CHRISTMAS TIME

VOCABULARY
Bethlehem

the small town in the Middle East believed to be the birthplace of Jesus
Christ

bauble

Little colored ball used to decorate the Christmas tree

candy cane

a cane-shaped hard candy stick

Christ

the title of Jesus (also used as His name)

Christian

a person who believes in Christianity; also an adjective

Christmas card

a greetings card that people send to friends and family at Christmas

Christmas carol

a religious song or popular hymn that people sing at Christmas

Christmas Day

25 December, the birthday of Jesus Christ

Christmas Eve

the evening or day before Christmas Day (24 December)

Christmas holidays

the holiday period for about a week before and after Christmas Day

Christmas tree

an evergreen tree (often a spruce) that people decorate with lights and
ornaments at Christmas

Cribs or mangers

small wooden structures that recreate the scene of the birth of the baby
Jesus.

candle

a cylinder of wax with a central wick (like string) which burns to produce
light

chimney

a vertical pipe in a house that allows smoke and gases to escape from a
fireplace (Father Christmas traditionally enters a house through its
chimney)

decoration

something that adds beauty; ornament

egg-nog

a traditional Christmas drink made of alcohol with beaten eggs and milk

elf

(plural: elves) is a type of supernatural being in Germanic mythology and

folklore

Father Christmas/
Santa Claus

an imaginary being who brings presents for children on the night before
Christmas Day (also known as Santa Claus) - traditionally an old man with
a red suit and white beard (Santa Claus may be based in part on the
historical figure of Saint Nicholas.)

fireplace

a partly enclosed space in a house where people light a fire for warmth

garland

a decorative wreath or cord, used at festive occasions, which can be

hung round a person's neck, or on inanimate objects like Christmas trees.

gingerbread man

a biscuit or cookie made of gingerbread in the shape of a stylized human

holly

an evergreen plant with prickly dark green leaves and red berries

Jesus

the name of Christ, the central figure of Christianity (believed by

Christians to be the Son of God)

manger

a trough for food for horses or cattle (used by Mary as a cradle or bed for
Jesus)

mistletoe

a parasitic plant with white berries, traditionally used as a Christmas

decoration

nativity

the birth of a person

the Nativity

the birth of Jesus Christ

New Year's Day

1 January

New Year's Eve

31 December

ornament

an object that adds beauty to something; a decoration

Present/gift

something given to somebody as a gift/present.

reindeer

a deer with large antlers found in some cold climates (believed to pull
the sleigh for Santa Claus or Father Christmas)

shepherd

a person who looks after sheep

stocking

an empty sock or sock-shaped bag that is hung on for Santa

tree ornaments

sleigh

a sledge or light cart on runners pulled by horses or reindeer over snow

and ice

snow

water vapour from the sky that falls as white flakes and covers the
ground

star

a bright point in the night sky which is a large, distant incandescent body
like the sun

the star of
Bethlehem

the star that announced the birth of Jesus and guided the wise men to
find Him

tinsel

a decoration consisting of thin strips of shiny metal foil, traditionally

used at Christmas

The Three
Kings/Wise
Men/Magi

the wise men from the East who brought gifts for the baby Jesus.
Magi [mey-jahy].

turkey

a bird like a large chicken, traditionally eaten at Christmas

white Christmas

a Christmas with snow on the ground

Wreath

A mixture of flowers, leaves or various materials that is constructed to

resemble a ring

Xmas

abbreviation or informal term for Christmas

IDIOMS
Christmas comes but once a year
Used as an excuse for over indulgence, whether on food or on gifts, on the basis that it doesnt
happen often
Cold turkey
Immediately; without tapering off or cutting down gradually. (Originally drug slang. Now used
of breaking any habit.)
EX; Tom stopped smoking cold turkey.

Deck the halls

Decking (or decorating) ones hall with branches from a holly tree is an old tradition; the
popular carol of the same name began as a Welsh tune dating back to the 16th century.
Dont look a gift horse in the mouth
Dont be ungrateful when you receive a present, even if its not exactly what you wanted
Good things come in small packages
The size of a gift doesnt determine whats inside; in the same way a small person may have a
big heart
Its the thought that counts
Its the kindness behind an act that matters, however imperfect or insignificant it may be
Like turkeys voting for (an early) Christmas
if people are like turkeys voting for Christmas, they choose to accept a situation which will
have very bad results for them (as turkeys are traditionally eaten at Christmas).
EX: Teachers agreeing to even larger class sizes would be like turkeys voting for Christmas.

Light it up like a christmas tree

Phrase commonly used in the military for blowing out an enemy position. Plenty of bombs,
missiles, bullets etc.
Ex: They need to go into North Korea and light it up like a Christmas tree.

The more the merrier

The more people or things there are, the better a given situation will be
The proof of the pudding (is in the eating)
You don't know the quality of something until you have tried it or experienced it.
EX: Theory says that this material will produce a superior widget, but the proof of the pudding is.
Theres no time like the present
Something that you say in order to show that you think it is a good idea to do something
immediately.
EX:'When do you think I should phone Mr Hughes about that job? Well, there's no time like the present.

To trim the tree

Nothing to do with cutting, this is an old reference to decorating a pine tree with ornaments,
lights and other glittery bits
White Christmas
When it snows at Christmas time.
Written in the stars
Intended to be, destiny

CHRISTMAS EXPRESSIONS
Merry Christmas!
Happy Christmas
Happy New Year!
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Wishing you a prosperous New Year

All the best for the coming year
Seasons Greetings!

CURIOSITIES
The Legend of the Christmas Spider
There are many wonderful legends and stories connected with the Christmas season.
This lovely folk tale which originated in Europe many years ago about the legend of the
Christmas spider is one of my favourites. I hope you will enjoy reading it - even those of you
who don't normally like spiders!
The day before Christmas the mother of a poor family made a big effort to decorate
and clean her house ready to be blessed at Christmas by the Christmas Angel. When she began
to dust and clean, the spiders who lived in the house fled and scurried away to hide up in the
furthest reaches of the dark and dusty attic.
The house was cleaned and decorated from top to bottom. A Christmas tree was
chopped down and brought into the house and decorated with home-made ornaments that
the mother of the house had made with loving care.
That night, after the family had gone to bed, the spiders returned to the main rooms of
the house to see what all the fuss had been about. The spiders were delighted by the
transformation that had taken place! The Christmas tree was the focus of their attention, and
they ran up and down it scurrying through its branches, admiring each and every one of the
ornaments. To do this of course, the spiders needed to spin their webs, and the tree was soon
wrapped up from top to bottom with dull grey strands of shimmering spider silk.
In the morning, the Christmas Angel came to bless the house. The silky spider webs
that adorned the tree looked beautiful, but the Christmas Angel knew that the mother, who
had worked so hard to clean the house, was unlikely to be pleased by their handiwork. The
Christmas Angel touched the spider webs with her wand and they immediately began to
glisten and glimmer and turn to sparkling garlands of gold and silver.
In the morning, the family gathered about the Christmas tree and exclaimed that it
had never looked so lovely! Only the mother knew that the sparkling strands were a true
Christmas miracle and not some last-minute decoration.
Since then, it has been traditional to decorate the tree with garlands and tinsel. While
the mother still chases the spiders away for cleaning on Christmas Eve, she remembers the
Christmas miracle and celebrates it by hanging a spider ornament among the branches of the
tree.