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B2 English • 20 Mins Unit: Vocabulary & Speaking

Awards, Prizes and Scholarships 🏆

Master key B2 vocabulary for academic honors, official recognitions, and competitive awards through interactive tables, contextual practice, and speech shadowing.

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How to use this lesson

TEACHER Classroom Guide

• Guide students through the word table first, then spend 10 minutes on practice and 5 minutes on shadowing.

• Check answers together by asking students to read sentences aloud.

LEARNER Your Steps

• Read the word table carefully and try the memory tips.

• Complete the 16 practice questions, then record yourself in the shadowing section.

Word table

10 B2 Target Words

Group 1: The Prize

Word	Meaning	Common Collocations	Word Forms	Example Sentence	Memory Tip
bursary (n)	Money given to a student to pay for their university or college studies.	win a bursary, apply for a bursary	–	She received a bursary to help pay her university tuition fees.	Think of "purse" - a bursary puts money in your purse for school.
plaque (n)	A flat piece of metal, stone, or wood with words to remember a person or event.	gold plaque, commemorative plaque	–	At the end of the evening, the youngest nurse in the room was handed a small gold plaque.	Sounds like "plate" - a metal plate fixed to a wall or prize board.
accolade (n)	Praise or a special award given to someone for doing great work.	high accolade, win an accolade	–	Winning the national teacher award was the highest accolade of her career.	Starts like "ack" (acknowledge) - acknowledging great work with praise.
prestige (n)	High respect and admiration felt by people because of high quality or status.	high prestige, global prestige	prestigious (adj)	Studying at an Ivy League university carries immense international prestige.	Sounds like a magic trick ("presto!") that makes people respect you.

Group 2: The People

Word	Meaning	Common Collocations	Word Forms	Example Sentence	Memory Tip
laureate (n)	A person who has been given a very high prize or honor in art or science.	Nobel laureate, poet laureate	–	The Nobel laureate gave a speech on renewable energy solutions.	Contains "laurel" - ancient winners wore leaves of laurel on their heads.
nominee (n)	Someone who has been officially suggested for a prize, job, or position.	Oscar nominee, final nominee	nominate (v)	Each nominee was invited onto the stage before the winner was announced.	Contains "nom" like "name" - someone whose name was chosen.
recipient (n)	A person who receives a prize, award, or scholarship.	grant recipient, award recipient	receive (v)	The recipient of the science scholarship thanked her mentor during the speech.	Starts like "receive" - the person who receives the award.

Group 3: The Choice

Word	Meaning	Common Collocations	Word Forms	Example Sentence	Memory Tip
shortlist (n)	A list of the best candidates chosen from a larger group for a final decision.	make the shortlist, final shortlist	–	Only five applicants made the shortlist for the international grant.	"Short" + "list" - a shortened list with only top candidates left.
merit (n)	The quality of being good and deserving praise, reward, or recognition.	judge on merit, academic merit	–	Scholarships should be awarded on academic merit rather than wealth.	What you earn through quality, not what you inherit.
eligible (adj)	Having the right qualifications or meeting conditions to receive something.	eligible for a grant, eligible to apply	eligibility (n)	Only full-time university students are eligible to apply for this funding.	Has "elect" inside - chosen because you meet all official rules.

Practice

16 Questions

A Collocation Matrix

Match each action on the left with the correct target noun column.

Collocation Phrase

accolade

plaque

bursary

shortlist

1. win a full ____ to study

____ accolade ____ plaque ____ bursary ____ shortlist

2. make the final ____

____ accolade ____ plaque ____ bursary ____ shortlist

3. receive a high ____

____ accolade ____ plaque ____ bursary ____ shortlist

4. award a brass ____

____ accolade ____ plaque ____ bursary ____ shortlist

B Gap-fill with Word Bank

Complete each dialogue or sentence using the correct word from the bank below.

Word Bank: recipient laureate bursary accolade

Item 5 • Dialogue

A: Did you apply for financial support for your university fees?

B: Yes, I submitted my application for the student [gap] yesterday.

Your answer: ____

Item 6 • Sentence

The young scientist felt honored to receive the highest ____ for her groundbreaking research paper.

Your answer: ____

Item 7 • Dialogue

A: Who is giving the keynote lecture at the conference today?

B: A famous Nobel [gap] in medicine!

Your answer: ____

Item 8 • Sentence

Every grant ____ must submit a detailed report showing how the funding was spent.

Your answer: ____

C Choose the Word

Select the single word option that correctly completes the sentence context.

9. At the end of the ceremony, the retiring director was presented with an engraved wood ____.

____ a. plaque ____ b. shortlist ____ c. bursary

10. The foundation enjoys immense international ____ because of its decades of high-quality work.

____ a. nominee ____ b. prestige ____ c. eligible

11. She was thrilled when her professor declared her an official ____ for the young researcher prize.

____ a. nominee ____ b. merit ____ c. bursary

12. The selection panel judged each scholarship candidate purely on individual academic ____.

____ a. plaque ____ b. laureate ____ c. merit

D Word Formation

Complete each blank with the correct form of the word shown in the item heading.

Item 13 • From 'prestige'

Winning this competition is a highly ____ achievement for any young writer.

____

Item 14 • From 'nominee'

The board members will ____ three students for the community grant.

____

Item 15 • From 'recipient'

He was delighted to ____ a formal certificate of excellence from the dean.

____

Item 16 • From 'eligible'

Applicants must confirm their ____ before submitting their scholarship paperwork.

____

Shadowing

12 Audio Exercises

🎙️ Instructions: Listen to the model audio first by tapping the speaker icon. Then record yourself speaking clearly into your microphone.

Collocation 1 🔊 Listen

"win a university bursary"

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

Collocation 2 🔊 Listen

"a Nobel laureate"

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

Collocation 3 🔊 Listen

"make the final shortlist"

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

Collocation 4 🔊 Listen

"receive a gold plaque"

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

Sentence 1 🔊 Listen

"She got a bursary to study abroad."

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

Sentence 2 🔊 Listen

"Only ten candidates made the final shortlist."

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

Sentence 3 🔊 Listen

"He is eligible for the student discount."

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

Sentence 4 🔊 Listen

"They presented her with a commemorative plaque."

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

Sentence 5 🔊 Listen

"The winner received a prestigious award at the gala."

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

Sentence 6 🔊 Listen

"The committee will nominate three students for the grant."

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

Focus Word 1 🔊 Listen

laureate

Pronunciation focus: /ˈlɔː.ri.ət/

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

Focus Word 2 🔊 Listen

eligible

Pronunciation focus: /ˈel.ɪ.dʒə.bəl/

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

Vocabulary: Awards, Prizes, and Scholarships

Awards, Prizes and Scholarships 🏆

How to use this lesson

Word table

Practice

A Collocation Matrix

B Gap-fill with Word Bank

C Choose the Word

D Word Formation

Shadowing

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