Vocabulary builder course level 1

Vocabulary Builder Course Level 1:
Introduction
Hello and welcome to the course!
You’re going to learn hundreds of useful English vocabulary words in these
lessons. Each lesson has four parts:
• Video – watch the video to learn the words (or read the text under it)
• Pronunciation Practice – listen to and repeat words from the lesson
• Quiz or Exercise – take the quiz or download the worksheet to
practice the vocabulary
• Vocabulary Practice – questions to help you use the words in YOUR
English! (you can send me your answers at
and I'll correct them)
You can access your course online anytime by logging in here:
/>Username: your e-mail address
Password: the password you chose when you registered
(or use the “Forgot password” link to set a new one)
I hope you enjoy the Vocabulary Builder!
Your teacher,
Shayna
EspressoEnglish.net

© Shayna Oliveira 2014 - EspressoEnglish.net


Lesson List
Lesson 1 – Around the House
Lesson 2 – All about Money
Lesson 3 – Clothes
Lesson 4 – Shopping
Lesson 5 – Food & Drink
Lesson 6 – Restaurants

Lesson 7 – Cars & Driving
Lesson 8 – Public Transportation
Lesson 9 – Body & Health
Lesson 10 – Work & Employment
Lesson 11 – School & Studying
Lesson 12 – Phones & Computers
Lesson 13 – Sports & Hobbies
Lesson 14 – TV & Movies
Lesson 15 – Books, Art, & Music
Lesson 16 – Action Verbs with the Body
Lesson 17 – Lifecycle
Lesson 18 – Family, Friends, & Relationships
Lesson 19 – Personality & Character
Lesson 20 – Emotions
Lesson 21 – Travel
Lesson 22 – Vacation Activities
Lesson 23 – Nature & Natural Disasters
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Lesson 24 – Animals: Part 1
Lesson 25 – Animals: Part 2
Lesson 26 – Politics & Elections
Lesson 27 – News & Media
Lesson 28 – Crime and Punishment
Lesson 29 – Religion
Lesson 30 – Essential Concepts

© Shayna Oliveira 2014 - EspressoEnglish.net

Lesson 1: Around the House
In today's lesson, we're going to go through a house, learning vocabulary for
the different objects in each room AND the different actions you can do there.
You'll also learn the difference between "house" and "home."

Bedroom
Let's begin with the bedroom. The bed is the place where you sleep probably with pillows, sheets, and blankets. In this photo, there is a lamp
next to the bed. The lamp is on top of a nightstand or night table.

You keep your clothes in a closet - on hangers - or in a dresser - inside the
drawers.

© Shayna Oliveira 2014 - EspressoEnglish.net


closet

hangers

a dresser with five drawers
At night, you go to bed or go to sleep – and in the morning, you wake up
(maybe with an alarm clock). Try to answer these questions now:
•

•

What time do you go to bed?
I go to bed at _____________.
What time do you wake up?

I wake up at _____________.

© Shayna Oliveira 2014 - EspressoEnglish.net


Bathroom
Now we'll learn about the bathroom. In the bathroom, you can brush your
teeth using a toothbrush and toothpaste. Most people use the sink to brush
their teeth, and you can see yourself in the mirror.

In the bathroom, you can also take a shower or take a bath in the bathtub.
You use shampoo and conditioner to wash your hair, and soap to wash your
body. Then you use a towel to dry off. Of course, you can also use the toilet –
and don’t forget to flush the toilet after you’re finished!

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towels

toilet

Try to complete these sentences now:
•
•

I brush my teeth ________ times a day.
I take a shower ________ times a week.

Kitchen

Time to go into the kitchen. In the kitchen, you can
cook – prepare food for eating. When talking about a
specific meal, we usually use the verb make – make
breakfast, make lunch, and make dinner.
You can keep food cold in the refrigerator (or
“fridge” for short) - and food that needs to be VERY
cold – like ice cream – is kept in the freezer.
Other foods are kept inside cabinets or on a shelf
(the plural is shelves). You can prepare food on the
counter, cook food on the stove or in the oven - and
heat it up in the microwave.

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There are many objects in the kitchen, but the most common are pots, pans,
bowls, plates, forks, spoons, and knives. (For more kitchen vocabulary, see
this lesson).

pot

pan

fork, spoon, and knife
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Living Room
The living room is where people relax and spend time with friends and
family. There's a couch or sofa to sit on – you can also sit on a chair. There’s a

bookcase and a window. The floor can be covered by a carpet or rug.

couch / sofa

chair

bookcase

Structure of the House
Finally, let's go through the hallway and out the door, so we can see the
outside of the house. The vertical part is called a wall, the bottom is the floor,
and the top is the ceiling. The word ceiling refers to the interior part, and the
word roof refers to the exterior part.

© Shayna Oliveira 2014 - EspressoEnglish.net


hallway

door

Some houses have a basement that is underground, and an attic to store
things. And you can park your car in the garage.

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House or Home?
Let's finish this lesson with the difference between house and home. A house
is a specific type of building. A house is a physical thing, but the word home is

more of an emotional idea - it means the place where you live, and where you
have a special emotional attachment - where you feel comfortable, safe, and
happy. Your "home" can be a house, an apartment, or another type of
structure.
In English, we often use the word “house” when talking about the building
itself (for example, “I live in a small house”), and “home” with the verb “go”
and the preposition “at.” For example, you can say, “I was at home last night” –
or when you leave work, you can say, “Bye everyone. I’m going home.”
You learned a LOT of words in today’s lesson – now try the exercises to
practice the vocabulary.

Pronunciation Practice
bedroom, bed, pillows, sheets, blankets, lamp, closet, hangers, dresser,
drawers, go to bed, go to sleep, wake up, alarm clock, bathroom, brush your
teeth, toothbrush, toothpaste, sink, mirror, take a shower, take a bath,
bathtub, shampoo, conditioner, soap, towel, toilet, flush the toilet, kitchen,
cook, refrigerator, fridge, freezer, cabinets, shelf, counter, stove, oven,
microwave, pots, pans, bowl, plate, fork, knife, spoon, living room, couch, sofa,
chair, bookcase, window, carpet, rug, hallway, door, wall, floor, ceiling, roof,
basement, attic, garage

© Shayna Oliveira 2014 - EspressoEnglish.net


Quiz – Lesson 1
1. Categorize these words into the bedroom, the bathroom, and the kitchen:

alarm clock
bed
blanket

dresser
fork

Bedroom

fridge
mirror
oven
pillow
plate

Bathroom

pot
soap
sheet
shower
sink

spoon
stove
toilet
toothbrush
towel

Kitchen

© Shayna Oliveira 2014 - EspressoEnglish.net

2. Label the diagram with these words:
attic / basement / ceiling / door / garage / floor / roof / wall / window

Vocabulary Practice
Describe your house and each room. Whenever possible, use the vocabulary
words from this lesson. You can also use prepositions of location, for example:
"I have two pillows on my bed." "There is a closet next to the door." "In my
bathroom, there are two shelves above the sink."
Send me your text at and I’ll correct it!

© Shayna Oliveira 2014 - EspressoEnglish.net


Quiz Answers:
Bedroom
alarm clock
bed
blanket
dresser
pillow
sheet

Bathroom
mirror
soap
shower
sink
toilet
toothbrush
towel

Kitchen
fork
fridge
oven
plate
pot
spoon
stove
(the kitchen also has a
sink, too!)

© Shayna Oliveira 2014 - EspressoEnglish.net


Lesson 2: Money
Verbs with Money
Let’s start by reviewing some of the different verbs you can use with money:
• earn money = Receive money from doing work.
Ex. At my job, I earn $1000 per month.
• spend money = Use money to pay for things.
Ex. I spent $300 on repairs to my car.
• save money = Keep money to buy something in the future. We often use
save up for… + the object you are planning to buy.
Ex. I’m saving up for a new bike. / I’m saving up for a vacation.
Try to complete these sentences now. You can give approximate answers –
and you can use your country’s own currency instead of “dollars”:
•
•
•

•

Every month, I earn _____________ dollars.
Every month, I spend ______________ dollars.
Every month, I save ______________ dollars.
I’m currently saving up for _____________________.

Earning & Saving Money
The general money you receive for doing your job is called your salary. Every
week, every two weeks, or every month, the regular payment you receive
from your job is called your paycheck. Some jobs include extra payments for
good work, or at the end of the year – called a bonus.
You can keep your money in a bank account. There are three main types of
bank accounts:
▪

Checking - This is an account where you can keep your money and
write checks to make payments. Checking accounts are usually used for
day-to-day spending.

© Shayna Oliveira 2014 - EspressoEnglish.net


▪

Savings - This is an account for keeping money for a long time. You can
save money for a car or a house. Savings accounts usually
earn interest – that’s a small percentage of extra money that the bank
gives you.

▪

Investment - This type of account puts your money into the stock
market (companies in the general economy). There is some risk,
because you might get a lot more money if the economy grows… but you
might also lose money if the economy goes bad.

Every month, you receive a statement (a document with a list of all the
activity in your account) in the mail or online. The statement will show your
transactions (events in which money was received and spent) and your
balance (the current amount of money in your account).

When you put money into your bank account, you are making a deposit – and
the opposite, taking money out of your bank account, is making a withdrawal.
You can make both deposits and withdrawals at a machine called an ATM.

© Shayna Oliveira 2014 - EspressoEnglish.net


Finally, let’s learn some words for economic class. If you have a lot of money,
then you are rich or wealthy. If you have an average amount of money, then
you are middle-class. If you have very little money, then you are poor.
Complete this sentence now:
• I am… (rich / middle-class / poor).

Spending Money
There are two types of money:
• Paper money is called bills. This is a $10 bill.

• Metal money is called coins. This is a 1-cent coin.

Both bills and coins are called cash. You can also pay for something in other
ways besides cash – like with a check, a credit card, or a debit card.
If something costs a lot of money, we say it is expensive. If something is too
expensive for you, then you can say “I can’t afford it” – this phrase means, “I
don’t have enough money to pay for it.”

© Shayna Oliveira 2014 - EspressoEnglish.net


Now, do you know what the opposite of “expensive” is? Something that costs
little money is inexpensive or cheap. If something is a low price and good
value, you can say “That’s a good deal” or “That’s a bargain.”
In addition to using your money to buy things, you can also donate (give)
money to charity – a non-profit organization (like the Red Cross, for example)
that helps people, animals, or the environment.
People who like to share and give their money can be called generous – and
the opposite, people who like to keep all their money for themselves, can be
called selfish or stingy.

Borrowing & Lending Money
Another thing you can do with money is to lend or borrow it. These words
are opposites: The word lend means to give someone money temporarily. The
word borrow means to receive money temporarily.
Imagine you want to buy a car, but you don’t have enough money. You can
borrow $10,000 from the bank. The bank lends you $10,000. The amount of
money you borrow is called a loan.

Now you owe $10,000 to the bank (the verb “owe” means you need to pay it
back). You can pay the money back to the bank in installments – for example,

$200 per month – plus interest (again, that’s a small percentage of extra
money).

© Shayna Oliveira 2014 - EspressoEnglish.net


You’ve finished Lesson 2! Now continue to the exercises to practice the
vocabulary you’ve learned.

Pronunciation Practice:
earn, spend, save, salary, paycheck, bonus, bank account, checking account,
savings account, interest, investment account, stock market, statement,
transactions, balance, deposit, withdrawal, ATM, rich, wealthy, middle-class,
poor, bills, coins, cash, check, credit card, debit card, expensive, I can't afford
it, inexpensive, cheap, That's a good deal, That's a bargain, donate, charity,
generous, selfish, stingy, lend, borrow, loan, owe, installments

© Shayna Oliveira 2014 - EspressoEnglish.net


Quiz – Lesson 2
1) I just bought a new car, and now I have very little money left in my
___________.
A. savings account
B. statement
C. stock market
2) My grandfather was very _______. He had to work three jobs to sustain his
family.
A. expensive
B. poor

C. selfish
3) I don't have enough money for a taxi. Could you ________ me $15? I'll pay you
back tomorrow.
A. borrow
B. lend
C. owe
4) We got a good _______ on plane tickets to Miami - they're normally $500, but
we got them for $350.
A. afford
B. bill
C. deal
5) I made a $50 donation to a local _________ that rescues abandoned dogs and
cats.
A. account
B. bargain
C. charity

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6) It's my lucky day! I found a $20 _______ in the street!
A. bill
B. bonus
C. cash
7) Many banks charge an extra fee for __________ performed outside your home
country.
A. installments
B. paychecks
C. transactions
8) My company ________ my salary directly into my checking account.

A. deposits
B. earns
C. lends
9) My roommate's really ________. He always eats my food, but he doesn't help
pay for it.
A. expensive
B. middle-class
C. stingy
10) The economy is growing - it's a great time to ________ in the stock market.
A. deposit
B. invest
C. withdraw
11) The houses along the beach are very expensive; a lot of __________ people
live there.
A. generous
B. selfish
C. wealthy

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12) We couldn't afford to buy our apartment in cash, so we took out a $50,000
________ from the bank.
A. bill
B. check
C. loan
13) You can buy ________ clothes on Market Street - I just got two T-shirts for $5
each.
A. charity
B. cheap

C. poor
14) We're __________ $500 per month on restaurants - I think we need to stop
eating out so much.
A. affording
B. borrowing
C. spending
15) My husband is _________ up for a motorcycle - he hopes to buy one next
year.
A. checking
B. earning
C. saving
The quiz answers are at the end of the lesson.

© Shayna Oliveira 2014 - EspressoEnglish.net


Vocabulary Practice
Answer these questions – either speaking out loud to yourself, or writing your
answers and sending them to me at Whenever
possible, use the vocabulary words from this lesson.
1. On which day of the month do you receive your paycheck?

2. What kinds of bank accounts do you have?

3. What items do you usually spend a lot of money on?

4. Do you invest in the stock market? Do you think investing in the
stock market is a good or bad idea?

5. When was the last time you made a deposit?

6. When was the last time you made a withdrawal?

7. Where is the closest ATM to your house?

8. How many bills and coins do you have in your wallet right now?

9. Do you usually pay for things in cash, or do you use a check, credit
card, or debit card?

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10. What's something that you would like to buy, but you can't afford it
at the moment?

11. What's the most expensive thing you own?

12. When was the last time you bought something cheap?

13. Do you donate to charity? Which charity do you (or would you like
to) support?

14. Have you ever borrowed money, or lent someone else money?

15. Who is the most generous person you know?

Quiz Answers:
1.A 2.B 3.B 4.C 5.C 6.A 7.C 8.A 9.C 10.B 11.C 12.C 13.B 14.C 15.C

© Shayna Oliveira 2014 - EspressoEnglish.net


Lesson 3: Clothes
Get ready to learn a LOT of vocabulary for clothes! You probably already know
some of these words – but we’re going to go beyond the basics, so I’m sure
you’ll learn a number of new words as well.
Let’s start with the various parts of a shirt. Some shirts have a collar around
your neck, and buttons in the front.

The parts of the shirt that cover your arms are called the sleeves. You can
have a long-sleeved shirt, a short-sleeved shirt, or a sleeveless shirt:

Complete this sentence now: “I’m wearing a _______________________________ shirt.”
(long-sleeved / short-sleeved / sleeveless)

© Shayna Oliveira 2014 - EspressoEnglish.net