Revision Exercises

(based on the Introductory Material)

Exercise 1. Make up several questions of different types (including indirect questions) based on the following sentences: 1, 6, 8.

Exercise 2. Make up several sentences on the analogy of sentences 1, 6, 9.

Exercise 3. Comment on the following sentences: 4, 8.

Exercise 4. Develop the following sentences into short situations: 2, 3, 9.

Exercise 5. Build dialogues round the following sentences: 1, 8.

13. Content, contents

Introductory material

Read and translate the following sentences paying special attention to the words in bold type.

1. «National in form, socialist in content,» was the key to the solution of the national question. 2. «Quite properly,» said Philip. «The contents of the will were no business of-the servants.» 3. This is not the place to discuss in even the most cursory fashion the contents of Ross’s article. 4. The table of contents will show that I have regarded it as imperative to provide two introductions, one to Cambridge and one to the shire. 5. But it was not these grander features of the view that I remember from those earlу visits. It was the contents of a curious room that you entered through folding doors from the drawing-room. 6. Adele, indeed, no sooner saw Mrs. Fairfax, than she summoned her to her sofa, and there quickly filled her lap with the porcelain, the ivory, the waxen contents of her «boite»; pouring out, meantime, explanations and raptures in such broken English as she was mistress of. 7. The seed was all of the white varieties of wheat and of a very high grade. «Bread would be as good as cake, then,» he answered, going from sack to sack, inspecting the contents and consulting the tags affixed to the mouths. 8. He went through Marian Strademyer’s desk, carefully replacing every thing he disturbed. None of the contents of the desk drawers interested him for long. 9. Ernestine had a room of her own in the Swedish Haven house, and Geraldine was careful not to disturb its contents. 10. Then, taking possession of the stool, which the sergeant handled carefully with a handkerchief, the ashtray and its contents and the teapot, cups and saucers, they departed. 11. He identified the ashtray with its contents as an exhibit. It was passed round to the jurymen who examined the cigarette ends closely and whispered among themselves. 12. «Nothing else?» «No, sir, but there’s one thing that’s odd. The suit he was wearing — I checked the contents of the pockets.» 13. She began more hurriedly to search the rest of the desk. She looked into all the drawers, pulling them right out and examining their contents. There was nothing. The lowest drawer would not pull fully out, it seemed to be jammed. Hilda tugged at it, then thrust her fingers in and clawed its contents forward into the light.

EXPLANATORY NOTES

Content n. 1. (sing.) The main substance or meaning (of cognition, art, a book, a speech, etc. as opposed to its form) (суть, основное содержание), e.g. the ~ of a proposition; the ~ of a poem is distinguished from its form.

2. (often pl.) All that is contained or expressed in a writing or speech (содержание), e.g. the ~ of a book; a table of ~ (a list of chapters, topics, etc. in a book or periodical). 3. (pl) All that is contained in something; everything inside (содержимое), e.g. the ~ of a room. 4. (pl.) The amount which a vessel will hold, e.g. the ~ o[ a barrel (объем, емкость).

Unlike the Russian words содержание, содержимое, объем which require the use of a verb in the singular, their English equivalent contents requires the use of a verb in the plural, e.g. Under his arm he carried a long stiff cardboard box, the contents of which were revealed to me when Mother came slowly, almost unwillingly, downstairs.