Podcast 130 - Sea and beach collocations (with glossary)

A day on the beach

Beach and sand collocations

A beach bag, a towel laid on the sand, put the sunshade up, get out the picnic, open the cool box, take out some ice-cold drinks and watermelon.

Sand between your toes.

Footprints in the sand.

Buckets and spades for making sandcastles.

Strands of seaweed strewn along the beach.

Excited kids pick it up to decorate their sandcastle.

Bury your sister in the sand and make a mermaid's tail where her legs are.

Seashells on the seashore, broken shells, and smooth round pebbles.

Rock pools full of crabs and shiny darting fish.

Waves breaking on the beach.

White foam on the crest of the waves.

Blue sea sparkling in the bright sun.

A cloudless sky.

A cool breeze blowing over the sea, cooling you down.

The hot sun beating down on the dunes.

Seawater: salty, crystal clear or murky where it's muddy.

Paddling in the shallows near the beach, looking out at some distant ship on the skyline.

Swimming and diving under the water: the breaststroke, the crawl, or doggy paddle.

Brightly-coloured sunshades on the beach.

Swimsuits and swimming trunks, bikinis.

Playing Frisbee or bat and ball by the water's edge.

Fishermen fishing off the rocks. They cast out their bait. Fishing rods pushed in between a crack pointing up at the sky. Waiting and hoping to catch something for lunch.

Walking gingerly over sharp rocks barefoot looking into sparkling pools.

Children dipping their fishing nets into a pool, an empty bucket by their feet, hoping to catch a crab or a shrimp.

Crabs peeping out from crevices between the rocks, darting for cover when you approach.

Limpets, winkles, stuck fast to the rocks.

Beachcombing: looking for interesting objects on the seashore washed up by the waves from last night's storm.

Wading out into the sea. Trying to pluck up courage to plunge into the cold water. But it's all right once you're in!

Sunbathing: getting a suntan. We all want one! But you've got to put your sunscreen on, or you'll turn red and burn! Sunburn, nobody wants that!

The sun is so strong in the south of Spain!

The setting sun, a reddening sky. People packing up their things. Taking their sunshades down. Come on! Everybody's got to help to carry something. A reluctant child, fishing net and bucket in hand, gazing out to sea. He doesn't want to go home. His mum calls him back, bags in hand.

Seagulls move in as people leave, looking for food scraps after the picnic.

The sea turns a dark purple as the sun sets, looking more mysterious than ever...

Glossary of the more difficult words:

strewn - all over the place

darting - moving very quickly

foam - where the water turns white

crest - the limit, highest point of a wave

sparkling - bright and shiny

to beat down - a strong action hitting a surface

crystal clear - transparent

breaststroke, the crawl, or doggy paddle - different types of swimming style

bait - a piece of food that attracts the fish to the hook when fishing

paddling - walking in water up to your knees

shallows - where the water isn't deep

murky (water) - not clear or transparent

crack (in the rocks) - a small opening

gingerly (walking) - walking very carefully

barefoot - without shoes

dipping - putting something into the water (the fishing nets)

peeping out - looking out cautiously

crevice - very small and narrow opening.

limpets, winkles - types of shellfish

stuck fast - attached so it's difficult to pull it off

wading out - walking out into the sea

pluck up courage - find a moment to be brave enough

plunge - to jump suddenly into the sea

reluctant - not wanting to do something

reddening - turning red

scraps - bits of food left behind