Happy English Podcast

951 - Does "I hear you" mean "I can hear you?"

Have you ever been in this situation? You’re venting to a friend about having a long and tough day, and your friend’s response is  something like, Yeah, I hear you.”  That little phrase - "I hear you"- has nothing to do with your friend's ears.  So - let’s talk about those moments when someone is telling you about a bad day, a tough situation, or something that’s just not going well. You want to respond in a way that shows you care, right? That you’re listening. That you understand. There are actually a bunch of phrases like that in everyday English that help you sound more natural when someone is complaining, venting, or just needs to feel heard. That’s what we’re going to look at today! Watch video versions of the Happy English Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@HappyEnglishNY/podcasts [https://www.youtube.com/@HappyEnglishNY/podcasts] Build Vocabulary With My Free Vocabulary Workshop: https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/vocabulary-workshop-signup [https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/vocabulary-workshop-signup]

950 - Stress Shift With Do and Did - Speak Naturally in a Minute | Happy English

Hey there! It’s Michael here - and welcome back to Speak Naturally in a Minute from Happy English. I’m here every Sunday with a quick one-point lesson to help you improve your pronunciation, rhythm, and intonation.  And if you want to watch this lesson, just look for Happy English Podcast on YouTube. Sometimes, in everyday spoken American English,  we use stress, to show meaning. That means saying certain words louder or stronger to give emphasis in a sentence. A great example of this is when we use do or did for emphasis. When we really want to strongly confirm something, we put the stress on do or did.  * Like if someone says, how come you didn’t finish that report? You can say “I did finish the report.” And I sent it to you. * Or if you got a bad grade on an exam, and someone accuses you of not studying. You can tell them, “I did study. That was just a really tough exam” * Or maybe someone has the wrong idea about you. Like if your friend says, “we can’t go to that new sushi place, because Michael doesn’t like sushi. You can say, “I do like sushi.” When you use do or did this way, the meaning becomes stronger and clearer. That’s how native speakers show emphasis.  So next time you want to correct someone or strongly confirm something, try saying things like, “I did do it.” OR “I do wanna do it.”  That’s the music of natural American English. Hey, thanks for listening! And remember to follow and subscribe so you won’t miss the next Happy English Podcast and next Sunday’s Speak Naturally in a Minute.  Until next time, keep learning and keep it cool. Watch video versions of the Happy English Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@HappyEnglishNY/podcasts [https://www.youtube.com/@HappyEnglishNY/podcasts] Build Vocabulary With My Free Vocabulary Workshop: https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/vocabulary-workshop-signup [https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/vocabulary-workshop-signup]

949 - Sure Enough - English Tips in a Minute | Happy English

Hey there! It’s Michael here - and welcome back to English Tips in a Minute from Happy English. I’m here every Saturday with a short, simple tip to help you speak English more naturally and confidently. And by the way, if you want to watch this lesson, just look for Happy English Podcast on YouTube. Today, let’s look at a really natural conversational expression - “sure enough.” Sure enough means, “as expected.” We use sure enough to talk about something that happened exactly the way we thought it would. * Like,  “I was wondering if Jack would come late to the meeting - and sure enough, he did.” * And yesterday, on the way to the bakery, I was wondering if they would still have sesame bagels left, and when I got there, sure enough, they were sold out.  * Here’s one more. The weather looked iffy all morning and sure enough, it started pouring during lunch. Again, sure enough is not negative or positive. It just means, “Yep… that’s exactly what I thought would happen.” Try using this phrase in one of your English conversations this week. And hey - sure enough, I think you’re gonna sound even more natural when you do. Lemme know in the comments how it goes, and remember to follow or subscribe so you don’t miss the next Happy English Podcast and next Saturday’s English Tips in a Minute. Hey, thanks for listening - and until next time, keep learning and keep it cool.   Watch video versions of the Happy English Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@HappyEnglishNY/podcasts [https://www.youtube.com/@HappyEnglishNY/podcasts] Build Vocabulary With My Free Vocabulary Workshop: https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/vocabulary-workshop-signup [https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/vocabulary-workshop-signup]

948 - Bang Out - Phrasal Verbs in a Minute | Happy English

Hey there! It’s Michael here, and welcome back to Phrasal Verbs in a Minute from Happy English. I’m here every Friday with a quick one-point lesson to help you learn a new phrasal verb and sound more natural when you speak. By the way, if you want to see the video version of this lesson, just look for Happy English Podcast on YouTube. Today’s phrasal verb is bang out. When you bang something out, it means you produce it quickly - often a lot of it - without spending too much time on perfect details. It’s all about speed and getting things done fast. * Like, the other day, I had so many emails to answer that I just banged them out one after another. * And in my neighborhood, my friend Atsuko bangs out a lot of bagels at her bakery Cocon. * Yesterday, I banged out a quick pasta dish using whatever I had in the fridge. And here’s a pronunciation tip: The G at the end of bang links with out. So it sounds like ban-gout So how about you? What’s something you can bang out quickly - homework, ideas, or maybe dinner? Let me know in the comments, and remember to follow or subscribe so you don’t miss the next Happy English Podcast and next week’s Phrasal Verbs in a Minute.  Hey, thanks for listening. And until next time, keep learning and keep it cool. Watch video versions of the Happy English Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@HappyEnglishNY/podcasts [https://www.youtube.com/@HappyEnglishNY/podcasts] Build Vocabulary With My Free Vocabulary Workshop: https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/vocabulary-workshop-signup [https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/vocabulary-workshop-signup]

947 - Verb + To Do Patterns With Special Meanings

You know, English is funny sometimes. We’ve got a ton of verbs that go with “to + verb” - like want to do, like to do, plan to do - and most of them just talk about an action, right? I want to go. I like to cook. I plan to travel. That’s easy.  But! There are some verb + to do combinations that have a special meaning - a nuance - a deeper idea behind them. And that’s what we’re going to look at today. Watch video versions of the Happy English Podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@HappyEnglishNY/podcasts [https://www.youtube.com/@HappyEnglishNY/podcasts] Build Vocabulary With My Free Vocabulary Workshop: https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/vocabulary-workshop-signup [https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/vocabulary-workshop-signup]