I'm Vanessa from SpeakEnglishWithVanessa.com.

Dan: And I'm Dan.

Vanessa: Are you ready to improve your vocabulary A to Z?

Dan: I am.

Vanessa: Let's do it.

In today's special vocabulary lesson, I'm here with my husband, Dan, and we're going

to be talking about one important vocabulary word for each letter of the alphabet, A to

Z, 26 new words.

All of these words have a theme.

Dan: Yes, you can use them to describe your English-learning journey.

Vanessa: Yes, but you can also use them in other situations.

So, for each of these words, I'm going to give an example that you can use to talk about

your English journey, and Dan's going to give an example about something else, another topic.

Dan: Something personal.

Vanessa: Yeah, we don't know yet.

Dan: But not too personal.

Vanessa: We'll see.

Feel free to check out the description for a timestamp for each of these words, so that

you can go back and study them later.

I hope that you'll be able to really remember them by reviewing them again and again.

Are you ready to get started?

Dan: Yes.

Vanessa: Let's go.

A, apprehension: A fearful expectation of something.

I feel some apprehension when I speak English with a native English speaker or in front

of other people in a crowd.

What about you?

When do you feel apprehensive?

Dan: Well, I used to feel apprehensive giving speeches, but now I've gotten over that a

little bit.

But when I was in college, I wrote on the calendar D-Day.

This day is coming, and it's going to be terrible, and I was so scared.

I was so apprehensive, but now, I've gotten over it.

Vanessa: Yeah, I remember that speech.

You actually did a great job.

So, your nervousness really didn't lead to a bad conclusion.

Dan: Maybe it even helped me.

Vanessa: Yeah, you felt apprehensive.

All right, let's go to the next one.

B, bittersweet: A good feeling with a bit of sadness.

When I studied abroad in Texas, it was bittersweet to leave my host family because I had some

really great memories with them, but I was also looking forward to see my family back

home.

What about you?

Are you going to feel bittersweet anytime soon?

Dan: Actually, we will feel bittersweet because we are leaving this house and moving to a

new house.

So, it's bitter because we have a lot of good memories here and that's sad, but it's sweet

because we're going to a new house.

It's bittersweet.

Vanessa: Yes.

C, complacent: Comfortable with no desire to change or improve.

I don't want to be complacent about my English level.

I always want to be improving.

What about you?

What do you do when you feel complacent?

Dan: Well, I usually try something new, and this word, it actually sounds like it could

be positive, but really it's a negative thing.

You're comfortable, and you should change.

When I feel complacent, I try something new like when I was not exercising in the past,

I decided to play hockey.

So, I joined a league, and I played hockey on a team, and I got lots of exercise.

Vanessa: Yeah, you didn't want it to be too complacent.

Dan: D, diligent: Being committed to a task.

I know that I need to be diligent if I want to remember all of these vocabulary words.

I should study them every day.

Do you know anyone who's diligent?

Vanessa: Yes, I do.

Dan: Vanessa is very diligent.

Every single day, she works on the fearless fluency club, the YouTube channel.

She's always learning new things in English.

She is diligent.

Vanessa: Thank you.

E, expend: To use up money or energy.

Sometimes, I expend all my energy worrying about making a mistake, and then I don't actually

speak.

What about you?

How do you feel at the end of the day?

Dan: Well, lately, I certainly feel expended at the end of the day because we have a toddler,

so he's running around all day.

We're chasing him all day, and when he goes to sleep at night, we feel expended.

We're done.

We have to lie down.

Vanessa: We have expended all our energy taking care of him, and we just want to relax.

F, feasible: To be possible.

Is it feasible to be a fluent English speaker?

Yes, it is.

Is it feasible for you to be an NHL player?

Dan: No, it is not.

It is not feasible for me to play in the NHL because I haven't practiced enough to play

professional hockey.

I'm just an amateur.

Vanessa: G, gist: The main idea.

I'd like to understand everything in English TV shows and movies, but right now I'm struggling

to understand the gist of what they're saying.

It's really tough.

What about for you?

What happened before we filmed this lesson?

Dan: Well, Vanessa described this video to me, and she showed me a script, and she started

going over everything, and I said, "It's okay.

I get the gist."

So, I know the main idea, I get it, and I can do it now.

Vanessa: Yes, and you're doing great.

Dan: Thank you.

Vanessa: H, hiatus: A gap or break in an event.

I studied English in high school, and after that, I took a long hiatus for 30 years.

Dan: Wow.

Vanessa: What about for you?

What's something that goes on hiatus?

Dan: A lot of times TV shows will go on hiatus, so they'll shoot a season.

There'll be season one, and you're waiting for season two, but they're on hiatus, so

you have to wait.

I remember the show, Rick and Morty.

There was season one that...

This is not popular with her, but I like Rick and Morty.

There was season one, and then they went on hiatus, and Everybody was waiting for season

two, and it finally came out.

Vanessa: Maybe a couple months later.

Dan: Mm-hmm (affirmative), it was longer than...

I think it was like a year or two.

Vanessa: Oh, okay.

That's a long hiatus.

I, insatiable: Can't be satisfied.

I have an insatiable desire to learn English.

My desire to learn English is insatiable.

Dan: Yes, and meanwhile, I have an insatiable desire to eat Pizza.

I love pizza, so bring me pizza, please.

Vanessa: J, jaded: Cynical or worn out due to past experience.

I feel so jaded about English classes.

I've joined so many of them, and nothing's worked for me.

What about you?

Do you feel jaded about anything?

Dan: Yes, I often feel jaded about politics because every single year, you see somebody

running, and they say the same thing, and you just get tired of it.

Nowadays, too, you have a social media, so you're reading people's posts, and this side's

angry, and that side's angry.

Nothing gets solved.

I'm very jaded about it.

Vanessa: You're cynical because you've got this past experience built up, so you feel

jaded about politics.

Maybe you feel the same way too, or maybe you don't.

K, knack: Something that's easy for you.

I thought I didn't have a knack for languages, but with Vanessa, it's easy.

What about you?

Do you have a knack for anything?

Dan: Some people might say, "I have a knack for playing the piano."

I can hear a song, usually something easy, maybe a Beatles song, and then I can spend

a few hours and learn it on the piano.

I'll just teach myself.

Vanessa: Yeah, sometimes it even takes a couple minutes.

Dan: Yeah, if it's Mary Had a Little Lamb.

So, I have a knack for playing the piano.

Vanessa: L, lull: A short period of calm or a break.

I started watching English lessons on YouTube.

But then when I went on vacation, there was a lull in my English learning.

What about for you?

Was there ever a lull in your life?

Dan: Oh yeah, there have been lulls in my life.

For example, every Christmas, there is a lull in my healthy eating.

There is just too much good food around, and my mom, she puts out chocolate.

So, I walk through the door, and I just grab a piece of chocolate when I enter the house,

so I'm not eating healthily during Christmas.

There's a lull in my healthy eating.

Vanessa: M, modest: Humble.

He says that his English isn't good, but he's just being modest.

It's actually pretty great.

Dan: Yeah, we actually knew a guy who was the opposite of modest.

He would say things like, "When I was at the gym the other day, I looked at my muscles,

and I saw the sweat on my arm, and my arms looked really great."

Vanessa: That's not modest.

Dan: Yeah, he wasn't very modest, but it was funny.

Vanessa: N, nuance: A subtle difference in meaning.

Sometimes phrasal verbs have slight nuances that are important to know.

For example, find out or figure out.

If you want to learn more about these two phrasal verbs, you can check out my video

about it up here.

What about for you?

Was there ever a time when you needed to learn some nuances?

Dan: Yes.

When you travel to a different country, you'll probably find some cultural nuances.

So, something in their culture is just a little bit different, and you don't notice it right

away.

When we lived in South Korea, there were a lot of cultural nuances.

They wouldn't speak as directly to you.

They would be a little more subtle.

They would say things indirectly, and you had to figure out exactly what it meant.

Vanessa: Yeah, so it was important for us to be sensitive and aware of these cultural

nuances, so that we could get along with other people and understand each other.

O, obsolete: No longer used, rare.

Vanessa teaches me real conversational English, things that are not obsolete, things that

are really used in real life.

What's something that's obsolete in your life?

Dan: Well, I used to have an iPod, and I would listen to that thing every single day, but

now it's obsolete.

Apple doesn't even make an iPod anymore.

They make iPhones.

So, just a dedicated music player is obsolete.

Vanessa: Sure.

I want to let you know that I got this idea to go through the alphabet with English vocabulary

from Jacob, from EnglishTVLive.com.

He has a podcast, and on different episodes, he's talking about five vocabulary words for

each letter of the alphabet.

So, it's much more intensive than what we're doing today, five words, and he interviewed

me for the letter, O.

We talked about obsolete, oblivious, ominous, omit, opportunistic, these five words.

So, if you'd like to check out Jacob's podcast, and especially the episode that we made together

about the letter O, check out the link in the description so that you can learn more

English.

P, pragmatic: Practical, useful.

I try to be pragmatic about what I study in English.

Is it useful?

Is it important?

What about you?

Are you generally a pragmatic spender when it comes to money?

Dan: Yeah.

When it comes to money, I think I'm generally pragmatic, but I am less pragmatic than Vanessa.

She only buys things she needs, but I'll look around, and I'll get the nicer things in life.

I'll spend a little bit more money, but not too much.

Vanessa: Sure, I think you appreciate beauty in a way that maybe I don't always appreciate.

Dan: Sure.

Vanessa: So, I'm very pragmatic sure, and you're generally pretty pragmatic when it

comes to spending.

Dan: I'm pretty pragmatic.

Vanessa: Q, quench: To satisfy a thirst or desire.

My desire to learn English is unquenchable.

I will never be complacent.

Dan: Yes, and we typically use this word for your thirst, right?

On a hot summer day, a cold beer will really quench your thirst.

Vanessa: R, rash: Acting without much thought.

When my boss told me that I needed to give a presentation in English, I immediately quit

my job.

Okay, I admit that was a little rash.