Today's story: Though most Christmas trees are plastic, millions of families like to get live Christmas trees every year. Real trees are grown at special Christmas tree farms and they take many years (and twice-a-year trimming) to mature into the picture-perfect trees you see in family photos.

Transcript & Exercises: https://plainenglish.com/824

Full lesson: https://plainenglish.com/824

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Plain English helps you improve your English:

• Learn about the world and improve your English
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• New stories every week
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Mentioned in this episode:

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Today's story: Scientists used to rely on stickers to track monarch butterfly migration—but that only showed where a butterfly started and ended. Now, a solar-powered device called the BluMorpho is helping researchers track each step of the journey, offering new insight into one of nature’s most complex migrations.

Transcript & Exercises: https://plainenglish.com/823

Full lesson: https://plainenglish.com/823

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Plain English helps you improve your English:

• Learn about the world and improve your English
• Clear, natural English at a speed you can understand
• New stories every week
• Learn even more at PlainEnglish.com

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Mentioned in this episode:

Hard words? No problem

Never be confused by difficult words in Plain English again!

Today's story: Monarch butterflies migrate thousands of kilometers from across the U.S. and Canada to just a few mountain forests in central Mexico. They rely on the sun, the Earth’s magnetic field, and a unique multi-generational life cycle to complete the journey. But their numbers are falling due to habitat loss and climate change.

Transcript & Exercises: https://plainenglish.com/822

Full lesson: https://plainenglish.com/822

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Plain English helps you improve your English:

• Learn about the world and improve your English
• Clear, natural English at a speed you can understand
• New stories every week
• Learn even more at PlainEnglish.com

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Mentioned in this episode:

Hard words? No problem

Never be confused by difficult words in Plain English again!

Today's story: The United States Mint struck its final penny in November 2025, ending a 232-year run of producing the one-cent coin. The decision followed years of debate over the coin’s value, as production costs exceeded its worth and demand declined. Pennies will remain legal tender, but new ones won’t be made.

Transcript & Exercises: https://plainenglish.com/821

Full lesson: https://plainenglish.com/821

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Plain English helps you improve your English:

• Learn about the world and improve your English
• Clear, natural English at a speed you can understand
• New stories every week
• Learn even more at PlainEnglish.com

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Today's story: Zippers are everywhere: on clothes, bags, and accessories. But the basic design of a zipper hasn't changed in a century. Now, though, the world's biggest zipper maker, YKK, has a new design that eliminates the tape next to the zipper's teeth. The result is a zipper that's lighter, more flexible, and better looking.

Transcript & Exercises: https://plainenglish.com/820

Full lesson: https://plainenglish.com/820

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We're opening up the archives to repeat episode 223 from January 2020, just before COVID-19 halted air travel. Enjoy!

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In between economy class (in the back) and business class (in the front), airlines have created a new class of service called "premium economy." This is aimed at travelers who will pay a little more for some extra space, but can't pay the sky-high prices of a full business class seat. In this episode, Jeff reviews his experience in premium economy: he finds that it's more "economy" than "premium."

Full lesson: https://plainenglish.com/lessons/airlines-try-to-split-the-difference-with-premium-economy

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Plain English helps you improve your English:

• Learn about the world and improve your English
• Clear, natural English at a speed you can understand
• New stories every week
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Mentioned in this episode:

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Today's episode is one from the archives, originally number 583. Enjoy!

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Cold plunges are the new health trend championed by high-fliers and ordinary people alike. By submerging yourself water that's 15 degrees Celsius (or colder!), you can manage stress, reduce muscle soreness, improve your concentration, and more, advocates say.

Full lesson: https://plainenglish.com/lessons/cold-plunge

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Plain English helps you improve your English:

• Learn about the world and improve your English
• Clear, natural English at a speed you can understand
• New stories every week
• Learn even more at PlainEnglish.com

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Mentioned in this episode:

Ready to improve your listening?

Ready to listen fast? Improve your listening with the fast version of this and every episode. The full-speed version is a fresh recording and it sounds just like someone speaking to a native speaker (with no AI or computer manipulation!) You can even listen on a podcast app

Today's story: Parkrun is a free, volunteer-run event that takes place every Saturday morning in parks around the world. Participants run, jog, or walk a 5K route, and the focus is on community, health, and fun—not competition. What started with just 13 runners in London has expanded to over 23 countries.

Transcript & Exercises: https://plainenglish.com/819

Full lesson: https://plainenglish.com/819

--

Plain English helps you improve your English:

• Learn about the world and improve your English
• Clear, natural English at a speed you can understand
• New stories every week
• Learn even more at PlainEnglish.com

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Mentioned in this episode:

Ready to improve your listening?

Ready to listen fast? Improve your listening with the fast version of this and every episode. The full-speed version is a fresh recording and it sounds just like someone speaking to a native speaker (with no AI or computer manipulation!) You can even listen on a podcast app

Today's story: Snake bites kill over 100,000 people each year, but antivenom (the treatment for poisonous snake bites) has hardly changed in a century. Today, doctors have to know the type of snake that bit a patient, and the hospital has to have the right antivenom handy. But now, scientists are developing universal treatments that work against many types of venom. If successful, it could save lives and prevent amputations.

Transcript & Exercises: https://plainenglish.com/818

Full lesson: https://plainenglish.com/818

--

Plain English helps you improve your English:

• Learn about the world and improve your English
• Clear, natural English at a speed you can understand
• New stories every week
• Learn even more at PlainEnglish.com

--

Mentioned in this episode:

Ready to improve your listening?

Ready to listen fast? Improve your listening with the fast version of this and every episode. The full-speed version is a fresh recording and it sounds just like someone speaking to a native speaker (with no AI or computer manipulation!) You can even listen on a podcast app