Exercise 1

Choose the correct words to complete the sentences. Use the words in the box.
Bedsit bunglow flat halls mobile semi-detached

1. A ____________is a home inside a bigger building, usually on one floor. It’s also
called an apartment.
2. I live in a _______________ home. It’s got wheels, but it’s been in the same place
for years.
3. There are no stairs in my house. It’s a ______________ , so it’s only got one floor.
4. When I was a student, I lived in the _______________ of residence for a year, with
hundreds of other students.
5. Our house is ________________ , so it’s attached to another house on one side, but
not the other side.
6. The first place I lived after I left home was a ________________ – a rented room. It
had a bed, a table and chairs and a place to cook, so it was quite basic.

KEY
Q Answers Word class Definition
1 flat noun a set of rooms for living in that are part of
a larger building and are usually all on one floor
2 mobile adjective able to be moved from one place to another
3 bungalow noun a small house all on one level
4 halls noun having a lot of complicated decoration
5 semi-detached adjective very modern and using the
most recent ideas and methods
6 bedsit noun designed to be practical and useful rather than attractive

Exercise 2
What item would you not expect to find in each room of a house? Choose the correct
answers.
1. bedroom:
a. an en-suite bathroom
b. a washing machine
c. a bedside table
2. bathroom:
a. a shower unit
b. a fridge
c. a sink
3. living room:
a. a garage
b. a sofa
c. a coffee table
4. study:
a. a desk
b. a lamp
c. a cellar
5. kitchen:
 a. a wardrobe
b. a fridge
c. an oven
6. dining room:
a. a patio
b. a dining table
c. a rug

KEY
Q Answer Vocabulary Definition
1 b en-suite An en-suite bathroom is directly connected to and entered
bathroom through a bedroom
2 b
3 a
4 c
5 a
6 a patio An outside area with a solid floor next to a house, where
people can sit

Exercise 3
Complete the sentences. Use the words in the box.
Bright charming guest messy remote run-down spacious tidy
1. My sister’s room is very ____________ – she always puts everything away in the
right place.
2. My flat’s quite _______________ . It has enough room for all my things.
3. It’s a lovely ____________ room. The sun shines through the wide windows all day.
4. Our house is very pretty, but it’s rather ______________ – it’s a long way from
everywhere else.
5. The kitchen is really ____________ . There are dirty plates and cups everywhere.
6. We’ve got four bedrooms – one for my parents, one each for my brother and me,
plus a ______________ room for visitors.
7. It was a nice house when it was built, but it’s a bit _____________ now. It looks
in bad condition and a lot of things need to be fixed.
8. What a _______________ little house! It looks so pretty and full of character!

Key
Q Answer Word class Definition
1 tidy adj having everything ordered and arranged in the right place,
or liking to keep things like this
2 spacious adj large and with a lot of space
3 bright adj full of light, shining
4 remote adj a remote area, house, or village is a long way from any
towns or cities
5 messy adj untidy
6 guest noun a person who is staying with you, or a person you have
invited to a social occasion, such as a party or a meal
 7 run-down adj in a very bad condition
8 charming adj pleasant and attractive

Exercise 4
Choose the correct prepositions to complete the sentences.
1. I live on/by/with myself in a bedsit.
2. There isn’t enough space for/from/of all my things.
3. My sister shares a flat from/with/to two flatmates.
4. Our flat is by/about/on the top floor of an apartment block.
5. I’ve got a nice view by/about/of the park from my balcony.
6. My brother is on/in/at home this afternoon.

Key
Q Answer Collocations
1 by by myself = alone
2 for
3 with
4 on
5 of a view of sth
6 at

Exercise 5
Read the sentences. Select the two words that can go in each gap.
1. All my money goes on my flat. There’s never any money left after I pay my ... / bills /
rent / salary / ... every month.
2. When we bought the house, it was really run-down, but it looked a lot better after
we ... / decorated / painted / removed / ... it.
3. When are you going to ... / clean / tidy / wash / ... your room? It’s really messy!
4. The central heating has broken again. Can you ... / damage / fix / repair / ... it
yourself, or do we need to call a plumber?
5. You can’t see the house from the road. There’s a tall ... / ceiling / fence / wall / ... all
the way around the garden.
6. Our flat is quite small, but it feels a lot bigger now that we’ve ... / rearranged /
remained / replaced / ... some of the furniture.

KEY (The correct answers are in red)

Q Answer Word class Definition
1 bills adj a request for payment of money owed
rent adj a fixed amount of money that you pay regularly for the
use of a room, house, car, television, etc. that someone
else owns
salary adj a fixed amount of money agreed every year as pay for an
employee, usually paid directly into his or her bank
account every month
2 decorated adj
painted adj
 removed adj
3 clean verb
tidy verb
wash verb
4 damage verb to harm or spoil something
fix verb to put something that is damaged, broken, or not working
repair verb correctly, back into good condition or make it work again
5 ceiling noun
fence noun a structure that divides two areas of land, similar to a wall
but made of wood or wire and supported with posts
wall noun
6 rearrange verb to change the order, position, or time of arrangements
d already made
remained verb to stay in the same place or in the same condition
replaced verb to take the place of something, or to put something or
someone in the place of something or someone else

Exercise 6
Read the information. Then put the verbs in the correct column.
State and action verbs
State and action verbs are verbs that refer to a state, an action or event.
With state verbs, we usually use the present simple.
Example: I want it.NOT I’m wanting it.
With action verbs, we can use the present simple or present continuous. We use the present
simple for habits and present continuous for things happening now.
Example: I often drive to work but I’m not driving to work today.

Tidy decorate work build seem own cost use help

pay know need believe

State verb Action verb

seem tidy
cost decorate
know work
need build
believe use
own help
pa

Exercise 7
Read the information. Then complete the sentences with the correct form of the verbs.

Present simple and present continuous

  We use the present simple for activities (action verbs) that happen often (e.g. I
usually drive to work.).
 We use the present simple for state verbs (e.g. I want to go. NOT I’m wanting
to go.).
 A few verbs (e.g. live, work, think, have) can be actions or states, with a slightly
different meaning.
 We use the present continuous for activities (action verbs) that are in progress
at the time of speaking (e.g. I'm driving to work at the moment.).
1. I live/ I’m living with my parents, but I’d like to leave home and live by myself in a
year or two.
2. I live/ I’m living with my parents at the moment, while my own flat’s being
redecorated.
3. I’m afraid the lift isn’t working/ doesn’t work today. You’ll need to use the stairs
instead.
4. I don’t work / I’m not working for that company now. I left that job last year.
5. We think/ We’re thinking of moving to the countryside in a few years’ time, but
we’re not sure.
6. I’m not thinking/ I don’t think this is the right house. Are you sure it’s the correct
address?
7. It’s a very small bathroom, so it isn’t having/ doesn’t have a bath. There’s only
enough room for a shower.
8. No, now’s not a good time to call me. I have/ I’m having a bath at the moment. Can I
call you back in twenty minutes?
KEY
Q Answer Explanation
1 I live The present simple tense reflects current living arrangement. It
conveys a sense of permanence and routine in describing the
person's current state or condition.
2 I’m living ‘at the moment’  The activity is in progress at the time speaking
 Use present continuous
3 isn’t working ‘today’  The activity is in progress at the time speaking  Use
present continuous
4 I’m not working ‘now’  The activity is in progress at the time speaking  Use
present continuous
5 We’re thinking The present continuous tense reflects the ongoing and uncertain
nature of the speaker's decision to move to the countryside in a
few years' time.
6 I don’t think The present simple tense reflects the ongoing belief or opinion
about the house. It conveys a sense of certainty and confidence in
the conviction that the house may not be the right one.
7 doesn’t have The present simple tense reflects the permanent and objective
absence of a bath in the bathroom. It conveys a sense of factuality
and objectivity in describing the bathroom's features and
characteristics.
8 I’m having ‘at the moment’  The activity is in progress at the time speaking
 Use present continuous
Exercise 8
Complete the conversation. Use the words in the box.

Any currently days longer moment nowadays right still

temporarily
A: I remember you were living in a bedsit last time I saw you. Are you (1)________________
living there, or have you found a new place to live?
B: No, I’m not living there (2)_______________ more. (3)_______________ , I’m sharing a
flat with another student. But I’m having a few problems with my flatmate at the
(4)_______________ . We got on really well at first, but things aren’t going so well these
(5)______________ . In fact, we’re no (6)________________ speaking to each other. So
I’m (7)______________ looking for somewhere else to live. Do you know anybody with a
spare room?
A: Well, I’m actually looking for a new flatmate (8)_____________ now. My sister’s staying
with me (9)_________________ , while she gets a new kitchen installed in her flat, but her
room will be empty again next week. What do you think? Would you like to stay with me?

KEY
Q Answer Explanation
1 currently
2 any
3 nowadays
4 moment
5 days
6 longer
7 still
8 right
9 temporarily

Exercise 9
Complete the conversation. Use the words in brackets with the present simple or present
continuous. Use contractions (e.g. isn't), where possible. The first question has been done
for you.
A: Why are you standing on that chair? (you / stand)
B: (1)_________________ the batteries in this smoke detector. (I / change)
A: Why (2)_________________ that? (you / do) (3)_______________ perfectly, isn’t it?
(it / still / work)
B: Yes, but (4)_______________ the batteries every six months. (I / always / change) And
look – (5)_______________ . (the light / flash)
A: Oh, yes. I can see. Why (6)_______________ ? (it / flash)
B: (7)_______________ the battery’s nearly flat. (that / mean) So (8)_____________ to
change it. (I / definitely / need)
A: OK, (9)_____________ like a good idea. (that / sound)
KEY
Q Answer Explanation
1 I’m charging The previous question is already in present continuous. So the
2 are you doing answer should be in the present continuous tense to describe
 3 It is still working the current action or the current situation.
4 I always change ‘every six months’  present simple
5 the light is flashing ‘look’  the situation is happening at the moment  present
6 is it flashing continuous.
7 that means ‘mean’ is a state verb  present simple
8 I definitely need ‘need’ is a state verb  present simple
9 that sounds ‘sound’ is a state verb  present simple

Exercise 10
Each sentence has one mistake with the present simple or present continuous. Correct the
mistakes.
1. How much rent you pay do you pay every month?
2. I standing outside your flat now, so can you let me in, please?
3. We aren’t planning to move house again soon, but it depend on my job.
4. I don’t want to live here, because it don’t look very nice.
5. We usually sleeping on the floor when we stay at my grandparent’s house.
6. The sofa’s in the kitchen right now because we paint the living room.
7. Do you own this flat, or are you just rent it?
8. Hey! Why am I cleaning the flat by myself? You don’t helping me at all!

KEY
Q Answer Explanation
1 do you pay rent The correct sentence structure for a question with the present
simple tense is subject + auxiliary verb + main verb.
2 I am standing ‘now’  present continuous
3 it depends The verb "depend" should be in the present simple tense to agree
with the subject "it"
4 it doesn’t look The verb "look" should be in the present simple tense to agree
with the subject "it"
5 usually sleep The verb "sleep" is the main verb and does not require an auxiliary
verb.
6 we are painting The auxiliary verb "are" is required to form the present continuous
tense “painting”
7 are you just The verb "rent" should be in the present continuous tense to
renting describe a current action. The auxiliary verb "are" is required to
form the present continuous tense.
8 are not helping The auxiliary verb "don't" should be in the present continuous
tense to describe a current action. The present continuous tense is
appropriate because the sentence is describing an action that is
happening now.