Vocabulary practice · Episode 82

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.

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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 find your feet

to become comfortable and confident in a new situation after an initial period of difficulty or uncertainty

Nuance: Find your feet is a warm, encouraging idiom — it acknowledges that the beginning is hard and reassures you that it will get easier. Perfect for the experience of arriving in a new English-speaking country.

It takes time to find your feet in a new country — be patient with yourself in the first few months.

Once she found her feet in London, the language improved dramatically because she was no longer anxious.

Expression 2

to get the hang of something

to learn how to do something through practice and gradually become comfortable and competent with it

Nuance: Get the hang of is informal and encouraging — it implies the skill is learnable and that you are getting there. Often used to reassure someone who is struggling. One of the most natural phrases in everyday English conversation.

You'll get the hang of English shopping vocabulary after a few visits — it becomes automatic.

She found the London Underground confusing at first but got the hang of it within a week.

Expression 3

to adapt to

to adjust your behaviour, expectations, or skills to fit a new situation — often involving some difficulty before success

Nuance: Adapt to is the adjustment verb. Unlike 'get used to' which is more passive — something gradually stops feeling strange — 'adapt to' implies active adjustment: changing how you think or behave to fit better. In professional and personal contexts abroad, adapting to new norms — workplace culture, communication style, social expectations — is a conscious and ongoing process.

Adapting to a new culture takes conscious effort — observe, ask, and adjust rather than assuming.

She adapted to the British workplace culture faster than she expected once she understood the unspoken rules.

Expression 4

to pick yourself up

to recover your motivation, confidence, or energy after a setback or failure — and continue trying

Nuance: Pick yourself up is the resilience phrase. It refers to the internal process of recovery — not just accepting failure but actively choosing to try again. It is used after professional disappointments, language learning frustrations, social awkwardness, or any moment when the temptation is to stop. 'You have to pick yourself up and try again' is both a practical and a motivational phrase.

Picking yourself up after a setback is a skill — it gets faster with practice.

She failed the driving test three times but picked herself up each time and finally passed on the fourth attempt.

Expression 5

trial and error

a method of achieving a goal by testing different approaches, learning from mistakes, and improving with each attempt

Nuance: Trial and error is the learning by doing phrase. It describes the process of figuring things out not by following instructions but by attempting, failing, adjusting, and trying again. For language learners, speaking in real situations is largely trial and error — you say something, see whether it works, and adjust. Understanding that this is the process — not a sign of failure — is a freeing insight.

Accept trial and error as the process — every mistake is data for the next attempt.

She learned how the local bus system worked through trial and error — taking wrong routes until she mapped it herself.

Expression 6

to be out of your depth

to be in a situation that is more difficult, complex, or demanding than your current knowledge or ability can handle

Nuance: Out of your depth is the competence mismatch phrase. It comes from the swimming metaphor: if water is too deep, you cannot touch the bottom and may struggle to stay afloat. In professional and learning contexts, being out of your depth means encountering demands beyond your current competence — which is uncomfortable but often where the most growth occurs.

Feeling out of your depth is often a sign you are exactly where you should be — at the edge of your competence.

She felt out of her depth in her first meeting in English but used it as motivation to prepare more thoroughly for the next.

Expression 7

to come a long way

to have made significant progress from a previous point — to have improved substantially over time

Nuance: Come a long way is the progress recognition phrase. It is used to acknowledge how much someone or something has improved — often said to reassure or encourage. 'You've come a long way' is a meaningful compliment in English. In language learning, moments when you realise how much you have improved — looking back at where you started — are powerful motivators.

Look back occasionally to recognise how far you have come — progress is easier to see in retrospect.

She looked at a recording of herself speaking English two years earlier and was struck by how far she had come.

Expression 8

to take it one step at a time

to approach a large or overwhelming task by focusing only on the next immediate action — rather than being paralysed by the whole

Nuance: Take it one step at a time is the manageable progress phrase. It is advice given — and advice to give yourself — when a challenge feels too large to confront all at once. In language learning, in new jobs, in new countries, in new relationships — the skill of breaking the overwhelming into the manageable is both a practical and a psychological tool.

When something feels overwhelming, take it one step at a time — focus on only what needs to happen next.

She stopped worrying about her whole language learning journey and decided to take it one step at a time — starting with listening practice.

Expression 9

to keep going

to continue with an activity or effort — especially when it is difficult and the temptation is to stop

Nuance: Keep going is the persistence phrase. It is the simplest and most direct form of the perseverance idea. In language learning, keeping going through plateaus, embarrassments, and dry spells is what separates those who become fluent from those who give up. 'Just keep going' is as much a philosophy as a phrase.

When you feel like stopping, that is often when keeping going matters most.

She had a terrible month where nothing seemed to improve but kept going and noticed a breakthrough the following week.

Expression 10

to build confidence

to gradually develop a stronger belief in your own abilities — through practice, experience, and small successes

Nuance: Build confidence is the self-development phrase. Confidence is not a fixed trait — it is built through action. In language learning, confidence is built by speaking even when unsure, by succeeding in small interactions, and by reframing failures as feedback rather than proof of inadequacy. 'Build confidence' implies the process is active and cumulative — not something that arrives on its own.

Build confidence by seeking small wins first — confidence in big situations comes from many small ones.

She built her confidence in English by starting with short, predictable conversations at the local shop before attempting longer or more complex ones.

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