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DIR Return to: Questions about the Use of Language
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#Post#: 12011--------------------------------------------------
Are bathrooms and kitchens considered rooms?!
By: Moonlight Date: February 3, 2019, 5:09 pm
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It might sound a weird question, but it made my students
strongly disagree with each other. Last week, I taught a short
passage about an apartment and its furniture. The passage
contained the words bedroom, livingroom, bathroom, and kitchen
as well .At the end of the text, there were some True/False
statements. One of them was this:
There are two rooms in the apartment. True. False
Honestly, I couldn't decide whether to consider the bathroom and
the kitchen as rooms or not. So, half of the class was crying
two and the other half four!
What would be your answer to this question?
#Post#: 12014--------------------------------------------------
Re: Are bathrooms and kitchens considered rooms?!
By: NealC Date: February 3, 2019, 5:30 pm
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In advertisements of apartments and houses for sale or to rent
they really only mention the number of bedrooms.
The above would advertised 1BR apt, EiK, LR, 1Ba.
But I think in learning languages all 4 would fall under the
heading "Rooms of the House".
#Post#: 12018--------------------------------------------------
Re: Are bathrooms and kitchens considered rooms?!
By: Moonlight Date: February 3, 2019, 5:43 pm
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[quote author=NealC link=topic=813.msg12014#msg12014
date=1549236646]
In advertisements of apartments and house for sale or to rent
they really only mention the number of bedrooms.
The above would advertised 1BR apt, EiK, LR, 1Ba.
But I think in learning languages all 4 would fall under the
heading "Rooms of the House"..
[/quote]
Thank you very much!
#Post#: 12037--------------------------------------------------
Re: Are bathrooms and kitchens considered rooms?!
By: Kseniia Date: February 4, 2019, 3:12 am
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I think the answer depends on the country in question. For
example, in Russia we usually say the number of bedrooms and
living rooms (bathrooms, kitchens and balconies don't count). In
China, they only mention the number of bedrooms — though some
good-hearted estate agents may try to convince you to rent a one
bedroom flat for the price of a two bedroom one if they know
you're from a post-USSR country. Still, strictly speaking,
bathrooms and kitchens are rooms (seriously, what are they if
not rooms?). What a culturally biased question! :)
#Post#: 12040--------------------------------------------------
Re: Are bathrooms and kitchens considered rooms?!
By: Moonlight Date: February 4, 2019, 5:15 am
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[quote author=Kseniia link=topic=813.msg12037#msg12037
date=1549271562]
I think the answer depends on the country in question. For
example, in Russia we usually say the number of bedrooms and
living rooms (bathrooms, kitchens and balconies don't count). In
China, they only mention the number of bedrooms — though some
good-hearted estate agents may try to convince you to rent a one
bedroom flat for the price of a two bedroom one if they know
you're from a post-USSR country. Still, strictly speaking,
bathrooms and kitchens are rooms (seriously, what are they if
not rooms?). What a culturally biased question! :)
[/quote]
Just like in China, we really don't think of bathrooms and
kitchens as rooms. For example, when renting an apartment, you
will often hear people talk about two or three bedroom
apartments, without mentioning other parts of the house.
It was funny when one of my students argued that a bathroom was
a room, too. Some of the girls in the class couldn't accept her
opinion and told her if she would LIVE in a bathroom. :)
#Post#: 12045--------------------------------------------------
Re: Are bathrooms and kitchens considered rooms?!
By: Truman Overby Date: February 4, 2019, 6:30 am
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To follow up on Neal's answer, in the US ads for houses for sale
don't normally mention the total number of rooms, as he stated.
The total square footage of the house is the golden number in
the US. The calculation of which is controversial. Some measure
the outside dimensions, some calculate the square footage on the
inside dimensions omitting closets while some include closets.
The only time I can think of seeing total number of rooms under
roof is in the case of historic houses. The Russian twist on
room counting has always made me wonder about the historical
roots of the practice of counting only the bedroom and the
living room. Do you know, Kseniia?
#Post#: 12046--------------------------------------------------
Re: Are bathrooms and kitchens considered rooms?!
By: Chizuko hanji Date: February 4, 2019, 7:01 am
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In Japan, the bathroom and kitchen are not counted as rooms. So
advertisements of apartments show like, 'A Kitchen with a dining
room, A bathroom, 1 Living room, 2 Bed rooms.'
This is more infor.
There is not a toilet in the bathroom in Japanese houses. Toilet
is separated from a bathroom. You might call a toilet room and
bathtub with shower room. But in very small apartment have both
in one room like western style. But they are smaller than
westerns'.
Kitchen and dining room are often combined too. If it says 3LDK
of an apartment, it usually means 3 bed rooms, 1 living room and
1 kitchen combined a dining room.
#Post#: 12048--------------------------------------------------
Re: Are bathrooms and kitchens considered rooms?!
By: Nikola Date: February 4, 2019, 7:31 am
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In the Czech Republic, you'll see something like 2+1 or 3+kk.
The first number represents the number of rooms (bedrooms,
living rooms), the second tells you whether there's a separate
kitchen (1) or an open-plan kitchen that's attached to one of
the rooms (kk). We have two words, pokoj and místnost. Pokoj
means room - one you can "live" in. Místnost is any area within
the house/flat that is separated from other areas by walls. It's
an umbrella term that covers anything from bathroom to walk-in
closet as well as bedrooms.
#Post#: 12082--------------------------------------------------
Re: Are bathrooms and kitchens considered rooms?!
By: Alharacas Date: February 4, 2019, 7:25 pm
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[quote author=Nikola link=topic=813.msg12048#msg12048
date=1549287088]
In the Czech Republic, you'll see something like 2+1 or 3+kk.
The first number represents the number of rooms (bedrooms,
living rooms), the second tells you whether there's a separate
kitchen (1) or an open-plan kitchen that's attached to one of
the rooms (kk). We have two words, pokoj and místnost. Pokoj
means room - one you can "live" in. Místnost is any area within
the house/flat that is separated from other areas by walls. It's
an umbrella term that covers anything from bathroom to walk-in
closet as well as bedrooms.
[/quote]
The same happens in German with Raum, the equivalent of
místnost, vs. Zimmer, which corresponds to pokoj.
As a side note, it was always clear whether a person was from
the GDR when they said Zweiraumwohnung, as opposed to
Zweizimmerwohnung (FRG).
#Post#: 12119--------------------------------------------------
Re: Are bathrooms and kitchens considered rooms?!
By: Sudeep Date: February 5, 2019, 1:46 pm
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Here we have 1BHK, 2BHK and 3BHK house. BHK stands for Bedroom,
Hall and Kitchen. Depending upon number of bedroom, the 1, 2 and
3 are prefixed. So, if you consider a room depending upon amount
of time we spend there, then kitchen and bathroom may not be
considered as rooms. But sometimes in summer, I like to spend
time under the shower for hours more than I spend in my bedroom.
So, in that case, it could be considered as a room ;D
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