a sandwich
chocolate
coffee
Meal and food words
English has three everyday meals: breakfast, lunch and dinner. Use for to link food to a meal: “I have yogurt and fruit for breakfast.” Listen to the cards above, then use the words about your own day.
- Breakfast: eggs, bread, butter, cheese, yogurt, cereal, fruit, coffee, tea, milk, orange juice
- Lunch: a sandwich, salad, rice, pasta, vegetables
- Dinner: fish, meat, potatoes, water, wine
- An egg, two eggs, a sandwich; but bread, rice, cheese, fruit, milk and water usually take no a and no -s: “I eat bread.”
Have, eat or drink?
Eat is for food, drink is for drinks, and have works for both. Have is also the usual verb with meals. Make breakfast means you cook it.
- “I eat fruit.” / “I drink tea.”
- “I have a sandwich and coffee.” (food and a drink together)
- “I have breakfast at seven.” (no a before the meal)
- “Can I have a coffee, please?” In a café, a coffee means one cup.
I eat, I don’t eat: habits with I, you, we and they
For regular habits, English uses the present simple. With I, you, we and they, the verb has no ending: I eat, we drink, they have. For a negative, put don’t before the verb and keep the verb the same. Join a yes and a no with but: “I eat fruit, but I don’t drink coffee.”
- “I eat eggs.” → “I don’t eat eggs.”
- “We drink tea.” → “We don’t drink coffee.”
- “They have lunch at work.” → “They don’t have lunch at home.”
Asking “Do you…?” and giving short answers
Put Do at the start and keep the normal order: “You eat breakfast.” becomes “Do you eat breakfast?” Give a short answer, then one detail, so the other person has something to reply to.
- “Do you eat breakfast?” – “Yes, I do. I have eggs and bread.”
- “Do you drink coffee?” – “No, I don’t. I drink tea.”
- “What time do you have dinner?” – “At eight.”
- With hungry or tired, use be, not do: “Are you hungry?” – “Yes, I am.”
One “no”, one follow-up: a short conversation
A negative often hides a limit: not at home, not coffee. The natural next question asks about it. Here, the man doesn’t eat breakfast at home, so the woman asks about work. Listen, then answer her question about your own mornings.
Maya I have yogurt and fruit for breakfast.
Owen I don't eat breakfast at home.
Maya Do you eat at work?
Owen Yes. I have a sandwich and coffee there.
Making your own follow-up questions
Take the detail from the negative and ask about the other side. Stuck? Send the question back.
- “I don’t eat breakfast at home.” → “Do you eat at work?”
- “I don’t drink coffee.” → “Do you drink tea?”
- “We don’t eat meat.” → “Do you eat fish?”
- “What about you?” or “And you?” works after almost any answer.
Common mistakes
Each has an easy fix:
- “I not eat breakfast.” Say “I don’t eat breakfast.”
- “You eat at work?” Without do, it sounds casual or surprised. Ask “Do you eat at work?”
- “Are you eat breakfast?” Use are with adjectives and places (“Are you hungry?”) and do with other verbs.
- “I have a breakfast at seven.” Say “I have breakfast at seven.” A comes back with an adjective: “a big breakfast”.
- “Do you drink coffee?” – “Yes, I drink.” Say “Yes, I do.” On its own, “I drink” usually means alcohol.
A 10-minute daily practice routine
Say everything out loud. A little every day works better than one long session a week.
- 2 minutes: play the conversation, pausing to repeat each line.
- 3 minutes: the follow-up game. A partner says a negative (“I don’t drink coffee.”) and you ask a follow-up (“Do you drink tea?”). On your own, write them down.
- 5 minutes: describe a normal day in five sentences with one negative: “I have breakfast at seven. I eat bread and cheese. I don’t eat lunch at home. I have a sandwich at work. We have dinner at eight.”
What comes next
Next, talk about other people. With he and she, the verb takes -s and the negative is doesn’t: “She has tea at seven. He doesn’t eat breakfast.” Questions start with Does: “Does he work in a bank?”