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  • Hello and welcome to 6 Minute Englishthe  show that brings you an interesting topic,  

  • authentic listening practice and vocabulary to  help you improve your language skills. I'm Rob

  • Watashi no namae wa Neil desuAnd that means 'my name's Neil'.

  • So Neil, here's a question for youcan  

  • you speak any languages other than  English of course? I think you can!

  • Un poco de español that meanslittle bit of Spanish. Some Japanese,  

  • which I tried at the beginning and also a bit  of Czech language - Dobrý den, jak se máš?

  • Very impressive. So what tips can you give  for learning to speak another language?

  • Well, practise, practise, practiseand don't  be afraid of making mistakes as I no doubt have.

  • Of course. Well my aim this year  is to master the Spanish language.  

  • Master means to learn thoroughly.

  • Muy bien! Well you're not alone. A survey by the  British Council found learning a language is a new  

  • year's resolution for about one in five Britons  in 2018. So learning Spanish is a good start Rob  

  • but do you know approximately how many languages  there are in the world altogether? Are there

  • a) 70 

  • b) 700 c) 7,000

  • Well I know there are many but  surely not 7,000 so I'm going to say  

  • b) 700 – but don't expect me to learn all of them.

  • I won't Rob. But I will give you the answer later.  

  • So, we all know learning another language is  a good thingit brings us many benefits.

  • Yes, we can communicate with  people from other countries  

  • and when we're travelling we can understand what  signs and notices say. So we don't get lost.

  • That's rightbut many scientists also  believe that knowledge of another language  

  • can boost your brainpower. A study  of monolingual and bilingual speakers  

  • suggests speaking two languages can help  slow down the brain's decline with age.

  • All good reasons. But Neil, learning another  language is hard. It would take me years and  

  • years to become fluent in say, Mandarinby  fluent I mean speak very well, without difficulty.

  • Well this depends on your  mother tongue. In general,  

  • the closer the second language is to  the learner's native tongue and culture  

  • in terms of vocabulary, sounds or sentence  structure - the easier it will be to learn.

  • But whatever the language,  

  • there is so much vocabulary to learnyou  know, thousands and thousands of words.

  • Maybe not Rob. Professor Stuart Webb, a  linguist from the University of Western Ontario,  

  • may be able to help you. He  spoke to BBC Radio 4's More  

  • or Less programme and explained  that you don't need to do that

  • For language learners in a foreign language  settingso for example, if you were learning  

  • French in Britain or English in Japan,  

  • students may often really struggle to learn more  than 2,000, 3,000 words after many years of study.  

  • So for example, there was a study in Taiwan  recently that showed that after nine years  

  • of study about half of the students had still  failed to learn the most frequent 1,000 words.  

  • Now they knew lower frequency words but they  hadn't mastered those most important words.

  • So Rob, don't waste your time  trying to learn every single word.  

  • Professor Webb spoke there about  research that showed students  

  • knew lower frequency words but weren't  learning enough high-frequency words.

  • Right, and frequency here means the number  of times something happensso the important  

  • words to learn are the high-frequency  onesand how many are there exactly?

  • Here's Professor Stuart Webb again

  • For example, with English, I would suggest if  you learn the 800 most frequent lemmaswhich is  

  • a word and its inflectionsthat will  account for about 75 per cent of all of  

  • the English language. So that learning  those 800 words first will provide  

  • the foundation for which you may be  able to learn the lower frequency words.

  • Fascinating stuff. And good to know I just need to  learn about 800 wordsor what he calls lemmas.

  • Yes, a lemma is the simplest form or base form  of a word. And the inflection here refers to  

  • how the base word is changed according to its  use in a sentence. Knowing these things give  

  • you a foundationthe basics from which  you language learning will develop. Simple

  • Thank goodness I am learning  just one new language!

  • But how many languages could you potentially  be learning Rob? Earlier I asked you,  

  • approximately how many languages there  are in the world altogether? Are there

  • a) 70 b) 700 

  • c) 7,000

  • And I said 700. Was I right?

  • No Rob, you were wrong. There are around  7,000 recognised languages in the world  

  • but UNESCO has identified 2,500 languages  which it claims are at risk of extinction.

  • A sobering thought Neil. Now  shall we remind ourselves  

  • of some of the English vocabulary we've  heard today. Starting with master.

  • To master a new skill, in  this context, means to learn  

  • thoroughly or learn well. "Rob hopes to master  Spanish before he starts a new job in Madrid."

  • That's news to me Neil! But it would be  good to be fluent in Spanishor any  

  • languageor to speak it fluentlythat's  speaking it well and without difficulty.

  • Now our next word was frequency. Here we are  referring to high and low frequency wordsso  

  • it means how often they occur. Examples ofhigh frequency word are 'it', 'the' and 'and'.

  • And our next word is inflections. These are the  changes to the basic form of words according to  

  • their function in a sentence. Such as adding  an 's' to the end of a word to make it plural.

  • And don't forget lemma which  is the simplest form or base  

  • form of a word before an inflection is added.

  • And finally foundation which means  the basics your learning grows from.

  • That just leaves me to remind you  that you can learn English with  

  • us at bbclearningenglish.com. That's  it for today's 6 Minute English. We  

  • hope you enjoyed it. Bye for nowNa shledanou. Hasta luego. Ja-ne.

  • And in English, goodbye.

  • Goodbye. Hello. This  

  • is 6 Minute English from BBC  Learning English. I'm Neil.

  • And I'm Georgina

  • Can I ask you something, Georgina…?

  • Mm-mm-hmm.

  • Georgina? I said, I want to ask you  somethingare you listening to me?!

  • Mm-hmm, just a second, Neil, I'm texting a friend

  • Ah, has this ever happened youSomeone too busy texting to talk.  

  • With the huge rise of mobile phones in  recent decades, communicating by text  

  • has become more and more popular and scenes  like this have become increasingly common.

  • and send! There, all doneNow, what were you saying, Neil?

  • In this programme, we'll be investigating  why people often choose to text,  

  • instead of talk to the people  in their lives. We'll be asking  

  • whether this popular form of communication  is changing how we interact with each other.

  • And, of course, we'll be learning  some related vocabulary as well.  

  • Now, Neil, what did you want to ask me?

  • My quiz question, Georgina, which is this. Young  people are often the biggest users of mobile  

  • phones, but in a 2016 study, what percentage  of British teenagers said they would prefer  

  • to send a text rather than speak to someoneeven if they were in the same room? Is it:

  • a) 9 percent?, b) 49 percent?, or

  • c) 99 percent?

  • That sounds pretty shocking! I can't  believe 99 percent of teenagers said that,  

  • so I'll guess b) 49 percent.

  • OK, Georgina. We'll find out later if that's  right. In one way, the popularity of texting,  

  • sometimes called 'talking with thumbs',  

  • is understandable - people like  to be in control of what they say.

  • But this low-risk way of hiding behind a screen  may come at a cost, as neuroscientist, Professor  

  • Sophie Scott, explained to Sandra Kanthal, for  BBC World Service programme, The Why Factor:

  • When we 'talk with our thumbs' by  text or email or instant message,  

  • we're often prioritising speed over  clarity and depth. But when we can't  

  • hear the way someone is speaking it's all  too easy to misunderstand their intention.

  • So if I say a phrase like, 'Oh shut  up!' - has a different meaning than,  

  • 'Oh shut up!' There's an emotional thing  there but also a strong kind of intonation:  

  • one's sort of funny, one's  just aggressive. Written down  

  • it's just aggressive – 'Shut up!' - and you  can't soften that. […] We always speak with  

  • melody and intonation to our voice and we'll  change our meaning depending on that. You take  

  • that channel of information out of communication  you lose another way that sense is being conveyed.

  • When reading a text instead  of listening to someone speak,  

  • we miss out on the speaker's intonationthat's  the way the voice rises and falls when speaking.

  • Intonation, how a word is saidoften changes the meaning of  

  • words and phrases - small groups of words  people use to say something particular.

  • Reading a phrase like, 'Oh shut up!' in a textinstead of hearing it spoken aloud, makes it  

  • easy to misunderstand the speaker's intention  – their aim, or plan of what they want to do.

  • And it's not just the speaker's intention that  we miss. A whole range of extra information  

  • is conveyed through speech, from the speaker's  age and gender to the region they're from.

  • Poet, Gary Turk, believes that we lose  something uniquely human when we stop talking.  

  • And there are practical problems  involved with texting too,  

  • as he explains to BBC World  Service's, The Why Factor:

  • If you speak to someone in person and they  don't respond right away, that would be rude.  

  • But you might be speaking to someone in person  and someone texts you... and it would be ruder  

  • for you then to stop that conversation and speak  to the person over textyet the person on the  

  • other side of the text is getting annoyedyou  haven't responded right wayit's like we're  

  • constantly now creating these situations using our  phones that allow us to like tread on minesno  

  • matter what you do, we're going to disappoint  people because we're trying to communicate in  

  • so many different ways. Do you prioritise the  person on the phone? Would you prioritise the  

  • person you're speaking to? Who do you disappoint  first? You're going to disappoint somebody.

  • So what should you do if a friend texts you when  

  • you're already speaking to someone else in  personphysically present, face to face?

  • You can't communicate with  both people at the same time,  

  • so whatever you do someone will get  annoyedbecome angry and upset.

  • Gary thinks that despite its conveniencetexting creates situations where we have  

  • to tread on mines, another way of  saying that something is a minefield,  

  • meaning a situation full of hidden problems  and dangers, where people need to take care.

  • Yes, it's easy to get annoyed when  someone ignores you to text their friend

  • Oh, you're not still upset  about that are you, Neil?

  • Ha, it's like those teenagers in my  quiz question! Remember I asked you  

  • how many teenagers said they'd prefer to text  someone, even if they were in the same room.

  • I guessed it was b) 49 percent.

  • Which wasthe correct answer! I'm glad you  were listening, Georgina, and not texting!

  • Ha ha! In this programme we've  been discussing ways in which  

  • texting differs from talking with  someone in personor face to face.

  • Sending texts instead of having a conversation  means we don't hear the speaker's intonationthe  

  • musical way their voice rises and falls. A phrase  - or small group of words - like 'Oh shut up!',  

  • means different things when  said in different ways.

  • Without intonation we can easily misunderstand a  

  • text writer's intentiontheir idea  or plan of what they are going to do.

  • Which in turns means they can get  annoyedor become irritated,  

  • if you don't understand what they  mean, or don't respond right away.

  • All of which can create an absolute minefield  – a situation with many hidden problems,  

  • where you need to speak and act carefully.

  • And that's all we have time for  in this programme, but remember  

  • you can find more useful vocabulary, trending  topics and help with your language learning  

  • here at BBC Learning English. We also  have an app that you can download for free  

  • from the app stores and of course we  are all over social media. Bye for now!

  • Bye!

  • Hello. This is 6 Minute English. I'm Neil.

  • And I'm Sam.

  • Now Sam, I assume that you know your alphabet.

  • Of course, Neilyou mean my ABCs? We  learn that at a very young age, you know?

  • Sorry to sound patronising. But you do you know  

  • why the letters in the alphabet  are in that particular order?

  • No, I don't. That's really interesting. Why?

  • I don't know either, I was hoping you mightBut seriously, no one really knows how the  

  • order became established. However, some  research has shown that if your surname,  

  • your family name, begins with  a letter later in the alphabet,  

  • you could be at a disadvantage at school and  in life. Before we get in to that though,  

  • a question. Where does the alphabet  come from in its earliest form? Was it

  • a) Ancient Egypt b) Ancient Greece 

  • c) Ancient Rome

  • What do you think, Sam?

  • Well, we refer to the English alphabet as having  Roman characters, so I'm going with Ancient Rome.

  • OK. I'll have the answer later in the programmeIn the BBC radio programme Fry's English Delight  

  • there was a feature about the alphabet and how it  can have a negative impact on your school life.  

  • Can you remember all those years  ago when you were at school?  

  • What's the first thing that the teacher  would do at the beginning of the day?

  • She would take the registerthat's what we call  it in the UK. You can also call it the roll call.

  • Yes, this is when the teacher calls out the  names of the students to check that they  

  • are all there. This is where the problem startsaccording to, ironically, Professor Jeffrey Zax,  

  • from the University of Colorado. The  further down that list your name is,  

  • the less noticed you are by the teacherWhy is that? Here's Professor Zax.

  • When it begins people are paying attention. As it  proceeds, first the people who are already called,  

  • they no longer have any need to take things  seriously. And the people who are waiting to  

  • be called, their attention is wandering as wellAnd so as you make your way through the roll call  

  • somehow the intensity of  the engagement diminishes.

  • So, what is the problem?

  • Well, it's a lot to do with paying attentionThis means concentrating on something.  

  • At the beginning of the roll call everyone is  paying attention - they are quiet and listening.  

  • But after the first names are called, those  students don't need to pay attention any more.

  • So they lose a bit of interest in what comes  next, and the students later in the list  

  • are also now distracted and the teacherhim or herself, is not so focussed.

  • And by the end of the list the relationship  between the teacher and the students whose names  

  • are being called later is not as strong  as those at the beginning of the list.

  • Professor Zax describes this by saying that  the intensity of the engagement diminishes.  

  • Diminishes means 'gets weaker', and the intensity  of the engagement is the strength of the  

  • communication, the level of enthusiasm for being  involved. So this is the start of the disadvantage  

  • which can subtly affect students throughout their  school years and after. This was discovered after  

  • some research in the US in the 1950s. So what were  these disadvantages? Here's Professor Zax again.

  • They were less likely to have  enjoyed their high school courses,  

  • graduate from college if they applied. They were  more likely to drop out. They had first jobs in  

  • occupations that paid less. They were  more likely to go to the military  

  • and they were more likely to have  jobs whose prestige was lower.

  • So what disadvantages did they have?

  • Well, Professor Zax says that the  research showed they enjoyed school  

  • less, were less successful academically  and more likely to drop out of college  

  • or university. This means that they  left the course before it was finished.

  • And he also said that they were more  likely to find jobs that had a lower  

  • prestige. This means the jobs weren't seen as  high status or desirable. Let's listen again.

  • They were less likely to have  enjoyed their high school courses,  

  • graduate from college if they applied. They were  more likely to drop out. They had first jobs  

  • in occupations that paid less. They were  

  • more likely to go to the military and they were  more likely to have jobs whose prestige was lower.

  • Well, Professor Zax seems to have  done OK. Even with that surname!

  • Indeed, I guess this doesn't apply  to everyone. Right, well before we  

  • remind ourselves of our vocabularylet's get the answer to the question.  

  • Where does the alphabet come from  in its earliest form? Was it

  • a) Ancient Egypt b) Ancient Greece 

  • c) Ancient Rome

  • Sam, what did you say?

  • Pretty sure it's Ancient Rome.

  • What does your surname begin with?

  • A 'B', actually.

  • Well, you are wrong, I'm afraidIt's actually Ancient Egyptso  

  • well done to everyone who got thatOK, now it's time for our vocabulary.

  • Yesto pay attention to something means to  concentrate on something, to not be distracted.

  • Then there was the phrase the  intensity of the engagement,  

  • which is another way of saying the strength of  the relationship, interaction and communication.

  • And if your surname comes at the end  of the alphabet you may find that the  

  • intensity of engagement with the teacher  diminishes. Diminishes means gets weaker.

  • If you drop out from a course, it means  that you leave it before it's finished.

  • And the prestige of a job is the respect it has.  

  • If it is seen as important or  desirable then it has higher prestige.

  • OK, thank you, Sam. That's all from 6 Minute  English. We hope you can join us again soon.  

  • You can find us at bbclearningenglish onlineon social media and on our app. Bye for now!

  • Bye bye everyone!

  • Hello. This is 6 Minute English, I'm Georgina.

  • And I'm Rob.

  • Are you a punctuation pedant? Do you get upset,  

  • annoyed or angry if you see punctuation being  used incorrectlyparticularly apostrophes?

  • Well, it depends. Usually I'm pretty  chilled out about it, but sometimes,  

  • just sometimes it really winds me up. For exampleif I see a sign for taxis at a train station  

  • and it says taxiapostrophe - s – aarghWhywhy? The apostrophe is not used to  

  • show there is more than one, it's used to  show there is a missing letter or that the  

  • word is a possessiveit's just wrongSo that does kind of make my blood boil.

  • So, when you say you're pretty  chilled about it you mean

  • OK, I'm not chilled at allBut maybe I wish I were.

  • Well, we're going to be takinglook at reactions to the use and  

  • abuse of apostrophes in this programme. But first,  

  • a question. The word 'apostrophe' itself  – which language does it come from? Is it:

  • A: Latin

  • B: Greek

  • C: Arabic

  • What do you think, Rob?

  • I don't think it's Arabic, so it's a toss-up  between Latin and Greek. I'm going to say Greek.

  • OK. We'll see if you're correct at the end  of the programme. The apostrophe, it is true  

  • to say, is often misused. It's put where it  shouldn't be and not used where it should be.  

  • Is it important, though? Does it matterAfter all, in spoken English there is no  

  • difference between 'it's' with an  apostrophe and 'its' without. 'Your'  

  • and 'you're' – short for 'you are' sound the  same. So what's the problem in written English?

  • In many cases there isn't a problem at  all. There would be very little confusion.  

  • But I don't think that means we should  just ignore the correct way to use them.  

  • Sometimes it can be very important to make clear  if it's a singular or plural or possessive.  

  • Another important thing to remember is that in CVs  and job applications a good standard of spelling  

  • and punctuation is expected. Get it wrong  and you could miss out on a good opportunity.

  • There is one group that has tried for  nearly 20 years to keep others to these high  

  • standards - The Apostrophe Protection SocietyThey have publicly pointed out incorrect use  

  • in public signs and communications – a tactic  that has not always been welcome or successful.  

  • But like the apostrophe itself, the group is in  danger. Here's a BBC news report on the subject.

  • They linger above our letters, they  wander around the endings of our words,  

  • but apostrophes, it seems, are an  endangered species. The Apostrophe  

  • Protection Societyyes there really is one  – says their future is, well, up in the air.

  • How does he describe apostrophes?

  • Using metaphorical, poetic language, he says they  linger above our letters. To linger is a verb  

  • usually used to describe someone or something  staying somewhere before finally leaving.

  • So, we have apostrophes lingering  above our letters and also he said  

  • they wander around the ending of words.

  • Yes, also a metaphorical use. To wander means  

  • to walk slowly around without  any real purpose or urgency.

  • And he went on to say that the future  of the apostrophe is up in the air.  

  • When something is up in the airit means its future is not certain,  

  • it's not guaranteed. So if, for exampleyour holiday plans are up in the air,  

  • it means that there is some kind of problem and  you might not be going on holiday after all.  

  • The person who founded The Apostrophe Protection  Society is John Edwards. Now 96 years old he has  

  • decided to give it up. Partly because of his agebut also because he thinks that due to the impact  

  • of texting and social media he has lost the battle  against bad punctuation. So why has it come to  

  • this? Here he is explaining why he thinks people  aren't bothered about using correct punctuation.

  • I think it's a mixture of ignorance and lazinessThey're too ignorant to know where it goes,  

  • they're too lazy to learn so they just  don't bother. The barbarians have won.

  • So what's his reason?

  • He blames ignorance and laziness. Ignorance islack of knowledge or understanding of something.  

  • So people don't know the rules and are too  lazy to learn them, according to Edwards.

  • Quite strong views there!

  • Yes, and you thought I was a pedant! He actually  goes further to say that the barbarians have won.  

  • Barbarian is a historical word  for people who weren't part of  

  • so-called civilized society. They were seen as  violent and aggressive, primitive and uncivilized.

  • So it's not a compliment then?

  • Oh no!

  • Right, before we review today's  vocabulary, let's have the answer  

  • to today's quiz. Which language does the  word apostrophe come from? What did you say?

  • I went for Greek.

  • Congratulations to you and anyone else who  got that right. Greek is the right answer.  

  • Now let's remind ourselves of today's  vocabulary. First, what's a pedant, Rob?

  • A pedant is someone who corrects other  people's small mistakesparticularly  

  • in grammar and punctuationbut it's  not the same as an English teacher!  

  • A pedant will correct native speakersmistakes too, and not in the classroom.

  • To linger means to stay somewhere for longer.

  • To wander is to walk around without a real  purpose or intention to get somewhere quickly.

  • If your plans are up in the air, it means  they are at risk and might not happen.

  • Ignorance is the state of not knowing  something that should be known.

  • And finally, a barbarian is a word for a primitive  and uncivilized person. Right, we can't linger in  

  • this studio as our six minutes are up. You can  find more from us about punctuation and many  

  • other aspects of English online, on social media  and on the BBC Learning English app. Bye for now.

  • Bye!

  • Welcome to 6 Minute English. In this programme we  

  • bring you an expressive topic and  six items of vocabulary. I'm Neil

  • And I'm Tim. So, we had an argument  just before we started the show

  • We did, Tim. But no hard feelings?

  • None. No hard feelings is something you  say to somebody you have argued with to  

  • say you'd still like to be friendsWe often fall out over silly things

  • Like who's going to introduce the show

  • Or who's going to choose the quiz question.

  • But we understand each other. That's  the important thing, isn't it?  

  • To fall out with somebody by the way, is another  way of saying to argue or disagree with them.  

  • Do you know that you wave your arms  around a lot when you're arguing, Tim?

  • No, I didn't know I did that.

  • That isn't very British.

  • I know. Using gesturesor movements  you make with your hands or your head  

  • to express what you are thinking of feeling –  is common in some countries but not in others.  

  • Then there are some movementslike  shaking your headwhich mostly means  

  • 'no' but in some countries can mean the opposite.

  • That's right. In which country  does shaking your head mean 'yes',  

  • Tim? Is it… a) Greece

  • b) Japan or c) Bulgaria?

  • No idea – I'll guess Greece. I do know that in  

  • India people shake their heads  to mean lots of different things.

  • There are plenty of gestures  you need to be careful with  

  • when you're meeting and greeting people  from a culture that's different to your  

  • ownto avoid offending people  – or making an awkward faux pas

  • If you make a faux pas it means you say or do  something embarrassing in a social situation.  

  • For example, our every day use of the thumbs-up  signal might offend people from the Middle East.

  • And to offend means to make  somebody angry or upset.

  • Let's hear now from Business Professor  Erin Meyer talking about how easy it is  

  • to misunderstand why people behave the way they do  

  • in everyday situations when we  don't belong to the same culture.

  • A while ago I was in Dubai and one of my studentsmy Emirati students, was driving me home after a  

  • session and the car stopped at a light and she  rolled down the window, and she started shouting  

  • at someone outside of the window. This guy was  crossing the street with a big box of cloth. And  

  • he started shouting back, and she opened up the  door, and they started gesticulating and shouting  

  • at one another. And I thought, wow, they're  having a huge fight, I thought maybe he was  

  • going to hit her. And she got back in the carand I said, well, what were you fighting about?  

  • And she said, 'Oh no, no, we weren't fightinghe was giving me directions to your hotel.'  

  • And I thought that was a great example of how  someone from another culture may misperceive or  

  • misunderstand something as a fight when in fact  they were just being emotionally expressive.

  • Gesticulatingwhat does that mean?

  • It means what I was doing earlier! – Waving  your arms around to express what you're feeling.

  • Erin Meyer was worried because her student and the  

  • man on the street were shouting  and gesticulating at each other.  

  • She thought they were having a fight when in  fact they were just being emotionally expressive.

  • And expressive means showing  what you think or feel.

  • You were nodding in agreement, there, TimWhich reminds me of our quiz question. In which  

  • country does shaking your head mean 'yes'?  Is it… a) Greece, b) Japan or c) Bulgaria?

  • I said Greece

  • And that's the wrong answer, I'm  afraid. The right answer is Bulgaria.  

  • In some Southeastern European areas  such as Bulgaria and southern Albania,  

  • shaking your head is used to indicate "yes". In  those regions, nodding in fact means "no" as well.

  • I hope I remember that the next timemeet somebody from Southeastern Europe.OK,  

  • shall we look back at the words we learned today?

  • 'No hard feelings' is something you  say to somebody you have argued with  

  • or beaten in a game or contest to  say you'd still like to be friends.

  • For example, “I always get the quiz questions  

  • rightunlike you NeilBut no hard feelings, OK?”

  • That's not a very realistic example, Tim…  

  • But I'll let it go. Number two – 'to fall out with  somebody' means to argue or disagree with them.

  • “I fell out with my best friend at school. We  didn't talk to each other for a whole week!”

  • That must've been a serious disagreementTim! What were you arguing about?

  • I can't remember. It was a long time  ago. Number three – a 'gesture' is a  

  • movement you make with your hands or head  to express what you are thinking or feeling.

  • She opened her arms wide  in a gesture of welcome.”

  • Or the verb – “I gestured to Neil that we  only had one minute left to finish the show!”

  • Is that true, Tim? You're nodding your  headbut we should also quickly mention  

  • 'gesticulate' which means to make  gestures with your hands or arms!

  • A 'faux pas' is saying or doing something  embarrassing in a social situation.  

  • For example, “I committed a serious faux pas  

  • at a party last nightthat I'm  too embarrassed to tell you about!”

  • Oh dear, Tim. I hope you didn't  offend too many people – 'offend'  

  • is our next wordand it means  to make somebody angry or upset.

  • Well, you've given us a good example  already, Neil, so let's move on to  

  • the final word – 'expressive' – which  means showing what you think or feel.

  • Tim has a very expressive face.”

  • Thanks! Another quick example – “I waved my hand  

  • expressively to signal to Neil that  it was time to finish the show.”

  • Taking my cue from Tim, that's all for todayBut please remember to check out our Instagram,  

  • Twitter, Facebook and YouTube pages.

  • Bye-bye! Goodbye!

  • Hello. This is 6 Minute English  from BBC Learning English. I'm Neil.

  • And I'm Rob.

  • Bonjour, Rob! Kon'nichi'wa!

  • Excuse me?

  • ¡Hola! ¿Cómo estás?

  • Rob Oh, OK, I think Neil's saying  

  • 'hello' in different languagesFrench, was itAnd then.. Japanese? AndSpanish? Is that right?

  • ¡Si, muy bien!

  • The English are famously slow to learn other  languages. But it seems that Rob and I - and of  

  • course you - our global audience here at 6 Minute  English - are good examples of polyglotspeople  

  • who speak more than one language, sometimes  known as 'superlinguists'. People who speak  

  • multiple languages benefit from many advantagesas we'll be hearing in this programme.

  • That word polyglot sounds familiar, NeilDoesn't the prefixpolymean, 'many'?

  • That's right, like polygon  – a shape with many sides.

  • Or polymathsomeone who knows many things.

  • And speaking of knowing thingsit's time for my quiz question.  

  • The word polyglot comes from Greek and is  made up of two parts: poly, which as Rob says,  

  • means 'many', and 'glot'. But what does  'glot' mean? What is the meaning of the word  

  • polyglot? Is it: a) many words?, 

  • b) many sounds? or c) many tongues?

  • Well, there's three syllables in 'polyglot',  Neil, so I reckon it's b), many sounds.

  • OK, Rob, we'll find out if that's  right at the end of the programme.  

  • But leaving aside the origins of the wordwhat exactly does being a polyglot involve?  

  • British-born polyglot, Richard  Simcot speaks eleven languages.  

  • Listen to his definition as he speaks to BBC  World Service programme, The Documentary:

  • A polyglot for me can be anyone who  identifies with that termit's  

  • somebody who learns languages that they  don't necessarily need for their lives,  

  • but just out of sheer enjoyment, pleasure or  fascination with another language or culture.

  • For Richard, being a polyglot  simply means identifying with  

  • the idea - feeling that you are  similar or closely connected to it.

  • He says polyglots learn languages  not because they have to,  

  • but for the sheer enjoymentwhich means, 'nothing except'  

  • enjoyment. Richard uses the word sheer to  emphasise how strong and pure this enjoyment is.

  • As well as the pleasure of speaking other  languages, polyglots are also better at  

  • communicating with others. My favourite quote  by South Africa's first black president,  

  • Nelson Mandela, is: "If you talk to a man inlanguage he understands, that goes to his head.  

  • If you talk to him in his  language, that goes to his heart."

  • How inspiring, Rob – I'm lost  for words! Here's another:  

  • 'To have another language is  to possess a second soul'.

  • So language learning is good for the head, heart  and soul – a person's spirit or the part of them  

  • which is believed to continue  existing after death.

  • Yesand what's more, language  learning is good for the brain too.  

  • That's according to Harvard neuroscientistEve Fedorenko.She's researched the effects  

  • of speaking multiple languages on  the brains of growing children.

  • Eve predicted that multilingual children would  have hyperactive language brains. But what she  

  • actually found surprised her, as she explains  here to BBC World Service's The Documentary:

  • What we foundthis is now people who  already have proficiency in multiple  

  • languages - what we found is that their  language regions appear to be smaller,  

  • and that was surprisingand as people get better  and better, more automatic at performing the task,  

  • the activations shrink, so to speak, over  time, it becomes so that you don't have to  

  • use as much brain tissue to do the task  as well, so you become more efficient.

  • Eve was testing children who already have language  

  • proficiencythe skill and ability to  do something, such as speak a language.

  • Her surprising discovery was that the  language regions of these children's  

  • brains were shrinkingnot because  their speaking skills were getting worse,  

  • but the opposite; as they learned  and repeated language patterns,  

  • their brain tissue became more efficient  – worked quicker and more effectively.

  • It's suggested that this increased efficiency  is a result of exposure to different languages.

  • So that proves it, Neil: speaking many languages  is good for the head, heart, mind and soul!

  • You took the words right out of my mouth!

  • And speaking of words, what does the 'glot' in  polyglot actually mean? Was my answer correct?

  • Ah, that's right. In my quiz question I asked  you for the meaning of the word 'polyglot'.

  • I said, b) many sounds.

  • But in fact the correct answer was c)  many tongues. You may be a polyglot, Rob,  

  • but you're not quite a polymath yet!

  • OK, well, let me get my brain tissues  working by recapping the vocabulary,  

  • starting with polyglotsomeone  who speaks many languages.

  • The language centres in a polyglot's brain  

  • are efficienttheywork quickly  and effectively in an organised way.

  • Proficiency means the skill and ability  to do something well. And if you identify  

  • with something, you feel you are  similar or closely connected to it.

  • Polyglots learn languages for the  sheer enjoyment of it – a word  

  • meaning 'nothing except' which is used  to emphasise the strength of feeling.

  • So speaking many languages is good for mind  and soul – a person's non-physical spirit  

  • which some believe to continue after death.

  • That's it for this programme, but to discover more  about language learning, including some useful  

  • practical tips, check out The Superlinguists  series from BBC World Service's The Documentary!

  • Bye for now!

  • Bye!

  • Hello. This is 6 Minute English  from BBC Learning English. I'm Neil.

  • And I'm Sam.

  • Tell me, Sam, do you think Neil Armstrong  

  • really landed on the Moon in 1969? I meanthat must be fake news! And who shot JFK?  

  • Surely the CIA were involved? Unless it was  the giant lizards controlling the government!

  • Oh dear! It looks like reading online conspiracies  has sent Neil down the rabbit holean expression  

  • used to describe a situation which seems  interesting and uncomplicated at first  

  • but ends up becoming strange, confusing and hard  to escape from. Luckily in this programme we'll  

  • be hearing some advice on how to talk to people  who've become convinced by online conspiracies.

  • It seems that during times of crisisas people feel uncertain and fearful,  

  • they actively look for  information to feel more secure.

  • Nowadays this information is often found online,  

  • and while there are reliable facts out  there, there's also a lot of misinformation.

  • Somebody who's the target of many conspiracy  theories is Microsoft's Bill Gates and our  

  • BBC fact checkers have been busy debunking - or  exposingsome of the more bizarre accusations  

  • made against him. But what strange behaviour  has Bill Gates been accused of recently?  

  • That's my quiz question for today. Is it: a) being a member of the Chinese Communist Party?, 

  • b) being an alien lizard?, or c) being involved in the assassination of JFK?

  • They all sounds pretty silly to me but  I'll guess b) being an alien lizard.

  • OK, Sam, if you say so! We'll find out  the answer later. Now, I'm not the only  

  • one who's been doing some internet research. Ever  since the outbreak of the Covid pandemic there's  

  • been an avalanche of online conspiracies  linking Bill Gates to the coronavirus.  

  • Here's Marianna Spring, presenter of BBC World  Service programme, Trending, to tell us more:

  • The Microsoft founder is  a rich and powerful person  

  • and he's funded research into vaccines  – that's why he's become a target.  

  • Some of the claims are bonkersthat he wants  to use the virus as a pretext to microchip  

  • everyone in the world. Others say a vaccine  would actually kill people rather than save their  

  • lives. These ideas are without any evidence. We  should treat them with the disdain they deserve.

  • Some conspiracies claim that Bill Gates  wants to implant microchips in people  

  • and that he's using the coronavirus as  a pretext - a pretend reason for doing  

  • something that is used to hide the real reason.

  • Claims like these are described as  bonkersan informal way to say silly,  

  • stupid or crazy, and should  therefore be treated with  

  • disdain - disliking something because you feel  it does not deserve your attention or respect.

  • But while you might not believe such bonkers  theories yourself, it's not hard to see  

  • how people looking for answers can  get sucked down online rabbit holes.

  • So how would you deal some someone  spreading baseless conspiracies  

  • about Covid vaccines or Bill Gates? The BBC's  Trending programme spoke to Dr Jovan Byford,  

  • senior psychology lecturer with  the Open University, about it.

  • He thinks it's important to separate the  conspiracy from the theorist. The former,  

  • the belief, we have to dismiss, but the  latter, the person, is more complex.

  • Here's BBC Trending'spresenter, Marianna  Spring, again to sum up Dr Byford's advice:

  • How do you talk to someone who's at risk of being  sucked into the rabbit hole? First, establish  

  • a basis of understanding. Approach them on their  own terms and avoid sweeping dismissals or saying,  

  • you're wrong!”. Try not to judge. And try to  get to the bottom of the often legitimate concern  

  • at the heart of the conspiracy. Present them with  facts and research. Try to do this neutrally. You  

  • can't force anyone to change their mind but  you can make sure they have valid information.

  • While some conspiracies may be harmless, others  are more dangerous. People thinking that vaccines  

  • will kill them might worsen the coronavirus  situation worldwide, so we need to get to the  

  • bottom of these claims - discover the real but  sometimes hidden reason why something happens.

  • A good way to engage people  in discussion is to avoid  

  • sweeping claims or statements - speaking  or writing about things in a way that is  

  • too general and does not carefully  consider all the relevant facts.

  • And by doing so calmly and neutrally  you might persuade them to reconsider  

  • the funny business Bill Gates  is supposedly involved with.

  • Ah yes, you mean our quiz question. I asked you  

  • what Bill Gates has recently been  accused of by conspiracy theorists.

  • And I said b) being an alien lizard. But thinking  about it now, that seems pretty unlikely!

  • In fact the answer was a) beingmember of the Chinese Communist Party.

  • OK. So today we've been hearing advice on  how to deal with online conspiracy theories,  

  • some of which are totally bonkers –  silly, stupid and crazy - or involve  

  • a complicated pretext – a pretend reason  used to hide someone's true motivation.

  • These can be treated with  disdaindislike because  

  • they are unworthy of our attention or respect.

  • But with so many conspiracies online, it's easy  to get lost down the rabbit holeintrigued  

  • by a situation which seems interesting but  ends up confusing and hard to escape from.

  • It's important to get to the bottom of these  

  • theories - discover the real  but hidden reason behind them.

  • And to present people with facts, avoiding  sweepingor over-generalisedstatements.

  • That's all for this programme. Goodbye for now!

  • Bye bye!

  • Hello. Welcome to 6 Minute English, I'm Neil.

  • And I'm Rob.

  • We're going to be looking atletter from the English alphabet.  

  • It's a letter which has a particular  meaning when used at the end of a  

  • piece of informal writing such as  letters, emails, texts and messages.

  • I'm very EXcited.

  • Ha ha, very good, very good Rob!

  • My EXpectations are really high.

  • Yep, that's another good one.

  • Is it an EXtraordinary letter?

  • OK, thank you Rob, that's enough of  your jokes. I'm getting EXasperated! Oh,  

  • now you've got me at it! Well, no prizes for  guessing what letter we're focussing on today?

  • Why?

  • No, it's not Y.

  • No, I didn't mean the letter 'y', I meant the  word 'why', as in - why are there no prizes?

  • Because of all the not so subtle clues  you've been giving. The letter is X.

  • Yes. Exactly.

  • Alright, I think we get the  idea! Before we go much further,  

  • let's have a question. English has 26  letters. Which language has 74 letters?

  • a) Khmer (Cambodian)

  • b) Hindi or

  • c) Armenian

  • Any ideas Rob?

  • An excellent question but quite  obscure, I'm going to say b) Hindi.

  • Well, I'll have the answer later on. Now,  

  • Rob, what does the letter X all by  itself at the end of a message mean?

  • Well, it means a kiss. The more kissesthe more affection you are showing.

  • Where does this concept of putting anto mean a kiss come from? Dr Laura Wright  

  • is from the Faculty of English at Cambridge  University and she appeared on the BBC Radio 4  

  • programme Word of Mouth. When does she say this  practice started and where does it come from?

  • Well, we've been adding Xs for kisses at  the bottom of letters since at least 1763.  

  • The very first one we know of had seven Xs. I  have to say, I haven't gone to seven ever. We get  

  • X from the Roman alphabet which got it from the  Greek alphabet, pronounced /ks/ and the Romans...

  • Presenter: That's nearly a kiss, isn't it?

  • Yes it is, isn't it? I think  a penny's just dropped there.

  • Presenter: It has, clunk.

  • What do we learn about the  origins of the X for kisses?

  • Well, it's been used since at least 1763,  

  • and it comes from the Roman alphabet  and they got it from the Greeks.

  • And why did this come to mean a kiss?

  • Well, Dr Wright suggests it's because  of the original pronunciation - /ks/.

  • And at the point the presenter  made the connection, didn't he?

  • Yes, he did. And Dr Wright used a phrase for  when someone suddenly understands something,  

  • particularly something that is obvious to  others. She said the penny has just dropped.

  • And this has got nothing to do with a penny, which  is small coin, actually dropping anywhere. But  

  • the presenter makes a joke by using a word we  use for the noise of something falling, clunk.

  • Although, to be honest, a penny would  never really clunk. That's more like the  

  • noise two heavy metal objects would make  - the clunk of a car door, for example.

  • Let's listen to that exchange again.

  • Well, we've been adding Xs for kisses  at the bottom of letters since at least  

  • 1763. The very first one we know of had seven Xs.  I have to say I haven't gone to seven ever. We get  

  • X from the Roman alphabet which got it from the  Greek alphabet, pronounced /ks/ and the Romans...

  • Presenter: That's nearly a kiss, isn't it?

  • Yes it is, isn't it? I think  a penny's just dropped there.

  • Presenter: It has, clunk.

  • One thing to note about putting an X at the end of  a communication is that it is not something you do  

  • for everyone. It's usually only to friends  and family members, people you might kiss  

  • in real life. Professor Nils Langer from the  University of Bristol told a story about a  

  • colleague of his who wasn't too familiar  with this convention. What was her mistake?

  • A colleague of mine from Bristolwho... when she came over from Germany  

  • thought that X was just the normal  way of closing a letter in England  

  • and so she would finish any letter with  Xs, even a letter to the Inland Revenue.  

  • We never heard, really, how the Inland Revenue  responded to these letters with these Xs.

  • Presenter: They docked her  another 20 quid, I think!

  • What was her mistake, Rob?

  • She didn't realise that you don't put anon every communication. So she even put it  

  • on business letter including  one to the Inland Revenue,  

  • which is the government department  in the UK that deals with tax.

  • We don't know how the tax people  felt about the letter with kisses.  

  • But the presenter joked about what  their response would have been.

  • Yes, he joked that they probably docked her  another 20 quid. To dock money is to cut the  

  • amount of money you are expecting to receive  and a quid is a slang word for a British pound.

  • Time now for the answer to our questionEnglish has 26 letters. Which language  

  • has 74 letters? Is it… a) Khmer (Cambodian

  • b) Hindi or c) Armenian?

  • I guessed b) Hindi.

  • Well, I suppose it was a one in three chance, but  not correct this time. The answer is a) Khmer.  

  • Very well done if you knew that. Now on to  the vocabulary we looked at in this programme.

  • We started with a penny. A penny is an English  coin. A hundred pennies makes one pound sterling.

  • The phrase, the penny has dropped, means that  someone has suddenly understood something.

  • A clunk is the noise of two  heavy objects hitting each other.

  • The Inland Revenue is the UK's tax authority.

  • If you dock money from someone, you  reduce the amount of money you pay them.  

  • For example, as an employee in the UK your  tax is automatically docked from your salary.

  • And finally, a quid, which is a slang term for  one pound sterling. Right, before they start  

  • docking our pay for being late, it's time to say  goodbye. Find us on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter,  

  • YouTube, our App and of course the website  bbclearningenglish.com. See you soon, goodbye.


  • Bye bye!

  • Hello and welcome to 6 Minute English.  I'm Dan and joining me is Rob.

  • Hello.

  • Here at BBC Learning Englishwe're always discussing diets.

  • I am on a sea-food diet. Whensee food, I just have to eat it!

  • I suppose there's no chance of  converting you to a vegan diet,  

  • is there? That seems be the  most talked about food fad at  

  • the moment – a fad is something that  is popular but only for a short time.

  • Of course, veganismthat's not eating or using  any products that come from animalsmay be  

  • more than a fad. It could be a lifestyle  that improves our health and the planet.  

  • And it could be here to stay. But personallyme becoming a vegan would take some persuading.

  • I'm sure it would. And in this programme we'll be  discussing the debate about veganism and how it's  

  • sometimes difficult to change people's minds. But  first a question to answer. We've mentioned what a  

  • vegan eats but what about a lacto-ovo-vegetarianWhich one of these items can they eat? Is it:

  • a) pork

  • b) fish or

  • c) cheese?

  • I'll say b) they can eat fish.

  • Well, you'll have to wait until the  end of the programme to find out.  

  • But now back to veganism. According to  some national surveys, there are now  

  • around 3.5 million full-time vegans in  the UK... and the number is growing!

  • And what was recently a radical  lifestyle choice is slowly moving  

  • into the mainstreamor has become  accepted by most people as normal.

  • Advocates of veganism say their healthy  lifestyle would also free up space and  

  • resources for growing food and it would  help reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

  • Yeah, but come on Dan. Having a meat-free  

  • diet means you might not get  all the nutrients you need.

  • Well, this is all part of the debate, RobThere's always two sides to an argument and  

  • it's something that's been discussed on  BBC Radio 4's Farming Today programme.  

  • They spoke to Dr Jutta Tobias Mortlock, a senior  lecturer in organisational psychology at London's  

  • City University, who explained why views  about veganism are so polarisedthat  

  • 'means causing people to divide into  two groups with opposing views'.

  • This issue touches on personal beliefsand beliefs always trump facts and so,  

  • often when we talk about beliefswe're touching on important values.  

  • Values are the things that guide our opinion over  what's right versus what's wrong. And so whenever  

  • people argue over whether it's right or wrong to  eat meat, they are in fact not debating the facts  

  • around this issue, they're actually debating the  beliefs about what's moral or immoral about this.

  • So it seems in the whole debate about  veganism we are basing our views on beliefs.  

  • A belief is something we feel is true or real.  

  • Our beliefs are based on our valuesthose  are the things we think are right and wrong.

  • And when we argue over the  rights and wrongs of veganism,  

  • we base it on our valuesnot hard facts. We  talk about our view on what is immoralso what  

  • society thinks is wrong or not acceptable. But  basically, there is no right or wrong answer.

  • That's why we need facts, Rob.

  • So Dan, what can I do if I want to win  you over to becoming an omnivore, like me?

  • According to Dr Jutta, there are two main  routes to winning someone over: a direct,  

  • fact-based approach or a 'peripheral route',  

  • which might be more effectiveLet's hear her explain how it works.

  • If I'm working with you and I'm trying to get you  to come round to my side, I might not focus on the  

  • central facts. I might focus on the peripheral  stuff around how I'm constructing my argument.  

  • I'd look for ways of how they overlap as  people, like what do they have in common?  

  • And that's a way to debate an issue such as this  controversial one in a way to get people to feel  

  • connected to each other and to actually feel that  they value each other as decent human beings.

  • Interesting! This is a more  subtle way of winning an argument.  

  • She says we should focus on the  peripheral stuffthese are the  

  • things that are not as important as the  main argument but are connected to it.

  • So we could say we're looking for common  groundthings that both sides agree on  

  • or at least understand. Dr Jutta talked about  making both sides feel connected. And it's a  

  • good point. Even if you don't want to be a veganyou should respect someone's choice to be one.

  • Yes, it's all about valuing  someone as a decent human being.  

  • Decent means 'good and having good  moral standards'. Like us, Dan!

  • Well, they're wise words, Rob! Of course, it would  be morally wrongimmoralnot to give you the  

  • answer to our quiz question. Earlier I asked which  one of these items can a lacto-ovo-vegetarian eat.

  • I said b) fish.

  • Sorry, nothat's something they can't eat –  but they can eat cheese. A lacto-ovo-vegetarian  

  • is a person who eats vegetables, eggsand dairy products but does not eat meat.

  • No meat! No steak! How can they enjoy eating?!

  • Rob, remember as a decent human  beings, we respect all views here.

  • Just jokingbut now I'm deadly  serious about reviewing some of  

  • the vocabulary we've discussed today.

  • OK. Our first word was fad. A fad is something  that is popular but only for a short time.

  • Next, we mentioned mainstreamSomething that is mainstream  

  • has become accepted by most people as normal.

  • Then we had polarisedthat describes a situation  

  • that causes people to divide into  two groups with opposing views.

  • A belief is something we feel is true or real.  

  • And immoral describes something that  society thinks is wrong or not acceptable.

  • We also mentionedperipheral, which relates  to things that are not as important as  

  • the main argument, but are connected to  it. It also means situated on the edge.

  • And finally, decent means good or good enough.

  • Don't forget you can learn more English with  us on our website at bbclearningenglish.com.

  • Bye for now.

  • Goodbye.

  • Hello. I'm Catherine.

  • Hello. I'm Rob.

  • We both started with what is probably the  best-known greeting in English and one of  

  • the first words English language students learnand that is 'hello'! So today in 6 Minute English  

  • we're digging a little deeper into the world of  greetings and the fascinating history of 'hello'.

  • Surprisingly, the word 'hellois not as old as you might think.  

  • But when did it first appear in print in English?

  • Was it:

  • a) in the 1890s b) the 1950s or 

  • c) the1820s

  • Well, I think English changes  really quickly, so I'm going to say  

  • b) the 1950s. And we'll say 'hello againto 'hello' a little later in the programme.

  • First, greetings. They can  be a bit of a minefield. A  

  • subject full of unpredictable difficulties.

  • While in many places a handshake or bow is  normalthere's also the tricky question of  

  • kisses and hugs.

  • Awkward. Should you kiss? How many timesAnd should your lips touch their cheek?

  • No, Rob - definitely an air-kiss! Close  to the cheek, but don't touch. Much safer.

  • Greetings are the subject of a new  book, by former British diplomat  

  • Andy Scott, called One Kiss or TwoIn Search of the Perfect Greeting.  

  • Here he is on a BBC radio show Word of  Mouth. Why are greetings so important?

  • These are the first moments of interaction we  have with people. And it's in those first moments,  

  • and using those verbal and physical rituals that  we have and we can get in such a muddle about,  

  • that we're kind of recognising each other and  reaffirming our bonds or even testing our bonds  

  • and our relationships with each other, we're  signalling our intentions towards each other,  

  • despite the fact we might not necessarily  be conscious when we're doing them

  • Scott says we need to communicate our intentions  to each other and acknowledge our relationships.

  • Well, that's what greetings do. One word he  uses to mean 'relationship' or 'connection'  

  • is bond. We can reaffirm our bonds, which  means we confirm them and make them stronger.

  • And we do it through rituals -patterns of  behaviour that we do for a particular purpose.  

  • So there are the phrases such as 'hello',  'good afternoon', 'nice to meet you',  

  • and as well as the physical rituals  – handshakes, bows and kisses.

  • Though he also said we sometimes want to test our  bonds. We might want to check if our friendship  

  • has grown by offering something warmer than  usuallike a hug instead of a handshake.

  • Now, Scott acknowledges how difficult  greetings can beusing the very British  

  • slang phraseto get in a muddle. If you get  in a muddle, you become confused or lost. You  

  • might get in a muddle if one person expects  two kisses and the other expects only one.

  • Though Scott does believe that the details  don't really matter, because another important  

  • purpose of greetings is to reduce tensionSo if you get it wrong, just laugh about it.

  • OK, let's get back to the one word we really  shouldn't get in a muddle about, 'hello'.

  • Let's listen to Dr Laura Wright, a  linguist from Cambridge University,  

  • also speaking on the BBC Word of Mouth radio  programme. Where does 'hello' come from?

  • It starts as a distant hailing: "I see you miles  over there and I've got to yell at you." It's not  

  • until the invention of telephones we really get  to use hello as a greeting to each other, and  

  • even then it wasn't initially used as a greetingit was used more as an attention-grabbing device:  

  • "You are miles away, the line is about to be cut,  I need to attract the attention of the operator  

  • as well." And so everybody would call 'hello' to  each other as this long-distance greeting form.

  • Laura says 'hello' hasn't always meant  'hello' – originally it was just a shout  

  • to attract someone's attention. And  we call this kind of shouting hailing.

  • The shout would vary in formit could  sound like a 'hollo'! Or a 'hulloa'!

  • We continued this kind of hailing  when telephones first appeared.  

  • People would keep repeating 'hello, hellowhile they were waiting to be connected.  

  • And before long, this became the actual way  to greet somebody on the telephone. Anyway,  

  • before we say 'goodbye' to 'hello' –  let's have the answer to today's question.

  • I asked when the word first  appeared in print in English.  

  • According to the Oxford English Dictionary, it  was in 1826. Other spellings appeared before that.

  • Ah, you see – I was thinking English changes  really quickly, but not that quickly.

  • Not that quickly.

  • So before we go, let's havelook at today's vocabulary again.  

  • A minefield is something that is  full of uncertainty and even danger.  

  • This sense comes from the literal meaning  – a field full of explosive landmines!

  • And then we had air-kisswhich is when  you kiss the air beside someone's face,  

  • instead of the face itself! Like this: mwah.

  • And we had bond – a connection. There's  a close bond between us I think, Rob.

  • Which is good, because when I get inmuddle, you're always very understanding!

  • Yeah.

  • To get in a muddle means to become confused.

  • Ritual was another word –  rituals are certain behaviours  

  • that people perform in certain contexts. I have  a morning ritual, for example: brush my teeth,  

  • eat breakfast… I didn't say it  was an interesting ritual, Rob!

  • No, that's true. Finally, to hail  – it's to greet someone loudly,  

  • especially from a distance. I hailed my  friend when I saw her at the airport.

  • And that's it for this programmeFor more, find us on Facebook,  

  • Twitter, Instagram and YouTubeand of course our website! Bye!

  • Bye!

  • Hello. This is 6 Minute English, I'm Sam.

  • And I'm Georgina.

  • Georgina, what languages do you speak?

  • Well, my mother tongue is English and  I also speak Spanish and French badly!

  • OK. It's interesting that we say 'mother  tongue', isn't it? Like many languages,  

  • English has a number of gender-specific terms that  don't refer to gender-specific ideas and concepts.  

  • And this complicated relationship  between language and gender  

  • is what we will be talking about todayBut first, this week's quiz question,  

  • which is also on the topic of languagesWhich of these languages is the newest? Is it:

  • A: Esperanto

  • B: Afrikaans

  • C: Light Warlpiri

  • What do you think, Georgina?

  • Well, I've only heard of two of these - Esperanto  and Afrikaansso I think I'm going to choose the  

  • other one, Light Warlpiri, purely as I've never  heard of it, so I think that must be the one.

  • OK, well we'll find out if your intuition is  correct later in the programme. Professor Lera  

  • Boroditsky is a cognitive scientist who was  a guest on the BBC World Service programme,  

  • The Conversation. She was asked about why  we use the term 'mother tongue' in English.

  • Different languages actually do it differentlybut definitely there's a strong association  

  • between mothers as primary caregivers and  people who teach us things, and so there's that  

  • point of origin metaphor that  applies in a lot of languages.

  • So, how does she explain the  use of mother tongue, Georgina?

  • Well, she says it's a form of metaphor. A metaphor  is a way of describing something by comparing it  

  • to something else. In a metaphor,though, you  don't say that something is like something else,  

  • you say that it 'is' something else. For examplehaving good friends is the key to a happy life.

  • It is indeed. In this metaphor, language is  seen as coming from your primary caregiver,  

  • the person who looked after you most when you  were young, and traditionally this was mothers

  • So, this is perhaps the point of originthe starting place,of the metaphorical  

  • phrase, mother tongue. Let's listen again.

  • Different languages actually do it  differently, but definitely there's  

  • a strong association between mothers as  primary caregivers and people who teach  

  • us things, and so there's that point of origin  metaphor that applies in a lot of languages.

  • Language is very powerful in society and culture,  

  • and when it comes to gendered language, it can  cause some issues. Here's Lera Boroditsky again:

  • in English of course we have some  words that are gendered, like 'actor'  

  • and 'actress' or 'waiter' and 'waitress', and  very commonly when there are those two gender  

  • forms people perceive the masculine form  as being a more prestigious job or the more  

  • skilled job than the feminine form, so an actor  is a fancier job than an actress and a waiter  

  • is a fancier job than a waitress, and so they  could then come with pay disparities and so on.

  • So, what's the subconscious difference in attitude  towards, for example, an actor and actress?

  • Well, she says that people perceive those roles  differently. This means that we are aware of, or  

  • believe there is a difference in the jobs because  of the vocabulary. The male form is perceived  

  • to be more prestigiousmore important, more  respected, even though it's exactly the same job.

  • And this attitude can lead to  problems such as disparities in pay.  

  • A disparity is a difference, an inequalityand in the world of work it can mean men  

  • getting paid more than women for the same  job. Here's Professor Boroditsky again.

  • in English of course we have some  words that are gendered, like 'actor'  

  • and 'actress' or 'waiter' and 'waitress', and  very commonly when there are those two gender  

  • forms people perceive the masculine form  as being a more prestigious job or a more  

  • skilled job than the feminine form, so an actor  is a fancier job than an actress and a waiter  

  • is a fancier job than a waitress, and so they  could then come with pay disparities and so on.

  • OK, before we take another  look at today's vocabulary,  

  • let's reveal the answer to this week's quizWhich of these languages is the newest, is it:

  • A: Esperanto

  • B: Afrikaans

  • C: Light Warlpiri

  • Georgina, what did you say?

  • I thought it had to be Light Walpiri, but  just because I had never heard of it before.

  • Well, congratulations. Your instincts were good,  

  • that is correct. Let's move on to vocabulary  and look at today's words and phrase again.

  • A primary caregiver is a person who has most  responsibility for looking after someone.

  • A point of origin is the place  or time when something begins.

  • A metaphor is a way of describing  something. We can say that something  

  • is something else that has similar qualities.

  • You're a star!

  • Aw, thank you.

  • No, I meant, you're a staris an example of a metaphor.

  • Oh, OK. Of course, I knew that.

  • Mmmm, if you say so. To perceive is to  think of something in a particular way.  

  • We might perceive the value of different jobs  based on the vocabulary used to describe them.

  • Something prestigious is important and respected.

  • And finally, a disparity is a differencean inequality and is often used when  

  • talking about how men and women aren't  always paid the same for the same job.  

  • And that is all from us. We look forward to  your company again soon. In the meantime,  

  • you can always find us online, on social media  and on the BBC Learning English app. Bye for now.

  • Bye!

Hello and welcome to 6 Minute Englishthe  show that brings you an interesting topic,  

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