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Bridesmaids

Present Progressive

Date: Jun 15 2011

Themes: Romance

Grammar: Present Progressive Tense

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Intro

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A bride’s maid of honor is like the queen of the bridesmaids. She’s supposed to be the bride’s number one support and the person who takes charge of planning everything from the bachelorette party to the wedding shower. She’s supposed to go along on dress shopping trips, help with decorating projects, and most of all, keep the bride calm and worry-free.

In the new comedy Bridesmaids, comedian Kristin Wiig plays Annie, a woman who wants to be the perfect maid of honor for her best friend, but who fails in every possible way. Annie’s own life is a mess, and things just get worse for her when the rich and beautiful Whitney tries to take over her role and steal her best friend. Find out what Amy and Ella thought about this movie.

Dialog

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

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

Amy

Ella

Amy: I just saw that new movie Bridesmaids.

Ella: Oh, what? That looks awesome!

Amy: It was pretty funny.

Ella: That sounds awesome! I think it’ll be nice to see some females play some main roles in a comedy. You never see that, it’s not very common.

Amy: It’s so true. It’s like a female buddy movie.

Ella: So what’s it about?

Amy: One of the girls is getting married, one of the women, and her best friend since childhood is her maid of honor, and the maid of honor, you know, her own life is kind of a mess. She’s not in a relationship, she’s kind of lovelorn. And she really, really wants to be like the perfect maid of honor, but she’s kind of having a hard time with her friend, you know, getting married and everything. But that makes it sound a lot more serious than it is. It’s really just funny, like how much can go wrong at a bachelorette party and a wedding shower.

Ella: You always see those love comedies about how weddings can go right, I’d love to see one go wrong, not to be cynical or anything.

Amy: I know. But it’s funny, because I’m getting married this summer, and so, there is like a lot of pressure around the bachelorette party and the shower.

Ella: Making everything perfect, I’m sure, and all the details being kinked out.

Amy: Have you ever had to do that for somebody?

Ella: No. Luckily I’m just getting to the age where everyone’s getting engaged, and so I’m sure I’ll start seeing it more and more.

Amy: I was a bridesmaid, but never a maid of honor.

Grammar Point

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Discussion

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Amy recently saw the comedy Bridesmaids and thought it was really funny. Ella is excited to see a movie starring female comedians.

Amy explains what the movie is about. One of the characters is getting married, and she chooses her closest childhood friend to be her maid of honor. But the maid of honor, Annie, doesn’t do a very good job, and a lot of funny things go wrong at the bachelorette party and wedding shower.

Ella has never been a bridesmaid or maid of honor. Amy has been a bridesmaid, but not a maid of honor. She is getting married this summer, and she says there is a lot of pressure to get all the details just right.

Have you ever been someone’s bridesmaid or maid of honor? How would you feel if your best friend was getting married?

Comments

Nadya_Hope

Russian Federation

Unfortunately, I have never been neither bridesmaid nor maid of honor but I’d love to!

if your best friend is getting married I’d be very happy because I love her and I wish happy her.

Fernandinha

Brazil

I have never been someone’s either bridesmaid or maid of honor. The tradicional wedding where I live doesn’t demand such “characters”. Here, the bride invites her best female friends and her best male friends to be her godparents. The groom also invites his. The godparents are supposed to give good and expensive gifts.

The bachelorette party is not mandatory here and can be organized by any bride’s female friend. And, until this lesson in EnglishBaby, I have never heard about “wedding shower”.

Madline

Jordan

no,I haven’t . I hope so .

I’ll be so glad because she’s my soul mate she’s exactly like my sister and I will be beside her in eachstep that she would take ….

denisezhao86

China

Most of my friends are single,so I have no chance to be a bridesmaids,but there is an old saying in my hometown that if you get to be a bridesmaids three times,you maybe won’t get married.

sweet.kotori

Italy

No, never. I’d feel very happy for him/her :)

santelle

Malta

Gonna be a maid of honour for my sister’s wedding in june next year :) I’ve also was a flower girl on my auntie’s wedding when I was 2-3yrs old so I hardly remember the event.

isabel139

Peru

I was never a bridesmaid or maid of honor because in my country we don’t use it. We use to do a party. Just girls with the bride in one party and just boys and the groom in other party, no mix all night long :)))

birjoy basumatary

India

really interesting…

wwongsapun

Thailand

No, I never bridesmaid But, I’ve been a bride. The culture of Thailand is a specify for bridesmaid just only virgin women , If my best friend was getting married, Yes…I will give a gift for her and soft kiss to her Sure!

shaibal kumar

Bangladesh

It’s quite interesting lesson….............SKN

sofree

China

No, never, not Chinese way.

Maybe I’ll become lovelorn too if my best friend’s getting married…

xin7

Chile

I’ll be a bridesmaid for a friend who is getting married next saturday! It’s my first time, I’m pretty anxious and excited. The bride is one of my best friends, we have been friends for about ten years. The groom is from Brazil. I think he’s a good guy, so I’m happy they’re getting married =)