Lily asks
Describe the area where you live. What do you like about it?
How to build your answer
Describe: four moves, about a minute.
- 1Say who or whatOne line to introduce it.
- 2Two detailsWhat they're like, or what it looks like.
- 3Why it mattersWhat it means to you.
- 4A small momentOne example that brings it to life.
Lily's answer, three ways
The same story, from easy to advanced. Tap a highlighted phrase to learn it.
Easy
Lily's voice note
I live in a pretty quiet bit of south London. It's not fancy, but I like it. There's a bus stop right outside my flat, a corner shop, and a small park with a pond. Everything I need is five minutes away. My favourite thing is the bakery on the corner. On Saturday mornings it smells amazing, and I always end up buying a cinnamon bun. Oh, and my neighbour's cat, Pepper, sits on my wall every day, which I love, even though she ignores me.
Phrases to borrow
pretty quiet
/ˈprɪti ˈkwaɪət/
quite calm, without much noise
My street's pretty quiet at night.
(five) minutes away
/(ˈfaɪv) ˈmɪnɪts əˈweɪ/
a short time to get there
The station's only five minutes away.
end up (doing something)
/ˈend ʌp (ˈduːɪŋ ˈsʌmθɪŋ)/
finally do something you didn't plan
I always end up spending too much at the market.
Natural
Lily's voice note
I live in a quiet bit of south London. It's nothing fancy, but it's really handy. There's a bus stop right outside my flat, so it's easy to get around, plus a corner shop and a small park with a pond, where I go to get some fresh air. My favourite thing is the bakery on the corner. On Saturday mornings I always buy a cinnamon bun there. And my neighbour's cat, Pepper, sits on my wall every day, ignoring me completely. It's not the prettiest place, but it has a good feel to it.
Phrases to borrow
easy to get around
/ˈiːzi tə ˈɡet əˈraʊnd/
simple to travel from place to place
London's easy to get around if you use the buses.
get some fresh air
/ˈɡet səm ˈfreʃ ˈeə/
go outside, especially after being indoors
I'm going out to get some fresh air.
have a good feel (to it)
/ˈhæv ə ˈɡʊd ˈfiːl (tə ɪt)/
gives a nice, welcoming impression
The new office has a good feel to it.
Advanced
Lily's voice note
I live in a quiet, slightly scruffy bit of south London, but it's full of character. Everything's five minutes away, the bus stop right outside my flat, the corner shop, a little park with a pond. The real star, though, is the bakery on the corner. On Saturday mornings the smell drifts down the street, and I can never resist a warm cinnamon bun. And the icing on the cake is Pepper, my neighbour's cat, who sits on my wall every day and ignores me like a little queen. It took a while, but this place really feels like mine now.
Phrases to borrow
full of character
/fʊl əv ˈkærɪktə/
interesting and different, with its own style
Their old house is full of character.
the icing on the cake
/ði ˈaɪsɪŋ ɒn ðə ˈkeɪk/
an extra good thing that makes something good even better
The food was great, and the view was the icing on the cake.
take a while
/ˈteɪk ə ˈwaɪl/
need quite a long time
It took a while to find a good doctor here.
feel like mine
/ˈfiːl laɪk ˈmaɪn/
feels like it belongs to you
After painting the walls, the room finally feels like mine.
Your turn: answer Lily
Describe the area where you live. What do you like about it?
Answer out loud, in your own words. Try one phrase you just borrowed.
Home & neighbourhood
easy to get around
simple to travel from place to place
“London's easy to get around if you use the buses.”
heytardy