A. Adjectives describing free-time activities

I enjoyed being secretary of the sports club but it was very time-consuming. [I had to give up two evenings a week to do it.]
The conservation work I do is very rewarding. [I feel I’m doing something good and useful.]
Photography has been a lucrative pursuit for her. [She often sells her pictures to magazines.]
Painting is such a therapeutic activity. [It makes me feel good, and teaches me patience.]

B. Informal expressions: how people spend their leisure

• Rob’s a real culture vulture; he goes to the theatre regularly and to every art gallery he can find. [big fan of anything cultural]
• I’m a bit of a couch potato; I spend hours every day just watching TV. [physically very inactive person]
• Lucy loves playing tennis but only as an amateur – she’d never want to be a professional. [someone who does something as a hobby, not a job]
• Fatima’s a bit of a dabbler; she takes up a hobby for a couple of weeks, then she gets bored and starts something different. [person who never keeps doing one activity for long]
• Matt does a lot of chores at the weekend – things like shopping and mowing the lawn. [boring tasks that have to be done]
• Laura’s a shopaholic. She buys all sorts of things she doesn’t need. [person addicted to shopping; compare alcoholic: addicted to alcohol]
• Joe is heavily into downhill skiing these days. [is very involved in]
• I went off football and I took up golf instead. [stopped liking, lost interest in]
• She locks herself away for hours in her room and listens to music. [isolates herself from the world]
• He’s totally hooked on motor racing these days. [is addicted to]
• What do you get up to at weekends, Mariana? [do]
• Do you have a hectic social life? I have a pretty full diary. [a lot of activities]
• Mark is a keen participant in all the community activities in his town. [takes part enthusiastically]