detached house 

– a house that is not connected to any other houses

- We’d love to buy one of the new detached houses being built near the
lake but they’re out of our price range.

semi-detached house – a house that is joined to another house on one

side

- Meena lived in a semi-detached house and could sometimes hear her

neighbours arguing through the adjoining wall.

terraced house (UK) / row house (US) – a house in a row of similar

houses joined together on both sides

- Having a property either side of us means that our terraced house stays

warm in winter.

townhouse – a house built in a row but larger in size than a terraced

house, often having more than two storeys

- Townhouses are popular with families as they often have extra

bedrooms in the attic.

bungalow – a house with only one storey; built all on one level

- Many people move to a bungalow when they retire so they don’t have to

climb the stair as they get older.

cottage – a small house, usually located in the countryside

- For lots of people, a cottage in the countryside is their idea of a dream

home.

flat / apartment – a set of rooms for living in that are part of a larger
building and are usually all on one floor

- It was a big day when their son left home and moved into his own flat.

fully-furnished flat / apartment – one that you rent with furniture already
in it

- The young couple didn’t have much money so looked for a fully-
furnished apartment to rent when they got married.

studio flat / apartment – a small flat that has one main room for living,
eating and sleeping in
- Hilda had the choice of three studio flats in the converted property and
chose the one with pink walls.

bedsit – a rented room that has a bed, table, chairs, and somewhere to
cook in it but a shared bathroom

- The bedsit is small but has everything I need to create a little home for
myself.

apartment block / high-rise – an apartment building with at least 10 floors

- There is little space for housing in my city and most people live in a high-
rise.

block of flats / tower block – a tall building with flats on many levels

- They are clearing some of the old terraced houses in our town and
replacing them with blocks of flats.

Skyscraper -

penthouse – an expensive flat at the top of a tall building in a fashionable

area of a city

mansion – a large, impressive house

- If we were rich, I would buy a penthouse in London overlooking the River

Thames but my husband would prefer a mansion on the coast.

villa – a large, often luxurious house in the country or near the sea,
especially in southern Europe, and often rented out for holidays

- We stayed in a fabulous villa when we visited Greece. It even had its own

swimming pool.

student digs –  student accommodation, often in a shared house

- I was apprehensive about moving into student digs but I’m enjoying it

and get on well with my housemates.

bedroom – room used for sleeping in

- I’ve painted my bedroom yellow as it makes me feel cheerful when I

wake up.

living room / lounge / sitting room – room used for relaxing

- In the evenings I chill out in the living room with a book or watch a bit of
TV.

bathroom – room with a bath and/or shower and often a toilet

- With five people in my family, we have to queue for the bathroom in the

morning.

kitchen – room where food is prepared and cooked, and sometimes eaten

- The kitchen is my favourite room in the house because I love cooking.

dining room – room in which meals are eaten

- I usually eat my breakfast in the kitchen but we always have family meals
in the dining room.

study – a room for doing paperwork and studying in

- Kamal spent all day in the study working on his essay.

hall / hallway – open area inside the main entrance which leads to other
rooms and usually the stairs

- Having a large hallway is so useful if you have a baby as there’s plenty of

space to store the buggy.

landing – area at the top of the stairs

- I’m always telling the kids off for leaving their toys on the landing in case
someone trips over them and falls down the stairs.

utility room – room used for storage and equipment such as the washing
machine, freezer, etc.

- It’s a rule in our house that all muddy boots are left in the utility room.

basement / cellar – room below ground level used for storage and
sometimes for accommodation

- The children are so excited that our new house has a basement as we’ve
promised to turn it into a playroom for them.

porch – a covered shelter protecting the front entrance of a building

- I’m so grateful for the porch on a wet day when I have to stop and wipe
the dog’s feet before going indoors.

attic / loft – space in the roof used for storage and often converted into
accommodation
- Margit regretted putting so much junk up in the attic now that she had to
clear it out ready for the builders to start work on the loft conversion.

- We had a proper larder when I was young but nowadays, most people

keep food in the fridge, freezer or a cupboard.

balcony – a platform enclosed by a wall or bars on the outside of a

building, with access from an upper-floor window or door

- My dream home would have a balcony overlooking the sea.

rent – to pay money to the owner of a property to be allowed to live there

- One day I hope to own my own home but for now, I can only afford
to rent.

to rent out / let out – to allow someone to live in your property for a fee

- I inherited my mum’s bungalow when she died and I’ve decided

to rent it out.

rented accommodation – a property for which a person pays a fixed

amount to live in it to the person who owns it

- Being a university town, Exeter has lots of rented accommodation for

the students.

landlord / landlady – the owner of a building or room that is rented out to

others

- I have an excellent landlord who always fixes things quickly when

something needs repairing.

tenant – someone who rents a flat or house from the person who owns it

- The people renting Adil’s flat gave notice last week so he’s looking for
new tenants.

to give notice – to inform someone that you will be leaving or that they are
required to leave

- We gave the landlord the required 30-day’s notice that we would be

moving out of the flat.

to put down a deposit – to make an initial payment as part of a rental

agreement or to secure a purchase

- The landlord said that once we’d put down the deposit of £200, the flat
was ours.
lease – the contract a tenant signs when renting a property

- We gave him the £200 deposit immediately and agreed that we’d visit the
office later to sign the lease.

evict – to force tenants to leave a property if they fail to pay the rent or they
behave unacceptably

- The tenants in the flat above us used to play loud music all night long but
thankfully the landlady evicted them.

Eviction notice