Speak English Around Town Lesson 19 Idioms, Proverbs, Expressions MCQ Test
LESSON 19 – Checking Into a Hotel
CHECKING INTO A HOTEL
When Maria goes to check in to her hotel, Chad, at reception, informs her that he doesn’t have her reservation. He finds a room for her, which ends up being too noisy.
Chad: How can I help you?
Maria: I’m checking in. I’ve got a reservation under the name Baker.
Chad: Okay, let me pull up your reservation. You said “Baker.”
Maria: Yes, Maria Baker.
Chad: Unfortunately, I have no record of your reservation. It must have gotten lost in our system.
Maria: Great. Just my luck!
Chad: Don’t worry. We’ve got plenty of rooms. Are you a member of our rewards program yet?
Maria: No, I don’t travel that much so it’s not worth my while.
Chad: You can start earning points with this stay. Then you can get discounts on future stays and special offers by mail.
Maria: As a rule, I don’t join those programs. I get enough junk mail already.
(ten minutes later)
Maria: I just checked my room, and I’ll need a different room.
Chad: What’s the problem?
Maria: The 12th floor is a zoo. There’s some kind of convention going on up there and people are making a racket.
Chad: I’m sorry about that. Let’s see what else we have.
Maria: Also, you must have given me a smoking room because it reeks of cigarette smoke!
Chad: I do apologize for that. Let me give you room 1485. It should be quiet and smoke free.
Language Lens: “Must have”
To say what you think has happened in a situation, use must have or the contraction must’ve.
Form it like this:
must have ( or must’ve) + verb in the past participle
The past participle of regular verbs usually ends in -ed. It is the same as the verb in the past tense.
Examples: visited, looked, entered, wanted. Irregular verbs have various endings in the past participle. Most end in one of these:
-d (heard, held, paid, read, stood, understood)
-n (eaten, forgotten, given, gotten, known, taken, spoken)
-t (brought, caught, cost, left, slept, spent, thought)
Examples:
◼ I can’t find my passport. I must’ve* left it at the hotel. ( = I think I left it at the hotel).
◼ You don’t have your book? You must have forgotten it in my car.
◼ The movie is over already? I must’ve fallen asleep.
◼ I can’t find my laptop. Someone must’ve moved it.
◼ Linda called you from her car saying she was lost? She must’ve left the directions at home.
◼ My stomach is killing me. I must’ve overeaten!
◼ My iPad is gone from my hotel room. Someone must’ve stolen it!
◼ There are no more cookies left? Kate must’ve eaten the last one.
* Note: must’ve can be pronounced either mustof or, more informally, musta.
IDIOMS
- as a rule
→ in general; usually
Example: As a rule, Betty doesn’t answer her telephone after 10 p.m.
- (to) check in
→ to register (such as at a hotel or conference)
Example: Let’s check in to our hotel first, and then go out and explore the city.
- (to) earn points
→ to earn credit towards a future purchase (when talking about promotions offered by companies)
Example: Allison joined Delta’s frequent flier program and started earning points.
- I do apologize (for that)
→ I’m very sorry (said to a customer)
Example: Your order arrived a week late? I do apologize for that.
Note: The “do” in this expression is optional. It makes the apology stronger or more polite.
- junk mail
→ unwanted mail, usually selling or advertising something
Example: My mailbox was full today, but it was almost all junk mail.
- just my luck
→ what bad luck
Example: I arrived two minutes late to the airport and missed my flight. Just my luck!
- (to) make a racket
→ to make a lot of noise
Example: We couldn’t sleep because the people in the hotel room next door were making a racket all night.
- (to) pull up a reservation
→ to find a reservation on the computer; to call up the file with the reservation
Example: “Hello, I’d like to change my flight for next Friday.” – “Please give me your last name and I’ll pull up our reservation.”
- (to) reek of
→ to smell badly of something (often smoke or alcohol)
Example: This pillow reeks of smoke. Please bring me a fresh one.
- rewards program
→ a promotional program designed to get customers to use a company’s product or service more often
Example: Paula earned a free one-week stay at a Marriott through the hotel’s rewards program.
- special offer
→ a promotional offer; a discount on a particular product or service, usually for a limited time
Example: The restaurant is running a special offer. Buy one meal at full price and get the second one free.
- worth one’s while
→ deserving of one’s time or effort
Example: If you ‘re in Manhattan, I suggest you visit the Guggenheim Museum. It’ll be worth your while.
- zoo
→ a noisy area; chaos
Example: Thousands of people go to Times Square in New York to celebrate New Year’s Eve. It’s a zoo!
