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B1 Vocabulary & Speaking

⏰ Bad Habits and Breaking Them

Master 10 key words, practice core collocations, and perfect your pronunciation in 20 minutes.

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How to use this lesson

👩‍🏫 Teacher Guide

Set a timer for 20 minutes and guide students through the word table first.

Check answers together after each practice section and listen to their shadowing recordings.

🎒 Learner Guide

Read the 10 words and memory tips carefully before starting.

Complete the practice tasks, then record your voice in the shadowing section.

Word table

10 Core Words

Example Pattern

"I keep hitting the snooze button, so I tend to be late for class."

A person struggling to avoid hitting the alarm snooze button in the morning, neo-brutalist digital illustration style

Word	Meaning	Common Collocations	Word forms	Example sentence	Memory tip
Group 1: The Habit
snooze	to sleep extra minutes after an alarm sounds	hit the snooze button	snooze (v, n)	He always hits snooze twice.	Sounds like "snooring" in your sleep.
trigger	something that makes a habit start	common trigger, trigger a response	trigger (n, v)	Stress is a common trigger.	Think of pulling a gun trigger to start action.
urge	a sudden strong wish to do something	resist the urge, feel an urge	urge (n, v)	She felt an urge to eat chocolate.	URGE sounds like URGent - do it now!
excuse	a reason given to explain a mistake or bad habit	make an excuse, weak excuse	excuse (n, v)	That is just a weak excuse.	EXcuse = EXplaining away your fault.
Group 2: The Struggle
resist	to stop yourself from doing something you want	resist temptation, hard to resist	–	It is hard to resist sweets.	RE-SIST = RE-STAY strong against a push.
distract	to take someone's attention away	distract attention, easily distracted	distraction (n)	Phones distract students easily.	DIS-TRACT = DIS-TRip your focus.
willpower	the mental strength to control your actions	strong willpower, lack of willpower	–	It takes willpower to stop.	WILL (desire) + POWER (strength).
Group 3: Changing It
addicted	unable to stop doing something harmful	addicted to gaming, become addicted	addiction (n)	He is addicted to video games.	ADD-icted = ADDing more and more daily.
quit	to stop doing a habit or job permanently	quit smoking, quit a bad habit	–	She wants to quit smoking.	QUIT = Quick EXIT from a habit.
stubborn	refusing to change your mind or behavior	stubborn person, too stubborn	–	He is too stubborn to listen.	STUCK like a stone, born unwilling to move.

Practice

16 Items

Part 1: Collocation Matrix

Match each verb on the left to the noun phrase it naturally goes with.

Verb

an urge

the snooze button

willpower

a bad habit

1. hit

____an urge ____the snooze button ____willpower ____a bad habit

2. resist

____an urge ____the snooze button ____willpower ____a bad habit

3. break

____an urge ____the snooze button ____willpower ____a bad habit

4. lose

____an urge ____the snooze button ____willpower ____a bad habit

Part 2: Short Dialogues Gap-Fill

Word Bank: quit trigger stubborn excuse

5. Dialogue 1:

A: What makes you eat junk food at night?

B: Seeing fast food ads on TV is a big ____ for me.

6. Dialogue 2:

A: Why didn't you go to the gym yesterday?

B: I made a weak ____ that I was feeling too tired.

7. Dialogue 3:

A: Are you still trying to stop smoking?

B: Yes, I decided to ____ completely last week.

8. Dialogue 4:

A: Will he change his sleeping schedule?

B: No, he is too ____ to listen to advice.

Part 3: Choose the Correct Word

Choose the word that best fits the exact meaning of the sentence.

9. The smell of fresh bread is a _____ that makes me want a snack.

____ a. trigger ____ b. urge ____ c. excuse

10. It is very hard to _____ buying sweet treats when you feel hungry at the shop.

____ a. resist ____ b. distract ____ c. willpower

11. I suddenly felt a strong _____ to check social media during the class.

____ a. trigger ____ b. urge ____ c. excuse

12. He is so _____ that he refuses to try any new morning routine.

____ a. stubborn ____ b. addicted ____ c. distract

Part 4: Word-Formation Gap-Fill

Write the correct form of the word in brackets to complete the sentence.

13. Turn off phone alerts to avoid any unnecessary ____ while studying. (distract)

14. Playing games all night can quickly turn into a bad ____ for teenagers. (addicted)

15. Yesterday I ____ my alarm three times and woke up late. (snooze)

16. His ____ made it hard to change his morning routine. (stubborn)

Shadowing

12 Pronunciation Cards

Listen to the native voice playback, then record your own voice to check accuracy.

Collocation 1 🔊 Listen

hit the snooze button

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

Collocation 2 🔊 Listen

resist the urge

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

Collocation 3 🔊 Listen

build strong willpower

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

Collocation 4 🔊 Listen

break a bad habit

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

Sentence 1 🔊 Listen

Stress is a common trigger for bad habits.

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

Sentence 2 🔊 Listen

He made a weak excuse for being late.

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

Sentence 3 🔊 Listen

She is trying hard to quit smoking now.

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

Sentence 4 🔊 Listen

Don't let phone notifications distract your study.

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

Sentence 5 🔊 Listen

My brother is too stubborn to change.

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

Sentence 6 🔊 Listen

Some people become addicted to video games very fast.

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

Target Word 🔊 Listen

snooze

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

Target Word 🔊 Listen

willpower

[Bài tập luyện nói]

____

Vocabulary & Pronunciation: Bad Habits

⏰ Bad Habits and Breaking Them

How to use this lesson

👩‍🏫 Teacher Guide

🎒 Learner Guide

Word table

Practice

Part 1: Collocation Matrix

Part 2: Short Dialogues Gap-Fill

Part 3: Choose the Correct Word

Part 4: Word-Formation Gap-Fill

Shadowing

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