Week 3 · Making plans: yes, no and “maybe”
A polite no rarely contains the word no. The answer comes after "but": "I'd love to, but…". And listen for can and can't: "I can" is quick and weak, "I can't" is longer and stressed.
Read the sentences below, then practice the whole lesson with audio.
- 1Are you free this Saturday?
- 2Do you have anything going on Friday night?
- 3A few of us are getting dinner, if you want to join.
- 4Let's grab a coffee sometime next week.
- 5I'm in. What time were you thinking?
- 6Sounds good to me. Just tell me where.
- 7I can make it, but I might be a little late.
- 8I can't make it this time, sorry.
- 9I'd love to, but I already have plans that night.
- 10I wish I could, but I'm working all weekend.
- 11Can I take a rain check?
- 12Let me look at my schedule and get back to you.
- 13I'm kind of wiped out, so I think I'll stay in tonight.
- 14That might be a little tricky for me.
- 15Thanks for thinking of me, though.
FAQ
- How does this dictation practice work?
- Play a sentence, type exactly what you hear, then press check — Dictation Trainer shows word-level feedback: which words you misheard, misspelled, confused for a homophone, or missed.
- Do I need an account, and is it free?
- No account needed to start: you can practice 3 full lessons free — audio, typing, and word-by-word feedback — without signing up. Create a free account to keep going: 100 Echoes (about 10 more lessons), plus saved progress, streaks, and a mistakes notebook.
- What level is this lesson?
- This lesson is graded B1 on the CEFR scale and has 15 sentences. Dictation Trainer lessons start at A1 and climb as the library grows.