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Being Affectionate in Public

Welcome to English as a Second Language Podcast number 293: Being Affectionate in Public.

This is English as a Second Language Podcast episode 293. I’m your host, Dr. Jeff McQuillan, coming to you from the Center for Educational Development in beautiful Los Angeles, California.

Visit our website at eslpod.com and take a look at our ESL Podcast Store; it has some additional premium courses we think you’ll be interested in. You can also download a Learning Guide for this episode by going to our website.

This episode is called “Being Affectionate in Public.” “Affectionate” means showing someone that you love them. Let’s get started.

[start of story]

Nelly: Look at that couple over there. What they’re doing is indecent!

Sadat: Where? Oh, you mean those two people hugging and kissing? That’s not indecent.

Nelly: They’re not just hugging and kissing. That girl is sitting on her boyfriend’s lap and they’re making out in the middle of a public place. They need to get a room.

Sadat: They’re just passionate, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Don’t you remember when you were a teenager in love?

Nelly: When I was a teenager, we behaved a lot more modestly. We might hold hands or give each other a peck on the cheek in public. That’s it. Anything else we did, we did in private.

Sadat: Oh, you’re not saying that you didn’t get cozy with your boyfriend as a teenager, you’re just saying you did it in private.

Nelly: Right. What I object to is having to watch other people’s public displays of affection. It turns my stomach.

Sadat: Don’t look now, but there’s another PDA over there.

Nelly: Oh, no!

[end of story]

Our dialogue between Nelly and Sadat begins by Nelly saying, “Look at that couple over there.” That “couple” is usually a word that refers to a romantic pair, two people involved in a romantic relationship. Nelly says, “What they’re doing is indecent!” To be “indecent” means to be inappropriate or immoral – offensive. It’s a negative description; the opposite of “indecent” would be “decent.” If you run outside without any clothes on, that would be considered, in most places, to be “indecent.” At least, at my house!

Sadat says, “Oh, you mean those two people hugging and kissing? That’s not indecent.” To “hug” means to put your arms around another person, usually when you are facing them so that your bodies are touching. To “kiss” means to put your lips to another person’s skin, usually their lips. If you ever come to Los Angeles, I’ll be happy to show you “hugging and kissing,” depending on who you are!

Nelly says, “They’re not just hugging and kissing. That girl is sitting on her boyfriend’s lap.” To “sit on someone’s lap” means to sit on their legs – the upper part of their legs when they are sitting down. That’s to “sit on someone’s lap.” Nelly says that this couple is “making out in the middle of a public place.” To “make out” (two words) is an informal verb that means to kiss and touch someone else; sometimes it has a slightly sexual meaning as well. The expression “make out” also has some non-romantic meanings; take a look at the Learning Guide for some additional explanations.

Nelly says they’re “in the middle of a public place.” “Public” is where there are many people – open to anyone. The opposite of “public” would be “private.” She says, “They need to get a room.” This is an informal expression, which means they need to get away from the public view so that people can’t see them. Literally, it means to go into a room by themselves and close the door, such as a hotel room. This is usually an expression we use when we see people who are being too affectionate, somewhat indecent in public. You may say, “Oh, get a room!” meaning you’re doing something that’s not appropriate for a public place – something romantically or, possibly, even sexually, related.

Sadat says, “They’re just passionate.” To be “passionate” is to have strong feelings, especially about love and romance. You can use the word “passionate,” however, for anything; you could be passionate about art or passionate about movies. It means you love them; you think they are great; you are very excited about them.

Sadat says this couple is “just passionate…there’s nothing wrong with that. Don’t you remember when you were a teenager in love?” he asks Nelly. A “teenager” is anyone between the ages of 13 and 19.

Nelly says, “When I was a teenager, we behaved a lot more modestly.” “Modestly” means conservatively, not attracting attention. To be “modest” means not to make yourself more important – to make yourself the center of attention. In this case, “modestly” means more decent – more appropriate for the “circumstance,” the situation.

Nelly continues, “We might hold hands or give each other a peck on the cheek in public. That’s it.” To “hold hands” means to put your hand in someone else’s hand, usually to indicate that you love them or are affectionate toward them. In the U.S., usually only couples in love hold hands. A parent may hold the hand of his or her child, especially if they are very young. A “peck” (peck) is the same as a kiss, a very quick kiss. A “peck on the cheek” would be to kiss someone on their cheek. The “cheek” is the part of your face underneath your eyes, between your ears and your mouth and nose; that’s your “cheek.” Nelly says, “Anything else we did, we did in private.” Again, “private” is the opposite of “public,” away from other people.

Sadat says, “Oh, you’re not saying you didn’t get cozy with your boyfriend as a teenager, you’re just saying you did it in private.” To “get cozy” (cozy) means to be physically close to another person.

Nelly says, “Right,” or that’s correct. “What I object to” – what I dislike; what I oppose; what I think is wrong – “is having to watch other people’s public displays of affection.” To “object to” something has some other meanings, take a look at our Learning Guide for some additional explanations.

A “public display of affection” is when people kiss and hug in some romantic way, where other people can see them. It’s sometimes abbreviated “PDA”: “Look over there, it’s a PDA” – a public display of affection. To “display” means to show something.

Nelly says that public displays of affection turn her stomach. To “turn your stomach” means to make you feel sick, to make you feel like you have to “vomit,” or throw up, when the contents of your stomach come out through your mouth. Not a very nice thing!

Sadat says to Nelly, “Don’t look now, but there’s another PDA over there.” The expression “don’t look now” is used to “point out,” or to indicate, something to someone, something that they probably don’t see yet. “Don’t look now” really means look now at what is happening. Of course, in public sometimes we say, “Don’t look” to mean don’t turn your head and look at something because that person will know that you are looking at them, and that might be considered rude or impolite.

Now let’s listen to the dialogue, this time at a normal speed.

[start of story]

Nelly: Look at that couple over there. What they’re doing is indecent!

Sadat: Where? Oh, you mean those two people hugging and kissing? That’s not indecent.

Nelly: They’re not just hugging and kissing. That girl is sitting on her boyfriend’s lap and they’re making out in the middle of a public place. They need to get a room.

Sadat: They’re just passionate, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Don’t you remember when you were a teenager in love?

Nelly: When I was a teenager, we behaved a lot more modestly. We might hold hands or give each other a peck on the cheek in public. That’s it. Anything else we did, we did in private.

Sadat: Oh, you’re not saying you didn’t get cozy with your boyfriend as a teenager, you’re just saying you did it in private.

Nelly: Right. What I object to is having to watch other people’s public displays of affection. It turns my stomach.

Sadat: Don’t look now, but there’s another PDA over there.

Nelly: Oh, no!

[end of story]

The script for this podcast was written by Dr. Lucy Tse.

From Los Angeles, California, I’m Jeff McQuillan. Thanks for listening. We’ll see you next time on ESL Podcast.

English as a Second Language Podcast is written and produced by Dr. Lucy Tse, hosted by Dr. Jeff McQuillan. This podcast is copyright 2007.