ake a tumble, just a chance, odd rogue shower ); everyday turns of phrase which ordinary people use about the weather ( become a little bit quieter, turn colder) fuzzy expressions ( more or less, round about ); contracted verbs ( its, that is, we `ll ); colloquial sentence connection ( anyhow, in actual fact ). At the same time, the scientific element in the weather forecast message is evident in the numerical underpinning ( eight degrees, minus one or minus two ) and the reference to notions which are generally not found in the speech of the amateur ( icy patches on untreated roads, well broken cloud, south-westerly wind ).
.1.3 Commentary
Is one of the most distinctive of all uses of English. Its roles extend well beyond broadcasting. It will be heard in such varied contexts as fashion shows, race-course meetings, and cookery demonstrations. Within broadcasting the use of commentary extends beyond sporting occasions. It will be heard accompanying such public events as inaugurations, funerals and other processions.the most frequent kinds of commentary are those associated with sports and games. Here, two elements need to be distinguished: the play-by-play commentary, and the colour-added commentary. The latter is important, for it provides an audience with pre-event background, post-event evaluation, and within-event interpretation. But there is little to be said about it stylistically: it is conversational in style, and often in dialogue form. Consider a fragment of colour commentary: It was two dollars before and I just think something `s wrong with those dividends that are showing up on our screen. They `ve got Speedy Cheval the favourite but I` m not exactly sure that that `s correct, but anyway they` re in behind the mobile going towards the starting point now for the first heat of the Lion Brown Rising Star Three-Year- Old Championship just about there. For example : Stylistic interest in commentary lies chiefly in the play-by-play component.
Because commentary is an oral reporting of ongoing activity, it is unlike other kinds of narrative which are typically reported in past time. Indeed, it is unlike any other kind of speech situation. US linguist Charles Ferguson (1983, p. 156) captured its uniqueness when he described radio sports casting as a monolog or dialog-on-stag...
