• Salas celebrating Khmer New Year in 2025

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In 2025, I celebrated Khmer New Year with my family. It was a very important festival in Cambodia. The holiday was in the middle of April. Many people were happy.

Before the holiday, my family cleaned our house. We also decorated the house. We wanted a clean and nice home for the new year.

Many people traveled to their hometowns. I visited my grandparents. I was very happy to see them. We ate food and talked together.

My family went to the temple. We prayed and brought food for the monks. We asked for good luck and good health. Some people made small sand hills at the temple.

There were many fun activities. Young people played traditional games. They danced and listened to music. Many people laughed and enjoyed the festival.

I also poured water on my parents and grandparents. This showed respect. It also gave them good wishes for health and long life.

Khmer New Year was a happy time. Families spent time together and welcomed the new year.

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Vocabulary:

• to celebrate – to do something special because of a happy day 🎉
• important – very special or very necessary
• to clean – to make something not dirty
• to decorate – to make a place look nice with colors or things
• to travel – to go to another place
• a hometown – the town or city where you were born or grew up
• to pray – to speak to God
• a monk – a religious man who lives and works in a temple
• good luck – when good things happen to you 🍀
• health – when your body feels good and you are not sick
• an activity – something people do (a game, work, or fun thing)
• traditional – something people did for a long time in a culture
• to enjoy – to feel happy when you do something 😊
• to pour water on somebody – to put water on a person
• to show respect – to be kind and polite to someone (often older people)

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Basics in past simple:

Rules:

• Most verbs: add -ed
  play → played
• Verbs ending in -e: add -d
  live → lived
• Verbs ending in consonant + y: change y to i and add -ed
  study → studied
• Short verbs ending in vowel + consonant: double the final consonant and add -ed
  stop → stopped
• List of irregular verbs => LINK

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Basics in past simple:

Personal Pronoun	Verb (Past)	Object
I	ate	apples
You	ate	apples
He	ate	apples
She	ate	apples
It	ate	apples
We	ate	apples
You (plural)	ate	apples
They	ate	apples
I	played	football
You	played	football
He	played	football
She	played	football
It	played	football
We	played	football
You (plural)	played	football
They	played	football

Personal Pronoun	Verb (Past Negative)	Object
I	did not eat	apples
You	did not eat	apples
He	did not eat	apples
She	did not eat	apples
It	did not eat	apples
We	did not eat	apples
You (plural)	did not eat	apples
They	did not eat	apples
I	did not play	football
You	did not play	football
He	did not play	football
She	did not play	football
It	did not play	football
We	did not play	football
You (plural)	did not play	football
They	did not play	football

Did + Pronoun	Verb	Object
Did I	eat	apples?
Did you	eat	apples?
Did he	eat	apples?
Did she	eat	apples?
Did it	eat	apples?
Did we	eat	apples?
Did you	eat	apples?
Did they	eat	apples?
Did I	play	football?
Did you	play	football?
Did he	play	football?
Did she	play	football?
Did it	play	football?
Did we	play	football?
Did you	play	football?
Did they	play	football?

Didn’t + Pronoun	Verb	Object
Didn’t I	eat	apples?
Didn’t you	eat	apples?
Didn’t he	eat	apples?
Didn’t she	eat	apples?
Didn’t it	eat	apples?
Didn’t we	eat	apples?
Didn’t you	eat	apples?
Didn’t they	eat	apples?
Didn’t I	play	football?
Didn’t you	play	football?
Didn’t he	play	football?
Didn’t she	play	football?
Didn’t it	play	football?
Didn’t we	play	football?
Didn’t you	play	football?
Didn’t they	play	football?

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Past simple forms of ‚to be‘:

Person	Past
I	was
You	were
He/She/It	was
We	were
You (pl)	were
They	were

Person	Question
I	Was I …?
You	Were you …?
He/She/It	Was he/she/it …?
We	Were we …?
You (pl)	Were you …?
They	Were they …?

Person	Negative
I	I was not (I wasn’t)
You	You were not (You weren’t)
He/She/It	He/She/It was not (He/She/It wasn’t)
We	We were not (We weren’t)
You (pl)	You were not (You weren’t)
They	They were not (They weren’t)

Person	Negative Question
I	Wasn’t I …?
You	Weren’t you …?
He/She/It	Wasn’t he/she/it …?
We	Weren’t we …?
You (pl)	Weren’t you …?
They	Weren’t they …?

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Short answers in past simple:

Question	Short Answer (Yes/Positive)	Short Answer (No/Negative)
Did she check reservations?	Yes, she did.	No, she didn’t.
Did she give keys to guests?	Yes, she did.	No, she didn’t.
Did she talk to many guests?	Yes, she did.	No, she didn’t.
Was she happy?	Yes, she was.	No, she wasn’t.
Were the guests satisfied?	Yes, they were.	No, they weren’t.

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Verbs in story and their past tense

Infinitive	Past Simple	A1 Definition
to celebrate	celebrated	to do something special for a happy day
to be	was / were	to exist or describe something
to clean	cleaned	to make something not dirty
to decorate	decorated	to make something look nice
to want	wanted	to wish to have or do something
to travel	traveled	to go to another place
to visit	visited	to go to see someone
to see	saw	to look at something with your eyes
to eat	ate	to put food in your mouth and swallow it
to talk	talked	to say words to someone
to go	went	to move to another place
to pray	prayed	to speak to God
to bring	brought	to take something with you to a place
to ask	asked	to say you want something or want information
to make	made	to create or build something
to play	played	to do a game or fun activity
to dance	danced	to move your body to music
to listen	listened	to hear and pay attention to sound
to laugh	laughed	to make a happy sound when something is funny
to enjoy	enjoyed	to feel happy doing something
to pour	poured	to make liquid flow from a container
to show	showed	to let someone see or understand something
to spend	spent	to use time doing something
to welcome	welcomed	to greet someone in a friendly way

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Match the word with the correct definition.

Words

1. to celebrate
2. important
3. to clean
4. to decorate
5. to travel
6. a hometown
7. to pray
8. a monk
9. good luck
10. health
11. an activity
12. traditional
13. to enjoy
14. to pour water on somebody
15. to show respect

Definitions

A. to make a place look nice with colors or things
B. when good things happen to you
C. something people did for a long time in a culture
D. when your body feels good and you are not sick
E. to put water on a person
F. to speak to God
G. something people do (a game, work, or fun thing)
H. to do something special because of a happy day
I. a religious man who lives and works in a temple
J. the town or city where you were born or grew up
K. to feel happy when you do something
L. to be kind and polite to someone (often older people)
M. very special or very necessary
N. to go to another place
O. to make something not dirty

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Answers:
1-H, 2-M, 3-O, 4-A, 5-N, 6-J,
7-F, 8-I, 9-B, 10-D, 11-G,
12-C, 13-K, 14-E, 15-L

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Correct version:

1. to celebrate – to do something special because of a happy day
2. important – very special or very necessary
3. to clean – to make something not dirty
4. to decorate – to make a place look nice with colors or things
5. to travel – to go to another place
6. a hometown – the town or city where you were born or grew up
7. to pray – to speak to God
8. a monk – a religious man who lives and works in a temple
9. good luck – when good things happen to you
10. health – when your body feels good and you are not sick
11. an activity – something people do (a game, work, or fun thing)
12. traditional – something people did for a long time in a culture
13. to enjoy – to feel happy when you do something
14. to pour water on somebody – to put water on a person
15. to show respect – to be kind and polite to someone (often older people)

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True or false:

1. Khmer New Year is an important holiday in Cambodia.
2. People celebrate Khmer New Year in the middle of April.
3. People clean their houses before the holiday.
4. People decorate their houses after the festival ends.
5. Many people travel to their hometowns during Khmer New Year.
6. A monk is a man who works in a restaurant.
7. Families pray at the temple during Khmer New Year.
8. Good luck means bad things happen to you.
9. Health means your body feels good and you are not sick.
10. Young people play activities and games during the festival.
11. Traditional means something people did for a long time in a culture.
12. To enjoy something means you feel sad when you do it.
13. People pour water on their parents and grandparents during the celebration.
14. Pouring water on elders shows respect.
15. People travel to other countries because they hate their hometown.

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Answers:
1T, 2T, 3T, 4F, 5T, 6F, 7T, 8F, 9T,
10T, 11T, 12F, 13T, 14T, 15F
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Correct version:

1. Khmer New Year is an important holiday in Cambodia.
2. People celebrate Khmer New Year in the middle of April.
3. People clean their houses before the holiday.
4. People decorate their houses after the festival ends. True is: People decorate their houses before the festival begins.
5. Many people travel to their hometowns during Khmer New Year.
6. A monk is a man who works in a restaurant. True is: A monk is a religious man who lives and works in a temple.
7. Families pray at the temple during Khmer New Year.
8. Good luck means bad things happen to you. True is: Good luck means when good things happen to you.
9. Health means your body feels good and you are not sick.
10. Young people play activities and games during the festival.
11. Traditional means something people did for a long time in a culture.
12. To enjoy something means you feel sad when you do it. True is: To enjoy something means to feel happy when you do it.
13. People pour water on their parents and grandparents during the celebration.
14. Pouring water on elders shows respect.
15. People travel to other countries because they hate their hometown. True is: People travel to their hometowns during Khmer New Year.

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What is the correct sequence?

1. Young people played games, danced, and enjoyed music during the festival.
2. In 2025, I celebrated Khmer New Year with my family.
3. I poured water on my parents and grandparents to show respect and wish them good health.
4. Many people traveled to their hometowns, and I visited my grandparents.
5. My family went to the temple to pray and bring food for the monks.
6. Before the holiday, we cleaned and decorated our house.

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Correct sequence:

1. In 2025, I celebrated Khmer New Year with my family.
2. Before the holiday, we cleaned and decorated our house.
3. Many people traveled to their hometowns, and I visited my grandparents.
4. My family went to the temple to pray and bring food for the monks.
5. Young people played games, danced, and enjoyed music during the festival.
6. I poured water on my parents and grandparents to show respect and wish them good health.

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Match the action with the correct verb

Actions:
A. Make something not dirty
B. Speak to God
C. Go to see family or friends
D. Put water on someone
E. Go to another place
F. Be kind and polite to someone
G. Take food or gifts to someone
H. Make your house nice with colors or things
I. Do something special for a happy day
J. Have fun with games

Verbs

1. to travel
2. to show respect
3. to play
4. to celebrate
5. to clean
6. to decorate
7. to pour water on somebody
8. to pray
9. to visit
10. to bring

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Answer key:
A-5, B-8, C-9, D-7, E-1,
F-2, G-10, H-6, I-4, J-3

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Correct version:

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Make something not dirty – to clean
Speak to God – to pray
Go to see family or friends – to visit
Put water on someone – to pour water on somebody
Go to another place – to travel
Be kind and polite to someone – to show respect
Take food or gifts to someone – to bring
Make your house nice with colors or things – to decorate
Do something special for a happy day – to celebrate
Have fun with games – to play

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Scrambled sentences – unscramble:

1. celebrated / I / Khmer New Year / in 2025
2. the / cleaned / and / holiday / we / decorated / house / before
3. visited / in / hometown/ grandparents / I / my
4. the /went / family / temple / my / to
5. monks / brought / prayed / we / the / and / food / for
6. played / young / games / people / traditional
7. poured / grandparents / I / water / my / on

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Correct version:

1. I celebrated Khmer New Year in 2025.
2. We cleaned and decorated the house before holiday.
3. I visited my grandparents in my hometown.
4. My family went to the temple.
5. We prayed and brought food for the monks.
6. Young people played traditional games.
7. I poured water on my grandparents.

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Short-answer questions:

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1. When did you celebrate Khmer New Year?
   
   YOU WRITE:
   in 2025
   
   
2. Where did your family go before the holiday?
3. Who did you visit during the holiday?
4. What did you clean before the festival?
5. What did people decorate?
6. Why did families go to the temple?
7. What did you bring for the monks?
8. Who played traditional games?
9. How did you show respect to elders?
10. What did people enjoy during the festival?
11. When did people travel to their hometowns?
12. Who prayed at the temple during Khmer New Year?

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Correct short answers:

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1. When did you celebrate Khmer New Year? → In 2025
2. Where did your family go before the holiday? → Home / Our house
3. Who did you visit during the holiday? → Grandparents
4. What did you clean before the festival? → House
5. What did people decorate? → Houses / Temples
6. Why did families go to the temple? → To pray
7. What did you bring for the monks? → Food
8. Who played traditional games? → Young people
9. How did you show respect to elders? → Poured water
10. What did people enjoy during the festival? → Music / Games
11. When did people travel to their hometowns? → During the holiday
12. Who prayed at the temple during Khmer New Year? → Families

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Answer as shown:

1. People cleaned their houses after Khmer New Year.
   
   YOU WRITE:
   People cleaned their houses after Khmer New Year. – No, they didn’t. People cleaned their houses before Khmer New Year.
   
2. Families decorated their homes after the festival ended.
3. People traveled to other countries for Khmer New Year.
4. Monks brought food to the families.
5. People poured water on friends during the celebration.
6. Young people did not play games during Khmer New Year.
7. Families did not visit the temple during the holiday.
8. Good luck meant that bad things happened.
9. Health meant their bodies felt sick.
10. Traditional activities were new and modern, not old.

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Correct answers:

1. People cleaned their houses after Khmer New Year. – No, they didn’t. People cleaned their houses before Khmer New Year.
2. Families decorated their homes after the festival ended. – No, they didn’t. Families decorated their homes before the festival began.
3. People traveled to other countries for Khmer New Year. – No, they didn’t. People traveled to their hometowns.
4. Monks brought food to the families. – No, they didn’t. Families brought food for the monks.
5. People poured water on friends during the celebration. – No, they didn’t. People poured water on their parents and grandparents.
6. Young people did not play games during Khmer New Year. – No, they didn’t. Young people played games and danced.
7. Families did not visit the temple during the holiday. – No, they didn’t. Families visited the temple to pray.
8. Good luck meant that bad things happened. – No, it didn’t. Good luck meant that good things happened.
9. Health meant their bodies felt sick. – No, it didn’t. Health meant their bodies felt good.
10. Traditional activities were new and modern, not old. – No, they weren’t. Traditional activities were done for a long time in the culture.

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Match question and answer:

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Questions:

1. When did you celebrate Khmer New Year?
2. Where did your family go before the holiday?
3. Who did you visit during the holiday?
4. What did you clean before the festival?
5. What did people decorate?
6. Why did your family go to the temple?
7. What did you bring for the monks?
8. Who played games during the festival?
9. How did you show respect to your grandparents?
10. What did people enjoy during the festival?
11. When did people travel to their hometowns?
12. Who prayed at the temple during the festival?

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Answers:

A. The young people in the village had fun with games.
B. People listened to music, danced, and had fun.
C. My family stayed at our house before the holiday.
D. People made the house and the temple look nice.
E. I saw my grandparents during the holiday.
F. Many families asked for good luck and health at the temple.
G. I spent Khmer New Year in 2025 with my family.
H. I poured water on my grandparents to give them good wishes.
I. People went back to their hometowns during the Khmer New Year holiday.
J. We gave rice, fruits, and food to the monks.
K. My family went to the temple to ask for good luck and health.
L. We made the rooms and the kitchen tidy before the festival.

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Answers:

1. G, 2. C, 3. E, 4. L, 5. D, 6. K,
   7. J, 8. A, 9. H, 10. B, 11. I, 12. F

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Correct dialogue:

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1. A: When did you celebrate Khmer New Year?
   B: I spent Khmer New Year in 2025 with my family.
2. A: Where did your family go before the holiday?
   B: My family stayed at our house before the holiday.
3. A: Who did you visit during the holiday?
   B: I saw my grandparents during the holiday.
4. A: What did you clean before the festival?
   B: We made the rooms and the kitchen tidy before the festival.
5. A: What did people decorate?
   B: People made the house and the temple look nice.
6. A: Why did your family go to the temple?
   B: My family went to the temple to ask for good luck and health.
7. A: What did you bring for the monks?
   B: We gave rice, fruits, and food to the monks.
8. A: Who played games during the festival?
   B: The young people in the village had fun with games.
9. A: How did you show respect to your grandparents?
   B: I poured water on my grandparents to give them good wishes.
10. A: What did people enjoy during the festival?
    B: People listened to music, danced, and had fun.
11. A: When did people travel to their hometowns?
    B: People went back to their hometowns during the Khmer New Year holiday.
12. A: Who prayed at the temple during the festival?
    B: Many families asked for good luck and health at the temple.

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Fill in, words below:

games – village – relatives – visited –
altar – monks – flowers –
hometowns – kitchen –
meet

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1. A: What did you do for Khmer New Year?
   B: I spent time with my family and __________.
2. A: How did your family prepare the house?
   B: We made it clean and decorated with__________.
3. A: Who did you __________ during the holiday?
   B: I saw my grandparents and cousins.
4. A: Which rooms did you clean?
   B: We tidied the living room and __________.
5. A: What was decorated in your home?
   B: The house and the small __________ were decorated.
6. A: Where did your family go in the morning?
   B: We went to the temple in the morning.
7. A: What did your family give to the __________?
   B: We offered rice, fruits, and some food.
8. A: Who joined the games during the festival?
   B: The young people from our __________ joined.
9. A: How did you show kindness to older people?
   B: I poured water on my grandparents.
10. A: What made the festival fun for everyone?
    B: Music, dancing, and __________ made it fun.
11. A: When did everyone return to their __________?
    B: Families went back during the holiday.
12. A: Which families went to the temple?
    B: Many families __________ the temple to pray.

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Full version:

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1. A: What did you do for Khmer New Year?
   B: I spent time with my family and relatives.
2. A: How did your family prepare the house?
   B: We made it clean and decorated with flowers.
3. A: Who did you meet during the holiday?
   B: I saw my grandparents and cousins.
4. A: Which rooms did you clean?
   B: We tidied the living room and kitchen.
5. A: What was decorated in your home?
   B: The house and the small altar were decorated.
6. A: Where did your family go in the morning?
   B: We went to the temple in the morning.
7. A: What did your family give to the monks?
   B: We offered rice, fruits, and some food.
8. A: Who joined the games during the festival?
   B: The young people from our village joined.
9. A: How did you show kindness to older people?
   B: I poured water on my grandparents.
10. A: What made the festival fun for everyone?
    B: Music, dancing, and games made it fun.
11. A: When did everyone return to their hometowns?
    B: Families went back during the holiday.
12. A: Which families went to the temple?
    B: Many families visited the temple to pray.

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Which phrase are we looking for? Unscramble words – have fun: