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1. 0:00
   Bella (tutor) Welcome to MicroEnglish. In this B2 lesson,
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   Bella (tutor) an application arrives just after the deadline. Should the
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   Bella (tutor) office accept it? We'll use that decision to explore
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   Bella (tutor) bend the rules, compare it with breaking a rule, and practise
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   Bella (tutor) the verb forms you'll need.
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   Bella (tutor) Maya wants to join a photography course, but her application
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   Bella (tutor) is an hour late. She asks, could you bend the rules
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   Bella (tutor) just this once? She wants the office to apply its deadline
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   Bella (tutor) less strictly for her. She isn't asking it to remove the deadline
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    Bella (tutor) for everyone.
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    Bella (tutor) Start here: does the policy already allow extra
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    Bella (tutor) time? If so, accepting Maya isn't necessarily
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    Bella (tutor) bending the rules. If it doesn't, accepting her as a
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    Bella (tutor) special case could be. If the deadline must be strict,
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    Bella (tutor) the office can say, sorry, we can't bend the rules.
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    Bella (tutor) Bend the rules presents a departure from a rule as limited
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    Bella (tutor) or flexible. Break a rule directly says that someone
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    Bella (tutor) acted against it. These can describe the same event from different
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    Bella (tutor) viewpoints. Calling something bending doesn't prove it's
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    Bella (tutor) allowed, fair, or harmless.
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    Bella (tutor) Could you bend the rules just this once? Could you makes
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    Bella (tutor) the request polite, while just this once limits it to one occasion.
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    Bella (tutor) The person may still refuse. You can add a reason,
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    Bella (tutor) but the phrase itself doesn't give you a right to special treatment.
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    Bella (tutor) Bend is irregular: bend, bent,
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    Bella (tutor) bent. Yesterday, they bent the rules. They've bent the
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    Bella (tutor) rules before. After a modal verb, use bend:
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    Bella (tutor) they might bend the rules. For an action happening now, you
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    Bella (tutor) can say, we're bending the rules for this applicant.
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    Bella (tutor) At a community studio, a regular member forgets her entry
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    Bella (tutor) card. A staff member offers a spare as an exception.
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    Bella (tutor) Bend the rules sounds natural in conversation here. In
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    Bella (tutor) a formal message, make an exception may be a more neutral choice.
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    Bella (tutor) A common mistake is bended the rules. Use bent
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    Bella (tutor) instead. Learn bend the rules as a whole phrase,
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    Bella (tutor) including the. You can also say bend a rule, or
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    Bella (tutor) bend the rule about something, when you mean one particular
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    Bella (tutor) requirement.
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    Bella (tutor) Back to Maya. Other late applicants were refused,
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    Bella (tutor) so the office decides to keep the deadline. I'm afraid we
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    Bella (tutor) can't make an exception is a clear response. Our decision tree
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    Bella (tutor) helps us choose language; it doesn't decide whether an exception
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    Bella (tutor) would be fair.
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    Bella (tutor) Now listen to four conversations, two British and two American.
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    Bella (tutor) Choose what the speakers' words suggest about the decision.
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    Bella (tutor) Try without captions first. After each answer,
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    Bella (tutor) hear the same conversation again and check the clue.
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    Bella (tutor) George is borrowing books at a library. Listen
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    Bella (tutor) for what Alice agrees to.
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    George I've got seven books, but the limit's six.
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    George I'll bend the rules today. Next time, please choose
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    Alice six.
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    Alice Thanks. This last one's for my research.
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    Bella (tutor) She allows one extra book this time. The limit stays
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    Bella (tutor) at six; her words today and next time mark the exception.
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    George I've got seven books, but the limit's six.
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    George I'll bend the rules today. Next time, please choose
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    Alice six.
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    Alice Thanks. This last one's for my research.
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    Bella (tutor) Roger asks about leaving his hotel room later. What
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    Bella (tutor) explains Jessica's response?
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    Roger Could you bend the rules and let me check out at two?
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    Roger No need. Your booking includes checkout at two.
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    Jessica Great, I hadn't noticed that.
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    Bella (tutor) His booking includes the later checkout. Jessica says
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    Bella (tutor) there's no need to bend the rules because the arrangement is
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    Bella (tutor) already allowed.
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    Roger Could you bend the rules and let me check out at two?
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    Roger No need. Your booking includes checkout at two.
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    Jessica Great, I hadn't noticed that.
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    Bella (tutor) Alice calls a competition organiser about her entry. What will
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    Bella (tutor) happen to it?
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    Alice My entry was only ten minutes late. Could you still
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    Alice accept it?
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    Alice I'm sorry. The deadline applies to everyone.
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    George We can't bend the rules.
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    George All right. I'll try next year.
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    Bella (tutor) The entry won't be accepted. George says the deadline applies
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    Bella (tutor) to everyone, then explicitly refuses to bend the rules.
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    Alice My entry was only ten minutes late. Could you still
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    Alice accept it?
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    Alice I'm sorry. The deadline applies to everyone.
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    George We can't bend the rules.
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    George All right. I'll try next year.
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    Bella (tutor) Two colleagues discuss an expense claim. What should Roger
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    Bella (tutor) understand from Jessica's reply?
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    Roger Will they pay this claim without a receipt?
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    Roger They bent the rules last month. Don't assume they'll
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    Jessica do it again.
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    Jessica I'd better ask the restaurant for a copy.
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    Bella (tutor) The earlier exception isn't a promise. Last month
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    Bella (tutor) describes a past decision, and don't assume warns that this
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    Bella (tutor) claim may be refused.
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    Roger Will they pay this claim without a receipt?
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    Roger They bent the rules last month. Don't assume they'll
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    Jessica do it again.
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    Jessica I'd better ask the restaurant for a copy.
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    Bella (tutor) Say, they bent the rules for me yesterday. Now change
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    Bella (tutor) it to a possibility: they might bend the rules for me tomorrow.
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     Bella (tutor) Try both aloud.
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     Bella (tutor) Does it mean a permanent change? Usually no. Is it
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     Bella (tutor) always acceptable? No; consider the actual action.
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     Bella (tutor) Can it sound critical? Yes. They always bend the rules
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     Bella (tutor) for their friends suggests unfair special treatment.
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     Bella (tutor) After have, use bent. The singular is possible when
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     Bella (tutor) you mean one rule. For a more formal request, try,
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     Bella (tutor) would you consider making an exception? That asks about
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     Bella (tutor) the same possibility without suggesting quite so strongly
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     Bella (tutor) that someone should stretch a rule.
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     Bella (tutor) Visit this lesson on MicroEnglish dot com for interactive dictation:
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     Bella (tutor) listen, type what you hear, and check your answers. You
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     Bella (tutor) can also ask the AI tutor about a sentence. The first dictation
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     Bella (tutor) is free; further practice and tutor access depend on membership
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     Bella (tutor) and available credits.
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     Bella (tutor) Would you accept Maya's late application? Write
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     Bella (tutor) your decision in the comments using would or wouldn't bend
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     Bella (tutor) the rules, and give a reason. You can ask questions there too.
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     Bella (tutor) Thanks for joining me, and see you in another lesson.

Elige tu respuesta en cada pregunta y luego abre la respuesta para comprobarla.

1. Pregunta 1

   What is Maya's application for?

   A A MicroEnglish lesson B A photography course C An office job
   Comprobar respuesta Conversar con el tutor
2. Pregunta 2 Escuchar la frase de nuevo

   Which sentence uses the correct past tense and fixed noun form?

   A The supervisor bent the rules so we could start early. B The supervisor bended the rules so we could start early. C The supervisor bent the rule so we could start early.
   Comprobar respuesta Conversar con el tutor
3. Pregunta 3 Escuchar la frase de nuevo

   A warehouse worker sneaks expensive tools out of your building to sell them online. Did they bend the rules or break them?

   A They broke the rules because stealing is a serious violation. B They bent the rules because the tools weren't in use. C They bent the rules to show flexibility to their family.
   Comprobar respuesta Conversar con el tutor