Transcription
Hi there. This is Harry, and welcome back to my Advanced English lessons with Harry. What we're going to talk to you about today are actually adjectives. So, the lesson today is based on adjectives, and these are advanced adjectives that we use to describe people.
Now, unusually, I have actually 12, not 10. I usually have a list of 10; I don't know why I've got 12. So I'm going to go down through the list of 12, okay? It's called the 12 disciples. I'll go back through them individually and give you an example one by one.
Number one: sensible. Well, when somebody is sensible, they take the right approach to something without taking risks. It's sensible, for example, when you're standing at the side of the road, to look right and left to make sure there's no traffic coming, and not just walk across the road without having a care in the world.
You're sensible about it, you're sensible in the way you approach the problem that your child might have at school. So when he comes home and he's got a bloody nose or some little problem, you don't run down to school shouting and screaming. You sit down in a sensible way with them and try to find out exactly what happened, and then try to find or think about the best way to deal with the problem. That would be sensible.
He's very sensible; he doesn't do things without thinking about the risk. He won't just run off with his friend and not tell us where he is going. He's really, really sensible. It's a sensible thing to do. So when you're sensible, you take certain precautions; you don't do things just in a risky way.
Okay, now sensible is the next word, and, sorry, sensitive is the next word. These two words get confused: sensible and sensitive, because in some languages they actually have the same word. So it's hard to distinguish, but in English, it's sensible and also sensitive.
So when somebody's sensitive, their feelings are a little bit close to the surface. If they get criticized, they get upset. If somebody shouts at them, they get upset, or they see something un savory on the TV or in a movie; they might shed a tear about children that have been orphaned or animals that have been badly treated. So they're very sensitive to those sorts of situations and therefore can be very, very emotional.
"Emotional" can be a word very synonymous with the whole idea of being sensitive. Now, we can also be sensitive to change. Like, my nose can be very sensitive, and when you go out, it's nice to breathe in deeply. But within a day or two, my eyes are watering, my nose is running, and I'm sneezing a lot. So I'm very sensitive to the change in the climate, particularly in the spring into the early summer.
So, yeah, that's about being sensitive in that way as well. Just to make sure we understand the difference: being sensible means doing things without taking risks; being sensitive means our emotions sometimes might take over, and we can be a little emotional about things, particularly about criticism.
Next, we have assertive. When you are assertive, you make your point clear and you stick to it. You're not going to be easily persuaded or easily moved.
Competitive: well, when you're competitive, it means you don't want to give in without a fight. If there's a game you want to win or a challenge you want to achieve, competitive means you don't just participate for the sake of it or even just to have fun.
When we were growing up as kids, we were always competitive. We always wanted to be the best. I grew up, and I still am, of course, I'm a twin, and we were identical twins, so we were very competitive. If one did one thing, the other would want to do better. If one did better, the other one would want to be better again.
So we were always in a competitive environment, whether our parents did it deliberately or not—I don't think they did—but, you know, if one did something, they would encourage the other one to do better the next time. So everything became competitive: the game of football, the game of cards, the game of Monopoly, whatever it might be. Even the Easter, Christmas, and summer exams at school also became competitive. So when you're always thinking as a challenge and always wanting to do your best, or in fact winning, then you could be described as being competitive.
Greedy: greedy is when people want more than they really need. This is a good adjective to describe people. Greedy is often referred to when we're talking about food, but it's not just about food. So the child who wants the extra biscuit or two can be greedy: "Don't be so greedy! Leave some for somebody else!" They just stuff another biscuit in, and they can hardly chew what they have.
So they're being very greedy. But we can also be greedy as adults; we want more money, we want a bigger house, we want more responsibility, we want more promotion—all of these things. This is an air of greediness that has crept into society. To be greedy is to want more than you actually need.
Arrogant: well, arrogant is when you walk around with an air of supremacy. When you feel you are better than other people, you look down your nose at people and let people know that you think you are better, that your qualifications are better, that you do things better. Everything about you, you believe, is better than other people.
So you're somewhat arrogant. People don't usually like arrogant people, but in certain professions, it's often needed. A little bit of arrogance is not such a bad thing to have. If you think you're the best and you believe you're the best, well, you actually can be. If you look at some of these footballers, they can be a little bit arrogant, but the really good footballers—well, you can see why. So Ronaldo might come across as a little bit arrogant. Why not? He's the best footballer in the world.
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Thick: well, thick is a word that we use to describe someone when they're a bit stupid. "Ah, don't be so thick!" Yeah, "Oh, that child, he's thick at times. I just wonder, will we ever get through it? Will he ever understand simple mathematics?" Okay, so thick is an adjective we use to describe people who are a little bit stupid or don't understand something or ask stupid questions. "Ah, that's a thick question. It's a really stupid question to ask."
Okay, so thick means a little bit stupid. It's like thick as wood, meaning something really thick, something you can't get through.
Now, is there anybody there? No, a little bit thick.
Patronizing: when we talk about patronizing, the meaning of patronizing is to treat somebody in a way that's condescending, as if you're trying to be helpful but in reality you're just trying to show that you know better than they do.
So, where somebody might say, "Oh, don't be so patronizing." You might say, "Okay, let me help you, and I can show you how to do it. After all, I've been doing this for such a long time now. But you, I'll show it to you, and if you need any help, I can show you again.”
So, a very patronizing way to give somebody some help, rather than just say, "Oh yeah, if you need some help, give me a call." When you're being patronizing, it's usually where you're trying to sound or seem as if you're helpful, but in reality, you're actually demonstrating that you are in some way superior to that person.
So patronizing—you'll often hear it in the expression, "I wish you weren't so patronizing! No, really, I could do it on my own. I don't need anybody else to help me!"
After patronizing, we have obnoxious. Now, be careful here with the pronunciation: obnoxious. Yes, obnoxious! You've got a "sh" sound: obnoxious. So when somebody is obnoxious, they're really not very pleasant people.
Now, you can have an obnoxious smell, which is a terrible, terrible smell. You come in, and there's a smell of like sulfur or something— that would be obnoxious. Or you come in, and the cat's litter tray hasn't been cleaned out for three or four days—that would certainly be obnoxious.
But when we're using this as an adjective to describe people, that usually refers to their habits or their behavior being somewhat obnoxious. Perhaps it's the language they use where every second word is "F this" and "F that." You say, "I really don't like that person. He's obnoxious; he's got no manners." He's rude, he doesn't close his mouth when he's eating, he drinks his water or beer so quickly, spills half of it, and he dresses like a pig. He's obnoxious.
So, behaviors and habits can all describe and define the person, and the adjective describes that person really well: obnoxious—a rather obnoxious individual.
Pretentious: well, when somebody is pretentious, the meaning of it is that they are trying to appear more important than their position really is. Yes, so they're a little bit pretentious. Someone who's perhaps a junior manager or not even a manager at all acts in a way that they might feel they are a manager, but they've been a little bit pretentious because they're not really in that position of seniority.
Okay, so when they try to appear to be better or more important than they are, we often hear this expression: "a pretentious snob." So, somebody trying to be really important, looking down their nose a little bit at people. This is a little bit like arrogance—yes, slightly like that, but somewhat pretentious.
And then we have ruthless. Yes, when somebody is ruthless, and we describe them as ruthless, it means they make decisions without any consideration for people's opinion. They're just interested in getting the job done or getting whatever they want done. They don't take into consideration people's views or opinions.
Let me give you an example. So, a company is going through a bad time trading-wise. They've got 120 people, and the directors come down and talk to the CEO. They tell him, "We're going to have to go through some sort of redundancy program. You're going to have to get rid of 30 people, and you're going to have to get rid of 30 people within the next month. Otherwise, we're going to have a serious problem."
So the CEO goes off and thinks about it for a few days, looks at the numbers, calls the staff together, and tells them that there will be a redundancy program. He writes to them the following week and lets them know who has and hasn't a job, and there's no favoritism involved. It's not a question of whether he likes you or doesn't like you.
The people who will stay are those who are most needed, and the people who will go are those who are not needed, and that's a fact. There will be no discussion about it. When the letters are issued the week later, he has been very ruthless in his decision. 30 people have been selected—no negotiation, no discussion.
The terms for the redundancy program have been offered, but that's it. It's not a question of whether you're his favorite or not; he is absolutely ruthless in his choice of those people who are going to be made redundant. He doesn't care whether you've got two kids in college, whether you've got a big mortgage—he's making a decision in terms of the security and the long-term security of the business.
So, very, very ruthless—an absolute ruthless individual.
And then finally, somebody down to earth. Well, when we describe somebody as down to earth, we mean they're very normal. They're very matter-of-fact. They've got no airs and graces, and they're somebody who will just say what they think straight out.
Okay, so they'll be upfront, they'll be direct, and they'll be very frank and honest. We would describe them as down to earth.
So what do you think of Patrick? "Ah, he's a good guy! When you get to know him, he's really good. I mean, he's not somebody who's got airs and graces; he's not pretentious in any way. In fact, if he doesn't like somebody or something, he will tell them or tell you about that. So he's really down to earth." Some people see that as a little bit too frank, being a little bit too honest, but you know, it's better than the other way. At least you know where you are with him—his real down-to-earth character.
Okay, so as I said, we've got 12 adjectives. Let me just give them to you again in the list:
- Sensible
- Sensitive (and be careful, those two words, they do get confused)
- Assertive
- Competitive
- Greedy
- Arrogant
- Thick
- Patronizing
- Obnoxious (and remember the pronunciation: obnoxious)
- Pretentious (and another one, you have to be careful with the pronunciation: pretentious)
- Ruthless
- Down to earth
So again, the two for the pronunciation there: obnoxious, pretentious—get the same sound at the end: obnoxious, pretentious.
Okay, all right! So there's your list of advanced adjectives that we use to describe people.
As always, I really appreciate you watching, listening, and hopefully understanding what I've said. You can try using some of those to describe people that you know. If you need any further examples, you can come back to me on www.englishlonvskype.com. I'm always happy to hear from you. And as always, join me again in the future for more of our Advanced English lessons.
This is Harry saying goodbye!