Houses – B1 English Vocabulary

Houses

In this Intermediate Vocabulary Lesson about Houses, you will learn about different rooms and parts of a house, terms used for describing houses, and verbs related to repair and renovation. Check the pictures below and read the definitions and sentence examples below.

Rooms and parts of a house

1 An attic is a room at the top of a house under the roof.

• I store old clothes and books in the attic.

2 A loft is an open space under the roof of a house, often used as a bedroom or living area.

• She turned the loft into a cozy reading area.

3 A basement is the floor of a house or building which is partly or entirely below ground level.

• There’s a ping pong table and a home cinema projector in our basement.

4 A cellar is a room below ground level in a house used for storage, especially wine or food.

• Grandpa keeps his wine collection in the cellar.

5 A landing is the floor area at the top of a staircase.

• There’s a small table on the landing with a vase of flowers.

6 A shed is a small building used for storage or hobbies, often in a garden.

• Dad keeps his gardening tools in the shed.

7 A porch is a covered area next to the entrance of a house.

• We enjoy sitting on the porch during summer evenings.

8 A patio is an outdoor area next to a house used for eating or relaxing.

• They have a barbecue grill on their patio.

9 A playroom is a room where children can play.

• The kids are playing in the playroom.

10 A study is a room in a house used for work or study.

• He’s reading in the study.

11 A pantry is a small room or closet in a house where food is stored.

• We keep our canned goods in the pantry.

12 A utility room is a room in a house where you keep things such as a washing machine, sink, and cleaning equipment.

• We put the dirty laundry in the utility room.

Describing a house

1 When a house or room is spacious or roomy, it is large in size or area, allowing you to move freely and relax.

• Our new living room is so spacious that we can have a big sofa and a coffee table in it.

2 When a place is cramped, it is very small and does not have enough space for moving around comfortably.

• The old kitchen was cramped; it was too small for a table.

3 A cozy house or room is small, warm, and comfortable, making you feel relaxed.

• The small country house was cozy, with a warm fireplace and soft lighting.

4 A light room has a lot of natural light from the sun, making it bright.

• My bedroom is light and sunny, perfect for reading during the day.

5 When a room is dark, it does not have much light, so it looks shadowy or gloomy.

• The basement is dark, and we need to use extra lights when we go down there.

6 A furnished house or room has furniture like chairs, tables, or beds in it. When there is no furniture, we say it is unfurnished.

• The apartment came furnished, so it already had beds, tables, a sofa, etc.
• Our new apartment is unfurnished, so we need to buy all the furniture.

7 A two-story (or two-storey in the UK) house has two levels or floors. We can also say three-story, four-story, etc.

• We live in a two-story house, with bedrooms upstairs and a living room downstairs.

8 When a house or room is in good condition, it is well maintained and does not have any damage. When a home or room is in bad condition, it is not well maintained and has damage or needs repair.

• Our home is in good condition because we recently painted it and fixed the roof.
• The old house is in bad condition, with broken windows and peeling paint.

9 When a house or building is in a good location, it is in a place that is convenient or desirable, often close to important places like shops or schools.

• Our house is in a good location, close to the school and the grocery store.

Verbs related to repair and renovation

10 When you fix, repair, or mend something that is broken, you work on it so that it is no longer broken.

• I need to fix the broken chair in the dining room.

11 When you decorate or redecorate a room or house, you make it look more attractive by adding things like paint, wallpaper, or ornaments.

• We will decorate our living room with new curtains and a rug.
• She wants to redecorate her bedroom with blue paint and new pictures.

12 When you renovate, refurbish, or do up (UK) a house or room, you make big improvements by repairing and decorating it.

• We are going to renovate the old house to make it look new.
• The hotel has been completely refurbished.

13 When you install or put in something like a fireplace, a piece of equipment, etc., you place it into a house or room so it can be used.

• They will put in a new sink in the kitchen next week.

14 When you insulate a house or room, you add materials to the walls, roof, or floors to improve the heat or noise conditions.

• We should insulate the attic to keep the house warmer in winter.

15 When you do DIY (do it yourself), you do home improvement or repair work by yourself without hiring professionals.

• On the weekend, I’m going to do some DIY and build a bookshelf.

16 When you do housework, you do routine work to keep your house clean and organized, like cleaning, washing dishes, or doing laundry.

• Every Saturday, I do housework like cleaning the floors and dusting.

After completing the exercises in this lesson on Houses, you can use the unit’s Vocabulary Flascards to revise and help you memorize the terms.