Hobbies

What do you do in your free time?

To get up to = to do an activity

I get up to a lot of different things. (=I do a lot of things)

I don’t get up to much. (DON’T say “nothing”!!!)

I’m fond of taking photos.

I’m into playing video games.

I’m passionate about playing video games.

Not a hobby, but just do it for fun

I like to dabble in cooking.

I sometimes dabble in painting.

Last week I dabbled in football.

I play the guitar, but I am just an aficionado/amateur.(=just play for fun)

Adverbs of Frequency

Simple

I often paint

I regularly paint

I frequently paint

More Complex

I paint whenever I can

I paint as often as I can

I paint whenever I get a chance

Much More Complex

I don’t paint as much as I would Iike

I don’t get round to painting as much as I would like

The Use of Different Tenses (to show your ability to use different tenses in English)

Simple

Present

I recently took up painting.c(=I paint)

I am new to it.

Past

I started painting a couple of years ago.

I decided to have a go at painting. (=try sth new)

I decided to try my hand on painting.

More Complex: Present Perfect Continuous

I’ve been playing video games for as long as I can remember. (or for about 2 years)

I’ve been playing video games for donkey’s years. (=for a long time)

The Benefit of Hobbies

To relex

It has a calming effect.

It’s really therapeutic.

It’s a great stress buster.

It just helps me ____.

to unwind

kick back

chill out

To stay healthy

I find that it help me ____.

get into my work better

keep fit

stay positive

To socialize

It allows me to just ____.

to hang out with friends

to meet up with friends

to chill out with friends

It’s quite a nice way to ____.

socialize

It’s quite a nice way to get in touch with my friends.