This is the BBC. This podcast is supported by advertising outside the UK.
This is a download from BBC Learning English.
To find out more, visit our website...
Hello and welcome to 6 Minute Vocabulary.
I'm Catherine... And I'm Finn.
Now make sure you pay attention because we have a lot of information...
That's right and attention and information are a good introduction to the programme.
They are. They both end in SHN, which is the suffix we're talking about.
Suffixes are groups of letters at the end of words which can change the form or the meaning of the word or both.
And we'll tell you about the three different ways to spell the suffix SHN.
And we'll give you examples of words with all three spellings plus some tips for knowing which spelling to use.
We'll have a quiz...
And we'll finish with a top tip for learning vocabulary.
But first, let's hear a news report about the theft of a valuable statue.
While you listen, think about this question.
Where was the statue from?
Here's the report...
The man confessed after witnesses came forward with information and his description appeared in the newspapers.
In his confession, he said that he had gained admission to the museum by pretending to be a security guard.
Police recovered items including a priceless Venetian vase and an Egyptian statue.
So we asked you, where was the statue from?
And the answer is Egypt.
It was Egyptian. That's right.
And the word Egyptian has a suffix SHN spelled T -I -A -N.
And we usually find this spelling in adjectives that describe where something or someone comes from.
So the stolen Egyptian statue came from Egypt.
Exactly. And the Venetian vase came from Venice.
Now, in these examples, the suffix SHN spelled T -I -A -N turns the noun into an adjective.
And these adjectives are often written with a capital letter because they come from proper nouns.
Now, another example is Martian and Martians come from Mars.
I suppose they do. They do.
Let's listen to another clip with more words that end in SHN.
See if you can spot them.
A man was charged today following an investigation into the theft of valuable objects from the museum.
The man confessed after witnesses came forward with information and his description appeared in the newspapers.
So we had three words ending in SHN.
Investigation. Description.
And information. Now, here, the SHN at the end is spelled T -I -O -N.
This is the most usual spelling for SHN.
And words with SHN spelled T -I -O -N are nouns.
They usually come from verbs.
So the word investigation comes from the verb investigate.
The word description comes from describe.
And the word information comes from the verb inform.
There are many words with this spelling of SHN.
We told you to pay attention at the start of the programme.
Yep. And there are other words like addition, subtraction, accommodation, population.
Many, many more. So that's words with the suffix SHN spelled T -I -O -N and T -I -A -N.
Now, let's look at a third spelling of the suffix SHN.
S -I -O -N. And here they are in another clip.
In his confession, he said that he had gained admission to the museum by pretending to be a security guard.
So we had confession and admission.
Yes. Nouns with the ending SHN spelled S -I -O -N are often based on words ending in SS or MIT like confession from confess.
Expression from express.
Discussion from discuss.
Admission from admit.
And permission from permit.
And we're talking about the suffix SHN.
We can spell it in three different ways.
There's T -I -A -N as in Egyptian or Venetian.
These are adjectives which indicate someone or something's origin.
Or we can spell it S -I -O -N and these words are nouns and often based on verbs ending in SS like discussion from discuss.
Or verbs ending in T like permission from permit.
And finally the most common spelling T -I -O -N as in nouns like information and ambition.
Oh, ambition. Yeah.
Catherine, do you have a secret ambition?
I have an ambition.
It's not so secret, but I would love to go to Africa on a safari.
What about you, Finn?
Oh, yes. Travel as well.
I'd love to travel through South America one day.
I hope you get to do it.
Thank you. Quite soon.
Yes. Now it's time for a quiz.
What is the correct spelling for the ending of these words?
Is it T -I -O -N S -I -O -N or T -I -A -N?
Ready? Okay. Number one, Egyptian.
Egyptian is T -I -A -N.
Good. Number two, permission.
Permission S -I -O -N.
And number three, attention.
Attention. Ends with the suffix s -pelt T -I -O -N.
Fantastic. And that's the end of the quiz.
Well done if you got them right.
And now here's a top tip for learning vocabulary.
To help you learn new words, try linking them into a story.
Now, this can really help you remember their meaning.
Top tip, and there's more about this at bbclearningenglish .com.
Join us again for more 6 Minute Vocabulary.
Bye. Bye.
