Views #72 | High Beginner 3

Driving

Kerri talks about the process of getting a driver's license in the United States.

Script
Vocab
Quiz


Kerri	Todd

Todd: OK. Keri, can you drive?

Kerri: Yes, I can.

Todd: Do you have a driver's license?

Kerri: I do.

Todd: OK. So, how long have you had your driver's license?

Kerri: I think I got it when I was 17 actually.

Todd: OK. How do you get a driver's license in your country?

Kerri: Well, I think it's changed since I was a teenager. At that time, you get a learner's permit. And then you start driving with your parents. And you'd also go to drivers ed. And then you had to pass a driving test. I think a written test as well.

Todd: OK. Did you get a perfect score on your driving test?

Kerri: I was close to perfect, yeah. I can't remember my exact score but I remember it was pretty good.

Todd: Do all the members of your family drive?

Kerri: Yeah.

Learn vocabulary from the lesson!

driver's license

Do you have a driver's license?

A 'driver's license' is permission from the government to drive. In many places you have to pass a test and then they give you an identification card. In normal speech we just call this a license. Notice the following:

My picture on my driver's license is terrible.
His parents didn't let him get his driver's license until he was eighteen.

how long

How long have you had your driver's license?

We use the question phrase 'how long' to ask about the amount of time a person has done something. Notice the following:

So, how long did you work there?
She wants to know how long you've lived here.

teenager

I got my license when I was a teenager.

A 'teenager' is a person from the age of 13 to 19. Notice the following:

I had horrible fashion sense when I was a teenager.
Teenagers can be very difficult for parents to control.

driving test

You have to pass both the written and driving test to get a license.

A 'driving test' is the test you have to take to get your license. In the U.S. there is a written test on a computer and then a driving test in a car with a person who scores your ability. Notice the following:

Did you take your driving test on your birthday?
She failed her driving test the first time she took it.

close to perfect

I was close to perfect in my driving test.

If something is 'close to perfect' it is almost perfect, maybe one or two small things were incorrect. We can use 'close to' before any adjective to mean the same as 'almost.' Notice the following: