Name: Learn English with DESPICABLE ME
Uploaded: 2026-02-18T17:17:07.000Z
Duration: 20 min 5 s
Description: Thousands of YouTube videos with English-Chinese subtitles! Now you can learn to understand native speakers, expand your vocabulary, and improve your pronunciation...

To-infinitive

Present continuous

I'm Ksenia, your real life English fluency coach.

And today we are learning English with a sweet and hilarious 2010 movie, Despicable Me.

This means that he was once successful and famous.

So he comes up with a plan that will put him back in the.

However, first he has to steal a shrink ray.

So, as we saw at the start, he adopts three young girls to help him.

This supervillain has absolutely zero experience with children.

He lives in a dark lair full of dangerous weapons and inventions.

So let's break down what happens when he tries to establish some ground rules.

Then I'll teach you the most useful expressions.

And finally, you'll test yourself by watching again without subtitles.

And I'll be asking some quiz questions to make it more challenging.

As you can see, I have provided everything a child might need.

In that hilarious first scene where Gru adopts the girls.

We already have some great advanced expressions to learn.

And if you want to remember these expressions forever so you can confidently and naturally use them in your next conversation, whether at work or with friends, let me share you something that will help you a lot.

It's our magic flashcards on the RealLife app.

They use science to bring back words for review right when you're about to forget them.

That way, expressions like washed up in the spotlight layer, let go and set some rules will stick in your head like super Glee.

Check it out for free right now with the link in the description.

Now let's actually learn all of these everyday expressions.

Let's start off with a common phrasal verb let go means to stop holding on to something or someone.

You might hear you need to let go of the past and move forward, or let go of me.

Release the grip is a more formal way of saying let go.

When you have a grip on something, you're holding it tightly.

To release means to let something go or set it free.

This phrase is often used in instruction manuals like release the grip slowly to avoid injury.

As Gru is an evil genius, he often uses advanced technical language like this.

And this is part of the movie's humor because it contrasts with how most people speak to children using simpler, cuter language.

We see him continue treating the children like a technical problem he needs to solve.

Alright, let's break down these few advanced words.

A command in this context would be a specific word or instruction that makes something happen, like a computer command.

Gruy is wondering if there's a magic word that makes children let go.

In the tech world, you might hear, what's the command to shut down the system.

You might say, your puppy knows basic commands like sit and stay.

Nonstick spray is actually a real product used in cooking.

It's an oil spray you put on pans so food doesn't stick to them.

The irony here is that Gru wants something to make Agnes not stick to his leg, treating her like food stuck to a pan.

It's used to lift heavy objects off the ground or open things by force.

Often used in construction or breaking into places.

Alright, before we move on to the next clip, I want to help you understand fast speaking natives and speak more naturally and clearly yourself with something called connected speech.

That's how natives cut, reduce and link words together in fluent speech.

Listen to how Agnes says, I got your leg, I got your leg.

This happens because when we have a word ending in T followed by a word like you or your, it morphs into a ch sound.

Your speaking will only get better with lots of practice.

So listen again and try to say that just like her.

Subtitles ListPlay Video

Learn English with DESPICABLE ME

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obvious

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hilarious