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Vocabulary: housecleaning

It's often a delicate topic and the source of argument between husband and wife. When both spouses work (or even if only the man works out), the problem is often to know who is going to do what chore, as far as cleaning the house is concerned! 

Before cleaning a room, you must, of course absolutely tidy it up. Then, it will be possible and easier to start working at the real cleaning of the room. 

What tools to use?

An apron

Brooms

A brush and dustpan

Dusters

A feather duster

A handheld vacuum cleaner

A vacuum cleaner

A floor polisher

Clean/ Dirty

**    In colloquial English, "a duster" may be a person who's very bad at a sport...  

* to vacuum :pus = to hoover :pgb (, which is a famous brand too.) Now, traditional vacuum cleaners tend to be replaced by very trendy and expensive "robots".

Any ot them hoover the dust, fluff balls/ dust balls and our pets' hair. (when they shed hair or moult).

... for busy Dads too...

Furniture wax

To polish

To wash up/ to do the dishes

Two sponges

To wipe the dishes

A dishwasher

A dishwasher product

Dishwasher freshener

Tea-towels= Dish-towels             

  To wring, I wrung, wrung.                     

  To scrub

A wash-tub	Soap
To hang out the washing	Pegs
A washing machine	Washing powder or liquid
A stain	A stain remover
A dryer	An iron
An ironing board	A clothes basket

  A laundry                                        A launderette

If some chores are painful and quite annoying for housewives and house-husbands to do,  because they have to stand on a stepladder, or even a ladder, and extend their arms as much as possible upward, with a back ache and a shoulder-ache: it's cleaning the window panes.

Moreover, many of my friends and colleagues think it useless to clean them because, especially when living in towns and cities, they are dirty again as early as the following day or even on that same day in case of rain...

Yet, it's very pleasant to look at a landscape or a view without having the impression of a curtain of dirt.  Besides, high rises have, of course, hundreds of panes. Then, in order to have the outside cleaned, you must hire special companies using secured platforms.

 A dirty pane is a tempting thing to write on...  

How to clean window panes?

Even little boys can do it

What a dangerous work ...

Up the ladder

Climbing up high-rises...

A secure platform up a high-rise

And to end it with a smile...

"What a pane!" is a play on words inspired by the colloquial (and sometimes vulgar) expression, depending on the intonation you're putting: "What a pain!", "You're a pain!" - short for "You're a pain in the a** ! "  (The original expression was "He's a real pain in the neck!", which means "a very annoying person". It also reminds us that cleaning window-panes is really annoying. 

("Sorry" to give you this sort of vocabulary, but it may be very useful and learners generally like and remember it easily!   )

(and, just if you couldn't        get it at first!) 

Ready for the test? I'm sure you are. 

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Sharing the housework ?... or not ?
While mothers often fight that cliché, little girls seem to wish to be introduced to homeworkcleaning roomhouse cleaningup washingI don't know quite early.
They want a little washer dishproductbroomwash upI don't know, a dustpanfeatherpaneapronI don't know with apronsdustersspongefeathersI don't know and mock stepladderspanesstainsproductsI don't know to help keep the house clean while their Moms (or Dads!) are doing it.
They are often given feather dusterswashersstainsspongespegsI don't know to clean the furniture, mopsapronsfeatherspegsI don't know to protect their clothes, and washing linesremoverspegsmopsI don't know in order to learn the right gestures to clean floors.
You seldom hear little boys asking for such 'toys', though they're quite ready ironingcleaningto removeto wash upI don't know for Mom, in order to play with water and foam.
I do think that men have 'invented' cleans panesironings boardsvacuums cleanersdishwashersI don't know because they thought the chore of waxvacuum cleanscrubwashing dishesI don't know was much too time-wasting for them.
Few men dryerironscrubwaxI don't know clothes regularly. As for removingpane cleaningdishingwaxingI don't know, it tends to become a man's job, needing male strength and the fearlessness of height. Women do hope the rest of the choresdishessprayspegsI don't know could be shareddriedironedscrubI don't know with the same acceptance and 'enthusiasm'.
Please, notice that in my lesson, I pictured as many men as possible, just to show that the tasks suit them pretty well!  

 

 

 = Wipe away your pain = comfort you !