Greeting - BasicThere are many ways to greet someone. We'll learn about the most common way to greet someone in this lesson. I'll give a variety of example sentences.

Greeting someone you never met:"Hi, my name is Steve. It's nice to meet you."You can respond to this by saying,"It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Jack."

Another common question to ask is

"What do you do for a living?"

You can respond to this by saying,

"I work at a restaurant.""I work at a bank.""I work in a software company.""I'm a dentist."

Usually, you will not need to ask for a name. It is implied that each person should say their name. But in case they don't, you can ask,

"What is your name?"

Many times, I don't hear the name. If you would like for them to repeat their name, you can say,

"What was that again?""Excuse me?""Pardon me?"

Greeting Someone you Know"Hey John, how have you been?""Hi Bob, how are you?""Hi Nancy, what have you been up to?""Andy, it's been a long time, how are you man?"

If you meet someone unexpectedly, you can say,"Hey Jack, it's good to see you. What are you doing here?"or"What a surprise. I haven't seen you in a long time. How have you been?"

If you see the person at a restaurant, you can say, "Do you come to this restaurant often?"Or at the movie theatre, "What movie did you come to see?"

Appropriate responses:

"Hi Steve, my name is Mike. It is nice to meet you as well."

"I heard a lot about you from John. He had a lot of good things to say."

"Wow. How long has it been? It seems like more than a year. I'm doing pretty well. How about you?"

A typical response to this type of greeting is simple.

"Not too bad."

If asked what you have been up to, you can respond with, "Same ole same ole." Or, "The same as usual."

Here are some other example responses.

"I'm pretty busy at work these days, but otherwise, everything is great.""I'm doing very well.""I finally have some free time. I just finished taking a big examination, and I'm so relieved that I'm done with it."

Restaurant Responses

"I've been here a couple of times, but I don't come on a regular basis.""I come pretty often. This is my favorite restaurant.""I can't believe we haven't seen each other before. I come here at least twice a week."

Movie Response

"I came here to see Matrix Revolution. How about you?"

Greeting - Example ConversationsLet's look at several example conversations. Then we can move on to the practice section.

Person A: "Hi, my name is Steve. It's nice to meet you."Person B: "I'm Jack. It's a pleasure to meet you, Steve."Person A: "What do you do for a living Jack?"Person B: "I work at the bank."

Person A: "What is your name?"Person B: "Jackson."Person A: "What was that again?"

Person A: "Hey John, how have you been?"Person B: "What a surprise. I haven't seen you in a long time. How have you been?"Person A: "I'm doing very well. How about you?"Person B: "I finally have some free time. I just finished taking a big examination, and I'm so relieved that I'm done with it."

Person A: "Hi Nancy, what have you been up to?"Person B: "The same ole same ole." Or, "The same as usual. How about you?"Person A: "I'm pretty busy at work these days, but otherwise, everything is great."

Person A: "Andy, it's been a long time, how are you man?"Person B: "What a surprise. I haven't seen you in a long time. How have you been?"Person A: "Do you come to this restaurant often?"Person B: "I've been here a couple of times, but I don't come on a regular basis."

Greeting - Interactive Practice

|Person A|Person B

A: "Hi, how are you doing?"B: "I'm doing great. How about you?"A: "Not too bad."B: "Do you come to this restaurant often?"A: "I've been here a couple of times, but I don't come on a regular basis. What have you been up to?"B: "I'm pretty busy at work these days, but otherwise, everything is great."A: "Well, have a good evening."B: "You too."

|Person A|Person B

A: "It's nice to meet you. My name is Jack."B: "I'm Steve. It's a pleasure to meet you."A: "What was your name again?"B: "Steve."A: "So Steve, What do you do for a living?"B: "I work at the public library. How about you?"A: "I'm a University student."B: "That's great. It was nice meeting you."A: "Yeah. It was a pleasure meeting you."

|Person A|Person B

A: "Hey Jack, it's good to see you."B: "Wow. How long has it been? It seems like more than a year. I'm doing pretty well. How about you?"A: "Not too bad."B: "What movie did you come to see?"A: "I came here to see Matrix Revolution. How about you?"B: "I'm going to watch Finding Nemo."

Bored - General PhrasesBeing bored means having nothing to do. When someone is bored, they often call people and try to entertain themselves or try to find something to do with a friend. So being bored is a good starting point for conversational English.

There are a couple of situations you can express to someone that you are bored. Most commonly, you will call a friend and tell them that you are bored or ask them to do something together. The other time is when someone asks you how you are doing. We will cover both situations in this session.

General Phrases

"I'm dying from boredom.""I hate being bored.""I don't have anything to do.""My life is so boring.""Life is so boring.""I'm just watching TV until I find something to do.""I was bored all weekend.""I am so bored today."

"I get bored very easily.""I get bored all the time."

A common place to get bored is when you have to visit family members.

"It's always boring whenever we go to our relatives.""It's nice to visit my grandmother, but it gets boring after a couple of hours.""My cousins are so boring. All they do is watch tv."

"There's nothing to do in the country side. I'm always bored there."

If you think you are a boring person, here is a way to say that you are boring.

"I think I'm a little boring.""I'm a boring person."

Boring can be used to describe someone.

"He is a boring person.""His personality is very boring.""It's boring whenever she's around."

Using bored to answer a question is very common. Here are some general questions that someone might ask.

"How was your trip?""How was your vacation?""How was your weekend?""How was the lecture?""How was the class?""How was the game?"

Any of these types of questions can be answered with a simple answer.

"It was pretty boring.""It was boring. I didn't do much.""It wasn't as fun as I thought. It was a little boring.""I was bored most of the time.""Because it was disorganized, we had too much extra time. I was bored during our free time."

Bored - Calling SomeoneThe conversation when you call someone might sound something like this.

"Hello""Hi Jane, this is Jill. Do you have time to talk?""Hi Jill, sure, I was just watching TV.""What are you watching?""I was just watching a re-run of friends. How about you? What are you doing?""Nothing much. I really wanted to start studying for the Psychology test coming up, but I can't seem to motivate myself."

As you can see, Even though Jill is very bored, she didn't say that she was bored. To sensitive people, they can misinterpret the situation. If I am bored and I call you, then that could mean that I am only calling you because I have nothing better to do. So if you are not very close friends, it is better to say something like, 'nothing much' instead of 'I am bored.'

If you are very close friends with someone, then the conversation can be more direct and honest.

"What are you doing?""I'm doing the laundry.""I'm so bored. I have nothing to do.""Why don't you come over and help me with the laundry?""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?""Sure, that sounds great. I'll meet you there in thirty minutes."

Bored - Boring WorkA 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."

Bored - Interactive Practice

|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."

|Person A|Person B

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: "Aright. Let's meet at 8:30 in front of the university bookstore."B: "Perfect. I'll see you later tonight."

|Person A|Person B

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."

How is your Day - General StatementsIn 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."

How is your day - Example ConversationThe 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."

How is your day - Interactive Practice

|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."

|Person A|Person B

A: "Where are you going now?"B: "I'm going to the bank."A: "Aren't you supposed to be at work?"B: "I'm working now. I'm making a deposit for our company."A: "Where do you work?"B: "I work for a restaurant as a controller."A: "Wow. That's great."B: "Great seeing you. I have to go now. I'll talk to you later."

|Person A|Person B

A: "Hi Steve. What are yu doing here?"B: "I'm meeting a friend here for dinner. How about you?"A: "I'm on my way home but I needed to stop by the book store to buy a text book."B: "Didn't you finish school yet?"A: "I have one more year, and then I'm done."B: "What are you majoring in?"A: "I'm majoring in Sociology"B: "How do you like your major?"A: "I really find the subject very interesting. I'm enjoying all my classes."B: "That's great."A: "I better go now. I don't want to miss the bus."B: "Aright, I'll talk to you later."A: "Okay. See you later."

Tomorrow's Plan - I am going toTalking 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"

Tomorrow's Plan - Questions and AnswersWhen 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."

Tomorrow's Plan - Example ConversationLet'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 you 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 - Interactive Practice

|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."

|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."

|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."

Yesterday - The Past - General StatementsIn 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 TensePresent TenseFuture Tense

WentGoGoing to go

MetMeetWill meet

WasAmGoing to be

CompletedCompleteWill 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.

Yesterday - The Past - Questions and AnswersWhen 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."Yesterday - The Past - Example ConversationStudy 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 through out 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 - Interactive Practice

|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."

|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."

|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 crowed 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."

Weather - Summer and AutumnIn 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."

Weather - WinterWinter 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."

Weather - Fahrenheit and CelsiusIt'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.

FahrenheitCelsius

10037.8

9032.2

8528.4

8026.7

7523.9

7021.1

6518.3

6015.6

5010

404.4

320

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 - Questions and AnswersIn 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 - Long DescriptionBeing 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 - Interactive Practice

|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."

|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."

|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."

Small TalkMany people believe small talk is very boring and not personable. Although that is true, there are many places where small talk is very important. In the western culture, strangers talk to other strangers frequently. On the other hand, small talk is not so common in the eastern culture. Because strangers are friendly to one another in the western culture, small talk is very important to master in regards to learning English. One other place small talk is important is in an interview. That is why this session will be important to learn.

The best way to learn small talk is to provide many examples. So this lesson will be taught using an example format.

Small talk involves many different topics. We will have several sessions on small talk once we have covered other subjects such as sports, jobs, school, etc. But for now, we will go through the basics of small talk conversation. To initiate small talk, we can use what we have learned from our previous several sessions:

One: "Hi Bill, how are you doing?"Two: "I'm doing great. How are you doing?"One: "I'm doing well myself."

Wasn't that simple? If you studied the material in prior sessions, this should be real easy for you. Now that we have initiated the small talk, it's your responsibility to keep the conversation going. In order to do so, you can talk about anything that is not too personal. Let's first ask what the other person has been doing lately.

One: "What have you been up to lately?"Two: "Well, I just started to work at the bank so I'm pretty busy learning everything."

You can elaborate on what you have learned to keep the conversation alive. In this example, you are going to ask more questions about school and work.

One: "Does that mean you already finished school? I thought you had 1 more semester left."Two: "I took summer courses, so I finished one semester early."One: "It's great that you got a job. I'm really happy for you."Two: "Thanks."

As you can now tell, the conversation is getting old. You have a choice of ending the conversation, or changing the topic. Let's practice ending the conversation.

One: "We should get together for lunch sometime."Two: "Yeah, that would be great."One: "I'll call you sometime."Two: "Ok. I'll see you later."One: "Alright. See ya."

Small Talk - Two Example DialogsIn this conversation, we initiated the conversation and talked about the other person. However, sometimes you will not have anything to talk about. In order to keep the conversation alive, you should think about topics such as the weather.

One: "Hi Mary."Two: "Oh, hi."One: "How are you doing?"Two: "I'm doing alright. How about you?"One: "Not too bad. The weather is great isn't it?"Two: "Yes. It's absolutely beautiful today."One: "I wish it was like this more frequently."Two: "Me too."One: "So where are you going now?"Two: "I'm going to meet a friend of mine at the department store."One: "Going to do a little shopping?"Two: "Yeah, I have to buy some presents for my parents."One: "What's the occasion?"Two: "It's their anniversary."One: "That's great. Well, you better get going. You don't want to be late."Two: "I'll see you next time."One: "Sure. Bye."

This example is when you run into someone. This is an easy type of small talk because when you run out of things to say, you can always say bye. There are times when you don't have that option. Let's practice a situation where you cannot leave, such as an interview. I go into depth about interview communication in a different section. For now, I am going to emphasize the small talk portion of an interview. There are times when you will not have an opportunity for small talk, but in other cases, you might have to talk about general things.

Them: "Hi. My name is Josh. It's a pleasure to meet you."You: "Hi Josh. I'm glad to be here."Them: "Did you have any problems finding this place."You: "I didn't have any problems. I found directions on the internet so it was pretty easy to find. However, the traffic was not that great."Them: "Traffic is never good around here."You: "I agree. It would be great if there was a train or a subway line that went through here."Them: "That would be so great. I would definitely take the train if they had it."You: "Trains are great because you can read a book or get a little rest instead of having to fight the traffic."Them: "Very true. Well, let me begin by telling you about our company..."

This is a good example of small talk. It shows that you are easy to speak with, and most importantly, you found a small connection even though it was about a small topic such as the traffic problem. In this type of situation, don't feel that you have to constantly talk. If it is not relevant to the topic, it might be better not to say anything. But if you can add on to the topic, it's a good thing. The person who is giving the interview has the control, and that person will direct the small talk to the interview when the time is right. In my example above, I made a small transition from the traffic and started the interview process. If you are interested about interview, please go to the Interview Section. You may now move on to the practice session.A: "Hey Paul. What are you doing here?"B: "How's it going? I'm meeting up with a friend here."A: "How have you been man?"B: "Not too bad. I'm still in school and having a little fun."A: "How are you enjoying Mr. Lee's history class?"B: "It's so boring."A: "Tell me about it. If it wasn't a requirement, I wouldn't have taken it."B: "How about you? What have you been up to?"A: "I finished school last spring. I'm searching for a job now, but I'm slacking off."B: "I heard the job market is not that hot right now."A: "I could always take a low end job, but I'm not that desperate yet."B: "Well, good luck to you."A: "Thanks. It was good seeing you again."B: "Yeah. I'll catch you later."A: "Have a good night."

|Person A|Person B

A: "You're John right?"B: "Yes. Oh, you're in my English class right?"A: "Yeah. I'm Martha."B: "Well it's good to finally meet you."A: "How are you enjoying the class?"B: "I'm not sure. Some days it seems ok, but other days I am totally bored in class."A: "I know what you mean. Do you know what is wrong with the weather these days? I haven't seen the sun in 2 weeks."B: "The weather has been pretty terrible recently."A: "I'm really hoping the weather gets better."B: "Do you have something coming up?"A: "To tell you the truth, it's just depressing seeing so much rain."B: "I don't blame you. It has been pretty gloomy for sometime now."A: "This is my stop. I'll see you later."B: "I'll see you in class. Bye."

Movies - Asking FriendIn this section we will work on the planning aspect of watching a movie. In other Movie sections, we will cover discussing a movie, types of movies, etc.

Since this is the first Movie section, let me take a quick minute to explain how to find out movie times and how to pay for tickets in America. It's very similar and simple.

First, you need to find out what time a show is playing. In most cases, this is done by checking the internet. Usually, you type in the zip code and all the theatres in that area will display all the movies and movie times for that week. After you have chosen the movie to see, you need to buy the ticket. There are some places you can buy on-line, but it isn't that popular yet. You can go to the theatre before the movie starts and buy it at the theatre. The only thing you need to know how to say is the movie name and the movie time. Here is a quick example. Let's say you are watching the Titanic at 3:00. You walk up to the counter and say, 'Titanic. Three o'clock.' Wasn't that easy? Finally, big block buster movies usually sell out of tickets very quickly. So if you want to see it on opening day, it is wise to go to the theatre right when it opens and buy the tickets in advance.

Before you watch a movie, you need to plan ahead with friends. Either you are asking a friend to watch a movie, or you are answering. In either case, we will cover it here.

The following questions and statements are used when asking a friend to watch a movie.

"Hey John, do you want to (wanna) go see a movie tonight?""I'm going to watch Terminator 2. Do you wanna join?""Let's go see The Matrix tomorrow.""What time should we meet at the theatre?""Let's watch a movie after dinner.""The Titanic is coming out this Friday. Let's go see it."

If there are not enough details, a response can be in a question form. Here are a couple of examples.

"Who is all going?""Who are you watching it with?""Where are you watching it?""What time are you watching the movie?"

Normal answers:

"That sounds great.""I always wanted to see that. Let's go.""Let's meet at the theatre at four o'clock.""Sure. Do you wanna eat lunch together before the movie?"

"I've already seen that movie. What else is playing?""I can't. I have to work that night.""That movie sounds scary. I don't like horror movies.""I really don't like the actors. I'm going to pass."Movies - Example ConversationLet's look at a couple of example conversations before going to the practice section.

Person A: "Hey John, I'm going to see The Matrix with Peter and Brad. Do you wanna come?"Person B: "When are you guys going?"Person A: "We're going to see the eight O'clock showing."Person B: "That would be great. Where are you guys meeting?"Person A: "We're meeting at the theatre at seven thirty."Person B: "Great. I'll meet you guys there."

Person A: "Hey Jill."Person B: "What's up Mike?"Person A: "I was wondering if you have any plans for tomorrow night."Person B: "Umm... I don't think I have anything special for tomorrow. Why?"Person A: "Do you want to see The Titanic with me?"Person B: "I wanted to see that. Yeah. Let's go."Person A: "What time is good for you?"Person B: "How about seven thirty."Person A: "Sure. I'll meet you at the theatre at seven.Movies - Interactive Practice

|Person A|Person B

A: "I hear Batman is supposed to be good. Do you want to go see it tomorrow?"B: "I have to eat dinner with my family tomorrow."A: "We can watch the late show. I think it starts at nine forty five."B: "That would be great."A: "What time can you be at the theatre by?"B: "I can be there by 9:15."A: "Ok. I'll meet you there."

|Person A|Person B

A: "What are you doing tomorrow?"B: "Nothing really."A: "Let's watch a movie or something."B: "What's on these days?"A: "I think they're playing Lord of the Rings"B: "That sounds pretty good. Let's watch that."A: "Where should we meet?"B: "How about at the subway entrance."A: "Aright. I'll meet you there at one o'clock."

|Person A|Person B

A: "Hey Steve, what are you doing these days?"B: "Just working. The same as usual."A: "Have you seen Shiri?"B: "No. I haven't seen that yet."A: "Let's go watch it tomorrow. It's a weekend and you should take a break."B: "Well, to think of it, that sounds great."A: "I'll give you a call tomorrow about noon and let you know the time."B: "Ok. I'll see you tomorrow."A: "See you."

|Person A|Person B

A: "What should we do this Saturday?"B: "Rocky six is suppose to come out this Friday."A: "Yeah, but I don't know if it is going to be any good."B: "The only reason I want to see it is because I have seen the previous five."A: "True. Ok. Let's see it this Saturday."B: "How about we hook up for lunch at 12:00, and then go see the movie afterwards."A: "Sounds like a plan. Let's meet in front of Tower Records at 12:00."

Movies Types - Action and DramaIn the next three movie sections, we are going to learn about different movie types. Afterwards, we will cover having discussions about movies that you recently saw. But for now, let's work on movie types.

There are many different types of movies. You probably know them all in your language, but let's learn what they are in English. Also, we will learn how to say a couple of sentences related to a movie type. If you disagree with a sentence, feel free to change some words around so they fit what you want to say.

Although there are many categories, we will learn the most basic 10 types of movies.

ActionDramaComedyRomantic comedyHorrorScience fictionSuspense (Thriller)WesternCommentary / Non-Fiction

Action:Movies with lots of fighting, shooting, exploding, etc.

"What kind of movie do you like?""I like action movies because they are fast paced.""Action movies are my favorite.""I like all the action movies with a lot of guns.""I like fight scenes that are choreographed."

Drama:Everyone knows drama. Like Titanic and Schindler's List

"What type of movies do you like?""I like all sorts of drama.""I like movies that play with my emotion.""Drama movies are great because they are the most realistic.""The sad drama movies that make me cry."

Movie Types - Comedy and HorrorComedy:Funny movies with many jokes or actors acting in a funny way.

"I love all types of comedy because I love to laugh.""Comedy is my favorite because it is very entertaining to me.""I like comedy that makes fun of political things.""Comedy is so hilarious that I always enjoy watching them."

Romantic Comedy:Funny movies with a strong romantic theme. Opposite to action because usually guys like action and the ladies like Romantic comedies.

"Many people view romantic comedy movies as chick-flicks."

Chick = girlFlick = movie

Chick-Flick = a girly type of movie; a movie a girl will like; 'take your girlfriend to' type of movie... or something like that.

"Romantic comedy is funny movies that involve a lot of romance.""I love all the story lines of romantic comedy movies."

Horror:Scary movies that will give you nightmares for 3 months.

"When I was a little kid, I couldn't sleep because of horror movies.""Horror movies are not scary anymore.""I have yet to see a movie that really scares me.""I hate horror movies because I cannot sleep.""I always have nightmares after watching horror movies so I try to avoid them."Movie Types - Other TypesScience Fiction:Futuristic movies like star wars, star trek, theme of time travel, superhuman powers, etc.

"Many science fiction movies are about the future.""The success of a science fiction movie is usually dependent on how much they spend on special effects.""After watching a science fiction movie such as star wars, I always wish I lived in the future.""Gene Rodenberry and George Lucas are two great people in the Science Fiction world."

Suspense (Thriller):A movie that intentionally keeps you in a heightened state.

"I am always on the edge of my seat when I watch suspenseful movies.""I can't stand to watch suspenseful movies because my stomach always gets upset.""The suspense just kills me.""It's so exciting to watch a suspense movie."

Western:Old time cowboy movies

"Western movies are not so popular anymore.""Client Eastwood was a popular western actor.""Western movies show a little bit about the United States during the early years.""After watching The Last Samurai, I always hoped an Asian country will make a movie called The Last Cowboy."

Commentary / Non-Fiction:Educational and true.

"Commentaries and non-fiction films are usually educational.""Non-profit organizations usually create commentaries supported by the government.""Popular non-fiction films are about chimpanzees and gorillas""Sometimes non-fiction films are sad because of the hidden truth that is revealed."

Movie Types - Interactive Practice

|Person A|Person B

A: "What type of movies do you like?"B: "I like comedies. How about you?"A: "I like action."B: "Action is fun too."

|Person A|Person B

A: "What type of movies do you like?"B: "I like all sorts of movies, primarily drama and science fiction."A: "That's an interesting combination. How about western movies?"B: "Western and horror are the two types of movies I don't care for."A: "Why don't you like horror? They're entertaining."B: "Some are entertaining, but I find most of them stupid and childish. For example, I don't understand why a person always goes into the house alone when something is suspicious."A: "Ha ha. I know what you mean. But it's just a movie. They need for the characters to do that."

|Person A|Person B

A: "Hey, you wanna see a movie tomorrow?"B: "Sounds like a good plan. What do you want to see?"A: "How about Legally Blonde."B: "Ah, my girlfriend wanted to see that movie. I have to take her later so I don't want to watch it ahead of time. How about The Cube?"A: "Isn't that a scary movie?"B: "How scary can it be? Come on, it'll be fun."A: "Ok. I'll give it a try."B: "That's the spirit. I'll see you tomorrow after class."A: "Ok. See you tomorrow."

Movie Discussion - General StatementsIn this movie section, we are going to have discussions about movies that we already saw. This is useful because whenever we come out of a movie theatre, we always ask our friends what we thought about the movie. Sometimes, it's a simple answer such as, 'It was alright.' But sometimes, a good discussion can arise from a great movie. Let's get started...

Every time I finish watching a movie, I either ask someone, or someone asks me, "What did you think about the movie?" For the most part, the answer is a simple one line sentence:

"It was alright.""It could have been better.""It was pretty good.""I liked it.""It was entertaining.""It was so stupid I almost fell asleep.""Lame""Boring""Too unrealistic"

I can go on for a long time describing movies. I have listed a few so you get an idea how to answer simple movie questions.

Besides simple one line answers, there are a few reasons we need to say other things. It is because either we didn't understand something, want to describe a scene we liked, want to describe a scene that was stupid, or simply go on and on about how great the movie was.

Movie Discussion - Describing a MovieDidn't understand:

"Do you remember the scene when Mary walked into the dining room? Why was she carrying a knife? She didn't use it and the cameras focused on it.""I can't understand why she betrayed him. The whole movie concentrated on her trust and loyalty. It just doesn't make sense."

Good Scene:

"I love the scene when Russell Crowe showed his face to the emperor after the first gladiator fight.""What did you think about the last fight scene between Neo and Agent Smith in the rain?""The courtroom scene between Jodie Foster and Richard Gere was absolutely amazing."

Great Movie:

"That was such a cool movie. It was the best movie I've seen in a long time.""Anytime I see a great movie I tend to look at my watch often. That's because I don't want the movie to end.""The movie was great. I liked everything about it. I'm definitely going to buy the dvd."

Situational questions:

"What would you have done? Would you have taken the million dollars and give up your wife for a night?""Would you choose money and fame, or family and stability?"

Some movies are known to be 'based on a true story.' These types of movies are very interesting because they actually happened. The only reason they are not considered to be a non-fiction movie is because the director or writer will add some scenes that didn't happen, or change some facts around so the movie is more appealing to the masses.

A conversation can start from movies such as Schindler's List. When coming out of a theatre, I heard a couple talk briefly about this.

"What did you think about the movie?""I thought it was great. It was very powerful.""How much of it do you think was true?""I learned about Germany and World War II in one of my classes, and this movie showed everything I learned from class.""Wow. It's amazing that these things have happened in our history."

Movie Discussion - Example DialogIt is difficult to specifically teach what you will need to know about movie conversations because every movie will require different words and sentences.

Listen to the conversation

A: "Did you like the movie?"B: "It was better than I thought."C: "I liked it."A: "The movie didn't have many cheesy or stupid scenes."B: "Yeah. I'm glad that they didn't have any love scenes. Sometimes a love scene destroys a good movie."C: "I thought the scene where the girl was washing her hair and Tom Cruise came to say good bye was stupid. Why did they have that there? It didn't make sense."B: "I agree. They didn't need that scene."A: "I don't see the harm in that scene. They didn't do anything or show anything. What's the big deal?"C: "When you are talking about good movies versus great movies, each and every scene counts."A: "That's true."B: "But besides those one or two scenes, the movie was great."A: "I liked everything about it. I really liked the samurai that was beating up Cruise in the beginning of the movie. The guy second in command. He was cool too."B: "Every movie has a guy like him. They try to make him awesome even though they don't say much."C: "I don't understand why Tom Cruise went back to that village. If he was the only survivor, wouldn't that make everyone suspicious about where his loyalty lies?"A: "It was clear in the movie that he loved the place and the samurais. Clearly everyone knows that he isn't a traitor. I would have done the same thing in his position."B: "I think so too."C: "But isn't it suspicious that he is the only survivor."A: "Well, all the samurais were looking for a death in battle. Cruise wasn't."C: "But only the boss received the satisfaction of being killed with the sword. Nobody else did."A: "True."B: "What are we going to order?"C: "I am going to have a chicken burger because of the Mad Cow disease."A: "Me too."B: "I'm just having a soup and salad."

Favorite - What's your FavoriteThe word favorite is used a lot in spoken English. It is very common to talk about your favorite things with your friends or acquaintances. Topics can range from favorite movies, favorite TV shows, favorite food, favorite cars, etc. Since there are so many favorite things in the world, you should pay close attention to this lesson.

Asking questions is the most common way to use the word favorite:

"Who is your favorite singer?""Who is your favorite person?""Who is your favorite athlete?""Who was your favorite ex-girlfriend?""Who was your favorite elementary teacher?"

Are you following me? It's very easy. Just change the word at the end and you can make dozens of sentences.

"What is your favorite show?""What is your favorite movie?""What is your favorite dessert?""What is your favorite program?""What is your favorite class?""What is your favorite game?""What was the title of your favorite song?""What was the name of your favorite sit-com?"

We used 'who' and 'what' in our sentences. It's possible to use 'where', 'how', and 'when', but the most common is 'what' and 'who'.

I'll provide a couple of sentences for the other words.

"Where is your favorite vacation spot?""When is your favorite time of day?""How is your favorite noodles cooked?"

It's not common, because even though it is grammatically incorrect, you can ask the same question with 'what'

"What is your favorite vacation spot?""What is your favorite time of day?"

Nobody is really going to notice and it's not a big deal. After this lesson is over, I suggest practicing with 'what' and 'who', but don't bother with the others. It's not as important.Favorite - Answering QuestionsTo answer these types of questions, it is very easy. All you have to do is change 'your' to 'my', repeat the last portion of the question and add your answer. We'll practice a couple of times.

"What is your favorite show?""My favorite show is Smurfs."

"What is your favorite movie?""My favorite movie is Matrix."

"What is your favorite dessert?""My favorite dessert is cheesecake."

"Who is your favorite singer?""My favorite singer is Josh Groban."

"Who is your favorite athlete?""My favorite athlete is Tiger Woods."

"Who was your favorite elementary teacher?""My favorite elementary teacher was Mrs. Smouse."

Different ways to ask about favorite things

You don't necessarily have to use the word favorite. Favorite basically means what you like the most. So, you can ask favorite questions without the word favorite.

"What do you like to eat the most?""My favorite food is ice cream."

"What is a childhood memory that stands out?""My favorite childhood memory is a time I went fishing with my dad."

"Which professor do you like the most?""My favorite professor is Professor Kim."

Likewise, you can answer questions without using the word favorite.

"What is your favorite baseball team?""I like Seattle Mariners the most."

"What is your favorite type of food?""I love Italian food... especially pasta. They are so good."

"Who is your favorite music group?""I really enjoy listening to Depeche Mode."

Favorite - Interactive Practice

|Person A|Person B

A: "What are you doing tomorrow?"B: "I'm going to stay home and watch the video."A: "What are you going to watch?"B: "I rented Last of the Mohican. Have you seen it?"A: "That was one of my favorite movies. You will not be disappointed."

|Person A|Person B

A: "What's your favorite food?"B: "I like Chinese food the most."A: "Have you been to the Chinese restaurant on 44th street."B: "No I haven't. Is it any good?"A: "It's my favorite Chinese restaurant. I believe you will like it."B: "That sounds great. Let's go."

|Person A|Person B

A: "Hey Jack. How were your classes this semester?"B: "They were not too bad. I really dig/liked my poli-science class."A: "Would you consider it your favorite class?"B: "I don't know if I would call it my favorite, but it ranks up there."A: "What class was your favorite then?"B: "I took a business communication class last year and it was terrific."A: "I never took that yet. If that was your favorite, I think I will check it out."

Hobby - Questions and AnswersHobbies are a hot topic anytime. Similar to favorite things, hobbies are favorite things that you do. This is a small section so let's get started.

Questions you can ask:

"What are your hobbies?""What do you do in your spare time?""What do you like to do?""What do you like to do for fun?""If you had extra time, what would you do with it?"

There is not much else you can say. Remember that we can create many different sentences, but we want to use what is most common in spoken English. So we need to stay with the most common words.

Answering questions:

"My hobbies consist of golfing, reading novels, and watching movies.""I like to play computer games in my free time.""If I'm not working, then I'm busy chatting with people on the Internet.""During my spare time, I like to cook.""I like to read magazines.""In the summer I play golf, and in the winter, I go skiing.""I love every type of sports."

Making statements:

"I need to find a hobby. I have nothing to do all day.""Maybe you wouldn't be so lonely if you had a hobby.""Hobbies are great because it allows you to do what you enjoy.""Although I have many hobbies, I wish I had more time to do more.""I love to go snowboarding. It's exhilarating.""I would go skiing more often, but it takes such a long time to go up to the mountains.""I wish golfing wasn't so expensive. I would golf almost everyday if I could afford it."Hobby - Various Q&A"If you had all the money in the world, what would you do?""I would probably find some hobbies and join an organization that works for a good cause."

"You just stay home most of the week. Don't you ever get bored?""A lot of my hobbies are things I do by myself such as oil painting, sculpting, and drawing. So actually, I have a lot to do with not enough time."

"I'm so bored. I have nothing to do.""Maybe you should start thinking about some hobbies."

"Is studying considered a hobby?""Studying is usually associated with school and work, so it's not usually considered a hobby. But if it's not for these purposes, then I guess it can be a hobby. That's just my opinion though."

"What do you do in your spare time?""I do a lot of writing, so I write every chance I get."

Like many topics in English, a conversation will go towards the content of the conversation. So let's review with longer dialogs in practice.Hobby - Interactive Practice

|Person A|Person B

A: "Hey Bob. What are you doing?"B: "I'm at home painting."A: "I didn't know you paint. What type of painting is it?"B: "I enjoy oil painting. I learned it in one of my extra classes in college."A: "That sounds so interesting. I wish I learned a hobby."B: "Hobbies are never too late to learn. They offer a variety of classes at the local community college. You should look into it."A: "I think I will. Thanks for the info."

|Person A|Person B

A: "Hey Joanne. What are you up to?"B: "I'm just watching some television."A: "I'm so bored. I don't know what I'm going to do today and it is only ten in the morning."B: "Me too. Do you think we are boring people?"A: "I don't think we are boring. It's just that we don't have any hobbies."B: "That's right. What do you think we should do as a hobby?"A: "That all depends on what you like to do. For example, I like to doodle on the notepad, so I'm thinking about doing some real drawings."B: "I like to play the piano for fun."A: "Yeah. That can be a good hobby."B: "Hobbies are great. I'm going to make a list of all the things I like to do."A: "That's a great idea. I'm going to do the same."

Exercise - QuestionsThere are various types of exercise. Some people might think walking is exercise, and some other people will think weight lifting is exercise. In the next couple of lessons, we will take a closer look at various types of exercise.

Exercising can be done in many different ways. Here is a small list to get us started:

WalkingJoggingRunningSportsAerobicsRowing (boat)Commuting to workEtc.

Here are some questions.

"Do you exercise at all?""Do you work out?""What type of exercising do you do?""Where is a good place to exercise?""Why don't you exercise?""Where do you usually jog?""How long do you take a walk for?""How often do you jog?""Where do you do aerobics?""How long do you usually run for everyday?"

Exercise - Walking Jogging and MoreWalking:"Every morning right when I get up, I like to take a thirty minute walk.""I like to take walks with my dog.""Golf is a healthy sport because of all the walking it requires.""I heard from some doctors that walking is the healthiest form of exercise.""There's a trail by my house that is a perfect 20 minute walk.""We usually go to a nearby lake and walk around it."

Jogging:"Every night, I go to an elementary school across from my house and jog a few laps around the playground.""I go jogging in the morning when the air is still fresh.""Some people find jogging stressful, but I find it as a way to relieve some of my stress.""It feels so good after jogging for half an hour.""I usually jog on a treadmill because it's convenient."

Sports:We will have another more comprehensive lesson on sports in a different lesson."I usually play a lot of basketball""I get enough exercise from soccer.""I like to play sports because it is a good form of exercise and allows me to have fun all at the same time.""Although bowling is a sport, I don't consider it a form of exercise.""I play volleyball a couple hours a day.""I practice baseball with my school team everyday.""I'm in my high school's track and field team. I'm a long distance runner.""I don't play soccer because it requires too much running.""Running constantly is a hard thing to do."

Others:"Aerobics is an excellent form of exercise.""I use a video at home to do my aerobic sessions.""I like to do aerobics because it targets specific areas.""I get my exercise from rowing. I'm on the junior varsity crew team.""I ride my bicycle to work every day.""I take the stairs because it gives me a little bit of a work out.""I go to the local park and ride my rollerblades."

Exercise - Interactive Practice

|Person A|Person B

A: "Hey Michael. Where are you going?"B: "No where special. I was just taking a walk."A: "What for?"B: "To get a little exercise. I'm so out of shape."A: "Hey, I play basketball with a bunch of friends twice a week. It's great exercise and it's fun too. Why don't you come out and play with us?"B: "That sounds great. Give me a call next time you guys play."

|Person A|Person B

A: "All I do all day is work and watch TV. I really should start thinking about my health."B: "I never thought about that, but you're right. What do you think we should do?"A: "For starters, we should start doing more outdoor activities. That way we'll get some exercise."B: "I was thinking about taking tennis lessons. I always have an hour to spare in the afternoon. What do you think about that?"A: "That's not a bad idea. How much is it?"B: "I heard it is only about one hundred twenty dollars a month for 8 lessons."A: "Playing tennis twice a week will be a good start. Count me in."

Exercise Gym - Lifting WeightsPopular types of exercising are conducted in the gym or health club. When I refer to a gym, I am implying a health club. Two common types of exercising in the gym are working out / lifting weights, or using machines such as treadmills, bicycle machines, step machines, etc. It's common for guys to get together and talk about lifting weights. Likewise, girls get together and discuss the best methods to lose weight. In this lesson, we are going to lay the ground work on talking about exercising in the gym.

Lifting weights

Professional weight lifters are called body builders. But since the number of body builders are not significant, we are going to concentrate more on regular weight lifting.

I don't lift weights, but when I see a friend who is noticeably bigger due to lifting weights, these are the types of things I say.

"Have you been lifting?"

You do not need to say lifting weights. When you say lifting, it's understood that you are talking about weights.

"You got big man.""How long have you been lifting?"

Other terminologies for lifting weights are:

Pumping IronPressing IronPressing WeightsWorking OutWeight TrainingHitting the GymExercise Gym - Questions and AnswersHere are some questions you can ask.

"Where do you work out?""What club do you work out at?""When do you usually work out?""How often do you work out?""How many hours do you work out in a day?"

To ask how they work out or what their routine is, you can ask:

"When you bench, how many reps and sets do you do?"

Reps are repetition. In weight lifting terminology, this means how many times they lift in one set.

"Do you do low reps with heavy weights, or many reps with light weight.""How many sets do you do when you work out your arms?"

If you are the person being asked these questions, here are ways you can answer:

"I work out at 24 Hour Fitness""I work out at Bally's""I work out at Samsung Health Club"

"I started lifting weights about 2 years ago.""I have been lifting weights for about 2 years now.""I just started 9 months ago."

"I usually work out 2 hours a day 4 times a week.""I work out everyday for an hour.""I go to the gym 3 times a week.""I go in every other day."

"I can bench press 220 pounds.""I squat 400 pounds.""I curl 90 pounds."

"I'm trying to gain bulk so I'm doing low reps with heavy weights.""I'm trying to get ripped, so I'm doing a lot of repetitions."

Ripped means to get lines to show up in the muscles. It's called ripped because when you rip a piece of paper, you see a line in the paper where the tear is. So a person is ripped when you can see lines on his body due to muscles.Exercise Gym - Other MethodsOther ways to work out in a health club

Many people lift weights in the health club, but many people also go to lose weight using machines such as the treadmill and bicycle machines.

Here are some things you can say in a conversation if you fall into this category.

"When I go to the health club, I usually spend 30 minutes on the treadmill, 20 minutes on the bicycle, and finally 10 minutes on the step master."

"There is no place to run in the city, so I have to do my running on the treadmill.""It always rains around here so I like to exercise in the gym.""I usually use the treadmill, but I try to work on the nautilus machines at least twice a week."

"My wife exercises four times a week.""My husband can't last 10 minutes on the step machine."Exercise Gym - Interactive Practice

|Person A|Person B

A: "What do you do besides work and watching TV?"B: "When I have some time, I like to exercise."A: "Do you go jogging or do you go to a health club?"B: "I joined Samsung Health Club a couple of months ago."A: "How do you exercise?"B: "I usually spend 30 minutes on the bicycle for the cardio, and then I lift weight for about 45 minutes."A: "How often do you go?"B: "I want to go four times a week, but I'm too lazy. Last week, I only went to workout once."

|Person A|Person B

A: "Hey Jimmy. Let's go workout later today."B: "Sure. What time do you want to go?"A: "How about at 3:30."B: "That sounds good. Today we work on Legs and forearm."A: "Hey. I just played basketball earlier, so my legs are a little sore. Let's work out on arms and stomach today."B: "I'm on a weekly schedule. You're messing everything up."A: "C'mon. We're only switching two days. You can do legs on Friday."B: "Aright. I'll meet you at the gym at 3:30 then."

|Person A|Person B

A: "Damn Scott. You got big."B: "Yeah, I've been working out a lot."A: "How long have you been lifting weights?"B: "For a year and a half."A: "Yeah. Last time I saw you, it was like 2 years ago."B: "Has it been that long?"A: "How often do you go to the gym?"B: "I usually go every other day for about 3 hours."A: "That's a lot."B: "Yeah, I used to work out for an hour a day 4 times a week, and I saw no results. This is what you have to do to get noticeable results."A: "I don't think I have the discipline for that."B: "Just think of it as a hobby. Then it's actually fun."

General Things Review - Interactive Practice

|Person A|Person B

A: "How are you doing?"B: "I'm doing great."A: "What movies have you seen lately?"B: "I saw Forrest Gump the other day."A: "What type of movie is that?"B: "The movie type is drama."A: "I can't believe you are watching movies. The weather is great. You should be outside."B: "I hate the hot weather. I'd rather stay indoors with the air conditioner."A: "What else do you like to do besides watching movies?"B: "I like to play computer games, read books, go shopping, and play pool."A: "Out of those what is your favorite?"B: "My favorite is to play computer games."A: "What is your favorite computer game?"B: "My favorite is Diablo. It used to be Star Craft, but it is getting a little old."A: "If you like to play so much, when do you ever exercise?"B: "Although I hate to exercise, I go jogging at least twice a week."A: "That's pretty good. By the way, what are you doing next Saturday?"B: "I am going to go to the bookstore."A: "I am having a party Saturday night at my house. If you have time, you should come."B: "That sounds like fun."A: "Great. I'll see you on Saturday."B: "Ok. See you later."

|Person A|Person B

A: "Hello?"B: "Hi Steve. This is Mike. What are you doing?"A: "Oh, hi. I was just watching TV."B: "There's nothing to watch right now."A: "I know. I was watching a re-run. I have nothing to do and I was bored."B: "Me too. Let's get together and do something."A: "I'd like to, but I have to meet my parents in an hour for dinner. How about tomorrow?"B: "Yeah. Let's plan something tomorrow."A: "Did you hear the weather forecast for tomorrow?"B: "I think it is going to be the same as today. Clear and sunny."A: "That's great. We can do something outdoors then."B: "Are there any special events going on tomorrow?"A: "Yeah. I think there's a live outdoor concert by the river tomorrow."B: "Oh yeah. I heard about that too. Let's go check it out."A: "Do you know what time it starts?"B: "It starts at one PM."A: "Let's meet for lunch at eleven thirty and afterwards, we can head over there."B: "Perfect. I'll see you in front of the apartment at eleven thirty."

|Person A|Person B

A: "Steve. Is that you?"B: "Yeah. What's going on?"A: "Not much. What a surprise to see you here."B: "Yeah. It's been a couple of months since I saw you."A: "What have you been up to?"B: "I just started working out."A: "Really? Where do you work out at?"B: "I joined the Samsung Health Club last month."A: "What do you mostly do during your workout?"B: "I concentrate mostly on my legs, chest, arms and stomach."A: "I should start exercising more."B: "It's hard work while exercising, but it is a great feeling when I get done."A: "I have a running machine at home. I used to use it, but I already got sick of it."B: "Exercising at home is hard. The environment is not suited for exercising."A: "If I want to exercise, I will need to join a gym."B: "I have a couple of guest passes. You want to check out my health club."A: "That's a good idea. Let's go over the weekend."B: "Great. I'll call you Saturday morning."A: "Aright. I'll talk to you later."B: "Ok. Bye."

|Person A|Person B

A: "The weather is terrible."B: "Yeah. It's been raining a lot these days."A: "I have been watching a lot of videos at home because of the constant rain."B: "Have you heard when it's supposed to get better?"A: "I saw the weather report, and it's going to rain for the next eight days."B: "That sucks so much. What are we going to do?"A: "I'm getting pretty bored. We should do something despite the rain."B: "I'm with you. What do you have in mind?"A: "I haven't been to the Mall in a long time. Let's go there."B: "That sounds good. They have a movie theatre there, so if we get bored, we can watch a movie."A: "Great. I'll stop by your place now."B: "Ok. Don't forget to bring your umbrella. The rain can start up again anytime."