Embarrassing Tales
Martin from Rock ‘n’ Roll English joins me to share some embarrassing stories in life and related to language learning. We talk about embarrassing stories from our past, what you can do to embarrass a Brit, as well as learning from these awkward situations to help with language learning and self development.
Timestamps
- 0:00 – Intro
- 2:23 – Who is Martin?
- 4:11 – How many podcasts do you listen to?
- 6:18 – Why do you focus on embarrassing stories?
- 8:43 – How do you kiss when greeting someone?
- 13:37 – What other embarrassing social interactions have you had?
- 16:13 – What’s your most embarrassing story?
- 26:34 – Michael’s embarrassing zombie train story
- 29:34 – What embarrassing moments have you had in Italian?
- 34:50 – Everyone makes mistakes
- 39:45 – Vicarious embarrassment
- 42:32 – Schadenfreude
- 48:15 – How can you embarrass a Brit?
- 52:29 – Where to find Martin
Where to Find Martin
Vocabulary & Expressions
- Cringy (00:52) – Something that makes you feel embarrassed
- On the flip side (07:06) – On the other hand, on the opposite side
- To pull a finger out (10:27) – Stop being lazy and start doing something (quite rude)
- Peck (11:14) – A quick, light kiss
- To bid farewell (12:93) – To say goodbye to someone (very formal)
- Touchy-feely (12:49) – An adjective to describe someone who likes to touch people (eg. hugs)
- To stiffen up (15:29) – To get hard (not flexible)
- Old but gold (16:42) – Something that is old but still really good
- Peckish (17:06) – A little hungry
- Numb (19:47) – Unable to feel
- Scum (20:00) – Rude and strong word for a terrible person (like ‘dirt’)
- Leeway (21:35) – Freedom to do something
- Traumatic (24:17) – Describing something that affects you mentally in a really negative way
- To erupt in laughter (31:06) – To laugh out loud suddenly
- To make light of something (34:55) – To make a bad situation seem more positive
- Vicarious (39:56) – Experiencing something through the actions of someone else
- Schadenfreude (43:01) – A German word often used in English, meaning taking pleasure in someone else’s pain
- To ring a bell (43:24) – To sound familiar
- To ease the tension (45:29) – To make the situation less tense and awkward
- Bidet (48:11) – An item used to clean yourself with water after using the toilet
- Hierarchy (51:08) – A system where people are ranked above and below each other in levels of importance
“Mistakes actually happen in your native language as well. So you shouldn’t really be so harsh on yourself in a foreign language”
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Hi Micheal! Can “make light of something” also mean “look down upon something”?
Hi Robin! I think they’re a little different. If you make light of something, you treat something as important. (He made light of the serious situation). To look down (up)on something is to view it as inferior. (He looked down on the child with disgust)
Hope that helps!
Thanks！