Class #18: The Big Bang Theory - Penny gets a compliment from Sheldon

Vocabulary

PACK OF CIGARETTES

FLAT WORMS (PLATYHELMINTHES)

LIGHTER

ROPE

TOOTSIE ROLL

FLAGS

Amy (on webcam): Hello, Sheldon.

Sheldon: Hello. How’s the final stage of your nicotine addiction study going?

Amy: Fine. Just hold on. Mommy’s on the phone! Sorry. We’ve cut the monkeys down to one cigarette a day, so things are a little intense. Makes me miss my marijuana-abusing flatworms. Those guys were mellow.

Sheldon: Good news. Uh, the latest episode of Fun with Flags is online.

Amy: Oh, that’s right. How’d it go with Penny?

Sheldon: Much better than I expected. She even gave me some helpful tips about acting and body language. Watch. Welcome to my world. Not welcome to my world. Welcome. Not welcome.

Amy: Subtle, but powerful.

Sheldon: I know. I’m still learning to control it.

Amy: Did you tell Penny how helpful she was?

Sheldon: Why would I do that?

Amy: Because she’s your friend, and she did a nice job. I’m sure she’d like to hear it.

Sheldon: All right.

Amy: I didn’t mean now. Hello? Yeah, yeah, you want a cigarette. Well, I’d like a normal boyfriend. Deal with it.

Penny: Oh, hi. What’s up?

Sheldon: Um…

Penny: You need me to shut the door so you can do your knocking thing?

Sheldon: No. I didn’t start yet, it’s fine.

Penny: Okay. So, what do you need?

Sheldon: Well, I was thinking about you helping me out last night (knock, knock, knock)Penny. And I just wanted to tell you (knock, knock, knock) Penny, that the answer to the question, "who did a great job?" is you, (knock, knock, knock) Penny.

Penny: Really?

Sheldon: Yes, you were very natural in front of the camera, and I found your suggestions extremely helpful.

Penny: Aw, sweetie, you just made my day.

Sheldon: Okay.

Penny: Hey, my acting class is putting on a play Friday night. I could put you and Amy on the guest list.

Sheldon: Oh, that sounds terrible. Why would I want to do that?

Amy (on webcam): That’s right. They’re no good without the lighter.

Sheldon: Well, so much for your advice on complimenting Penny.

Amy: Why? What happened?

Sheldon: She tried to rope us into going to her acting class to see a play. Don’t worry. Luckily, I had the good sense to drown that kitten in the river.

Amy: Sheldon, that’s very rude. She helped you with your show. The right thing to do is reciprocate by going to see her play.

Sheldon: Oh, so many crazy rules.

Amy: That better be Tootsie Rolls you’re throwing at me!

Sheldon: (Knock, knock, knock) Penny. (Knock, knock, knock) Penny. (Knock, knock, knock)Penny. Oh yeah, much better.

Penny: What?

Sheldon: Amy pointed out to me that since you did something nice for me, I’m obligated to do something nice for you. So, yes, I’ll go to your dopey play.

Penny: Hey, I don’t want you to go any more.

Sheldon: Why not?

Penny: You should go ’cause you want to go, not because you have to.

Sheldon: Oh, Dear Lord, more rules? Where does it stop? Can I want to go because I have to want to go?
Penny: Okay. Do whatever you want.
Sheldon: Yeah, but now, wait. Do whatever I want? Or whatever I have to want?
Penny: Oh, for God’s sake, just come to the play.

Sheldon: All right. I don’t want to, but at least that makes sense.

Grammar

Comparative Forms

One-syllable adjectives.

Form the comparative and superlative forms of a one-syllable adjective by adding –er for the comparative form and –est for the superlative.

One-Syllable Adjective	Comparative Form	Superlative Form
tall	taller	tallest
old	older	oldest
long	longer	longest

• Mary is taller than Max.
• Mary is the tallest of all the students.
• Max is older than John.
• Of the three students, Max is the oldest.
• My hair is longer than your hair.
• Max's story is the longest story I've ever heard.

If the one-syllable adjective ends with an e, just add –r for the comparative form and –st for the superlative form.

One-Syllable Adjective with Final -e	Comparative Form	Superlative Form
large	larger	largest
wise	wiser	wisest

• Mary's car is larger than Max's car.
• Mary's house is the largest of all the houses on the block.
• Max is wiser than his brother.
• Max is the wisest person I know.

If the one-syllable adjective ends with a single consonant with a vowel before it, double the consonant and add –er for the comparative form; and double the consonant and add –est for the superlative form.

One-Syllable Adjective Ending with a Single Consonant with a Single Vowel before It	Comparative Form	Superlative Form
big	bigger	biggest
thin	thinner	thinnest
fat	fatter	fattest

• 
  
• My dog is bigger than your dog.
• My dog is the biggest of all the dogs in the neighborhood.
• Max is thinner than John.
• Of all the students in the class, Max is the thinnest.
• My mother is fatter than your mother.
• Mary is the fattest person I've ever seen.

Two-syllable adjectives.

With most two-syllable adjectives, you form the comparative with more and the superlative with most.

Two-Syllable Adjective	Comparative Form	Superlative Form
peaceful	more peaceful	most peaceful
pleasant	more pleasant	most pleasant
careful	more careful	most careful
thoughtful	more thoughtful	most thoughtful

• 
  
• This morning is more peaceful than yesterday morning.
• Max's house in the mountains is the most peaceful in the world.
• Max is more careful than Mike.
• Of all the taxi drivers, Jack is the most careful.
• Jill is more thoughtful than your sister.
• Mary is the most thoughtful person I've ever met.

If the two-syllable adjectives ends with –y, change the y to i and add –er for the comparative form. For the superlative form change the y to i and add –est.

Two-Syllable Adjective Ending with -y	Comparative Form	Superlative Form
happy	happier	happiest
angry	angrier	angriest
busy	busier	busiest

• 
  
• John is happier today than he was yesterday.
• John is the happiest boy in the world.
• Max is angrier than Mary.
• Of all of John's victims, Max is the angriest.
• Mary is busier than Max.
• Mary is the busiest person I've ever met.

Two-syllable adjectives ending in –er, -le, or –ow take –er and –est to form the comparative and superlative forms.

Two-Syllable Adjective Ending with -er, -le, or -ow	Comparative Form	Superlative Form
narrow	narrower	narrowest
gentle	gentler	gentlest

• The roads in this town are narrower than the roads in the city.
• This road is the narrowest of all the roads in California.
• Big dogs are gentler than small dogs.
• Of all the dogs in the world, English Mastiffs are the gentlest.

Adjectives with three or more syllables.

For adjectives with three syllables or more, you form the comparative with more and the superlative with most.

Adjective with Three or More Syllables	Comparative Form	Superlative Form
generous	more generous	most generous
important	more important	most important
intelligent	more intelligent	most intelligent

• 
  
• John is more generous than Jack.
• John is the most generous of all the people I know.
• Health is more important than money.
• Of all the people I know, Max is the most important.
• Women are more intelligent than men.
• Mary is the most intelligent person I've ever met.

Exceptions.

Irregular adjectives.

Irregular Adjective	Comparative Form	Superlative Form
good	better	best
bad	worse	worst
far	farther	farthest
little	less	least
many	more	most

• 
  
• Italian food is better than American food.
• My dog is the best dog in the world.
• My mother's cooking is worse than your mother's cooking.
• Of all the students in the class, Max is the worst.

Two-syllable adjectives that follow two rules. These adjectives can be used with -er and -est and with more and most.

Two-Syllable Adjective	Comparative Form	Superlative Form
clever	cleverer	cleverest
clever	more clever	most clever
gentle	gentler	gentlest
gentle	more gentle	most gentle
friendly	friendlier	friendliest
friendly	more friendly	most friendly
quiet	quieter	quietest
quiet	more quiet	most quiet
simple	simpler	simplest
simple	more simple	most simple

• Big dogs are gentler than small dogs.
• Of all the dogs in the world, English Mastiffs are the gentlest.
• Big dogs are more gentle than small dogs.
• Of all the dogs in the world, English Mastiffs are the most gentle.

Who /What Questions

• Sometimes who or what takes the place of the subject:

Who gave you the chocolates? >>> Barbara gave me the chocolates. or Barbara did.
Who is looking after the children? >>> My mother is looking after the children. or My mother is.
Who mended the window? >>> My brother mended the window. or My brother did.
Who could have done this? >>> Anybody could have done this. or Anybody could.

• We use what in the same way:

What will happen?
What caused the accident?
What frightened the children?

He is seeing Joe tomorrow >>> Who is he seeing tomorrow?
I want a computer for my birthday >>> What do you want for your birthday?
She has brought some fruit for the picnic >>> What has she brought for the picnic?
They need a new car >>> What do they need?

• Pay attention!

Subject question

Question word	Verb	Rest	Subject	Verb	Object - Place - Time
Who	runs	to the shop?	Peter	runs	to the shop.

---

Object question

Question word	Auxiliary	Subject	Verb	Rest	Answer
Who	do	you	like?		I like my mum.
Who	did	Mandy	phone	last Monday?	Mandy phoned her uncle.

NOTE!

Subject question			Object question
Who	phoned	John?	Who	did	John	phone?
Answer: Peggy phoned John.			Answer: John phoned Peggy.

Had Better

We use “had better” plus the infinitive without “to”  to give advice. Although “had” is the past form of “have”, we use “had better” to give advice about the present or future.

• You'd better tell her everything.
• I'd better get back to work.
• We'd better meet early.

The negative form is “had better not”.

• You'd better not say anything.
• I'd better not come.
• We'd better not miss the start of his presentation.

We use “had better” to give advice about specific situations, not general ones. If you want to talk about general situations, you must use “should”.

• You should brush your teeth before you go to bed.
• I shouldn't listen to negative people.
• He should dress more appropriately for the office.

When we give advice about specific situations, it is also possible to use “should”.

• You shouldn't say anything.
• I should get back to work.
• We should meet early.

However, when we use “had better” there is a suggestion that if the advice is not followed, that something bad will happen.

• You'd better do what I say or else you will get into trouble.
• I'd better get back to work or my boss will be angry with me.
• We'd better get to the airport by five or else we may miss the flight.

Idioms

An idiom is a phrase where the words together have a meaning that is different from the dictionary definitions of the individual words, which can make idioms hard for English students and learners to understand.

Examples: 

Hit below the belt: To hit below the belt is to say something unfair or cruel when you shouldn’t.

Lose your head: If you lose your head, you cannot control your emotions and actions.

Spread the word: If you spread the word about something, you let as many people know about it as you can.

Yesterday's news: Someone or something that is yesterday's news is no longer interesting.

Sing the blues: If you're singing the blues, you're complaining or lamenting something.