McEnglish: Recent Episodes

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Here, we are looking at the cadence of English and just touching on some key pointers. These will help you with pronunciation and will make speaking English much easier.

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This episode is all about politeness, and instead of adding a list of new words, I have put together an outline for you that will help you to understand the many ways to be polite in English.

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Be careful with commands! (Would you mind being a bit more careful with the commands, please? If you don't mind...)

• "Don't interrupt me."
  • "If you don't mind, I would like to be able to say all of what I would like to say."
• "Tell me the meaning of this/that."
  • "Could you tell me what this/that means?"

Words that soften the language:

• Would
  • "Would it be okay if I stepped outside of the room?"
  • "Would you happen to..."
  • "Would you mind...?"
  • "I would like to..."
• Could
  • "Could I ask you to move just a bit to the right?"
  • "Could you add a bit of sugar to my coffee?"
• Should
  • Instead of, "Do you want me to do this now?"
  • Maybe try, "Should I do this now?"
  • "Shouldn't this be done this way though?"
• May
  • "May I place you on a brief hold?"
• Please and Thank you
  • Thank you
    • Often follows any request using please.
  • Please
    • "Complete this and send it back to me, please"
      • ... "Thank you."
    • "Please, complete this whenever you have a chance and return it to me."
      • ... "Thank you."
    • "May I please ask a question?"
    • "May I ask a question, please?"
• Do you mind...?
  • "If you don't mind, I'd like to..."
  • "I hope you don't mind, but..."
  • "Do you mind if...?"
  • ".......if you don't mind."
• If possible...
  • "If possible, would you mind completing this and returning it to me by 9pm?"
• I apologize
  • "I apologize, I did not mean to hurt your feelings."
• We (instead of you)
  • "What we might want to do here, is say we instead of you."
• Maybe
  • "Do you maybe want to wait until tomorrow to start working on the presentation?"
  • "Is there maybe a different way to do this?"
• Might
  • "It might be best if I do this alone."
  • "That might be the best solution, but maybe we should explore other options."
• Express what you want to say in the form of a question
  • This is usually a way to be less direct or assertive, but the tone is a very important element here. You don't want to sound sarcastic, patronizing, condescending, or superior.
  • Instead of, "Please, explain why you did this."
  • Try, "Could you please explain why you did this here instead of ...?"

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This episode of making this is all about collocation, collocative words, and colloquial expressions. I’ll also include a technique that will assist you in developing this ability to naturally express yourself in English and to comprehend more of what you read and more of what you hear.

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collocation - the habitual juxtaposition of a particular word with another word or words with a frequency greater than chance.
as opposed to - used to refer to something that is different from what has just been mentioned; in contrast to.
to sustain - to keep up, prolong...
to lead the way - to be the first person to go somewhere. to fight a fire - to put forth an effort to extinguish a fire. to keep in touch - to continue to talk to or write to someone.to attend - to be present at; to go to.to hit the nail on the head - to be exactly right; to describeexactly what is causing a situation or problem.stand-alone - complete in itself, complete as is.
to emphasize - to place special consideration of or stress or insistence on something; to stress, to place emphasis.aches and pains - general way to refer to minor pains in the body.
law and order - the safe, civil, and orderly functioning of society viewed especially as a result of the enactment and strict enforcement of laws. black eye - an area of bruised skin around the eye resulting from a blow. sweeping generalization - a general rule applied to a specific situation (list of fallacies) to jot down - write briefly or hurriedly; write a short note of... to hone in on - to move toward or focus attention on an objective; to find and go directly toward...

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One of the most misleading rules commonly cited when looking at prepositions in English grammar is that we should not end a sentence with a preposition. Now, there is actually more to it, so I encourage you to have an especially open mind this episode as we explore the different ways sentences might end with prepositions.
colloquial - (of language) used in ordinary or familiar conversation; not formal or literary. to be on the lookout - to watch or search for (something or someone); be alert to... origin - the point or place where something begins, arises, or is derived. questionable - doubtful as regards truth or quality. pointer - a useful suggestion or hint. mind-boggling - mentally or emotionally exciting or overwhelming. feat - an act or product of skill, endurance, or ingenuity. consult - to refer to; to ask the advice or opinion of... pose - to set forth or offer for attention or consideration to throw one off - to distract or divert; to cause to make a mistake. egregious - conspicuously bad. misleading - to lead astray;give a wrong impression. pretentious - expressive of affected, unwarranted, or exaggerated importance, worth, or stature. concise - marked by brevity of expression or statement; free from all elaboration and superfluous detail. virtually - almost entirely; for all practical purposes.

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This is the first installment of the "English in a Multicultural World" thread. This episode is all about finding a way to make English your own language and how to empower yourself to transcend anything that is holding you back. Create your own English in a way that empowers you! Make it yours! It is your natural right to do so.

Also! I see on my new website, we don't have the option to comment on the episode, but you can do so on the facebook page! The McEnglish Podcast

Article that I reference:
English as a Multicultural Language
Book of the Week:
The Unfolding of Language

to dissect - to analyze and interpret rolling - done or happening in a steady and continuous way substantially - to a great or significant extent unprecedented - never done or known before to transcend - to triumph over the negative or restrictive aspects of a situation sake - end, purpose array - variety, assortment quirky - unusual in especially an interesting or appealing way omission - the removal of stake - an interest or share in an undertaking or enterprise to forfeit - to subject to confiscation as a forfeit degradation - the act or process of becoming reduced in complexity to innovate - make changes in something established, especially by introducing new methods, ideas, or products effectively - actually but not officially or explicitly mediocrity - moderate ability or value to facilitate - to make easier; to help bring about to conceptualize - to form a concept of

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The first of many episodes of McEnglish. Find out what McEnglish is all about in this episode and take the first step towards learning English the McEnglish way.

The Power of Now Keywords, Advanced words, and Expressions:
thoroughly - very much; greatly.

to fluctuate - to shift back and forth uncertainly

invaluable - valuable beyond estimation; priceless

informational - relating to or characterized by facts about something; providing information.

informative - providing useful or interesting information.

to tailor - to make or adapt for a particular purpose or person.

to take it nice and slow - to do something slowly/gently/steadily/without rushing.

spontaneously - as a result of a sudden impulse and without premeditation.

essential - absolutely necessary; extremely important.

usage - the action of using something or the fact of being used.

to transcribe - to put (thoughts, speech, or data) into written or printed form.

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