Episode 10: Fall is Back - Part 2

The tenth episode is dedicated to uniquely American vocabulary commonly used during the Autumn. We'll talk about the weather, clothing, trees, and food. Let's talk about the Fall, everyone! 

Walking Through Dead Leaves by maiasnowdrop -- https://freesound.org/s/609331/ -- License: Attribution 4.0

Transcript

Welcome to Donald’s English Corner podcast. This podcast is dedicated to helping people express themselves in English in a relaxed and fun environment. Together, we will learn more about what the language has to offer: by expanding your vocabulary, strengthening your grammar, and sometimes investigating American culture.

Welcome to Episode 10:  Fall is Back - Part 2

This episode is the second part of a two-part series dedicated to the language of Autumn. In this episode, we will learn about words that are commonly used during this time of year.

The Fall has its own unique vocabulary. Here in the States, especially in the north, everything changes during Autumn. I mean — everything: the weather, the colors, the food, and the clothes. Especially the clothes. Learning and using this vocabulary will help you to grow your confidence in describing the environment during this time of year.

So go ahead and take a sip of your favorite Fall drink and let’s get started.

Part 1 - We’ll start with two adjectives that describe Autumn weather. 


Chilly - this adjective describes temperatures that are low but not exactly cold. I would say that anything less than 10C is chilly. It’s a good idea to wear warm clothes if you’re outside in chilly temperatures.

Brisk - this adjective means quick, fresh, or pleasant. We often use this word with the wind. For example, there is a brisk wind today. It also can describe the weather in general. If the temperature were around 10C, and the sun were shining -- that would be very pleasant weather for being outside. For example, “Let’s take the dogs for a long walk – it's a brisk day.” No matter if the weather is brisk or the wind is brisk, you'll want to wear warm clothes.

Part 2 - Clothing

Here are three common Autumn examples: Hoodies, Sweaters, and the fabric called Flannel. Sweaters are thick or heavy shirts with long sleeves. They are great for staying warm  -- this is why it comes from the word "sweat." A hoodie is a sweater with an attached hood. The hood goes over your head in order to keep your ears warm and your head dry during rain or snow.

And flannel? Ah, flannel. Flannel originated in Wales -- a country in the United Kingdom. Flannel used to be made only of wool; however, it is made now from all kinds of different fabrics. Flannel fabric is incredibly warm and durable. This means that it keeps the person wearing it warm and dry. Many people confuse flannel with plaid. But, they are different! Plaid is a color pattern, almost always made of squares, rectangles, or straight lines. Like flannel, plaid comes from another country in the United Kingdom: Scotland. I should make a note here: plaid is the word used in North America. In the UK it's called tartan. Same thing, but different words.

People who live in colder climates often depend upon flannel clothes outside of the summer. I am no exception. My family is from the north. We grew up wearing flannel clothes. Back then - the 1980s and early 1990s -- flannel shirts carried a negative meaning. They were associated with lower class, blue-collar workers.  I remember in high school that kids who wore flannel shirts were either poor or smoking marijuana. That was definitely our family (though, I didn't smoke marijuana... I left that to my brothers). The negative image of flannel shirts would change almost immediately in 1991. The band Nirvana released their music video for the song "Smells Like Teen Spirit." While none of the band members wore flannel shirts in the video, they did wear them during interviews and for magazine photographs. They became the coolest band in America while wearing the clothes of the working class. It seemed like every wealthy or popular kid in school was wearing a flannel shirt after 1991. You know -- I still absolutely love flannel shirts and my favorite plaid pattern is red and black.

Part 3 - Food and Flavors

Pumpkin Spice everything: Oh boy. Where to begin with this. Let’s look at both words one at a time. Pumpkins are a seasonal food. This means that they are harvested at one time of the year…. Specifically, in Autumn. Americans associate pumpkins with Fall even more strongly because of how popular both Halloween and Thanksgiving holidays are. The spice on the other hand comes from a group of spices. Not just one. The spices are cinnamon, cloves, and nutmeg. We immediately think of Autumn when smelling these spices. Combining the flavor of pumpkin with these three traditional spices of autumn has inspired coffee companies, restaurants, bakers, and even candle makers to add Pumpkin Spice to their products. The Pumpkin Spice latte became an iconic drink, thanks to Starbucks.

 In addition to the pumpkin, another food skyrockets in popularity during the Autumn: apples. Both apples and pumpkins are harvested in the fall, so Americans flock to apple farms during this time of year.  Oh! The word for a farm that grows fruit or nuts is orchard, so we can use this word for places that grow cherries, oranges, plums, walnuts, and — of course — apples. People go to orchards in order to pick their own apples from the trees. This is called “you pick.” In addition to picking apples, people love to drink cider. Cider is different from apple juice. Cider is unfiltered and unsweetened. It is, basically, the squeezed juice from an apple. What Americans call apple juice is the result of a complex chemical and mechanical process. That process adds sugar and water to the resulting liquid. Oh! Right. Here is a big head’s up to my listeners outside of the United States. Cider in the US is non-alcoholic. Anyone can drink it, including young people. You shouldn’t be surprised to see American kids drinking cider. If you want a buzz with your cider, you’ll order hard cider. Hard cider contained alcohol.

Now you know that the stars of Autumn food are apples and pumpkins. I can't forget to mention pies. This is the most popular time of year for Americans to make the classic pumpkin pies and apple pies.

Part 4 - Colors

Moving from pumpkins and apples, let's talk now about colors. Specifically the colors that make Autumn so popular. For that, we need to talk about trees. In Autumn, there are fewer hours of sunlight available to the trees. They need sunlight to survive, so the trees react to the lessened light by breaking down a chemical in their leaves called chlorophyll. Chlorophyll is what allows the trees to turn sunlight into food and it has a green color. Without chlorophyll, the leaves are left (haha) with red, orange, or yellow colors. That process happens really quickly, -- usually in the span of a few weeks. During that time, people travel through the northern forests to see the explosion of vivid colors in the natural world. Those travels are called "color tours." Color tours have become a major part of the tourist industry in northern states. Those three colors: red, orange, and yellow are the most common colors during Autumn. You'll find them in almost every Autumn-themed food or product.

Congratulations! You’ve made it to the end of the tenth episode of Donald’s English Corner podcast: Fall is Back, Part 2. Please check out my website at donaldinchicago.com, or any of my social media sites if you’d like to learn more about the English language and American culture. Thanks everybody, and see you next time in the eleventh episode: Foreign Names for American States. Keep learning!