Food & Ingredients – A1 English Listening Exercise
Listening 1
Listen to the supermarket announcement and choose the correct answer (A, B, or C) for each question.
1 What meat is on sale today?
(A) Beef
(B) Chicken
(C) Pork
2 How does the announcer spell the meat on sale?
(A) C-H-I-K-E-N
(B) C-H-I-C-E-N
(C) C-H-I-C-K-E-N
3 What color are the apples on sale?
(A) Red
(B) Green
(C) Yellow
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (B) Chicken
- Explanation: The announcer explicitly says, “Chicken is on sale today.” Option (A) Beef is The Trap: beef is mentioned, but the announcer says “Beef is not on sale.” Option (C) Pork is not mentioned in the audio.
2 (C) C-H-I-C-K-E-N
- Explanation: The announcer spells the word for the meat very clearly: “C-H-I-C-K-E-N”. Options (A) and (B) are common spelling mistakes for this word.
3 (A) Red
- Explanation: The announcer says, “Red apples are two dollars.” Option (B) Green is The Trap: green apples are mentioned, but the announcer says “Green apples are not on sale.” Option (C) Yellow is a plausible apple color but is not mentioned in the audio.
AUDIO SCRIPT
Announcer: Hello, shoppers! Welcome to the supermarket. Today, we have a special sale. Chicken is on sale today. C-H-I-C-K-E-N. Chicken is only five dollars. Beef is not on sale. We also have a sale on apples. Red apples are two dollars. Green apples are not on sale. Thank you!
Listening 2
Listen to a vlogger talking about how to make a salad and choose the correct answer (A, B, or C) for each question.
1 How many ingredients do you need for the salad?
(A) Two
(B) Three
(C) Four
2 How does the vlogger spell the second ingredient?
(A) T-A-M-A-T-O
(B) T-O-M-O-T-O
(C) T-O-M-A-T-O
3 What does the vlogger use to make the salad?
(A) Lettuce, tomato, and cheese
(B) Lettuce, tomato, and onion
(C) Lettuce, cucumber, and onion
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (B) Three
- Explanation: The vlogger clearly says, “You need three things.” Option (A) Two is not mentioned. Option (C) Four is The Trap: students might hear “cheese” and count it as a fourth item, but she does not use it.
2 (C) T-O-M-A-T-O
- Explanation: The vlogger spells the word for the second ingredient very clearly: “T-O-M-A-T-O”. Options (A) and (B) are incorrect spellings with similar pronunciation.
3 (B) Lettuce, tomato, and onion
- Explanation: The vlogger repeats the ingredients at the end: “Just lettuce, a tomato, and an onion.” Option (A) Lettuce, tomato, and cheese is The Trap: she mentions cheese (“Do we need cheese?”), but then explicitly says “No, we don’t need cheese today.” Option (C) is incorrect because “cucumber” is a plausible salad ingredient but is not mentioned in the audio.
AUDIO SCRIPT
Vlogger: Hello everyone! Welcome to my vlog. Today, we make a simple salad. You need three things. First, you need lettuce. Second, you need a tomato. T-O-M-A-T-O. Third, you need an onion. Do we need cheese? No, we don’t need cheese today. Just lettuce, a tomato, and an onion. Let’s start!
Listening 3
Listen to a doctor talking on TV and choose the correct answer (A, B, or C) for each question.
1 How does the doctor spell his name?
(A) G-R-E-A-N
(B) G-R-E-E-N
(C) G-R-E-N-N
2 What food is BAD for you?
(A) Apples
(B) Bananas
(C) Cake
3 What does the doctor want you to drink?
(A) Water
(B) Juice
(C) Milk
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (B) G-R-E-E-N
- Explanation: The doctor introduces himself as Doctor Green and spells it clearly: “G-R-E-E-N”. Options (A) and (C) are incorrect spellings.
2 (C) Cake
- Explanation: The doctor explicitly states, “Cake is bad for you. Please do not eat cake.” Options (A) and (B) are The Trap: apples and bananas are mentioned in the audio, but the doctor says they are “very good,” not bad.
3 (A) Water
- Explanation: The doctor advises, “drink a lot of water.” Options (B) Juice and (C) Milk are plausible healthy drinks, but they are not mentioned in the monologue.
AUDIO SCRIPT
Doctor: Hello, I am Doctor Green. G-R-E-E-N. Today, let’s talk about food. You need to eat fruit every day. Apples and bananas are very good. Do you like cake? Cake is bad for you. Please do not eat cake. Also, drink a lot of water. Water is great for your body. Thank you!
Listening 4
Listen to a radio advertisement for a new restaurant and choose the correct answer (A, B, or C) for each question.
1 How does the announcer spell the name of the restaurant?
(A) T-O-M-Y
(B) T-O-N-Y
(C) T-O-N-I
2 What pizza do they NOT have?
(A) Cheese pizza
(B) Tomato pizza
(C) Chicken pizza
3 How much is one pizza?
(A) $8
(B) $18
(C) $80
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (B) T-O-N-Y
- Explanation: The announcer says the name of the restaurant is Tony’s Pizza and spells it clearly: “T-O-N-Y”. Options (A) and (C) are distractors with similar spelling and sound.
2 (C) Chicken pizza
- Explanation: The announcer explicitly asks, “Do we have chicken pizza?” and answers, “No, we don’t have chicken pizza.” Options (A) and (B) are The Trap: cheese and tomatoes are mentioned as ingredients they do put on their pizza.
3 (A) $8
- Explanation: The announcer states, “One pizza is only eight dollars.” Option (B) $18 is a common distractor (eight vs eighteen) for A1 learners. Option (C) $80 is also a distractor with a similar starting sound.
AUDIO SCRIPT
Radio Announcer: Hello everyone! Welcome to Tony’s Pizza. T-O-N-Y. We are a new restaurant in town. We make great pizza! Our pizza has cheese and tomatoes. Do we have chicken pizza? No, we don’t have chicken pizza. Our food is very cheap. One pizza is only eight dollars. Come and eat today!
Listening 5
Listen to a voicemail from a friend and choose the correct answer (A, B, or C) for each question.
1 What does John want Sarah to buy?
(A) Pizza
(B) Bread
(C) Water
2 How does John spell the food he wants?
(A) B-R-E-A-D
(B) B-R-A-D-E
(C) B-R-E-E-D
3 What food do they already have a lot of at the party?
(A) Bread
(B) Chicken
(C) Pizza
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (B) Bread
- Explanation: John explicitly asks, “Can you buy some bread?” Option (A) Pizza is The Trap: pizza is mentioned, but he says they already have a lot of it. Option (C) Water is also The Trap: he says they already have water and don’t need drinks.
2 (A) B-R-E-A-D
- Explanation: John spells the word for the food he wants very clearly: “B-R-E-A-D”. Options (B) and (C) are incorrect spellings with similar sounds.
3 (C) Pizza
- Explanation: John says, “We have a lot of pizza.” Option (A) Bread is incorrect because it is the item they lack and need Sarah to buy. Option (B) Chicken is a plausible party food but is not mentioned in the audio.
AUDIO SCRIPT
John: Hi Sarah, it is John. We are at the party. We have a lot of pizza, but we don’t have any bread. Can you buy some bread? B-R-E-A-D. We don’t need drinks. We have water. Thank you!