Last week was Semana Santa... or Holy Week. That is the most "sacred" of Christian holidays. It's kind of a big deal here in southern Spain. In this episode of the more than English podcast, I will tell you about my experience here during Semana Santa as well as teach you 15 USEFUL and NATURAL expressions to really increase your fluency.

VOCABULARY and EXPRESSIONS include:

The most adj of nouns – A bit more formal way of using superlatives.
“The most religious of Christian holidays.”
to mark something – to make a reminder so you remember something
            “Easter Sunday is to mark his resurrection.”
To go all out  – to put all of your energy into something. To do it 100%
            “Here in Southern Spain, they really go all out.”
Ritualistic (adj) – something that is done by ritual the same way every time
            “It’s kind of ritualistic or traditional.”
And, I’ll tell ya… – (Fluency builder) before you say something strong, important, or surprising
            “This is probably my fourth Semana Santa here in Seville, and I’ll tell ya, it’s the first one that I’m actually… observing it to observe what they do, and it’s pretty interesting.”
Processions – The marches in remembrance of something (Funeral Processions)
In concordance with… –Something that parallels something else.
            “The days of each paso goes in concordance with the days of Jesus’ life.”
Blocked off – (phrasal verb) To stop people from going somewhere or doing something
            “Streets are completely blocked off.”
Undertones – Subtle /suh-dl/ messages
            “With the religious undertones… it just wasn’t something I was interested in.”
Turn somebody off – To cause somebody to lose interest in something
            “Something else that turned me off in the beginning was the outfits.”
Come on – (Fluency builder) Emphasizes that you’re going to give your opinion.
            “Because, come on, Spanish people had this outfit before the KKK.”
Big business – “There is a lot of big business going on during this week.”
Those times have passed – You don’t do something anymore that you used to do
            “I used to be religious, but those times have passed”
It leaves a bad taste in my mouth – Something that has given you a bad experience
Pivotal (adj) – Something that causes a drastic change in your life

Do you get frustrated at your English listening? I want to share three tricks to try TODAY to help you REAL listening. These will help you on exams, but they are for real, actionable English in REAL LIFE. Whether you're meeting people, having conversations with people, or watching TV or movies, these tricks will help you.

Below, you will be able to listen to this week's episode of the More Than English Podcast, and you will see some key expressions that you can use to IMPROVE you English speaking as well!

VOCABULARY and EXPRESSIONS
(The words and terms are in order of when you will hear them)
 
Moving along – We’re progressing in something/ Something is continuing.
“We are just moving along here, aren’t we.”
To turn somebody off – to stop listening to somebody
            “Before you turn me off here...”
I find it a bit… – Express your feeling or opinion about something..
            “I find it a bit curious.”
You get one shot/ one crack at sth – to have one chance at something (Purple Belt)
            “Some listening exams, you get one shot.”
Well, for one… – Fluency builder + begin a list of important information.
            “Well, for one, know why you’re listening.”
To get lost – To lose your place in a listening or reading
“You might get lost and get frustrated.”
To pick out – (phrasal verb) To notice or to choose something specific
            “Don’t try to pick out every single word.”
Make a mental note – To notice something and remember it in your mind (Purple Belt)
            “Try to make a mental note how you listen to something in your language.”
Here and there – To occasionally do something (Purple Belt)
            “You probably miss some words here and there.”
Fill in the blanks – To assume information that you missed (Blue Belt)
            “You probably listen to the message and fill in the blanks if you miss something.”
To miss the forest for the trees – You miss the big picture because you’re focused on a single detail
Hang out – (Phrasal Verb) To spend time with your friends.
Step back and think – To pause and think about something
            “Step back and think, ‘What is this person trying to communicate to me?’”
 
Did you catch any other phrasal verbs or expressions you like? Write them below or on my Facebook page or on Twitter.

Do you still translate English in your own mind when you're speaking or listening? That can be frustrating, but it's also very normal. In this episode of the More Than English Podcast I'm going to share with you a simple 2-part trick to TRAIN YOURSELF to think DIRECTLY in English. 
Below are some of the key vocabulary and expressions ​you will hear in the episode.

More Than English Podcast
Episode 4: Think DIRECTLY in English
 
VOCABULARY and EXPRESSIONS
(The words and terms are in order of when you will hear them)
 
To go swimmingly – Time that passes really well. You’re enjoying your time.
“I’m going to try to have your next 20 minutes go by swimmingly.”
Target language – the language you’re trying to learn
            “I’m going to show you a trick to think directly in your target language.”
Let’s face it… – (Fluency builder) Let’s be honest.
            “Let’s face it, that’s what we do normally, isn’t it?”
To be in _______ mode – to be mentally focused on a certain thing.
            “How can we train our brains to be in second-language mode?”
To tickle somebody’s ears – Telling somebody something that you think would make them feel good whether it’s true or not.
            “Don’t just tickle my ears here. I want to know your real opinion.”
…almost two years ago now – A natural way to explain something happened X time ago. Stressing that it doesn’t feel that long ago.
“Sadly she died almost two years ago now.”
The grocery store – The supermarket
            “I was imagining having conversations with the person at the grocery store.”
by myself – Alone
            “I was imagining these conversations by myself in Spanish.”
I would find myself ___ing – You suddenly realize you’re doing something (Purple Belt)
            “I would find myself stopping in the middle of the street to look up a word.”
You’ll be surprised at _____ – Useful expression when giving a suggestion
            “You’ll be surprised at how well this works.”
Silent mode – Making your phone notifications silent
Shame on me – When somebody did something to be embarrassed about
Where was I? – Use this when you were interrupted doing something, and then you return to the topic.
 
Did you catch any other phrasal verbs or expressions you like? Write them below or on Facebook or Twitter.
​

 Learn some English expressions for health and doctors. What do you say in English if you hurt your back? What if you have to go to a doctor? How can you describe it?

I recently threw out my back. What does that mean? Basically, it means my back seized up and I was in a lot of pain and I couldn't move. I will talk about how I injured my back, what I'm doing for recovery, how I feel, and a lot more! Learn useful vocabulary and expressions to improve your NATURAL English speaking!

Look below at the expressions you will hear in today's episode. Practice and use these expressions the next time you have an English conversation. Not all of the expressions I say are about an injured back. These are expressions that can be used in many different types of situations.

If you have any examples that you'd like to try using these expressions or others, send me your examples on Facebook or Twitter.

 
VOCABULARY and EXPRESSIONS
(The words and terms are in order of when you will hear them)
 
Going around – If many people around you are getting a cold or flu, it’s going around
“Fevers and colds and flus are going around in our family.”
To have somebody in your arms – a way to describe you’re holding or hugging somebody
            “I had my son in my arms.”
Throw your back out/ Throw out your back – (Phrasal verb) You’ve injured or damaged your back (or other body part).
            “I coughed and threw my back out yesterday.”
Tightened up/ Stiffened up/ Tensed up – To become hard and solid. I wasn’t able to move my muscles.
            “The muscles on both sides of my spine tightened up, and stiffened up, and tensed up…”
Cramp (n)/ Cramp up (v) – A painful involuntary contraction of a muscle. It normally lasts a few minutes.
            “Sometimes I feel a cramp in my leg.” (n)
            “Sometimes my leg cramps up.” (v)
In fact – Fluency builder to help you sound more natural.
“It wasn’t getting better, in fact it was getting worse.”
To be stuck – To not be able to move or pass through something.
            “I couldn’t move. I was stuck there..”
To be curled up – A position where you are in a small position with your knees pulled to your chest.
            “I was curled up on the bed face down on my knees.”
… is it?  – Question tag with intonation
            “It’s not a really natural position, is it.”
The (comparison), the (comparison) – Talk mention issue that is not directly related to the rest of your message
            “The healthier you are, the better you will perform on your exam.”
 
Did you catch any other phrasal verbs or expressions you like? Write them below or on Facebook or Twitter.
​

In today's episode of the More Than English Podcast, I give you a simple trick that you can use today to increase your vocabulary in a natural way. It's actually a two-part trick. Part 1 is to talk to yourself in English when you're doing some daily tasks, for example, when you're driving, washing the dishes, walking the dog, or any other thing when you talk to yourself. Do that in English. Part 2 is to write down any new vocabulary words or expressions that you look up in a dictionary or hear in a movie or a podcast or a song. Keep a notebook with you to always have that also in the back of your mind. 

You'll hear these expressions in the podcast. 

VOCABULARY and EXPRESSIONS
(The words and terms are in order of when you will hear them)
 
Vice-versa – The other way around
“We’re applying how we learn English to also learning  other things in life – or vice-versa, how we apply learning other things in life to our language learning.”
To see something from both sides of the spectrum –
            “I kind of see language learning from both sides of the spectrum.” (As a language
teacher and a learner.)
Let’s face it… - Using this will help you sound more fluent to say something honestly.
            “Let’s face it, teachers put in a lot of time… but as a learner, a lot of these activities
don’t apply to the real world.”
The internet goes down – The internet stopped working temporarily
            “What do you say when you have to call customer service because the internet went
down?”
Exponentially (adv.) – To increase something A LOT
            “It’s helping me exponentially as a teacher.”
Practice what you preach – To actually do what you tell other people to do
            “I tell my students to do it, and I should practice what I preach.”
That’s beside the point – An expression to say what you’ve said isn’t in the topic of what you’re
talking about.
That’s neither here nor there – To express that something is irrelevant to what you’re talking
about.
            “My bag isn’t like a traditional fanny pack; it’s a fashionable leather one, but that’s
beside the point. That’s neither here nor there.”
A habit to get into – Use “get into” for a habit when you’re starting it.
            “Repeating what you hear in English will be a useful habit to get into.”
To say something under your breath – To whisper something to yourself
            “Sometimes, I will repeat an expression I hear under my breath.”
On a side note – Talk mention issue that is not directly related to the rest of your message
            “On a side note, it’s good motivation for other people to help you.”
In one ear, out the other – Something you hear, but you don’t pay attention to. (Hear, but don’t listen)
            “You’ll start picking up on some expressions that normally would go in one ear and out
the other.”

Write the expressions you like below. Also write them in context and a sentence. Share those with me below in the comments or on Facebook or Twitter.

In this first episode of the More Than English Podcast, I talk about the format of this show. In the podcast, I speak in a NATURAL way, so you can hear real English about a variety of topics. I will talk about things directly related to English learning, but also about life in general. After each episode, I will have an expressions breakdown where I will review some of the useful expressions in the podcast, so you can LEARN them and USE them.  

I talk about the common saying, "practice makes perfect" and how that is not exactly true. Basically, you could practice something 1,000 times, but if you practice it wrong, you will just learn how to do it wrong. This does not lead to perfection... or even growth! Practice doesn't make perfect, perfect practice makes perfect! I will tell you my ideas on how you can do perfect practice during your time studying or practicing any skill because it's not just English... it's More Than English. Let's go!

​VOCABULARY and EXPRESSIONS
(The words and terms are in order of when you will hear them)
 
Venture – A business project where something is risked to hope to gain a reward.
            - “Thank you for joining me in this venture.”
All the time – Another expression to say ‘always’
            - “Students ask me all the time.”
In response to – An expression to explain responding to somebody.
            - “I ask the same question in response to this every time.”
How often to you ______? – PRON /ofen/
… isn’t it? – Question tag (intonation going up to ask a question)
            - “It’s kind of logical, isn’t it?”
Nonsense – something that is silly or doesn’t make any sense.
            - “Read blogs, read news articles, read science journals, read sports articles, read
nonsense.”
A trick – a small hint or hack to do something better.
            - “Here’s the trick. Here’s the secret.”
Alliteration – form of speech where a group of words all start with the same letter or sound.
            - Practice makes perfect.
To engrain – to permanently fix or establish something in the mind
            - “If I practice the wrong way, I’m just engraining the wrong way in my head.”
To solidify something – the act of making something solid; to make something stronger.
            - “You’re solidifying it in your mind.”
Fossilized errors – when you learn something the wrong way so much that you know and use it
the wrong way.
Broadly – (adv.) broad (adj.)
- Once we see the way broadly, we can see all ways.