What’s the weather like? showed the more basic answers and vocabulary.
In this lesson, you’ll learn useful weather expressions and improve your vocabulary with new words, phrases, and common patterns you can use to describe different kinds of weather.
Check the lesson to make notes and to take a quiz.
At each change of the season, people notice that, feel and talk even more about the weather. They commonly ask about it by saying:
We usually use IT IS when we talk about the weather. We use:
It is + adjective or It is + verb-ing
For example:
What is the difference?
It is + adjective = A description of the weather
It is + verb-ing = This type of weather is happening now.
Let’s look at more examples of these.
It is + adjective = A description of the weather
Notice how a lot of weather adjectives end in Y: sunny, cloudy, windy, foggy.
But adjectives to describe temperature don’t normally end in Y:
Now let’s look at this again… It is hot.
We can give a little more information by using:
It is + a + adjective + day
Or instead of the word day, you can specify the part of the day like morning, afternoon, night, etc.
Another example:
Now let’s look at using the verb-ing to describe the weather.
Remember, this describes the type of weather happening now.
These three actions are happening now.
You can also use it is in different tenses.
For example the past tense, perfect tense, present tense, future tense, etc.
What is the weather like where you are right now?
Learn the differences between ‘at,’ ‘in,’ and ‘on,’ as prepositions of place with this awesome video! Take notes, use the subtitles and play the video slower than its speed if you need.
Good, right?
So let’s look again at the differences between ‘at,’ ‘in,’ and ‘on’ for locations with a different lesson.
Now, we will look at the different ways to use the prepositions ‘in,’ ‘on,’ and ‘at,’ more examples, meanings, and exceptions to the rules. First, test your knowledge of the vocabulary with the quiz.
‘At’ is often used for public places. For example, you can say ‘at the cinema’ or ‘at the mall.’
‘At’ in this case can mean that you’re inside the place, or just near it.
Often, in these cases, it’s possible to use ‘in’ or ‘at’ with no difference in meaning. You can say ‘I’m in the supermarket’ or ‘I’m at the supermarket’; both are correct and commonly used.
There might be a small difference. If you want to emphasize that you’re inside a building, then use ‘in.’ If you’re outdoors, then use ‘at.’
‘At’ can mean ‘next to’. Let’s see a couple of examples:
Use ‘at’ with events or the building where an event or activity takes place.
Use ‘at’ with people’s homes or offices. You can say:
Use ‘at’ for a temporary stop during a journey:
There are a few fixed phrases with ‘at’ that it’s better just to memorize. The most important ones are:
Note that you never use an article, like ‘a’ or ‘the,’ in the phrases ‘at home’ and ‘at work,’ and you generally don’t use an article when you say ‘at school,’ ‘at college’ or ‘at university.’
Use ‘at’ to talk about position or time with phrases like:
For example: ‘Please read and follow the instructions at the top of the page.’
Finally, use ‘at’ with an exact address, when we know the name and number of the street, for example: ‘I live at 13 Crinklewell Crescent.’
Use ‘on’ when something is on a surface:
You can use ‘on’ with all kinds of surfaces – not just horizontal ones:
Use ‘on’ with print media:
You use ‘on’ with geographical features, like islands and beaches.
For canal and other bodies of water like rivers and lakes, we think of them as surfaces.
But ‘on’ and ‘in’ are both possible with mountains. We say that someone or something is on a mountain If we are talking about a single mountain.
We say that someone or something is in the mountains (in the plural) when we are talking about a mountain range.
Use ‘on’ with transport in which you sit on top of: bicycles, motorbikes, and horses. You also use ‘on’ with public transport and boats. So, you say:
Here’s one more example: ‘He’s sitting on the train and talking on the phone.’
Use ‘on’ to talk about using devices:
Use ‘on’ with floors. You say:
Use ‘on’ is when something is ‘attached’ to something else:
Use ‘on’ for a town close to a coast, river, or the coast, and for roads and streets.
Use ‘on’ for talking about places along a road when we do not know the number of the street:
Finally, ‘on’ a farm, ‘on’ the left/ ‘on’ the right, are standard expressions.
The most common use of the ‘in’ preposition is for cities and countries.
Use ‘in’ for rooms and indoor spaces:
Also, use ‘in’ for containers and enclosed spaces:
Also, use ‘in’ plus ‘north’, ‘south’, ‘east’ or ‘west’:
Use ‘in’ with establishments and businesses:
As you saw before, sometimes, ‘at’ is also possible here, with a similar meaning.
You also say ‘in the centre’ or ‘in the middle’.
Use ‘in’ to talk about media:
Use ‘in’ with cars and taxis. With most other transport, use ‘on.’
You also use ‘in’ to mean ‘surrounded by a material’:
Use ‘in’ to talk about many outdoor spaces. You can use ‘in’ for smaller, enclosed spaces. For example:
You can also use ‘in’ for larger, more open spaces:
Use ‘in’ to talk about things which are enclosed by part of your body. You can hold something in your hand. If you eat too much sugar, you’ll get toothache – a pain in your tooth.
There are some fixed phrases with ‘in’ that don’t follow a clear pattern. Notice that we do not use the word “the”. The most useful are:
If you are talking about ‘armchair,’ you say, ‘we sit in an armchair,’ but if it is a regular chair, you say ‘we sit on a chair.’
There is no rule. We must learn these fixed expressions.
Finally, use ‘in’ to talk about things which are in a line. For example:
This also works if you arrange things into a shape. For example: ‘We set out the chairs in a circle.’
Wow! That is a comprehensive and highly necessary lesson! 😉
A student said: “I’ve just arrived at home.”
Home or at home?
His sentence isn’t fine. It should be:
“I’VE JUST ARRIVED HOME.”
Home in this example is behaving like an adverb expressing direction. We do not need a preposition with home when it is used with any verb referring to direction:
Note that most verbs expressing direction require the preposition to before the noun:
Now, once you arrive home, then you are at home, and no more direction is suggested, so at is then the appropriate preposition to use with home:
However, even here, at is often omitted, especially in American English.
So AT HOME / FROM HOME / GO HOME / LEAVE HOME are common fixed expressions with prepositions where no article is required:
PRACTICE 1 – LISTENING: Listen to vocabulary related to working from home, from announcements to buying and setting up computers to work from home.
PRACTICE 2 – SPEAKING: answer the questions
Studies show promising results for hybrid work, especially for those who enjoy face-to-face interactions and the excitement of office environments.
Carnival in Brazil is part of Brazilian culture and starts on the Friday before Ash Wednesday and ends on Ash Wednesday at noon.
It’s a big celebration of the food and pleasures one has to give up during Lent.
Because the celebrations happen during Brazil’s summer, the ambiance is perfect for massive parties. There is even a common saying in Brazil that “the year starts only after Carnival,” referring to the number of people that take their holidays between New Year’s and Carnival, a national holiday.
How about learning the main words about carnival in English? Listen to pronunciation and note the words, not on the lists below.
| English | Português |
| Street Carnival | Carnaval de rua |
| Samba schools parade | Desfile das escolas de samba |
| Costumes | Fantasias |
| Reveler | Folião |
| Carnival blocks | Blocos de Carnaval |
| Carnival warm-up | Esquenta de Carnaval |
| Costume | Fantasia |
| Sequin | Lantejoula |
| Feathers | Penas |
| English | Português |
| Choreography | Coreografia |
| Sambadrome | Sambódromo |
| Flag bearer | Porta-bandeira |
| Drum section | Ala da bateria |
| Drum section queen | Rainha da bateria |
| Floats | Carros alegóricos |
| Revelers / Paraders | Participantes ou público dos desfiles |
| Wing / Section | Ala |
| Suites | Camarotes |
| Rehearsals | Ensaios |
| Access group | Grupo de acesso |
| Special group | Grupo especial |
| Parade of champions | Desfile das campeãs |
| English | Português |
| Holiday | Feriado |
| Mardi Gras / Fat Tuesday | Terça-feira de Carnaval |
| Ash Wednesday | Quarta-feira de Cinzas |
| Lent | Quaresma |
| English | Português |
| (To) celebrate Carnival | Pular Carnaval |
| (To) dress up as | Vestir-se de |
| (To) parade | Desfilar |
| (To) samba | Sambar |
Have fun!