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An English Conversation
Josh: Look, this evening gown is fifty percent off.
Susan: What's the price now?
Josh: It's 55 dollars after discount.
Susan: Let me see if it's all silk. I don't want any polyester in it.
Josh: Dear, you don't understand. Without polyester silk gets wrinkled. It's only 15 percent polyester.
Susan: Well, I have to try it on. What're the colors it comes in? I don't like this green.
Josh: I don't know. Let's find it out. I don't see a saleswoman around here, though.
Susan: Macy's is always like that. No sales people you can find on the floor.
Josh: That's why Macy's is getting cheaper and cheaper. They cut down on sales people to save money. The less expenses they have, the cheaper prices they offer to customers.
Susan: You find it out at the customer service desk over there. I wanna see those tops.
Josh: OK. I'll find it out for you. In the meantime, take a look at those tank tops, too.
Susan: Good Lord! They're only 6 dollars a piece.
Josh goes over to the customer service desk and Susan tries on the tops marked fifty percent down. Then Josh returns.
Josh: They said whatever you see here that's about it. But I like that green color. Why not try it on?
Susan: Alright, honey. Where's the fitting room?
Josh: Right behind you I see one.
Susan: I'll try on these tank tops, too. They're made of hundred percent cotton, they feel so fresh.
Josh: You're obsessed with cotton.
Susan: Yes, I am. I hate that all over sticky sweating I get from the polyester as well as rayon.
Josh: Your vocabulary on fabrics are just adorable, and so are you. Go try it on real quick. I have only one more hour.
Susan: OK. I'll do it real quick.
on sale: prepositional phrase. to be discounted, the time when products in stores are discounted
discount: the amount of money stores take out from the original price. For example, "10 dollars discount I got from the dress. The original price is 70 dollars." So, she got the dress for 60 dollars.
evening gown: compound noun. dress women wear for formal events
fifty percent off: adverbial phrase. the state of being discounted for fifty percent on the original price.
marked fifty percent down: It is a state of fifty percent discount applied to a product.
fabric: noun. textile material used for clothing in this context
silk: a natural fabric soft and smooth, and expensive
polyester.: noun. a synthetic fabric, easy to maintain and inexpensive
get wrinkled: verb + past participle. to get + adjective. In this context, the word "wrinkled" is the participle form of the verb "wrinkle". The participle form used with "get" makes the participle an adjective. For example: "I get annoyed when people interrupt me." The verb "annoy" is used in the participle form, "annoyed", with the verb "get" so the participle "annoyed" functions as an adjective in this sentence.
rayon: noun. a synthetic fabric.
sticky: adjective. the uncomfortable feeling when we perspire and it stays on us (in this context)
sweating: the gerund form of the "sweat" makes "sweating" an adjective in this context.
that is about it: idiomatic phrase. No more that why it is there; no more than what you see. Example: "You get only 50 dollars a week as your pocket money. That's about it." This sentence means: you will get only 50 dollars but not more than that.
come in: prepositional verb. to offer the same product in one different variety in this context. "The evening gown comes in different colors." This sentence means, there are different colors of the same evening gown in the store.
Good Lord! compound noun. an exclamation phrase
fitting room: compound noun. The area in department stores where people try on clothes to see how well they fit
obsessed with: the participle form of the verb used as an adjective with the helping verb "be". To be obsessed with. To be overly mindful about something. Example: "My daughter is obsessed with her weight. She is skinny and still wants to lose weight."
top: noun. The clothes which we wear above the west. Generally all kinds of clothes worn above the west are called top. For example, a blouse is a top; a shirt is a top.
try it on: prepositional verb. To put on an apparel so see how well it fits.
saleswoman: the female sales person in a store
the less expenses ... the cheaper prices ... the + comparative form of the subject (less expenses) in the first object + the comparative form of the subject noun (cheaper) in the second object. This comparative form is used when we compare two objects, events or anything to stress the effect of the first object or event on the other object or event. For example, "The more the politician talked, the less people believed in what he said." "The more vocabulary I learn in English, the better I speak it."
wanna: the informal, spoken English form of the verb "want". Do not use it in formal English or writing.
real quick: informal use of the adverb "really" as "real". Americans don't say "really quickly", but say "real quick".
to be made of (something): prepositional verb with 'make' in the passive voice. The material used to manufacture a product. Mostly, it singles out one particular material used in manufacturing a product. For example: "This dress is made of silk.", which singles out the only fabric used to make the dress.
tank top: compound noun. a sleeveless and tight top with a low-cut front
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