How to Study and Remember New English Words?

43,708 views ・ 2018-08-04

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Hi everybody, welcome back to Ask Alisha, the weekly series where you ask me
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questions and I answer them. Maybe!
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First question this week comes from Gul.
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Hi, Gul.
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Gul says: Hi Alisha, what is the correct pronunciation of "s" and "th" sounds when they come one
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after another?
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Especially when we talk fast?
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For example: It's 3 PM.
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Here's the thing.
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Is that possible?
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He is thin.
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Could you please pronounce these sentences?
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Sure, yeah, this is a tough one.
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So, when we're speaking quickly, we make the "s" sound as short as possible.
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Sometimes, it's just a "sss" and we drop the "it" sound, like in "it's."
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Sometimes, it turns into a "z" sound.
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So, I'll say these, uh, sentences at regular pace.
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It's 3 PM.
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It's 3 PM.
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He's thin.
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He's thin.
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He's thin.
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Here's the thing.
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01:00
Here's the thing.
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Here's the thing.
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Is that possible?
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Is that possible?
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Is that possible?
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So, we're not pronouncing all the sounds clearly in that last example.
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Is that possible becomes "izzat" possible?
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Izzat possible?
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It's like a "z" sound.
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Everything gets combined there.
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So, in the first example sentence, it's a quick, soft "s" sound.
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It's 3 PM.
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We're not exaggerating the "th" sound so much there.
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It's like the "th" sound happens, but the tongue doesn't come out between our teeth.
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He's thin.
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He's thin.
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He'ssss thin.
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So I hope that helps you.
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Next question!
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Next question comes from Maxim Romanovich.
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Hi, Maxim.
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Maxim says: Hi Alisha, nice day, isn't it?
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Indeed.
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Uh, about two weeks ago I started learning English by watching serials without translation
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into my own language.
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Is it normal that recently I started to notice I could talk in English to myself about half
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an hour?
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Am I getting crazy with English?
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Hehe, uh, thanks for sending this!
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No, that's awesome.
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I think that's really cool.
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Um, sometimes you guys do send your comments, like, "oh wow, I can understand things now,"
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or I can use English more than I could before,
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so I don't think that's weird at all.
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I think that's great.
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I think that's just uh, proof.
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That's evidence that your dedication and your studies are paying off.
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In other words, you're making progress.
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So, I think that's great!
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So, thanks very much for sharing this comment, and good luck in your continued studies!
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It sounds like you're enjoying yourself.
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That's awesome.
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Great.
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Thanks very much for sending this.
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Let's go on to the next question.
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Next question comes from Sumayyah Abdullah.
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Hi, Sumayyah.
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Sumayyah says: Hi, I have a question.
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Uh, what is the difference between "portal" and "gate"?
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Ah, interesting question, okay!
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Uh, portal.
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Portal is something used in like science fiction stories.
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We use portal in science fiction stories, and you might sometimes see this on the internet
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as like a hub, a web hub for something.
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But portal is used to refer like a gate between dimensions.
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It's like a special kind of, like, dimensional gate.
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Uh, so portal is not commonly used in everyday speech.
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Maybe some of you have played the game portal.
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That was a really popular game where you had a gun and you could shoot the gun, like on
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a wall, and a portal would open here.
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You could shoot another portal on another wall and walk through it.
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So it's like some kind of dimensional, like sci-fi word.
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Gate, however, is the much more commonly used word.
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We use gate to talk about this, like, entrance to a house or to someone's yard, or to a garden,
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for example.
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So a gate is much, much more common.
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We see them in our neighborhoods and our cities all the time.
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So typically, in most situations, I think gate is the better word.
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Portal is like a science fiction kind of gate.
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It's usually the image is like a circle.
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Gate is like something that swings open, something like this, perhaps.
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So, I hope that helps you.
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Interesting question.
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Thanks very much!
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04:00
Next question!
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Next question comes from Wangfan Chen.
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Hi, Wangfan.
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Wangfan says: Hey Alisha, could you please clarify the phrase "we got you back"?
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I came across this expression on my email from my bank.
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It said, "we've got you back on fraud."
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Ummm, I want you to check.
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Does your email say, "we've got YOUR back," or "we got you back"?
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These are very different expressions.
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so I'll explain.
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First, the expression "we've got," "we have got your back" means we support you.
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We've got your back.
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Imagine, like, a friend watches your back.
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A friend is behind you watching your back.
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The backside of your body, like to protect you.
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To make sure nothing bad happens to you.
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So when someone is watching your back, to say "I've got your back," something like that
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means "I support you," "I'm looking out for you."
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I'm trying to protect you.
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However, "we got you back."
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We got you back means we got revenge on you for something.
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You did something bad in the past, and someone got you back.
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Means they got revenge on you.
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Someone took revenge for something bad in the past.
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So, "we've got your back" and "we got you back" are very, very different expressions.
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I think your bank is probably saying "we've got your back in regard to fraud.
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In other words, the bank is trying to protect you.
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If you want to use this expression in everyday life, like a friend is going to do something
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difficult or dangerous, you can say "I've (I have) got your back."
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Sometimes we also make it more casual.
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We drop "have" there and say "I got your back.
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I got your back."
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Meaning: I support you.
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I am looking out for you.
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So, interesting question!
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Thanks very much for asking.
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Let's go on to the next question.
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Next question comes from Ranold Royce.
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Hi, Ranold.
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Ranold says: 1) How to study new words and remember them?
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2) How to speak in an American accent?
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Uhh, number 1.
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How to study words and remember them?
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Uh, to study words and remember them, you could try using a vocabulary flashcard tool
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like Anki.
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Anki is a great, uh, flashcard tool.
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It's a computer-based, uh, tool, so that's great for flashcards.
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I think you can download sets of flashcards to help you study vocabulary words and expressions.
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Other things you can do...Once you practice those words, make sure you use them.
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So, make sure you use the words, um, write with the words.
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Speak with the words.
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So, don't just input, input, input.
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But create using those new words.
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Um, 2, how to speak with an American accent?
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Practice speaking with an American accent.
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That's what I did when I was growing up, and that's what speakers all over the world do
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to gain their accents.
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They practice speaking using that accent.
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So, if you want to speak with an American accent, I would say practice speaking with
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an American accent.
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I have an American accent, so if you want to practice speaking, you can try to, uh,
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practice speaking like me, if you want to.
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If you want to get some ideas about American accents, uh, you can check the English Topics
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series on this channel, where you can see Michael, uh Davey, and of course me, talking
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in English, but in a more casual setting, so you can get an idea of how our accents
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sound in everyday conversations.
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So if you want to see what an American accent sounds like and use that as a way to practice
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your speech, you can check that out, for sure.
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Those are all the questions that I have for this week!
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Thank you, as always, for sending your questions.
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Remember to send them to me at EnglishClass101.com/ask-alisha.
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Of course, if you liked the video, don't forget to give it a thumbs up, subscribe to our channel,
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and check us out at EnglishClass101.com for some other things that can help you with your
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English studies.
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Thanks very much for watching this week's episode of Ask Alisha, and I will see you
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again next week. Bye!
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