Vanessa: Hi, I'm Vanessa from SpeakEnglishWithVanessa.com.
Are you ready to test your listening skills?
Let's do it.
Do you want to understand movies and TV shows and fast English-speakers?
Yes, of course you do, but there are countless reductions and linking in English that make
it difficult, so the best way to understand fast English conversations is to study fast
English conversations.
And that's what we're going to do today.
We're going to be listening to five quick English conversations, and I'm going to give
you three sentences for each conversation.
I want you to guess which sentence you hear in each conversation.
If this exercise is too easy for you, then this is my challenge.
I challenge you to not look at the screen, but to try to write every single word that
you hear from that conversation.
This way, instead of listening for specific words that you already know will happen in
that conversation that I give to you, you're going to be trying to write just from your
listening skills every word that you hear.
These conversations that you're about to hear are all part of the 30 Day Listening Challenge,
PACK 4, which is open now until December 31st.
If you'd like to join hundreds of other English learners who are deciding to start the new
year 2020 by improving your listening skills, great, you can click on the link up here or
in the description to find out more about the listening challenge.
Are you ready to listen to the first conversation?
I'm going to give you three sentences that I want you to listen for.
I want you to choose which one is going to be in the conversation.
Let's take a look at those sentences.
You didn't take it seriously.
You didn't take in seriously.
You didn't take on seriously.
Let's listen to the conversation clip and I want you to choose.
Did you hear number one, two or three?
All right, let's listen a couple of times to the clip.
Dan: I had probably a poor work ethic.
Vanessa: Oh yeah, you didn't take it seriously?
Dan: I didn't have to try very hard in high school.
Vanessa: As in you could do okay and not try?
Dan: I didn't have to study it that much to get by in my high school, because my high
school didn't have very high standards.
Vanessa: Oh, I see.
Dan: I had probably a poor work ethic.
Vanessa: Oh yeah, you didn't take it seriously?
Dan: I didn't have to try very hard in high school.
Vanessa: As in you could do okay and not try?
Dan: I didn't have to study it that much to get by in my high school, because my high
school didn't have very high standards.
Vanessa: Oh, I see.
Which sentence did you hear?
Did you hear number one, "You didn't take it seriously."?
I hope so.
In this conversation, Dan said that he didn't work really hard in high school, and I clarified
his statement by saying, "You didn't take it seriously."
What is it in this sentence?
It's school.
You didn't take school seriously.
This is a wonderful expression, to take something seriously.
Let's listen to that clip again, and now that you know which sentence you're listening for,
and you know the general idea of the clip, hopefully you'll be able to hear it clear.
Dan: I had probably a poor work ethic.
Vanessa: Oh yeah, you didn't take it seriously?
Dan: I didn't have to try very hard in high school.
I had probably a poor work ethic.
Vanessa: Oh yeah, you didn't take it seriously?
Dan: I didn't have to try very hard in high school.
Vanessa: Did you hear, "You didn't take it seriously."?
I hope so.
Let's go on to quiz question number two.
While you listen to this clip, I want you to guess which one of these sentences you're
actually hearing.
Is it number one, you have be like five or six years old.
Number two, you have to be like five or six years old, or number three, you have to been
like five or six years old.
Let's listen to the clip and choose which one you're hearing.
So they have it for all ages?
James: Yes.
Well, I think you have to be a certain age.
You have to be like five or six years old.
Vanessa: Oh, gotcha.
So at least at that studio, are there quite a few adults who are a part of the program?
James: Yes, there are definitely more people there.
I am typically the oldest one in the place for the most part.
I'm 45.
Vanessa: So they have it for all ages?
James: Yes.
Well, I think you have to be a certain age.
You have to be like five or six years old.
Vanessa: Oh, gotcha.
So at least at that studio, are there quite a few adults who are a part of the program?
James: Yes, there are definitely more people there.
I am typically the oldest one in the place for the most part.
I'm 45.
Vanessa: Which sentence did you hear?
Did you hear number two, "You have to be like five or six years old."?
Here in this clip, James is talking about the minimum age to participate in the martial
arts club that he's a part of.
It's five or six years old.
Did you also hear how old he is?
Did you catch that number?
He said 45.
All right, we're going to listen to that key sentence a couple times so that you can hear,
"You have to be like five or six years old."
Let's listen.
So they have it for all ages?
James: Yes.
Well, I think you have to be a certain age.
You have to be like five or six years old.
Vanessa: So they have it for all ages?
James: Yes.
Well, I think you have to be a certain age.
You have to be like five or six years old.
Vanessa: Did you hear, "You have to be like five or six years old."?
I hope so.
Let's go on to quiz question number three.
I want you to listen for which one of these three sentences you hear.
Number one, she spent up living with me for seven months.
Number two, she went up living with me for seven months.
Number three, she ended living with me for seven months.
Let's listen to the clip, and I want you to choose which sentence you hear.
David: Actually, when I was there, I met a girl from Montreal, Chantelle her name was.
I saw her on the beach and I said, Oh, she's beautiful.
I must meet her.
She spoke no English.
I spoke no French.
Vanessa: That didn't matter.
David: She had a friend that was with her.
They had come down from Montreal for a vacation a couple of weeks, and she ended up living
with me for seven months.
Actually, when I was there, I met a girl from Montreal, Chantelle her name was.
I saw her on the beach and I said, Oh, she's beautiful.
I must meet her.
She spoke no English.
I spoke no French.
Vanessa: That didn't matter.
David: She had a friend that was with her.
They had come down from Montreal for a vacation a couple of weeks, and she ended up living
with me for seven months.
Vanessa: Which sentence did you hear?
Did you hear number three, "She ended up living with me for seven months."?
I hope so.
In this quick conversation, David's talking about a special girl who he met and they didn't
speak the same language, but it didn't matter.
They lived together for seven months.
He uses a great phrasal verb, to end up.
"She ended up living with me for seven months."
We use this phrasal verb, to end up, to talk about a conclusion, but it's usually a surprising
conclusion.
For example, I checked into my flight to go to New York city, and I ended up getting moved
to first class.
Woah, this is a surprising conclusion because I didn't pay for first-class, I didn't expect
to be in first-class, maybe they had some extra seats or they needed to put someone
else in the back of the plane, so we could say, I ended up getting moved to first-class.
Great.
All right, let's listen to that original clip again so that you can hear a little bit more
accurately, everything that we say.
David: She had a friend that was with her.
They had come down from Montreal for a vacation a couple of weeks, and she ended up living
with me for seven months.
She had a friend that was with her.
They had come down from Montreal for a vacation a couple of weeks, and she ended up living
with me for seven months.
Vanessa: Did you hear, "...ended up."?
I hope so.
Let's go on to quiz question number four.
I want you to listen for which one of these three sentences you're about to hear.
Number one, I just kind of self-got myself the rest.
Number two, I just kind of self-taught myself the rest.
Number three, I just kind of self-bought myself the rest.
Let's listen.
Jessie: It actually started with a friend of mine that was not Cherokee at all.
Even though she had no native American heritage, she was still interested in it.
She taught me, and I would make the rooms with different types of sticks, all different
types.
Vanessa: Yeah, it looks definitely all natural.
Jessie: Yeah, all different types.
Vanessa: She got into making dream catchers- Jessie: And she showed me, and then I just
kind of self-taught myself the rest.
It actually started with a friend of mine that was not Cherokee at all.
Even though she had no native American heritage, she was still interested in it.
She taught me, and I would make the rooms with different types of sticks, all different
types.
Vanessa: Yeah, it looks definitely all natural.
Jessie: Yeah, all different types.
Vanessa: She got into making dream catchers- Jessie: And she showed me, and then I just
kind of self-taught myself the rest.
Vanessa: Which sentence did you hear?
Did you hear number two, "I just kind of self-taught myself the rest."?
I hope so.
In this quick conversation clip, Jessie is talking about learning a Native American craft
called dream catchers.
She explains that her friend who has no native American heritage taught her some basics about
how to make them, but Jessie self-taught.
She taught herself the rest.
What does this expression, the rest, mean?
This means that she learned the remaining part by herself.
For example, I cleaned most of my house in the morning, and then I cleaned the rest in
the afternoon.
I cleaned the remaining part of my house in the afternoon.
All right, let's listen to that original clip again, so that you can hear and hopefully
catch those expressions.
Let's listen.
She got into making dream catchers- Jessie: And she showed me, and then I just
kind of self-taught myself the rest.
Vanessa: She got into making dream catchers- Jessie: And she showed me, and then I just
kind of self-taught myself the rest.
Vanessa: Did you hear, "I just kind of self-taught myself the rest."?
I hope so.
Let's move on to the final quiz question, number five.
This one's a little bit tricky because we speak at the same time as each other, but
you've got it.
Listen carefully.
Which one of these three sentences are you going to hear?
Number one, they're coming to the restaurant to avoid that.
Number two, they come into the restaurant to avoid that.
Number three, they're come to the restaurant to avoid that.
Let's listen.
Kevin: I never got an autograph except one time in all these years, and it was from David
Bowie.
Vanessa: Okay.
Kevin: Because my chef was in love with David Bowie, and it was just a big deal.
Vanessa: Yeah, you can't be the paparazzi when they're coming to the restaurant to avoid
that.
Kevin: Right.
Tourists find out where they are.
I never got an autograph except one time in all these years, and it was from David Bowie.
Vanessa: Okay.
Kevin: Because my chef was in love with David Bowie, and it was just a big deal.
Vanessa: Yeah, you can't be the paparazzi when they're coming to the restaurant to avoid
that.
Kevin: Right.
Tourists find out they are.
Vanessa: Which sentence did you hear?
Did you hear sentence number one?
"They're coming to the restaurant to avoid that."
I hope so.
In this conversation clip, Kevin is talking about his experience as a server in one of
the most popular restaurants in Hollywood where celebrities like to go to avoid tourists,
to avoid paparazzi.
It's a hidden spot where they could feel safe.
The second sentence that you were listening for, they come into the restaurant to avoid
that, it's grammatically correct, but it's not what I said.
So make sure you're listening for exactly what I said.
"They're coming to the restaurant to avoid that."
All right, let's listen to that quick clip again so that you can pick up on this expression.
Yeah, you can't be the paparazzi when they're coming to the restaurant to avoid that.
Kevin: Right.
Tourists find out where they are.
Vanessa: Yeah, you can't be the paparazzi when they're coming to the restaurant to avoid
that.
Kevin: Right.
Tourists find out where they are.
Vanessa: How did you do?
Did you hear, "They're coming to the restaurant to avoid that."?
I hope so.
How did you do on this quiz?
Let me know in the comments, what was your score?
Did you get all of them correct or maybe none?
I hope that you can do this quiz again and again so that you can test your listening
skills.
If the quiz was easy, like I mentioned at the beginning, go back.
Don't look at those sample sentences, but just listen to the audio and try to write
exactly what you hear.
See if you can pick up on every single word without any hints from me.
This is what we'll be doing in the 30 Day Listening Challenge, PACK 4.
We'll be boosting your listening skills so that you can understand every fast native
speaker conversation.
You'll be studying one conversation like this every day, testing your listening skills,
trying to write exactly what you hear, and checking it to see, is it correct, and learning
new expressions along the way.
Join me and thousands of other English learners around the world with the 30 Day Listening
Challenge, PACK 4.
For $30 you'll get 30 lessons, one every day during the month of January.
You can click on the link up here or in the description to learn more and to join us.
Thanks so much for learning English with me, and I'll see you again next Friday for a new
lesson here on my YouTube channel.
Bye.
The next step is to join the 30 day English listening challenge.
You'll be on the right path to increasing your listening skills and understanding fast
English speakers.
Don't forget to subscribe to my YouTube channel for more free lessons.
Thanks so much.
Bye.