
TALC Chats Podcast
Supported by Tacoma Area Literacy Council Volunteers.
This podcast supports American-English language learners by strengthening listening and comprehension skills. In addition, this podcast focuses on pronunciation challenges, idioms, and expressions in the American- English language.
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TALC Chats Podcast
#50 - Brrrr! It's cold🥶! Winter Weather
A correction: Diana said, "The boiling point on the Fahrenheit scale is 112 degrees." The boiling point on the Fahrenheit scale is 212 degrees.
What’s the weather like this morning? It’s cold, frosty and sunny this morning! Yes!! BRRRR! It is cold!
Was it cold last night?
Yes, it was below freezing.
What do you mean :”below freezing”?The temperature at which water freezes is 32 degrees Fahrenheit.… or 0 degrees Celsius. If I say it’s below freezing, I mean the temperature is below 32 degrees Fahrenheit or 0 degrees Celsius or Centigrade. Fahrenheit – Celsius – centigrade? There are two different “scales” for measuring temperature. On the Fahrenheit scale water freezes at 32 degrees F and it boils at 212 degrees F. On the Celsius scale, the temperature at which water freezes in 0 degrees and the temperature that water boils is 100 degrees C. Centigrade and Celsius are the same scale.Most countries use the Celsius scale. Only a few use the Fahrenheit scale: the U.S., Belize, Palau, the Bahamas and the Cayman Islands. In most places in the world, you will hear the temperature in Celsius or “degrees C.” Here in the U. S. of A., you will hear the temperature in Fahrenheit or degrees F.
Let’s get back to the temperature today. It’s 40 degrees F. or 4.4 degrees C. Notice that when we talk about the weather, we use “it”. For example, “It is cold today. :” It is correct to say “The weather is cold today.”, but you will most often hear, “It is cold today.” (present) or “It was freezing cold last night.” (past) The same is true when we talk about the temperature: “It is 40 degrees right now.” or “It was 27 degrees last night.” 27 degrees F or –2.7 degrees Celsius! That’s cold! You know, “cold” is kind of a boring word… let’s talk about some other words - more descriptive words we can use to talk about for winter weather.
If it’s just a little cold, and we need to wear a sweater, we can say “It’s chilly!” It sounds the same as the meal with beans and chili powder, chili. In fact, when the weather is chilly, I like to eat chili. When I feel a little cold, I can say “I’m chilly.”
When it’s a little colder than chilly and I need to wear a jacket, and some gloves, I might say ”It’s nippy outside today.” “a nip” means a little bite. We use it often with animals. “The puppy nipped at my heels.” When I say “It’s nippy!”, the cold is “nipping” or taking little bites of my fingers and nose. We would say “It is nippy. But not “I am nippy.”
If the temperature is below freezing (below 32 degrees F), it’s a little colder that nippy, I can say “ It’s freezing” or “ It’s crisp.” If it’s crisp, the ground might be frosty or frozen. When I walk I make a crunchy sound because the ground is hard. If I am feeling very cold, I can say “I’m freezing.”, but I would not say “I’m crisp.”
If I need to wear a heavy coat, mittens and a scarf, the temperature is in the 20’s or lower, and especially if it is windy, “it is bitter cold or biting cold. “Bitter” is like the unpleasant taste of a lemon peel. Biting cold is a cold that can hurt like the bite of an animal. When it’s biting cold or bitter cold, it’s not pleasant for most people to be outside for a long time. We use:” biting cold” and “bitter cold” only to talk about the temperature or the weather being cold, we don’t use those adjectives for people.
How would you describe the weather today, dear listener? Is it chilly, nippy, crisp, or freezing cold? We hope it’s not biting cold today, so you can go out for a nice long walk.
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