📙 Part 2: Describe a quiet place you like to go

This episode's vocabulary

Stretch out (phrasal verb) – to extend your limbs or body to their full length. → My bedroom has a lot of space to stretch out in after a long day.

Unwind (verb) – to relax after a period of work or tension. → It's a great place to unwind and forget about my worries.

Integral part (collocation) – an essential or necessary part of something. → My bedroom is an integral part of my home; I couldn't imagine the house without it.

On a daily basis (idiom) – every day. → I go to my bedroom on a daily basis, since that's where I sleep.

Stay over (phrasal verb) – to sleep at someone else's house for one night. → I'm almost always in my room unless I'm staying over at a friend's house.

A clear distinction (collocation) – a clear difference between two similar things. → I like to have a clear distinction between my workspace and my rest areas.

Chill out (phrasal verb) – to relax completely, often by doing nothing. → Sometimes it's just nice to chill out on the bed and read a book.

Work your way through (phrasal verb) – to deal with or finish a large or difficult task. → I have a pile of unread books that I'm slowly working my way through.

Have (something) all to myself (phrase) – to not have to share something with anyone else. → I'm glad I have the space all to myself where I can be alone with my thoughts.

Overwhelmed (adjective) – feeling that something is too much to deal with. → When I feel overwhelmed with work, I go to my quiet place to calm down.

Peace and quiet (binomial pair/idiom) – a state of calm and tranquility. → I go to the library when I need some peace and quiet to study.

Stand out (phrasal verb) – to be very noticeable or much better than other similar things or people. → Of all the quiet places I know, my bedroom is the one that stands out the most.

Questions and Answers

Maria: Describe a quiet place you like to go. You should say where it is, how you knew about the place, how often you go there, and what you do there. Also explain how you feel about the place. Rory, give us your story.

Rory: Well, my whole house is pretty quiet, but the place I like to go to the most to relax is definitely my bedroom. In terms of where it is, I think it's on the west side of my house, or at least the end that's furthest away from the front door. Not only that, but it's the second largest room, too. So it's away from the noise outside on the stairs and it's got a lot of space to stretch out in and just unwind. When it comes to how I knew of it, well, it's impossible to miss since it's a pretty integral part of my home. It's right down the main corridor. So I don't have far to go if I ever need to be there. With regards to how often I go there, I'm pretty much there on a daily basis, since my bed is in there, and I almost always sleep there, unless I'm staying over somewhere else. Sometimes during the day, I'll also go there and sit on my bed to work or read. Although I am trying to do that less these days since I like a clear distinction between my work space and my rest areas. But still, it's nice to know I can go there if I need it. To tell you a bit more about what I do there, it's just nice to chill out on the bed sometimes, and it's quite a large one, so it's fairly easy to do that. And I have all my unread books that I'm working my way through next to my bed or on bookshelves. So I can get to them easily enough. And as for how I feel about it, I'm quite glad I have the space all to myself, because I like having a place to go when I feel overwhelmed that's away from people and work. If I didn't have it, I think life would be a bit more stressful and I don't think anybody really wants that, especially in the context of quiet places that we like to go to.