Mean Professor

take offense

He actually takes personal offense to what I say.

If you 'take offense' to something, you feel hurt or offended by the comment or the action. Notice the following:

1. Please don't take offense to this, but I don't really like your new perfume.
2. I was only trying to be honest. I didn't want you to take offense.

thesis

Right now, I'm really just working on my thesis.

A 'thesis' is a long academic paper university students often write to get their degree. Notice the following:

1. He completed his thesis on using computers in child education.
2. Many students now use AI to write their thesis.

gather

It's taking me a long time to gather all the materials.

If you collect materials, you 'gather' them. More specifically we use this word to imply bringing a number of different items to one location. Notice the following:

1. The children gathered around the new puppy.
2. Gather all of your things together. It's time to go.

resources

I must gather all the resources and go through all the readings.

Resources are things people use, such as money, supplies, or materials, to assist with a situation. Notice the following:

1. He doesn't have the financial resources right now to fix his house.
2. She was trying to study, but she had forgotten most of her resources at home.

survey

I have to survey about a thousand people.

'To survey' someone means to ask people about a particular situation. The word 'survey' is used as both a noun and a verb. Notice the following:

1. Have you ever taken a product survey?
2. We surveyed people about their thoughts regarding local restaurants.

Go up / Went up

I went up because I didn't get a question on my homework right.

Here, the phrasal verb 'go up' or 'went up' means to approach something or someone. Notice the following:

1. Please go up to the board and write the answer.
2. I went up to John and he looked surprised to see me.

funny

That's the funny part, right?

The word 'funny' often refers to something that seems strange or not normal. In this situation, it does not mean something that makes people laugh. Notice the following:

1. It's funny that Bob is not here today.
2. At the party, he never spoke to me, which I thought was funny.

Go through

It took me a long time to go through all the readings.

The phrasal verb 'go through' means to review, read, or cover some materials. Notice the following:

1. I need to go through my lecture notes and study for the test.
2. Were you able to go through the materials I sent?

marks

I asked him why I didn't get any marks for it.

Here, the word 'marks' means credit or points for an assignment or test. Notice the following:

1. I got high marks on the test.
2. I did the assignment, but got poor marks on it.

What's the point?

So, what's the point of asking for your own opinion?

People use the phrase 'what's the point?' to show that something is not logical or makes any sense. Notice the following:

1. No one shops at 3 a.m. What's the point of being open all-night?
2. What's the point of studying a language if you never use it?

fault

Well, it's not any of my fault. I think the teacher doesn't like me.

The word 'fault' means that someone is the reason for something bad happening. That person, or thing, is to blame for a bad result. Notice the following:

1. It's not the teacher's fault you failed the test. You didn't study!
2. It's my fault that we are late. I got lost driving here.

Double spaced / Single spaced

Is the paper double spaced or single spaced?

When text is double spaced, there is a blank line or spaced between each line of text. With single spaced, there is no blank line. Notice the following:

1. Use single spaced so the article fits on one page.
2. Teacher like double spaced papers so they have more space to write remarks.