Micro-listening
Nowadays: Talk About Life That Has Changed
What does 'nowadays' mean?
'Nowadays' means these days or during the present period, usually describing a current habit or situation. For example: Nowadays, our library opens later. Use 'now' for something happening at this moment and 'today' for this particular day. Write 'nowadays' as one word, without an apostrophe; it does not give an exact change date.
Key points
- 'Nowadays' describes a general current habit or situation.
- Write 'nowadays' as one word, without an apostrophe.
- Use 'now' for an immediate action or situation.
- Use 'today' for this particular day.
This lesson has 5 stages. You can stop at any time and continue later.
At a glance
| Form | Use it for | Example |
|---|---|---|
| nowadays | A general current habit or situation | Nowadays, our library opens later. |
| now | An action happening at this moment | The kettle is boiling now. |
| today | This particular day | I am working from home today. |
Stage 1 of 5
Understand
What it means, when to use it, and mistakes to avoid.
The full explanation
Nowadays means these days or during the present period. It often suggests that something was different before, even when the speaker does not describe the past.
Nowadays, the café serves breakfast until noon.
Why it works: This describes the café's current arrangement.
2 more examples
-
I bring my own cup nowadays.
The final time word presents this as a current habit.
-
I am waiting for my coffee now.
Now points to an action happening at this moment.
Read the full guide
Recognise a current pattern
Imagine meeting a friend at a café you both visited years ago. You notice that most customers bring reusable cups. Nowadays helps you describe this current pattern. It covers a period around the present, rather than one visit. The useful question is: does this sentence describe how things generally are these days?
-
More customers bring their own cups nowadays.
Why it works: The speaker describes a pattern across many visits.
Your turn
What does nowadays describe in the example?
Answer: A general pattern in the present
Show the answer
Answer: A general pattern in the present
The sentence describes what customers commonly do during the present period.
Separate habits from moments
Before choosing a time word, decide how wide your message is. Nowadays suits a current habit. Now often points to this moment, and today can identify this particular day. A person may usually drink tea nowadays but order coffee today. Their choice on one visit does not have to match their general habit.
-
I usually drink tea nowadays, but I want coffee today.
Why it works: The sentence separates a general habit from today's choice.
You can practise this again in Bored or boring: Talk about your class and Simple past tense: talk about finished events.
Your turn
Your drink is ready at this moment. Which sentence fits best?
Answer: My drink is ready now.
Show the answer
Answer: My drink is ready now.
Now clearly identifies the immediate situation.
Connect the present with the past
Nowadays often makes listeners think about a change. You can explain the earlier situation with a past form, then give the current situation. You can also leave the past unstated when your listener already knows it. Avoid guessing the date of the change: nowadays itself gives no exact starting point.
-
We paid at the table before, but nowadays we pay at the counter.
Why it works: Paid introduces the earlier system; pay describes the current one.
Your turn
What can you learn from 'We pay at the counter nowadays'?
Answer: Paying at the counter is the current arrangement.
Show the answer
Answer: Paying at the counter is the current arrangement.
Nowadays identifies the current arrangement without dating the change.
Write and place the word
In standard modern English, nowadays is one word. Do not divide it into 'now a days' or add an apostrophe. A simple position is the beginning or end of your sentence. An opening comma is common. At the end, a comma is usually unnecessary. Moving the word changes the order of information more than the basic meaning.
-
Nowadays, we eat outside when the weather is warm.
Why it works: The opening time word sets the present context.
-
We eat outside when the weather is warm nowadays.
Why it works: The final time word gives the same general time frame.
Your turn
Which sentence uses the standard spelling?
Answer: We meet here nowadays.
Show the answer
Answer: We meet here nowadays.
Nowadays is written as one word without an apostrophe.
Match the verb to the message
Use the present simple for regular actions and current facts: people order, the café closes, or I walk. Nowadays can also appear with the present continuous when you describe a current activity or developing pattern. It does not choose the verb form for you. A single finished event yesterday normally needs a past time expression instead.
-
I walk to the café nowadays.
Why it works: The present simple describes a regular action.
-
More neighbours are meeting here nowadays.
Why it works: The continuous form presents a developing pattern.
Your turn
Which sentence clearly describes a regular current habit?
Answer: I have a snack here nowadays.
Show the answer
Answer: I have a snack here nowadays.
Have with nowadays describes a habit during the current period.
Hear the whole word
Listen for three syllables in nowadays, with the strongest stress on the first. The middle vowel is usually short and weak, and the ending sounds like days. Those sounds still form one written word. In dictation, listen once for the whole message, then listen again for small words such as the, at and our.
-
Nowadays, we leave our bikes at the back.
Why it works: Recover our and at the as well as the main time word.
Your turn
How should you write the time word that sounds like 'NOW-uh-days'?
Answer: nowadays
Show the answer
Answer: nowadays
Hearing separate syllables does not mean the spelling contains spaces.
Keep written claims specific
In a message or review, use nowadays to explain a change that matters to your reader. Name the people or place you know about. 'Our café takes card payments' is more careful than a claim about every café. Use nowadays once to establish the time frame; repeating it in every sentence can make a short message feel heavy.
-
Our café offers smaller lunches nowadays, which suits me.
Why it works: The writer describes one known place and explains the personal effect.
Your turn
You know only your local café. Which claim stays within that knowledge?
Answer: Our local café closes at four nowadays.
Show the answer
Answer: Our local café closes at four nowadays.
This statement limits the claim to the café the writer knows.
Recall the language and reuse it
After a dictation, cover the transcript and recall the speaker's current habit. Say it in a new sentence about yourself. This is a separate step from copying the recording: dictation checks the words you heard, while your new sentence practises choosing language. Check the time meaning, the one-word spelling and whether your verb fits the message.
-
Nowadays, I meet friends near my office.
Why it works: A personal sentence reuses the pattern with new information.
Your turn
Which action practises composition after dictation?
Answer: Write a new sentence about your own current routine.
Show the answer
Answer: Write a new sentence about your own current routine.
Choosing your own message practises composition rather than transcription.
Common mistakes
What learners often say, what to say instead, and why.
-
Not this:
I bring my lunch nowaday's.Say: I bring my lunch nowadays.
'Nowadays' is one word and does not take an apostrophe.
-
Not this:
My train is arriving nowadays.Say: My train is arriving now.
'Now' suits an action happening at this moment; 'nowadays' describes a broader period.
-
Not this:
Nowadays, I bought a new coat yesterday.Say: I bought a new coat yesterday.
A single finished event yesterday needs a past time expression, not 'nowadays'.
Use it naturally
How people really use “nowadays”
Neutral Fine almost anywhere, at work or with friends.
Words it often goes with
- common nowadaysWorking from home is common nowadays.
- popular nowadaysOnline language classes are popular nowadays.
- available nowadaysMany free learning tools are available nowadays.
What people also say
- “I usually shop online nowadays.” instead of “In the present period, I usually shop online.” Nowadays sounds natural when you describe a current habit.
Questions about "Nowadays: Talk About Life That Has Changed"
Can I use these days instead of nowadays?
Usually, yes, when you mean the general present period. These days is written as two words, while nowadays is one word. Both can describe a current habit and suggest a difference from the past.
I take a packed lunch these days.
I take a packed lunch nowadays.
Do I have to explain what happened in the past?
No. Nowadays can suggest a contrast without stating it. Explain the past when that information helps your listener understand the change. The word alone does not tell the listener exactly what happened before.
My father grows vegetables nowadays.
He bought all his vegetables before, but nowadays he grows some.
Do I always need a comma with nowadays?
No. A comma is common after nowadays at the beginning of a sentence. When it comes at the end, you usually do not need one. These are useful patterns for ordinary messages and short pieces of writing.
Nowadays, our shop opens on Sundays.
Our shop opens on Sundays nowadays.
Can now describe a changed habit too?
Yes. Now can contrast a current situation with the past, as well as mean this exact moment. Context tells you which meaning applies. Nowadays makes the broad present-period meaning clearer; it is unsuitable for saying that one drink is ready at this moment.
We live near the station now.
Your tea is ready now.
We travel by train more often nowadays.
Before you go
Remember this
Use nowadays for a general current habit or situation, and write it as one word. Compare it with now and today before choosing. Listen for the weak middle vowel, recover the surrounding words, then practise making a new sentence of your own.
Stage 2 of 5
Listen
Hear it in real sentences, from short to long, and write what you hear.
0 of 4 done
Listening 1 of 4
Listening 2 of 4
Try a longer clip. Listen once, then replay the part you missed.
Listening 3 of 4
This clip is longer. Follow the instruction above the answer field.
Listening 4 of 4
Listen, then type the missing words. The rest of the text is already there.
0:00
Practice complete
You listened closely.
Your result is saved in this browser.
Keep your progress. Your practice is saved on this device only. Create a free account to keep it everywhere.
Create a free accountThat was today's free lesson. Tomorrow you get another one. Want more today? See membership.
Create a free SubLearn account to keep this progress across devices.
Save my progressStage 3 of 5
Speak
Say it with the speaker, then use it in your own answer.
Shadow
Say it along with the speaker
Play the line slowly, then speak at the same time as the speaker. Copy the rhythm, not just the words.
Your turn
Say it your way
Speak from memory for 30 to 60 seconds about how you keep in touch with a relative who lives far away. Describe how you communicate nowadays, what has changed, and a message you want to send today. You can invent the details.
Use: nowadays today
Take ten seconds to think, then answer out loud without looking at the lesson. Speak for the time shown in the task above. Nothing is sent unless you ask for feedback.
0:00
Hear how someone else might say it
My cousin lives in another country, so we don't see each other very often. We send voice messages nowadays because they're easy to record when we have a few minutes. Before, we only talked on the phone on birthdays. I like hearing about her family and telling her funny stories about mine. We also share photos, especially when we cook something new. I want to send her a message today to ask about her new job. Maybe we can arrange a video call for the weekend.
Try once more and answer this: What do you usually talk about?
Stage 4 of 5
Write
Use what you've learned to write about your day or week, then write a message.
Write
Put it in your own words
- I used “nowadays”.
- It is about my life, not the lesson’s example.
- I read it once aloud to check it sounds right.
Write your own response
Choose a situation and write 30–50 words of your own. In this activity, you decide what to say rather than copy the words in a recording.
Check your own writing
Read one possible response
Use these checks to revise your message. Grammar and meaning are not automatically graded. Each task keeps its own draft in this browser tab.
You finished the free part of this lesson
- Understand
- Listen
- Speak
- Write
- CheckPart of membership
Worth another look
With a free account, the lessons you finish come back for review to help you remember them.Create a free account
Stage 5 of 5 · Part of membership
Check
New clips without hints.
Listening tests are included with membership. Try the free dictation first, then decide whether to continue.
Listening 1 of 2 Part of membership
Listening 2 of 2 Part of membership
Follow MicroEnglish
Find lesson updates, short videos and quick quizzes. Pick the app you already use.
Questions & comments
Ask about this lesson, share an example, or help another learner.
Example
Memory tip
Goes with
Related forms
Not to be confused with
In this lesson
This word isn't in our dictionary. Check the spelling, or try another form of the word.
We couldn't load this word. Try again.
