Donald Trump's home 'raided' by the FBI. This is News Review from BBC
Learning English. I'm Neil.
And I'm Sian. Stick with us till the end of the video
and you'll learn vocabulary about this story.
And remember, subscribe to our channel, 'like' this video,
and try the quiz on our website.
Now, today's story.
'Raided' by the FBI.
The former US president, Donald Trump, says agents broke in to his Florida
home and took documents.
The search was part of an investigation into the way
Mr Trump handled official papers. Reports say several boxes
of documents were taken away.
You've been looking at the headline, Sian - what's the vocabulary?
We have 'unleashed', 'tears into'
and 'hinges on'. This is News Review from BBC
Learning English.
Let's have a look at our first headline.
This one is from CNN.
So, this headline is saying that a political storm,
that's a really angry political argument, has started because the FBI
went into one of Donald Trump's homes and took some documents.
Now, the word
we're looking at from the headline is 'unleashed' and bit of a strange question
perhaps, Sian. But do you like dogs?
Yes, I do like dogs, but sometimes when you have
a particularly big or powerful dog that isn't well trained it jumps up
at you, that can be a bit scary.
Yeah, well, then it's a good thing that people often use a leash.
Now, a leash is that rope or chain
that you use to attach to the dog to make sure that it is under control.
And if you unleash a dangerous dog,
then it will be out of control.
So, something bad or violent might happen.
And that's the sense here.
So, when the headline says a political storm has been unleashed it means
there's been a release of a powerful, maybe violent force and one
that is difficult to control. Yeah.
But 'unleash' isn't always about negative things being released.
That's true. It can depend on the context.
So you can unleash your potential.
That means your ability to do something well.
For example, I've heard that you're planning to learn to play the piano
Neil, is that correct?
Absolutely, yes.
Aren't you a bit old to start learning the piano?
It's a bit rude, isn't it? You never know,
I might unleash my musical potential.
I mean here, this is a positive use of the word 'unleash'. Possibly Neil's
singing won't be that positive, but we'll see.
Yeah, OK, let's get a summary of that.
Let's have a look at our next headline.
This one is from The Mail.
And so, this headline is saying that Donald Trump is very critical
of the FBI.
He thinks they have double standards.
That means they treat him differently to his political opponents.
Now the word
we're looking at is 'tears into' and again,
this is connected to violence and force.
Yes, so it's useful
first to look at the verb 'tear'.
So, if I tear my piece of paper like this...
I use force to damage it and the phrasal verb
'tear into something' means to attack something.
Yes, and that attack can be either literal, a physical attack
or metaphorical - an attack with words or criticism.
Yes, but it is always strong.
So, if someone tears into you,
it's quite an aggressive form of criticism and probably not very nice.
No, if you watch professional sport,
sometimes you see the team manager or coach really tearing into the referee.
It means 'criticise heavily' with shouting and pointing.
Now, we've got a word about the pronunciation of this word.
Yes, so the spelling is the same
as another word.
So, the drop of water that comes from your eye when you cry, for example.
But the pronunciation is 'teer'.
So, you have a tear.
OK, so you have a tear and then you tear, but it's the same spelling,
but a different pronunciation,
I mean, that's just ridiculous, isn't it? I mean,
what kind of language is this where you can have this ridiculous confusion?
OK, there's no need to tear into the English language like that Neil!
I'm only doing it to demonstrate.
Let's take a look at that again.
OK, Sian. Next headline please.
This one is from Fox News.
Let's break this headline down.
The Attorney General in Florida
is the person whose job is the head of the state
justice department.
We're talking about legal things here - the law - and according to the headline
this person thinks the respect of the FBI - that its reputation - depends
on this case.
It 'hinges on' it,
and that's the word we're looking at.
So, let's focus on that word 'hinge'.
So a hinge is the physical object that attaches the door to its frame
and it allows the door to open and close.
Yes, and that's the important sense here,
the door won't work properly
if there's no hinge.
The hinge allows the door to function - to open and close. And if the door
doesn't open and close
it's pretty pointless.
It's pointless and so the verb 'hinges on'
means something
depends on something, so it won't work without it.
Let's look at this in another context.
A lot of people took exams before the summer
and they are waiting for the results in the autumn.
Yes, and getting a job or a place
at university hinges on their exam results. So, without the right results,
then they might not get the job or the place at university.
Yes, and you understanding us hinges
on our explanation being clear and because of that
we'll have a look at it one more time.
We've had 'unleashed' - released
a powerful or violent force.
'Tears into' - attacks with words or physically.
And 'hinges on' - depends on.
And don't forget there's a quiz on our website.
That's at bbclearningenglish.com. Thank you for joining us
and goodbye. Goodbye.