Vocabulary · Lesson 14

Rooms & furniture

Build a clear picture of a room. First introduce a new thing with There is a lamp in the room. Then locate that known thing with It is on the desk. Along the way, separate true furniture from appliances, fixtures, and small objects, and use precise place phrases.

45–55 min corerooms · furniture · fixtures · objectsnew thing vs. known thing15–20 min optional listening and retrieval

NoticeFollow a fictional studio description.

DiscoverChoose a form from number and information.

BuildClassify objects and locate them precisely.

UsePresent a fictional accessible guest room.

Natural U.S. choices include couch or sofa, fridge or refrigerator, and TV or television. The shorter forms are common in conversation. The longer forms remain normal.

Two-minute retrieval

Three quick checks from earlier lessons

Answer from memory, then check. Say each complete sentence aloud.

1The studio list introduces one desk: There one desk in the studio.

2The list introduces two chairs: There two chairs by the table.

3The laptop touches the desk surface: It is the desk.

Meet the room vocabulary

This visual bank mixes several useful categories. A bed and a chair are furniture. A refrigerator is an appliance. A bathtub is usually a fixture. A key is a small object. The categories explain the words; they do not tell anyone what a home must contain.

bed

couch

chair

door

window

mirror

plant

toilet

bathtub

shower

key

light

candle

picture

clock

broom

soap

basket

wastebasket

radio

phone

Notice before the rule

A fictional studio for a visiting speaker

“There is a lamp in the room. It is on the desk. There are two chairs by the table. They are between the window and the door. There is some comfortable furniture in the sitting area. The studio has a small kitchen.”

Which sentence introduces the lamp? Which sentence refers to the same known lamp?
Which form follows one lamp, two chairs, and the uncountable noun furniture?
Which sentence views the kitchen as a feature of the studio rather than introducing it into a scene?

Discovery check: choose the viewpoint and form

First ask whether the sentence introduces something, locates a known thing, or describes a room feature.

1The guide introduces one lamp: There a lamp in the room.

2The guide introduces two chairs: There two chairs by the table.

3The guide presents an amount of the uncountable noun furniture: There some comfortable furniture in the sitting area.

4The lamp is already known. Now give its exact location: on the desk.

5The two chairs are already known. Now locate them: between the window and the door.

6The sentence describes the kitchen as one feature of the studio: The studio a small kitchen.

Get to the root: four kinds of room information

A clear description does more than list nouns. It tells the listener what kind of thing each word names, whether the thing is new or known, and how it relates to the room.

information job	useful language	example
name a room or area	It is / This is + room	This is the sitting area.
introduce something new	There is / There are	There is a lamp by the bed.
locate a known thing	The lamp is / It is	It is on the table.
describe a feature	The room has	The room has a large window.

The viewpoints can describe the same scene. There is a large window in the room introduces the window. The room has a large window describes a feature of the room. Neither pattern is automatically more correct.

Furniture is one category, not every thing in a room

category	A1 meaning	examples
furniture	movable things that support living, working, or storage	bed · chair · sofa · table · desk
appliance	a machine used in a home or room	refrigerator · stove · TV
fixture	something usually installed as part of the room	bathtub · toilet · built-in light
small object	a separate item that can be held or moved easily	key · phone · candle · soap
room feature	part of the room or building	door · window · wall · closet

Furniture is uncountable. Say some furniture, a lot of furniture, or a piece of furniture. Do not say a furniture or furnitures. Individual names are countable: one chair, two chairs.

Classify four room items

Tap an item, then tap its exact category.

Useful U.S. room words and boundaries

word or pair	useful boundary	example
living room	a shared sitting area in a home	The living room has a sofa.
bedroom	a room used for sleeping	There is a bed in the bedroom.
kitchen	an area used to prepare food	The kitchen has a refrigerator.
bathroom / restroom	In U.S. English, bathroom can mean a toilet room even with no bathtub. Restroom is common in public places.	Where is the restroom?
closet / wardrobe	A closet is storage space built into a room. A wardrobe is a freestanding piece of furniture.	The coats are in the closet.
home office	a work area in a home; it may be a full room or part of another room	The desk is in the home office.
hallway / balcony	a passage inside a building / a raised outdoor platform connected to a building	The elevator is at the end of the hallway.

These names describe function, not one required design. A studio may combine sleeping, working, cooking, and sitting areas in one room. A home office may be one desk in a shared space.

New information and known location

There is / There are puts a new person or thing into the listener’s mental scene. After the listener knows it, name it or use a pronoun when its exact location is the message.

Follow the information chain

There is a lamp in the room. It is on the desk.

The first sentence answers What is in the room? The second answers Where is the lamp? Repeating There is on the desk does not work because there is needs a following noun phrase.

There are two chairs by the table. They are between the window and the door.

Plural new information takes there are. The known plural reference takes they are.

noun after there	affirmative	negative reminder
one singular countable thing	There is a chair.	There isn’t a chair.
an uncountable amount	There is some furniture.	There isn’t any furniture.
two or more countable things	There are two chairs.	There aren’t any chairs.

In speech, there is commonly contracts to there’s. In careful A1 writing, keep plural there are in its full form. You may hear informal speakers use there’s before a plural list, but the reliable learning form is There are two chairs.

Choose a precise place relationship

The reference object creates the map. Ask how the first thing relates to that object.

place phrase	exact picture	example
in	inside an area or enclosed space	The towels are in the closet.
on	in contact with a surface	The laptop is on the desk.
under	lower than and in a direct vertical relationship	The rug is under the table.
above	higher than, with no surface contact	The picture is above the sofa.
next to / beside	immediately at the side	The lamp is next to the bed.
near	close, but not necessarily immediately beside	The desk is near the window.
between	in the middle of two named reference points	The chair is between the desk and the door.
in front of	on the front side of another thing	The sofa is in front of the bookshelf.
behind	on the back side of another thing	The closet is behind the door.

On the wall means attached to or touching the wall surface. Above the sofa means higher than the sofa, not touching it. In front of the building means outside or relative to the building. In the front of the room means inside the room’s front area.

Sound natural: room words, linking, and plural endings

Stress the first part of common room compounds: LIVing room · BEDroom. In conversational U.S. English, furniture sounds approximately FUR-nuh-cher, comfortable often sounds like KUMF-ter-buhl, and refrigerator sounds like ri-FRIJ-uh-ray-ter.

Link there’s a as one light opening, then stress the new object: there’s-a LAMP. Keep there are light before a plural noun: there-are two CHAIRS. In next to, to is often reduced: next-tuh the BED. In in front of, of is light and the reference noun carries the last clear beat.

Keep plural endings audible: lamps ends /s/, chairs ends /z/, and couches adds a final syllable /ɪz/. These endings help the listener predict there is or there are.

Listen: what information does the speaker give?

Your teacher reads each fictional line once with natural U.S. rhythm and once more slowly. Listen for new versus known information and the exact place relationship. Check your answer before discussing the line with your tutor.

Tutor-read listening check

1Clip 1 .

2Clip 2 .

3Clip 3 .

4Clip 4 .

5Clip 5 places the picture .

6Clip 6 places the rug .

Read a fictional floor plan

This plan assigns each item to one area for this exercise only. It does not claim that every home uses the same layout.

Community guest studio plan

The kitchen has a stove. The sleeping area has a bed. The lounge area has a sofa. The work area has a desk. The bathroom has a shower.

Drill 1: match the plan, not a stereotype

Tap an item, then tap the exact area named for it in the plan.

Choose the exact place phrase

Drill 2: build the picture from the cue

1The towels are inside the closed closet: They are the closet.

2The laptop touches the desk surface: It is the desk.

3The rug is directly lower than the table: It is the table.

4The picture is higher than the sofa and does not touch it: It is the sofa.

5The lamp is immediately beside the bed: It is the bed.

6The chair is in the middle of the desk and the door: It is the desk and the door.

Build the information chain

Drill 3: introduce the object

The listener does not know about the lamp yet. Build the introduction.

Drill 4: locate the known object

The lamp is now known. Build the next sentence that gives its exact location.

Notice and repair errors

Drill 5: countable items or uncountable category?

The guide describes an amount of furniture: “There are some furniture in the sitting area.” Tap the verb to replace.

Drill 6: new thing or known thing?

The guide first introduces a lamp, then locates the same lamp: “There is a lamp in the room. There is on the desk.” Tap the second opening to replace.

Oral transform: introduce, then locate

Say each complete response aloud first. Reveal only after you answer.

1 one sofa · introduce it in the lounge area

There is a sofa in the lounge area.

2 the same sofa · locate it in front of the bookshelf

It is in front of the bookshelf.

3 two chairs · introduce them by the table

There are two chairs by the table.

4 the same chairs · locate them between the door and window

They are between the door and the window.

5 one room feature · use has

The room has a large closet.

Read a fictional guest-room card

Room 204

Room 204 has one bed and a wide, clear path from the door to the bathroom. There is a small desk near the window. The chair is under the desk. A reading light is on the wall above the bed. The bathroom has a shower, not a bathtub.

Read, then choose the exact information

1. Where does the wide, clear path go?

2. Where is the chair?

3. Which fixture is in the bathroom?

Play and practice

Games and a short reading that recycle this lesson. Use them as a warm-up, a fast finisher, or homework. Each one checks itself.

Read

Welcome to Studio 3

Read once for meaning. Then read again and do the tasks below.

Guest room card86 wordsAbout 1 min

Welcome to Studio 3! There is a large bed by the window and a small table beside it. There is a desk near the door, with a chair under it.

The kitchen area has a refrigerator and a stove. In the sitting area, there is a sofa in front of the TV, and there is a bookshelf behind it. The bathroom has a shower, not a bathtub. Towels are in the closet.

At checkout, please leave your key at reception. We hope you enjoy your stay!

Find it

Tap the 6 pieces of furniture. Skip appliances, fixtures, room features, and small objects.

Check your understanding

1. Where is the chair?

2. What is in front of the TV?

3. Where are the towels?

Crossword

Name the room or thing

Click a clue or a square, then type. Press Check when you finish.

Across

Down

Sort it

What kind of room item?

Tap a word, then tap the box it belongs in. Press Check when the tray is empty.

Word search

Find the place word

Find the word for each clue. Words run across or down. Tap the first letter, then the last.

higher than, with no contact → ?
lower than, in a direct line → ?
in the middle of two things → ?
on the back side of something → ?
close, but not right at the side → ?
immediately at the side (next to) → ?

Use it safely and flexibly

You never need to disclose your real home, address, bedroom, possessions, finances, family, neighborhood, work setup, location, or photos. Use the fictional room cards, invent a complete layout, or discuss personal details only when you freely choose.

Classify the inventory: The fictional studio contains a sofa, refrigerator, bathtub, key, window, desk, lamp, and two chairs. Group them as furniture, appliance, fixture, small object, or room feature.

Introduce the scene: Use There is with one singular item, There is with some uncountable furniture, and There are with two plural items.

Track known information: After introducing the lamp and chairs, continue with It is and They are. Give each a precise location.

Check an accessible route: Describe a fictional clear path from the entrance to the bed, desk, and bathroom. Place a rug, chair, and small table so that the path stays clear. This is a language-planning task, not a medical assessment.

Final production: present a fictional guest studio for 45–60 seconds. Name its areas, classify at least two items, introduce one singular item and one plural set, locate those known items with pronouns, describe one room feature with has, and use at least four precise place phrases.

Reflect

Say the system back

Complete this aloud: “Furniture is a(n) ______ noun. There is / There are introduces something ______. It is / They are can locate that thing after it becomes ______. The room has presents something as a room ______.”

Then explain the difference between on the wall and above the sofa, and between next to and near.

Final quiz: build the room from meaning

1. The guide presents an unspecified amount of furniture. Which sentence is accurate?

2. The guide introduces two new chairs. Which sentence fits?

3. The previous sentence introduced one lamp. Now locate the same lamp. Which sentence fits?

4. The writer wants to present the window as a room feature. Which sentence fits that viewpoint?

5. The picture is higher than the sofa and does not touch it. It is ___ the sofa.

6. The chair is in the middle of the desk and the door. It is ___ them.

7. A room has built-in storage space for coats. Which U.S. room word fits?

8. A visitor is asking for the public toilet room in a museum. Which word is especially natural in U.S. English?

Return tomorrow before rereading the lesson. Complete the five-minute next-day retrieval, then revisit only the category, information chain, or place contrast that still feels slow.

Next-day retrieval

Choose the missing room-description language

1The studio contains an unspecified amount of furniture: There is furniture in the studio.

2The previous sentence introduced one lamp. Now locate the same lamp: next to the bed.

3The picture is higher than the sofa with no contact: It is the sofa.

Repair the uncountable category noun

The guide presents an amount, not separate countable items: “There are some furniture in the studio.” Tap the verb to replace.

Thirty-second retrieval

Without looking back, introduce one object and two plural objects in a fictional room. Then refer back to both with pronouns, give exact locations, and describe one room feature with has.

There is a lamp in the room. It is on the desk. There are two chairs by the table. They are between the window and the door. The room has a large closet.