Vocabulary practice · Episode 24

Review the useful expressions from the episode

Study the episode’s central expressions with English definitions, nuance and examples, plus reviewed support-language versions where available.

B1–B2Everyday EnglishAbout 17 min + dynamic ads5 PDF versions available
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  1. Choose one expression. Read its definition, nuance and examples.
  2. Make it yours. Write one true sentence from your own life.
  3. Return to the episode. Listen for the expression in its original context.

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Vocabulary from the episode

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Expression 1

anxiety lives in the future

A phrase suggesting that anxiety is often caused by worrying about future events rather than present circumstances.

Nuance: This expression highlights the tendency of anxiety to be linked to anticipation of future problems, rather than current realities.

Here is something true about anxiety. Anxiety lives in the future.

Always the future. Never now.

Expression 2

to get something off your chest

to express a worry, feeling, or secret that has been troubling you, and feel relief after doing so

Nuance: The idiom comes from the physical feeling of relief — a weight lifted from the chest. After getting something off your chest, you feel lighter. Essential vocabulary for talking about emotional honesty.

She finally got it off her chest — she told him exactly how she had felt for months.

Sometimes you just need to get something off your chest, even in a language you are still learning.

Expression 3

to bottle up

to suppress or hold in your emotions instead of expressing them; to keep feelings tightly contained inside

Nuance: Bottling up is the opposite of opening up — the image is of emotions sealed under pressure. Long-term bottling up leads to emotional buildup that eventually must be released.

He had been bottling up his frustration about work for months before finally talking about it.

One reason people cannot express feelings in English is that they bottle up even in their own language.

Expression 4

to open up

to talk honestly and freely about personal feelings, thoughts, or experiences that you normally keep private

Nuance: Opening up is emotionally courageous — it requires trust and vulnerability. In English, the ability to open up naturally is one of the most advanced communication skills.

She rarely opens up about her feelings in English — but when she does, it is incredibly powerful.

This episode will give you the language to open up to people who matter to you.

Expression 5

vulnerability

the state of being open to criticism, embarrassment, or emotional risk — the willingness to be seen as imperfect

Nuance: Vulnerability in language learning is not weakness — it is the prerequisite for growth. You cannot speak imperfectly without accepting some vulnerability. The learners who grow fastest are often not the most talented but the most willing to be seen making mistakes.

Speaking a second language requires vulnerability — accept it as part of the process.

She learned to see her vulnerability as a learner not as a weakness but as proof that she was trying.

Expression 6

overwhelmed

Feeling unable to cope because there is too much to do, think about or experience.

Nuance: Describes a person’s feeling. Common patterns are feel overwhelmed and be overwhelmed by/with something.

I felt overwhelmed.

I feel overwhelmed by everything I need to do.

Expression 7

to appreciate

to recognise the value or quality of something and feel grateful for it; to understand the importance of something fully

Nuance: Appreciate sits between 'notice' and 'love' — it implies awareness and gratitude. In language learning, appreciating small progress prevents the discouragement that kills long-term learning.

Appreciate every small step — they add up to something enormous over time.

She began to appreciate the beauty of English when she stopped comparing it to her native language.

Expression 8

empathy

the ability to understand and share the feelings of another

the capacity to place oneself in another's position

Nuance: Empathy is essential for building strong relationships and understanding others.

If you want to understand people deeply with accuracy and kindness, you need empathy.

Empathy replaces confusion with understanding.

Expression 9

to release

To allow or enable something to escape from confinement.

To let go of something, especially something that is held or trapped.

Nuance: 'To release' often implies freeing something or someone from a physical or metaphorical constraint. It can be used in both literal and figurative contexts, such as releasing emotions or stress.

Ho'oponopono is about releasing — letting go of what weighs on you.

"To release." That's the last phrase.

Expression 10

stress

the extra emphasis placed on a particular word or syllable, which can change the meaning of a sentence

Nuance: In English, moving the stress to a different word in the same sentence can completely change what it means, so listening for stress is as important as listening for words.

I didn't say he stole the money — change the stressed word, change the meaning.

Stress is the compass of meaning in spoken English.

Expression 11

to accept something

to acknowledge and come to terms with something as it is — not necessarily liking it, but stopping the fight against it

Nuance: Accept is different from 'like' or 'agree with'. You can accept that learning is hard without liking it. Acceptance is the beginning of calm — the moment you stop wasting energy fighting a fact, you free that energy for action. Very important in mindset vocabulary.

Accept that mistakes are part of the process — fighting that truth only slows you down.

She accepted that she was not fluent yet and, paradoxically, this acceptance made her more relaxed and more effective.

Expression 12

to notice

To become aware of something or someone by seeing, hearing, or feeling them.

To pay attention to something or someone.

Nuance: 'To notice' implies a conscious act of becoming aware, often used in everyday contexts to describe the act of perceiving something that might not be immediately obvious.

Just noticing.

So two phrases here: "to notice", and "to flow".

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