Shadowing Practice: 1-HOUR LESSON - C2 Vocab Every Serious Learner Must Know - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Let's take your advanced vocabulary to the moon like a rocket
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because I am going to teach you some super useful advanced C2 level words and phrases.
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And if you are someone who enjoys building your vocabulary, please subscribe, turn on notifications.
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That way I can become your teacher.
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My name is Wes.
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The channel is Interactive English.
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It is all about helping you reach your fluency goals.
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So this vocabulary is at a C2 level, which is Cambridge's highest level of proficiency,
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which means that, well, these words and phrases will definitely help you be more descriptive and precise.
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So let's go ahead and get started with some C2 phrases.
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So I am going to teach you these advanced phrases.
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I'll tell you the meaning.
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I'll give you some context as to how they're used.
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And I'm going to teach you the pronunciation because if you're going to use these phrases, you want to make sure that you are saying them correctly.
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So let's face it, building your vocabulary is extremely important.
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And let's face it is the first phrase that I would like to teach you.
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So this phrase is used to say that something is true and cannot be denied, or it is said before something that is true but unpleasant.
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And just keep in mind that you're really going to use this phrase at the beginning of a statement.
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So to give you some context, let's look at a few memes.
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Let's face it, you laugh at anything I say.
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This is true and undeniable.
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Or let's face it, you're the reason I drink.
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In this case, it's true and unpleasant.
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Or let's face it, memes are a childish way to communicate and debate ideas.
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This is also true, but they do make for some great examples.
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Now, when it comes to pronouncing this phrase, and you want to make sure you're saying these words together instead of pronouncing the words individually,
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one thing to keep in mind is that linking may occur.
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And this often happens when the final sound of one word is a consonant sound, and the beginning sound of the next word is a vowel sound.
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So let's face it.
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The final consonant sound in face may get linked with the vowel sound in it and it's gonna sound like face it.
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It's almost like we're carrying that consonant sound over to the next syllable.
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Face it.
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Let's face it.
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You know, let's face it.
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If you would like to continue building your vocabulary, well then you need to subscribe, turn on notifications, that way I can become your teacher.
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And the next C2 phrase that I wanna teach you is few and far between.
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It means not happening or existing very often.
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And you would say that something is few and far between.
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So it's often going to follow the verb to be.
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And typically it's going to come at the end of a statement.
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In this town, good workers are few and far between.
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This winter, snowy days have been few and far between.
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And that's true.
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It's been a rather mild winter.
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Or I could say miracles are few and far between.
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In each of these sentences, the phrase follows the verb to be and comes at the end of the statement.
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As for pronunciation, the very first thing that I want to point out is that the word and may get reduced to n.
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And this is common in spoken English.
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And keep in mind, it's also an unstressed sound, n.
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Now, it begins with a vowel sound, and the word before ends in a consonant sound.
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So once again, linking may occur.
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Few when, few when far between.
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And reductions, they're quite common.
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And in this case, it allows us to just say the phrase quickly.
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Few and far between.
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Few and far between.
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Just listen for it.
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All I'm saying is that the really good guys are few and far between.
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The wealthy families in the countryside are few and far between.
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Friends, close friends, few and far between.
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The next one that I have for you is fall into place.
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And this is when things are happening in a satisfactory way without any problems.
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So it really does have a positive connotation.
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And often you're referring to several things that are going on and you could say everything is falling into place.
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So let's say that we're working on a project and toward the end, everyone is completing their work on time.
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The numbers are adding up.
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People are working well together and we're going to finish well before the deadline.
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So in that case, I could say as we got toward the end of the project, everything was falling into place.
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When you pronounce this phrase, keep in mind linking will often occur.
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We can link that consonant sound in fall with the beginning vowel sound in into.
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Fall into.
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Fall into.
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Fall into place.
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You know, say it with me.
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Fall into place.
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Good.
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Our next phrase, for the best.
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This refers to an action that is done in order to improve a situation or produce a good result,
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although at the time it's going to seem unpleasant.
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And I think a great example would be ending a relationship and breaking up.
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So let's say that you are planning to break up with me and our relationship's coming to an end.
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I hope this is just an example.
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And of course, I'm very sad.
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I would say, please, please don't break up with me.
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People like you are few and far between.
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And then you would tell me, you know, let's face it, it's for the best.
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Okay, we need to break up.
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It's going to improve our situation in the future.
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It's for the best.
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Ted's stepdad and I have separated.
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Oh my God.
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It's for the best.
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Well, thank you, but we think it'd be better if we left.
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Not because of last night.
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It's for the best.
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I think that pronouncing this phrase, it's not too difficult for the best.
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The only thing that I would tell you to keep in mind is that the article the, it is the weak the, and you're using the schwa sound,
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that uh sound, because it comes before a word that begins with a consonant sound for the best.
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For the best.
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The next phrase is conflict of interest.
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And you may be thinking, wait a second, I have heard this phrase.
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And that is because it describes a situation that is quite common.
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So this phrase is very useful.
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And we're talking about describing a situation in
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which someone cannot make a fair decision because they will be affected by the result.
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So let's just say that I am going to judge a contest for children and my daughter is one of the participants.
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Do you think that I am a fair judge or would you say that I have a conflict of interest?
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Because this is my daughter, I would love to see her win, so perhaps I'm not capable of making a fair decision in this case.
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And you would say, look, Wes, you clearly have a conflict of interest.
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And I'm sure that you can think of someone that you know who has had a conflict of interest, because like I said, this is a very common and useful phrase.
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For pronunciation, there is some more linking going on.
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We can actually link all three of these words together.
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We can link that final consonant sound in conflict with the beginning vowel sound in of,
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conflict of, and then we can link that consonant sound with the beginning vowel sound in interest.
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Conflict of interest.
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Conflict of interest.
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And one thing I want to point out with that preposition of whenever you see this word linking often occurs,
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such as in this phrase, conflict of interest.
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Then we have the phrase something dawns on someone.
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And this means to understand or realize something for the first time.
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I was about to pay for the groceries when and it suddenly dawned on me that I forgot my wallet.
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And I just realize it, all of a sudden, it dawns on me.
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And there are some great collocations with this phrase.
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You could say something suddenly dawns on someone or something finally dawns on someone.
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And when you're pronouncing this phrase, there's more linking.
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You can link the final consonant sound in dawns with the vowel sound in on, dawns on.
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However, I think people may often use this phrase in the past tense in which they're going to say donned on.
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And that can be a little trickier because of the repetition when we're linking.
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Something donned on me, or donned on him, or donned on her.
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And you hear that repetition, donned on.
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Our next phrase is to crack down on something or crack down on someone.
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And it just means to take strong action to stop something.
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And in order to show you this phrase being used in context, I have some news headlines that I'd like to share with you.
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Washington Bill aims to crack down on street racing.
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Three things we know about Netflix's efforts to crack down on password sharing, something that I'm not too happy about.
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The Supreme Court might not crack down on big tech after all.
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And when you pronounce this phrase, more linking may occur.
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We can link the final consonant sound in down with the vowel sound in on, crack down on.
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And I think this is a little easier to say than the other one, something dawned on someone.
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But linking, it's very common.
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It allows us to connect these words and say these phrases easily and smoothly, crack down on.
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In the blink of an eye, this is our next phrase, and it means extremely quickly.
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And it really makes sense because when you blink, well, that's pretty fast.
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Now, you're likely going to use this phrase at either the beginning of a statement, in the blink of an eye.. something happened.
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Or you'll use it at the end of a statement.
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Something happened in the blink of an eye.
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This phrase may often get used when referring to time or maybe someone is just suddenly gone.
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And instead of saying something happened very quickly, I would just switch it out.
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Something happened in the blink of an eye.
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Now, I have been married for, let me do the math, six years now and I could say that well this time has passed quickly.
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Six years have gone by in the blink of an eye.
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For pronunciation we're gonna use that weak the with the schwa sound and then link those final four words.
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The blink of an eye.
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And once again it's like we're we're just carrying that final consonant sound over to the next syllable.
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Blink of an eye.
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The blink of an eye.
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And the next phrase, I really like this one, butt in.
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It just means to interrupt.
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And really, you would be interrupting a conversation, a discussion, or just getting involved in someone else's business.
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And you might hear someone use this phrase if they're telling another person to stop doing this, don't butt in.
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Or perhaps someone needs to interrupt, and they would say something like, I'm sorry to butt in, but, or I don't mean to butt in, but.
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I don't mean to butt in, but maybe you and Derek could co -host the party.
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Something I want to say about the pronunciation of this phrase, and this is more related to the American accent because I am from the U .S.,
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and that is that T sound in butt, that double consonant T.
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Because it comes between two vowel sounds, I am going to say this as a flap T, and it's gonna sound more like a soft D. But in.
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And then we can link that flap T with the vowel sound in in. But in.
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Hey, hey, hey, don't but in.
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Then there's the phrase by all means.
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This is used to give permission, like you're just saying yes, certainly.
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And often you may use this as a standalone statement.
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You're responding to someone's question.
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Could I borrow this book?
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By all means.
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Can I make a suggestion?
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By all means.
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Perhaps you are asking me, would you like me to hit the like button?
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And I would say, well, yeah, by all means, please go ahead.
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Hit that like button, by all means.
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When it comes to the pronunciation of this phrase and someone is speaking quickly,
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they may use intrusion to link the two vowel sounds in the words by and all. By all.
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And intrusion is when you're adding either a slight W sound or a slight Y sound.
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And that then allows us to link two vowels.
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And we're gonna use a slight Y sound, which comes after front vowel sounds like I.
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So by all means.
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And you hear that slight Y sound, by all, by all means.
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Then we have the phrase behind closed doors.
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This refers to a situation that is hidden or kept secret from the public without an audience or crowd watching.
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And again, this is a situation that is common, so I think this is a very useful phrase.
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People may often use this phrase when referring to government or business decisions that are kept secret.
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We didn't want the public to know, so the decision was made behind closed doors.
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And yeah, secrecy, it's not a good thing.
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When pronouncing this phrase, elision may occur.
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And elision is when certain sounds get removed.
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And I'm talking about the T or D sounds when they come between two consonants.
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So think about the word handsome.
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That D, it comes between two consonants it elides, we don't hear it.
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With our phrase, both of the D sounds in behind and closed, they're going to elide.
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They come between two consonant sounds and it's like they get muted and you just don't really hear it.
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Behind closed doors.
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Behind closed doors.
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Once again, just listen for it.
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I heard about a third fight between you and Apollo.
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Behind closed doors.
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How did he know to choose them?
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Everything happened behind closed doors.
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What's going on?
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There's been people whispering behind closed doors.
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So we just talked about secrecy with the phrase behind closed doors.
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Now, let's go in the other direction and talk about the phrase come to light.
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This refers to facts that become known publicly.
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And once again, there are useful collocations with this phrase.
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We could say that new evidence comes to light, or new facts may come to light, or new details may come to light.
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I could say recently new details came to light showing how the decision was made behind closed doors.
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And it's like this secret information became known publicly.
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When you pronounce this phrase, it's pretty straightforward.
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The only thing that I would like to point out is the word to.
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When you're stressing it, it's pronounced just like I said to, but there is another accepted form of pronunciation,
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and that is when it's unstressed and it's gonna sound more like .
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And if somebody is saying this phrase quickly, they may not stress that word and it's gonna sound like come to light, come to light.
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Some new evidence comes to light.
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Now for a little review.
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I know that this lesson has gone by in the blink of an eye, but by all means, please watch another video lesson because,
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let's face it, great vocabulary lessons like this one are few and far between.
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And I am a firm believer that if you keep practicing and you keep learning a little bit each and every day, when it comes to improving your English,
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everything's just going to fall right into place.
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So I think I need to wrap things up and say goodbye.
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It's for the best.
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I hope that you enjoyed that last bit of review.
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It's always good to hear how the vocabulary is used in context.
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I'm going to keep trying to do that as we go through the lesson.
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But right now, I want to switch gears
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and I want to teach you some incredibly useful C2 verbs
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and I say incredibly useful because verbs are
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so important they are like the heart of every statement thought
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and opinion they provide us with invaluable information
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so without further ado here are some essential C2 let's learn some advanced C2 verbs
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and I'm gonna get right to the point
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and we'll begin with our first verb which is to linger
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so this verb actually has two different meanings the first one is to continue to exist
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so if I were sick and I have a cold I could say
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that it is still lingering
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and in this case you may often hear it being used in the continuous tense with
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that adverb still that's a good adverb verb collocation something is
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still lingering how's your cold yeah unfortunately it's still lingering it also means to take longer than usual to leave
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and in this case you may be talking about a person
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or group of people some customers lingered for a
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while after the shop closed and and they just took longer than usual to leave
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when you pronounce this verb it has two syllables the stress is on
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that first syllable linger but i want to focus on that NG because it can be a little confusing.
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Look at these two words.
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They are not rhyming words.
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Singer, you only have that ing sound, whereas linger, you have the ing plus that g sound afterwards.
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Linger.
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It's similar to the word finger.
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These are rhyming words.
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Linger, finger.
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Any of you wish to seek counseling due to lingering trauma, speak with me privately.
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Yeah, well, it turns out that there's some lingering feelings or something.
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Clark, get out of here.
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My mistake.
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Yes, it is your mistake.
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Lingering is so annoying.
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And if you are someone who enjoys building your vocabulary, then I hope that you linger for a while and watch more video lessons.
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Dole out.
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This means to give something, usually money, to several people.
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And this C2 verb, it is a phrasal verb that may be separable.
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So you could dole out something or dole something out.
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And in order to show you how this verb may be used in context, I have some news headlines for you.
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As lawmakers dole out record surplus, many say they need more.
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Colts dole out $22 .5 million for kicker Matt Gay.
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This is talking about American football, and yeah, that's a lot of money to dole out for a kicker.
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Should political parties be able to dole out freebies?
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When pronouncing this phrasal verb, you should know that linking is going to occur,
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and we can link the final consonant sound in dole with the beginning vowel sound in out.
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And this is when linking commonly occurs, linking a final consonant sound with a beginning vowel sound.
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And it just helps us make a smooth transition from one word to the next.
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Dole out.
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It's like we're taking that consonant sound and just moving it over to the next syllable.
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Dole out.
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Then we have the verb pinpoint.
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It also has two meanings.
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The first one is to find or say the exact position in space or time of something.
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I may ask you the question, can you pinpoint our location on the map?
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Because I just want to know where we are.
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It also means to discover or describe the exact facts of something.
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I could tell you doctors could not pinpoint the cause of his illness.
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So in this case, they just could not describe the facts of his illness.
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For pronunciation, the verb has two syllables.
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The stress is on that first syllable, pinpoint point.
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And I'd also like to point out that final T, it's really a stop.
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It's pretty subtle pinpoint and the next one
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that I have for you is plague This means to cause worry pain
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or difficulty to someone or something Over a period of time
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and often you may follow this verb with the preposition by
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you have been plagued by Something I could tell you
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that well my athletic career has been plagued by back injuries And to be honest, I've never really had much of an athletic career.
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That's not really true.
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But yes, over the years, I have been plagued by back injuries.
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That part is unfortunately true.
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When it comes to pronunciation, the spelling and pronunciation don't really look like they match.
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But that final G -U -E, it's going to be pronounced with an aspirated G sound, plague.
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But often people may use this verb as well the past participle in which case it's gonna end with the final
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sound and those consonants that can be a difficult combination that Plagued Plagued you've been plagued by something.
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I'm plagued by an internal struggle If you would just use the bucket you'd be
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so much more comfortable Sunrise Bay was a coastal community plagued by a centuries -old curse.
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Next is the verb prescribe.
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And this is a very useful verb because it's when a doctor says what kind of treatment someone should have.
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And it's very specific because we're really talking about someone's health.
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And there are some common collocations with this verb because a doctor may prescribe some medicine.
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Or prescribe some pills.
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Or prescribe some rest or even prescribe some painkillers.
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Now this verb has two syllables and the stress is on
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that second syllable prescribe and That first syllable even though it's spelled P -R -E.
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It has a pre sound because it's unstressed prescribe say it with me prescribe Excellent,
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then we have the verb utter this means to say something or just make a sound with your voice So,
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sometimes it can be interchangeable with say, except that it's a bit more formal and not as commonly used.
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Maybe I tell you, he sat through the meeting without uttering a word.
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And that's a good collocation with this verb, without uttering a word.
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Now, to talk about the difference between utter and say is that, well, utter is not always clear.
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She uttered something through the car window, but I didn't understand what she was saying.
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It wasn't clear, but I could tell she was making some sounds with her voice and uttered something.
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For pronunciation, the verb has two syllables.
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The stress is on that first syllable, utter.
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But what I'd really like to point out is that T, I am going to pronounce it as a flap T.
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It's going to sound like a soft D.
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And this is pretty common with the American accent when the T comes between two vowel sounds.
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There are many words we can say with the flap T, like water.
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Better.
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Utter.
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Just listen for it.
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It was him.
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He uttered something.
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I'm sorry I uttered.
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You think you're funny, don't you, bro?
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It is the truth.
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Uttered with his own lips.
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What was she said?
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Cousin' us is another syllable.
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Then we have the verb curb.
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And to curb something means to control or limit something that is not wanted.
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And you would try to curb something.
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And in order to show you how this verb is used in context, once again, I have some news headlines for you.
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This phone helped me curb my screen addiction.
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Syria agrees to curb drug trade in meeting with Arab ministers.
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Brazil orders Google to curb campaign against fake news law.
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And when you pronounce this verb, it's pretty simple and straightforward.
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There's just one syllable, curb.
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But that U has more of an R vowel sound.
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Curb to curb something.
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Then there's lure.
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This means to persuade someone to do something or go somewhere by offering them something exciting.
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And often you may follow this verb with the preposition into or to.
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The employees were lured into working over the weekend with the promise of overtime.
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Or universities try to lure the top academics to their school.
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They always set those things to pay out more so they can lure people into the casino.
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Tyler and I feel, due to Marie's attempt to lure him to your house...
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I'm trying to lure him.
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Well, very clever Simpson.
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Luring our bees to your sugar and selling them back to us at an inflated price.
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You're on to what now?
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Simpson, you diabolical.
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When you pronounce this verb, just make sure that you are saying that diphthong, because that you, it's gonna sound like a combination of vowel sounds.
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Lure.
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Say it with me.
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Lure.
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Lure.
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Good.
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Then there's indulge.
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And I really like this verb.
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It means to allow yourself or some other person to have something enjoyable, especially more than what's good for you.
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So you may follow this verb with the preposition in and you indulge in something.
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Late at night, sometimes I get a little hungry and I probably shouldn't eat anything,
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but I like to indulge in sweets and I'll have some cookies or chocolate.
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And often you may use this verb when talking about food
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and you indulge in something and you have more than what's really good for you.
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For pronunciation, there are two syllables.
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The stress is on that second syllable, and that G has more of a juh sound.
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Indulge.
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Indulge.
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What do you like to indulge in?
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Let me know in the comments.
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Then there's delegate.
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This means to give a job, duty, or right to someone so they can do it for you.
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And this verb is often used in the context of work because you can't do everything,
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so you may delegate certain responsibilities to other people.
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And you may also say that a boss
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or supervisor is good at delegating and they tell others what they need to do.
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Or perhaps someone is bad at delegating because they try to do everything themselves.
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And yeah, that may not be a good situation.
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So this is a very useful verb when talking about work.
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This verb has three syllables.
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The stress is on that first syllable, delegate.
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Now don't confuse this with the noun because that third syllable is pronounced differently when you say the noun delegate.
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With the verb, you're gonna use that long A sound, delegate.
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Now I'd also like to point out that when you use this verb in the continuous tense,
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it's going to change from a stop T to a flap T, at least with the American accent.
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And you'd say that someone is delegating something, and you're going to use that flap T.
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Once again, just listen for it.
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I'm delegating.
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He's delegating.
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Don't shy away from delegating.
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Reconcile.
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Great verb.
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This means to find a way in which two situations
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or beliefs that are opposed to each other can agree or exist together.
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And you could hear somebody say something like, we need to reconcile our differences.
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That's a great collocation with this verb.
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The boys appear to have reconciled their differences.
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Rose and her daughter have reconciled their differences.
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That's why it's important for you to reconcile your differences.
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You could also reconcile something with something.
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I could say, research is being done to reconcile the world's population growth with sustainability.
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So these two things they seem opposed, but we need to reconcile them and find a way for them to exist together.
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Growth and sustainability.
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For pronunciation, the verb has three syllables.
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The stress is on that first syllable.
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And keep in mind that the C has more of an S sound.
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Reconcile.
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Reconcile.
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And then there's Loathe which is a pretty powerful verb
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because it means to hate someone or something so Loathe just like hate it's it's a strong word.
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So be careful how you're using it But of course there are probably things that I'm sure you loathe.
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I know there are things that I loathe like I
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Loathe sitting at an airport when my flight has been delayed or I I loathe anchovies.
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I just don't like eating them.
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Or I loathe driving in really bad weather conditions.
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For pronunciation, it's just the one syllable, but make sure you're using that voice TH at the end.
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Loathe.
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Let's say it together.
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Loathe.
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Loathe.
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Nice.
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Now for a little review.
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I'm sure that you do not loathe building your vocabulary,
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Larry, and I hope that I can lure you into watching another video lesson because even though I'm not a doctor,
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that is what I would prescribe in order for you to develop your English fluency.
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And to be honest, I know it's not good to watch a lot of videos and be in front of a screen, but in this case, of course,
438
I think it's okay for you to indulge a little bit and watch many different video lessons.
439
I have a lot on this channel, especially vocabulary lessons, in which you will find me doling out words left.. and right.
440
But in all seriousness, I just want you to keep practicing, keep improving.
441
You're doing great.
442
Let's continue supercharging your vocabulary with some informal phrases.
443
And by that, I'm talking about some C2 idioms.
444
Now, idioms, I think, are commonly used in just casual conversation.
445
So this is really going to help your listening comprehension.
446
However, I think it's important to be able to use them and feel comfortable using them when you're having a conversation.
447
And it's like learning any other vocabulary.
448
You learn the meaning, kind of get an idea as to how it's used, and then you can go out and practice.
449
So here are some C2 idioms.
450
Let's move on to those C2 idioms, which may not be as common, but they're great to learn because they're really going to help you express your thoughts,
451
opinions, and feelings.
452
Like this next idiom, which is at the end of your rope.
453
It means having no strength or patience left, and it's a great way to emphasize that.
454
And of course you can replace that possessive pronoun with others.
455
My rope, his rope, her rope.
456
But I could say, I'm at the end of my rope.
457
Why on earth have you not already hit the like button?
458
Okay, it's just the only example that I can think of, but I promise I'm not going to mention it again.
459
For pronunciation, just keep in mind that the article the, we're actually going to use the stronger form the, because it comes before a word that begins with a vowel sound.
460
Typically, the article comes before words that begin with a consonant, and we say that weaker the, but I'm sure you already knew that because you're on the ball.
461
We can also link the final consonant sound in end with the beginning vowel sound in of.
462
End of.
463
At the end of your rope.
464
At the end of your rope.
465
I hate to do this, but I'm kind of at the end of my rope.
466
I need to borrow some money.
467
I was at the end of my rope.
468
The financial pressure was crazy.
469
You're not giving me a lot of direction here.
470
I'm at the end of my rope.
471
To the bitter end.
472
This is a great idiom.
473
It means until something is finished.
474
And it's not always interchangeable with that meaning.
475
If I'm eating something, I could say, yeah, I'm going to eat my food until it is finished.
476
I wouldn't say I'm going to eat my food until the bitter end.
477
That just sounds really awkward.
478
So you're really going to use this idiom when talking about an outcome
479
that may not always be the one that you want, but you're going to keep going.
480
We may not meet the deadline, but we're gonna work to the bitter end.
481
You're just gonna keep fighting.
482
And fight is a verb that's often used with this idiom.
483
It's a common collocation.
484
To fight to the bitter end.
485
Let me show you.
486
Southampton boss vows to fight to the bitter end.
487
Youngsville police chief will fight until the bitter end in proposed investigation.
488
Nurses warn of more strike dates in January as they fight to the For pronunciation, there are a couple of weak words that I'd like to point out.
489
So the weak to is gonna sound like to, and the weak article the.
490
And then we can link the final consonant sound in bitter with the beginning vowel sound in end.
491
Bitter end.
492
So it's going to sound like to the bitter end.
493
Say it with me.
494
To the bitter end.
495
To fight to the bitter end.
496
Excellent.
497
The next idiom is to get off on the right or wrong foot.
498
And this just means to make a successful or unsuccessful start in something.
499
Now, it's more common to use it in the negative and say that something got off on the wrong foot.
500
The team did not get along, so the project got off on the wrong foot.
501
It's also commonly used when talking about relationships, two people meet each other.
502
doesn't go well, it's unsuccessful, it got off on the wrong foot.
503
Why are you being so nice to me all of a sudden?
504
I'm sorry we got off on the wrong foot.
505
We got off on the wrong foot here.
506
And I believe it's because we're just too damn similar.
507
You do.
508
Absolutely.
509
Let's pronounce this idiom and once again, linking may occur.
510
You can see just how common this is in spoken English.
511
So we can link the phrase, get off on.
512
Just keep in mind that the final T in get, once again, I'm from the US, so I will pronounce it as a flap T.
513
Get off on.
514
Get off on.
515
Get off on the right foot.
516
Get off on the wrong foot.
517
And then there's over the top.
518
This means too extreme and not suitable or exaggerated.
519
So something that's too extreme.
520
She was supposed to buy me a small present, but her gift was way over the top.
521
And that is a great word to emphasize this idiom, way over the top.
522
For something that may be exaggerated, I could say it was supposed to be a friendly competition, but his performance was a bit over the top.
523
And that's another good word you can use with this idiom, a bit over the top.
524
For pronunciation, there's not really much to say about this idiom.
525
You're just going to say these three words one right after the other, over the top.
526
It was our fault.
527
Our acting was way over the top.
528
What are you talking about?
529
We were totally believable.
530
This is like secret agent stuff.
531
I think a safe room is a bit over the top.
532
At Ed bout with the two little ones, you can never be too cautious.
533
What do you think of my new theater?
534
A bit over the top.
535
The next idiom, at the crack of dawn.
536
This just means very early in the morning, usually the time when the sun first appears.
537
So it's a great way to emphasize that you're up really early.
538
I could say, this morning, I got up at the crack of dawn.
539
Or, we'll have to get up at the crack of dawn for our flight.
540
I hate it when that happens.
541
Or, my grandfather has been up since the crack of dawn.
542
I tried to present this idiom with some different verb tenses.
543
When pronouncing it, there are a couple of things going on.
544
There are some overlapping sounds.
545
And this is basically when your tongue is in the same position.
546
So at, your tongue is going to come up and block the air with that stop T.
547
But then you're just going to release right into that voiced TH in the. At the. At the.
548
And then we can link the final consonant sound in crack with the vowel sound in of.
549
Crack of.
550
At the crack of dawn.
551
Have you ever gotten up at the crack of dawn?
552
Let me know down in the comments.
553
And then there's change of heart.
554
This is when you change your opinion or the way you feel about something.
555
Basically like a reversal in your attitude.
556
And there are three things that I want to point out when it comes to this idiom.
557
Number one, overwhelmingly, you will use this with the verb have to have a change of heart.
558
Number two, I want to stress that this idiom really involves feelings.
559
So you're not always going to use it anytime you just change your mind.
560
So if I told you, look, this morning I was gonna make pancakes
561
but then I had a change of heart and I decided to cook some eggs instead.
562
You're not really going to use this idiom in that context.
563
I don't have deep feelings when it comes to eggs or pancakes.
564
But if I were to say something like, she was going to sell her grandmother's necklace but she had a sudden change of heart.
565
In this case she She has stronger feelings when it comes to this necklace.
566
It's more meaningful.
567
And that's also a good collocation with this idiom, a sudden change of heart.
568
Number three, notice that because you're talking about a change in your opinion or the way you feel,
569
most of the time people are going to use this in the past tense.
570
So you would say that someone had a change of heart or they had a sudden change of heart.
571
For pronunciation, once again, more linking we can link that first phrase, had a, as well as that second phrase, change of.
572
Had a change of heart.
573
And you could say it easily and naturally just like that.
574
Someone had a change of heart.
575
I know that I am giving you a ton of information, and I do not expect you to memorize all of these words and phrases.
576
I think one of the primary goals of a long, detailed lesson like this is just to get exposure.
577
You hear this vocabulary.
578
You see the meaning.
579
You get a variety of examples.
580
You're learning them passively, and then hopefully you can then go out and use them actively.
581
This is really the initial building blocks of developing your skills and really going to help you reach your fluency goals.
582
So let's continue with some more descriptive words, and I want to teach you some important C2 nouns.
583
Let's learn some advanced C2 nouns to help you supercharge your vocabulary
584
and be a little more precise when you're having a conversation.
585
Now, building your vocabulary, it's not always easy.
586
It requires a lot of time and perseverance.
587
And I wanna start with that noun that I just mentioned, perseverance.
588
This refers to a continued effort to do or achieve something even when it is difficult or takes a long time.
589
And this has a positive connotation, it's a good thing.
590
Often you may use this when talking about things that are hard to do.
591
As you know, learning a language takes a lot of time and energy and you need perseverance.
592
I said creative writing is hard.
593
Oh yeah, yeah, perseverance Steve, it's all about perseverance.
594
For pronunciation, this word has four syllables and the stress is on that third syllable, perseverance.
595
And the second and fourth syllable have
596
that unstressed schwa sound, sounds like.. uh perseverance
597
and it's good to practice these words
598
because sometimes people tend to avoid these longer words
599
because they're a bit more difficult to pronounce perseverance and
600
if you are someone who likes to learn new words
601
and phrases please subscribe to the channel it shows perseverance and
602
that way i can become your teacher my name is wes the channel is interactive English, it's all about trying to help you reach your fluency goals.
603
And as we go through the lesson, I'm going to tell you the meaning of each word.
604
I'll talk a little bit about how it's used in context, and I'll go over the pronunciation so you can say them just like a native speaker.
605
And the next noun that I have for you is one that I really like, and that is workaholic.
606
This noun refers to a person who works a lot and actually finds it difficult not to work.
607
And you may be able to relate to this noun.
608
I don't really think that I'm a workaholic, even though sometimes I feel like I work a little too much and I'm constantly thinking about new lessons.
609
But what I really wanted to point out with this word is that suffix, the H -O -L -I -C at the end of the word,
610
because this The suffix means that you are addicted to something.
611
I'm sure that you may be familiar with the word alcoholic.
612
In this case, a workaholic, it's like you're saying that someone is addicted to work.
613
And this is a fun way to play around with the language because maybe you like to go shopping.
614
Are you a shopaholic?
615
Do you read a lot?
616
Maybe you're a bookaholic.
617
I drink a lot of milk, so someone might say I'm a milkaholic.
618
But let's not forget the reason why we're talking about this
619
suffix is for all of you who love to work You may be a workaholic.
620
This is your wedding weekend.
621
I'm marrying a real workaholic.
622
You do know that Isn't that what you want in a partner?
623
Homie, workaholic is probably your best -aholic ever, but you need to relax The pronunciation is not too difficult.
624
There are four syllables and the stress is on that third syllable workaholic.
625
But let me let you in on a little secret.
626
It's a syllable stress rule because when a word ends in IC, the stress is often going to be on the second to last syllable.
627
It's a good little rule to keep in mind so that you can easily pronounce words like workaholic.
628
The next word that I have for you is hierarchy.
629
This is a system or organization in which people or things are are arranged according to importance.
630
And this is a word that we can actually visualize using a chart.
631
So think about a company.
632
It has a hierarchy.
633
Who's at the top, the most important position?
634
Well, that would be the CEO.
635
And then according to this chart, below the CEO, we have the marketing manager and the IT manager.
636
And then there are people below them.
637
So this is a chart detailing the company's hierarchy.
638
To give you a better idea as to how this word is used in context, let's look at some news headlines.
639
Is organizational hierarchy getting in the way of innovation?
640
Support for legacy admissions is rooted in racial hierarchy.
641
Maslow's hierarchy of needs, examples and explanation.
642
And his hierarchy of needs describes different levels of the human experience.
643
It's very interesting stuff, but you know what else is interesting?
644
That's the pronunciation of this noun, because it's another long word, hierarchy.
645
There are four syllables, the stress is on that first syllable, and the second syllable, you do hear that schwa sound,
646
hierarchy, it's a little easier when we slow it down, hierarchy, and then we can speed it up, say it with me, hierarchy, excellent.
647
The next word, bias.
648
This is when you support or oppose someone or something in an unfair way because you are influenced by your personal opinions.
649
And there are some useful collocations with this noun.
650
You could have a bias towards or against someone or something,
651
and then there are some adjective noun collocations like having a strong bias or an unconscious bias, stereotypes that you're unaware of.
652
Or you may hear somebody talk about confirmation bias when you seek out information to support the views you already have.
653
I'm getting a little tired of this bias against the leaders of our industry.
654
I thought I had an awareness to issues, ways of living, unconscious bias, like all of it.
655
And your country owes you a debt of gratitude, Dr. Reim, but even you can agree that a confirmation bias is a dangerous...
656
When pronouncing this word, it's pretty simple and straightforward.
657
There are two syllables.
658
The stress is on that first syllable, bias.
659
Then we have the word scrutiny.
660
This is the careful and detailed examination of something in order to get more information about it.
661
And there's a useful phrase, which is to come under scrutiny.
662
And then you can use this phrase with some common adjective -noun collocations and say that something comes under close scrutiny,
663
or it comes under intense scrutiny, or additional scrutiny, or constant scrutiny, there are quite a few collocations with this noun, and they're all great to know.
664
For pronunciation, the stress is on the first syllable, scrutiny, but I wanna take a moment to talk to you about the glottal T versus a true T,
665
because if you listen to some online dictionaries, you may hear this.
666
Scrutiny.
667
And you hear the true T, But I'm from the US and with the American accent, when the T is followed by an n sound,
668
people may pronounce it with a glottal T and the sound comes from the throat.
669
Your vocal cords are closing and that's stopping the flow of air.
670
So when you hear me say words like mountain,
671
certain, scrutiny, you hear that glottal T, scrutiny.
672
Just listen for it.
673
Now Dutton's office is under intense scrutiny for its use of force in multiple gun battles.
674
If your customers come under scrutiny, Apollonia, your business comes under scrutiny.
675
The next word is concession.
676
This is when something is allowed or given up in order to end a disagreement.
677
So if we disagree on something and we need to come to a compromise,
678
you may make a concession and I may also have to make a concession.
679
And that is a common collocation with this noun, to make a concession.
680
I understand that you like things a certain way, and I'm willing to make some concessions, but you have to be open to compromise.
681
Right, that's reasonable.
682
But surely those rules changed the moment they invited television into the coronation.
683
That was their right, and a huge concession. To what?
684
Popular interests.
685
I am aware that I will have to make some concessions.
686
Concessions?
687
Yes, concessions.
688
When pronouncing this noun, there are three syllables, and the stress is on that second syllable, concession.
689
And another syllable stress rule for you is that when a word ends in S -I -O -N, the stress is going to come on the syllable before it.
690
So that second to last syllable, concession.
691
Another good rule to keep in mind.
692
Next is the noun remorse.
693
This is a feeling of sadness and being sorry for something you have done.
694
And there are some useful phrases with this noun.
695
To feel remorse for something, or to feel no remorse for something, or to be filled with remorse.
696
So let me show you some examples.
697
Some funny memes when someone might feel remorse.
698
So you might feel remorse when those were the droids you were looking for.
699
You might feel remorse when you feel guilty for not studying and you are still not studying.
700
You might feel remorse when you buy a new phone just before they announce an upgraded model.
701
When pronouncing this noun, there are two syllables and the stress is on that second syllable.
702
Remorse.
703
Keep in mind that the first syllable's not stressed.
704
Sometimes I hear people stress the first syllable and I hear that long E sound like reee instead of a r.
705
Remorse.
706
I'm sure you will feel no remorse when you learn how to pronounce all these nouns perfectly.
707
The next word is snob.
708
I like this word even though it has a bit of a negative connotation, and it also has a couple of different meanings.
709
So the first one refers to a person who likes or respects only other people of a high social class.
710
Now, it's a little antiquated, but you may still hear it from time to time and
711
if someone's a snob it's like they just feel they're better than other people.
712
It also refers to a person who has extremely high standards and is not satisfied with things that ordinary people like.
713
And you may hear this noun being used with an adjective when talking about food or drink, but not always.
714
And it does still have a negative connotation, even though you could use it playfully if you say that someone is a coffee snob.
715
Or a wine snob.
716
Or a pizza snob.
717
Or even an art snob.
718
For this person, it must be the finest quality, and then you could say that they are a snob.
719
Wow, lattes.
720
Yeah, have a bit of a coffee.
721
Now the key to a perfect latte is in the temperature of the steamed milk.
722
I'm going to unveil the Duchess and watch every art world snob in town drool all over her.
723
For pronunciation, it's pretty simple and straightforward.
724
Just the one syllable, snob.
725
Try not to be a snob unless you are an English lesson snob and you only want the highest quality lessons,
726
then, yeah, you're in the right place.
727
Then we have the word exile.
728
This refers to someone who has to leave their home country and go live in another country, often for political reasons.
729
And there are some useful phrases with this noun.
730
You could say someone goes into exile or someone is in exile.
731
After the overthrow of the government, the former president went into exile.
732
Or currently, the deposed leaders are living in exile in the neighboring country to go into exile or to be in exile.
733
Into exile I must go.
734
Failed I have.
735
Do you know the meaning of that world?
736
Refugee.
737
Driven from my home in exile.
738
One who could reclaim the throne of Gondor.
739
He turned from that path a long time ago.
740
He has chosen exile.
741
This noun has two syllables and the stress is on that first syllable, exile.
742
I will never make you leave this channel and go into exile.
743
In fact, I want the opposite.
744
I want you to stay.
745
I want to keep you here.
746
Then we have the word narrative.
747
This is a word that I think is becoming more commonly used.
748
It refers to a story or a particular way of explaining or understanding events.
749
But let's talk about how this word is used, because even though it's basically a synonym for the word story, it's not really used interchangeably.
750
I could say my friend likes to read love stories.
751
I'm not really going to say my friend likes to read love narratives.
752
These days, this word is used when talking about the story or the events that they would like others to believe,
753
and that is their narrative.
754
Let me give you the interactive English narrative.
755
So I think that this is the best channel to build your vocabulary and reach your fluency goals.
756
I say that in practically every lesson.
757
That is the narrative that I would like you to believe.
758
Let me show you some more news headlines so you You can see how this word is used in context.
759
New January 6th videos praised by Republicans.
760
Narrative has crumbled.
761
Notre Dame offense still has time to change the narrative.
762
And stocks holding majority of recent gains fuels bullish narrative.
763
For pronunciation, there are three syllables, and the stress is on that first syllable, narrative.
764
Now, when you hear me say the word, I am going to pronounce that final T as a flap T.
765
It's going to sound like a soft D.
766
This is common with the American accent when the T comes between two vowel sounds.
767
Narrative.
768
You hear that soft D.
769
Narrative.
770
Then we have the word xenophobia.
771
This refers to an extreme dislike or fear of foreigners.
772
Their customs, their traditions, their religion and it's a word that may often be used as an adjective as well xenophobic.
773
But with this word, I want to highlight another suffix, this time phobia.
774
It comes from the Greek word phobos, meaning fear.
775
So whenever you see or hear phobia at the end of a word, you know it's referring to the fear of something.
776
Arachnophobia is the fear of spiders.
777
Claustrophobia is the fear of being confined in a small space.
778
Glossophobia is the fear of public speaking.
779
And this is one that I didn't know before this lesson, so I'm learning new words each and every day.
780
So there are many different words describing different fears using phobia, but the noun that I want you to remember is xenophobia.
781
And when pronouncing this noun, it can be a little challenging.
782
It's a longer word and the spelling and the pronunciation don't really match up.
783
The word has five syllables and the stress is on the third syllable, xenophobia.
784
Now, there are two accepted pronunciations for this noun.
785
You could say xenophobia, like I've been saying, or xenophobia.
786
Either one is okay, both are accepted.
787
The only difference is that short E or long E in the first syllable, xenophobia versus xenophobia.
788
The other thing I want you to keep in mind is, of course, that X at the beginning of the noun, it has a z sound, xenophobia.
789
Then we have the word...
790
Influx.
791
This means the arrival of a lot of people or things at the same time.
792
And often you're going to follow this noun with the preposition of.
793
An influx of something.
794
The town experienced an influx of tourists this summer.
795
Or the business needs an influx of money or it may not survive.
796
When pronouncing this word there are two syllables.
797
The stress is on that first syllable.
798
But one thing I want to say is
799
that this noun will generally follow an article either the
800
or an And if we have the phrase an influx of Then linking may occur
801
and linking is
802
when we connect the final consonant sound of one word with the beginning vowel sound of the next word
803
So it's going to sound like an influx of an influx
804
of just listen for it Wendy has identified a casino
805
and hotel in Northwest Missouri that needs an influx of cash to survive.
806
One day, Carl, an influx of hormones
807
that we can't control will overpower our better judgment and drive us to pursue the female species against our will.
808
And now for a little review.
809
I think it is great that you want to build your vocabulary, but I want to remind you that you will need perseverance.
810
Because to be honest, it can be difficult to find the time.
811
You may have to make some concessions in order to reach your fluency goals.
812
And I know some people may be thinking, look, do I really need to become a vocabulary snob and learn all these advanced words?
813
Is my English really going to come under intense scrutiny?
814
Probably not.
815
It's entirely up to you.
816
But personally, and I know that I have a bias, I think it's worth it to have a robust vocabulary.
817
I think it's going to help you both personally and professionally.
818
At least that's the narrative that I am trying to tell.
819
So I should really wrap things up and get going.
820
But don't worry, I'm not going to go into exile.
821
I will be back soon with another lesson.
822
What can I say?
823
I'm a workaholic.
824
I know that we covered a lot this past hour.
825
And I truly hope that you learned something new.
826
Remember, building vocabulary takes time.
827
And I hope that this lesson will be a great resource when it comes to learning C2 vocabulary.
828
If you enjoyed the lesson and you actually did learn something new, you can let me know by hitting that like button.
829
As always, thanks so much for watching and I will see you next time. So long.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This C2 speaking lesson is built on the video “1-HOUR LESSON - C2 Vocab Every Serious Learner Must Know”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: sound, word, phrase, syllable, verb. This video has 829 sentences and 9441 words to shadow. The speech runs for 57:41. The speaker talks at a natural 164 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. Only 81% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is demanding.
Key vocabulary in this video
The 15 most advanced words in the video, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| syllable noun | /ˈsɪl.ə.bəl/ | A unit of human speech which often forms words corresponding to one opening of the mouth; a vowel and its surrounding consonants. |
| verb noun | /vɝb/ | A word that indicates an action, event, or state of being. |
| pronounce verb | /pɹəˈnaʊns/ | To declare formally, officially or ceremoniously. |
| noun noun | /naʊn/ | A word that functions as the name of a specific object or set of objects, such as person, animal, place, word, thing, phenomenon, substance, quality, or idea… |
| pronunciation noun | /pɹəˌnʌn.siˈeɪ.ʃən/ | The formal or informal way in which a word is made to sound when spoken. |
| consonant noun | /ˈkɑn.sə.nənt/ | A sound that results from the passage of air through restrictions of the oral cavity; any sound that is not the dominant sound of a syllable, the dominant… |
| vowel noun | /ˈvaʊ.əl/ | A sound produced by the vocal cords with relatively little restriction of the oral cavity, forming the prominent sound of a syllable. |
| vocabulary noun | /vəˈkæb.jə.lə.ɹi/ | A usually alphabetized and explained collection of words e.g. of a particular field, or prepared for a specific purpose, often for learning. |
| idiom noun | /ˈɪdiəm/ | A manner of speaking, a mode of expression peculiar to a language, language family, or group of people. |
| scrutiny noun | /ˈskɹuː.tɪ.ni/ | Intense study of someone or something. |
| collocation noun | /ˌkɑ.ləˈkeɪ.ʃən/ | The grouping or juxtaposition of things, especially words or sounds. |
| exile noun | /ˈɛɡˌzaɪl/ | The state of being banished from one's home or country. |
| linger verb | /ˈlɪŋɡɚ/ | To stay or remain in a place or situation, especially as if unwilling to depart or not easily able to do so. |
| concession noun | /kənˈsɛʃən/ | The act of conceding. |
| utter verb | /ˈʌtəɹ/ | Sometimes preceded by forth, out, etc.: to produce (a cry, speech, or other sounds) with the voice. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| point out verb | To identify among a group of similar subjects, or in a scene where the subject might not be readily seen or noticed, with a gesture of the body. | |
| come under verb | To come underneath (something). | |
| break up verb | To break or separate into pieces. | |
| go ahead verb | /ˌɡoʊ əˈhɛd/ | To proceed with; to begin. |
| go out verb | To leave, especially a building. | |
| go through verb | To travel from one end of something to the other. | |
| add up verb | To take the sum of; to total. | |
| come up verb | To emerge or become known, especially unexpectedly. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- Could I borrow this book?
- Can I make a suggestion?
- You think you're funny, don't you, bro?
- You're on to what now?
- What do you like to indulge in?
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | have been · It's been · have separated |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | cannot be denied · will be affected · being used |
| Relative clauses who / which + clause — extra information about a person or thing | someone who enjoys · level, which is · verb which is |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 168 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, you're, don't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: pronunciation /pɹəˌnʌn.siˈeɪ.ʃən/, collocation /ˌkɑ.ləˈkeɪ.ʃən/, concession /kənˈsɛʃən/, preposition /ˌpɹɛpəˈzɪʃən/, connotation /ˌkɑnəˈteɪʃən/
- Long words — get the stress right: pronunciation /pɹəˌnʌn.siˈeɪ.ʃən/, vocabulary /vəˈkæb.jə.lə.ɹi/, collocation /ˌkɑ.ləˈkeɪ.ʃən/, hierarchy /ˈhaɪ.ə.ɹɑː(ɹ).ki/, perseverance /ˌpɝsəˈvɪɹəns/
How to practise with this video
- Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
- Start at 0.75× speed, shadow it sentence by sentence, then go back to normal speed once it feels easy.
- Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like syllable, verb, pronounce.
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.