English Listening Exercises for B2 – Can I ask ___ ?

1. a   Read the DJ’s introduction to the radio programme. Listen and complete the fans’ questions.

American rock singer Curtis Philips is on a concert tour of Europe. Unfortunately, he’s ill, so he can’t be on the programme today. But his manager, Vera Galata, is here to answer your questions about Curtis. So let’s have the first question.

1) What time __does he get up?……

2) _________ any sports?

3) _________ to Europe before?

4) _________ a girlfriend?

5) _________ a new album?

6) _________ his own songs?

7) _________ at the moment?

8) _________ well again soon?

b   Listen again. Are the statements true (✓) or false (✗)?

1) Curtis usually gets up at about eight o’clock.

2) He doesn’t play ice hockey.

3) This is his first visit to Europe.

4) He split up with his girlfriend a week ago.

5) He’s going to start recording a new album in July.

6) Vera’s brother writes all Curtis’s songs.

7) Curtis is probably watching TV at the moment.

8) A lot of people have bought tickets for his concerts.

Show answers

a

2) Does he play   6) Does he write

3) Has he been   7) What is he doing

4) Has he got   8) Will he be

5) When is he going to record

b

1) ✓ 2) ✗ 3) ✗ 4) ✗ 5) ✓ 6) ✗  7) ✗ 8)

Transcript

Girl 1 What time does he get up?

Vera  Curtis usually gets up at about eight o’clock.

Boy 1 Does he play any sports?

Vera  Yes, he plays tennis, baseball and ice hockey.

Girl 2 Has he been to Europe before?

Vera  Yes, he has. He was here two years ago.

Girl 3 Has he got a girlfriend?

Vera  No, he hasn’t. They split up last month.

Girl 4 When is he going to record a new album?

Vera  He’s going to start on a new album in July.

Boy 2 Does he write his own songs?

Vera  Yes, he writes all his songs.

Boy 3 What is he doing at the moment?

Vera  He’s probably lying in bed and listening to this programme.

Girl 5 Will he be well again soon?

Vera  We hope he will. A lot of people have bought tickets for his concerts!

2. Listen to Emma talking about these people. Write the positive (+) and negative (-) adjectives in the boxes.

1) Best friend: KYLIE

+

nice, sensible, ___

2) Cousin: ZACH

+

3) Boss: MR TRENT

+

Show answers

1) + tidy, hard-working

  – anxious, impatient

2) + charming, polite, ambitious

  – miserable, unpleasant

3) + cheerful, enthusiastic, patient, loyal, easy-going

     – lazy, unreliable

Transcript

1)

Boy What’s your friend, Kylie, like? She seems very nice.

Emma Kylie? I really like her. She’s good to be around, and we laugh a lot together. She’s very sensible – and you should see her room. Everything’s in the right place. She’s very tidy. And she’s hard working, too.

Boy Yes, you said she does well at school.

Emma She does, but she’s a bit anxious sometimes – especially when we’ve got exams. And she can also be quite impatient. She doesn’t like waiting for things. Anyway, why do you want to know? Do you fancy her?

Boy Maybe.

2)

Girl Is your cousin, Zach, still staying with you?

Emma Yes, he is. He’ll be with us till he finishes university next year.

Girl Oh, right. What’s he like?

Emma Oh, everybody loves Zach because he’s a very charming person, and he’s usually polite. He’s ambitious, too, so I’m sure he’ll get a good job when he leaves university.

Girl That’s good.

Emma Yes, but he isn’t very good in the mornings, so I try to avoid him then. He can be very miserable and quite unpleasant when he’s just got up.

3)

Boy Hi, Emma. Are you enjoying your new Saturday job at the café?

Emma Yes, it’s fine.

Boy What’s your boss like?

Emma Mr Trent? Oh, he’s very cheerful and enthusiastic. He talks a lot about the café and his plans for it. He’s good to work for, because he’s patient and always tries to help if you don’t understand something.

Boy That’s good.

Emma And he’s loyal, too. Sometimes the customers can be a bit rude, but Mr Trent always defends the people who work at the café.

Boy He sounds like an ideal boss.

Emma Well, yes and no. He’s very easy-going, but that means that he can be a bit lazy sometimes – and unreliable. Like last week he went home early, but took the keys with him, so we couldn’t lock the café up when we finished.

3. a   Listen. Some parts of the dialogue are incorrect. Delete them.

Joy Can I go to the cinema bowling this evening, Dad?

Dad Have you got a lot of homework to do?

Joy Yes, but can I do it in the morning instead?

Dad You’re going to dance class tomorrow, aren’t you?

Joy Well, I’ll do it on Sunday afternoon, then.

Dad You said that two weeks ago, and you were still doing it at half past ten on Sunday night.

Joy That won’t happen again, I promise.

Dad No, it won’t, because you’re going to finish your homework before you can go out.

Joy But that means I can’t go to the cinema.

Dad There’s no point in arguing. The answer’s still the same.

Joy Oh. It’s not fair. Everybody else is going.

b   Listen again and correct the dialogue.

Show answers

Joy Can I go to the cinema bowling this evening, Dad?

Dad Have you got a lot of any homework to do?

Joy Yes, but can I do it in the morning tomorrow instead?

Dad You’re going to dance class working tomorrow, aren’t you?

Joy Well, I’ll do it on Sunday afternoon morning , then.

Dad You said that two weeks ago last week , and you were still doing it at half past ten on Sunday night.

Joy That won’t happen again this week , I promise.

Dad No, it won’t, because you’re going to finish your homework before you can go out this evening .

Joy But that means I can’t go to the cinema I won’t have time .

Dad There’s no point in arguing. The answer’s still the same ‘No’ .

Joy Oh. It’s not fair. Everybody else is All friends are going.

4. a   Listen. Complete the sentences with the correct name.

Meg      Troy      Fiona      Harry

1) __Harry__ is saving for his / her holiday.

2) _____ has a paper round.

3) _____ doesn’t do anything for his / her pocket money.

4) _____ does babysitting for a neighbour.

5) _____ gets extra pocket money for washing the car.

6) _____ is saving to pay for driving lessons.

7) _____ doesn’t get any pocket money.

8) _____ doesn’t save any money.

9) _____ tries to save half of his / her pocket money.

10) _____ doesn’t pay for his / her own clothes.

11) _____ is saving to buy a new bike.

12) _____ loads the dishwasher.

b   Listen again. What do they spend their money on? Complete the chart.

Meg

Troy

Fiona

Harry

clothes, make-up and ___  

Show answers

a

2) Troy 3) Fiona 4) Meg  5) Harry 6) Fiona  7) Troy

8) Meg 9) Harry 10) Fiona 11) Troy 12) Meg

b

Meg : birthday presents

Troy : computer games

Fiona : going out, cinema

Harry : music downloads, mobile phone bill

Transcript

1)

Hello. I’m Meg. I get pocket money from parents, but I have to help with the housework for it. I don’t do a lot, but I always clear the table and load the dishwasher after dinner. And I vacuum the living room floor at the weekend. I also earn some money by babysitting for our neighbours when they go out. They’ve got two young children. It’s quite easy, and I usually do homework while I’m there. I don’t save any money. I spend it on clothes, make-up and birthday presents.

2)

Hi. name’s Troy. I don’t get any pocket money. parents think I should earn money, so I’ve got a paper round. I deliver newspapers to houses every morning from seven to eight o’clock, before I go to school. I spend some money on computer games, but I try to save most of it. I’m saving to buy a new bike. I love cycling – and I need the bike for paper round, too.

3)

Hello. name’s Fiona. I get pocket money every week from parents. I don’t have to do anything for it – like jobs around the house. Some of friends have got part-time jobs, but I haven’t. What do I do with money? I spend it on going out – to the cinema and things like that. I don’t spend it on clothes, because parents buy them. But I try to save some money. I’m saving to pay for driving lessons when I’m seventeen.

4)

Hi. I’m Harry. parents give me pocket money and I do a few jobs around the house for it – like tidying room and putting the rubbish and recycling out. I get extra pocket money if I do something bigger, like washing the car or cutting the grass. I spend money on music downloads, and I have to pay for mobile phone bill, too. But I try to save about half money, so that I’ve got some to spend when we go on holiday.

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