Please double-click on the English subtitles below to play the video.
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Sometimes the things people say
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don't mean what we think they do.
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and that can lead to misunderstandings.
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Thinking about context is essential
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if you want to understand what people really mean.
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Mark's not very good at this,
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but luckily I'm here to help him
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work out what people really mean.
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00:29
Chloe: Are you really wearing that hat?
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Claire: Of course Mark is wearing that hat,
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it's on his head.
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So why is Chloe asking
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him that question.
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Any ideas?
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Let's watch and find out.
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Mark: Well, I'll be off to Dave's party.
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Chloe: Oh right.... Where did you get that hat?
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Mark: I just picked it up down the market.
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Chloe: Have you looked in the mirror?
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Mark: Well, of course
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it means that I can really admire my new hat.
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01:01
Chloe: Are you really wearing that hat?
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Mark: Well...
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it's on my head isn't it?
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So yes, I am wearing this hat.
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Well, I'm off to the party.
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01:15
Chloe: What's up?
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01:17
Mark: Everyone was laughing at my hat.
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They said it looked ridiculous.
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Why didn't you tell me?
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Chloe: But, I tried.
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You did?
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I don't understand.
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Mark: I don't understand.
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Chloe said that she tried to warn me,
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but all she did was just ask me some questions.
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Claire: No, Chloe did...
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those questions she asked...
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they weren't really questions.
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Mark: What do you mean?
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Claire: These were questions used as warnings.
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Chloe wasn't looking for an answer.
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In fact, the answers were obvious.
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She knew that he was wearing that hat,
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she could see that he was looking in the mirror.
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She was just trying to draw his attention
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to the hat...
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and it's a lot politer than saying
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take off that hat, it's ridiculous!
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Now, these questions are written in the same way
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as normal questions,
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so to spot them try asking yourself this:
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is this information that
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the other person really needs?
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Are the answers obvious?
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Listen for their tone of voice,
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questions that are used as warnings
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often use the same intonation as a statement.
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Listen to:
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Where did you get that hat?
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And
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Where did you get that hat?
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In this case, Chloe was warning about
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his hat looking silly,
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but they can be about lots of different things
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the weather,
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time,
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people's ideas.
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You'll see more examples
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at the end of the programme.
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Mark: I feel like I want to try that again.
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03:21
Chloe: Are you still off to Dave's party?
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Mark: Yes... I'm off now.
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Chloe: Are you really wearing that hat?
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03:28
Mark: You don't think it's a good idea?
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03:30
Chloe: Erm...
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I'm not sure it's your colour.
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Mark: Oh...
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um...
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Alright, well...
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Maybe I'll leave it at home then.
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