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Lesson 96 / Home & everyday tasks
5 phrases · 12 minutes · Look, listen and try.
Lift objects, inspect low spaces and deal with small household tasks.
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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.
Lift up the basket so I can wipe the table.
Lift up the basket so I can wipe the table.
She lifted the lid up to see what was inside.
She lifted the lid up to see what was inside.
This describes an upward lifting movement. Put a pronoun in the middle: “lift it up”.
Cambridge Dictionary · lift up
I knelt down to look under the low shelf.
I knelt down to look under the low shelf.
Please kneel down on the soft mat.
Please kneel down on the soft mat.
The past form can be “knelt” or “kneeled”. Kneeling is different from sitting on a chair.
Cambridge Dictionary · kneel down
Small leaves can block up the drain.
Small leaves can block up the drain.
The pipe was blocked up with dirt.
The pipe was blocked up with dirt.
Here an obstruction prevents water from flowing, rather than simply closing a door.
Shut off the water before checking the pipe.
Shut off the water before checking the pipe.
They shut the power off before the work began.
They shut the power off before the work began.
This emphasises stopping a supply. The past form is also “shut”; the scene shows an adult operating a water valve.
We can send out for sandwiches after finishing the work.
We can send out for sandwiches after finishing the work.
They sent out for lunch instead of cooking.
They sent out for lunch instead of cooking.
This three-word phrase is often used for food ordered for delivery. Keep both “out for”; the past form of “send” is “sent”.
The examples were written for this course. Usage was checked against Matt Errey’s book, pages 79, 73, 12, 116, 114. A2–B1 is the course’s intended level.
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Sentences using suggestions are counted as needing more practice. Review schedule based on each phrase's meaning.
OBSERVE · UNDERSTAND · MATCH
Drag a wire from the dot beside a phrase to the dot beside its matching picture. You can also tap a phrase, then a picture. Drag again to change a pair before checking.
Read the picture descriptions for more context. Similar expressions are accepted when they fit the particular scene.
Minh uses both hands to lift a light basket off the table so he can clean underneath.
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Minh kneels on one knee on a floor pad to look into an open low cupboard.
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Minh observes leaves and small debris obstructing the drain opening, causing water to collect in the basin.
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Minh turns the valve on an outdoor water-supply pipe to stop the water before checking the basin.
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After the household jobs, Minh orders food by phone; a small later inset shows a courier bringing food boxes to the door.
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Choose a phrase to begin.
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Read the conversation and find the expressions you have learned.
Could you lift up that box while I clean underneath?
Could you lift up that box while I clean underneath?
Yes. You may need to kneel down to reach the corner.
Yes. You may need to kneel down to reach the corner.
Afterwards we should check what is blocking up the drain.
Afterwards we should check what is blocking up the drain.
“Lift up” raises a person or object; “kneel down” lowers your body onto your knees. The first may take an object; the second describes the subject’s posture.
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 cleaner raises a box while a colleague lowers onto her knees to reach a dusty corner.
Describe the cleaner’s action with the box.
He lifts up the box.
The cleaner “lifts up the box”, unlike the colleague lowering herself to kneel.
Complete: Kneel ___ carefully to reach the corner.
down
“Kneel down” lowers the helper to reach the low corner, rather than stand up.
Write a clear instruction to the helper.
Please lift the box up while I clean the floor beneath it.
“While I clean beneath it” explains lifting the box: it creates access to the floor underneath.
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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