Exercise 1
People are talking about problems with their apartments. What problems do they describe? Listen and circle the correct answer.
Listen
1. a. The walls are too thin.
b. The TV reception is poor.
2. a. The neighbor is noisy.
b. The roof leaks.
3. a. The garbage is picked up too early.
b. The hallways are too dark.
4. a. There are too many ads in the mailboxes.
b. The are too many salespeople.
5. a. The kitchen appliances are too old.
b. The bathroom appliances are too old.
6. a. The neighbor is noisy.
b. The neighbor’s dog makes a mess.
Answer & Transcript
1.
My apartment’s nice, but the walls are too thin. I can hear my neighbors all the time, even when they’re asleep. One of them really snores.
2.
My neighbor is driving me crazy. I don’t know what she’s up to, but she’s always banging or hammering something late at night.
3.
Would you believe that the garbage trucks pick up the trash at 5 a.m.? Last week, I had to run outside in my pajamas and throw the garbage onto the truck as it was passing by! They should come a little later.
4.
I’m tired of having people ringing my doorbell at dinnertime. It’s gotten to the point where I don’t even like answering the door anymore. It seems like someone’s always trying to sell me something.
5.
I really need the landlord to look at my kitchen. It needs a new stove and a new refrigerator. The ones I’ve got are so old they don’t even work anymore.
6.
My neighbor’s really a sweet old man. But I can’t stand his dog. It messes up my garden all the time.
Exercise 2
Listen
Task 1
A person is talking about problems with an apartment. Listen and write the correct letter in the chart.
|
Problems |
|
|
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. |
…. …. …. …. …. …. |
Task 2
Listen again. What is the problem with each item? Circle the correct answer.
1. a. It really needs cleaning.
b. It really needs painting.
c. It really needs replacing.
2. a. It’s much too big.
b. The smell is horrible.
c. The color is horrible.
3. a. It doesn’t work.
b. It’s too dangerous.
c. It isn’t the right color.
4. a. It doesn’t open easily.
b. It’s falling off.
c. It needs a new coat of paint.
5. a. It isn’t very comfortable.
b. It’s really worn thin.
c. It makes a noise when you sit down.
6. a. The screen is too small.
b. It doesn’t make any sound.
c. The reception is very bad.
Answer & Transcript
1.
Well, to start with, look at the wall underneath the window. Water must have come in sometime and stained it. It really needs painting.
2.
And this carpet is awful. It’s old and stained, and the color’s horrible. We’ve got to ask the landlord for a new one.
3.
I think that switch is broken – the one for the lamp next to the sofa. Try it. It doesn’t work.
4.
Look! This door is falling off! It’s so loose! It really needs to be fixed.
5.
This sofa needs recovering, doesn’t it? I mean, it’s really worn thin. I wonder if we can get the landlord to recover it. There’s nothing wrong with it apart from that.
6.
I think the TV needs fixing, too. The reception is very bad, so I guess we’d have to put up a bigger antenna. Say, do we really want this apartment?
Exercise 3
Listen
Task 1
People are complaining to their landlord. What problem does each person have? Listen and circle the correct answer.
1. a. The are too many ads in the mailboxes.
b. There are too many salespeople.
c. The neighbors are noisy.
2. a. The kitchen is dirty.
b. The living room needs painting.
c. The walls are too thin.
3. a. The window is broken.
b. The TV reception is poor.
c. The neighbors are noisy.
4. a. The roof leaks.
b. The kitchen needs repainting.
c. The refrigerator is too old.
5. a. The faucet leaks.
b. The roof leaks.
c. The neighbors are noisy.
6. a. The sofa needs replacing.
b. The curtains are worn out.
c. The walls are too thin.
Task 2
Listen again. Does the landlord agree to help the people? Check the correct answer.
|
|
Agrees |
Doesn’t agree |
|
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. |
◻ ◻ ◻ ◻ ◻ ◻ |
◻ ◻ ◻ ◻ ◻ ◻ |
Answer & Transcript
1.
A: I’m tired of the ads we get all the time in our mailboxes. Could you put a sign in the lobby that says “No Flyers”? I’m tired of having all this junk mail stuffed into my mailbox.
B: Oh, I know. It’s a real nuisance. That’s a good idea. You know, I’ve been meaning to do that for a long time. I’ll get one today.
2.
A: I’m afraid the living room really needs painting. It’s been several years since we moved in, and the apartment looks really dirty. Do you think you could get it painted?
B: No, I don’t have time right now. But you’re welcome to paint it yourself if you want to.
3
A: I’m having trouble with the neighbor’s children. They play their music at all hours of the night. It’s terrible. Can you tell them to stop?
B: Oh, they’re really very nice kids. They’ve only done it a few times. I don’t think it’s worth getting upset about.
4.
A: I was wondering if I could get a new refrigerator in the kitchen. The one I’ve got is very old and just doesn’t keep things old.
B: Yes, it is pretty old. I’ll get a new one for you next month.
5.
A: I think the faucet in the bathroom needs fixing. It leaks all the time. All it does is drip, drip, drip all night. It’s driving me insane!
B: Okay. I’ll get someone to come and have a look at it.
6.
A: The curtains in the living room are really worn out. Do you think you could get us some new ones?
B: Oh, those belonged to the people who were there before you. The apartment doesn’t come with curtains. I’m afraid you’ll have to get your own.
Exercise 4
People are complaining about their apartments. What problem does each apartment have? Listen and circle the correct answer.
Listen
1. a. The kitchen is too hot.
b. The kitchen is too small.
c. The appliances are old.
2. a. The bathroom is too small.
b. The toilet is dirty.
c. The toilet is noisy.
3. a. The TV reception is poor.
b. The TV is too small.
c. There isn’t an antenna.
4. a. The walls are too thin.
b. The CD player is broken.
c. The neighbor’s TV is too loud.
5. a. The neighbors are noisy.
b. The neighborhood is dirty.
c. The roof leaks.
Answer & Transcript
1 b 2 c 3 a 4 a 5 b
Transcript
1.
This apartment is driving me crazy! The kitchen is much too small. It has new appliances, which is nice, but there’s no room for me!
2.
My bathroom is the worst. Look how old everything is. The toilet looks like it was put in about 100 years ago. And lately it’s been making this horrible noise.
3.
I just bought a TV, but I can’t get a single channel on it. The reception in this building is terrible! I think there’s something wrong with the antenna on the roof.
4.
Did you hear that? It’s my neighbor listening to music again. The walls in this apartment are so thin. They’re like paper. I can’t sleep because of all this noise.
5.
My new apartment is really big and cheap, but the neighborhood is the worst. There are no supermarkets, no restaurants, no bookstores-and the garbage is never picked up. There’s trash all over the sidewalks!
Exercise 5
People are complaining to their landlord. Does the landlord agree to help the people? Listen and check the correct answer.
Listen
1. ◻ agrees
◻ doesn’t agree
2. ◻ agrees
◻ doesn’t agree
3. ◻ agrees
◻ doesn’t agree
4. ◻ agrees
◻ doesn’t agree
5. ◻ agrees
◻ doesn’t agree
Answer & Transcript
1 agrees
2 doesn’t agree
3 agrees
4 agrees
5 doesn’t agree
Transcript
1.
A: Can you help me, Mr. Roberts? The windows in my apartment are really old, and a lot of cold air comes in. Do you think you could replace them?
B: Of course. I’ll send someone up right away.
2.
A: I was wondering if you could do something about repainting the bathroom. The color is pretty bad.
B: Oh! Well, I’m sorry, but I can’t help you there.
3.
A: Mr. Roberts, the light switch in the living room doesn’t work. It’s a real problem when I come home from work at night.
B: That is a real problem. I’ll fix it today.
4.
A: Could you take a look at the bathroom, Mr. Roberts? All of the faucets are leaky.
B: Well, that’s pretty serious. I’ll call a plumber right now and have him fix it tomorrow morning.
5.
A: The living room couch is really worn out. And it’s very dirty, too. When can you replace it?
B: Actually, that couch belonged to the people who were there before you. If you want a new one, you’ll have to get your own.
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