Types of dwelling

A person’s home is a much a reflection of his personality as the clothes he wears, the food he eats and the friends with whom he spends his time. Most families in Britain live in their own houses, rather than in flats or apartments. The houses are not always very big and they often built very close together. You may want to live in a detached house or in a semidetached house.

THE DETACHED HOUSE. A detached house has land all round it. More and more modern homes are detached, although in areas where building land is ex­pensive, the houses may be very close to each other.

THE SEMI-DETACHED HOUSE. This is one building with two separate households. These houses share a central wall. Each house is the mirror of the other, inside and out. These houses can be found, street after street, in the suburbs of cities and the outskirts of towns all over Britain. The most common building material is brick. The typical semidetached has two floors and three bedrooms. Typically a semi has a small gar­den in front and a fence divides a larger garden at the back.

THE TERRACED HOUSE. Terraced houses are at­tached to each other in a long row. They are usually found in towns and cities and were earlier called town-houses. They usually have three or four storeys.

THE COUNTRY COTTAGE. Country cottages are often stone buildings which were part of a farm. Some country cottages are very old and they may have a thatched or tiled roof. Today many people who work in the cities buy cottages so, that they have a place to go for the weekend.

A BUNGALOW. A bungalow is a house where all the rooms are on the ground floor. As there are no stairs, many older people dream of going to live in a bungalow when they retire.

A BLOCK OF FLATS (AM. E. APARTMENT BLOCKS). A block of flats is a large building divided into sepa­rate parts (especially flats or offices).

— Ex.2. Match the number of each drawing next to the correct word.

a. bungalow b. block of flats c. detached house d. semi-detached house e. lighthouse f. windmill g. caravan h. castle i. cottage j. mansion k. palace l. tent m. terraced house	1.	2.
3.	4.

5 6

7 8

5.

10 11

12 13

& Ex. 3. Reading

THE YOUNGS' HOUSE

The Youngs live in a comfortable two-storeyed house in the suburbs of Winfield. On the ground floor there's a lounge, a dining-room, a kitchen, a pantry, a bathroom and a toilet. There's also a hall with a stand for hats, coats and umbrellas.

A staircase leads from the ground floor to the landing of the first floor. On the first floor there are three bedrooms, a guest-room and a bathroom.

Their lounge is the biggest room in the house. There's not much furniture in it but it's quite modern and convenient. There's a book-case to the right, a small round table with a night lamp on it to the left, a TV-set in the corner, two comfortable sofas facing each other, an arm-chair with a puff next to it, a rocking-chair, two coffee-tables and a piano. On the floor there's no beautiful thick carpet but a small striped rug. On the walls above the sofa there're some pictures and photos. There's a large window with curtains of a very pretty colour and pattern to match the wall-paper. An electric lamp with a nice lampshade is standing behind the arm-chair. The Youngs like to get together in the lounge in the evening. They watch TV, read books and newspapers, listen to Mrs. Young playing the piano. They entertain their guests in the lounge, too.

In the dining-room they have their meals. There's a square table with some chairs and a sideboard where they keep their plates, cups, saucers, knives, spoons, forks and other things.

The table is covered with a white cloth and there's a vase with fresh flowers in the middle of it.

The bedrooms are rather small and cosy and they are nicely furnished. Mr. and Mrs. Young's bedroom has two beds, bedside tables with night lamps above them, a mirror and a wardrobe. There's a balcony overlooking the garden.

Mike shares the room with his brother Ted. Mike and Ted's bedroom is neat and tidy. Here there's a bed and a comfortable sofa, a writing table, several bookshelves full of books, a computer table, a chest-of-drawers and an armchair. On a small table near the window there's a cage with a parrot. Mike takes care of his pet himself. The room faces south and it's always warm and sunny.

The third bedroom belongs to Mike’s younger sister Joice. It is also sunny and warm.

The kitchen is rather spacious and very clean. There's a gas-stove, a sink with two taps, one for cold water and the other for hot, a kitchen table with some stools, a cupboard for kitchen utensils.

The lawn in front of the house looks neatly trimmed and pretty. Mrs.Young is fond of flowers and she grows tulips, daffodils, lilac and roses. Behind the house there's a small garden where the Youngs grow some fruit and vegetables. In the garden there're some fruit trees: apple, pear, cherry and apricot. Under the house there's a cellar. Mr.Young keeps his car in the garage.

— Ex. 4. Agree or disagree to the following statements.

1. The Youngs live in a multi-storeyed block of flats in the suburbs of Glasgow. 2. In the sitting-room the Youngs have no pictures on the walls. 3. On the window there're curtains of a very pretty colour to match with the wall-paper. 4. The walls of the rooms are painted. 5. In the kitchen the walls are papered. 6. The Youngs have their meals in the kitchen. 7. They keep their kitchen utensils in the sideboard. 8. In the bedroom the furniture is old and ugly. 9. There are no pets in the Youngs' house. 10. It's always dark and cool in Mike's room. 11. There is no lawn in front of the house. 12. Mrs. Young grows a lot of flowers in the garden. 13. There are many fruit-trees in the garden. 14. Mr. Young keeps his car behind the house.

— Ex. 5. Interview Mike Young about the house his family lives in. Be particular about the details.

— Ex. 6. Answer the questions about your flat/house.

1. What house do you live in? Is it a multi-storeyed house?

2. What floor is your flat on?

3. What modern conveniences are there in your house?

4. Which is your favourite room? Why?

5. What pieces of furniture are there in your bedroom? Is there a carpet on the floor or on the walls? Where do you keep your clothes? Have you got a standard-lamp in your bedroom? Where is it standing? What's the colour of the lamp-shade?

6. What pieces of furniture are there in your sitting-room? Are there any armchairs in your bed-sitting room?

7. Is there a bookcase or a bookstand in your study? What things are there on your writing table?

8. Where do you have meals? 14. What is there in the middle of your dining-room? Is your dinner-table round or square? What is it covered with?

9. Where do you keep your tea and dinner things? Where do you keep your kitchen utensils? Is your kitchen large and spacious? Is the kitchen the coziest room in your flat?

10. How often do you do your room? What are the rooms dusted with? How are the carpets cleaned? What is the floor swept with? When is the flat aired? Where does the balcony overlook?

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