Speak English Now Podcast: Learn English | Speak English without grammar.

#166 Popular words in English added to the dictionary Apr 15, 2021

Hi, everyone! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Today we are going to look at some trendy words. These words have been added to the dictionary in the last decade.

And with a mini-story, you are going to improve your fluency. I'll tell you a story while asking you many questions that you have to answer right away. It's like talking to another person in English.

Please, visit SpeakEnglishPodcast.com to get the transcript of today's episode. And follow me on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, etc.

Let's get started!

As I said today, we will look at some words added to the dictionary in the last decade. These are trendy words, and I'm sure most of them sound familiar to you.

Let's start with the first word:

1. Jeggings

The word was introduced into the dictionary in 2015.

Jeggings are a blend of jeans and leggings.

When they first came out, I was fascinated by these pants. They are the most comfortable thing ever in my opinion, and yet they look so much like jeans.

2. YouTuber

The term was introduced into the dictionary in 2016.

YouTube appeared in 2005 and since then, millions of people have been uploading videos on the platform on a regular basis.

I started creating weekly videos in 2012, but it wasn't until 2016 that the word was added to the dictionary.

According to the Oxford Dictionary, a YouTuber is a person who uploads, produces, or appears in videos on YouTube.

3. LOL

The word was introduced into the dictionary in 2011.

Though this word is still popular, we have actually been using it for many years.

So what's LOL? It's an abbreviation of laughing out loud or laugh out loud.

The word abbreviation means a shortened form of a word or phrase.

4. Facebook

The term was introduced into the dictionary in 2018.

Did you know that we have used Facebook so many times that the verb to facebook has emerged?

So “to facebook” means to spend time using the social media website or app Facebook.

5. Skype

The word was introduced into the dictionary in 2014.

Before other apps like Zoom or FaceTime existed, Skype was the most popular app on the Internet for video calls.

According to the Oxford Dictionary, to skype means to have a spoken conversation with (someone) over the Internet using Skype, typically also viewing by webcam.

Get the transcript here: SpeakEnglishpodcast.com

#165 Easter in the USA -ESL Apr 05, 2021

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Today I'll talk about something more festive.

I'll talk about Easter and how Americans celebrate this holiday.

And with a fun mini-story, you'll improve your English fluency by answering many questions in English.

Before we get started, I just wanted to say hi if you are new here.

And if you are a long-time listener, I want to thank you for supporting this show by sharing it with your friends and family.

Ok, let’s start!

Whenever Easter comes, everywhere I go, I see chocolate eggs and Easter bunny cakes.

But what do we celebrate on Easter?

Easter is a Christian holiday celebrating the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. The New Testament describes the resurrection occurring on the third day after his burial following his crucifixion by the Romans on Calvary around 30 AD.

Americans spend this holiday with friends and family, and some attend special services held in churches on Easter.

And while not all Americans observe the holiday from a spiritual point of view, Easter is certainly one of the most celebrated holidays in the States.

And if there's one thing people love doing during the holidays, it's eating. Let's take a look at the 3 most popular dishes at Easter.

Hot Cross Buns

These are typical Easter food. It is a sweet bread seasoned with nutmeg, flavored with currants and apricots, and covered with a lemon glaze.

Stuffed Leg of Lamb

Americans also enjoy a stuffed leg of lamb. A delicious recipe, yet very easy to make. With parsley, garlic, bacon, and red wine.

Honey Butter Ham

Another very representative dish for this holiday is the honey butter ham. This recipe is simple and is prepared in the oven or a slow cooker.

And how about the colored eggs and the Easter Bunny tradition?

Typically, people start dying hard-boiled eggs in a variety of colors the night before Easter Sunday. These eggs are left for the Easter Bunny on Saturday night. The Bunny comes and hides them all over the house. So when the children wake up on Easter Sunday, they get excited looking for the eggs and the Easter baskets filled with goodies.

The idea of the Easter Bunny giving candy and eggs is said to have originated in Germany during the Middle Ages. Pennsylvania Dutch settlers brought the rabbit to the United States in the 18th century.

Another fun fact about the Easter holiday is that Easter and Halloween often compete for the highest candy sales every year. In some years, Americans buy more candy the week before Easter than the week before Halloween.

How interesting. Right?

Read the transcript here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#164 Different Types of Doctors in English - part2 Mar 31, 2021

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

This week we are going to continue talking about the different types of doctors in English. And with a fun mini-story, you will effectively improve your English fluency.

Before we get started, make sure you get the transcript on my website SpeakEnglishPodcast.com/podcast

Ok, let's start!

Last week we started talking about the different types of doctors in English. We saw that a general practitioner or family doctor treats common health problems.

We also learned that an optometrist is an eye doctor and that a dentist treats teeth and gums' problems.

Now let's continue learning the different types of doctors in English.

1) When we have skin, hair, or nail-related problems, we visit a dermatologist. If you have nasty red rashes on your body, quickly make an appointment with a dermatologist. So a dermatologist is a doctor who treats problems related to skin, nails, and hair.

Nowadays, more and more people choose to see a dermatologist whenever they have a skin condition such as acne, sensitive skin, a rash, etc.

It is always better to trust a specialist and not to experiment on our skin.

2) If you have children, you should take them to a pediatrician. A pediatrician's office is always very colorful and a very child-friendly environment. Therefore, pediatricians are physicians who take care of infants, toddlers, children, and teenagers.

3) What if you have a broken heart? Do you make an appointment to see a cardiologist? Unfortunately, a cardiologist can't fix your broken heart. But they will cure any cardiovascular disease. A cardiologist is a heart doctor.

4) And if you have an accident, you must see an orthopedic surgeon. An orthopedic surgeon deals with the skeletal system. Any broken leg or broken bone or anything that's wrong with your skeletal system, an orthopedic surgeon is going to fix it for you.

As people get older, they have many problems in their knees or their hands or even arthritis. So all of these things are taken care of by an orthopedic surgeon.

5) If you are a woman, you need to see a doctor who focuses on the female reproductive organs from time to time. We call this type of doctor a gynecologist.

There is also the obstetrician who works in a particular area of gynecology that focuses on childbirth.

6) What if you are a man? Do you also go to see a gynecologist?

No. No. Only women go to a gynecologist.

Men should see a urologist. A urologist is a doctor who deals with urinary tract infections or urinary problems. A urologist deals with the male reproductive system or male reproductive organs.

So if you have any problems with the urinary tract or the male reproductive system, you see a urologist.

7) There is another type of doctor called a neurologist. A neurologist is

a doctor who studies and treats diseases of the nerves.

While the doctor who performs surgery on the human brain is called a neurosurgeon.

So a neurologist is a doctor who deals with any nerve-related problem. But if you have brain surgery, you go to a neurosurgeon.

Well, these are the types of doctors or physicians we have here. There are a large number of doctors, so I've picked the most common ones.

Read the transcript here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#163 Different Types of Doctors in English Mar 25, 2021

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

This episode is going to be interesting because we will talk about doctors in English. And I'll tell you about a surgery I had last week.

You'll also improve your English grammar without memorizing any boring rules.

Before I get started, remember to get the transcript at SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

This way, you listen and read at the same time if you find it necessary.

Let's start.

Today I would like to tell you a bit about my experience of having to undergo surgery for the first time.

Although you probably didn’t notice my absence last week, I was in the hospital for a few days after having gallbladder surgery.

I always had difficulty eating some foods, and I didn't know why. Finally, after many tests, the doctor told me he had good news and bad news. I wanted to know good news first. The good news was that he had found the cause of my digestive problems. I had gallstones in my gallbladder. And the bad news was that I had to have my gallbladder removed altogether.

But I was looking forward to the surgery. And since I wanted to avoid getting overly nervous before the procedure, I decided to concentrate on work. I doubled my workload before the surgery so that you wouldn't miss any of my weekly episodes.

And on the day of the surgical procedure, I packed a suitcase with all the things I thought I needed while in the hospital. It is always wise to be prepared. But in the end, I didn't need much of it because I spent most of the time sleeping.

Now I’m happy to be back home.

The intervention was a success, and I feel great, I was even able to start working on a new episode.

But enough about me, let's talk about the different types of doctors in English.

Let's start with the general practitioner. What’s a general practitioner?

If you have a health problem, you usually go to a general practitioner. For example, if you have a cold or a stomach ache, you see a general practitioner.

We also call this type of physician a family doctor.

What if you have a terrible toothache? Do you go to your family doctor? Of course not. In that case, you should make an appointment with a reputable dentist as soon as possible.

I know many of you don’t like going to the dentist, but I have a visit every six months, and that helps to prevent major complications.

So a dentist is a doctor who treats problems related to teeth and gums.

Well, what if you have a problem with your vision? What do you do? If you have a problem with your eyesight, an eye infection, or anything related to your eyes, you should see an optometrist. An optometrist is an eye doctor.

Get the transcript here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#162 Learning English with Riddles part #2 ESL Mar 16, 2021

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Today we are going to learn English in a fun way.

You will learn new English vocabulary through fun riddles.

I will introduce you to some popular riddles and ask you to guess the correct answer. If you don't know what a riddle is, don't worry because I'll explain it to you.

And with a point of view lesson, you will learn grammar without memorizing any boring rules.

Many of you send me messages telling me that you listen to my podcast in the car, walking, or doing other things. That's great because you are incorporating learning into your lifestyle, not the other way around. That way, you spend more time listening and learning. The idea is always to accumulate many hours of listening for you to internalize the language.

By the way, it would make me very happy if you shared my website with your friends. Tell them to go to SpeakEnglishPodcast.com and subscribe to my free mini-course.

All right. In today's episode, you will improve your English in a fun way with some fun riddles. You'll have to guess the answer to each riddle. Are you up for it? Don't worry; they're not complicated.

Come on, it's gonna be fun :)

But first, what's a riddle?

A riddle is a type of poem that works like a puzzle.

They describe something and sometimes use words with double meanings.

First, I'll tell you a riddle, and then I'll wait 10 seconds to give you time to answer. But don't worry. If you need more time, you can pause the audio.

Get the transcript here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#161 English Vocabulary - Vegetables in Urban Gardens ESL Mar 11, 2021

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

In today’s episode

– I’m going to tell you how you can get vegetables without going to the supermarket. And I’m not talking about magic 🙂

– In the second part, you will learn grammar without memorizing any boring rules.

Are you a new listener? I recommend that you get my free video course at speakenglishpodcast.com. You will learn how to acquire more vocabulary, how to learn grammar but without memorizing anything, how to learn deeply, how to speak automatically and how to maintain yourself motivated in the long run.

Very well. Let’s start!

Some things only happen in cities. Interesting things. One of them is urban gardens,

If you have an urban garden, you can grow your own veggies if you live in a city.

I’m talking about tomatoes, celery, broccoli, etc. It is an exciting option if you do not want to buy them directly from the supermarket or if you want to make sure that the vegetables are pesticides free.

Urban gardens appeared as a fad, but the truth is that they are consolidating in many cities. A good phrase to use in this case is: “they are here to stay”. That is, it is not just a fad.

Where can we find these gardens? Locations vary. For example, there are large gardens in the suburbs of many cities. These are family gardens that produce all kinds of veggies.

We can also find urban garden projects in schools, where they have an educational function. I find it very helpful for children to understand that tomatoes are not “manufactured” in the supermarket but rather grown in the soil.

On the other hand, many apartments have a terrace, and people have some vegetables in small earthen containers. Some take advantage of the rooftop. There is usually quite a lot of space available.

I guess in general you can save money, but it’s easy to overspend. You need tools, fertilizers, seeds, substrates… and a lot of patience. In any case, it’s an outdoor hobby that is usually rewarding.

However, there are some disadvantages. The most important is that the contamination affects the plants. All contaminating particles fall on the surfaces. Many of them are metals such as lead, mercury, or cadmium. And I don’t believe anyone likes the idea of eating a tomato with these kinds of metals in it.

Then there is the expense of the water, which can be significant. Nowadays, the water bill can go up quite a bit because there are more and more taxes.

So… Would you like to have an urban garden? If you already have one, you can tell me about it in the comments section.

Read the transcript here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#160 Learning English with Riddles ESL Mar 04, 2021

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Today you are going to learn English in a fun way.

You will learn new English vocabulary through fun riddles.

And with a mini-story, you will improve your fluency by answering lots of questions.

Let’s start!

One thing is clear. You want to become fluent in English. That's why it's a great idea to get to know the typical expressions and riddles.

Riddles often make us laugh out loud. Everyone knows that laughter is healthy because it relaxes the brain and body, helps us release stress, and promotes positive mental health. This way you will learn English more easily.

So I'm going to start telling you some riddles.

First, I'll tell you the riddle, and then I'll wait 10 seconds to give you time to answer. But don't worry. If you need more time, you can pause the audio.

Remember that on my website SpeakEnglishPodcast.com you will find the transcript of this episode.

Let's start!

Think about it,

1) What has to be broken before you can use it?

I'll give you a hint. It's something to eat.

Answer: An egg.

Yes, of course, it's an egg, I don't know about you, but I always remove the eggshell before eating it.

Let's continue.

2. I'm tall when I'm young, and I'm short when I'm old. What am I?

I'll give you a hint. It's something you can see in the dark.

Answer: A candle.

Yes, of course, it is a candle; as the candle burns, it gets shorter. Although this also happens with people. We also as lose height as we get older.

3. What month of the year has 28 days?

Answer: All of them

That's right; all months have at least 28 days. Although in a leap year, the extra day is added to the end of February, making it 29 days instead of 28.

4. What is full of holes but still holds water?

Answer: A sponge

If there is a hole in a glass or bucket, the water comes out, but the sponge will absorb the water even though it has holes in it.

5. What can you break, even if you never pick it up or touch it?

Answer: A promise.

In English, we keep or break a promise. If you don't keep your promise, you break it.

Read the transcript here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#159 English pronunciation practice - Difficult words Feb 25, 2021

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Today we will practice some of the most difficult words to pronounce in English.

Words that start with "th" as in this or that and words that end in "ly" as in constantly or definitely." And with a mini-story, you will improve your fluency.

English pronunciation can be a big problem for some English students. And their native language determines, for the most part, what types of difficulties students will have.

However, most English students worldwide find it difficult to pronounce words that start with "th."

"th" is one of the hardest sounds to pronounce.

And we pronounce it in three different ways:

as /ð/ as in this, that, these, those, they or them.

As the voiceless /θ/ as in three, thing, thought.

Some students often say "dat" instead of that.

- but we also pronounce it as a /t/ as in Thai.

I've asked my students what words they found difficult and many of them were words beginning with "th."

Thought, through, three, threaten, throughout, theft.

I will give an example for each word but first, let's pronounce them one by one.

Listen and repeat.

Thought, through, three, threaten, throughout, theft.

Examples:

"I never thought my wish could one day come true."
"Through repetition, you will improve your English fluency."
"I had three exams last week and passed all of them."
"They tried to threaten to take away my scholarship, but in the end, they had a change of heart."
You have always been by my side, especially throughout the difficult times.
"They were put in prison for theft."

Read the transcript here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#158 How to LISTEN more in English? ESL Feb 17, 2021

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Today I will tell you how to train your brain to listen more in English.

And with a fun mini-story, you will improve your English fluency.

Nowadays, we are very used to watching content on the Internet. There is a wide variety of materials.

And when it comes to learning English, it is no exception, so I understand that you can feel overwhelmed by so many possibilities.

That's why I'm here, to give you clarity and to help you speak English in a very short time and with a very efficient method.

While most teachers switch from audio to video, I have done the opposite.

There are several reasons why I have stopped making videos regularly. I've started making videos a decade ago. Meanwhile, I was teaching English one on one to students from all over the world and of all ages.

That's how I came up with the best method to learn English.

I noticed that when my students were listening to simple audio repeatedly, they were learning faster, and their listening and speech improved.

I've realized that many students learn with their eyes and not with their ears. Listening was a greater challenge than reading for many.

If you want to understand a language better, you need to train your brain to listen more.

Another aspect that has helped me understand what my students really need was the fact that I'm a polyglot.

I've started learning several languages when I was a kid, by using different techniques. For me, the most effective way to learn a language was to learn by listening.

With my podcast, you will improve your listening and comprehension, especially if you listen repeatedly.

Most students think that the more variety, the better.

So what they usually do is listen to an audio once or twice and then change to something else.

Well, variety is useful, but what you want is to consolidate what you listen to; if you want to train your brain to listen, the most effective way to achieve this is through repetition.

For example, you can use one of my podcast episodes. I recommend that you listen to every episode several times to consolidate the content.

I provide a transcript for each episode, so after listening to an episode a few times, get the transcript and read it at the same time.

Another excellent way to improve your English is by using my premium courses.

Get the transcript here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#157 Valentine’s Day in the United States (rep) Feb 10, 2021

Listen to a new episode of Speak English Now Podcast, your favorite material for practicing your spoken and heard English. You will also learn about lifestyle and culture, language, vocabulary, and how to improve your English more effectively.

Transcript:

Happy Valentine's Day, everybody! I am Georgiana, founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

In today’s episode, I will talk about Valentine’s Day in the United States. And with a mini-story, you will improve your English speaking.

Remember! You can get the transcript at speakenglishpodcast.com.

Ok. Let’s get started!

Although it is a very commercial holiday, Valentine's Day has a fascinating history that goes back to ancient Rome! In the United States and other parts of the world, people celebrate February 14 by giving away candy hearts and red roses.

Historians believe that Valentine's Day originated in ancient Rome as a pagan fertility festival.

But despite its origins, in 1300, it officially became a holiday associated with love and romance.

The Roman Pope officially declared February 14, "Valentine's Day." It was then associated with love because many believed that birds began their mating season on February 14.

There was more than one St. Valentine.

There have been multiple St. Valentines throughout history, like a bishop and a pope.

But the most common one was the one who challenged Emperor Claudius II.

Back then, Claudius had forbidden marriage because he thought it would distract young soldiers.

However, Valentine disapproved, so he illegally married couples until he was captured.

After he was convicted, young couples would visit his cell and give him flowers and cards. It’s said that he died on February 14.

Let’s see how Americans celebrate Valentine’s Day nowadays.

Since 1840 sending cards became a tradition and Americans send out 145 million Valentine's Day cards every year.

Americans spend a lot of money on Valentine’s Day

About 50% of Americans celebrate Valentine's Day and spend about $19 billion a year, and over $2 billion on candy alone. That’s a lot of money, right?

But do you know where most of the money goes?

Americans spend almost 5 billion dollars on jewelry on Valentine's Day!

They also spend more than $3.7 billion on going out at night, followed by flowers, clothes, and candy.

Ok. Now let’s get a bit romantic.

Nearly 6 million couples get engaged on Valentine's Day.

[END of EXTRACT]

Get the transcript at: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#156 How to pronounce vowels in American English? ESL Feb 04, 2021

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Today we will talk about how to pronounce vowels in English. And with a fun point of view story you will improve your grammar.

The truth is that vowels in English always represent a particular difficulty for many students.

But don't worry because there is a self-evident reason why this happens.

It turns out that in English, we have six vowel letters represented by the letters a, e, i, o, and u and fifteen vowel sounds.

Fifteen vowel sounds?

Yes. You see that's the real problem.

In English, we don't read vowels as they are written, simply because the same vowel letter can be pronounced in different ways.

For example, we can pronounce vowel A in seven different ways.

Amazing, right?

We divide vowel sounds into three different categories:

Long vowels (we pronounce the long vowels the same as the letter.)

These are the long vowel sounds in American English:

A /eɪ/, E /i/, I /ɑɪ/, O /oʊ/, U /yu/.

Examples:

Steak / steɪk /

Sleep / slip /

Bike / baɪk /

Home / hoʊm /

Cute / kyut /

Short vowels (have the most common sound for a single vowel spelling.)

Examples:

cat /kæt/

bed /bɛd/

sit /sɪt/ top /tɑp/

sun /sʌn/

Other vowels (the remaining vowel sounds)

other u /ʊ/ Put /pʊt/

oo sound /u/ soon /sun/

aw sound /ɔ/ dog /dɔg/

oi sound /ɔɪ/ join /ʤɔɪn/

ow sound /aʊ/. down /daʊn/

Ok, let’s continue.

I want to talk about the schwa (ə) sound.

What is Schwa?

The Schwa sound - is the most common vowel in English.

We find this sound in almost all words with more than a syllable.

Examples:

Doctor, about, the, center.

Schwa (ə) replaces any vowel in English if the vowel is unstressed.

It also appears in words consisting of only one syllable: a, the, of.

Read the transcript at SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#155 Job Interview Stories - English Course - ESL Jan 29, 2021

You're hired. You will start with $1000, and in two years it will be $3000.
Awesome! Then I'll start working two years from now.

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Today I want to talk about some stories that occurred in a job interview. I think it will be fun.

Later, you'll practice grammar with a Point of View Story.

Let’s say you’re looking for a job.

You have a degree, a master or an impressive background, and you are a real professional.

One day,

A call. It's a company that wants to interview you.

You're excited! On the day of the interview, you prepare yourself: you get a nice haircut, dress properly, you are a bit nervous but focused, and the interview begins in English.

You didn't see that coming. All your preparation, degrees, masters, background don't seem relevant anymore.

Here's the harsh truth: Not having interview skills in English will prevent you from getting the job of your life.

However, there's good news.

If you already know some English, preparing for a job interview's easy, and you don't need too much time.

At the end of the lesson, I'll tell you how you can prepare for a job interview in only two weeks or less.

Okay, let's listen to some stories that happened in job interviews.

1) Let's start with the first one:

"In the interview, they asked me, "where do you see yourself in five years", and I answered, 'not here.' They never called me back."

In this case he was right. In five years, he wouldn't work there because they never called him back.

2) The next one:

"After undergoing three interviews for the position, I was introduced to my new boss, who happened to be the father of my ex. Despite being very worried, we ended up becoming good friends even more so than when I was dating his daughter."

What a small world! In this case, the interview could have ended very badly, but we can safely say that this guy was very lucky.

3) Let's continue with the next one, which is very interesting.

"The interviewer started looking at me with a puzzled face, and the first thing he asked me was if I could prove all the experience described in my CV. I told him that I had no experience at all since I had just finished my studies. He showed me the CV, and to my amazement, it was my dad's!"

What a coincidence! For some reason, the interviewer had his father's CV. Maybe the father sent a CV to the same company.

Read the transcript here: SpeakEnglishpodcast.com

#154 How to write a  business email in English  part #2  Jan 22, 2021

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Last week we started learning how to write a formal business email in English. Today we will learn how to close an email with a final comment and greeting.

I'll also give you an example of a formal email that you can use in different situations.

With a point of view story, you will improve your grammar.

Sending a formal or professional email in English can always be challenging, so I

decided to dedicate two episodes to this topic. If you haven't yet listened to last week's episode, I invite you to do so before listening to today's lesson.

Ok, let's get started!

After giving or asking for information, it's time to close with a remark.

Here are some examples:

5. Closing remarks:

This is how you could respond when you are answering a customer query.

"If you require any further information, please do not hesitate to contact me."

Use this phrase to let the other person know that you are eager to hear from them soon:

"I am looking forward to hearing from you soon."

This way, you encourage the other person to contact you if they need to do so.

More closing phrases:

"Thank you in advance for your reply / your help."

"Please let me know if you have other questions or concerns."

"Please don't forget to _______________."

"Please get back to me: by Monday/ before Monday / soon. "

"I appreciate your prompt reply."

"I hope to speak with you / hear from / see you soon."

6. Complimentary Close (followed by your name)

We will end our email with a complimentary close.

Best Regards,

Best wishes,

Kind Regards,

Regards,

Sincerely,

Thank you,

Enjoy the weekend,

Have a good weekend, day, Friday,

Have a safe flight,

Enjoy your trip,

Best wishes, regards,

All these can be used interchangeably as a way to pay your respects to the person who is going to read the email.

I typically sign my emails with "Best Regards"; however, sometimes I use "Regards" or "Enjoy the weekend."

After "Best regards," I add my name.

7. Email Samples

Here's an email sample that you can use in different situations:

Dear Mr. John,

Thank you for your interest in our services.

With reference to your request regarding a new SIM card for your cell phone, I would like to inform you that it should be made available to you within the next 24 hours.

I would like to inform you that we have already delivered the card to the carrier, and you will receive it during the day.

Also, I would really appreciate it if you could respond to this email today confirming your billing information.

I am sorry to ask you this on such short notice, but it is in your best interest to do this as soon as possible to avoid any delays.

If you require any further information, please do not hesitate to contact me.

Best Regards,

Tom.

Read the transcript here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#153 How to write a  business email in English?part #1 -  ESL Jan 15, 2021

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

In today's episode, I'll show you how to write a business email in English. I'll teach you how to structure an email by providing some examples. Then with a fun mini-story, you will improve your English fluency.

Nowadays, we need to communicate online both on a personal and professional level. And though sending an email to a friend doesn't seem to be too challenging, many of you feel intimidated when writing a professional email in English.

Whether it's sending it to a supplier, to your boss, a professor, sign up for a job, etc., this episode will be very useful.

1) Always start with a greeting.

For example:

If you know the first and last name of the person, say hello like this:

"Hello, Mike Adams."

Use only their last name by saying:

"Dear Mr./Ms. Adams"

If it's a person you know on a more personal level, you can address them by their name:

"Dear Mike"

Another way to say hello is to mention the person's position.

"Dear manager, (recruiter, project manager, hiring manager, etc.)"

When you are not writing to a specific person use this expression:

"To whom it may concern."

2) Use an opening line.

Once you say hello, use an opening line.

Examples:

"Thank you for your reply."

"I hope this message finds you well."

"Thank you for your message."

"Regarding___, I would like to inform you that___"

"Concerning the email, I received___"

"I hope you're enjoying (the great weather, your time in the city, etc.")

"Thank you so much for the quick reply; I really appreciate it."

If you haven't heard from that person in a while, you can say:

"It's been a while since I heard from you."

If you have not been able to reply to an email for a while, say:

"Sorry for the late reply,"

3)Giving Information

After a short introduction, you can start providing information.

Start with one of these phrases:

"I'd like to inform you that…

"I am writing to inform you that…"

"I am writing to let you know that.."

"Regarding (our last conversation)

"I'd like to update you on …"

"I'd like to confirm our meeting, your order, the business plan, etc.

To deliver good news, say:

"Fortunately, (we will be able to deliver your goods on time.")

"I am pleased to inform you that (we will be able to deliver your goods on time.")

If you need to give bad news, say:

"Unfortunately, (we won't be able to deliver the goods on time.")

"I regret to inform you that..(we won't be able to deliver the goods on time.")

(END OF THE EXTRACT).

Get the FULL TEXT here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#152  Asking and giving Directions  in English ESL Jan 08, 2021

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

I'm going to talk about how to ask and give directions in English. For example, when you want to go to a restaurant, and you have to ask for directions.

Next, an exclusive mini-story to improve your fluency in English.

Remember that you can get the text of the episode at SpeakEnglishpodcast.com.

So, let's get started. As you know, it's very useful to know how to ask for directions when you go to a place for the first time, and you're a bit lost.

Okay, yes, I know that nowadays with smartphones, you can check the GPS and you don't need to ask for help anymore, but think about this: Asking for directions is an excellent opportunity to practice English.

In this episode, we will see the most common expressions with some examples:

All right, the best way to ask for directions is by using this expression:

"Excuse me, how do I get to _?"

"Could you tell me the best way to get to _?"

For example, if you want to ask how to get to Times Square, you say:

Excuse me, how do I get to Times Square?

You could also say…

"What is the quickest way to get to the movies?"

"Excuse me. Where's the nearest (post office) please?"

"Excuse me. I'm looking for _."

And if you are very close to your destination, you could simply ask:

"Where is the hotel?"

If you get lost, just ask this simple question:

"Where exactly am I?"

Okay, great. Now let's see how to give directions.

Here are some useful phrases for giving directions on the street:

TURN LEFT

TURN RIGHT

GO STRAIGHT AHEAD

An example:

"Sorry, what is the quickest way to get to the city center?

"It is easy. Go straight ahead and then turn right.

They can also tell you to TAKE the first, second, or third, street, for example.

Let's look at the same example:

"Excuse me, could you tell me the best way to get to the city center?"

"It is easy. Go straight ahead and take the second street on the right."

(END OF THE EXTRACT).

READ the TRANSCRIPT here: speakEnglishPodcast.com

#151 English Fluency and Mistakes when you speak ESL Dec 30, 2020

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Today I will talk about fluency and how it is related to the possible mistakes that occur when we speak. Yes. Sometimes we can make mistakes!

Next, we will practice grammar with a funny point of view story. You just have to listen and observe how the different grammar points change.

Very good! I have decided to talk about a topic that I think is very significant for the language student.

First of all, let's see what fluency means.

When a person can speak fluently, they can speak more or less without hesitation, without pausing and thinking about how to say something. Occasionally we can take a short pause to think, but this is not usual.

We experience near-perfect fluency when we speak our mother tongue. If you pay attention to when you speak, you will see that you do not think about which words to use. You just have an idea of what you are going to say, and you say it.

When you are learning a language, fluency develops gradually. A good symptom is when you find yourself without almost translating mentally. At first, it is normal to do so, but little by little, part of your speech becomes automatic, and the words are simply there. That's when you start enjoying more and more conversations with Native speakers. It is amazing to see yourself in a conversation with a Native speaker in the language you are learning.

Somehow, it all becomes real.

Traditional or more academic methods insist on mastering more formal aspects such as grammar rules, word position, or conjugations. According to their theories, learning all this will help you express yourself better and avoid making so many mistakes when speaking.

Ask yourself this question: How often do you think about grammar rules when you speak in your native language?

I believe that the most important thing for a language student is to develop fluency first. This has to be your main goal. When we are in the middle of a conversation, things go very fast. You can't pause for 30 seconds to think about how to structure a sentence. You need to speak at that moment. You need to be fluent.

And how does this relate to mistakes? It's common sense. If you can express yourself more or less effortlessly, mentally, you don't have to look up or translate words. They just come to your mind. This way, you can spend more time focusing on other aspects, such as making fewer mistakes or improving your pronunciation.

As I always say, the way to improve your fluency is mostly by listening. The more you listen, the more you acquire the patterns of the language. When I talk about patterns, I mean word patterns that are very commonly used. So, you no longer think word by word but by groups of words. A very positive effect from listening to content made by a native speaker is that you hear the language without mistakes, so little by little, you will end up using the same structures that are error-free.

In short, developing fluency as the main objective helps us to speak without pausing and without translating mentally. Also, by automating speech, we can spend more time focusing on small mistakes we can make. To improve fluency, you must listen a lot and repeatedly. Contrary to what you thought, the material you listen to has to be easy to understand. You have to comprehend 90% of what you hear. Listening to something you like and can understand easily but for hours and hours will improve your fluency.

Read the Transcript here: https://speakenglishpodcast.com/

#150 Christmas Holidays Vocabulary 2020 (rep) Dec 18, 2020

Hi everyone! I’m your English teacher Georgiana, founder of speakenglishpodcast.com. My mission is to help you to speak English fluently.

In this episode, I’ll talk about the Christmas holidays. And after that, you’ll practice your English speaking with an exciting mini-story about a man dressed in red.

Alright! Let’s start!

Ah! It's Christmas at last! I don't know about you, but I love this time of year. I start to think about what presents to give to my family and friends. Normally I make a list, so I don't forget anyone. Can you imagine forgetting someone? That would be terrible! That's why I start very early to plan what presents to give to everyone.

Finding the right gift for someone can be difficult, so what I usually do is search online for gift ideas. And buying online helps me avoid the holiday crowds.

To really feel the Christmas spirit, I like preparing a pot with a delightful scent using orange, cinnamon, apple cider, and clove. I let everything boil throughout the day so that the fragrance spreads throughout the house.

At this time of year, I also love to listen to Christmas songs.

I can recommend some popular Christmas songs:

“All I want for Christmas is You” by Mariah Carey.
"Last Christmas" by Wham!
"Let It, Snow! Let It, Snow! Let It Snow!” by Frank Sinatra. "Jingle Bell Rock" by Bobby Helms.
and something from Michael Bublé’s Christmas album.

Plus, I enjoy placing Christmas lights and decorations. I sometimes use social media to find unique decorations.

Did you know that some Americans use popcorn threaded on a string to help decorate their Christmas Tree?

Or that in New England, you can find some shops called "Christmas Shops." There they sell Christmas decorations and toys throughout the entire year!

There are many classic Christmas movies that you can watch on TV at this time of year. Here are some examples:

It's A Wonderful Life (1946)
Holiday Inn (1942)
A Christmas Story (1983)
A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965)
Elf (2003)
Bad Santa (2003)
Love Actually (2003)
The Man Who Invented Christmas (2017)

And it wouldn't be Christmas without a tree! Christmas trees are the symbol of the season. I love having a real tree and decorate it along with my family and friends.

The Christmas trees tradition started in Germany in the 16th century. Protestant reformer Martin Luther first added lighted candles to a tree to remind his children of the wonders of God's creation.

Nowadays, many Americans buy a fresh evergreen tree or a plastic model and decorate it with lights and ornaments.

READ the TRANSCRIPT here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#149 Is your personality different in English?  (rep) Dec 09, 2020

Welcome to the Speak English Now Podcast, your resource for practicing your English speaking and listening. You will also learn about lifestyle and culture, language, vocabulary, and how to learn English more effectively.

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.In this episode:

• I’d like to talk about how speaking a different language can change your personality.

• Later, a cool mini-story to practice your English speaking.

Let’s get started!

So, did you know that speaking a different language can change your personality?

Yes, you heard me well! Studies show that depending on the language you speak; your personality can be affected.

Studies show that speaking two or more languages can lead to a split personality.

They say that many speakers have completely unique identities in each of the languages they speak.

Apparently, the way you speak impacts the way you think, and it influences everything from how you make decisions to how you perceive color.

Therefore, language is much more than just communication. Since the way you speak clearly affects the way you think.

I can speak several languages, besides English. When I speak in German, for example, I pay attention to the way I interact with people, the way I organize my ideas and my thoughts, my emotions. All of these become profoundly influenced by the language I’m speaking.

For example, whenever I speak in German, I become more rational.

On the other hand, if I have a conversation in Spanish, I can observe myself behaving differently. It’s like being a different person. In this case, I feel more relaxed, more easy-going.

To acquire a new self, you’ll need to immerse yourself in the culture. You can achieve that by taking a trip abroad, watching movies, interact with a native speaker or, listening to the Speak English Now podcast.

Another key factor is how well you know the language. Of course, it’s not the same if your level’s low. The more you dominate the language, the more it influences your personality.

My advice is that when you’re learning English, try to adopt a specific personality of the language. This way it’ll get easier and easier, and finally, you’ll speak English fluently and confidently.

When you learn a new language, you’re not simply memorizing vocabulary and grammar rules – you also have the opportunity to adopt new elements of your identity.

READ the transcript here: speakenglishpodcast.com

#148 Conditionals in English (rep) Nov 19, 2020

Hi everyone!

I'm Georgiana; founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help YOU speak English fluently.

Today, I’ll talk about how we use conditionals in English.

After that, we'll practice them with a Point Of View Story.

Ok, let's get started!

I'm going to review the different conditionals in English. I don't recommend you to memorize them, but to understand them. You need plenty of contexts, and the best way to practice the conditionals is by using the Point of View story technique.

Conditionals in English aren't complicated. I'm going to give you some examples:

Zero conditional

Here, we talk about things that are always true. For example:

If you heat water, it boils.

If you heat ice, it melts.

If it rains, the grass gets wet.

First Conditional

We use the first conditional when we talk about a probable result. For example:

If you study more, you'll pass the exam.

If I have time, I'll help you.

Second Conditional

We use the second conditional in case we want to express less probability.

I know you're busy, but if you went to the cinema, you'd enjoy the new Star Trek movie.

If you studied more, you'd pass the exam.

As you can see, this is more hypothetical. "If you went to the cinema", means you won't probably go, but if you went, then you'd like the movie. In the second example happens the same: If you studied more…it seems that you aren't currently studying enough.

Third Conditional

This third conditional is in the past. We talk about an alternative result about something that happened in the past. For example:

If you had studied more, you would've passed the exam.

If I had had more time, I would've helped you.

If I had visited you, I could've helped you.

In the third conditional, everything happens in the past, and we just express a different result if things weren't different in the past.

Let's quickly review the first, second, and third conditional with a common example:

If I have enough money, I'll buy a ticket to travel to New York.

If I had enough money, I would buy a ticket to travel to New York.

If I had had enough money, I would've bought a ticket to travel to New York.

Can you see how the tenses change?

Read the transcript here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#147 Is it hard for you to  SPEAK ENGLISH? (rep)  Nov 11, 2020

Hi, Everyone!

I’m Georgiana, founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help YOU speak English fluently.

In this episode:

I’ll talk about passive vocabulary, and I’ll focus on the difference between active and passive vocabulary.After that, we’ll simulate a conversation with the Question & Answer technique.

OK, let’s start!

Like I’ve just mentioned earlier, in this episode, I’d like to focus on the passive vocabulary.

There are two kinds of vocabularies that we all acquire in time, no matter whether it’s your native language or a foreign language.

The first and more obvious one is the active vocabulary. These are the words we use when we speak or write.

On the other hand, there’s passive vocabulary. And these are all the words we understand when we read or listen.

Let me make myself clear: You fully understand the meaning of these words; you don’t just guess their meaning when you read or listen. However, you can’t use them in a conversation.

It’s complicated to use passive vocabulary when you speak because understanding the words just isn’t enough. You’ll need to listen and read these words several times before they become part of your active vocabulary.

At this point, you may think that using passive vocabulary is only difficult when you’re trying to speak in English, but unfortunately, you’ll find the same difficulty when using your mother tongue.

Let me give you an example:

Let’s say that you’re reading an article about the economic situation of a country. You fully understand the whole article, but if you had to speak about this topic, I’m convinced that you’d use words that you’re more familiar with. If you had to talk about the economic situation of a country, you’d use the active vocabulary and not the passive one.

When it comes to English, it’s the same. You can only use about 20% of all the vocabulary you’ve learned. So, if you know 1000 words, you’ll probably use only 200 words.

The best way to activate your passive vocabulary is by repetition. If you listen to the same audios many times, you’ll be able to transform passive vocabulary into active vocabulary.

We tend to use the words we listen to more. For example, the verbs to be, to go or objects like car, paper, etc. These words are so common that they have become part of your active vocabulary from the very beginning.

(END OF THE EXTRACT). Get the transcript in PDF here:

SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#146 Abandoned Towns and Villages in English ESL Nov 06, 2020

Listen to a new episode of Speak English Now Podcast, your favorite material for practicing your spoken and heard English. You will also learn about lifestyle and culture, language, vocabulary, and how to improve your English more effectively.

Transcript:

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Today I'm going to talk about towns, where no one lives anymore for one reason or another.

With a mini-story, we will meet John, a man who, tired of his lifestyle, makes a radical decision.

Very good. Thank you for listening once again. We have reached 22 million downloads of this podcast; thank you very much for following me! If you want to help me, please share and recommend my website SpeakEnglishPodcast.com by mentioning my podcast. Thank you very much in advance.

Okay, let's get to today's topic.

In every country in the world, there are villages where no one lives.

I find this phenomenon fascinating.

There are several words you can use to describe such a town. They all mean the same thing:

Abandoned: This means that those who lived in that area have left. Therefore, people abandoned the place at some point in the past.

Uninhabited: This word implies that it was previously inhabited. The inhabitants inhabit a place. If those people leave and don't live there anymore, it becomes uninhabited.

Ghost. A ghost town is simply a town without inhabitants, without anyone living there. This word sometimes gives a sinister air to the place. All kinds of legends can arise in certain abandoned places. Some people's imaginations can be very vivid.

-Deserted merely means that there is no one there. For example: "The village was deserted, there was absolutely no one."

Now, let's use a little imagination. Imagine that you decide to move to a deserted town. Moving means going to live permanently in a new place. So, you would be the only inhabitant. You could put a sign with the name of the village and the number of inhabitants: one.

(END OF THE EXTRACT).

Read the transcript here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#145 Halloween in America 2020 esl (rep) Oct 29, 2020

Hi, everyone!

I'm Georgiana, founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help YOU to speak English fluently.

In today's episode:

I'll be talking about one of the most celebrated holidays in the United States: Halloween. After that, you'll practice your speaking with a new mini-story, while enjoying my new Question & Answer story.

Very well. Let's get started!

Halloween is a holiday celebrated on the last day of October. I would say it's very popular because everybody's excited about it, especially children.

The word Halloween comes from an old English expression, "All Hallows' Eve," and it means the day before All Saints' Day.

Children of all ages really love Halloween because they can dress up in funny costumes and knock on their neighborhood doors shouting "Trick or Treat!". The neighbors usually give them candies.

The meaning of the phrase "Trick or Treat" is interesting. In this context, "treat" means getting the candies, and "trick" implies the consequence of not getting the sweets. It's like an innocent threat children make. Of course, kids get really excited when they knock on stranger's doors in their neighborhood.

Since Halloween originated as a celebration connected with evil spirits, the most common symbols are witches flying on broomsticks, ghosts, skeletons, black cats, etc. The black color is one of the traditional Halloween colors.

Of course, pumpkins are also a Halloween symbol. I'm sure you've seen them in movies. People empty pumpkin and put a candle inside to make a lamp.

How do you make a Halloween pumpkin?

· The first step is hollowing out the pumpkin.

· After we use a keyhole saw to cut the hole.

· When using a candle for illumination, you can cut the hole in the pumpkin's top.

· For electric lights, make a hole in the bottom or side so you can hide the cord.

The Halloween pumpkin is called Jack-O'-Lantern. It's common to see jack-o'-lanterns on doorsteps decorations before and on Halloween.

The name comes from an Irish legend about a man named Jack. He was so ungenerous that when he died, he couldn't enter heaven, but he couldn't go to hell either because he had told jokes about the devil. As a result, Jack had to walk and walk with a lantern until the Day of Judgment.

Read the transcript here: speakEnglishPodcast.com

#144 Are you hooked on your cell phone? ESL Oct 22, 2020

-I’m hooked on the Thunder Game series.

-It’s Game of Thrones.

-Ah, yes, that. The fire of Thrones.

-Game.

-Game of Thorns. Right?

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Have you ever wondered if you spend too many hours looking at your cell phone? Or maybe the computer. There is an expression in English that I quite like, called being hooked. It means to be excessively attracted to something and almost unable to resist it.

For example:

- I’m hooked on doing sports.

- But I've never seen you exercise.

- I have a lot of willpower, and I’m able to resist it.

I have to admit that sometimes I spend too much time checking my cell phone. Sometimes it's almost impossible not to. My intentions are good. For example, I start watching the daily news and end up without knowing how, watching videos on Youtube.

Maybe it's all a conspiracy of the whole Internet to distract me from doing the podcast episode of the week.

Everything is designed to capture your attention. As I'm sure you know, everything you do on the Internet leaves a trace, so a lot of content is matched to your interests.

For example, on Facebook, there is a video section. These videos are customized to your interests, and some of them really capture your attention.

This creates all kinds of problems, both for teens and adults. Many kids find it difficult concentrating and studying. Every few minutes, they pick up the phone to see if they have new notifications or messages.

Many specialists point out that this type of behavior can be classified as an addiction. And it affects everyone, regardless of age. Children imitate their parents, thus normalizing this behavior.

Here is a small list of some typical symptoms of being hooked on a cell phone:

You check it every two or three minutes.

When you wake up, the first thing you do is looking at your cell phone, and the last thing when you go to sleep too.

The truth is that it's very common to check your phone just when you wake up. I like doing that. At night, I prefer to read a bit.

You check your phone when you're with friends or family. It's sad, but in many family gatherings, we all check our cell phones at some point.

You eat while looking at your cell phone. If you are alone, you unlock your phone and start moving your finger vertically while disconnecting completely from real life.

If you leave your phone at home, it feels like it's the end of the world. And, you cannot know for sure if it’s the end of the world because you can't check it on your phone.

After making this list, it seems to me that I'm a little bit hooked, but only a little bit :)

Read the transcript here: speakEnglishpodcast.com

#143 Learn new Food Vocabulary in English part #2 ESL Oct 14, 2020

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Today you'll learn some more cooking vocabulary in English.

And with a mini-story, you will improve your speaking.

You'll see, it's like having a conversation with another person.

Do you remember that I talked about my kitchen appliances in a previous episode and explained some techniques I use when cooking?

I talked about using my blender to make a green smoothie, almond milk, soups, flours, batters, dough, nut butter, juices, and dips.

I also mentioned how I loved using my instant pot to pressure-cook, steam, boil, and even make yogurt with it.

I explained what a pressure cooker was, and how steaming works.

Today I'll continue talking about my cooking habits and my favorite appliances and kitchen tools.

I must say that I love buying a new kitchen appliance, and during the lockdown, I've purchased a lot of them.

For some reason, everyone started baking, so I really felt that it was the best moment to purchase a KitchenAid stand mixer. If you don't know what this is, let me explain.

It's a stand mixer; therefore, it's so much more convenient than a hand mixer. One of the reasons why I prefer using a stand mixer is because it allows me to multitask.

Read the transcript here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#142 My Student's Favorite Words in English part#2 Oct 07, 2020

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Today, I will continue to talk about the English words my students love.

Later, you will improve your grammar with a point of view lesson, so don’t miss out because it’s worth it!

If you haven’t heard the first episode on this topic, I recommend you do so.

So, my idea for today is to comment on some of those words. I think it will be fun.

Like in the previous episode, I will be commenting on the English words that my students have liked the most.

Okay, so, here’s the first one:

Faithfully (Jessica Alonso)

My students have always been faithful, from the moment I’ve started teaching English. Thank you everyone, for being faithful!

Yours faithfully.

Skills (Issa Capp)

Let me ask you a question.

How do you improve your English-speaking skills?

This one was easy. Right? You improve your speaking skills by listening to my premium courses and my podcast every day.

Peace (Guillermo Navío)

Who doesn’t want peace?

Peace is the absence of hostility and violence; it’s a concept of friendship and social harmony.

If peaceful conditions predominate in a society, all activities take place in their proper form.

Energy (Puentes Andres)

We all want to have more energy. If you don’t have enough of it, you can’t work or study, so, if we don’t have time to sleep, we choose to drink a lot of coffee.

Delightful (Richard Moreno Diaz)

Delightful is something or someone who is very pleasant, attractive, or enjoyable.

Examples:

“What a delightful day!”

“What a delightful surprise!”

“I wish you a delightful evening.”

“What a delightful person!”

I’d say that “delightful” is elegant and sophisticated, and you can use it in so many ways.

Beautiful (Saga Saint)

Beautiful is such an amazing word, but unfortunately, we tend to overuse it.

Let’s learn some other ways to say beautiful:

Instead of beautiful, say:

Appealing

Gorgeous

Stunning

Ravishing

Pretty

Lovely

Dazzling

Attractive

Good-looking.

Amazing (Marcela García)

Amazing is something that causes great surprise.

Some synonyms are: impressive, excellent, or astonishing.

Examples:

“What an amazing picture you have here.”

“Ann was very impressive in the interview.”

“Her facility for languages is astonishing.”

“He congratulated me for my excellent exam results.”

(END OF THE EXTRACT).

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#141 Food and Cooking Vocabulary in English ESL Oct 02, 2020

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

In this episode, I’d like to include some food and cooking vocabulary.

And with a mini-story, you will improve your English fluency.

You’ll see, it’s like having a conversation with another person.

You know, when I enter the kitchen, the first thought that I have is… Why am I here? Yeah. I’m hungry. That’s why. Now I remember. 🙂

I open the refrigerator and start scanning for some delicious food.

Since I don’t buy ready-made food, I usually stare at the fridge for some minutes until it starts beeping. Then I close it and open it again to continue scanning.

And I’m not saying my refrigerator isn’t well organized; it’s just that I’m looking for something that I can prepare in 1 minute, or preferably even less.

Many times, I end up making a green smoothie. That’s a fast and easy way of getting all the needed nutrients. And plus, smoothies are delicious.

By the way, a smoothie is a thick drink that you can make using fruits, vegetables, greens, seeds, milk, ice, etc.

Like I said earlier, I usually end up making a green smoothie. Don’t panic. It’s green but really yummy.

I add some water or milk, one avocado, 1/2 cup of pineapple, 1/2 frozen banana, 2 cups of spinach, and 1/2 cup of ice cubes. I put it at speed 10 for 45 seconds, and the smoothie is ready. Delicious!

By the way, in case you were wondering, I use a Vitamix blender to prepare my smoothies.

And I don’t use it only for that. I also make frozen desserts with it, soups, I can make flours with it, almond milk, batters, dough, nut butter, juices, dips, etc. It’s very versatile.

Whenever I’m not in the mood for a smoothie, and I want to eat healthy and fast, I use a pressure cooker or a frying pan.

A frying pan is simply a metal pan with a handle that we use for frying foods.

A pressure cooker is an airtight pot where the food is cooked quickly under steam pressure.

I love using a pressure cooker because whatever I throw into the pot comes out delicious. I’m not here to promote any brands, but I’m really happy with my Instant pot cooker.

Read the transcript here: speakenglishpodcast.com

#140 My students' favorite words in English Sep 24, 2020

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Today I'm going to do something different. I'm going to comment on my students' favorite words in English. It will be interesting. Later, you will improve your fluency with a fun mini-story, so don't miss out because it's worth it!

I want to start by thanking you for your support. I also like your messages, where you describe your experience with the podcast and my premium courses.

Well, some time ago, in the Speak English Now student group, I asked the following question: "What is your favorite word in English?" I was expecting a few comments, but in the end, there were more than a hundred.

So, my idea for today is to comment on some of those words. I think it will be fun.

Okay, so here’s the first one:

Ewa Filipina says her favorite word in English is "mesmerize."

I’d like to mention that the word mesmerize is considered by many one of the most beautiful words in English.

It means to get someone's attention completely, so they can't think about anything else.

Let's continue!

Isaac Figueroa says he likes the word famous. Of course, many people want to be famous, or at least they admire a celebrity. I guess it's human nature. :)

Juan Ambrosio said he loves the word love.

I guess the word love is one of the most used in English. And we don't always use it to express our feeling of love for someone.

The word love is so overused that I feel it has lost its true meaning.

But still, it's a beautiful word. And if you say it to the right person, it can be very powerful.

Pedro Ochoa likes the word apple.

I'm not sure why you like this word in particular, but when people hear this word, they think of a fruit or an iPhone. :)) I always admired Steve Jobs, and I believe he was a genius, primarily because of the name he chose for his company.

Amanda Gues says her favorite word in English is "improve."Of course, if you are following my method, then your goal is to improve your English. So, Amanda, let us know how your English is improving.

Let's continue!

Jumita Rahmy likes the word Friday.

And who doesn't?

On Friday, you eat and even dress differently, it's the day when things end, and better things start, the day is shorter, and no bad things happen on Fridays.

That's why everyone's looking forward to Friday.

Lucilene Resende likes the word jeopardize. Jeopardize means to put something or someone in danger of being harmed or damaged.

For example:"If I quit learning English, I will jeopardize my future."

So, don't quit learning English. Follow my method. :)

Kashif Hussain says his favorite word is gorgeous.

Gorgeous is a great word, and I used it in my podcast episodes, mostly when I talked about the most beautiful English words.

It's a word that can be used to compliment someone's appearance or their accessories, etc. I use it all the time!

(END OF THE EXTRACT).

Get the FULL TRANSCRIPT here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#139 How to activate your English vocabulary - ESL Sep 19, 2020

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

In this episode:

– I’m going to talk briefly about how to activate your English vocabulary.

– Next, I will comment on the appearance of mysterious islands. Sometimes, on a given day, certain people have seen some structures on the horizon that have caused an element of surprise. What could it be?

– Finally, we will practice fluency with a short mini-story of questions and answers—the best exercise to speak without translating mentally.

First of all, I want to thank all of you who are writing to me. I read all the emails personally, and I also answer them myself.

One question I sometimes get is this:

How can I activate my English vocabulary?

I’ve covered this topic before, but I think it’s worth remembering. Most of the time, students understand much more than they can talk. That is, they have a lot of passive vocabulary, but no active vocabulary ready to be used in a conversation.

An easy way to improve, but sometimes not too obvious, is to listen to the same audio several times. This is one of the techniques I use in my premium courses, although you can also use this podcast.

Let’s say you have short audio with some vocabulary and expressions you want to activate. If you listen to it once, even if you understand it, you will forget most things, but if you listen, for example, once a day for a week, you will surely activate an essential part of the vocabulary.

Another way to increase the number of repetitions of words is to listen to a specific topic. This way, you are much more likely to hear many times the vocabulary that is characteristic of the topic.

Finally, you can listen to the same author, even if they speak about different subjects.

A useful resource is this podcast.

READ the TRANSCRIPT here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#138 Speak Like an American (rep) Sep 10, 2020

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently

In this episode:

• I’d like to help you to understand how to use words like Gonna, Wanna, Gotta, and similar.

• Later, a point of view story to practice your English grammar, and consolidate the information that I’ll be teaching in the first part.

Let’s get started!

Are you confused about how and when to use the words GONNA, WANNA, and GOTTA?

We refer to these kinds of words as contractions.

What’s a contraction?

A contraction is created when two words in a row come together and become one.

For example:

I am= I’m

It is = It’s

Do not = Don’t

Will not= Won’t

These are some contractions which are accepted as grammatically correct and are taught in all English courses.

However, in this lesson, I’ll focus on the informal contractions. These are not taught in grammar books because their use is mostly colloquial.

For example:

If you say going to really fast, you can shorten it to GONNA by dropping the final sound. If you say want to really fast, it shortens to WANNA. These are informal contractions.

You probably noticed that the grammatically correct English we learn in school is not the same as the colloquial English in the street. However, informal contractions are very common in colloquial English.

That’s why you should familiarize yourself with them. You don’t need to start using them right away. The most important step is to make sure that you understand how to use these informal contractions.

Many conventional teachers sustain that it’s wrong or inappropriate to use these colloquial contractions when speaking English in formal situations.

But let me tell you that words like “gonna,” “wanna,” and “gotta” are perfectly OK to use in all spoken situations, both formal and informal.

In the US, everyone seems to use “gonna” and “wanna”; even highly educated people use these words several times a day. People in business meetings, professors giving lectures, everyone.

So, don’t worry. You can also use them, and you’ll sound just like an American.

Read the transcript here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#137 How to make listening in English fun (rep) Sep 03, 2020

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

In this episode:

I'm going to give you seven ideas you can use when you perform repeated listening.
After that, I'm going to read a Point Of View story. It' an excellent technique for improving your grammar.

Ok, let's start!

As you may know, I always encourage students to listen daily. Listening is the best way to deeply learn the different sounds, words, and expressions you find in English. It's how we learn our mother tongue.

Also, it's vital to understand that listening to an audio several times helps you consolidate what you learn.

However, some students complain that they get bored. It's normal. Our brain likes new and fresh content. In other words, we like the novelty.

Here are some tricks, which will help you to keep your interest while you repeat the same audio material.

Try to guess what the speaker will say next: At first, it may seem difficult, but since you repeat the audio many times, it's a stimulating game to play.
Focus on the pronunciation of each word, especially the words you find more difficult to pronounce. Try to notice the subtleties of each sound.
Concentrate on the intonation of each sentence. As opposed to the pronunciation of individual words, here, you need to pay attention to the "musicality" of the sentence: the rhythm and the "music" of the phrase.
If you are listening to a mini-story (with questions and answers), try to answer faster. You can also try to give a longer answer.
While you listen to the audio, imitate the narrator. Listen to the material and try your best to talk at the same time as the narrator.

It may be hard, but it's fun! This technique is called "shadowing" and requires a lot of concentration. So, it's better if you pick an easy material.

Try to move while listening. You can walk, run, wash the dishes, etc. Doing a different activity while listening to the same audio adds some variety.
Listen to a friend. It's always more entertaining to share a task and to discuss the main topic with a friend. You will definitely lose track of time.

As you can see, repeating the same audio material doesn't need to be a tedious task. Using some of these powerful methods will help you to learn English patterns thoroughly.

Read the transcript here: SpeakEnglishpodcast.com

#136 Phrasal Verbs with GET in English (rep) - ESL Aug 27, 2020

Hello, everybody! I am Georgiana founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you to speak English fluently.

In this episode:

•I'll be discussing some more about some of the most common phrasal verbs.
•After that, you'll be able to practice your grammar skills with an interesting Point of View lesson.

Ok, let's continue with the phrasal verbs. A phrasal verb is just a verb and a particle. For example, "get in." If you haven't checked out the first episode about phrasal verbs, please do it.

Remember, you only need to learn the most frequently used phrasal verbs. Also, instead of learning all the different meanings of each phrasal verb, simply learn one or two common meanings.

Ok, let's get started! Today, we'll play a bit with "get."

Get along / get on

Do you have friends? Then, you'll probably use this phrasal verb. It means to like each other. For example:

I'm surprised how well I get along with my mother-in-law.

The older and younger members get along well.

I get along very well with foreign people.

You can also use "get on" instead of "get along." It's exactly the same meaning. For example:

I'm surprised how well I get on with my mother-in-law.

The older and younger members get on well.

I get on very well with foreign people.

Go back / Come back / Get back

Sometimes these phrasal verbs are confusing for the English students. First, let's see the difference between 'go' and 'come.' An example:

Please, Jim, come here. I need to talk to you.

Please, Jim, go to the supermarket to buy some food.

As you can see, when Jim approaches you, he "comes." When Jim doesn't approach you and goes somewhere else, he "goes."

Now let's add the word 'back':

Jim, come back from the supermarket. I've just ordered a pizza.

In this first example, Jim is at the supermarket and returns to where he was before. Another example:

Tomorrow, Jim will have to go back to the supermarket to buy more food.

In the second example, Jim goes to the supermarket again. He went the day before.

As you can see, adding the word 'back' emphasizes the idea that you go again to a place or you come again from a place.

So, how about "get back"? It has virtually the same meaning. Here’s not so important if you go or if you come. It sounds a bit more informal.

We didn't get back from the movies until midnight.

Call me when you get back.

I visited my uncle in France two years ago, and I can't wait to get back!

(end of the extract)

read the transcript here: speakenglishpodcast.com

#135 Reading, Writing, Speaking, or Listening in English? (rep) Aug 20, 2020

Hello, everybody! I am Georgiana founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you to speak English fluently.

In this episode, I’m going to talk about the relationship between reading, writing, speaking, and listening. After that, I’m going to tell you a Point of View Story.

Ok, let’s get started!

As a language student, the main activities to learn a new language are: reading, writing, listening, and speaking. This is what we naturally do in our mother tongue.

One key aspect to keep in mind is that we can categorize these activities as input and output. As you may guess, listening and reading are input activities, and writing and speaking are output activities.

In other words, when you’re listening or reading, you are being exposed to the language, and when you’re writing and speaking, you are “producing” the language.

The traditional approach tells you that the more you write and speak, the better. That’s why language schools insist on writing a lot and “practicing” your speaking with other students, sometimes in groups.

This seems reasonable, but it’s not effective. There’s a lot of research that points out the contrary: Basically, to develop your English, you need to do input activities most of the time.

Why is that? Because you can’t produce the language if you haven’t previously learned it, and the only way to learn it is through comprehensible input, as simple as that.

But then...is speaking and writing a waste of time? No, I didn’t say that.

When you speak in a conversation, you can see what areas of the language you need to improve. Then, when you listen again, you will naturally pay more attention to those areas. For example, if you’re in a conversation, and you have to describe something in the past tense. When you try to do it, you see that you make some mistakes. The next day, when you listen to your materials again, I bet you’ll pay more attention to the past.

A good schedule may be listening for one hour a day (a course, a podcast, etc.) and practicing your speaking with a tutor or friend a couple of times a week. You will improve a lot.

Last but not least, there’s an interesting consequence when you listen and when you read:

Listening will naturally help you with your speaking.

Reading will naturally help you with your writing.

Read the transcript here: speakEnglishPodcast.com

#134 How to talk about money in English – Warren Buffett (rep) Aug 12, 2020

Hello, everybody! I am Georgiana your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently. Speaking English is easier than it seems! You just have to use the right material and techniques.

Today I will talk about one of the wealthiest people in the world. His name is Warren Buffett.

Born in 1930 in Nebraska, Buffet is a fascinating character because of his inspiring story.

As a child, Buffett showed interest in stocks. He was writing stock prices on the board in his father’s office. His father was a stockbroker and future congressman.

And while nowadays most children play video games, Warren bought his first stock was at the age of 11 and filed his first taxes at age 13.

Because like many children of the Great Depression, Buffett grew up to respect the value of money.

He became so frugal that when he moved to New York to attend business school, he lived at the YMCA to save money.

“YMCA” is short for the Young Men’s Christian Association.

I also used the word “frugal,” which refers to someone careful when using money or food.

For example:

a frugal lifestyle.
a frugal meal of bread and soup.

However, you can replace the word “frugal” with the words “economical” or “sparing.”

Let’s continue.

Buffett started working at the age of 13 as a paperboy delivering newspapers in the morning and afternoon.

After graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree, he enrolled in Columbia School of Business, where he graduated with a Master of Science in Economics.

Only five years after his graduation, Warren started Buffett Partnership Ltd.

(END OF THE EXTRACT).

Get the FULL TEXT in PDF here:

www.speakenglishpodcast.com

#133 Summer Vacation Vocabulary in English ESL (rep) Aug 01, 2020

Listen to a new episode of Speak English Now Podcast, your favorite material for practicing your spoken and heard English. You will also learn about lifestyle and culture, language, vocabulary, and how to improve your English more effectively.

Transcript:

Hello, everybody! I am Georgiana your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently. Speaking English is easier than it seems! You just have to use the right material and techniques.

In today’s episode, I’ll give you some tips on how to spend your summer vacation, and you’ll speak English with a mini-story.

Before I go any further, I’d like to thank you for listening. I’m also a language learner, and I can identify with you and your goals, so I want to help you.

Do you know how you can help me? It would be great if you could share my podcast with your friends or write a review on iTunes, Youtube, or my Facebook page.

OK! Let’s start!

Time passes so quickly. I can’t believe it’s already August! And speaking of time, this is the last episode of the season. I’m going to take a short vacation to rest. But don’t worry because I’m going to upload a selection of episodes from other seasons so you can continue practicing your English.

So, I’ll be back in September with new, highly refreshing content. But in today’s episode, I thought it might help you think about what activities you can do during the summer vacation.

So, let’s see what you could do during this vacation:

Connecting with nature A very healthy activity that you can do is to go to a natural spot and enjoy nature. The idea is to relax and forget about exams or deadlines. Of course, you can take the opportunity to do a little exercise by going for a walk. Ideally, you should find a place without too many people, especially children. I am sure that in your country there are many places where you can quietly enjoy nature.

Wandering around the city

Okay, if you get bored with so much nature, you can do the opposite. You can wander around the city where we live. The word “wander” means to walk without a specific destination.

The idea is to rediscover the city where you live. Just let yourself be carried away and contemplate where your steps take you. We don’t do this kind of activity daily because we are always in a hurry. But now you have a good excuse.

Sleeping under the stars

Okay, I know this sounds very romantic, but I believe that if the weather is pleasant, it is worth spending a night contemplating the night sky while we sleep. But remember that the sun comes up very soon and that you won’t be able to sleep much with so much light. The advantage is that you will be able to see the sunrise as well.

Watch classic movies

Today, we are very used to watching the latest series and movies, although we shouldn’t forget about classic films. So, it’s a good time to rediscover films that marked an entire era. The quality won’t be 4k, but you’ll find real gems if you watch films from the ’60s, ‘70s, and ’80s, for example.

Well, these were my modest suggestions for your summer vacation. Obviously, you can opt for the usual, and go to the beach and get tanned. You can also take the opportunity to travel to another country. I like both: I want to relax on the beach, but I also want to discover a new city as a tourist.

And before I continue with a mini-story, I’d like to answer a common question. I’ll briefly explain the difference between my courses and the podcast.

I offer the episodes of the podcasts for free so that students all over the world become familiar with my method.

My English courses are separated from the podcast, and they are complete programs designed to improve fluency through stories, with the question & answers and point of view lessons.

Initially, the lessons are easier and the difficulty increases little by little. The first lessons are shorter, and I speak a little more slowly. This way you will adapt better to the whole program.

In addition to that, you have a step-by-step guide so that you can get the most out of my courses.

For more information about my courses go to:

courses.SpeakEnglishpodcast.com

Read the Transcript here: speakEnglishPodcast.com

#132 The differences between Bring, Carry, Take, and Fetch (rep) Jul 18, 2020

Transcript:

Hi, dear listener! I’m Georgiana, founder of the Speak English Now podcast. My mission is to help you to speak English fluently. Speaking English is way easier when you use the right material and techniques.

Do you know the difference between the words “bring,” “carry,” “fetch,” and “take?”

If the answer is no, this is going to be a very useful episode for you.

I’ll start by explaining the meaning of each of these terms with some examples.

And in the second part of this lesson, you are going to practice your speech with a funny mini-story.

If you are new here, visit my website to get the transcript of today’s episode. Go to: speakenglishpodcast.com

If you’re already familiar with this podcast, please share it with your friends and family. That would make me very happy!

Tell your friends that the show is available everywhere on the internet.

It’s available on my website and many podcast apps like Spotify, iTunes, Youtube, Facebook, Soundcloud, etc.

Just look for “Speak English Now with Georgiana,” and start learning English with me!”

Ok! Let’s begin this new episode!

When do we use the word “BRING”?

1) “Bring” means to conduct something/someone to come with, to, or toward the speaker.

Examples:

“Jason, please bring me a beer.”

“He brought his brother to the hospital.”

When do we use the word TAKE?

2) “Take” means taking something/someone away from where you are, or when the person making the request is NOT at the intended destination.”

Examples:

“Am I allowed to take library books home with me?”

“Can I take you to the movies tonight?”

“Could you take these files to Jame’s office?”

The following examples will help you to remember the differences between “bring” and “take“:

Examples:

“You bring something/someone here, and you take something there. “

“You bring something/someone toward a person, and you take something away from a person.”

So far, so good?

Ok. Let’s continue.

When do we use the word CARRY?

3) To “carry” means to move while holding something/someone, in a vehicle, in our hand or body. We use it when the person making the request is NOT at the intended destination.

Examples:

“Bill, would you please carry my suitcase?”

“Tom is carrying me in his arms.”

(END OF THE EXTRACT).

Get the FULL TEXT in PDF here.

#131  How to avoid awkward conversations in English  Jul 11, 2020

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Today, in this episode:

We're going to continue to see some bad strategies that I don't recommend in conversations.

Next, you will practice some grammar in an intuitive way with a point of view lesson.

Okay, let's start!

If you remember, last week, we saw some unwise ways to interact in a conversation.

Today we are going to continue with more things that we should not say or do when you have a conversation in English.

This is what we saw in the previous episode:

- Talking about the weather.

- Not listening to the other person.

- Talking too fast, too softly, not articulating well, or not pausing.

Talking about negative things.
Talking about boring things.
And my favorite: messing up. Remember, I told you how easy it is to mess up? That's why we always have to be careful.

If you didn't listen to the previous episode, I suggest you do it along with this one.

Cool! Let's look at some more bad strategies. This way, you can avoid having uncomfortable conversations in the future.

Interrupt others.

Interrupting someone always has its risks, especially in more formal settings or with people we don't know.

I don't like being interrupted at all, especially since I can lose track of what I was saying. This means that sometimes I don't remember exactly what I was going to say.

Of course, the worst thing is when they interrupt you to change the subject. Sometimes you just want to finish what you want to say, but they won't let you. Imagine you're telling a joke, and someone interrupts you. That completely ruins the moment.

Okay, let's move on to the next one:

Always wanting to be right.

It's a classic. We always want to be right, even with strangers. We always know best. However, it's better to be diplomatic and not try to impose on others.

Sometimes someone says something we know is not true. We have to evaluate whether it is worth correcting that person or simply expressing our disagreement. It all depends on the type of relationship we have with that person and whether different opinions are accepted.

Of course, if it is a brainstorming session, different points of view must be expressed. After all, this is the goal of the exercise.

READ the Transcript here: speakenglishpodcast.com

#130 Conversations in English (things you should not say) esl Jun 28, 2020

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Today, in this episode

Let's look at some bad strategies and attitudes that don't quite work in conversation. I mean, like having awkward conversations.

Next, you'll practice your fluency with a mini-story lesson—the best way to learn to speak English without translating mentally.

Okay, let's start with an important question:

Do you think that you are too old to learn English?

I have always thought that it is never too late to learn a language, and I have always had students of all ages using my method successfully.

But a few days ago, I received an email from a student in Greece, saying something like this:

Dear Georgiana, hello,

I'm delighted to see your programs.

I think you give your soul to every lesson.

My mother tongue is Greek, and I am proud because our language has a positive contribution to the English vocabulary.

I'm also proud that I try to improve my English even though I'm 94 years old.

Georgiana, I encourage you to continue with your English lessons.

I admire you!

Erotokritos

Thank you, dear Erotokritos, for your kind words. You are an inspiration for all of us.

So, you see, I think I've made my point. It's never too late to learn English.

All right, have you ever been with someone and not know what to talk about? It's happened to me sometimes. Every once in a while, we run into situations where it's difficult to continue the conversation.

One example is what happens in an elevator. Imagine that you meet a neighbor you hardly know, and a typical dialogue ends up going like this:

—Good morning.

—Going down?

—Yes.

— ...

— It's cold today, isn't it?

— Yes, yes. It's going to be like this all week, they say...

— ...

As you can see, this conversation is not very intellectual. It's more about avoiding silence, which can be uncomfortable.

This doesn't just happen in elevators but in all kinds of social interactions. I read recently that a silence of four seconds or more triggers anxiety.

It doesn't get any better when you have to speak in a language you are learning. You have even fewer resources to express yourself.

READ the TEXT here: speakenglishpodcast.com

#129 Beautiful words in English - esl Jun 20, 2020

Did you know that there are more than 1 million words in English? I know it's hard to believe, so keep counting, I mean keep listening. :)

Hi, everyone! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Today I will share with you 9 of the most beautiful words in English. And with the point of view story, you will learn grammar only by listening.

Ok. Let’s start!

In 2010, during a project to search for words in digitized books, researchers estimated a total of 1,000,000 words.

Yeah, I was a bit surprized by this, too, but there's an explanation for all this.

First of all, you need to take into account that they have included different forms of the same word. Also, many words are archaic since they are not used in modern English.

Speaking of archaic words, in the second edition of the Oxford English Dictionary, there are approximately 600,000 defined word forms. But that's because it includes many old-fashioned words. And also, the dictionary expands every year to keep up with new words being invented.

However, according to the BBC, the good news is that we only use about 170.000 words in English.

Yeah. I know. It's still a considerable number of words, but you don't need to know all these words to be able to have a conversation in English.

I actually believe it's a mistake to keep track of the number of words you know. If you want to learn English effectively, remember how you learned your mother tongue.

And let's face it, you don't know all the words that are included in the dictionary of your mother tongue. But that doesn't stop you from speaking fluently and eloquently.

Let's not forget that words are a powerful form of communication. I have selected the ones that I consider to be the most beautiful out of all the words in English.

1. CherishThe word cherish means having a deep appreciation for something or someone.

Example:"We all cherish our family, our home, our possessions, and I'm sure someone in your life cherishes you and the relationship they have with you."

2. Demure

We use the word demure when we refer to a person who is shy and polite. A demure outfit is a modest one.

Examples:"The girl was dressed very demurely for the occasion.""Her clothes were too demure for the occasion.""The girl was demure."

3. EbullienceHave you ever seen some puppies playing? The word that comes to mind is ebullience. Ebullience means excitement and enthusiasm.Just think of someone who is too noisy, almost euphoric.

Example:"I remember that when you were a kid, you would always burst into the room with your usual ebullience, and talk to everyone."

4. EleganceI'm sure you're smiling right now because this is a word you knew. However, it is still one of the most beautiful words in the English language.

Examples:"When she entered the room, everyone was amazed at her elegance.""We'll deal with this matter with the utmost diplomacy and elegance."

Read the text here: speakenglishpodcast.com

#128 William Shakespeare (part #2)- ESL Jun 05, 2020

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Today I'm gonna keep talking about William Shakespeare. Last week you learned some interesting facts about his life, so I will continue sharing some exciting facts about him.

What else do we know about Shakespeare?

Well, one thing is for sure. Shakespeare's life was anything but boring.

Did you know that we're probably spelling Shakespeare's name wrong?

We don't really know exactly how William Shakespeare wrote his name.

There are almost 80 different versions of Shakespeare's name that appear in the records and other historical documents.

You have to keep in mind that a lot of people were illiterate at that time.

Let's learn some more about his life:

His parents:

His father's name was John Shakespeare, and he was a glove maker and leatherworker. His mother, Mary Arden, was an heiress from a rich family.

His parents were probably illiterate, like many other people at the time. And, it's very likely they never learned to read or write, as was often the case with people in their position.

Shakespeare had seven siblings: Joan who only lived two months; Margaret; Gilbert, another Joan, Anne; Richard and also Edmund.

Did you know that William Shakespeare's Father Was Paid to Drink Beer?

You might find this interesting, but John Shakespeare was appointed to one of the city's most important public offices: official beer taster. Another word for beer in English is ale.

It may seem like a strange job today, but at the time, the ale tasting was an important and highly respected occupation.

Read the transcript here: speakenglishpodcast.com

#127 Who was William Shakespeare? esl May 22, 2020

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Today I’m going to talk about William Shakespeare and with a funny mini-story, you will practice your English speaking.

Before I get started, let me thank you for listening to the podcast and for all your amazing comments on iTunes, Facebook, YouTube, and on my website.

I also want to say hi to the Speak English Now community.

OK. Now let’s get started!

So, who was William Shakespeare, and why is he famous?

You know, I find it very hard to believe that you've never heard of William Shakespeare, but just in case I'll give you a brief introduction.

Although most people believe that William Shakespeare is the most celebrated British writer of all time, only a few know that he was also an actor.

And even though it's been over 400 years since he died, people still celebrate his work all over the world.

His plays were the most popular at the time, and I'm sure you've already heard of Macbeth, Romeo and Juliet, and Hamlet.

Well, I guess now you know who I'm talking about.

That's great! Let's continue!

So what else do we know about Shakespeare?

William Shakespeare was born in Stratford-upon-Avon, England, in 1564.

We're not really sure the exact day he was born, but we do know he was baptized on April 26 that same year.

Did he get married?

In 1582, he married Anne Hathaway, and the couple went on to have three children.

Wait a second. Anne Hathaway?

Yes, Shakespeare's wife's name was Anne Hathaway. But obviously, I don't mean the beautiful contemporary American actress.

So, what else do we know about Shakespeare?

We know he was a writer and wrote 37 plays.

Shakespeare wrote histories about the lives of kings and famous figures from history.

He also wrote comedies that end with a marriage and tragedies which end with the death of the main character.

Shakespeare also wrote plenty of poetry and, published a book of 154 sonnets.

Read the transcript here: speakenglishpodcast.com

#126 Did you stop improving your English?  Here’s why. May 04, 2020

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

In today's episode, I will talk about an issue that is of great concern to language students. It is the much-feared plateau.

What is a plateau? A plateau happens when you stop your progress despite continuing to do "all the right things."

An interesting expression for this situation is: to hit a plateau.

For example:

"It seems I hit a plateau because I can't see any progress with my English, and I'm still studying really hard!"

More literally, a plateau is a large flat area of land. This definition makes total sense because if you are walking on a plateau, you are not going up or down. You stay at the same height.

Plateaus are very common not only in learning a new language but in other areas—for example, a very common one is losing weight.

Imagine that you've been on a diet and have lost some weight. But then, after two months, you stop losing weight. You're still on a diet, but you're not losing weight anymore.

The main problem here is not the diet. It's just that the body needs some time before it starts losing weight again. It has to adapt to the new situation.

This type of situation is very tough because when we experience it for a while, we can easily lose motivation, and may end up giving up. It is essential to understand better why this happens so that we do not lose motivation and will to continue.

I'm sure many of you have experienced this.

When you started learning English, you were very motivated. You have spent a lot of time listening and answering questions, but now apparently, you are not experiencing any improvement.

Usually, when we start listening or reading in the language we are studying, we notice a constant improvement in our level.

Every day we learn new words, expressions, and structures. We are happy and pleased and want to keep learning more and more. This is a wonderful stage.

After some time, we no longer notice a considerable improvement, although we still see small improvements. So we don't worry too much and move on. But a bit later, our progress stagnates, and well, it's when we start worrying.

This situation makes us lose our motivation, and possibly, we are tempted to give up or at least postpone it, promising ourselves that we will continue to study with enthusiasm and motivation, but this seldom happens.

The main reason this happens to us is simple. Our brain needs time to consolidate, structure, order, polish, and finally automate all this new knowledge.

Learning a new language is not only about learning new words but also thinking differently. That's why I always insist that you have to learn in context. This way, you can observe how words are used in a sentence, and that takes time.

Think of it this way: when we learn math, we are using the conscious part of our brain to do calculations. To do this, we need to concentrate very hard. However, when we speak in our mother tongue, we can do this almost without attention and without effort. We can even do other kinds of activities while having a conversation.

Read the text here: www.SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#125 Learn English with The Beatles (rep) Apr 23, 2020

Hi everyone! I am Georgiana, founder of speakenglishpodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Today I’ll talk about the most famous band in the world. The Beatles! And you’ll practice your speaking with a funny mini-story.

Have you ever listened to The Beatles? Actually, let me rephrase that. When was the first time you listened to a Beatles song?

The Beatles are probably the most popular band in the history of music. They are considered by many to be the best band on Earth. The band was undoubtedly the most successful, with global sales exceeding 1.1 billion records.

They were initially famous for their light pop music, although their later works achieved a combination of popular and critical acclaim perhaps unprecedented in the 20th century.

Beatlemania began in the UK and exploded after The Beatles appeared on a popular TV show in the US in 1964. The band became a worldwide phenomenon with adoring fans and hysterical adulation.

The members of the group were John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr, all from England.

John Lennon was a singer-songwriter and peace activist who co-founded The Beatles.

Paul McCartney is a singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and composer. He has gained worldwide fame as a bassist and singer.

George Harrison was a musician, singer-songwriter, music and film producer who achieved international fame as The Beatles’ lead guitarist. He was often referred to as “The Quiet Beatle.”

Ringo Starr is a musician, singer-songwriter, and actor who gained worldwide fame as a Beatles drummer.

Read the transcript here: speakEnglishpodcast.com

#124 How to Learn English with Netflix (rep) Apr 19, 2020

Transcript:

Hi, everyone! I’m Georgiana, founder of speakenglishpodcast.com. My mission is to help you to speak English fluently.

In this episode, I’ll recommend some of my favorite TV shows that will help you with your English. I’ll give you some useful tips on how to use Netflix to improve your English. And later, you’ll practice your English speaking with an exciting mini-story.

Alright! Let’s start!

Netflix has changed the way we spend our free time. We spend a lot more time watching our favorite shows, so why not use all this time to speed up the way we learn English too? English-language TV shows can quickly introduce you to authentic English and can help keep you motivated and entertained as you learn. In today's episode, I'll let you know how watching TV can help you improve your language skills. You’ll stop feeling guilty about watching TV!

The next time your friends ask you what you did all weekend, you can proudly say that you spent all weekend watching TV.

Here’s what you can do while you’re watching a TV show in English:

1)Always choose an English show which you are interested in watching. And always use subtitles in English.

2) To make it easier for you to start watching TV series which you’ve already watched in your own language. Since you already know the plot, you’ll spend more time focusing on the language.

3)Practice listening to different accents. The more you listen to different accents, the easier you’ll understand them. Remember to use subtitles in English.

Here are some of my favorite TV shows in English:Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Discovery, Mad Men, Ozark, Suits, House of Cards, Outlander, The Good Place, Mozart in the Jungle, Silicon Valley, The Marvelous Miss Maisel.

READ transcript here: https://speakenglishpodcast.com

#123 How Americans celebrate Easter in the USA (rep) Apr 11, 2020

Hello, everybody! I am Georgiana your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Today we'll talk about something festive. Have you noticed that in springtime you go to your local supermarket and you see chocolate bunnies and colorful eggs everywhere?

Well, today I'll talk about Easter and how Americans celebrate this holiday.

And with a funny mini-story, you’ll practice your speaking while learning new things about the Easter holiday.

What exactly are we celebrating at Easter? Each spring, people all over the world, celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. This year we celebrate Easter on Sunday, April 21.

Whenever Easter comes, everywhere you go, you'll see from colorful eggs to Easter bunny cakes.

Also, most people have a week off for Easter, so parties are organized to enjoy the occasion with family and friends. Certainly, Easter is one of the most celebrated holidays in the United States.

And how else do Americans celebrate Easter?

Apart from spending this holiday with friends and family, some people attend special services which are held in churches on Easter.

And what's with the eggs and the rabbits? Why are they a symbol of this holiday?

Eggs and rabbits symbolize the rebirth and return to the fertility of nature in spring. The eggs are hard-boiled and decorated or made of plastic, candy, and of course, chocolate.

Read the full transcript here: speakenglishpodcast.com

#122 Global Pandemic What to do during the lockdown Apr 02, 2020

Hi everyone! I am Georgiana, founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Hi! How are you? Given the circumstances, I'm fine.

I hope it's the same with you too.

As you know, there is currently a pandemic affecting us globally. And in the previous episode, I talked about the recommendations of the authorities.

Today I want to make some personal suggestions on how to spend time during confinement. And with a fun mini-story, you can practice your spoken English.

You'll see. It's very effective. By answering many questions, you can practice and improve your speech, just like in a real conversation.

If you haven't listened to the last week's episode yet, visit my website speakenglishpodcast.com and search for episode #121.

Let's start!

How to cope with this situation? What to do during the confinement?

While staying informed is very important, it is better to take a break from time to time. It's not a good idea to always be watching the news, and especially on social media. In any case, hearing about the pandemic repeatedly can be disturbing.

Take care of your body.

Although you can't go for a walk like you used to, I suggest you at least stretch a bit. If you're like me and you like pilates or yoga, this would be an excellent time to do some exercises. Also, if you have a stationary bike or a stepper, they will become your best friends.

In general, make sure you take care of your body. Eating healthy and doing some exercise will help you think clearly and thus, cope much better with this situation.

Communication is more important than ever

Call your friends and family, and spend some time talking to them and not just about the pandemic. In the last few weeks, I'm spending more time than ever talking to my friends, even the ones I only talk to at Christmas.

Everybody feels like talking lately. Yesterday I went to take the dog for a short walk, and all my neighbors said hello, and I'm sure some of them weren't even my neighbors, which doesn't usually happen. I'm used to seeing people checking their cell phones, but lately, everyone wants to walk and talk.

Remain positive

When faced with significant challenges, especially if they are unexpected, it's very easy to become discouraged.

But I don't recommend it because it will only make you feel overwhelmed.

Whenever there is an obstacle, try to see it as an opportunity to grow. It's a chance to become a stronger human being, to be resilient.

Yes. Resilient. It's when you need to recover quickly from difficult conditions.

Avoid any stimulants.

In these situations, avoid taking any stimulants. And coffee is one of them. You'll have to drink infusions or water for a while. Keeping yourself hydrated will always help you feel better.

Make jokes and laugh.

Something happens to me when I get nervous. I start giggling, but unintentionally. I know it seems weird, but it's not just because I have a great sense of humor. It turns out that laughter releases hormones that calm you down and allow you to be in control.

Get some rest

Take all the time you need to relax and stop thinking about the problems.

I try to get some extra sleep in these circumstances. After I rest, I get my strength back, and I can see things from another perspective. I see things more clearly.

Not getting enough sleep will not only damage your health, but you won't be able to think clearly. And it's tough to stay calm when you can't think clearly.

If you can't sit still, you can stretch a bit, read a book or watch a movie. Whatever you choose.

I hope this lesson will be useful for learning English, above all. I also wanted to help you get through the confinement.

Read the transcript here: www.speakenglishpodcast.com

#121 Global Pandemic - About the Recommendations Mar 23, 2020

Listen to a new episode of Speak English Now Podcast, your favorite material for practicing your spoken and heard English. You will also learn about lifestyle and culture, language, vocabulary and how to improve your English more effectively.

Transcript:

Hi everyone! I am Georgiana, founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Hello, dear students, I hope you're well. I am alright, and I have prepared a special episode for you.

- We will practice expressions and vocabulary related to the recommendations of health authorities on how to limit the spread of this global pandemic.

We will also practice fluency with a new mini-story by using the term "should," among other structures.

As I'm sure you know, a global pandemic is affecting the health of many people and also our daily lives. I had planned to do another topic this week, but I think it's worth talking about this instead so that we can learn and practice relevant vocabulary.

I thought it would be a good idea to review the indications and recommendations that health authorities give us to prevent the spread of the virus. So in today's episode, we're going to learn some useful and relevant stuff.

Before continuing, and as a disclaimer, the only purpose of the episode is to learn English, not give medical advice. Today's episode is not intended as medical instruction or guidance. For any questions or concerns, please contact a doctor or the health authorities in your country.

Okay, now we continue :)

Wash your hands

I'm sure you've heard many times how important it is to wash your hands patiently. Apparently, you have to spend at least 20 seconds washing your hands. Yeah, I know 20 seconds seems like a lot, but you should do it just in case.

We have to wash every single finger and not forget the fingertips. It is especially important to wash regularly and particularly after coughing and sneezing.

Soap and water are the most effective. Alcohol-based disinfectant gels can also be used, but it is preferable to use soap instead.

Avoid touching your face.

I often touch my face without realizing it, and this is not good. We can become infected if we touch our face, especially when we have previously touched a contaminated surface. In particular, try not to touch your eyes, nose, or mouth. Some people have a habit of biting their nails. Please try not to do that. In any case, wash your hands.

Cover your mouth.

An important aspect when we sneeze or cough is to cover our mouth. A tissue is enough, but if we don't have one, we can cough or sneeze into our sleeve. If we do this in the air, we will be releasing the virus into the same space the others are breathing. Therefore, we have to be cautious.

Keep your distance from other people.

Maintain a distance of at least 3 feet (0.91 m) from other people. If you or someone else is sneezing or coughing, you should keep even more distance.

As a matter of common sense, the less contact we have with other people, the better. Every country is taking similar measures, so we have to respect what the authorities say.

Wearing a mask

I think wearing a mask is important, but I've seen people walking down the street practically alone and wearing masks. You only need to wear a mask if you are caring for an infected person and if you have a cough or sneeze often. Remember that we have to combine this with the above measures. Ah! And remember to wash your hands before touching the mask.

When traveling

With everything that is happening, I recommend not to travel. Besides, there are so many controls, and some countries are even closing their borders. If you really need to travel, take some masks and gloves with you in case you need them. And try to cooperate with the police and all the airport staff.

These people are probably more tired than you are, so it is best to try to help by following their instructions.

When you cook

When we handle food, for example, when we prepare it before cooking, it is important to disinfect the surfaces where we put it. Also, clean all utensils, such as knives. And although it is obvious to remember... wash your hands before doing anything.

When should you seek medical attention?

Finally, if you have a fever, cough, and difficulty breathing, it is best to seek medical attention. Call as soon as possible.

Also, if you are over 60 years old and have cardiovascular disease, diabetes, or a respiratory condition, you should take the precautions described above and try to avoid spaces with other people.

I hope this lesson has been useful, especially for learning English. Hopefully, all this will pass soon, and we can get back to normality.

Let’s continue with a mini-story.

[END of EXTRACT] Get the Transcript here: https://SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#120 Baking cooking vocabulary in English Mar 12, 2020

Transcript:

Hi everyone! I am Georgiana, founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

In today's lesson, I'll talk about baking. I'll teach you how to bake my favorite blueberry muffins. So if you want to enrich your English vocabulary and try out my favorite muffin recipe, I suggest that you continue listening.

And with a point of view lesson, you will improve your English grammar intuitively without memorizing any rules.

Unbelievable! Today is episode 120. That means you get over 120 free English lessons. If my podcast helps you, be sure to share it with your friends. That would mean a lot to me. Thank you.

Remember! You can get the transcript at speakenglishpodcast.com.

Ok, let's start!

I don't know about you, but I love baking.

And the easiest recipe I know, and the one my friends like best, is blueberry muffins.

People are very used to eating all sorts of pastries that contain an incredible amount of sugar, yet one of the things they love most about my cakes is the fact that I add very little sugar.

That's why I started baking. I'm not too fond of pies with a lot of sugar either.

So today, I'm going to share with you my blueberry muffin recipe.

Are you excited?

Oh, I'm sure that if you try these muffins, you're gonna love them.

If you've never heard the word muffin, then you probably know the term cupcake.

A cupcake is very similar to a muffin, but it is always sweet and often covered with frosting.

Wait a minute, what's frosting?

It's a sweet mixture that we use to decorate and fill cakes.

Muffins, on the other hand, are generally considered healthier than cupcakes. They are usually made with whole wheat flour and loaded with fruit.

It is not easy to describe how a muffin looks, but the only real difference between a slice of cake and a muffin is the shape. But just to give you an idea, a muffin looks like an oversized mushroom.

It's very easy to make them. It doesn't matter if you're a master chef or if you never set foot in the kitchen.

And all you need is 30 minutes, 10 minutes of preparation, and cook for 20 minutes.

And don't worry because you won't even need a food processor.

A food processor is an electric machine that cuts, slices, and mixes food quickly.

But in this case, you will only need a mixing bowl.

Before we start cooking, let's take a look at the ingredients we need for the muffins.

This is an essential step. You have to make sure you have all the ingredients ready before you start baking. This will speed up the preparation and ensure that no ingredients are missing.

This has happened to me more than once. The other day I wanted to make a carrot cake, and I was pretty sure I had some carrots in the refrigerator. It turns out that there weren't any carrots in the fridge, so I had to shop for groceries, and that ruined the moment.

Before we go any further, let's get a little better understanding of how we measure the ingredients.

In the US, we use cups, tablespoons, and teaspoons in our recipes.

To follow this recipe, you'll need some measuring cups and spoons. You can get them online or in your local store.

[END of EXTRACT]

Read the full transcript here: speakenglishpodcast.com

#119 Beauty and Makeup vocabulary in English Feb 26, 2020

Transcript:

Hi everyone! I am Georgiana, founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

In today's lesson, I'll talk about makeup. I've decided to introduce some basic vocabulary related to makeup products. So if you want to enrich your English vocabulary, I suggest that you continue listening.

Make sure you don't miss the mini-story. It will help you improve your English speaking, and you will have a great time.

Remember! You can get the transcript at speakenglishpodcast.com.

Let's see what beauty products we need for a basic look.

Most women want to be ready in 5 minutes and depending on the time that I have, or the occasion, I spend between 5 and 30 minutes doing my makeup.

If you are a makeup lover, you know that there are countless makeup products. So, remember that in this episode, I will focus on the basics.

OK, so, what's the first step?

Before I start, I'd like to mention some essential points like, how do we apply makeup? What makeup tools do we need for that?

There are so many options, but don't worry; I promise to keep it simple.

There are at least two makeup tools that you need to have in you collection: makeup brushes, and at least one makeup sponge, (also called a blender.)

Depending on the product you want to apply, you'll choose the right makeup tool.

Just keep in mind that many of the beauty items that I will mention come in a variety of textures. The most common ones are powder, liquid, cream, and gel.

So, let's start our makeup routine. Remember, you only have 5 minutes!

The foundation, as its name indicates, is where we apply the rest of the beauty products. It's a makeup product very similar to a cream, except that it should have the same color as your skin. We apply it all over the face or only on the spots where we choose to hide imperfections.

Concealer is a very similar product, but we use it to hide the dark circles under the eyes that make us look tired.

After applying foundation, we need to add some products on the cheeks:

Bronzer is a product that gives the impression that we've been in the sun the whole weekend. I would say that nowadays, it's the most loved makeup product together with the highlighter.

Wait a minute! What’s a highlighter?

It’s a cosmetic product that reflects light. It gives a youthful glow to the face and body.

Another thing that I like to apply is blush. This beauty product adds redness to the cheeks. It comes in a variety of colors like pink, peach, red, that imitate a natural flush.

[END of EXTRACT]

READ the transcript here: speakenglishpodcast.com

#118 Valentine's Day in the USA Feb 15, 2020

"Do you love me?"

“I love you more than the cookie monster loves cookies.”

Happy Valentine's Day, everybody! I am Georgiana, founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

In today’s episode, I will talk about Valentine’s Day in the United States. And with a mini-story you will improve your English speaking.

Remember! You can get the transcript at speakenglishpodcast.com.

Ok. Let’s get started!

Although it is a very commercial holiday, Valentine's Day has a fascinating history that goes back to ancient Rome! In the United States and other parts of the world, people celebrate February 14 by giving away candy hearts and red roses.

Historians believe that Valentine's Day originated in ancient Rome as a pagan fertility festival.

But despite its origins, in 1300, it officially became a holiday associated with love and romance.

The Roman Pope officially declared February 14, "Valentine's Day." It was then associated with love because many believed that birds began their mating season on February 14.

There was more than one St. Valentine.

There have been multiple St. Valentines throughout history, like a bishop and a pope.

But the most common one was the one who challenged Emperor Claudius II.

Back then, Claudius had forbidden marriage because he thought it would distract young soldiers.

However, Valentine disapproved, so he illegally married couples until he was captured.

After he was convicted, young couples would visit his cell and give him flowers and cards. It’s said that he died on February 14.

Let’s see how Americans celebrate Valentine’s Day nowadays.

Since 1840 sending cards became a tradition and Americans send out 145 million Valentines' Day cards every year.

Americans spend a lot of money on Valentine’s Day

About 50% of Americans celebrate Valentine's Day and spend about $19 billion a year, and over $2 billion on candy alone. That’s a lot of money, right?

But do you know where most of the money goes?

Americans spend almost 5 billion dollars on jewelry on Valentine's Day!

They also spend more than $3.7 billion on going out at night, followed by flowers, clothes, and candy.

Ok. Now let’s get a bit romantic.

Nearly 6 million couples get engaged on Valentine's Day.

As it turns out, Valentine's Day was voted the best day of the year to get engaged.

Because what better day to propose than a day devoted to love and romance?

For me, Valentine's Day is an opportunity to tell others how important they are in my life.

And what does Valentine's Day mean to you?

Ok! Let’s continue with a mini-story.

READ the TRANSCRIPT HERE: www.speakenglishpodcast.com

#117 Stop saying "I Think" in English Feb 08, 2020

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently. Speaking English is way easier than it seems! You just have to use the right material and techniques.

Do you often find yourself saying "I think" in a conversation? Well, today I'll teach you some new expressions that will enrich your English vocabulary and make you sound smarter.

Remember! You can get the transcript of this episode at speakenglishpodcast.com.

Ok. Let’s get started!

Hey, everybody! I'm back with a new episode. Unfortunately, I couldn't record a new episode last week because I had a cold. So, how are you? I hope you're okay. Leave some comments on Facebook, on my YouTube channel, or on my website to let me know how you're doing.

Let's start with today's topic.

When we learn a new language, and we don't yet master much vocabulary, so we tend to repeat the same expressions over and over again.

And even if people understand what you say, if you want to sound more like a native speaker, you need to expand your English vocabulary.

For example, as an English teacher, I have noticed that some English students tend to abuse the phrase "I think". Don't get me wrong, there's nothing terrible about starting a conversation like that, but it's always better to learn new expressions.

So, instead of repeating, "I think," just give your opinion and say: "In my opinion."

For example:

1)"In my opinion, you should stop memorizing grammar rules and listen to easy English audios."

"Tom likes you too much, in my opinion."As you can see, we can either place the expression at the beginning of a sentence or at the end.

Another way to start a conversation is by using the expression "If you ask me." 2) "If you ask me

Don't take this sentence literally. You can use this expression even though no one's asked you your opinion. It's just another way of saying what you think without using the word "think."

Example:

"If you ask me, he doesn't seem like a reliable worker."

"She’s just a bit crazy if you ask me."

3) Instead of saying, "I think," just say, "The way I see it."

As you probably guessed, we don't use this expression literally. It has nothing to do with someone's ability to see something. We use it to give our opinion.

Example

"The way I see it, you should get a job as soon as possible." "It’s the best thing that could ever happen to you, the way I see it."

4) Another great expression would be, "As far as I can see / As far as I’m concerned."

Example:

“As far as I can see, he has done nothing wrong yet.”

"That’s your own problem, as far as I can see."

"He can leave anywhere he wants as far as I’m concerned."

5) And if you want to be really honest about something, start your sentence by saying: "I honestly believe."

Examples:

"I honestly believe that she’s not the right candidate for this position."

"I honestly believe the worst is over."

"Do you honestly believe he’s gonna quit his job?"

Tell things from your point of view:

6) From my point of view

"From my point of view, you already have enough money."

"He has already done enough damage, from my point of view."

"It’s a great idea, from my point of view, to go on vacation next summer."

7) I assume

When you assume something, you accept something to be true without question or proof.

Examples:

"I assume David’s not coming to the meeting."

"You already invited him to the wedding, I assume."

8) I consider

"Although no progress has been made, I consider the outcome is positive."

"I consider she helped her family to overcome their financial difficulties."

9)It seems to me

Examples:

"It seems to me that he’s not an honest guy."

"It seems to me that things are gonna change very soon."

10) As far as I can tell.

We use this expression to tell someone what you believe to be true, based on what you've learned so far.

Examples:As far as I can tell, you’re not in a position to ask for explanations.

"He’s a good father, as far as I can tell."

Let's listen to the expressions one more time:

In my opinion
If you ask me
The way I see it
As far as I can see/as I’m concerned
I honestly believe
From my point of view
I assume
I consider
It seems to me
10.As far as I can tell

Now we've come to the most exciting moment of the episode. Yes, I got a mini story for you so you can practice your speaking.

Read the Transcript here: www.speakenglishpodcast.com

#116 Learn English proverbs Jan 23, 2020

Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently. Speaking English is way easier than it seems! You just have to use the right material and techniques.

Today, I’ll teach you some English proverbs. If you don’t know what proverbs are, continue listening.

And with a story, you will improve your grammar intuitively but without memorizing any rules!

Remember! You can get the transcript of this episode at speakenglishpodcast.com.

Ok. Let’s get started!

First of all, what’s a proverb?

A proverb is a popular saying that highlights the basic facts of life. Some of them are quite serious, although others are very funny.

Just like idioms, proverbs often have a greater meaning. It’s not just individual words put together.

Great. So, what's the difference between an expression and a proverb?

Many English learners find it hard to learn idioms, and that's because they don't usually make literal sense.

Proverbs, on the other hand, are easier to guess, although their significance is greater, usually more philosophical.

Let’s learn some proverbs:

1) Growing old is mandatory. Growing up? Definitely optional.

Oh, yeah! This first one is quite philosophical, and especially those who are growing old understand the meaning of this proverb.

While our body inevitably ages, our behavior doesn’t need to change. We can be young forever :)

2) Wise men don't need advice. Fools won't take it.

Usually foolish people don’t take any advice, otherwise they wouldn’t be foolish. Right?

3) Learn from the mistakes of others. You can't live long enough to make them all yourself.

Another wise proverb. Our lives are short, so it’s best to observe how other’s make mistakes and learn from them.

That's why we don't need to try everything ourselves. For example, we have been told that fire burns, so we don’t stick our hands in the oven when it is at a high temperature. Right?

Read the transcript here: SpeakEnglishpodcast.com

#115 English Pronunciation Training with Tongue Twisters Jan 16, 2020

Hello, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently. Speaking English is way easier than it seems! You just have to use the right material and techniques.

In this episode, I’ll introduce you to some new tongue twisters. It's not the first time I'm talking about tongue twisters. I've done two episodes in the past, so if you want to listen to them, look for episodes #083 and #087.

And with a mini-story, you will improve your fluency in English by answering questions, like in a real conversation.

Remember that you can get the text of this episode at speakenglishpodcast.com.

Before I start talking about tongue twisters, let me thank you for listening to my podcast.

I would like to start 2020 by thanking everyone for listening and for supporting my program by sharing it on social media with your friends and families. Thank you, everyone!

Ok. Let’s get started!

So, do you remember what a tongue twister is?

It can be a difficult phrase or sentence that we say quickly, usually because of a sequence of almost similar sounds.

For example, "Peter Piper picked a pickle of pickled peppers." By the way, if you want to learn Peter Piper's tongue twister, be sure to listen to episode #083.

Although children find them entertaining, tongue twisters are used by people who want to speak clearly, including actors, politicians, etc.

Tongue twisters allow us to practice pronunciation and agility when producing sounds in the language, and that’s why I’ve decided to share some more examples with you.

Are you ready?

Let’s go!

I'll start saying each tongue twister slowly, and then I'll go faster.

You will see that at first, they can seem very difficult. But don’t worry about it. Just make sure to have the text in front of you so that you can follow it better.

Let’s start!

Ok. So, I will say it very slowly:

1) I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream.

Again.

I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream. Are you ready to speed it up?

I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream.

Again.

I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream.

READ THE TRANSCRIPT HERE: speakenglishpodcast.com

#114 New Year's Resolution 2020 (rep) Jan 08, 2020

Transcript:

Hi, everybody! I’m Georgiana, founder of speakenglishpodcast.com. My mission is to help you to speak English fluently. Speaking English is way easier when you use the right material and techniques.

In this episode, let's take a look at the most common New Year's resolutions. Then you will practice your English fluency with a mini-story.

Alright! Let’s start!

By the way, if you are new here, visit my website to get the transcript of today's episode. Go to: speakenglishpodcast.com

If you're already familiar with this show, please share it with your friends and family. That would make me very happy!

Tell your friends that my podcast is available everywhere on the internet.

You can find it on my website and many podcast apps like Spotify, iTunes, YouTube, Facebook, SoundCloud, etc.

Just look for "Speak English Now with Georgiana," and start learning English with me!"

Well, first of all... Happy New Year!

How time flies! A new year has just begun.

It’s curious how the passage of time is perceived according to age. Young people don't think much about it. Middle-aged people think about the things they still want to achieve and realize that they have less and less time. Older people, on the other hand, remember the old days.

Don't worry; I won't get too philosophical in this lesson. :) I’ll go ahead and talk about New Year's resolutions.

As you know, when a new year comes, we all feel like doing many things. Also, we feel a bit guilty for having celebrated a little too much at Christmas.

Therefore in this episode, we will take a look at the most popular New Year's resolutions and practice new vocabulary.

And what’s a resolution?

A resolution is a firm decision to do something.

My new’s year resolution is to use high proven techniques, based on the natural learning of a second language, to help my students to speak English automatically.

Losing weight or going on a diet.

This resolution is a classic. After all the meals and alcoholic beverages, we decide to lose weight. Usually, this decision is made after a very generous meal. We are on a full stomach and solemnly decide that we are going to lose weight and that we are going on a diet.

Going to the gym

Another classic. It's funny how many people are paying their gym fee every month but never go. Sounds familiar? Then now it's the perfect excuse to start exercising. A friend of mine told me in October that he wasn't going to the gym, but that he would certainly start going in January. :)

[END of EXTRACT]

READ the TRANSCRIPT here: www.speakenglishpodcast.com

#113 Christmas Holidays 2019 (rep) Dec 18, 2019

Hi everyone! I’m your English teacher Georgiana, founder of speakenglishpodcast.com. My mission is to help you to speak English fluently.

In this episode, I’ll talk about the Christmas holidays. And after that, you’ll practice your English speaking with an exciting mini-story about a man dressed in red.

Alright! Let’s start!

Ah! It's Christmas at last! I don't know about you, but I love this time of year. I start to think about what presents to give to my family and friends. Normally I make a list, so I don't forget anyone. Can you imagine forgetting someone? That would be terrible! That's why I start very early to plan what presents to give to everyone.

Finding the right gift for someone can be difficult, so what I usually do is search online for gift ideas. And buying online helps me avoid the holiday crowds.

To really feel the Christmas spirit, I like preparing a pot with a delightful scent using orange, cinnamon, apple cider, and clove. I let everything boil throughout the day so that the fragrance spreads throughout the house.

At this time of year, I also love to listen to Christmas songs.

I can recommend some popular Christmas songs:

“All I want for Christmas is You” by Mariah Carey.
"Last Christmas" by Wham!
"Let It, Snow! Let It, Snow! Let It Snow!” by Frank Sinatra. "Jingle Bell Rock" by Bobby Helms.
and something from Michael Bublé’s Christmas album.

Plus, I enjoy placing Christmas lights and decorations. I sometimes use social media to find unique decorations.

Did you know that some Americans use popcorn threaded on a string to help decorate their Christmas Tree?

Or that in New England, you can find some shops called "Christmas Shops." There they sell Christmas decorations and toys throughout the entire year!

There are many classic Christmas movies that you can watch on TV at this time of year. Here are some examples:

It's A Wonderful Life (1946)
Holiday Inn (1942)
A Christmas Story (1983)
A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965)
Elf (2003)
Bad Santa (2003)
Love Actually (2003)
The Man Who Invented Christmas (2017)

And it wouldn't be Christmas without a tree! Christmas trees are the symbol of the season. I love having a real tree and decorate it along with my family and friends.

The Christmas trees tradition started in Germany in the 16th century. Protestant reformer Martin Luther first added lighted candles to a tree to remind his children of the wonders of God's creation.

Nowadays, many Americans buy a fresh evergreen tree or a plastic model and decorate it with lights and ornaments.

READ the TRANSCRIPT here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#112 How to replace the word Look in English Dec 12, 2019

Hi, everyone! I'm Georgiana, founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you to speak English fluently.

Today you will learn how to replace the word "look" in a sentence if you want to be more concise. I'll give you an example, depending on the context. In the previous episodes, I gave several examples of terms or expressions that you may use instead of "look". So make sure that you listen to the earlier episodes as well.

By the way, if you are new here, visit my website to get the transcript of today's episode. Go to: speakenglishpodcast.com

If you're already familiar with this show, please share it with your friends and family. That would make me very happy!

Tell your friends that my podcast is available everywhere on the internet.

You can find it on my website and many podcast apps like Spotify, iTunes, YouTube, Facebook, Soundcloud, etc.

Just look for "Speak English Now with Georgiana," and start learning English with me!"

We’ll start with the word to scan.

1)To scan

When we look over something quickly we "scan" it.

Let me explain.

Imagine you have to get out of the house, and you're in a hurry. Surprise, surprise, you can't find your keys or your sunglasses. By the way, that never happened to me. I was just kidding. Unfortunately, this occurs to me quite often.

So what do you do in this situation? You start looking for your keys or your sunglasses. Or you could also say that you're scanning the room for your keys. Can you see? That’s a more precise word to use in this situation.

We might scan a room at a party to see if our friend is there.

Example:

"I scanned the room to see if Mary was there."

"I need to scan some diagrams for my PowerPoint presentation."

2)To eye

The thing is that whenever we observe something we use our eyes, so this word is quite straightforward.

We use the word "eye" to express our interest in something.

We might eye the candies on the table even though we don't want the extra sugar.

Example:

"I have been eyeing that cake for hours now but I must resist, since I’m on a diet.

3)To examine

When we "examine" something, we inspect it closely.

A doctor might examine your body to make sure that you are healthy.

Example:

"Whenever I got a cut my mom examined it and then cleaned it for me."

4) To peer

When you can’t see something completely because your vision is obstructed, we can say that you are peering at it.

Examples:

"The girl was jumping up and down trying to peer out the window."

"George carefully peered inside the box."

5) To witness

This word is similar to "watch". It means that you saw something your own eyes, usually an event.

This word is often used in the field of criminal justice to say that someone "witnessed" a crime.

Examples:

"A friend told me she witnessed a crime last night.

"Jane returned to the witness stand. "

READ the TRANSCRIPT here: www.speakenglishpodcast.com

#111 How to compliment your partner in English Nov 16, 2019

Hi, dear students! I'm Georgiana, founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you to speak English fluently. Speaking English is way easier when you use the right material and techniques.

Although we don't celebrate Valentine's Day this time of the year, I think that as Christmas approaches, many of us spend more time with our partners. So today, I want to introduce some funny but useful compliments that will make your significant other, feel special.  There are all kinds of compliments: good, bad, original, ordinary, or funny ones. If you still don't know what they are, don't worry because I'll explain it to you.

Next, we will practice fluency with a mini-story on a very special competition related to today's topic.

Remember that you can get the text of the episode at SpeakEnglishPodcast.com.

As I said, today I'm going to talk about compliments, but first, let's define what they are. A compliment is basically a brief comment on an attribute or quality of a person. There are many types, and perhaps it is more common to say a compliment to a woman, although I think nowadays there are more and more women who compliment men.

I have to say some compliments are tasteless. That is to say, they are rude and instead create the opposite sense of what is intended.

My intention in this episode is to analyze some compliments I find to be especially witty or funny. Well, let's see the first one:

#1 "I don't have a favorite color. It's pretty much whatever you are wearing."

This is beautiful, and you can use it to congratulate a woman you're already dating. Let her know that you have noticed the color of her dress. Many women love it when our partners pay attention to what we're wearing.

#2 "I can't take my eyes off of you. Unless you notice me, then I'll quickly look away and act like it never happened."

Sometimes at the beginning of a relationship, you start doing silly things you've never done before. Although it may sound silly, it would be super cool if you would compliment someone like that. #3 "I'd be so happy to spend every minute of every day with you, but some days I have to do things."  The reality is that as much as we would like to spend all our time with our loved one, it's practically impossible. At least it's not feasible in the long term since someone has to pay the bills.

#4 "If you knew how much I think about you, I would be very embarrassed."  If there is one person in your life who is always on your mind, don't be afraid to let them know with this honest compliment.

#5 "It's not easy to be me. Which is why I need you."  I know, this one's a bit silly, but I think it's genuine and sweet. Whoever you tell this to, no matter if it's a man or a woman, will appreciate your honesty or at least make them smile.

READ the TEXT here: speakenglishpodcast.com

#110 Stop using the word LOOK in English part#2 Nov 06, 2019

Hi, dear students! I'm Georgiana, founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you to speak English fluently. Speaking English is way easier when you use the right material and techniques.

 Let’s talk again about the repetitive use of the word "look." Seriously, you gotta stop using the word "look" all the time. There are many more words that you can use instead. I will help you to choose the right one depending on the context.

Therefore, today, I will continue to enrich your vocabulary and help you to sound more like a native English speaker.

And with a point of view story, you will practice your English speaking and you will learn grammar without memorizing any rules. By the way, you can find my podcast everywhere on the internet.  If you need to read the transcript, I recommend you to listen to the podcast on my website SpeakEnglishPodcast.com   But you can also find it on Spotify, iTunes, YouTube, Soundcloud, etc. Just look for "Speak English Now with Georgiana," and start learning English with me!"  Ok! Let's learn some new words that replace the word "look."   #1) To watch We’ll start with the word "to watch."  Many students confuse "watch" with "see," so I will take a closer look at the difference between these two terms.

Two weeks ago, in episode #108, we saw that we use "see" to express the ability to discern visually. You are aware of your surroundings by using your eyes.  We use the term "watch" when we observe something happening in front of us or on television, for example. However, we don’t need to participate in what we see actively.

Examples: "Last night, I watched TV until 2 am." "As a kid, I always liked to watch a plane take off. "My friend Rachel and I watched a movie last night."

 #2) To view

We continue now with "view." For instance, you can view a presentation or a movie.

But if we want to be specific, we'll use "view" mostly when we're looking at something up close and examining it.

Examples: "Before you buy a property, make sure to view it a few times." "We’re excited to view your summer collection." "I normally view situations objectively, especially when it comes to business." #3) To Spot

We can use the word to spot literally or figuratively.  And what happens when you find something?

When you find something you are looking for, we can say that you have spotted it.

For example, you may spot a stain on a shirt.

Examples: "I know him so well that I could spot him even among a large crowd."

"I’m not sure if it’s easy to spot a cheap imitation."

"Unfortunately, you failed to spot the error. "

  #4) To Stare Another word you could use in order to replace "look" is "stare."  "Stare" is similar to "glare," but we don’t necessarily use it in a negative situation. For example, when you have a crush on someone, you might spend all day staring at them.

And if you have a pet, you might have already noticed how they stare at you whenever they are hungry.

Examples: "Stop staring at me like that! You're making me uncomfortable."

"We all stared at the beautiful girl next door."

"If you want to stare at him, at least don't make it so self-evident." #5) To inspect When you "inspect" something, you take an active role in examining something. Let's say that you inspect a house before you buy it. You can also inspect your friend's house, to get some decorating ideas.

Example: "You must inspect the vehicle before you purchase it." #6) To gaze This is another word you can use to replace the word "look." We use the word "gaze" when we are admiring something or someone. When you "gaze," you usually look at someone/something for a long time.

Examples: "Rachel gazed at Tom with admiration as he spoke."

"Bobby spends hours gazing out the window, waiting for his dad to come home."

READ the TEXT here: www.SpeakEnglishpodcast.com

#109 Halloween in America 2019 Oct 31, 2019

Hi, everyone!

I'm Georgiana, founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help YOU to speak English fluently.

In today's episode:

I'll be talking about one of the most celebrated holidays in the United States: Halloween. After that, you'll practice your speaking with a new mini-story, while enjoying my new Question & Answer story.

Very well. Let's get started!

Halloween is a holiday celebrated on the last day of October. I would say it's very popular because everybody's excited about it, especially children.

The word Halloween comes from an old English expression, "All Hallows' Eve," and it means the day before All Saints' Day.

Children of all ages really love Halloween because they can dress up in funny costumes and knock on their neighborhood doors shouting "Trick or Treat!". The neighbors usually give them candies.

The meaning of the phrase "Trick or Treat" is interesting. In this context, "treat" means getting the candies, and "trick" implies the consequence of not getting the sweets. It's like an innocent threat children make. Of course, kids get really excited when they knock on stranger's doors in their neighborhood.

Since Halloween originated as a celebration connected with evil spirits, the most common symbols are witches flying on broomsticks, ghosts, skeletons, black cats, etc. The black color is one of the traditional Halloween colors.

Of course, pumpkins are also a Halloween symbol. I'm sure you've seen them in movies. People empty pumpkin and put a candle inside to make a lamp.

How do you make a Halloween pumpkin?

· The first step is hollowing out the pumpkin.

· After we use a keyhole saw to cut the hole.

· When using a candle for illumination, you can cut the hole in the pumpkin's top.

· For electric lights, make the hole in the bottom or side so you can hide the cord.

READ THE FULL TEXT HERE: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#108 Stop using the word Look - part#1 Oct 25, 2019

Hi, dear student! I'm Georgiana, founder of the Speak English Now podcast. My mission is to help you to speak English fluently. Speaking English is way easier when you use the right material and techniques. I'm here to tell you to stop using the word "look" repeatedly. There are many more alternatives, and depending on the context, I will help you to choose the right one.

This lesson is intended to help you enrich your vocabulary and sound more like a native English speaker.

And with a mini-story, you will practice your English speaking.

But first, I would like to share with you a comment on Facebook from one of my students called Fernando Romero:

"Hello Georgiana, I'm fascinated by your method. I have improved my spoken English. Your podcasts are incredible... congratulations. Thank you!"

By the way, if you are new here, visit my website to get the transcript of today's episode. Go to: speakenglishpodcast.com

If you're already familiar with this show, please share it with your friends and family. That would make me very happy!

Tell your friends that my podcast is available everywhere on the internet.

You can find it on my website and many podcast apps like Spotify, iTunes, YouTube, Facebook, Soundcloud, etc.

Just look for "Speak English Now with Georgiana," and start learning English with me!" Do you know the difference between "glare" and "glance"? What about the difference between "looking" and "seeing"?

For a native English speaker, these words are different, although I know this is complicated for an English learner.

Ok! Let's learn some new words that replace the word "look." #1) To glare

If we glare at someone, we usually show them that we are angry because we often frown, and have a dark look on our faces.

People may glare at us when we do something they disagree with.

Examples:

"Georgie glared at her dad every time he asked her to tidy up her room." "She gave me such an icy glare I almost froze."

"Don't glare at me like that; you deserved to be scolded."

#2) To glance

However, when we glance, we take a quick look at something, but we don't concentrate on it for too long.

Usually, that happens when we don't want people to know we're seeing something or someone, so we "look" at it, in a natural way, but without making it self-evident.

Examples:

"During a meeting, Jim glanced at the clock on the wall."

"We fell in love at first glance."

"He could tell at a glance something was wrong with her.

#3) To catch a glimpse

When we "catch a glimpse," we barely see something, we see it for a brief time, as it goes by quickly.

Examples:

"Millions of people had gathered to catch a glimpse of her Royal Majesty.

"Did you catch a glimpse of that beautiful woman who just walked by?"

"We were hoping to catch a glimpse of the superstar."

READ the TEXT here: speakenglishpodcast.com

#107 Already, still and yet in English Oct 19, 2019

Hi, dear listener! I'm Georgiana, founder of the Speak English Now podcast. My mission is to help you to speak English fluently. Speaking English is way easier when you use the right material and techniques.

Do you have a hard time using the words Already, Still and Yet?

Well, today I’ll help you to understand how to use these three words.

And with a point of view story, you will learn grammar without memorizing any rules.

As you know, I don't teach grammar to my students. However, many of you have difficulties using the words: already, still, and yet. So in this episode, I'm going to explain how to use them.

Before I go any further, I want you to know that native English speakers do not learn these words by studying grammar. Not at all!

What’s the secret then? Well, they learn new words and expressions in context. And that's exactly the way you learned your own language.

Let's see some examples:

My idea is to give you a general sense of how to use these words. So I won't go into details, exceptions, etc. Because the only effective way to learn these subtleties is to listen and read in context.

Let's start with an example:

"It's 11 o'clock in the morning, and Finn is still in bed."

So here we have Finn. It's 11 o'clock, but Finn is STILL in bed. Here we emphasize the idea that the situation hasn't changed (Finn didn't get up.) even though it's late (it's 11 o'clock).

Now, let's say that Finn is a responsible guy and doesn't want to oversleep because he has many things to do.

For example:

"It's 6 o'clock in the morning, and Finn is already up and ready to go."

See? It's very early (6 in the morning), and Finn is ALREADY up. Since it's so early in the morning, we didn't expect our friend Finn to be awake.

Now back to the first example. This time I'm going to use the same example to explain how to use "YET."

"It's 11 o'clock in the morning, and Finn is still in bed."

(this was the first example)

If I want to use "YET," it will be something like this:

"It's 11 o'clock in the morning, and Finn's not up yet."

See? If we compare these two examples, they look very similar.

READ THE TEXT here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#106 The differences between Bring, Carry, Fetch, and Take - ESL Oct 03, 2019

Hi, dear listener! I'm Georgiana, founder of the Speak English Now podcast. My mission is to help you to speak English fluently. Speaking English is way easier when you use the right material and techniques.

Do you know the difference between the words "bring," "carry," "fetch," and "take?"

If the answer is no, this is going to be a very useful episode for you.

I'll start by explaining the meaning of each of these terms with some examples.

And in the second part of this lesson, you are going to practice your speech with a funny mini-story.

If you are new here, visit my website to get the transcript of today’s episode. Go to: speakenglishpodcast.com

If you're already familiar with this podcast, please share it with your friends and family. That would make me very happy!

Tell your friends that the show is available everywhere on the internet.

It’s available on my website and many podcast apps like Spotify, iTunes, YouTube, Facebook, Soundcloud, etc.

Just look for "Speak English Now with Georgiana," and start learning English with me!"

Ok! Let’s begin this new episode!

When do we use the word "BRING"?

1) "Bring" means to conduct something/someone to come with, to, or toward the speaker.

Examples:

"Jason, please bring me a beer."

"He brought his brother to the hospital."

When do we use the word TAKE?

2) "Take" means taking something/someone away from where you are, or when the person making the request is NOT at the intended destination."

Examples:

"Am I allowed to take library books home with me?"

"Can I take you to the movies tonight?"

"Could you take these files to Jame's office?"

Ok. Let’s continue.

(END OF THE EXTRACT).

READ THE TEXT here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#105 Back to school part #2 - ESL Sep 25, 2019

Listen to a new episode of Speak English Now Podcast, your favorite material for practicing your spoken and heard English. You will also learn about lifestyle and culture, language, vocabulary and how to improve your English more effectively.

Transcript:

Hi, dear listener! I'm Georgiana, founder of the Speak English Now podcast. My mission is to help you to speak English fluently. Speaking English is way easier when you use the right material and techniques.

In this episode, we continue learning more vocabulary related to school supplies.

And with an exclusive point of view story, you’ll learn grammar without memorizing any boring rules.

Ok. Let’s continue.

If you love this podcast, please share it with your friends and family. That would make me very happy!

The show is available everywhere on the internet!

However, you can also find the podcast on different apps like Spotify, iTunes, Youtube, Facebook, Soundcloud, etc.

Just look for "Speak English Now with Georgiana," and start learning English with me!"

Ok! Let’s start today’s lesson by going over the vocabulary used last week in episode #104.

In the previous episode, we talked about going back to school, focusing on the necessary material. We learned some new words.

Let’s listen to them one more time:

notebook
clips
paper sheets
pens
pencils
eraser
felt-tips
markers
ruler

Now it’s time to learn new vocabulary:

Let’s start!

Agenda

I think it's the most crucial element for a student. An agenda contains the days of the year and the holidays. So, the student can write down the dates of exams, activities, etc. In this way, in theory, everything is under control. I say this in theory because many times kids forget to write things down and it's chaos. I remember when I was little, I was a bit absent-minded and rarely wrote anything down. I once lost my agenda, and I still don't know how I passed the different courses.

Textbooks

One disadvantage of textbooks is that they are really heavy. This is something I didn't like when I was in school. Although I loved the way textbooks used to smell when they were new.

(END OF THE EXTRACT).

READ THE FULL TEXT here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#104 Back To School part #1 Sep 20, 2019

Hi, everybody! I'm Georgiana, your online English teacher. My mission is to help you to speak English fluently. Speaking English is way easier when you use the right material and techniques.

Since it's September, we're going back to school. At least in this episode, you will remember how exciting it used to be to start a new school year. We're going to check out vocabulary related to the school supplies that kids need when they go back to school, after the summer vacation.

And in the second part of this episode, you'll learn English grammar without studying any rules with an exclusive point of view story.

Before I go any further, I'd like to thank you for listening.

Did you know that there are over 10 million downloads of the Speak English Now podcast? I'm very excited because that means that my method really helps you improve your English speaking and listening skills.

Thanks again for listening and remember to share the podcast with your friends and family.

All right, let's get started!

We could use the expression "back to school" as a metaphor for this episode that kicks off this new season. You will continue to improve your English skills with my mini-stories and point of view lessons. But don't worry because you don't have to study or memorize anything, just listen and learn as children do with their mother tongue.

Each year, parents face significant challenges when purchasing school supplies for their children.

Since there's a wide range of vocabulary related to this topic, next week, I will continue talking about the same thing, though I’ll introduce more vocabulary. In any case, don't worry if you can't remember everything. You can listen several times to learn new words and expressions.

Well, here we go:

Notebooks

Basically, a notebook is made up of several sheets of paper which are joined together. Notebooks can be handy to use in the classroom. You can write exercises, copy things the teacher writes on the board, etc. In some cases, instead of notebooks, you simply use sheets of paper. The advantage of sheets of paper is that you don't carry so much weight. The disadvantage is that you can easily lose them. I remember that in the first year of high school, I started with notebooks, but in the second year, I only used sheets because the notebooks weighed a lot.

Clips

But if you want to organize the sheets of paper a little better, you can use some clips. Really a very useful invention.

Pens, pencils, and eraser.

Obviously, if you want to write, you're not going to do it with your finger. A pen is a good choice. The disadvantage of the pen over the pencil is that you can't erase what you write. On the other hand, if you write something down with a pencil, you can easily wipe it with an eraser.

Many students like to use different colors of pens. The most common colors are black, blue, and red.

As for pencils, most students use mechanical pencils. If you use classic pencils, you need a sharpener, also called a "pencil sharpener." That's how you sharpen your pencil.

Felt-tip pens

Felt-tip pens are like pens but are usually available in a variety of colors. They have many uses, from painting to highlighting. We don't generally use them for writing, although some children may like doing that. Teachers use red markers to correct exams.

Marker

When you study a text and find a relevant phrase, what you want is to remember it. You can use a marker for this. There are markers in several colors, so you can always create categories. In my opinion, you don't have to overuse colors, because otherwise, you leave the text like a rainbow. :)

If you don't have markers; what you can do is underline. Underlining is simple. You just have to make a roughly straight line below the text you want to stress. You can do it with a pencil or a "pen." I like to underline more than to mark, and I almost always do it with a pencil. This way, if I have underlined too much, I will still be able to erase those parts.

Ruler

Do you want to make straight lines? It' s almost impossible to do it without a tool. You need a ruler for that, and it's gonna be useful, especially in your geometry class.

READ the TEXT here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#103 Learn English Every Day (rep) Sep 12, 2019

Welcome to the Speak English Now Podcast, your resource for practicing your English speaking and listening. You will also learn about lifestyle and culture, language, vocabulary and how to learn English more effectively.

Transcript:

Hi, everybody! I’m Georgiana, your online English teacher. My mission is to help you to speak English fluently. Speaking English is way easier when you use the right material and techniques.

In the first part of today’s episode, I’ll show you how you can benefit from creating habits that help you with your English.

And in the second part of this episode, you’ll learn English grammar without studying any rules with an exclusive point of view story.

All right, let's get started! The first thing we have to keep in mind is that willpower is not as important as it seems. In fact, it’s quite limited. It's impossible to do anything consistently with willpower alone. We are not designed that way. We are creatures of habit, and essentially our life consists of a sum of habits. For example, think for a moment what you do when you wake up in the morning. Maybe you brush your teeth, make a cup of coffee and turn on your cell phone to check the social networks. I'm sure that I have mentioned in one of the previous episodes that I speak different languages. Let me tell you now what I do to maintain and improve different languages through habits. I don’t know about you, but I enjoy taking a walk every day. And every time I open the door I put on my air-pods, I press play, and I start listening to an audiobook or a podcast in German, French, Italian, Spanish or Portuguese. If I don't like what I hear, I simply select another content. What’s important is that I do this action almost without thinking, automatically. Of course, I don’t always listen to audiobooks or podcasts. Sometimes I just wanna relax and listen to music or not listen to anything at all. :)

And I don’t only listen when I go for a walk. I also listen to audiobooks or podcasts while I drive my car or even when I'm doing my chores at home.

Recently, I realized that in the last few years I've been listening to about 2000 hours of podcasts and audiobooks in several languages. That’s amazing! Right?

(END OF THE EXTRACT).

Get the transcript here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#102 Going to the Bank in English (rep) ESL Sep 05, 2019

Listen to a new episode of Speak English Now Podcast, your favorite material for practicing your spoken and heard English. You will also learn about lifestyle and culture, language, vocabulary and how to improve your English more effectively.

Transcript:

Hi, everybody! I’m Georgiana, your online English teacher. My mission is to help you to speak English fluently. Speaking English is way easier when you use the right material and techniques.

In the first part of this episode, I'm gonna talk about lending and borrowing something and how to get a loan from the bank.

And in the second part, you’ll practice your spoken English with a question and answer mini-story.

All right, let's get started!

Today I'd like to talk about loans and the related vocabulary. Loans have always been a feature in all countries, societies, and cultures. Person A has some money, and person B needs money. Then person A can lend money to person B.

When we talk about lending, we don't talk about giving. Giving means permanently, without a time limit. For example, if I say "I'll give you the car," it means that the car won’t be mine anymore, it'll be yours.

When someone gives a loan, it's under certain conditions. That is, he agrees to give money under certain conditions. You can say, "give a loan," or more formally "grant a loan."

(END OF THE EXTRACT).

Read the TEXT here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#101 English podcast - Shopping at the Supermarket ESL (rep) Aug 28, 2019

Are you a spender? Today I’m gonna talk about the tricks that supermarkets use to make you to buy more than necessary.
You’ll also improve your speaking with a funny mini-story.

Ok! Let’s start!

When you leave the supermarket, have you ever wondered why you spent more money than you originally planned?

I do :) If it happens to you, you may think that you don't know how to manage money, that you are a spender or simply that you don't have enough discipline, but don't worry, because supermarkets follow a whole series of very powerful marketing strategies that induce the buyer to buy, so don't feel too guilty :)

By the way, a spender is someone who spends money unnecessarily. And another interesting expression: "overspending," which means spending more than planned or necessary.

These supermarket strategies can simply be called tricks. The truth is that supermarkets have more tricks than a magician.

Let's take a look at a few of them, and learn some vocabulary on the subject.

The size of the cart matters.

The shopping cart is the element we push to add the products we want to buy. These trolleys, with time, have been increasing in size.

The logic is simple. Psychologically we feel more satisfied if we can fill the cart and, therefore, with a slightly larger cart, we tend to put more products inside.

The products they want to sell the most, are placed right at eye level.

We are lazy by nature, and therefore, all products that are visually easier to see, but overall easier to access, are also easier to sell.

Prices with decimals.

This is another classic seller's trick. For some reason, $9.99 seems a lot, much cheaper than 10 dollars. We save 1 cent! Wow! If we do this 100 million times, we'll save a million dollars :)

Read the TEXT here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#100 Going out in NYC - How to order a drink in English (rep) Aug 21, 2019

I'm Georgiana, founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. And I’m here to help YOU to speak English fluently and with confidence.

In this episode, I'll talk about going out at night. I’ll point out the most emblematic places where you can hang out in New York City at night, and I’ll teach you how to order a drink! I’ve also prepared a Point of View story so you can practice your grammar and vocabulary.

I’m not sure if you have noticed, but today you’re listening to episode 50 of the Speak English Now Podcast. It may not sound like a big deal to you, but in approximately one year I’ve posted 680 minutes of free material!! And it’s available on iTunes, Spotify, SoundCloud, Youtube, etc Thank you so much for helping me share the podcast with your friends and family. Remember to leave a comment on iTunes about the show. It would mean a lot to me!

Let's start the lesson. Today's gonna be fun!

It's Friday night, you call your friends and ask them: What are we doing tonight? And they say: Let’s go party! Or Let's go clubbing!

The expression “Let’s go party” doesn't mean going to a specific "party", but simply going out. Usually, it means going to clubs or music pubs.

People in their 20s and 30s usually have a drink in a bar first and then go to a club. Clubs are often pricey, and you don't just have to pay for the drinks. You’ll also need to pay for the club admission which is also expensive.

Now let me tell you where to go out at night in New York. I’ll suggest different locations:

For instance, if you wanna party in Manhattan surrounded by fashion models, celebrities, professional athletes and musicians, visit one of the city's exclusive nightclubs. It can be difficult to get into these places, but it's definitely not impossible.

READ the TEXT here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#099 Renting a car in English – ESL (rep) Aug 14, 2019

Hi everyone! I’m Georgiana; founder of SpeakEnglishPod.com. My mission is to help YOU speak English fluently.

Today I’ll be teaching you how to rent a car in English. The lesson is simple and to the point, so it’ll save you a lot of time when you really need to rent a vehicle.
And in the next section, you’ll practice your English speaking with a funny mini-story. Today’s story is about Brian, a middle-aged man who wants to go out with hot chicks. 🙂

It’s summer again, and many of you are seeking a holiday getaway. So today I’ll be teaching you how to rent a car.

First of all, you should start by comparing prices online. Consider doing your research by checking travel websites like Expedia, Kayak, or Hotwire.

Some of the most popular car hire agencies are Alamo, Avis, and Hertz.

Before deciding on an agency, ask about the additional charges because these charges will help you figure out which is the best deal. Some common rates include:

Underage-driver fees: it means that the agency charges an additional fee for a driver under 25.

Airport surcharges: This charge will make a big difference in the total amount. Basically, the agency will charge you a supplement for picking up a rental car at the airport.

Additional charges per driver: You’ll need to pay extra for having more than one person driving the rental.

READ the TEXT here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#098 How many times do you  need to listen in English? (rep) Aug 07, 2019

Hello, everybody! I am Georgiana your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently. In this episode, I will be talking about how many times we have to repeat an audio material in English. After that, you practice your conversation skills with a new mini-story. Ok, let’s get started!

As you may know, I always recommend you to listen to improve your English speaking. There are many studies, which suggest that there is a correlation between our level of the language and the hours we have been listening. In other words, the more you listen, the better. The more hours you spend listening, the quicker you improve.

Here’s an interesting question you might ask: “How many times do I have to listen to every piece of content?” Do I have to listen just one time? Or more than that?

What most students do is listen to certain content once or twice and then change to another material. The typical student thinks that the more variety, the better.

Well, variety is useful, but what you want is to consolidate what you listen, and the most effective way to achieve this is through repetition.

So, let’s say you are starting with English. You're a beginner. This is the situation where you need a lot of repetition. The reason is that you need to create the most common patterns in your head. That’s why you need to repeat many times. For example, let’s say you have a 5 minutes audio adapted to your level. Then, you can repeat the audio twenty, thirty, or even more times.

Yes! You heard me well! Twenty, thirty, or more times!

I’m not saying that you have to do it in one day. For example, you can repeat the audio three times every day for one week. This is only 15 minutes a day for seven days, which is 21 times. You can read and listen if you need to. Yes, it seems crazy, but I can assure you that this is very effective. You can learn a lot! And the most important thing is that you’re consolidating the phrases, the vocabulary, the pronunciation, and it becomes easier to use all of this in a conversation.

READ the TEXT here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#097 What to do during  the Summer Vacation ESL Aug 04, 2019

Hello, everybody! I am Georgiana your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently. Speaking English is easier than it seems! You just have to use the right material and techniques.

In today’s episode, I’ll give you some tips on how to spend your summer vacation, and you'll speak English with a mini-story.

Before I go any further, I'd like to thank you for listening. I’m also a language learner, and I can identify with you and your goals, so I want to help you.

Do you know how you can help me? It would be great if you could share my podcast with your friends or write a review on iTunes, YouTube, or my Facebook page.

OK. Let’s start.

Time passes so quickly. I can’t believe it’s already August. And speaking of time, this is the last episode of the season. I'm going to take a short vacation to rest. But don't worry because I'm going to upload a selection of episodes from other seasons so you can continue practicing your English.

So, I'll be back in September with new, highly refreshing content. But in today’s episode, I thought it might help you think about what activities you can do during the summer vacation.

So, let's see what you could do during this vacation:

Connecting with nature A very healthy activity that you can do is to go to a natural spot and enjoy nature. The idea is to relax and forget about exams or deadlines. Of course, you can take the opportunity to do a little exercise by going for a walk. Ideally, you should find a place without too many people, especially children. I am sure that in your country there are many places where you can quietly enjoy nature.

Read the TEXT here: speakenglishpodcast.com

#096 Obsolete Communication  Devices and Gadgets Jul 18, 2019

Speaking English is easier than it seems! You just have to use the right material and techniques.

Today we are going to be a bit nostalgic, and talk about some communication devices and gadgets that still exist nowadays, but are obsolete.  Let’s start!

Fax machine How did we share documents and letters before the email existed? Although many people sent a telegram or a letter, there was another device that we used, particularly in the professional field. Yes. I'm talking about the fax machine.

While some companies still use fax machines, no one has one of those machines at home. I guess we prefer to use an email because it's faster, takes up no space and it's free.

Nowadays, you can still send a fax without a fax machine. You only need to use your computer or a smartphone, because there are websites that offer this service.

Telegram And by the way, you'll be surprised to know that people still send telegrams.

No. I'm not referring to the Telegram Messenger app. You can send a telegram the old fashioned way or even online.  Landlines How about landline phones? Do you still have one of those at home? I can’t even remember when was the last time I had one of those. It was definitely a long time ago.

The landlines had no high-definition color display, no camera, and no Internet connection. They had a long cord so people could move it around the house. But that was inconvenient. I remember my landline phone was wireless and had a small black and white screen.

I was happy to move around the house without a cord, but it was a bulky phone, and the battery didn't last long. I just know that I’m grateful to have a smartphone now. :)

READ the TEXT here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#095  American vs. British  Vocabulary Differences (part 3)   Jul 04, 2019

Hello, everybody! I am Georgiana your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you to speak English fluently.

Two weeks ago, we started with a series of vocabulary differences between American and British English. Today we will continue this series, although we’ll focus on food vocabulary differences.

And with a point of view story, you’re gonna compare the different grammar points. It’s the perfect way to learn grammar and new vocabulary without memorizing.

Ok! Let’s start!

1)Zucchini

Maybe you aren’t familiar with this word.

It’s a long, thin vegetable with dark green skin. It looks similar to a cucumber, but it’s larger, and we don’t eat it in a salad.

Yes. I’m talking about a vegetable called zucchini. I love zucchini noodles and zucchini soup! You should try that out because it’s simply delicious!

In the United Kingdom, people use the word courgette, which comes from French.

American-zucchini

British- courgette

2)I’m sure you know the meaning of the following word.

I’m talking about the word cookie. Everybody loves chocolate cookies!

But do you know the meaning of the word biscuit?

That’s right. Biscuit has the same meaning as "cookie," though it’s used in the UK.

American-cookie

British- biscuit

3) There’s a purple vegetable, similar to an egg. Can you guess?

Exactly! An eggplant!

What do you think? Personally, I don't think eggplants look like an egg.

In British it’s called aubergine. It sounds funny because it’s also a word that comes from French.

American-eggplant

British- aubergine

4) Have you ever heard of jacket potatoes?

No. It’s not a potato that’s wearing a jacket.

In American English, we call them baked potatoes, but in British it’s called jacket potato.

Therefore, baked or jacket potatoes are usually well cooked, so they have a fluffy interior and a crisp skin.

American-baked potatoes

British- jacket potato.

READ the TRANSCRIPT here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#094 American vs. British Vocabulary Differences #2 Jun 28, 2019

Hello, everybody! I am Georgiana your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you to speak English fluently.

We all know that American and British English sound different most of the time. But did you know there is also a difference in vocabulary?

That’s right. There are spelling, vocabulary, and even specific grammar differences between the two.

Last week we started with a series of vocabulary differences between American and British English. Today we will continue this series, if you didn't listen to last week's episode, you might want to do so right now. Just go speakenglishpodcast.com and select episode #093.

And with a point of view story, you’re gonna compare the different grammar points. It’s the perfect way to learn grammar and new vocabulary without memorizing.

I’m going to tell you a word in American English, and I’ll ask you to guess what would be the equivalent word in British English.

1)Truck In American English with use the word truck when we refer to a large, heavy road vehicle used for carrying goods, materials, or troops.

Can you guess the equivalent in British?

Yes! In the United Kingdom, people use the word lorry.

American-truck

British- lorry

READ THE TEXT HERE: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#093 American vs British English - Vocabulary Differences Jun 20, 2019

Hello, everybody! I am Georgiana your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Today you will learn some new words in English, and compare the differences between American and British English. This episode is part 1 of a series. Because over the next few weeks, we will continue to learn new vocabulary differences between British and American English.

I'm going to make you guess each word, and then you're going to find out if you were using an American or a British word.

Let's start with the first word:

When we stop working for a few days, we take a break. Can you guess this word?

Yes! The correct word is vacation.

Vacation is an American word.

In British English, we usually use the word holiday.

British- Holiday

American-Vacation

2) Try guessing the next word:

Tell me what season comes after summer?

That's right! After summer comes fall.

So, what do you think?

Is the world fall an American or British English?

Time's up.

The word fall is used in American English. In British English, we use the word autumn.

British-Autumn

American-Fall

3) This new word is simple. Just try to think about babies. What do they wear?

Exactly! Babys wear diapers.

The word diaper is an American word.

But how do we say this in British?

In the UK, people use the word nappy.

British-Nappy

American-Diaper

4) And what do you do after drinking a lot of water?

Exactly! You go to the restroom or the bathroom.

However, in the United Kingdom, they use the word loo.

British-Loo

American-restroom (bathroom)

5) How do you watch Netflix? Of course, nowadays we have all kinds of devices. But try to think about the obvious way to watch your favorite show.

Yep. I'm talking about the word TV or television.

But did you know that in the UK they call it telly?

I think it sounds adorable!

British-Telly

American-TV (Television)

READ the TEXT here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#092 The Evolution of Cell Phones Jun 12, 2019

Welcome to Speak English Now Podcast. With your host Georgiana. The podcast that will help you to speak English fluently with no grammar and no textbooks.

Hi, everybody! I'm Georgiana, your online English teacher, and founder of speakenglishpodcast.com

My mission is to help you to speak English fluently.

I have a question for you. What was your first cell phone? I got my first cell phone in 1996, and it was a Motorola. I can’t remember the exact model, but it was very different from what we can find in stores nowadays. And yeah - with this type of cell phone, one could only make phone calls and send text messages. Now I have a smartphone, and I don’t make any phone calls anymore. Like everybody else, I tend to use WhatsApp, Telegram, Messages, FaceTime, or Skype.

I must have mentioned before that I love technology. Actually, without it, you could not listen to this podcast because I wouldn’t be able to record it :)

Ok, so let’s talk about cell phones and how people used to communicate before they were invented.

The smartphone couldn’t exist without the landline telephone. And do you know when it was developed?

Yes. A long time ago, in 1876. And the idea of the landline telephone was inspired by the telegraph.

We all know that telephones came before cell phones, but have you ever heard of car phones?

Yes! The original car phone weighed about 80 pounds, and this piece of technology was created in 1947.

Back then there was a limited number of people who used this car phone and there were 5 to 10-year waiting lists.

The car phone was a great invention, but luckily for us in 1973, Motorola created the DynaTAC 8000X - the first handheld cell phone.

It cost $4000, which would be $10000 today. However, the cell phone wasn’t available on the market until 1983.

Many of us complain that our smartphones run out of battery too soon. Do you how long the battery of the first cell phone would last?

Only 35 minutes!!!

And that’s not all. This cell phone would take 10 hours to charge!!! Can you imagine that?

I guess now you’re feeling grateful for having a smartphone. :)

As you can see, there is an incredible difference between the first cell phone and the ones available on the market nowadays.

So, the first cell phone was expensive, it weighed a lot, and the battery didn’t last much. That’s not something that can be sold to everybody. Therefore, very few people used a cell phone, and they were not for sale. They were leased.

And I’m not going to mention all cell phones invented in the last 40 years. Instead, I’m going to mention the first smartphone. Do you know when it was invented?

In 1992. And I’m not talking about an Apple cell phone. The first smartphone was the IBM SIMON. This phone was considered the first smartphone, the first touchscreen phone, and the first phone to have software apps.

It cost around $1100, which would be $1800 today. Not all affordable! So I guess the only businessman carried this smartphone.

Now I’ll mention some cell phones that were extremely popular in early 2000.

In 2002 Nokia 1100 became the best-selling cell phone of all time.

One of the most wanted cell phones in 2004 was Motorola Razr V3. I loved this cell phone, and I regret I didn’t buy it at the time. The funny thing is that yesterday I found it for sale on Amazon. It’s cheaper than it was in the past, but it can’t beat my current smartphone.

You probably know this already but in 2007 something amazing happened. Something that would forever change cell phones, the computer industry, and technology. Yes. I’m taking the original iPhone that was a complete success — selling more than 6 million units.

The original iPhone was the first cell phone without any physical keyboard.

This led to great controversy, and I’ll tell you all about with a mini-story.

For those of you Android users, you may be interested to know that in 2008, the smartphone HTC Dream was the first phone to run Android.

Do you know when the first Samsung Galaxy phone was released? Only ten years ago in 2009.

In 2016 Google Pixel was the first smartphone on the market to run entirely by Google.

For many, the phone feature has become the least used feature.

However, in the future phones could make another drastic change.

What do you think?

Read the TEXT here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#091 Getting a Driving License in the USA - ESL Jun 03, 2019

Welcome to Speak English Now Podcast. With your host Georgiana. The podcast that will help you to speak English fluently with no grammar and no textbooks.

Hi, everybody! I'm Georgiana, your online English teacher, and founder of speakenglishpodcast.com

My mission is to help you to speak English fluently.

Today you’ll learn how to get your driver’s license in the United States. And you’ll practice your speaking with a conversation simulator that I often refer to as mini-story. You’ll also find out some interesting facts about the legendary Formula 1 racing driver Michael Schumacher.

If you've never driven a car, you'll have to start with a learner's permit. You can take all the time you need before scheduling your appointment for the driving test. Before obtaining a driver's license, you must pass a written, driving, and vision test.

Ok! Let’s get started!

How do you get a Learner's Permit?

You'll have to read the driver's manual. And you will be required to take a written test based on your knowledge and understanding of the rules and regulations described in the driver's manual.

If you're under the age of 18, most states require you to get a learner's permit and hold it for about six months to a year before you can get a full license.

Also, to get a learner's permit, you must show legal documents to verify who you are and where you live.

Before you can take the written test and get your permit, you'll have to pay a fee. The amount of the fee is usually is under $100.

You will need to take a basic knowledge test based on the traffic rules and regulations discussed in the driver's manual before obtaining the learner's permit.

The learner's permit test typically focuses on your knowledge of signs and basic traffic rules such as using your turn signal and passing on the left.

To operate a motor vehicle, you must be able to see. If you cannot pass the eye exam, you must obtain eyeglasses or contact lenses to correct your vision before you are allowed to get your learner's permit.

READ THE TEXT HERE: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#090 Introvert vs Extrovert what's the difference? ESL May 27, 2019

Welcome to Speak English Now Podcast. With your host Georgiana. The podcast that will help you to speak English fluently with no grammar and no textbooks.

Hi, everybody! I'm Georgiana, your online English teacher, and founder of speakenglishpodcast.com

My mission is to help you to speak English fluently. Today I'd like to talk about introverts and extroverts, and at the end of the lesson, you'll be able to determine your personality type. And you'll learn how English grammar changes through a small point of view. We're going to meet Tom, a guy who doesn't like to be around people much.

So... how was your week? I hope everything went well. I've already recovered from the effort of decorating my house. If you don't know what I'm talking about, you can listen to episode #088.

Remember that you can find the text of this episode of my website speakenglishpodcast.com

Let's start!

What is extroversion?

Extroverts are usually the life of the party. With their outgoing and magnetic personality, they easily draw people to them.

So, if you want to know if you're an extrovert just think about how much you enjoy being and interacting with other people. Do you enjoy chatting and having long conversations with all kinds of people? Do you get bored when you're home alone? If the answers to most of these questions were "yes," then you are probably an extroverted person. That is, you are a very sociable person.

And apparently, there are more extroverts in the world than introverts.

Can you guess what Tom Hanks, Oprah, Johnny Depp, Madonna, and Jim Carrey have in common? That's right. They are all extroverts.

And... do you know how to tell me the opposite of extraversion? Well, this one is easy. The opposite word is introversion. If you like having your inner space, spending time alone with your stuff, then you are an introverted person.

By the way, make sure you don't confuse the term introversion with shyness. A shy person is someone anxious about interacting with people, especially strangers.

However, an introverted person simply prefers to spend less time with other people.

In my case, I enjoy going out, and I have a lot of friends, though from time to time I need some alone time. If you're an extrovert, you're probably asking yourself just how an introvert survives alone. Well, as an introvert when I'm at home I enjoy cooking something healthy and watch my favorite TV show on Netflix, other days I just read an interesting book.

And what do I do when I'm not at home? Well, I usually love going for a long walk as much as possible. It's a great way to relax and I often listen to an audiobook or a podcast. And no. I don't listen to the Speak English Now podcast. :) Although if you want to improve your English, you should definitely give it a try.

Anyways, the bottom line is that I consider myself moderately introverted. What about you? What's your personality type? Are you an introvert or an extrovert? I'd really love to know.

Famous people who are/were introverts:

Michael Jackson, Monroe, Britney Spears, Julia Roberts, and Lady Gaga.

READ the TEXT here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#089 - History of the USA- George Washington - ESL May 19, 2019

Welcome to Speak English Now Podcast. With your host Georgiana. The podcast that will help you to speak English fluently with no grammar and no textbooks.

Hi, everybody! I'm Georgiana, your online English teacher, and founder of speakenglishpodcast.com

My mission is to help you to speak English fluently.

Today I'd like to introduce you to American history. After all, if you really want to consolidate your English, you'll have to learn more about American culture and society.

And what better way to start than with George Washington the first president of the United States?

George Washington was the Commander-in-Chief of the Continental First Army that fought the British when the country was not yet established.

During the American Revolution, Washington led the colonial forces to victory over the British and was considered a national hero.

He became the first president of the United States in 1789 in the first American elections. He was also elected for a second term in 1793. Therefore, he was the only president to win 100 percent of the electoral votes.

In the United States, people celebrate George Washington's birthday on the third Monday in February. Like that people always have a day off even if his birthday falls during the weekend.

Many people want the holiday to celebrate the birthday of another president, Abraham Lincoln, who was also born in February. Therefore, different U.S. states have renamed the day Presidents Day.

READ THE TEXT HERE: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#088 How to Decorate your Home May 12, 2019

Welcome to Speak English Now Podcast. With your host Georgiana. The podcast that will help you to speak English fluently with no grammar and no textbooks.

Hi, everybody! I'm Georgiana, your online English teacher, and founder of speakenglishpodcast.com

My mission is to help you to speak English fluently.

You're probably wondering why it took me so long to publish a new episode. Well, I have a good excuse. Do you know what happened to me? I've been redecorating some rooms in my house.

I've been planning this for over a year, and I must confess that I've been too optimistic. I really thought that changing the decor of the house would be as easy as buying new furniture, a new couch and painting the walls.

However, as you can imagine, things were not that simple.

I must confess that I love decorating, but this time I had too many options, I just couldn't make up my mind, and I was postponing because I had too many ideas.

One of the quickest ways to refresh a room's appearance is to paint the walls. In theory, you should choose a color that complements your personality and fits your space.

Although first I had to find out the color of the furniture to match the color of the walls. In general, I want the room to look clean but also modern and a little sophisticated.

I also had to keep in mind that if I buy too much furniture, it will look too crowded, but if I didn't buy enough furniture, it would look empty and poor. So I had to find a balance.

Size is also important because you could buy furniture that is too big or too small. Small furniture in a large room can look ridiculous though it's not a good idea to add big furniture in a room either. You can imagine how terrible it would look.

And, of course, you have to stick to one style, as there are several options.

READ THE TEXT HERE: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#087 English accent reduction - Pronunciation practice with tongue twisters Apr 29, 2019

Welcome to Speak English Now Podcast. With your host Georgiana. The podcast that will help you to speak English fluently with no grammar and no textbooks.

Hi, everybody! I'm Georgiana, your online English teacher, and founder of speakenglishpodcast.com

My mission is to help you to speak English fluently.

Today I'll focus again on the English pronunciation particularly on the vowels with some funny tongue twisters. I'm sure you remember that I made another episode about tongue twisters just recently.

If you missed it just go to my website and listen to episode #083.

And in the second part of this episode, you'll learn English grammar without studying any rules with an exclusive point of view story.

Ok! Let's start!

But first, I’ll remind you what a tongue twister is. It’s usually a sentence that is difficult to say fast because the words in the sentence have very similar sounds.

For example: "Annie ate eight Arctic apples."

Tongue twisters allow us to practice pronunciation and, most importantly, agility when producing sounds in the language.

If you want to sound more like an American, it's vital to pronounce vowels correctly. The following tongue twisters will help you reduce your accent for the vowels "a," "e""o" and "u."

Like any other tongue twister, your goal is to recite as fast as possible and with few mistakes.

Okay. Now let's see some tongue twisters. I'll start saying each tongue twister slowly and then continue faster.

And while it's true that that at first, they can seem very difficult. Don't worry about it. Make sure to have the text in front of you because like that you can follow it better.

1. Excited executioner exercising his excising powers excessively.

2. Annie ate eight Arctic apples.

3. Mary Mac's mother's making Mary Mac marry me. My mother's making me marry Mary Mac. Will I always be so merry when Mary's taking care of me? Will I always be so merry when I marry Mary Mac?

4. Picky people pick Peter Pan Peanut-Butter,' tis the peanut-butter picky people pick!

5. I wish to wish, I dream to dream, I try to try, and I live to live, and I'd die to die, and I cry to cry, but I don't know why.

6. Near an ear, the nearer ear a nearly eerie ear.

READ the TEXT here: speakenglishpod.com

#086 How Americans celebrate Easter in the United States Apr 19, 2019

Hello, everybody! I am Georgiana your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Today we'll talk about something festive. Have you noticed that in springtime you go to your local supermarket and you see chocolate bunnies and colorful eggs everywhere?

Well, today I'll talk about Easter and how Americans celebrate this holiday.

And with a funny mini-story, you’ll practice your speaking while learning new things about the Easter holiday.

What exactly are we celebrating at Easter? Each spring people all over the world, celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ. This year we celebrate Easter on Sunday, April 21.

Whenever Easter comes, everywhere you go you'll see from colorful eggs to Easter bunny cakes.

Also, most people have a week off for Easter, so parties are organized to enjoy the occasion with family and friends. Certainly, Easter is one of the most celebrated holidays in the United States.

And how else do Americans celebrate Easter?

Apart from spending this holiday with friends and family, some people attend special services which are held in churches on Easter.

And what's with the eggs and the rabbits? Why are they a symbol of this holiday?

READ THE TEXT HERE: SpeakEnglishPod.com

#085 Food Idioms in English to sound like an English native speaker Apr 14, 2019

Hi everyone! I am Georgiana, founder of speakenglishpodcast.com. My mission is to help you to speak English fluently.

Do you want to sound more like an English native speaker?

Well, today you’ll learn 6 new popular expressions in English related to food. After that, I’ll practice your speaking with a funny mini-story.

Ok. Let’s learn some new idioms:

There's a type of food that always makes us feel better because it reminds us of our childhood. That kind of food is called COMFORT FOOD.

We eat comfort food because it comforts us. Although we tend to feel better after eating this type of food, it is not necessarily healthy food.

Example:

“After a tiring day, it’s so wonderful to cook some comfort food and read a good book.”

And who doesn’t like eating cake? I just can’t say no to a piece of cake. And when something is extremely easy to do we say it’s a PIECE OF CAKE.

However, this expression doesn’t have anything to do with food.

There’s another similar expression. Instead of “piece of cake” you could say “AS EASY AS PIE.”

Examples:

“I thought the test would be difficult, but it was a piece of cake.”

“Compared to learning Japanese, learning English was as easy as pie.”

But you know what? Sadly, there are times when YOU CAN’T HAVE YOUR CAKE AND EAT IT TOO.

Yeah! You guessed right! This is another expression :)

When someone says “you can’t have your cake and eat it too” they mean that you can't have two incompatible things at the same time.

In other words, the cake cannot be eaten and saved for later.

Example:

“James works too hard to pay for that luxurious house. The irony here is that he never has any time to stay at home and enjoy it. I guess he can't have his cake and eat it too.”

READ THE TEXT HERE: speakenglishpodcast.com

#084 Friends TV Series - Learn English with TV shows Apr 07, 2019

Hello, everybody! I am Georgiana your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently. Speaking English is easier than it seems! You just have to use the right material and techniques.

Hey, do you watch TV series to practice your English? Let’s talk about that. One of the most popular series of all time is...can you guess it? No, it’s not House of Cards. Let me give you a hint: Currently, it’s the most watched TV show on Netflix. Still, not a clue? Well, I’m talking about “Friends”. You know: Rachel and Ross, Monica and Chandler, Joey and Phoebe. Right?

Not only is “Friends” entertaining, but also it’s an excellent resource for improving your informal English by learning tons of phrasal verbs, and slang.

In this episode, I’d like to talk about this TV show. By the way, I recently rewatched all the seasons in a row. That’s called binge-watching. And boy how I enjoyed it!

Apparently, when you are binge-watching your favorite show, your brain is continually producing dopamine, so it becomes an addiction.

The TV show has ten seasons, and the duration of each episode is 30 minutes. And I guess half an hour is more than enough. Besides, that makes it even more addictive. As the episodes are short, you end up watching 3 or 5 in a row.

Some say that “Friends” is still one of the most popular television series of all time for a reason: it’s not just a TV show; it’s a way of life. And that may be true.

Regardless of your age, gender and nationality you should watch this TV show. It’s the perfect excuse to learn English and learn new expressions and have fun!

READ THE TEXT here: speakenglishpodcast.com

#083 English Pronunciation Practice - Tongue Twisters Mar 31, 2019

Hello, everybody! I am Georgiana your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently. Speaking English is easier than it seems! You just have to use the right material and techniques.

In this episode we're going to do something we've never done before. Today I’ll introduce you to the tongue twisters. I’ll explain later what a tongue twister actually is, and how it can help you with your English.

And with a mini-story,you will improve your fluency in English by answering questions, like in a real conversation.

So what are tongue twisters?

A tongue twister can be a phrase or sentence that is hard to say fast, usually because of a sequence of nearly similar sounds.

For example: “Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.”

What a mess! Right? I get that you feel intimidated but don’t worry. I’ll tell you how to use them in a bit.

Tongue twisters are part of popular culture and have always been with us. This means that they are clearly useful in society. And although children find them entertaining, they are used by people who want to sound crystal clear when speaking, including actors, politicians, etc.

One of the most interesting aspects of tongue twisters is that it allows us to practice pronunciation and above all agility when it comes to producing sounds in the language.

Okay. Now let's see some tongue twisters.

(END OF THE EXTRACT)

READ THE TEXT HERE: speakenglishpodcast.com

#082 English Money Vocabulary - Warren Buffett Mar 23, 2019

Hello, everybody! I am Georgiana your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently. Speaking English is easier than it seems! You just have to use the right material and techniques.

Today I will talk about one of the wealthiest people in the world. His name is Warren Buffett. And you will practice your English speaking with a mini-story.

Born in 1930 in Nebraska, Buffet is a fascinating character because of his inspiring story.

As a child, Buffett showed interest in stocks. He was writing stockprices on the board in his father's office. His father was a stockbrokerand future congressman.

And while nowadays most children play video games, Warren bought his first stock was at the age of 11 and filed his first taxes at age 13.

Because like many children of the Great Depression, Buffett grew up to respect the value of money.

He became so frugal that when he moved to New Yorkto attend business school, he lived at the YMCAto save money.

“YMCA” is short for the Young Men's Christian Association.

I also used the word “frugal” which refers to someone careful when using money or food.

For example:

a frugal lifestyle.
a frugal meal of bread and soup.

However, you can replace the word “frugal”with the words “economical” or “sparing.”

Let’s continue.

Buffett started working at the age of 13 as a paperboy delivering newspapers in the morning and afternoon.

After graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree, he enrolled in ColumbiaSchool of Business, where he graduated with a Master of Science in Economics.

Only five years after his graduation, Warren started Buffett Partnership Ltd.

READ THE TEXT HERE: SpeakEnglishpodcast.com

#081 English Grammar and Fluency -Is grammar important? Mar 16, 2019

Hi everyone! I’m Georgiana, founder of speakenglishpodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently. Speaking English is easier than it seems. You just have to use the right material and techniques.

Today I’ll talk about grammar and the English fluency.

Is grammar important?

Do you really need to study grammar?

Before I go any further, I'd like to thank you for listening. I’m also a language learner, and I can identify with you and your goals, so I want to help you.

Do you know how you can help me? It would be great if you could share my podcast with your friends or write a review on iTunes, Youtube or my Facebook page.

Your help would mean a lot to me!

Let me share a review of a student named Cata Lina:

“I’m a language teacher in my home country, and this method is an easy and very intelligent way to learn English. The use of Question and Answers and The Point of view is the correct way to learn a language. Georgiana really cares about the people who use her method because we can learn effectively. "

Thanks, Cata Lina! I’m happy to know that my method is helping you with your English.

All right. Now let's get started:

Are you a frequent listener of the Speak English Now podcast?

Then I'm sure you’re more than familiar with the opening of the show

“Speak English Now fluently with no grammar and no textbooks.”

That's right. I help my students to speak English fluently without grammar. And still people ask me from time to time:

“Is grammar essential?”

“Should I learn grammar?”

My short answer is: No, it's not essential. And you shouldn’t learn grammar.

Let me elaborate on my answer a bit more.

First of all, if you want to speak English fluently, you don't need to study grammar.

READ THE TEXT HERE: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#080 English Podcast ESL - Freddie Mercury - Queen Mar 07, 2019

“Don’t stop me now. Cause I’m having a good time. I don’t wanna stop at all!”

Hello, everybody! I am Georgiana your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently. Speaking English is easier than it seems! You just have to use the right material and techniques.

Today I’m going to talk about a band named Queen and the legendary Freddie Mercury.

And with a mini-story, you’re going to practice your speaking in English while learning fascinating facts about Freddie.

Have you heard or a band named Queen?

Of course, you have. I’m just kidding. :)

And how much do you know about their singer and songwriter Freddie Mercury?

Some people believe that Mercury was British, but did you know that he was born in Zanzibar, September 1946?

You probably guessed by now that his real name wasn’t Freddie Mercury. His birth name was Farrokh Bulsara. I was curious about how to pronounce his name, so I have done my research, though I’m still not sure I’m pronouncing it correctly.

Did you know that Freddie was born with four extra teeth in the back of his mouth? He never fixed his teeth because he feared it would ruin his voice.

In 1964 Freddie's family moved to England, and in 1966, he enrolled in Ealing College of Art to study graphic illustration. There he met Tim Staffell who introduced him to his band Smile. Watching Smile made Freddie realize that he really wanted to be in a band himself. Therefore, after he finished his diploma in graphic art and design, he joined a band called Ibex, playing the lead guitarist.

Later on, he formed the band Queen in 1970 with guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor. He wrote numerous hits for Queen, including "Bohemian Rhapsody," "Somebody to Love," "Don't Stop Me Now," and "We Are the Champions." He also conducted a solo career and was a guest producer and musician for other artists.

READ THE FULL TEXT HERE: speakenglishpodcast.com

#079 Color idioms expressions in English (white) Feb 28, 2019

Hello, everybody! I am Georgiana your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently. Speaking English is easier than it seems! You just have to use the right material and techniques.

In today’s episode, you will learn new expressions in English with the help of the color white. In fact, with the help of colors, you can say many different things. You'll see.

And with an exclusive mini-story, you will be able to practice your fluency in English along with today's expressions.

I'm going to start talking about the English idiomatic expressions with the color white. In the following episodes, I will use more expressions with different colors.

As I was preparing this episode, I realized that these expressions are used a lot in everyday life. It would be great if you could at least understand their meaning. And don't worry if you don't remember all of them.

1. As white as a sheet

We use this expression to say that someone is in a state of great fear or anxiety.

Let me tell you a story about a friend who had long distance relationship before the internet era. During the first month, he spoke on the phone for about 12 hours every day. However, things changed after he saw the phone bill! I’m sure that he became as white as a sheet. :)

Another example:

“Bill, you’re as white as a sheet! Are you alright?”

2. Raise a white flag The white flag is a widely known symbol used to symbolize surrender. People carrying or waving a white flag should not be attacked or allowed to open fire.

And as you have already guessed by now, this expression indicates that someone admitted defeat.

Examples:

“After studying English for 28 years and eight months, Marta was about to raise a white flag. Luckily before throwing in the towel, she found out about the Speak English Now podcast!!”

Here I used the expression “to throw in the towel” which has the same meaning as “raise a white flag.”

READ the TEXT here: speakenglishpodcast.com

#078 Cause and Effect in English (Because, As, Due to, As a result) Feb 20, 2019

Hi everyone! I am Georgiana, founder of speakenglishpodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

In today’s lesson, you’ll learn about the words and expressions used to show cause and effect. For example, "Because of the course, I can now speak English.”
And with a point of view story you’ll intuitively learn grammar - without memorizing.

Remember that you can get the text of this episode at SpeakEnglishPodcast.com.

Okay, let's get to it!

Phrase connectors improve writing adding variety and sophistication to your writing style.

Today we are going to see some very useful words and phrases to express cause and effect.

You don't have to learn all of these variations, although it's helpful to be familiar with them.

I'll also give you examples to make it easier to understand.

#077 Animal Idioms in English with a story Feb 14, 2019

Hi everyone! I am Georgiana, founder of speakenglishpodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!

If you have already listened to my previous episode about asking a girl out, I hope my lesson has helped you to get a date. But if you still haven't had the luck to put my advice into practice, don't worry. At least now you know what to say to the girl of your dreams.

But now, let’s change the topic.

Today, I’d like to teach you some animal idioms.

I’m sure some of them will sound familiar because they are quite popular.

And with a point of view story, you’re gonna practice the expressions and compare the different grammar points. It’s the perfect way to learn grammar and new vocabulary without memorizing. The story will be romantic but with an unexpected turn of the events!

Alright! Let’s talk about idioms now.

Supposing you're talking to a friend and he insists that you reveal him a secret.

Suddenly he says, “come on! let the cat out of the bag!”

And you’re wondering, “what on Earth is he talking about? I don’t have any cat in the bag!

Well, you’ve just heard an animal idiom.

You are probably wondering what an idiom is?

Well, it’s an expression, it's a creative way to share an idea or a feeling. So you shouldn't take meaning literally.

READ the text here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#076 How to Ask a Girl Out on a Date in English Feb 06, 2019

Hi everyone! I am Georgiana, founder of speakenglishpodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Last week I realized that Valentine's Day is coming up, and I wanted to dedicate this lesson to students who want to know how to ask a girl out. You never know when you'll meet that special someone, so you gotta be prepared.

I’ve also prepared a point of view story so you can practice your grammar and vocabulary.

Before I start, I'd like to thank everyone who follows me on iTunes, YouTube, Facebook, Spotify, etc. Thank you very much for your support and your positive reviews. Every time you share your honest opinion, you're in fact helping others to discover a more effective and enjoyable way of learning English.

Alright! I’ll just cut to the chase and tell you how to ask a girl out.

Oh, now you’re probably wondering what the expression "Cut to the chase" means. Well, we use this phrase when we start talking about the important aspects of something. We want to get to the point without wasting time.

Now I'm really going to cut to the chase!

There are different circumstances when you want to ask a girl out.

If you want to ask a friend to go out with you, you’ll need to have a clear idea of where and when you want your date to be. Don't just tell her you'd like to "hang out sometime.”

One thing you could do is take her to dinner at a not-so-elegant restaurant; it's a good choice for a first date.

READ the TEXT here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#075 Ten advanced English Idioms (to sound more like a native speaker) Jan 30, 2019

Hi everyone! I am Georgiana, founder of speakenglishpodcast.com. My mission is to help you to speak English fluently.

Do you want to sound more like an English native speaker?

Well, this is the perfect lesson for you. Today I’ll teach you ten idioms that will make you sound more like a native speaker. And with a Point of view story you will improve your grammar, and at the same time, you’ll practice the expressions in context.

Ok. Let’s start!

1) GET OUT OF HAND: to become difficult to control.

When you lose control of things, they get out of hand.

Examples:

“There was an argument that got out of hand,and the police came.”

“Your aggressive nature has gotten a bit out of hand.”

“The demonstration is getting out of hand.”

“It was only a joke but sadly got a little out of hand.”

2) GET YOUR HEAD AROUND IT: to understand something.

Examples:

“I just can’t get my head around the fact that she just broke up with me.”
“I just can’t get my head aroundthe fact that I’m not getting promoted this year.”
“Have you got your head aroundyour new situation?”

3) POUND THE PAVEMENT: to walk the streets looking for a job.

Examples:

“You’ll be pounding the pavementfor months before you find another job.”
“I’ll need to pound the pavementto get a new job.”
“Last year I spent three months pounding the pavement after I lost my job.”

READ the TEXT here: speakenglishpodcast.com

#074 The Beatles - English Speaking Practice Jan 22, 2019

Hi everyone! I am Georgiana, founder of speakenglishpodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

Today I’ll talk about the most famous band in the world. The Beatles! And you’ll practice your speaking with a funny mini-story.

Have you ever listened to The Beatles? Actually, let me rephrase that. When was the first time you listened to a Beatles song?

The Beatles are probably the most popular band in the history of music. They are considered by many to be the best band on Earth. The band was undoubtedly the most successful, with global sales exceeding 1.1 billion records.

They were initially famous for their light pop music, although their later works achieved a combination of popular and critical acclaim perhaps unprecedented in the 20th century.

Beatlemania began in the UK and exploded after The Beatles appeared on a popular TV show in the US in 1964. The band became a worldwide phenomenon with adoring fans and hysterical adulation.

The members of the group were John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr, all from England.

READ THE TEXT here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#073 Learn English by watching TV series (with NETFLIX) Jan 16, 2019

In this episode, I’ll recommend you some of my favorite TV shows that will help you with your English. I’ll give you some useful tips on how to use Netflix to improve your English. And later, you’ll practice your English speaking with an exciting mini-story.

Alright! Let’s start!

Netflix has changed the way we spend our free time. We spend a lot more time watching our favorite shows, so why not use all this time to speed up the way we learn English too? English-language TV shows can quickly introduce you to authentic English and can help keep you motivated and entertained as you learn. In today's episode, I'll let you know how watching TV can help you improve your language skills. You’ll stop feeling guilty about watching TV!

The next time your friends ask you what you did all weekend, you can proudly say that you spent all weekend watching TV.

READ THE TEXT HERE: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#072 New Year’s Resolutions Jan 09, 2019

Hi, everybody! I’m Georgiana, founder of speakenglishpodcast.com. My mission is to help you to speak English fluently.

In this episode, let's take a look at the most common New Year's resolutions. Then you will practice your English fluency with a mini-story.

Alright! Let’s start!

Remember that you can get the text of the episode at SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

Well, first of all... Happy New Year! How time flies! A new year has just begun. It’s curious how the passage of time is perceived according to age. Young people don't think much about it. Middle-aged people think about the things they still want to achieve and realize that they have less and less time. Older people, on the other hand, remember the old days.

Don't worry; I won't get too philosophical in this lesson. :) I’ll go ahead and talk about New Year's resolutions.

As you know, when a new year comes, we all feel like doing a lot of things. Also, we feel a bit guilty for having celebrated a little too much at Christmas.

Therefore in this episode, we will take a look at the most popular New Year's resolutions and practice new vocabulary.

Read the full text here: www.SpeakEnglishPod.com

#071 Christmas In The US (rep) | English mini-story Dec 26, 2018

I'm Georgiana, founder of SpeakEnglishPod.com My mission is to help YOU to speak English fluently and confidently.

In today's episode:

I'll talk about how Americans celebrate Christmas and how I used to enjoy Christmas time when I was a kid.
Later, you'll practice vocabulary, and above all, you'll improve your spoken English with a funny question and answer story.

Awesome! Let's get started!

Multi-Cultural Christmas

In the United States, every 25th of December people celebrate Christmas in many unique ways because of its multi-cultural nature.

The modern, commercialized Christmas began to emerge in the 19th century with the new custom of buying gifts for children.

Many of the Christmas holiday activities differ from family to family. It often depends on the cultural heritage of the family members.

Some of the customs are like ones in the UK, France, Italy, Poland, and Mexico.

A typical celebration of Christmas Day in America combines Irish, Austrian, Polish and Belgian traditions.

Despite the variety of cultures, most Americans agree that Christmas is a family time. For many families, Christmas is the one time of year when all family members, come together to eat, drink and spend a great time together.

Read the full text here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#070 Christmas Holidays 2018 - English speaking practice Dec 19, 2018

Hi everyone! I’m your English teacher Georgiana, founder of speakenglishpodcast.com. My mission is to help you to speak English fluently.

In this episode, I’ll talk about the Christmas holidays. And after that, you’ll practice your English speaking with an exciting mini-story about a man dressed in red.

Ah! It's Christmas at last! I don't know about you, but I love this time of year. I start to think about what presents to give to my family and friends. Normally I make a list, so I don't forget anyone. Can you imagine forgetting someone? That would be terrible! That's why I start very early to plan what presents to give to everyone.

Finding the right gift for someone can be difficult, so what I usually do is search online for gift ideas. And buying online helps me avoid the holiday crowds.

To really feel the Christmas spirit, I like preparing a pot with a delightful scent using orange, cinnamon, apple cider, and clove. I let everything boil throughout the day so that the fragrance spreads throughout the house.

READ the text here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#069 Money Slang in American English Dec 12, 2018

Hi everyone! I am Georgiana, founder of speakenglishpodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

In this episode, I’ll teach you some new expressions. You’ll learn different ways to call the American dollar.

And after that, you’ll practice your English speaking with a funny mini-story.

In the last part of this episode I’ll tell you what to do if you get bored listening repeatedly?

You probably haven't noticed it until now, but the truth is that there are many ways to talk about money in English.

Today you will learn many expressions that people in the US use when referring to the American dollar.

I’ll start with the most popular ones: bucks, dough, bread, cheddar, paper, Benjamin, Benji, etc.

The following terms are outdated or rarely used:

bones, scratch, cheese, lettuce, salad, chips, cake, and cabbage.

The dollar has also been referred to as a "bean" or “bone."

Buck- is slang for one U.S. dollar

The expression comes from the 18th century when deer (buck) skins were used as currency. “Buck” is still one of the most commonly used terms in the U.S. for money to this day.

READ the TEXT here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#068 How men should compliment women Dec 05, 2018

Hi everyone! I am Georgiana, founder of speakenglishpodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently.

In this episode, I’ll teach you how to compliment a woman if you are a man. I’m sure this will be very helpful :)

And after that, you’ll practice grammar with a Point of View story.

Complimenting a woman can make her feel special by showing her how wonderful you think she is. However, some guys don't know how to make good compliments. They either say the obvious or exaggerate compliments.

As a woman, I have received a good part of the compliments both requested and unrequested in my life. Some comments have been sweet, some shocking, and some even repulsive.

Before complimenting a woman, you must first determine if the context is appropriate.

Where is the conversation taking place? Are you at work, in a public place, or are you alone? It all depends on the physical context of the conversation.

What's your relationship with her? Are you strangers, friends, colleagues? If you are strangers, an unjustified compliment can be met with hostility, even if you don't say anything inappropriate.

No matter the context, however, one of the key things you must do if you want to be successful in complimenting a woman is to have at least one conversation with her, even if only for a few minutes.

Read the TEXT here: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com

#067 English speaking practice - Superstitions Nov 28, 2018

Hello everyone! I am Georgiana, founder of speakenglishpodcast.com. I want to help you speak English fluently. Speaking English is easier than it seems! You just have to use the right material and techniques.

Today I’ll talk about superstitions, and you’ll practice your speaking with a mini-story.

By the way, thank you so much for listening wherever you are. If you can, please write a comment on iTunes. That's how you help me reach more people.

Ok! Let’s start!

Bad luck, good luck...Superstition is something that people think can give good or bad luck. And all over the world, there are superstitious people.

However, not everyone is superstitious, and some think it's silly. So they don't believe in anything. I'm gonna comment on some of the most common superstitions I know:

-1) Finger crossing: If you cross your fingers, in theory, you avoid bad luck. For example: "I'm going to cross my fingers to win the lottery.” - 2) Touching or knocking on wood: This is also quite common. The expression "to touch wood" means that you don't want something bad to happen. For example. “My friend Laura can't find a job.” "Well, touch wood. I need to find a job soon.”

READ THE TEXT HERE: speakenglishpodcast.com

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