Reading: Life in Ancient Rome

1Before you read the text, look at the title, the layout and the pictures. Answer the questions below. 

• 1Look at the layout. Where is the text from? Is it from

  a leaflet for tourists?a personal blog?a magazine article?or a history website?

• 2Look at the title. What is the text about? Is it fictional or factual?

  It is a fictionalfactual text about 

   

  .

• 3Look at the pictures. Which of the following topics do you expect to find in the text?

  games and activitieswhat people atethe design of their homesthe lives of both the rich and the poorhow they travelledwhat they did in the eveningswhat jobs they hadhow they decorated their homes

Life in Ancient Rome

The Romans had one of the greatest and

most powerful empires in history. They built

roads and canals, and hundreds of elegant

cities full of theatres, markets and enormous

sports stadiums. But what were ordinary

Roman houses like, and what was life like in a

typical Roman home?

Two thousand years ago, the ancient city

of Rome had over one million residents,

and there wasn't enough space for all the

people. When we think of Rome, we think of

magnificent stone buildings like the Colosseum

or the Pantheon, but most of its houses were

wooden, especially in the poorer districts.

Poorer people lived in two-storey houses

around three sides of a central courtyard.

Families were larger than today. ___ There

was no privacy inside the house, and, in the

summer, it was often too hot as well as too

crowded to sleep indoors, so younger people

often slept on the roofs. Teenagers spent time

with their friends in the courtyard, playing ball

games and board games. ___ The houses

didn't have kitchens or bathrooms, so people

used the courtyard for cooking and washing.

There weren't many cats in Ancient Rome, but

the most popular pets were dogs, and some

people had monkeys or ducks!

Wealthier people had larger and more

luxurious houses. ___ And because rich

Romans had so many servants and slaves,

their lives were unbelievably comfortable.

Their one-storey homes were made of brick,

with attractive red roofs, and the windows of

all the rooms faced towards the courtyard.

___ Rich people wanted to be safe from

crime. They had a big wall at the front of the

house with a huge front door, and they had

guards to watch out for thieves and burglars,

especially at night.

Inside a wealthy citizen's home, there were a

lot of things that we think are modern. ___

They had pipes* that carried hot water under

the floor of their bedrooms and living rooms,

so they were warm in winter and they had a hot

bath whenever they wanted one. There were a

lot of rooms in their homes, including an office,

a kitchen, a huge bathroom, and small rooms

for their slaves. Interestingly, they didn't have

any carpets, or much furniture, and things like

armchairs and desks simply didn't exist. The

wealthy Romans decorated their walls with

mosaics,* or by painting colourful pictures if

the mosaics were too expensive. They often

had a shady garden at the back of the house,

which their gardeners looked after, and they

usually tried to build their dining room opposite

the garden so that they could eat and enjoy

looking at the trees and flowers.

People lived in Ancient Rome two thousand

years ago, but were their homes and their

daily lives so very different from the lives of

very poor and very rich people today?

Glossary

* pipes = long tubes that carry water around a house

* mosaics = wall pictures made from a lot of small stone pieces

2Read the text and check your answers to the questions in exercise 1. 

3Read the text again. Match sentences A–G to gaps 1–5 in the text. There are two sentences that you do not need. 

• AThey didn't mind eating outside, especially when the weather was good.

  BIn many ways, they were as attractive as a millionaire's mansion today.

  CSeveral generations lived together under one roof, including aunts, uncles and cousins.

  DAmazingly, for example, they had running water and central heating.

  EOf course, they avoided using the pipes in the courtyard in winter.

  FHowever, they didn't have much free time because they needed to do their chores.

  GThat was because it was safer and more private to face the courtyard and not the street.

Life in Ancient Rome

The Romans had one of the greatest and

most powerful empires in history. They built

roads and canals, and hundreds of elegant

cities full of theatres, markets and enormous

sports stadiums. But what were ordinary

Roman houses like, and what was life like in a

typical Roman home?

Two thousand years ago, the ancient city

of Rome had over one million residents,

and there wasn't enough space for all the

people. When we think of Rome, we think of

magnificent stone buildings like the Colosseum

or the Pantheon, but most of its houses were

wooden, especially in the poorer districts.

Poorer people lived in two-storey houses

around three sides of a central courtyard.

Families were larger than today. ¹ There

was no privacy inside the house, and, in the

summer, it was often too hot as well as too

crowded to sleep indoors, so younger people

often slept on the roofs. Teenagers spent time

with their friends in the courtyard, playing ball

games and board games. ² The houses

didn't have kitchens or bathrooms, so people

used the courtyard for cooking and washing.

There weren't many cats in Ancient Rome, but

the most popular pets were dogs, and some

people had monkeys or ducks!

Wealthier people had larger and more

luxurious houses. ³ And because rich

Romans had so many servants and slaves,

their lives were unbelievably comfortable.

Their one-storey homes were made of brick,

with attractive red roofs, and the windows of

all the rooms faced towards the courtyard.

⁴ Rich people wanted to be safe from

crime. They had a big wall at the front of the

house with a huge front door, and they had

guards to watch out for thieves and burglars,

especially at night.

Inside a wealthy citizen's home, there were a

lot of things that we think are modern. ⁵

They had pipes* that carried hot water under

the floor of their bedrooms and living rooms,

so they were warm in winter and they had a hot

bath whenever they wanted one. There were a

lot of rooms in their homes, including an office,

a kitchen, a huge bathroom, and small rooms

for their slaves. Interestingly, they didn't have

any carpets, or much furniture, and things like

armchairs and desks simply didn't exist. The

wealthy Romans decorated their walls with

mosaics,* or by painting colourful pictures if

the mosaics were too expensive. They often

had a shady garden at the back of the house,

which their gardeners looked after, and they

usually tried to build their dining room opposite

the garden so that they could eat and enjoy

looking at the trees and flowers.

People lived in Ancient Rome two thousand

years ago, but were their homes and their

daily lives so very different from the lives of

very poor and very rich people today?

Glossary

* pipes = long tubes that carry water around a house

* mosaics = wall pictures made from a lot of small stone pieces

4Read the text. Are the sentences True, False or Not given? Correct the false ones. 

You need to use normal letters and capital letters correctly in this task. You also need to use correct punctuation.

• 1Ancient Rome was a very crowded city.

  TrueFalseNot given 

• 2Poor people usually lived in stone buildings.

  TrueFalseNot given 

• 3Poor people often lived with their relatives.

  TrueFalseNot given 

• 4Teenagers often did the cooking for the family.

  TrueFalseNot given 

• 5Poor people cooked food outside.

  TrueFalseNot given 

• 6The bedrooms in rich people's houses were upstairs.

  TrueFalseNot given 

• 7Burglars often stole jewellery and paintings from rich people's houses.

  TrueFalseNot given 

• 8Rich people had the same type of furniture as we have today.

  TrueFalseNot given 

5Find and underline the pairs of words below in the text. Answer the questions to show the difference between the words. 

MOVE
• servants and slaves
• thieves and burglars
• guards and gardeners
• families and generations

Life in Ancient Rome

The Romans had one of the greatest and

most powerful empires in history. They built

roads and canals, and hundreds of elegant

cities full of theatres, markets and enormous

sports stadiums. But what were ordinary

Roman houses like, and what was life like in a

typical Roman home?

Two thousand years ago, the ancient city

of Rome had over one million residents,

and there wasn't enough space for all the

people. When we think of Rome, we think of

magnificent stone buildings like the Colosseum

or the Pantheon, but most of its houses were

wooden, especially in the poorer districts.

Poorer people lived in two-storey houses

around three sides of a central courtyard.

Families were larger than today. ___ There

was no privacy inside the house, and, in the

summer, it was often too hot as well as too

crowded to sleep indoors, so younger people

often slept on the roofs. Teenagers spent time

with their friends in the courtyard, playing ball

games and board games. ___ The houses

didn't have kitchens or bathrooms, so people

used the courtyard for cooking and washing.

There weren't many cats in Ancient Rome, but

the most popular pets were dogs, and some

people had monkeys or ducks!

Wealthier people had larger and more

luxurious houses. ___ And because rich

Romans had so many servants and slaves,

their lives were unbelievably comfortable.

Their one-storey homes were made of brick,

with attractive red roofs, and the windows of

all the rooms faced towards the courtyard.

___ Rich people wanted to be safe from

crime. They had a big wall at the front of the

house with a huge front door, and they had

guards to watch out for thieves and burglars,

especially at night.

Inside a wealthy citizen's home, there were a

lot of things that we think are modern. ___

They had pipes* that carried hot water under

the floor of their bedrooms and living rooms,

so they were warm in winter and they had a hot

bath whenever they wanted one. There were a

lot of rooms in their homes, including an office,

a kitchen, a huge bathroom, and small rooms

for their slaves. Interestingly, they didn't have

any carpets, or much furniture, and things like

armchairs and desks simply didn't exist. The

wealthy Romans decorated their walls with

mosaics,* or by painting colourful pictures if

the mosaics were too expensive. They often

had a shady garden at the back of the house,

which their gardeners looked after, and they

usually tried to build their dining room opposite

the garden so that they could eat and enjoy

looking at the trees and flowers.

People lived in Ancient Rome two thousand

years ago, but were their homes and their

daily lives so very different from the lives of

very poor and very rich people today?

Glossary

* pipes = long tubes that carry water around a house

* mosaics = wall pictures made from a lot of small stone pieces

• AThey didn't mind eating outside, especially when the weather was good.

  BIn many ways, they were as attractive as a millionaire's mansion today.

  CSeveral generations lived together under one roof, including aunts, uncles and cousins.

  DAmazingly, for example, they had running water and central heating.

  EOf course, they avoided using the pipes in the courtyard in winter.

  FHowever, they didn't have much free time because they needed to do their chores.

  GThat was because it was safer and more private to face the courtyard and not the street.

• 1aWhich of these people get paid for their work? servantsslaves

  bWhich people belong to someone else? servantsslaves

• 2aWhich people only steal things from houses? thievesburglars

  bWhich people steal things from anywhere? thievesburglars

• 3aWhich people grow flowers and plants? guardsgardeners

  bWhich people protect a place? guardsgardeners

• 4aWhich word describes a group of people of about the same age, such as sons and daughters, grandchildren or great-grandchildren? familiesgenerations

  bWhich word describes people who are closely related, especially parents and their children? familiesgenerations

6Complete the sentences about life in Ancient Rome with the words in the box. 

MOVE
• servants
• slaves
• thieves
• burglars
• guards
• gardeners
• families
• generations

• 1There were three  of emperors in Nero's family. His uncle Caligula, his great-uncle Claudius and his great-great-grandfather Augustus were all emperors.

• 2Two  attacked Maximus on his way home from the forum in central Rome. They stole all his money.

• 3Amelia was a . She had to work very hard in a rich Roman's house, but she was a free woman. The rich Roman didn't own her.

• 4Lucius was one of the  in front of the emperor's palace. He stopped people from coming inside.

• 5Delius was a . He often climbed over the wall into rich people's houses and stole expensive objects.

• 6Twenty-five per cent of Rome's population were . They were men, women and children that rich people owned.

7  Imagine being a teenager in Ancient Rome. Describe your home and the city. Say who you live with and how you spend your day. Speak for no longer than one minute.

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