A Typical Day

This material contains words, phrases and a sample story for your story about your typical day. (Данный материал содержит слова, фразы и образец рассказа для вашего рассказа о вашем типичном дне.)

Time expressions

usually, often, every week

usually; regularly; often; frequently; sometimes; rarely; seldom; never;

every day; every other day (через день); every week; every month; every year;

three times a day; twice a week; once a week; once in a while (изредка; время от времени);

now

now; today; at the moment; at this moment; at present; at the present time;

tomorrow, next week

tomorrow; the day after tomorrow (послезавтра); one of these days (на днях – в буд. вр.);

next week (на следующей неделе – в буд. вр.); next month; next year; next Friday; next spring; next autumn;

in a day or two; in a week; in a year; in five years (через пять лет – в буд. вр.);

a week from now; a year from now; five years from now (через пять лет – в буд. вр.);

soon; quite soon; sometime soon; sometime next week;

yesterday, two days ago, last week

yesterday; the day before yesterday (позавчера); the other day (на днях – в прош. вр.);

last week; last month; last year; last Monday; last winter; last summer;

three years ago; a month ago; a week ago; an hour ago; ten minutes ago;

two days later; a week later; a year later; five years later (через пять лет – в прош. вр.);

at two o'clock, in the morning, for thirty minutes

in the morning; in the afternoon; in the evening;

at noon; at night; at dawn; at midnight; after midnight; tonight;

at eight o'clock; at eleven o'clock; at 9:15; at nine fifteen; at 10:30; at ten thirty; at 7:00 a.m. (at seven ['ei'em]); at 10:00 p.m. (at ten ['pi:'em]);

at nine in the morning; at three in the afternoon; at eight in the evening; at ten at night;

during the day; during the night; during the week; during the weekend;

for ten minutes; for half an hour; for an hour; for three hours; for a day or two; for six days; for a week; for two months; for a year; for fifteen years;

on Monday, in May, in winter

on Sunday; on Friday; on Saturday; on Mondays; on weekdays; on weekends;

in August; in January; in winter; in spring; in summer; in autumn / in the fall;

Dates

(Pronunciation of dates is indicated in parentheses. – Произношение дат указано в скобках.)

on July fifth, on the fifth of July, on July 5th, on July 5 (on July fifth / on the fifth of July);

in 1917 (in nineteen seventeen); in 1980 (in nineteen eighty); in 1995 (in nineteen ninety-five);

in 1906 (in nineteen oh-six); in 1900 (in the year nineteen hundred / in nineteen hundred);

in 2007 (in two thousand seven / in two thousand and seven); in 2000 (in the year two thousand);

in 2010 (in twenty ten / in two thousand ten / in two thousand and ten); in 2015 (in twenty fifteen / in two thousand fifteen);

Today is the third of November. Today is May 6, 2011. (May sixth, twenty eleven / the sixth of May, two thousand eleven)

He was born on January 1, 2004. (on January first, two thousand four / on the first of January, two thousand and four)

Morning

get up at seven o'clock; get up at about nine; wake up around eight in the morning; make the bed;

do morning exercises; do a set of morning exercises; do sit-ups; do knee bends; do push-ups; do pull-ups; run in the park in the morning; work out in the gym three times a week;

take a shower; take a bath; brush my teeth; wash my face; comb my hair; apply make-up; go to the bathroom;

go to the kitchen; make breakfast; cook breakfast; have breakfast; eat breakfast; have tea; drink tea; have coffee; drink coffee; wash the dishes;

a cup of black coffee; coffee with milk and sugar; coffee with cream; a cup of green tea; a cup of tea with lemon; a glass of orange juice; a glass of milk;

have cornflakes with milk and a cup of tea for breakfast; drink a glass of orange juice; eat two boiled eggs and a ham sandwich for breakfast;

get dressed; put on clothes; put on a business suit; put on a pair of jeans and a sweater; put on my coat; leave at 8:30; leave for work at eight in the morning;

Work

my workplace; my office; the place where I work; the company that I work for;

work in an office; work in a bank; work at a bank; work at a factory; work at a hospital; work at a small computer company; work for a newspaper; have a small business of my own;

work as a secretary; work as an engineer; work as a nurse; be a clerk; be a manager; be a salesman; sell cars; design clothes; repair computers;

go to work; drive to work; walk to work; go by bus; go by train; take the subway to work;

not very far from home; quite far from home; it's ten minutes by car; it's a ten-minute drive from home; a twenty-minute walk from where I live;

it takes me an hour to get to my workplace; it takes me about twenty minutes to get there; it takes me about an hour and a half to get there;

work five days a week from nine in the morning till six at night; work from nine to six; I have to work on Saturdays; Sunday is my day off;

work part time; work full time; she has to work overtime;

have a short break for lunch at noon; eat lunch at the nearby cafeteria; I have lunch at my desk;

School

go to school; go to high school; go to business school; go to college; go to the university;

kindergarten, nursery school, elementary school, secondary school, high school; public school, private school;

pupil, student, teacher; classroom, lesson, textbook, homework; do homework; do an exercise; do grammar exercises;

attend school; attend classes; attend a lecture; attend a seminar; attend a conference;

be in the tenth form; be in the tenth grade; be in class; be present, be absent; Who is absent today?

be a student; be a student of law; be a student of economics; be a medical student;

study law; study accounting; study business; study medicine; study English;

study medicine at a school of medicine; study law at a school of law; study accounting at a vocational school (trade school; technical school);

study bookkeeping on the job; have on-the-job training;

I'm studying English at a language school; study English with a private teacher; have English classes twice a week; have classes four times a week;

to graduate from school; drop out of school; quit school;

Free time

free time; spare time; leisure time; pastime; favorite occupation;

go to the cinema; go to the theater; go to the movies; go to a movie; go to a concert; go to a museum; go to an art gallery; go to the park; go to the zoo; go to a party;

go on holiday; go on vacation; be on holiday; be on vacation; go on an excursion (a picnic, a trip); go for a walk (a picnic, a swim, a drive);

take a walk (a trip, a swim, a holiday, a vacation); have a party (a picnic, a walk, a holiday); have a picnic by the river (in the park, on the beach);

go to the summer house in summer; go to a summer camp; go to the seaside; spend summers at the seaside; spend a holiday by the sea; go to the beach; get some tan;

go swimming; go bicycling; go hiking; go skiing; go skating; go horse riding; go boating; go sailing; go hunting; go fishing; go camping; I go bicycling with my friends every Sunday;

listen to music; listen to the radio; watch TV; watch a new film; see a movie; read a book; read a magazine;

play the piano; play the violin; play (the) guitar; play the drums; sing in a school choir; sing songs; sing a song; sing and dance; go dancing;

Hobbies

I like reading; I like music; I like sports; I like basketball; I like swimming; I like parties;

I like to read books; I like to read about dogs; I like to play with my dog; I'm a member of a kennel club; I like to draw pictures of flowers;

I like to travel; I like to visit different countries; I went to Rome last year; I have been to Spain twice; go / travel by plane, by train, by car;

I have a hobby; my hobby is swimming; my hobby is collecting stamps; my hobby is gardening;

my hobby is animals (dogs; cats; butterflies; flowers; books; folk music; etc.); my hobby is taking pictures of animals;

I collect seashells; she collects coins; she has a good collection of coins; he collects rock 'n' roll records;

Sports

play sports; participate in sports; go in for sports; indoor sports; outdoor sports;

play tennis; play basketball; play football; play badminton; play golf; play chess;

play a game of tennis; play a game of chess; play a game of billiards;

do gymnastics; do aerobics; do athletics; do weight lifting; do arm wrestling; do yoga, practice yoga;

go to the swimming pool three times a week; go to the gym twice a week; go to the sports ground;

to exercise, to run, to race, to jump, to swim, to ride, to shoot, to play; to compete, to win, to lose;

sportsman, athlete, gymnast, swimmer, skier, skater, boxer, wrestler, player; contestant, participant, champion, winner;

to take part in a competition (a contest, a championship, a tournament); to participate in a skiing competition;

to win a contest (a competition, a game); to win a swimming competition; to win first prize in a tennis tournament; to win the first game; to lose the second game;

to like sports; be interested in sports; he is interested in sports; go in for sports; go in for tennis;

he is a sports fan; he is a football fan; to go to a football game; to go to a football match;

Sleep

go to bed; go to bed at 11:00; set the alarm clock for 7:00 a.m.; he usually goes to bed at ten;

go to sleep; fall asleep; feel sleepy; be asleep; have eight hours of sleep; sleep well;

to have a dream, to have dreams, to have no dreams; to see something in a dream (in dreams); Sweet dreams!

Sample story: My day

My typical day is very busy. I work part time as an office clerk in a large publishing company, and I go to school after work. I am studying accounting at a business school.

I get up at seven o'clock in the morning. I do morning exercises for ten or fifteen minutes, and then I take a shower. When the weather is good, I sometimes run in the morning. On Sundays I work out in the gym or go to the swimming pool.

Then I go to the kitchen and have breakfast. I usually have a cheese sandwich and a cup of coffee or tea for breakfast. After breakfast I get dressed and leave for work.

I usually go to work by bus. My workplace is not very far from home. It takes me about twenty minutes to get there. Sometimes I walk to work if I have enough time.

From 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. I type letters and invoices, answer the phone, make Xerox copies, and do other work in the office.

I have a short break for lunch at noon. I often eat lunch in the cafe near the office. I usually have a bowl of mushroom soup, green salad, and a cup of tea with lemon. Sometimes I have lunch at my desk.

I finish work at three and go to college. First I go to the college library and study for about two hours. Then I meet with my classmates in the college cafeteria. We have tea or coffee with a piece of pie, talk, discuss things, tell jokes, and laugh a lot.

Classes start at 6:00 p.m. and end at 9:30 p.m. My classes are interesting, but accounting is a difficult subject, so I have to study hard.

When I get home after classes, I am usually very tired. I listen to quiet music, read a book, eat an apple or a banana, and go to bed.

Answer these questions

Do you study or work? What do you do? What business are you in? What are your duties at work?

What school do you go to? What college do you go to?

What were your favorite subjects in school? What is your favorite subject now?

How do you spend your free time? What is your favorite occupation?

Do you like reading? Who is your favorite writer? What kind of books do you like?

Do you like music? What kind of music do you like?

Do you have a hobby? Describe your hobby, please.

How do you stay fit? Do you exercise in the morning? How often do you go to the gym?

Do you participate in sports? What sports do you like?

What sports do you play? What sports are you good at?

What is your favorite food? Do you eat a balanced diet? Do you live a healthy life?

Make up your own story

Make up your own story about your typical day. Use the vocabulary given above.

You can find more words and phrases for your story in the materials About Myself, Family and Relatives and Jobs and Professions in the sections Phrases and Vocabulary.

You can also find related vocabulary and several sample stories in the materials My Hobby, My Free Time and Family and Friends in the section Kids.

It will be useful to listen to some phrases on the topic in Listening: About Myself (1) and Listening: About Myself (2) in the section Phrases.