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Sweat Lodge – Vocabulary Lesson

Hi, this is Kristin Dodds, one of the directors of Learn Real English. Welcome to this month’s vocabulary lesson for the conversation Sweat Lodge. So I have the text here and I will be giving you explanations for words or groups of words as they are used in this conversation. So they might have a meaning, a different meaning in another conversation but I’ll be explaining them as they’re used in this conversation.

And I want to mention two other things. Sometimes in conversations you’ll see one word, it’s y’know, so all that is or means, that word, it’s actually two words combined into one word. So it’s actually the word you and the word know combined into one word. And it’s combined because a lot of times when we speak fast instead of saying “you know” we say “y’know.” We just…it’s just us native English speakers speaking quickly, speaking fast, that’s all.

And also you’ll see like used in a lot of conversations as…many times it’s just used as a filler word. It doesn’t have any meaning. So many times it’ll be a filler word if it’s used at the beginning of a sentence or if it’s the beginning of a sentence or at the beginning of an idea or a thought. Alright, so let’s begin now with the conversation, vocab lesson for the conversation Sweat Lodge.

So first I wanted to explain what a sweat lodge is. A sweat lodge is a dome-shaped building used by various indigenous people, or native people, native people to a particular area and it’s, they were used, these dome-shaped structures were used as spiritual steam baths so that people could purify themselves or cleanse themselves. So that’s what a sweat lodge is. Alright, let’s begin now.

At the beginning of the conversation, AJ says, “I’m curious to hear what you experienced.” So curious: curious means interested. He’s saying I’m interested to hear what you experienced. I’m curious.

And then I say, “I was kind of concerned.” Concerned: this means worried. I was kind of concerned. I was kind of worried.

And then I say, “I was kind of anxious.” So anxious: this also means worried. Anxious, worried.

And then I say, “I went and picked her up yesterday.” So picked her up: this is a bit of a slang or a misleading phrase. I’m speaking about my friend. I didn’t really pick her up off the ground. Picked her up means I went, I drove to her house to get her because we rode together to go to this event with the sweat lodge.

Okay, then I say, “Back in her hippie days.” So hippie days: hippies, or a hippie is a person or hippies, they were people who started back in the 1960s they were people who started to reject or refuse traditional values, the traditional values of society. So that’s hippie.

And then I say, “Stripping down and jumping in a teepee.” So stripping down: this means taking all clothes off. Stripping down, taking all clothes off. And jumping in a teepee: I don’t mean like really jumping. What I’m saying is and going, going into a teepee. So jumping here means going. And a teepee: this is a cone-shaped structure used by some indigenous groups as their home. That’s what they would live in, some Native American groups, that’s what they would live in.

Okay, then I say, “There was no ceremonial part to it.” So ceremonial: this means spiritual.

And then I say, “He’s now living in New Mexico with a Lakota tribe.” So New Mexico is a state in the southwestern part of the United States and it borders the country of Mexico, so that’s New Mexico. And Lakota tribe, Lakota tribe: this is a Native American group of people.

Okay, then AJ says, “The thing I remember being kind of intense.” So intense: this means challenging.

Intense, challenging or difficult.

And then AJ says, “You’re packed in to this little lodge.” So packed: what he means here is many people were in a very small space together so it was very tight. They were squeezed in to a very small space.

They were packed in.

And then AJ says, “It’s just pitch black dark.” So pitch black means very black, very dark. Pitch black dark.

And then I say, “It was totally dark.” So when I say totally here I mean it was completely dark.

And then AJ says, “Yeah, yeah, I know. It’s tiny.” Tiny: this means very small. Tiny, very small.

And then I say, “This was like a little igloo shape.” So igloo: this is a dome-shaped home for some indigenous people who live in cold areas. And they’re made from blocks of hardened snow. So snow that’s really hard, they’re made from these blocks of hard snow.

And then I say, “We went in single file.” So single file: it means one person at a time. Single file, one person at a time.

And then I say, “You crawl then.” So crawl: this means we were down on our hands and our knees going inside the sweat lodge. So we’re on our hands, we’re on our knees and we’re using our feet and hands to push ourselves along. Like a baby…a baby crawls before a baby walks.

And then I say, “They want you to stay on all fours.” So all fours: this is like the same as crawling. It’s on your hands, knees, using your feet, using your hands and feet, but you’re on your hands and knees.

And then I say, “So I was a little bit more insulated from the heat.” So insulated means protected.

Insulated from the heat, protected from the heat.

And then I say, “The flap, y’know, to the entrance would be brought down.” So flap: flap here means a piece of material that acted as a door to the sweat lodge, to the lodge, to the domed-shaped structure.

And then I say, “There’d be drumming and chanting going on.” So chanting: this is singing. Chanting means singing.

And then I say, “So, oh, let me back up.” So when I say let me back up, I’m saying let me go back in time in the story. Let me go back in time in the story. Let me back up.

And then I say, “So it would be kind of a reprieve from the heat.” So reprieve: this means a break. A break from the heat. Reprieve from the heat.

And then I say, “Something was triggered.” So something was triggered: this means something really upset the person. Something was triggered. Something really upset the person.

Next I say, “The guy kind of freaked out.” So freaked out: this means panicked or lost control. The guy panicked. He lost control. He freaked out.

And then AJ says, “But I think for some people it’s a little oppressive feeling.” So oppressive feeling: this here means overwhelming. It’s a little too much. It’s overwhelming. Oppressive feeling.

And then AJ says, “The tiny enclosed space.” So enclosed space: this means closed in. Closed in space. That means enclosed.

And then I say, “We were crammed in.” So crammed in means, again, like packed in. We were all squeezed in to a really small area so it was very tight fitting for all of us. We were crammed in. We were squeezed in.

And then I say, “I don’t get claustrophobic.” So claustrophobic means fearful of small tight spaces.

And then I say, “I wasn’t hyperventilating.” Hyperventilating: this means breathing really fast due to being panicked. Breathing really fast due to being panicked or scared.

And then I say, “It’s a weird description.” So weird meaning strange. It’s a strange description. It’s a weird description.

And then I say, “Kind of reminds me of Reiki.” So Reiki: this is healing energy. Reiki is healing energy.

And then I say, “I went into it with a lot of expectations.” Expectations: this means ideas about what the experience would be like. Expectations, ideas of what the experience would be like.

And then I say, “I’m going to persevere through this.” So persevere: this means get through the experience no matter how difficult it is. I will get through this experience no matter how difficult it is. I will persevere.

And then AJ says, “If it wasn’t so crowded with people.” So crowded with: this means many, crowded with people means many people. If there weren’t so many people. If it wasn’t so crowded with people.

And then AJ says, “You know me, I don’t like crowds.” So crowds here means a large amount of people.

Large amount of people, crowds.

And then AJ says, “I just wasn’t comfortable being all, y’know, elbow to elbow.” So elbow to elbow: this means we were all sitting so, or actually in AJ’s experience of doing a sweat lodge, he and the other people were sitting so close together their elbows were actually touching each other. That’s elbow to elbow.

And then AJ says, “Crushed in with them.” So crushed in: this means like packed in or crammed in.

Again, it’s squeezed in or, y’know, any people in a very small tight space.

And then I say, “It’s very disorienting.” Disorienting means confusing. Disorienting, confusing.

And then I say, “Escape, yeah, escape, escape.” So escape means want to try and leave, to get out. To want to try and leave, escape.

Okay, that is the end of this vocabulary lesson for the conversation Sweat Lodge and I’ll be right back with the commentary.