Touchstone 2nd Edition • Language summary • Level 1

Unit 9 • Lesson A: Sightseeing

Vocabulary
Tourist activities
get a view of (the city) (v)
go to the top of (a tall building) (v)
see a show (v)
sit at an outdoor café (v)
take a bus tour (v)
take a ferry (to) (v)
take a walk (v)
take a walking tour (v)
visit historic areas (v)
walk around a neighborhood (v)

Travel and tourism

bridge (n)
castle (n)
historic district / area / site (n)
island (n)
New York (n)
palace (n)
pyramid (n)
souvenir (n)
statue (n)
tower (n)
zoo (n)
historic district / area / site (n)

© Cambridge University Press 2014 Unit 9, Lesson A, Page 1

Touchstone 2nd Edition • Language summary • Level 1

Other words
first (adv)
through (Central Park) (prep)
on (a rainy day) (prep)
like (prep)
can (v)
can't (v)

Grammar
Can and can't for possibility
Statements
Use can to talk about things that are possible. Use subject + can + verb:

I can take a ferry.

Use can't (= can not / cannot) to talk about things that are not possible. Use subject + can't +
verb:

She can't see a show.

The form of can / can't is the same for all subjects (I, you, he, she, we, and they).

Questions
Use can to ask questions about things that are possible.

Information questions

Use question word + can + subject + verb:

A What can you do in New York?

B You can do a million things.

A Where can tourists go on a rainy day?

B They can go to a Broadway show.

The form of can / can't is the same for all subjects (I, you, he, she, we, and they).

© Cambridge University Press 2014 Unit 9, Lesson A, Page 2

Touchstone 2nd Edition • Language summary • Level 1
Yes-No questions

Use Can + subject + verb to ask a question:

Can we buy an umbrella here?

To answer, use Yes / No + subject + can / can't:

A Can we buy an umbrella here?

B Yes, you can. / No, you can't.

The form of can / can't is the same for all subjects (I, you, he, she, we, and they).

© Cambridge University Press 2014 Unit 9, Lesson A, Page 3