ENGSPRESSO – Episode 32

Transcript of my podcast episode (32)

Hello again! How’s your summer? Here, in the south of Poland, it’s been scorching hot these days. In other words, it’s been boiling hot. On such days, I usually look for some shade just because I can’t stand too much heat. I know that some of you love such hot weather, but for me, it’s simply way too hot. Remember that when it’s unpleasantly warm and the air feels sticky (because it contains a lot of water, so air humidity is high), you can describe the weather as 'muggy’. Luckily, in my town, it also pours with rain from time to time, which means that it sometimes rains heavily too, so I’m glad. Thanks to the rain, this summer is rather bearable for me.

And how about your English? Have you given it up because of the summer and your holidays? Or perhaps, on the contrary, you’ve been working harder on it as you’ve got more free time? Whatever choice you’ve made this summer, don’t foget to take pleasure in learning and using your English skills! There’s nothing worse than forcing yourself to do activities that are not your cup of tea. Just be yourself, stay open to people and new situations, and never focus too much on your mistakes in English (if you make any). Be willing to learn and keep going! That’s all you need, really. Don’t ever think that you won’t be liked or accepted somewhere just because you’re not satisfied with your English. Remember that normally, in real life, people value your personality, knowledge and experience much more than your English level. Also, your English level has nothing to do with who you are, what you know, and what you’ve achieved so far. We learn English just to communicate, don’t we? We simply want to work with foreigners, travel, meet new people, have fun and experience great things. We don’t learn it to have something to criticise ourselves for, or something to complain about! I can’t emphasise that enough! I hope I’ve made you feel better. So my last tip for you today is: don’t forget who you are and what you already know and can do, find your favourite ways of learning and using English, and never stop moving on – baby steps (or even crawling!) are much better than getting stuck, constantly worrying about trivial matters. Don’t ever let anything or anyone hold you back! And fianlly, be louder than your inner voice that tries to make you believe you shouldn’t even give something a go, or that you’ll fail anyway. Trust me, that negative voice in your head is always wrong!

As I’ve just wrapped it all up on a positive note, I’m now going to teach you another two expressions.

The first one is FOR THE UMPTEENTH TIME. The word 'umpteenth’ is used to say that something happened or came after many other similar things. So if something is happening for the umpteenth time, it’s already happened many times, and it’s happening again.

For instance: For the umpteenth time, please turn off the light when you leave the room. Now, repeat after me.
The translation is: Po raz n-ty proszę, wyłączaj światło, kiedy wychodzisz z pokoju.

Another example: We’ve just called the customer service for the umpteenth time, but they haven’t solved the issue yet.
Właśnie po raz n-ty zadzwoniliśmy do obsługi klienta, ale nie rozwiązali jeszcze tego problemu.

The second expression is TO BE KEEN ON STH / SB. It means to like, to be interested in, or to want (to do) something very much, or to be very interested in someone, especially romantically.

For instance: I’m not very keen on spicy food, so I’ll pass on the chilli peppers.
Nie przepadam za bardzo za ostrym jedzeniem, więc odpuszczę sobie te papryczki chili.

Another example: It seems that our new neighbour is really keen on my sister – he’s been trying to impress her since the day he met her.
Wygląda na to, że nasz nowy sąsiad naprawdę lubi moją siostrę – próbuje zrobić na niej wrażenie od dnia, w którym ją poznał.

And now it’s time for your ENGSPRESSO to go!

Our context for the phrases is:

I’m telling you this for the umpteenth time – I’m not keen on going to clubs, so I’d rather stay home.
Mówię ci to po raz n-ty – nie przepadam za chodzeniem do klubów, więc wolałabym zostać w domu.

Excellent, we’ve made it! As you must have noticed, the beginning of this episode was somewhat longer than usual, but I really wanted to remind you about how important it is to always have high self-esteem. And I don’t mean that we should be big-headed, arrogant, or look down on other people. We should just always appreciate who we are as individuals, what we know, what skills we already have, and how we can contribute to our society and the world. On top of that, let’s not forget that English is our second language, or sometimes the third one! So we actually do English native speakers a favour, trying to communicate with them in their mother tongue. When we look at it from this perspective, for sure, we’ll feel happier and more motivated to use English on a daily basis.

Also, remember that I’m here and you can count on me! If you ever have any questions or doubts, feel free to get in touch with me by sending me an e-mail or a message on Instagram.
For more information and materials, visit my website angielskidokawy.pl, where you can also find the transcript of today’s episode. And if you want to boost your vocabulary or improve your English skills in general, have a look at my e-books and courses online in my shop at angielskidokawy.pl/sklep. Perhaps there’s something you’ve been looking for.

Thank you for listening to my podcast and speak to you next time!