Listening Exercises

Listen to the conversation again by pressing the Play Audio button and read along with the conversation. Review the Key Vocabulary and the sample sentences.

Man: Hey, hey, neighbor. What are you doing with my trees? My wife planted that tree 25 years ago. Get off that ladder. Neighbor: Listen. Even though the trees are in your yard, some of the branches hang over into mine, and I am getting sick and tired of raking up your leaves and picking up all the branches that fall off during storms throughout the year. And the walnuts off this tree . . . they litter my yard and damage my lawnmower when I cut the grass. And my dog eats them, and he ends up with terrible diarrhea. Man: Still. You can't cut off those branches. Neighbor: Watch me. It's completely legal. I check the city code and law regarding this issue, and I am well within my rights. Man: I'm not sure about that. Anyway, It's just not right. You didn't say anything to us about it . . . Neighbor: I don't have to. Man: Yeah, but you could have said something. Anything! I mean I want to stay on friendly terms with you, but the basic courtesy of informing your neighbors is the least you could have done. Neighbor: Okay. I'm cutting down your branches. You've been informed . . . now, stand back! Man: Hey. Don't expect an invitation to our next barbecue or book club! Neighbor: See if I care. Hey, what are you doing? Stop shaking the ladder. You're acting juvenile now. Help!

Key Vocabulary [Top]

• ladder (noun): a piece of equipment used to climb up to high places
  - Be careful if you use the ladder to get into the trees.

• get sick and tired of something (idiom): become exhausted and/or upset about something
  - I just get sick and tired o picking up garbage in the yard.

• litter (verb and noun): make a place messy or untidy with trash or other objects left on the ground
  - I hate it when people walk through the park and litter.
  - Please don't throw litter out the window as we drive.

• right (noun): something you are legally allowed to do by law
  - The government should protect our individual rights to the freedom of speech and to vote in public elections.

• inform (verb): tell, make aware, or notify
  - It is often a good idea to inform your neighbors if you are planning to make major changes to your yard and landscaping.

• juvenile (noun or adjective): a young person, or someone who is acting inappropriate for an adult
  - Several juveniles were arrested for destroying the landscaping of our company.
  - Stop acting juvenile! You can't play games and jump over seats in a movie theater.

Vocabulary Activities [Top]

Now, do these exercises to review the vocabulary. Then, return back to the Post-Listening Exercise to use the vocabulary in real conversations. [Why do these?]

• Mixed-Up Sentence
• Sentence and Vocabulary Matching