What you will learn
Вы научитесь называть бытовые дела естественными сочетаниями, а не переводить каждый глагол отдельно.
Match the action to what changes
Put things in their proper place.
Remove dirt after use.
Finish a regular household job.
Give food or water.
Read a flatmate chore board
Monday — Nina: do the laundry; water the plants. Tuesday — Ben: vacuum the floor; take out the rubbish. Every morning: make your bed. After dinner: wash the dishes. Before guests arrive: tidy the living room.
English stores many everyday actions as collocations: words that normally occur together. Learn do the laundry as one unit. Make the laundry is understandable, but it is not the natural combination.
Four useful verb families
Do often names a complete task: do the laundry, do the shopping, do the housework. Make creates a result: make the bed, make dinner. Wash / clean / vacuum name the cleaning method: wash the dishes, clean the bathroom, vacuum the carpet. Take out / put away describe movement: take out the rubbish, put away the clothes.
Frequency and timing
Use every day / every week for a schedule, usually / sometimes / never for frequency, and before / after to connect the task to another event.
- I usually do the laundry on Saturday.
- We wash the dishes after dinner.
- Please take out the rubbish before you leave.
Common traps
Say make the bed, not do the bed. Say do the laundry, not wash the laundry when you mean the whole task. Say wash the dishes or do the dishes; both are natural.
The easiest way to remember chores is to connect each phrase to a visible result: a made bed, clean dishes, an empty bin or watered plants.
Try it yourself
Write four sentences about chores in your home. Use four different verb-and-noun combinations and add a real time or frequency phrase to at least two sentences.
Check: Did you write complete combinations such as make the bed and do the laundry?