Learn English with this knick-knacks English lesson

Date: Aug 07 2018

Themes: Hobbies

Grammar: Phrasal Verbs

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Intro

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2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.

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What does your house say about you? Is it clean and clutter free? Or do you have keepsakes and tchotchke filling every space on the wall?

While some people love to keep gifts and decorations, too many knick-knacks drive other people crazy. If your roommate or your partner has covered every inch of your wall with stuff, you might be dying to rip some of it down and lose it.

It’s true that heirlooms are special and should be kept, but it might be good to invite a friend over to pare you down if you have too many items from your favorite vintage shop. There can be too much of a good thing, especially knick-knacks.

Learn how Jessica and Marni like to decorate in today’s English lesson.

Dialog

1. Listen and Read - Listen to the audio and read the dialog at the same time.

2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Marni

Jessica

Marni: Jessica.

Jessica: Yes.

Marni: There is this new vintage store around the corner that I’m dying to check out. I need some new knick-knacks. You want to come with me?

Jessica: I guess so. I hate clutter, though. I don’t need any more decorations for my home.

Marni: Really?

Jessica: Yeah.

Marni: Oh my god. I love a good knick-knack. A little tchotchke. A lot of the ones that I have in my own home are actually hand-me-downs from my grandmother, and so they’re family items.

Jessica: Oh, that’s kind of neat.

Marni: I might call them family heirlooms. But I just love little keepsakes, just little things to really give your house some personality.

Jessica: Absolutely. I’m more of a minimalist, though. I have this motto: “If you don’t use it, lose it.”

Marni: Wow.

Jessica: Yeah.

Marni: Man, you might think my house is kind of junky, then. But I think it’s got a lot of pizzazz.

Jessica: Maybe I’ll have to come over, and we’ll pare you down a bit with your knick-knacks.

Marni: OK, but let’s go to the store and just maybe get a few more first.

Jessica: OK. Just a few minutes.

Grammar Point

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Quizzes

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Lesson MP3

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Discussion

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Marni invites Jessica to go shopping at the new vintage store. Jessica groans. It’s obvious she doesn’t want to go. Jessica likes spending time with Marni, but she doesn’t want to buy any new decorations for her house. To her, extra items are just extra clutter, and she likes to keep her house as empty as possible.

Marni, on the other hand, loves tchotchkes of all kinds. She has a lot of heirlooms and other keepsakes. They’re special to her, and she thinks they make her house exciting.

Jessica strongly disagrees with Marni’s decorating style. She’ll go to the shop with Marni, but she also plans to help Marni throw away some of her knick-knacks.

Do you collect items for your home? What’s the most interesting knick-knack you own?

Comments

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kimnga

Viet Nam

I think I have the same idea with Jessica that I don’t like to keep so many things in my house. However, I love to play with dolls since I was a little girl, so I only keep few of my favorite dolls that my Mom had bought for me until now.