Listening transcript · Episode 14

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B1–B2VocabularyAbout 12 min + dynamic ads5 PDF versions available

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EPISODE 2 — “The Ten Verbs That Move You Forward”

[Soft acoustic intro music fades in – calm and reflective]

⚫ Sometimes, one single verb can describe your whole learning journey.

⚫ A verb that carries motion, energy, or emotion — something that makes your English alive.

⚪ And that’s exactly what today’s episode is about.

⚪ Ten verbs that help you describe what really happens when you learn slowly, calmly, and intentionally.

⚫ If you stay with us till the end, you’ll understand how each verb can give your English rhythm — and how using them in your own stories makes your speech sound natural and confident.

⚪ So take a deep breath…

⚪ Let’s move through these verbs together — one slow step at a time.

🪶 PART 1 — pick up

⚫ Let’s begin with one of the most natural verbs in English: pick up.

⚪ It means to learn something without really studying it.

⚪ You don’t memorize — you just pick it up by hearing it, reading it, or living it.

⚫ Remember when Peter talked about learning pronunciation through shadowing?

⚫ He said, “After two weeks, I just picked up the rhythm.” ⚫ That’s pick up.

⚪ Compare it with learn — learn sounds serious, like a classroom.

⚪ Pick up is casual and human.

⚪ You can say, “I picked up some new expressions from that movie.”

⚫ Or, “Children pick up language faster because they don’t study it — they live it.” ⚫ It’s learning without pressure.

💪 PART 2 — overcome

⚪ Our second verb is more emotional — overcome.

⚪ It means to win against a difficulty, fear, or barrier.

⚫ I love this word because it appeared so many times in our stories.

⚫ Remember my childhood stutter?

I said, “Music helped me overcome it.” ⚫ That word carries courage.

⚪ Compare it with beat or fight.

Those sound physical.

⚪ Overcome is mental and emotional.

⚪ You don’t fight English — you overcome fear.

⚫ You can say, “She overcame her fear of speaking.” ⚫ Or, “I’m trying to overcome my perfectionism.”

⚪ It’s a beautiful verb because it ends with victory — quiet, calm victory.

🔁 PART 3 — get stuck

⚫ Now let’s get real — every learner gets stuck.

⚪ Absolutely.

⚪ Get stuck means to stop moving forward, usually because you don’t know what to do next.

⚫ You can say, “I got stuck on this word,” or “I get stuck when I try to speak fast.”

⚪ Compare it with pause — pause is a choice.

⚪ Get stuck just happens.

It’s natural.

⚫ But there’s something interesting: ⚫ Getting stuck isn’t failure — it’s feedback.

⚫ It’s your brain saying, “Hey, I need more time here.”

⚪ So next time you get stuck, don’t panic.

⚪ Just slow down, breathe, and listen again.

⚪ That’s how you unstick your English.

✏️ PART 4 — refine

⚫ Here’s a more elegant verb — refine.

⚪ It means to make something better, smoother, or more precise.

⚪ You’re not starting from zero — you already know something, but you want to polish it.

⚫ In the “Shadowing Practice” episode, we said: ⚫ “Shadowing isn’t about repeating.

It’s about refining your ear and your rhythm.”

⚪ Compare it with improve.

⚪ Improve is general — you can improve anything.

⚪ But refine is delicate.

It’s about small, smart adjustments.

⚫ For example: ⚫ “I’m refining my pronunciation.” ⚫ “She’s refining her writing style.”

⚪ It’s the verb of artists — and language learners are artists of sound.

🧪 PART 5 — try out

⚪ Verb number five — try out.

⚪ A friendly phrasal verb meaning to test something new and see how it feels.

⚫ You can try out a word, a method, or even a new accent.

⚫ For example, “I tried out that new shadowing app.”

⚪ Compare it with experiment with.

⚪ That one sounds more scientific.

Try out is everyday and real.

⚫ You could even say, “I’m trying out speaking slower this week.” ⚫ It’s playful — no pressure, just curiosity.

⚪ And that’s what slow learning is all about — trying things calmly until they become natural.

🐢 PART 6 — slow down

⚫ And speaking of calm, the next verb is a lifestyle — slow down.

⚪ Yes!

It means to reduce speed, but also to be more present and thoughtful.

⚫ In the “Morning Routine” episode, we repeated this idea again and again: ⚫ “When you slow down, you actually learn faster.”

⚪ Compare it with relax — relax is about your body.

⚪ Slow down is about your actions and attention.

⚫ For example: ⚫ “Slow down your reading — notice the small details.” ⚫ “Slow down your speaking — let your ideas breathe.”

⚪ It’s the perfect verb for mindfulness in language.

🧩 PART 7 — figure out

⚪ Our next verb has a puzzle inside it — figure out.

⚫ It means to understand something by thinking carefully or solving a small problem.

⚪ You can say, “I’m trying to figure out this grammar rule,” or “I finally figured out how to use that phrase.”

⚫ Compare it with understand.

⚫ Understand feels instant.

⚫ Figure out feels active — you work for it, you connect pieces together.

⚪ And it’s perfect for English learning because that’s exactly what we do every day — ⚪ We figure things out, slowly and joyfully.

⚖️ PART 8 — deal with

⚫ Okay, next one — deal with.

⚪ It means to manage, face, or handle something — especially problems or emotions.

⚫ It’s not dramatic; it’s practical.

⚫ You deal with mistakes, stress, confusion.

⚪ In “Broken Language Learning,” we said: “Students don’t deal with mistakes — they hide from them.”

⚫ For example: ⚫ “I’m learning to deal with my accent anxiety.” ⚫ “How do you deal with forgetting words?”

⚪ Compare it with handle — both are similar, but deal with sounds more spoken and everyday.

⚫ It’s the verb of calm confidence — facing things without fear.

🤗 PART 9 — embrace

⚪ This next one is one of my favorites — embrace.

⚪ It means to accept something completely and with a good attitude.

⚫ In the “Calm English” episode, we said: ⚫ “The moment you embrace your mistakes, you start to learn.”

⚪ Compare it with accept.

⚪ Accept is neutral; embrace is warm.

⚪ You can say, “I’m learning to embrace silence in conversations.” ⚪ Or, “He embraced his accent — and that’s when he became fluent.”

⚫ It’s one of the most positive verbs in English.

⚫ It turns mistakes into friends.

🧭 PART 10 — set up

⚪ And the last one — set up.

⚪ It means to organize or prepare something before you start.

⚫ In “Morning Routines of a Music Star,” the singer said, “I always set up my space before I practice.” ⚫ It’s simple but powerful — preparation creates peace.

⚪ You can say, “I’m setting up my English notebook,” or “Let’s set up a new study plan.”

⚫ Compare it with prepare.

⚫ Prepare is formal; set up is practical and spoken.

⚪ It’s the quiet start of every success.

🎧 CLOSING REFLECTION

⚫ So there you have them — ten verbs that describe movement, courage, and calm growth.

⚪ Pick up, overcome, get stuck, refine, try out, slow down, figure out, deal with, embrace, and set up.

⚫ They’re not just actions — they’re attitudes.

⚫ Each one tells a small story of learning.

⚪ Let me ask you something.

⚪ When you think about your English right now — which of these verbs describes you best today?

⚫ And here’s a second question.

⚫ Which one would you like to describe you next month?

⚪ Maybe you’re getting stuck now… but soon you’ll overcome.

⚪ Or maybe you’re ready to refine and embrace the next level.

⚫ Whatever verb you choose, remember this: language learning isn’t a race — it’s a rhythm.

⚫ The goal isn’t speed, it’s awareness.

⚪ So slow down, try things out, and give yourself time to pick it up — one calm verb at a time.

[Soft outro music fades in]

⚫ Thanks for joining us today.

⚫ In the next episode, we’ll explore ten idioms that bring real-life emotion to your English.

⚪ Until then, keep refining, keep embracing, and keep moving forward — slowly.

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