Lesson 84

Words of Wisdom

Level: Intermediate

Lesson contents:

• New Vocabulary: Tough definition 2, cliché, accomplishable, grudge, one meaning of " cheesy", sappy, motto, remind vs remember, primary definition of treat as verb, the interjection "gosh", and kid as verb.
• Phrasal verbs: go away, get through (something).
  
• Grammar: A use of the subjunctive mood: as if and as though to indicate unreality, have to for necessity.
• Exressions: Interjection: You know, keep (on) pushing, live the dream.
• Structure of the Question : Conditional and subjunctive mood of the verb "be" - " If this were to be... what would...".
• Expressing Impressions : it sounds like, feels like, looks like, seems like.

Always watch the video several times without subtitles first. Train your ears! Your pronunciation will be much better if you follow this simple rule.

Problems? See general support or ask your question here.

If this were to be your last conversation, what words of wisdom would you like to share with others?

Lessons coming soon - this is our top priority.

Same video with Precise Subtitles

Teachers:

This question was a lot of fun. Almost nobody hesitated in giving generaly excellent replies, which surprised me. The replies were also very upbeat.

It also reminded me that you don't have to be a wise man, nor a professor, nor a famous author, to express very wise ideas. One of my favorite interviewees in this South Beach series, Justin, for example, drives a truck and delivers beer and soft drinks to the cafés in Miami Beach. In fact, we interrupted him during a delivery for this interview. Listen to him. So simple, sincere, and in my humble opinion, wise.

It's also interesting to note that at the end of the 8th interview with Utkarsh, Joanne, the interviewer, pretends not to understand a British use of the informal adjective "cheesy", and asks Utkarsh what the term means. She adds that she only asked the question "for the school". "The school" is The Marzio School, the language school I created with my wife in the south of France in 1976, which serves as a testing ground for all the new videos. Our own students are always the first to see our new clips and generally serve as happy guinea pigs, allowing us to gauge reactions to our lesson plans for the clips, also providing us with ideas for the interactive exercises which make up the lesson for each video, such as this one.