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Weather - Interactive Practice
Click on Listen All and follow along. After becoming comfortable with the entire conversation, become Person A by clicking on the Person A button. You will hear only Person B through the audio file. There will be a silence for you to repeat the sentences of Person A. Do the same for Person B. The speed of the conversation is native speed. Use the pause button if the pause between each sentence is too fast for you. After practicing several times, you will be able to speak as fast as a native.
1
Listen All | Person A | Person B
A: "Hey John, it's beautiful out today, isn't it?"
B: "Yeah. I wish it would be like this everyday."
A: "Did you see the weather forecast?"
B: "Unfortunately, it's supposed to start raining tomorrow night."
2
Listen All | Person A | Person B
A: "Do you know what the weather is going to be like tomorrow?"
B: "It's supposed to be the same as today. I don't think the weather will change much for the next week or so."
A: "That's great."
B: "Why are you so happy? Do you have anything planned?"
A: "Yeah, I'm going to Everland with my family this weekend so I was hoping for good weather."
3
Listen All | Person A | Person B
A: "I can't believe it is raining so much."
B: "It's not that bad. Last year we had floods in 4 different areas of the city."
A: "Really? Does it always rain so much during this time of year?"
B: "This is not as bad as usual. During the monsoon season, we usually have rain for 3 weeks."
Weather - Questions and Answers
Listen to the Entire Lesson
In this session, we are primarily going to practice speaking key sentences that will help you carry a conversation about the weather.
Asking about the weather:
"Do you know what the weather will be like tomorrow?"
"Do you know if it's going to rain tomorrow?"
"Did you see the weather forecast?"
"What is the weather like in Korea/Seattle/Los Angeles?"
"How is the climate in Korea?"
"Does it rain much in Denver?"
"How different is the weather between Pusan and Seoul?"
"What is your favorite season of the year?"
Answering questions about the weather:
"The weather is supposed to be sunny and warm tomorrow."
"It's supposed to rain for the next several days."
"I didn't see the news yesterday so I don't know what the weather is going to be like."
"Weather in Los Angeles is usually hot in the summer and mild in the winter. It never really gets that cold."
"The weather in Pusan is very similar to Seoul. The main difference is that Seoul gets a little more snow in the winter and a little hotter in the summer. This is primarily because Pusan is right next to the water."
"My favorite season of the year is Spring. It's not too cold and the anticipation of a good summer puts me in a good mood."
Statements about the weather:
"I heard Seattle is a very gloomy city with so many clouds."
"The weather is beautiful this time of year."
"I hate the rain. It makes me feel depressed."
"Autumn is a great season."
"The summer months are so humid in Korea."
"I can't stand the cold winter months."
"It's a beautiful day today, isn't it?"
"I wish the weather was like this everyday."
"It's been raining for 5 days straight. I wonder when it will stop raining."
"I hate the snow. The roads are dangerous to drive in, and when it melts, the streets are very dirty."
"I love snowboarding so I always look forward to the winter."
"The winter months are tolerable because I don't mind the cold."
"Korea has four distinct seasons."
Weather - Winter
Listen to the Entire Lesson
Winter has many differences between locations. Some places might be extremely cold like Korea, New York, Alaska, Greenland, etc, and some places might be perfect like Hawaii, Los Angeles, Mexico and other hot places.
Hot places that enjoy pleasant summer warmth:
"I don't think we have a winter here. During the winter months, it's still 80 degrees. So everyone loves the winter months because it's not too hot."
"Winter time is the best time to visit because the temperature is the best during January."
"I like to go to Hawaii for my winter vacations because it's so cold in my home city."
Cold places:
"It's freezing out."
"It doesn't snow often, but when it does, it stays around for several weeks because it stays cold."
"For 3 months, this city will be covered with a layer of snow because it will never melt."
"It doesn't get too cold here, but it's always raining and very gloomy."
"The winter here is cold and dry. We hardly get any precipitation."
19. Yesterday - The Past - Interactive Practice
Click on Listen All and follow along. After becoming comfortable with the entire conversation, become Person A by clicking on the Person A button. You will hear only Person B through the audio file. There will be a silence for you to repeat the sentences of Person A. Do the same for Person B. The speed of the conversation is native speed. Use the pause button if the pause between each sentence is too fast for you. After practicing several times, you will be able to speak as fast as a native.
1
Listen All | Person A | Person B
A: "What did you do last night?"
B: "I met some friends and we had some drinks at a bar."
A: "Did you drink a lot?"
B: "I got so drunk that I don't remember how I got home."
A: "Why did you drink so much?"
B: "I was so depressed. I just wanted to forget about everything."
2
Listen All | Person A | Person B
A: "How was the airplane ride?"
B: "It was a twelve hour flight. It was so boring. I tried to sleep but it was too uncomfortable on the plane."
A: "How about the movies they play on international flights?"
B: "I saw both movies they played. I was just unlucky."
A: "Did you take a book with you?"
B: "I accidentally packed it with my luggage that I checked in."
3
Listen All | Person A | Person B
A: "What did you do last weekend?"
B: "I went to a party."
A: "How was the party?"
B: "It was way too crowded and the food was gone before I got there."
A: "What time did you get home?"
B: "It was pretty boring so I left at ten and got home before eleven."
Yesterday - The Past - Questions and Answers
Listen to the Entire Lesson
When asking questions about the past, you can ask questions like:
"How did you enjoy the movie?"
"What time did you get home last night?"
"How was your date with Jackie?"
"How was the traffic going to the airport?"
"What have you been up to?"
"What did you do last weekend?"
"How was the party?"
"How come you didn't come to class yesterday?"
"How did your presentation go?"
Here are some ways you can answer these types of questions. Remember to use past tense because these actions already occurred.
"How did you enjoy the movie?"
"It was a long movie, but overall, the movie was great."
"I really didn't like the movie. It was slow and boring."
"I enjoyed the movie so much that I saw it again."
"What time did you get home last night?"
"I got home at two in the morning."
"I didn't make it home until eleven last night."
"I made it home at midnight."
"How was your date with Jackie?"
"The date went so well. We had dinner at a seafood restaurant. And then we saw a movie together."
"I don't think it went too well. We hardly had anything to talk about. I really thought Jackie was bored to death."
"The date was alright. She called me this morning to go out again, but I haven't responded yet."
"What have you been up to?"
"I just graduated from school so I'm happy that I'm done."
"I met Jackie yesterday and we spent the evening together in a nice restaurant."
"The only thing I have done in the last three months is computer games."
"What did you do last weekend?"
"Last weekend, I visited my parents."
"I went golfing on Saturday. I shot a great score."
"I stayed home and watched TV all weekend long."
"How come you didn't come to class yesterday?"
"I was very sick yesterday."
"I missed the bus and by the time I got to campus, class was already over."
"I slept in because I didn't hear the alarm ring."
"How did your presentation go?"
"It went ok. A few of the people asked some tough questions, but overall it was good."
"I messed up so bad. I brought the wrong folder from my office so I didn't have any notes."
"It was the best presentation of the day. My boss told me I was organized, focused, and spoke clearly."
Tomorrow's Plan - Interactive Practice
Click on Listen All and follow along. After becoming comfortable with the entire conversation, become Person A by clicking on the Person A button. You will hear only Person B through the audio file. There will be a silence for you to repeat the sentences of Person A. Do the same for Person B. The speed of the conversation is native speed. Use the pause button if the pause between each sentence is too fast for you. After practicing several times, you will be able to speak as fast as a native.
1
Listen All | Person A | Person B
A: "Do you have any plans tonight?"
B: "I have class until 5 O'clock, but I'm free after that."
A: "Do you want to grab dinner?"
B: "I don't have any dinner plans so that sounds great."
A: "What time should we meet?"
B: "I need to go to the book store first, so let's meet at 6 O'clock."
2
Listen All | Person A | Person B
A: "Let's go to Everland next week"
B: "I can't. I'm way too busy."
A: "What are you doing next week?"
B: "On Monday, I'm going to meet my professor. Tuesday, I have a job interview. Wednesday, I'm going to the dentist. And on Thursday, I have to go visit my parents."
A: "Why are you so busy?"
B: "I've been procrastinating for a long time."
3
Listen All | Person A | Person B
A: "What are you doing over the weekend?"
B: "I'm going to exercise, meet some friends, and then watch tv."
A: "Who are you going to meet?"
B: "My friend from middle school is visiting, so we are going to have dinner on Saturday."
A: "How long is he going to stay?"
B: "He is only here for a day."
A: "Where are you going to eat dinner?"
B: "I plan on taking him to an Italian restaurant."
Tomorrow's Plan - Questions and Answers
Listen to the Entire Lesson
When asking questions about the future, you can ask questions like:
"What are you going to do tonight?"
"What are you doing next week?"
"When do you plan on doing your homework?"
"When are you going to eat dinner?"
"What time do we have to leave for the airport?"
"What should we do tonight?"
There are many different questions you can ask. By changing a few words, you can make numerous questions properly about the future.
When you are answering questions that relate to the future, remember to use the future tense. Here are some ways to answer the questions directly above:
"What are you going to do tonight?"
"I plan on meeting John after dinner. We're going to go to a night club."
"I'm going to go to take my girlfriend out to dinner. And if we have time, we might try to see a movie."
"What are you doing next week?"
"Since I'm on vacation next week, I plan on going to Pusan to visit some friends down there."
"Next week I have to go shopping for all the Christmas presents. I have to buy a present for my dad, mom, and my two sisters."
"When do you plan on doing your homework?"
"I think I'm going to do my homework after I watch the world cup. I don't think I'll be able to concentrate until after the game is over."
"I'm so unmotivated to do my homework. But I'll eventually have to do it, so I'll get around to them probably after dinner."
"What time do you have to leave for the airport?"
"The flight comes in at 4:30, so I plan on leaving at about 3:30"
"The security is pretty tight so I should get there early. I plan on arriving there 2 hours before my flight leaves."
"What should we do tonight?"
"After dinner, let's go grab a couple of beers. Then we can go shopping for a couple of hours, and afterwards, we can rent a video and watch it at my place."
"I'm pretty busy tonight. I have to do the laundry, vacuum, and then make dinner, so I won't be able to meet you tonight."
How is your day - Interactive Practice
Click on Listen All and follow along. After becoming comfortable with the entire conversation, become Person A by clicking on the Person A button. You will hear only Person B through the audio file. There will be a silence for you to repeat the sentences of Person A. Do the same for Person B. The speed of the conversation is native speed. Use the pause button if the pause between each sentence is too fast for you. After practicing several times, you will be able to speak as fast as a native.
1
Listen All | Person A | Person B
A: "What are you doing now?"
B: "I'm watching TV."
A: "What are you watching?"
B: "I'm watching Friends. What are you doing?"
A: "I'm doing my homework, but I really need to take a break."
B: "You want to do something?"
A: "Yes. But I shouldn't. I got to finish my assignment now."
B: "Alright. Call me later then."
A: "OK. Bye."
Regular Lessons
Greeting and General Things I
Greetings and General Thingssection contains basic English lessons on Greetings, communicating when you're bored, past, present, and future tense, and the weather.
Regular English Lessons
Greeting and General Things 1:
1. Greeting - Basic
2. Greeting Someone you Know
3. Greeting - Example Conversations
4. Greeting - Interactive Practice
5. Bored - General Phrases
6. Bored - Calling Someone
7. Bored - Boring Work
8. Bored - Interactive Practice
9. How is your Day - General Statements
10. How is your day - Example Conversation
11. How is your day - Interactive Practice
12. Tomorrow's Plan - I am going to
13. Tomorrow's Plan - Questions and Answers
14. Tomorrow's Plan - Example Conversation
15. Tomorrow's Plan - Interactive Practice
16. Yesterday - The Past - General Statements
17. Yesterday - The Past - Questions and Answers
18. Yesterday - The Past - Example Conversation
19. Yesterday - The Past - Interactive Practice
20. Weather - Summer and Autumn
21. Weather - Winter
22. Weather - Fahrenheit and Celsius
23. Weather - Questions and Answers
24. Weather - Long Description
25. Weather - Interactive Practice
Back to Homebase
⚜️English House ⚜️
9. How is your Day - General Statements
Listen to the Entire Lesson
In this lesson, we are going to learn how to communicate to someone using the present tense. However, because this isn't a site teaching grammar, I do not want to spend too much time on details. I wanted to include this section primarily to show many different sentences using present tense and to have a dedicated practice section with only present tense sentences.
This lesson is a little shorter than others because speaking in the present tense is not as common as speaking in the future or past tense. Although speaking in the future tense or the past tense is more common, it is still important to know how to communicate in the present tense. Here are some example sentences:
"I see Bob over there by the newspaper stand."
"I'm going to the library."
"I'm on my way home."
"I'm going to the bus stop."
"Jack is going to the store."
"Jill is stopping by now."
"The meeting is starting now."
"The manager is waiting for you in her office."
"Tell the receptionist that you are here to see Mr. Hwang."
Questions:
A very common question you will run into is,
"How are you doing?"
"How is your day going?"
"What are you doing now?"
To answer these types of question, you must remember that you are talking about what is currently going on now, so you must use the present tense.
Here are some ways to answer the above question.
"I'm enjoying the beautiful weather without any worries in the world."
"I'm playing a video game on my computer because I have nothing to do."
"I'm at the grocery store buying ingredients for tonight's dinner."
"I'm at the gym working out."
As you can see, each sentence is starting with, 'I am' instead of 'I will be' or 'I was.' We will discuss past tense and future tense in the next sessions.
More descriptive answers you can give are the following:
"I'm pretty busy right now. I'm doing my homework because I have an exam tomorrow."
"My project deadline is coming up, so I'm currently in the process of finishing my tasks."
"I'm taking the day off from work today because I have so many errands. I'm going to the post office to send some packages to my friends."
"I'm looking for a job. The job market does not look that great, but I can't give up."
"I'm applying for a job at a consulting firm in Taiwan."
"I'm listening to music while thinking about my situation."
A: "Hi Steve, what's your plan for tonight?"
B: "I don't have any plans. Are you doing anything special?"
A: "Well, if you're bored, let's plan on meeting up tonight."
B: "That sounds like a good idea. Should we invite Bob?"
A: "He's a little boring."
B: "What do you mean?"
A: "Well, he doesn't drink, play video games, pool, or really anything. The only thing he talks about is history."
B: "You do have a point. We'll leave him out tonight."
A: "Alright. Let's meet at 8:30 in front of the university bookstore."
B: "Perfect. I'll see you later tonight."
English Conversation 3: Gossip
1. What's going on?: What's happening?
It is very noisy in that room. What's going on?
There are many police cars outside. What's going on?
2. to get a divorce: to legally end a marriage
Mark and Sally got a divorce.
She wants to get a divorce, but her husband doesn't want to.
3. to cheat on someone: to secretly be in a romantic relationship with a person who is not one's husband, wife,
boyfriend, or girlfriend
Tina and Mark got divorced because Tina was cheating on Mark.
He cheats on his girlfriend a lot when he travels on business.
English Conversation Lesson 2 Meeting an Old Friend
1. to bump into someone: to meet someone by chance
I bumped into Greg at the store.
She bumped into her ex-boyfriend at the concert.
2. to be back in town: to return to town after being gone for a period of time
Mark is back in town.
Tina was in Europe for 3 months, but she has been back in town for a couple days.
3. to keep in touch with someone: to regularly contact or communicate with someone
She moved to New York 2 years ago, but we still keep in touch with each other.
I don't keep in touch with my friends from high school.
English Conversation 1: Catching Up with an Old Friend
1. to be on the phone: to be using the phone or having a conversation on the phone
She cannot talk right now because she is on the phone.
I couldn't talk to him because I was on the phone with an important client when he came.
2. an old friend: a person who has been one's friend for a long time
I met my old friend from high school last week.
We are old friends.
3. to catch up with someone: to talk to a person that one has not seen or talked to in a long time and find out about the person's life
I caught up with my old friend last night. We hadn't seen each other in over 20 years, so we had a lot to talk about.
I will meet Sally tomorrow. We haven't seen each other in a long time, so I want to catch up with her.
English Conversation Video Lessons
These lessons will show you how to speak natural and fluent English for daily conversations. Each lesson includes a short conversation video with vocabulary.
Try listening to the conversation and following along with the subtitles. After that, listen again without the subtitles. If you want to practice your speaking, then watch the video again and try reading along aloud with the subtitles.
Practicing with these video lessons with improve your speaking skills, expand your vocabulary, help you get better at listening, and review important English grammar that you have learned before.
English Conversation Video Lessons
1. Video 1: Catching Up with an Old Friend
2. Video 2: Meeting an Old Friend
3. Video 3: Gossip
4. Video 4: Office Rumor
5. Video 5: The Old Days
6. Video 6: Do You Remember?
7. Video 7: How are your Kids?
8. Video 8: Asking about Family
9. Video 9: Busy Busy Busy
10. Video 10: Busy Weekend
11. Video 11: Introducing Two People
12. Video 12: New Roommate
13. Video 13: Making an Excuse
14. Video 14: A White Lie
15. Video 15: Helping a Friend Move
16. Video 16: A Ride to the Airport
17. Video 17: Friday Night Party
18. Video 18: A New Hairstyle
19. Video 19: Getting a Motorcycle
20. Video 20: Let's Sell Our House
21. Video 21: Amazing Magic Trick
22. Video 22: The Surprise Party
23. Video 23: A Boring Movie
24. Video 24: Taking Sides
25. Video 25: Dishwasher
26. Video 26: Noisy Neighbor
27. Video 27: A Terrible Hotel
28. Video 28: Stop Complaining
29. Video 29: Failing a Class
30. Video 30: Speaking Too Fast
31. Video 31: Traffic
32. Video 32: Terrible Excuses
33. Video 33: Slow Elevator
34. Video 34: Taking the Stairs
35. Video 35: A Change of Plans
36. Video 36: Wait I Changed My Mind
37. Video 37: An Accusation
38. Video 38: You Stole My Idea
39. Video 39: ESL Classes
40. Video 40: Improved English
41. Video 41: A Rude Clerk
42. Video 42: Missing Order
43. Video 43: A Big Stain
44. Video 44: Dry Cleaning Emergency
45. Video 45: Making an Appointment
46. Video 46: Medical Emergency
47. Video 47: Scheduling a Haircut
48. Video 48: The New Stylist
49. Video 49: Wrong Color Jacket
50. Video 50: Wrong Flowers
Weather - Long Description
Listen to the Entire Lesson
Being able to speak specific sentences is good, however, it is more important to be able to say a whole paragraph when talking about topics such as the weather. I'll have a specific lesson about putting sentences together in a future lesson. But I'll give one advice now. Basically, make about 10 sentences. After you know your ten sentences about this question, you can say all of them one after the other so it is a long answer. The ten sentences should be in a list format.
We will learn how to speak longer in a future lesson, but if you want to give it a try now, here are two examples.
Question: "What is the weather like in Korea?"
Answer: "Well, the weather in Korea is unique with four distinct seasons. In the winter, the temperature is about zero degrees Celsius. But, because it doesn't rain much in the winter, there isn't much snow and the air is very dry. In spring, the days warm up significantly but the night gets a little chilly. The summer has two characteristics. It is very hot and humid most of the time, and for about 3 weeks or so, we have a rainy season called monsoon. It gets very rainy and windy during that time period. But we all look forward to autumn. It is a beautiful time of year and the temperature is very pleasant. If you plan on visiting Korea, I highly recommend visiting during autumn."
Question: "Which season do you like the most?"
Answer: "I like summer the most, but at the same time, I hate it. I like summer because it's warm. I don't mind the heat and I like the longer days. So, I can do more activities like swimming, bicycling, rollerblading, and many other outdoor activities. I usually take a short vacation during the summer so I always look forward to that. However, the part about summer I hate the most is during the monsoon season. I can tolerate the humidity, but when it gets hot and humid along with the rain and the wind, then it gets terrible."
Weather - Fahrenheit and Celsius
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It's unfortunate that some countries still use the Fahrenheit system. It would be so much easier if everything was in Celsius. But because the United States still uses the Fahrenheit system, knowing the conversion of Celsius to Fahrenheit will help when speaking to Americans.
"How do you convert Fahrenheit to Celsius?"
"Well, you subtract 32 from Fahrenheit, multiply by 5 and then divide by 9."
"How do you convert Celsius to Fahrenheit?"
"You multiply Celsius by 9, divide by 5, then add 32."
Here is an example dialog.
Person A: "What is the average temperature in Seoul during June?"
Person B: "It is usually about 26 degrees Celsius during June."
Person A: "What is that in Fahrenheit?"
Person B: "That would be about 80 degrees Fahrenheit."
Usually, it takes some time to convert degrees using the conversion method. So it's easier to have general temperatures already memorized. Here is a small table so you can quickly respond when talking with a foreigner about the temperature.
Fahrenheit Celsius
100 ————-37.8
90 ———— 32.2
85 ———— 28.4
80———— 26.7
75———— 23.9
70———— 21.1
65 ———— 18.3
60 ———— 15.6
50 ———— 10
40 ————4.4
32 ————0
20 ———— -6.7
10———— -12.2
0 ———— -17.8
You don't need to remember everything. But if you know a couple of numbers you can just change the other number slightly. For example, if you know that 80 degrees is about 27 degrees Celsius, then if the temperature is 77 degrees, you can figure that it will be about 25 degrees Celsius. Also, you don't have to be very accurate. In conversation, many people just want general numbers and being off by a half a degree will not do any harm.
Finally, during the winter months, it gets so cold that the temperature goes below 0 degrees Celsius. Let's practice a few sentences using negative numbers.
"How cold does it usually get in Korea?"
"Usually around minus 5 degrees Celsius, but sometimes it gets as cold as minus 12 degrees."
"How cold does it get in Alaska?"
"Depending on the area, but it's common for the temperature to be below 0."
"Is that in Fahrenheit or Celsius?"
"Fahrenheit."
"That means it's 20 below zero!"
Remember, although numbers below zero are negative numbers, it's not common to say, 'Negative 2 degrees.' It's not wrong to say it and everyone will understand, however, when speaking to many people, almost everyone says 'minus 2 degrees.' Another common way to say it is below zero is to say, '2 below' as in the example above.
Weather - Summer and Autumn
Listen to the Entire Lesson
In this section, we will learn about the four different seasons along with the difference between Celsius and Fahrenheit. Also, we will learn about weather in different parts of the world. In the next session, we will practice more dialog. But this is a good starting point when learning to hold a conversation about the weather.
Summer:
Depending on the location, summer can be warm and pleasant or unbearably hot and humid. Although you will describe summer in one particular way, you should be aware of how other people describe summer in different parts of the world.
In Nevada, Arizona, Egypt, or other places that are like deserts, people might say,
"Summer is very hot and dry. It's not so bad when we are in the shade."
"Summer is extremely hot. The sun will burn you if you don't wear sunscreen."
"Because it's not humid, it is easy to get used to."
In Seattle, the summer is the best season,
"Summer is the only time of year that it doesn't rain much."
"Summer is like paradise in Seattle."
"If summer wasn't so good here, I would move to a different city."
In New York, Korea, or other hot and humid places, people can say,
"Summer is both hot and humid here."
"I am always sticky because I sweat so much during the summer."
"Without air conditioning, I don't know how I would survive."
Spring and Fall / Autumn
From my perception, I noticed that spring and autumn are generally pleasant seasons for many areas of the world. I haven't heard enough to say one way or another, so I can only write down what I know.
"My favorite season is autumn."
"The only reason I don't like the fall is due to all the leaves I have to rake up."
"Fall is so beautiful because of all the different color leaves everywhere."
"It rains a lot around here during the fall."
"It gets cold in late autumn."
"In our country, autumn is just like summer. It's hot and humid."
"My favorite season is spring because of the budding flowers."
"I love the spring because it's not cold nor hot."
"The spring season here causes a lot of people to sneeze due to all the flowers appearing. Many people with allergies hate the spring."
18. Yesterday - The Past - Example Conversation
Listen to the Entire Lesson
Study some examples and then we will be at the practice session.
Person A: "Why didn't you come to my party last night?"
Person B: "I'm sorry I couldn't make it. I had to go visit my grandmother at the hospital."
Person A: "Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. Is she doing ok?"
Person B: "They just completed a small operation and the doctors said she should recover."
Person A: "Did you get a chance to go to that new restaurant down the street?"
Person B: "Yeah. I ordered the special, but the server screwed up my order."
Person A: "That sucks. So what ended up happening?"
Person B: "They finally got my steak out, but it was overcooked. It was a terrible experience."
Person A: "What did you do last weekend?"
Person B: "I went on a date with Sammy."
Person A: "Really? How was it?"
Person B: "I couldn't ask for a better night. We talked all throughout our two hour dinner, and then we sat by the river and cuddled in the night."
Person A: "Didn't you finish finals week?"
Person B: "Don't remind me. I think I failed most of the exams."
Person A: "Why did you do so terrible?"
Person B: "My mind just went blank. I think I overloaded my brain. I just couldn't concentrate during the exams."
Yesterday - The Past - General Statements
Listen to the Entire Lesson
In daily conversation, talking about the past is done very frequently. Whenever you meet a friend, you always tell each other what you have been doing recently. Friends are always interested in each other so they want to know how you have been spending your time in the past.
Today's lesson is going to target past tense communication. This goes hand in hand with the last two lessons and changing a few words around can make a future or present tense sentence into a past tense sentence.
To begin, here are a couple of sentences that are common to say:
"I went to the airport yesterday."
"I met Bob last week."
"I was an hour late for my meeting."
"I went to the bus stop, but I was 30 seconds late. A person on the street told me the bus just went by."
"I completed that task this morning."
Speaking in the past requires past tense words. Let's take a closer examination for the sentences above.
Past Tense
Went
Met
Was
Completed
Present Tense
Go
Meet
Am
Complete
Future Tense
Going to go
Will meet
Going to be
Will complete
As you can see by some of the examples in the chart, some words change when speaking in the past tense.
Besides some words that change, many times a word with the letter 'd' or 'ed' at the end changes the word to past tense. Here are some examples:
"I was being polite so I opened the door for him."
"I stapled the papers together to keep them organized."
"The paper ripped on the bottom, so I taped them together."
"I switched the presents around because I found out Jane doesn't like red lipstick."
"I was very interested in the topic so I paid close attention."
The tricky part is to know when to add a 'd' to the end of a word to make it past tense. There are exceptions that can cause confusion, for example,
"I rode my bike to school." It would be incorrect to say, 'I rided...'
"I built the house from scratch." Incorrect way is to say, 'I builded...'
"I sat on the chair next to the emergency exit." Incorrect way is to say, 'sitted...'
So remember to use past tense words correctly or the other person might not understand what you are saying.
Tomorrow's Plan - Example Conversation
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Let's use this time to incorporate what we have learned so far.
Person A: "Bob is in the hospital, did you get a chance to visit him?"
Person B: "I'm going to see Bob tomorrow."
Person A: "I thought you had to meet John tomorrow?"
Person B: "I'm going to meet John at the airport at 6 O'clock tonight."
Person A: "I'm going home now, do you want to head out together?"
Person B: "No Thanks. I'm going to go home in about an hour."
Person A: "Didn't you need to buy a present for your brother's birthday?"
Person B: "I'm going to do that tomorrow."
Person A: "I'm going to go to the bus stop right after class, so I won't have time to meet you."
Person B: "That's OK. We can always get together tomorrow."
Person A: "Why do you look so stressed?"
Person B: "I'm going to be dead if I don't finish this project by tomorrow."
Person A: "I thought you had 2 weeks to finish this project."
Person B: "I don't have time to explain now. I'll talk to you later."
Person A: "Since we are done with school, when are you going back home?"
Person B: "I'm going to go home next week."
Person A: "Me too. Do you want to meet at the train station on Sunday?"
Person B: "Sure. I'll meet you there at five."
Practice asking questions:
"What are you going to do tonight?"
"What are you doing next week?"
"When do you plan on doing your homework?"
"When are you going to eat dinner?"
"What time do we have to leave for the airport?"
"What should we do tonight?"
Tomorrow's Plan - I am going to
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Talking about the future is something that is done very frequently.
Whether we are talking about our dreams or simply telling someone what we will do tomorrow is all spoken in the future tense.
As in the previous lesson, this isn't a grammar lesson.
This lesson is to provide many different sentences using the future tense.
In the previous lesson, we concentrated on present tense using 'I am'
When we speak in the future tense, we can still use 'I am' but it is important what follows the two words that will make it future tense.
Here are a couple of examples.
"I'm going to see Bob tomorrow."
"I'm going to meet John at the airport at 6 O'clock tonight."
"I'm going to go home in an hour."
"I'm going to go to the bus stop right after class."
"I'm going to do that tomorrow."
When using 'going to' after 'I am' it is important that a future indicator is present. For example, if I say, 'I am going to meet John', this can
also be present tense that we practiced previously. But if you add a future indicator like 'at 6 O'clock tonight' then it becomes future
tense.
Other future tense indicators are:
'going to go'
'going to be'
'I will'
'I have to'
Let's practice using these words:
"I'm going to be dead if I don't finish this project by tomorrow."
"I'm going to go home next week."
"I'll meet you there at five."
"I can't go tonight because I have to work late."
How is your day - Example Conversation
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The present tense is more common in writing. As you can see by all the explanations I am giving, they are all written in the present tense.
That is because it is instructional. Instructional writing is more commonly written in present tense. However, stories in novels are written
in past tense.
The reason past and future tense is used more commonly than present tense when speaking is because usually you are telling someone
what you have done or what you plan on doing. Speaking in the present tense is used primarily to tell someone what you are currently
doing.
As in previous lessons in 'Bored and Greeting' it is very common to have a conversation using the present tense when you run into
somebody or when you make or receive a phone call.
Let's use this time now to incorporate what we have learned so far.
Person A: "Hi Jack. What are you doing?"
Person B: "Hi Mary. I'm filling out a job application."
Person A: "Are you finished with school already?"
Person B: "No. I have one more semester, but it would be great to have a job lined up."
Person A: "How is your day going?"
Person B: "Quite busy. I'm preparing for my presentation tomorrow on our marketing strategy. I'm not even half done yet."
Person A: "You must feel stressed out now."
Person B: "That's an understatement."
Person A: "What are you doing now?"
Person B: "I'm playing pool with my friends at a pool hall."
Person A: "I didn't know you play pool. Are you having fun?"
Person B: "I'm having a great time. How about you? What are you doing?"
Person A: "I'm taking a break from my homework. There seems to be no end to the amount of work I have to do."
Person B: "I'm glad I'm not in your shoes."
7. Bored - Boring Work
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A different situation you can tell someone you are bored is when you are simply talking with a friend concerning a part of your life that is boring. For example, if you have a boring job, you can explain to your friend how boring it is.
"How is your work these days?"
"Work is so boring that I'm going crazy."
"I ran out of things to do and management is too busy to give me more work. I tried to find things to do with no luck. I'm basically sitting in my chair pretending to work."
"That sounds so boring."
"Tell me about it. Time goes so slow when you're bored. I'd rather be busy. Then at least the day would go by faster."
Similar type of boring work is when doing something that is routine. Some sentences expressing boring work are:
"I'm doing the same thing over and over again."
"My work is so repetitious that I am getting bored of it."
"My work does not interest me."
"I'm only working to pay the bills."
"I wish I had your job."
Because some people are so busy, they envy people who have nothing to do at work.
"I'm so bored. I have nothing to do at work. I just surf the Internet all day long."
"Dang! I'm so busy at work, it's driving me crazy. I really wish I had your job."
A: "Hello"
B: "Hi Jane"
A: "Oh, hi Jill."
B: "What are you doing?"
A: "I'm doing the laundry."
B: "I'm so bored. I have nothing to do."
A: "Why don't you come over and help me with the laundry?"
B: "I'd rather do my own house chores. Hey, you wanna take a break from your house work and have coffee at Starbucks with me?"
A: "Sure, that sounds great. I'll meet you there in thirty minutes."
8. Bored - Interactive Practice
Click on Listen All and follow along.
1
Listen All | Person A | Person B
A: "Hey there. What have you been up to?"
B: "Nothing really."
A: "How about your work?"
B: "It's so boring there. I really wish I had a different job."
A: "Is it really that bad?"
B: "Yeah. Most of the time, I have nothing to do. But whenever I have something to do, it's boring work because it is the same old thing."
A: "Why don't you find a different job then?"
B: "Maybe I should."