How to Leave Your Lover

Intro

1. Learn Vocabulary - Learn some new vocabulary before you start the lesson.

• hassle
• tad
• breaking it off
• insult

• can't stand it
• the boot
• kaput
• Dear John

• the axe
• beg

2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.

He chews with his mouth open. She cares more about her hair than she does about you. He never calls. She calls too often. Argh, you can’t stand it anymore. It’s time to give him (or her) the boot.

But how do you do it? Sit down and talk? Send an email? Do it over the phone? You could just disappear – no more calls, no more emails – and leave him to figure out for himself that the relationship is kaput.

In his song 50 Ways to Leave Your Lover, Paul Simon suggests that whatever you have to do to give him the axe, do it…and get yourself free.

Listen in as Derek shares his advice with Dave on how to break up with somebody.

Dialog

1. Listen and Read - Listen to the audio and read the dialog at the same time.

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2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Dave

Derek

Dave:  Derek, have you ever broken up with somebody?

Derek:  Ah, yeah, I have actually. A few times.

Dave:  Yeah, how did you do it?

Derek:  Um, I think each time it was a little bit different. Um, and, you know, I think that basically there is no best way to break up with somebody. Um, maybe it’s just…come out with it and say, you know, ‘it’s not going to work.’

Dave:  Well, that’s a very polite way to do it.

Derek:  Yeah. I suppose, you know, you never…never should do it in the heat of an argument or anything like that, you know. Just think about things first, and then, when you have a rational mind, you could say it.

Quizzes

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Lesson MP3

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