Vocabulary Basics 5 (Food/Health/Numbers/Dates)

Core vocabulary by topic

Food and meals

• ingredients, recipe, cuisine, dish, portion, calorie, nutrient, protein, carbohydrate, fat, fiber, seasoning, spicy, sweet, sour, salty, bitter
• breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack, appetizer, main course, dessert
• boil, fry, bake, grill, steam, roast, chop, slice, stir, simmer

Health and wellbeing

• symptom, fever, cough, headache, allergy, injury, appointment, prescription, dosage, vaccine, therapy, recovery, hydration, balanced diet, lifestyle, exercise, stress, sleep

Numbers and operations

• zero, one, two, three, dozen, hundred, thousand, million, billion
• add, subtract, multiply, divide, total, average, percentage, fraction, ratio
• odd, even, decimal, point, approximate, estimate

Dates and time words

• yesterday, today, tomorrow, weekday, weekend, month, year, decade, century
• on Monday, in May, in 2025, at 7 pm, by Friday, since 2020, for two years

High value collocations

• a balanced diet, healthy habit, regular exercise, medical check-up, side effects
• fresh ingredients, local produce, portion control, calorie intake, plant based diet
• take medicine, follow advice, make an appointment, see a doctor, get vaccinated
• round a number, estimate a cost, calculate a percentage, meet a deadline
• set a date, change a date, confirm a date, save the date

Model sentences

• I follow portion control to reduce calorie intake.
• Please make an appointment and bring your prescription.
• We estimated the cost and rounded the figure to the nearest hundred.

Phrasal verbs you will use

• cut down on = reduce. I am cutting down on sugar.
• give up = stop. He gave up smoking last year.
• work out = exercise. I work out three times a week.
• come down with = start to get an illness. She came down with the flu.
• fill out = complete a form. Please fill out the health form.
• heat up = warm food. Heat up the soup before dinner.
• run out of = have none left. We ran out of milk.
• put off = delay. Do not put off the check-up.

Useful set phrases

• Do you have any food allergies
• Could you recommend a healthy option
• How many calories are in this portion
• I would like to book an appointment for Tuesday
• What is the total after tax
• Let us schedule the meeting for the 15th of July

Grammar micro notes

Countable vs uncountable

• Countable: apple, egg, carrot. Use a or an and plurals.
• Uncountable: rice, water, sugar, advice, information, furniture. Use some or a little.
• Use partitives: a piece of fruit, a bottle of water, a bowl of rice.

Quantifiers

• many with countable plurals. much with uncountable. a lot of works with both.
• a few vs few, a little vs little. A few is positive. Few is negative.

Numbers

• Commas in long numbers: 12,500. Decimal point: 3.75.
• Percent style: 15 percent in formal writing. 15% in charts.
• Fractions: one half, two thirds.

Dates

• 7 October 2025 or October 7, 2025.
• Write times clearly: 7 pm or 19:00.
• Prepositions: on Friday, in July, at 7 pm, by Monday, since 2023, for two weeks.

Common mistakes and clear fixes

• ❌ I have few money for lunch.
  ✅ I have little money for lunch. Money is uncountable.
• ❌ She gave me an advice.
  ✅ She gave me advice.
  ✅ She gave me a piece of advice.
• ❌ The doctor suggested to do exercise.
  ✅ The doctor suggested doing exercise.
  ✅ The doctor advised me to exercise.
• ❌ I ate two breads.
  ✅ I ate two slices of bread. Bread is uncountable.
• ❌ We will meet in 7 pm on Monday.
  ✅ We will meet at 7 pm on Monday.

Mini dialogues

A. At a cafe

• Customer: Do you have a healthy option
• Server: Yes, the grilled chicken salad is low in calories and high in protein.

B. At a clinic

• Patient: I would like to book an appointment for Friday morning.
• Reception: 10:30 is available. Please arrive 10 minutes early and fill out the form.

C. Numbers and dates

• Client: What is the total cost
• Staff: The estimate is 18,750 taka, including 10 percent tax. The delivery date is 12 June.

Quick practice with answers

A. Choose the best option

1. I want to (cut down on or cut off) sugary drinks.
2. We (ran out of or ran off) vegetables.
3. She (made or did) an appointment with the dentist.
4. Please (round or circle) the number to one decimal place.
5. The meeting is (in or on) 25 August at 9 am.

Answers

1. cut down on
2. ran out of
3. made
4. round
5. on

B. Complete the collocation
6) a balanced ______ → diet
7) portion ______ → size
8) make a ______ → recovery or reservation
9) book an ______ → appointment
10) calculate a ______ → percentage or total

C. Fix the sentence
11) I need two advices before I buy a blender.
12) We will meet since 3 pm to 5 pm.
13) He has many homework after class.

Suggested answers
11) I need two pieces of advice before I buy a blender.
12) We will meet from 3 pm to 5 pm.
13) He has a lot of homework after class.

Writing frames you can reuse

Healthy eating email
Subject: Advice on lunch menu
Dear Nutrition Team,
Could you suggest three balanced lunch options that include lean protein and vegetables I would like each option to stay under 600 calories and include one whole grain. Please send the list by Friday.
Kind regards,
Name

Appointment request
Dear Clinic,
I would like to book a check-up for Tuesday, 22 April at 11 am. I have a mild allergy and need a prescription renewal. Please confirm the time and the consultation fee.
Thank you,
Name

10 minute drills

• Make 10 collocations with food or health. Example: follow a diet, monitor blood pressure.
• Read a menu and write 5 dishes with cooking verbs.
• Convert three numbers to full sentences. Example: 37.5 becomes The temperature is thirty seven point five degrees.
• Write five dates in two styles. Example: 14 February 2026 and February 14, 2026.

7 day review plan

• Day 1 food words and cooking verbs
• Day 2 health words and clinic language
• Day 3 numbers and math verbs
• Day 4 dates and time expressions
• Day 5 phrasal verbs and collocations
• Day 6 error correction and mini dialogues
• Day 7 write a 120 word health routine using 12 target items