General English Lower Intermediate Level
Lesson 9

The future

1. Watch the video and listen attentively to the people speaking about their future


Expression to work on

I started working for the BBC 3 years ago

I really enjoy my work, but I really would love to live and work in New York

I am going there in the autumn to visit some friends and I am really excited

What about you? What are your plans for the future?

I hope to go to the University in September, but that depends on my exam results

I just want to find my place and work I love

I would like to join a band and to tour around the world

I would love to be a specialist in Middle East of Studies

I am actually planning to move to New Jersey just for 6

Months

I don’t really want to make a long term plans, but I would like to become a solicitor

I hope to move to a bigger place

My house feels a bit small now for our family

I am planning to be a doctor

I would like to stay in London and I would like to work as a research assistant at the University here

I would like to go on, take a gap year out, and do Masters next year

I would like to work with the world health organization and I am going to make internship in summer in Geneva

Well, I would like to come and study here, in London, still acting here and I would like to become may be a studio actor

I’d really love to come to Australia one day, because I am really lucky there, I love the weather and the lifestyle and I also hope to get married in the next few years

I would love to start my tour business and I hope to solve a lot of troubles in that sort of the expedition work

I want to be a graph designer

I would like to move from where I am living, I would like to buy a house and I would like a car

I want to do some architecture, like interior design, because my dad is an architect and I am really interested

I want to become a vet and hopefully specialize in small animals

Questions to speak about
  1. What do you want to become in the future?
  2. What are your plans for the future?
  3. Are you planning to go on holidays /on vacations in the future?

Activity 2

Happy Holidays

The language of travel
Swiss mountains

Read Sophie's travel blog. She's having a great time sightseeing in Switzerland - the land of snow-capped mountains, beautiful wooden houses and delicious chocolate!

Word challenge: While you read, try to find words with these meanings. The answers are underneath the blog.

  1. An informal word that means 'expensive'.
  2. The style and design of buildings.
  3. Visiting interesting places, as a tourist.
  4. Lying in the sun, to make your skin darker.
  5. Connected to art, music, literature, etc.
  6. The feeling you get from being in a particular place.

Read the text and complete the activity

travel

"Welcome to Switzerland. I love it here. I often come here for a break and to get away from the crowds and pollution of my home city. It's quite cheap to get here on a low-cost airline and it's quick too: just a two-hour flight and I'm here, enjoying the fresh air, the picture-postcard views and the friendly people.

There are lots of reasons to visit Switzerland. In cities like Zurich and Geneva, you can find amazing architecture from old cathedrals to modern museums and converted factories, exciting cultural life including museums and art galleries, and lots of opportunities for sightseeing and photography - as well as great shopping. But be careful: Switzerland can be very pricey - so if you like to shop, you’ll need to take plenty of money with you.

But it really is the mountains and lakes that I love most, and the best way to get to see them is on a train. No mountain is too high for a Swiss train. I took a train on The Jungfrau Railway, which leads from Kleine Scheidegg through the Eiger and Mönch to the Jungfraujoch.


I love walking in the mountains. The view across the Alps is spectacular as you can see! The air feels so fresh up here and the colours seem so bright, especially the green grass. It's no surprise the cows up here look so happy - but they still need to wear a huge bell around their neck so they don't get lost!

When you're out walking, don't be surprised if you meet some of the local men wearing leather shorts, called lederhosen, and sturdy leather boots. This is traditional clothing in the Alps: it’s not worn to impress tourists but as reminder of their heritage - and apparently they're quite comfortable too!

It can be quite cold in the mountains - so if your ideal holiday involves sunbathing by the pool, the Alps might not be the right place for you. But if you like wonderful views, a peaceful atmosphere, and long walks in a beautiful natural environment, this is a great destination."

Session Vocabulary
  • low-cost
    cheaper than normal
  • picture-postcard
    a very beautiful view, similar to pictures on postcards
  • destination
    place you travel to
  • traditional
    based on past customs and beliefs by a certain group of people
  • break
    (here) a period of rest and relaxation
  • spectacular
    wonderful; amazing
  • heritage
    things like art or buildings that a group of people feel are important to their
  • history
    environment
    the situation around us - particularly the land, air, water, etc.
Word challenge: answers

Here is the key to the vocabulary challenge. Have a look and check your answers.

  1. An informal word that means 'expensive': pricey
  2. The style and design of buildings: architecture
  3. Visiting interesting places, as a tourist: sightseeing
  4. Lying in the sun, to make your skin darker: sunbathing
  5. Connected to art, music, literature, etc.: cultural
  6. The feeling you get when you are in a particular place: atmosphere
To do

Let's practise using some of the vocabulary from Sophie's blog. Try this activity.

Know your words

Fill the gaps with the correct words

Activity 3

Learn the language: articles

A virtual postcard

It's good to keep in touch with friends when they go abroad - but not when they're bragging about their holiday. Rob sent Emma a message from a very exciting location. Take a look - and listen out for the articles a and an.

Watch the video and complete the activity


Transcript

Hello again. My friends are so lucky - they always seem to have the time and money to go on holiday to some really nice places. Rob's just put a message on Facebook...

"Hi! I'm in Sydney, Australia. Wow, what a great place this is. I've been to a concert at the famous Opera House. I went to Bondi Beach but I couldn't go in the sea because a lifeguard said he'd seen a shark. I went on an amazing trip to the Blue Mountains - it's only an hour away on the bus - and I got to stroke a koala bear. The trip's cost an arm and a leg but it's well worth it."

An arm and a leg? That sounds painful! Oh I'd love to go to Australia. How about you - where would you like to go to?

Session Vocabulary
  • bragging
    telling everyone that something you have or did was very good, often making them feel jealous
  • lifeguard
    someone whose job is to watch over a swimming pool or part of the sea where people swim, to make sure they are safe
  • cost an arm and a leg
    be very expensive
  • virtual postcard
    a message you send over the internet to tell someone about a place that you are visiting, usually as a holiday

Did you notice the articles Rob used in his virtual postcard? Here is an explanation of how and when to use a and an. Have a read, and try the activity to test your understanding.

Articles 'a' and 'an': meaning and use 

a or an means one person or thing.

We use a or an:

  1. before singular nouns: I've been to a concert. We had a great day and we saw an elephant.
  2. before the name of a job: My sister wants to be an engineer.
Articles and adjectives

Adjectives go between a or an and the noun: What a great place this is! I went on an amazing trip.

A or an?

Use a before consonant sounds: a chair, a horse, a laptop

This includes letters u or eu when they are pronounced y (/j/)a university, a euro

Use an before vowel sounds. These words usually start with a, e, i, o, u: an architect, an idea, an umbrella

Also use an with words that start with the letter h when the h is not pronounced: an hour, an honour

To do

Now check your understanding with this activity. Look at the notes if you need help.

  1. I've just received message from Rob.
  2. What great place this is!
  3. I've been to concert at the Opera House.
  4. lifeguard said he'd seen shark.
  5. I went on amazing trip to the Blue Mountains.
  6. It only takes hour on the bus to get there.
  7. The trip cost arm and a leg.

Activity 4

When to use 'the'

Some rules for using 'the'

We all have a favourite place we'd like to travel to - maybe to see a famous historic site, to trek in the mountains or just to lie on a beach and sunbathe.  

And to describe these places, we need to use the word the. Let's look at some of the rules.

Explanation:

We use  the

  1. Before singular nouns that we have already mentioned with a/an:
    • We saw an elephant. The elephant was standing under some trees.
  2. Before singular, plural or uncountable nouns when we say exactly which person or thing we mean:
    • I love the coffee shop in George Street.
    • The people in my new office are really nice.
    • Where's the brown sugar?
    BUT: We don't use the before plural and uncountable nouns when we are talking about things in general:
    • Children need plenty of exercise and fresh air. (children in general; exercise in general; fresh air in general)
    • Sugar isn't very good for you. (sugar in general)
  3. 3) We also use the before singular, plural or uncountable nouns when it is clear which person or thing we mean:
    • I'm going to the supermarket. (the one we always go to)
    • The children are upstairs. (our children)
    • Could you shut the door? (the door of this room)
  4. 4) We also use the before singular nouns when there is only one of the noun:
    • The sun is shining and there aren't any clouds in the sky.
To do

Let's practise. Listen to these people making plans to visit Italy and then try the next activity.

Listen to the audio and complete the activity

Grammar Reference
Articles

A and an

A or an means one person or thing. We use a or an

  1. before singular nouns: I've been to a concert. We had a great day and we saw an elephant.
  2. before the name of a job: 

My sister wants to be an engineer.

A or an?

Use a before consonant sounds: a chair, a horse, a laptop

This includes letters u or eu when they are pronounced y (/j/): a university, a euro

Use an before vowel sounds. These words usually start with a, e, i, o, uan architect, an idea, an umbrella

Also use an with words that start with the letter h when the h is not pronounced: an hour, an honour

The

We use the:

  1. before singular nouns that we have already mentioned with a/an
    • We saw an elephant. The elephant was standing under some trees.
  2. before singular, plural or uncountable nouns when we say exactly which person or thing we mean:
    • The people who live next door are really nice.
    • Where's the brown sugar

    Note that we don't use the before plural and uncountable nouns when we are talking about things in general:

    • Children need plenty of exercise and fresh air. (children in general) 
    • Sugar isn't good for you. (sugar in general)
  3. We also use the before singular, plural or uncountable nouns when it is clear which person or thing we mean:
    • I'm going to the supermarket. (the one we always go to) 
    • The children are upstairs. (our children) 
    • Could you shut the door? (the door of this room)
  4. We use the before nouns when there is only one:
    • The sun is shining and there aren't any clouds in the sky.
  5. We use the with superlatives:
    • You're the best dad ever!
  6. We use the in many expressions with 'of'
    • In the middle of the night
    • The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
    • At the end of my holiday
The or zero article?

Here are some rules: 

Use the with

  • Countries with plural names or with Republic or Kingdom in the name: The United Arab Emirates, The Netherlands, The United Kingdom
  • Geographical areas in noun phrases: I live in the north-west of Egypt, in the east
  • The names of rivers, seas, oceans and mountain ranges: The Mississippi, The Black Sea, The Atlantic, The Urals
  • Parts of the day: in the morning/afternoon/evening
  • Most prepositional phrases of position and place: at the top, on the left, at the office/bank/cinema

Use zero article (-) with

  • The names of most countries, cities and continents: Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Warsaw, Beijing, Europe, Asia
  • Geographical areas in adjective phrases: I live in (-) north-west Egypt, (-) eastern France
  • The names of single mountains and lakes: Mount Kilimanjaro, Lake Titicaca
  • Exact days, months and times: on (-) Friday, in (-) March, at (-) 7 o’clock
  • Some prepositional phrases of place: at (-) home, at (-) work, in (-) bed, at (-) sea
Take note: school/university, etc.

There is a special rule for these places: school, university, college, hospital, prison, church. Compare these examples:

The children go to school by bus. I go to the school to help twice a week.
Ben's studying maths at university. He works in the canteen at the university.
She was in hospital for three weeks. Is there a shop in the hospital?

If someone is at the place because they are a student / are sick / a prisoner, etc, we don't use the. If they are there for another reason, or we are talking about the building, we use the.

Articles and adjectives

Adjectives go between articles and nouns: What a great place this is! I went on an amazing trip. We went to the famous Bondi beach.

We usually pronounce a/an with a weak vowel sound /ə/ ('uh'). It sounds like the vowel sound in fun, and not the vowel sound in cat.

Before consonants and the letters u or eu when they are pronounced y (/j/), we pronounce the with this weak sound /ə/, too.

  • the doctor, the party, the uniform

But when the is before a vowel sound, we pronounce the with the long ee sound in see

  • the afternoon, the ice, the open door, the upstairs rooms

Exercises

Articles

Choose A, AN or THE for each blank below, then click the "Check" button to check your answers.

  1. A: What's wrong?
    B: I have bad headache.
  2. A: Why was today's class cancelled?
    B: Because teacher is sick.
  3. A: What does he do?
    B: He's engineer.
  4. A: What did Tom buy?
    B: He bought new camera.
  5. A: How long does it take to get there?
    B: It takes about hour.
  6. A: I want to change the channel.
    B: OK, remote control is over there.
  7. A: Why can't Shelly travel?
    B: She doesn't have passport.
  8. A: Where does Barbara live?
    B: In apartment on 5th Avenue.
  9. A: Oh no, where is it?
    B: Don't worry, key is in my pocket.
  10. A: I don't understand what this word means.
    B: You need to buy dictionary.

Fill in the article a, an or the where necessary. Choose x where no article is used.

  1. I like blue T-shirt over there better than red one.
  2. Their car does 150 miles hour.
  3. Where's USB drive I lent you last week?
  4. Do you still live in Bristol?
  5. Is your mother working in old office building?
  6. Carol's father works as electrician.
  7. The tomatoes are 99 pence kilo.
  8. What do you usually have for breakfast?
  9. Ben has terrible headache.
  10. After this tour you have whole afternoon free to explore the city.

Decide whether to use the definite article the or not.

  1. My grandmother likes very much.
  2. I love in your garden.
  3. See you on .
  4. I always listen to in the morning.
  5. Alex goes to work by .
  6. Don't be late for .
  7. Listen! Dennis is playing .
  8. We often see our cousins over .
  9. She has never been to before.
  10. What about going to Australia in ?
Homework

1. Learn the topic vocabulary

2. Learn the Grammar: Articles

Activity 3

6 Minute Grammar: Articles

Articles and elephants

What can you learn in 6 minutes? Quite a lot if you listen to 6 Minute Grammar where Rob and Emma talk about articles and Finn talks about elephants in Cambodia.


Transcript
  • Rob
    Hello again. Welcome to 6 Minute Grammar with me, Rob.
  • Emma
    And me, Emma. Hello.
  • Rob
    In today's programme, we're talking about three little words: a, an and the.
  • Emma
    Also known as articles. So let's start by saying hello to Finn.
  • Finn
    Hello.
  • Emma
    And Finn, you're going to tell us about your time in Phnom Penh, which is the capital city of Cambodia. Listen out for the words a, an and the.
  • Finn
    Yes, I was living in a flat near the city centre. I was lucky because every morning I saw an elephant walk past my front door. The elephant was giving rides to tourists. The owner told me that her name was Sambo. I discovered later that she was the only elephant in Phnom Penh. Here's a photo.
    Rob/Emma
    Ahhh...
  • Emma
    And quite a few articles there. We had a flat and a photo...
  • Rob    
    Yes, we use a before singular nouns. A flat and 
    a photo...
  • Emma
    ...but in spoken English it's 'uh' not 'a'.
  • Finn
    I was living in a flat. Here's a photo
  • Emma
    Now, Finn also said he saw an elephant. Not a elephant. An elephant.
  • Rob
    That's because 'elephant' begins with 'e'. We use an, not a, before nouns that begin with 'a', 'e', 'i', 'o' - and most words starting with 'u'. We say an apple, an elephant, an ice-cream, an orange, an uncle.
  • Emma
    But in spoken English, an sounds like 'un'. Finn.
  • Finn
    An apple, an elephant, an ice-cream, an orange, an uncle. 
  • Rob
    Now let's look at the [thuh] and the [thee]. Finn said:
  • Finn
    The elephant was giving rides to tourists...   
  • Emma
    Yes, and it's the elephant because it's the second time he mentions the elephant:
  • Rob
    A first time, and the [thuh] or the [thee] second time. And it's the [thee] not the [thuh] with elephant because elephant starts with 'e'. Finn. 
  • Finn
    I saw an elephant. The elephant was giving rides to tourists.
  • Emma
    Ok ... Now there was another one - the owner. Finn only mentioned the owner once, so why the [strong form] and not an [strong form]?
  • Rob
    Good question, and the answer is: we use the before a person or thing when it's clear exactly which person or thing we're talking about, even if it's the first time. Let's hear it again: 
  • Finn
    The owner told me that her name was Sambo.
  • Emma
    So Finn's talking about the owner of Sambo, not the owner of any unknown elephant.
  • Rob
    Ok, so that's a, an and the. Now let's hear more about elephants. Can you spot the articles in this sentence?
  • Finn
    African elephants are bigger than Indian elephants.             
  • Rob
    Actually there were no articles. Trick question, sorry! There's no article before African elephants and Indian elephants because we're talking about African elephants and Indian elephants in general...
  • Emma
    ...not a specific African or Indian elephant.
  • Rob
    So in Finn's story, he didn't use an article when he talked about tourists in general.
  • Finn
    The elephant was giving rides to tourists.
  • IDENT
    You're listening to BBC Learning English.
  • Emm
    And we're talking about articles.
  • Rob
    And now here are some top tips for using the.
  • Emma
    Tip one. Don't use the before the names of most countries, cities and continents.
  • Rob
    Just say: Saudi Arabia, Warsaw and Europe.
  • Emma
    Tip two: say the with countries with plural names or the words Republic or Kingdom in the name...
  • Rob
    The Maldives, The United Arab Emirates.
  • Emma
    Tip three: use the for the names of rivers, seas, oceans and mountain ranges...
  • Rob
    The Mississippi, The Red Sea, The Andes.
  • Emma
    Tip four: Don't use the before names of single mountains and lakes...
  • Rob
    Mount Kilimanjaro, Lake Titicaca.
  • Emma
    And now it's quiz time. I'm going to say a sentence with or without an article and you have to say if it's correct or wrong. Ready? Number 1: I've got cat.
  • Rob                 
    That's wrong. It should be I've got a cat. Because you need an article before a singular noun when you mention it the first time. Or you can say I've got the cat if it's clear which cat we're talking about.
  • Emma
    Number 2. I'm going on holiday to United States next week. I'm so excited!
  • Rob
    Wrong again. It should be I'm going to the United States next week because it's a plural country name.
  • Emma
    And number 3. I love elephants!
  • Rob
    And that's correct because you're talking about elephants in general, so: no article needed.
  • Emma
    Well done if you got those right.
  • Rob
    There's lots more information about articles on our website at bbclearningenglish.com. Join us again for more 6 Minute Grammar.
  • Both
    Bye.

Exercises
Articles

Decide whether to use the definite article the or not.

  1. Last year we visited and .
  2. is on earth.
  3. is in Scotland.
  4. like .
  5. was hot and dry.
  6. is on the corner of and .
  7. My sister often stays at in Detroit.
  8. Our friends moved to Florida last August.
  9. is a problem in .
  10. Our children go to by .

Decided whether to use the definite article the or not. If you do not need the article, type an x.

Hi John,

I arrived in USA last Monday. We left Rome, flew over Alps and made a quick stop in London. There we went shopping at Harrods, visited Tower and enjoyed a sunny afternoon in Hyde Park. On the following day we left for New York. time on board wasn't boring as there were two films to watch on monitor. people on plane were all Italian. Before we landed at JFK airport, we saw Statue of Liberty, Ellis Island and Empire State Building. hotel I stayed in was on corner of 42nd Street and 5th Avenue. I don't like hotels very much, but I didn't have time to rent an apartment.

Please say hello to Peter and Mandy.

Yours,
Peter

Do you need the definite article the in the following sentences or not? Choose from the dropdown menu.

  1. is Austria's longest river.
  2. Our uncle lives on .
  3. belongs to the Carribean islands.
  4. was dedicated in 1886.
  5. is one of India's most popular attractions.
  6. lies below sea level.
  7. is in Florida.
  8. Aconcagua is outside Asia.
  9. is one of Japan's Three Holy Mountains.
  10. is of .