Culips Everyday English Podcast

If you’ve been listening to Culips for a little while, you’ve already started to get to know the Culips hosts, Harp and Maura. And you’ll also know that in our Chatterbox episodes, sometimes we interview people. So here’s an interview with Harp, where she tells us about her life growing up and what she’s upRead More

If you’ve been listening to Culips for a little while, you’ve already started to get to know the Culips hosts, Harp and Maura. And you’ll also know that in our Chatterbox episodes, sometimes we interview people. So here’s an interview with Harp, where she tells us about her life growing up and what she’s up to now. Along the way, she also drops a few expressions for you. Maura: So, what did you study at university? Harp: I studied political science. Maura: So does that mean you wanted to become a politician? Harp: I was actually thinking more of becoming a lawyer. And so it's a really common route to go from political science into law. And I love politics. Even now, I read the news a lot, I'm always following what's going on politically in Canada, the US, and even internationally. Maura: So, you grew up in Fort St. John, and then you lived in Edmonton, and then you decided to travel and move around. Where is the first place that you went? Harp: Well, you know, it's funny, because I had travelled quite a bit in Canada, and even the US, when I was growing up, but I hadn't really left North America until I decided, with a bang, to move to South Korea for a year. Maura: Wow! So, tell us about that experience. Expressions from this episode included in the Learning Materials: To tune in To keep an ear out for something When I say…, I mean… Fort St. John Out west A small-town feel With a bang To not speak a word of English A built-in babysitter To sink or swim A cool vibe A day job To shoot the breeze That’s because you like to shoot the breeze Podcast/Learning Materials: Culips English Podcast, Photo ©Culips

We all have to grow up someday! In this episode, we talk about becoming and adult and the different generations of adults in North America, and we discuss some of the slang terms that describe various types of adults. We talk about it all, up to having kids and going on parental leave. Listen inRead More

We all have to grow up someday! In this episode, we talk about becoming and adult and the different generations of adults in North America, and we discuss some of the slang terms that describe various types of adults. We talk about it all, up to having kids and going on parental leave. Listen in to find out whether Maura really is a yuppie! Harp: A yuppie is a young urban professional. That's what it stands for. Maura: Right. So the Y-U-P at the beginning of yuppies stands for young urban professionals. This means that the people who are yuppies are young, they’re urban, which means they live in a big city… Harp: And they're professional. They have some sort of professional career. They're white collar; they usually work in an office; they have some sort of professional job. Maura: Right. And this also implies that they're probably making pretty good money. Harp: Yes. Now in terms of young, a yuppie could be anyone who’s 21 who has a professional job, up to 40. There's no real set age to be a yuppie. Expressions from this episode included in the Learning Materials: The two pronunciations of adult The two way of saying the name of the letter Z Or so A baby boomer, Generation X, and Generation Y A boomerang kid and the Boomerang Generation A yuppie White collar Clean cut Technically A dink/a dinky The suburbs Maternity, paternity, and parental leave A stay-at-home mom or dad Podcast/Learning Materials: Culips English Podcast, Image courtesy of English with Jo

Everyone makes mistakes sometimes, and this episode is all about expressions to talk about them. Some mistakes are small and minor, and others are really big. And sometimes we make embarrassing mistakes in front of other people—the worst kind or mistakes! But you shouldn’t make a mistake with these expressions once you’ve listened to thisRead More

Everyone makes mistakes sometimes, and this episode is all about expressions to talk about them. Some mistakes are small and minor, and others are really big. And sometimes we make embarrassing mistakes in front of other people—the worst kind or mistakes! But you shouldn’t make a mistake with these expressions once you’ve listened to this episode. So go ahead, check it out. Harp: So today we’re going to talk about some expressions when you make a mistake. Maura: Right. We can use these expressions to talk about when people have not done something well, when they've made a mistake or done something wrong. Harp: Yeah. And all of the expressions are a little bit different, but they're all related to making mistakes. Maura: Right. So let's start with the first one. The first expression that we're going to look at is to mess up. Expressions from this episode included in the Learning Materials: There’s no end in sight To mess up/to screw up And I mean… To say the least To give it time To get over something To draw a blank To butcher something Renos To learn your lesson To choke To strike out Podcast/Learning Materials: Culips English Podcast, Image courtesy of Search engine journal

Every day we all go to sleep. Some people fall asleep as soon as they hit the bed and it takes others hours to get to sleep. In this episode, we’re talking all about sleeping habits and just how important sleep is! Throughout the episode, we discuss lots of expressions related to this important timeRead More

Every day we all go to sleep. Some people fall asleep as soon as they hit the bed and it takes others hours to get to sleep. In this episode, we’re talking all about sleeping habits and just how important sleep is! Throughout the episode, we discuss lots of expressions related to this important time of day—bedtime! Are you a morning person or a night owl? How important is it for you to get some shut-eye? Harp: There are the early risers, the people who wake up early, get a good start on the day. They’re in bed usually on time or early, and they wake up early. Maura: Right. So these are people who like to get a good night’s sleep normally, but they also don’t like to waste the morning lying in bed. They would rather wake up and get started. Harp: Yeah. And you can call someone who’s an early riser a morning person. Maura: Right. This is the kind of person who wakes up early and they’re already happy and capable of having a conversation. Harp: Yes. Most people are not like this, I would say. Maura: Yeah. A lot of people wake up in the morning and they’re groggy, they’re kind of out of it for, maybe, 15 minutes, maybe 30 minutes, or until they have their first cup of coffee. Harp: Yup. To me, it’s funny because my mom is not a morning person and she is barely awake until she has two cups of tea in the morning. Expressions from this episode included in the Learning Materials: Shut-eye An early riser/a morning person A good night’s sleep Groggy/out of it To hit snooze A late riser A night owl The crack of dawn I’m talking… A naps/a catnap A siesta An insomniac Your mind is racing A spring chicken To toss and turn To count sheep Sleep tight. Don’t let the bed bugs bite. Podcast/Learning Materials: Culips English Podcast, Image courtesy of [photostock]/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

The idea for this episode came from a Culips listener, Igor, who thought this might be an interesting topic. He was late to meet his friend, and his friend said, “I’m getting old here!” So here’s your episode, Igor. In it, Maura and Harp talk about the importance of being on time and what to do if you’re late in Canada. They also explain Igor’s friend’s expression, and give you a few others you might hear if you’re late! Harp: In Canada, it's very important to be on time. Maura: It is important to be on time. When you make a plan to meet someone at 3 o'clock, you should be there at 3 o'clock. Seems quite logical to me, but I guess because I'm Canadian, that's why it makes sense. Harp: Yup. And we know in other places being late is very often normal and when you say 3 o'clock, everyone knows that you mean 4 o'clock, but here in Canada, if you say 3 o'clock you mean 3 o'clock. Maura: Right. And it's easy to figure out because you don't have to add another hour or be there early. The time that you're supposed to meet is the time that you should be there. It is of course important to be on time in Canada and the US, but how much time do you think is socially acceptable to be late? Expressions from this episode included in the Learning Materials: Better late than never To show up On time Fashionably late Who's counting? Under control To stand someone up I’m getting old here I don’t have all day Take a chill pill A rhyme To waltz in Without a care in the world From now on To grace us with your presence Podcast/Learning Materials: Culips English Podcast, Image courtesy of [sdmania]/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

The idea for this episode came from a Culips listener, Igor, who thought this might be an interesting topic. He was late to meet his friend, and his friend said, “I’m getting old here!” So here’s your episode, Igor. In it, Maura and Harp talk about the importance of being on time and what toRead More

People love stories, especially stories with secret information in them. In this episode, we talk about expressions that people use when they telling a story, whether it’s true or possibly not. These stories might be told by a person who heard it directly from a trustworthy source or by someone who just loves to gossip! Sometimes it’s hard to know the difference. Listen to this episode if you’ve ever heard a story through the grapevine. Maura: To get wind of something means that you learned something new or heard something new and this new thing that you learned is often supposed to be a secret. Harp: Yes. And often, the person or the source of the information is unknown or kept a secret as well. Maura: Right. Instead of saying who you heard this information from, you just say that you got wind of it. So you don't actually have to say where you heard this new, possibly secret, information. Harp: Yeah. It's like the wind told you this secret. Maura: Right. It's like you were just minding your own business and the wind passed by you and you just happened to hear some new information. Expressions from this episode included in the Learning Materials: To come on over To get wind of something To keep your mouth shut To mind your own business Have I got something for you! To hear something through the grapevine To spread like wild fire A little birdie told me Two weeks’ notice Podcast/Learning Materials: Culips English Podcast, Image courtesy of [Master isolated image]/FreeDigitalPhotos.net

People love stories, especially stories with secret information in them. In this episode, we talk about expressions that people use when they telling a story, whether it’s true or possibly not. These stories might be told by a person who heard it directly from a trustworthy source or by someone who just loves to gossip!Read More

Eating is something people do every day, so there are tons of expressions about it. In this episode, we talk about the amount that people eat. Sometimes we have big appetites and other times we don’t want to eat much. Sometimes our eyes are bigger than our stomachs and we make so much food thatRead More

Eating is something people do every day, so there are tons of expressions about it. In this episode, we talk about the amount that people eat. Sometimes we have big appetites and other times we don’t want to eat much. Sometimes our eyes are bigger than our stomachs and we make so much food that we can’t eat it all. By the end of this episode, you’ll probably want a snack. Maura: Now that we've talked about not eating very much, let's look at some expressions that have to do with eating a whole bunch of food. Harp: This is much more like me. Maura: The next expression is to eat like a horse. Harp: Yes. To eat like a horse. Maura: And this makes sense because a horse is a pretty big animal, so we can imagine that it must need to eat a lot because it's so big. Harp: Yup. And it seems like horses are just eating all the time. Maura: That's true. You always see their mouths moving and chewing and chomping. Expressions from this episode included in the Learning Materials: To eat like a bird To nibble To take food to go A buffet To see To eat like a horse Didn’t you just go a couple of days ago? To go through a phase To grab a bite To build up an appetite My eyes are bigger than my stomach To finish your plate Leftovers Podcast/Learning Materials: Culips English Podcast, Image: Cheez Burger

Hey Culips listeners! We recently did an episode about klutzes, where we told you all about clumsy people and the expression we can use to talk about them. In one of our example dialogues, we used the word vase. If you’re a Culips member, you might have seen the note about this word vase having twoRead More