Vocabulary practice · Episode 44

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 12 min + dynamic ads5 PDF versions available
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A short study session

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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

to carry your English

to be the main thing that supports and advances your English ability — the core tool or habit that does the heavy lifting of your language development

Nuance: Carry your English is a metaphorical image — some tools, like extensive listening or a great vocabulary notebook, do more work than ten others combined. Identifying what 'carries' you is strategic.

Find the one or two tools that carry your English and give them your best time.

Extensive listening has carried her English further than any grammar book ever could.

Expression 2

to keep a vocabulary notebook

to maintain a personal written record of new words and phrases you encounter, including context, examples, and your own notes

Nuance: A vocabulary notebook is not just a list — it is a personal dictionary built from your real life encounters with English. The act of writing something down increases retention dramatically compared to passive exposure.

Keep a vocabulary notebook — not for every word, but for the ones that stop you in your tracks.

Her vocabulary notebook became the most valuable English resource she ever made.

Expression 3

to revise

to go back and review material you have already studied in order to strengthen and confirm your understanding

Nuance: Revise is the British English word for reviewing material before a test or to consolidate learning. In American English, it is more often 'review'. In language learning, regular revision of what you have already learned is as important as learning new things.

Revise ten vocabulary words a day rather than learning one hundred new ones — repetition is where memory lives.

She built a habit of revising her vocabulary notebook every Friday evening and found that words stuck much better.

Expression 4

to jot something down

to write a short, quick note of something so you do not forget it

Nuance: Jot down is practical and fast — it is the vocabulary of informal note-taking. You jot down a word, a phrase, a number. In English learning, jotting things down immediately is the difference between remembering a new word and losing it.

When you hear a new expression in English, jot it down immediately — do not trust your memory.

She always kept a small notebook in her bag so she could jot down any English phrase she encountered.

Expression 5

to look something up

to search for information about a word, phrase, or topic in a dictionary, online, or another reference

Nuance: Look something up is the fundamental research verb of language learning. You hear a word you do not know — you look it up. The habit of looking things up the moment you encounter them is one of the most efficient vocabulary-building strategies in existence.

Do not skip over words you do not know — look them up immediately while the context is fresh.

She looked up every word she did not understand and wrote it with a sentence in her notebook.

Expression 6

to test yourself

to check your own knowledge or recall of something, without external pressure, in order to identify gaps

Nuance: Test yourself is active learning at its most self-directed. Instead of passively re-reading your notes, you close them and try to recall what you know. This is one of the most evidence-backed learning strategies in language acquisition research.

Test yourself on vocabulary before you open your notebook — what you cannot recall is what needs more work.

She tested herself daily by trying to use each new word in a sentence before looking at her notes.

Expression 7

to make it stick

to use repetition, examples, and context to ensure that something you learn stays in your long-term memory

Nuance: Make it stick is practical learning strategy vocabulary — and it is also the title of an influential book on memory science. The key insight: seeing a word once is not learning. You need retrieval, spacing, and use. The notebook is only the first step.

Writing a word down is not enough — you need to use it, hear it, and see it to make it stick.

She used the podcast, her notebook, and real conversations together to make new vocabulary stick permanently.

Expression 8

to go over something

to review, check, or discuss something carefully — often used for notes, material, or a plan

Nuance: Go over is one of the most versatile phrasal verbs in academic and learning English. You go over your notes, go over a lesson, go over vocabulary before a test. It is active re-engagement — you are not just reading, you are checking understanding.

Go over your vocabulary from the week before you listen to a new episode — the repetition pays off.

She went over her English notes every Sunday morning and found it the most effective part of her whole routine.

Expression 9

context

the surrounding words, situation, or circumstances that help you understand the meaning of something

Nuance: Context is one of the single most important words in language learning. You do not learn words in isolation — you learn them in context. Context is the sentence, the conversation, the situation that makes meaning clear. Teaching yourself to read context is the fastest route to real comprehension.

You do not need to know every word to understand English — read the context and meaning will often become clear.

She stopped panicking when she heard unknown words and started reading the context around them instead.

Expression 10

spaced repetition

a learning technique that reviews information at increasing intervals, optimising memory retention over time

Nuance: Spaced repetition is one of the most evidence-backed vocabulary learning methods in existence. The idea: review a word after one day, then three, then a week, then a month. Your brain remembers best what it almost forgot. Apps like Anki are built on this principle.

Spaced repetition is the science behind the notebook habit — review what you know, but not all at once.

She used spaced repetition on her vocabulary and found that words she had known for a year were still perfectly accessible.

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