Unit 9: The big wedding
Present continuous and 'going to' for future
Select a unit
- 1 Nice to meet you!
- 2 What to wear
- 3 Like this, like that
- 4 The daily grind
- 5 Christmas every day
- 6 Great achievers
- 7 The Titanic
- 8 Travel
- 9 The big wedding
- 10 Sunny's job hunt
- 11 The bucket list
- 12 Moving and migration
- 13 Welcome to BBC Broadcasting House
- 14 New Year, New Project
- 15 From Handel to Hendrix
- 16 What's the weather like?
- 17 The Digital Revolution
- 18 A detective story
- 19 A place to live
- 20 The Cult of Celebrity
- 21 Welcome to your new job
- 22 Beyond the planets
- 23 Great expectations!
- 24 Eco-tourism
- 25 Moving house
- 26 It must be love
- 27 Job hunting success... and failure
- 28 Speeding into the future
- 29 Lost arts
- 30 Tales of survival
Session 1
Time to meet three happy couples who are planning the biggest day of their lives: their wedding day! And as we hear from them, we'll look at some different ways to talk about the future.
Session 1 score
0 / 29
- 0 / 16Activity 1
- 0 / 0Activity 2
- 0 / 5Activity 3
- 0 / 8Activity 4
- 0 / 0Activity 5
Activity 1
Wedding words
Bridesmaids and groomsmen...
This unit is all about weddings, so it's a good time to look at some wedding vocabulary. Who's the bride and who's the groom? And what's the difference between a fiancé and a fiancée?
Read this story. Jean-Pierre and Marianne are planning their wedding in France. Do you know the meanings of the words in bold?
Read the text and complete the activity
A wedding with a difference
"I proposed to my girlfriend Marianne last month, so she's now my fiancée! It's lovely being engaged, though planning the wedding takes up a lot of time. We're getting married next summer, here in France.
It's going to be a small wedding with around 50 guests – we've already sent them invitations. We've also booked the venue – a big hotel by the sea.
In terms of catering, we'd like traditional French food – it's the best! But we don't want a traditional ceremony in a church – instead we're going to have it on the beach, with both Marianne, the bride, and me, the groom, wearing wetsuits instead of formal clothes.
The photographer will need a waterproof camera. All our best friends – the bridesmaids and groomsmen - will be dressed in swimwear.
I can't wait until we're married. Because then – there's the honeymoon to look forward to – two whole weeks on a diving holiday after our wedding."
To do
Now you've read the story, can you work out the meanings of the words in bold?
Wedding vocabulary
16 Questions
Now you've read the story, can you work out the meanings of the words in bold?
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Activity
Now you've read the story, can you work out the meanings of the words in bold?
Hint
It involves an important question…Question 1 of 16
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Activity
Now you've read the story, can you work out the meanings of the words in bold?
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Usually there are lots of people with you when you do this…Question 2 of 16
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Now you've read the story, can you work out the meanings of the words in bold?
Hint
Are you married yet?Question 3 of 16
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Activity
Now you've read the story, can you work out the meanings of the words in bold?
Hint
Want to be more than a girlfriend or boyfriend? Many people do this…Question 4 of 16
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Now you've read the story, can you work out the meanings of the words in bold?
Hint
After you propose, you are…Question 5 of 16
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Now you've read the story, can you work out the meanings of the words in bold?
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Churches, halls and hotels are all popular wedding venues in the UK…Question 6 of 16
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Now you've read the story, can you work out the meanings of the words in bold?
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If you don't want your wedding guests to be hungry, you will have to organise this...Question 7 of 16
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Activity
Now you've read the story, can you work out the meanings of the words in bold?
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Do you want a traditional ceremony? Or something modern?Question 8 of 16
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Activity
Now you've read the story, can you work out the meanings of the words in bold?
Hint
Hint: They're having over 300 guests at their wedding. They have so many friends…Question 9 of 16
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Activity
Now you've read the story, can you work out the meanings of the words in bold?
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No-one sent me an invitation to the party. Maybe they don't want me to come…Question 10 of 16
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Now you've read the story, can you work out the meanings of the words in bold?
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Take this to the beach!Question 11 of 16
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Now you've read the story, can you work out the meanings of the words in bold?
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Lots of job names end in the suffix -er...Question 12 of 16
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Now you've read the story, can you work out the meanings of the words in bold?
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The bride's dress is very important…Question 13 of 16
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Activity
Now you've read the story, can you work out the meanings of the words in bold?
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The groom looked very handsome in his suit and tieQuestion 14 of 16
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Now you've read the story, can you work out the meanings of the words in bold?
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She had eight bridesmaids at her wedding…Question 15 of 16
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Activity
Now you've read the story, can you work out the meanings of the words in bold?
Hint
He had three groomsmen at his wedding…Question 16 of 16
Excellent! Great job! Bad luck! You scored:
Vocabulary tip
Did you notice the difference between to get married and to be married? On the day of your wedding, you get married. After that, you are married.
It's similar for to get engaged and to be engaged. To get engaged is what happens when you ask someone to marry you and they say yes. After that you are engaged, until… you get married!
Examples
- We got engaged in March this year and we're going to get married this year.
- I've been engaged for two years.
- All my friends are married already!
Next
We hope you learned some useful words. Soon you will have a chance to use them as we meet three couples talking about their wedding plans. But first, a quick pronunciation point with Emma. It's a really useful one!