Fantasy & SciFi Comic Corpus 語言學必看

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Dictionary Skills - How to Choose Meanings (PCM Method)

The PCM Method is very easy. Some words have more than one meaning. When you look up such a word in the Macmillan English Dictionary [MED], look for a sample sentence with the same grammar pattern and similar collocates. This will help you find the correct meaning.

1. pay

2.6 These are my friends now, Dad ... And they're going to help me pay back [the buzzard] who bushwhacked you! That's a *PROMISE*!

None of these five meanings fits. The patterns and collocates are wrong.

pay back (2) is just right: same pattern, same collocates

PATTERN: pay [somebody] back = VB + [N] + ADV

COLLOCATE: them ~ buzzards (= bad guys)

MED: She was determined to pay [them] back for the trouble they had caused.

MEANING: to do something bad to someone because they have done something bad to you

2. happy

4.4 I get a lump in my throat when I think of the happy [years] when Dad and I lived back of the sheriff's office!

Meaning (3) has the right pattern and the right collocates

PATTERN: happy years = ADJ + [N]

COLLOCATE: a happy marriage/childhood/life (these nouns all refer to time)

MEANING: making you feel happy, or showing that you feel happy

3. case

6.5 Now, Bunco ... I'm paying you off for back-shooting my Daddy!

No! No! I didn't do it! ... Honest! Cade done the shooting! *I SWEAR HE DID IT*! I only stood by in case of trouble.

 

In case of (=if there is) bad weather, the wedding will be held indoors.

PATTERN: in + case + of + [N]

COLLOCATE: trouble ~ bad weather (things that make people unhappy)

MEANING: If there is [N]

4. know

2.5 {Now I know why you made me learn to shoot!}

know what/why/who etc.: None of us really knew what had gone wrong.

PATTERN: know + WH (who/what/when/where/why/how) + sentence

COLLOCATE: you made me learn ~ [something went wrong]

MEANING: to have information about something, or to understand something

Writing a 50-word summary (Part 2) （英文閱讀、語言學必看）

In Part 1, I showed you how to make a long summary by saying a little about each page. In this posting, I will show you how to make your summary shorter. If your first summary is too long, you can take away some sentences and words. If your summary is now too short, you can put back a few words or find new, better words.

Here is yesterday's summary:

Summary	# of words
When Lil Peters was a little girl, her father made her learn to shoot	14
When she went to college, she could shoot better than many men.	12
One day, Lil learned that her father was killed by a bad guy.	13
Lil promised that she would find the man who killed her father.	12
Garson Cade and Bunco tried to kill Lil with dynamite.	10
Lil was very smart, so she saved herself.	8
She then took out her guns and went to find the bad guys.	13
Lil found out that Garson Cade was the killer.	9
This summary is much too long!	91

Summary	# of words
Lil Peters could shoot better than many men.	8
One day, Lil learned that her father was killed by a bad guy.	13
Garson Cade tried to kill Lil with dynamite.	8
Lil saved herself and went to find the bad guys.	10
Lil found out that Garson Cade was the killer.	9
Now the summary is a little too short	48

Summary	# of words
Lil Peters could shoot better than many men.	8
One day, Lil learned that her father, a sheriff, was killed by a bad guy.	15
Garson Cade, a gambler, tried to kill Lil with dynamite.	8
Lil saved herself and went to find the bad guys.	10
Lil found out that Garson Cade was the killer.	9
Now the summary is just right!	50

Dynamite is not important, but I know that her father's job is important. The sheriff told the gambler to leave town, probably because he cheated many people. 

  This explains why Garson Cade killed Lil's father.

Writing a 50-word summary (Part 1) （英文閱讀、語言學必看）

寫摘要其實很容易！如果你選的故事有6頁，每一頁寫兩句話而每句話平均5～6個字，一下子可以寫72個字。經過刪刪減減之後，就可以輕輕鬆鬆地改成50個字的摘要。

1 Reread your story. What important things happened on each page? Write two sentences about those pages. If there are 5 or 6 words in each sentence, you can easily write 10~12 words per page. If there are 6 pages in your story, you can easily write 60～72 words (5 or 6 x 12 = 60 or 72).

2 When you finish, look at all of your sentences. Maybe some things are less important? Maybe you can put two sentences together to make one sentence? Maybe you can take out some words? Do this several times until you have 50 words. That's it! You have finished a 50-word summary! Here is an example, some sentences about the "Two-Gun Lil" story (91 words). In Part 2, I will show you how to change these 91 words into a 50-word summary.

1		When Lil Peters was a little girl, her father made her learn to shoot	14
2		When she went to college, she could shoot better than many men.	12
3		One day, Lil learned that her father was killed by a bad guy.	13
4		Lil promised that she would find the man who killed her father.	12
5		Garson Cade and Bunco tried to kill Lil with dynamite.	10
6		Lil was very smart, so she saved herself.	8
7		She then took out her guns and went to find the bad guys.	13
8		Lil found out that Garson Cade was the killer.	9

 

Two-Gun Lil--First Story

Here is the first Two-Gun Lil story, six picture pages and typed up text.

1.1

{Keep shootin', honey," Sheriff Sam Peters told his beautiful daughter, Lil! "Some day those six-guns may turn out to be the only friends you got!" So little Lil played with guns before she played with dolls -- and when the terrible day of vengeance came -- she was ready!}

1.2 

{A charity carnival in Boston}

By Jove, Lil... I believe I'll try shooting one of those big pistols ... if I can hold it!

Go ahead, Tommy! But you'd better use both hands!

1.3 

No good, son. Ah reckon you'll never make a good trail hand!

You can say that again, old timer! Sometimes I wonder what these dudes are good for! Let me try those guns!

1.4 

But ma'am, guns ain't for ladies.

Lil, be careful! You have no idea how heavy and loud they are!

2.1 

Phooey! I cut my first teeth on the barrel of a Colt .44!

Yike!

2.2 

Thanks! Now I'm going home to pack!  Sheriff Sam Peters of Sage City is going to get his daughter back again ... College or *NO* college!

2.3 

A telegram just came for you. Miss Peters!

Thanks!

2.4 

TELEGRAM--Miss Lil Peters, C/O Ladies Seminary, Boston; Your father Sheriff Sam Peters killed by bushwhacker; (Signed) Bob Cross, Deputy

2.5 

{Now I know why you made me learn to shoot!}

Now can I go play with my friends, Daddy?

Yes, honey! But *REMEMBER*, this is wild country! Some day, a pair of six-guns may be the *ONLY* friends you have!

2.6 

These are my friends now, Dad ... And they're going to help me pay back the buzzard who bushwhacked you! That's a *PROMISE*!

2.7 

No matter what they do or where they hide, I'll find the hombres who gunned out my Daddy ... *AND I'LL MAKE THEM PAY*!

Computers vs Typewriters: 'Enter' （英文閱讀、語言學必看）

A computer is NOT a typewriter

Typewriters are over 150 years old. These old machines had many problems. One problem was that at the end of each line, the typist had to pull the carriage return lever 回車槓 back to the beginning of the line. Computers do this automatically.

Carriage Return 回車槓 = 電腦的 "Enter" 鍵

When you write a report or an email on a computer, DO NOT hit 'Enter' at the end of each line. Other people's computers are not the same as your computer. The end of your line might be the middle of another person's line. When you come to the end of a line, just keep on typing. The computer software (Microsoft Word, Notetab, your email program etc) will make automatically make new lines.

Only hit 'Enter' 回車 to make a new paragraph

Computers vs Typewriters: Periods （英文閱讀、語言學必看）

Periods and Commas: Computers vs Typewriters

Typewriters are over 150 years old. These old machines had many problems. One problem was that periods sometimes looked like commas. 

Why? Because old typewriters sometimes put too much ink on the paper when people typed. This made periods and commas look very similar. 

To help people see periods and commas clearly, a special typewriter rule was made: one space after a comma, but two spaces after a period. Some old computer teachers don't know that computers are different, so they tell students to leave two spaces after each period. This rule is WRONG!

WRONG -- Two spaces after every period look very big and very ugly!

Computer periods and commas are very, very clear, so we only ever leave one space after each period or comma. If you leave two spaces when typing on a computer, the spaces can become very big and look very ugly.

Old typewriters sometimes put too much ink on the paper when people typed periods and commas.  This made them look very similar.  To help people see periods and commas clearly, a special typewriter rule was made: one space after a comma, but two spaces after a period.  

Computer periods and commas are very, very clear, so we only ever leave one space after each period or comma. 

RIGHT -- One space after every period looks just right

Western Vocabulary: Words Used in Westerns （閱讀班）

Western Vocabulary

Here are some words that you will see and hear when you read westerns or watch cowboy movies. 

adios || "Adios" is a Spanish word = "Goodbye!"

ain't || In comics, "ain't" = "isn't/aren't" This spelling usually means that the person who is talking did not go to school.

bloodhound || A kind of dog. Bloodhounds have very good noses. They can help the police find bad guys.

bullet || The thing that shoots out (= comes out very quickly) from a gun

bushwhack || To attack somebody by surprise.

bushwhacker || In westerns, bushwhackers are usually bad guys who surprise people by shooting them from a hidden place.

buzzard || 1. A buzzard is a bird that eats dead animals OR a bird that attacks other animals; 2. A bad guy

canyon || A low place between two mountains

cattle || Cows and bulls

cayuse || A kind of horse

Conchita || A Spanish woman's name (short form of Concepción, referring to Maria, the mother of Jesus; she was conceived/born [= Concepción] without sin).

cowpoke || A cowboy

coyote || 1 = an animal like a small wolf; 2 = bad guy

critter || 1. In comics, "critter" = "creature" (usually an unpleasant animal). This wrong spelling means that the person who is talking did not go to school.; 2. A bad guy

deed || A deed is a piece of paper from the government. The paper says that (this house/land etc.) belongs to you.

deputy || A deputy is a "policeman's" helper in the west (A sheriff's deputy, a marshal's deputy)

drygulch || When bad guys attack somebody by surprise in a lonely place (like a dry river or the desert), they "drygulch" them.

fast on the draw || A man who is "fast on the draw" is able to take his gun out very quickly

fer || In comics, "fer" = "for" This wrong spelling usually means that the person who is talking did not go to school.

fixing to || "Getting ready to ..."

foller || In comics, "foller" = "follow" This wrong spelling usually means that the person who is talking did not go to school.

foreman || A foreman is somebody who watches workers. He doesn't let them be lazy.

giddyap || When a cowboy speaks to a horse, "Giddyap!" means "Start moving fast!"

git || In comics, "git" = "get" This wrong spelling usually means that the person who is talking did not go to school.

grand || A grand = $1000

grub || In western comics, "grub" = "food"

gunsel || A gunsel works for a bad guy. He shoots good guys to help his boss.

gunshy || A gunshy dog is a dog that is afraid of guns (so it is not a good hunting dog)

gunslick || A gunslick works for a bad guy. He shoots good guys to help his boss.

gunslinger || A gunslinger works for a bad guy. He shoots good guys to help his boss.

hardware || In westerns, "hardware" is sometimes a slang word = guns

herd || A group of animals such as cattle

holster || 1. NOUN = A strong "pocket" for guns made of animal skin (like a wallet for money); 2. VERB = if you holster your gun, you put it back in its holster

hombre || A man (borrowed from a Spanish word; "hombre" sounds like /ɔmbrɛ/; There is no "h" sound in Spanish)

hoof || A horse's foot

hoosegow || A jail (a "house" for bad guys)

horseshoes || A U-shaped piece of iron to keep horse's feet safe

hyar || In western comics, "hyar" = "here" This wrong spelling usually means that the person who is talking did not go to school.

ketch || In western comics, "ketch" = "catch" This wrong spelling means that the person who is talking did not go to school.

kin || In comics, "kin" sometimes means "can" This wrong spelling usually means that the person who is talking did not go to school.

loco || Crazy (borrowed from a Spanish word)

marshal || A "policeman" sent by the US government (= police for the whole country)

mebbe || In western comics, "mebbe" = "maybe" This wrong spelling usually means that the person who is talking did not go to school.

mortgage || When most people want a house, they ask a bank to buy it for them. They then pay the bank every month for 15, 20 or even 30 years. This is called "paying a mortgage."

muh || In comics, "muh" = "the." This wrong spelling usually means that the person who is talking did not go to school.

pea shooter || 1 A child's toy gun; 2 Any gun

pinto || A kind of horse

play possum || Pretend to be dead

polecat || 1. A skunk (= An animal that fights by making a very bad smell); 2. A bad guy

pull iron || If bad guys "pull iron" they take their guns out and get ready to shoot somebody

purty || In comics, "purty" = "pretty." This wrong spelling usually means that the person who is talking did not go to school.

ranch || A "farm" where ranchers raise cattle and horses

ranny || 1. A young cow (calf) that is not strong and healthy; 2. Somebody that a cowboy doesn't like

reach || In westerns, "Reach!" sometimes means "hold your hands up above your heads" (away from your guns)

ride shotgun || If somebody with a gun rides shotgun, they ride with a stagecoach (bus, car, truck etc) to keep the coach safe from bad guys

rustler || Someone who steals cattle or horses

saddle || A "chair" on a horse (a special seat) (shy = afraid; saddle-shy = afraid to ride on a horse)

savvy || Know, understand (borrowed from a Spanish word "sabe" [sounds like /sɑβɛ/])

sheriff || A local policeman, especially in the west. In the US, people vote for a sheriff.

shoes || = horseshoes

shooting iron || A gun

shore || In comics "shore" sometimes means "sure" ("certainly"). This wrong spelling usually means that the person who is talking did not go to school.

sidewinder || 1. A dangerous snake that moves sideways in the desert; 2. A bad guy

spurs || The sharp small stars on a cowboy's boots. Cowboys use spurs to make horses move.

stagecoach || A travel service which is like a small bus which is pulled by horses. When the stagecoach comes to a special town, the horses rest and new horses start pulling.

stampede || Make cows and horses start running (because they are afraid)

steers || cattle (= cows, bulls and calfs)

tenderfoot || Newcomer who doesn't know about cowboy life (guns, horses, etc.)

thar || In western comics, "thar" = "there" (western pronunciation). This spelling means that the person who is talking did not go to school.

thet || In comics, "thet" = "that" This wrong spelling usually means that the person who is talking did not go to school.

thuh || In comics, "thuh" = "the." This wrong spelling usually means that the person who is talking did not go to school.

tinhorn || A small unimportant person who likes to tell other people that he is rich and important

tuh || In comics, "tuh" = "to" This spelling usually means that the person who is talking did not go to school.

vamoose || = (in western comics) You go/Let's go ("Vamoose" is a word borrowed from Spanish "Vamos" /ˈβɑmɔs/)

varmint || 1 = Unpleasant animal; 2 = Bad guy

whoa || "Whoa" tells a horse to stop

whut || In comics, "whut" = "what" This wrong spelling usually means that the person who is talking did not go to school.

yonder || Over there

yore || In comics, "yore" sometimes means "you're" This wrong spelling usually means that the person who is talking did not go to school.

yuh || In comics, "yuh" = "you" This wrong spelling usually means that the person who is talking did not go to school.