompetents inept men
Pirates
sea trip
cost Pirates sea trip
Schoolmaster
the classroom
Schoolmaster the
Shop lifter
has to pilfer
classroom Shop lifter
has to
Vocabulary: inept = no skill at all, pilfer = steal
无能=完全没有技能，偷窃=偷窃
Funny Book Titles
有趣的书名
Match the titles with the authors.
将标题与作者配对。
тiтlеr
’uтнoRr
тiтlеr
’uтнoRr
I Didn’t Do It!
Alec Tricity
IThe
Didn’t
Do
It!
Great Escape Alec
FreidaTricity
Convict
The
Great
Escape
Freida
Convict
Under Arrest
Ivan Alibi
Under
Arrest
Ivan
Alibi
Unsolved MysteriesN. Igma
Unsolved
Mysteries
N. Igma
It’s a Shocker
It’s a Shocker
Watts E Dunn
Watts E Dunn
Limericks
打油诗
Practise reading the limericks aloud and hear/!nd the rhythm.
练习大声朗读打油诗，并听到/找到节奏。
There was an old man of Madrid There was a young man from Japan
There was an old man of Madrid There was a young man from
Who ate sixty eggs - yes, he did! Whose limericks never would scan.
Japan Who ate sixty eggs - yes, he did! Whose limericks
When they asked ‘Are you faint?’ When asked why that was,
never would scan. When they asked ‘Are you faint?’ When
He replied ‘No, I ain’t
He replied ‘It’s because
asked why that was,
But I don’t feel as well as I did.’
I always try to cram as many words into
He replied ‘No, I ain’t
He replied ‘It’s because
the last line as I possibly can’.
But I don’t feel as well as I did.’
I always try to cram
as many words into
17
17
Proverbs
《箴言》
Insert the words from the box into the spaces. The sentences in brackets are a brief
explanation of the meaning of the proverb.
将方框中的单词插入空格中。括号中的句子是对谚语意思的简要解释。
1. Don’t
off your nose to spite your face. (don’t overreact to a situation)
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
不
离开你的鼻子去怨恨你的脸。(不要对某个情况反应过度)
Don’t
your dirty linen in public. (keep your private affairs private)
不
你的家丑外扬。(保持你的私事的私密性)
It’s no use
over spilt milk. (what is done is done)
没用的
打翻的牛奶。(木已成舟)
There’s no point
a dead horse. (don’t continue because the outcome
has already been decided.
8. 没有意义
一匹死马。(不要继续，因为结局已经决定了。
9. Necessity
the mother of invention. (if you need something you will
!nd a way)
10.必需品
发明之母。(如果你需要什么，你会找到方法)
11.Once
twice shy. (when you are scared to do something because you
had a negative experience the !rst time you did it)
12.一次
加倍害羞。(当你害怕做某件事，因为你第一次做这件事时
有负面的经历)
13.A rolling stone
no moss. (constantly changing thus never becoming
attached to anything)
14.滚石乐队
没有苔藓。(不断变化，因此从不依恋任何东西)
15.Some people can’t
the wood for the trees. (unable to see the overall
point)
16.有些人不能
为树木提供木材。(看不到整体点)
17.A watched pot never
. (a process appears to take longer if we only
focus on that and do not engage in other activities)
18.被监视的罐子永远不会 。(如果我们只关注这一点而不参与其他活
动，流程似乎需要更长时间)
19. You can’t have your cake and
it. (you can’t have the best of both worlds)
20. 你不能有你的蛋糕和
它。(鱼与熊掌不可兼得)
bitten, boils, crying, cut, eat, "ogging, gathers, is, see, wash
bitten, boils, crying, cut, eat, flogging, gathers, is, see,
wash
Logic 1
逻辑 1
Three boxes contain two coins each. One contains two nickels, one contains two
dimes, and one contains a dime and a nickel. All three boxes are mislabeled.
三个盒子各装有两枚硬币。一个装有两个五分镍币，一个装有两个一角硬
币，一个装有一个一角硬币和一个五分镍币。三个盒子都贴错了标签。
If you are permitted to take out only one coin at a time, how many must you take
out in order to be able to label all three boxes correctly?
如果一次只允许你取出一枚硬币，你必须取出多少才能正确地贴上三个盒子
的标签？
Logic 2
逻辑 2
Two barmen in London were looking at a barrel, which was partly !lled with beer.
One barman said to the other: “Look, it’s more than half full.” To which the other
barman replied: “You’re wrong, it’s actually less than half full.” How could they !nd
out, without using any measuring devices or any equipment of any kind, if it was
more or less than exactly half?
伦敦的两个酒吧侍者正看着一只桶，桶里装着一部分啤酒。一个酒保对另一
个酒保说:“看，已经满了一大半了。”对此，另一个酒保回答道:“你错
了，实际上还不到半满。”如果不使用任何测量设备或任何类型的设备，他
们怎么能发现是多于还是少于一半呢？
18
18
Word Combinations 1
单词组合 1
Combine a word from the !rst column with a word from the second column.
将第一列中的单词与第二列中的单词合并。
arm back earbag
eyebrow
!ngerchair
hairlace
handline
head
nail
lipring stick style
arm
bag
eye
brow
finger
chairhair
lacehand
linehead
naillip
ring stick style
wards
neck back ear
neck
wards
Word Combinations 2
单词组合 2
Combine a word from the !rst column with a word from the second column. The
将第一列中的单词与第二列中的单词合并。这
!rst part of the word combination may be in the second column.
单词组合的第一部分可能在第二列。
back face hand
brush
head
cap
knee
endleg
!rstspine
"ashtooth
in less
voice
lift some
wrist
watch
back face hand
brushhead
cap knee
end first
leg spine
flashtooth
in less
voice
lift some
wrist
watch
19
19
Tense Challenge 1
紧张挑战 1
Underline the correct form of the verbs in italics.
划出斜体印出的动词的正确形式。
The Queen of Sheba was desperate - her best friend, Rowenna, was captured/had
been captured by the terrible Bingoid tribe, and she needed/had needed someone
to rescue her. She had three faithful knights, all of whom were equally
courageous. But she needed/had needed to !nd a way of discovering which of these
three knights was the the most intelligent and could rescue Rowenna.
示巴女王绝望了——她最好的朋友罗温娜被可怕的班戈部落抓住了，她需要
有人来救她。她有三个忠诚的骑士，他们都同样勇敢。但是她需要/曾经需
要找到一种方法来发现这三个骑士中哪一个是最聪明的，并且能够营救罗薇
娜。
So she decided/had decided to set the knights a test. She blindfolded each man and
put a cap on each of their heads.
所以她决定对骑士们进行一次测试。她蒙住每个男人的眼睛，给他们每人戴
上一顶帽子。
“Knights listen to your queen,” she said, “each of you is now wearing a red or a
blue cap. When I take off your blindfolds, you are to raise your hand as soon as
you see a black cap. But as soon as you know what color cap you yourself are
wearing, put your hand down.”
“骑士们听你们的女王的，”她说，“你们每个人现在都戴着红色或蓝色的
帽子。当我摘下你的眼罩时，你一看到黑色的帽子就举起你的手。但是一旦
你知道你自己戴的是什么颜色的帽子，就把手放下来。”
She took off their blindfolds and straightaway all the knights put up their hands,
because in fact the Queen put/had put a black cap on all of them. After a few minutes, one of the knights, Sir Galawas, dropped/had dropped his hand and proclaimed: “My cap is black”.
她摘下了他们的眼罩，所有的骑士立刻举起了手，因为事实上女王给他们都
戴上了一顶黑色的帽子。几分钟后，其中一名骑士，加拉瓦斯爵士，放下了
他的手，郑重声明:“我的帽子是黑色的”。
Question: How did Sir Galawas know that his cap was/had been black?
问:加拉瓦斯爵士怎么知道他的帽子是/曾经是黑色的？
Ambiguous Headlines
模糊的标题
Try to understand what makes the headlines ambiguous.
试着理解是什么让标题模棱两可。
Panda mating fails; vet takes over
Miners refuse to work after death
Juvenile court to try shooting defendant
熊猫交配失败；兽医接管矿工死亡后
拒绝工作少年法庭试图枪杀被告
Killer sentenced to die for second time in 10 years
Red tape holds up new bridge
黑仔十年内第二次被判死刑，繁文缛节支撑新
桥
Astronaut takes blame for gas in spacecraft
Plane too close to the ground, crash probe told
Local high school dropouts cut in half
坠毁探测器告诉当地高中辍学生减少一
半，宇航员因飞船飞机太接近地面的气体
而受到责备
Sex education delayed, teachers request training
性教育滞后，教师要求培训
20
20
Riddles 2
谜语 2
Insert the words in the box into the blank spaces.
将方框中的单词插入空白处。
1. If you were in a
would you be in?
and passed the person in second place, what place
2. 如果你在一个
超过了第二名，你会排在第几名？
Second place!
第二名！
3. What goes up, but never comes
down? Your
!
4. 什么东西会上升，但永远不会下
降？你的 ！
5. What gets bigger and bigger the more you
away from it?
A hole!
6. 什么会变得越来越大
远离它？一
个洞！
7. How many
have 28 days?
All of them!
8. 多少
有 28 天？所
有人！
9. Which weighs more, a ton of
or a ton of bricks?
Neither, they both weigh a ton!
10.哪一个更重，一吨
还是一吨砖？都
不是，它们都有一吨重！
11.What is full of
but can still hold water?
A sponge!
12.充满了什么
但还能盛水？一块海
绵！
13.What has two hands, a
face, always runs, but stays in place?
A clock!
14.什么东西有两只手
脸，一直跑，却原地不动？一个
钟！
15.Where does
come before work?
In the dictionary!
16.哪里有
上班前来？在字
典里！
17.If a man is born in Turkey, grows up in Italy, comes to England and dies in
Manchester what is he?
18.如果一个人生在土耳其，长在意大利，来到英国，死在曼彻斯特，他是
什么？
.
。
19. What is it that no one wishes to have, yet no one wishes to
?
A bald head.
20. 什么东西没有人想拥有，也没有人想拥有
？光头。
age,
feathers
, holes, , holes
lose, months,
race,
round, success,
take
age,dead,
dead,
feathers
, lose,
months,
race, round,
success, take
21
21
Tongue Twisters
绕口令
Practise reading the tongue twister aloud. Then see if you can memorize and say it
quickly without getting your tongue tied!
练习大声朗读绕口令。然后看你能不能背下来，快速说出来，不至于舌头打
结！
A tutor who tooted the "ute
Tried to tutor two tooters to toot.
Said the two to their tutor:
一个吹长笛的老师试图教两个
吹长笛的人吹长笛。两个对他
们的导师说:
“Is it harder to toot,
“吹笛子难吗，
Or to tutor two tooters to toot?”
还是辅导两个吹笛人吹笛？"
Logic 3
逻辑 3
An Englishman was up in Edinburgh on business. One night he decided to go into
the local pub for a pint of beer. The publican, a canny old man, said that if the
Englishman could drink four pints of the local beer, he would give him another
pint free. Otherwise, the Englishman would have to buy all the people in the pub a
free round. The Englishman’s eyes lit up and he agreed. The publican then
produced a full eight pint jug of beer and two smaller empty ones - one !ve pint
and one three pint. He then told the Englishman that if he wanted to get his free
pint he would have to measure out exactly four pints using the three different jugs.
一个英国人在爱丁堡出差。一天晚上，他决定去当地的酒吧喝一品脱啤酒。
酒吧老板是个精明的老人，他说如果那个英国人能喝四品脱本地啤酒，他会
免费再给他一品脱。否则，英国人将不得不请酒吧里的所有人免费喝一杯。
英国人眼睛一亮，同意了。酒吧老板随后拿出一个满满的八品脱啤酒和两个
小的空瓶子——一个五品脱，一个三品脱。然后他告诉那个英国人，如果他
想得到免费的一品脱，他必须用三个不同的壶准确地量出四品脱。
How did the Englishman win his !fth pint and avoid buying a round for the rest of
the pub?
这个英国人是如何赢得他的第五品脱酒，并避免为酒吧的其他人买一轮酒
的？
Anagrams
字谜
Create an anagram from the letters of the words in the !rst column. The anagram
should correspond to the de!nition.
根据第一列中单词的字母创建一个变位词。变位词应该与定义相对应。
’u’/R’m
cures
diary
deals
early
earth
there
!eld
gates
grown
sweat
u'/R'm
治愈
日记
交易
早期
的；在
早期；
提早
地球
在那里
领域
大门
成年的
焦急
dеrIuiтIOu
profane or obscene expression usually of surprise or anger
a farm where milk products are produced
electric wires, cables
single thickness of usually some homogeneous substance
the most important human organ
the number after two
archived
section or portion of a journey or course
based on or acting or judging in error
any materials unused and rejected as worthless or
unwanted
dеriuiтiou
通常表示惊讶或愤怒的亵渎或猥亵的表情
生产奶制品的农场
电线、电缆
通常是某种同质物质的单一厚度
人类最重要的器官
二后面的数字
存档
旅程或路线的一段或一部分
基于错误、行动错误或者判断错误
任何未使用的材料和因无价值或不需要而被
拒绝的材料
22
22
Tense Challenge 2
紧张挑战 2
An American scientist wanted to prove that the Loch Ness monster exists so he
decided/was decided to prove it. All his photographic equipment sent/was sent
from the USA to Loch Ness in Scotland where the scientist and his team put/was
put it on a large boat. The scientist then spent/was spent a week on the Loch
waiting for the monster to appear. Suddenly one night there was a terrible crash
and the scientist found/was found himself face to face with the monster under the
water . His boat smashed/was smashed to pieces by the monster, and the oil,
which powered the boat, leaked onto the Loch. Every day the oil slick
doubled/was doubled in size and Scottish environmental groups became/were
become very worried. After 13 days half the Loch covered/was covered by the oil
slick.
一位美国科学家想证明尼斯湖水怪的存在，所以他决定证明它。他所有的摄
影器材都从美国运到了苏格兰的尼斯湖，在那里科学家和他的团队把它们放
到了一艘大船上。这位科学家在湖上呆了一周，等待怪物出现。一天晚上，
突然传来一声可怕的撞击声，科学家发现自己与水下的怪物面对面了。他的
船被怪物撞得粉碎，给船提供动力的油泄漏到了湖上。浮油的面积每天都在
翻倍，苏格兰环保组织变得非常担心。13 天后，一半的湖水被浮油覆盖。
How many more days did it take to cover the entire Loch?
覆盖整个湖需要多少天？
Word Ladder
单词阶梯
Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice in Wonderland, enjoyed converting one word
into another by changing one letter at a time. For example: H A T E > h a v e > h o
ve>LOVE
《爱丽丝梦游仙境》的作者刘易斯·卡罗尔喜欢通过一次改变一个字母来将
一个单词转换成另一个单词。例如:H A T E > h a v e > h o v e > L O V
E
See if you can convert BREAD into WHEET. You can use the clues in brackets to
help you.
看看你是否能把面包变成面包。你可以利用括号中的线索来帮助你。
BREAD
面包
(have/raise young animals)
(饲养小动物)
(someone unpleasantly strange or eccentric)
(令人不快的奇怪或古怪的人)
CHEEP (sound a small bird makes)
吱(小鸟发出的声音)
(not expensive)
(不贵)
(copy during an
exam) WHEAT
(考试时抄)小麦
Keys to Chapter 2
23
第二章的答案 23
Keys to Chapter 2
Keys
to Chapter 2
Riddles
Riddles
What is at the end of a rainbow? The letter W!
What occurs
is at once
the in
end
of a rainbow?
letter
W! in one thousand
What
a minute,
twice in a The
moment
and never
years?
The
letter
M
What occurs once in a minute, twice in a moment and never in
one
years?
Thewhen
letter
Whatthousand
word becomes
shorter
you Madd two letters to it? Short
What is
word
shorter
you add
two because
lettersthere
to it?
Short
What
the becomes
longest word
in the when
dictionary?
Smiles,
is a mile
between
each
‘s’
What is the longest word in the dictionary? Smiles, because
there
a mile
between
‘s’and never in a day. What is it? The
We see is
it once
in a year,
twiceeach
in a week,
letter
“E”it once in a year, twice in a week, and never in a
We see
day. is
What
is it?
letter
What
the center
of The
Gravity?
The “E”
letter V.
What
is the
of“t”,
Gravity?
V. in “t”? A teapot!
What starts
withcenter
the letter
is !lled The
with letter
“t” and ends
What away
startsmywith
letter
is the
filled
ends
Take
!rst the
letter,
and I “t”,
still sound
same.with
Take“t”
away and
my last
in
“t”?
teapot!
letter,
I still Asound
the same. Even take away my letter in the middle, I will
still
I amletter,
a !ve letter
What am
I? EMPTY
Takesound
awaythemysame.
first
andword.
I still
sound
the same. Take
away
my
last
letter,
I
still
sound
the
same.
Even take away
What has 4 eyes but can’t see? Mississippi
my letter in the middle, I will still sound the same. I am a
What
with
“P” and
“E” and has more than 1000 letters? A
five starts
letter
word.
Whatends
am with
I? EMPTY
post of!ce!
What has 4 eyes but can’t see? Mississippi
What starts with “P” and ends with “E” and has more than
Funny
Book Titles
1000
letters?
A post office!
IFunny
Didn’t Do
It! by
Ivan Alibi = I have an alibi
Book
Titles
The Great Escape by Freida Convict = freed a convict (i.e. a convict was
freed)
I Didn’t Do It! by Ivan Alibi = I have an alibi
Under Arrest by Watts E Dunn = What has he done?
The Great Escape by Freida Convict = freed a convict (i.e. a
Unsolved
Mysteries
by N. Igma = Enigma (mystery)
convict was
freed)
It’s
a Shocker
Tricity
= Electricity
Under
ArrestbybyAlec
Watts
E Dunn
= What has he
done? Unsolved Mysteries by N. Igma =
Enigma (mystery) It’s a Shocker by Alec
24
Keys to Chapter 2
第 2 章的 24 把钥匙
Logic 1
逻辑 1
Only one. Take it from the box labeled “Dime and Nickel”. Since you know
all three boxes are mislabeled, the box contains two coins of the
denomination you withdrew. Put the proper label on that box. Then simply
switch the two remaining labels.
只有一个。从标有“一角和五分”的盒子里拿出来。因为你知道三个
盒子都贴错了标签，所以盒子里有两枚你取出的面额的硬币。在那个
盒子上贴上正确的标签。然后简单地交换剩下的两个标签。
Logic 2
逻辑 2
All they need to do is tilt the barrel at 45 degrees. If the edge of the surface
of the beer touches the lip of the barrel at the same time as it touches the
bottom of the barrel, then it must be half full/empty.
他们需要做的就是将枪管倾斜 45 度。如果啤酒表面的边缘接触到桶的
边缘，同时接触到桶的底部，那么它一定是半满/空的。
Proverbs
《箴言》
1. Don’t cut off your nose to spite your face.
2. 不要割掉你的鼻子来气你的脸。
3. Don’t wash your dirty linen in public.
4. 不要在公共场合洗你的脏衣服。
5. It’s no use crying over spilt milk.
6. 覆水难收。
7. There’s no point flogging a dead horse.
8. 徒劳无益。
9. Necessity is the mother of invention.
10.需要是发明之母。
11.Once bitten twice shy.
12.一朝被蛇咬十年怕井绳。
13.A rolling stone gathers no moss.
14.滚石不生苔。
15.Some people can’t see the wood for the trees.
16.有些人见树不见林。
17.A watched pot never boils.
18.心急锅不开。
19. You can’t have your cake and eat it.
20. 你不能鱼与熊掌兼得。
Word Combinations 1
单词组合 1
armchair, backwards, earring, !ngernail, hairstyle, headline, lipstick,
necklace
扶手椅，倒着，耳环，指甲，发型，头条，口红，项链
Word Combinations 2
单词组合 2
"ashback, facelift, handsome, head!rst, kneecap, legend, spineless, toothbrush, voiceless/invoice, wristwatch
闪回，整容，英俊，头朝下，膝盖骨，传奇，没骨气，牙刷，无声/发
票，手表
Keys to Chapter 2
第二章的答案 25
Tense Challenge 1 (Simple Past vs Past Perfect)
时态挑战 1(一般过去时 vs 过去完成时)
The Queen of Sheba was desperate - her best friend, Rowenna, had been
cap- tured by the terrible Bingoid tribe, and she needed someone to rescue
her. She had three faithful knights, all of whom were equally courageous.
But she needed to !nd a way of discovering which of these three knights
was intelli- gent enough to rescue Rowenna.
示巴女王绝望了——她最好的朋友罗温娜被可怕的班戈部落俘虏了，
她需要有人来救她。她有三个忠诚的骑士，他们都同样勇敢。但是她
需要找到一种方法来发现这三个骑士中哪一个足够聪明来营救罗温
娜。
So she decided to set the knights a test. She blindfolded each man and put a
cap on each of their heads.
所以她决定给骑士们一个考验。她蒙住每个男人的眼睛，给他们每人
戴上一顶帽子。
“Knights listen to your queen,” she said, “each of you is now wearing a red
or a blue cap. When I take off your blindfolds, you are to raise your hand as
soon as you see a black cap. But as soon as you know what color cap you
yourself are wearing, put your hand down.”
“骑士们听你们的女王的，”她说，“你们每个人现在都戴着红色或
蓝色的帽子。当我摘下你的眼罩时，你一看到黑色的帽子就举起你的
手。但是一 旦你知 道你自 己戴的是 什么 颜色的帽子， 就把手放下
来。”
She took off their blindfolds and straightaway all the knights put up their
hands, because the Queen had in fact put a black cap on all of them. After a
few minutes, one of the knights, Sir Galawas, dropped his hand and proclaimed: “My cap is black”.
她摘下了他们的眼罩，所有的骑士立刻举起了手，因为女王实际上给
他们所有人都戴上了一顶黑色的帽子。几分钟后，其中一名骑士加拉
瓦斯爵士放下手，亲称:“我的帽子是黑色的”。
How did Sir Galawas know that his cap was black?
加拉瓦斯爵士怎么知道他的帽子是黑色的？
# If Sir Galawas’s cap had been white, either one of his rivals would have
known that his own was black, for the remaining man’s raised hand showed
that he saw a black cap, and that couldn’t be Sir Galawas’s if his were white.
Neither of the other two knights put their hands down to show they knew the
color of their own cap, so Sir Galawas’s couldn’t have been white.
25
#如果加拉沃斯爵士的帽子是白色的，他的任何一个对手都会知道他自
己的是黑色的，因为剩下的人举起的手表明他看到了一顶黑色的帽
子，如果他是白色的，那就不可能是加拉沃斯爵士的。另外两个骑士
都没有把手放下来表示他们知道自己帽子的颜色，所以加拉沃斯爵士
的不可能是白色的。
Ambiguous Headlines
模糊的标题
Panda mating fails; vet takes over = It seems like the vet decided to mate
with the panda.
熊猫交配失败；兽医接管=好像兽医决定与熊猫交配。
Miners refuse to work after death = The ‘death’ in reality refers to a fellow
miner. But here it seems like the miners have voted not to work after they
have died.
矿工死后拒绝工作=现实中的“死亡”指的是一名矿工同伴。但在这
里，矿工们似乎投票决定死后不再工作。
Juvenile court to try shooting defendant = The ‘shooting defendant’ is someone who has been accused of shooting someone. To ‘try’ means to decide if
someone is guilty or innocent. But here it seems that the members of the
court are going to attempt to shoot the defendant.
少年法庭将审判枪击案被告。“尝试”的意思是决定某人是有罪还是
无辜。但在这里，法庭成员似乎打算向被告开枪。
Killer sentenced to die for second time in 10 years. = It seems like this is the
second time the killer is going to die.
黑仔十年内第二次被判死刑。=好像这是杀手第二次要死了。
26
Keys to Chapter 2
第 2 章的 26 把钥匙
Red tape holds up new bridge = ‘red tape’ is a metaphor for bureaucracy.
The real meaning is that bureaucracy is delaying the construction or opening
or a bridge. But it seems that the new bridge is being held together by red
tape (i.e. a narrow strip of material).
繁文缛节支撑新桥= '繁文缛节'是官僚主义的隐喻。真正的意思是官
僚主义在拖延一座桥的建设或开通。但似乎新桥是由红头文件(即一条
狭窄的材料带)连接在一起的。
Astronaut takes blame for gas in spacecraft = Gas also means the gas produced by the human body.
宇航员为宇宙飞船中的气体承担责任=气体也指人体产生的气体。
Plane too close to the ground, crash probe told = This is not really
ambiguous but simply ridiculous: if it crashed, it was obviously too close to
the ground.
飞机离地面太近，坠毁探测器告诉=这不是真的模棱两可，而是简单的
荒谬:如果它坠毁了，它显然离地面太近了。
Local high school dropouts cut in half = A ‘dropout’ is someone who drops
out of school, i.e. stops going to school. The real meaning is that the number
of dropouts has fallen by 50%, but it seems that the poor students have had
the top half of their body removed from the bottom half.
当地高中辍学人数减半=一个“辍学者”是指辍学的人，即不再去上
学。真正的意义是辍学人数下降了 50%，但好像是贫困生把上半身从下
半身去掉了。
Sex education delayed, teachers request training = The training should refer
to the teacher’s skills in teaching sex education, but it seems like the
teachers want to learn how to have sex themselves.
性教育被推迟，老师要求培训=培训应该是指老师教授性教育的技能，
但是看起来老师们想自己学习如何进行性教育。
Riddles 2
谜语 2
1. race
2. 人种
3. age
4. 年龄
5. take
6. 拿
7. months
8. 月份
9. feathers
10.羽毛
11.holes
12.洞
13.round
14.圆形物
15.success
16.成功
17.dead
18.死亡的
19. lose
20. 失去
Keys to Chapter 2
第二章的答案 27
Logic 3
Logic 3
A = the 8-pint jug, B = 5, C = 3
The
starts with
A = English
the 8-pint
jug,the
B following
= 5, C = 3
situation:
ABC
The
English
starts with the following
8situation:
00
A B C
He
then
continues
as
8 0 0
follows
BC
He thenAcontinues
as
3follows
5 0 (5 from
A BACto B)
from
B toAC)to B)
3 2530(3(5
from
63 2203(3(3
from
C toBA)
from
to C)
from
B toCC)to A)
6 0220(2(3
from
16 5022(5(2
from
A toBB)
from
to C)
1 4532(1(5
from
B toAC)to B)
from
41 4403(3(1
from
C toBA)
from
to C)
4 4 0 (3 from C to A)
Anagrams 2
Anagrams 2
curse
curse
dairy
dairy
leads
leads
layer
layer
heart
heart
three
three
!led
filed
stage
stage
wrong
wrong
waste
waste
27
28
Keys to Chapter 2
第 2 章的 28 把钥匙
Tense Challenge 2 (Active vs Passive)
紧张挑战 2(主动与被动)
An American scientist wanted to prove that the Loch Ness monster exists so
he decided to prove it. All his photographic equipment was sent from the
USA to Loch Ness in Scotland where the scientist put it on a large boat. The
scien- tist then spent a week on the Loch waiting for the monster to appear.
Suddenly one night there was a terrible crash and the scientist found himself
face to face with the monster under the water. His boat was smashed to
pieces by the mon- ster, and the oil, which powered the boat, leaked onto the
Loch. Every day the oil slick doubled in size and Scottish environmental
groups became/were become very worried. After 13 days half the Loch was
covered by the oil slick.
一位美国科学家想证明尼斯湖水怪的存在，所以他决定证明它。他所
有的摄影器材都从美国运到了苏格兰的尼斯湖，在那里科学家把它们
放在一艘大船上。这位科学家然后在湖上呆了一周，等待怪物出现。
一天晚上，突然发生了可怕的撞击声，科学家发现自己与水下的怪物
面对面了。他的船被船长撞得粉碎，给船提供动力的油泄漏到了湖
上。浮油的面积每天都在翻倍，苏格兰环保组织变得非常担忧。13 天
后，半个湖被浮油覆盖。
Answer: One more day.
回答:再多一天。
Word Ladder
单词阶梯
BREAD
面包
BREED (have/raise young animals)
繁殖(有/饲养小动物)
CREEP (someone unpleasantly strange or eccentric)
令人讨厌的奇怪或古怪的人
CHEEP (sound a small bird makes)
CHEAP (not expensive)
便宜(不贵)
CHEAT (copy during an
exam) WHEAT
作弊(考试时抄袭)小麦
Chapter 3
第三章
The scientist should treasure the riddles
he can’t solve
科学家应该珍惜他无法解答的谜题
Rhyming Forms
押韵形式
The words below may look very strange but they are actually used in every day
conversation. Can you match the word (1-10) with its meaning (a-j)?
下面的单词可能看起来很奇怪，但它们实际上在日常对话中使用。你能把单
词(1-10)和它的意思(a-j)搭配起来吗？
1. hotch potch
2. hotch potch
3. humdrum
4. 无聊
5. itsy bitsy
6. itsy bitsy
7. jet set
8. 乘喷气客机到处旅游的富豪
9. knick knack
10.小摆设
11.mumbo jumbo
12.巫术
13.namby pamby
14.伤心过度
15.okey dokey
16.好的
17.pooper scooper
18.狗屎清扫铲
19. prime time
20. 黄金时间
a) device for collecting dog excrement
b) 一种收集狗粪便的装置
c) insipid character
d) 平淡的性格
e) meaningless mystical nonsense
f) 无意义的神秘废话
g) mixture
h) 混合
i) monotonous routine
j) 单调的例行公事
k) OK
l) 好
m)period when TV audience viewing is at its highest
n) 电视观众收看率最高的时期
o) rich elite
p) 富裕精英
q) useless device
r) 无用的设备
s) very small
t) 非常小
© Springer International Publishing AG 2018
施普林格国际出版公司 2018 29
A. Wallwork, Word Games, Riddles and Logic Tests, Easy
English!, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0_3
A.沃尔沃克，文字游戏，谜语和逻辑测试，简单英
语！，https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0_3
29
30
30
Tongue Twister
绕口令
Practise reading the tongue twister aloud. Then see if you can memorize and say it
quickly without getting your tongue tied!
练习大声朗读绕口令。然后看你能不能背下来，快速说出来，不至于舌头打
结！
She sells seashells by the seashore.
她在海边卖贝壳。
The shells she sells are surely seashells.
So if she sells shells on the seashore,
I’m sure she sells seashore shells.
她卖的贝壳肯定是海贝壳。所以如果
她在海边卖贝壳，我肯定她卖的是海
滨贝壳。
Riddles
谜语
Match the questions (1-10) with the answers (a -j).
将问题(1-10)与答案(a -j)配对。
1. What’s the best thing about Switzerland?
2. 瑞士最棒的是什么？
3. What is the color of the wind?
4. 风是什么颜色的？
5. Who earns a living by driving his/her customers away?
6. 谁靠赶走他/她的顾客谋生？
7. What breaks when you say it?
8. 什么东西说破了？
9. What instrument can you hear but never see?
10.什么乐器你能听到却看不到？
11.What do you call a fish with no eyes?
12.你把一条没有眼睛的鱼叫做什么？
13.What comes down but never goes up?
14.什么东西下来了却再也没有上去过？
15.A lawyer, a plumber and a hat maker were walking down the street. Who had
the biggest hat?
16.一个律师、一个水管工和一个制帽匠走在街上。谁的帽子最大？
17.If two’s company and three’s a crowd, what are four and five?
18.如果两个人是同伴，三个人是人群，那么四和五是什么？
19. Can you name the two days starting with T besides Tuesday and Thursday?
20. 除了星期二和星期四，你能说出以 T 开头的两天吗？
a) A fsh.
b) fsh。
c) A taxi driver.
d) 出租车司机。
e) Blew.
f) 吹了。
g) I don’t know, but the flag is a big plus.
h) 我不知道，但国旗是一大优势。
i) Nine!
j) 九！
k) Rain
l) 雨
m)Silence!
n) 肃静！
o) The one with the biggest head.
p) 头最大的那个。
q) Today and tomorrow.
r) 今天和明天。
s) Your voice!
t) 你的声音！
31
31
Cryptic Meaning
隐晦的意思
What does the following mean? Hint: Try to read it aloud. YY = two Ys
YY UR
以下是什么意思？提示:试着大声读出来。YY =两个 YY 乌尔
YY UB
ICUR
YY 大
学
YY 4 ME
YY 4 我
Funny Book Titles
有趣的书名
Try to understand why the author of the book is appropriate to the title/topic of the
book.
试着去理解为什么书的作者和书名/题目是合适的。
I Lived in Detroit by Helen Earth
I Love Mathematics by Adam Up
我住在底特律由海伦地球我爱
数学由亚当了
I Was a Cloakroom Attendant by Mahatma Coate
I Win! by U. Lose
我是圣雄寇特的衣帽间服务员我赢了！by U.
Lose
I Say So! by Frank O. Pinion
我这么说！弗兰克·欧·皮恩
Animal Idioms
动物习语
A famous English idiom is ‘It’s raining cats and dogs’, but where does it come
from? It goes back to Norse mythology and to sailors who associated cats with
heavy rain and dogs with storms and the wind.
一个著名的英语成语是‘下着倾盆大雨’，但是它是从哪里来的呢？这可以
追溯到北欧神话和水手们，他们把猫和大雨联系在一起，把狗和风暴和风联
系在一起。
See if you can match the idiom with its meaning.
看看你能否把这个成语和它的意思匹配起来。
1. a dark horse
2. a little bird told me
3. a night owl
4. a white elephant
5. donkey’s years
6. not enough room to swing a cat
7. till the cows come home
8. to have a bee in one’s bonnet
9. to make a pig’s ear of something
10. to smell a rat/something fishy
1.实力难测的竞争者
2.有人跟我说
3.夜猫子
4.沉重的负担
5.很久
6.没有足够的空间让猫转身
a) have an obsession about something
b) something expensive and worthless
c) do something very badly
d) avoids saying directly how you heard
news
e) very little space
f) going back a long time into the past
g) for an indefinitely long time into the
future
h) someone who stays up late
i) person whose true value is unknown
j) suspect that something is wrong
a)对某事着迷
b)昂贵而无价值的东西
c)做某事非常糟糕
避免直接说出你是如何听到消息的
7.无限期地
e)非常小的空间
f)追溯到很久以前
g)在未来无限长的时间内
8.帽子里有一只蜜蜂
9.把某事弄得一团糟
10.闻到老鼠/可疑的东西
熬夜的人
I)真实价值未知的人
j)怀疑有问题
32
32
Anagrams
字谜
Create an anagram from the letters of the words in the first column. The anagram
should correspond to the definition.
根据第一列中单词的字母创建一个变位词。变位词应该与定义相对应。
$u$&R$m
lakes
steal
smart
warms
miles
items
means
melon
needs
newer
湖
deriuitiou
loss of water
stories
means of transport in a town
a group of bees altogether
something on your face that shows that you are happy
x as in 5 x 5 = 20
something that is given to use by our parents
a citrus fruit
thick
make new again
美元和兰特百 德里蒂欧
万美元
水分损耗
偷窃
聪明的
变暖
英里
项目
方法
甜瓜
需要
较新的
故事
镇上的交通工具
一群蜜蜂
你脸上显示你快乐的东西
x 就是 5 x 5 = 20
父母给我们使用的东西
柑橘类水果
厚的
再次创建新的
Limericks
打油诗
Practise reading the limericks aloud and hear/find the rhythm.
练习大声朗读打油诗，并听到/找到节奏。
There
dame
of Dunbar,
exceedingly
canny,canny,
There was
wasananoldold
dame
of Dunbar,A Acanner
canner
exceedingly
Who took
took the
to Forfar;
One
his his
Who
the4.44.4
to Forfar;
One morning
morning remarked
remarkedto to
granny: But
went
on to
“A canner
cancan
can can
granny:
But
went
onDundee,
to Dundee, “A
canner
So
you see
So she
shetravelled,
travelled,
you see
Too
far
by
4.4.
from
Forfar.
Too far by 4.4. from Forfar.
can he?”
Anything
he can
Anythingthat
that
he can
But aacanner
can’t
can a can,
he?”
canner can’t
can can
a can,
Mathematical 1
数学 1
Arrange the figures 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 0, in a way that the total comes to
100. Each figure can only be written once.
排列数字 1、2、3、4、5、6、7、8、9 和 0，使总数达到 100。每个数字只
能写一次。
Mathematical 2
数学 2
Three friends to a restaurant and have a really good meal. The bill comes to £30,
so they each pay £10. But because they are regular customers, the manager gives
them a discount of £5. They decide to leave the waiter a £2 tip and then they
divide the rest equally between them. Thus they have only spent £9 each = £27 +
£2 tip = £29. So where has the other £1 gone?
三个朋友去餐馆吃了一顿真正的大餐。账单共计 30 英镑，所以他们每人付
10 英镑。但是因为他们是常客，经理给了他们 5 的折扣。他们决定给服务员
2 英镑小费，然后把剩下的平分。因此，他们每人只花了 9 英镑= 27 英镑+
2 英镑小费= 29 英镑。那么另一个 1 去哪了呢？
33
33
Mathematical 3
数学 3
A little girl is getting dressed to go out to a birthday party. Her mother has bought
her a new dress and she looks very pretty indeed. She is just about to take her
socks out of the drawer when there’s a blackout and she’s left completely in the
dark. In the drawer there are only white and black socks. How many socks will she
have to pull out before getting a pair of the same color?
一个小女孩正在穿衣服准备去参加生日聚会。她妈妈给她买了一件新衣服，
她看起来真的很漂亮。她正要把袜子从抽屉里拿出来，突然停电了，她完全
被蒙在鼓里。抽屉里只有白色和黑色的袜子。在得到一双同样颜色的袜子之
前，她要拉出多少只袜子？
Pseudodromes
假综合征
Pseudodrome are palindromes in which words, rather than individual letters, read
the same backwards or forwards.
伪迹是回文，其中单词，而不是单个字母，向前或向后读起来都一样。
Bores are people what say people are bores.
无聊的人是说别人无聊的人。
Women understand men, few men understand women.
Dollars make men covetous, then covetous men make
dollars.
女人理解男人，很少有男人理解女人。美元使人贪婪，
然后贪婪的人赚美元。
Girl, bathing on Bikini, eyeing boy, finds boy eyeing bikini on bathing girl.
女孩，穿着比基尼游泳，盯着男孩，发现男孩盯着游泳女孩的比基尼。
Tense Challenge
紧张的挑战
Underline the correct form of the verbs in italics.
划出斜体印出的动词的正确形式。
In Medieval times jesters were very much a part of the royal courts of Europe.
One particular court jester made a fortune traveling from country to country
playing the following trick on unsuspecting monarchs.
在中世纪，弄臣是欧洲皇家宫廷的重要组成部分。一个特别的宫廷小丑从一
个国家旅行到另一个国家，通过对毫无防备的君主玩下面的把戏赚了一大笔
钱。
On seeing the king, queen or whoever he would say: “I bet/will bet that if I
tell/will tell you a really big lie, you give/will give me a pot of gold.”
见到国王、王后或其他人时，他会说:“我打赌，如果我告诉你一个大谎
言，你会给我一罐金子。”
One day he decided to go to England and arriving at His Majesty’s palace he
demanded to see the king, he then announced his challenge and added:
一天，他决定去英国，到达国王陛下的宫殿后，他要求见国王，然后宣布了
他的挑战，并补充道:
“If you agree/will agree to my proposal, you end/will end up giving me a pot of
gold. I am/will be the best liar in the world you know!
“如果你同意/将会同意我的提议，你最终/将会给我一桶金。我是/将会是
你所知道的世界上最好的骗子！
“OK then,” replied the king wearily, “if you tell/will tell me a really big lie, I will
give you a pot of gold”.
“那么好吧，”国王疲倦地回答，“如果你告诉我一个大谎言，我会给你一
罐金子”。
The jester smiled and continued:
杰斯特罗笑了笑，继续说道:
“You owe/will owe my father a pot full of gold. You lost it to him 25 years ago at
poker and you never paid him back.”
“你欠/将要欠我父亲一罐金子。25 年前打牌时你输给了他，而你从未还过
他钱。”
“But I’ve never even met your father,” protested the king, “that’s the biggest lie
I’ve ever heard.”
“但我从未见过你的父亲，”国王抗议道，“这是我听过的最大的谎言。”
The king then realised that he had been fooled and that he would have to pay the
jester. Why?
国王意识到他被愚弄了，他必须付钱给小丑。为什么？
34
34
Word Ladder
单词阶梯
Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice in Wonderland, enjoyed converting one word
into another by changing one letter at a time. For example: H A T E > h a v e > h o
ve>LOVE
《爱丽丝梦游仙境》的作者刘易斯·卡罗尔喜欢通过一次改变一个字母来将
一个单词转换成另一个单词。例如:H A T E > h a v e > h o v e > L O V
E
See if you can convert MICE into RATS. You can use the clues in brackets to help
you.
看看你能否把老鼠变成大白鼠。你可以利用括号中的线索来帮助你。
MICE
老鼠
(staple diet of much of the world)
(世界大部分地区的主食)
(competition)
(比赛)
(assign a rank or rating to)
RATS
(给老鼠定一个等级)
Keys to Chapter 3
第 3 章的答案 35
Keys to Chapter 3
第三章的答案
Rhyming Forms
押韵形式
hotch potch - mixture
humdrum - monotonous routine
itsy bitsy - very small
大杂烩-混合单调-单调的例
行公事
jet set - rich elite
富有的精英阶层
knick knack - useless device
小摆设-无用的装置
mumbo jumbo - meaningless mystical nonsense
namby pamby - insipid character
无意义的神秘的胡说八道
okey dokey - OK
好的，好的
pooper scooper - device for collecting dog excrement
掏粪器-收集狗粪便的装置
prime time - period when TV audience viewing is at its highest
黄金时段——电视观众收看率最高的时段
Riddles 1
谜语 1
What’s the best thing about Switzerland? I don’t know, but the flag is a big
plus.
瑞士最棒的是什么？我不知道，但国旗是一大优势。
What is the color of the wind? Blew.
35
风是什么颜色的？吹了。
Who earns a living by driving his customers away? A taxi driver.
What breaks when you say it? Silence!
谁靠赶走顾客谋生？出租车司机。什么东西说破了？肃静！
What instrument can you hear but never see? Your voice! You can sing
with your voice like an instrument and hear it, but no one can see it!
什么乐器你能听到却看不到？你的声音！你可以像乐器一样用嗓子唱
歌，听得到，但没人看得见！
What do you call a fish with no eyes? A fsh.
What comes down but never goes up? Rain
你把一条没有眼睛的鱼叫做什么？fsh。什么
东西下来了却再也没有上去过？雨
A lawyer, a plumber and a hat maker were walking down the street. Who
had the biggest hat? The one with the biggest head.
一个律师、一个水管工和一个制帽匠走在街上。谁的帽子最大？头最
大的那个。
If two’s company and three’s a crowd, what are four and five? Nine!
如果两个人是同伴，三个人是人群，那么四和五是什么？九！
Can you name the two days starting with T besides Tuesday and Thursday?
Today and tomorrow.
除了星期二和星期四，你能说出以 T 开头的两天吗？今天和明天。
36
Keys to Chapter 3
第 3 章的 36 把钥匙
Cryptic Meaning
Cryptic Meaning
YY UR - too wise you are
YY
UB -- two
youyou
be
YY UR
toowise
wise
I C UYY
R -UB
I see
are
- you
twoare
wise
YY
MEI- too
you 4be
C wise
U R for
- me
I
see you are
YY 4 ME - too wise for me
Funny Book Titles
I Lived inBook
DetroitTitles
by Helen Earth = Hell on earth (i.e. a horrible place)
Funny
I Love Mathematics by Adam Up = Add them (i.e. numbers) up
II Was
a Cloakroom
Attendant
by Mahatma
Myearth
hat, my(i.e.
coat
Lived
in Detroit
by Helen
Earth =Coate
Hell=on
by U. Lose
= You
lose Mathematics by Adam Up = Add
aI Win!
horrible
place)
I Love
I Say So!
them
(i.e.
by Frank
numbers)
O. Pinion
up = frank (sincere) opinion
I Was a Cloakroom Attendant by Mahatma Coate = My hat,
my
coat Idioms
I Win! by U. Lose = You lose
Animal
I Say So! by Frank O. Pinion = frank (sincere) opinion
a dark horse - person whose true value is unknown
a little birdIdioms
told me - avoids saying directly how you heard news
Animal
a night owl - someone who stays up late
dark elephant
horse -- something
person whose
true and
value is unknown
a white
expensive
a little donkey’s
bird told
me- going
- avoids
directly how
worthless
years
back saying
a long time
you the
heard
a night
- someone
into
past news
not enough
roomowl
to swing
a cat - who
very stays up
late
little space
atillwhite
elephant
- something
expensive
the cows
come home
- for an indefinitely
longand
time into the future
worthless
years
- going
back aabout something
to
have a beedonkey’s
in one’s bonnet
- have
an obsession
long
time
into
past not- do
enough
room very
to badly
to make
a pig’s
earthe
of something
something
swing
- very little
space that something is wrong
to smellaa cat
rat`something
fishy - suspect
till the cows come home - for an indefinitely long time
Keys to Chapter 3
第 3 章的答案 37
Anagrams 2
字谜 2
leaks
tales
trams
swarm
smile
times
names
lemon
dense
renew
泄漏
的故
事电
车群
微笑
时代
的名
字柠
檬密
集更
新
Mathematical 1
数学 1
# 57+23=80+1+4+6+9 = 100
# 57+23=80+1+4+6+9 = 100
Mathematical 2
37
数学 2
#
#
Mathematical 3
数学 3
#3
# 3
Tense Challenge - Present Simple vs Will
紧张挑战-现在简单 vs 意志
In Medieval times jesters were very much a part of the royal courts of
Europe. One particular court jester made a fortune traveling from country to
country playing the following trick on unsuspecting monarchs.
在中世纪，弄臣是欧洲皇家宫廷的重要组成部分。一个特别的宫廷小
丑从一个国家旅行到另一个国家，通过对毫无防备的君主玩下面的把
戏赚了一大笔钱。
On seeing the king, queen or whoever he would say: “I bet that if I tell you a
really big lie, you will give me a pot of gold.”
一见到国王、王后或其他什么人，他就会说:“我敢打赌，如果我对你
撒了一个大谎，你会给我一罐金子。”
One day he decided to go to England and arriving at His Majesty’s palace he
demanded to see the king, he then announced his challenge and added:
一天，他决定去英国，到达国王陛下的宫殿后，他要求见国王，然后
宣布了他的挑战，并补充道:
38
Keys to Chapter 3
第 3 章的 38 把钥匙
“If you agree to my proposal, you will end up giving me a pot of gold. I am
“如果你同意我的提议，你最终会给我一桶金。我是
the best liar in the world you know!
你所知道的世界上最好的骗子！
“OK then,” replied the king wearily, “if you tell me a really big lie, I will give
“那好吧，”国王疲倦地回答，“如果你对我撒一个弥天大谎，我就让
步。”
you a pot of gold”.
你一桶金”。
The jester smiled and continued:
杰斯特罗笑了笑，继续说道:
“You owe my father a pot full of gold. You lost it to him 25 years ago at
poker and you never paid him back.”
“你欠我父亲一罐金子。25 年前打牌时你输给了他，而你从未还过他
钱。”
“But I’ve never even met your father,” protested the king, “that’s the biggest
lie I’ve ever heard.”
“但我从未见过你的父亲，”国王抗议道，“这是我听过的最大的谎
言。”
The king then realised that he had been fooled and that he would have to pay
the jester. Why?
国王意识到他被愚弄了，他必须付钱给小丑。为什么？
#If the king admits that it was a lie, he will have to pay the jester a pot of
gold (this was part of the challenge). But if it’s not a lie, then he really does
owe the jester’s father a pot of gold and so he will have to pay the jester
anyway.
#如果国王承认这是一个谎言，他将不得不付给小丑一罐金子(这是挑
战的一部分)。但是，如果这不是一个谎言，那么他真的欠小丑的父亲
一罐金子，所以他将不得不支付小丑。
Word Ladder
单词阶梯
MICE
老鼠
RICE (staple diet of much of the world)
RACE (competition)
大米(世界大部分地区的主食)竞赛
RATE (assign a rank or rating to)
RATS
给老鼠评级
Chapter 4
第四章
Play up! play up! and play the game
打起来！打起来！玩游戏
Numbers
民数记
Numbers occur quite frequently in the abbreviations used in the social media. Due
to the bizarre spelling system of English, numbers can be used in many different
ways:
数字在社交媒体的缩写中出现得相当频繁。由于英语奇怪的拼写系统，数字
可以有许多不同的用法:
1) /won/, 2) /tu/, 3) /thri/ or /fri/, 4) /for/, 8) /eit/
1) /won/，2) /tu/，3) /thri/ or /fri/，4) /for/，8) /eit/
Match the ‘numbers’ in the first column with the meanings in the second column.
将第一列中的“数字”与第二列中的含义配对。
1ce every1 ne1 sum1
anyone
2day f2f
before everyone face to face
im2gud4u lk2ul8r wan2
I’m too good for you once
b4
please forgive me see you later someone
plz 4gv me cul8er w8in4u
talk to you later today
waiting for you
1ce every1 ne1 sum1
anyone
2day
before
f2f everyone face to face
im2gud4u lk2ul8rI’m
wan2too good for you once
b4
please forgive me see you later someone
plz 4gv me cul8er
talk
w8in4u
to you later today
waiting for you
want to
© Springer International Publishing AG 2018
施普林格国际出版公司 2018 39
A. Wallwork, Word Games, Riddles and Logic Tests, Easy
English!, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0_4
A.沃尔沃克，文字游戏，谜语和逻辑测试，简单英
语！，https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0_4
39
40
40
Word Ladder
单词阶梯
Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice in Wonderland, enjoyed converting one word
into another by changing one letter at a time. For example: H A T E > h a v e > h o
ve>LOVE
《爱丽丝梦游仙境》的作者刘易斯·卡罗尔喜欢通过一次改变一个字母来将
一个单词转换成另一个单词。例如:H A T E > h a v e > h o v e > L O V
E
See if you can convert FIRE into HEAT. You can use the clues in brackets to help
you. FIRE
看看你能否将火转化为热。你可以利用括号中的线索来帮助你。火
(engage for work)
HERE (not there)
(受雇)在这里(不在那
里)
(a group of cattle or sheep or other domestic mammals)
(一群牛、羊或其他家养哺乳动物)
HEAT
热
41
41
Proverbs
《箴言》
Match the proverbs (1-10) with their explanations (a-j).
将谚语(1-10)与其解释(a-j)配对。
1. A bad workman always blames his tools
2. 自己笨
3. A bird in hand is worth two in the bush
4. 一鸟在手胜过双鸟在林
5. A change is a good as a rest
6. 改变和休息一样有益
7. A leopard can’t change his spots
8. 本性难移
9. A miss is as good as a mile
10.错误再小也是错
11.A stitch in time saves nine
12.小洞不补大洞吃苦
13.Absence makes the heart grow fonder
14.小别胜新婚
15.Actions speak louder than words
16.事实胜于雄辩
17.All good things must come to an end
18.天下没有不散的宴席
19. Beauty is only skin deep
20. 美丽是肤浅的
a) Rather than recognizing that we have done something badly, we attribute the
responsibility to the tools we are working with.
b) 我们没有意识到我们做错了什么，而是把责任归咎于我们正在使用的工
具。
c) It’s better not to lose something that you already have by trying to get something extra that you cannot be certain of.
d) 最好不要因为试图得到一些你不能确定的额外的东西而失去你已经拥有
的东西。
e) If you start doing something different, then this is equivalent to having a
period of rest.
f) 如果你开始做一些不同的事情，那么这就相当于休息了一段时间。
g) You cannot change human nature.
h) 你不能改变人性。
i)
It doesn’t matter by how far you have missed your target.
j) 你离目标有多远并不重要。
k) If you fix something or solve a problem straight away you will save time later.
l) 如果你马上修好了某样东西或解决了某个问题，你以后会节省时间。
m) When you are away from your loved one, you fall even more in love.
n) 当你离开你爱的人时，你会更加爱他。
o) What you do is more important than what you say.
p) 你做什么比你说什么更重要。
q) Enjoyable experiences don’t last forever.
r) 愉快的经历不会永远持续。
s) What is important is someone’s character not their appearance.
t) 重要的是一个人的性格而不是外表。
42
42
Tongue Twisters
绕口令
Practise reading the tongue twisters aloud. Then see if you can memorize and say
them quickly without getting your tongue tied!
练习大声朗读绕口令。然后看看你是否能记住并快速说出它们，而不会舌头
打结！
Which wristwatches are Swiss wristwatches?
Unique New York.
哪些手表是瑞士手表？独特的纽约。
Many an anemone sees an enemy anemone.
Freshly-fried flying fish.
许多海葵看到了敌人的海葵。新鲜油炸
飞鱼。
Riddles
谜语
Can you answer the questions of the following riddles?
你能回答下列谜语的问题吗？
1. In a one-storey pink house, there was a pink person, a pink cat, a pink fish, a
pink computer, a pink chair, a pink table, a pink telephone, a pink shower–
everything was pink! What color were the stairs?
2. 在一层粉红色的房子里，有一个粉红色的人，一只粉红色的猫，一条粉
红色的鱼，一台粉红色的电脑，一把粉红色的椅子，一张粉红色的桌
子，一部粉红色的电话，一个粉红色的淋浴——一切都是粉红色的！楼
梯是什么颜色的？
3. If you were forced to go through one of the following doors, which door do
you go through with 100 % certainty you’d stay alive: a door with a man with
a gun behind it, a door with a tiger who hasn’t eaten in 7 years behind it, or a
door with an electric chair behind it?
4. 如果你被迫穿过下面的一扇门，你 100 %确定你会活着穿过哪扇门:一扇
门后面有一个持枪的男人，一扇门后面有一只 7 年没吃东西的老虎，还
是一扇门后面有一把电椅？
5. Jack rode into town on Friday and rode out 2 days later on Friday. How can
that be possible?
6. 杰克星期五骑马进城，两天后星期五又骑马出去。这怎么可能呢？
7. A man was cleaning the windows of a 25 storey building. He slipped and fell
off the ladder, but wasn’t hurt. How did he do it?
8. 一名男子正在清洁一栋 25 层高大楼的窗户。他滑倒了，从梯子上摔了下
来，但没有受伤。他是怎么做到的？
9. Two fathers and two sons go on a fishing trip. They each catch a fish and
bring it home. Why do they only bring three fish home?
10.两个父亲和两个儿子去钓鱼。他们每人抓了一条鱼，并把它带回家。为
什么他们只带三条鱼回家？
11.A monkey, a squirrel, and a bird are racing to the top of a coconut tree. Who
will get the banana first, the monkey, the squirrel, or the bird?
12.一只猴子、一只松鼠和一只鸟正跑向一棵椰子树的顶端。谁会先拿到香
蕉，猴子，松鼠，还是鸟？
13.Mr. Blue lives in the blue house, Mr. Pink lives in the pink house, and Mr.
Brown lives in the brown house. Who lives in the white house?
14.蓝色先生住在蓝色的房子里，粉色先生住在粉色的房子里，棕色先生住
在棕色的房子里。谁住在白宫？
15.If a blue house is made out of blue bricks, a yellow house is made out of yellow bricks and a pink house is made out of pink bricks, what is a green house
made of?
16.如果蓝色的房子是用青砖建造的，黄色的房子是用黄色的砖建造的，粉
色的房子是用粉色的砖建造的，那么绿色的房子是用什么建造的呢？
17.How many months have 28 days?
18.多少个月有 28 天？
19. You walk into a room with a match, a kerosene lamp, a candle, and a
fireplace. Which do you light first?
20. 你走进一个有火柴、煤油灯、蜡烛和壁炉的房间。你先点哪个？
21. What is as light as a feather, but even the world’s strongest man couldn’t hold
it for more than a minute?
22. 什么东西轻如鸿毛，却连世界上最强壮的人都坚持不了一分多钟？
23. Mary’s father has 5 daughters – Nana, Nene, Nini, Nono. What is the fifth
daughters name?
24. 玛丽的父亲有 5 个女儿——娜娜、内内、妮妮、辜莞允。第五个女儿的
名字是什么？
43
43
Funny Book Titles
有趣的书名
Match the titles with the authors.
将标题与作者配对。
titler
Cry
Wolf
titler
)UTHoRr
Al
Armist
)UTH
oRr
It’s Unfair!
Cry
Wolf
Al Dente
Armist
It’s Unfair!
Al Dente
Surprised!
Oliver
Sudden
Surprised!
OliverGosh
Without Warning
Omar
Sudden Without
Cooking
SpaghettiWarning
Y. Me
Omar Gosh
Cooking Spaghetti Y. Me
Limericks
打油诗
Practise reading the limericks aloud and hear/find the rhythm.
练习大声朗读打油诗，并听到/找到节奏。
There was a faith-healer of Deal
Who said “Although pain isn’t
real, If I sit on a pin
有一个信仰治疗者说“虽然痛苦
不是真实的，但如果我坐在一根
针上
And it punctures my skin
它刺穿了我的皮肤
I dislike what I fancy I feel.
我不喜欢我想象中的感觉。
There was a young man from
Bengal Who went to a fancy
dress ball.
有一个来自孟加拉的年轻人去参
加一个化妆舞会。
He went just for fun
Dressed up as a bun
他打扮成一个小圆
面包只是为了好玩
And a dog ate him up in the hall.
一只狗在大厅里把他吃了。
Preposition Challenge
介词挑战
Choose the correct preposition - in or to.
选择正确的介词 in 或 to。
There is a night watchman who works in/to a small factory in/to Pisa in/to Italy.
His job is to make sure that there are no intruders in/to the factory during the night
time.
有一个守夜人在意大利比萨的一家小工厂工作。他的工作是确保夜间没有闯
入者进入工厂。
One night he had a dream about his boss. The next morning he went to see his
boss and said in/to him: “Last night I had a dream. I dreamt that the plane crashed
that you are taking in/to London today”. The boss got very angry and told him to
go away.
一天晚上，他做了一个关于他老板的梦。第二天早上，他去见老板，对他
说:“昨晚我做了一个梦。我梦见你今天乘坐的去伦敦的飞机坠毁了”。老
板非常生气，叫他走开。
There was terrible traffic and the boss arrived too late in/to the airport to catch his
plane. So he caught the next one instead. When he arrived in / to London he
bought the evening newspaper and read: “Pisa - London plane crashes - all dead!”
A week later he flew back in/to his factory in/to Pisa. He immediately called in the
night watchman and told him that he was sacked.
交通很糟糕，老板到达机场太晚了，没赶上飞机。所以他抓住了下一个。当
他到达伦敦时，他买了一份晚报，上面写着:“比萨-伦敦空难-全部遇
难！”一周后，他飞回了他在比萨的工厂。他立即叫来守夜人，告诉他自己
被解雇了。
Why did the boss sack his night watchman?
老板为什么解雇他的守夜人？
44
44
On a Mat up Here
在这上面的垫子上
What do the following words have in common?
moo, buzz, neigh, quack
下列单词有什么共同点？哞，嗡嗡，马嘶，嘎
嘎
burp, clang, click crash, hiss, pop, squelch, jingle, snap, thud
打嗝，铿锵声，咔嚓声，碰撞声，嘶嘶声，砰砰声，叮当声，啪嗒声，
砰地一声
Anagrams
字谜
Can you work out the connection between the two columns?
你能找出这两列之间的联系吗？
a telephone girl
repeating hello
Eastwoodgirl
old
west action
aClint
telephone
repeating
hello
French
revolution
violence
run
forth
Clint Eastwood
old west action
Madamerevolution
Curie
radium
came
French
violence
run
police protection
cop cope
forth
Madame Curie let
radium
camein riot
silver
and
gold
grand
old
evils in
police protection let cop cope
the countryside
here
riot
silver and goldno city dust
grand
the
nudist
colony
no
untidy
clothes
old evils
William
Shakespeare no
we all
make
his
the
countryside
city
dust
praise
here the nudist colony
no
untidy clothes
William Shakespearewe all make
Vocabulary notes: Clint Eastwood was a famous film star in westerns; run forth =
flow, cop = police officer, cope = manage, evil = opposite of good, untidy = not in
order, praise = say good things about
克林特·伊斯特伍德是西部片中著名的电影明星；向前跑 =流动，cop =警
官，应付=管理，邪恶=好的反面，邋遢=不整齐，赞美=说好话
Mathematical 1
数学 1
A farmer had two and a half haystacks in one corner of a field and three and a half
haystacks in another corner of the same field. If he put them together how many
haystacks would he have?
一个农民在一块田地的一角有两个半干草堆，在同一块田地的另一角有三个
半干草堆。如果他把它们放在一起，他会有多少干草堆？
45
45
Mathematical 2
数学 2
A train which is 1 km long is moving at 100 km an hour. It goes into a 1 km long
tunnel. How long will it take to pass through the tunnel completely?
一辆 1 公里长的火车正以每小时 100 公里的速度行驶。它进入一条 1 公里长
的隧道。完全穿过隧道需要多长时间？
Mathematical 3
数学 3
A woman worked on her farm where she had a lot of chickens. She went to the
market to sell the chickens’ eggs. The first person bought half her eggs and half an
egg more. The second and third people did exactly the same thing. When she had
given them all their eggs, she had none left and hadn’t had to break a single egg all
day. How many eggs did she have at the beginning?
一个女人在她的农场工作，那里有很多鸡。她去市场卖鸡蛋。第一个人买了
她一半的鸡蛋，又多买了半个鸡蛋。第二个人和第三个人做了完全一样的事
情。当她给了他们所有的鸡蛋后，她一个也不剩了，而且一整天都不用打破
一个鸡蛋。她当初有几个卵子？
Rhyming Words
押韵的词
These pairs of words look as if they should rhyme, but not many of them do.
Which ones do rhyme?
这些成对的单词看起来似乎应该押韵，但不是很多都押韵。哪些押韵？
saidhis
farm
heat seven this whole slaughter close know
aid arm eat even
hole
laughter lose son
now
on
aid arm eatsaid
evenfarm
his heat
hole seven this whole slaughter close know
son
laughter lose now
on
46
46
Anagrams
字谜
Create an anagram from the letters of the words in the first column. The anagram
should correspond to the definition.
根据第一列中单词的字母创建一个变位词。变位词应该与定义相对应。
)u)/R)m
破裂
derIuitIou
a professional bread maker
the opposite of the most
the opposite of day
related to the sun
hard
the opposite of better
the path followed to get from A to B
the part of the bag that you put over your shoulder
not expensive
precious object found in a shell
德里蒂欧
专业面包师
尿
东西
口板
应该
发誓
外面的
部件
桃子
苍白的
大多数人的对立面
一天的反面
与太阳有关
困难的
更好的反义词
从 A 到 B 的路径
你放在肩膀上的那部分包
不贵
在贝壳中发现的珍贵物品
break
stale
thing
orals
ought
swore
outer
parts
peach
paler
)u)/R)m
Logical Ladies?
逻辑女士？
Below are four cases (1-4) all involving women. There are eight possible solutions
(a-h) to the cases. Match the most appropriate solution to each case.
以下是四个案例(1-4)，都涉及妇女。这些情况有八种可能的解决方案(ah)。为每个案例匹配最合适的解决方案。
1. Laura had not been seen for 24 hours. The police sent out a search party. They
discovered her in a couple of hours covered in blood in an abandoned building.
A few hours later, it was confirmed that she had been shot twice. Even though
the police had no other physical evidence, they arrested the murderer. How did
the police know the identity of the murderer?
2. 劳拉已经 24 小时没有露面了。警方派出了一支搜索队。几个小时后，他
们在一栋废弃的建筑里发现了她，浑身是血。几个小时后，证实她中了
两枪。尽管警方没有其他物证，他们还是逮捕了凶手。警察是怎么知道
凶手的身份的？
3. Martha decides to buy a new mobile phone and to sell her old one to a stranger.
The stranger wants to pay in cash. Teresa accepts but says that the stranger
must give her the money in front of a bank clerk in a bank. Why?
4. 玛莎决定买一部新手机，并将旧手机卖给一个陌生人。陌生人想用现金
支付。泰瑞莎接受了，但是她说陌生人必须在银行里当着银行职员的面
把钱给她。为什么？
5. Mrs Jones, who lives alone with her daughter Kate, suspects that Kate’s boyfriend has been staying in their house. But her daughter says that she has spent
the day by herself and that her boyfriend was out with his friends. In reality, the
boyfriend has spent the day in the house, so Kate has made sure that he has not
left anything behind. But Mrs Jones soon finds evidence that Kate’s boyfriend
really has spent the day with Kate in the house. What evidence did Mrs Smith
find?
6. 琼斯夫人和她的女儿凯特单独住在一起，她怀疑凯特的男朋友一直住在
他们家。但是她的女儿说她一个人呆了一天，她的男朋友和他的朋友出
去了。实际上，男朋友已经在家里呆了一天了，所以凯特确定他没有留
下任何东西。但是琼斯夫人很快发现了证据，证明凯特的男朋友真的和
凯特在家里呆了一天。史密斯太太找到了什么证据？
7. Patricia wakes up in the middle of the night and smells smoke. She knows she
is in danger from the fire. She makes no attempt to leave the room where she is
sleeping. Why?
8. 帕特丽夏半夜醒来，闻到烟味。她知道她有火灾的危险。她没有试图离
开她正在睡觉的房间。为什么？
47
47
a) She was not alone.
b) 她并不孤单。
c) She lives next door to the bank.
d) 她住在银行隔壁。
e) She is in a prison cell.
f) 她在监狱里。
g) She can smell perfume.
h) 她能闻到香水味。
i) She is blind.
j) 她是盲人。
k) She wasn’t dead when she was found. So she was able to reveal the identity
of her killers.
l) 她被发现时还没死。所以她能够揭露凶手的身份。
m) She sees that the toilet seat is up.
n) 她看到马桶座圈是向上的。
o) She is a fire officer.
p) 她是一名消防队员。
Ambiguous Headlines
模糊的标题
Try to understand what makes the headlines ambiguous.
试着理解是什么让标题模棱两可。
Two sisters reunited after 18 years at checkout counter
Dealers will hear car talk at noon
两姐妹在收银台 18 年后重聚经销商将在中午听到汽
车谈话
Enraged cow injures farmer with axe
Include your children when baking cookies
Lawyers from Mexico barbecue guests.
愤怒的牛用斧头伤害农民，包括你的孩
子，当烘烤饼干的律师从墨西哥烧烤客
人。
48
Keys to Chapter 4
第 4 章的 48 把钥匙
Keys to Chapter 4
第四章的答案
Numbers
民数记
1ce = once,
1ce =一次，
every1 =
everyone, ne1 =
anyone sum1 =
someone, 2day =
today
every1 =每个
人，ne1 =任何人
sum1 =某
人，2day =今天
f2f = face to face
f2f =面对面
im2gud4u = I’m too good for you
im2gud4u =我对你太好了
lk2ul8r = talk to you later
lk2ul8r =以后再聊
wan2 = want t
wan2 = want t
b4 = before
b4 =之前
plz 4gv me = please forgive me
请原谅我
cul8er = see you later
回头见
w8in4u = waiting for you
w8in4u =等你
Word Ladder
单词阶梯
FIRE
火
HIRE (engage for work)
HERE (not there)
在这里(不在那里)雇
用(工作)
HERD (a group of cattle or sheep or other domestic mammals)
HEAD
牛群(一群牛、羊或其他家养哺乳动物)的头
HEAT
热
Proverbs
《箴言》
A bad workman always blames his tools - Rather than recognizing that we
have done something badly, we attribute the responsibility to the tools we
are working with.
拙劣的工匠总是责怪他的工具——我们不是认识到我们做错了什么，
而是把责任归咎于我们正在使用的工具。
A bird in hand is worth two in the bush - It’s better not to lose something
that you already have by trying to get something extra that you cannot be
certain.
双鸟在林不如一鸟在手——最好不要因为试图得到你不能确定的额外
的东西而失去你已经拥有的东西。
Keys to Chapter 4
第 4 章的答案 49
A change is a good as a rest - If you start doing something different then this
is equivalent to having a period of rest.
改变和休息一样有益——如果你开始做一些不同的事情，那么这就相
当于休息了一段时间。
A leopard can’t change his spots - You cannot change human nature.
江山易改，本性难移。
A miss is as good as a mile - It doesn’t matter by how far you have missed
your target.
失之毫厘，差之千里——你与目标相差多远并不重要。
A stitch in time saves nine - if you fix something or solve a problem straight
away you will save time later.
一针及时省九针——如果你马上修好了某样东西或解决了某个问题，
你以后就会节省时间。
Absence makes the heart grow fonder - When you are away from your loved
one, you fall even more in love.
离别使两颗心靠得更近——当你离开你爱的人时，你会更加相爱。
Actions speak louder than words - What you do is more important than what
you say.
行动胜于言语——你做的比你说的更重要。
All good things must come to an end - Enjoyable experiences don’t last
forever
所有美好的事情都有结束的时候——愉快的经历不会永远持续
Beauty is only skin deep - What is important is someone’s character not their
appearance.
美丽是肤浅的，重要的是一个人的性格而不是外表。
Riddles
谜语
1. There weren’t any stairs, it was a one storey house!
2. 没有任何楼梯，这是一个平房！
3. The one with the tiger behind it, because if it hasn’t eaten in 7 years it’s
49
dead.
4. 后面有老虎的那只，因为如果它 7 年没吃东西，它就死了。
5. Friday is his horse’s name!
6. 星期五是他的马的名字！
7. He fell off the 2nd step.
8. 他从第二级台阶上摔了下来。
9. The fishing trip consists of a grandfather, a father and a son.
10.这次钓鱼旅行由一位祖父、一位父亲和一个儿子组成。
11.None of them, because you can’t get a banana from a coconut tree!
12.一个都没有，因为你不可能从椰子树上得到一根香蕉！
13.The president!
14.总统！
15.Glass
16.玻璃
17.All 12 months!
18.整整 12 个月！
19. The match.
20. 这场比赛。
21. His breath!
22. 他的呼吸！
23. If you answered Nunu, you are wrong. It’s Mary!
24. 如果你回答了努努，那你就错了。是玛丽！
50
Keys to Chapter 4
第四章的 50 个关键
Funny Book Titles
有趣的书名
Cry Wolf by Al Armist - to cry wolf means to claim that something bad has
happened when in reality it hasn’t. The author’s name is alarmist.
Al Armist 的《喊狼来了》——喊狼来了的意思是声称一些不好的事情
已经发生，而事实上并没有发生。作者名是危言耸听。
It’s Unfair! by Y. Me - why me?
不公平！我-为什么是我？
Surprised! by Omar Gosh - oh my gosh (a typical exclamation. gosh is used
instead of god)
惊讶！由奥马尔 Gosh - oh my gosh(一个典型的感叹词。用 gosh 代替
上帝)
Without Warning by Oliver Sudden - all of a sudden (an idiom meaning
‘suddenly’)
没有警告，由奥利弗突然-突然(一个成语的意思是'突然')
Cooking Spaghetti by Al Dente - al dente is an Italian expression indicating
the correct hardness of cooked pasta (literally ‘to the tooth’)
用牙齿烹饪意大利面条——牙齿是一种意大利语表达，表示煮熟的意
大利面条的正确硬度(字面意思是“到牙齿”)
Preposition Challenge
介词挑战
There is a night watchman who works in a small factory in Pisa in Italy. His
job is to make sure that there are no intruders in the factory during the night
time.
有一个守夜人，在意大利比萨的一家小工厂工作。他的工作是确保夜间
工厂里没有入侵者。
One night he had a dream about his boss. The next morning he went to see
his boss and said to him: “Last night I had a dream. I dreamt that the plane
crashed that you are taking to London today”. The boss got very angry and
told him to go away.
一天晚上，他做了一个关于他老板的梦。第二天早上，他去见老板，
对他说:“昨晚我做了一个梦。我梦见你今天要去伦敦的飞机坠毁
了”。老板非常生气，叫他走开。
There was terrible traffic and the boss arrived too late to the airport to catch
his plane. So he caught the next one instead. When he arrived in London he
bought the evening newspaper and read: “Pisa - London plane crashes - all
dead!” A week later he flew back to his factory in Pisa. He immediately
called in the night watchman and told him that he was sacked.
交通很糟糕，老板到机场太晚了，没赶上飞机。所以他抓住了下一
个。当他到达伦敦时，他买了一份晚报，上面写着:“比萨-伦敦空难全部遇难！”一周后，他飞回他在比萨的工厂。他立即叫来守夜人，
告诉他自己被解雇了。
Why did the boss sack his night watchman? Because he was sleeping
(dream- ing) on the job when he should have been checking that there were
no intruders.
老板为什么解雇他的守夜人？因为他在工作时睡觉(做梦),而他应该检
查没有入侵者。
On a Mat up Here
在这上面的垫子上
The words are all onomatopoeic, i.e. they imitate the sound that they are
sup- posed to represent. The first set are all animal noises (cow, bee, horse,
duck). The others are all just sounds made by humans, animals or objects you may have seen them in comics.
这些单词都是拟声词，也就是说，它们模仿的是它们所代表的声音。
第一套都是动物的声音(牛、蜂、马、鸭)。其他的都只是人类、动物
或者物体发出的声音——你可能在漫画里见过。
Keys to Chapter 4
51
第 4 章的答案 51
Mathematical 1
Mathematical 1
1
1
Mathematical 2
Mathematical 2
2 minutes
2 minutes
Mathematical 3
Mathematical 3
The total is seven: first person four eggs (three and a half plus a half), the
second
2 (there
three
left atperson
this stage,
the second
person
one
The total
is were
seven:
first
fourso eggs
(three
and had
a half
and
a
half
plus
a
half),
and
the
third
person
had
one
egg
(half
plus
a
half).
plus a half), the second 2 (there were three left at this
stage, so the second person had one and a half plus a half),
and the third person had one egg (half plus a half).
Rhyming Words
Rhyming
Words
The
following
pairs rhyme: arm/farm, eat/heat, hole/whole
The following pairs rhyme: arm/farm, eat/heat, hole/whole
Anagrams 2
Anagrams
baker
least
bake
night
rsolar
leas
tough
tworse
nigh
route
tstrap
sola
cheap
rpearl
toug
h
wors
2
52
Keys to Chapter 4
第 4 章的 52 把钥匙
Logical Ladies?
逻辑女士？
1) f
2) 2
2) f
2)
2
3) g
4) g
5) c
6) c
Ambiguous Headlines
模糊的标题
Two sisters reunited after 18 years at checkout counter - It seems like they
had both spent 18 years at the checkout counter, whereas in fact the counter
was the place where they were reunited.
两姐妹 18 年后在收银台重聚——看起来她们都在收银台度过了 18 年，
而事实上收银台是她们重聚的地方。
Dealers will hear car talk at noon - Dealers, in this case, are car salespeople.
The ambiguous word is talk which in reality means a presentation/speech
(i.e. a presentation on cars), but seems like it is a car that can speak.
经销商会在中午听到汽车谈话——在这种情况下，经销商就是汽车销
售人员。这个含糊不清的词是 talk，它实际上意味着演示/演讲(即关
于汽车的演示)，但看起来好像是一辆会说话的汽车。
Enraged cow injures farmer with axe - The farmer has the axe not the angry
cow.
被激怒的牛用斧头砍伤农夫-农夫拿的是斧头，而不是被激怒的牛。
Include your children when baking cookies - The idea is that parents should
get their children to participate when cooking, but instead it sounds the children are part of the ingredients.
烘烤饼干时让你的孩子也参与进来——这个想法是父母应该让他们的
孩子参与烹饪，但是听起来孩子也是原料的一部分。
Lawyers from Mexico barbecue guests. The guests are the lawyers, but it
seems like the lawyers are cooking the guests.
来自墨西哥的律师烧烤客人。客人是律师，但似乎律师在煮客人。
Chapter 5
第五章
Thanks to words, we have been able to rise
above the brute
感谢文字，我们已经能够超越兽性
Acronyms
首字母缩略词
A quick way of writing is to use acronyms, where each letter stands for a word.
Match the acronyms with their meanings.
一种快捷的书写方式是使用首字母缩写词，其中每个字母代表一个单词。将缩
写与其含义配对。
aka asap atb
endbbn
of message
bf bfn btdt btw eom
fyi
for your information as soon as possible all the best
bye bye now boy friend bye for now also known as
been there done that
by the way
aka asapend
atbofbbn
message
bf bfn btdt btw eom
fyi
for your information as soon as possible all the best
bye bye now boy friend bye for now also known as
been there done that
by the way
© Springer International Publishing AG 2018
施普林格国际出版公司 2018 53
A. Wallwork, Word Games, Riddles and Logic Tests, Easy
English!, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0_5
A.沃尔沃克，文字游戏，谜语和逻辑测试，简单英
语！，https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0_5
53
54
54
Rhyming Words
押韵的词
These pairs of words look as if they should rhyme, but not many of them do. Which
ones do rhyme?
这些成对的单词看起来似乎应该押韵，但不是很多都押韵。哪些押韵？
are
are
ear
ear
ever
ever
hall
hall
nose
nose
how
how
ill
ill
new
new
raw
raw
word
word
care
care
wear
wear
fever
fever
shall
shall
chose
chose
show
show
kill
kill
knew
knew
draw
draw
sword
sword
Limericks
打油诗
Practise reading the limerick aloud and hear/!nd the rhythm.
练习大声朗读五行打油诗，并听到/找到节奏。
There was a young fellow of Perth
Who was
born
on the day
of hisof
birth;
There
was
a young
fellow
He
married,
they
say,
Perth Who was born on the day
On his
wedding
day,
of
hiswife’s
birth;
He married,
they
And he died when he quitted the earth.
say,
On his wife’s wedding day,
And he died when he quitted the
55
55
Word Ladder
单词阶梯
Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice in Wonderland, enjoyed converting one word into
another by changing one letter at a time.
《爱丽丝梦游仙境》的作者刘易斯·卡罗尔喜欢通过一次改变一个字母来将一
个单词转换成另一个单词。
For example: H A T E > h a v e > h o v e > L O V E
例如:H A T E > h a v e > h o v e > L O V E
See if you can convert SLEEP into DREAM. You can use the clues in brackets to
help you.
看看你能否将睡眠转化为梦境。你可以利用括号中的线索来帮助你。
SLEEP
睡眠
(a short high tone produced as a signal or warning)
(作为信号或警告发出的短而高的音调)
(lose blood)
(失血)
(have/raise young animals)
(饲养小动物)
DREED (not a recognized word)
DREED(无法识别的单词)
(causing fear or terror)
DREAM
(引起恐惧或恐怖的)梦
Riddles
谜语
Choose the correct answer. In some cases more than one answer may be correct.
选择正确的答案。在某些情况下，可能不止一个答案是正确的。
1. The more it dries, the wetter it becomes. What is it?
2. 它越干，就变得越湿。这是什么？
a) a towel b) a cloud c) a sponge
b) 一条毛巾 b)一朵云 c)一块海绵
3. What can you catch but not throw?
4. 什么东西你能接住但不能扔出去？
a) a train b) a star c) a cold
b) 火车 b)星星 c)感冒
5. What loses its head in the morning but gets it back at night?
6. 什么东西早上掉了脑袋，晚上又长回来了？
a) a mad man b) a tortoise c) a pillow
b) 疯子 b)乌龟 c)枕头
7. What gets broken without being held?
8. 什么东西没有被抓住就碎了？
a) a mirror b) a promise c) silence
b) 一面镜子 b)一个承诺 c)沉默
9. What is always coming but never arrives?
10.
什么东西总是要来却从来没来过？
a) the next bus b) tomorrow c) true love
b) 下一班车 b)明天 c)真爱
11.
What goes through towns and over hills but never moves?
12.
什么东西穿过城镇，翻过山丘，却从不移动？
a) electricity b) the earth c) a road
b) 电 b)大地 c)道路
13.
What has 88 keys but can’t open a single door?
14.
什么东西有 88 把钥匙，却打不开一扇门？
a) a prison guard b) a piano c) a computer
b) 一名狱警 b)一架钢琴 c)一台电脑
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15.What has a neck but no head?
16.什么东西有脖子但没有头？
a) a bottle b) a dead chicken c) a cabbage
b) 一个瓶子 b)一只死鸡 c)一棵卷心菜
17.What has one eye but cannot see?
18.什么东西有一只眼睛但看不见？
a) a needle b) a bat c) a mole
b) 一根针 b)一根球棒 c)一颗痣
19. What has hands but can not clap?
20. 什么东西有手但不会拍手？
a) a six-month old baby b) clock c) a murderer
b) 一个六个月大的婴儿是杀人犯
21. What has 50 heads but can’t think?
22. 什么东西有 50 个头却不会思考？
a) a centipede b) a box of matches c) Cerberus, the mythical creature
b) 蜈蚣 b)一盒火柴 c)地狱犬，神话中的动物
Ambiguous Headlines
模糊的标题
Try to understand what makes the headlines ambiguous.
试着理解是什么让标题模棱两可。
Stolen painting found by tree.
被盗画在树下被发现。
Safety experts say school bus passengers should be belted.
A quarter of a million Chinese live on water.
安全专家称校车乘客应该系好安全带。25 万中国人靠
水生活。
Old school pillars are replaced by alumni.
旧学校的支柱被校友取代。
Palindromes
回文
The !ve sentences below are all palindromes, i.e. sentences that can be read letterby-letter either starting at the beginning or starting from the end. The only
problem is that in each case an extra word has been inserted. Can you !nd the
extra word? (e.g. Madam I’m not Adam = in this case not is the extra word)
下面的五个句子都是回文，即可以从开头或结尾开始逐字母阅读的句子。唯
一的问题是在每种情况下都插入了一个额外的单词。你能找到多余的单词
吗？(例如，夫人，我不是亚当=在这种情况下，不是额外的词)
No lemons and no melon.
没有柠檬和甜瓜。
Ten animals I now slam in a net.
Some men interpret the nine memos.
我现在把十只动物关在网里。有些
人解读这九份备忘录。
Evil is a not name of a foreman, as I live.
Marge lets Norah to see Sharon’s telegram.
据我所知，邪恶不是工头的名字。玛吉让
诺拉看莎伦的电报。
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57
Anagrams
字谜
Create an anagram from the letters of the words in the !rst column. The anagram
should correspond to the de!nition.
根据第一列中单词的字母创建一个变位词。变位词应该与定义相对应。
#u#%R#m
进餐
deriuitiou
not females
extra
alternative spelling of spelled
cord used to tie things
lets something fall
not noisy
examples of this are football, tennis, skiing
liquid that comes out of your eyes
propel something through the air
give a portion of something to other people
德里蒂欧
不是女性
梨子
睡觉
散文
刺
很
港口
凝视
价值
听到
额外的
拼写的替代拼写
用来系东西的绳子
让东西落下
不吵
这方面的例子有足球、网球、滑雪
从你眼中流出的液体
推动某物穿过空气
把某物的一部分给其他人
meals
pears
slept
prose
prods
quite
ports
stare
worth
hears
#u#%R#m
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Colorful Idioms
丰富多彩的成语
Match the color idiom with its de!nition.
将颜色习语与其定义配对。
1. be in someone’s black books
2. 不受某人欢迎
3. have the blues
4. 郁郁不乐
5. be not as green as one’s cabbage looking
6. 不像白菜看上去那么嫩
7. a grey area
8. 灰色地带
9. a golden handshake
10.金色的握手
11.red tape
12.官样文章
13.see red
14.大怒
15.as white as a sheet
16.苍白如纸
17.be yellow
18.发黄
a) something which seems unidenti!able
b) 似乎无法辨认的东西
c) not as inexperienced as one looks
d) 不像看上去那么没有经验
e) a substantial sum of money given to someone leaving a company
f) 给离开公司的人的一大笔钱
g) feel depressed or sad
h) 感到沮丧或者悲伤
i) when a person is angry with you
j) 当一个人生你的气时
k) very pale, in a state of shock
l) 非常苍白，处于休克状态
m) bureaucratic formalities
n) 官僚手续
o) act in a cowardly way
p) 以懦弱的方式行事
q) be rather ill
r) 病得很重
s) be extremely angry
t) 极其愤怒
Mathematical 1
数学 1
You have ten stacks of ten silver dollars in each. They are identical, except that
one stack consists entirely of counterfeit dollars. You know the weight of an
authentic dollar, and you also know that a counterfeit dollar weighs one gram less.
How many weighings are needed to reveal which stack is counterfeit?
你有十叠十元的银元。除了一叠全是假币之外，它们是一样的。你知道一张
真美元的重量，你也知道一张假美元比真美元轻一克。需要称重多少次才能
发现哪一叠是假币？
Mathematical 2
数学 2
You have the same amount of money in your wallet as your friend. How much do
you need to give her so that she has 10 euros more than you?
你钱包里的钱和你朋友的一样多。你需要给她多少才能让她比你多 10 欧？
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Mathematical 3
数学 3
An art dealer bought a painting for $7000, then sold it for $8000. She then bought
back the same painting for $9000, and sold it again for $10,000. How much pro!t
did she make?
一个艺术商人以 7000 美元买了一幅画，然后以 8000 美元卖出。然后，她以
9000 美元买回了同一幅画，并以 10000 美元再次出售。她赚了多少钱？
QWERTY or CWAZY?
QWERTY 还是 CWAZY？
What do the following strange sentences all have in common?
以下奇怪的句子都有什么共同点？
A large fawn jumped quickly over white zinc boxes.
一只大鹿快速跳过白色的锌盒。
Jack amazed a few girls by dropping the antique onyx vase
Playing jazz vibe chords quickly excites my wife.
杰克把古董缟玛瑙花瓶掉在地上，让几个女孩大吃一
惊。他弹奏的爵士音乐和弦很快让我妻子兴奋起来。
The !ve boxing wizards jump quickly.
五个拳击奇才跳得很快。
Turgid saxophones blew over Mick’s jazzy quaff.
肿胀的萨克斯管吹过米克爵士的大口大口。
Grammar Challenge
语法挑战
Underline the correct form of the words in italics.
划出斜体词的正确形式。
Some time the/Ø last year in a/the small town on a/the east coast of an/the island
somewhere in the/Ø Paci!c Ocean, a/the kidnapping took place. It all went
exactly to plan. The/Ø kidnappers drew up to Mr X, an/the/Ø important judge, just
as he was leaving court, bundled him into a/the stolen car, blindfolded him and
took him out to a/the hiding place in a/the/Ø country. A/The ransom note, made
from news- paper cuttings, was sent to the/Ø police. However after three days of
waiting, the/Ø police had made no contact and there was no money to be seen.
去年的某个时候，在太平洋某个岛屿东海岸的一个小镇上，绑架发生了。一
切都按计划进行。当 X 先生----一位重要的法官----正要离开法庭时，绑架
者拦住了他，把他塞进一辆偷来的汽车，蒙上他的眼睛，带到一个国家的一
个藏身之处。用剪报做成的勒索信被送到了警察局。然而，经过三天的等
待，警察没有取得任何联系，也没有看到钱。
After a/the week, the/Ø terrorists, tired and disappointed, condemned Mr X to
death. But a/the terrorist leader was not completely cold-hearted and left a/the/Ø
choice of death to Mr X.
一周之后，恐怖分子又累又失望，判处 X 先生死刑。但是这位恐怖分子头目
并没有完全冷酷无情，他让 x 先生选择死亡。
Mr X, despite a/the week of tension, had not lost his sense of humor and in a/the
bid for time asked a/the/Ø terrorist leader: “What deaths have you got in stock?”
尽管经历了一周的紧张，X 先生并没有失去他的幽默感，在争取时间的过程
中，他问恐怖分子头目:“你准备了什么样的死法？”
“Anything from the/Ø electric chair to the/Ø arsenic,” replied a/the leader.
“任何东西，从电椅到砒霜，”首领回答说。
Mr X refused all the leader’s suggestions - electrocution was too “shocking”,
being starved “rather tasteless”, hanging was out of the question as he hated being
“kept in suspense”, poisoning made his “stomach turn” and drowning just left him
“cold”.
X 先生拒绝了领导的所有建议----电刑太"令人震惊",挨饿"相当无味",绞刑
是不可能的，因为他讨厌被"吊在悬疑之中",投毒使他"反胃",溺水只是让
他"感冒"。
He had virtually decided on the/Ø quickest solution, being shot, when he had a/
the/Ø brain-wave. He got up, told the leader of his choice of death and walked
away a/the free man.
当他有了一个脑波时，他几乎已经决定了最快的解决办法，被枪毙。他站起
来，告诉领袖他选择了死亡，然后以自由人的身份离开了。
Question: What death did he choose?
问题:他选择了什么样的死亡？
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60
Similes
明喻
Insert the words in the box into the correct spaces
as quick as
尽快将方框中的单词插入正确的空格中
as quiet as a
as safe as
非常安静，非常安
全
as sharp as a
as sly as a
像...一样狡猾
as steady as a
as sweet as
as thick as a
as ugly as
像……一样稳定，
像……一样甜蜜，
像……一样厚实，
像……一样丑陋
as white as a
白得像
brick, fox, honey, houses, lightning, mouse, needle, rock, sheet, sin
brick, fox, honey, houses, lightning, mouse, needle, rock,
sheet, sin
Smileys
笑脸消除(游戏名)
Match the smileys (i.e. a group of keyboard characters that taken on a facial
expres- sion) with their meanings.
将表情符号(即一组带面部表情的键盘字符)与其含义配对。
:<>
Drunk
:<>
Drunk
:-ll
Big
Kiss
:-ll
Big believe
Kiss it
(((H))) Can’t
(((H)))
Can’t
:-X
Cursing
believe Confused
it
:-C
:-X
Cursing
:-S
Disappointed
:-C
:’-(
:-S
:-@!
:’-(
:-e
:-@!
:-|
:-e
:*)
:-|
:#)
:*)
:#)
Confused
Disgusted
Disappointed
Drinking every
night
Disgusted
Crying
Drinking
every
Big Hugnight
Crying
Angry
Big
Hug
Amazed
Angry
Amazed
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61
Proverbs
《箴言》
Match the proverbs (1-10) with their explanations (a-j).
将谚语(1-10)与其解释(a-j)配对。
1. Beggars can’t be choosers
2. 要饭的哪能挑肥拣瘦
3. Better the devil you know than the devil you don’t
4. 你认识的魔鬼比你不认识的魔鬼好
5. Blood is thicker than water
6. 血浓于水
7. Do as I say, not as I do
8. 照我说的做，不要照我做的做
9. Don’t count your chickens before they hatch
10.不要在小鸡孵出来之前数你的小鸡
11.Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth
12.不对发现（或获赠）的东西吹毛求疵
13.Don’t put all your eggs in one basket
14.不要孤注一掷
15.Every cloud has a silver lining
16.黑暗中总有一丝光明
17.Fools rush in where angels fear to tread
18.智者三思之事蠢人急不可待
19. Give someone an inch and they will take a mile
20. 给人一英寸，他们就会拿走一英里
a) Do not automatically assume that something will turn out right before it actually happens.
b) 不要在事情实际发生之前就自动假设事情会有好结果。
c) Don’t be critical of something that you are going to get for free.
d) 不要对你将免费得到的东西吹毛求疵。
e) Don’t criticize a present that you receive.
f) 不要批评你收到的礼物。
g) Family ties are stronger than other relationships.
h) 家庭纽带比其他关系更牢固。
i) Follow my advice rather than looking at my actions.
j) 听从我的建议，而不是看着我的行动。
k) If you give a little to someone they will then ask for more.
l) 如果你给某人一点，他们会要求更多。
m) Spread your options.
n) 传播你的选择。
o) The current situation, however bad, may be better than a change for some
thing that may be worse.
p) 目前的情况，无论多么糟糕，都可能比改变一些可能更糟的事情要好。
q) The inexperienced often become involved in dif!cult situations that more
intel- ligent people would avoid.
r) 没有经验的人经常会陷入更聪明的人会避免的困境。
s) There is always something positive in every apparently bad event.
t) 每一件明显的坏事中总有积极的一面。
62
Keys to Chapter 5
第五章的 62 把钥匙
Keys to Chapter 5
Keys
to Chapter 5
Acronyms
Acronyms
aka = also known as
asap
soonknown
as possible
aka == as
also
as
atb
=
all
the
best
asap = as soon as possible
bbn
now
atb == bye
allbye
the
bf = boy
best
bbnfriend
= bye
bfn =now
bye bf
for now
bye
=
btdt
been there
boy =friend
bfndone that
= by
thenow
way
=btw
bye
for
eom
of message
btdt==end
been
there done that
fyi = =forbyyour
btw
theinformation
way
eom = end of message
fyi
= for Words
your information
Rhyming
The
following
pairs rhyme: nose/chose, ill/kill, new/knew, raw/draw
Rhyming
Words
The
following
Word
Ladder pairs rhyme: nose/chose, ill/kill, new/knew,
raw/draw
SLEEP
Word
BLEEPLadder
(a short high tone produced as a signal or warning)
BLEED (lose blood)
SLEEP
BREED (have/raise young
BLEEP
short (not
higha recognized
tone produced as a signal or
animals)(aDREED
warning)
BLEED
(lose
blood)
word) DREAD (causing fear
or
BREED
(have/raise
young
terror) DREAM
animals) DREED (not a
recognized word) DREAD
(causing fear or terror)
Keys to Chapter 5
第五章的答案 63
Riddles
谜语
The more it dries, the wetter it becomes. What is it? A towel.
What can you catch but not throw? A cold.
它越干，就变得越湿。这是什么？一条毛巾。什么东西你能
接住但不能扔出去？感冒了。
What loses its head in the morning but gets it back at night? A pillow.
What gets broken without being held? A promise. Silence
什么东西早上掉了脑袋，晚上又长回来了？一个枕头。什么东西
没有被抓住就碎了？一个承诺。沉默
What is always coming but never arrives? Tomorrow.
什么东西总是要来却从来没来过？明天。
What goes through towns and over hills but never moves? A road.
What has 88 keys but can’t open a single door? A piano.
什么东西穿过城镇，翻过山丘，却从不移动？一条路。什么
东西有 88 把钥匙，却打不开一扇门？一架钢琴。
What has a neck but no head? A bottle
What has one eye but cannot see? A needle.
What has hands but can not clap? A clock.
什么东西有脖子但没有头？什么东西只
有一只眼睛却看不见？一根针。什么东
西有手但不会拍手？一只钟。
What has 50 heads but can’t think? A box of matches.
什么东西有 50 个头却不会思考？一盒火柴。
Ambiguous Headlines
模糊的标题
63
Stolen painting found by tree. It sounds like the tree found the painting.
被盗画在树下被发现。听起来像是树找到了那幅画。
Safety experts say school bus passengers should be belted. The ambiguous
word here is belted which means i) ‘with their safety belts on’, ii) hit with a
belt as a form of corporal punishment.
安全专家称校车乘客应该系好安全带。这个模糊的词在这里是
belted，意思是 I)'系上安全带'，ii)用皮带抽打作为一种体罚。
A quarter of a million Chinese live on water. In reality these Chinese have
constructed housing on the water, but ‘live on water’ sounds like they
survive simply by consuming water and nothing else.
25 万中国人靠水生活。事实上，这些中国人已经在水上建造了房屋，
但是“水上生活”听起来就像他们仅仅通过消耗水而生存。
Old school pillars are replaced by alumni. The alumni have removed the old
pillars and put new pillars in their place. But it sounds like the alumni are
now being used as pillars.
旧学校的支柱被校友取代。校友们已经移走了旧的柱子，在它们的位
置上放上了新的柱子。但听起来校友们现在被当成了顶梁柱。
64
Keys to Chapter 5
第 5 章的 64 把钥匙
Palindromes
回文
The extra words are in italics.
No lemons and no melon.
多余的单词用斜体表示。没
有柠檬和甜瓜。
Ten animals I now slam in a net.
Some men interpret the nine memos.
我现在把十只动物关在网里。有些
人解读这九份备忘录。
Evil is a not name of a foeman, as I live.
Marge lets Norah to see Sharon’s telegram.
据我所知，邪恶不是一个敌人的名字。玛
吉让诺拉看莎伦的电报。
Anagrams 2
字谜 2
males
spare
spelt
ropes
drops
quiet
sport
tears
throw
share
男性
备用
斯佩
尔特
绳滴
安静
的运
动眼
泪扔
份额
Colorful Idioms
丰富多彩的成语
be in someone’s black books - when a person is angry with you
have the blues - feel depressed or sad
当一个人生你的气时，你会感到沮丧或悲伤
be not as green as one’s cabbage looking - not as inexperienced as one looks
a grey area - something which seems unidenti!able
不要看上去像白菜一样嫩——不要看上去像没有经验的灰色地带——
一些看上去无法识别的东西
a golden handshake - a substantial sum of money paid to someone leaving a
company
黄金握手——付给离开公司的人一大笔钱
red tape - bureaucratic formalities
see red - be extremely angry
繁文缛节——官僚手续见红
——大发雷霆
as white as a sheet - very pale in a state of shock or very ill
be yellow - act in a cowardly way
苍白如纸-在震惊的状态下非常苍白或者非常虚弱是黄
色的-以懦弱的方式行动
Keys to Chapter 5
第五章答案 65
Mathematical 1
数学 1
Only one. Weigh one coin from the !rst stack, two from the second, and so
forth. The number of grams by which the total is light will correspond to the
number of the counterfeit stack.
只有一个。从第一堆硬币中称出一枚，从第二堆中称出两枚，依此类
推。总数较轻的克数将对应于假币堆的数量。
Mathematical 2
数学 2
5 euros. Imagine you initially both have 10 euros. If you give her 5 you will
now only have 5 yourself and she will have 15, giving the 10 euros
difference that you require.
5 欧元。假设一开始你们都有 10 欧元。如果你给她 5 欧元，你自己现
在只有 5 欧元，她会有 15 欧元，这样你就需要 10 欧元的差额。
Mathematical 3
数学 3
$2000. The total amount of money she spends is £7000 + $9000 = $16,000.
The money she receives is $8000 and $10,000 = $18,000. The difference
between them is $2000.
$2000.她花的钱总数是 7000+$ 9000 = 16000。她收到的钱是 8000 美
元，10000 美元= 18000 美元。两者相差 2000 美元。
QWERTY or CWAZY?
QWERTY 还是 CWAZY？
65
Each sentence contains every letter of the alphabet. The sentences are grammatically correct, but have little real meaning.
每个句子包含字母表中的每个字母。这些句子在语法上是正确的，但
没有什么实际意义。
Grammar Challenge: Articles
语法挑战:文章
Some time Ø last year in a small town on the east coast of an island somewhere in the Paci!c Ocean, a kidnapping took place. It all went exactly to
plan. The kidnappers drew up to Mr X, an important judge, just as he was
leaving court, bundled him into a stolen car, blindfolded him and took him
out to a hiding place in the country. A ransom note, made from newspaper
cut- tings, was sent to the police. However after three days of waiting, the
police had made no contact and there was no money to be seen.
去年某个时候，在太平洋某个岛屿东海岸的一个小镇上，发生了一起
绑架案。一切都按计划进行。绑架者在 X 先生——一位重要的法官
——离开法庭时拦住他，把他塞进一辆偷来的汽车，蒙上他的眼睛，
带到乡下的一个藏身之处。警方收到了一张用剪报制作的勒索信。然
而，经过三天的等待，警方没有取得任何联系，也没有看到钱。
After a week, the terrorists, tired and disappointed, condemned Mr X to
death. But the terrorist leader was not completely cold-hearted and left the
choice of death to Mr X.
一个星期后，恐怖分子又累又失望，判处 X 先生死刑。但是恐怖分子
头目并没有完全冷酷无情，把死亡的选择留给了 x 先生。
Mr X, despite a week of tension, had not lost his sense of humor and in a bid
for time asked the terrorist leader: “What deaths have you got in stock?”
尽管紧张了一周，X 先生并没有失去他的幽默感，为了争取时间，他问
这位恐怖分子头目:“你准备了什么样的死亡？”
66
Keys to Chapter 5
第五章的 66 把钥匙
“Anything from the electric chair to Ø arsenic,” replied the leader.
“Anything
fromallthe
to Ø arsenic,”
replied
the
Mr
X refused
theelectric
leader’s chair
suggestions
- electrocution
was too
leader.
“shocking”,
being starved “rather tasteless”, hanging was out of the question
as
beingall
“keptthe
in suspense”,
made his
“stomach turn”
Mr heX hated
refused
leader’spoisoning
suggestions
- electrocution
and
drowning
just
left
him
“cold”.
was too “shocking”, being starved “rather tasteless”,
hanging
was out
of the
question
as he hated
being
“kept
He had virtually
decided
on the
quickest solution,
being shot,
when
he hadina
suspense”,
poisoning
made
his
“stomach
turn”
and
drowning
brain-wave. He got up, told the leader of his choice of death and walked
just
him “cold”.
away aleft
free man.
He had
decided on the quickest solution, being
What
deathvirtually
did he choose?
shot, when he had a brain-wave. He got up, told the leader of
Answer:
Old age.
his choice
of death and walked away a free man.
What
death
did
he
Similes
choose? Answer: Old
age.
as quick as lightning
as quiet as a mouse
Similes
as safe as houses
as sharp as a needle
as
quick
as
as sly
as a fox
lightning
as steady as aasrock
quiet
mouse
as sweetasas ahoney
as
safe
as
as thick as a brick
houses
as ugly as sin
as sharp as a
as white as a sheet
needle as sly
as a fox
Keys to Chapter 5
第五章答案 67
Smileys
笑脸消除(游戏名)
:<>
Amazed
:<>惊讶
:-ll
Angry
(((H))) Big Hug
:-LH 生气((H))
大拥抱
:-X
Big Kiss
:-X 大吻
:-C
Can’t believe it
:-C 不敢相信
:-S
Confused
:-S 糊涂了
:’-(
Crying
:'-(哭了
:-@!
Cursing
:-@!诅咒
:-e
Disappointed
失望
:-|
Disgusted
:-|恶心
:*)
Drinking every
night
:*)每天晚上喝酒
:#)
Drunk
:#)醉了
Proverbs
《箴言》
67
Beggars can’t be choosers Don’t be critical of something that you are going
to get for free.
乞丐不能挑肥拣瘦不要对你将免费得到的东西吹毛求疵。
Better the devil you know than the devil you don’t The current situation, however bad, may be better than a change for something that may be worse.
你认识的魔鬼总比你不认识的魔鬼好。目前的情况，无论如何糟糕，都比
改变一些可能更糟糕的事情要好。
Blood is thicker than water Family ties are stronger than other relationships.
血浓于水家庭纽带比其他关系更牢固。
Do as I say, not as I do Follow my advice rather than looking at my actions.
照我说的做，而不是照我做的那样听从我的建议而不是看我的行动。
Don’t count your chickens before they hatch Do not automatically assume that
something will turn out right before it actually happens.
不要在小鸡孵出来之前就数你的小鸡。不要在事情真正发生之前就自动假设
事情会变好。
Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth Don’t criticize a present that you receive.
不要对收到的礼物吹毛求疵。
Don’t put all your eggs in one basket Spread your options.
不要把所有的鸡蛋放在一个篮子里，分散你的选择。
Every cloud has a silver lining There is always something positive in every
apparently bad event.
每片乌云都有一线光明，在每件明显的坏事中总有积极的一面。
Fools rush in where angels fear to tread The inexperienced often become
involved in dif!cult situations that more intelligent people would avoid.
傻瓜们冲进天使们害怕涉足的地方。没有经验的人往往会卷入更聪明
的人会避开的困境。
Give someone an inch and they will take a mile If you give a little to
someone they will then ask for more (an inch is a very small measurement, a
mile is very big)
给某人一英寸，他们就会拿走一英里。如果你给某人一点，他们就会
要更多(一英寸是很小的度量，一英里是很大的)
Chapter 6
第六章
Words are, of course, the most powerful
drug used by mankind
当然，语言是人类使用的最有效的药物
Symbols
标志
Can you work out why the words in the second column are an explanation of the
letters and symbols in the first column?
你能找出为什么第二列中的单词是第一列中字母和符号的解释吗？
cu@
cu@
l&n
l&n
pl&
pl&
po$bl
po$bl
s^
s^
th@
up?
ura*
th@
x
ura*
xoxox
star
x
xoxox
see you at
see
you at
landing
landing
planned
planned
possible
possible
what’s up?
what’s
that
you are a star
that
kiss
you are a
hugs and
kisses
kiss
hugs and
© Springer International Publishing AG 2018
施普林格国际出版公司 2018 69
A. Wallwork, Word Games, Riddles and Logic Tests, Easy
English!, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0_6
A.沃尔沃克，文字游戏，谜语和逻辑测试，简单英
语！，https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-67241-0_6
69
70
70
Contractions
收缩
Match the contractions in the first column with their full forms in the second column.
将第一列中的缩写与第二列中的完整形式配对。
ain’t
a cup of (tea)
ain’t a cup of
betchu
could have
(tea) betchu
betta
give me
could have
coulda
has not, am
betta
give
not me
coulda
has
cuppa
have not,
you got
am
..?
not
dunno
hi there
cuppa
have
you got
gimme
I am going
to
..?
gonna
I bet you
dunno
hi there
gotta ...? I don’t know
gimme
I am going
gotta
I had better
to gonna I bet you
hiya
is he
gotta ...? I don’t
izzy
kind of
know gotta I had
kinda
I have got to
better
hiya
is he
Riddles
谜语
Choose the correct answer. In some cases more than one answer may be correct.
选择正确的答案。在某些情况下，可能不止一个答案是正确的。
I’m the part of the bird that’s not in the sky. I can swim in the ocean and yet
remain dry. What am I?
我是那只不在天空的鸟的一部分。我可以在大海里游泳，但却不会淋湿。我
是什么？
a) a shadow b) a nest c) the water
a)一个影子 b)一个鸟巢 c)水
I went into the woods and got it. I sat down to seek it. I brought it home with me
because I couldn’t find it. What am I?
我去树林里找到了它。我坐下来寻找它。我把它带回家，因为我找不到它。
我是什么？
a) a ring b) a fairy c) a splinter
a)戒指 b)仙女 c)碎片
I am weightless, but you can see me. Put me in a bucket, and I’ll make it lighter.
What am I?
我失重了，但是你能看见我。把我放进桶里，我会让它变轻。我是什么？
a) hydrogen b) a hole c) the man on the moon
a)氢 b)洞 c)月球上的人
I’m as light as a feather, yet the strongest man can’t hold me for much more than a
minute. What am I?
我像羽毛一样轻，然而最强壮的人也不能抱我超过一分钟。我是什么？
a) breath b) fire c) life
a)呼吸 b)火 c)生命
71
71
I’m where yesterday follows today, and tomorrow’s in the middle. What am I?
我在昨天跟随今天的地方，明天在中间。我是什么？
a) a time machine b) a dictionary c) the future
The man who needs me doesn’t know it. What am
I?
a)时光机 b)字典 c)未来需要我的人不知道。
我是什么？
a) a woman b) religion c) a coffin
a)女人 b)宗教 c)棺材
I run over fields and woods all day. Under the bed at night I sit not alone. My tongue
hangs out, up and to the rear, awaiting to be filled in the morning. What am I?
我整天在田野和树林中奔跑。夜晚，我坐在床下，并不孤单。我的舌头伸出
来，向上伸到后面，等待着早上被填满。我是什么？
a) shoe b) grass c) a politician.
a)鞋子 b)草 c)政客。
Throw me off the highest building, and I’ll not break. But put me in the ocean, and
I will. What am I?
把我从最高的建筑上扔下去，我也不会崩溃。但是把我放到海里，我会的。
我是什么？
a) an egg b) a regret c) a tissue
a)一个鸡蛋 b)一个遗憾 c)一张纸巾
Lighter than what I’m made of, more of me is hidden than is seen. What am I?
比我所做的还要轻，我隐藏的比看到的更多。我是什么？
a) an iceberg b) an ice cream c) a nice dream
a)冰山 b)冰淇淋 c)美梦
I fly, yet I have no wings. I cry, yet I have no eyes. Darkness follows me; lower
light I never see. What am I?
我能飞，但我没有翅膀。我哭泣，但我没有眼睛。黑暗跟随我；我从未见过
的微光。我是什么？
a) a magician b) a short story c) a cloud
b) 一个魔术师 b)一个小故事 c)一朵云
Forward I’m heavy, backwards I’m not. What am I?
向前我很重，向后我不重。我是什么？
a) a ton b) a gram c) a kilo
一吨一克一公斤
Word Ladder
单词阶梯
Lewis Carroll, the author of Alice in Wonderland, enjoyed converting one word into
another by changing one letter at a time.
《爱丽丝梦游仙境》的作者刘易斯·卡罗尔喜欢通过一次改变一个字母来将一
个单词转换成另一个单词。
For example: H A T E > h a v e > h o v e > L O V E
例如:H A T E > h a v e > h o v e > L O V E
See if you can convert BLACK into WHITE. You can use the clues in brackets to
help you.
看看你是否能把黑色变成白色。你可以利用括号中的线索来帮助你。
BLACK
黑色
(with nothing written on it)
(上面什么也没写)
(rapid movement with
eyes) LINK (short light metallic
sound) CHINK (a narrow opening)
(用眼睛快速移动)LINK(短而轻
的金属声)CHINK(狭窄的开口)
CHINE (cut of meat or fish)
切好的肉或鱼
(noise made by animal or child when unhappy)
WHITE
(动物或儿童不高兴时发出的声音)白色
72
72
Anagrams
字谜
Create an anagram from the letters of the words in the first column. The anagram
should correspond to the definition.
根据第一列中单词的字母创建一个变位词。变位词应该与定义相对应。
$u$&R$m
shout
edits
tales
slope
spare
spark
fiber
canoe
react
swing
呼喊
实验数
字电视
系统
候补陪
审员召
集令
倾斜
多余的
发动
纤维
独木舟
反应
摇摆
deriuitiou
Opposite of north.
Movement of the seas.
Synonym of ‘rob’.
These are found at the extreme north and south of the
earth.
A kind of fruit.
Public green areas.
Short.
The Pacific and Atlantic are examples of this.
Find by investigation.
What birds use to fly with.
美元和兰特百 德里蒂欧
万美元
北的对面。
海洋的运动。
“罗布”的同义词。
这些是在地球的最北端和最南端发现的。
一种水果。
公共绿地。
短。
太平洋和大西洋就是这方面的例子。
通过调查发现。
鸟类用来飞行的工具。
Rhyming Words
押韵的词
These pairs of words look as if they should rhyme, but not many of them do. Which
ones do rhyme?
这些成对的单词看起来似乎应该押韵，但不是很多都押韵。哪些押韵？
age
cage
age
cage
and
wand
and
wand
ash
wash
ash
wash
aunt
haunt
aunt haunt
eased ceased
eased
eight weight
host
ceased ghost
limb climb
eight
loud cloud
weight bone
one
host ghost
limb
climb
73
73
Proverbs
《箴言》
Match the proverbs (1-10) with their explanations (a-j).
将谚语(1-10)与其解释(a-j)配对。
1. God helps those who help themselves
2. 天助自助者
3. His/her bark is worse than his/her bite
4. 他/她刀子嘴豆腐心
5. If at first you don’t succeed try, try again
6. 如果第一次尝试没有成功，那就再试一次
7. It takes two to tango
8. 一个巴掌拍不响
9. Let bygones be bygones
10.既往不咎
11.Let sleeping dogs lie
12.过去的事情就让它们过去吧，别再自找麻烦
13.Look after number one
14.照顾好自己
15.Love is blind
16.爱情使人盲目
17.Make hay while the sun shines
18.抓紧时机
19. Many hands make light work
20. 人多好办事
a) A job is done more quickly if a lot of people share in the work.
b) 如果许多人分担工作，工作会做得更快。
c) Avoid making trouble if you do not need to.
d) 如果不需要，就避免制造麻烦。
e) Don’t rely on other people.
f) 不要依赖其他人。
g) Forget about unpleasant things or problems that happened in the past.
h) 忘记过去发生的不愉快的事情或问题。
i) He or she may not be as bad-tempered as they appear.
j) 他或她也许并不像他们看起来那样脾气暴躁。
k) If you are patient and persevere you will eventually achieve your goal.
l) 如果你有耐心，坚持不懈，你最终会实现你的目标。
m)Some things you can’t do just by yourself.
n) 有些事情你一个人做不了。
o) Sometimes it pays to put yourself in first position.
p) 有时候把自己放在第一位是值得的。
q) Take advantage of opportunities and good conditions while you can.
r) 尽可能利用机会和良好的条件。
s) Your positive emotions towards someone are not always rationale.
t) 你对某人的积极情绪并不总是理性的。
Limericks
打油诗
Practise reading the limericks aloud and hear/find the rhythm.
练习大声朗读打油诗，并听到/找到节奏。
There was an old man of Madrid There was a young man from Japan
There was an old man of Madrid There was a young man from
Who ate sixty eggs - yes, he did! Whose limericks never would scan.
Japan Who ate sixty eggs - yes, he did! Whose limericks
When they asked ‘Are you faint?’ When asked why that was,
never would scan. When they asked ‘Are you faint?’ When
He replied ‘No, I ain’t
He replied ‘It’s because
asked why that was,
But I don’t feel as well as I did.’
I always try to cram as many words into
He replied ‘No, I ain’t
He replied ‘It’s because
the last line as I possibly can’.
But I don’t feel as well as I did.’
I always try to cram as
many words into
74
74
Rhyming Forms
押韵形式
The words below may look very strange but they are actually used in every day
conversation. Can you match the word (1-10) with its meaning (a-j)?
下面的单词可能看起来很奇怪，但它们实际上在日常对话中使用。你能把单
词(1-10)和它的意思(a-j)搭配起来吗？
1. back pack
2. 背包
3. big wig
4. 大人物
5. boob tube
6. 电视机
7. brain drain
8. 人才外流
9. chit chat
10.聊天
11.clap trap
12.拍手陷阱
13.fat cat
14.有钱有势的人
15.fuddy duddy
16.老古董
17.higgledy piggledy
18.乱糟糟的
19. hot shot
20. 过热
a) bag worn on the back
b) 背在背上的包
c) boring person who is stuck in their ways
d) 固执己见的无趣的人
e) important person
f) 重要人物
g) item of clothing worn by woman over her chest
h) 妇女穿在胸前的衣服
i) light conversation
j) 轻松的谈话
k) nonsense
l) 胡说
m)not straight
n) 不直
o) rich, successful person
p) 富有、成功的人
q) someone destined for success
r) 注定会成功的人
s) tendency for highly qualified people (typically scientists) to leave their country
t) 高素质人才(通常是科学家)离开自己国家的趋势
Special Words
特殊单词
What is special about this word?
NOON
这个词有什么特别之处？中午
75
75
Tense Challenge
紧张的挑战
A basketball manager needed 30 million dollars rebuilding/to rebuild his club’s
stadium. Hoping !nding/to !nd the finances he needed, the manager went to a
rich business man, Mr Dollar, whose whole life had been dedicated to
making/make money. Mr Dollar, spotting an opportunity to make a good return on
this investment, agreed lending/to lend the manager the money.
一位篮球经理需要 3000 万美元来重建他俱乐部的体育场。希望找到他需要
的资金，经理去找了一个富有的商人，多勒先生，他的一生都致力于赚
钱。Dollar 先生发现这项投资有很好的回报，同意借钱给经理。
It took six months rebuilding/to rebuild the stadium. But on the first day of the
new basketball season, some rival fans burnt down part of the stadium.
重建体育场花了六个月的时间。但是在新篮球赛季的第一天，一些对手的球
迷烧毁了部分体育场。
Mr Dollar, worrying/to worry about this situation, immediately telephoned the
man- ager asking/to ask him for the 20 million dollars. But the manager said he
didn’t have the money. So Mr Dollar told the manager meeting/to meet him at his
office car park and coming/to come with his best player, Micky Jordan.
Dollar 先生担心这种情况，立即打电话给经理，向他要 2000 万美元。但是
经理说他没有钱。所以美元先生告诉经理在他的办公室停车场见他，并带着
他最好的球员米奇·乔丹一起来。
The three men met at the car park and Mr Dollar said to the manager: “If you give
me your best player, I will cancel your debt.”
三个人在停车场相遇，多勒先生对经理说:“如果你给我你最好的球员，我
就取消你的债务。”
Looking/To look at Mr Dollar right in the eye, the manager replied. “If I give you
Micky Jordan, no one will come to watch my team play”.
“直视美元先生的眼睛,”经理回答道。“如果我把米奇·乔丹给你，就没
人会来看我的球队比赛了”。
“OK” said Mr Dollar. “Look at these stones on the ground. They are all black and
white. I will pick up two stones, a black one and a white one and put them into this
little bag. If Micky picks out a black stone from this bag, then you will have to
give him to me. But if he picks out the white one, then he will be free and I will
cancel your debt.” Not being/to be in a position to argue, the manager reluctantly
agreed.
“好的”美元先生说。“看看地上的这些石头。它们都是黑白的。我会捡起
两块石头，一块黑色的和一块白色的，把它们放进这个小袋子里。如果米奇
从这个包里挑出一块黑色的石头，那么你必须把它给我。但如果他挑出白色
的，那么他将是自由的，我会取消你的债务。”经理没有争辩的资格，勉强
同意了。
Mr Dollar picked up two stones and put them in his bag, but Micky noticed that
Mr Dollar had put two black stones in his bag. How did Micky find a way
resolving/to resolve the situation?
美元先生捡起两块石头放进了他的包里，但是米奇注意到美元先生把两块黑
色的石头放进了他的包里。米奇是如何找到解决这个问题的方法的？
76
76
Riddles
谜语
Match the questions (1-10) with the answers (a-j).
将问题(1-10)与答案(a-j)配对。
1. What is at the end of a rainbow?
2. 彩虹的尽头是什么？
3. What occurs once in a minute, twice in a moment and never in one thousand
years?
4. 什么事情一分钟发生一次，一瞬间发生两次，一千年都不会发生？
5. What word becomes shorter when you add two letters to it?
6. 什么单词加了两个字母就变短了？
7. What is the longest word in the dictionary?
8. 字典里最长的单词是什么？
9. We see it once in a year, twice in a week, and never in a day. What is it?
10.我们一年见一次，一周见两次，一天见不到一次。这是什么？
11.What is the center of gravity?
12.重心是什么？
13.What starts with the letter “t”, is filled with “t” and ends in “t”?
14.什么东西以字母“t”开头，以“t”填充，以“t”结尾？
15.Take away my first letter, and I still sound the same. Take away my last letter,
I still sound the same. Even take away my letter in the middle, I will still
sound the same. I am a five letter word. What am I?
16.拿走我的第一封信，我听起来还是一样。拿走我最后一封信，我听起来
还是一样。即使中途拿走我的信，我的声音还是一样。我是一个五个字
母的单词。我是什么？
17.What has 4 eyes but can’t see?
18.什么东西有四只眼睛但看不见？
19. What starts with “P” and ends with “E” and has more than 1000 letters?
20. 什么东西以“P”开头，以“E”结尾，有 1000 多个字母？
a) A post office
b) 邮局
c) A teapot
d) 一个茶壶
e) EMPTY
f) 空的
g) Mississippi
h) 密西西比河
i) Short
j) 短的
k) Smiles, because there is a mile between each ‘s’
l) 微笑，因为每个“s”之间有一英里
m)The letter “E”
n) 字母“E”
o) The letter M
p) 字母 M
q) The letter V.
r) 字母 v。
s) The letter W!
t) 字母 W！
Mathematical 1
数学 1
Bob the chauffeur always arrives at the train station at exactly five o’clock to pick
up his boss and drive her home. One day Bob’s boss arrives an hour early, starts
walking home some of the way home before Bob picks her up. She arrives at
home twenty minutes earlier than usual. How long had she walked before she met
Bob the chauffeur?
司机鲍勃总是在五点钟准时到达火车站接他的老板并开车送她回家。一天，
鲍勃的老板提前一个小时到了，在鲍勃去接她之前，他开始步行回家。她比
平时早 20 分钟到家。她走了多久才遇到司机鲍勃？
77
77
Mathematical 2
数学 2
It was a windy day and ten people wearing hats were walking towards a supermarket. Suddenly the wind blew all their hats off. A young girl, who was passing by,
picked up all the hats and without asking who the hats belonged to, gave each person a hat. What are the chances of exactly nine people getting their own hat back?
这是一个刮风的日子，十个人戴着帽子走向一个超级市场。突然，风吹走了
他们所有的帽子。一个路过的年轻女孩捡起了所有的帽子，没问是谁的，就
给了每个人一顶帽子。正好九个人拿回自己帽子的几率有多大？
Mathematical 3
数学 3
Where do you often see the fraction 24/31?
你经常在哪里看到分数 24/31？
Similes
明喻
Match the simile with the definitions below.
将明喻与下面的定义配对。
1. like a beached whale
2. 像一头搁浅的鲸鱼
3. like a bolt out of the blue
4. 就像晴天霹雳
5. like a book
6. 清楚地
7. like a broken record
8. 像一张破唱片
9. like a cat on hot bricks
10.像热锅上的蚂蚁
11.like a deer in (the) headlights
12.像车灯前的小鹿
13.like a dog’s dinner
14.像狗的晚餐
15.like a fish out of water
16.像一条离开水的鱼
17.like a flash
18.像一道闪光
19. like a headless chicken
20. 像只无头鸡
a) Completely stuck and unable to move or escape from the situation.
b) 完全被卡住，无法移动或逃离这种情况。
c) Suddenly and unexpectedly
d) 突然出乎意料地
e) Very easy to understand
f) 非常容易理解
g) To repeat and repeat ad nauseam.
h) 令人作呕地重复。
i) To be nervous and unable to keep still
j) 紧张不安，无法保持安静
k) To be so frightened or surprised that you cannot move or think
l) 害怕或惊讶得不能动弹或思考
m)Very messy and/or disorganized.
n) 非常凌乱和/或杂乱无章。
o) Appearing to be completely out of place.
p) 看起来完全不合适。
q) Very quickly.
r) 非常快。
s) You do it very quickly and without thinking carefully about what you are doing
t) 你做得很快，没有仔细考虑你在做什么
78
78
Riddles
谜语
Choose the best answer.
选择最佳答案。
What do hippos have that no other animals have?
河马有什么其他动物没有的东西？
a) enormous jaws b) baby hippopotamuses c) three stomachs
What does a hen do when she stands on one foot?
a)巨大的下巴 b)小河马 c)三个胃当母鸡单脚站立时会做
什么？
a) meditates b) lifts up the other one c) goes to sleep
What has four legs and flies?
a)冥想 b)举起另一只手 c)睡觉什么东西有四条
腿并且会飞？
a) a lightning bird b) a low cost airline plane c) a dead horse
What is the best way to keep a fish from smelling?
a)闪电鸟 b)廉价航空飞机 c)死马防止鱼发臭的最好方
法是什么？
a) keep it on ice b) cut off its nose c) spray it with an organic deodorant
Why does a hen cross the road?
a)把它放在冰上 b)割掉它的鼻子 c)喷上有机除臭剂为什么母鸡要
过马路？
a) to get to the other side b) whenever she wants c) when she is henpecked
a)想去另一边的时候 b)想去的时候 c)怕老婆的时候
Anagrams
字谜
Can you work out the connection between the words (e.g. conversation) and the
explanations (e.g. voices rant on)?
你能找出单词(如对话)和解释(如咆哮的声音)之间的联系吗？
Conversation - voices rant on
Declaration - an oral edict
Desperation - a rope ends it
Saintliness - Least in sins
Suggestion - It eggs us on
Nostalgia - Lost again
Marriage - a grim era
Misfortune - oft ruins me
Prosperity - Is property
Punishment - Nine thumps
Revolution - I love to run
对话——宣言上的声音咆哮
——绝望的口头法令——一
根绳子终结了它的圣洁——
至少是罪恶的暗示——它激
起了我们的怀旧之情——又
一次失去了婚姻——一个不
幸的时代——常常毁灭我的
繁荣——是财产的惩罚——
九次重击革命——我喜欢奔
跑
79
79
Palindromes
回文
The five sentences below are all palindromes, i.e. sentences that can be read letterby-letter either starting at the beginning or starting from the end. The only
problem is that in each case an extra word has been inserted. Can you find the
extra word? (e.g. Madam I’m not Adam = in this case not is the extra word)
下面的五个句子都是回文，即可以从开头或结尾开始逐字母阅读的句子。唯
一的问题是在每种情况下都插入了一个额外的单词。你能找到多余的单词
吗？(例如，夫人，我不是亚当=在这种情况下，不是额外的词)
Draw a pupil’s lip upward.
把学生的嘴唇向上画。
Do nine men interpret it? Nine men, I nod.
Rise to vote, you sir.
九个男人解读吗？九个人，我点头。先
生，请起立投票。
Now, Ned, I am a maiden nun; Ned nod, I am a maiden won.
Are we not drawn onward, oh we few, drawn onward to new
era?
现在，奈德，我是一个处女修女；奈德点头，我是处女赢
了。哦，我们几个人，难道我们不是在前进，前进到新的时
代吗？
80
Keys to Chapter 6
第六章的 80 把钥匙
Keys to Chapter 6
第六章的答案
Symbols
标志
In the first column & stands for and, and @ for at, even in the middle of
words. * is known as an asterisk or the ‘star’ symbol. An x has been used for
decades at the end of a letter to signify a kiss, and and o means a hug
(embrace).
在第一列&代表 and，@代表 at，甚至在单词中间。*被称为星号或‘星
形’符号。几十年来，字母末尾的 x 表示亲吻，o 表示拥抱。
cu@
cu@见
l&n
see you at
landing
l&n 着陆
pl&
planned
po$bl possible
s^
what’s up?
pl& planned
po$bl 可能 s^怎么
了？
th@
that
那个
ura*
you are a star
你是一个明星
x
kiss
x吻
xoxox
hugs and
xoxox 拥抱和
kisses
吻
Contractions
收缩
ain’t
has not, am
not
没有没有，我不是
betchu I bet you
betta
I had better
coulda could have
cuppa a cup of (tea)
dunno I don’t know
gimme give me
gonna I am going to
我敢打赌，我最好能
喝杯茶，我不知道，
给我，给我，我会的
gotta
必须
...?
...
？
have you got
你有
..？
吗
..?
gotta
I have got to
必须我必须
hiya
hi there
你好你好
izzy
is he
他是伊兹吗
kinda
kind of
算是吧
Keys to Chapter 6
81
第六章答案 81
Riddles
谜语
I’m the part of the bird that’s not in the sky. I can swim in the ocean and yet
remain dry. A shadow.
我是那只不在天空的鸟的一部分。我可以在大海里游泳，但却不会淋
湿。一个影子。
I went into the woods and got it. I sat down to seek it. I brought it home with
me because I couldn’t find it. A splinter.
我去树林里找到了它。我坐下来寻找它。我把它带回家，因为我找不
到它。一块碎片。
I am weightless, but you can see me. Put me in a bucket, and I’ll make it
lighter. A hole.
我失重了，但是你能看见我。把我放进桶里，我会让它变轻。一个
洞。
I’m light as a feather, yet the strongest man can’t hold me for much more
than a minute. Breath.
我像羽毛一样轻，然而最强壮的人也不能抱我超过一分钟。呼吸。
I’m where yesterday follows today, and tomorrow’s in the middle. A dictionary.
The man who needs me doesn’t know it. A cof!n.
我在昨天跟随今天的地方，明天在中间。一本字典。需要我的人不知道。
一口棺材。
I run over fields and woods all day. Under the bed at night I sit not alone. My
tongue hangs out, up and to the rear, awaiting to be filled in the morning. A shoe.
我整天在田野和树林中奔跑。夜晚，我坐在床下，并不孤单。我的舌头伸
出来，向上伸到后面，等待着早上被填满。一只鞋。
Throw it off the highest building, and I’ll not break. But put me in the ocean,
and I will. A tissue.
把它从最高的建筑上扔下去，我也不会碎。但是把我放到海里，我会
的。一张纸巾。
Lighter than what I’m made of, More of me is hidden than is seen. An
iceberg.
比我所做的还要轻，我隐藏的比看到的更多。一座冰山。
I fly, yet I have no wings. I cry, yet I have no eyes. Darkness follows me; lower
light I never see. A cloud.
我能飞，但我没有翅膀。我哭泣，但我没有眼睛。黑暗跟随我；我从未见
过的微光。一朵云。
Forward I’m heavy, backwards I’m not. A ton (the letters of not reversed).
向前我很重，向后我不重。一吨(不颠倒的字母)。
Word Ladder
单词阶梯
BLACK
黑色
BLANK (with nothing written on it)
BLINK (rapid movement with eyes)
CLINK (short light metallic sound)
CHINK (a narrow opening)
空白(上面什么也没写)眨眼(眼睛
快速运动)叮当声(短暂的金属声)
叮当声(狭窄的开口)
CHINE (cut of meat or fish)
切好的肉或鱼
WHINE (noise made by animal or child when unhappy)
WHITE
呜呜声(动物或儿童不高兴时发出的声音)
82
Keys to Chapter 6
第六章的 82 把钥匙
Anagrams
字谜
south
tides
steal
poles
pears
parks
brief
ocean
trace
wings
南潮
偷走
极点
梨园
短暂
的海
洋痕
迹翅
膀
Rhyming Words
押韵的词
age/cage, eight/weight, host/ghost, loud/cloud
年龄/笼，八/重，宿主/鬼，大声/云
Proverbs
《箴言》
God helps those who help themselves Don’t rely on other people.
天助自助者不依赖他人。
His/her bark is worse than his/her bite He or she may not be as badtempered as they appear
他/她刀子嘴豆腐心，他/她也许并不像看上去那样脾气暴躁
If at !rst you don’t succeed try, try again If you are patient and persevere you
will eventually achieve your goal.
如果第一次你没有成功，试一试，再试一次，如果你有耐心和毅力，你最
终会实现你的目标。
It takes two to tango Some things you can’t do just by yourself.
探戈需要两个人来跳，有些事情你一个人做不了。
Let bygones be bygones Forget about unpleasant things or problems that happened in the past.
过去的就让它过去吧忘记过去发生的不愉快的事情或问题。
Let sleeping dogs lie Avoid making trouble if you do not need to.
不要惹麻烦，如果你不需要的话，避免制造麻烦。
Look after number one Sometimes it pays to put yourself in first position.
照顾好自己有时候把自己放在第一位是值得的。
Love is blind Your positive emotions towards someone are not always
rationale.
爱情是盲目的，你对某人的积极情绪并不总是理性的。
Make hay while the sun shines Take advantage of opportunities and good
conditions while you can
把握时机尽可能地利用机会和良好的条件
any hands make light work A job is done more quickly if a lot of people
share in the work.
人多力量大如果许多人一起分担工作，工作会做得更快。
Keys to Chapter 6
第六章答案 83
Rhyming Forms
押韵形式
back pack - bag worn on the back
big wig - important person
背包-戴在背上的大假发-重要
人物
boob tube - item of clothing worn by woman over her chest
女人穿在胸前的衣服
brain drain - tendency for highly qualified people (typically scientists) to
leave their country
人才外流——高素质人才(通常是科学家)离开自己国家的趋势
chit chat - light conversation
clap trap – nonsense
闲聊-轻松的谈话鼓掌陷阱胡说八道
fat cat - rich, successful person
富有的成功人士
fuddy duddy - boring person who is stuck in their ways
higgledy piggledy - not straight
墨守成规的人-令人厌烦的人，在他们的道路上纠
缠不清-不正直
hot shot - someone destined for success
热门人物-注定成功的人
Special Words
特殊单词
You can read NOON backwards and forwards and even upside down and it
still looks the same.
你可以把《正午》倒着读、顺着读、甚至倒着读，它看起来还是一样
的。
83
Tense Challenge (-inf Form vs In!nitive)
时态挑战(-inf 形式 vs 不定式)
A basketball manager needed 30 million dollars to rebuild his club’s
stadium. Hoping to !nd the finances he needed, the manager went to a rich
business man, Mr Dollar, whose whole life had been dedicated to making
money. Mr Dollar, spotting an opportunity to make a good return on this
investment, agreed to lend the manager the money.
一位篮球经理需要 3000 万美元来重建他俱乐部的体育场。为了找到他
需要的资金，经理去找了一位富有的商人多勒先生，他的一生都致力
于赚钱。Dollar 先生发现了一个从这项投资中获得丰厚回报的机会，
同意借钱给经理。
It took six months to rebuild the stadium. But on the first day of the new
bas- ketball season, some rival fans burnt down part of the stadium.
重建体育场花了六个月的时间。但是在新篮球赛季的第一天，一些对
手的球迷烧毁了部分体育场。
Mr Dollar, worrying about this situation, immediately telephoned the manager to ask him for the 20 million dollars. But the manager said he didn’t
have the money. So Mr Dollar told the manager to meet him at his office car
park and to come with his best player, Micky Jordan.
Dollar 先生对这种情况很担心，立即打电话给经理，向他要 2000 万美
元。但是经理说他没有钱。因此，多勒先生告诉经理在他的办公室停
车场见他，并带上他最好的球员米奇·乔丹一起来。
The three men met at the car park and Mr Dollar said to the manager: “If
you give me your best player, I will cancel your debt.”
三个人在停车场相遇，多勒先生对经理说:“如果你给我你最好的球
员，我就取消你的债务。”
Looking at Mr Dollar right in the eye, the manager replied. “If I give you
Micky Jordan, no one will come to watch my team play”.
经理直视着美元先生的眼睛，回答道。“如果我把米奇·乔丹给你，
就没人会来看我的球队比赛了”。