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Lesson 37 / Family & trip
5 phrases · 12 minutes · Look, listen and try.
Looking forward to the vacation, packing and stopping along the way.
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We are going away for the weekend.
We are going away for the weekend.
My family went away to the seaside last summer.
My family went away to the seaside last summer.
The meaning in the lesson is to go away for a while. In other contexts, “go away” can mean disappear.
I am looking forward to our trip.
I am looking forward to our trip.
She looks forward to seeing her cousins.
She looks forward to seeing her cousins.
After “to” is a noun or -ing form: “look forward to seeing”, not “to see”.
Let us pack up our things before breakfast.
Let us pack up our things before breakfast.
We packed the toys up when it was time to leave.
We packed the toys up when it was time to leave.
Used when packing to leave a place or take away.
Cambridge Dictionary · pack up
We stopped off at a cafe on the way to the beach.
We stopped off at a cafe on the way to the beach.
Can we stop off to visit Grandma before going home?
Can we stop off to visit Grandma before going home?
A stop along the way; usually shorter than an overnight stay in a “stop over”.
Cambridge Dictionary · stop off
We stayed up a little later to read with Dad.
We stayed up a little later to read with Dad.
I do not usually stay up late on school nights.
I do not usually stay up late on school nights.
Use before going to bed even though it is at or near bedtime; don't have to stand up.
The examples were written for this course. Usage was checked against Matt Errey’s book, pages 55, 81, 94, 123, 122. A2–B1 is the course’s intended level.
One step forward every day
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Sentences using suggestions are counted as needing more practice. Review schedule based on each phrase's meaning.
OBSERVE · UNDERSTAND · MATCH
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Read the picture descriptions for more context. Similar expressions are accepted when they fit the particular scene.
Bảo and Minh carried suitcases and left home for a vacation.
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Bảo eagerly thought about the upcoming trip to the beach.
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Bảo and Minh packed clothes and toys into a bag.
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Bảo's family stopped by a small restaurant to rest for a while on the journey.
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Bảo read a story with Minh for a while before going to bed.
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Choose a phrase to begin.
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Read the conversation and find the expressions you have learned.
Have you packed up everything for the trip?
Have you packed up everything for the trip?
Yes. Can we stop off at the lake on the way?
Yes. Can we stop off at the lake on the way?
Certainly. I am looking forward to spending time there.
Certainly. I am looking forward to spending time there.
“Pack up” means gather belongings or finish an activity; “stop off” means make a visit during a journey. One concerns preparation, the other a stop en route.
Try answering before revealing the suggested answer. This practice is not scored.
The answers below are models. Other answers can also work if they preserve the facts, meaning and structure requested in the task.
Campers are gathering their belongings. They want a short visit to a waterfall during the drive home.
What do they do with their belongings?
They pack up their belongings before leaving.
The campers gather and pack their possessions before leaving, so they “pack up their belongings”.
Complete: We can stop ___ at the waterfall.
off
A short waterfall visit during the journey is “stop off at”; “off” does not end the whole trip.
Write one sentence expressing anticipation.
I am looking forward to visiting the waterfall on our journey home.
“Look forward to” takes “visiting” because “to” is a preposition; the anticipated event is the waterfall visit.
The usage comparisons are checked against the Cambridge Dictionary entries linked beside the compared expressions. The additional conversations and exercises are written for this course.
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