Housework has its own British words, and families talk about it every day: whose turn it is, what still needs doing, and who forgot the bins. Learners who translate directly from their own language often say "make the dishes", "clean the clothes" or "throw the garbage", which sound unnatural in Britain. Here we say "do the washing-up", "do the washing" and "take the bins out". In this episode: • Cleaning the house • Dishes • Clothes and beds • Bins and sharing jobs • Listening lab • Practice • Self-check questions with answers Key phrases from this episode: do the hoovering — clean the floor with a vacuum cleaner hoover the living room — the verb is common in everyday British speech the hoover — the everyday word for the vacuum cleaner dust — remove dust with a cloth mop the floor — wash it with a mop and water wipe the sides — clean the kitchen counters; "the sides" are the worktops tidy your room — put things back in their places clean the bathroom — wash the bath, sink and toilet Can you do the hoovering? — a common request Have you wiped the sides? — have you cleaned the counters? Your room's a tip! — your room is very messy (casual) do the washing-up — wash the dishes by hand washing-up liquid — the soap for dishes a tea towel — a cloth for drying dishes dry up — dry the clean dishes with a tea towel load the dishwasher — put dirty dishes in it empty the dishwasher — take clean dishes out put the dishes away — put them back in the cupboards I'll wash, you dry. — a fair way to share Leave them to soak. — leave dirty pans in water for a while do the washing — wash clothes (laundry) Real British English: the complete spoken course for learners worldwide — modern British accent, everyday grammar, phrasal verbs, idioms, slang, he/she/it for things, and real conversations at home. Listen, repeat out loud, then take the 52-question quiz. Audio voiced with AI from an original script by Dr. Rashmi R Nair.