Pronunciation

refute verb [ T ] formal UK /rɪˈfjuːt/ US /rɪˈfjuːt/ to say or prove that a person, statement, opinion, etc. is wrong or false: mule /myo͞ol/ noun 1. the offspring of a donkey and a horse (strictly, a male donkey and a female horse), typically sterile and used as a beast of burden. fume /fyo͞om/ noun 1. gas, smoke, or vapor that smells strongly or is dangerous to inhale: "clouds of exhaust fumes spewed by cars" accumulate verb UK /əˈkjuː.mjə.leɪt/ US /əˈkjuː.mjə.leɪt/ C2 [ T ] to collect a large number of things over a long period of time: As people accumulate more wealth, they tend to spend a greater proportion of their incomes. accurate: correct, exact, and without any mistakes: an accurate machine an accurate description amuse B2 to entertain someone, especially by humorous speech or action or by making them laugh or smile: I've brought an article from yesterday's paper that I thought might amuse you. mutant noun [ C ] an organism that is different from others of its type because of a permanent change in its genes: These mutants lack a vital protein which gives them immunity to the disease. This mutant gene is thought to cause cancer. fusion noun [ U ] UK /ˈfjuː.ʒən/ US /ˈfjuː.ʒən/ an occasion when two or more things join or are combined: nuclear fusion Their music is described as "an explosive fusion of Latin American and modern jazz rhythms".

1. Mount Rainier is located in the southeastern part of Washington State. It is the highest mountain in the Cascade Mountain Range with a summit elevation of about 14,000 feet. It has 26 major glaciers and two volcanic craters with diameters of over 1,000 feet each. 2. Mount Rainier is an active volcano that could be devastating to local communities if it erupted, but there have been no signs of eruption potential in recent years. Its icy peaks are regularly seen by commuters on interstate 5 in Seattle, and on very clear days, the summit is visible from Portland, Oregon. 3. Mountain climbing is very difficult due to the large glaciers, and almost every year, a few people lose their lives in the attempt. It takes at least two to three days to reach the summit, and hikers must have experience traversing glaciers and surviving in the wilderness. 4. The mountain is infamous for its sudden snowstorms and blizzards which can create avalanches and make the mountain impassable, trapping hikers who are already at high elevations. In January of 2012, four people disappeared in mountain snowstorms. Three of their bodies were recovered during the summer thaw. 5. Also in the summer, a Mount Rainier ranger lost his life while trying to rescue four climbers who had fallen on a glacier. He slid down the mountain over 3,000 feet to his death. The climbers were saved by others on the rescue team and their injuries were not life-threatening. 6. Last November, two twenty year old snowboarders became trapped by a snowstorm. They were stranded on the mountain for days before a rescue team was able to reach them. Rescuers had to literally swim through the snow to create a trail to the snowboarders. Both survived and were not injured.

Spring Baby 1. This woman has a new baby. 2. Her name is Ruth. 3. The baby’s name is Theo. 4. Ruth buys many things for Theo. 5. When she is at the drugstore, she buys this and that. 6. When she is at the mall, she buys this and that. 7. Theo’s date of birth is May 6, 2009. 8. Ruth wanted Theo’s birthday to happen in Spring. 9. Ruth’s favorite month is May. 10. Theo is her first baby.

The Dentist 1. This woman has very bad teeth. She brushes her teeth a lot, but she likes chocolate and sugary drinks. 2. She is always seeing the dentist. This is because the dentist always finds cavities during her checkups. 3. Over the years, she also had several root canals. She did not put caps on the teeth because she could not afford them. 4. The dental insurance plans usually cover $1,500, if that much. $1,500 is the total needed for both a root canal and a cap for one tooth. 5. She even had one tooth removed because it was so rotten. They gave her a lot of painkillers and yanked the tooth from her mouth. 6. She does not like all these tooth problems. Anyway, she is thankful that she lives in an age of painkillers and clean offices!

Studies show that most teens are not harmed by internet use. On TV, you can see shows on sexual exploitation and online bullying, but in reality, these issues affect less than ten percent of teens. Still, any good parent will monitor teen use of the internet--you never know when that ten percent could include your own child. Out of all the online activities, social networking sites seem to hold the most risk. Four out of ten teenagers say that they give out personal information such as a last name, names of parents or the local school.Many teens also misrepresent their age. To combat these issues, the first rule is to keep your computer in a public place. About 25% of teens say that they have internet access in their bedrooms which is not a good idea. Also, find out if your child has a web page, and if so, take a look at it. Talk to your child about general rules for social networking sites which are usually posted on the sites. For instance, the rules on MySpace include "do not make it easy for a stranger to find you." Lastly, remember that you cannot monitor your teen's use of the internet completely. Your teen goes online in public libraries and at school. Be sure you maintain a trusting relationship with your son or daughter.

~The Y is a tricky letter in American English. Y as a letter with 3 sounds: "yuh" as in "yes," "ee" as in "happy" and "i" as in "cry.“ However, there is a Y sound that sometimes happens before an R sound, a long U sound (especially tied to the letters C, M and F) and near a long I sound. Not only that, this little "yuh" sound can be traded for the I in the suffixes "ion" and "ian"--both can sound like "yun." Remember that "tion" will sound like "shun.“

These words are pronounced with a vibrating or voiced Th. Leave your tongue in the Th position for a moment and let the sound vibrate as air leaves your mouth. This is a reduced sound and applies to very common words. The words have been smoothed through every day use.