Story:

I went grocery shopping, but I forgot my wallet at home!

Pronunciation Lesson:

Two ways to pronounce ‘the’

 
This weekly podcast is for intermediate to advanced English learners. I use core vocabulary to tell you a story about something that happened in my daily life in Canada. Each podcast also includes a pronunciation lesson that explains something I said in the story. You’ll hear the story twice. The first time, the story is a little slower than normal. After the pronunciation lesson, you’ll hear the story again, but at a regular speed. I speak naturally and with a standard American accent.

Transcript:

[I speak with a standard American accent, but sometimes my spelling is British. That's the way we do things in Canada!]

Have you ever gone shopping and forgotten your wallet, but you didn’t know you had forgotten your wallet until you were ready to pay for everything? That happened to me and it was really embarrassing. I went to the grocery store, as I do every week. I put my purse in the cart and went through the entire store. I filled my cart with all the items on my grocery list. I got to the checkout, and as the cashier was scanning all my items, I reached into my purse to get my wallet to pay for everything.

That’s when I realized my wallet was not in my purse! In a flash, I remembered where I had left my wallet. It was sitting next to my computer. Earlier in the day I had been trying to buy tickets over the Internet to a concert. I forgot to put my wallet back in my purse.

I felt so awkward! I quietly explained my situation to the cashier. Luckily she was very sympathetic. She told me to drive home very slowly (obeying all traffic laws), get my wallet, and then come back. I was really nervous about this! My house was only a 15-minute drive away, but it was pouring rain outside, and my driver’s license was in my wallet! It’s illegal to drive without a license!

When I returned to the store with my wallet, I went to the customer service counter. My two bags of groceries were sitting behind the counter. The technology in supermarkets is really advanced! The cashier had saved my bill in her computer. It had been saved with the helpful title, “Melanie who forgot her wallet.” At the customer service counter, the cashier found my bill in her computer, and I was able to pay for the groceries there.

Now, I always make sure I have my wallet before I leave the house!

Pronunciation

Listen to some things I said in the story:

the grocery store
the entire store
all the items
over the Internet
behind the counter

Did you notice that sometimes I said the /ðə/ and sometimes I said /ði/? Do you know why?

Listen again and see if you can hear the difference:

the grocery store
the entire store
all the items
over the Internet
behind the counter

The word the is one of the most commonly-used words in English. There are two ways to pronounce the.

Most of the time, it is pronounced the /ðə/.

However, when the comes before a word that begins with a vowel sound, it’s pronounced /ði/.

Listen carefully:

the entire store
all the items
over the Internet

Sometimes people will say /ði/ when they want to emphasize or exaggerate something:
For example,
“That was the best ice cream I’ve ever had.”
“That’s THE David Beckham? ”
[= the famous soccer player David Beckham, not another person named David Beckham]

This is just one of many ways you can emphasize or exaggerate something in English.

Reference Vocabulary:

wallet
“Have you ever gone shopping and forgotten your wallet, but you didn’t know you had forgotten your wallet until you were ready to pay for everything?”
= a small case in which people put money, credit cards and other small things to carry in a purse or pocket

grocery
“I went to the grocery store, as I do every week.” [adjective]
“I filled my cart with all the items on my grocery list.” [adjective]
“My two bags of groceries were sitting behind the counter.” [noun]
‘and I was able to pay for the groceries there” [noun]
A grocery store is another name for a supermarket. Groceries are food items that can be bought at a grocery store. A grocery list is a list of all the food items that a person needs to buy at the grocery store.

the checkout
“I got to the checkout, ”
= the area in a grocery store [or other large store] where you pay for all your items; in a grocery store or supermarket, there is usually one long row with many different checkout counters

cashier
“I quietly explained my situation to the cashier.”
“The cashier had saved my bill in her computer.”
“…the cashier found my bill in her computer, …”
= a person who works at the checkout; this person takes your money
A cashier also works in stores & banks.

a driver’s license / license
“…and my driver’s license was in my wallet!”
“It’s illegal to drive without a license!”
= a legal document, usually a card, that allows you to legally drive a car or other vehicle. You cannot drive a car without this card!

customer service
“When I returned to the store with my wallet, I went to the customer service counter.”
“At the customer service counter,…”
= a place in a store that deals with customer complaints or customer relations, or where a customer can ask for information about something

Phrasal Verbs:

put (something) back
“I forgot to put my wallet back in my purse.”
= return something to its original place

come back
“She told me to drive home very slowly (obeying all traffic laws), get my wallet, and then come back.”
= return to a place

Core Vocabulary:

(What is core vocabulary?)

3***
forget
everything
store
entire
fill
item
reach
realize
remember
sit
computer
ticket
quietly
explain
situation
drive
slowly
traffic
law
pour
return
technology
bill
save
title

2**
purse
cart
scan
awkward
concert
calmly
sympathetic
nervous
illegal
counter
supermarket
representative
helpful

1*
embarrassing
flash
luckily
obey

Collocations:

(What are collocations?)

be ready (to do something)
pay for (something)
on a list
in a flash
sit next to (someone/something)
buy tickets
over the Internet
explain (something) to (someone)
obey a/the law
traffic laws
driver’s license
it’s illegal to (do something)
behind the counter

Story:

One day, my parents lost the keys to the house. Eight days later, the keys arrived in the mail. How did that happen???

Pronunciation Lesson:

Linking consonant sounds to vowel sounds

 
This weekly podcast is for intermediate to advanced English learners. I use core vocabulary to tell you a story about something that happened in my daily life in Canada. Each podcast also includes a pronunciation lesson that explains something I said in the story. You’ll hear the story twice. The first time, the story is a little slower than normal. After the pronunciation lesson, you’ll hear the story again, but at a regular speed. I speak naturally and with a standard American accent.

Transcript:

[I speak with a standard American accent, but sometimes my spelling is British. That's the way we do things in Canada!]

 
This is a story about something that happened to my mom & dad about a year ago. They had gone out to do some shopping, and somewhere along the way they lost the key to their house. My dad left the house first, and my mom locked the door as she was leaving. She claims that she put the keys on top of the car to give to my dad. That’s the last time anyone saw the keys. When they got home, each waited for the other to open the door to the house. That’s when they realized the keys were gone. They spent the rest of day searching high & low for the keys, but they couldn’t find them.

My parents decided to wait a few days before changing the locks in case someone returned the keys. Their house has an alarm system and there was nothing on the keys that could identify them as keys to their house, so they weren’t worried about someone using the keys to get in.

You may think it’s odd to wait for someone to return the keys, but this actually happens in Canada! A charity came up with a very innovative service to encourage people to donate to them. They make identification tags for your keys. Each tag has a unique number on it, and that unique number tells this charity who & what address the keys belong to. Anyone anywhere in Canada who finds a set of keys with an ID tag from this charity can drop the keys in any mailbox or take them to the post office. Canada Post sends the keys to the charity. The charity uses the number on the key tag to look up the address of the owner in their database, and mails the keys back to the owner. For free. It’s a worthy charity & a great service, so many people donate money to it.

Eight days after my parents lost the keys, the keys arrived in the mail. The keys must have fallen off the car after my parents left the house, and a kind, anonymous person found them and put them in the mail. The charity sent the keys back to my parents.

Pronunciation

Listen to some sounds from the story. Can you understand what I’m saying?

this is a

keys on

them as

think it’s

happens in

One of the main features of English pronunciation is linking. It’s part of the rhythm of English. To link things together, means to connect them. In spoken English, words are connected together so that there is no pause between the words. Linking words together sounds more natural & makes your speech more fluid.

One of the most common methods of linking, is to link a consonant sound at the end of one word, to the vowel sound at the beginning of the next word, so that the second word sounds like a syllable of the first word. Listen again:

This is a story

she put the keys on top of the car

there was nothing on the keys that could identify them as keys to their house

You may think it’s odd

this actually happens in Canada

Most of the time, content words are linked to function words, or function words are linked together. You might not be able to hear the function words, because they are linked to content words.

When people start learning English, they learn to pronounce every word individually. They have trouble listening to natural spoken English, because they are listening for separate words. The more you listen to natural spoken English, the more you will get used to all the strange sounds that come from linking words together, and you will stop listening for each individual word.

Imitation is a great way to add linking to your spoken English. Practice different phrases & sentences that you hear. The more you practice, the easier it becomes to link words together.

NOTE:

The charity I talk about in the story is The War Amps. The key tag service helps the War Amps raise money to help amputees. I didn’t talk about the specific charity in the story because it’s difficult to explain using just core vocabulary. It’s a charity that helps amputees. An amputee is someone who has had part of his/her body (usually part of a leg or an arm) amputated. To amputate is to cut off or remove a part of someone’s body, usually part of a leg, foot, arm or hand. For example, after the bombing at the 2013 Boston Marathon, many people had to have their legs amputated (removed) because of damage to their legs from the bomb.

Reference Vocabulary:

the keys
Throughout the story I use both ‘the key’ and ‘the keys.’ Often we keep more than one key on a key ring or a key chain. Even though we only need 1 key to unlock a door, we still say ‘the keys’ to mean ‘the key chain’ or ‘the key ring.’

change the locks
“My parents decided to wait a few days before changing the locks in case someone returned the keys.”
= When you lose the key to the house, you have to change all the locks that key opens. Canadian & American homes have more than one door. Houses have a front door and a back door, and may also have a side door & a garage door (from the garage to the house). The same key will open all those doors, so if you lose that key, you have to change the lock on every door.

mailbox
“Anyone anywhere in Canada who finds a set of keys with an ID tag from this charity can drop the keys in any mailbox or take them to the post office.”
= a large box in a public space where people can put their letters (with postage stamp) to send to someone else. The postal service collects all the mail from the public mailboxes.

Canada Post
“Canada Post sends the keys to the charity.”
= the national postal service in Canada

Phrasal Verbs:

come up with
“A charity came up with a very innovative service to encourage people to donate to them.”
= think of something (a solution, a plan, an idea, something that is needed)

look up
“The charity uses the number on the key tag to look up the address of the owner in their database,…”
= to search for / find a piece of information

Core Vocabulary:

(What is core vocabulary?)

3***
story
happen
lost
key
lock
claim
each
wait
realize
search
return
system
identify
worry
actually
charity
service
encourage
unique
sends
address
owner
service
arrive

2**
lock [noun]
alarm
odd
identification
address
post office
database
worthy
mail [noun]

1*
innovative
donate
tag
mail [verb]
anonymous

Collocations:

(What are collocations?)

about a year ago
the key to (something)
lock a/the door
on top of
the last time
open a/the door
the door to the house
search/look high & low
a few days
in case
an alarm system
for free
in the mail

Story:

A party on my street (that got out of control!)

Pronunciation Lesson:

The reduced form of the pronoun our

 
This weekly podcast is for intermediate to advanced English learners. I use core vocabulary to tell you a story about something that happened in my daily life in Canada. Each podcast also includes a pronunciation lesson that explains something I said in the story. You’ll hear the story twice. The first time, the story is a little slower than normal. After the pronunciation lesson, you’ll hear the story again, but at a regular speed. I speak naturally and with a standard American accent.

Transcript:

[I speak with a standard American accent, but sometimes my spelling is British. That's the way we do things in Canada!]

 
Our neighborhood is very quiet. I live with my family in a suburb north of Toronto. There are some families with young children in the neighborhood, but mostly the people living here are older, retired couples. Our house is on a hill. There is a street going up the hill with houses on either side of it.

Not too long ago, I was staying in on a Saturday night. Around 10:30 at night, I heard a lot of noise outside. I looked out my window and saw an unusually large number of teenagers walking up the hill. They just kept coming & there was no end in sight! I went outside to see where they were all going, and I saw that there was a mob of kids at the top of the hill. I’d never seen that many kids in our neighborhood, not even on Halloween!

Sure enough, someone in the neighborhood called the police. The kids had taken over the road. A lot of them had probably been drinking. They were yelling at neighbors and running between houses to urinate. One of my neighbors almost got in a fist fight with a kid who was mouthing off, and the police had to step in.

A 14-year-old girl who lives at the top of the hill decided to have a party while her parents were away. She posted the details on Facebook, and of course, it went viral. Kids SHOWED UP at her house from all over town, including people she didn’t even know. The police estimate(d) [*I should have said 'estimated'] there were about 200 kids. It took 5 police cars and half an hour to disperse everyone.

I’m sure it was a great party for the kids. A party is always considered cool when the police SHOW UP, and I’m sure she was very popular at school after this. She was also probably punished by her parents when they got home and heard about what happened.

Pronunciation

Listen carefully to some sentences from the story:

Our neighborhood is very quiet.

Our house is on a hill.

I’d never seen that many kids in our neighborhood,…

Did you hear the word our in those sentences?

The pronoun our is a function word. It’s a grammar word. It’s not an important word, but it needs to be in a sentence so that the sentence is grammatically correct. Within a sentence, function words are unstressed, and they are often reduced.

The pronoun our is unstressed and reduced in a sentence. In natural spoken English, it’s pronounced /ɑɚ/, exactly like are, the second-person singular and plural form of the verb be.

Listen again:
I didn’t say “Our neighborhood.” I said “/ɑɚ/ neighborhood”

I didn’t say “Our house.” I said “/ɑɚ/ house”

Can you hear the difference?

Listen to the story again, and listen for the reduced form of our.

Reference Vocabulary:

urinate (verb)
They were yelling at neighbors and running between houses to urinate.
= to pee, get rid of liquid waste from your body

fist fight
One of my neighbors almost got in a fist fight with a kid who was mouthing off, and the police had to step in.
= a fight in which people use their fists (your hands with fingers closed in a ball) to hit each other

go viral
She posted the details on Facebook, and of course, it went viral.
= spread very quickly from person to person on the internet

Phrasal Verbs:

stay in
Not too long ago, I was staying in on a Saturday night.
= stay at home instead of going out

take over
The kids had taken over the road.
= take/have control of (something)

mouth off
One of my neighbors almost got in a fist fight with a kid who was mouthing off, and the police had to step in.
= talk loudly & say rude, unpleasant, offensive things

step in
One of my neighbors almost got in a fist fight with a kid who was mouthing off, and the police had to step in.
= to become involved into order to prevent or stop something bad from happening

show up
Kids show up at her house from all over town, including people she didn’t even know.
A party is always considered cool when the police show up,…
= arrive at a place/somewhere

Core Vocabulary:

(What is core vocabulary?)

3***
control
neighborhood
quiet
couples
hill
street
window
number
kids [older people use ‘kids’ to also refer to teenagers]
police
road
neighbor
fight
away
details
estimate
great
consider
cool
popular

2**
drinking [drinking alcohol]
fist
punish

1*
suburb
retired
unusually
mob
yell
post
disperse

Collocations:

(What are collocations?)

out of control
north of
up the hill
on either side of
(not) long ago
on a Saturday night
at night
a lot of
a number of
in sight
no end in sight
sure enough
call the police
of course
half an hour
at school

Story:

This podcast started in the summer of 2010, but it became so time-consuming that I threw in the towel a few months later. Now, I have an easier way of making podcast episodes!

Have you ever thrown in the towel?

Pronunciation Lesson:

How to sound more confident when you are speaking English

 
This weekly podcast is for intermediate to advanced English learners. I use core vocabulary to tell you a story about something that happened in my daily life in Canada. Each podcast also includes a pronunciation lesson that explains something I said in the story. You’ll hear the story twice. The first time, the story is a little slower than normal. After the pronunciation lesson, you’ll hear the story again, but at a regular speed. I speak naturally and with a standard American accent.

Transcript:

[I speak with a standard American accent, but sometimes my spelling is British. That's the way we do things in Canada!]

 
Did you know this podcast actually started in the summer of 2010? The English Teacher Melanie website was less than a year old and I was experimenting with different lessons. I had spent a lot of time on Twitter & Facebook talking to English learners, and I learned that there weren’t a lot of quality listening resources available for students. I also learned that people really liked Canada even though they didn’t know a lot about it. I realized I could help learners improve their listening by telling stories about life in Canada.

In theory, the procedure for making a podcast was simple: Each week I wrote a short story and a pronunciation lesson. I already had a professional microphone that I was using to make videos, and this microphone was highly recommended for podcasting, too, so I just plugged it into my laptop. I set up my laptop in the quietest room in the house & recorded the entire lesson. I edited the .mp3 file, and uploaded it. In practice, it was not this simple.

It turned out that my microphone was the WORST microphone to use for podcasting. It picked up every single sound in the background. If you had listened carefully to some of the old episodes, you could hear birds chirping outside, cars going by, the fan on my laptop, even my mouth opening & closing. I tried everything I could think of to create a soundproof environment, but nothing worked! I even sat in a walk-in closet, but if someone was watching TV in the room below, the microphone picked that up, too.

It would take hours to edit out all the background noise. After 29 episodes, I finally threw in the towel. I didn’t want to abandon the podcast, because there had been such a positive response to it. I just needed to find an easier way of doing it! I did a lot of research, and found a better microphone, better recording equipment, and better editing software. Producing an episode is much easier now.

My goal is to help you understand natural spoken English. I want this podcast to be an important part of your English studies, so I’m looking forward to hearing from you about the new episodes!

Pronunciation

There’s one simple thing you can do to help you sound more confident speaking English, even when you don’t feel confident.

It’s really easy.

Make sure your voice goes down at the end of a sentence.

It’s called ‘falling pitch’ or ‘falling intonation.’

When you’re voice goes up at the end of a sentence, it sounds like you’re really unsure of what your saying. It sounds like you’re asking a question. [NOTE: I say these sentences with my voice going up at the end as an example of rising pitch/rising intonation.]

When you voice goes down at the end of a thought or a sentence, you sound much more confident.

Listen to the story again, and listen to how my voice goes down at the end of a sentence.

Reference Vocabulary:

podcast
Did you know this podcast actually started in the summer of 2010?
A podcast episode is an audio or video digital media file. A podcast is a series of episodes that you can subscribe to.

upload (verb)
I edited the .mp3 file, and uploaded it.
= to send or move a file from your computer to a larger computer, server or network. In this case, I upload each .mp3 file to a podcast host (a larger computer that many different people can access to get the .mp3 file)

pick up (phrasal verb)
It picked up every single sound in the background.
= receive & record sound
This phrasal verb has many different meanings; this meaning is specifically about microphones. You probably won’t hear it or use it very often, if at all.

chirp (verb)
If you had listened carefully to some of the old episodes, you could hear birds chirping outside, …
= the sound a bird makes, a short high sound

a laptop
If you had listened carefully to some of the old episodes, you could hear… the fan on my laptop,…
= a portable computer; a small computer that you can carry; a small computer that can sit on your lap.
In American English, ‘laptop’ is more common than ‘notebook computer,’ because notebook can also be a book with paper in it to write on.

soundproof (adjective)
I tried everything I could think of to create a soundproof environment,…
= not allowing any sound in

walk-in (adjective)
I even sat in a walk-in closet, …
= a space that is large enough to walk into (usually used with ‘closet’)

Idiom:

throw in the towel
After 29 episodes, I finally threw in the towel.
= to stop trying or doing a project, activity or effort; to give up or quit, because you can no longer do it or you realize you cannot succeed.

Phrasal Verbs:

plug (something) into (something)
…so I just plugged it [my microphone] into my laptop.
= connect a device to a power source or another device using a plug

set up (something)
I set up my laptop in the quietest room in the house,…
= make something (a computer, machine, piece of equipment) ready to use

turn out
It turned out that my microphone was the WORST microphone to use for podcasting.
= to develop, happen, or end in a specific way, to have a particular (usually unexpected) result

go by
If you had listened carefully to some of the old episodes, you could hear … cars going by,
= moving past something

edit out
It would take hours to edit out all the background noise.
= remove something unwanted (from a recording, a book, magazine, movies, etc.) before making it available to the public

look forward to
I’m looking forward to hearing from you about the new episodes!
= be excited about (something that is going to happen or is expected to happen)

hear from (someone)
I’m looking forward to hearing from you about the new episodes!
= receive communication from someone, for example a phone call, a letter, an email, or in this case a comment on a blog or social media,

Core Vocabulary:

(What is core vocabulary?)

3***
actually
lesson
quality
resources
available
learn
theory
procedure
already
professional
highly
recommended
record
entire
file
single
sound
background
practice
create
environment
background
noise
positive
response
research
equipment
software
produce [verb]
goal
studies

2**
website
edit
episode
abandon

1*
experiment
microphone
closet

Collocations:

(What are collocations?)

in the summer
the summer of
less than
experiment with
a lot of time
even though
tell a story
In theory
highly recommended
In practice
every single
listened carefully to
some of
a walk-in closet
background noise
a positive response (to something)
my/your/his/her/their studies

Learn how to understand natural spoken English.

Learn core vocabulary, phrasal verbs & collocations.

Improve your American accent.

Finally take control of your English studies and start moving in the right direction.

This is what you’ll be able to do when you listen to the English Teacher Melanie Podcast!

Hello everyone,

I’m really excited to announce that the English Teacher Melanie Podcast will be starting again soon! [Click to tweet this!]

It’s a weekly podcast for intermediate to advanced English learners who feel stuck at their current level. Each episode, I use core vocabulary, phrasal verbs, and collocations to tell you a story about something that happened in my daily life in Canada.

Here’s what you can do right now:

1. Listen to new versions of 10 of the original episodes here on the website. (This will keep you busy until new episodes begin next week!)

2. Subscribe to the podcast on iTunes!

3. Help your friends improve their English and tell them about the podcast! Tweet, share this on Facebook or whatever social network you use!

Thank you for your support! Let me know what you think of the new podcast.

I look forward to hearing from you!
Melanie

Learn the Words That Go Together.

What are collocations?

a waste of money
brand new
a collection of
test results
front and back
phone number
in the middle of
pleasantly surprised
a soccer player
catch fire
smoke a cigarette
hotel room
eat breakfast / have breakfast
fresh air
throw a party
birthday party
unacceptable behaviour
commit suicide
newly appointed

A collocation is a combination of two or more words that are commonly used together, in a way that sounds natural to a native English speaker.

All of word combinations listed above sound ‘right’ and natural to a native English speaker. While a speaker of French or Spanish might say “the room of the hotel,” that sounds odd to an English speaker. The natural English combination is ‘hotel room.’

Instead of saying, “I made a birthday party for my son,” which is not correct in English, say “I threw a birthday party for my son.” ‘Throw’ and ‘party’ go together in English.

Why are collocations important?

To be fluent in English, you need to know which words go together. Learning the correct combination of words will help you sound more natural.

When English learners translate directly from their language into English, they often say unnatural word combinations, such as ‘make exercise‘ or ‘take breakfast‘ or ‘I married with him.’ All of those combinations are incorrect and unnatural in English.

How can I learn collocations?

Read, read, and read some more. Listen, listen, and listen some more. Notice the words that are used together. Memorize groups of words instead of just a single word.

Use a dictionary specifically for English learners. Dictionaries such as the Merriam-Webster’s Learner’s Dictionary or the Macmillan Dictionary usually include collocations for words.

At the end of each podcast, I list the collocations used in the story.

~

Translations

Read this article in Portuguese (Brazilian)

In this English lesson, you’re going to learn something that will help you better UNDERSTAND American English speakers, AND it will help you SOUND more American.

You’re going to learn how to pronounce words like center, disappointed, & internet

In fast speech, American English speakers often don’t pronounce the T after an N in a word. [Click here to tweet this!]

 
Listen carefully to these 5 words & repeat after me:

entertain
counter
printer
twenty
accountable

When you make the /n/ sound, the tongue goes up and the front of the tongue touches the roof of the mouth. This is the same as the starting position for the ‘t’ sound. So instead of trying to make two separate sounds, just don’t say the T!

This is a very common feature of fast speech.

Here are some more examples:

international
percentage
seventy
wanted
painter

It’s not wrong to fully pronounce the ‘t’ and say ‘international.’ In fact, you’ll hear Americans say both ‘international’ and ‘innernational.’ You should listen for both and know that they are the same word.

This also happens with the n + d combination, since the ‘t’ and ‘d’ sounds are the exact same mouth position.

handsome
landscape
grandparents
understand
underneath

Let’s try some practice sentences:

I don’t understand!

I was really disappointed with my interview.

I flew from Toronto to Atlanta.

I went over to my friend’s house.

That’s it! Don’t worry if this difficult for you at first! It takes 21 days to form a new habit, so keep practicing!

I hope this video helped you better understand the American accent.

To everyone celebrating the holiday, Merry Christmas to you & your family!

The temperature right now is -2 degrees, and we have an inch of snow on the ground!

I’d like to take this opportunity to thank you so much for your support this year! I am so thrilled that so many of you have used EnglishTeacherMelanie.com to improve your English. Thank you for all your lovely comments. I am delighted that the many lessons here have been helpful to you. You all encourage me to keep working hard!

May 2013 be your best year ever!

Here are some articles you can read to learn more about Christmas, Santa Claus and snow!

What is Christmas?

Who is Santa Claus?

Canada Fun Fact: Canada Post Helps Santa Claus Answer All His Letters!

Things to do in the Snow!

All About Snow!

All the best,
Melanie
xo

(Photo by Paojus)

I get a lot of emails and messages from beginner English learners who need help. My website is mainly for intermediate & advanced English learners, but I know that English can be very overwhelming for beginners. I have put together a list of free online resources to help beginners get started.

If you are a beginner, if you know someone who is a beginner, or if you teach beginners, here are some free resources that may be useful to you. All of these resources are in English.

Videos

Hungry for English [American]
“We want you to learn to speak English in the same way that we all learned to speak our native languages as babies – by hearing it instead of reading it.”

JenniferESL [American]
“English for Beginners! No scripts. No actors. Real lessons. Real learning.”
Jennifer is an English teacher who is teaching her friend Natasha to speak English. This is an ongoing series of lessons, so check the list often for new lessons!

Mister Duncan [British]
This list of video lessons is more for elementary & intermediate students, but they are a great way to learn new vocabulary. All his videos include subtitles (text).

Vocabulary & Grammar

ESOL Courses – Online course for beginners [British]
ESOL Courses – Online English lessons, exercises, games and quizzes for beginners [British]
Helping You Learn English – English course for beginners [American]
Learn English Online – Online course for beginners [British]

The Most Common English Words
100 most common words in English (video)
1000 most common words in English: [Esl.about.com] 1-250, 251-500, 501-750, 751-1000
1000 most common words in English (in alphabetical order)

Verb Forms
Perfect English Grammar – Memorize the past simple & past participle forms of irregular verbs
Macmillan Dictionary – Test your knowledge of irregular verb forms with the ‘Irregular Verb Wheel Game’

Reading

Read Theory – Read, listen, & answer questions
Super Easy Reading – Read, listen, & do activities
Simple English Wikipedia – 90,000 articles written in simple English!
If you know of some more free online resources for beginners, please let me know in the comments & I will look at them!

***LANGUAGE WARNING! Sexual language that may offend you is used in this article.***

(Photo by Tom Woodward)

Bond. James Bond.

Agent 007 [double oh seven] in the British Secret Service MI6.

James Bond movies are known for a few things: action, danger, exotic locations, gorgeous women (Bond Girls), evil enemies, and double entendres.

 
A double entendre /ˈdʌbəl ɑnˈtɑ:ndrə/ is a word or phrase that has two meanings: a normal meaning and a sexual meaning.

In this article, you’ll learn about some of the naughty, sexual meanings of names and dialogue in James Bond movies!

First, let’s make sure that everyone knows some basic vocabulary. Sex organs and genitals are nice, non-offensive, formal words used to talk about the body parts used for sex. A woman has a vagina and a clitoris (the part just above a vagina). A man has a penis and testicles.

Okay?

Bond Girls

 
In every James Bond movie, there are always attractive, sophisticated women. A Bond Girl can be an ally or an enemy, but she is usually the woman who becomes Bond’s love interest (the woman Bond becomes interested in).

Some Bond Girls are eye candy, their only purpose in the movie other than to be attractive and pleasant to look at! Bond girls are often criticized as sex objects, women who are only valued because they are sexually attractive.

A few Bond Girls have very suggestive [=makes you think of sex] names!

Honey Ryder (Dr. No, 1962)

‘Ryder’ is pronounced the same as rider: /raɪdɚ/. A rider, of course, is someone who rides something, like an a animal (ride a horse), a vehicle (ride the bus), … or a man! When a woman is ‘on top’ during sex, she is ‘riding’ the man. This sexual position is also called the ‘cowgirl’ or ‘cowgirl position’ since it looks like a cowgirl riding a horse.

Pussy Galore (Goldfinger, 1964)

James Bond: “Who are you?”

Bond Girl: “My name is Pussy Galore.”

James Bond: “I must be dreaming.”

Pussy is a crude, offensive slang word used for a woman’s vagina. Galore is an adjective [always used after a noun, not before] that means ‘in large amounts, a lot of, many.’

Bond remarks that he must be dreaming, since she seems to say that there is a lot of pussy!

Plenty O’Toole (Diamonds are Forever, 1971)

Bond Girl: “Hi, I’m Plenty!”

Bond [looks at her chest]: “But of course you are.”

The woman’s first name is Plenty. Plenty means ‘a large amount’ or ‘a lot of’. As you can see in the video above, she has big boobs [=breasts] that are very visible. Bond jokes that ‘plenty’ is a good name for her since she has plenty of breasts!

Bond Girl: “Plenty O’Toole”

Bond: “Named after your father, perhaps?”

Her name is a quick way of saying “plenty of tool.” As a slang word, a tool can have many different meanings. Here Bond jokes that ‘plenty of tool’ is a reference to the size of her father’s penis (her father’s penis is his ‘tool’).

Holly Goodhead (Moonraker, 1979)

Head is slang for oral sex on a man, also known as a blow job.

Oral is an adjective used for things related to the mouth, so oral sex is when someone uses their mouth to stimulate another person’s sex organs & give them pleasure.

Head is the act of a woman using her mouth on a man’s penis to give him pleasure. ‘Goodhead’ implies that she is good at giving head.

Dialogue

“Well, tell him to pull out immediately!”

(The Spy Who Loved Me, 1977)

M: “Miss Moneypenny, where is 007 now?

Moneypenny: “He’s on a mission, sir. In Austria.”

M: “Well, tell him to pull out immediately!”

After this dialogue, the scene changes to show James Bond in bed with a woman.

In the dialogue, M wanted Bond to stop his work in Austria leave the country.

To pull out during sex is to stop having sex. The man ‘pulls out’ his penis from the woman’s vagina before he has an orgasm and ejaculates [=semen (liquid) comes out of his penis].

“You always were a cunning linguist, James.”

(Tomorrow Never Dies 1997)

James Bond is in bed with his language tutor. He gets a phone call from Miss Moneypenny, the secretary to M (M is James Bond’s boss). After a short conversation, Moneypenny ends the call by saying:

“You always were a cunning linguist, James.”

A linguist is someone who speaks and studies languages. Someone who is cunning is able to get what they want, usually because they are intelligent and clever and are able to trick or cheat people.

However, cunning linguist also sounds like cunnilingus /ˌkʌnɪˈlɪŋɡəs/. Cunnilingus is the formal name for ‘going down’ on a woman, or oral sex on a woman.

“I thought Christmas only comes once a year!”

(The World is Not Enough, 1999)

Bond: “I was wrong about you.”

Dr. Jones: “Yeah? How so?”

Bond: “I thought Christmas only comes once a year!”

The Bond Girl in this scene is named Dr. Christmas Jones. Christmas is a Christian holiday that happens every year on December 25. It only happens once a year. It is common to use ‘come’ as a synonym for ‘happen’: “Christmas is coming!”

To come is also a synonym for ‘to have an orgasm.’ An orgasm is the height of sexual pleasure.

This dialogue happens while Bond and Christmas Jones are having sex. He implies that she has had more than one orgasm, or that they have had sex more than once.

~

Core Vocabulary
(What is core vocabulary?)

3*** words
agent
create
appear
action
danger
location
enemy
meaning
normal
sexual
formal
attractive
purpose
dream
seem
chest
quick
relate
imply
scene
secretary
boss
pleasure

2** words
evil
dialogue
sophisticated
ally
criticize
oral
value (verb)
remark (verb)
visible
joke (verb)
mission

1* words
spy
exotic
naughty
offensive
crude
tutor
linguist

Why is it taking so long to learn English?

Do you remember when you started learning English? It was so easy & fun! You learned so many new words and it was easy to learn the words for ‘dog’ and ‘house’ and ‘cheese.’ Before you knew it, you could put together a sentence. One day you realized you could have a basic conversation with someone in English. That was awesome!

Then, something happened, and you’re not quite sure what. It’s taking more and more time now just to make the smallest improvements. When you read something, you still have to look up many words in the dictionary. You learn lots of new words but you can’t remember them all and when you want to explain your opinion, you can’t find the right words to use. You can’t express yourself as clearly as you would like to, or as clearly as you can in your mother tongue/native language.

It seems to be taking a long time to learn English.

Here’s why:

(Source: Oxford Dictionaries)
 
The Oxford English Corpus (OEC) is a collection of texts (books, newspapers, magazines, blogs, emails, speeches etc.) that shows how the English language is used in real situations. It keeps track of all the words native English speakers use in speaking & writing. It tells us the number of words that English speakers currently use.
 
A ‘lemma’ is the base form of a word; for example the lemma ‘climb’ includes the different word forms climbs, climbing, and climbed

According to this chart, you only need to know 10 words to understand 25% of what native speakers say and write. You need to know 100 words to understand 50% of what native speakers say & write, and 1000 words to understand 75% of all the words used in common, every day English. That’s why it was so easy to get to the intermediate level.

Congratulations! You already know at least 75% of what native speakers say and write!

Now look at the 90% level. This is the most important part of the chart. Native speakers use just 7000 words for 90% of what they say and write. [Click to tweet this!]

To move from the intermediate level to the advanced/fluent level, you need to learn 6000 more words. That’s why it seems to be taking so long!

Of course, there are more than 7000 words used in English. However, it’s impossible to count all the words in the entire language, and new words are added all the time. Here’s how the Oxford English Dictionary explains English:

English consists of a small number of very common words, a larger number of intermediate ones, and then an indefinitely long ‘tail’ of very rare terms.

Not all English words are equal. Learn the right words.

Those 7000 words are the key to speaking English well. Those 7000 words are the core vocabulary of English. They are the most frequently used words in English. You need to know AND be able to use those words.

The less common words are important, but they are mostly for reference. You need to know them to understand what you’re reading or listening to, but you probably don’t need to use them in your everyday conversations.

You need to spend more time learning the 7000 core vocabulary words, and less time worrying about more advanced, rare words. [Click to tweet this!]

How do I learn the core vocabulary of 7000 words?

1. Learn the right words.

Have you noticed that many words in this article are in red?

The Macmillan Dictionary has a great system called red words. The 7000 words (actually, Macmillan includes 7500 words) that make up the core vocabulary are in red. When you hear or see a new word, look it up in the Macmillan dictionary. If the word is in red, then it is part of the core vocabulary and you need to know this word!

http://www.macmillandictionary.com/dictionary/american/opinion

You can see that there are 3 red stars *** after the word ‘opinion.’ This means that ‘opinion’ is one of the 2500 most frequently used words in English. You need to know these words, you need to understand these words, and you need to be able to use them in conversation.

The Macmillan dictionary has very comprehensive entries for red words. For example, in the definition for ‘opinion,’ you can also see collocations, phrases with ‘opinion’, ways of giving your opinion, and metaphors. You can also listen to someone pronounce the word, check different forms of the words, and find related words.

NOTE: The Macmillan dictionary has both British or American definitions. At the bottom of the entry, you can change to the British or American definition:

http://www.macmillandictionary.com/dictionary/american/opinion

Here are some red 3-star words that I used in this article. You should learn & be able to use these words:
realize
improve/improvement
quite
express
seem
reference
consist
rare
waste
entry
system
relate
opportunity
clearly
entire
appear
fail

If you are a low-intermediate student, focus on the 3*** words. Make an effort to learn these words. When you feel comfortable with these words, focus on the next 2500 most common words.

Two red stars ** means that the word is one of the next 2500 most common words. Two-star words are part of the core vocabulary, but they are not as frequently used as the 3-star words.

2-star words used in this article:
panic
confident
comprehensive
multiple

One red star * means that the word is one of the next 2500 most common words.

1-star words:
rating
discourage
pace

Words in black in the Macmillan dictionary are not part of the core vocabulary.

In the chart above, the word the calyx appears at the 95% level. This is a black word in the Macmillan dictionary, so it’s not part of the core vocabulary. Also, it says ‘biology’, so I know that this is a word use in science, not in everyday conversations.

http://www.macmillandictionary.com/dictionary/american/calyx

2.Listen to the English Teacher Melanie Podcast

The best way to learn new words is in the context of a larger story. The English Teacher Melanie podcast is a series of listening lessons. I use core vocabulary to tell you a story about something that happened in my daily life in Canada.

The English Teacher Melanie Podcast is a weekly audio podcast. A podcast is a series of episodes that you can subscribe to. Once a week I publish a short .mp3 file you can listen to on your computer, phone, iPod, or tablet. You can listen to it here on my website, download it to a device from my website or iTunes, or subscribe to the podcast on iTunes. It is short so that you can listen to the lessons over and over again.

3.Pace Yourself

Remember, not only do you need to know a word, you need to be able to use a word. If you try to learn too many words in a day, you’ll forget more than you’ll remember. One to five words a day is a good pace to improve your vocabulary. There is no time limit for learning English! You don’t have to learn every word as fast as possible.

Some words may have multiple definitions. Learn the definition in the context of where you heard/saw the word. Don’t try to memorize every single meaning of the word all at the same time.

Learning English is not a race.

4. Don’t panic. Don’t get discouraged. Be excited!

Seeing or hearing a new word does not mean there is a problem with your English. It does not mean that your English is worse than you thought it was. It’s just another opportunity to improve your English.

Some of my students get angry at themselves when they don’t know a word or can’t remember a word. They think that seeing or hearing a new word means they have failed & they have not yet ‘mastered’ English.

You’ll will be learning new English words for the rest of your life. Read that sentence again. Even native speakers are always learning new words, so don’t get angry with yourself because you don’t know every word in the English language. You will never know every word in the English language. I don’t know every word in the English language!

Be excited when you see a new word!

~

What do you think? Are you ready to focus on core vocabulary? How can you add core vocabulary to your daily studies?

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Last week, the American dictionary company Merriam-Webster announced that it had added 100 new words & definitions to its Collegiate Dictionary [= dictionary for people in college/university]!

These words are slang words and words that have been created to describe new events or products. They have been in use for a few years, but this is the first time they will be in a Merriam-Webster dictionary. You may see or hear these words when you watch American TV shows & movies, or read American magazines & newspapers.

The company did not publish the entire list of words, but here are some words I was able to find. I also provide some examples of the words used in headlines, so you can better understand the context:

1. Aha moment

(noun, countable)
This expression was made famous by daytime talk show host Oprah Winfrey. “Aha!” is a common English interjection. It’s a sound that English speakers make when they finally see, find, or understand something. Oprah used the expression ‘aha moment’ to describe something similar: a moment of sudden realization, inspiration, insight, recognition, or comprehension. It’s that moment when you suddenly understand something: an idea, your path in life, a situation, anything.

Watch a video of Oprah herself talking about the word.

2. bromance

(noun, countable)
A bromance is a close, nonsexual friendship between two men.

Bromance = brother + romance (even though a bromance is non-romantic!)

Rolling Stone (magazine): Fatboy Slim, Russell Brand share ‘bromance’ at Olympic Ceremony

Newser.com: Hollywood’s Hottest Bromances

3. bucket list

(noun, countable)
This was actually the title of a 2007 Hollywood movie with Jack Nicholson & Morgan Freeman. The two characters in the film had terminal cancer [=cancer that will lead to death], and decided to go on a trip to do all the things they had never done before but wanted to do before they died. We used to use the expression ‘things to do before I die,’ but it is now more common to talk about things on one’s bucket list.

It comes from the idiom ‘to kick the bucket,’ which is a very informal way to say ‘die.’

Yahoo!: Terminally Ill Alice Pyne, 16, Completes Inspirational Bucket List

5. craft beer

(noun, countable)
Most brands of beer in the world are made by large breweries [ =companies that make beer]: Budweiser, Heineken, Molsons, etc. ‘Microbreweries’ are smaller companies that make beer, and microbreweries often make ‘craft beer’: a special beer that is produced in small amounts.

You cannot walk to your local store and buy a craft beer. Craft beers are not widely available like Molsons, Heineken, etc.

An example of a craft beer is the beer that U.S. President Obama makes at the White House: White House Honey Ale

6. energy drink

(noun, countable)
The best example of an energy drink is Red Bull. It’s a drink that helps you feel more awake. This kind of drink is carbonated [ =fizzy, with lots of small bubbles at the top]. It contains ingredients like caffeine (usually found in coffee), taurine, or ginseng, that increase your energy.

7. e-reader

(noun, countable)
The best example of an e-reader is a Kindle. An e-reader is an an electronic reading device [electronic + reader = e-reader]. It is used to read an e-book [=a digital book; electronic + book = e-book]. It is also portable, meaning you can carry it with you wherever you go.

8. f-bomb

(noun, countable)
This is a way to describe the ‘f-word’ (fuck) in English. The f-word is a swear word, so instead of using it, people use a euphemism. ‘F-bomb’ is not the actual word, it’s a way to describe the word.

Chicago Tribune: Joe Biden drops f-bomb during news conference
(U.S. Vice President Joe Biden said the f-bomb during a news conference. He said to Obama, “It’s a big fucking deal.”)

Yahoo!: Melissa Leo apologizes for Oscar f-bomb
(Actress Melissa Leo used the f-word during her acceptance speech at the Oscars)

*This is the word that got the most attention when the announcement was made. Many people were angry that this word was included in a dictionary!

9. game changer

(noun, countable)
Something (or someone) introduced into a situation or activity that changes things significantly (usually positively).

Yahoo! Sports: Van Persie signing ‘an absolute game changer’, claims Peter Schmeichel
(Soccer/football team Manchester United signed Robin van Persie to the team. Peter Schmeichel believes this is a good thing for the team. It will make ManU a better team & it will help them win more games.)

Examiner.com: Samsung GALAXY Note 10.1 is a game changer
(Samsung has introduced its new tablet. The company believes it is better than other tablets (like the iPad) and will change the tablet market.)

10. life coach

(noun, countable)
A life coach is exactly that: a coach who helps you with your life. A life coach helps you set goals in your life and reach them. He/She gives you advice and guidance, and helps you solve problems in your life.

Metro: Katie Holmes ‘hires life coach’ to work on self-esteem issues post Tom Cruise

11. man cave

(noun, countable)
A man cave is a space or room in a house that is just for a man and his friends. The decor is very masculine, and it’s a place where men can drink beer & watch football, boxing, … or whatever it is men do.

It’s better to look at photos of a man cave than to read about it:
Houzz.com
HGTV.com: 8 Dude-tastic Man Caves

12. mash-up

(noun, countable)
A mash-up is something (a piece of music, for example) created by combining two or more existing things. For example, the song ‘Numb/Encore‘ is a mash-up of the songs ‘Numb’ by Linkin Park, and ‘Encore’ by Jay-Z.

The word ‘mash-up’ became popular in 2004 when Danger Mouse released The Grey Album. He combined Jay-Z’s voice from his The Black Album with music from the Beatles The White Album.

Others kinds of mash-ups:
- movies & videos
- web services & applications

13. sexting

(noun, uncountable)
To ‘text’ someone = to send someone a short message on a cellphone. A text is usually just words, but can also include photos. ‘Texting’ is the gerund form of ‘text.’

sex + texting = sexting

‘Sexting’ is the act of sending sexual messages or naked pictures of yourself to someone’s cellphone. It is possible to use ‘sext’ as a verb.

14. shovel-ready

(adjective)
This word was used a lot in the U.S. in early 2009. The U.S. government wanted to spend money on shovel-ready projects to improve the economy & help it recover from a recession.

A shovel is a tool used to dig holes in the ground, and lift & remove dirt. Shovels are used on construction projects, like making new roads or buildings.

If a project is shovel-ready, it is ready to begin. The shovels are ready to dig into the ground and get started on the project. The project just needs money to begin.

15. tipping point

(noun, countable)
This expression was made popular by the book The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference by Malcolm Gladwell.

If something tips, it leans to one side or falls over. The tipping point in a situation, project, or process, is the point when things past that point will never be the same. The effect or change cannot be stopped or undone.

Wall Street Journal: Augusta National Reaches Its Tipping Point
(The 79-year-old Augusta National golf club admitted women for the first time in its history.)

Globe & Mail: Women’s soccer at a tipping point in Canada after Olympic odyssey
(The Canadian women’s soccer team won a bronze medal at the Olympics. People hope this will encourage young women to join a soccer team.)

16. underwater

(adjective)
This new definition is a result of something that happened in the American economy. Starting around 2006, the housing market collapsed and house values decreased. Many homeowners found themselves underwater.

When people buy a house, they go to the bank and ask for a loan. A loan for a house is called a mortgage. To be ‘underwater’ is to owe more money to the bank than the home is worth. For example, if you have $100,000 mortgage with a bank, but your home is only worth $75,000, your home is underwater. If you sell the house, you will not be able to pay the bank $100,000.

Celebrity-gossip.net: Olympian Ryan Lochte’s Parents Underwater on Home Mortgage

~

Not everyone is happy about these words being added to the dictionary! Some people believe that a dictionary should be a formal educational book that teaches people what words to use. They believe slang words should NOT be in a dictionary. Other people believe that a dictionary include all words used in a culture. What do you think?

Activity: Choose a word & try to use it in a sentence!

Share this with the world!

•► Bromance, f-bomb, & shovel-ready: 16 new/slang words added to the @merriamwebster dictionary! [BLOG POST]bit.ly/SULcw9

— Melanie (@TeacherMelanie) August 22, 2012

1. The Home Team & Home Advantage

Team Great Britain was the home team. The British athletes were competing in their own country. It is possible that the GB athletes had a home advantage over the athletes from other countries. In every competition, the audience cheered very loudly for the GB athletes. The team won 65 medals, 29 of them gold! This is the most medals Great Britain has ever won at any Olympics in the past 100 years.

This is very common in sports. It is believed that when a team plays in its own city, it has an advantage over the visiting team. Other variations of this phrase include: home field advantage, home court advantage, home ice advantage.

2. The Phenom (Creating a better noun from an existing noun!)

Missy Franklin is a 17-year-old American swimmer. This was her first Olympics. She won 4 gold medals and a bronze! The only person who won more medals than her at this Olympics was Michael Phelps (he won 6). This is a phenomenal achievement! It was amazing & unexpected. It is unusual for a teenager to win 5 medals in her first Olympics. A noun already exists to describe her: She is a phenomenon. However, it sounds better to shorten the word to just phenom.

3. “Mom slang”: Why you should be careful when using slang!

Ryan Lochte is an American swimmer. He won 5 medals at this Olympics, for a total of 11 Olympic medals in two Olympics. He is really good-looking, very charming, and he has become very popular! His mother was interviewed on the American TV show “Today,” and the interviewer asked her if her son was dating anyone. She answered,

“He goes out on one-night stands, … He’s not able to give fully to a relationship because he’s always on the go.”

This is a very odd & embarrassing thing for a mother to say! A one-night stand is when you have sex with someone once (usually someone you don’t know), and then never speak to that person again or continue a relationship with him/her. It was clear to everyone, however, that she didn’t understand what ‘one-night stand’ actually meant! She meant to say that he only goes on one or two dates with a girl because he doesn’t really have time for a serious relationship.

Let this be a lesson to you: It can be VERY embarrassing to misuse slang!

4. Alliteration & Other Nicknames

Alliteration happens when all the words in a phrase or sentence begin with the same letter. In English, alliteration is often used for nicknames when someone has achieved something great. Here are some nicknames that were created during this Olympics:

The Fab Five! The Fierce Five! [The American women's artistic gymnastic team that the gold medal in the team event.]

Gabby the Great! [Gabby Douglas, the American gymnast who won the gold medal in the all-round competition.]

Matheson’s miracle! [Canadian soccer player Diana Matheson scored the winning goal in the bronze medal game against France; this an event nickname. ]

Other nicknames:

In English, we also like to find new and funny ways to use words in nicknames. Here are some examples:

The Lightning Bolt
Usain Bolt is a fast runner. What an amazing coincidence that his last name ‘Bolt’ is a synonym for ‘fast’! The verb ‘to bolt’ means to move quickly & suddenly from a place/to a place. A lightning bolt or a bolt of lightning is the line of light that appears very quickly in the sky during a storm. The pose that Usain Bolt does after he wins a race is called the ‘lightning bolt’

The Blade Runner
Blade Runner is a popular Hollywood movie from the 1980s. In the London Olympics, Oscar Pistorius became the first double-amputee to compete in the Olympic Games. His legs were amputated below the knees when he was a baby, and he uses prosthetic legs [= artificial legs] to walk and run. The prosthetic legs he wears to run are specially-designed blades. Because of these blades, he has been nicknamed ‘The Blade Runner,’ (even though neither he nor his legs have anything in common with the movie).

5. Superlatives

In 3 Olympics, American swimmer Michael Phelps has won 22 medals, including 18 gold medals! He has won more Olympic medals than any other athlete who has competed in any sport in 100 years of Olympics. He is the most decorated Olympian ever. (In this context, ‘decorated’ means he has won or been given medals.)

In 2 Olympics, Jamaican sprinter [= a fast runner over a short distance] Usain Bolt has won 6 gold medals: 2 in the 100 metre race, 2 in the 200 metre race, and 2 in the 4×100 metre relay race. He holds the world record in all three events (no one has run faster than him in the races).

How can we describe both these athletes? We can use superlative adjectives! Here are some ways they have been described in the media:

Michael Phelps
He’s no. 1 in the pool.
The most successful Olympian ever.
The greatest swimmer in Olympic history.
The most decorated Olympian ever.
The greatest Olympian of all-time.

Usain Bolt
The fastest man alive.
A legend.
The world’s fastest man.
An icon.
The best sprinter that has ever lived.
The greatest athlete ever.

Here’s how Usain Bolt described himself:

“I’ve shown the world that I am the greatest athlete.” (source)
“I came here with one goal and that was to become a legend. You’re looking at him right now!” (source)

6. To pour/throw cold water (on something)

It didn’t take long for someone to pour cold water on all these superlatives.

Sebastian Coe, the organizer of the London Olympics, said that in his opinion Michael Phelps “is probably not” the greatest Olympian ever. He named some other athletes who he thought were greater than Phelps. (source)

Jacques Rogge, the head of the International Olympic Committee said that Bolt is an “icon,”but he is not a legend yet. He needs to win medals in more than two Olympics. (source)

To pour or throw cold water on something is to say something that stops everyone else from enjoying it or being enthusiastic about it.

7. Euphemisms for losing

Athletes from Canada won 18 medals at the Olympics. Many of those medals were won by athletes who were not well known in the country before the Olympics. Many well-known athletes performed very badly and did not win medals. The commentators on TV thought of many euphemism to say instead of ‘He/She lost.’

A euphemism a nice and pleasant word to say instead of something that is unpleasant or offensive.

Here are some things to say instead of ‘He/She lost’:

It was a personal best [time/effort].
This was a learning experience.
She set a Canadian record!
It’s only her first Olympics.
She tried her best.
He made the country proud.
He should be proud of his accomplishments/achievements.

8. How to put the ‘bad’ in badminton

Badminton is considered a very quiet, conservative sport. Usually there are problems in sports like boxing or soccer, not badminton! In the first week of the Olympics, however, there was a big scandal in the badminton competition. Eight athletes were disqualified and sent home because they were purposely trying to lose their badminton match.

Within in the word ‘badminton,’ you can see the word ‘bad.’ This is a funny coincidence, because the 8 badminton players were behaving badly. We have a great expression for this in English: The 8 athletes put the ‘bad’ in ‘badminton.’

9. The synchronized swimming judges couldn’t find the envelope where the results had been mailed in!

Synchronized swimming is a judged sport. A group of judges watch each routine and give it a score. There are two events in synchronized swimming: the duets competition [2 athletes] and the teams competition. In each competition there is a qualification round & a final round. That’s a total of 4 performances. In all 4 performances the rankings never changed: Russia was 1st in the qualification events, the duets competition and the teams competition. China was second, Spain was third, Canada was fourth, and Japan was 5th. Nothing changed.

The scores did not seem to match the performances. If was as if the judges weren’t even watching and had decided who the winner was before the competition. After the Spanish team performed its final routine, the judges took a long time to announce the scores. A sports reporter on Twitter said that it was because “the judging panel couldn’t find the envelope in which the results had been mailed.” (source)

To mail/phone it in means to not try very hard to do something. The judges didn’t need to show up for work. They could have just stayed at home and mailed in or phoned in the scores, and the results would have been the same.

10. The Paralympics – a portmanteau!

The Olympic Games are the largest sporting event in the world. The second largest sporting event in the world is the Paralympic Games! The Games begin on August 29 in London. The word ‘paralympic’ is a portmanteau, a word made by combining two existing words: Paraplegic + Olympic. A paraplegic is someone who is paralyzed and cannot feel their legs or lower body, usually because of a spinal cord injury. The first international competition for impaired athletes was held in 1948. It was a sports competition for wheelchair athletes. The athletes were injured servicemen and women, people who had injuries to their spinal cord during WWII.

Paralympic also comes from the Greek word παρά / pará which is a preposition for ‘beside’/'alongside,’ since the Paralympic games are now held in the same city just weeks after the Summer Olympic Games. This is a better definition of Paralympic since athletes with impairments other than spinal cord injuries now participate.

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What was the big story in your country?

Were there any problems with athletes from your country?

Were there any great performances by athlete from your country?

How to say the names of all the Summer Olympic sports.

Follow the Olympics in English.

Photos of the 2012 Olympic Games on Pinterest.

The Summer Olympics

It’s almost time for the biggest sporting event in the world! The 2012 Summer Olympics begin on Friday in London, England, so this is a good opportunity to review some Olympic vocabulary!

London, England is hosting the Summer Olympics. The Olympic Games can also be called The Olympics. The Olympics is a noun, while Olympic is an adjective. London has hosted the Summer Olympics twice before, in 1908 & 1948.

Over 10,490 athletes from 206 countries will compete in 36 sports over 19 days (the women’s soccer competition begins on Wednesday). The events will take place in 34 different venues all over London & other parts of England. The main venue is the Olympic Stadium. This is where the Opening & Closing ceremonies will be held, as well as the athletic (track and field) events.

(Photo by Craig Maccubbin)

Olympic Athletes

Any athlete who competes at the Olympics, whether or not they win a medal, is known as an Olympian or an Olympic athlete. Olympic athletes are often referred to as elite athletes. They are the best of the best, the top athletes in their sport.

An Olympic athlete competes to win a medal: gold, silver, or bronze. An athlete who wins a medal is also known as a medalist. The medalists stand on a podium to receive their medals and listen to the national anthem of the country of the gold medalist. This Olympics there are 302 events or opportunities to win a medal. For example, swimming is one sport, but there are 34 events within that one sport.

(Photo by Singapore 2010)

Competition

The Olympic motto is Citius, Altius, Fortius (Faster, Higher, Stronger). Each athlete tries his best to go faster, jump or throw higher, or be stronger than his competitors.

All athletes must qualify for the Olympics. They compete in international and national competitions to be one of the top athletes in their sport.

Athletes also try to set a record or break a record. For example, Jamaican runner Usain Bolt is the fastest man in the world. He set a record of 9.58 seconds for the 100 metre race. That is the fastest time that anyone in the world has run 100 metres. No man has run 100 metres faster than that. He holds the world record. At the 2012 Olympics, he will try to break that record by running 100 metres in less than 9.58 seconds.

Of the 200+ countries taking part in this Olympics, 80 have never won a medal.

Olympic Athlete Fun Facts!

1. Canadian equestrian athlete Ian Millar will compete in his 10th Olympics! He will break the record for most Olympic appearances. Austrian sailor Hubert Raudaschl held the previous record for the most Olympic appearances (9).

2. Malaysian shooter Nur Suryani Mohamed Taibi is 8 months pregnant! While she is the only pregnant woman at this Olympics, she is not the 1st pregnant women to compete at an Olympics. There have been 3 other women who competed while pregnant.

3. Canadian athlete Clara Hughes is one of only five people to have won medals at both the Summer Olympics (cycling) AND the Winter Olympics (speed-skating). She is the first and only person ever to have won multiple medals at both!

4. South African runner Oscar Pistorious is the first amputee to ever take part in the Olympics. He is missing both legs below the knee.

5. Married Australian shooters Russell and Lauryn Mark are not allowed to share a room in the Olympic Village! All athletes must sleep in male and female rooms – no exceptions!

6. South Sudanese marathon runner Guor Marial will compete without a country. He lives and trains in the U.S., but he is not a citizen so he can’t compete for the U.S. South Sudan is a new country and doesn’t have a national organizing committee, so South Sudan will not send a team to the Olympics. Guor Marial will compete, but as an independent Olympic athlete.

7. There are 5 sets of siblings competing at the Olympics!
- Marc & Pau Gasol are brothers on the Spanish basketball team
- Kazuhito, Rie, & Yusuke Tanaka are all competing in gymnastics for Japan
- Diana & Steven Lopez and competing in taekwondo for the US
- Cate & Bronte Campbell are swimmers competing for Australia
- Ian & Justyn Warner are runners competing for Canada

Are you excited about the Olympics?

(Photo by Leo Reynolds)

One of the most common questions I am asked is, “How can I improve my pronunciation?” I wrote this post to answer that question, and hopefully help you improve your English pronunciation! I believe that good pronunciation is essential for speaking AND understanding spoken English well. Below is a list of my best tips for improving your English pronunciation:
 

1) Practice for at least 30 minutes every day

There is no way around it: the only way your pronunciation will improve is if you practice, practice, practice! Your pronunciation will not magically improve just because you’re speaking English. The sounds of English may be very different from the sounds in your language. It may be difficult and even uncomfortable for your mouth to make some of the sounds in English.

You need to practice with a purpose. Practice the sounds of English until they feel as natural and comfortable as the sounds of your language. It won’t happen overnight, but gradually your pronunciation will improve.

2) Decide what kind of accent you would like to speak with

There are many different kinds of English accents. The two most common are British and American. There are many different accents even within British or American pronunciation, but most learning materials will help you learn either a standard British accent or a standard American accent.

American pronunciation and British pronunciation are completely different. The consonant sounds are the same (except for the letter ‘t’ and an ‘r’ after a vowel), but the vowel sounds are very different. The British accent has more vowel sounds, and some vowel letters are pronounced differently.

3) Learn the IPA and the individual sounds of English

The International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) is a collection of symbols that represent the different sounds of a language. When you know the all the sounds of English and the symbols that represent those sounds, you will be able to pronounce any word in English.

American Pronunciation:
The Merriam-Webster’s Learner’s Dictionary Pronunciation Guide
Antimoon IPA chart
Rachel’s English

British Pronunciation:
BBC Learning English
Interactive IPA Chart

4) When you learn a new word, learn how to pronounce it correctly

The longer you say a word incorrectly, the harder it becomes to learn to say it correctly. You’ve developed a bad habit, and it takes a long time to break a bad habit! This is why it is so important to learn the IPA and use dictionaries specifically for English learners.

For example, let’s say you see a new word when you’re reading a book: permeate. How do you pronounce this word? Let’s check two of the online dictionaries specifically for English learners:
MW Learner’s Dictionary
Cambridge
Both of these dictionaries show you the IPA/phonetic transcription of the word (including which syllable you must stress): /ˈpɚmiˌeɪt/
You can also click on the red or blue speaker icon to hear someone say the word.

5) Watch YouTube pronunciation videos

American accent:
Teacher Melanie (me!)
JenniferESL
Lisa Mojsin @ Accurage English
Rachel’s English
Pronuncian/Seattle Learning Academy
Eva Easton

British accent:
The Phone Voice
VirtuAule

6) Try to imitate spoken English

To ‘imitate’ means to copy someone/something, to do something the same way, or to do the same things as someone else. Do you really like the way someone speaks English? Try to copy the way they speak.

This is a great activity to try: Close your eyes while you’re listening to something in English (podcasts, songs, TV shows, movies, etc.). Listen carefully to what the speaker is saying and try to make the same sounds. Choose a word or sentence, and listen to it many times.

Here are some resources that are useful for this:
English Teacher Melanie podcast (me!)
ESLPod podcast
Coach Shane’s Daily Dictation

Try to imitate the sounds that native speakers make.

7) Practice HEARING the sounds of English

Before you listen to an English podcast, song, etc. read the words first. Highlight, circle, or underline the sound you want to work on. For example, if you have trouble with the /I/ sound, highlight all the words that you think have the /I/ sound. Read the passage out loud to yourself, focusing on the words with /I/. Listen to the podcast (or song, etc.). Can you hear the /I/ sound? Practice the sound by trying to imitate what the speaker is saying.

8) Record yourself

It’s important to hear what you sound like speaking English so you know what you need to improve! You can compare what you sound like to what you want to sound like. For example, you record yourself reading a sentence from one of my podcasts. Then, listen to me say the same sentence and compare your pronunciation.

If you don’t have any recording software on your computer (like Windows Sound Recorder or GarageBand on Macs), you can use a web-based audio recorder:
audioboo
Vocaroo
SoundCloud

You may also be able to find a cheap digital voice recorder at your local electronics store.

9) Pronunciation Books

Here are the two books that I use to understand and teach American pronunciation. Check your local library for these books. If you attend a private language school, ask if it has these books. If you live in a large city, look for these books at an English bookstore. Buy these books online.

Mastering the American Accent – Lisa Mojsin

English Pronunciation Made Simple – Paulette Dale and Lillian Poms

10) Have your pronunciation professionally evaluated

When your pronunciation is evaluated by a teacher, he/she can tell you exactly what you are doing right and what you are doing wrong. He/She can tell you exactly what sounds you need to work on to sound more like a native speaker.

Use the search terms “English pronunciation assessment” or “English pronunciation evaluation” to find teachers online.

Those are my suggestions! What techniques, methods, activities or resources have you used to improve your pronunciation? Let me know in the comments below!

Are you excited about the Summer Olympics? The Summer Olympics begin on July 27, in London, England!

In this video, I’ll teach you the correct American pronunciation for all the sports that are part of the Summer Olympics. You’ll see a picture of the sports, the name of the sport, and the IPA pronunciation/phonetic transcription of the sport name. Watch my lips, listen, and repeat after me!

archery

athletics
- In North America, this sport is more commonly called ‘track and field,’ because it’s a collection of events that include running races around a track, and jumping and throwing competitions on the field inside the track

badminton

basketball

beach volleyball

boxing

canoe – slalom
canoe – sprint
Even though the official name of this sport is ‘canoe,’ it includes events for two different kinds of boats: canoes, and kayaks

cycling
There are 4 different types of cycling sports at the Olympics:
- BMX cycling
- mountain biking
- road cycling
- track cycling

diving

equestrian
This sport is more commonly known as ‘horseback riding.’ There are 3 different events in the sport of equestrian: jumping, eventing, dressage

fencing

football … which is called soccer in North America.

There are 2 different types of gymnastics at the Olympics:
artistic gymnastics
rhythmic gymnastics

handball

hockey … which, in North America, is called field hockey.

judo

modern pentathlon
In this sport, athletes must compete in 5 different events: fencing, swimming, horseback riding, shooting, and running … all in the same day!

rowing

sailing

shooting

swimming

synchronized swimming

table tennis
Informally, this sport is also called ping pong.

taekwondo

tennis

trampoline

triathlon
In this sport, competitors must swim, cycle and run … one right after the other!

volleyball

water polo

weightlifting

wrestling

That’s it! Now it’s your turn!

What sport do like to watch at the Olympics?

Let me know in the comments below.

(Photo by LesPaulSupreme)

For 10 days every summer, the city of Calgary is home to “The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth”! Every year over 1 million people attend this huge festival. This year is extra special, because it’s the 100th anniversary!

This article will tell you all about the Calgary Stampede! You will learn new words about festivals and the western lifestyle, and by the time you finish reading this, you will want to travel to Calgary to see the Stampede!

What is the Calgary Stampede?

Calgary is located in western Canada. It’s in the province of Alberta, which is often called the “Texas of the North”! The Calgary Stampede is a great celebration of Alberta’s heritage. During the Stampede, the entire city is transformed into a huge outdoor party. There are pancake breakfasts all over the city, and people wear cowboy hats & boots! Many of the Stampede events are shown live on TV across the country.

There are many parts to the festival:

The Parade
The festival kicks off with the Stampede Parade on Friday morning. It is led by Harry the Horse, the official Stampede mascot. The parade includes marching bands, horseback riders, and floats of all shapes and sizes. The parade travels along two-and-a-half miles of the downtown city streets. Last year, over 400,000 people attended the parade!

The Rodeo
The Calgary Stampede includes one of the largest rodeos in the world! The rodeo is a huge show where cowboys and cowgirls compete in different events such as:
- competitions to see who can stay on a bucking bull or horse the longest
- barrel racing (riding a horse around a series of barrels as fast as possible)
- competitions to catch and tie up animals
Rodeo events are based on skills that cowboys and cowgirls need to master when working on a farm.

Chuckwagon Races
A chuckwagon is an old-fashioned type of transportation. It is usually made out of wood, has 4 wheels, and is pulled by horses. The back of the wagon is covered by a huge tent that protects the people or contents in the wagon. In chuckwagon races, teams of 4 horses pull a chuckwagon around a track. The first chuckwagon to cross the finish line wins! This is a very popular part of the Stampede.

The Midway
This part is the most fun for kids! A midway is an area that includes lots of rides like roller coasters and ferris wheels, games where you can win prizes, and lots of food! The midway is located at Stampede Park.

The festival also includes fireworks, concerts, an agricultural exhibition, an Indian village that celebrates the heritage of the First Nations people who were here before the Europeans arrived, and a market where you can buy western-themed and handcrafted artwork, toys, household goods, food, clothing and many other items!

(Photo by Urban Mixer)

Want to see more pictures? I have been collecting photos of the Calgary Stampede on a Pinterest board! You can see photos of the chuckwagon races, the midway, the parade, the rodeo, and much more!

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Vocabulary

heritage = the culture and history of a city, country, place, group etc.

to kick off = to begin

a mascot = an animal, a person or other object that represents a team, a group of people, an organization, etc.

a parade float = a vehicle that has a large platform for people to decorate and stand on

to buck/bucking = this verb describe the movement of a horse or bull (male cow) as it jumps violently in the air, arches its back, and kicks its back legs

First Nations = the official name for the Indian/Aboriginal people that lived on this land before the Europeans arrived.

(Photo by Graeme Pow)

One of my study tips on how to become fluent in English is to make English a part of your life. Whatever you do during the day, do it in English!

Following the Olympics is a great example of this! If you are excited about the Olympics and enjoy watching Olympic sports on TV, then do it in English!

 
The 30th Summer Olympics begin in London, England on July 27. Here are some resources that you might find useful.

Learn About the Olympics in English

The Official London 2012 website has a schedule of all the events, a list of all the countries participating, information about each sport, and much, much more!

English Club has an excellent section called The Olympics Zone. There are tons of activities so make sure you check it out!

The Official website of the Olympic Movement has information on ALL the Olympics.

The BBC has two great websites dedicated to the Olympics:
BBC Sports – London 2012
World Olympic Dreams – For the past year, the BBC has followed aspiring Olympians as they compete for a spot in the Olympics

Learn how to say the names of ALL 36 sports that are part of the Summer Olympics with this pronunciation video!

In 2010, Vancouver, Canada hosted the Winter Olympics. I wrote two articles about it:
Vocabulary Spotlight on: The Olympics
Reading: The Olympic Torch Relay

Follow The Olympics on Social Media

The London 2012 website has a ‘Social Media Dashboard‘! It has all the London 2012 social media accounts in one place, including hashtags and tweets!

Facebook
The Olympics
London 2012
The Canadian Olympic Team
The US Olympic Team
Team Great Britian

Twitter
The Olympics
London 2012
The BBC
The Canadian Olympic Team
The US Olympic Team
Team Great Britian
A list of the official Twitter feeds for all 36 sports!

YouTube
The Olympics
London 2012

If you would like to find the website & social media sites of other English countries, just type “Australian Olympic team” or “Irish Olympic team,” for example, into a search engine.

Watch the Olympics in English

If you live in one of 64 countries in Asia or sub-Saharan Africa, you can watch the Olympics live on YouTube! It is only available in countries where no channel has paid for the rights to show the Olympics on TV.

If there is an English-language sports or news channel (like the BBC World Service, or CNN International) in your country, check its schedule to see if you can watch some Olympic events on that channel.

At this time I cannot find any international websites that will be live streaming Olympics events on the internet. If I find anything, I will post it here!

Happy 145th Birthday Canada!

We celebrate our national day on July 1st!

Across Canada people celebrate this day with parades, picnics, parties, barbecues, concerts, and fireworks! In every city you can see people dressed in red and white (the colours of the Canadian flag) or wearing something with a red maple leaf (the symbol in the middle of our flag).

The biggest celebration is always in Ottawa, the capital city of Canada. It’s the biggest party in the country! The downtown streets are closed to cars so people can wander around the city. There are celebrations all day on Parliament hill, including free concerts by Canadian musicians. Simple Plan, Feist, Roch Voisine, and Jully Black are all performing this year. The day is capped-off with a huge fireworks display!

Check out my collection of Canada Day pictures on Pinterest:
http://pinterest.com/etmelanie/canada-day/

Why July 1st?
It was on this day in 1867 that Canada officially became a country! Before then, there were several different British colonies on the land that is now Canada. In 1867, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Ontario and Quebec were the first 4 provinces to join the country. The last province to join Canada in 1948 was Newfoundland, and now there are 10 provinces and 3 territories in Canada.

Is Canada really ONLY 145 years old?
Well, there have been people living here for much longer than 145 years! The native Indians (Canada’s First Nations) lived here for thousands of years before the first Europeans arrived. The first Europeans arrived in 1000 A.D., when the Vikings settled at L’Anse aux Meadows on the east coast of Canada. They didn’t stay very long! Explorers employed by the British and French governments began exploring this land in 1497, but neither country established a colony here until almost 100 years later, Britain in 1583 and France in 1605. It took another 200 years and a couple wars until Canada officially became a country!

To read more about Canada, check out the Reading section on this blog!

When does your country celebrate its birthday?