Learn French with Marc & Julie! Short stories with audio and text for beginners (A1–B1) to practice listening, vocabulary, and pronunciation.

French Stories with Marc and Julie A1-B1

Oyez ! oyez ! venez découvrir les trésors de la langue française ...

French Treasures

Improve your French accent with phonetics! Learn sounds, rhythm, and intonation to speak clearly and confidently.

Master French Pronunciation 

Welcome to the American English Pronunciation Guide. My name is Trevor Kafka, and I am your host.

There are many different varieties of American English. I was born and raised in New York, which has given me General American English pronunciation. The English that I speak has 15 vowel sounds. 

Please view the transcript for help while listening.

Today, we will talk about the vowel sound number 2 of 15: /eɪ/ grey day. This vowel is what we call a diphthong, meaning that it’s really two vowel sounds smooshed together as one. The mouth begins very open when the sound begins, but then turns into a smile as the teeth come together.

Listen to me saying this sound and repeat: /eɪ/, /eɪ/, /eɪ/

Listen to and repeat the following single-syllable words:
gray
day
pain
whale
waste
straight
tail
wait
shade

Listen to and repeat the following multiple-syllable words:
chamber
embrace
greatest
labor
vacation
translate
Canadian
information

Listen to and repeat the following sentences:
The way you say “gray” makes my day quite okay.
I embrace the shade to stay out of the sun’s rays.
The greatest of Canadian vacations have no space for rain.

I would like to thank Shirley Thompson and Karen Taylor for their work in developing the set of key phrases that I use with each vowel, such as /æ/ black cat, /eɪ/ grey day, etc. 

📢 American English Pronunciation Guide

Episode 2 - Vowels: /eɪ/ gray day (2 of 15)

The character "耳 - ěr" is a pictographic character resembling the shape of a human ear.

1. Meaning (字义)
The character "耳 -ěr " primarily means "ear." It can also relate to hearing and listening.

2. Usage (用法)

"耳" is commonly used in words and phrases related to ears and hearing. 

Example Words (例词)

1.耳朵 (ěr duo) - ear
我的耳朵很敏感。 (Wǒ de ěr duo hěn mǐngǎn.)
My ears are very sensitive.

2.耳环 (ěr huán) - earring
她戴着漂亮的耳环。 (Tā dàizhe piàoliang de ěr huán.)
She is wearing beautiful earrings.

Example Sentences (例句)

1.他用耳朵听音乐。 (Tā yòng ěr duo tīng yīnyuè.)
He listens to music with his ears.

2.她的耳朵很大。 (Tā de ěr duo hěn dà.)
Her ears are very big.

3.小心保护耳朵。 (Xiǎoxīn bǎohù ěr duo.)
Be careful to protect your ears.

Idiom (四字成语)

成语: 耳目一新 (Ěr mù yì xīn )

Meaning (意义)
"耳目一新" literally means "a fresh new look for the ears and eyes." It refers to something that is refreshing and gives a new and pleasant impression.

Usage (用法)
This idiom is used to describe a new experience or change that is refreshing and invigorating.

Example Sentence (例句)
新装修的房子让人耳目一新。 (Xīn zhuāngxiū de fángzi ràng rén ěr mù yì xīn.)
The newly renovated house is refreshing and gives a new impression.

Summary
The character "耳" is related to ears and hearing. Its usage is common in everyday expressions and phrases. The idiom "耳目一新" describes something new and refreshing, often used to express a positive change or improvement.


每日一字

Trailer for the SERBIAN TO GO podcast. Причај српски да те цео свет разуме!

SERBIAN TO GO

TRAILER 

En este episodio estudiamos el verbo "creer" con varios ejemplos

Natural Spanish Fluency

5/100 CREER 🧠 Los 100 verbos más importantes en español

W tym odcinku rozmawiamy o postanowieniach noworocznych. 

Odkryj Polski 

Postanowienia noworoczne 

【北海道Hokkaido生活】
6月10日金曜日　天気/晴れ　気温/18℃ 

新得町/しんとくちょう
・道内有数のそばの産地　
・そばの種まき
・昼と夜の寒暖差が大きい気候

［単語］
道内/どうない…北海道
有数/ゆうすう…少なくて、しかもすばらしいこと。
産地/さんち…ある物ができる場所
種/たね…野菜や果物の中にあって、それを育てると野菜や果物になるもの
種まき/たねまき…野菜や果物が育つ場所に種をおくこと
寒暖差/かんだんさ…寒さと暖かさのちがいが大きい

レッスン待ってます♪


北海道Hokkaido生活 for Japanese learners

〈#77〉6月10日金曜日　日本の食べ物　そばの種まき

Today we have two idioms that both mean the same thing. They mean to ignore someone while they're doing something wrong, or maybe just to pretend not to notice. They are to "turn a blind eye" and to "look the other way". I hope you enjoy today's short episode!