Describe a family member - English Linguistics | Học viện Ngoại giao Việt Nam

21:39 1/8/24 Describe a family member
Describe a family member who has had an important influence on you You should say:  Who the person is; 
What kind of person he or she is; 
What this person has done to influence you;
And explain why you think this person is important to you. BAND 8 Sample 
I am going to talk about my mother who has played an essential role in my life. She is my guardian, my friend and my role model.
My mother is in her forties now, but she still maintains a youthful look. In terms of personality, she is an
extremely compassionate and kind-hearted person who always takes care of her children. She really is a mother and
a friend to me as she always gives me valuable advice and is willing to stand by me through all the ups and downs of
my life. Although sometimes she drives me crazy due to her being a perfectionist, I still hold so much pride and respect for her.
I am also influenced by her strong-will. Ever since she was young, she had to learn to be independent as my
grandparents were very busy and constantly on the go. She had to take care of almost everything: her younger
brother, household chores and herself. Such challenges shaped her into the strong person that she is now.
Her determination, as well as her perseverance, are really something for us to look up to. And I keep reminding
myself every day to be as strong as my mother, a real-life “wonder woman.” Vocabulary highlights:
– an essential role – a necessary part
– guardian – someone who protects you
– role model – someone to admire or look up to
– maintains a youthful look – to keep looking young about:blank 1/12 21:39 1/8/24 Describe a family member
– compassionate – to understand and care about someone
– kind-hearted – to be a kind or nice person to others
– to stand by someone – to support or help someone
– the ups and downs – the good and bad times
– drives me crazy – to repair and improve something eg. a building
– strong-will – to be determined, not give up easily
– independent – to look after or think for yourself or to not be controlled by others
– on the go – always doing something or going somewhere
– shaped her – changed her or made her that way
– determination – to not let anything stop you from doing what you have decided to do
– perseverance – to continue trying to achieve something
– a real-life “wonder woman” – someone who really helps you or saves you 
Well, it’s really hard for me to choose one family member that I admire because, you
know, I love and admire them all equally. But if I had to choose one, it would have to be my dad.
You know, my dad is a very hard-working person. He gets up pretty early, at about 5 and 5:30
every morning. He often has quick breakfast and then goes to the farm. He normally works 10 or
12 hours a day on the farm. You know, farming for a living is hard work, especially during
summer time, when the temperature can go up to nearly 40 degrees which is extremely hot.
Working outdoors in this condition is a nightmare. Although my dad has to work super hard to
support the family, I’ve never heard him complain about hard work or things like that. That’s
the first reason why I really admire him.
And the second thing that I want to talk about is that my dad is a very dedicated husband and father always . He
puts his family first. I feel like he’s willing to do everything to make his
wife and children smile. Although he has to work super hard during the day, he always makes
time for me and my brothers and sisters.
I’ve learned a great deal from my dad. You know, being a farmer’s daughter, I understand the
value of hard work. My dad is always a good role model for me. Actually, there are so many
things that I could talk about, but I know that I don’t have enough time for it. So if I had to
choose one family member that I admire the most, I would talk about my dad. 
Frankly speaking, I have a close-knit relationship to all people in my family. So, if I had to about:blank 2/12 21:39 1/8/24 Describe a family member
pick one of them, I would talk about my father.
He is a man of few words. Opposite to my mother who likes gossiping any time she can,
my father just talks much on family gatherings. But it doesn’t mean he’s a boring man.
Sometimes we kill ourselves laughing when he tell jokes, especially with a serious face.
Besides, he’s also a hardworking man who has led a life of hardship. As for this point, my
mother is also dedicated to her job.
The most common activity that I and my father do together is talking and sharing. I like
listening to him talk about the time during the Vietnam War, about his rough
upbringing, et cetera. Sometimes he also guides me to do some craftworks such as a
bamboo hammock or a clay cup. He’s a craftsman.
Our hobbies are not the same, so I think the only reason that we get on well with each
other is sharing. Whenever I’m down, he raises me up. When I’m in trouble, he pulls me
out. He never puts any pressure on me and always encourages me to lead a life that I
want. For example, when I was about to make a decision on my major, he told me not to
choose a major because of its job opportunity but to choose which I like. Thanks to him,
now I’m doctor and I love my job.  Close-knit: khắn khít
 A man of few words: người đàn ông kiệm lời, ít nói Gossip: nhiều chuyện 
 Family gathering: họp mặt gia đình
 Kill oneself laughing: cười rất nhiều
 Lead a life of hardship: sống một cuộc đời vất vả about:blank 3/12 21:39 1/8/24 Describe a family member about:blank 4/12 21:39 1/8/24 Describe a family member Your par ent s and siblings ( anh ch ị em) ar e y our i mmedi at e f ami l y ( gi a đì nh r u t ộ t ht ị ) – and y our extended family ( gđ l ớn) i ncl udes al l y our r el at i v es – unc l es , cousi ns , gr eat - aunt s , et c . You c an use a family tree ( s ơ đ ồ gi a đì nh/ gi a ph ) ả t o di agr am t he r el at i ons hi ps among y our f ami l y member s . A per s on who i s r el at ed t o y ou by a l ong s er i es of connect i ons can be c al l ed a distant relative ( họ hàng x a) . I f y ou’ r e l uck y , y ou
have a loving family (gia đình êm ấm)or a close-knit family (gia
đình gắn kết chặt chẽ)– If you were raised in a loving family, then you probably had a
carefree childhood (tuổi thơ vô tư/ tuổi thơ êm đềm). On the other hand, a family in
which the relationships are bad or unhealthy can be called a dysfunctional family (gia
đình không êm ấm). If the children experience abuse, poverty, or problems with the law,
we can say they had a troubled childhood (thời thơ ấu khó khăn.)
Perhaps the parents went through a bitter divorce (li dị do xích mích tình cảm) – that
means a separation in which there were bad/angry feelings between the husband and wife.
It’s also possible to have a messy divorce (vụ li thân và có tranh chấp tài sản), with a
prolonged legal battle involving lots of conflicts about the separation of the former
couple’s assets (money and possessions).
The decisions about the separation of assets are made in the divorce settlement (việc
giải quyết ly hôn). A family in which there are divorces or separations is sometimes
called a broken home (gia đình tan vỡ).
Sometimes the mother and father fight over custody of the children (quyền nuôi
con). A judge can grant joint custody (cấp quyền nuôi con chung)– or sole custody to
only one parent.(chỉ vợ hoặc chồng có quyền nuôi con). about:blank 5/12 21:39 1/8/24 Describe a family member
If it was a mutual divorce/separation (ly hôn / ly thân trong hòa bình) – that means
the ex-husband and ex-wife agreed to separate without fighting – then they will
probably stay on good terms with each other (giữ quan hệ tốt với nhau)
If a woman gets pregnant (mang thai)without being married or in a relationship, then
she will become a single mother. Some women in this situation choose to have an
abortion (phá thai), and others prefer to
give the baby up for adoption (đem con cho người ta nhận nuôi). The time when the
baby is planned to arrive is called the due date (Ngày dự sinh)– you can also say the
baby is due in mid-October, for example.
After the woman has the baby (or gives birth to the baby), the baby is given to the
adoptive parents (cha mẹ nuôi), who will raise the child or bring up the child as if it
was their own. Sometimes, when the adopted child (đứa con nuôi) is older, he or she
tries to find their birth mother (biological mother) (mẹ đẻ)
Ok, well after thinking for a bit just now, I’d say the family member I’d most like to work with is my
daddy, so he’s who I’m gonna talk about for reasons I gonna come to shortly. 
.But firstly, I’d like to tell you a little bit about him as a person, and I guess probably the best
word to describe him would be sociable, because you know, he just loves being around people
and making friends. And um.. what else?…. Um…yeah, I’d basically just describe him as being
very OUTGOING, super APPROACHABLE, and uh… extremely LIKEABLE. For example, I
mean, he always seems to be in a good mood, and I guess it’s because he has A POSITIVE
OUTLOOK ON LIFE. You know, he always SEES THE GOOD SIDE OF THINGS, and that’s
kind of what makes him fun to be with.
So yeah, that’s basically his general personality, and in terms of why I’d like to work with him, well,
simply speaking, I think we would COMPLEMENT EACH OTHER quite well. Because um, firstly, he’s
much more of a businessman than me. You know, I have no idea about how to run a company, whereas he
studied business at university and has much more of a business mind than I do. So that’s one thing, and
uh, secondly, I think he would be very good at MAKING CONTACTS and finding new clients, while I
would be more suited to staying in the office and doing the NITTY-GRITTY WORK/ SEDENTARY
WORK (Cong viec van phong) for them, like writing reports, email and stuff.
So, yeah, I think we would MAKE A PRETTY GOOD TEAM, and although we haven’t worked together
before IN A BUSINESS CONTEXT, I think we understand each other well enough that we could succeed pretty well together.
Describe a famous person that you are interested in You should say: about:blank 6/12 21:39 1/8/24 Describe a family member  who this person is  how you know about this person  how this person became famous
And explain why you like this person Band 8 Sample
I am going to tell you about a well-known physicist whose biography recently really caught
my attention. He is a house-hold name around the world, Albert Einstein.
He is recognized as the father of modern physics and he was the founder of the Theory of
Relativity, which became an essential, if not the most important, contribution to modern
science. He was also awarded the Nobel Physics prize thanks to this discovery.
Besides knowing him due to his many achievements, I did come across and read
a biography of him on the internet which really intrigued me and contained a lot of
information that made me admire him a lot. His childhood was not as carefree as I initially
thought and I was totally impressed by his perseverance and dedication to science despite
having communication problems at a very young age.
I love how Albert Einstein lived and worked with passion and enthusiasm all his life, which, I
feel is a shining example and a great inspiration for me to follow. Albert was hunted by the
Nazi’s for most of his adult life, yet he never abandoned his love for science and kept
working even when he was running to protect himself.
So, in other words, he really inspired me to pursue my goals and dreams with all I that I
have, despite any difficulties that I may come across along the way. Vocabulary highlights: 1.
caught my attention – attracted my attention or made me look or take notice of something 2.
a house-hold name – a commonly known famous person 3.
founder – someone who creates or starts something 4.
come across – to find or discover something 5.
biography – the story about the life of a person written by someone else 6.
intrigued – to be very interested by something unusual or unexpected 7.
carefree – to have no worries 8.
perseverance – to continue trying to achieve something 9.
dedication – a large amount of time and effort spent doing something important
10. enthusiasm – a feeling of energetic interest
11. a shining example – a very good or perfect example of something
12. hunted – to chase something to kill or catch it
13. abandoned – to leave someone or something behind
14. pursue – to chase or follow someone or something about:blank 7/12 21:39 1/8/24 Describe a family member
The celebrity whom I would like to meet in person is definitely David Bekham. David was a professional
English footballer who played for the world’s most renowned football clubs such as Manchester United
and Real Madrid. He was named in the list of 100 greatest living football players of FIFA back in 2004.
Besides his career as a sportsman, David is also famous for his marriage to Victoria Beckham, an equally
successful model, singer and fashion designer, with four children. This has been considered one of the
happiest celebrity marriages and partnerships.
David Beckham is my biggest idol not only because of his legendary football skills but also because he is
very modest and kind as a person. He was seen offering a hand to a photographer who fell while trying to
photograph him. Also, according to his wife, David Beckham is a devoted husband and father who always puts his family first.
If I ever had a chance, I would take David Beckham to my favorite restaurants in Hanoi and introduce
Vietnamese food to him. Of course I would take pictures with him too, to post on my facebook wall but
the most important thing would be for me to talk with him, learn from him and be inspired by this man. about:blank 8/12 21:39 1/8/24 Describe a family member about:blank 9/12 21:39 1/8/24 Describe a family member about:blank 10/12 21:39 1/8/24 Describe a family member I f I c oul d be l i k e any one i n t hi s wor l d i t woul d be my mot her . My mot her i s a t ough woman, but y ou woul d not know i t f r om her appear anc e bec aus e she i s so t i ny . She has been my s our c e of i nspi r at i on and I wi l l al way s r espect t he i nfl uence t hat s he has had on my l i f e. I of t en l ook f or war d t o a c up of t ea i n t he l i v i ng r oom wi t h mom t o di s c us s t he day ’ s ev ent s , f ut ur e pl ans , or ev en j us t t o s har e a moment of s i l ence af t er a bus y day . She has been my t eacher , c ouns el or , r ol e model , and f r i end f or t he pas t 21 y ear s . I f eel l i k e s he i s my bes t f r i end. She mak es me a bet t er , s t r onger per son. She t el l s me my f aul t s ” mi s t ak es , and weaknes s es ev en i f I don’ t want t o hear t hem at t i mes . She pus hes me t o s ucc eed and enc our ages me t o wor k har der when t hi ngs l ook i mposs i bl e. Her appr oachabl e nat ur e mak es i t eas y f or me t o open up my hear t t o ex pr ess my t r ue opi ni ons . She has cont r i but ed gr eat l y t o my dev el opment as an i ndi v i dual . I wi l l t ak e al l t hat s he has t aught and us e i t as a gui de f or my f ut ur e and as a s t eppi ng s t one i n t he pur s ui t of my dr eams . I admi r e my mot her and al l of t he s t r uggl es s he had been t hr ough. She came f r om a poor f ami l y and despi t e al l of her har ds hi ps she r emai ned opt i mi s t i c about l i f e. She i s a s t r ong per son and mak es ev er y one ar ound her s t r onger . She i s t he bac kbone and gui di ng l i ght of our f ami l y . So I r eal l y want t o be a per s on l i k e her . .
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��������: What ki nds of peopl e do chi l dr en i n Vi et nam want t o be s i mi l ar t o when t hey gr ow up? ������: Mos t c hi l dr en i n Vi et nam want t o be s i mi l ar t o t hei r par ent s . Par ent s ar e t he peopl e who ar e mos t i nv ol v ed i n a c hi l d’ s l i f e, t hus he or she want s t o be most l i k e t hem. Al s o chi l dr en al way s t hi nk t hat t hei r par ent s ar e t he gr eat es t peopl e i n t he wor l d. They of t en br ag about t hei r par ent s ’ achi ev ement s t o t hei r f r i ends . I onc e r ead a ps y c hol ogy book ; i t sai d t hat y ou c an al way s see peopl e f r om t hr ee di ffer ent aspect s , as a chi l d, as a s ophi s t i c at ed adul t , or as t hei r par ent s . I bel i ev e t hi s about:blank 11/12 21:39 1/8/24 Describe a family member i dea has a l ot of s i gni fi c ance i n a per son’ s char ac t er . .
��������: Do y ou t hi nk i t i s good f or c hi l dr en and y oung peopl e t o us e ent er t ai nment s t ar s as r ol e model s ? ������: No, I do not t hi nk i t i s good f or c hi l dr en and y oung peopl e t o us e ent er t ai nment s t ar s as r ol e model s . One r eason i s t hat many y oung peopl e get depr es sed, because t hey cannot measur e up t o t he i mpos s i bl e s t andar ds t hat t he ent er t ai nment i ndus t r y s et s . Anot her r eason i s t hat many c el ebr i t i es l i v e v er y i mmor al l i v es . Many c el ebr i t i es abus e al cohol and dr ugs , and many ar e i n c ons t ant t r oubl es wi t h t he l aw. Bas i c al l y , t he maj or i t y of ent er t ai nment s t ar s ar e not fi t t o s er v e as r ol e model s f or y oung peopl e t oday . .
��������: Why do some c ompani es adv er t i se pr oduc t s by usi ng f amous peopl e ? ������: Some c ompani es us e f amous peopl e t o adv er t i se t hei r pr oduct s , becaus e many peopl e aspi r e t o be f amous or at l eas t r es pect f amous peopl e’ s opi ni ons . I t i s al so a wel l - k nown f ac t t hat mos t f amous peopl e ar e al so v er y weal t hy . So, i f peopl e s ee t hat s omeone f amous i s us i ng a cer t ai n pr oduct , t hey get t he i mpr ess i on t hat i t i s a qual i t y pr oduc t . Anot her r eas on i s t hat f amous peopl e ar e usual l y at t r act i v e . Ha vi ng an at t r ac t i v e per s on i n y our adv er t i s ement dr aws i n peopl e’ s at t ent i on, and wi l l k eep peopl e’ s at t ent i on l onger t han unat t r ac t i v e per son.
��������: Do y ou t hi nk t hi s i s good? ������: I t i s good f or t he company t hat i s t r y i ng t o s el l t he pr oduct , becaus e i t get s t hei r pr oduc t s ome r ecogni t i on. So when consumer s go t o buy s omet hi ng at t he s t or e. t hi s adv er t i s ement wi l l be i n t hei r mi nd. As a r esul t i t c an i nc r eas e t hei r s al es . I t i s good f or t he economy becaus e peopl e ar e s pendi ng money on t hes e pr oduc t s and cas h i s cont i nui ng t o ex c hange hands . Pr oduct i on and t r anspor t at i on c ont i nue, t hus , cr eat i ng j obs f or t he c ommon man and l ower i ng unempl oy ment .
��������: Do y ou t hi nk f amous peopl e who appear i n adv er t i sement s hav e any spec i al r espons i bi l i t i es t owar ds s oci et y ? ������: I t hi nk t hes e peopl e who cons t ant l y appear on TV and adv er t i sement s do hav e a s pec i al r espons i bi l i t y t o t he publ i c . They ar e cons t ant l y s een by y oung peopl e t hat aspi r e t o be t hem, so t hey need t o be r es pons i bl e r ol e model s , ev en i f t hey nev er want ed t o be a r ol e model , bec ause y oung peopl e r espect t hem and i mi t at e t hem. I f t hey ar e c ut get t i ng ar r es t ed and bei ng s een doi ng bad t hi ngs , i t wi l l cer t ai nl y become common k nowl edge. Then y oung peopl e wi l l begi n t o t hi nk t hat i t i s ok f or t hem t o do i t . about:blank 12/12