A family

At the age of twenty-one, persons of both sexes in England come of age. Boys and girls are permitted to become "engaged", when still in their "teens". A boy can, with his parent's consent, propose to a girl and marry her before he is twenty-one years of age.

On the day of the wedding the bridegroom and bride with family and friends go to church for the wedding service. The clergyman slips a wedding-ring on the bride's finger, which is worn on the third finger of the left hand for the rest of her life.

When two persons are married, the man is called the husband, the woman becomes his wife. When a child is born in the family, the father and mother of the child are called parents. A family generally consists of a father, a mother and children - sons or daughters or both. The first-born child is the eldest, the last is the youngest. Two children that are born together are called twins.

The father and mother of the husband become the father-in-law and mother-in-law of the wife. The husband is the son-in-law, the wife - the daughter-in-law, they have brothers-in-law and sisters-in-law.

The other members of the family are the relatives or relations: uncles, aunts, cousins, etc.

The brothers and sisters of any of the parents become the uncles and aunts of the children. The children of two married brothers or sisters or brother and sister are cousins to each other.

In case of a second marriage, we speak of a step­-father or a step-mother, step-son, step-daughter, etc.

Questions

1. Do you live together with your parents?

2. Is your family large or small?

3. What are your parents?

4. Are you the only child in the family?

5. Is your sister (brother) older or younger than you?

6. What is your sister's (brother's) occupation?

7. Have you grandparents? Where do they live?

8. Have you any other close relatives? Do you often see them?

9. What do you usually do in the evenings?

10. Do you spend your week-ends together with your parents?

11. Do you help your mother to keep the house?

Unit 2. Flat words and expressions

block of flats detached house hall living room bedroom dining room kitchen bathroom staircase radiator windowsill curtain table lamp bookcase

fireplace carpet plug socket coffee table ash-tray house plant (pot plant) built-in furniture refrigerator (fridge) vacuum cleaner washing machine wall-paper floor space

FLAT

My friend Mr. Priestley lives in a very nice house. It is about ten miles from London. There is a big garden all round the house and a smooth lawn in front of it.

Their sitting room is quite a big room, about 25 feet long by 15 feet wide. There is a thick carpet on the floor. One or two good watercolours hang on the walls. There is the piano on one side of the room (Mr. Priestley and his wife Mrs. Priestley are fond of music). There are three or four comfortable armchairs, a radio and three or four bookcases filled with books. On a small table near the window there are copies of "The Times", "Punch" and some foreign newspapers and magazines.

Their dining-room is a pleasant-looking room with a Persian carpet on the floor, a dark oak dining-table, six chairs and a sideboard. A red lampshade gives a warm colour to the room, and an electric fire keeps it comfortable while they have dinner. There are brown velvet curtains on the windows.

Upstairs there are five bedrooms, a bathroom and a lavatory. There is a sink, a bath, a soap-dish, tooth­paste, several tooth-brushes and towels in the bathroom.

HOSTEL

I've got a room in the student's hostel. The room isn't large, but it's rather nice. It has two windows and a balcony. The balcony and the windows face the street.

The furniture is very simple: two beds, a pullout table in the middle of the room, a wardrobe, a shelf and two bedside tables. There are also three chairs and one arm-chair.

A small cabinet which hangs on the wall will be used for plates and cups. On the balcony there is a cane chair. The walls of the room are actually bare, though on one of them there is a picture of a town and on the other - a small mirror. When it's dark you may switch on a wall lamp or the lamp which hangs down from the ceiling. There is a rug on the floor.

In one of the corners of the room there is a bookcase where we keep our books. I share the room with a fellow student who is in the same year with me. I think he will be a good room-mate.