English Listening Exercises for B2 – Sibling rivalry

(Possible answers)

1   She behaved like an angel.

2   He was energetic and noisy.

3   ‘Why can’t you be more like your sister?’

4   He sometimes hated her.

5   When he got better at school and people stopped comparing them.

Transcript

Ella, my sister, was born with big blue eyes and golden curls. She looked like an angel, and she behaved like one too. This was not good news for me. I was an energetic, noisy child. I wasn’t particularly naughty – I was just a typical boy. But anyone would seem naughty compared to my sister! All I heard was ‘Why can’t you be more like your sister?’ and I hated it – and I hated her sometimes. It wasn’t her fault, of course. She was lovely and she adored me, but sometimes I pushed her away. Later, when I got better at school, things improved and we became good friends. People stopped comparing us then. She’s still lovely and she still adores me, but now I think she’s great too!

1 c   2 a   3 b

1   My sister was born with big, blue (w)eyes. 1

2   She looked like (k)an (n)angel. 2

3   This was no(t) good news for me. 3

4   Sometimes I pushed her (r)away. 3

5   Later, when I go(t) better. 4

6   Now I thin(k) she’s grea(t) too. 3

Transcript

1   My sister was born with big, blue (w)eyes.

2   She looked like (k)an (n)angel.

3   This was no(t) good news for me.

4   Sometimes I pushed her (r)away.

5   Later, when I go(t) better at school …

6   Now I thin(k) she’s grea(t) too.

Transcript

See exercise 3.

1 b   2 b   3 c

Transcript

1

Jake   I don’t think you should hang out with Luke so much, Sam. He’s not a nice guy and I don’t think he’s a good friend to have.

Sam   Luke’s fun! Why are you always commenting on my friends? You don’t like any of them!

Jake   That’s not true! I like Jonathan and Charlie.

Sam   That’s because they’re your friends too! Why can’t I have some of my own friends?

Jake   You can and you do! Plenty of them. But I just think Luke’s a bit of a bad influence on you. He’ll get you into trouble very soon.

Sam   You’re always acting the older brother and it’s so annoying.

Jake   That’s cos I am the older brother and I’m looking out for you!

Sam   Well, thanks, but I don’t need it. I’m old enough to make my own decisions now and I can choose my own friends.

Jake   Fine, whatever. Look, I’m just warning you. Have some sense. Be careful and don’t go along with all of Luke’s stupid ideas.

Sam   OK, OK. I know what you mean. He does do some stupid things, but I don’t think he’s bad, just silly. He makes me laugh.

Jake   OK, fine, maybe he’s OK. But you look after him, then. Sounds like he needs it!

2

I’m one of six and I had the bad luck to be born in the middle. I’ve got two much older brothers who were born only a year apart and have always been best friends. And I have two younger brothers and a sister, and they’re triplets! You can imagine what my mum thought when the doctor told her the news! I was two and a half when the triplets were born and I think it was a real problem for me. I was still just a baby myself. My poor mum and dad tried to spend time with me, but they were exhausted looking after the triplets. And my brothers were usually somewhere else doing something I couldn’t do. It’s not that they didn’t like me, they were just doing their own thing. So I was really happy when my grandma came to live with us. She became my second mum and did everything with me that my mum wasn’t able to do. Grandma was the one who taught me how to ride a bike, tie my shoelaces, and took me to school on the first day – that sort of thing. We’re so close now, I don’t know what I’d do without her.

3

Interviewer   What was it like with you girls as teenagers? Did you get along?

Linda   Well, not all the time, isn’t that right, Cathy?

Cathy   That’s right, Linda. We’ve always been close and we got on well as children, but we had problems when it came to sharing a room!

Linda   Yes! When our parents divorced, we went to live in a smaller house with our mum and we had to share a bedroom again.

Cathy   I was seventeen and Linda was fifteen and we had a lot of stuff for one small room.

Linda   You had a lot of stuff, Cathy! And you never put it away!

Cathy   It’s true that I wasn’t particularly tidy then.

Linda   You were extremely messy!!!

Cathy   True. And I didn’t realise how messy I was and how much it bothered my little sister, until one day I was sunbathing in the back garden and all my clothes came floating out of the upstairs window.

Linda   Yes, I’m afraid I threw all my sister’s things that were on the floor out of the window. The garden was covered with them!

Cathy   I ran upstairs and we had an argument, but I did try to be tidier after that.

Linda   You did. And the funny thing is, that when we studied at university, we chose to share a flat together! And you’re quite tidy now, aren’t you?

Cathy   Yep, fortunately I’ve improved since then!

1   You’re always acting the yolder brother and i(t)’s so annoying.

2   That’s cos I yam the yolder brother ran I’m looking ou(t) for you.

3   You can nimagine wha(t) my mum though(t) when the doctor told her the news!

4   I was two wand da half when the triplets were born an I think i(t) was a real problem for me.

5   One day yI was sunbathing gin the ba(ck) garden nand dall my clothes came floating gout tof the yupstairs window.

6   I ran nupstairs and we had dan nargument, but tI did try to be tidier rafter that.