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Оваа лекција е наменета за луѓе со средно ниво на англиски јазик. Откако ќе ја слушнете оваа лекција, проверете го вашето знаење со нашиот квиз.
Белешки за учење
Различни фрази што можете да ги користите за да опишете просторот:
- My room has heaps of storage.
- I love how the kitchen opens straight into the lounge.
- The layout’s spot on – it doesn’t feel cramped at all.
- The floor plan really works.
- The place has good bones.
- It’s definitely got character.
- It’s a bit of a fixer-upper.
- The bathroom’s been recently done.
- The bedrooms are a decent size.
Колоквијални изрази:
When you tell someone, ‘Make yourself at home,’ ги поканувате да се чувствуваат опуштено и удобно, исто како што би се чувствувале на свое место.
When a room ‘opens straight into’ another room, значи дека постои отворена врска - можете да одите од една соба во друга без да поминувате низ ходник или врата
If you say that the floor plan of your home works, велиш дека распоредот на твојот дом има смисла и е соодветен за тебе.
To check something out, е неформален начин да се каже да се испита или погледне нешто одблизу.
Spot on е неформален начин да се каже дека нешто е навистина совршено.
If your house has good bones, тоа значи дека структурата - ѕидовите, подовите и покривот - се цврсти и силни, дури и ако на куќата ѝ се потребни некои поправки.
When we say a place has character, значи дека е интересно, уникатно или има нешто посебно во врска со тоа.
Речник:
Heaps of storage - значи многу простор, полици или плакари за складирање работи
The word room (without ‘a’ or ‘the’ ) значи простор, обично просторот за правење нешто, како на пример складирање работи или вселување.
Ample значи големо или многу од нешто, и обично имплицира дека тоа нешто е доволно големо. Често се користи за да се опише простор, време или количина.
Layout значи начинот на кој се подредени работите. Често се користи за да се означи простор во соба, документ или страница .
A floor plan -е начинот на кој се распоредени собите во куќата.
To fix something up значи да го поправиш.
A fixer-upper е куќа на која ѝ се потребни поправки, а често и реновирања.
Фокус на учење:
Клер и Ален користат неколку различни начини за да искажат колку им се допаѓа нешто:
- Allan:
Finally – a …. (finally….! Shows that you have wanted. Something for a long time)
I’ve been dreaming of.. (if you have been dreaming of something then you really like it)
The floor plan really works (if something works, then you like it)
- Claire:
I love how it ….. (I love + how it + verb)
The layout’s spot on (spot on = exactly right)
Transcript:
(Note: This is not a word-for-word transcript)
SBS acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country and their connections and continuous care for the skies, lands, and waterways throughout Australia.
It’s early morning. The kettle’s just boiled, the house is quiet, and for me, this is the perfect time to learn something new.
Hi, I’m Kate, and you’re listening to the SBS Learn English podcast—where we help you develop your informal spoken English so that you can feel more confident and sound more natural.
Whatever you’re doing, whether you’re out and about or still in your pyjamas, grab your tea, coffee — or whatever keeps you going — and make yourself at home so that you can listen comfortably.
When you tell someone to make themselves at home, you’re inviting them to feel relaxed and comfortable, just like they would if they were in their own home. We often say this to be polite to someone who comes to our home.
And speaking of home — today we’re going to learn some useful everyday phrases you can use when talking about yours.
I chose this topic because Allan has just moved into a new place—a house he bought after months of looking. There are still a few boxes on the floor, but the kettle’s unpacked, and that’s what counts.
His friend Claire has come over to check it out. To check something out is an informal way of saying to examine or look at something closely. She’s excited to finally see what Allan’s been talking about all these months. As they walk into the kitchen, the conversation begins…
Allan
Finally – a kitchen with heaps of storage! I’ve been dreaming of this.
Claire
Yeah, and I love how it opens straight into the lounge. The layout’s spot on – it doesn’t feel cramped at all.
Allan
Exactly. The floor plan really works. The place has good bones.
Claire
It’s definitely got character.
Allan
Yeah, it’s a bit of a fixer-upper, but the bathroom’s been done recently and the bedrooms are a decent size.
As always, Allan and Claire used some fantastic everyday phrases. Let’s take a closer look at a few of the words they used—these are the kinds of expressions you can use yourself when talking about your home.
Allan first said,
Finally – a kitchen with heaps of storage! I’ve been dreaming of this.
I also love a kitchen that has heaps of storage, that means that has a lot of space to store things, like cupboards, shelves, or closets. In other words, if a place has heaps of storage, it means there’s plenty of room for you to put things. By the way, the word ‘room’ here doesn’t mean ‘room’ like bedroom or bathroom, it is another word for space.
But let’s say you're in your office and you want to sound a bit more formal, in that case you could use the word ‘ample’, as in, ‘There’s ample storage for all our files’.
‘Ample’ here means enough or more than enough of something. It's usually used to describe space, time, or quantity.
Claire then said,
I love how it opens straight into the lounge. The layout’s spot on – it doesn’t feel cramped at all.
Claire first said that she loves how the kitchen opens straight into the lounge. When a room ‘opens straight into’ another room, it means there’s an open connection—you can walk from one room to the other without going through a hallway or doorway.
Claire also said,
The layout’s spot on – it doesn’t feel cramped at all.
So, what does layout mean?
Well, layout is a word we can use to talk about how things are arranged or set out. You can use it when you’re talking about a space—like a room, a house, or even a page or a website.
Let’s start with homes.
When you say “the layout of the house”, you’re talking about how the rooms are arranged in the house.
For example, my flat has an open-plan layout—so the kitchen, dining and lounge are all in the same space. I love that—it feels nice and open.
Now, we also use layout when we talk about documents.
The other day I found an old presentation I made, and honestly, the layout was terrible. There was way too much on the page, and I didn’t know where to look first. So I’d say: “I didn’t like the layout at all.”
And of course, layout is a word we use when talking about websites or apps too.
Like, “Do you think the layout of our website is easy to use?” or “I like the new layout—it’s clean and simple.”
So, in short, layout just means the way something is organised or arranged.
But spot on – what have spots got to do with it? If something is spot on it is exactly right. So Claire really loved the layout.
Claire also said that Allan’s new home doesn’t feel cramped at all. If a place feels cramped it feels small and crowded –as though there’s not enough space. You might feel like there’s no room to move around.
What’s your place like? Do you think it feels cramped? Or does it have a good layout?
Allan then said,
The floor plan really works.
The floor plan really works. If you say that the floor plan of your home works, you’re saying the layout of your home makes sense and feels right for you. A floor plan is the way the rooms are arranged in a house. It’s similar to layout.
Allan also said,
And we’re only getting started! Allan is saying - even though they’ve been working together for two years, that’s just the start so there will be many more years of working together in the future. Isn’t that nice?!
He then said:
The place has good bones.
When we say a place has character, we mean it’s interesting, a bit unique, or has something special about it. It might be an old fireplace, high ceilings, the way the light comes in, or even some kind of different layout that makes it different from a brand-new house.
It may not be perfect—but it has something that makes it really special!
So, when Claire says, ‘It’s definitely got character’, she means the house feels interesting, and full of charm.
It’s definitely got character.
It sure is, Claire!
A milestone is an important and memorable moment or event in the development of something.
Twenty-five years together - that’s a big milestone worthy of a big celebration! Hmm. I wonder if they will invite me?
Allan replied,
Yeah, it’s a bit of a fixer-upper, but the bathroom’s been done recently, and the bedrooms are a decent size.
Allan’s home is a fixer-upper, which means it needs a lot of work. Allan will have to repair or renovate certain parts of the house. But luckily for him, the bathroom has been done recently, which means that it’s already been renovated or updated, so he doesn’t need to do any work on that part of the house.
The house also has decent-sized bedrooms. We say a space is a decent size when it’s not too small or too big – it’s just the right amount of space to be comfortable. For example, a decent-sized bedroom would have enough room for a bed, a wardrobe, and maybe a desk or some shelves, without feeling cramped.
So, even though Allan’s house needs work, it’s got some good thing about it, like the bathroom and the size of the bedrooms.
I guess we can often imagine something we’d like to change about where we live. How about your home? How many rooms are there? Does it have character?
Sit back, listen again and see how many useful phrases you might be able to use when describing your home.
A big thank you to our guest Wolfgang Mueller Paul Nicholson and Lily O'Sullivan voiced the characters of Allan and Claire, and Professor Lynda Yates was our educational consultant.
