Hello and welcome back to your English Five a Day. on the English Like a Native podcast.
This is the daily podcast aimed at intermediate to advanced level English learners who want to expand their vocabulary, improve their listening skills and feel more confident when using this language.
The way we learn is through stories because, let's face it, it's much more fun to learn with stories.
My name is Anna and today is week 11, day 4 of our story following Gabriel as he journeys across the UK.
Yesterday, Gabriel was unexpectedly invited to judge a baking competition at a village fete a classic slice of British community life.
Today, he steps right into the heart of the event.
Supporting materials for this season are available at www.joinelan.com.
But now, let's begin with a snapshot.
At the village fete, people gather to enjoy the day, chat away with friends, and Gabriel begins to mingle with the crowd.
As the judge, he must carefully sample each baked treat while the organisers work behind the scenes to host the event successfully.
Fabulous.
Now it's time for our vocabulary breakdown.
First, let's look at the word mingle.
To mingle.
M-I-N-G-L-E
This means to move around and talk to different people in a social setting.
For example, he spent the evening mingling with guests.
Do you like to mingle?
Next, we had the verb sample.
Sample.
S-A-M-P-L-E.
This means to try a small amount of food or drink.
For example, she sampled several cakes before choosing one.
Next, we have the verb host, to host, H-O-S-T.
This means to organise and lead an event or welcome people to it, to host.
For example, they hosted a party for the whole village.
Next, we have the verb gather.
To gather is to come together in one place.
For example, people gathered in the square for the event.
Last but not least we have chat away.
To chat away.
C-H-A-T chat A-W-A-Y away.
To chat away is to talk continuously in a relaxed and friendly way.
For example, they sat together chatting away for hours.
Fantastic.
Now listen out for those verbs as we head into story time.
The village fete featured all kinds of homemade goods, from cakes to cushions, from jewellery to juice, and from paintings to pottery.
Gabriel really wanted to sample some of the amazing-looking scones and pastries, but he had to make sure that his palate was clean for the judging session.
Gabriel saw Bert and some other locals gathered slightly away from the stalls, engaged in conversation.
At first he thought they were just chatting away cheerfully, enjoying the atmosphere of the day.
But he quickly got the impression that something was wrong.
He went across and politely interrupted, asking if they had any instructions for him.
Bert introduced Gabriel to the others and explained that they had a last-minute problem.
A landlord who had originally offered to host the evening party at his pub had pulled out and would no longer provide the venue as promised.
I wonder if you could use the cafe, Gabriel said without missing a beat.
Someone in the group commented in typical reserved British fashion that it wasn't the worst idea they'd ever heard.
And Gabriel returned to mingle with the crowds.
There were lots of workshops too, and he promised himself he would come to more of these types of events in the next few days.
It was as if he didn't want his visit to the UK to be over.
The judging time came.
Buttery scones, golden pastries, jam tarts, cinnamon swirl buns, Victoria sponge cake, and he had to taste all of these.
It was too good to be true.
Bert had told him to take a sip of water and a small bite of a plain cracker between each tasting.
That way he'd look more professional.
Gabriel tasted each treat with pleasure.
Bert did the same for what he called reasons of transparency.
At the end, they briefly compared notes before announcing the winner.
The jam tarts!
Gabriel asked if he could take the recipe back to Leon, but the winning baker said she would give it to him only if he took her back to Leon too.
Everyone roared with laughter.
Gabriel blushed and presented her with the winner's rosette.
The fate carried on until nightfall, ending up at the cafe, as Gabriel had suggested.
All right, let's pause our story there and recap today's vocabulary.
I will repeat each item twice, leaving a little space for you to repeat after me.
And then I'll remind you of the definition.
So here goes.
Repeat after me.
Mingle.
Mingle.
This means to move around and talk to different people in a social setting.
Next, repeat after me.
Sample Sample This means to try a small amount of food or drink.
Next, host Host This means to organise and lead an event or welcome people to it.
Next, we have gather.
Gather.
This means to come together in one place.
Finally, we have chat away. chat away.
This is to talk continuously in a relaxed and friendly way.
Wonderful.
Now these are incredibly useful verbs to use when talking about social events, parties and community life.
Now what a day it has been for Gabriel, from visitor to judge, fully part of the village experience.
Tomorrow, we wrap up the week as Gabriel continues exploring Somerset.
Visiting famous towns, discovering local traditions and beginning to reflect on his journey as it slowly comes to an end.
That's all from me for today.
I do hope that you've enjoyed the episode.
If you have, then please take a second to leave a like, a rating or review.
It really does help.
Until tomorrow, take care and goodbye.
