Hi! This is Ana Luiza and you're listening to inglesonline podcast. To read the transcript of this audio, go to inglesonline.com.br and type "Como digo em inglês: um outro, os outros" into the search box.
So last week Adriana sent me a question about another, other, others and the others, and I thought it would be a good idea to talk about that in a podcast.
So let me start with another. I guess the most common way to use another is when we say another one, or another person, another car, another woman, etc. Another is basically the same as "um outro" or "uma outra" in Portuguese. In many cases, it means "one more".
Example, I'll have another cup of coffee, thanks. That means you've already had one or more cups of coffee, and you want to have one more cup of coffee. Like, one more cup of coffee in addition to the cups that you have already had. So you say, I'll have another cup of coffee.
Sometimes it simply means "um outro" or "uma outra", like in Portuguese. Example: People have different opinions about television. One popular opinion is, television is just entertainment. Another opinion is, television isn't a good thing. In this case I could have said "Another one is, television isn't a good thing" because it was clear that "one" corresponds to opinion, so it means another opinion. Another opinion is, another one is.
There's a way to use another that doesn't correspond exactly to the way we use "um outro" or "uma outra". I'll give an example: I haven't finished my report yet. I'll probably need another 3 days to finish it. You could think of it as "another period of 3 days", but it's common to say another 3 days. Another example, one more example: I've spent 200 dollars on my site but it still doesn't work. I'll have to spend another three hundred dollars to make it work. So, this may sound strange to our Brazilian ears at first, but you'll get used to it.
So when do you use "the other", instead of another? Well... that's actually simple. Think of how you choose between "um outro" and "o outro" in Portuguese. You say "o outro" when you know which "outro" you are talking about. That's "the other". So, let's say, if you have a blue shirt and an orange shirt in front of you and someone asks you, do you want to wear the orange shirt? You could say, no, I want the other shirt. I want the other one, or I want the other shirt. If you wanted some other shirt, but you didn't know which shirt exactly you wanted, you could say, I want another shirt, or I want another one.
So, more examples. My cousins like horror movies. The other people in my family like comedies. Here, I'm saying "the other people in my family". It's very well defined, I'm kind of including the entire group of other people in my family. I'm saying "the other people". If I said, instead, "My cousins like horror movies. Other people in my family like comedies". Here, i'm saying that there are people in my family who like comedies. Other people. Maybe some people in my family like comedies, but not all the other people.
Another example, one more example: At my friend's dinner there was a vegetarian dish. The other dishes included meat. The other dishes. That communicates all other dishes. If I said, "There was a vegetarian dish. Other dishes included meat", I am just saying that there were other dishes that included meat. I'm not defining all the other dishes as including meat. That's very much like Portuguese.
Now others, and the others. Others can mean other people, other examples, other students, etc. and the others can mean the other people, the other examples, the other students, etc. What's the difference? So let's hear some examples. In my group of friends, I like chocolate ice cream and the others like vanilla ice cream. Here I'm saying that in my group I'm the only one who likes chocolate ice cream. The others in the group, all the other people, like vanilla ice cream. If I said instead "others like vanilla ice cream" I'm just saying that there are other people in my group who like vanilla ice cream. Others like vanilla ice cream. Other people, some other people like vanilla ice-cream.
Do you see the difference between The others like vanilla ice cream and Others like vanilla ice cream? One is very definite, the other one is more... vague. We don't know how many other people like vanilla. Others like vanilla ice cream.
So what are your examples?
Key expressions
another one
another 3 days
the other
the others
others
Glossário I could have said = eu poderia ter dito this may sound strange = isso pode soar estranho to make it work = para fazê-lo funcionar get used to it = se acostumar com isso instead of = em vez de can mean = pode significar vanilla = baunilha
Hi, this is Ana Luiza with a new episode of
inglesonline podcast. To read the transcript for this podcast go to
inglesonline.com.br and type Como digo em inglês: é de família
into the search box. This podcast was published on January 30, 2010.
So today I was thinking about some idioms, or
idiomatic expressions that I heard or used recently. Here's one of
them: something that runs in the family. That means something that
several members of a family share in common. It can be anything,
really. It can be a personality trait, or a physical trait, some kind
of behavior. So for example: in my case, thick hair runs in the
family. My mother has thick hair, and it's the same with me and my
sister. We all have thick hair, so we say that thick hair runs in the
family.
I remember when Julia Roberts, the actress, was
pregnant and she announced that she was expecting twins. And I
remember that she said that twins run in the family. So that means
that other people in her family have had twins, maybe she has
relatives who are twins... so twins run in the family.
Another expression I want to talk about is touch
base. When I worked in sales, my boss would sometimes call me in the
middle of the day and she would say, Ana, I just wanted to touch base
with you and see how you're doing. So for example when you call
someone and say that you want to touch base with this person it means
that you want to make contact, you want to talk to this person
briefly, maybe to see how he or she is doing, maybe to let this
person know about some change of plans, or just to make some contact.
I usually touch base with my sister via email or Skype, for example.
Oh, and in case you're curious, touch base is an expression that
comes from baseball, the sport.
And here's another expression that I've been
hearing a lot recently: beating around the bush. When someone is
beating around the bush, this person is not saying things in a very
direct way. This person is being indirect or vague because maybe they
are afraid to say what they really think about something, or they
don't want to hurt someone else's feelings. You will usually hear
people say "Stop beating around the bush" or "Quit
beating around the bush", which means stop being vague, you
know, say what you really mean, say what you really think. So, stop
beating around the bush and be direct.
So what are your examples? What runs in your
family? When was the last time you asked someone, or someone asked
you, to stop beating around the bush?
Key expressions:
It runs in the family (é de família)
to touch base
(fazer um contato com alguém, geralmente breve, a respeito de
alguma coisa)
beating around the bush (dando volta, fazendo
rodeio, sendo indireto)
personality trait = característica de
personalidade
Hi, this is Ana Luiza of inglesonline.com.br and here's another episode of the
inglesonline podcast. To get a transcript of this episode, go to inglesonline.com.br
and look up the post Como digo em inglês: demorou um tempo, published on January 12,
2010. You can use the search box to look up a post. Just type in the title, in the
search box, and hit Enviar.
Today I'm going to talk about a couple of ways to use the word TAKE. So there are
many many different ways to use take, there are several phrasal verbs, idiomatic
expressions, slang expressions that use take, so here I'm going to focus first on
this kind of situation... I'm going to give you an example:
My sister moved to Italy a few years ago and she didn't speak Italian when she first
got there. She had to study Italian for about one year and a half before she was able
to speak fluently.
So here's how I'm going to say this: it took her 18 months (eighteen, that's 1, 8) so
it took her eighteen months to become fluent in Italian. It took her about one year
and a half, right, eighteen months, one year and a half. It took her about one year
and a half to really speak Italian fluently.
Here's another example: some time ago I had a car and I used to drive everywhere. If
I needed to go to the pharmacy just around the block, I would drive. If I had to go
to the bank which was, like, two blocks away, I would drive.
So one day I sold my car, and during the first couple of weeks after I sold my car, I
had to get used to being a pedestrian again. You know, look both ways before crossing
a street... Making sure I had everything I needed in my pocket before I left the
house and so on. So I could say it took me a couple of weeks to get used to being a pedestrian again,
or even it took me a while, this is a very common expression, it took me a while, it
took me a while to get used to being a pedestrian again.
So, whenever someone asks you, How long did it take you to do something? You can
answer, Well, it took me a week, it took me three hours, it took me a year to do
this. For example it took me four hours to read this book. That means that I read the
entire book in four hours.
So what are your examples of how long it took you to do something? There's no rush
here, take your time. Take your time means, you can think about this question and
come back tomorrow to post your answer, or you can come back next week, or next
month... It doesn't matter how long it takes you to answer this question. Take your
time.
Talk to you soon.
Key expressions:
It took me (a year to do something), It took her (18 months to speak Italian)
It took me a while
How long did it take you (to do something)?
Take your time
just around the block = ali na esquina, super perto
I had to get used to being = eu tive que me acostumar a ser
look both ways = olhar para os dois lados
making sure = ter/tendo certeza que
it took me a while = levou um tempo pra eu... Eu demorei um tempo para...
whenever = sempre que
there's no rush = não tem pressa
Estou esperando as respostas de vocês! How long did it take you to do... something?
Hi, this is Ana Luiza
with a new episode of inglesonline podcast. To read the transcription
of this podcast, go to inglesonline.com.br and look up the post Como
digo em inglês: eu duvido, posted on December 21st 2009.
Today I'm going to talk
about the word doubt, d o u b t, and a few common ways to use this
word. The inspiration came from... You guessed it, Twitter.
What can I say? I love Twitter.
So this word, doubt,
came up last week when I gave my twitter followers this tip: when
you're in class, don't raise your hand and say 'I have a doubt'. One
thing you can say is I have a question. It's easy to think
that 'I have a doubt' would be the correct thing to say. Because...
after all, in Portuguese we say Eu tenho uma dúvida. But doubt isn't
used that way. If you say that in class, people will probably
understand you, but it will sound strange.
And the reason for that
is that in English, the word doubt has to do with uncertainty,
indecision, or disbelief - disbelief is the state of not believing
something. The word doubt does not have to do directly with
not understanding something, which is usually the reason why we ask a
question.
So you raise your hand,
and you say I have a question. Or you could say I would like to ask a
question.
So, for example, you
can say "I doubt it" when someone tells you that
something is going to happen, and you don't
believe it. Someone tells you Brazil is going to win the next World
Cup - you could say I doubt it. That means you don't believe it. You
have serious doubts about Brazil's ability to win the next
Cup. So you say I doubt it.
Or someone may ask you,
"Are you going to that birthday party on Saturday?" And you say,
"Oh, I doubt it. I have an
exam on Monday and I have so much work to do, I have to study, so I
doubt that I'll be able to go to the party". In this case you
really don't believe that you'll be able to go to the party, right...
You really think that it will not be possible. So you say, I doubt
it.
So here's a very common
expression with the word doubt. I'm gonna give you an example with this expression: Let's
say you're in a museum and you see a wonderful painting and you say,
This is, without a doubt, the most wonderful painting I have ever
seen. Without a doubt... it's like, sem sombra de dúvida in
Portuguese. So, without a doubt that is the most wonderful painting I
have ever seen. People also say without doubt. I, myself, prefer
without a doubt.
So here's another
common expression. I'll give you an example. Let's say someone is
giving you instructions on how to take the subway, and this person
tells you: always consult your subway map first before you take the
subway to go somewhere. And, when in doubt, ask someone for help.
So, "when in
doubt" here means, when you're still not sure, if you have
consulted the subway map but that wasn't enough, you're still not
confident which train you should take... when in doubt, ask someone
to help you. In Portuguese that would be something like, se você
ainda não tiver certeza.
So leave a comment and
tell us, where could you use the expression Without a doubt in your life? Do people around
you believe something while you have serious doubts about it? This is Ana Luiza of
Inglesonline.com.br . See you next time.
P.S. When in doubt também representa o nosso "Na dúvida..."
Key expressions:
I have a question
I doubt it
have serious
doubts about
without a doubt
when in doubt
You guessed it = acho que você já sabe, você
adivinhou
does not have to do with = não tem a ver com
I have ever seen = que eu já vi na vida
Estou esperando as respostas de vocês! What is it that you believe without a doubt?
Hi everyone, this is Ana Luiza of Inglesonline.com.br and today I am going to talk a little bit about 'looking like someone else'. This audio is part of a post published on December 1st, 2009 so to see all the contents of this post, including a transcript, please go to inglesonline.com.br .
So I wanted to post about this because about three weeks ago, I think, I asked this question on Twitter: Who do you look like the most: your mother or your father?
And I actually got a few answers to this question and I wanted to share them with you. One person said something like I look nothing like my family. So, it can happen. People look at you and at your biological parents, and no one can tell that you're all related because you look nothing like them. It happens.
Another person said something like I am the spitting image of my father. This expression, spitting image, or spitting image - there's a double 't' in there - means that someone looks very much like someone else. So in the case of this person - it was a guy who said that -he looks a lot like his father, he looks very much like his father, or... you could say he and his father look very much alike, they look very much alike. So we can use this expression, he is the spitting image of his father.
And then a third person, and this was a woman... She said People tell me that I look a lot like Ivete Sangalo. So Ivete Sangalo is a celebrity, she's a Brazilian celebrity and there's an expression that is very common, especially when you look a lot like a celebrity, and this expression is look-alike. So we can say, this person is an Ivete Sangalo look-alike. In Portuguese we would say 'sósia', 'Ela é sósia da Ivete Sangalo'. So we could say, she's an Ivete Sangalo look-alike.
In my case I look more like my mother. Yeah, we are, we are both brunettes. So what about you, who do you look like? Are you a celebrity look-alike? Are you the spitting image of your father, are you the spitting image of your mother? Please tell us in the comment section, and talk to you next time.
This is Ana Luiza of inglesonline.com.br .
Key expressions
look like someone
look nothing like someone
someone is the spitting image of (someone else)
they look alike
celebrity look-alike
Glossário
to share them with you = compartilhar (as respostas) com você
no one can tell = não dá para dizer (literalmente, ninguém consegue dizer)
you're all related = vocês todos são parentes ou da mesma família
brunette = morena ou que tem cabelo escuro
Estou esperando as respostas de vocês! Who do you look like the most?
