As you will see this week, however, vocabulary in the Bangkok Post is not really a problem. Instead, it offers you one of the best opportunities anywhere to improve your vocabulary quickly with surprisingly little effort or pain. Let me show you why:

I am going to limit this lesson to news stories because they give the best opportunity for learning new words without having to rely heavily on your dictionary. As you will see, there are a number of reasons for this. Certainly one of the most important is the style that news writers use in telling your stories.

As you might remember, news writers generally begin their stories with a short summary of the main points, first in the headline(s) and then in the first paragraph. After that they retell the story in more detail. This means a lot of repetition which often gives you several opportunities to guess the meanings of unfamiliar words.

One of the best of opportunities comes right at the beginning in the main headline and the lead. What, for example, does the word aghast mean in the following?

Australians, Asians aghast at violence

Many Asians and Australians appeared to be shocked yesterday by the violent protests that halted a world trade meeting in the United States, and some criticised the demonstrators.

Obviously, aghast must mean shocked. The writer used a synonym to keep the story fresh. Finding and recognising such synonyms can save you a trip to the dictionary. Try skimming through the news section today’s Bangkok Post for some more examples. I’ll bet you find some.

By now you have seen this story a thousand times: Thai police stop a vehicle – a car or truck – on the highway and search it. Hidden inside they find illegal drugs – most often what you call yaa baa. Or they find material used in the making of such drugs.

The police arrest the driver and other people travelling along. They also take control of its illegal cargo.

Let’s now look at the kind of vocabulary Bangkok Post news writers use when they tell this story. Below is an actual example. Read it and find:

1. two words that mean to "take control of"
2. two words for yaa baa, one informal and the other scientific
3. the general name for a substance which is used in the manufacture of yaa baa.
4. a word for working in the illegal drug business
5. a word for the process of secretly carrying an illegal substance into a country

Police seize precursor

Chiang Rai

Police seized six tonnes of a drug precursor at Mae Sai border pass and arrested six people, including five Burmese workers, on charges of trafficking in restricted goods.

Anti-narcotics and customs officials intercepted 6,000kg of caffeine from two pick-up trucks which were about to leave for Tachilek, Burma.

Authorities asked to search the vehicles which were loaded with pop soda, after the driver filed documents with customs officials to take out the goods. They found 240 sacks of caffeine totalling six tonnes hidden under piles of crates. About 75kg of another substance used to produce speed pills were also confiscated.

It is the first reported attempted smuggling of restricted substances used to manufacture methamphetamines, after Burma re-opened its border with Thailand, authorities said.

The driver, Saokham Vichahong, and five Burmese nationals were arrested.

Once you have learned these words, you will see them again and again in stories about drug trafficking. That brings me to another technique you can use to learn and remember new vocabulary. Read the same story as it develops over several different days. The first day will be the most difficult. After that you will began to see the same words repeated again and again.

Following are a number of stories that are very good for guessing the meanings of unfamiliar vocabulary. Read them and answer the accompanying questions. Each time you successfully guess the meaning of a new word, think about the method you used in making your guess.

Read the stories below and answer the questions that follow. Doctors tell Sanan to lay off the bottle Doctors have advised Interior Minister Sanan Kachornprasart, a well-known wine Epicurean, to lay off the bottle. Maj-Gen Sanan was admitted to the Police Hospital on Tuesday for treatment for what was described as a cold. The minister was yesterday examined by Pol Maj-Gen Somsak Wiwat-anan, deputy surgeon-general, and a team of doctors. They reported his condition had generally improved, he was less feverish and coughing less, although he complained about pains in his joints. An x-ray of his intestine showed nothing wrong. However, doctors concluded that Maj-Gen Sanan should quit drinking wine since, at 64, he is getting older. 1. Find a phrase in the story which explains what it means to lay off the bottle. Clark takes helm as new PM after swearing-in ceremony Washington, AP Labour leader Helen Clark was sworn in yesterday as New Zealand’s new prime minister, leading a minority centre-left coalition of Labour and the leftist Alliance Party supported by the Green Party, which earlier in the day won its seventh seat in parliament. 2. What does "Clark takes helm" in the headline mean? A whiff of oil, then a thundering explosion Post reporters Witness accounts suggest a human error may have sparked the fire at an oil storage tank in the refinery of Thai Oil Co in Chon Buri’s Si Racha district late Thursday night. But police handling the investigation said none of the 30 people questioned had so far confirmed they saw oil spilling from the tank before a thunderous explosion, although they said there was a strong smell of oil prior to the blast. 3. A synonym in the story for the word whiff in the headline is: a. witness; b. sparked; c. spilling; d. smell Critics blame failure on apathy and waste Delivery delays and a lack of attention to children’s needs have ruined the effectiveness of Bangkok’s school milk programme, critics say. Suthichai Verrakusunthorn, committee chairman from the Mod Ngan group, also said poor management of milk supplies has led to waste and to children receiving spoiled milk. 4. Find a phrase in the story that is an example of apathy. Editor imprisoned for defaming actress The editor-in-chief of an entertainment newspaper has been sentenced to three months in prison for defaming a famous actress and singer. The Supreme Court yesterday upheld the Appeals Court’s verdict on Chatchai Woradilok, 40, for allowing the publication of a column in Siam Banterng newspaper during July 14-20, 1997 defaming Suthida Kasemsant na Ayuthaya, 22. The actress was alleged in the column to be having an affair with Sornrarm Thepphithak, a famous actor and singer. 5. What does it mean to defame someone? to put them in jail to have a love affair with someone who are not married to to damage someone by writing something false about them to tell jokes about someone Thousands view relics of St Therese of Lisieux Miami, AP Thousands of Catholic faithful attended services at a Miami church to view a box containing bones of a revered saint, the 19th century French nun who became St Therese of Lisieux. The Archdiocese of Miami asked the Miami-Dade Police Department for assistance in controlling the crowds at St Thomas the Apostle Church, where a mass honouring the saint’s relics was held. Crowds of up to 60,000 people have greeted the ornate jacaranda wood and gold box, called a reliquary, containing three of the saint’s bones as the relics have toured the United States and Canada the past month. 6. In this story, the relics are ….. 7. What is a reliquary and what is it used for? Scam left crew high and dry Bogus papers given for fictional jobs The 226 Thais duped into paying for bogus jobs on ships in England had documents from the Harbour Department certifying they had completed basic merchant marine training, but the department denies they ever attended a course. Immigration police at Don Muang airport cleared the workers to leave because they produced the certificates, a police source said. All the workers were attired in ship crew’s uniforms, which helped convince immigration officers they were actually leaving to take up jobs overseas, the source said. An officer of the Merchant Marine Training Centre of the Harbour Department yesterday denied the centre had ever trained this group of workers. The men claim they were duped by four employment companies into believing they were going to work on ships in England. Instead they were sent to South Korea, where they were stranded for two months without any work. Each worker had paid one of the firms 170,000-250,000 baht for a job which did not exist. Chanpen Treechote, a training officer, said the men might have received training elsewhere, but certainly not at the Harbour Department’s training centre. Each course took about two weeks. The fee was 5,660 baht a person. 8. The word scam refers to a training course a plan to cheat someone out of money a government official employment in a foreign country 9. The word bogus means a. not real b. official c. expensive d. healthy 10. If you dupe someone you …. help them get what they want teach them a new skill trick them into believing something which is not true offer them a very well paying job 11. To leave someone high and dry means to give them an improved standard of living to put them in a difficult and inconvenient situation to require them to pass a very difficult examination to force them to leave the country Feud flares again as sisters sue each other Feuding continues in the Thammawattana family, with two sisters bringing legal action against each other for trespassing and unlawful confinement after a raid on a family company. Mallika Liraphan and three aides allegedly trespassed on the office of the Suwapee Thammawattana (1990) Co and were subsequently locked inside by Kanuengnit Thammawattana, her sister, yesterday. Ms Kanuengnit told Bang Khen police that Mrs Mallika, her secretary Namthip Yangngarm and two aides had unlawfully entered the company office to search for some documents. Police went to the firm and found Mrs Mallika and her aides had been locked up in a room. Mrs Mallika later asked police to begin legal action against Ms Kanuengnit for wrongfully confining her and her aides in the office. Both Thammawattana sisters were taken to Bang Khen police station for questioning. 12. A feud is a kind of disagreement b. family arrangement c. crime d. discussion 13. Find an example of trespassing in the story. 14. Find an example of confinement in the story Noppadol sues three rival siblings Noppadol Thammawattana yesterday filed a lawsuit against his three rival siblings for sacking an employee and compensating the sacked staff using company assets without his consent. In the suit filed with the civil court, Mr Noppadol named his youngest brother Prinya Thammawattana, his two younger sisters, Nareumol Mangkornpanit and Khaneungnit Thammawattana, as the first, second and third defendants in the case. He said in the suit that the three defendants, executives of Suwapee Thammawattana (1990) Co, have fired Sa-ing Taeng-on who was found inspecting the company financial books at the order of another executive, Mallikar Leeraphan. Mrs Mallikar is a member of the Thammawattana clan who sides with Mr Noppadol. To avoid a court case for unfair treatment, the three defendants had made out a cheque worth 200,000 baht for her on behalf of the company without his and Mrs Mallikar's consent, claimed Mr Noppadol, a shareholder. Their action had caused damage to the company, said the plaintiff. The court accepted the case for consideration and set Feb 14 next year for the first examination of the plaintiff’s witnesses. 15. What are siblings? 16. If you make a formal complaint against a person in court, you _____ a ______ against that person. 17. You would be the _________ in such a case and the person you accused would be the _________.

This year the organisers have very big plans. Read and find out what they are. You will also find out a little about the history of what is known as the "Silom Bangkok Carnival".

In fact, there is a lot of history in the feature. Most of it deals with Silom Road itself. You will find out when the first road was established and how the area has changed over the years. This section of the feature is quite easy to read and I think you will enjoy it.

Below I have explained some of the vocabulary from the story for you.

Without a doubt, the news section of your Bangkok Post is one of the very best places for finding material to help your students to learn how to guess the meanings of unfamiliar vocabulary from context. As we have seen many times this term, news stories are repetitive, giving your students several chances to understand key concepts without having to open their dictionaries.

This lesson is designed to illustrate this fact. Be sure to work through the introductory sections with your class. I suggest you then have them do the exercise in small groups. Tell you students that guessing vocabulary from context is like being a police detective. You must look for evidence and then draw conclusions from what you find.

If you are a long-time user of Post Tips, you will know that I include at least one vocabulary from context lesson per term. These lessons are very easy to prepare. Just collect about one week’s worth of Bangkok Post issues and you will find more than enough examples for a lesson.

Answers to introductory exercise: 1. seize; confiscate 2. speed pills; methamphetamines 3. precursor 4. trafficking 5. smuggling

Answers to main exercise: 1. quit drinking wine; 2. Helen Clark became the prime minister (i.e., the leader of her country); 3. d; 4. lack of attention; 5. c; 6 bones; 7. a wood and gold box; for holding the saint’s bones (relics); 8. b; 9. a; 10. c; 11. c; 12. a; 13. unlawfully entering the company; 14. locking up Mrs Mallika and her aides; 15. brothers and sisters; 16. file a lawsuit; 17. plaintiff; defendant

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