2. Pre-Listening Exercises
Finding a good apartment for rent sometimes •
takes time, but things always come up. What
kinds of complaints or problems do tenants
experience when renting a home or
apartment? Briefly discuss these ideas with a
partner. Explain one solution for each problem
you came up with.
3. ELPFUL TIP: If there is a problem with your •
housing, contact your landlord immediately so
you can resolve the issue. You might even be
liable for damages (e.g., water damage from a
leaking pipe) if you don't report it.
4. Idiom
• "teed off" = upset, angry"She was really teed
off because the landlord wouldn't fix her
toilet."
• "go ballistic" = become very angry
suddenly"The landlord went ballistic when he
found out the tenants destroyed the
apartment."
5. Vocabulary
• enant (noun): occupant, resident, lessee
- I have to talk to the tenant next door about his barking dog.
• blaring (verb): very loud
- I can't do my homework with the TV blaring next door
• walking refrigerator (noun phrase): a very big person (slang)
• pungent (adjective): strong, harsh
odor (noun): smell
- Your dog has a real pungent odor. When was the last time you
gave it a bath?
• zone (verb): designated, marked, set aside for
- This area is zoned for commercial use only, and the city is planning
to build several shops here.
• agriculture (noun); also agricultural (adjective): farming
- The main livelihood of those in this region is agriculture.
6. Vocab
• livestock (noun): farm animals
- We will sell some of our livestock this summer.
• resume (verb): continue, start again
- Classes will resume at the beginning of September.
• exercises (noun): drills, maneuvers, activities, operations
- The fire department will carry out its emergency preparedness
exercises later this week.
• artillery (noun): large guns, often on wheels, used by armies
- The army has removed its artillery in anticipation of the peace
treaty.
• protest (verb): complain, challenge
- The residents protested the building of the waste plant within 20
miles of their neighborhood for safety reasons.
• cease (verb): end, stop
- It is unclear when the steel factory will cease its operations.
7. Post-Listening Exercises
• What would you do if you were Mr. Burton at the
end of this conversation? For each of these
situations, what request would you use and how
would you respond to possible objections on the
part of the individual(s) you are talking to:
• you decide to speak to the man in 4B by yourself
• you call up the landowners next door to complain
• you visit the owner's office to vent your
frustrations
