This is an All Ears English Podcast, episode 2113, exclusive English advice.
Welcome to the All Ears English Podcast. downloaded more than 200 million times.
Are you feeling stuck with your English?
We'll show you how to become fearless and fluent by focusing on connection, not perfection.
With your American hosts Lindsay McMahon, the English adventurer, and Michelle Kaplan, the New York radio girl, coming to you from Colorado and New York City, USA.
To get real-time transcripts right on your phone and create your personalized vocabulary list, try the All Ears English app for iOS and Android.
Start your seven-day free trial at allearsenglish.com forward slash app.
In this episode, we answer a listener question.
What does the word exclusive mean, especially when we are not talking about relationships?
Day, get new and interesting ways to use this word in your English conversations.
This Black Friday, stop piecing together random TikToks and YouTube videos that don't lead anywhere.
Join our 2026 English Mastery Bundle, a complete nine to 12 month curriculum designed for goal oriented learners like you.
You'll follow a clear, structured path from intermediate to high intermediate and even to advanced fluency, with every course flowing naturally into the next.
No gaps, no guesswork.
No searching for extra resources.
Plus, you'll get live speaking practice, community, and teacher support.
It's a done-for-you plan.
Everything you need in one place.
All unlocked with a single, one-time investment.
This Black Friday only.
Build your English for the long term.
Start today.
Go to allersenglish.com slash blackfriday to save 50% off the normal price.
Expires at midnight on Friday. allersenglish.com slash B-L-A-C-K-F-R-I-D-A-Y.
Hey, Michelle, how's everything going today?
Hey, Lindsay, everything's good.
How are you?
Excellent.
Excellent.
We're recording today on a Friday, so I'm excited for the weekend, but what are we getting into today?
On today's episode?
Yeah.
Well, Lindsay, have you had any exciting opportunities recently?
Exciting opportunity in terms of work or in terms of life?
There's always, oh my gosh, I see a lot of opportunities everywhere all the time.
That's good.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, for sure.
I mean, I'm going to have an opportunity to travel to Portugal this fall.
Actually, by the time this comes out, I'll be back already.
But yeah, that's an opportunity that I'm grateful for.
What about you, Michelle?
Anything special?
Well, that's funny.
Well, it's funny that you went to travel because that's where my mind went to.
I was thinking oh, the opportunity that I had to go on my big trip in May and June to Paris and London.
That was definitely an exciting opportunity.
So yeah, thinking about travel here today.
Yeah, I love that.
It kind of says a lot about your values when you answer that, how you answer that question, right?
Yeah.
That's true.
That's true.
Right.
Neither of us.
I mean, even though there are exciting opportunities with work, we both jumped to travel and we know from almost 10 years of talking that we like, that we each really value uh, travel.
So it makes sense.
It has been 10 years of talking, michelle.
That's crazy, oh my gosh.
Well anyways guys, if you've just found dollars english or if you're a newbie here, make sure you hit that follow button because yes, we have been talking for 10 years and we're going to keep talking.
So all ears english publishes four days a week and we have a unique angle on learning english, michelle.
What is it?
Well, we believe in connection, not perfection right, Lindsay?
So we believe that if you really think about language learning in a way where you're connecting with people and you're not so focused on every little detail, we want to be as good as possible, of course, but we don't want it to hamper connection.
We don't want it to then take the place of connecting with someone, because that's really kind of defeats the whole purpose.
It's true.
It's true.
So connection, not perfection.
If you believe in that, if you also believe you could get it on board with that mentality, that motto, then hit that follow button to follow us four days a week.
Let's learn together.
All right, Michelle.
So we're starting with a question from Shiva from Iran.
Very exciting.
Could you read it for us for a change?
Sure.
Yeah, I would love to.
All right, here we go.
Hi, dear Lindsay and Michelle.
My name is Shiva from Iran.
I've been listening to all ears English for three years.
Wow.
Thank you for listening.
Oh, I like this next part.
I start my day with your amazing voices every day and I'm so thankful you guys are the best.
Well, I just love you.
This is amazing.
This is a five-star review, by the way, from Shiva in, I think, Apple Podcasts or the app.
I'm not sure which.
But yeah, so good to see how much they love the show.
Yes, it really was very heartwarming.
So thank you.
I really mean it.
I have a question for you guys.
I've heard the word exclusive about relationships like this sentence.
We are exclusive or we are not exclusive, which means we are in a serious relationship or it's just a casual relationship.
But I heard the word exclusive in a a movie, but it was different.
I heard this sentence.
I want to give you an exclusive chance.
Can you please explain this word exclusive?
Thank you so much.
I love you guys so much.
And I'm waiting for you guys to come to our country, Iran.
I can't wait to see you.
Kiss.
Thank you.
Wonderful.
So good to meet you through this letter, Shiva.
And thanks for being an amazing listener of All Ears English.
So good, Michelle.
Definitely.
Yeah.
So this is a great question.
I mean, yeah, we often use exclusive to talk about Yes.
Just like Shiva said.
So, yeah, there are other ways to use it, though.
So yeah, just to head you guys over to another episode, because we sometimes talk about exclusive deals.
Oh, yes.
Yes.
We can go to All Ears English episode 2101.
Should you shop around native English, english phrases for making purchases?
Yeah, i love that.
Guys, go check it out, check out that other episode, and all right.
So she was asking for other ways right, what are the ways in which we use exclusive, and what would be an example of exactly what she asked, michelle?
What did she exactly?
So well, she said it, the example that she had.
And again, i love when we have listeners coming and giving us a specific example from something they've heard, because that's such a good way to learn it really.
Um yeah, i want to give you an exclusive chance.
So lindsay, do you often hear exclusive used in this way?
Yeah, i do, for sure, sometimes.
Um so yeah, relationships are a whole other thing and yes, you can be exclusive with your partner.
Yes, but today right, this idea of an exclusive chance, you know what comes to mind actually.
Um, have you, have you watched the series inventing anna?
No,
Oh, you haven't?
Oh, you would like it.
I think you would like it.
Yeah.
It's about this woman in New York City in like 2013, 2014.
And she got into lots of trouble, like kind of scamming people, crazy stuff that happened.
She's in jail right now.
But the story is actually one of the main actors is Anna Kolomsky, who was in My Girl.
She was the little girl from My Girl.
But she's an adult actress.
Amazing.
I love her.
I think she's great.
But anyways, they keep saying in the movie how Anna, the one in jail, is giving Vivian, the reporter, an exclusive.
Giving her an exclusive meaning she is exclusively interviewing her, like she's only going to give her the story.
So she goes back to Rikers Island, like over and over and over, to write this story about Anna.
So watch the movie, watch the show.
It's, it's good, it's good okay.
Okay, that does sound really good.
I am currently I.
Do you ever have that moment where you're kind of in a in a blank space, you've run out of your shows and you're not really perfect?
This can fill the void.
So Yes,
Fill the void.
Yes.
So, but yeah, exactly.
I agree with you.
And we're going to do some examples and specifically about interviews as well.
But basically an exclusive chance likely means in this context that Shiva gave us.
That is very special right.
It's possibly only for this person, like Lindsay was talking about, with the show or a special group of people.
So it's not something that just anybody can get or just given out willy-nilly sure, it's exclusive right, it's special.
Yeah completely yeah yeah, exactly so to give it to use exclusive chance.
You could say something like we are giving you an exclusive chance to meet the stars of the show yeah, and it's interesting how, you know, usually it is used right before now.
Right, an exclusive chance, exclusive opportunity, exclusive offer.
But what?
The example that i, an example that i just shared giving you an exclusive?
Yes, you didn't have anything else right, we're putting that into the context of reporting, Right?
Like the reporters are talking to each other.
Oh, she gave you an exclusive.
That's amazing.
So in that case, we're dropped.
That becomes the noun.
Right.
Yeah.
Right.
Right.
It's interesting.
Definitely.
You don't need to have anything after exclusive in certain cases.
I guess, industries like journalism.
It becomes actually a form of jargon for that specific industry.
Yeah, exactly.
The other thing that comes to mind, Michelle, are, of course, our fluency parties are exclusive.
Only students who have ever been a student in All Ears English courses.
If you've ever purchased a course or you're currently in a course, you are invited.
Otherwise, yeah, it's not available.
So that's exclusive.
Very cool.
It's very special.
Very special.
Not for everyone.
So yeah, that's exclusive.
All right, Michelle, let's dig deeper.
What else?
All right.
Well, so I got some ideas of some chunks looking a little bit at wordreference.com for collocations.
So common ways that you hear this word.
What's one?
Yeah.
First one, exclusive opportunity.
So this one I hear all the time, right?
Get in on this exclusive opportunity.
Yes.
Or it's not always that something is exclusive.
Right.
Sometimes using that word can just be a sales tactic, right?
Oh, yeah.
Yeah.
For sure.
Yeah.
Like I'm thinking of an infomercial, you know, like, oh, like call now or you're going to miss it.
It's an exclusive opportunity.
Right.
Oh, yes.
Sometimes it's not.
Infomercials are so crazy.
Usually, by the time the infomercials come on the TV, I say OK, it's time to go to bed because it's getting bad now.
That means it's three in the morning.
Yeah.
Right.
Have you ever bought anything off of an infomercial?
Never.
What about you?
I mean, I honestly, but you should admit it.
If you have Michelle admit to us.
No, no, no.
But I, but I know I honestly.
Uh, I'm trying to think.
No, I haven't.
No, I think my mom has bought some stuff from QVC before.
Actually, recently she sent me a picture of a little bag and she said Oh, do you?
She said, do you want?
Do you want this bag from QVC?
And I was like, no, it's cool.
QVC is cool now because you know Lori from Shark Tank.
She's the one that has.
I think she's.
I don't know if she's like the owner of QVC or affiliated with it, but The entrepreneurs on Shark Tank always want to get on QVC, so it's cool.
Yes, I know.
They always talk about QVC.
Yeah, Lindsay and I, we both watch Shark Tank.
Yeah.
So that fills the void also when I don't have a show that I'm binging.
Yeah, right, right, right.
OK, let's do the next one.
So exclusive interview, right?
That's what Lindsay said.
Or just to say to have an exclusive.
So, for example, Entertainment Tonight has an exclusive interview with Hugh Jackman.
Oh, yeah, he's good.
He was in The Greatest Showman, right?
Hugh Jackman.
Oh, I love that guy.
Oh, me too.
He's good.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Yeah.
But sometimes, as you can see in my notes, I also wrote about an exclusive, right?
See, we're on the same page.
We are so in sync.
I love that.
So good.
What's another one?
This is kind of what we were talking about also with the infomercial.
Yeah, so it could be an exclusive offer.
So yeah, you do hear this a lot in marketing, whether it is genuine or whether they're just trying to make it seem genuine.
I recommend just using this word selectively. right?
Only when it actually is genuine.
So an example, don't miss this exclusive offer.
And then one more is exclusive club.
So she's part of an exclusive club.
So that could mean a lot of things.
I mean, maybe this person is a celebrity.
So it's kind of fancy.
Yeah, you might Like a country club also?
Yeah.
You can't say she's part of the exclusive club on blah, blah, blah road, right?
Yeah, right.
So it's interesting.
So here's a question.
Are all clubs that are, by definition, you have to apply to get in?
Are they all exclusive, would you say?
I mean, they are because you have to apply to get in.
They're not open to everyone, but the word exclusive elevates them a little bit more, wouldn't you say?
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
Yeah.
I don't, I am not a part of it. any of these kinds of clubs.
But yeah, I think, yeah, that's a good place to use exclusive for sure.
But it can also be just a club of people, right?
Like, oh, she discovered some blah, blah, blah.
So she's part of an exclusive club of scientists who have worked on Oh, you know what I mean?
Like, like a special group, like that's awesome.
Like, yeah.
Yeah.
So it might not be just like an actual club.
It might be, but it might.
You can use it also to say Oh, they're part of an exclusive club who have completed this level of education in their town.
I don't know.
Yeah.
That's a good point.
So it doesn't mean they necessarily meet and apply to be in it.
It means they've naturally ended up in this exclusive group and, based on what they've achieved.
So the word's a little flexible, actually.
Yeah.
Oh, yeah, yeah, for sure.
I mean, in all of these, the idea is that it's special.
There's only one or a few.
Not everyone gets something unless it's a marketing tactic, right?
Right.
But there are other ways to use this word, but we're focusing on this basic idea.
And the same idea goes for relationships.
Just to touch on that for a second in case our listeners don't know, even though we mentioned it.
If a relationship is exclusive, you're only with each other.
The idea is only.
It's special.
Yeah, and you know other ways to describe it would be yeah special unique, soul.
Yeah, um would be for like only right yep, exactly.
So special, unique or soul yeah, but I like exclusive better.
I mean it's yeah yeah exclusive, but it kind of I like how it sounds, it's got a ring to it.
It's kind of fun to say multiple syllables yeah, it works.
It works exactly.
So should we do a role play?
Yeah,
Oh my gosh.
This is so funny that you're mentioning this reporter.
Here we go.
So this is incredible.
I just got an exclusive interview planned with the mayor.
No way.
That's such a unique opportunity.
He never gives interviews.
Thanks.
Yeah.
I really feel like now I will be in this exclusive club of people who have interviewed him.
That's true.
This is really a special chance.
Nice.
Yeah.
So again, as we said at the top of the episode guys, you also could have said I just got an exclusive plan.
If I'm talking, probably if I'm talking to someone in another, in the industry, usually, right.
I mean, maybe your family would know what that means, but generally it's like a peer to peer industry, professional thing to say.
Yes.
Okay.
What did we say here, Michelle?
All right, let's go through it.
So yeah, so I just got an exclusive interview plan with the mayor.
And then I said.
Yeah, you said, no way, that's such a unique opportunity.
And that's another word that kind of is in the same ballpark, I would say.
It's in the same ballpark.
It's not exactly the same, but you know, it's a word that you couldn't use along with exclusive.
Yeah, exactly.
And then you said, Michelle, or I said, what was it?
I feel like I'll be in this exclusive club of people who have interviewed him.
Okay, so special group based on achievement.
Yeah, and you could have also said exclusive group.
Exclusive um yeah, i guess, group or club, but not necessarily like something you join actively.
It's just right, a group, people that are grouped together because they've done something.
Yeah good, yeah right.
And then what was the last part?
Uh, this is really a special chance.
This really is a special chance.
Again, same ballpark, but different word.
Right right right, exactly exactly the idea of being special.
Not everybody gets this chance.
So michelle, here's a question if you could be in any like exclusive group of people who have achieved something like anything could be quirky.
What would you want to be like?
What kind of gosh, I don't know.
It's a hard question.
Well, I feel like I should say something about saving the world, but I'll stick it.
I mean, yeah.
I mean, I'll go with something with podcasting.
Love it.
Yeah.
Well, I feel like All Ears English is in an exclusive group of podcasts when it comes to language education,
Oh, it's true.
Absolutely.
We are touching so many students.
And guys, so what's the takeaway here, Michelle?
What would you say is the takeaway about exclusive podcasting?
What do you think we need to know?
I mean, just special.
Think about special.
We've gone over a lot of ways that it's used today.
We've talked about industries and jargon.
We've talked about clubs, both ones that you actively join and that you're in through achievement.
But the main idea is this is a really good word to use.
This is a nice sounding word.
It's not really formal.
It's not informal.
It's just a good word.
Yeah, I love it.
And Michelle, my takeaway here is that you have a new show to watch.
Yes, yes, yes, yes.
Inventing Anna.
I highly recommend it.
It's good.
It's good.
All right.
Good stuff, Michelle.
Thanks for hanging out, guys.
If you love All Ears English, then hit that follow button.
If you're listening on Apple or Spotify, wherever you listen or even YouTube.
This episode is on YouTube.
Hit the subscribe button.
All right, Michelle.
See you soon.
All right.
Bye, Lindsay.
Bye, guys.
Bye.
Thanks for listening to all ears English.
Would you like to know your English level?
Take our two minute quiz.
Go to allearsenglish.com forward slash fluency score.
And if you believe in connection, not perfection, then hit subscribe now to make sure you don't miss anything.
See you next time.
