BBC
BETTER SPEAKING
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VOCABULARY
to sound - brzmieć |
Lesson 1
Do I have to sound like a native speaker?
Jinping: I have learned English for almost 15 years. I have no problem with reading and listening. But speaking has always been a problem for me
because when I was at school, we always focused on grammar, vocabulary and exams. Now I really want to improve my spoken English to a new
level, achieve that free speaking in the near future. Do you have any good suggestions on how to achieve this?
Richard Hallows: Learners of English often worry about speaking like a native speaker. I think it's important that they should realize this is not the
way you need to speak. Most of the time our listeners are speaking to other non-native speakers of English, so they need to be intelligible to
those people. It's not necessary to have a native accent.
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VOCABULARY
to sound natural - brzmieć naturalnie |
Lesson 2
What can I do to sound more natural?
Goran Ivanisevic: This was my dream, all my life and er… you know to serve for the match, suddenly I have a match point out of nowhere, you know... I came here, nobody even talked about me and now I'm holding this trophy and it's... it's just... this support today is like... er... I mean.. I was... er... three times in the final but this is, this is just unbelievable, this is too good. Thank you guys for everything...
Richard Hallows: When we're speaking, sometimes maybe we need time to think about what we're saying. Um... rather than having a silence when you're speaking, um... you might like to say, `erm... um...' In fact, I do this quite a lot when I'm speaking. And this helps you sound very natural and keeps the listener listening.
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VOCABULARY
to become - stać się |
Lesson 3
How can I become more confident?
Richard Hallows: Some students do have this confidence, and they're the students who really make the most progress and become, you know, the good speakers of English. The students who really don't progress so quickly are students who … you know, they worry about making mistakes so much, it stops them really communicating and making that progress.
Richard Hallows: Really “key” is, you know, you must enjoy speaking. Erm…. It's not an exam - it's just about communicating, and if you enjoy it, you will be so much better.
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VOCABULARY
how do I say it? - jak to powiedzieć? |
Lesson 4
How do I say it?
Ngoc: One of my problems is my spoken English sometimes I try to say something but I don't know the word so I feel... um... a bit confused and I stop because I don't know how to say it or to say what I want to say so I feel less confident in speaking and I stop myself from speaking sometimes.
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VOCABULARY
paraphrase - parafrazować |
Lesson 5
Can I paraphrase?
Pak Han Suk: In the house of the Korean people they like football very much, more than your baseball and basketball, but actually they do not want to visit a stadium.
Even if Korean people like football very much sometimes they want to go another place, like picnic, or do other things at home.
Maybe Korean people like drinking so much.
Maybe if a person is asked whether you go to the stadium or you join your friends in the, maybe, beer shop, something like that, I think maybe
Korean people choose going to the beer shop, I don't know...
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VOCABULARY
to survive - przeżyć, przetrwać, przetrzymać |
Lesson 6
How English helps you survive in business
Stelios Haji-Ioannou: Well obviously I've survived in business, by being able to speak English and Greek, which is not very useful outside Greece - so definitely English must be the business language.
I think it would've been impossible to run an airline in the UK without speaking English - that would've been a serious limitation to your ability to communicate with customers.
And in fact, when people ask me, "Do you... I mean, you come from Greece - why didn't you start the airline in Greece" or "Why didn't you go to France or Germany or everything else", and one of the things I say is, that you know, Greece is too small, it's in the wrong end of Europe, and out of the big markets, the German, the French and the English, the only
language I could skip... er... speak, was English, so I had to come to London.
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VOCABULARY
to link - łączyć |
Lesson 7
How do I link my thoughts together?
Patrice: I have to use English a lot in my job and I often have to explain ideas to people, so I would like to learn interesting ways of linking my thoughts together in English. Often I think I am just saying one thing and then another and I realize that this can be boring for people listening to me. Do you have any suggestions for me?
Stelios Haji-Ioannou: And in fact, when people ask me, "Do you... I mean, you come from Greece - why didn't you start the airline in Greece" or "Why didn't you go to France or Germany or everything else", and one of the things I say is, that you know, Greece is too small, it's in the wrong end of Europe, and out of the big markets, the German, the French and the English, the only language I could skip... er... speak, was English, so I had to come to London.
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VOCABULARY
to go together - iść w parze |
Lesson 8
How do I learn words that go together?
Leonid: My teacher tells me that it is very important for me to learn natural English phrases and expressions. But when I try to speak English, and use such phrases, it is very difficult for me to know which words go together.
I think in English there are many thousands of these expressions. Can you give me some advice on how to learn them?
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VOCABULARY
opposites - tu: słowa o przeciwnym znaczeniu, antonimy |
Lesson 9
Let's find more opposites
Bjork: I've always thought of 'Debut' and 'Post' as twins, and that's why I've called them 'Debut', which is before, and 'Post', which is after - sort of before and after my little lesson, and I think after this I will move on to, sort of, quite, sort of, different things, but the concept with both 'Debut' and 'Post' is a week in a life of a normal person, and all the ups and downs you have in one week which you can't plan - so that's why I wanted the songs on both 'Debut' and 'Post' to be completely different from each other, and to kind of represent that you just... you can't plan your life, and you're not supposed to.
You're supposed to just enjoy it to the maximum and take it as it comes sort of thing.
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VOCABULARY
filler - wypełniacz, coś co wypełnia lukę |
Lesson 10
What are the fillers?
Muhammed: When I listen to native speakers, I notice that sometimes they are not totally fluent and often they stop and think about their words.
But when they do this, they use lots of small words to help them. I would like to learn how to use these small words, because I think they will be very helpful for me, but my problem is that I cannot hear them exactly. Can you help to explain the use of these small words for me?
Madonna: Umm... it was really, kind of a mark for the end of the year and… um… you know
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VOCABULARY
to use - używać |
Lesson 11
How do I use the fillers?
Interviewer: And why did you actually decide to put the album out anyway? Was it a record company decision or was it just:' I've reached that time in my life, I'll put out another one?'
Madonna: Umm... it was really kind of a mark for the end of the year and um... you know, it sort of went part and parcel with the tour.
Interviewer: Yeah.
Madonna: which is kind of... it was a com... the tour was really um a celebration of my... pretty much my last three records and what I've been doing over the last... since I did `Evita', really.
Interviewer: Yeah.
memorable |
tu: godny zapamiętania, łatwy do zapamiętania, wpadający w ucho; również: pamiętny, niezapomniany |
to notice |
zauważać |
phrase |
fraza, zwrot |
politician |
polityk |
leader |
przywódca |
tough |
tu: trudny, ciężki |
sale |
sprzedaż |
out there |
tam; tu chodzi o kraje Trzeciego Świata |
world |
świat |
fellow human being |
bliźni, bratnia istota ludzka |
to struggle |
walczyć, zmagać się, męczyć się |
to survive |
przeżyć, wyżyć |
less than |
mniej niż |
to imagine |
wyobrażać sobie |
to mean |
znaczyć |
humanity |
ludzkość |
phone call |
telefon (w sensie: rozmowa telefoniczna) |
to make a phone call |
zadzwonić do kogoś, wykonać telefon, zatelefonować |
to receive a phone call |
dostać/odebrać od kogoś telefon (kiedy ktoś dzwoni do ciebie) |
the simple fact of the matter is |
rzecz polega po prostu na tym |
to work for |
tu: służyć czemuś/komuś; przynosić korzyści |
none |
nikt, nic, żaden |
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VOCABULARY
tough - tu: trudny, ciężki |
Lesson 12
How do I make my English more memorable?
Lydia: Yes, I have often noticed how good speakers are able to make phrases that sound, how can I say, memorable. You know, they use language in a more of an artistic way, especially politicians and leaders, when they speak.
Kofi Anan: It is a much tougher sale out there, in a world where half of our fellow human beings struggle to survive on less than $2.00 a day.
Try to imagine what globalization can possibly mean to half of humanity that has never made, or received, a phone call. The simple fact of the matter is this: if we cannot make globalization work for all, in the end it will work for none.
Lesson 13
What kind of rhetorical devices do I use?
Kofi Anan: It is a much tougher sale out there, in a world where half of our fellow human beings struggle to survive on less than $2.00 a day.
Try to imagine what globalization can possibly mean to half of humanity that has never made, or received, a phone call. The simple fact of the matter is this: if we cannot make globalization work for all, in the end it will work for none.
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VOCABULARY
to correct - poprawiać |
Lesson 14
How can I correct myself?
Sunil: People tell me that I speak English to a pretty high standard, but I still don't think I could describe myself as a fluent speaker. And I think the real reason for this is that I feel really embarrassed about making mistakes when I speak English.
I know I shouldn't do this, I know that native speakers also make plenty of mistakes, but I just can't help myself.
Interviewer: And tell me about the difference that an Oscar makes. You've talked about recognition.
Juliette Binoche: It means a lot, you know, especially being a foreigner, you know, it doesn't happen that often.
And also it's is my first movie since 'The English Patient', so I feels - I feel blessed in a way. But, erm... I'm not... erm... trying to analysis it - how do you say? - analyze this... er... because you know it's... I'm making these films and then afterwards I don't know whether it's a good one or not, but I try my best, that's the only thing I know.
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VOCABULARY
to make a difference - zrobić różnicę (wywrzeć duży wpływ) |
Lesson 15
How can I help myself?
Interviewer: And tell me about the difference that an Oscar makes. You've talked about recognition.
Juliette Binoche: It means a lot, you know, especially being a foreigner, you know, it doesn't happen that often.
And also it's is my first movie since `The English Patient', so I feels - I feel blessed in a way. But... erm... I'm not... erm... trying to analysis it - how do you say? - analyze this... er... because you know it's... I'm making these films and then afterwards I don't know whether it's a good one or not, but I try my best, that's the only thing I know.
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VOCABULARY
creative - twórczy, kreatywny |
Lesson 16
How can I be more creative in English?
Jan: I work in the advertising business and I think that I am a creative person, but when I speak English I find it very difficult to be creative with the language.
When I listen to native speakers, I notice that they often use images or maybe metaphors, which helps to make their speech more dynamic and interesting. I'm worried that when I meet with customers, they will think I am a boring and not a creative person. Do you have any advice for me?
Kylie Minogue: It is... slightly odd. I mean, I do feel that I'm part of the British music industry, so I'm... my heart, my... you know... the basis of me is Aussie through and through. I mean, my roots are Australian, my branches have been influenced by living here for over ten years.
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VOCABULARY
metaphor - metafora |
Lesson 17
How do I learn to use metaphors?
Kylie Minogue: It is... slightly odd. I mean, I do feel that I'm part of the British music industry, so I'm... my heart, my... you know... the basis of me is Aussie through and through.
I mean, my roots are Australian, my branches have been influenced by living here for over ten years.
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VOCABULARY
to take part - brać udział |
Lesson 18
How do I take part in a discussion?
Fatima: I often have to attend fairly formal business meetings, where the only language is English. This is not a problem for me, except for when I want to interrupt or break into the discussion or express my opinion. When I do this I always feel that I am being rude, so I am reluctant to do this.
Edward Said: Do you think that education plays a great role in emphasizing, rather than minimizing, differences? I think most systems of education are basically nationalist.
Luigi Cavalli-Sforza: I think, I think this is a very good point, and I think you're basically right. Eh, I also believe that fortunately there's a change in this attitude, although we are... we've all been brought up with the nationalists.
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VOCABULARY
express - wyrażać |
Lesson 19
How do I express my opinion?
Luigi Cavalli-Sforza: Well, when I was a child in Italy, I was... there was fascism and I can tell you, it was very nationalist, I received a very nationalist education.
It didn't disappear in most of the world, and... but there are many good signs. I would think that what is most important is to remember what I think it's Spinoza, said, that "intolerance shouldn't, absolutely not be tolerated!"
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VOCABULARY
to put across - tu: przekazać |
Lesson 20
How do I put my points across more strongly?
Piotr: Yes. Well, I would say that I am, you know, a fairly fluent speaker of English. But what I'd really like to do when I speak is to put my points across more strongly, you know, to make a bigger impression. I have the feeling that if I'm, like, with native speakers, people pay more attention to them. It's hard for me to, you know, be persuasive, and that's a really important thing.
Imman: Somali women don't wear veils. Erm... We have our own traditional clothes. We cover our head, but definitely, it's not a veil. So we've never worn veils, I've never worn a veil, my mother has not worn a veil...
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VOCABULARY
to put across - tu: przekazać |
Lesson 21
So, how do I put across my points then?
Imman: For one thing, let me make it very clear, Somalia is... is a Muslim country, 100% Muslim country, but we also have a very strong cultural identity. Somali women don't wear veils. Erm... We have our own traditional clothes. We cover our head, but definitely, it's not a veil.
So we've never worn veils, I've never worn a veil, my mother has not worn a veil, so that was not the issue. The issue that my parents had with me and my choice of profession was that they thought it was beneath me.
They thought that I should have had a higher calling, that I should have gone into politics. And they were just purely, simply disappointed in me. So, is... it was just the choice of profession that I chose that they were not happy with.
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VOCABULARY
to put together - składać (w całość), przedstawiać |
Lesson 22
How do I put together an argument in a clear logical way?
Rita: When I speak my own language, I find it very easy to express my opinions and - how do you say? - put together an argument, you know, in a clear logical way. But in English I find this much more difficult to do. What kind of techniques are there to help me to do this?
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VOCABULARY
to use - używać, stosować |
Lesson 23
How do I use repetitions, examples and comparisons?
Edgardo Codesal: Referees are human beings and I was in the middle of the pitch and I know very well that's, it's almost impossible to see everything, everything.
Sometimes your eyes make the mistake and confuse you because the things happen so fast. Unfortunately, we can't understand... we don't want to understand that the referee's mistake is part of the game like the mistake from the players and other people are involved in the game. We need to be more human with the referees.
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VOCABULARY
aware - zdający sobie sprawę, świadomy (czegoś) |
Lesson 24
Do I need to be aware of different communication styles?
Mitali: Now that I'm working in England, I am often worried about the way I appear to my colleagues in the office. My problem is that in my country we like to speak very directly about subjects, but I have the feeling that in England this is not so. I would like to know if other people have similar experiences to this.
Ang Lee: For the Chinese... you tell people what you want to do. Nobody discusses it with you. And I grew up in such a way that I was taking orders all my life until I was old enough to give orders. So to communicate with actors... wasn't really my thing.
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VOCABULARY
direct - bezpośredni, obcesowy |
Lesson 25
Shall I be direct or try a bit of bullshitting?
Ang Lee: And I like even to this day, I like to be, direct with... I think that's the most efficient way dealing with actor, even though sometimes it can be painful, it seems brutal, but it's effective, it's less bullshit.
Wak Choi in fact, he spent two months of his own time practising swordsmanship. He hired a coach and did something and put it on tape, proudly showed it to me, and I said "It sucks, and it's not what I want". It really hurt him - but it's very effective, you know.
A typical, like after a take, "Oh, that was great, erm, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah" and "How about… let's try something else". That's not on, a lot of the time that's bullshit. But I do more and more of that these days, because I get more sophisticated language, in English, and I work with more movie stars
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