درسنامه واژه ها

Dating – Vocabulary Lesson

Hi, this is Kristin Dodds, one of the teachers and directors of Learn Real English. Welcome to this month’s vocabulary lesson for the conversation Dating. I have the text, as always, of the conversation and I’ve made some notes about some words or groups of words that you may have had difficulty understanding. So I’ll be explaining those as they relate to this conversation, okay?

And, as always, in the beginning I like to talk about three words that you hear in a lot of our conversations. The first one is y’know, y’know. Y’know is actually two words combined into one, you and know. So sometimes when we’re speaking fast, instead of saying you know, it sounds more like y’know.

We kind of combine those two words into one.

The second word is yeah. Yeah is a slang word for yes. And then the third word is like. Now you probably know that like means to have positive feelings for someone or something. But sometimes you’ll hear it in our conversations and it doesn’t have that meaning. In fact, it doesn’t have any meaning at all.

So it’s just a filler word. Alright, let’s begin with Dating.

So in the very beginning, AJ says, “We were pen pals online.” So pen pals means friends who write.

Before the internet, they would actually write letters to each other. Or now, having the internet, it’s friends that e-mail back and forth. And usually a pen pal is somebody who lives far away from where you live.

So somebody you don’t see. So your communication is done through writing or e-mailing. So, for example, when I was in maybe high school, I had a pen pal from France and I had a pen pal from the state of New York, because I was actually living in the state of Georgia. Georgia is in the southeastern part of the United States and New York is in the northeastern part of the United States. So my pen pal lived far from me. So this is before the internet, we would actually write each other letters and send pictures to each other, the same as my pen pal in France.

Okay, then AJ says, “We started e-mailing each other back and forth, started realizing, oh, we’ve got a lot in common, really similar values.” So similar values: this means the same ideas about what was important to them in life.

Alright, then AJ says, “That’s probably the most common way, wouldn’t you say, for people now dating, that people meet online in some capacity.” So when he says in some capacity. That means in some way. That they meet online in some way, for example, from a dating website or from an online newspaper, y’know, putting an advertisement or a want ad in the newspaper.

Okay, then AJ says, “I found it very, very shallow.” So shallow means superficial or empty.

And then AJ says, “It’s exactly the opposite of how Tomoe and I did it.” So Tomoe, that’s the name of AJ’s wife. She’s from Japan.

Okay, then AJ says, “There’s a lot of pressure to be clever or witty or profound or somehow to stand out.” So that whole part of the sentence that I just read, what that means is there’s a lot of pressure to say something that you’re really smart or much different from everyone else.

And then AJ says, “I kind of feel that most people are not being very sincere.” So sincere means honest.

And then AJ says, “So then you meet them in person and they’re not quite as exciting or interesting or great, it’s like this whole putting on a show.” So putting on a show, what he’s saying is it’s like they’re making themselves sound much better than they really are. Again, not being very honest.

And then I say, “I just remember though the way that Joe met the mutual friend that we had.” So mutual means same, the same friend.

And then I say, “On Craigslist.” So Craigslist is the name of a website.

And then AJ says, “And really what that’s focused on is short-term hookups.” So short-term hookups: this means wanting to get together mainly for sex.

And then AJ says, “I think that’s typically the case.” So typically the case means basically the situation.

And then AJ says, “They’re not necessarily looking for their future spouse.” So spouse means husband or wife.

And then AJ says, “It was my brief stint of trying online dating.” So brief stint: this means short time.

And then AJ says, “A blind date where someone hooks you up.” So hooks you up: this means where someone connects you or introduces you.

And then AJ says, “There’s so much potential for that to be super awkward.” So when he says there’s so much potential, what he’s saying is it’s very possible that could be super awkward. Super means very here. And awkward means uncomfortable.

And then AJ says, “I just imagine you get there and you’re not attracted to each other or you have nothing in common and then you’re out at dinner and then you’re probably just thinking, okay, so how do I get out of this politely.” That very last part, how do I get out of this politely. That means how do I end this date in a nice way or a nice manner.

And then AJ says, “That’s delicate.” So what he means by that is it’s a situation that needs to be dealt with very carefully.

And then Joe says, “Online dating is ubiquitous now.” So ubiquitous means it exists everywhere. You can see it everywhere on the internet.

And then Joe says, “Before online dating developed it would have seemed very weird to hear that, oh, I put an ad in the paper, or I posted something on Craigslist.” So weird means strange. It would have seemed very strange to hear that somebody put an ad in the paper trying to find a date or that the posted something on Craigslist.

And then AJ says, “It really did change quite profoundly.” So quite profoundly means greatly. It changed greatly.

And then Joe says, “She lived in Michigan. He lived in New York.” So Michigan: this is a state in the northern part of the United States. And it’s actually up near the border of Canada and it’s shaped like a hand. And then New York is a state in the northeastern part of the United States.

And then Joe says, “Back then it would have seemed really odd, but now it just seems like a great romantic story.” So odd means strange.

Alright, this is the end of our vocabulary lesson for the conversation Dating. And I will be right back with the commentary.