🌎 Environment

⏱ 13 min read

In this lesson you will learn useful everyday English vocabulary and expressions for talking about the environment, pollution, recycling, renewable energy, and simple ways to protect nature. Each English word or phrase includes a simple meaning plus translations in several languages.

🟢 Basic Environment Vocabulary

🌎 Environment
the air, water, land, and living things around us
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Medio ambiente
🇫🇷 French: Environnement
🇩🇪 German: Umwelt
🇮🇹 Italian: Ambiente
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Meio ambiente
🌳 Nature
plants, animals, and the outdoor world
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Naturaleza
🇫🇷 French: Nature
🇩🇪 German: Natur
🇮🇹 Italian: Natura
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Natureza
♻️ Recycling
turning old materials into new ones
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Reciclaje
🇫🇷 French: Recyclage
🇩🇪 German: Recycling
🇮🇹 Italian: Riciclaggio
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Reciclagem
💨 Pollution
dirty air, water, or land caused by waste
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Contaminación
🇫🇷 French: Pollution
🇩🇪 German: Umweltverschmutzung
🇮🇹 Italian: Inquinamento
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Poluição
🌡️ Climate
the usual weather of a place over time
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Clima
🇫🇷 French: Climat
🇩🇪 German: Klima
🇮🇹 Italian: Clima
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Clima
🗑️ Trash / Garbage
things people throw away
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Basura
🇫🇷 French: Déchets / Ordures
🇩🇪 German: Müll
🇮🇹 Italian: Spazzatura / Rifiuti
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Lixo

🟡 Environmental Actions

♻️ To recycle
to turn used items into new materials
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Reciclar
🇫🇷 French: Recycler
🇩🇪 German: Recyceln
🇮🇹 Italian: Riciclare
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Reciclar
🔄 To reuse
to use something again
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Reutilizar
🇫🇷 French: Réutiliser
🇩🇪 German: Wiederverwenden
🇮🇹 Italian: Riutilizzare
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Reutilizar
📉 To reduce
to use or make less of something
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Reducir
🇫🇷 French: Réduire
🇩🇪 German: Reduzieren
🇮🇹 Italian: Ridurre
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Reduzir
🌱 To protect
to keep something safe from harm
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Proteger
🇫🇷 French: Protéger
🇩🇪 German: Schützen
🇮🇹 Italian: Proteggere
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Proteger
💧 To save water
to use less water
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Ahorrar agua
🇫🇷 French: Économiser l'eau
🇩🇪 German: Wasser sparen
🇮🇹 Italian: Risparmiare acqua
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Poupar água
⚡ To save energy
to use less electricity or fuel
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Ahorrar energía
🇫🇷 French: Économiser l'énergie
🇩🇪 German: Energie sparen
🇮🇹 Italian: Risparmiare energia
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Poupar energia

🔵 Energy & Conservation Vocabulary

☀️ Solar energy
power that comes from the sun
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Energía solar
🇫🇷 French: Énergie solaire
🇩🇪 German: Solarenergie
🇮🇹 Italian: Energia solare
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Energia solar
🌬️ Wind energy
power that comes from the wind
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Energía eólica
🇫🇷 French: Énergie éolienne
🇩🇪 German: Windenergie
🇮🇹 Italian: Energia eolica
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Energia eólica
🌿 Renewable energy
energy that can be used again and again
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Energía renovable
🇫🇷 French: Énergie renouvelable
🇩🇪 German: Erneuerbare Energie
🇮🇹 Italian: Energia rinnovabile
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Energia renovável
🌲 Forest
a large area full of trees
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Bosque
🇫🇷 French: Forêt
🇩🇪 German: Wald
🇮🇹 Italian: Foresta / Bosco
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Floresta / Bosque
🐾 Animal species
a type of animal
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Especie animal
🇫🇷 French: Espèce animale
🇩🇪 German: Tierart
🇮🇹 Italian: Specie animale
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Espécie animal
💧 Clean water
water that is safe and not dirty
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Agua limpia
🇫🇷 French: Eau propre
🇩🇪 German: Sauberes Wasser
🇮🇹 Italian: Acqua pulita
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Água limpa

🧠 Talking About the Environment

💡 Use we need to or we should to express something that people generally need or ought to do.
We need to take care of the environment.
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Hay que cuidar el medio ambiente.
🇫🇷 Il faut prendre soin de l'environnement.
🇩🇪 Wir müssen uns um die Umwelt kümmern.
🇮🇹 Bisogna prendersi cura dell'ambiente.
🇵🇹 É preciso cuidar do meio ambiente.
We need to use less plastic.
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Hay que usar menos plástico.
🇫🇷 Il faut utiliser moins de plastique.
🇩🇪 Wir müssen weniger Plastik verwenden.
🇮🇹 Bisogna usare meno plastica.
🇵🇹 É preciso usar menos plástico.
💡 Use we can when suggesting simple actions that people can take.
We can reuse these bags.
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Podemos reutilizar estas bolsas.
🇫🇷 Nous pouvons réutiliser ces sacs.
🇩🇪 Wir können diese Tüten wiederverwenden.
🇮🇹 Possiamo riutilizzare queste borse.
🇵🇹 Podemos reutilizar estas sacolas.
We can save water at home.
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Podemos ahorrar agua en casa.
🇫🇷 Nous pouvons économiser l'eau à la maison.
🇩🇪 Wir können zu Hause Wasser sparen.
🇮🇹 Possiamo risparmiare acqua a casa.
🇵🇹 Podemos poupar água em casa.
💡 Use less and more to talk about reducing or increasing everyday habits.
We should produce less trash.
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Debemos producir menos basura.
🇫🇷 Nous devrions produire moins de déchets.
🇩🇪 Wir sollten weniger Müll produzieren.
🇮🇹 Dovremmo produrre meno spazzatura.
🇵🇹 Devemos produzir menos lixo.
We want to use more renewable energy.
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Queremos usar más energía renovable.
🇫🇷 Nous voulons utiliser plus d'énergie renouvelable.
🇩🇪 Wir wollen mehr erneuerbare Energie nutzen.
🇮🇹 Vogliamo usare più energia rinnovabile.
🇵🇹 Queremos usar mais energia renovável.

💬 Everyday Phrases About the Environment

♻️ At home, we separate paper, glass, and plastic to recycle them.
we sort materials so they can be recycled
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: En casa separamos el papel, el vidrio y el plástico para reciclarlos.
🇫🇷 French: À la maison, nous séparons le papier, le verre et le plastique pour les recycler.
🇩🇪 German: Zu Hause trennen wir Papier, Glas und Plastik, um sie zu recyceln.
🇮🇹 Italian: A casa separiamo carta, vetro e plastica per riciclarli.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Em casa separamos o papel, o vidro e o plástico para reciclá-los.
💧 We turn off the faucet while brushing our teeth to save water.
we stop the water while we brush
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Cerramos el grifo mientras nos cepillamos los dientes para ahorrar agua.
🇫🇷 French: Nous fermons le robinet pendant que nous nous brossons les dents pour économiser l'eau.
🇩🇪 German: Wir drehen den Wasserhahn zu, während wir uns die Zähne putzen, um Wasser zu sparen.
🇮🇹 Italian: Chiudiamo il rubinetto mentre ci laviamo i denti per risparmiare acqua.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Fechamos a torneira enquanto escovamos os dentes para poupar água.
🌳 Air pollution can affect both cities and nature.
dirty air can harm towns and the natural world
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: La contaminación del aire puede afectar tanto a las ciudades como a la naturaleza.
🇫🇷 French: La pollution de l'air peut affecter à la fois les villes et la nature.
🇩🇪 German: Luftverschmutzung kann sowohl Städte als auch die Natur beeinträchtigen.
🇮🇹 Italian: L'inquinamento dell'aria può colpire sia le città che la natura.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: A poluição do ar pode afetar tanto as cidades quanto a natureza.
☀️ More and more buildings use solar energy to produce electricity.
many buildings now get power from the sun
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Cada vez más edificios utilizan energía solar para producir electricidad.
🇫🇷 French: De plus en plus de bâtiments utilisent l'énergie solaire pour produire de l'électricité.
🇩🇪 German: Immer mehr Gebäude nutzen Solarenergie, um Strom zu erzeugen.
🇮🇹 Italian: Sempre più edifici utilizzano l'energia solare per produrre elettricità.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Cada vez mais edifícios utilizam energia solar para produzir eletricidade.

💬 Everyday Conversations

Recycling at home
asking where to put a glass bottle
A: Where do I put this glass bottle?
B: Put it with the other bottles we're going to recycle.
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 A: ¿Dónde pongo esta botella de vidrio?
🇪🇸 B: Ponla con las otras botellas que vamos a reciclar.

🇫🇷 A: Où je mets cette bouteille en verre ?
🇫🇷 B: Mets-la avec les autres bouteilles que nous allons recycler.

🇩🇪 A: Wohin soll ich diese Glasflasche tun?
🇩🇪 B: Leg sie zu den anderen Flaschen, die wir recyceln werden.

🇮🇹 A: Dove metto questa bottiglia di vetro?
🇮🇹 B: Mettila con le altre bottiglie che andremo a riciclare.

🇵🇹 A: Onde coloco esta garrafa de vidro?
🇵🇹 B: Coloque-a com as outras garrafas que vamos reciclar.
Saving energy
asking someone to turn off a light
A: Can you turn off the light before leaving?
B: Of course. We don't need to leave it on.
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 A: ¿Puedes apagar la luz antes de salir?
🇪🇸 B: Claro. No necesitamos dejarla encendida.

🇫🇷 A: Tu peux éteindre la lumière avant de sortir ?
🇫🇷 B: Bien sûr. On n'a pas besoin de la laisser allumée.

🇩🇪 A: Kannst du das Licht ausschalten, bevor du gehst?
🇩🇪 B: Klar. Wir müssen es nicht anlassen.

🇮🇹 A: Puoi spegnere la luce prima di uscire?
🇮🇹 B: Certo. Non abbiamo bisogno di lasciarla accesa.

🇵🇹 A: Pode apagar a luz antes de sair?
🇵🇹 B: Claro. Não precisamos deixá-la acesa.

📝 Example Sentences

🌲 The volunteers collected several bags of trash during the forest cleanup.
helpers picked up garbage in the forest
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Los voluntarios recogieron varias bolsas de basura durante la limpieza del bosque.
🇫🇷 French: Les volontaires ont ramassé plusieurs sacs de déchets pendant le nettoyage de la forêt.
🇩🇪 German: Die Freiwilligen haben während der Waldreinigung mehrere Müllsäcke gesammelt.
🇮🇹 Italian: I volontari hanno raccolto diversi sacchi di spazzatura durante la pulizia del bosco.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Os voluntários recolheram vários sacos de lixo durante a limpeza da floresta.
🌊 It is important to prevent plastic from ending up in rivers and oceans.
plastic should not go into the water
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Es importante evitar que el plástico termine en los ríos y océanos.
🇫🇷 French: Il est important d'éviter que le plastique finisse dans les rivières et les océans.
🇩🇪 German: Es ist wichtig zu verhindern, dass Plastik in Flüsse und Ozeane gelangt.
🇮🇹 Italian: È importante evitare che la plastica finisca nei fiumi e negli oceani.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: É importante evitar que o plástico acabe nos rios e oceanos.
🌡️ Changes in the climate can affect plants and animals in many regions.
climate change can harm living things
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Los cambios en el clima pueden afectar a plantas y animales de muchas regiones.
🇫🇷 French: Les changements climatiques peuvent affecter les plantes et les animaux de nombreuses régions.
🇩🇪 German: Veränderungen im Klima können Pflanzen und Tiere in vielen Regionen betreffen.
🇮🇹 Italian: I cambiamenti del clima possono colpire piante e animali di molte regioni.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: As mudanças no clima podem afetar plantas e animais de muitas regiões.
💧 During the dry months, we try to use only the water we need.
we use less water when it does not rain
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Durante los meses secos, intentamos usar solamente el agua que necesitamos.
🇫🇷 French: Pendant les mois secs, nous essayons d'utiliser seulement l'eau dont nous avons besoin.
🇩🇪 German: In den trockenen Monaten versuchen wir, nur das Wasser zu verbrauchen, das wir brauchen.
🇮🇹 Italian: Durante i mesi secchi, cerchiamo di usare solo l'acqua di cui abbiamo bisogno.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Durante os meses secos, tentamos usar apenas a água de que precisamos.
🌬️ In this region, wind is used to generate part of the electricity.
wind power makes some of the electricity here
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: En esta región, el viento se utiliza para generar parte de la electricidad.
🇫🇷 French: Dans cette région, le vent est utilisé pour produire une partie de l'électricité.
🇩🇪 German: In dieser Region wird Wind genutzt, um einen Teil des Stroms zu erzeugen.
🇮🇹 Italian: In questa regione, il vento viene utilizzato per generare parte dell'elettricità.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Nesta região, o vento é usado para gerar parte da eletricidade.
🔄 Before throwing something away, we think about whether we can repair or reuse it.
we check if an item can be used again
Show translationsHide translations🇪🇸 Spanish: Antes de tirar algo, pensamos si podemos repararlo o reutilizarlo.
🇫🇷 French: Avant de jeter quelque chose, nous réfléchissons si nous pouvons le réparer ou le réutiliser.
🇩🇪 German: Bevor wir etwas wegwerfen, überlegen wir, ob wir es reparieren oder wiederverwenden können.
🇮🇹 Italian: Prima di buttare qualcosa, pensiamo se possiamo ripararlo o riutilizzarlo.
🇵🇹 Portuguese: Antes de deitar algo fora, pensamos se podemos repará-lo ou reutilizá-lo.

🏆 Final Practice

English in the Real World:

Read the situation. Choose the best word or phrase from the lesson.
Question 1 of 8
✅ Correct: 0
❓ Questions: 0
🎯 Accuracy: 0%