Fluency Game Flashcards
You see someone in the elevator who’s trying to untie the wires of his headphones. You think its funny because you do that a lot too. You say this.
Don’t you hate how those cords always get tangled up?
Your son asks if some yogurt that’s in your refrigerator is too old to eat. You’re not sure. You say this.
I don’t know, sweetie. Check the expiration date.
You’re a college student. Your grades haven’t been very high, but now you want to get better grades so that you can graduate with honors. You’re talking to your academic advisor. You say this.
Hopefully I can bring my GPA up to at least a 3.0 this semester.
At work, a member of another department suggests a change. You think it’s a good suggestion, but you can’t agree to it because you don’t have the power to make the change. One of your bosses will need to agree to it. You say this.
It’s not up to me; I’m way too far down on the totem pole.
When you come home, there are a lot of dry cleaning bags hanging in the closet. You wonder why your husband cleaned so many things. You ask this.
What’s with all the dry cleaning?
You work as a waiter. There’s a new waiter at the restaurant. Today’s a really busy day, so you want to make sure that she’s OK. You ask this.
You hangin’ in there?
You just moved to a new apartment and need to get a new desk. Your friend suggests that you try to buy one used through the Internet. You’d rather buy a new one because it’s easier. You say this.
I don’t have time to haggle with someone over the price of a piece of furniture!
You’re on an airplane that is about to land soon. The flight attendant is making announcement. She says this.
Seat backs and tray tables must be placed in their upright and locked positions.
You’re shopping for a new computer at an electronics store. After asking a salesperson a few questions, you say this because you’re ready to buy the computer that he recommends.
OK. Well, I’ll take it.
You’re buying a new computer at an electronics store. You’ve told the salesperson which computer you want to buy, and then he asks you this.
That comes with a 90-day warranty. Would you like to purchase an extended two-year warranty?
You recently quit your job. You’re talking to a friend about it. You told him that you could move back in with your parents if you can’t find a new job soon. But you don’t want to do that, so you say this.
Hopefully it won’t come to that.
You’ve quit your job. You’re talking about it with a friend, who’s worried about you. But you’re not worried. This is how you explain why.
Worst case scenario, I can always move back in with my folks.
You’re talking to a guy at a party. He speaks with a normal American English accent, so you think that he grew up in the U.S. But you’re curious what country his parents or other ancestors came from. You ask this.
Do you mind if I ask what your ethnic background is?
You have a big research paper due for school in 2 days, and you’re worried that you won’t be able to make the deadline. You’re complaining to one of your classmates who you’re working with. You’ve just listed two problems that are making it hard for you to finish your paper and conclude by saying this.
To make matters worse, one of the books I need is checked out.
You’re on vacation with your daughter. You were supposed to return home, but your flight was cancelled because of weather. Now you have to stay for another day. You’ve rescheduled your flight and there’s nothing else you can do, so you say this.
We might as well make the most of it.
One of your company’s competitors is expanding and hiring a lot of new employees. You think that’s a bad idea because the economy is bad now. You’re discussing it with your boss at lunch. You say this.
That seems pretty risky, given the current economic climate.
You’re at a Christmas party. You’re dressed up as Santa Claus. You see your girlfriend, so you walk up and ask her this.
Have you been naughty or nice this year?
You’re presenting awards at a company-wide end of year party. You have to call out someone’s name that’s written down, but the spelling is very tricky. You don’t think you’ll be able to pronounce the name correctly. Before saying the name, you say this.
I know I’m going to mangle this…
Your daughter is crying because she doesn’t like what you cooked for dinner. She wants pizza instead. You’re angry that she’s not satisfied with the meal you cooked. You say this.
You’re acting like a spoiled brat!
You’re going to apply to a school in the U.S. You’re reading the rules for applying on the school’s website. This sentence is on the page.
Please note that all applications must be accompanied by two letters of recommendation.
You’re in your car driving and talking to your friend on the telephone. She comments that she hears a siren in the background. You explain that you’re driving through an area with a lot of crime.
I’m driving through a rough part of town.
You and your family are going to move to another city in a couple months. You haven’t fully planned how you’re going to move all your stuff yet, but you have an idea. You’re having dinner with your wife, you say this to introduce the topic of how to move your stuff.
You know, I’ve been thinking about the move.
You and your family are planning to move to another city in 2 months. You haven’t fully planned how you’re going to move all your stuff yet, but you have an idea. While you’re having dinner with your wife, you brought up the topic of the move. Now you make this suggestion:
What if we rented a moving van instead of hiring someone?
Your friend lost his job. You’re talking with him about it and having a drink together. You say this to cheer him up.
Think of this as an opportunity.
Your friend just lost his job. You’re having a drink with him and talking to him about it. You say this because you want to encourage him.
Look on the bright side. You’ve still got your health and your family.
You’re talking on the phone with your friend and you hear a loud noise from his phone that sounds like a police car. You say this about the noise.
I hear some kind of siren in the background.
You and your husband don’t have any plans to do anything for Halloween. You were just going to stay home. But your husband sees a costume that he wants to buy while you’re out shopping together. You don’t think he should buy it because it’s a waste of money, so you say this.
There’s no point in buying a costume if you’re not even going to wear it out.
You have been working on a project for a few months at work, and it’s almost finished. Your coworker just told you that a high-level director in the company wants to change part of the project, which means that you will have to re-do several weeks of work. You say this because you’re annoyed that the work you did won’t be used in the final project.
So the work we did was all for nothing?
You have been working on a project for a few months at work, and it’s almost finished. Your coworker just told you that a high-level director in the company wants to change part of the project, which means that you will have to re-do several weeks of work. You’re annoyed and you can’t believe this is happening. You say this in frustration.
Seriously?
You have a twenty-dollar bill, but you need 20 one-dollar bills instead. You go to a bank and ask the teller this.
Can I get change for a twenty?
A customer at your part-time job asks you for change for a $20 bill. You want to know if they need 20 one-dollar bills, two ten-dollar bills, four five-dollar bills, or some other combination. You ask this.
Do you want that all in ones?
You voted in a political election today. You didn’t know who many of the people on the ballot were. Now you’re talking with a friend about the situation.
I didn’t even know who any of the candidates were in most of the races.
You’re talking to a friend about Facebook. You are trying not to use it. This is how you explain why.
It’s such a waste of time.
You work at a software company, and need to hire a new programmer. You’ve been searching for several months but haven’t had any luck. You’re telling a friend who’s in a different industry about your problem
You’d be surprised how hard it is to find qualified programmers.
Your friend works at a software company and needs to hire a programmer. She’s been searching for someone for a few months, but hasn’t found any qualified people. You want to know how she’s been looking for candidates, so you ask this.
Are you going through a recruitment agency?
You need to hire a software programmer at your company. You don’t want to hire a young programmer who’s just out of school. You want to hire someone who’s created similar software in the past. You say this to explain what kind of employee you need.
We need someone with real hands-on experience.
You’re working on a school project and need to buy some supplies for it. Your partner on the project offers to buy the supplies. You want to pay half of the cost, so you tell him this.
Just keep track of how much you’re spending and I’ll pay you back.
You’re working on a school project with a group of other students. You are going out to pick up some supplies. You want the other group members to work on something while you are gone. You say this after you offer to go to buy the supplies.
Meanwhile, can you guys decide on the theme?
You chose not to move to Hollywood to follow your dream of being an actor. Your friend asks you this many years later.
Do you ever think ‘what if’?
You hear a commercial for chocolate chip cookies. This is their claim.
If you like chocolate, you’ll love Tollhouse double chocolate chip cookies.
Your friend asked you to pass her a book. You say this as you hand it to her.
There you go.
A website is explaining the benefits of owning your own business. This is what it says.
You get to pick and choose when you work.
You invited your friend to a party where she didn’t know anyone, and now she’s complaining that you didn’t talk to her enough. You feel like you spent a lot of time with her and are angry that she’s complaining. You say this in frustration.
I went out of my way to make sure you were comfortable.
You’re a teenager and you stayed out late the night before without calling your parents to tell them. They were angry and yelled at you. The next day at school, you tell your friends this.
I got yelled at for not calling.
You are suspected of a crime and have to tell the police exactly what you did on a certain night. You offer this as your alibi.
I drove directly home after leaving work.
You usually stop by the supermarket or the gym after work before coming home. But yesterday you wanted to get home earlier because you are hooked on a TV show that you’ve been watching on DVD. You tell this to your friend.
I went straight home after work.
A co-worker told you that another co-worker is leaving the company and taking a new job somewhere else. You want to talk to the person who’s leaving to say goodbye. You start the conversation by saying this to her.
So, I heard you’re leaving us.
You want to renew the lease on your apartment. Your husband has sent an email to the landlord, but you don’t know if she responded to him yet. You ask him this.
Have you heard back about the lease yet?
You are helping a person log in to a website account. He has entered his login name and password, but the screen just turns white and nothing happens. You want this person to re-load the page, so you tell him this.
You might have to refresh your browser.
You are at a meeting for the homeowners’ association for your neighborhood. You have made a suggestion to raise the homeowner’s fee, but the other members immediately started making noises and complaining before you could explain your reasons for raising it. You want everyone to listen to your reasons first before deciding, so you say this.
Hold on. Just hear me out first.
You’re cleaning your house because you’re having guests over this weekend. Your husband isn’t helping you. You’re annoyed, so you ask for help this way.
Excuse me, I could use a little help…