Communication Advice for a Night-Owl Roommate Conflict

Dialogue script

Each entry shows the English sentence first, with the translation on the line below it. To practise speaking, cover the translation and repeat after the audio.

1. Tom 0:00

   My roommate keeps gaming at 1 a.m., and I can't sleep.

   Line 1
2. Emma 0:03

   Have you talked calmly, or only complained when upset?

   Line 2
3. Tom 0:08

   I complained once at night, so he became defensive.

   Line 3
4. Emma 0:11

   Timing matters; discuss it daytime when nobody feels attacked.

   Line 4
5. Tom 0:16

   He said headphones hurt his ears, which I didn't expect.

   Line 5
6. Emma 0:20

   So the issue isn't unwillingness; it's comfort and setup.

   Line 6
7. Tom 0:24

   First idea: quiet hours after midnight on weekdays.

   Line 7
8. Emma 0:28

   Alternative: move his desk to the living room after eleven.

   Line 8
9. Tom 0:32

   Let's try quiet hours plus a small speaker limiter app.

   Line 9
10. Emma 0:36

    Great, and write it down so both of you remember.

    Line 10
11. Tom 0:40

    If noise continues, we'll involve the landlord for mediation.

    Line 11
12. Emma 0:44

    Fair approach, and start with cooperation before escalation.

    Line 12

Native audio, line-by-line recording and pronunciation scoring for this dialogue are in the EngTalk app.

Key vocabulary

Content words from this dialogue, ranked by the CEFR level at which they appear across the whole 500-dialogue library. Function words and proper nouns are excluded.

• roommate /ˈrumˌmeɪt/ noun

  a person who shares a room or home

• upset /ʌpˈsɛt/ adjective, verb, noun

  unhappy; to make unhappy or disturb

• matters /ˈmætərz/ noun

  subjects, problems, or things of importance

• hurt /hɝt/ verb/adjective

  to cause pain; injured

• expect /ɪkˈspɛkt/ verb

  believe something will happen

• issue /ˈɪʃu/ noun

  a problem, topic, or edition

• comfort /ˈkʌmfərt/ noun

  a state of physical ease and relief from pain

• alternative /ɔlˈtɜrnətɪv/ noun

  one of two or more available possibilities

• speaker /ˈspikər/ noun

  a person who speaks; a device that plays sound

• involve /ɪnˈvɑlv/ verb

  to include or require as a part

• fair /ˈfɛr/ adjective

  reasonable and treating people equally

• escalation /ˌɛskəˈleɪʃən/ noun

  an increase in seriousness or intensity

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