This is an All Ears English podcast, episode 2606.
Scratch, ding, or dent?
How to talk about car damage in English.
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Have you ever been in a fender bender?
There are many things we can say when our car gets damaged in English.
Today, find out exactly what words to use in these situations.
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You understood everything that was said.
You had ideas, opinions, maybe even a joke.
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Hey, Michelle, how's it going?
Hey, Lindsay, how are you?
Everything's good over here.
All good.
All good.
No car accidents this week.
Thank goodness on my end.
But knock on wood, knock on wood.
Lindsay, have you ever dinged your car in a parking lot?
I've been accused of it.
Oh, really?
No, no.
I'm sure I've done it, but there have also been times when...
There was one time I was pulling out of my brother's driveway and there was literally nothing behind me.
But then, all of a sudden, there was a big ding in the car and I don't understand what happened, because there was nothing behind me.
So that's what I mean by being accused of it because I didn't see anything.
I didn't hear anything, but there was a ding.
So what about you, Michelle?
There was a ding.
Yeah.
Well, right before I had my son.
Actually this was a little more than a ding, but it wasn't a bad accident or anything.
This was not my smartest move, but my son was born around Thanksgiving time.
And on Black Friday, we all decided to go to the mall.
Oh, God.
And we were in the parking lot and some lady like hit us in the parking lot.
So I would say like it was a little more than a ding, but it wasn't it wasn't terrible or anything.
But did you exchange insurance?
Because usually we see this.
Yeah, he did.
OK.
Yeah.
Yeah, we did.
She was nice.
You know, she was nice about an apologetic.
Yeah.
But yeah, I mean, I've I mean, so now that I live in a house and I have a garage, I
Sometimes we'll just yeah, like you know, the getting into the garage or getting out of the garage, like I won't be paying attention and I'll yeah, it's not great.
Body work is not cheap.
That's what I've learned in the last couple of years.
Oh.
It's really not cheap.
Like I feel like even if you have a small ding, you're going to pay like a minimum 1000 to get it fixed.
Yeah.
And I don't mind cosmetically, but I'm you know, I've had things alerts on my car that show up and then I'm like, Oh yeah.
Well yeah, on the garage I did break my headlight and it was like 800 or something.
We're learning some things about you today.
Yeah, exactly.
I drive too slow, but then I have trouble with garages.
So maybe our listeners noticed here what word we were using over and over there.
Ding, ding, ding.
Yes.
That's it.
Yes.
And we're going to talk about this because our wonderful listener Sophia, asked us a question about the word ding.
Lindsay, would you like to read it for us?
Yes.
Sophia says, Hi, Allers English team.
I'm Sophia.
I just want to say I absolutely love your energy.
Your episodes always make me smile and keep me motivated to learn.
That is so wonderful, Michelle.
Thank you, Sophia.
You're the best.
Yeah, we love that.
I was curious if you could explain how the word ding is used in English.
I'd love to understand it better and hear your tips.
Thanks so much for making learning English so fun and lively.
You really brighten up my day.
Warmly, Sophia.
Beautiful.
Well, right back at you.
And thank you for your question.
Yeah.
So, I mean, yeah, great question.
I was I was excited to see this one because I am currently car shopping.
Okay.
And I was just speaking to a salesman and I did use the word ding.
It's extremely common.
Yes.
So that's what we're going to be talking about today.
But what do we want to do first, Lindsay?
Well, of course, we want to say thank you to our amazing reviewers, who took the time to go and read and review the show and left a comment.
So a huge thank you to Yosef Shahabi.
And a huge thank you to Mehdi Asadi.
So guys, we read your reviews every time they come out and we appreciate them.
If you haven't left us a review yet, guys, go ahead and do that.
Let us know what you think of the show.
Maybe even ask your episode question right in your review and we'll try to announce your name out loud.
Okay.
Absolutely.
Perfect.
So yeah.
So what does it mean to ding something, Lindsay?
I think our listeners can kind of...
Yeah.
From what we've been saying.
Good question, Michelle.
And honestly, it's interesting today because we're actually using ding, as we've already so far used ding as a verb and as a noun.
Right.
In this show.
So to ding something as a verb is to just, well, make a little mark.
Right.
Yeah.
It's minor damage, right?
It's generally some sort of small mark or tiny dent or something like that.
Yeah.
So, oh, no, I think I dinged my mirror on the garage.
Yeah.
But then in my sense, in my way, it was not a ding.
Oh, yes.
Well, oh, no, no, no.
And that was the headlight.
Excuse me.
Yes.
Or you might go and say to Dan, Oh, I think I dinged the car.
And he goes, I said that he looked a day.
That's not a ding.
What are you talking about?
Yep.
Or I dinged my bumper, but you can barely see anything.
Yes.
That's what we hope for.
Right.
Yeah.
So what, else does ding mean though?
Yeah.
I mean, what exactly what you said at the top of the show, ding, ding, ding.
So when you get the right answer for something, it's the sound we make for a bell.
When a bell is ringing right.
Yep.
Ding, ding, ding.
Like you got it, like you got it right.
And it could be used sarcastically or, You know seriously, like I mean not seriously, but ding ding, ding.
You're right.
Or it can be ding, ding, ding, you finally got it, right?
Yeah.
I mean, if you think of.
I don't know if when you were a kid, you used to watch the game shows on TV.
Yeah, sure.
You know, Wheel of Fortune.
I don't know what else there was, but there were a ton of them in the 90s that were out.
Yeah.
Like in the afternoon TV, you know, but they always used that kind of thing.
Yeah, exactly.
Yeah.
Or you might hear like someone if you're maybe in a race.
I mean, sometimes they use a gun in a race to have someone start running.
But maybe it's some sort of bell.
So you could say something like, oh, when you hear the ding, start running.
Yeah, that's true.
But, you know, I don't know if you're watching the Olympics now.
Right now we are in we're in mid-February.
This comes out in, I think, April, but mid-February.
And there are different words for the sounds you hear.
Like I was watching the skiing last night, the Super G, the Giant Slalom.
So cool, by the way.
And for that one, I would have said probably the buzzer.
Right.
The buzzer went off.
And she crossed.
So that could be another episode for another day.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
That's fun.
The ding, the... The buzzer, the buzz.
I don't know.
Different things.
So... Yeah, yeah.
If it's the sound of a bell, it's ding, ding, ding.
Yes, exactly.
Yeah, so...
Sorry, I was just making note of that.
But today we're going to really focus on the car way a little more.
So we're going to teach you other words for damage to one's car.
So what's the first one, Lindsay?
The first one is a scuff.
So this is generally with paint, but sometimes it can be wiped off.
That's what we hope for, right?
Yeah.
Oh, my gosh.
Have you ever had that where maybe you open the door onto someone else's door?
Oh, no.
It's the worst.
And you're like, no.
But then you just kind of. like touch it and it just comes off.
That's yeah.
And that's a relief.
That's the best case scenario, right?
I bumped her car a little, so I think I scuffed it up, but I was able to rub it off with my finger.
Yes.
Yes.
Now a scratch is worse right yeah yeah, the scratches to the paint.
So yeah, that could be an actual issue.
So oh no, there's a scratch on my car.
It's brand new and even deeper.
Michelle is what A dent.
Yeah.
So that's when the actual kind of metal of the car is pushed in, right?
Yes.
There's a change to the shape.
Right.
So you could say there's a huge dent in my car from that accident.
I hope insurance will cover it.
Yeah, this is where you could just end up at the body shop over and over and over again.
Oh, God.
Oh, God.
Yeah.
So, Michelle, there are a lot of words for these kinds of situations.
Right.
So maybe we could do a follow up another day.
Guys, hit the follow button.
We did do a series called Let's Talk Cars.
Yes, so the first episode was Let's Talk Cars Part 1, Why This Builds Connection with Americans.
That was episode 2549.
Um, and then we had business English 521.
That was let's talk cars.
Part two, take the wheel in your business conversations.
Yeah.
And when we recorded that series, you know, I saw our topic like okay, we're going to talk about cars.
Cool.
But then by the end of that series I thought oh, this is really a key to connecting the at least inside American culture.
We can't speak about British or Australian, but it's a big part of our culture here.
It's a huge, yeah, it's a great connection topic.
So definitely listen.
And also.
The third part of that series was Let's Talk Cars Part 3, Essential Car Vocabulary.
That was $25.58.
So there you go, guys.
You got some great episodes picked out for you to check out.
Michelle, now let's do a few more fun vocabulary pieces here.
This one sounds fun.
Yeah, this is fun.
As long as everyone's okay.
A fender bender.
What's a fender bender?
Well, usually everyone is okay in a fender bender, right?
Exactly.
That's what we're saying is, It's a small accident.
So your your fender.
I well, I'm not really a car person, but I guess it's sort of, isn't it like the bumper, kind of right.
No, it's Lindsay.
Now I'm Googling a fender on a car.
Oh my gosh.
Yes, it's the metal or plastic.
OK, I'm reading a metal or plastic body panel.
It frames the wheel wall.
OK, OK, OK.
So you were right.
So a fender bed is when your fender has been bent somehow.
So a tiny accident.
So Tanya got into a fender bender.
She's fine, but her car has some minor scratches.
It's good to say this as a connection skill, because if you say Tanya got into an accident, people might start to panic.
Right.
Right.
Right.
Yes, exactly.
Exactly.
That is true.
It does sound less than a true accident.
And so, right.
Saying fender bender will kind of keep that panic away.
Right.
And these kinds of accidents could happen in a parking lot, could happen in like traffic, heavy traffic, where people are not moving that fast.
Or a stop sign maybe where someone makes the wrong turn, that kind of thing, right?
And then there's hit, right?
My car was hit, but luckily I wasn't even in it.
Yes.
Yeah, you know.
I know Aubrey has a scary story about being in a car accident when she was in, I think, high school or college.
But it is a connection moment because you learn a lot about people, about their past, about things they've been through.
When you're able to talk about any accidents you've been in right.
God forbid.
I mean, yeah, yeah.
Knock on wood, knock on wood.
I hesitated to even plan this because I'm so...
I know you're so superstitious about these.
Yeah, it's funny.
I don't think of myself as a superstitious person, but I'm knocking on everything.
I can't find any wood right now.
Have you ever been in a serious accident?
No, I can't even answer this question.
I feel like I'm just okay.
No, we'll move on.
No, I've been in fender benders and things like that.
But knock on wood, knock on wood, nothing serious.
Okay.
No, no.
Look, I've seen a few, but never been in one.
So, yeah.
You don't seem as nervous as I am to answer that question.
No, not really.
I mean, yeah.
I don't know.
We're different people, Michelle.
You know, we're different people.
You're maybe a little more superstitious than I am or something.
I don't know.
Well, it's funny actually, because just the other day my I was driving my friends to a basketball game and um oh yeah yeah, they kept on like each of them, like one on the way there and one on the way back was like oh like oh, you're doing a good job, right?
Because I kept on being like oh, which lane?
And blah blah blah, and I said don't say that, you're not allowed to say that until I'm actually at the place.
So yeah, I guess I am superstitious with driving.
I don't like comments when I get comments on my driving at all.
Like I really don't like that in real time, right?
When you're in the car, it's just like, oh, just let me drive, you know?
Yeah.
Yep.
Exactly.
Exactly so.
All right, should we do a role play before we head off the mic?
Let's do it, michelle.
So here we were shopping and we came out to the parking lot and your car was clearly hit.
Right oh, all right, here we go.
Okay, oh my gosh, what happened here?
Whoa, looks like someone hit your car.
Oh, Look at this.
Scratch over here.
Oh, I think it's a scuff.
I think it can come off there.
Oh, thank you.
Oh no.
But there's a dent in the door.
Yikes.
Someone definitely dinged it and just left.
Oh, that's terrible.
I mean, I've been in fender benders before, but I never had this happen.
Yeah.
And so I just want to, Remind our listeners, ding again can be a verb or a noun.
To ding something, in this case, we use this as a verb.
Someone definitely dinged it and just left.
But again, we said you can find a ding in your car, right?
Exactly.
Yeah.
Um, all right.
So we come out and you said, Whoa, it looks like someone hit your car.
Yeah.
Past tense of hit is hit, right?
Yep.
And then you said, Oh, looks, look at this scratch over here.
Right.
So I'm kind of evaluating the damage.
So maybe, so I'm saying it's a scratch, like there's a problem with the paint.
And then you said.
I think it's a scuffs, meaning maybe it can come off and then you try and just a scuff.
Yes.
And then there.
So you got it.
Yeah.
I just want to explain that to our listeners.
So retroactively, we added to the role play.
What would be even more specific, guys, in your language?
If you want to be precise, you could say, oh, I think it's just a scuff.
This is downgrading the whole scenario, the whole situation for your friend, right?
You're being very verbal.
No big deal.
I think it's just a scuff.
It's just a scuff.
Yeah.
And then I said, but then I'm looking around and I said, oh, no, but there's a dent in the door.
So there's actual nuts now or now it's getting not not so good.
Yeah.
And then I said, yikes, someone definitely dinged it and just left.
This does happen sometimes.
Right.
So it's interesting because a ding isn't quite a dent, right?
A ding you think of as lighter.
But sometimes we just say that you know for the action of they.
They hit you.
Right.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
You're not.
Yeah, exactly.
Your friend's not going to say that's the wrong word.
Right.
Right.
Right.
Exactly.
The meaning can be a little more broad in some cases.
Right.
And they're not going to say, Oh, that wasn't a, they didn't ding it.
They hit it.
You know, no, right.
Unless you're there, as we did earlier in the role play, and we're differentiating between.
It's a scratch.
Oh, no, it's just a scuff.
Oh, actually, it's a dent.
That would be where it does matter, the word choice, right?
Yeah.
Yep.
Yeah.
Mm hmm.
Exactly.
And then so that would be called like a hit and run.
Right, Lindsay?
I guess so.
Yeah.
I mean, I think of a hit and run as much more serious.
Right.
Yeah.
Well, I think of a hit and run as when.
Well, let me see when someone's in the car.
Right.
Like, like or no hit.
Well, i mean it's also, if you hit a pedestrian, hit a pedestrian.
I think of that actually.
Yeah, i think i had.
I think of that yeah, more.
But i wonder yeah, i don't know, this is just a not nice person, um.
And then i said, i mean i've been in fender benders before but never had this happen.
So i'm basically saying i've never had someone just like do something to my car when I wasn't there and not write a note or something like that.
I know.
Yeah.
Oh, not good.
But anyway, this ties in nicely with our series on cars and why is it a connection skill, Michelle?
Oh, gosh.
Well, number one.
I mean, hopefully we don't have this happen to anybody, but you might need to talk to your insurance company and describe what happened.
So actually, that could be a whole other episode, how to actually really tell the story.
But this one is just, you know...
These things happen unfortunately, and it's just a good way to be able to describe it could connect you to others.
Yeah.
These are definitely great vocabulary words to know.
Yeah.
Good stuff today, Michelle.
And I hope everything is cool this week with your car.
No major issues.
So let's knock on wood.
And Michelle, I will see you in the next episode.
You have a good day.
All right.
All right.
Bye, Lindsay.
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