Hi, I'm Georgiana and I'm back with a new episode of the Speak English Now podcast.
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Before we start, get the transcript.
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Okay, let's start.
Before we jump into today's topic, I want to talk about something that can really help you understand English vocabulary better, especially if you speak a Romance language like Spanish Portuguese French, Italian or Romanian.
These languages all come from Latin, you know, the language spoken by the Romans a long time ago.
That's why we call them Romance languages.
English is different.
It doesn't come from Latin.
English is a Germanic language, more like German or Dutch.
But have you ever wondered why so many English words look really similar to words in Spanish or French?
Words like hospital, animal... important, restaurant.
They look familiar, right?
Well, the reason is history.
Back in 1066, England was invaded by the Normans, people from France.
After that, French became the language of the court, the government, and education.
And at the same time, Latin was still being used in churches and for official documents.
So little by little, English started borrowing thousands of words from both French and Latin.
That's why, even though English is technically Germanic, about half of all English words today come from Latin and French.
That's why, even though English is technically Germanic, about half of all English words today come from Latin and French.
So if you speak a Romance language, it makes sense that a lot of English words seem familiar.
But here's the tricky part.
Some of these familiar-looking words don't mean what you think they mean.
These words are called false friends.
And that's exactly what we're talking about today.
So what are false friends?
False friends are words that exist in both English and your language.
And they look very similar.
But they actually mean different things.
These words can really trick you.
You might feel confident using a word, but the person listening to you might understand something completely different.
Let's look at a few classic examples, the kind of mistakes that almost every learner makes at least once.
Number 1.
Eventually.
In Spanish, Portuguese or French, you've probably seen a word like eventualmente or even to a lemon.
And you might think it means the same as the English word eventually.
But it doesn't.
In those languages, it actually means maybe or possibly.
But in English, eventually means finally, like after some time.
For example, Eventually, I'll go to the party.
That means, yes, I will go, just not right away.
If you want to say maybe in English, try I might go or possibly I'll go.
Number two, assist.
This one's really common, too.
In Portuguese, assistir means to watch, like watching a movie.
And in Spanish or French, assistir or assister often means to attend.
But in English, assist means to help.
So if you say, I assisted a movie, it sounds like you were part of the film crew.
Or if you say I assisted the meeting, people might think you were helping the speaker, not just sitting there.
What should you say instead?
I watched a movie or I attended a meeting.
Number three, sympathetic.
This one sounds friendly, but again, it's a trap.
In many Romance languages, words like simpatico or simpatic mean nice or friendly.
But in English sympathetic means someone who shows empathy or understanding when someone else is going through a hard time.
So if you say, my teacher is very sympathetic, You're not just saying she's kind.
You're saying she's understanding and emotionally supportive, especially when you're feeling bad.
If you just mean she's a nice person, you can say she's really friendly or she's very kind.
Number four, constipated.
Okay, this one always gets a laugh.
In Spanish and Portuguese, constipado means you have a cold, like stuffy nose or sore throat.
But in English, constipated means you're having, let's say, stomach problems.
You're not sick with a cold.
Your digestion isn't working properly.
So if you walk into a pharmacy and say I'm constipated, people might give you the wrong medicine or just look very confused.
What you want to say is, I have a cold or I'm a little congested.
False friends are everywhere.
They're not bad.
They're just a bit tricky.
But the good news is, Once you made one of these mistakes, you almost never make it again.
In fact, these little accidents help you learn faster.
Why?
Because they're funny, awkward or memorable.
And those are the kind of moments your brain remembers best.
Let's continue with a point of view story.
I will tell you the same story, but in different points of view.
This will help you practice grammar in a natural way.
You can find more about this method in my premium courses.
Visit speakenglishpodcast.com to get my premium courses.
They are designed for learning by listening.
Let's listen to the story in the past tense.
Pedro has just moved to Chicago from Brazil.
He was excited, friendly and ready to speak English in his new job.
But that first week it was full of surprises.
On Monday someone invited him to a birthday dinner.
Pedro smiled and said, eventually I'll go.
Everyone thought he meant yes, later.
But Pedro meant maybe.
So when he didn't show up, people were confused.
On Tuesday, his boss asked what he did the night before.
Pedro said, I assisted a movie.
His boss looked surprised.
You helped with a movie.
Pedro laughed.
No, no.
I just watched it.
That's when he realized assist in English means to help, not to watch.
On Wednesday, a co-worker told him her dog was sick.
Pedro said, I'm very sympathetic.
She looked like she might cry and thanked him.
Pedro had just meant to be friendly, but the word had a much deeper meaning.
Then came Thursday.
Pedro had a cold.
His nose was stuffy.
His throat hurt.
He went to the pharmacy and said, Hi, I'm constipated.
The pharmacist handed him some medicine.
Pedro looked at the box and froze.
Oh no, I meant I have a cold.
That night, he laughed about the whole week with his roommates.
By Friday, Pedro had learned four new words and some important lessons he would never forget.
Great!
Let's listen to the story in the plural.
We had just moved to Chicago from Brazil.
We were excited, friendly and ready to speak English at our new jobs.
But that first week, wow!
It was full of surprises.
On Monday, someone invited us to a birthday dinner.
We smiled and said, Eventually we'll go.
But we meant maybe.
So when we didn't show up, people were a little confused.
On Tuesday, our boss asked what we did the night before.
We said we assisted a movie.
They thought we helped with the film, but we just meant we watched it.
On Wednesday, a co-worker told us her dog was sick.
We said, We're very sympathetic.
She got emotional and thanked us.
We didn't expect that.
We were just trying to be friendly.
Then came Thursday.
We had a cold.
Our noses were stuffy.
We went to the pharmacy and said, Hi, we're constipated.
Yeah, wrong word.
We got the wrong medicine and a funny story to tell later.
By Friday, we had learned four new useful lessons.
And we never forgot those words again.
Great.
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