Shay的中文小课堂

Idioms and Slangs Episode1

Master the long /iː/ and short /ɪ/ sounds through focused repetition and listening exercises. This practice session reinforces Lesson 7's key concept: both 'e' and 'i' can represent these two distinct vowel sounds in British English.
You'll practice word lists, minimal pairs (sit/seat, ship/sheep), and challenging tongue twisters designed to sharpen your ear and improve your articulation. Perfect for learners who want to train their pronunciation through hands-on practice rather than theory.
Repeat, listen, and build muscle memory—no matter your starting level, consistent practice will help these sounds become natural.

Transcript: 
Long e with letter E: see, me, be, these, complete, scene, tree, free, three, believe, receive, degree, theme, scheme, delete, extreme
Long e with letter I: machine, police, sardine, prestige, magazine, marine, cuisine, routine, limousine, hygiene, submarine, regime, tambourine
Short i with letter E:  English, pretty, bucket, pocket, started, lended,  helmet, velvet, secret
Short i with letter I:  it, sit, him, big, sister, interesting, milk, sick, pin, picnic, win, fish, list, lift, hint

Minimal Pairs: 
Sit - seat
Fit - feet 
ship - sheep 
dip  — deep 
chip — cheap 
Bin – Bean
Pin – Peen
Lid – Lead
Rich – Reach
Bit – Beat
Sick – Seek
Him – Heap
Fin – Fee
Rip – Reap
Tongue twisters: 
I see the sheep sleep deep in the green field.
Sick fish swim in the deep sea.
Pin the chip on the cheap machine.
The keen teen keeps the scene clean.
Big fish in a deep green sea swim free.
Pretty women with private seats sip tea.


British Pronunciation Tips 

British Vowel Sound Masterclass: Lesson 7 – The Long & Short E/I. Same Sounds, Different Letters - Practice 

A simple phrase, a powerful reaction. Kenji's story reveals what English fluency really is.

Real English Skills

Japanese Student Obsessed With Perfect English, Until He Broke One Rule

Part 4. Food.

Please listen to the audio and then choose your answer.

Please answer the following questions of understanding:

Question 1:
What is a grocery store?
a An establishment that cooks food for customers
b There are several definitions of a grocery store
c A place to sell and trade goods
d An establishment that distributes foods, drinks, household products, and other items that're used by the typical consumer

Question 2:
Fresh fruits and vegetables are collectively referred to as which of the following terms?
a Produce
b Feggies
c Veggies
d Famine	

Question 3:
What are staples?
a Small pieces of metal used to hold papers together
b Rare foods
c Foods that play a prominent role in the average diet
d Green fruits and vegetables

Question 4:
More vegetables are stocked in grocery stores than fruits because:
a Fruits stay fresh for less time than vegetables
b Vegetables are more popular than fruits, generally speaking
c Grocery store managers prefer fruits
d A and B

Question 5:
"Fresh" groceries are:
a Prepared by employees
b Measured manually
c Charged by the pound
d All of the Above


I hope you enjoyed spending time thinking and answering some questions and the idea is to do it daily for at least 90 days for the habit ‘to properly register’ in your brain.

See you tomorrow for further development :)


The Habits of Professionals Growing Into Strong, Confident English Communicators

Listening & Comprehension. 

En el episodio de hoy hablamos de falsos amigos. No, no de los falsos amigos en tu círculo social, sino gramaticalmente hablando. En especial de los falsos amigos entre el español y el inglés porque es verdad que ambos idiomas tienen palabras parecidas con un significado similar. Pero también es cierto que muchas palabras que parecen iguales tienen un significado totalmente diferente. Y es en esas palabras en las que nos vamos a concentrar hoy para que puedas usarlas correctamente y evitarlas cuando no son necesarias para no pasar por situaciones vergonzosas.

Como siempre, espero que disfrutes el episodio. Si lo haces, no te olvides de dejar una valorcaión. Te lo agradeceré muchísimo.

Y, ya sabes que espero tus comentarios.


Blanca to go 

158 – Falsos amigos español-inglés

When your car stops working, it’s not just having a bad day; it’s had a "breakdown"

But hey, it happens to people too! When you’re totally stressed out

and start crying in the grocery store because they’re out of your favourite ice cream flavour
that’s a "breakdown" too!

But don’t worry, you’re not alone. Whether it’s your car or your emotions, just remember:

we all break down sometimes. But please, try not to do it over ice cream flavour .

See you next time, hopefully in one piece! 

"Phrasal Verbs Gone Wild!"

"Break Down, But Keep It Together"

Zero = statements which are true in general. 
First = for something that is real or possible. 100% possible. 
Second = for something that could be possible but is probably unlikely. 50/50
Third = for something in the past that we cannot change – it’s too late! 100% impossible


All Ways Business

Easy Conditionals 

Ancient Egyptians loved and respected cats, believing they brought good luck.

Some families even dressed their cats in jewelry, and mummified them after death. They would mourn the death of their cat by shaving off their eyebrows, and continue to mourn until their eyebrows grew back.

Inspired by this ancient love for cats, the Shanghai Museum in China held a special event called Meowseum Nights.

Held 10 times during last summer and fall, the event invited 200 cats and 2,000 people to explore the exhibition On Top of the Pyramid: The Civilization of Ancient Egypt.

Some of the artifacts shown in the exhibition came from a temple discovered years ago in Egypt. The temple was for Bastet, an Egyptian goddess who could change into a cat. This gave the Shanghai Museum another reason to use cats as the theme for their event.

Museum director Chu Xiaobo said that the event was created to bring cat lovers to the museum, as in Shanghai, where there are over a million pet cats, cat-friendly public spaces are rare.

"There are dog parks, dog brunches, but not that much for cat parents to do with their pets," Wen Liuli, a visitor to the exhibition, told The Art Newspaper.

The museum took measures to keep all visitors and artifacts safe. Cats had to stay in strollers or bags, but there were certain areas where people could take their cats out for photos, such as in front of a statue of Bastet. All the other artifacts were kept behind glass.

The museum also had vets, doctors, and even an ambulance on-site, and over 80 animal welfare workers attended each night to help and give advice.

While the museum doesn't plan to hold another Meowseum Night, Chu hopes it might inspire other museums to try similar ideas.

"Cat people now have a special affection for the Shanghai Museum," he said.




Practice Listening, Reading & Comprehension

Cats Take a Tour of Ancient Egypt at Chinese Museum

MacAuley Culkin becomes a Dad again (no transcript today)