Essential English Vocabulary and Grammar Reference

Physical Appearance

Build: stocky, strong, thin, well-built. Height: medium-height, short, tall. Hair: bald, blonde, curly, dark, fair, long, medium-length, short, spiky, straight, wavy. General: attractive, cute, good-looking, gorgeous, plain, pretty.

Personality Traits

affectionate, arrogant, artistic, bossy, cheerful, clever, confident, determined, easy-going, energetic, generous, hard-working, impatient, likeable, lively, loyal, optimistic, outgoing, patient, reliable, sensible, sensitive, serious, shy, talkative, tidy, well-organised.

Synonyms

attractive, beautiful, bright, calm, cheerful, childish, clever, cute, difficult, easy-going, elderly, energetic, friendly, generous, glad, good-looking, gorgeous, handsome, happy, hard, immature, intelligent, kind, lively, old, outgoing, pretty, relaxed, slim, sociable, thin.

Travel and Transport

Transport

cable car, coach, cruise ship, ferry, helicopter, hot-air balloon, jet-ski, lorry/truck, motorbike, plane, scooter, skateboard, spacecraft, tram, underground/subway, van, yacht.

Travel Vocabulary

arrivals, bus stop, cancel, car park, catch, coach/train station, delay, departures, fare, information screens, lost property office, luggage, miss, platform, return, service station, single, taxi rank, ticket office, waiting room.

Accommodation

bed and breakfast, campsite, caravan, holiday home/apartment, homestay, hostel, motel, tent.

Travel Phrasal Verbs

break down, check in, get away, get back, get in, get into/out of, get on/off, go on, set off, take off.

Housing and City Life

Types of Homes

bungalow, cottage, detached house, flat/block of flats, houseboat, mansion, semi-detached house, terraced house.

Places in the City

art gallery, bridge, castle, city centre, factory, fountain, housing estate, industrial estate, market, museum, outskirts, palace, park, port, skyscraper, square, statue, suburbs, theatre, town hall.

City Adjectives

busy, charming, clean, crowded, dirty, historic, impressive, lively, modern, noisy, peaceful, popular, quiet, run-down.

Extreme Adjectives

ancient, boiling, dreadful/horrible, enormous/huge, filthy, freezing, hideous, hilarious, packed, silent, spotless, stunning, terrifying, tiny.

Food and Meals

Food Categories

• Dairy: butter, cream, semi-skimmed milk.
• Fruit: avocado, cherry, peach, plum.
• Meat/Fish/Seafood: cod, lamb, prawn, tuna, turkey.
• Bakery: muffin, pancake, pie.
• Vegetables: carrot, chips, crisps, lettuce, olive, pea, spinach, sweetcorn.
• Others: oil, rice.

Meals

canteen, dessert, dish, fast food, main course, packed lunch, school meal, snack, starter, vending machine.

Describing Food

baked, boiled, fattening, fresh, fried, frozen, greasy, juicy, processed, raw, roast, rotten, salty, spicy, stale, tasty.

Prefixes

disadvantage, overcooked, precooked, recooked, undercooked, redesign, underestimate, international, cooperate, misunderstand.

Education

Subjects

architecture, art, biology, business studies, chemistry, citizenship, computing, design and technology, drama, engineering, English, geography, history, law, literature, marketing, maths, media studies, medicine, music, philosophy, physical education (PE), physics, politics and international relations, psychology.

Academic Nouns

assessment, assignment, coursework, essay, excursion, extra-curricular activities, field trip, mark/grade, research, term, timetable.

Study Verbs and Phrases

catch up, fail an exam, fall behind, hand back, hand in, make an effort, make progress, pass an exam, pay attention, resit an exam, skip a lesson.

Sports and Equipment

Sports

athletics, baseball, basketball, climbing, cricket, cycling, diving, football, golf, gymnastics, horse-riding, ice hockey, ice skating, judo, karate, rugby, sailing, skiing, snowboarding, swimming, tennis, volleyball, weightlifting.

Sporting Terms

• Types: ball, combat, individual, indoor, non-competitive, team, water, winter.
• Equipment: bat, boots, club, goal/goal post, goggles, net, racket, skates, skis, stick, trainers.
• Action/Scoring: bounce, catch, head, hit, kick, pass, throw, beat, draw, goal, lose, league, match, nil, point, score, shoot, win.
• Venues: course, court, gym, pitch, pool, rink, slope, stadium, track.
• Phrasal Verbs: catch up with, end up, get into, give in, go for, join in, knock out, take up, work out.

Technology

Everyday Appliances

air-conditioner, cooker, dishwasher, electric toothbrush, fan, fridge-freezer, games console, heater, microwave oven, remote control, satnav, smart speaker, smart TV, sound system, toaster, vacuum cleaner, washing machine.

Describing Technology

Shape: curved, rectangular, round, square, straight. Material: aluminium, ceramic, glass, gold, leather, metal, plastic, rubber, silver, steel. Features: button, hole, slot, socket, strap.

Operating Technology

charge/recharge, connect, insert, plug in, press, run out, select, swipe, switch/turn on/off/up/down, tap, unplug.

Prepositional Phrases

afraid of, aware of, bored with, different from, fed up with, good/bad at, interested in, pleased with, ready for, responsible for, shocked about/at, similar to, tired of, worried about.

English Conditionals

• Type 0 (Truths): If you heat ice, it melts.
• Type 1 (Real/Possible): If it rains, I will stay.
• Type 2 (Hypothetical): If I were rich, I would buy a boat.
• Type 3 (Past Impossible): If I had studied, I would have passed.