Exterior & Interior Features

Ex. 1 Fill in the names for the houses in their places; there is one you won’t need.
1. Bubble Castle, France 2. Chameleon House, 3. Leaf House, Brazil 4. Free Spirit Sphere, British
Michigan Columbia

5. Rotating House, Australia 6. Flintstone’s Cave, 7. The Nautilus, Mexico

Canada

(A)___________3______________ The roof of this architectural masterpiece looks like a giant flower with six petals, each
of which covers a different section of the home. A curved swimming pool works its way through the house before
culminating as a small pond stocked with fish in the backyard. The interior of this house is free of hallways, providing ample
space for the beach winds to blow through.

(B)___________5______________ This octagonal house can rotate a full 360 degrees with the touch of a button. A rotating
drive consisting of 32 outrigger wheels and powered by two 500-wat electric motors are used to spin the house on demand, a
process that can take anywhere from 30 minutes to two hours.

(C)__________7_______________ This seashell-shaped home was completed in 2006. The stone steps running along the
shrubs lead to the front door, which blends into the mosaic façade. The house was created to imitate a crustacean’s shell, and
its interior is filled with vegetation and small trees. “It’s not common that you would see such a home,” the architect says.
“However, it’s very enlightening and something that we can all learn from.”

(D)__________6_______________ This is a perfect example of a radical approach to rethinking the built environment.
There are sharp angles and straight lines in this design. The architect unified the home with its natural surrounding by
bringing outdoor elements inside, including palm trees and a waterfall. The house has already been deemed a historic
monument, even though it’s not even 50 years old.

(E)___________4______________ This hanging room is the brainchild of a family couple that builds these spherical living
spaces for customers around the world.
The spheres can be ordered fully loaded, equipped with plumbing, electricity, and insulation. An average sphere weighs 500
kilos. The architects say that the structures gently rock in the wind, a nice thought depending on just how windy it is.

(F)____________2_____________ This home was completed in 2006 atop a hill overlooking a cherry orchard. The striking
structure took less than eight weeks to build thanks to the use of prefabricated materials. The steel frame of this house is
wrapped in translucent acrylic slats, allowing it to reflect the changing colors of the landscape, like a chameleon.

Ex. 1 Choose the right variant not looking at the texts above.

1. The roof of this architectural masterpiece looks like a giant flower with six petals, each of which covers a different
………………. of the home.
a) section b) angle c) form
2. This octagonal house can ……………… a full 360 degrees with the touch of a button.
a) circle = rotate b) section c) change
3. The stone steps running along the shrubs lead to the front door, which blends into the mosaic …………… .
 a) floor b) façade c) stairs
4. There are no sharp …………… or straight lines in this design.
a) forms b) tiles c) angles
5. The spheres can be ordered fully loaded, ………………… with plumbing, electricity and insulation.
a) equipped b) built c) demolished
6. The striking structure took less than eight weeks to build thanks to the use of …………………………. materials.
a) eco b) recycled c) prefabricated.

Ex.1 Fill in the words in the gaps.

town houses one-story house condominiums
two-story house high-rise apartment semidetached cottage
1. ……………………… town houses ………………...Houses of the same height built in more or less the same style and
separated by party walls.

2. ……………………high-rise apartment………………………………...Tall building containing multiple residences.

3. …………………………semidetached cottage …………………………...Single-family dwelling separated from another

dwelling by a party wall.

4. ………………………condominiums……………………………...Group of lodgings belonging to separate owners who

share the building’s maintenance costs.

5. ………………………one-story house……………………………...Single-family dwelling that contains only one level, the

first floor.

6. ………………………two-story house……………………………...Single-family dwelling that contains two levels, the

first floor and a second floor

Ex. 1 Brainstorm the pieces of vocabulary from the list into each of the categories below.

skylight - roof Gable - marble - floor - wood - porch - t-square - ceiling - flat
dormer  - The eaves - hall - semi-detached house - loft - study - drawing board - brick

1. People associated with buildings

2. Materials associated with buildings
3. Equipment that architects use
4. Parts of a room
5. Parts of a house or flat
6. Parts of a building
7. Types of houses
8. Types of other buildings

Ex. 1 Match the definitions with some of the words from the previous exercise.

1. Small window built into the roof of a structure to let in light: …………………………………………………...
2. Upper triangular section of a wall supporting the sides of the roof: ……………………………………………………...
3. Covered part of a house entrance protecting the door and people from the elements: …………………………………...
4. Window protruding through the roof to ventilate and illuminate the room below: ………………………………………...
5. Extended section of a roof protecting the wall from rain: …………………………………………………...

Ex.2 Fill in the words in the right places.

 cozy - oak paneled - fireplace - match - looks out onto - faces - utility room
The house is situated at the bottom of the valley. It’s about 20 miles from London and just outside the village of Hampton.
It’s a splendid period property. It seems typically English to me. There are long corridors and huge (1) _____________
rooms, and you can imagine all sorts of scenes from history taking place here. As you come in through the front door, you
find yourself in a large hall with an open (2) _____________, which is unusual. One of the doors on the right of the hall leads
into the living room. This room (3) _____________ south, so it’s very sunny, and it has a lovely view of the whole valley.
The furniture has been chosen to (4) _____________ the style of the house, so there’s a lot of leather and dark, heavy wood.
Next to this room there’s the dining room which has French windows leading onto a small patio. Also, on the ground floor
there is a study, kitchen and (5) _____________. A wide staircase takes you to the first floor, where there are five bedrooms.
The largest is about 40 sq.m, a really vast room which (6) _____________ the garden. The house is in 2.5 acres of land, and
there is a green house, a shed, a swimming-pool and a tennis court. It’s a beautiful place to be at any time of year. In winter
it’s warm and (7) _____________ and in summer there’s so much to do outside.

Ex. 11 Fill in the words which mean the following;

attic basement bathroom bedroom dining room

hallway living room/family room master bedroom nursery room
pantry patio rec room kitchen lobby

1. ………………………………………………: often in basement; extra room for watching TV and playing games
2. ………………………………………………: long narrow area that joins one room to another
3. ………………………………………………: area in the front entrance for hanging coats and placing shoes
4. ………………………………………………: room of the kitchen for keeping dry foods and storage items
5. ………………………………………………: the largest bedroom in the house; used by parents
6. ………………………………………………: storage room at the very top of the house
7. ………………………………………………: the lowest level of the house
8. ………………………………………………: room for baby or young child
9. ………………………………………………: outdoor area in front or backyard; usually sits slightly of the ground;

Ex. 1 Write the full words; use the Glossary for reference;

1. An appliance or device attached to the facade (e.g., awning, sign or security gate). F……………………………
2. A scroll-shaped projecting bracket that supports a horizontal member. C……………………………
3. The process of returning, as nearly as possible, a building or any of its parts to its original form and condition.
R……………………………
4. The secondary part of a window which holds the glazing in place. S……………………………
5. An ornamental configuration of curved mullions in a Gothic sash. T……………………………
6. A small dome on a base crowning a roof. C……………………………
7. A small tower, usually supported by corbels. T……………………………