English, please

Same rule, same mistake, every time you speak. Why do I keep making the same mistakes in English? In this episode, you’ll learn three common mistakes in English that intermediate learners make very often, why they’re so hard to change, and four simple ways to stop making mistakes when you speak English, including a better way to learn new words. You’ll practice fixing real sentences out loud. You’ll also find out why being understood can make a mistake harder to notice, and why language teachers compare these mistakes to dinosaur fossils.

Practice speaking English with me: your first private conversation session is free. englishpleasepod.com/talk

Read the full transcript

More from English, please:
Podcast website
English Listening Accelerator: a free sample lesson, or the full workbook with audio for $7
Short English lessons on YouTube

English, please is a podcast designed to help you improve your English by listening to clear, intermediate English about many different topics, such as history, culture, art, music, travel, and language.

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

One dollar or one hundred dollars: every US bill is the same size, and most of them are the same green. So why are all dollar bills the same size and color? In this episode, you’ll learn why American money is green, what changed in 1929, and how blind people tell money apart when every bill feels the same. You’ll hear about the court case the US government lost in 2008, and what it has done since. You’ll also find out about a new ten-dollar bill that people will be able to identify by touch.

Practice speaking English with me: your first private conversation session is free. englishpleasepod.com/talk

Read the full transcript

More from English, please:
Podcast website
English Listening Accelerator: a free sample lesson, or the full workbook with audio for $7
Short English lessons on YouTube

English, please is a podcast designed to help you improve your English by listening to clear, intermediate English about many different topics, such as history, culture, art, music, travel, and language.

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

English, please is a podcast designed to help improve your English by listening to clear, intermediate English about many different topics like history, culture, art, music, travel, and language.

Episode 80: How to Understand Long Sentences in English
You understand every word, but you still miss what happened: long sentences are one of the hardest parts of listening to English. In this episode, you'll learn how to understand long sentences in English by listening for just two things: the subject and the main verb. You'll discover why English depends on word order when languages like German and Russian don't, and what happened to English about a thousand years ago that changed everything. Then you'll practice with three sentences at natural speed, including one with a hidden trap that catches many learners.

Want more structured practice? Get a free sample lesson from the English Listening Accelerator at englishpleasepod.com/learn. If you like it, the full workbook with audio is just $7.

I'm on YouTube! I share short, practical English content on my channel!

Episode transcript

Podcast website 

Get the English Listening Accelerator!

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

English, please is a podcast designed to help improve your English by listening to clear, intermediate English about many different topics like history, culture, art, music, travel, and language.

Episode 79: 6 Animal Idioms Native English Speakers Actually Use
Horses, cats, elephants, and chickens: English is full of animal idioms that make no sense word by word. In this episode, you'll learn six that English speakers use every day, including "the elephant in the room," "let the cat out of the bag," and "kill two birds with one stone." For each one, you'll hear what it means, who says it, and when it sounds natural. You'll also discover how other languages use completely different animals for the same ideas, and why one famous idiom is less common than you might think.

Want more structured practice? Get a free sample lesson from the English Listening Accelerator at englishpleasepod.com/learn. If you like it, the full workbook with audio is just $7.

I'm on YouTube! I share short, practical English content on my channel!

Episode transcript

Podcast website 

Get the English Listening Accelerator!

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

English, please is a podcast designed to help improve your English by listening to clear, intermediate English about many different topics like history, culture, art, music, travel, and language.

Episode 78: The Price Tag Is Lying to You
This episode looks at something almost every visitor to the United States runs into: a price tag that almost never matches what you actually pay at the register. It explains why sales tax gets added at checkout instead of built into the sticker price, why there's no single national rate, and how the exact amount can change depending on your state, county, or even city.

Want more structured practice? Get a free sample lesson from the English Listening Accelerator at englishpleasepod.com/learn. If you like it, the full workbook with audio is just $7.

I'm on YouTube! I share short, practical English content on my channel!

Episode transcript

Podcast website 

Get the English Listening Accelerator!

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

English, please is a podcast designed to help improve your English by listening to clear, intermediate English about many different topics like history, culture, art, music, travel, and language.

Episode 77: The Intermediate Plateau
This episode is a bit more personal than usual. It looks at a common experience for language learners: working hard, making real progress, and then feeling stuck, even though you're not actually going backward. It includes a personal story about hitting that wall while learning French, another change that genuinely helped, and news about a brand new website with a full written transcript for every episode, going all the way back to Episode 1.

Want more structured practice? Get a free sample lesson from the English Listening Accelerator at englishpleasepod.com/learn. If you like it, the full workbook with audio is just $7.

I'm on YouTube! I share short, practical English content on my channel!

Episode transcript

Podcast website 

Get the English Listening Accelerator!

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

English, please is a podcast designed to help improve your English by listening to clear, intermediate English about many different topics like history, culture, art, music, travel, and language.

Episode 76: Texas—The Price of Doing It Your Own Way
This episode looks at the real history behind a flag you'll see on t-shirts and hats far outside the United States. Texas was its own independent country for nine years before joining the US. We'll look at a surprising, modern example of that same independence that is still shaping the state today, and the true, slightly ridiculous origin of the popular Texas slogan "Don't Mess With Texas."

Want to keep practicing after you listen? Subscribe to the free English, please newsletter at englishpleasepod.com/free. You'll get English practice tips and activities with every new episode, plus three FREE resources delivered straight to your inbox: a free sample lesson from the English Listening Accelerator, 60 Phrases Native English Speakers Use Every Day, and 25 Idioms Native English Speakers Use Every Day.

Want more structured practice? Get a free sample lesson from the English Listening Accelerator at englishpleasepod.com/free, or go straight to the full Accelerator at englishpleasepod.com/accelerator.

I'm on YouTube! I share short, practical English content on my channel!

Episode transcript

Podcast website 

Get the English Listening Accelerator!

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

English, please is a podcast designed to help improve your English by listening to clear, intermediate English about many different topics like history, culture, art, music, travel, and language.

Episode 75: New England, and a Color Scientists Can't Fully Explain
This episode takes you to a region where three weeks in October can decide whether an entire year was good or bad: New England, during fall foliage season. You'll learn the real (and still slightly mysterious) science behind why the leaves turn such a vivid red, discover the surprisingly recent origin of the word "leaf peeping," and pick up real English about risk and business, including the word for a very specific kind of tourist: a "leaf peeper."

Want to keep practicing after you listen? Subscribe to the free English, please newsletter at englishpleasepod.com/free. You'll get English practice tips and activities with every new episode, plus three FREE resources delivered straight to your inbox: a free sample lesson from the English Listening Accelerator, 60 Phrases Native English Speakers Use Every Day, and 25 Idioms Native English Speakers Use Every Day.

Want more structured practice? Get a free sample lesson from the English Listening Accelerator at englishpleasepod.com/free, or go straight to the full Accelerator at englishpleasepod.com/accelerator.

I'm on YouTube! I share short, practical English content on my channel!

Episode transcript

Podcast website 

Get the English Listening Accelerator!

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

English, please is a podcast designed to help improve your English by listening to clear, intermediate English about many different topics like history, culture, art, music, travel, and language.

Episode 74: Las Vegas: A City That Doesn't Feel Like the United States
Today's episode takes you to one of the strangest cities in the country: Las Vegas, built from scratch in the middle of the desert. You'll learn why the city is full of fake landmarks like the Eiffel Tower and Venetian canals, pick up real English expressions about risk and luck like take a risk, the odds, and hit the jackpot, and hear what life is actually like for the people who live there once the lights go off.

Want to keep practicing after you listen? Subscribe to the free English, please newsletter at englishpleasepod.com/free. You'll get English practice tips and activities with every new episode, plus three FREE resources delivered straight to your inbox: a free sample lesson from the English Listening Accelerator, 60 Phrases Native English Speakers Use Every Day, and 25 Idioms Native English Speakers Use Every Day.

Want more structured practice? Get a free sample lesson from the English Listening Accelerator at englishpleasepod.com/free, or go straight to the full Accelerator at englishpleasepod.com/accelerator.

I'm on YouTube! I share short, practical English content on my channel!

Episode transcript

Podcast website 

Get the English Listening Accelerator!

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

English, please is a podcast designed to help improve your English by listening to clear, intermediate English about many different topics like history, culture, art, music, travel, and language.

Episode 73: How to Read in English Without Stopping to Translate
This episode tackles something almost every learner does without thinking about it: stopping to translate every unfamiliar word while reading. You'll learn a simple three-stage approach to break that habit, why finishing the sentence first often gives you the answer before you even reach for a dictionary, and how fiction and nonfiction each hand you clues in slightly different ways.

Want to keep practicing after you listen? Subscribe to the free English, please newsletter at englishpleasepod.com/free. You'll get English practice tips and activities with every new episode, plus three FREE resources delivered straight to your inbox: a free sample lesson from the English Listening Accelerator, 60 Phrases Native English Speakers Use Every Day, and 25 Idioms Native English Speakers Use Every Day.

Want more structured practice? Get a free sample lesson from the English Listening Accelerator at englishpleasepod.com/free, or go straight to the full Accelerator at englishpleasepod.com/accelerator.

I'm on YouTube! I share short, practical English content on my channel!

Episode transcript

Podcast website 

Get the English Listening Accelerator!

Hosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.