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14A Grammar

Talk about your last holiday

Unit 14

I CAN use the past simple to tell a travel story
I CAN describe a past trip

Grammar

10 cards

To talk about a holiday that already finished, we use the past simple. The verb tells us the action is in the past, not now.

With regular verbs, we add -ed to the verb: visit → visited, stay → stayed, walk → walked. Some regular verbs change spelling: travel → travelled (double l in British English).

With irregular verbs, the word changes completely. You must learn these: go → went, have → had, see → saw, eat → ate, take → took, is → was, are → were.

Look at the pattern in affirmative sentences:

Subject	Verb (past)	Example
I / You / We / They	visited	We visited Rome.
He / She / It	visited	She visited the museum.
I / You / We / They	went	They went to Spain.
He / She / It	went	He went to the beach.

In the past simple, the verb is the same for every subject — there is no -s on He visited (NOT He visits). For negatives and questions, we use did**:

Negative: I didn't go / She didn't visit
Question: Did* you have a good trip? / Where did you go*?

Watch the word order: did + subject + base verb. After did, the verb goes back to its base form — did you go (NOT did you **went). The same rule is true in short answers: Yes, I did / No, I **didn't.

Generating translation…

Last summer, I went to Italy with my family.

A model sentence in the past simple. Notice the irregular verb went.

We visited three cities and stayed in a small hotel.

Two regular verbs: visit → visited and stay → stayed.

Required

Look at the two sentences above. In the past simple, does the verb change after 'he' or 'she'?

Required

Complete the sentence: 'Last year, she ___ to Paris for her holiday.'

goes
went
go

Required

We ___ (visit) the museum on Saturday.

Required

I ___ (have) a great time on holiday.

Required

Put the words in order to make a question.

Did
you
go
to
the
beach

Drag the correct past-tense verb into each sentence.

Required

'Did you went to the beach yesterday?' — Is this sentence correct?

Listening

5 cards

You are going to listen to a real conversation between two friends, Emma and Tom. They meet at a coffee shop and start talking about their last holidays. Listen first for the general idea (gist), then for specific information, and finally for exact details.

Before you listen, think: What do people usually say about a holiday? They talk about the place, the hotel, the food, the weather, and the journey. Listen for these things in the dialogue.

After the conversation, you will answer three questions — first about the general idea, then about a specific fact, and finally about one small detail. Listen carefully and do not worry if you miss a word the first time.

Generating translation…

Emma and Tom are at a coffee shop. They start talking about their last holidays.

E
Emma Hi Tom! How was your holiday?
T
Tom It was great, thanks! I went to Greece with my sister.
E
Emma Oh, lovely! Where did you stay?
T
Tom We stayed in a small hotel near the beach. The room was very clean.
E
Emma That sounds nice. Did you have good weather?
T
Tom Yes, it was sunny every day. We went swimming in the sea every morning.
E
Emma I went to the mountains last week. I visited my grandmother in Scotland.
T
Tom Did you have a good time?
E
Emma Yes, I had a wonderful time. I ate fish and chips every day!

Required

What is the conversation mainly about?

Tom's new job
Their last holidays
A coffee shop menu

Required

Tom stayed in a big hotel in the city centre.

Required

Emma visited her ___ in Scotland.

Pronunciation

6 cards

In British English, regular past-tense verbs all end in -ed in writing, but the ending has three different sounds when you speak. Listen carefully.

Sound	How to make it	Example verbs
/t/	No voice. Air comes out sharply. The tongue touches the top of the mouth, then releases.	walked, stopped, watched
/d/	Voice is on. The tongue touches the top of the mouth and vibrates.	played, lived, travelled
/ɪd/	A full extra syllable — say id slowly.	visited, wanted, needed

Rule to remember:

After the sounds /p/, /k/, /f/, /θ/, /s/, /ʃ/, /tʃ/ → say /t/: walked, watch**ed, stopped**.
After /t/ or /d/ → add the full /ɪd/: visited, need**ed, wanted**.
After all other sounds (vowels and voiced consonants like /l/, /n/, /g/, /b/, /m/) → say /d/: played, live**d, travelled, arrive**d.

The good news: irregular verbs (went, had, saw, ate) have their own sound — you just have to learn them one by one. The /d/ sound is the most common ending, so listen for the voice in played and lived.

Generating translation…

Practice the three sounds: • /t/ — no voice, like a small 't' at the end: walked, watched, stopped. • /d/ — voice on, your throat vibrates: played, lived, travelled. • /ɪd/ — a full extra syllable 'id': visited, wanted, needed.

Tip: put your hand on your throat. For /t/, you feel nothing. For /d/ and /ɪd/, you feel vibration.

Required

Listen. Does the verb end in /t/ or /d/?

/t/ (like 'walked')
/d/ (like 'lived')

Required

Say the word. The ending is /t/ — no voice in your throat.

walked

Required

Say the word. The ending is a full syllable: vis-it-id.

visited

Required

Read the sentence aloud. The verb travelled ends in /d/ — your voice is on.

I travelled to Spain last summer.

Reading

6 cards

In this section, you will read a short message from a friend called Sara. She is writing about her holiday in Spain.

Strategy — Skimming: When you read a text the first time, do not read every word. Move your eyes quickly over the text and look only for the main idea: Who? Where? When?. The details come later. Read the message once quickly, then read it again more slowly to find the answers.

Key words in the message (pre-taught):

last (adjective) — the one before this one (last week = the week before now)
for (preposition) — how long (for five days)
with (preposition) — together with (with my parents)
because (conjunction) — the reason (because the weather was nice)

Generating translation…

Sara's holiday in Spain

Hi everyone!

I want to tell you about my last holiday. I went to Spain with my parents. We travelled by plane, and the flight was only three hours. We stayed in a small hotel near the beach for five days.

The weather was wonderful — sunny and hot every day. We went swimming in the sea every morning. In the afternoon, we visited a beautiful old town and ate paella in a small restaurant. The food was delicious!

I bought a small souvenir for my brother. It was a key ring with a picture of the beach. We took lots of photos, and I had a great time. I want to go back next year!

Love, Sara

Generating translation…

Required

What is Sara's message mainly about?

Her new job in Spain
Her last holiday in Spain
Her school in Spain

Required

Sara travelled to Spain by train.

Required

Sara stayed in Spain for five days.

Required

What did Sara buy as a souvenir?

A key ring
A postcard
A T-shirt

Speaking

7 cards

Now it is your turn to talk about a holiday. Use these phrases to help you. Read each one, then practise saying it in a clear, friendly voice.

English (UK)	When to use it
I went to ___	to say the place
I stayed in ___	to say the hotel or place you slept
I visited ___	to say a place you went to see
The weather was ___	to describe sunny, hot, cold, rainy...
I had a great / wonderful time.	to finish your story in a positive way
Did you ___?	to ask your friend a question

A good holiday story has a beginning (I went to...), a middle (I visited... I ate...), and an end (I had a great time). Keep it short, speak slowly, and smile — your listener will enjoy it!

Generating translation…

A short model conversation. Listen and read the bubbles.

E
Emma Hi Tom! How was your holiday?
T
Tom It was great! I went to Italy.
E
Emma Oh, lovely! Where did you stay?
T
Tom I stayed in a small hotel near the beach. I had a wonderful time.

I went to Greece with my family. I had a wonderful time.

Your model sentence. Begin your story with I went to... and finish with I had a wonderful time.

Required

Read the sentence aloud. Use a clear, friendly voice.

I went to Spain last summer.

Required

Read the sentence aloud. Finish your story positively.

I visited the old town and I had a great time.

Required

You are at a coffee shop with your friend Tom. He asks about your last holiday. Answer his questions and tell him about your trip: where you went, where you stayed, and one thing you did. Use past simple verbs (went, stayed, visited, had). When you finish, ask Tom about his holiday too.

Required

I CAN use the past simple to tell a travel story
I CAN describe a past trip using words like flight, hotel, beach, suitcase, passport, and souvenir
I CAN ask and answer questions about a holiday (Where did you go? Where did you stay?)
I CAN say regular and irregular past-tense verbs correctly

Vocabulary

6 cards

When you talk about a holiday, you use some special words. These words help you describe where you went, how you travelled, and what you did. Learn these eight words first, and your stories will be much easier to tell.

Look at the table. Each word has a small gloss in Arabic to help you understand it, and one example sentence showing the word in a real holiday story.

Word	Type	Example sentence
flight	noun	My flight to Paris was on Monday morning.
hotel	noun	We stayed in a small hotel near the beach.
beach	noun	The beach was very clean and quiet.
suitcase	noun	I packed my suitcase the night before.
passport	noun	Don't forget your passport at home!
souvenir	noun	I bought a small souvenir for my mum.
trip	noun	The trip lasted five days.
journey	noun	The journey from London to Rome was long.

Notice the difference between trip and journey: a trip is the whole holiday, and a journey is the travelling from one place to another. You take a flight, you stay in a hotel, and you buy a souvenir. These verbs will help you in the next section.

Try to read each example sentence out loud. Say the new word clearly, and think about the picture in your head: the airport, the sand, the bag, the small gift you bring home.

Generating translation…

Meet the eight key words for talking about a holiday. Read each word and its example.

beach biːtʃ
An area of sand or small stones beside the sea or a lake where people go to relax or play.
flight flaɪt
A journey made by air, especially in an aircraft. Also refers to the act or process of flying through the air.
hotel
a building where travelers pay to sleep.
journey ˈdʒɜːni
A journey is a long trip from one place to another, especially when you travel a considerable distance.
passport ˈpɑːspɔːt
An official document issued by a government that proves your identity and citizenship, allowing you to travel
souvenir ˌsuːvəˈnɪə
An object kept as a reminder of a place, event, or experience; a memento or keepsake.
suitcase ˈsuːtkeɪs
A rectangular container with a handle, used for carrying clothes and personal belongings when traveling.
trip trɪp
A journey to a place, usually for a short period of time and often for pleasure or a specific purpose.