10 words
- accommodationnoun/uh-kom-uh-DAY-shun/
a place to live or stay
Finding cheap accommodation near the university is difficult.
Collocation: rented accommodation · Similar: housing, lodging
- landlordnoun/LAND-lawd/
a person who owns a property and rents it out
Our landlord increased the rent again this year.
Collocation: a private landlord · Similar: property owner, lessor
- tenantnoun/TEN-unt/
a person who pays rent to live in a property
Each tenant must pay rent by the fifth of the month.
Collocation: a new tenant · Similar: renter, occupant
- spaciousadjective/SPAY-shus/
having lots of room inside
The living room is spacious enough for a big sofa.
Collocation: a spacious living room · Similar: roomy, large
- suburbsnoun/SUB-urbz/
residential areas on the edge of a city
Many families now live in the suburbs and commute to work.
Collocation: live in the suburbs · Similar: outskirts, residential areas
- mortgagenoun/MAW-gij/
a loan from a bank to buy a house
They took out a mortgage to buy their first flat.
Collocation: pay off a mortgage · Similar: home loan
- neighbourhoodnoun/NAY-buh-hood/
the area around your house and the people there
I feel safe walking around my neighbourhood at night.
Collocation: a friendly neighbourhood · Similar: area, locality, community
- renovateverb/REN-uh-vayt/
to repair and improve an old building
They plan to renovate the old kitchen this year.
Collocation: renovate a house · Similar: refurbish, do up
- crampedadjective/KRAMPT/
too small for the people or things inside
Six of us shared a cramped two-room flat.
Collocation: cramped conditions · Similar: crowded, poky
- affordableadjective/uh-FAW-duh-bul/
cheap enough for ordinary people to pay for
Rent in the city centre is rarely affordable for students.
Collocation: affordable housing · Similar: reasonably priced, inexpensive
Grammar check
Choose the right option, then open the answer.
1. The house ___ we grew up in has been sold.
who · which · where · whose
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which: Which refers to a thing. Where does not work here because the clause already ends with 'in'.
2. This flat is ___ than the one we saw yesterday.
more spacious · spaciouser · most spacious · the more spacious
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more spacious: Long adjectives use more + adjective + than to compare two things.
3. We ___ in this flat since we got married.
live · lived · have lived · are living
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have lived: Present perfect with since for a situation that continues up to now.
4. The building ___ in 1950 and still looks great.
built · has built · is building · was built
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was built: Past passive: was + past participle. The building did not build itself.
5. If I won the lottery, I ___ a house by the sea.
will buy · would buy · bought · buy
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would buy: Second conditional for an unreal situation: if + past simple, would + verb.
Use the words: speaking questions
- Do you live in a house or a flat? What do you like about it?
- Describe your ideal home. You should say where it would be, what it would look like, and why you would like to live there.
- What are the advantages of living in the city centre compared with the suburbs?
Answer them out loud with Dodo in the app for a band and better versions of your answers.