Questions From Friends about English-Related Stuff

Englishwithdain.comslash transcripts. Today's episode is a bit of a different one. I'm going to talk about or share really some of the questions I get asked by my friends. Once in a while I get voice notes on WhatsApp from friends asking me an English-related question or wanting me to clear something up or explain the difference between blah blah. So I thought I'd share a few with you. So now that you know, let's jump in. You are listening to episode 102 of English with Dane. Hit it.

So in the United States and Canada, people say Nike. In the UK, you'll find that people say Nike. In Spain, decimos Nike también. The company calls itself Nike, so I guess if you want a definitive answer, that would be it. But again, it doesn't really matter. Choose whichever pronunciation you like more and roll with that one. My English friends give me shit for saying Nike. My American friends give them shit for saying Nike, but no one really cares. Alright, next question.

This one's from my friend Pablo. Shout out to Pablo. And he wants to know how to use ain't. That's ain't A-I-N apostrophe T. Like this. Ain't nothing but against the body. Ain't is used in informal speech, and it's a really interesting word actually, because it's a contraction, but for a bunch of different combinations of words. You'll normally hear it replacing am not, is not, are not, has not, and have not, but it can even replace do not, does not, and did not.

So it's actually a really versatile word. You probably won't use it in an email anytime soon, but you'll definitely hear it in the lyrics of a million different songs because it's so much nicer to sing and it just fits better. Ain't no sunshine when she's gone. You ain't nothing but a dog. This word was probably popularized by hip-hop, really, and it probably got a bad reputation from that.

I think people view it as an incorrect way to speak, but I don't think anyone really has the authority to say that, so do with that what you will. This next question also comes from my friend Pablo who wants to know what fuss means. Fuss is spelled F-U-S-S. You can use this word as a noun or as a verb. Personally, I think I only use it as a noun, and I always use it in the same way. Real quick, definition of fuss. A display of unnecessary or excessive excitement, activity or interest.

Again, a display of unnecessary or excessive excitement, activity or interest. If there's a movie, for example, and everyone is saying how amazing it is, and how much it blew them away. Oh, one phrasal verb. And everyone is talking about it on social media, saying it deserves an Oscar, but then you watch it and meh. And then someone asks you if you saw it, you would say, I really don't know what all the fuss is about. Again, I really don't know what all the fuss is about.

So I don't know what all the unnecessary or excessive excitement, activity, or interest is about. Shout out to you guys, by the way. Un saludo a Colombia, yeah Mexico, yeah Peru, yeah, Argentina, Brazil, and all of you guys. Guatemala and Honduras también, saludos, I appreciate your support. Alright, next question. This one's from my friend Richie, and he wants to know what's up with the word though spelled T H O U G H. So this one can be a bit confusing. There are two ways to use it.

Ignore the dog in the background, by the way. So there are two ways to use it as a conjunction and as an adverb. A quick example with each. First, though as a conjunction, which basically means although, so a pesar de in Spanish. Though they were the best team, they lost in the first round of the playoffs. Though they were walking slowly, they still got there first. So a pesar de, that's though as a conjunction. Now, if we use though as an adverb, then it takes on a different meaning.

Then it's kind of like saying however or nevertheless, sin embargo. A few examples. We went whale watching the other day, but we didn't see any whales though. My head hurts from working all day. I still need to write a few emails though. That's though as an adverb. Alright, one more question, y como no, from my friend Pablo. I should just change the name of this episode to Things Pablo Asks Me.

Actually, that can be maybe a recurring segment if Pablo continues to ask me things, which I don't doubt that he will. Anyways, in this case, he asks me about the pronunciation of the word grudo or gruda in English, which is raw. Now, the classic mistake people make here, and this is especially true for Spanish people in particular, is to round out your mouth at the end of the word. Spanish people will say raw instead of raw.

It's a weird sound because it's kind of in between the A and the O. No es una A española, pero tampoco es una O. Try it. Raw, raw, raw. It's the same vowel sound as in law, ¿no? Ley, and Paw, pata, as in my dog hurt his paw. Try saying my brother-in-law likes raw meat. Practice that. Don't say my brother-in-law likes raw meat. It's tricky at first, but once you get it right, you'll see that it's a vowel sound that you can apply to a bunch of different words.

Saw, for example, I saw my friends last week. Saw raw law. It's all the same sound. Maybe we should do an episode about these vowel sounds, because it's something that holds people back from speaking, and it's very changeable, I think. You just have to isolate those vowel sounds and get good at them. I'll do an episode about it because there's a lot to say about this. Alright, everyone, that's it for today's episode of English with Dane. I hope you enjoyed it. I hope you got something from it.

Remember, you don't have to learn everything I talk about. You don't have to learn everything, period. Don't think about how much you don't know or have left to learn. Think about the things you're learning every day, every week, and keep building on that. Okay, thanks for listening. I really appreciate it. Support English with Dane by following the show on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen. Give it a five-star rating and leave a review if you want to go the extra mile.

That's a cool expression, by the way. All right, talk soon. Bye bye.