Transcription
Hi, I'm Lisa. Let's find out if your English is truly advanced. I will give you a little vocabulary test to find out. Educated native speakers of English use these words, and do you know them? Do you use them? If you know 10 out of 12 of these words, congratulations, your English is truly advanced.
I will show you a word on the screen, and I will give you time to think about the meaning of the word, and then I will teach you how to pronounce it perfectly, and then I will give you the definition of the word, and then I will give you some sample sentences. And after that, you will hear some native speakers using the word in context. And if a word is new to you, I suggest that you pause the video and practice using it by making your own sentences. That's such an important part of practice. You're much more likely to remember the words if you use them in sentences and if you say them out loud. Okay, let's get started.
Let's look at the first word. Do you know the meaning of this word? This one is easy to pronounce. Bleak. Bleak. Bleak means lacking in warmth or lacking in kindness or not hopeful, also depressing or desolate. For example, you can say, "The landscape was bleak and barren." "The weather was bleak and cold." And you can also say, "The future seemed bleak after the company announced layoffs," or "The medical prognosis was bleak." Let's listen to how some other people used it. "The classic book Lord of the Flies, which paints a pretty bleak picture of human nature." "Where the economy looked pretty bleak for me." "It's not very positive, it's it's quite bleak." "Nothing gets done in Washington for very selfish and political reasons in my opinion."
Let's look at the next word. Do you know what this word means? Let's pronounce it correctly first. Daunting. Daunting. That "au" is pronounced like this: "a." In British English, this vowel sound is a little bit different. The lips are more rounded, and it sounds like this: "o." But in American English, it's a big vowel: "a." Daunting. If something is daunting, it seems difficult to deal with. It's overwhelming, it's intimidating. It makes you feel a little frightened or worried about your ability to do it. You're not looking forward to doing it. For example, we can say, "Starting a new job can be daunting." "The task ahead seems daunting." "The mountain's sheer size was daunting to the climbers." Let's listen to how some other people used it. "It's a daunting thing to start a book." "Look, starting a whole new career, of course, it's gonna feel daunting."
And now that you know the word daunting, you probably know the meaning of this word. What do you think it means? Undaunted. Undaunted. Undaunted is word number 191 in my online course, 400 Advanced Words You Must Know for Fluent English. In that course, I teach you the most important words that my advanced students still need to learn. They're fluent in English, but they're still lacking that vocabulary when they're reading newspapers or they're having conversations about deeper subjects. My students sometimes struggle to express themselves the same way that they can express themselves in their native language, and that's why I created this course. The course also talks a lot about English pronunciation rules and the American accent. The course includes 7 hours of video content, plus downloadable audio of the entire 7 hours, plus quizzes to test your knowledge and conversation practice exercises. And all 7 hours are downloadable in audio format, so you can listen even when you're not online. Go to AccurateEnglish.com.
If you are undaunted, you're not intimidated and you're not discouraged by difficulty or by danger or by disappointment. For example, you can say, "Despite the risks, he was undaunted and he proceeded with the plan." "The team was undaunted by the opponent." "It's not a problem for me, I remain undaunted." "It's not daunting, I'm undaunted."
Do you know the meaning of this word? Let's pronounce it correctly first. Unwitting. Unwitting. Be careful about that letter "i." It's a neutral sound. It's not "ee," it's "i." "Unwitting." And then we have that double "t" between two vowel sounds. So in American English, that "t" changes. We don't say "witting," we say "witting." Unwitting. Unwitting. Unwitting means not aware of the full facts or not done on purpose, unintentional or unplanned. For example, we can say, "He was an unwitting participant in the scam," and that means he wasn't aware of the scam, he didn't know anything about it. Or we can say, "His comment was unwittingly hurtful." In this case, we used it as an adverb, unwittingly. It was unwittingly hurtful. It was not intentional. Or we can say, "She unwittingly threw away the winning lottery ticket." She did it by mistake.
Do you know the meaning of this advanced English word? What do you think it means? Let's pronounce it correctly first. Egregious. Egregious. We reduce the last syllable, so the "io" is reduced. We say "us." We don't say "egregio," we say "egregious." Just egregious. Egregious means outstandingly bad, shocking. An egregious mistake or an egregious failure or an egregious problem is extremely bad and noticeable. "The egregious error cost the company millions of dollars." "He was expelled from the school because of his egregious behavior." "The report highlighted several egregious violations." "His egregious disregard for safety put everyone at risk." Let's listen to some native speakers using it. "When no one has confronted that it's egregious and see it as an egregious act of theft of the state, stealing their land and redistributing it again." "Just unacceptable and egregious, and it shouldn't have happened." "This example is egregious. I mean, this is a terrible example."
Do you know the meaning of this advanced English word? What does it mean? Let's pronounce it correctly first. Sanctimonious. Sanctimonious. We stress the first syllable. If someone is sanctimonious, they behave as if they're morally better than other people, or they're morally superior to other people, and usually because they do something or they say something in a way that's annoying. For example, we can say, "His sanctimonious attitude made him unpopular." "I'm getting tired of my friend's sanctimonious lectures about healthy living." Do you know any sanctimonious people? There are a lot of them out there. Let's listen to how some other people used it. "Sanctimonious about it." "The sanctimony alone is enough to drive you mad." "I think women really respond to other women when we speak the truth. We are not sanctimonious." "Yeah, I'm talking to you, you arrogant, sanctimonious, condescending lowlife." And now use the word by making your own sentence.
Do you know the meaning of this advanced word? Let's pronounce it correctly first. Hapless. Hapless. The vowel sound "a" is a big sound, "a," and we stress the first syllable. Hapless. Hapless. Hapless means not lucky, experiencing extremely bad luck, someone unlucky and deserving of pity. "The hapless traveler lost his passport." "The hapless team lost every game this season."
Do you know the meaning of this word? It's pronounced "trite." I'd like to teach you a little pronunciation rule. Let's listen to the difference between the vowel sounds of these two words: "trite," "tried." "Trite," "tried." What's the difference? Well, technically, they're the same vowel. It's the vowel sound "i." However, the "i" of "trite" is shorter because "t" is a voiceless consonant, and "tried," the vowel is longer because "d" is a voiced consonant. We use our vocal cords. "D" versus "t." "Ttt." We don't use our vocal cords. That's called a voiceless consonant. The vowel sound before a voiceless consonant is generally shorter. Listen again: "trite," "tried." And here are a few more words with that same pattern: "right," "ride." "Light," "lied." "White," "wide." So, let's say that word again: "trite." Something that is trite is overused. It lacks originality or freshness. It's not new, and maybe it's boring. It's not original. For example, we say a "trite comment" or a "trite idea" or a "trite expression." We can say, "That speech was full of trite expressions." "His ideas were dismissed as trite and unoriginal." "You should avoid trite phrases in your writing." Or we can say, "I know it sounds trite, but we're lucky to have our health." Let's listen to how some other people used it. "And this is going to sound so trite, and I apologize in advance." "We're a, you know, a global world." "You know, it's it's, you know, a trite phrase, but it's true." "I mean, these things sound trite, but they are deep evolutionary truths."
Do you know the meaning of this advanced word? Let's pronounce it correctly first. Ubiquitous. Ubiquitous. We stress the second syllable, "bi," and then the "qu" becomes a "kw." Ubiquitous. Ubiquitous. Reduce that final syllable. Don't pronounce the "o" and the "u." It's "us." "Us." Repeat after me: ubiquitous. Ubiquitous. Ubiquitous means present everywhere, seeming to be everywhere. For example, we can say, "McDonald's and Starbucks are ubiquitous these days. You see them everywhere." "Are they ubiquitous in your city as well?" "Smartphones have become ubiquitous in today's society." "The influence of social media is ubiquitous." "Volcanoes are ubiquitous throughout the solar system." "In an age when information is ubiquitous but wisdom is rare."
Do you know the meaning of this word? Let's pronounce it correctly first. We have three letters, "a-d-a-m-a-n-t." We stress the first syllable, and we say "ad-a-mant." However, the second "a" and the third "a" get reduced. They become the schwa sound. They become "uh." So we say it like this: "ad-uh-mant." And that "d" is like a fast "d." We don't say "adamant," we say "ad-uh-mant." For example, "ad-uh-dict" or "prod-uh-ct." Canada. This often happens when the "d" is between two vowel sounds. It sounds like this: "ad-uh-mant." Adamant. If you are adamant, you refuse to be persuaded or to change your mind. You're determined not to change your opinion or a decision that you have made. For example, we can say, "He was adamant about not going to the party." He absolutely didn't want to go. He was adamant about it. "I'm adamant about it. I will not change my opinion. I will not change my mind." Or you can use it as an adverb: adamantly. Adamantly. "His parents were adamantly opposed to the marriage." "He adamantly denied that he was guilty." "He was adamant about his innocence." And now you use the word by making your own sentences.
Do you know the meaning of this word? Let's pronounce it correctly first. Callous. Callous. We stress the first syllable and we reduce the second syllable. We say it like this: callous. Callous. Make sure you always reduce the "ous" endings in adjectives. For example, "generous." We don't say "generose," we say "generous." "Nervous." "Famous." "Delicious." If your native language is Spanish or Italian, be careful about the pronunciation changes in your native language. The "o" is not reduced, it's fully pronounced. For example, "famous" in Italian, that "o" is pronounced fully. Or in Spanish, same thing, same word. Or "curious." Of course, they're spelled differently, and they're pronounced a little bit differently, but the tendency is to pronounce it similarly to your native language. And let's look at the meaning of callous. If someone is callous, they're insensitive. They don't care that other people are suffering, or they're very cruel and they show no concern, concern for other people and their feelings. We can say, "His callous remarks hurt her feelings." Or "He has a callous attitude toward the poor." Toward poor people.
Do you know the meaning of this word? Let's pronounce it correctly. Distraught. Distraught. Make that vowel sound big. It's an "a" sound, especially in American English. Open your mouth: "a." Distraught. And the "tr" is pronounced like this: "tr." "Tr." For example, "try," "travel," "trick." We don't say "trought," we say "distraught." Distraught. Distraught. Distraught means extremely worried, nervous, or upset. We can say, "She was very distraught over the loss of her pet." "He appeared distraught after hearing the bad news." "The child was distraught after getting lost in the store." Let's say that word again: distraught. Distraught. "And I was so distraught and desperate and so full of grief." "As parents, we were very, very distraught."
How did you do on the test? If you only didn't know one or two words, congratulations, your English is excellent. And if a lot of these words were new to you, I suggest you watch this video again, take notes, and make sure that you practice saying these words by making your own sentences. And keep expanding your English vocabulary. Every time you see a new word, write it down in your notebook. Keep a list, and then review that list from time to time. Practice using the words, and pretty soon your English will be at a much higher level. Thanks for watching, and keep practicing your English. Take your English to the final level of fluency with my online courses: The American Accent Course, the 400 Advanced Words You Must Know for Fluent English Course, and the Phrasal Verbs for Fluent English Course. Go to AccurateEnglish.com.