A Brit Difficult

By August

A Brit Difficult is a podcast for intermediate learners of English that focuses on British English. Too often, people think of British English speakers all being White and speaking like the Queen,

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FAQs about A Brit Difficult:

How many episodes does A Brit Difficult have?

The podcast currently has 32 episodes available.

A Brit Difficult episodes:

October 19, 2022A Brit Difficult - Episode 32 - uses of 'may' and other ways to use formal English
Hi all, it's been a while since the last episode - sorry! Please enjoy this guide to using 'may' and a few other forma phrases in English.

Words and phrases that might be new for you:

rule of thumb: a rule or piece of advice that is right most of the time
day-to-day: everyday
to do with: something related to something else
picky: being very particular about something
period drama: a film or tv show set in a particular period of history e.g. Downton Abbey
the long and short of it: a summary
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16min
October 04, 2022A Brit Difficult - Episode 31 - introducing regions of the UK #6 South West England
Let's learn about another region in the UK! Today, we'll briefly look at the South West of England!

Words and phrases that might be new for you:

pull up something: can mean to literally pull something upwards, but here means to open
pointy: has a sharp point shape
census: a big survey held regularly to find out basic information about a population
Cornish: an ethnic group and language in Cornwall
pick something out: can mean to choose but here I'm using it to mean to recognise
digression: talking about something that is part of.a completely different topic before returning to the main topic
stunning: beautiful
dome: a circular roof structure
book worm: somebody who really likes reading
savoury: an adjective to describe food that is not sweet
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15min
September 25, 2022A Brit Difficult - Episode 30 - the future perfect and future perfect continuous
Welcome to episode 30 and thank you if you have been regularly following along!

Follow us @abritdifficultpodcast on Instagram!

Today, we'll talk about one of the most difficult parts of English grammar - the future perfect.

Words and phrases that might be new for you:

ill / sick / not feeling well - to be unwell
construction - building; creating something
regardless of - even if x is true
shift: move
hint: information that makes a problem or question easier to understand
assumption: a guess based on information you have
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16min
September 19, 2022 A Brit Difficult - Episode 29 - improving your English accent (if you want to!)
Let's talk about some of the ways you can practice to improve your accent! In my opinion, having an accent is completely fine and I love hearing everyone's different accents :) how to get a better English accent is a common question from learners though, so I thought I would share some advice / tips.
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22min
September 12, 2022A Brit Difficult - Episode 28 - types of transport in the UK
Hello, it's me again!

If you'd like to connect and stay up to date, you can now follow the podcast on Instagram @abritdifficultpodcast !

Words and phrases that might be new:
bicycle lane: sometimes just called a cycle lane. A part of the road reserved for cyclists
remote: far away, not well connected
Intro music is 'Just Relax' by Lesfm via Pixabay.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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18min
September 11, 2022A Brit Difficult - Episode 27 - using the passive voice
Hello! I'm back after a short break :) let's learn about the passive voice.

Words and phrases that might be new :

spam: unwanted mail or emails from people or businesses
subject: the actor or focus of a sentence
object: a person or thing which is receives the action of the verb
present progressive: sometimes called the '-ing form'. Describes an ongoing action in the present
context: a situation or information that makes it clear what people mean
to attend: to go to an event
brownie points to you: a phrase used to mean 'well done'
Intro music is 'Just Relax' by Lesfm via Pixabay.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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20min
August 15, 2022A Brit Difficult - Episode 26 - conversation with an English learner #6
I chat with Ammar about his experience learning English as an Urdu/Punjabi speaker. We get some wise final words at the end of the episode!

Words and phrases that might be new:

South Asian - people from the region of Asia that contains the countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. There is a large amount of people with South Asian heritage in the UK :)
come again - a phrase used in the UK that means 'please repeat that'
to make sense - to have meaning, to understand the meaning of something
chunks - pieces
manoeuvre - when talking about driving, this refers to technical movements made with the car e.g. reverse parking
spoiler - telling somebody the plot of a story before they have seen / read / heard it
Intro music is 'Just Relax' by Lesfm via Pixabay.
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16min
August 08, 2022A Brit Difficult - Episode 25 - politics in the UK : a basic overview
Let's have a look at how politics work in the UK! Remember to listen until the end for some comprehension questions :) Sorry for the edits in this episode!

Words and phrases that might be new for you:

to get something out of the way: to do first; to give priority to something
monarchy: royal family; queens, kings, etc.
a great deal: a lot
broad: general, not specific
petition: a written document with signatures from people asking for something to change, be done, etc.
mayor: a local leader (the word for a female leader is a mayoress)
to inherit: to get something from somebody when they die. This could be money, objects, or even a title (such as with the House of Lords)
coalition: sharing power by joining two parties
referendum: a public vote to make a decision
Intro music is 'Just Relax' by Lesfm via Pixabay.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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23min
July 23, 2022A Brit Difficult - Episode 24 - useful time expressions
Let's look at how to tell the time in the UK as well as a few common time-related idioms!

Transcript coming soon!

Words and phrases that might be new to you:
straightforward: easy
quarter to: 15 minutes before an hour
quarter past: 15 minutes past an hour
half past: 30 minutes past an hour
twenty to: 20 minutes to an hour
twenty past: 20 minutes past an hour
five to: 5 minutes to an hour
five past: 5 minutes past an hour
ten past: 10 minutes past an hour
ten to: 10 minutes before an hour
the other day: any point of time in recent history
fortnight: a period of two weeks
what on earth: what / what the hell
Intro music is 'Just Relax' by Lesfm via Pixabay.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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18min
July 19, 2022A Brit Difficult - Episode 23 - what's dating like in the UK?
In this episode, we take a whirlwind adventure through what it's like to date in the UK! We will only touch briefly on the general trends and in this episode only focus on heterosexual couples, but I'd be happy to talk about other kinds of dating if you're all interested!

Transcript coming soon!

Words and phrases that might be new for you:

heatwave: sudden, hot weather
heterosexual: attracted to the opposite sex
hookup; casual sex
minefield: a situation where there are likely to be difficulties
tendency: a trend
flirting: talking and acting in a way that shows you are romantically interested in someone
a top: a word sometimes used to refer to a t shirt or shirt
sogetting: a Korean practice of setting up blind dates for a friend where the friend also attends
terms of endearment: pet or cute names used with family, friends or partners

Some common pet names for your boyfriend/girlfriend: https://www.thortful.com/blog/lovers-pet-names/
Intro music is 'Just Relax' by Lesfm via Pixabay.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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15min

FAQs about A Brit Difficult:

How many episodes does A Brit Difficult have?

The podcast currently has 32 episodes available.