B1 English - Intermediate
The threshold. You can hold an opinion, tell a story that lasts more than one sentence, and be understood.
- Levels
- 12
- Grammar points
- 98
- Active vocabulary
- ≈2,000 words
- Certified by
- Cambridge B1 Preliminary (PET) · IELTS 4.0–5.0
Where B1 counts. The level asked for British citizenship and indefinite leave to remain, and the usual bar for skilled-worker visas.
What you can do at B1
- Follow the main points of clear standard English on familiar matters.
- Deal with most situations that come up while travelling.
- Produce connected text on topics you know, and explain a point of view.
- Describe experiences, plans and ambitions, and give reasons for them.
Story length
350–650 words · 7–10 pages
Typical study time
350–400 guided hours
English you meet here
however · manage to · would have
Study-time figures are the guided-hour ranges commonly published by English language schools, counted cumulatively from zero. They describe a classroom average, not a promise.
Why B1 is the level it is
B1 is the threshold the CEFR is named after - the point where English becomes a language you use rather than a subject you study. It is also where the grammar shifts from describing to positioning: conditionals for hypotheses and politeness, reported speech for repeating what someone else claimed, the passive for moving the important thing to the front, and a modal system that carries meanings nothing else in the language expresses.
The modals are the real work of B1. English has almost no subjunctive, so the entire load of probability, obligation, permission, regret and deduction sits on a dozen small words that never change form. He must be tired is not obligation, it is deduction. You should have called is not advice, it is a complaint about the past. None of them map one-for-one onto any other language, and they are everywhere in real speech.
B1 is also the level with the most weight attached to it outside the classroom. It is what the UK asks for for settlement and citizenship, it is where employers start treating English as a working skill rather than a line on a CV, and it is the point at which you can finally read something written for native speakers and finish it. That last one changes the game: from B1 on, the language starts teaching itself, provided you keep reading.
The B1 curriculum, unit by unit
12 levels and 98 grammar points, in the order Leo teaches them. Each unit lists its must-know forms with a real example - the supporting points are covered inside the stories.
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B1.1 Present Perfect Continuous & Duration
Present perfect continuous
I've been waiting for an hour. | She's been studying all day. | How long have you been living here?
Tenses
Present perfect simple vs continuous
I've read 3 books (completed) vs I've been reading (activity/duration) | She's written 5 emails vs She's been writing emails all morning
Tenses
Present perfect with for/since: simple vs continuous
I've known her for years. (state — simple) | I've been learning English for 3 years. (activity — continuous)
Tenses
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B1.2 Past Perfect & Narrative Tenses
Past perfect simple
I had already eaten when she arrived. | He realized he had forgotten his wallet. | After she had finished, she left.
Tenses
Used to vs would (past habits)
I used to live there. (state) — would NOT possible | We used to/would play football every day. (repeated action) — both OK
Tenses
Be used to / get used to + -ing
I'm used to driving on the left. | I'm getting used to the weather. | She can't get used to waking up early.
Tenses
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B1.3 Modals: Obligation, Advice & Necessity
Must vs have to (nuance)
I must study! (I feel it) | I have to study. (external requirement) | She had to leave. (past — must has no past)
Modals
Should have / shouldn't have
You should have told me. (regret/criticism) | I shouldn't have eaten so much.
Modals
Could have + past participle
You could have called me. (= it was possible but you didn't) | We could have gone to Paris.
Modals
Need to / needn't
You need to register. | You needn't worry.
Modals
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B1.4 Conditionals: Second, Third & Advanced Forms
Second conditional
If I had more money, I would travel. | If I were you, I'd accept. | What would you do if you won the lottery?
Conditionals
Third conditional: if + past perfect, would have + past participle
If I had studied harder, I would have passed. | She wouldn't have been late if she'd left earlier.
Conditionals
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B1.5 Passive Voice: Core Tenses
Present simple passive
English is spoken here. | These cars are made in Japan.
Passive
Past simple passive
The house was built in 1990. | The window was broken.
Passive
Present perfect passive
The report has been written. | Three people have been arrested.
Passive
Future passive
The bridge will be completed next year. | The meeting will be held on Monday.
Passive
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B1.6 Reported Speech
Reported statements with tense shift
She said she was tired. (direct: 'I'm tired') | He told me he had seen the film. (direct: 'I've seen...')
Reported Speech
Reported questions
He asked where I lived. | She asked if I was coming. | They wanted to know what I had done.
Reported Speech
Reported commands and requests
She told me to wait. | He asked me not to call. | The teacher told us to be quiet.
Reported Speech
Say vs tell
She said (that) she was tired. | She told me (that) she was tired. | He said hello. (NOT He told hello.)
Reported Speech
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B1.7 Articles & Determiners (Advanced)
The with unique/known nouns
the sun, the moon, the government, the internet, the radio
Articles
The with superlatives
the best restaurant, the most interesting book, the longest river
Articles
Zero article: abstract nouns
Love is important. | Education matters. | Freedom is a right.
Articles
Zero article: countries, cities, languages, meals, sports
France, Tokyo, English, breakfast, tennis | BUT: the UK, the USA, the Netherlands
Articles
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B1.8 Relative Clauses
Relative pronouns: who, which, that, where, when
The woman who called is my sister. | The book which/that I read was good. | The town where I grew up.
Relative Clauses
Possessive relative: whose
The man whose car was stolen. | A country whose economy is growing.
Relative Clauses
Contact clauses (omitting relative pronoun)
The man (that) I met. | The film (which) we saw. | The hotel (that) we stayed at.
Relative Clauses
Defining relative clauses (full practice)
The woman who called is my sister. | The book that I bought was expensive. | The place where we met.
Relative Clauses
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B1.9 Verb Patterns: Gerund & Infinitive
Verb + -ing (gerund verbs)
enjoy, avoid, suggest, mind, finish, keep, imagine, deny, admit, consider, risk, practise, miss, involve | I enjoy reading.
Verb Patterns
Verb + to-infinitive
want, need, decide, hope, expect, offer, refuse, promise, agree, plan, manage, afford, learn, pretend, seem | I decided to leave.
Verb Patterns
Verb + object + to-infinitive
tell, ask, want, expect, advise, encourage, invite, remind, warn, allow, permit, force, teach | She told me to wait.
Verb Patterns
Verb + -ing or to-inf: NO change in meaning
like, love, hate, start, begin, continue, prefer | I like swimming / I like to swim (≈ same)
Verb Patterns
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B1.10 Phrasal Verbs & Collocations
Separable transitive phrasal verbs
turn on/off, pick up, put on, take off, fill in, give back, throw away, work out | Turn the light on. / Turn it on. (NOT turn on it)
Phrasal Verbs
Inseparable transitive phrasal verbs
look after, look for, look into, get on, get off, run into, come across, deal with
Phrasal Verbs
Intransitive phrasal verbs
break down, get up, take off, come back, go on, sit down, stand up, grow up
Phrasal Verbs
Pronoun placement in phrasal verbs
turn it on ✓ / turn on it ✗ (separable + pronoun = must separate) | look after it ✓ (inseparable = never separate)
Phrasal Verbs
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B1.11 Linking Words & Discourse Markers
although / even though / though
Although it was late, she kept working. | Even though he's rich, he's unhappy. | It was fun, though.
Conjunctions
however / nevertheless
The weather was bad. However, we enjoyed it. | It's expensive. Nevertheless, it's worth it.
Conjunctions
on the other hand / whereas / while (contrast)
Tom is tall, whereas his brother is short. | While I agree in principle, I have some concerns.
Conjunctions
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B1.12 Questions, Word Order & Sentence Patterns
Result: so...that / such...that
It was so cold that we stayed inside. | It was such a cold day that we stayed inside. | She spoke so quickly that I couldn't understand.
Conjunctions
Negative questions
Don't you like it? (surprise) | Isn't she coming? (expected yes) | Haven't you finished yet?
Questions
Have something done (causative)
I had my hair cut. | She had her car repaired. | I need to have/get my eyes tested.
Sentence Patterns
The app
Leo teaches B1 by reading
The roadmap on this page is not a chart we drew for the article - it is the syllabus the app is built on. Leo takes you from your first sentence to reading the press without a dictionary, one story at a time.
Stories, not drills
Every level is taught through illustrated stories written at that level - short at A1, full pages of natural prose by C1. You learn English the way you learned to read: by reading something you want to finish.
Tap any word
Translation, pronunciation and the grammar behind the form, on the word itself. No dictionary in another tab, no losing the thread of the sentence to look something up.
A real curriculum underneath
51 levels and 395 grammar points from A1 to C1, in the order they build on each other. The stories are ordered by that curriculum, so a form is always introduced before it is used again.
Be told the day it lands
The app is in development. One e-mail, on launch day - that is the whole deal.
One e-mail, on launch day. No newsletter, no drip campaign.
How to actually get through B1
Read whole texts, not extracts
At B1 you have enough grammar that the bottleneck is stamina, not comprehension. Finishing a long piece teaches you how English holds an argument together across paragraphs - exactly what B2 will test, and what no exercise book can drill.
Treat the modals as vocabulary
Do not try to fit must, might and should into a table of equivalents from your own language; there is no clean mapping. Learn each one from the situations it shows up in, the way you learned a noun.
Write something every week
A hundred words is plenty. Writing is where you find out which structures you actually control, because you cannot dodge a tense in writing the way you can in speech by rephrasing until something comes out.
Start noticing register
Get against obtain, start against commence. English keeps a plain Germanic word and a formal Latin one for the same idea, and choosing wrongly is what makes otherwise good learner English sound stiff or, occasionally, rude.
B1 English - frequently asked questions
How long does it take to go from A2 to B1?
Do I need B1 English for UK citizenship?
Which exam certifies B1?
Can I read real books at B1?
What is the difference between B1 and B2?
The whole roadmap: 51 levels, 395 grammar points
Leo teaches B1 through illustrated stories written at B1. The app is in development - we will write once, on launch day.
One e-mail, on launch day. No newsletter, no drip campaign.