In this lesson, you’ll learn useful words, phrases and idioms which you can use when talking about your goals.
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Conversation practice - New Year’s Eve
- How did you spend this New Year's Eve? How did you spend last New Year's Eve?
- Are there any New Year's Eve traditions or superstitions in your country e.g. settling debts (Reading practice: read an article about popular New Year’s Superstitions here)
- Do you think fireworks are ethical? Do you know how they affect domestic and wild animals? (Reading practice: read an article about fireworks here)
- Do you know any alternatives to fireworks?
- Have you ever heard of or seen a laser light show?
- Where did you go for Christmas last year?
- Are you looking forward to anything specific this year?
USEFUL INFO
Formal ‘I look forward + verb + ing’
Informal ‘I’m looking forward + verb + ing’
Learn more about when to use ‘look forward’ and ‘looking forward’ from Neil Collins’ video:
Intro exercise
Use those phrases when you describe your goals and New Year’s Resolutions. Match the phrases to their definitions.
cut down/back on sth
to stop doing something completely e.g. a bad habit
cut sth out
to reduce how much you do or use something
put sth off
to delay something; to do it later than planned
get into the habit of
to start doing something regularly
break/kick the habit
to remove something from your life completely
Theory
Clips
Fill in the gaps with correct phrases and watch the clips to check your answers.
Clip A
“One of the simplest ways to … (reduce) the spread of germs is to use something called the vampire cough.”
“Did you say vampire?”
“Oh, no, it’s just that, if a vampire had to cough, he would do it like this.”
“Other things you can do to help … (reduce) the spread of disease are to wash your hands regularly, don’t come in if you’re sick, and get your flu shot. Also, I’m going to set up hand-sanitising stations.”
Clip B
“I have things to do. I’ve … this … (delay) far too long. I regret to announce this is the end! I’m going now. Goodbye.”
Clip C
“We all have habits we’d like to … (stop) Whether it’s biting your fingernails, smoking or eating late at night. But why are these habits so hard to … (stop)?
Clip D
“Whenever I remember, what I try to do is to … (start a habit) of just rephrasing how I’m feeling the difficulty, the struggle of what I’m going through into something positive that I’m hoping for instead. So instead of saying something like ‘I’m afraid that I’m not going to make the deadline for this assignment’ I could rephrase it to ‘I hope I can finish this assignment on time’.
Clip E
“Rachel, did you just light that?”
“Yeah, but you know what? I’m just really trying to … … (smoke less), you know? Good luck, Rach.”
“I’ve actually been thinking about quitting lately.”
“Oh well, sure. Every Sunday night, I tell myself I’m quitting. Every Monday morning it’s like…”
“Tell me about it.”
Practise those phrases by doing exercises below:
Exercise 1
Exercise 2
‘Goal’ phrases - B2
Intro exercise
Read the text below and guess the meaning of the underlined phrases.
At the beginning of the year, I decided to set a goal to improve my health. My short-term goal was to exercise three times a week, while my long-term goal was to run a half-marathon. I knew I had to stick to my goal, even on days when I felt tired or unmotivated.
It was important for me to choose an achievable goal, so I made sure it was realistic for my schedule. In the past, I sometimes chose an unrealistic goal, like training every single day, and I quickly gave up. This time, I stayed consistent and finally managed to achieve my goal. It felt amazing to accomplish a goal that I had worked towards for months.
Theory
REAL-LIFE EXAMPLES
1. Watch this clip from The Office you’ll hear those phrases - ‘stick to sth’ and ‘make a resolution to do sth’.
2. Watch this clip from Lord of the rings Two Towers in which Galadriel says that the ring is close to achieving its goal of returning to Sauron.
3. Watch this video about Setting and achieving goals.
Practise those phrases by doing this exercise:
Exercise 3
Let’s practise all phrases you’ve learnt so far.
Exercise 4
Useful idioms - B2+
Use those advanced idioms to describe behaviour related to achieving goals.
Practise those idioms by doing this exercise:
Exercise 5
Let’s practice all phrases and idioms we’ve learnt so far!
Exercise 6
Exercise 7
Exercise 8
That was a lot of work! Good job! 🥳 Here’s your treat 😊
Exercise 9
Check out all the words you’ve learnt!
