37 At home

A

B Moving house

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Hi Freddie, I’m just settling in1 to the new house now and beginning to enjoy it. There were so many things that needed doing in the first few days. I had to chuck away2 some old bits of furniture that belonged to the previous owner, put up3 my bookshelves in the study, smarten up4 the living room with a coat of white paint, wash down the kitchen walls and units, put away all the kitchen things that were still in boxes, mop up5 a pool of oil in the garage, block up6 a suspicious-looking hole that could have been a mouse hole (aargh!) and put all the empty boxes out7 in the rubbish. I thought I’d never finish! As I’m writing this I’ve got the TV on and one of those home-improvement programmes is just about to start. I’m going to switch it off – I can’t take any more! Once I’ve got the place straightened up8, I’ll invite you over for a meal. Love, Abigail

1 becoming relaxed and happy in new surroundings 2 (informal) get rid of something that is not needed any more (also chuck out) 3 fasten a piece of furniture (e.g. shelves, cupboard) to a wall or assemble something 4 make a place (or a person) look tidier 5 use a cloth or a mop to remove a liquid that has been dropped or that has spread 6 fill a hole so that nothing can pass through it 7 (common collocation: put the rubbish out) 8 made tidy

At home

Pull up a chair and come and sit next to me. I want to show you something. [move a piece of furniture (especially a chair) near to something or someone] The last person to leave has to lock up. [lock all the doors and windows of a building when you leave it] We were sorry to part with our old sofa, but our son needed one for his flat. [give something away, usually when you do not want to] Pull/push the door to, will you? It’s cold in here. [only used of doors and windows: close or almost close a door or window by pulling it towards you / pushing it] Here, let me plump up this cushion; then you can rest your head on it and relax. [make something (e.g. cushion, pillow) rounder and softer, especially by shaking it] We’ll have to move those bags and shoes; they’re just cluttering up the hallway. [fill something in an untidy or badly organised way] We’ve had the bedroom done out in pale green. It’s a nice relaxing colour. [decorated (also done up)] This morning I forgot to clear away the breakfast things before leaving the house. [remove in order to make a place tidy] I’m fed up with having to clean up after / clear up after my flatmates. [remove dirt someone has made / make the place tidy by putting things back where they belong]

Tip

Associating a set of phrasal verbs with a place or a situation (e.g. your house or flat) will help you remember them better.

37.1

37.2

37.3

37.4

Look at the pictures and complete the descriptions below with verbs from the opposite page.

1 She’s the breakfast

things. 4 He’s the pillow.

2 She’s the door . 5 He’s a chair.

3 She’s a hole. 6 He’s some spilt milk.

Answer the questions using one of the verbs from A opposite.

1 What do you do with the cups and plates after you have washed them up? 2 What do you do if a child has put greasy fingerprints all over your walls? 3 What do you do if someone spills some juice on your kitchen floor? 4 What should you do with your old newspapers? (give two possible answers) 5 What might you do if you want to display your favourite ornaments in your room? 6 What would you do if you noticed a small hole at the bottom of the wall?

Match the phrasal verbs on the left with their definitions on the right.

1 settle in a) move something nearer 2 do out b) discard 3 pull to c) improve the appearance of something 4 chuck away d) close 5 stop up e) feel at home 6 clutter up f) fill 7 pull up g) decorate 8 smarten up h) make a mess somewhere

Complete these sentences in an appropriate way. Use one of the phrasal verbs from the opposite page and any other words that you need.

1 I didn’t hear you come in because I’d rather loud. 2 My flatmate tends to make a mess when she’s cooking and leaves me to her. 3 When you go to bed, please don’t forget to . 4 The bookcase was too big for our new flat, so we had to . 5 Erica is untidy. There are always lots of things her room. 6 Our hall hasn’t been decorated for years – it’s time we . 7 Living in a student hostel was odd for Khalifa at first, but he soon . 8 If I lay the table, you can after the meal. 9 You’ll make the sofa look more comfortable if you . 10 It took me all day to those wild, crazy kids and get the place again. (Use two phrasal verbs.)