General Listening Quiz

Listen to the recording on bus trips and read along with the conversation. Review the key vocabulary and the sample sentences.

Woman: Um, excuse me. Is this seat taken?

Man: It is now. Take a seat.

Woman: Uh, thanks. Um, I’ve been waiting for over two hours for the bus to come.

Man: Oh, yeah. The bus broke down about 50 miles back. Actually, the bus driver lost control of the bus when he spilt hot chocolate on himself, and then he tried to regain control of the bus and hit a rock and blew a tire.

Woman: Uh. Are you sure this bus is safe?

Man: I ain’t sure if it’s safe, but you can’t beat the price.

Woman: Umm . . . hmm . . . Well, um, where are you from?

Man: To tell ya [you] truth, I really don’t know.

Woman: Uh, what do you mean?

Man: Well, you see, I was adopted when I was a baby, and I was told that I was born in New York City, but I can’t be sure about that. Then, my new parents raised me in a small town in Texas. I’m sure you’ve never heard of it.

Woman: Uh, oh, where?

Man: Well, well . . . My parents, Fred and Norma, had a farm, and I grew up milking cows and herding sheep, and actually, I’m on my way to visit them now.

Woman: You’re going back to Texas?

Man: Oh no. They sold that farm years ago when they discovered oil on the property. They live on a ranch right outside of Las Vegas now. Beautiful place with a pool . . .

Woman: Las Vegas. Las Vegas? I thought this bus was heading to Chicago [Oh] . . in the opposite direction!

Man: Oh, no. You’re on the wrong bus.

Woman: I . . I’ve got to get off.

Man: Oh, no . . . relax. Spend a weekend with me and my parents on the ranch. I can teach you how to milk a cow or something like that.

Woman: I have to get off.

Man: Oh, well . . . Once this bus left the last station, it ain’t gonna stop until the next station . . . three hours from now. And, and, and . . . the driver got really upset when the last passenger made a same mistake. So, sit and relax. Let me tell you about the farm. I have plenty of stories.

• Is this seat taken? (adjective): being used or occupied 
  – I’m sorry, but this seat is taken. My wife is using the restroom right now, but she’ll be back in a minute.
• break down (verb): stop working 
  – The buses always break down on my way to work, so I now drive instead.
• regain (verb): recover something after it is lost 
  – My brother almost crashed his car into a tree during the snowstorm, but he regained control of the car at the last second.
• beat (verb): do better than something else 
  – I know that taking the bus isn’t always very comfortable and fast, but you sometimes can’t beat the price.
• herd (verb; also a noun): gather animals 
  – Our dog herds the sheep very quickly in the fields.
• discover (verb): find 
  – You can discover interesting places when you travel the country by bus.
• ranch (noun): a place where people live in the country and raise animals such as horses and cows 
  – My father grew up on a large ranch in California, and his family raised a lot of animals. He said it was very hard work.
• head somewhere (verb): go in the direction of a particular place 
  – I’m heading to California to visit my family. What about you? Where are you heading on this trip?
• upset (adjective): unhappy or angry 
  – Brittany is really upset about the trip. She can’t go because she doesn’t have money to buy a bus ticket.