Teaching Video

Yesterday we learned a number of words for describing people and how they act, and today we’ll focus on some key words – namely character, behavior, act, and action – and expand your vocabulary with collocations.

We’ll start with character, meaning a person’s nature. When that nature is excellent and almost perfect, we can say the person has an exemplary or impeccable character.

If lots of other people love this person, then they have a likeable/lovable character.

Some people have a very colorful character meaning it’s very varied and interesting and a little bit unusual. A larger-than-life character also refers to a “big” personality that is rather dramatic.

On the other hand, some people have a ruthless character meaning they have no compassion for others. A shady/dubious character is one that is suspicious, you think they might be dishonest. And a volatile character is one that might change mood or behavior often, and might “explode” at any time.

The qualities of a person can be called character traits. Sometimes people can conceal their character, meaning to hide it. But eventually their words or actions will reveal/reflect their character.

If someone does something that’s unusual for their main personality type, we can describe that strange action as out of character for that person.

Behavior can also be exemplary if it is excellent. In places like school and work where there are expected standards for behavior, we can talk about acceptable and unacceptable behavior for what is and is not OK.

Antisocial behavior refers to doing things that make it clear you don’t want contact or interaction with other people.

You can describe it as strange/odd behavior if it is different from what is normal and expected. My dog has been behaving strangely lately; he’s constantly scratching his ears – I might have to get him checked out at the vet.

In a group environment, disruptive behavior disturbs the calmness and efficiency of the group – like kids arguing while the teacher is trying to give a lesson.

A behavior that happens often over time can be described as a pattern of behavior. Teachers often observe their students’ patterns of behavior and alert the students’ parents if there’s cause for concern or cause for congratulations.

Let’s look at collocations with act and action.

A heroic act is one that took a lot of courage, like a firefighter risking his life to save a child from a burning building. A charitable act is a generous one, like buying a meal for a homeless person.

A hostile act is one that demonstrates bad intentions; one country invading another would be a hostile act because it is violating their territory and maybe trying to start a war.

Something that is shocking and terrible can be described as an appalling act. If a famous actor sexually harassed the teenage actors he was working with, the public would be shocked by these appalling acts.

Acts that are horrible and hated can be described as despicable. When parents abuse their children by locking them in the basement and refusing to feed them, that would be a despicable act.

Many of us might do a careless/foolish act – one that was not smart and was done without thinking. An impulsive act is done without planning, and this could be good or bad. In contrast, a deliberate/willful act was done on purpose, with conscious intention and perhaps planning.

We have the expression a balancing act to describe a situation where it’s challenging to find a middle ground that takes two or more needs/sides into consideration. Raising children is a balancing act between teaching them appropriate behavior and letting them find their own independence.

When someone is discovered in the middle of a crime or bad behavior, we say they’re caught in the act. If wife came home to find her husband having sex with the neighbor, she caught him in the act.

Some situations need swift action – action that is done quickly – and some need drastic action – “big” and dramatic actions, not small ones.

When several people, companies, groups, or countries collaborate, it can be called a collective / joint action.

If a situation is going badly or things are headed in the wrong direction, you can take corrective action to bring the situation back to the right path. If your car starts to go off the road, you’d take corrective action with the steering wheel!

When we punish people for their bad behavior and to help them learn a lesson, this is disciplinary action. The school is considering the best form of disciplinary action for the teenagers who intentionally broke the windows.

When we take action quickly, suddenly, and with energy, we leap/spring into action – I would spring into action if I saw a pot of boiling milk about to overflow; I’d jump up and take it off the stove.

On the other hand, when we’re reluctant or hesitant to take action, we might need a person or event to prod/spur us into action – meaning to motivate or cause us to take action when we’re stopped.

Finally, you’ll often hear people talking about the best course of action, meaning the best path or plan for things to do.

Right now, your best course of action is to go ahead and take the quiz for this lesson! It will help you review, remember, and apply the collocations you’ve learned.