Welcome to a new episode of English Vocabulary Booster.
My name is Lara and I'm a SALSA-certified English teacher.
Learning new vocabulary usually takes a long time, but we'll do it in a way that's easy, quick and efficient.
In every episode, we'll learn how to use five new English words or expressions, so that you too can start speaking like a native.
So let's get learning.
Hello you guys, how are you?
How good are you at geography?
I'm asking because today's topic is geography.
So let's take a look at some new expressions.
But first, let's listen to the story.
Hey, Sammy, you're back.
Hi.
I am.
How's France?
Oh, fantastique.
Oh, sorry.
Did I just say fantastique?
You know, I've been speaking French the whole summer.
I almost feel like I'm forgetting English.
This lucky one got to spend three months in Paris.
Oh, really?
Yep.
I think spending a few months across the pond is an experience everyone should have once in their life.
Oh, yeah, no, I get it.
My dad spends long periods of time overseas for work, so sometimes I get to travel to visit him.
So, Sammy, tell us, how was it?
Oh, great, great.
You know, very romantic.
You know my parents were there, but it was beautiful food and the shops.
And are you?
Since when do you smoke?
Oh, just just a few weeks.
I guess it's a habit.
I got in paris.
Everybody smokes there.
You know what they say right wedding room, do as the romans do.
Well, I think you should quit.
It's really bad for you.
Oh, come on.
You're making a mountain out of a molehill.
It's just one or two cigarettes a day.
How bad can he be?
I'm telling you, Sammy.
It's a slippery slope.
My aunt started the same way, and now she smokes a pack a day.
Well then, tell me, how was it?
Did you see the Eiffel Tower?
Have I seen the Eiffel Tower?
Please, of course.
It's so big.
Look, you don't believe me?
I even got pictures.
See, that's me, my dad, and my stepmom in front of the Eiffel Tower, like I told you.
Yeah, I see.
Sammy, why are there so many people wearing Disney shirts?
And is that a man dressed as Mickey Mouse?
Fine, you got me.
I didn't go to Paris.
I went to Disney World.
All right, let's begin with expression number one, across the pond.
I think spending a few months across the pond is an experience everyone should have once in their life.
What is the pond in this idiom?
A lake or the ocean?
The pond that we are referring to in this case is the ocean.
So if you are in the States and you travel across the pond, where will you go?
East, so heading to Europe, or west, heading to Asia?
If you are in the States and you are traveling to go across the pond, you are going to be traveling east, meaning you're going to be going to Europe.
You're going to be crossing the Atlantic Ocean.
That is the pond, so to speak, that we are referring to in this idiom.
So if you are in the States and you want to say that you're traveling to the UK, for example, you would say oh, I'm going to be spending however much time across the pond.
And the same goes, you know, if you are in the UK and you're going to be spending some time in the States.
Have you ever been across the pond before?
Yes, quite a few times.
You guys know, I think by this point, that I used to have a boyfriend in the States.
Actually, two of my boyfriends were from the States.
I also worked there and studied there for a little while, a total of two years.
So I have been across the pond.
Expression number two, overseas.
My dad spends long periods of time overseas for work.
If someone from the US, for example, lives or works overseas, where do they live?
In a different city or in a foreign country?
If someone from the US, for example, or really any other country, lives or works overseas, they live in a foreign country.
And where is that country usually located?
Across the sea or not?
Well, you got a little bit of a hint there.
It's overseas.
So yes, it is across the sea.
So if you say that you are living overseas, that means that between the country that you're living in and the country where you are from or you're moving from, There's a body of water, normally a sea or the ocean, not really a lake because again, it's overseas.
But yes, the ocean works too.
So again, if you're from the US and you move to France, you can say that you went overseas, and the other way around.
Do you know anybody working or living overseas at the moment?
I don't really think so.
I can't think of anyone that lives or works abroad at the moment.
I think most of my friends, yeah, I want to say all of my friends stayed in Italy.
So no.
Probably because you know we're Italians.
You know and everybody knows that Italians love their moms and they don't want to be too far away from them.
So maybe that's why.
I'm just kidding.
There's plenty of Italians that do work overseas.
Oh, but I just don't happen to know any, I guess.
Expression number three, when in Rome, do as the Romans do.
Or simply, when in Rome.
You know what they say, when in Rome, do as the Romans do.
What does the expression when in Rome, do as the Romans do imply?
That, when you travel to a different country, you should act like the people who live in that country, or that you should act like you do in your own country.
If you say when in Rome do as the Romans do, you are implying that when you are traveling, you should act like the people that live in the country that you have traveled to.
You should kind of embrace their culture and their habits.
So do you follow the when in Rome, do as the Romans do rule when traveling?
Probably I'm not the best example, because I really don't Go by the rule when in Rome do as the Romans do.
I will try, like, different foods.
And I'm very curious when it comes to other people's cultures.
But in terms of changing my own habits, it's really hard for me.
I don't have a lot of habits, actually.
But I remember, so I've been living in Spain for the past... three years more or less.
And you know that Spain is famous for its crazy dinner times maybe.
Okay, they wouldn't call them crazy, but they do have dinner at 9, sometimes even 10 pm, sometimes even later.
And, and that to me is just something that I haven't adjusted to.
And I don't think I ever will.
I haven't really made the effort, but it's just.
It's not something that I enjoy having dinner that late.
So I guess again, I'm not the best example of living by this rule, but I do think it's important as a tourist to kind of get curious about some of these things and at least try them out.
Put yourself in the shoes of the people that live in that country, and you just might discover something new.
Something else that, when I moved to Spain, I swore I would never do was was to have a savory breakfast.
Because here in Italy, we pretty much only have sweets for breakfast.
I'm talking like croissants, I'm talking cakes or cookies, you know, like very, very sweet stuff.
And one of the most typical breakfasts in Spain is tostada con tomate, which is basically like toasted bread with tomatoes.
And at first I was horrified.
I would look at people and I was like, okay, how can you eat that at 7.30 in the morning?
It's beyond me.
And surprisingly enough, I tried it one time and I kind of enjoyed it.
And now it's one of my favorite breakfasts.
So all I'm saying is that there's a lot to discover when you follow the rule.
It's not really a rule, but you know when you follow this proverb, when in Rome, do as the Romans do, because you can expand your horizons and discover something new that you didn't know about yourself.
Expression number four, make a mountain out of a molehill.
Oh, come on.
You're making a mountain out of a molehill.
Okay.
This idiom is perfect for me.
I'm.
If you're making a mountain out of a molehill, are you turning a small problem into a big one or a big problem into a small one?
If you're making a mountain out of a molehill, you're turning a small problem, something that might be even insignificant, into a big problem.
So you tend to exaggerate a problem.
Wendy usually say you're making a mountain out of a molehill when criticizing someone for overreacting or when telling someone they should worry.
You use this idiom when criticizing someone for overreacting.
You think something that is not a big deal is happening.
The other person is freaking out.
You're like, okay, hold on.
You're making a mountain out of a molehill.
Relax.
The problem is not as big as you're picturing it to be or you're making it out to be.
Has someone ever told you you are making a mountain out of a molehill?
I think maybe my boyfriend tells me that once a day because I, like I said, I do this all the time.
Unfortunately, I'm a pretty pessimistic person.
So whenever something happens, I always tend to either exaggerate it or I'm talking about negative things.
Like to me, things look much, much worse than they actually are.
I tend to catastrophize a lot.
So a lot of times, even if it's a small thing, I immediately freak out and I start thinking about all the possible negative consequences that this thing might have.
So yes, I definitely do that a lot.
I make a mountain out of a molehill a lot.
So pretty much once a day, my boyfriend needs to go.
Lara, you're making a mountain out of a molehill.
Let's try to be rational here.
Expression number five, slippery slope.
I'm telling you, Sammy, it's a slippery slope.
What's a slippery slope?
A situation that could easily have very bad consequences or very good consequences.
If you say it's a slippery slope, you are talking about a situation that could very easily have very bad consequences.
So if you say something, someone is doing or a situation that they're in is a slippery slope, do you think it will be easy or difficult to stop these consequences?
It's going to be difficult.
So think about what a slope is.
A slope is a piece of ground that is higher at one end than the other.
So what happens when you are at the top and you go down?
Well, if you fall, you are going to go down the slope, and the further down you go, the faster you're also going to fall, right.
So that is the idea behind this idiom.
Is this almost like unstoppable fall that becomes worse and worse as you progress right?
So all these bad consequences are going to start building up.
There's going to be more and more of them.
And it's going to be really hard to stop, because you're going to be so fast that it's going to be really hard to stop you or these bad consequences.
So that's what you mean when you say that it's a slippery slope.
It means a bad decision or a bad behavior that could very quickly turn into an even bigger problem that you cannot get out of.
Why would you tell someone the situation they're in is a slippery slope?
To warn them or to encourage them to continue to do what they're doing?
Well, a slippery slope is a dangerous situation.
So you would tell them, hey, listen, it's a slippery slope.
Don't do that.
To warn them, to kind of let them know that you think that they should stop doing what they're doing.
So what situations are potential slippery slopes?
Well, I think the example from the story is a good example.
Smoking could be a slippery slope, meaning you know you try it one day.
Just one cigarette, just for fun.
And then, before you know it, you become addicted to it and you want to smoke a whole pack a day or something.
So yeah, that's an example of a potential slippery slope.
As for me, I think watching reality TV is a slippery slope, because if I start watching one episode, then I can't stop, and then I don't get anything done.
Yeah, not sure how many people can relate to this one, but it's still, I think, a pretty good example.
And that is it for today.
And remember, if you want to access the transcript, as well as lots of other resources, visit enboocom.
That is E-N-B-O-O-O dot com.
Have a great day.
