CUE CARD: A THING YOU CANNOT LIVE WITHOUT

Đề: Describe the thing that you cannot live without 

You should say:

• What is it?

• Why can’t you manage without it?

• How long have you had it for?

and explain how you felt when you were without it?

Model answer:

I would have to say my car. Public transport in Japan is not so convenient and sometimes infrequent so having a car is the preferred choice for getting around, especially if you have to travel to various places.

I use my car mainly to go from my home to university and back. But at the moment I'm also working as a part-time intern in a local business so I have to go there three afternoons a week as well.

Trying to do all that by using public transport would be almost impossible and would take a lot more time.So I've had my car for about two years now, it's a Toyota Prius and I love it.

It's very comfortable and well equipped and it's also easy to park and economical to run. I can't imagine having to do all the things I do normally without having my car. But a few months ago there was a problem with it. I noticed a strange noise coming from the front of the car one day.

At first, I ignored it, but then it gradually became worse and worse. I told my brother about it and he arranged for the car to be inspected by the mechanic. I'm not a very technical person, but apparently, there was a problem with the suspension and they had to replace a part. That is the only problem I've ever had with it. The bad news was that they had to order the part specially and I was without my car for about ten days in total. It made my daily activities very difficult, and I didn't really like using public transport at all. It was a waste of time.

I was surprised how quickly I had gotten used to having my car and just how convenient it is. Let's hope that in the future I don't have any more problems with it. It really is an essential part of my life and I don't want to be without it again.

TỪ VỰNG CÙNG CHỦ ĐỀ

• The things I couldn't live without fall into two categories: có hai thứ mà tôi không thể sống thiếu là…

• Spending quality time with something: dành thời gian chất lượng/gần gũi với cái gì đó

• X is a large part of what makes life worth living: X góp một phần lớn trong việc làm cho cuộc đời trở nên đáng sống

• It enables me to do something: nó cho phép tôi làm điều gì đó

• It puts me in a good mood for the rest of the day: nó giúp tôi có tâm trạng tốt cho khoảng thời gian còn lại của ngày

• No matter where I go, it is with me and can never be taken away: thứ gì đó luôn bên cạnh tôi ở mọi nơi và không ai có thể lấy nó đi được

• Basic necessities of life: những nhu cầu cơ bản của cuộc sống

• What is essential is invisible to the eye: điều gì đó thật sự quan trọng thì sẽ không thể nhìn thấy bằng mắt thường