I remember a few years ago a teacher friend of mine.
He said to me what I do with my students in the class.
I get them to speak in monosyllabic words.
Well, monosyllabic is not one syllable, but most words that we usually use in English are just of one syllable.
Hi, my name is Mike and I live in the south of Spain.
All those words just have one syllable.
One mistake of a lot of European learners of English who speak a Latin-based language, for example Spanish, Italian or French, is that they tend to look for words which are Latin-based.
They are formal, too formal.
So a student might say to me Well, yesterday I was.
I was standing in the street and I saw an old lady descending from the bus.
I immediately went to assist her.
Too formal, really.
Too formal English.
Easier to say and also more colloquial for speaking together with your friends is I saw an old lady getting off the bus and I went to help her.
The point is that really, we should be trying to find those words which are more Anglo-Saxon when we're talking to friends or talking with people who we know well.
Formal English is acceptable and necessary, especially if we're writing an essay, for example, for the B2 exam, or if we are speaking in a more formal situation.
I'm going to read a dialogue to you today and it's going to be B2 language and it's going to be in very formal English.
And I want you to think Why is this situation the right situation for formal language?
So this is a B2 level podcast today.
Here we go.
Hello and welcome to Practicing English.
My name is Mike Bilbrea.
And these are podcasts for students of English at B1 or B2 levels.
For transcripts, please go to practicingenglish.com.
Would you like to see my books for learning B1 and B2 level English?
Then go to the show notes at your podcast app, and just below today's lesson you'll see a link to Amazon and
There you'll be able to read about my new B1 book and my B2 book.
Check it out today.
So I'm going to read a conversation between members of a family mum dad, brother and sister, or son and daughter.
I want you to listen.
And why do you think the language they use is appropriate, is suitable for the situation?
It's called Family Breakfast.
Here we go.
Beginning morning food consuming cycle, said the father as he entered the kitchen.
Please gather at the table. for an efficient distribution of resources.
Mother replied Indeed, I have organised a balanced combination of carbohydrates and proteins which should provide ideal operating for the day.
The ten-year-old entered next.
Parents, I request information regarding today's academic schedule.
My timetable indicates elementary programming and logical calculation.
Then the 15-year-old followed his sister.
You have not interpreted the data inaccurately.
I however, will participate in advanced algorithmic reasoning and the completion of two complex projects.
Father asked, Do you require additional data input before departure?
Negative, said the younger child.
The information previously provided is sufficient for maximum efficiency.
Mother directed her attention towards the older child.
Have you reviewed the regulations for your institution's examinations?
Affirmative.
I have memorized all content.
There is no prediction of error.
Father sat at the table.
The tasks at my place of occupation will involve machine precision processes.
Mother added.
And I will contribute to the coordination of instructional software.
My schedule is densely arranged, but entirely manageable.
A distant mechanical sound approached the house.
Father spoke again.
The transport vehicle has arrived.
Prepare for collection.
The kitchen door opened and a lorry had stopped outside.
A human driver stepped inside the kitchen.
Roy, time to load you all up.
Headquarters want you there early.
His colleague entered behind him.
Kids too!
Their programming school starts in half an hour!
The father, mother and children stood simultaneously.
Affirmative! they said together.
They walked outside one behind the other and the humans guided the android family onto the waiting lorry.
The easy answer to the question why is that language suitable?
Is because they're an Android family.
They're all robots.
And as we know, robots use very formal type of language.
They say things like affirmative and negative.
Actually, those words that I used, these very formal words, are B2 words.
I don't think today I'm going to go through all of them.
I might just look at one or two.
What I really wanted to do.
The purpose of this podcast today is really to give a comparison to colloquial monosyllabic English.
How this conversation would be in a much more informal tone.
What I'll do, I'll quickly read over And I'll give you the equivalent in colloquial English.
Here we go.
Family breakfast.
Beginning morning food consuming cycle.
Right, let's have breakfast, everyone, said the father as he entered the kitchen.
Entered?
All my students say enter.
You don't enter a kitchen or enter a classroom.
You go in.
You go in or you come in.
Can I come in?
You don't say enter.
Enter is for a competition.
To enter a competition.
That's B1 English.
You can say to enter, I suppose.
Of course you can.
I have here.
But it's very formal.
Then the father says... please gather at the table for an efficient distribution of resources.
What he means is, let's all sit down at the table and have a nice breakfast.
Mother replied Indeed, I have organized a balanced combination of carbohydrates and proteins which should provide ideal operating for the day.
Yes, I've made a lovely breakfast carbohydrates proteins, which should give you just what you need for the day.
The 10-year-old now entered.
Came in, not entered.
Parents, I request information regarding today's academic schedule.
Mum, Dad, can you tell me what I've got to do at school today?
My timetable indicates elementary programming and logical calculations.
On my timetable, it says I've got easy computers and then mathematics or maths.
Monosyllabic word.
The 15-year-old followed.
You have not interpreted the data inaccurately.
Yes, you're absolutely right.
Oh, absolutely.
That's a long word.
However, I will participate in advanced algorithmic reasoning and the completion of two complex projects.
I'm going to take part in difficult maths and doing two difficult projects.
So notice the words like participate, which is a B2 word, is to take part.
All those wonderful phrasal verbs, which are so difficult to learn, aren't they?
They take the place of those formal Latin based words like participate, do take part.
Father asked, do you require additional data input before departure?
Do you want to know anything else before you leave?
Negative, said the younger child.
No, the information previously provided is sufficient for maximum efficiency.
What you just told us is enough.
I don't need any more.
Mother directed her attention towards the older child.
Have you reviewed the regulations for your institution's examinations?
Do you know what you're doing for the school exams today?
Affirmative.
I have memorised all content.
There is no prediction of error.
Yes, yeah, I know it all.
There won't be any mistakes.
Father sat at the table.
The tasks at my place of occupation will involve machine learning, Precision processes.
What I've got to do at work today is about working with machines.
Mother added, and I will contribute to the coordination of instructional software.
My schedule is densely arranged, but entirely manageable.
Well, I'm carrying out working with teaching software.
My schedule is densely arranged, but entirely manageable.
It's going to be a busy day, but it'll work out.
It'll work out.
Meaning that it'll be entirely manageable.
Well, that's it.
And then the two men come in with the lorry to take the androids to their place of work.
I'm going to put this text here. on your podcast app and also at practicingenglish.com.
Podcast 277.
And there you'll be able to see the words in bold, which are the B2 words.
And your task would be just to look at it and think how you could simplify that and use, where possible, monosyllabic words.
Words of just one syllable.
Phrasal verbs as well. if possible, which are nearly always of just one syllable.
So I'm going to wrap up this podcast for today.
To wrap up, which means to finish, to terminate this podcast today.
I'll see you next week.
Goodbye for now.
