Transcription
Let's improve your English with some breaking news. [music] Breaking news. Well, hello all of my students. I hope you're having a fantastic day. My name is Jay and welcome back to the channel where I have the opportunity to help you improve your English comprehension, vocabulary, and fluency. I am going to do that today with an English through the news lesson. I'm going to read through an article at a moderate pace and explain key vocabulary words and phrases to help your English improve. Make sure you're paying attention. Today, I have eight quiz questions that I'm going to ask throughout today's lesson. So, use the comment section to take notes. I hope you're ready for some learning and some laughter. Let's dive into today's lesson.
According to NPR, Iran or Iran warns of devastating responses as Trump threatens new strikes. So devastating. Devastating has to do with very bad. [laughter] And uh once again our dear president is as we would say making wolf tickets or threats. Okay. So when someone is making wolf tickets that's a slang term for talking a lot of threats.
Let's dive into the article. Iran has issued a strong warning that it will carry out retalatory actions if President Donald Trump follows through with new military strikes raising fears of a wider regional conflict. So when we talk about retalatory, retaliatory, it's an adjective retaliatory, okay, is done as a response to harm. Okay, it comes from retaliate. So you might say the country took retalatory action after the attack. So if you do something to me, I would have a retaliatory response by doing something to you. Okay? We call it tit for tat. So if you hurt me, I hurt you. Okay? Some people say an I for an I. Okay?
Let's continue. Officials describe the potential response as much more devastating and widespread signaling a serious escalation in tensions. Okay, escalations. Okay, when we talk about escalations, it's when things increase. All right, when things are going from worst to worst, [laughter] there's escalation. All right. Um, when there's escalation there, things are getting worse. Okay. A rapid increase. Things are getting more intense. Escalation. All right. There was an escalation in the conflict. All right.
The warning comes after Trump threatened additional attacks on Iran's infrastructure. And of course infrastructure having to do with uh I think he mentioned bridges and other type things but things that are very important in a region. Okay, including power systems and transportation networks. Well, there you go. I know I've heard bridges, transportation networks, and power systems.
In response, Iranian leaders said they would not hesitate to defend their country as they should. All right? They would not hesitate. They would not take too long. They would not take time to stop and think. In other words, if you hurt us, we're coming to hurt you. framing their position as a matter of national sovereignty. Okay? So when we talk about a nation of sovereign or sovereignty in a nation, it's the right to control one's own country. Okay? They're they're not saying and sitting back saying you can do what you want to do. We have authority. Okay? The nation defended its sovereignty strongly. All right, sovereignty.
Let's continue. Diplomatic efforts are still underway with international mediators proposing a temporary ceasefire aimed at reopening the Strait of Hormuz. All right. Notice a mediator. Okay. So, a mediator is just that, someone in the middle. Mediator. All right. A person who helps resolve conflict. The mediator helped both sides agree. So, think of it like this. If a husband and wife or two brothers were having a disagreement and they couldn't come to a resolve, they may go get you to help solve the problem and you would be the mediator. You would be the person in the middle to help them come to an agreement. All right.
Notice diplomatic efforts are still underway. When something is underway, it's continuing. It's continuing. Okay, it's still in the process. It's still developing. All right, let's see. With international mediators proposing a temporary ceasefire aimed at reopening the Strait of Hermas. However, both sides have yet to fully agree, [snorts] leaving the situation in a state of deadlock. Okay, deadlock. Say that with me. Deadlock. Compound word. Two words in one. Deadlock. A noun describing a situation. A situation with no progress at all. >> [laughter] >> So you might say the talks ended in a deadlock. Okay.
Trump has maintained a firm stance warning that failure to comply could lead to intensified military action. Intensified increasing. All right. Intensified. He emphasized that the United States is prepared to take decisive steps to secure global energy routes and maintain stability in the region. Okay. Decisive steps. When someone takes decisive steps, they are doing something with purpose. They know exactly what they're doing. They're taking sure steps. When you are decisive, okay? When you are indecisive, you don't know what you want to do. So, if I ask my wife, "Where do you want to go out to eat?" Let's go let's go get some lamb. No, let's go get a steak. No, let's go get a hamburger. She's indecisive. But if I say, "Let's go get something to eat. Let's go get some ham." She's made a decision. She's decisive. Okay.
Iranian officials, however, have criticized the US approach, arguing that continued threats could further provoke conflict rather than resolve it. Provoke. Okay. Provoke. So, when we talk about provoke, it's a verb. It's something that you do. All right. To cause a reaction or conflict. Provoke. His comments may provoke an argument. Okay. So, when you provoke someone, I like to say you're stirring them up. You're adding wood to the fire. [laughter] You're trying to make me say something, aren't you? You're provoking me. Keep hitting me in the head. Why are you trying to provoke me? I'm going to slap you in the face. [laughter] provoke. All right? Uh and provoke doesn't just have to be used in a negative sense. Okay? If your spouse is touching, if she's always uh whispering and feeling on you and kissing on your cheek, she's trying to provoke you to spend some time with her. [laughter] So, it can be negative or positive. All right, [clears throat] let's continue.
They insist that any agreement must address their concerns about sanctions and long-term security. Okay, sanctions, agreements, laws, okay, things put in place to govern the land. All right. The situation has already affected global oil markets with prices rising sharply as uncertainty grows. Analysts say the conflict could disrupt international supply chains if the strait remains restricted. Okay. So disrupt when something is disrupted, it's interrupted or it causes problems. The storm disrupted travel plans. Okay. Uh I was talking. Will you stop disrupting me by making so much noise? All right. So disrupt to interrupt or to cause problems. All right.
Meanwhile, both sides continue to exchange strong public statements, increasing the level of hostility between them. Yeah, this it's they they really need to get their yourself together, both sides. [laughter] They're being very hostile towards one another. Hostility has to do with anger, strong conflict between people. There was hostility between the groups. Okay. All right.
Let's take a quick quiz. All right. Let's let me pull up my first quiz and let's test your comprehension and see if you can complete these correctly. All right. I want you to use the comment section for your answers. Retaliatory, sovereignty, deadlock, and provoke are your options. Number one, the nation worked to protect its blank. Number two, the negotiations ended in a complete blank. Number three, his words may blank a strong reaction. And number four, the country threatened blank action after the attack. All right. So, let's see if you can get all of these correct. This one to me is pretty simple, but let's test your comprehension and see if you can get them all correct.
Okay, let's continue and close out this this story. Experts warned that such rhetoric can make it more difficult to reach a peaceful solution. Despite the rising tension, some officials believe the negotiations could still lead to a breakthrough if both sides show willingness to compromise. That's a great word, compromise. So, when you compromise, uh, you are willing to lower your standard. Okay? You're willing to do something that you normally wouldn't do when you compromise. Okay? I'll let you stay out later if you bring in all A's. Okay? or I'll give you a 7-day vacation if your sales meet the goal. Okay? So, I'm willing to do something if you do something. I compromise. [snorts]
However, the risk of further escalation remains high. As the deadline for action approaches, the situation continues to evolve rapidly, leaving the international community closely monitoring developments in what could become a significant geopolitical flash point. Okay, flash point. All right, so when we talk about a flash point, it's a noun. It describes a thing, a place or moment of sudden conflict. Okay? It's that very instant when problems start. [laughter] That's the flash point. Okay? The issue became a political flash point. Okay?
So, what we're going to do is we're going to read through the story at a faster pace and then I'm going to give you the last four quiz questions for today. Okay? All right. Let's dive back in.
Iran has issued a strong warning that it will carry out retalatory actions if President Donald Trump follows through with new military strikes, raising fears of a wider regional conflict. Officials describe the potential response as much more devastating and widespread, signaling a serious escalation in tensions. The warning comes after Trump threatened additional attacks on Iran's infrastructure, including power systems and transportation networks. In response, Iran leaders said they would not hesitate to defend their country, framing their position as a matter of national sovereignty. Diplomatic efforts are still underway with international mediators proposing a temporary ceasefire aimed at reopening the strait of Hormas. However, both sides have yet to fully agree leaving the situation in a state of deadlock. Trump has maintained a firm stance, warning that failure to comply could lead to intensified military action. He emphasized that the United States is prepared to take decisive steps to secure global energy routes and maintain stability in the region. Iranian officials, however, have criticized the US approach, arguing that continued threats could further provoke conflict rather than resolve it. They insist that any agreement must address their concerns about sanctions and long-term security. The situation has already affected global oil markets with prices rising sharply as uncertainty grows. Analysts say the conflict could disrupt international supply chains if the strait remains restricted. Meanwhile, both sides continue to exchange strong public statements, increasing the level of hostility between them. Experts warned that such rhetoric can make it more difficult to reach a peaceful resolution. [snorts] Despite the rising tensions, some officials believe that negotiations could still lead to a breakthrough if both sides show willingness to compromise. However, the risk of further escalation remains high as the deadline for action approaches. The situation continues to evolve rapidly, leaving the international community closely monitoring monitoring developments in what could become a significant geopolitical flash point.
All right. Alrighty then. [laughter] Okay. So, let's look at our final four quiz questions. Flashoint, mediator, ultimatum, and escalation. All right, so I threw in a word in there that was synonymous with decisive and ultimatum. Let's see if you can get all four of these correct. He issued an blank during the argument. Number two, a blank helped resolve the disagreement. That should be an easy one. Number three, there was a sudden blank in tension. And finally, the situation became a major political blank.
Well, folks, thanks so much for hanging out with me today. I moved at a faster pace today, I must admit. Okay, I I got an email. Someone was saying that um my lessons are too long [laughter] and that I don't need to do a lesson every day. Look, I believe you can study every day. Why waste time? And so I try to make my my lessons to where they're compact, quick, and you can get a number of learning opportunities in each lesson. So, I think 20 minutes to 30 minutes is a great time to study on a daily basis if you're serious about improving. You know, I get emails and messages that are so encouraging about people just doing what I suggest, my two little strategies. You know, you take two words from my lesson and you try to use them in a sentence within one week. You have an entire week to practice those two words. And if you're following me, my lessons every day, spending time with me, you should have 14 words a week, and that's more than enough to jumpstart your English and improve quickly. I also invite you guys to watch each lesson twice. Uh, once with the subtitles on, once with the subtitles off. Sometimes people let me know, they listen while they're going to work, while they're working out. uh you can be creative, but the key is to continue to listen to English so it becomes more familiar to you. And so I do different types of lessons. I do stories, I do news, uh I do a podcast. So so many different opportunities for you to improve and I hope you're taking advantage of them. If you enjoy my lessons, all I ask is that you share, subscribe, like, leave me a comment. If this is your first time watching, feel free to send me a message. There is a link down below along with my playlist that you can also study. With that being said, I hope you enjoy the rest of your day so you can join me on my next English lesson. I'll see you then.