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Lesson 19 / Family
5 phrases · 12 minutes · Look, listen and try.
Tells about growing up, taking care of relatives and reunions.
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A randomly assigned, fixed male or female synthetic voice for each phrase or sentence · Slow playback at 0.7× preserves pitch.
I grew up in a small town near the sea.
I grew up in a small town near the sea.
Children grow up so quickly.
Children grow up so quickly.
There is no object in this usage. The past tense of “grow” is “grew”.
Cambridge Dictionary · grow up
Her grandparents brought her up.
Her grandparents brought her up.
It takes patience to bring up children.
It takes patience to bring up children.
The meaning here is to raise; Different from "bring up a topic" which is stating the topic. The past is “brought”.
Cambridge Dictionary · bring up
Can you look after the children for an hour?
Can you look after the children for an hour?
I look after the plants next door when my neighbours travel.
I look after the plants next door when my neighbours travel.
Do not separate the phrase: “look after them”. Use on people, pets or items that need care.
Our family gets together every New Year.
Our family gets together every New Year.
Let us get together for lunch next week.
Let us get together for lunch next week.
Emphasis on people meeting at the same time, usually to chat or do an activity.
You can count on me if you need help.
You can count on me if you need help.
I count on my brother to pick me up on time.
I count on my brother to pick me up on time.
Here it means believing that that person or thing is trustworthy, not counting by numbers.
The examples were written for this course. Usage was checked against Matt Errey’s book, pages 58, 15, 81, 53, 29. A2–B1 is the course’s intended level.
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OBSERVE · UNDERSTAND · MATCH
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Read the picture descriptions for more context. Similar expressions are accepted when they fit the particular scene.
Mây looks at an album with pictures showing a child gradually growing into an adult.
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Minh cares for Mây and helps her with homework at home, showing an adult bringing up a child.
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Mây takes care of the baby and holds the baby's hand while playing.
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Family members gather around a table to share a meal.
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Mây received help from her trusted relatives while carrying a heavy box.
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Choose a phrase to begin.
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Read the conversation and find the expressions you have learned.
Did you grow up near your grandparents?
Did you grow up near your grandparents?
Yes. They helped bring me up while my parents worked.
Yes. They helped bring me up while my parents worked.
It is lovely that you still get together every month.
It is lovely that you still get together every month.
“Grow up” describes a person becoming older; “bring up” describes someone raising that person. Choose the subject according to what you want to emphasise.
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.
A woman spent her childhood by the sea. Her uncle and aunt raised her there.
Describe her childhood place using grow up.
She grew up by the sea.
The woman is the person who grew up, so say “she grew up”; “grew” is the past of “grow”.
Correct: Her aunt brought up her there.
Her aunt brought her up there.
“Her” is the child being raised and goes between “brought” and “up”, not after the whole expression.
Write one sentence distinguishing the two perspectives.
She grew up by the sea, where her aunt helped bring her up.
“She grew up” makes the child the subject; the aunt is the person who helped “bring her up”.
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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