Pengantar
Artikel di bawah ini saya ambil dari Buku 1100 Words You Need to Know, edisi kedua. Fotocopy buku tersebut saya dapatkan dari teman saya yang ambil kursus TOEFL di Sam College Bandung. Waktu itu saya yang bahasa Inggrisnya pas-pasan, setengah mati buat memahami kalimat demi kalimat yang dibahas di buku itu. Apalagi sekitar tahun 90-an akhir saat itu, akses internet masih menjadi barang mahal buat saya. Belum ada Electronic Dictionary terinstall di smartphone, lha wong smarphonenya juga belum ada.
Pembahasan
After writing that beauty is truth, truth beauty, John Keats concluded: That is all ye know on earth, and all ye need to know. Naturally the poet’s romantic philosophy must be appreciated on a lofty level, while at the same time, we concede that there are more specific things on this earth that we need to know.
- conclude – mengambil kesimpulan
- lofty – sangat tinggi
- concede – mengakui / membenarkan
To really come to grip with the question, one should be aware of his purposes, his aims in life. It is obvious that there are vital facts that a surgeon needs to know, just as there are essential knowledge and skills for butchers, bakers, and the manufacturer of candlesticks. The individual’s life style ultimately determines just how much he needs to know. There is a discipline, however, which cuts across every mode of living, and the mastery of it can bring all types of rewards. We are referring to the study of vocabulary.
- come to grip with – datang untung mengatasi
- obvious – sangat jelas
- surgeon – dokter bedah
- just as – sebagaimana halnya
- ultimately – pada akhirnya
- discipline – disiplin, cabang ilmu
- reward – penghargaan
- treasury – perbendaharaan
- subtlety – seluk beluk
- convey – sampaikan
- nuances – nuansa
- derive – dapatkan
- precisely – dengan tepat sekali
- priceless – tidak ternilai harganya
Since assembling an extensive and practical vocabulary requires effort, we have tried to get the serious student started by selecting over 1100 useful words and idioms – 1100 Words You Need to Know – and by teaching them through interest, variety, and repetition.
We believe that the reader who spends 15-20 minutes daily on our lesson will see a dramatic improvement in his word power. Aside from the higher grades and success on college entrance exams, he will be better able to send and receive ideas and to enrich his personal and profesional relationship
- assembling – menghimpun, memasang
- extensive – luas
- interest – minat
- entrance exams – ujian masuk sekolah
- enrich – memperkaya
More than a half-million readers have already been exposed to the controlled vocabulary in 1100 Words You Need to Know and the techniques that we devised to help them learn how to use those important words. We have received grateful letters from across the country and abroad, praising us for the timeless off our selection words appearing in newspapers and books, on standardized exams, and in business correspondence.
Their response is very gratifying. We realize that possessing a rich treasury of words brings material gains as well as confidence in one’s ability to communicate and to be accepted as a mature person. As you spend the time to master the 1100 words and idioms even 15 to 20 minutes daily, you will discover the pleasure of recognition and understanding when you come across these challenging words in your listening, reading, and conversing.
- gratify – memuaskan
- conversing – bercakap-cakap
For the Second Edition, published in 1987, we added words games that enhanced the learning process and analogies that were useful for those who were preparing for college entrance tests. In the Third Edition, we took into account the newly revised SAT format by creaing words-in-context segments called WORD SEARCHES, one for each of the 46 weeks. Now, in this Fourth Edition, we have updated all the material and added a major component, “The Panorama of Words,” where you will find a valuable sentence reference for each words you have learned. The material presented is consistent with our successful blueprint of interest, variety, relevance, and repetition. Regard it as a dividend on your investment.
