Vocabulary Around The House

Vocabulary Around The House

Useful Vocabulary - click on a room to find out more

Pronunciation Click here

Build Up

Other Rooms

Attic	People store things in the attic.
Ballroom	A room in stately homes where rich people dance and concerts are held.
Box Room	A small room used for storage.
Cellar	Underneath the house.
Cloakroom	A small room where people put their coats.
Conservatory	A greenhouse attached to a house for the display of plants.
Dining Room	A room where people eat.
Drawing Room	A room in stately homes where rich people entertain.
Games Room	A room in large houses where games are played.
Hall	The entrance passage to a house.
Larder	A small room used for the storage of food.
Library	A room where books are kept.
Lounge	Another name for living room.
Music Room	A room where people play music.
Office	A room where people work.
Pantry	A small room used to store kitchen and dining items.
Parlour	Old fashioned word for living room.
Sitting Room	Another name for living room.
Spare Room/ Guest Room	A room where guests sleep.
Toilet	A room where people go to the toilet (often known as WC)
Utility Room	A room where appliances such as washing machines are used.

Things you may find around the house

light bulb(s)	plug(s)	socket(s)	torch(es)
ceiling light(s)	lamp(s)	curtain(s)
	shelf (shelves)	(tele)phone(s)	box(es)
plug(s)	battery (batteries)	photo(graph)(s)

Naturally Speaking

Click on the words to hear the pronunciation

Finete Verb

A finite verbs is a verb that is inflected for tense according to the rules and categories of the languages in which it occurs. Finite verbs can form independent clauses, which can stand by their own as complete sentences.Every grammatically correct sentence or clouse must contain a finite verb; sentence fragments not containing finite verb are described as phrases.
Some interjections can play the same role. Even in English, a sentence like thanks for you help! Has an interjection where it could have a subject and a fibite verb form compare I appreciate your help!

A verb is a world that expression an occurrence, act, or made, of being, finite verbs, sometimes called main verbs, are limited by time (see tense), person, and number.

Verb forms that are not finite include the infinite

Participles (e.g, the broken window..!, The wheezing gentleman…”)

Gerunds and gerundives

English has three kinds of verbals : participles, which function as adjectives, which have noun-like, adjective –like, and adverb-like functions each of these is also used in various common constructs; for example, the past participle is used in farming the perfect aspect (to have done).

Other kinds of verbals, such as gerunds and gerundives, exist in other languages.

Example :

The Finite verbs are the under lived work

THE CROWN AND THE FOX

One day a crow finds a tasty piece of cheese she picks it up, flaps her wings, and flies to a high branch of a tree to eat it. (…)

Introductory It

When the subjective is an infinitive phrase

We begin a sentence with it when the real subject is an infinitive phrase. So instead of saying, ‘To accept your advice is difficult’, we say, ‘It is difficult to accept your advice’.

Structure: It + verb + subject complement + infinitive phrase (real subject)

Ø It is easy to learn English. (= To learn English is easy.)

Ø It is easy to find fault with others. (= To find fault with others is easy.)

Ø It is difficult to know his motive. (= To know his motive is difficult.)

Ø It is difficult to find a good job during these troubled times.

Ø It is dangerous to play with fire.

Ø It could be dangerous to drive so fast.

Note that when we wish to emphasize the infinitive phrase, it may be put at the beginning, especially when it is short.

Ø To err is human. (OR It is human to err.)

Ø To become a well known writer was his life-long ambition. (OR It was his lifelong ambition to become a well known writer.)

Ø To invest all your money in shares is foolish. (OR It is foolish to invest all your money in shares.)

When the subject is a gerund phrase

When the real subject is a phrase that includes a gerund, it is used as a provisional subject to begin the sentence. So instead of saying ‘Your trying to fool us is no good’, we say, ‘It is no good your trying to fool us.’

Ø It won’t be any good complaining to the manager. (Complaining to the anager won’t be any good.)

Ø It is silly throwing away this opportunity. (Throwing away this opportunity is silly.)

Ø Will it be any good my talking to him about it? (Will my talking to him about it be any good)

Ø It is no fun having so many children to look after. (Having so many children to look after is no fun.)

Note that it is possible to change the gerund into an infinitive.

It won’t be any good for me to complain to the manager.

It is silly (for you) to throw away this opportunity.

Will it be any good for me to talk to him about it?

Introductory It

When the subjective is an infinitive phrase

We begin a sentence with it when the real subject is an infinitive phrase. So instead of saying, ‘To accept your advice is difficult’, we say, ‘It is difficult to accept your advice’.

Structure: It + verb + subject complement + infinitive phrase (real subject)

Ø It is easy to learn English. (= To learn English is easy.)

Ø It is easy to find fault with others. (= To find fault with others is easy.)

Ø It is difficult to know his motive. (= To know his motive is difficult.)

Ø It is difficult to find a good job during these troubled times.

Ø It is dangerous to play with fire.

Ø It could be dangerous to drive so fast.

Note that when we wish to emphasize the infinitive phrase, it may be put at the beginning, especially when it is short.

Ø To err is human. (OR It is human to err.)

Ø To become a well known writer was his life-long ambition. (OR It was his lifelong ambition to become a well known writer.)

Ø To invest all your money in shares is foolish. (OR It is foolish to invest all your money in shares.)

When the subject is a gerund phrase

When the real subject is a phrase that includes a gerund, it is used as a provisional subject to begin the sentence. So instead of saying ‘Your trying to fool us is no good’, we say, ‘It is no good your trying to fool us.’

Ø It won’t be any good complaining to the manager. (Complaining to the anager won’t be any good.)

Ø It is silly throwing away this opportunity. (Throwing away this opportunity is silly.)

Ø Will it be any good my talking to him about it? (Will my talking to him about it be any good)

Ø It is no fun having so many children to look after. (Having so many children to look after is no fun.)

Note that it is possible to change the gerund into an infinitive.

It won’t be any good for me to complain to the manager.

It is silly (for you) to throw away this opportunity.

Will it be any good for me to talk to him about it?

PaSSive voice

In the passive sentence, the object of an active verb becomes the subject of the passive verb.

Only transitive verbs are used in the passive. Intransitive verbs such as happen, sleep, come and seem cannot be used in the passive.

When rewriting active sentences in passive voice, note the following:

• the object of the active sentence becomes the subject of the passive sentence

• the finite form of the verb is changed (to be + past participle)

• the subject of the active sentence becomes the object of the passive sentence (or is dropped)

Agent

In a passive clause, we usually use a phrase beginning with by if we want to mention the agent - the person or thing that does the action, or that causes what happens.

If you want to change an active sentence which has two objects into its passive forms, there are two ways:

1. Make its indirect object into the subject of the passive sentence.

2. Make its direct object into the subject of the passive sentence.

Pattern: be + past participle
Example:

• The boy are listening to a story.
• The story was being told by grandfather.
• Snow white eats a poisonous apple
• A poisonous apple is eaten by snow white
• Snow white is eating a poisonous apple
• A poisonous apple is being eaten by snow white
• Snow white has eaten a poisonous apple
• A poisonous apple has been eaten by snow white
• Snow white ate a poisonous apple
• A poisonous apple was eaten by snow white
• Snow white was eating a poisonous apple
• A poisonous apple was being eaten by snow white
• Snow white had eaten a poisonous apple
• A poisonous apple had been eaten by snow white
• Snow white will eat a poisonous apple
• A poisonous apple will be eaten by snow white
• Snow white is going to eat a poisonous apple
• A poisonous apple is going to be eaten by snow white
• Snow white will have eaten a poisonous apple
• A poisonous apple will have been eaten by snow white

News Item

News Item: is factual text which informs the readers about events of the day which are considered newsworthy or important.

Social function of news item is: to inform readers, listeners or viewers about events of the day which are considered newsworthy or important.

Generic structure:

• Newsworthy Event(s): recounts the events in summary form
• Background Event(s): elaborate what happened, to WHOM, in WHAT circumstances.
• Sources: comments by participants in, witnesses to and authorities’ expert on the event.

Significant Grammar Features:

± Short, telegraphic information about story captured in headline

± Generally using Simple Past Tense

± Use of Material Processes to retell the event

± Using Action Verbs, e.g.: were, run, go, kill, etc.

± Using Saying Verbs, e.g.: say, tell

± Focus on Circumstances

± Use of projecting Verbal Processes in Sources stages

There are some rules that can help to make newspaper headlines more comprehensible.

1. The passive voice is used without the appropriate form of “be”.

Example: Town ‘Contaminated’

Complete Sentence: Town is contaminated.

2. It is unusual to find complex forms, generally the simple present form is used

Example: Fire Destroys over 2,511 acres of Forest in 2003-2004

Complete Sentence: Fire has destroyed over 2,511 acres of forest in 2003-2004.

3. The present progressive tense is used, usually to describe something that is changing or developing, but the auxiliary verb is usually left out.

Example: World Heading for Energy Crisis

Complete Sentence: The world is heading for an energy crisis.

4. To refer to the future, headlines often use the infinitive.

Example: Queen to Visit Samoa.

Complete Sentence: The Queen is going to visit Samoa.

5. Headlines are not always complete sentences.

Example: More earthquakes in Japan.

Complete Sentence: More earthquakes happened in Japan.

News Item

News Item: is factual text which informs the readers about events of the day which are considered newsworthy or important.

Social function of news item is: to inform readers, listeners or viewers about events of the day which are considered newsworthy or important.

Generic structure:

• Newsworthy Event(s): recounts the events in summary form
• Background Event(s): elaborate what happened, to WHOM, in WHAT circumstances.
• Sources: comments by participants in, witnesses to and authorities’ expert on the event.

Significant Grammar Features:

± Short, telegraphic information about story captured in headline

± Generally using Simple Past Tense

± Use of Material Processes to retell the event

± Using Action Verbs, e.g.: were, run, go, kill, etc.

± Using Saying Verbs, e.g.: say, tell

± Focus on Circumstances

± Use of projecting Verbal Processes in Sources stages

There are some rules that can help to make newspaper headlines more comprehensible.

1. The passive voice is used without the appropriate form of “be”.

Example: Town ‘Contaminated’

Complete Sentence: Town is contaminated.

2. It is unusual to find complex forms, generally the simple present form is used

Example: Fire Destroys over 2,511 acres of Forest in 2003-2004

Complete Sentence: Fire has destroyed over 2,511 acres of forest in 2003-2004.

3. The present progressive tense is used, usually to describe something that is changing or developing, but the auxiliary verb is usually left out.

Example: World Heading for Energy Crisis

Complete Sentence: The world is heading for an energy crisis.

4. To refer to the future, headlines often use the infinitive.

Example: Queen to Visit Samoa.

Complete Sentence: The Queen is going to visit Samoa.

5. Headlines are not always complete sentences.

Example: More earthquakes in Japan.

Complete Sentence: More earthquakes happened in Japan.