Go Natural English Podcast | Listening & Speaking Lessons

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The Appropriate Use of the English Word: "Congratulations!" Nov 06, 2019

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Today let's explore the appropriate use of the English word "Congratulations." You see, in the English language, it's not so much about knowing a word, but being able to pronounce it well or spell it correctly. You must also know the right situations to use a specific word correctly.

For this post, it's the word 'Congratulations'! I'll give you some guidelines and tips on when to use this English word correctly.

When to Use 'Congratulations'

17 Easy Ways to Practice English Every Day (for Free) Oct 15, 2019

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How to Order Food in English Oct 15, 2019

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In this lesson, you'll learn how to pronounce "Chipotle," a popular place to eat lunch in the US, learn how to order, how to ask important questions about food, and practice the pronunciation of common food items. It's a delicious lesson!

This is not sponsored and not an ad for Chipotle, I just happen to really like them and a lot of people have asked how to pronounce it.

Learn more at: https://www.gonaturalenglish.com/how-to-order-food-in-english/ HOW TO PRONOUNCE DIFFICULT FOODS

In the video lesson (make sure to play and listen!) you'll learn how to pronounce some tricky words in English that come from Spanish such as:

Burrito, Burrito Bowl, Tortilla, Barbacoa, Carnitas, Sofritas, Guacamole, Fajitas, Queso and more.

You can hear some common and some not-so-common fruit drink flavors too:

Peach Pineapple Pomegranate, blackberry, clementine, grapefruit

HOW TO ORDER FOOD IN ENGLISH

Next in the lesson, I show you how to order your food like a native. Listen for key useful phrases and questions for ordering food and making special requests such as:

Hold the —

This means to not include an item.

On the side —

This means to put an item in a separate container, not touching the main food items.

I'd like to add the —

If you want to add extra items, use this phrase.

What kind of meat is this?

"What kind of…" is the correct structure to ask about a type or variety of an item within a larger category, such as meat.

Is X vegetarian? Vegan?

Vegetarian means without meat and vegan means without any animal product including meat, dairy, eggs or honey.

Does X have gluten, dairy, meat in it?

If you want to know if a specific item has certain ingredients, use this question.

Is this extra?

In this situation, "extra" means an additional charge, or more money.

Be sure to watch the lesson video to hear these phrases and for the complete explanation. Thanks for watching!

What's the Difference Between the Prepositions... IN and ON? May 21, 2019

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"In" is basically within, inside a container or box, maybe an enclosed space but not necessarily.

"On" is related to surfaces.

You can use "in" or "on" in the same sentence, but the meaning would change.

What's the difference between EACH and EVERY? May 18, 2019

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Stop being a student and start being a speaker May 16, 2019

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I've noticed that there are 2 very different ways of learning: 1 for school and 1 for real life.

They keep you from speaking English, because you aren't required to apply it in real life in order to be rewarded.

Our whole education system, for the most part, is broken because we have been taught to memorize and not apply concepts in real life.

"Studying" English, in the traditional sense of the word, is the antithesis of speaking English.

Let's talk about the difference between studying and learning and speaking English

"To study" means to read about it. To memorize lists of vocabulary words. It means you relegate the subject to study sessions, blocks of time when you might sit quietly at home in your room or maybe a desk at the library.

Where does this get you? Maybe it gets you a better grade in your class if you have a quiz on vocabulary or grammar.

Maybe it makes you feel better in the short-term because you don't have to take any risks, like being embarrassed of the way you speak. It's so nice to stay in your comfort zone of studying the way you've always studied, but to really speak English, you need to get out of your comfort zone.

When we are babies, we do not "study" English or our native language, yet we manage to learn to speak it! Now, studying English can accelerate your language learning, but to really speak you have to use it in the real world.

Learning English is not simply memorizing information or learning about the language, it is using it. Learning English comes from making mistakes, correcting, and moving forward.

If you want to speak English, you'd better stop focusing your time solely on memorizing and reading about it, and start doing it.

Regional Accents in American English May 13, 2019

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See the summary and the video here: https://www.gonaturalenglish.com/regional-american-english-accents/

SUMMARY OF REGIONAL AMERICAN ENGLISH ACCENTS

There are around 160 recognized dialects of the English language, or regional accents. These terms are often used interchangeably. Even if you're really into accents, it would probably be impossible to learn them all. Even native speakers can't understand them all. For example, it's very difficult for us American English speakers to understand Scottish English speakers!

Join our American English Pronunciation course to improve your accent now. (https://www.gonaturalenglish.com/pronunciation-course/)

AMERICAN ENGLISH ACCENTS: THE 4 MOST COMMON ONES

If you travel around the US, you will encounter different American English accents. In this lesson we will look at 4 of the most common accents: Southern, New England, New York City, & Midwestern.

Remember, these are general accent regions. Even within these regions there are smaller subdivision of accents! Hale is from the South so this is the accent he is most familiar with. In this lesson, our English teacher Hale shares clips from American TV shows that feature the US Southern Accent:

-Designing Women

-The Help

-King of the Hill

Next, let's look at the New England American English accent.

The most famous version is the Boston accent. In this lesson, you can see examples from the video clips:

-The Heat

-The fighter

-Good Will Hunting

New York City is not too far from New England, but the accent is a bit different. Within New York City, there are even distinctive accents in different neighborhoods (Bronx, Queens, Brooklyn). Check out the clips from:

-Rosie Perez

-Raging Bull

-Seinfeld

Finally, let's look at the Midwest. This is often considered where "standard" American English comes from. However, there are variations from speakers in Minnesota and the Dakotas that are definitely something different. Check out the clips in the lesson from the shows and movies:

-Making a Murderer

-Drop Dead Gorgeous

-Fargo

In conclusion, if you want to develop a specific regional accent, you'll really need to find a teacher from that region or go there to get immersed in the dialect! In general though, it's not necessary to become an expert in a regional dialect. It's probably more sensible to learn "standard" American English, which is the accent you hear most news reporters, journalists or other nation-wide broadcasting professionals using.

Pro Tip 1: Understand that there are four major regional dialects in the United States, each with different accents

Pro Tip 2: Learn standard American English, not just one regional accent.

Pro Tip 3: As you advance in your listening skills, if you want a challenge start watching TV shows and movies that feature regional accents.

Pro Tip 4: Improve your standard American accent using our Pronunciation course(https://www.gonaturalenglish.com/pronunciation-course/)

Don't be shy or creepy: 10 compliments in English to start a conversation with anyone Mar 14, 2019

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10 Useful English Phrases You'll Use Over and Over - Learn to Speak like a Native Feb 25, 2019

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Here are 10 Very Useful English Phrases You Need to Know

Thanks so much. Please.
Excuse me.
I really appreciate it.
Never mind.
how does that sound? That sounds great.
Sorry, what was that?
Let me confirm...
Nice to meet you.
Can/could I get your...
Actually...

For a limited time only you're invited to my live online Master Class - The 3 Keys to English Fluency. Sign up and reserve your spot now at http://gonaturalenglish.com/keys

The Third Conditional in English Grammar with Examples Feb 11, 2019

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How do you form the third conditional tense in English?

The third conditional requires us to construct a sentence in two parts.

We make the third conditional by using 'if,' the past perfect form of the verb in the first part of the sentence and then 'would have' and the past participle the second part of the sentence:

if + past perfect, …would + have + past participle

It talks about the past. It's used to describe a situation that didn't happen, and to imagine the result of this situation.

If he had studied, he would have passed the exam (but, really we know he didn't study and therefore he didn't pass)
If I hadn't spent so much money in my 20's, I wouldn't have been poor in my 30's (but I did spend a lot, and so I did become poor).
If we had taken the subway, we wouldn't have missed the plane (but we did not take the subway, and we did miss the plane)
I wouldn't have been tired if I had gone to bed earlier (but I was tired because I did not go to bed earlier)
I would have become a lawyer if I had followed my parents' wishes (but I did not become a lawyer and did not follow my parents' wishes)
He would not have felt sick if he had not eaten the questionable street food (but he did eat the questionable street food and so he felt sick)

I hope that these examples help. If you have questions, comments, or would like to try your own examples, leave a comment on the blog post at https://gonaturalenglish.com/third-conditional

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