B1 English Reading: If I Had a Million Dollars (Intermediate ESL)
- Alex
- Aug 4
- 3 min read
This high B1 English reading is ideal for B1 learners who can clearly express their ideas about common topics with simple, compound, and complex sentences. They can connect multiple ideas together and more confidently derive meaning from context. Grammatically, they have adequate command of the past, present, and future simple, the past and present continuous, present perfect, and first and second conditionals.
Read the text and answer the comprehension questions. You can also listen to the audio to practice your listening and speaking skills.
Level B1 Intermediate English Reading Practice: If I Had a Million Dollars
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"What would you do if you had a million dollars?" We asked three people this question. Read on for their responses.
Janet from Ireland
A million dollars? That would be a lot of money for me. I would be able to pay off my house and still have money left over. With the extra cash, I would help my parents pay off their home. I'm a little sad that I haven't been able to help my parents more. My dad has mobility problems, and my mom feels tired from taking care of him and the house all the time. I do what I can to help my parents on weekends, but I have my own life, too. If I had a million dollars, I would hire a house cleaner and a private nurse to help my parents.
Peter from the United States
I have a really good job, so a million dollars would help me, but I don't think I would use it on myself. I would probably donate it to a charity like Doctors Without Borders or UNICEF. I would also give some of the money to my sister. She's the only family I have. Our parents passed away a few years ago, and my sister has had a hard time since then. Money doesn't fix everything, but it can make life a little easier. So, to answer your question, if I had a million dollars, I would use it to help others.
Roberto from Spain
My wife and I are going to have a baby soon, so a million dollars would be amazing. We would use it to buy a nice home and pay for daycare in Madrid. Right now, we live in a suburb south of Madrid called Parla. It's nice, but it takes me about an hour to get to work every day. If we lived in Madrid, I could get to work faster and spend more time with our new baby. My wife also works in Madrid, so it would be great for both of us. For now, we will keep doing our best with what we have.
Comprehension Questions
"Money left over" is money you didn't _______________.
a) have
b) earn
c) use
Who still needs to pay off their home?
a) Janet.
b) Janet's parents.
c) Janet and her parents.
Janet wants to _______________.
a) help her parents
b) buy a new house
c) be happy
What is Doctors Without Borders?
a) Peter's company.
b) A charity.
c) A medical website.
Why is Peter's sister having a hard time?
a) Her and Peter's parents died.
b) Peter moved away.
c) She had an accident.
Where do Roberto and his wife live?
a) Madrid.
b) Parla.
c) Barcelona.
Why would moving to Madrid be good for Roberto and his wife?
a) They would spend less time traveling to work.
b) They would live closer to Roberto's parents' house.
c) They would pay less for daycare.
Answers
c
c
a
b
a
b
a
For Teachers
You can follow up this reading by asking students these questions:
What would you do if you had a million dollars?
Do you think a million dollars is a lot of money?
What does Peter mean when he says, "Money doesn't fix everything, but it can make life a little easier." Do you agree with him?
Note: This text was written by a human named Alex. It was not generated or edited by AI.
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