Weddings and Funerals — Unit 5, Pre-intermediate to Intermediate English
Weddings, funerals, and family celebrations — vocabulary for life events and ceremonies.
Reading: A Spring Wedding in the Village
Last Saturday I attended my cousin's **wedding** in a small village church filled with flowers from local gardens. The bride wore a simple white dress, and the groom looked nervous but happy as he waited at the front with his best man. After the **ceremony**, everyone walked to the village hall for the **reception**, where there was music, speeches, and a huge meal.
I sat with relatives I had not seen for years, and we talked about old photos and family news while the children ran around the hall. When the couple had their first dance, even my serious uncle smiled and clapped along to the music. It was a joyful day, and I felt proud to celebrate their new life together. If you ever get invited to a countryside **wedding**, arrive early — the best seats fill quickly and the roads are narrow.
Not everything went according to plan. The **bride** was forty minutes late, because the car taking her from her parents' house met a tractor on a lane too narrow for both of them. The **groom** stood at the front of the church looking at his watch, and his **best man** kept whispering things that were clearly meant to calm him down and clearly were not working.
There were about ninety **guests**. My grandmother, who is eighty-six, sat in the second row and cried from the first hymn to the last. She told me afterwards that she cries at every **wedding**, and that this is perfectly normal and nobody should worry about it.
The speeches after the meal were the best part. The bride's father spoke for four minutes and made everybody cry again. The best man spoke for eleven minutes and told three stories that I suspect were not entirely true.
They are going to Portugal for their **honeymoon** in September — not now, because they are both teachers and cannot take a holiday in term time.
My own parents celebrate their thirtieth **anniversary** next month. Watching my cousin on Saturday, I asked my mother whether she remembered her own wedding day clearly. She said she remembered almost none of it, and that everybody had told her this would happen, and that she had not believed them either.
That is why there are photographs, she said.
Vocabulary from this unit
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| wedding | /ˈwedɪŋ/ | a ceremony where two people get married | We're going to a wedding next week. |
| bride | /braɪd/ | the woman getting married | The bride wore a beautiful dress. |
| groom | /ɡruːm/ | the man getting married | The groom looked nervous. |
| bridesmaid | /ˈbraɪdzmeɪd/ | a woman who helps the bride | Her sister was a bridesmaid. |
| best man | /ˈbest mæn/ | the groom's main helper | His brother was his best man. |
| ceremony | /ˈserəməni/ | a formal event, often religious | The ceremony was in a church. |
| reception | /rɪˈsepʃən/ | a party after a wedding | The reception was at a hotel. |
| guest | /ɡest/ | someone invited to an event | There were 100 guests at the wedding. |
| invitation | /ˌɪnvɪˈteɪʃən/ | a request to attend an event | We received the invitation by email. |
| ring | /rɪŋ/ | jewellery worn on a finger | They exchanged rings. |
| honeymoon | /ˈhʌnɪmuːn/ | a holiday after a wedding | They went to Italy for their honeymoon. |
| anniversary | /ˌænɪˈvɜːsəri/ | a date on which something happened in a previous year | It's their 10th wedding anniversary. |
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| funeral | /ˈfjuːnərəl/ | a ceremony when someone has died | The funeral was in the local church. |
| death | /deθ/ | when someone dies | The death of her mother was very sad. |
| die | /daɪ/ | stop living | She died when she was 90. |
| dead | /ded/ | no longer living | Her grandmother is dead. |
| mourner | /ˈmɔːnə/ | someone who is sad at a funeral | There were many mourners at the funeral. |
| bury | /ˈberi/ | put a dead body in the ground | He was buried in the village cemetery. |
| burial | /ˈberiəl/ | the ceremony of burying someone | The burial took place in the afternoon. |
| cemetery | /ˈsemətri/ | a place where people are buried | She is buried in the town cemetery. |
| cremation | /krəˈmeɪʃən/ | burning a dead body | They chose cremation instead of burial. |
| widow | /ˈwɪdəʊ/ | a woman whose husband has died | She became a widow at 60. |
| widower | /ˈwɪdəʊə/ | a man whose wife has died | He's been a widower for 5 years. |
| Word / Phrase | Pronunciation | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| birth | /bɜːθ/ | when a baby is born | The birth of their child was very special. |
| birthday | /ˈbɜːθdeɪ/ | the date when someone was born | My birthday is in March. |
| celebrate | /ˈselɪbreɪt/ | do something enjoyable on a special day | We celebrated her birthday with a party. |
| celebration | /ˌselɪˈbreɪʃən/ | an event where people celebrate | There was a big celebration. |
| gathering | /ˈɡæðərɪŋ/ | a meeting of people | There was a family gathering for the wedding. |
| pass away | /pɑːs əˈweɪ/ | die (polite expression) | Her father passed away last year. |
| get together | /ɡet təˈɡeðə/ | meet socially | We got together for his birthday. |
| look after | /lʊk ˈɑːftə/ | take care of | She looks after her elderly parents. |
| care for | /keə fɔː/ | look after | He cares for his sick wife. |
1 more vocabulary section in the full unit.
This is the free sample from this unit. The full unit adds 1 more reading passage, comprehension questions with an answer key, the listening exercises, flashcards for the vocabulary above, and a speaking task — with your progress tracked so the next unit unlocks when you are ready for it.
Common questions
What level is this unit?
Pre-intermediate to Intermediate — roughly CEFR A2–B1. If you are not sure of your level, the course places you with a short diagnostic before you start rather than making you guess.
Do I need to pay to use this?
The reading passage and vocabulary on this page are free to read. The rest of the unit — the remaining passages, the exercises, the listening, the answer key and the progress tracking — is part of the paid General English course.
Is this British or American English?
British English spelling and vocabulary, which is what most learners in Azerbaijan are taught and what IELTS expects, though both are accepted in the exam.