Useful Vocabulary
Birth |
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| pregnant pregnancy |
A woman becomes pregnant. We say she's pregnant. She's having a baby. We call also call it a pregnancy. |
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| antenatal |
She goes to an antenatal clinic for check ups. Antenatal means "before birth", it's also called prenatal.
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| labour | Eventually she starts to have the baby. We call this going into labour. |
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birth newborn |
When the baby arrives we say the mother has given birth. The baby is called a newborn baby. |
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| baby | We also say the parents have had a baby. |
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milk breastmilk |
Babies drink milk. They can be breast fed. |
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| bottle | They can be bottle fed. |
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| nappy | Babies have to have their nappy changed. |
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| certificate | All babies are registered at birth, and issued with a birth certificate. |
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| baptism / christening | Some babies are baptised / christened by their parents. The ceremony is called a christening or a baptism. |
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| pram | Babies can't walk so they get pushed in prams. |
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| pushchair | When babies are older they go for walks in pushchairs. |
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| adopt | If someone can't have children they may adopt a child who is in need of a family. |
| Growing Up - The stages of childhood | ||
baby |
Between 1 to 12 months you are a baby, an infant, or a girl / boy. |
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| toddler | Between the ages of 1 to 3 years, when you start to walk, you are a toddler, or a girl / boy. |
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| preschooler child kid |
Between the ages of 3 to 5 years you are a
preschooler, a child, a kid, or a girl / boy. |
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| schoolchild schoolgirl schoolboy |
Between the ages of 5 to 10 years
you are a child, a schoolchild / schoolgirl / schoolboy, or a girl / boy. |
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| preteen | Between the ages of 11 to 12 years
you are a preteen, a schoolchild / schoolgirl / schoolboy, a child, or a girl / boy. |
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teenager teen |
Between the ages of 13 to 19 years you are a teenager. |
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| man woman |
From the age of 18 you are legally an adult, or a man / woman. This is the age at which you can get married without having to ask your parents (called parental consent). |
| Growing Old | ||
graduate (v) graduate (n) |
When you are an adult you might graduate from University. Then you become a post graduate. |
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work job |
When you are an adult you need to work and get a job. |
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marriage married partner |
When you are an adult you might get married. |
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| family parent |
When you're an adult you might have a family and become a parent. |
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| housewife househusband |
When you're an adult you might decide to stay at home to look after your family. Then you become a housewife or a househusband. |
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retire pensioner |
When you are 65 you can retire. Then you become a pensioner. |
| Death and dying | ||
die dead death |
When you die you pass away and you are dead. You become known as the deceased. |
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undertaker coffin funeral burial |
Your body is taken to an undertakers and placed in a coffin. Then your family and friends hold a ceremony - a funeral or burial |
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grave buried |
You are buried in a grave. |
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| mausoleum | You may end up in a mausoleum |
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| wreath | People send a wreath. |
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will heir(s) inheritance
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Hopefully your wrote a will before you died. A will tells your executor about how you want your belongings to be shared between your heirs. This is their inheritance.. |
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| orphan | If both your parents die when you're still young, you are an orphan. |
Pronunciation Click here
Build Up
- Irregular Plurals for People - You can't always just add an (s)
| Singular | Plural |
|---|---|
| child | children |
| man | men |
| person | people |
| woman | women |
Naturally Speaking
Things we say / write:-
| About the birth of a baby. | Congratulations! Congratulations on the birth of your baby girl / boy. |
|---|---|
| About a graduation. | Congratulations! Congratulations on graduating. |
| About a wedding. |
Congratulations! Best wishes on your marriage. |
| About retirement. |
Congratulations! Congratulations on your retirement. |
About a death. |
I'm sorry for your loss. When you hear someone has died you offer your condolences to the family and friends of the person. Sometimes there is an orbituary printed in the paper. Please accept my sincere condolences. |
Dialogue
Here is a conversation between Mr Smith and his doctor
| It's Saturday morning and Mr Smith is reading the newspaper. | |
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| Mrs Smith : | Anything interesting in the paper? |
| Mr Smith: | Not much. I was just reading the announcements. |
| Mrs Smith: | That's a bit morbid. |
| Mr Smith: | Not at all, it's births and marriages as well as deaths. But I did read one of the oribituaries. It seems that the old lady down the road passed away. |
| Mrs Smith: | Really? That's a shame. I know she went to hospital, but I hadn't heard any more. I shall have to phone up and offer my condolences. |
| Mr Smith: | Rather you than me. I never know what to say in those circumstances. |
Games and Tests for this Vocabulary Unit
All these games and tests open in a new window.
Crossword
Hangman
Life or Death - Columns
Rumble in the Jumble - Life and Death
Word Search