Dogs: Happy tears?: BBC News Review

Do dogs cry happy tears?

This is News Review from

BBC Learning English. I'm Neil. And I'm Beth.

Make sure you watch to the end to learn vocabulary to talk about crying.

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and try the quiz on our website.

Now, more about our story.

Tears of joy... from a dog?

Researchers from Japan say the pets cry

happy tears when they see their owners. Dogs often cry to clear their eyes,

but it's the first time that their tears have been linked to emotions.

It's thought the tears might make the relationship between dogs

and humans stronger.

You've been looking at the headlines,

Beth. What is the vocabulary?

We have 'teary-eyed', 'well up' and 'shed'.

This is News Review from BBC Learning English.

Let's have a look at our first headline.

This one comes from RTE:

So this headline is saying that dogs get teary-eyed

when they reunite with their owners, and 'reunite' means 'meet again,

usually after a while'.

But we're looking at the word teary-eyed here. And I'm sure you all know what

tears are - the water that falls when you cry,

usually because you're sad, but sometimes,

also, when you're very happy.

Yes, and tears

here are things, they are nouns,

but in this headline 'teary-eyed' is used to describe something.

Yes, and 'teary-eyed' is an adjective.

It describes someone or something, like

in this story, which is crying or is likely to cry.

So, Beth, in what situation

do we use 'teary-eyed'?

Well, any in which there are strong emotions.

So, Neil,

have you been to a wedding at all recently?

Oh, yes. I love a good wedding.

You can see the father of the bride teary-eyed making an emotional speech.

And we can see there that expression 'teary-eyed' is not just used for sadness.

Yeah. That's right. It's used for both tears of joy and tears of sadness

You know what? Whenever I have to say goodbye to my mum's dog,

I get really teary-eyed. You must really love him, then?

No, I can't stand him.

It's tears of joy.

Let's have a look at that again.

Let's have a look at our next headline.

This one comes from CNN:

So we can see that expression 'tears of joy' again,

which means 'happy crying'.

But we are going to learn 'well up'.

Now, a well is a big hole outside that you can get water from.

Yes. That is exactly what a well is, and it is a very useful way

  to think about this phrasal verb 'well up'.

Now, what happens

Neil, if you bring too much water to the surface of a well?

If you bring too much water to the surface, it spills it flows over.

Exactly. So, imagine that your eyes are like a well. So, if you well up,

Yes, it means the water,

the tears in your eyes, would flow. You would cry.

Exactly. And that is what the headline is saying.

So, dogs are welling up when they see their owners.

The dogs are going to cry. And 'welling up' is also used to describe a feeling.

If you're getting emotional,

or you're about to cry.

Imagine you're watching a really sad film, and you get to that really sad section,

and you feel yourself welling up.

Well, control your emotions, please,

Beth, we've still got more vocabulary to teach.

Let's have a look at that again.

Next headline, please, Beth.

This is from the Daily Mail:

So, once again,

we see that expression 'tears of joy', and the word 'reunite' meaning 'meet again

after a while', but we are interested in the word 'shed'.

Now, this is easy, Beth.

I know what a shed is.

It's like a little house, often

in a garden, where you keep tools, bicycles, that kind of thing.

Well, yes. That is a shed.

But here in the headline,

it's used completely differently.

Even though it does have the same spelling and pronunciation

as the little house in your garden.

OK. Yes, it's used to talk about releasing or letting something go.

But tell us more.

Well, yeah. You're right.

So, it's a verb, and we use it to talk about something becoming separate

from something else that

it was attached to. Neil, do you like snakes?

No, not really,

but I know why you asked me the question because a snake sheds its skin.

It means the skin falls off, and we're talking a lot about dogs today.

Dogs shed their fur.

It comes out everywhere.

It covers you. Yeah. That's right.

And we also use 'shed' with tears. 'To shed tears' just means 'to cry'.

So, if he or she sheds tears, then they are crying.

Right. Well, I'm getting a little emotional here.

So, before we all start shedding tears,

let's get a summary.

We've had 'teary-eyed' - describes someone or a dog

who's crying, or about to cry. 'Well up'

Are you watching a sad film? Because this might happen to you.

And 'shed' - separate from something. In this case,

tears come from the eyes.

Don't forget there is a quiz on a website

bbclearningenglish.com. Thank you for joining us,

and goodbye. Bye.