Daily routine vocabulary – A1 beginner English vocabulary lesson and exercises
Reading text
Example sentences with time expressions
When we talk about daily routines, we often use time expressions to indicate a time, a general time, how often we do something or in what sequence.
- On weekdays, I get up early in the morning.
- I get dressed at half seven and then I have breakfast at 8.00 a.m.
- I go to work at a quarter past eight.
- I have lunch at 12:30 p.m.
- I go home at 4:00 p.m.
- I have dinner with my family in the evening.
- After that I usually watch TV.
- I go to bed at 10:00 p.m.
Use these expressions to describe when you do your daily activities:
- Times of day: in the morning, in the afternoon, in the evening, at night
- Specific times: at 7 o'clock, at half past seven, at quarter past eight, at quarter to nine
- How often: every day, every morning, every evening, on weekdays, at the weekend, usually, always, often, sometimes, never
- Sequence: first, then, next, after that, finally
Daily routines and the present simple
We usually talk about our daily routines using the present simple tense because routines and habits are actions that happen regularly.
Examples:
- I have breakfast at 8:00 a.m.
- My daughter goes to school every day.
- We have lunch at home.
- They go to bed at 10:00 p.m.
Remember: In the present simple, we usually add -s or -es to the verb when talking about he, she, or it.
- I wake up at 7:00.
- She wakes up at 7:00.
See our Present simple grammar page for a more detailed explanation.
Discussion
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It's such a crazy time!
In my country, people usually have lunch between 1 and 2 p.m.
Here in Indonesia, the common break at work for lunch is 12.30 to 13.30.
In Curitiba, most people have lunch at midday
Here we have lunch at 1 pm, because we liked have lunch late.
Here, lunch times vary and are usually between 12 and 2 p.m. If there's a snack after breakfast, lunch is eaten after midday.
In my city, Recife, people have lunch between 12 and 1 p.m.
People in Arequipa usually have lunch from noon until 2 in the afternoon.
People in Arequipa usually have lunch at 1 or 2 in the afternoon. In my case, I usually have lunch at 1 in the afternoon, and some neighbors also have lunch at that time.
In Arequipa, people have lunch at varying times, but generally between 12 PM and 4 PM. Specifically, in my house, we eat around 12 PM to 2 PM, depending on when everyone is available. Once we are all together, we enjoy our meal as a family. It's a perfect time to talk about university, check in on how my parents are doing at work, or simply watch TV together.