Fog on the Barrow-Downs

(Extract from the book by J. R. R. Tolkien "The Lord of the Rings". Abridged)

That night they heard no noises. But either in his dreams or out of them, he could not tell which, Frodo heard a sweet singing run­ning in his mind;¹ a song that seemed to come like a pale light be-hind a grey rain-curtain.

The vision melted into waking;² and there was Tom whistling; and the sun was already slanting down the hill and through the open window.

After breakfast they made ready to say farewell, as nearly heavy of heart³ as was possible on such a morning; cool, bright, and clean under a washed autumn sky of thin blue. The air came fresh from the North-West.

They rode off along a path and looked out from the hill-top over lands under the morning. It was now as clear and far-seen as it had been veiled and misty when they stood upon the knoll in the Forest. They took a deep draught of the air.⁴

Their way wound along the floor of the hollow, and round the green feet of a steep hill into another deeper and broader valley. As they journeyed the sun mounted, and grew hot. Each time they climbed a ridge the breeze seemed to have grown less. When they caught a glimpse of the country westward the distant Forest seemed to be smoking, as if the fallen rain was steaming up again. A shadow now lay round the edge of sight, a dark haze above which the sky was like a blue cap.⁵ On that side the hills were higher and looked down upon them; and all those hills were crowned with green mounds, and on some were standing stones, pointing upwards like jagged teeth out of green gums. The view was somehow disquieting; so they turned from the sight and went down into the hollow circle. In the midst of it there stood a single stone, standing tall under the sun above, and at this hour casting no shadow. They set their backs⁶ against the east side of the stone. It was cool, as if the sun had had no power to warm it. There they took food and drink.

Riding over the hills, and eating their fill,⁷ lying a little too long; these things are, perhaps, enough to explain what happened. How­ever, that may be: they woke suddenly from a sleep they had never meant to take. The standing stone was cold, and it cast a long pale shadow. The sun was gleaming through the mist; north, south, and east, the fog was thick, cold and white. The air was silent, heavy and chill.

The hobbits⁸ sprang to their feet in alarm, and ran to the western rim. They found that they were upon an island in the fog. Even as they looked out in dismay towards the setting sun, it sank before their eyes into a white sea, and a cold grey shadow sprang up in the East behind. The fog rolled up to the walls and rose above them, and as it mounted it bent over their heads until it became a roof. They felt as if a trap was closing about them. They packed up as quickly as their chilled fingers would work.

Soon they were leading their ponies in single file⁹ over the rim and down the long northward slope of the hill, down into a foggy sea. As they went down the mist became colder and damper, and their hair hung lank and dripping on their foreheads. When they reached the bottom it was so cold that they halted and got out cloaks and hoods, which soon became bedewed with grey drops. Then, mounting their ponies, they went slowly on again. To prevent their getting separated and wandering in different directions they went in file, with Frodo leading. Suddenly Frodo saw a hopeful sign. On either side ahead a darkness began to loom through the mist; and he guessed that they were at last approaching the gap in the hills. 'Come on! Follow me!' he called back over his shoulder, and he hurried forward. His pony reared, and he fell off. When he looked back he found that he was alone: the others had not fol­lowed him.

'Sam!' he called. 'Pippin! Merry! Come along! Why don't you keep up?'¹⁰

There was no answer. Fear took him, and he ran back. As he struggled on he called again, and kept on calling more and more frantically. He was weary, sweating and yet chilled. It was wholly dark.

'Where are you?' he cried out miserably.

There was no reply. He stood listening. He was suddenly aware that it was getting very cold, and that up here a wind was beginning to blow, an icy wind. A change was coming in the weather. The mist was flowing past him in shreds and tatters. His breath was smok­ing.¹¹ He looked up and saw with surprise that faint stars were ap­pearing overhead amid the strands of hurrying cloud and fog. Oat of the east the biting wind was blowing.

'Where are you?' he cried again, both angry and afraid.

'Here!' said a voice, deep and cold, that seemed to come out of the ground. 'I am waiting for you!'

'No!' said Frodo; but he did not run away. His knees gave,¹² and he fell on the ground. Nothing happened, and there was no sound. Trembling he looked up in time to see a tall dark figure like a shadow against the stars. It leaned over him. He thought there were two eyes, very cold though lit with a pale light that seemed to come from some remote distance. Then a grip stronger and colder than iron seized him. The icy touch froze his bones, and he remembered no more.

When he came to himself again, for a moment he could recall nothing except a sense of dread. Then suddenly he knew that he was imprisoned, caught hopelessly; he was in a barrow. A Barrow-wight had taken him, and he was probably already under the dreadful spells of the Barrow-wights about which whispered tales spoke. Hedared not move, but lay as he found himself: flat on his back upon a cold stone with his hands on his breast.

As he lay there, thinking and getting a hold on himself, he no­ticed all at once that the darkness was slowly giving way:¹³ a pale greenish light was growing round him. He turned, and there in the cold glow he saw lying beside him Sam, Pippin, and Merry.

There was a loud rumbling sound, as of stones rolling and fal­ling, and suddenly light streamed in. A low door-like opening appeared at the end of the chamber beyond Frodo's feet; and there was Tom's head against the light of the sun rising red behind him.

'Come, friend Frodo!' said Tom. 'Let us get out on to the clean grass! You must help me bear them.' Together they carried out Merry, Pippin and Sam. To Frodo's great joy the hobbits stirred, robbed their eyes, and then suddenly sprang up. They looked about in amazement. 'What in the name of wonder?¹⁴ began Merry. 'Where did you get to, Frodo?'

'I thought that I was lost', said Frodo; 'but I don't want to speak of it.' But Tom shook his head, saying: 'Be glad, my merry friends, and let the warm sunlight heat now heart and limb! Cast off these cold rags! Run naked on the grass!'

The air was growing very warm again. The hobbits ran about for a while on the grass. Then they lay basking in the sun with the de­light of those that have been wafted suddenly from bitter winter to a friendly clime, or of people that, after being long ill, wake one day to find that they are unexpectedly well and the day is again full of promise.

Proper Names

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien ['³Án 'rÁnld 'rU@l tÁlkIn] — Джон Роналд Руэл Толкин

Barrow-downs [b{r@U,daUnz] — Курганы (Прим.: в тексте — место захоронения древних королей)

Frodo ['frÁd@U] — Фродо

Torn [tÁm] — Том

Sam [s{m] —Сэм

Pippin — ['pIpIn] — Пиппин

Merry — ['merI] — Мерри

Barrow-wight [b{r@U"waIt] — призрак Курганов

Vocabulary Notes

1. But either in his dreams or out of them, he could not tell which, Frodo heard a sweet singing running in his mind ... — Ho Фродо не знал, во сне или наяву, до него доносилось нежное пение ...

2. The vision melted into waking ... — Он проснулся, и видение растворилось ...

3. After breakfast they made ready to say farewell as nearly heavy of heart as was possible on such a morning ... — ... После завтрака они приготовились распрощаться; на душе у них почему-то было неспокойно, несмотря на такое утро ...

4. They took a deep draught of the air. — Они глубоко вдохнули воздух.

5. A shadow now lay round the edge of sight, a dark haze above which the sky was like a blue cap. — Теперь силуэт леса по всему краю окаймляла тёмная полоса, небо над которой было похоже на голубой колпак.

6. They set their backs against the east side of the stone. — Они сели, прислонившись спинами к той стороне камня, которая была обращена на восток.

7. ... and eating their fill... — ... и плотно пообедав ...

8. hobbits ['hÁbIts] — хоббиты

9. Soon they were leading their ponies in single file ... — Вскоре они уже цепочкой вели своих пони ...

10. Why don't you keep up? — Почему вы не поспеваете?

11. His breath was smoking. — При дыхании появлялся парок.

12. His knees gave ... — Ноги у него подкосились ...

13. As he lay there, thinking and getting a hold on himself, he noticed all at once that the darkness was showly giving way ... — Вот так лёжа, размышляя и приходя в себя, он вдруг заметил, что темнота медленно расступается ...

14. What in the name of wonder? — Что за чудеса?

Comprehension Check

1. What did Frodo hear in his sleep?

2. Who was whistling?

3. When did the hobbits start out?

4. What was the country like?

5. What was the weather like?

6. Where did the hobbits stop and what for?

7. Why did they fall asleep?

8. What change in the weather did they see when they woke up?

9. What did they do after waking up?

10. Why did Frodo hurry forward?

11. What was Frodo suddenly aware of?

12. What happened to Frodo?

13. What did Frodo realise when he came to himself again?

14. Whom did Frodo suddenly see?

15. Where did Tom and Frodo bear the others?

16. What was the weather like again?

Phonetic Text Drills

○ Exercise 1

Transcribe and pronounce correctly the words from the text.

Vision, whistling, slanting, farewell, knoll, to journey, to mount, mound, jagged, disquieting, to cast, to roll, northward, bedewed, to wander, sign, to rear, frantically, weary, to sweat, tatter, strand, dread, barrow-wight, chamber, naked, to bask, to waft.

○ Exercise 2

Pronounce the words and phrases where the following clusters occur.

1. plosive + r

Dreams, breakfast, made ready, bright, draught, and round, grew, breeze, crowned, green, trap, dripping, grey drops, prevent, approaching, breath, grip, great, cold rags, promise.

2. t+s/s+t

Sweet singing, that seemed, that side, standing stones, cast­ing, against, east side, white sea, mist, stronger, streamed.

3. plosive + 1

Clean, clear, glimpse, circle, explain, gleaming, quickly, stood listening, it leaned, clime, people, unexpectedly.

○ Exercise 3

Pronounce after the announcer and say what phonetic phenomenon the following word groups have in common:

1. Down the hill, upon them, on their foreheads, when they reached, in the hills, in the weather, on the ground, on the grass, then they lay, in the sun.

2. And the sun, round the green, found that, amid the strands, cold though lit, rubbed their eyes, and then, and the day.

3. Breakfast they made, that they, about them, reached the bottom, against the stars, thought there were, that the darkness, against the light, thought that, let the warm sun­light.

○ Exercise 4

Explain how the sound [f] affects preceding or following consonants.

1. Frodo, fresh, from, frantically, froze, friendly;

2. Hurried forward, that faint stars, and fog.

○ Exercise 5

Group the phrases below according to the varieties of false assimilation which may occur in them.

Breeze seemed, as they journeyed, was steaming up, was cold, was silent, as they looked, was closing, as their chilled fingers, was so cold, as he struggled, was suddenly aware, was smoking, with surprise, was slowly giving way.

○ Exercise 6

Transcribe and intone the sentences. Comment upon the intonation pat­tern in imperative, exclamatory sentences and sentences with direct ad­dress.

‘^\Sam!P he "called. ||

‘^\Pippin! ^\Merry! 'Come a^\long!P ||

‘I am ^\waiting for "you!P ||

‘^\Cоmе, "friend "Frodo!’ "said "Tom. ||

But 'Tom 'shook his 'head "saying: 'Be ^\glad, my "merry "friends,

and 'let the 'warm 'sunlight ­heat now 'heart and ^\limb! || 'Cast

'off these 'cold ^\rags! || 'Run ^\naked on the "grass!' ||

EXERCISES

Exercise 1

Match the following definitions in the left column with the words in the right column. Find sentences with these words in the text.

Verbs:

1. shine with interrupted brightness A. melt

1. appear indistinctly B. slant

2. change to liquid condition by heat C. bedew

3. move upwards D. gleam

4. cover or sprinkle with dew or water E. mount

5. be or feel very cold F. loom

6. diverge from a vertical or horizontal line G. freeze

Nouns:

1. gentle wind A. shadow

1. climate B. breeze

2. round portion of liquid such as hangs or C. cloud

falls separately

3. grave-mound D. shred

4. patch of shade, region not reached by sun E. barrow

5. visible water vapour floating in air high F. clime

above the ground

6. torn or broken piece G.drop

Adjectives:

1. biting, harsh; piercingly cold A. damp

1. of fairly low temperature, fairly cold B.icy

2. slightly or fairly wet C. chill

3. unpleasantly cold to feel D. bitter

4. covered with ice, very cold E. lank

5. indinstinct in form; of, or covered with, F.cool mist

6. straight and limp G. misty

Exercise 2

Consult your dictionary and give all possible derivatives from the following words.

sun mist air

fog wind light

rain dark warm

Exercise 3

Find in the text one or more synonyms to the following words.

to smoke a shred to sink cool

to rise cold to journey to cast

Exercise 4

Pick out from the text:

1) all verbs used with the nouns: sun, shadow, fog, rain;

2) all adjectives used with the nouns: fog, wind, morning, air, light, mist.

Exercise 5

Explain the difference between the synonyms or analogous words from the text.

to chill — to freeze

breeze — wind

to smoke — to steam up

shreds — tatters — strands

veil — haze — mist — fog

cool — chill — cold — icy — bitter

Exercise 6

Find the English equivalents to the following words or phrases.

A.

Пелена дождя, потянул свежий ветерок, было далеко видно, по низу лощины, солнце поднялось, стало жарко, после дождя поднимались испарения, отбрасывать тень, солнечные лучи пробивались сквозь дымку, заходящее солнце, туман подкатывал, закоченевшие пальцы, волосы обвисли, покрылись каплями, погода менялась, появи­лись звезды, темнота рассеивалась, забрезжил зеленова­тый свет, ворвался поток света, вставало красное солнце, нежиться на солнце.

В.

Звучать в сознании, попрощаться, с тяжёлым сердцем, прислониться спиной, плотно пообедать, вскочить на ноги, в ужасе, остановиться, сесть на пони, поспевать, склониться над кем-либо, издалека, выбраться, протереть глаза, сбросить лохмотья, нежиться на солнце.

Exercise 7

I. Give the first form of the following irregular verbs in the past tense.

rode, stood, wound, grew, caught, lay, set, woke, meant, sprang, sank, bent, felt, hung, froze, began, fell, lost.

II. Give the past form of the following regular verbs.

melt, wash, veil, mount, seem, crown, turn, roll, chill, halt, guess, rear, hurry, struggle, stream, waft.

Exercise 8

Write out into your notebook all expressions used to describe good or bad weather in the text.

Good weather	Bad weather

 

Exercise 9

Fill in the gaps in the sentences with one of the expressions from the list. Change their form if necessary.

To run in one's mind, to give way, to catch a glimpse, in sin­gle file, to get separated, to come from some remote dis­ tance, to come to oneself, to be heavy of heart, to be crow­ned with, to grow less, to spring to one's feet, to be lost, to call back over one's shoulder, to freeze one's bones, to rub one's eyes.

1. The rain ceased and the wind ... ; soon everything had be­come quiet in nature.

2. Though we were sitting, we all ... when he appeared in the room: our astonishment was so great. No one could ex­pect it.

3. To manage everything we decided ... and meet again later; thus each one could carry out his task better.

4. Having wandered for an hour along the narrow streets, I re­alised at last that I....

5. The top of the mountain was ... a snowcap although there were green woods in blossom at the foot.

6. The tourists were slowly walking ... . It was a lot easier to walk like this across the marshy ground.

7. The voices of our friends ..., we did not understand how far away they were.

8. I had to leave Paris soon. I ... because it meant the end of my careless and happy life in the city which I started to love so much.

9. For a whole day Ronald could not get rid of a simple mel­ody which he heard on the radio in the morning: it was constantly ....

10. The operation was over and the patient was ... . At first he could not understand where he was.

11. Whithout turning around, he ... , but nobody answered. In surprise he turned his head and saw nobody.

12. Deadly fear ... . I could not move, I could not even stir a finger.

13. Though we passed the open door very quickly, I managed ... of the people who gathered in the director's office.

14. The medicine did a world of good: the disease started ... , which was almost a miracle.

15. The sight in front of me was so unbelievable, that I felt an impulse ... , but kept back, remembering that I was not a child.

Exercise 10

Find in the text sentences starting with the following words and express the same idea using different wording and grammar.

1. The vision melted into waking ...

2. It was now as clear and far-seen ...

3. Their way wound along ...

4. A shadow now lay round the edge of sight...

5. In the midst of it there stood a single stone ...

6. However, that may be ...

7. To prevent their getting separated ...

8. On either side ahead a darkness ...

9. As he straggled on he called again ...

10. He was suddenly aware that it was getting very cold ...

11. He thought there were two eyes ...

12. As he lay there, thinking and getting a hold on him­self ...

13. To Frodo's great joy the hobbits stirred ...

14. Then they lay basking in the sun ...

Exercise 11

Retell the story of the hobbits' journey:

1. in the third person;

2. in the person of Frodo;

3. in the person of Tom.

Exercise 12

Discussion points.

1. What can you say about the hobbits' journey: was it difficult or pleasant, interesting or boring?

2. Can you say that the weather is one more character in the story? Prove your point.

3. Does the weather help the hobbits somehow or does it in­terfere somehow?

4. Do you think that the author tries to draw a parallel "nature — weather" in the story? Prove your point.

Exercise 13

I. Translate into Russian the following bits from the same book by J. R. R.

Tolkien.

1. They had been two days in this country when the weather turned wet. The wind began to blow steadily out of the West and pour the water of the distant seas (...) in fine drenching rain. By nightfall they were all soaked.

2. But before long the snow was falling fast, filling all the air, and swirling into Frodo's eyes.

While they were halted, the wind died down, and the snow slackened until it almost ceased. (...) But they had not gone more than a furlong when the storm returned with fresh fury. The wind whistled and the snow became a blinding blizzard.

3. Nothing happened that night worse than a brief drizzle of rain an hour before dawn. (...) Already the fog was thinning. (...) In the mid-morning the clouds drew down lower, and it began to rain heavily.

4. The sky was utterly dark, and the stillness of the heavy air foreboded the storm. Suddenly the clouds were seared by a blinding flash. Branched lighting smote dawn upon the east­ward hills.

5. The thunder was rumbling in the distance now. The light­ning flickered still, far off among the mountains in the South. A keen wind was blowing from the North again. The clouds were torn and drifting, and stars peeped out.

6. The hurrying darkness, now gathering speed, rushed up from the East and swallowed the sky. There was a dry splitting crack of thunder right overhead. Searing lightning smote down into the hills. Then came a blast of savage wind.

7. There was another crack of thunder, and then the rain came. In a blinding sheet, mingled with hail, it drove against the cliff, bitter cold.

II. Using some of the underlined words or expressions describe a rain­storm or a snowstorm you were caught in once.

Exercise 14

Study the Topical Vocabulaiy and add other analogous words to the follow­ing lists. Explain the difference in their meanings.

rainfall snowfall wind

rain snowstorm whirlwind

Exercise 15

Match the nouns with adjectives to make common phrases.

► Pattern: heavy rain, heavy snow, etc.

Nouns: rain

wind

fog

snow

sky

air

Adjectives: heavy bitter

biting chilly

strong cloudy

fresh brisk

thick drizzling

thin hot

cold piercing

bright southerly

clear swirling

chill misty

clean drenching

Exercise 16

Add the missing forms.

1. north ...?... northerly

south southern ...?...

east ...?... ...?...

west ...?... ...?...

2. north-east ...?... north-easterly

north-west north-western ...?...

south-east ...?... ...?...

south-west ...?... ...?...

Exercise 17

Choose the right word from a couple of similar looking ones. Change word forms if necessary.

1. (slush, sleet)

a) The ... under my feet was awful. I had an impression that I was walking through a muddy sea.

b) The rain changed into .... Wet snowflakes were falling on the ground and melted there.

2. (ice drift, snowdrift)

a) The path was hedged by two long .... They were like two mountain ranges.

b) The ... started at night. In the morning the children ran to the river to look at the huge blocks of ice drifting across the water.

3. (icing, icicle)

a) There was heavy... on the road and all cars were moving very slowly.

b) After a thaw there appeared ... on the edge of the roof; they looked like sparkling needles.

4. (frost, hoarfrost)

a) Tree branches were covered with ... and the forest looked enchanting and somewhat mysterious.

b) The ... was biting the nose and the cheeks. It was im­possible to stay long in the street.

5. (draught, drought)

a) Severe ... killed the crops. Not a drop of rain fell on the ground for a month.

b) When the door opened, the ... blew off the papers down on to the floor.

6. (to freeze, to be freezing)

a) In winter all rivers and lakes in these parts always ....

b) The temperature was quite low and I felt that I ....

7. (blizzard, drizzle)

a) Boring ... spoiled the day. It was too wet and dull.

b) The ... was blinding us. Snowflakes were swirling in the air.

8. (light, lightning)

a) There is not enough ... in the room. The table should be moved closer to the window.

b) The ... split the sky into two parts. A deafening thunder crack followed.

Exercise 18

I. Below you see examples of several weather forecasts from English newspapers. Read and translate them.

I. General situation: Many eastern coastal areas of Eng­land will; stay cloudy and cool, with patchy light drizzle during the morning. Western parts of Wales and south-west England will be cloudy with showery outbreaks of rain, al­though western Wales will brighten up during the after­noon. The rest of England and Wales will stay warm and dry with hazy sunshine, although there will be a brisk eas­terly breeze. Showery rain over Northern Ireland will clear during the afternoon. Scotland will be dry with sunny peri­ods, but eastern coasts will be cloudy and western areas may have rain during the morning.

"The Independent"

II. Cloud and outbreaks of rain over England and Wales will clear during the morning. The afternoon will be mostly dry with bright or sunny spells, although wintry showers will develop at times in the north and north-west.

Scotland and Nothern Ireland will have another cold day with sunshine and blustery showers expected. The

showers will be heavy in places and falling as snow over the high ground.

Outlook: Bright with wintry showers at times, especially in the north. Rain spreading eastwards on Monday.

"Daily Express"

III. Forecast: A dry, sunny start over England and Wales, but there may be light showers adjacent to the southern North Sea. Western Scotland and Nothern Ireland will be­come cloudy during the morning with outbreaks of rain moving to these areas by midday. This weather will spread south-eastwards to all parts of Scotland, north-west Eng­land and north Wales by the evening. Temperatures: 8 C° (46 F°) in East Anglia, 10 C° (50 F°) in Nothern Ireland.

Outlook: Little change in southern and eastern parts of England during Tuesday and Wednesday. There will be cool nights with frost and possibly patchy fog, but diy with sunny spells during daylight hours. Early cloud and rain in north-western districts will gradually die out during Tuesday.

"The Independent"

IV. Weather: England and Wales will start cloudy with out­breaks of rain. However, brighter, showery weather already over Scotland and Nothern Ireland will slowly spread south and east throughout the day. The showers will be heaviest and most frequent in the north, falling as sleet or snow over hills and mountains, with drifting occurring in places. It will feel cold in the blustery and strong westerly wind.

Outlook: Sunny intervals and showers are expected. Feeling colder than of late in the north-westerly wind.

"Daily Express"

II. Match the Russian phrases from list A with their English equivalents from list B.

A.

Местами дожди/туман; ожидается сухая тёплая погода; на востоке области пройдут сильные проливные дожди; на почве возможны заморозки; ветер северный, умеренный, 10—15 м/сек; в дальнейшем холодный характер по­годы сохранится; облачная, дождливая погода; к концу недели погода изменится.

В.

The showers will be heavy in the East; we are in for a warm dry spell; moderate northerly wind, 1—15 metres per second; a change in the weather by the end of the week; patchy rain/fog; the weather will stay cold; ground frosts are possible; cloudy and wet.

III. Make up your own weather forecast for the next day.

Exercise 19

I. Look at the following patterns, expressing one's delight with the weather or dislike of it. Translate them into Russian.

For good weather	For bad weather
It's absolutely marvellous!	It certainly is horrible.
Isn't it gorgeous!	Nasty day, isn't it?
It's so nice and hot!	Isn't it dreadful?
Personally I think it's so nice when it's hot, isn't it?	I hate rain.
I adore it. Don't you?	I don't like it at all. Do you?

 

II. Work in pairs. Use these patterns to respond to the following.

A.

Nice day, isn't it?

What a glorious morning!

Fancy such a day in December!

It's so nice when it's warm.

What a beautiful winter evening!

This breeze is so refreshing!

It's so surprisingly warm for this time of the year!

What a fine day we are having!

I love the sun. Isn't it wonderful?

B.

Dull morning, isn't it?

Nasty day, isn't it?

I hate snow.

What a horrible day!

The heat is unbearable.

I can't stand this wind.

The weather is turning bad.

Rain all day long. Isn't it dreadful?

It's pouring again. Isn't it wretched?

Exercise 20

Discuss with a partner the weather you are having at present. Choose questions and answers from the models given below.

Questions:

What do you think of the weather?

What's the weather outside?

I wonder what the weather is going to be like.

Will the weather keep?

Do you think it will clear up?

Do you think it is going to turn out fine?

What is the weather forecast for today?

Answers:

We are in for a spell of good weather.

It looks like rain.

The weather is turning bad.

It'll change for the better.

The weather is fine/nice/lovely/beautiful.

The weather is nasty/wretched/awful/dull.

The day is rainy/windy/bright/sunny.

The weather is favourable.

The sky is overcast/cloudy/clear.

It's snowing/pouring/raining/drizzling.

The wind is rising.

It has been raining on and off for ...

The fog is lifting.

Exercise 21

Compare the weather in your parts with the weather in Great Britain. Use the daily forecasts in British newspapers.

Exercise 22

Translate into English.

1. Утро началось с моросящего дождя, который посте­пенно усилился и к полудню перешел в сильный ливень.

2. Я слышала прогноз погоды на сегодня: днем солнечно и тепло, температура около 20°С, ветер восточный, умеренный; ночью температура около нуля, на почве местами заморозки.

3. Зима наступает здесь в ноябре — начинают дуть север­ные ветры, из-за чего средняя температура становится ниже, выпадает первый снег.

4. Весной легкий ветер часто нагоняет облака. Небо за­тягивается тучами и погода портится.

5. Ожидается улучшение погоды — дождь прекратится и станет сухо и жарко.

6. В июле невыносимая жара привела к засухе. За месяц не выпало ни капли дождя.

7. Белые снежинки тихо кружили в воздухе и ложились на землю. К утру всё было завалено сугробами.

8. Первые лучи солнца пробились сквозь пелену тумана. К девяти туман начал рассеиваться.

9. Всходило солнце, дул теплый ветерок, над землёй курился туман.

10. Высокая ель отбрасывала тень, там можно было спас­тись от жары.

11. С неба падал мокрый снег, было холодно и сыро. Сапоги промокли, потому что под ногами тоже был талый снег.

12. После дождя прояснилось и на небе появилась много­цветная радуга. Хорошая примета.

13. Такой грозы я не припомню: гром, молния, сильные порывы ветра, а потом — град.

14. Было чудесное утро. Быстро встало солнце и иссушило капли росы на траве.

15. Сначала подмораживало. Ветви деревьев покрылись инеем. На дороге был сильный гололед. Потом начало оттаивать.

Exercise 23

Recall the weather on the day of 1) your entrance examination in English, 2) your last exam at school, 3) your last birthday. As you may be not quite sure of the weather on that day, use the models below to express hesita­tion.

As far as I remember ...

If my memory serves me right ...

I seem to remember ...

I am not sure about it, but ...

I can't be absolutely sure about it, of course, ...

If I remember correctly ...

Exercise 24

What is the weather like in different parts of Russia in spring, summer, autumn and winter?

Exercise 25

Say what mood in you prevails when 1) it is a cold winter day; 2) it is a hot summer night; 3) it is a warm spring evening; 4) it is a cool autumn mor­ning.

Exercise 26

Think for five minutes and write what you like to do in good and bad weather. Compare your activities with those written by other classmates. Choose the most original ideas.

Exercise 27

For hundreds of years people have accumulated weather lore. Do you be­lieve that there are signs in nature that may predict the weather? What are they? Is weather lore reliable? Comment on the pieces of weather lore below.

A snow year — a rich year.

Farewell frost — fair weather next.

Good winter — good summer.

Red sky at night, shepherd's delight; red sky in the morning, shepherd's warning.

When the dew is on the grass, rain will never come to pass. If bees stay at home, rain will soon come; if they fly away, fine will be the day.

A sunshiny shower won't last half an hour. Mackerel sky, mackerel sky, not long wet and not long dry.

Exercise 28

Work in groups and discuss with your classmates the topics you see below. Let one of you sum up what all of you have said.

1. Your favourite season or your favourite month.

2. The season or month you dislike.

3. The climate of Russia and Great Britain.

4. The climate in one of the countries where you have been.

Exercise 29

1. Read the poem from Winnie-the-Pooh by A. Milne.