English vocabulary for travelling by plane exercise part 2

In this second of two online exercises on travelling by air/plane, you will learn and remember more vocabulary and phrases that are commonly used to tell people about traveling by air/plane. In addition, you'll learn some vocabulary and phrases that can be used for all types of journeys (e.g. by plane, train, car etc...) and trips.

If you haven't done the first part of this exercise yet, I recommend you do this first part of the exercise before doing this second part of the exercise.

Click here to see more of our free online exercises on travel & hotel vocabulary


Exercise: Conversation about a plane journey continued

Read the following conversation between two colleagues (Pierre from Paris and Simon from Madrid) before a meeting about Pierre's journey to the meeting.

From the context, try to guess what the meaning of the words/phrases in bold are. Then do the quiz at the end to check if you are right.

Simon:'What time did you leave your house this morning?'

Pierre:'Well, I set off at 6am and the taxi got to the airport at 6.45am.'

Simon:'Are you staying in Madrid for the night?'

Pierre:'This time no. I'm in Madrid for the day.'

Simon:'What time are you flying back to Paris?'

Pierre:'I'm flying back at 6.30pm this evening.'

Simon:'What time do you need to arrive at the airport?'

Pierre:'Well, I've already checked in online for the flight because I'm only taking hand luggage, this bag. So I need to arrive at the airport by 5.45pm at the latest.'

Simon:'I can give you a lift to the airport in my car. The airport isn't far and I have to pass it on my journey home. I can drop you off in front of the door of departures.'

Pierre:'That would be very much appreciated.'

Simon:'Who are you flying with?'

Pierre:'The flight is with Spain Air.'

Simon:'What time will you get back to your house tonight?'

Pierre:'The flight is scheduled to land in Paris at 8.20pm. My wife is going to pick me up in her car from the airport. So I should get back to my house by 9.20pm.'

Simon:'A long day.'


What next

Well done for reading the text and learning the meaning of each of the words/phrase in bold. If you don't want to forgot what they mean and want to be able to say them correctly, I'd like you to do one more thing which won't take you long.

Answer the questions in the below quiz with the travelling by plane vocabulary you've just learnt. Doing this will make sure that you both remember what they mean and that you'll use them in the future.



Quiz:

Below is a definition/description of each of the words/phrases in bold from the above text. Now fill in the blanks with one of these words/phrases in bold. Only use one word/phrase once and write it as it is in the text. Click on the "Check Answers" button at the bottom of the quiz to check your answers.

When the answer is correct, two icons will appear next to the question. The first is an Additional Information Icon "". Click on this for extra information on the word/phrase and for a translation. The second is a Pronunciation Icon "". Click on this to listen to the pronunciation of the word/phrase.

1. When you take somebody in your car to a place, is a    

         

Lift:
(noun) A 'lift' is the commonly used word for taking somebody in your car/motorbike to a certain place (e.g. airport, school, work, home, centre of town etc...). 'lift' is generally used with the verb 'to give'. When using it with the verb 'to give', you use 'to give' first, then the name or pronoun of the person/people (e.g. 'Simon', 'her' etc...), then 'a lift', then the preposition 'to' if you use the place where you will take them, e.g. 'I gave them a lift to the airport' or 'can you give me a lift to work?'.

'lift' can also be with the verb 'to want' when asking somebody if you can take them somewhere in your car (e.g. 'do you want a lift?'). It has a similar meaning to 'to drop somebody off', but 'to drop somebody off' means that only the passenger(s) leaves the car and the driver doesn't. 'to give somebody a lift' could mean that both the passenger(s) and driver leave the car at the place or only the passenger(s) does.

In Spanish: "llevar alguien en un coche".

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Lift:

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2. A different way to say 'travel with' when telling someone the name of the company of the plane you are going in, is    

         

Flying with:
(verb & prep) The infinitive is 'to fly with'. You use this when you are asking or telling somebody the name of the airline/company that you are travelling with. The airline/company goes after the preposition 'with'. For example 'I'm flying with British Airways'. You use 'to fly to' to tell someone which place/airport you are going to (e.g. 'He flew to Gatwick') and 'to fly from' to say which place you came from (e.g. 'I'm flying from Heathrow').

In Spanish: "volar con".

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Flying with:

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3. When you don't stay overnight in a place, you stay    

         

For the day:
(phrase) 'for the day' is used when somebody is visiting a place/city/country and will only be there during the day (not staying overnight or returning the next day). You use 'for the day' after 'to be here/there', e.g. 'I'm here for the day'. You can also use 'the week', 'the month' or 'two days' instead of 'the day', e.g. 'he's there for the week'.

In Spanish: "pasar el dia".

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For the day:

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4. A phrasal verb that is used when you drive somebody to a place and they then leave your car, is    

         

Drop you off:
(phrasal verb) The infinitive is 'to drop somebody off'. In this context it means to drive/take somebody in your car/motorbike to a place (e.g. airport, work, train station etc...) and then they leave the car and you drive somewhere else (e.g. to return home, a car park, work etc...). This a transitive and separable phrasal verb, so the person/people who are going to leave has to be used and generally goes between the verb and the particle (e.g. 'drop Simon off' or 'drop them off').

If you want to say the place they left/were dropped off, the phrasal verb is followed by the preposition 'at' and the place, e.g. 'his flight leaves tonight and I'm going to drop him off at the airport'. It has a similar meaning to 'to give somebody a lift', but 'to drop somebody off' means that only the passenger(s) leaves the car and the driver doesn't and 'to give somebody a lift' could mean that both the passenger(s) and driver leave the car at the place or only the passenger(s) does.

When you drive to a place (e.g. airport, work, train station etc...) to collect somebody, so they can enter your car/motorbike to go to another place (e.g. home etc...), you use the phrasal verb 'to pick up', e.g. 'his flight arrives tonight and I'm going to pick him up from the airport'.

In Spanish: "dejar".

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Drop you off:

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5. A verb that means that a plane 'arrives' at an airport, is    

         

Land:
(verb) The infinitive is 'to land'. This is a different way to say that a flight/plane 'arrives' at an airport. It literally means that the plane stops flying in the air and is now on the ground/land, e.g. 'the plane lands at 7.30'. The opposite of 'to land' is 'to take off', when a plane leaves the airport and starts to fly in the air.

In Spanish: "aterrizar".

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Land:

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6. The name for bags that you take/carry with you when you board/get on a plane, is    

         

Hand luggage:
(noun) 'hand luggage' or 'hand baggage' in American English is the name for a bag(s) that you take/carry on to the plane when you board/get on it. These are the bags that don't have to be checked in and placed in the cargo hold in the bottom part of the plane (these bags are called 'hold luggage/baggage'). Some airlines have restrictions on the size of the 'hand luggage' that passengers can take on board the plane with them.

In Spanish: "equipaje de mano".

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Hand luggage:

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7. A phrasal verb that is used when you collect somebody in your car from the airport, is    

         

Pick me up:
(phrasal verb) The infinitive is 'to pick somebody up'. In this context it means to drive to a place (e.g. airport, work, train station etc...) to collect somebody, so they can enter your car/motorbike to go to another place (e.g. home etc...). This a transitive and separable phrasal verb, so the person/people who are going to be collected has to be used and generally goes between the verb and the particle (e.g. 'pick Simon up' or 'pick them up').

If you want to say the place they were collected/picked up, the phrasal verb is followed by the preposition 'from' and the place, e.g. 'his flight arrives tonight and I'm going to pick him up from the airport'. When you drive/take somebody in your car/motorbike to a certain place (e.g. airport, school, work etc...) and they leave the car/motorbike, you use 'to drop somebody off', e.g. 'I dropped them off at the airport'.

In Spanish: "recoger".

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Pick me up:

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8. When you go to a desk at the airport and get your seat number for a flight, is    

         

Checked in:
(phrasal verb) The infinitive is 'to check in'. In this context it means to confirm that you going to take the flight. Normally, this happens a few hours before the flight/plane is scheduled to take off/leave the airport. Although you can do it at a desk in the airport which is called 'check in' (you have to do this if you have bags/luggage which you are going to leave in the plane's cargo hold), it is now common for people who are only taking hand luggage to do it online, on the internet. With both methods, you receive a boarding card, which you need to board/get on the plane.

This is an intransitive verb (it has no object), e.g. 'I've already checked in online'. This phrasal verb is also used when you are going to put your bags/luggage in the cargo hold at the bottom of the plane, e.g 'I'd like to check in two bags'.

In Spanish: "facturar".

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Checked in:

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9. A phrasal verb that means to 'arrive' in your own city or house, is    

         

Get back:
(phrasal verb) The infinitive is 'to get back'. In this context it is an informal way of saying 'arrive' in your own city, home or office when are you are visiting another place. When you use this phrasal verb, you normally give a time when you arrived or expect to, e.g. 'If there are no traffic jams, I should get back home at 7.30'. This is an intransitive phrasal verb (it has no object), e.g. 'he got back to the office at 12.10'. The exception is with 'home', which doesn't need the preposition 'to' to connect it to the phrasal verb, e.g. 'I'll get back home at 7.30'.

In Spanish: "volver/regresar".

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Get back:

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10. A phrasal verb that means to 'leave' a place when you start a journey, is    

         

Set off:
(phrasal verb) The infinitive is 'to set off'. In this context it is an informal and commonly used way of saying 'leave' a place and 'start' a journey. When you use this phrasal verb, you normally give a time when you left or expect to, e.g. 'I'll set off tomorrow morning at 6.30'. This is an intransitive phrasal verb (it has no object), e.g. 'I set off from home at 12.10'. If you want to say the place where you started your journey, you use the preposition 'from' after the phrasal verb and then the name of the place (e.g. 'from the office', 'from home' etc...).

In Spanish: "salir".

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Set off:

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Practice

Now that you understand the new vocabulary, practise it by creating your own sentences with the new words/phrases.