Podcasts This Week (April 4, 2011)

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ON MONDAY
ESL Podcast 674 – Threatening Other Countries

In the Learning Guide: Get a full transcript (written version of every word you hear), vocabulary list and sample sentences, and comprehension questions.
In “What Else Does it Mean,” learn the other meanings of “border” and “to strike.”
In the “Culture Note,” learn about “The Longest Border in the World.”
“The border between the United States and Canada is the longest border in the world. Including the part between Canada and Alaska, the “terrestrial” (land-based, not water-based) border…” – READ MORE in the Learning Guide

ON WEDNESDAY
English Cafe 288

Topics: Prohibition; Famous Americans: Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr.; I’m sorry versus I apologize; green thumb; elbow grease; to be screwed

In the Learning Guide:  Get a full transcript (written version of every word you hear).
In “What Insiders Know,” you will read about “Famous Teetotaler President Robert B. Hayes.”
“There have been many famous teetotalers in American history.  One of the most famous is President Rutherford B. Hayes, who was the 19th American president, and who served from 1877 to 1881…” – READ MORE in the Learning Guide

ON FRIDAY
ESL Podcast 675 – Having Furniture Delivered

In the Learning Guide: Get a full transcript (written version of every word you hear), vocabulary list and sample sentences, and comprehension questions.
In “What Else Does it Mean,” learn the other meanings of “window” and “to be at (someone’s) mercy.”
In the “Culture Note,” learn about “Common Store Sales Policies.”
“Sellers in the United States often “stipulate” (say that something must happen; establish) “conditions of sale” (terms; things that the buyer and seller must agree to).  These conditions of sale can be very “lenient” (not tolerant) or very strict… – READ MORE in the Learning Guide

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3 Responses to Podcasts This Week (April 4, 2011)

  1. eva says:

    I like this very nuch though i am not quite familiar with it. Hope that it can help me more.

  2. Peter says:

    If it is rough,you tough it out
    If it is sad,you cheer it up
    If it is hard,you wait it out
    That
    Against the grain must be a way of life.

    Love ,and beloved for ever

  3. Maxim says:

    Hi Jeff,

    Thanks for the new interesting lessons!

    Actually I have a grammar question here. In EnglishCafe 288 (00:08:45) you said, “many people think that if we DID not have Prohibition, we WOULD not HAVE HAD such powerful mafia groups in the US”. It seems to me that there’s a some sort of a grammar violation, since according to the rules, and if my memory serves it’s called Third Conditional, we have to use this formula: if [Past Participle], then [Would] + [Present Participle]. The action already happened in the past and we can’t change anything.

    So, apparently you use DID instead of HAD. And I was wondering how common it is to substitute HAD with DID while speaking.

    Here’s another example I once came across while speaking to a native speaker. He was like, “If you drove faster, we wouldn’t be so late”. Here we have Second Conditional instead of Third One. In fact, we have to say, “If you HAD driven faster, we WOULD not HAVE BEEN so late”. But it seems native speakers at times are acting in this kind of a lazy way when they have such casual conversations. So, again, I’m curious to know how common such violations are. Is this legit being a non-native speaker to use such “lazy” substitutes once in a while?

    Thanks in advance,

    Max from Moscow

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