Learn about the people and the businesses that thrived during the pandemic.

New English US

Business English: Pandemic Millionaires (upper-intermediate)

Enjoy the third podcast from Culture To Grow which allows you to travel the world from the comfort of your home, your car, or if you are still half asleep in your bed. 

This episode provides you with a glimpse of Mongolia's name-giving process and what the country looks like from a local's perspective.

There will be a new episode every other Monday, so be sure to subscribe!

Culture To Grow

Episode 3: Let's Travel to Mongolia!

My experience teaching on Italki (in, easy to understand, Indian accent).

3 in 1

My experience teaching on Italki (Indian Accent)

我还了解到另一件重要的事，
I had thus learned a second fact of great importance:


就是他老家所在的那个星球比一座房子大不了多少。
this was that the planet the little prince came from was scarcely any larger than a house!
这倒并没有使我感到太奇怪。
But that did not really surprise me much.
我知道除地球、木星、火星、金星这几个有名称的大行星以外，
I knew very well that in addition to the great planets–such as the Earth, Jupiter, Mars, Venus–to which we have given names,
还有成百个别的星球，它们有的小得很，就是用望远镜也很难看见。
there are also hundreds of others, some of which are so small that,one has a hard time seeing them through the telescope.
当一个天文学者发现了其中一个星星，他就给它编上一个号码。
When an astronomer discovers one of these he does not give it a name, but only a number.
例如把它称作“325小行星”。
He might call it, for example, "Asteroid 325."
我有重要的根据认为小王子所来自的那个星球是小行星B612。
I have serious reason to believe that the planet from which the little prince came is the asteroid known as B-612.
这颗小行星仅仅在1909年被一个土耳其天文学家用望远镜看见过一次。
This asteroid has only once been seen through the telescope. That was by a Turkish astronomer, in 1909.
当时他曾经在一次国际天文学家代表大会上对他的发现作了重要的论证。
On making his discovery, the astronomer had presented it to the International Astronomical Congress, in a great demonstration.

但由于他所穿衣服的缘故，那时没有人相信他。
But he was in Turkish costume, and so nobody would believe what he said.
那些大人们就是这样。
Grown-ups are like that
幸好，土耳其的一个独裁者，为了小行星B612的声誉，
Fortunately, however, for the reputation of Asteroid B-612,
迫使他的人民都要穿欧式服装，否则就处以死刑。
a Turkish dictator made a law that his subjects, under pain of death, should change to European costume.
1920年，这位天文学家穿了一身非常漂亮的服装，重新作了一次论证。
So in 1920 the astronomer gave his demonstration all over again, dressed with impressive style and elegance.
这一次所有的人都同意他的看法。
And this time everybody accepted his report.
我给你们讲关于小行星B612的这些细节，并且告诉你们它的编号，这是由于这些大人的缘故。
If I have told you these details about the asteroid, and made a note of its number for you, it is on account of the grown-ups and their ways.

小王子-The Little Prince-Read in Chinese

小王子第8章：B612小行星

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 

How motivated are you? Learn about the types of motivation and understand how it can help you learn a language. 

 Ideas for Learning English

Motivation

Natural Nihongo Chat

がんばってね！という言葉

「あやしい」とは本当かどうか疑わしいという意味です。
「聞いているだけで英語が話せるようになる」とか「これを食べるだけでやせる」という商品を見るたびに私は「あやしいな」と思います。

オンラインショップやレストランのレビューもあやしいなと感じることがあります。私はアマゾンで商品を買うときはなるべくレビューやコメントが多い商品を選びます。レビューがとてもいい商品でも、レビューの数が少ないものはあまり選ばないようにしています。

２週間前の雪が降るという天気予報を私はあやしいなと思っていました。「もう4月なのに今さら雪が降るわけがない」と思っていました。でも、たくさん雪が積もりました。

みなさんは、最近なにか「あやしいな」と感じたことはありますか？


あやしい：doubtful, suspect, fishy
疑わしい：うたがわしい　doughtful
やせる：lose weight
商品：しょうひん　product
レビュー：rating, review, 評価（ひょうか）
数：かず　number
評価をつける／残す（のこす）： to rate, review
天気予報：てんきよほう　weather forecast

Nihongo Short Story by Noriko

あやしい-Today’s Word

In this episode, we explore the phrase "Let's circle back" and why it’s essential for revisiting important topics in business conversations. Plus, we’ll introduce more key phrases like "touch base" and "get the ball rolling" to help you sound professional in meetings and emails.