Where/How did you learn English? • I took classes for three years. • I did an intensive course. • I’ve been studying on my own. You can also say “studying by myself.” • I picked it up from movies and songs. In this context, “picked it up” means “learned it casually.” • My girlfriend taught me.
What do you do in your free time? • I don’t have any free time! • I usually hang out with friends. “Hang out” means to spend time in an informal way. • I go running a lot. • I do volunteer work.
• I like reading and relaxing at home. What’s the weather like? / How’s the weather? • Hot and humid. “Humid” means there is a lot of water vapor in the air. • It’s pouring – take an umbrella. “Pouring” means raining very heavily.
• A little chilly – you might wanna bring a jacket. “Chilly” means a little bit cold. • Gorgeous – a perfect summer day! • It’s quite cold – make sure to bundle up. “Bundle up” means to wear warm clothing for protection against the cold. What time is it?
/ Do you have the time? • It’s ten o’clock.
• It’s half past four. This means “4:30” • It’s a quarter to twelve. “A quarter” is 15 minutes – so this means “11:45” • Let me check my phone.
• Sorry, I don’t know. Shopping & Social Questions 8. Can I help you? / Do you need any help?
This is a question that you might hear from an employee or salesperson in a store. • No thanks, I’m just browsing. “Browsing” means looking casually at the items. • Yes – do you have this in a larger size? • Yes – where are the try-on rooms? “Try-on rooms” means the place where you can put on the clothes to see if they are the right size and if you like them.
• Yeah, can you tell me how much this is? • Yeah, I’m looking for something under $30. How’s it going?
Couldn’t be better! This means that everything is excellent. How are things with you? This means that things are OK.
• I can’t complain. • Do you really wanna know? Normally when people ask “how’s it going?” they expect a positive response like “fine” or “good.” If you say “Do you really wanna know?” it means that things are going badly, but you are not sure if the other person wants to listen to your problems or not. How are you feeling? Never better. • I’m all right. • Like I need a vacation.