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Day 35 of 60 · B1 · Listening
Listen for the stress: thirTEEN is stressed at the end, THIRty at the start. Dates are usually said as the third of May. When names are spelled, listen carefully for e and i, g and j, and a and e.
Learners often miss the stress, so 13 becomes 30. Letter names are tricky too: English e sounds like French i, and English i sounds like the word eye. In a listening task, every digit and letter needs to be right.
| ✗ Don't say | ✓ Say |
|---|---|
| — | thirTEEN (13) / THIRty (30) |
| the three of May | the third of May |
| — | The bus leaves at four fifTEEN, not four FIFty. |
| — | Could you spell that, please? Is that E or I? |
A: Good morning. Can I book an appointment for the thirteenth of May?
B: Sorry, the thirteenth or the thirtieth?
A: The thirteenth, one-three. My name's Nora: N-O-R-A.
B: Thank you, Nora. So that's the thirteenth of May at ten.
Choose the best answer. The answers are at the end of the lesson.
Remember: English g rhymes with see, and j rhymes with day. French has them almost the other way round, so they're easy to mix up.
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