Welcome to English Listening Channel.
Hello everyone.
Today we're going to look at a conversation about common English mistakes.
In this video, you will follow a simple and friendly conversation between Ken and Mina.
Today's video may be a little difficult, but don't worry.
Take your time and feel free to pause the video anytime.
If it feels difficult, please pause the video, make sure you understand and then move on.
Before we start, I have a small question for you.
Please listen carefully to find the answer.
This will help you understand English more deeply.
So here is today's question.
What did Ken say when he made a mistake in English?
The answer is mentioned in the conversation.
If you find the answer, please write it in the comments section.
By writing your answer in English, you can improve your English skills even more effectively.
All right, let's start the video.
Are you ready?
Okay, let's begin.
Hey, Nina.
I was studying English last night and I noticed something.
What did you notice?
I make a lot of small mistakes when I speak English.
My meaning is clear, but my English sounds a little strange sometimes.
Oh, I understand that feeling.
I think many English learners have the same problem.
Really?
So it's not just me?
Not at all.
There are some very common mistakes that almost everyone makes.
It doesn't matter where you are from.
Many learners make the same mistakes.
That makes me feel better.
I thought I was bad at English.
No, you're not bad.
Making mistakes is a normal part of learning.
Everyone goes through it.
Okay, that's good to hear.
Hey, why don't we talk about some of those common mistakes today?
Sure, that sounds like a great idea.
Let's think about the mistakes we often hear and go through them together.
Nice.
Let's keep it fun and easy.
I don't want this to feel like a test.
Don't worry, it won't be like a test at all.
We're just having a conversation.
That's the best way to learn right right okay, let's start.
Okay, so here's one.
Last week i was talking to my friend in english and i said i am boring.
Oh no, do you know what that means?
I wanted to say I felt bored like I had nothing to do.
Right, but I am boring means I am a boring person.
It means other people may think you are boring.
Oh no, that's not what I meant at all.
The correct way is I am bored.
When you talk about how you feel, you use bored with ed at the end.
I am bored.
Okay, I got it.
So bored is my feeling.
Yes, exactly.
And boring describes the thing that makes you feel that way.
For example, the class was boring, so I was bored.
Oh, that's clear.
The class was boring.
I was bored.
I think I see the difference now.
Let's try another one.
What about exciting and excited?
Hmm, so if I want to say I feel excited about a party, I should say I am excited.
Yes, I am excited about the party, and the party itself is exciting.
The party is exciting, so I am excited.
Got it.
What if someone says I am exciting?
That means I am an exciting person.
Like I make other people feel excited.
OK, I won't say that about myself.
Here's one more.
If you watched a movie and it was not interesting, you can say the movie was boring.
Not, the movie was bored.
Because the movie can't feel bored, right?
The movie doesn't have feelings.
Exactly.
The movie is boring.
You are bored.
The thing uses ing, your feeling uses ed.
That's a really simple way to remember it.
Bored and excited, these are my feelings.
Boring, exciting, these describe the thing.
You got it.
So remember, when you feel something, use the ed form.
When you describe the thing that gives you that feeling, use the ing form.
I'll try to remember that.
Bored and boring.
Excited and exciting.
My feelings use ed, things use ing.
Okay, next one.
I think I also have trouble with tenses.
That's very common.
What kind of trouble?
Well, sometimes I talk about yesterday, but I use the wrong form.
Like, I might say, yesterday I go to the store.
Ah, yes.
That should be yesterday I went to the store.
When you talk about the past, you need the past form of the verb.
Yesterday I went to the store.
Right.
Go becomes went.
Yes, and here's a good tip.
Listen for time words.
Words like yesterday, last night, and last week are big hints.
When you hear those words, you know you need the past form.
That makes sense.
So if I say, last night I watch a movie, that's wrong too?
Yes, last night tells you it already happened, so it should be last night I watched a movie.
Last night, I watched a movie.
Okay.
Watch becomes watched because I add ed.
Exactly.
Many verbs just add ed for the past.
Watched, played, talked, walked.
But some verbs change completely, like go becomes went, and eat becomes ate.
Right.
Those are the tricky ones.
I need to remember them one by one.
Yes, but the good news is that you use them a lot, so you will remember them quickly.
I went to the store.
I ate lunch.
I saw my friend.
You'll hear these every day.
I went to the store.
I ate lunch.
I saw my friend.
Okay, that's helpful.
There's one more thing I want to mention.
Sometimes we talk about something that started in the past and is still true now.
What do you mean?
For example, how long have you lived in this city?
About five years.
So I would say, I am living here for five years?
That's a common mistake.
The more natural way is, I have lived here for five years.
I have lived here for five years.
Why is that different?
Because you started living here five years ago and you still live here now.
That's why we say have lived.
I see.
So I have lived here for five years means I started in the past and I still live here now.
Yes, that's right.
You can also say I have worked at this coffee shop for two years, or I have studied English for three years.
I have studied English for three years, and I'm still making mistakes.
That's okay.
You're getting better.
Okay, here's something else I find confusing.
Sometimes I know the meaning of a word, but I don't know how to use it correctly in a sentence.
Oh, that's a really good point.
In English, many verbs have rules about what comes after them.
It's not just about the meaning.
Can you give me an example?
Sure.
Have you ever said, let's enjoy?
Yes, I've said that before.
Let's enjoy.
Is that wrong?
In English, enjoy needs something after it.
You can say, let's enjoy it or let's enjoy the party.
But just let's enjoy by itself sounds incomplete in most situations.
Oh, really?
So I should say, let's enjoy it?
Yes.
Or if you don't want to use enjoy, you can just say, let's have fun.
That's very natural.
Let's have fun.
That's easy.
I like that.
Here's another one.
How would you say, I will explain the answer to you?
Hmm.
I will explain you?
That's actually a common mistake.
Explain doesn't work like tell.
You can say, I will tell you, but with explain, you need to say, I will explain it to you.
I will explain it to you.
Okay, so I can't say explain you.
I need explain something to someone.
That's right.
And here's one more.
Have you heard people say, we discussed about the problem?
Yes, I think I've said that before.
Is about wrong there?
Yes, discuss already means talk about, so you don't need about again.
Just say we discussed the problem.
We discussed the problem, not discussed about.
That's interesting.
The meaning is clear in my head, but the form is different from what I expected.
That happens a lot in English.
It really helps to learn verbs together with the words that follow them, not just the verb alone.
So, enjoy something, explain something to someone, discuss something.
I should remember them as a set.
Exactly.
That's a really smart way to learn.
When you learn a new verb, try to learn the whole pattern, not just the word.
The whole pattern.
Got it.
I think that will help me a lot.
Okay, Mina.
Now I want to talk about something that has always confused me.
A and the.
Yes.
I think A and the are some of the most difficult little words in English.
They're so small, but I often get them wrong.
For example, is it okay to say, I bought book?
No, that sounds incomplete.
You need to say, I bought a book.
When you mention something for the first time and it's just one of many, you use a. I bought a book.
So a means one book and you don't know which one yet.
Yes, that's a good way to think about it.
Now, what about the?
Can you say sun is bright today?
Hmm, that doesn't sound right.
I think it should be the sun is bright today.
That's correct.
We say the sun because everyone knows which sun we mean.
There is only one sun in our sky.
So we use the, the sun, the moon, the sky, because everyone knows which one we mean.
Yes, exactly now.
Here's a tricky one.
What do you say when you go to school?
I went to the school yesterday actually.
When you mean i went there to study, the natural way is i went to school yesterday.
No, the Know the.
That's confusing.
Why not?
Go to school is a set phrase.
It means go there for the purpose of studying.
It's like go to bed or go to work.
These are fixed expressions.
Go to school, go to bed, go to work.
So these are phrases I should just remember as they are.
Yes, and go to church and go to class are the same.
Know the when you go there for the usual purpose.
But if I go to the school building to pick up my bag, not to study, would I say the school?
Yes, that's a great question.
In that case you could say I went to the school because you're talking about the building, not the activity.
That's interesting.
The meaning changes with just one small word?
Yes.
Don't worry about making it perfect every time.
Even advanced learners sometimes get confused about a and the.
The best thing is to learn the most common patterns first.
That's good advice.
I'll start with a book, the sun, and go to school.
Small words, but very important.
They really are.
These small words make your English sound much more natural.
Wow, I made more mistakes than I thought.
But now you know about them.
That's the first step.
Yeah, that's true.
Let me think about what we talked about.
First, bored and boring.
Bored is my feeling.
Boring describes the thing.
Right, and excited and exciting work the same way.
Then past tense yesterday I went, not yesterday I go.
And last night I watched, not last night I watch.
And don't forget, have lived.
I have lived here for five years.
You started in the past and you still live here now.
Right.
I have lived here for five years.
Then we talked about verbs.
Let's enjoy it.
Or even better, let's have fun and explain it to you, not explain you.
And we discussed the problem.
Know about.
Right.
Discuss the problem.
That one surprised me.
And finally, we talked about a and the.
I bought a book, the sun is bright, and go to school with no the.
You remembered everything.
That's impressive.
Well, I still need to practice, but I feel more confident now.
I think I'll try to use English more and not be afraid of making mistakes.
That's the best way to learn.
Everyone makes mistakes.
The important thing is to keep going and keep speaking.
You're right.
Mistakes are not something to be embarrassed about.
They're just part of the process.
Exactly.
And the more you speak, the more natural it becomes.
So don't stop.
I won't.
Thanks, Mina.
Today was really helpful.
I learned a lot.
I'm glad.
And remember, you don't have to fix everything at once.
Just focus on one thing at a time and you'll keep getting better.
Anytime.
Let's do this again sometime.
Definitely.
Let's have fun with English.
See?
You used have fun correctly.
I'm learning already.
How was it?
I hope this video helped you improve your English.
Now, let me ask the question from the beginning one more time.
What did Ken say when he made a mistake in English?
Did you find it?
If you did, please write your answer in the comments section.
By practicing English output like this, you can improve your English skills more efficiently.
In today's video we talked about common English mistakes such as bored and boring past tense, like went and watched, natural verb patterns like explain it to you, and small but important words like a and the.
On this channel, I share stories in slow and easy English with small but useful tips to help you.
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Alright, that's all for today. i hope to see you in the next video see you next time bye
