Essential Vocabulary for Travel, Culture, and Lifestyle

Posted on Apr 3, 2025 in English

Travel Essentials Vocabulary

  • Landmark: Something easily recognizable, like a monument or building.
  • Traveler’s checks: A medium of exchange used as an alternative to hard currency, often used by travelers.
  • Package holiday: A holiday organized by a travel company, for which you pay a fixed price that includes the cost of the hotel and travel.
  • Service charge: An extra charge assessed for a service.
  • Guidebook: A book of information about a place, designed for the use of visitors or tourists.
  • Departure time: The time at which a plane, train, or bus is scheduled to leave.
  • Airfare: The cost of a ticket for a journey on an aircraft.
  • Seat belt: A belt used to secure someone in the seat of a motor vehicle or aircraft.
  • Leaflet: A printed sheet of paper, sometimes folded, containing information or advertising and usually distributed free.
  • Venue: The place where something happens, especially an organized event like a concert, conference, or sports event.
  • Flying visit: A very brief visit.

Describing Places and Experiences

  • Ancient: Belonging to the very distant past and no longer in existence.
  • Rural: Relating to, or characteristic of the countryside rather than the town.
  • Thrilling: Causing excitement and pleasure; exhilarating.
  • Dangerous: Able or likely to cause harm or injury.
  • Narrow: Of small width in comparison to length.
  • Steep: Rising or falling sharply; almost perpendicular.
  • Exhausting: Making one feel very tired; very tiring.
  • Fascinating: Extremely interesting.
  • Busy: Having a great deal to do; occupied.
  • Crowded: Full of people, leaving little or no room for movement; packed.
  • Secluded: (Of a place) not seen or visited by many people; sheltered and private.
  • Breathtaking: Astonishing or awe-inspiring in quality, so as to take one’s breath away.
  • Outskirts: The outer parts of a town or city.
  • Luxury: A state of great comfort or elegance, especially when involving great expense.
  • Retreat: A quiet or secluded place in which one can rest and relax.
  • Summer house: A small building in a garden or park, used for sitting in during the summer months.
  • Detached house: A house that is not connected to any other building.

Cultural Events and Traditions

  • Ancestor: A person, typically one more remote than a grandparent, from whom one is descended.
  • Cancel: Decide that an arranged event will not take place.
  • Celebrate: Acknowledge (a significant or happy day or event) with a social gathering or enjoyable activity.
  • Commemorate: Recall and show respect for (someone or something) in a ceremony.
  • Costume: A set of clothes in a style typical of a particular country or historical period.
  • Custom: A traditional and widely accepted way of behaving or doing something that is specific to a particular society, place, or time.
  • Dress up: Put on special clothes in order to change one’s appearance, typically for fun or as part of a costume.
  • Ethnic group: A community or population made up of people who share a common cultural background or descent.
  • Family get-together: An informal social gathering of members of a family.
  • Festival: A day or period of celebration, typically a religious commemoration.
  • Give gifts: Present something willingly to someone without payment; offer presents.
  • Identity: The fact of being who or what a person or thing is; the characteristics determining this.
  • Join in the celebrations: Take part in the festive activities.
  • Joyful: Feeling, expressing, or causing great pleasure and happiness.
  • Marriage: The legally or formally recognized union of two people as partners in a personal relationship.
  • Wedding: A marriage ceremony, especially considered as including the associated celebrations.
  • Occur: Happen; take place.
  • Offer congratulations: Express praise and good wishes to someone on a special occasion.
  • Parade: A public procession, especially one celebrating a special day or event.
  • Perform: Carry out, accomplish, or fulfill (an action, task, or function).
  • Postpone: Cause or arrange for (something) to take place at a time later than that first scheduled; delay.
  • Religious: Relating to or believing in a religion.
  • Religious ceremony: A celebration or ritual related to religious beliefs or practices.
  • Say prayers: Address a prayer to God or another deity; express thanks or requests.
  • Take part in: Participate in an activity or event.
  • Wave flags: Move a flag to and fro as a signal or greeting.

People, Lifestyle, and Society Terms

  • Cheer: Shout for joy or in praise or encouragement.
  • Claim: State or assert that something is the case; demand or request as one’s right.
  • Complain: Express dissatisfaction or annoyance about something.
  • Concerned: Worried, troubled, or anxious.
  • Emotional: Relating to a person’s emotions; readily displaying emotion.
  • Endangered: (Of a species) seriously at risk of extinction.
  • Exciting: Causing great enthusiasm and eagerness; thrilling.
  • Expense: The cost required for something; the money spent on something.
  • Extravagant: Lacking restraint in spending money or using resources; exceeding what is reasonable.
  • Fall on deaf ears: (Of a statement or request) be ignored.
  • Increasing: Becoming greater in size, amount, or degree; rising.
  • Local: Relating or restricted to a particular area or neighborhood.
  • Look forward to: Await eagerly.
  • Otherwise: In different circumstances; or else.
  • Provide: Make available for use; supply.
  • Remind: Cause (someone) to remember someone or something.
  • Slave: A person who is the legal property of another and is forced to obey them.
  • Spectator: A person who watches at a show, game, or other event.
  • Viewer: A person who looks at or watches something; a spectator.
  • Tension: Mental or emotional strain; a strained state or condition.
  • Threaten: State one’s intention to take hostile action against someone; put at risk.
  • Trademark: A symbol, word, or words legally registered or established by use as representing a company or product.
  • Unique: Being the only one of its kind; unlike anything else.
  • Vary: Differ in size, amount, degree, or nature; change.
  • Superstar: A very famous and successful performer or sports player.
  • Hospitably: In a friendly and generous way towards guests and visitors.
  • Privacy: A state in which one is not observed or disturbed by other people.
  • Popular: Liked, admired, or enjoyed by many people or by a particular person or group.
  • Ambition: A strong desire to do or achieve something, typically requiring determination and hard work.
  • Afford: Have enough money to pay for; be able to meet the cost of.
  • Autograph: A signature, especially that of a celebrity written as a memento for an admirer.
  • Well-off: Wealthy; rich.
  • Wealthy: Having a great deal of money, resources, or assets; rich.
  • Publicity: Attention given to someone or something by the media.
  • Respect: A feeling of deep admiration for someone or something elicited by their abilities, qualities, or achievements.
  • Standard of living: The degree of wealth and material comfort available to a person or community.
  • Alone: Having no one else present; on one’s own.
  • Lonely: Sad because one has no friends or company; lonesome.
  • Opportunity / Possibility: A time or set of circumstances that makes it possible to do something / A thing that may happen or be the case; chance.
  • Retirement: The action or fact of leaving one’s job and ceasing to work, typically upon reaching a certain age.
  • Hippies: Members of a liberal counterculture, originally a youth movement that started in the United States and the United Kingdom during the mid-1960s.