Describing objects
To describe objects consists of different parts as follows:
1- Function / Use
2- Components / Parts
3- Characteristics:
material
shape / figure
dimensions
property
color
4- Position
5- Connection between parts
Function / Use
used to + infinitive
used for + Ving
A drum set is
music
A drum set is
music
Components / Parts
A hammer Is consists of is
made up of is a handle and a head
composed of
A hammer includes a handle and a head
A hammer has two parts: a handle and a head
sections:
components:
Characteristics
Material
A chair is made of wood.
Bread is made from wheat.
This kind of car is made by a big company in Japan.
Shape / Figure
A coin is shaped like a circle.
A coin is circular in shape.
A coin is circular
Noun: Adjective:
square
rectangle
triangle
ellipse
semicircle
circle
cube
pyramid
cone
hemisphere
cylinder
The rectangle has an area of...............square meters
The circle has an area of square meters
The cube has a volume of............cubic meters
The cylinder has a volume of cubic meters
Dimensions
Noun: Adjective: Translation in French
length
height
width
breadth
depth
1 pouce (inch “in”) : 25,4mm 1 pied (foot “ft”) : 304,8mm
1 yard (“yd”) : 0,9144 m 1 gallon : 4,546l 1 pound (livre “lb”) : 0,4536kg
Property
Property is a special quality that belongs to the object.
The interior of a ping-pong ball is hollow.
This book is thick.
the glass bottle is fragile.
The edge of a table is straight.
The sides of a car are flat
The middle of a bottle is curved.
Colours
Black, white, green, orange, …
Fill in the blanks of the following sentences
a) Long (adj.) and length (noun)
We can describe the length of this beam in four ways:
Q-How is the beam? -A-The beam is
three metres
Q-What is the of the beam? A-The
beam is three metres in
-The beam has a of three metres
-The of the beam is three meters
b) Wide (adj.) (or broad) and width (noun) (or breadth)
Q-How is the belt? A- The belt is sixty millimeters
Q- what is the of the belt? A-The belt is sixty millimeters in
-The belt has a of sixty millimeters
-The of the belt is sixty millimeters
c) High (adj.) and heigth (noun)
Q- how is the tower? A-The tower is a hundred metres
Q-what is the of the tower? A-The tower is a hundred metres in
-The tower has a of hundred metres
-The has of the tower is a hundred metres
d) Thick (adj.) and thickness (noun)
This steel sheet is three millimetres
This steel sheet is three millimetres in
This steel sheet has a of three
millimetres
The of the steel sheet is three millimetres
e) Deep (adj.) and depth (noun)
(In this case, Depth is measured vertically downwards
from a surface. This surface is often ground
level.)
The ditch is two metres
The ditch is two metres in
The ditch has a of two metres
The of the ditch is two metres
Position
If the objects to be described are complicated, consisting of many parts, or
appearing in a set, positions must be given.
Example: inside, outside, at the top, on the left/ right, in
the middle, to the right/ left (of), at the bottom, above,
over, between, below, beside, at the end of, behind, in
front of, near, by, ….
The Vespa scooter COSA (1) 125/200 1988 - 1992
The engine is inside the scooter with a headlight at the top.
The spare wheel is at the back. There is a petrol cap under
the seat. The directional Indicators are located on the
sides.
Hydraulic linked brakes are actuated via the rear brake pedal
Exercise: label the different parts on the picture
Connection between parts
Connection is a relationship between two things or more. If the object has more
than one part, we have to describe them part by part with a connection
between them.
Verbs that signal the connection are: attach, detach, join, connected, support,
fix, fit, lead, link, …
The head of a hammer is fixed to
the handle. The rubber tube is fitted
over the glass tube. The glass tube
is fitted into the rubber tube. The
wire leads from the switch to the
bulb.
The wire links between the switch and the bulb.
The wheels of a car are detached from the
body of a car.
