Vocabulary practice · Episode 28

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 45 min + dynamic ads5 PDF versions available
FREE TRANSLATED PDF PACKSStudy this episode with support in your language EspañolDeutschFrançaisفارسی Open the PDF library →

A short study session

Read here, or listen on the episode page

This reader does not play audio. The link above opens the episode with this support selected; press Play or Resume when you are ready.

  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.

Readable web version

Vocabulary from the episode

English only. Choose one support language if you need it.

Your reading position will be saved on this browser.

Expression 1

to push through

to continue despite difficulty, pain, or resistance; to persist until you complete something hard

Nuance: Push through is physical language for mental determination — you feel the resistance but you keep moving forward anyway. It is the vocabulary of people who do not stop when things get hard.

Push through the difficult days — those are the ones that build the most.

She pushed through three months of feeling stuck and came out the other side truly fluent.

Expression 2

to bounce back

to recover quickly from a setback, disappointment, or difficult period

Nuance: Bounce back is an optimistic phrase — the image is a ball that springs back after hitting the ground. It implies not just recovery but a return to energy and forward movement.

He bounced back from a terrible test result and improved dramatically in the following month.

The key to unstoppable English is not avoiding failure — it is knowing how to bounce back from it.

Expression 3

a setback

a difficulty or reversal that slows down or temporarily stops your progress

Nuance: A setback is not a defeat — it is a temporary step backwards. Reframing setbacks as part of the journey rather than proof of failure is one of the most important mindset shifts in language learning.

A bad week is a setback, not a sign that you should stop.

Every successful language learner has experienced setbacks — what matters is what you do next.

Expression 4

to rise above

to handle a difficulty with dignity and without letting it bring you down; to overcome something by staying above its level

Nuance: Rise above has a moral and emotional quality — it is not just surviving a challenge but maintaining your values and character while facing it. A person who rises above does not become bitter or defeated.

Rise above the frustration — one bad day does not define your English journey.

She rose above every critic who told her her accent was too strong to be understood.

Expression 5

to stay the course

to continue with a plan or commitment despite difficulties, temptations to quit, or slow progress

Nuance: Stay the course is nautical — keeping the ship on its planned route despite rough seas. In learning, it means maintaining consistency even when progress feels invisible. Success favours those who stay the course.

Stay the course — every expert was once a beginner who decided not to quit.

The hardest part of learning English is staying the course during the months when nothing seems to change.

Expression 6

to dust yourself off

to recover quickly from a failure, setback, or embarrassment and prepare to try again

Nuance: Dust yourself off is a vivid image — you fall down, you get a bit dirty, and instead of giving up you brush off the dust and stand up again. It is the essential resilience move: acknowledge what happened and get back up.

You had a difficult conversation — dust yourself off and try again tomorrow.

Great English speakers dust themselves off after every stumble and use the experience to get better.

Expression 7

grit

the combination of passion and perseverance needed to stick with long-term goals despite difficulty and failure

Nuance: Grit is different from talent — it is the will to keep going when things are hard. Research shows grit predicts success in language learning better than aptitude. You can build grit; you cannot easily build talent.

Learning English to fluency requires grit — there will be months when nothing seems to improve.

She had no natural advantage in English, but her grit kept her studying every day for three years.

Expression 8

to weather the storm

to endure a difficult period without giving up, accepting the hardship until it passes

Nuance: Weather the storm is a powerful nautical metaphor — a ship does not avoid the storm, it sails through it. In language learning, there are hard weeks when nothing clicks. Weathering the storm means staying consistent through them.

Your progress will feel slow at times — weather the storm and trust that the breakthrough is coming.

He weathered the storm of the first difficult year and came out the other side speaking confidently.

Expression 9

to press on

to continue moving forward with determination despite obstacles, tiredness, or discouragement

Nuance: Press on is direct and purposeful — it means refusing to stop. Unlike bounce back (recovering from a fall), press on is about continuing when it would be easy to quit. It is the verb of stubborn progress.

When you feel like giving up, press on — the hardest days are often just before a breakthrough.

Despite the accent comments, she pressed on with her speaking practice and never looked back.

Expression 10

to keep going

to continue doing something despite tiredness, doubt, or difficulty — to not stop

Nuance: Keep going is the simplest and most powerful instruction in language learning. Not keep going perfectly, not keep going when motivated — just keep going. Movement, even slow movement, beats stopping every time.

When everything feels too hard, just keep going — even one sentence a day is forward motion.

The only difference between learners who succeed and those who do not is that the successful ones kept going.

Expression 11

the finish line

The point at which a race, task or long process is completed.

Nuance: Frequently used metaphorically for goals and projects.

Imagine your finish line before you begin.

The team can finally see the finish line.

Expression 12

to lay the ground

To prepare the conditions needed for something to succeed.

Nuance: Lay the groundwork is a more common extended form.

The first step lays the ground for confident speaking.

Clear expectations laid the ground for a productive meeting.

Expression 13

the two-minute rule

A method of starting a habit with an action that takes less than two minutes.

Nuance: The phrase is associated with productivity and habit formation.

Use the two-minute rule to make practice easy to begin.

Her two-minute rule was to read one paragraph aloud.

Expression 14

to rehearse your finish line

To mentally or physically practise the successful completion of a goal.

Nuance: Rehearse is normally used for performances, but it can also describe mental preparation.

Rehearse your finish line until the result feels possible.

The athlete rehearsed the finish line before the race.

Expression 15

to adapt

To change your approach so that it works in new conditions.

Nuance: Adapt to takes the new situation; adapt something means modify it.

Strong learners adapt when a method stops working.

We adapted the lesson to the smaller group.

Expression 16

to reinforce

To make an idea, habit or structure stronger through support or repetition.

Nuance: Common with learning, behaviour, messages and physical structures.

Short reviews reinforce the new language.

The positive result reinforced her confidence.

Expression 17

to engage with something

To give something your active attention and involvement.

Nuance: More active than simply seeing or hearing it.

Engage with the sentence instead of repeating it mechanically.

Students engaged with the problem from several angles.

Expression 18

a clear method

An organised and understandable way of doing something.

Nuance: Clear modifies both how easy the method is to understand and how easy it is to follow.

A clear method turns motivation into action.

We need a clear method for reviewing mistakes.

Print or study offline

Choose a PDF version

Each button names the available language, format and file size. No email or account is required.

If a PDF does not open, use the complete web reader above and try the download again later. The episode audio remains available on its own page.

Put it back into context

Now listen for what you studied

The resource is support; the listening is the lesson. Return to the same episode and continue from your saved position.

Open episode 28 →