Learn English Through News: Vocabulary Explained Clearly [580]

🚨Improve your English with structured online lessons. Book a free trial and get clear feedback on your level, pronunciation and speaking. Book here ➡️  https://www.englishlessonviaskype.com/trial

In this episode, you’ll improve your English by listening to a short news extract and learning the key vocabulary in context.

First, you’ll hear part of a real news article. Then, I explain important words and phrases so you can understand how they are used in natural English. This helps you follow current topics while building vocabulary that is useful in both everyday and professional situations.

This episode will help you:

•  understand real English used in news articles 
•  learn new vocabulary in clear context 
•  improve listening and comprehension 
•  feel more confident discussing current topics 

Ideal for intermediate and upper-intermediate learners who want to learn English through real content, not textbook examples.

If you often hesitate, make mistakes, or feel unsure when speaking English, book a trial lesson. We assess your level, correct you clearly, and give you a focused plan so you know exactly what to improve. 

Book a free trial here: https://www.englishlessonviaskype.com/trial

If you prefer to study on your own, explore our online courses. They give you structured lessons to build stronger grammar, clearer pronunciation, and more confident speaking step by step

Discover all courses and guides: https://englishlessonviaskype.com/confidence

Transcript

Speaker: 0:09

Hi there. This is Harry and welcome back Harry, where I try to help you the English language. So anything that you need, you www.englishlessonviaskype.com hear from you. And in this particular lesson, appeared in the Guardian called You Be the Judge. Should my partner stop eating in Okay, so we're going to read it The first time I'll read it is to give you the gist of the article. The second time I read it just for you to get a better understanding. And then I'll explain some words and phrases that are used in this particular article by the journalist. So you get a better understanding of how you might be able to use them in your own English. Okay, now this particular article is a little bit light hearted. Some of the articles that we serious, but this one is a based on the heading. You know, you be the judge. Should my partner stop eating in Now, I have to make a confession here, because I'm one of these guilty parties. Because I actually enjoy having Yeah, so I started it a year or You know, when a cold winter. And rather than sitting in a breakfast, I put my breakfast bedroom and I sat up in bed. Just like this article will tell And I propped myself up with a And then I tucked into my bowl apple and Greek yogurt. So that's my breakfast every Very simple. Some muesli, some chopped apple nice helping of Greek yogurt, the Greek yogurt. And then I sprinkle it with a really nice flavor. And that's my breakfast. So not much to make a mess. And that and a cup of coffee do enjoy having it in breakfast So yes, I have to say that I'm a little bit prejudiced when it comes to this particular article, but I'll let you be your own judge and make your own opinion. So here's the first reading. So the title, as I said, you be Should my partner stop eating in Question mark. Now here's the text. So I'll read it the first time just for you to get the gist of it. Hugo, the name of one of the Hugo hates lying on all the other person in the partnership, So this is about Hugo and Hugo hates lying on all the the perfect place to eat. You decide and put this argument Now the prosecution. Hugo, my partner Harriet and I have been living together for six years. And the one thing that's not bad eating habits. I can't deal with crumbs in the I've had a ban on food in the bedroom for as long as I can remember, but she just ignores it. I hate getting into bed and feeling as if I'm lying on sandpaper. The crumbs are scratchy against Harriet will deny eating in bed can feel bits of crisps and It drives me mad sometimes. I'll make us get out of bed and crumbs out by beating the sheets It's not a very relaxing routine when you're meant to be winding down. Now the defence. Harriet. I eat everything in bed and I usually hide the evidence pretty well. One time I chucked the wrapper down the side of the bed. Hugo was not happy when he found I work from home all day as a uses co-working spaces for his Sometimes I'll eat a whole meal I make sure I take the plate downstairs so Hugo doesn't know, but afterwards the room can smell of food, so I get caught out. It's hard not to spill things in of propping a hard pillow behind goodies on another cushion in I just took my chin in a lot. When I eat, food just tastes When. When you look at dogs in the wild or even in a house, when you give them a delicious piece of food, they retreat to their bed to eat it, which has a lot to do with feeling safe and comfortable. I'm like a dog in that sense. The sort of person who eats in bed is also the sort of person who can't be bothered to go to the shop. That's me. I'll just raid the cupboards and I'm partial to rice cakes, have lying around. But these are quite crummy. I've also been known to eat a Domino's pizza in bed, which is deliciously naughty. That is usually saved for when mega told off for that. What do you think? Should Harriet stop eating in So there's the argument put eating in bed. He wants to ban his partner from In fact, he has banned her. But she continues to do it. Or Harriet for the defence. Who says, well, there's nothing In fact, there's something comfortable about it. Eating a snack in bed. So you have to make the And for those of you and your to one lessons, well, you know Just get in touch on and you can apply for a free trial lesson. And we'd be very happy to hear from you and very happy to help you. Okay, so let me read it again. So it starts with the background. hates lying on all the crumbs, perfect place to eat. You decide and put this argument to for the argument for the and I have been living together the one thing that's not changed eating habits. I can't deal with crumbs in the had a ban on food in the bedroom for as long as I can remember, but she just ignores it. I hate getting into bed and as if I'm lying on sandpaper. The crumbs are scratchy against my will deny eating in bed until feel bits of crisps and drives me mad sometimes. I'll make us get out of bed and out by beating the sheets with a not a very relaxing routine when you're meant to be winding down. And then the defense. This is Harriet putting in her eat everything in bed and I hide the evidence pretty well. One time I chucked the wrapper of the side of the bed. Hugo was not happy when he found it. work from home all day as a co-working spaces for his social I'll eat a whole meal in bed. I make sure I take the plate so Hugo doesn't know, but afterwards the room can smell of food, so I get caught out. It's hard not to spill things in bed, propping a hard pillow behind me goodies on another cushion in just took my chin in a lot. When I eat, food just tastes better you look at dogs in the wild or even in a house, when you give them a delicious piece of food, they retreat to their bed to eat it, which has a lot to do with feeling safe and I'm like a dog in that sense. The sort of person who eats in bed is also the sort of person who can't be bothered to go to the shop. That's me. I'll just raid the cupboards and see partial to rice cakes, crisps lying around. But these are quite crummy. I've also been known to eat a pizza in bed, which is naughty. That is usually saved when Hugo is off for that. What do you think? Should Harriet stop eating in bed now? we have the word crumbs, be very careful here for the It's not crumbs. Yeah. It's crumbs. The B is silent crumbs. Crumbs. Okay, just be really, really careful so let's look at the the words I a little bit light hearted, but The first word is scratchy. Okay. Scratchy is the same as itchy. Okay? If you feel itchy, you scratch it. If you've got a little rash on your arm, you will itch it or scratch it. So you you scratchy is when you're to irritate you, you feel a have to rub your leg or rub your when Hugo was in bed and he was lying on crumbs, it felt It was uncomfortable for him to lie think there's a cartoon, an old, with the kids called the Itchy so there's Itchy and Scratchy. mean exactly the same. And then the expression until the you know, this is an old, old you can talk about something until the cows come home. Mean for a long, long time, because in the field forever. Okay. And it's only when it's really, that the cows come into the the they stay in the field. So you can talk about this until forever and ever. So if you're asking your parents partner for something, you might the cows come home, he'll never really, really stubborn. So I'm just wasting my time. The next expression to wind down. So when we wind down, we are We go on a holiday to wind down. We spend our weekends at the begin down from our work exploits of when you wind down, you begin to begin to feel human again. not worrying or thinking about four is to Chuck. It's a very, very informal word. To Chuck means to throw. Okay, so if I throw the ball for the dog, the dog will race after it. If I took the ball into the garden, the dog will run after it. So if I chuck something out, I can also say to throw something out. I throw it out in the bin or I it out in the bin, so it's quite informal. What will I do with this old dress just chuck it out. So if you're decluttering your last few weeks, you chuck things you no longer need to chuck and some of you might just say, ah, just chuck it over here, chuck my keys in this direction. I need to get them. Okay, so to Chuck is to throw, to doing something that they our article here, Harriet was worried that Hugo would catch her out, or she said that Hugo would always catch her out if she thought she had been eating something casually without his knowledge, he would catch her out because he would come in and smell the air and say, yeah, you've been eating in bed again. Yeah. So to catch someone out is to find them guilty of doing something that they thought they had hidden. Yeah. Okay. So kids, if they tell lies to the out because they trip themselves discover the truth. Or parents always know when are telling little fibs, as we call them, are little lies. They catch them out. They catch someone out because it so to catch someone out is to get find them guilty of doing that they thought they had hidden. And in this case, Hugo. Hugo. Finding out that Harriet has in fact in bed. Number six to spill. Okay, well, if we spill something, we can spill water. Okay. So if you have a glass of water or unsteady, you will spill the in this case, she might spill might spill her rice cakes out lots and lots of crumbs. For poor Hugo to sleep on, to spill. when we spill something, it have an expression. Come on, spill the beans. So when we want somebody to tell us something in detail, we say, on, come on, don't keep it a secret. Spill the beans. You can tell me. Meaning let it all pour out to spill to The perfect solution for Harriet in with a hard pillow, put it support so she can sit up in bed and eat her leisurely Okay, so to prop up means to support. if you need to get one of your of the car, and when they sit on down too low, you put something will prop them up. It could be a cushion, it could be could be anything that will them to raise their head a taller, so they're able to look out the window to prop up. Okay, so and if you want to sit up in and you don't like leaning back be a little bit hard. You put one or two pillows or yourself up to prop, to hold up eight. Goodies. Goodies is this word that we use for I'll often come into the kitchen after a day's recording or working or teaching, and I'll to my wife, are there any And if I'm lucky, if it's a Thursday or Friday, there may be some left. If it's a Saturday or Sunday, the chances of any goodies pretty rare biscuits or chocolate or whatever was there in the middle of the week has disappeared, and the reply from my wife would be well, there would be some goodies there if you didn't eat them all. But you've eaten them all, so goodies are those nice little snacks that we like to have in between meals and goodies. My favorite goodie is a Kit-Kat, a nine to tuck to tuck the chin we're eating, we can't take can't spill things all over it. we took in our chin. Or when children go to to bed at we say, I'll come up in ten minutes. You read a book, I'll come up in ten bed, meaning we'll make the bed around the child so they, they and they'll feel nice and cozy to tuck in the child in the bed, to tuck in your chin like this. Oh, if kids are running around in say, come on kids, time to go your t shirts in so they have to top of the trousers or skirt or number ten to retreat to. is about going backwards. Okay. When we retreat, we go backwards. that are attacking other armies. there's a counter-attack by one who will push the other army then they will retreat. They will go backwards. So any time we retreat, it's really to where we were. And in the article we had it where piece of meat or bone to eat, beds in the house to eat the to retreat means to go back. so so they wouldn't be disturbed eleven. I cannot be bothered to. Or people cannot be bothered to. In the article, it's about can it so when you cannot be bothered you don't really care. Would you like to go for a walk? Ah, I can't be bothered to go. It's raining. It's not so pleasant. Yeah. I thought you were going to go and he couldn't be bothered. And really, neither could I. I had a said we'll do it next week. So when you cannot be bothered to don't really want to. You don't have the energy. You don't have the desire. You don't have the wish to do it. I cannot be bothered. I'll do it later. Do you want to watch a movie? No, I can't be bothered. I think I just read my book. Okay. Cannot be bothered. Number twelve to raid. Okay. When we raid the cupboards, we're we're referring to. Yeah. So we we see them there and we take them without asking permission. So the mother comes into the and she looks in the cookie jar and there are no biscuits left. And she screams at the kids, okay, put the hand in the cookie jar So to raid something is to steal or to take something, usually permission. Okay. To raid number thirteen. To be partial to something. But when we are partial to I said when we were talking a Kit Kat means I really like a somebody is partial to pie, if somebody is partial to cream crackers with cheese. If somebody is partial to a glass of white wine before their meal or after their evening meal, it means they particularly like That particular habit. So to be partial to something means so be partial to. And then finally number fourteen to in this article, Harriet says she will be mega told off mega meaning in a big way. So to be told off means to be told to hear. So somebody complaining about this case, Hugo is telling doesn't want to be told off. She doesn't want Hugo complaining about her habit of eating. Okay, so when somebody tells another about something they've done or for example, the teacher will in class. The parents will tell the kids off going to bed. You know, the wife might tell the husband off for coming home, and he smells of a couple of beers. When he said he was going to come all of those situations, somebody will complain or give so there's the words and particular article, all a little me give them to you one more scratchy. They said scratchy or itchy until the cows come home forever and ever. To wind down, to relax, to chuck, to throw, to catch someone out. To find them guilty of something to the water. Splash, splash all over the place to prop up your back with a nice Nice things to eat to tuck your chin in, to retreat, to go backwards. Can't be bothered to just no energy. be bothered to. To raid, to take without asking. To raid. To be partial to. Oh, I like a little nibble of a cake or a KitKat to be partial to. And then the last one to tell off to mega told off in a big way. To tell off. Seriously to tell off. Okay, so that's our article. I hope you enjoy it. Perhaps give me the opinion. Send me a note and let me know. Are you for or against Harriet you have the same habit as I do Well, join me again soon. This is Harry thanking you for and listening to this lesson. And as always, make sure you join me