Do yourself a favor. Stop studying English. Yeah I said that. Me, your humble English teacher. In this podcast English lesson, I’m going to explain why I suggest you stop studying English and what you can do instead to practice and improve your English.  Today I want you to rethink what you do in English. I want you to move from the “I study English” to the “I use English” mindset. Let’s jump in! Join my Podcast Learner's Study Group here: https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/transcript Visit...

Even though I was up with the chickens this morning, because of a train delay I got to the office just in the nick of time. I’m using the trains for the time being, but in the meantime, I’m looking for an apartment closer to the office.  For this English lesson, let’s take a look at 6 phrases that you can use to talk about time. These are common phrases that you can use in your everyday spoken and written English.  Let’s dive in! Join my Podcast Learner's Study Group here:...

As you may already know, I’m a huge music lover. But as for sports, frankly, I couldn’t care less. For all I care, all the local teams could lose and it wouldn’t bother me! Would you care to know why? The verb care is an interesting word in English because it has a number of uses as well as idioms that are common in everyday English conversation.  Join my Podcast Learner's Study Group here: https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/transcript Visit my website: https://www.myhappyenglish.com/

Have you ever heard of Louis Armstrong? Did you ever listen to jazz? Among all jazz musicians, Louis Armstrong has probably the most unique voice ever. I’m sure if you listen to his music, you’ll be ever so happy!  The adverb ever means at any time, and that could mean at any time in the past or in the future. For today’s English lesson, let’s look at all the different ways we use this versatile little word. Join my Podcast Learner's Study Group here:...

I'm not trying to let the cat out of the bag, but I have to tell you, I am dog tired.  I'm going to guess that you're going to want to know why, but keep in mind curiosity killed the cat. Yup, today is all about cats and dogs. For today's English lesson let's have a look at idioms that deal with cats and dogs. I really love helping you learn idioms because they do tend to make your English conversation and writing more colorful and more natural sounding.  Join my Podcast Learner's Study...

When I was younger I could play the piano a lot better than I can now. You know? I'm glad I was able to tell you that. Knowing modal verbs like can and be able to is not only important for your everyday English conversation, but using this grammar correctly will give you an edge in English exams like IELTS, TOEFL, and TOEIC.  Join my Podcast Learner's Study Group here: https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/transcript Visit my website: https://www.myhappyenglish.com/

Day in and day out, I try to come up with topics to talk about here on the Happy English podcast. Most of my ideas come from questions or problems my students have. At the end of the day, it’s always best to keep trying new things. In this day and age, I think most people are interested in learning something. That’s plain as day, no? Today, let’s look as 10 idioms and expressions that relate to time and day. Join my Podcast Learner's Study Group here:...

Wouldn't it be nice if we could learn another language quickly and easily? Oh, don’t worry, this isn’t a commercial, just an intro to this lesson. Isn’t that why you’re here? Negative questions are questions that begin with the negative forms of the be verb and other auxiliary verbs. Like their cousins, tag questions, negative questions are often used to check what we think is true. Let’s go! Join my Podcast Learner's Study Group here: https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/transcript Visit my...

I’m sure you have a lot on your plate, so thanks a lot for checking out my podcast. Today I have something special for everyone working in an international environment. I’m not saying that I have the silver bullet, but I think this episode is going to be a game changer for you. For today’s English lesson, let’s have a look at 8 phrases that you can use in the workplace and in your daily English conversations. Join my Podcast Learner's Study Group here:...

American English pronunciation is interesting. A lot of English learners tell me that Americans talk to quickly. But I would say it’s more the style of speaking than the speed. One interesting feature of spoken American English is the fact that We. Do. Not. Like. To. Stop. After. Each. Word. In. A. Sentence. Quite often, the end of one word links with the beginning of the next word. For this English lesson, we’re going look at one particular sound that happens when one word ends with a vowel...

For this English lesson, We’re going to look at nine different ways that we use the verb have. Have is one of those interesting words in English that has multiple meanings and uses, as well as a number of different grammar patterns. By the way, have is an irregular verb, and the three parts are have, had, and had. Let’s get the ball rolling! Join my Podcast Learner's Study Group here: https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/transcript Visit my website: https://www.myhappyenglish.com/

For this English lesson, I'm going to show you a couple of different types of questions that you can ask when you want to check that the information you have is right. Basically, these are tag questions and negative questions. By the end of this lesson you'll understand how these questions are used in everyday, conversational English. Join my Podcast Learner's Study Group here: https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/transcript Visit my website: https://www.myhappyenglish.com/

Guess what! This lesson is all about conversational phrases in American English. And maybe you’re wondering…can I find a lesson like this in a book? Not exactly. “How come?,”you may ask. How come indeed. Let’s check it out. For this English lesson, I’m going to show you how to sound more American, by using words and phrases that will make your English conversations sound, well, less like a text book. By the end of this lesson, you be able to use and understand this English. Let’s dive...

Have you ever seen the movie, Good Morning Vietnam with Robin Williams? In that movie, an army base had William’s character work as a radio dj, and his personality had everyone on the base laughing. Except of course his supervisors, who wanted to have him transferred. Have someone do something, have someone doing something, and have someone done. By the end of this podcast, you’ll have learned six different ways to use have in the causative. Join my Podcast Learner's Study Group here:...

Thanks again for spending time with the Happy English podcast. I remember the time I first started doing this in 2014. I was killing time on social medial when I first knew about podcasts. Those were interesting times! Time? Times? Let’s discuss! Join my Podcast Learner's Study Group here: https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/transcript Visit my website: https://www.myhappyenglish.com/

Let me ask you something. Would you rather pay train fare or a highway toll? Do you think the admission charge at the movie theater is reasonable? In your country, what percentage of a doctor's fee do patients usually need to pay? In this podcast English lesson you're going to learn the difference between six different types of things you can pay. Join my Podcast Learner's Study Group here: https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/transcript Visit my website: https://www.myhappyenglish.com/ FREE...

Learning idioms can make your English conversations sound more natural and today, we’re going to look at five idioms you might use in your English conversations at the beginning of the year. By the end of this podcast, you’ll learn these idioms and the history behind how we started saying them! Join my Podcast Learner's Study Group here: https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/transcript Visit my website: https://www.myhappyenglish.com/ FREE Workshop to build your vocabulary:...

Merry Christmas 2023. For today’s podcast, I’ve gotten together an amazing group of English learners from all over the world to bring to you a very special reading of A Visit From St. Nicholas, the iconic Christmas poem written by Clement Clarke Moore in 1837. In no particular order, thanks to Rémi (France), Naoko (Japan), Peter (Russia), Andrea (Germany), Konomi (Japan), Fabri (Italy), Tammy (Hong Kong), Sumiko (Japan), Elena (Italy) Noriko (Japan), Nancy (Guadalupe) Join my Podcast...

For today's English lesson we're going to take a look at five idioms which are things that you can hit: Hit the ceiling, hit the hay / sack, hit the jackpot, hit the sauce, and hit the town By the end of this lesson you're going to not only learn these idioms but you also have an idea as to where they came from. Join my Podcast Learner's Study Group here: https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/transcript Visit my website: https://www.myhappyenglish.com/

Are you determined to do anything, come hell or high water? Are you able to keep your head above water these days? Is there anything you want to try and test the waters? Has anyone told you a story that couldn’t hold water? By the end of this podcast English lesson, you’ll learn five water idioms and also how they came to be. Have a topic you'd like me to cover here? Send me a message and let me know! Join my Podcast Learner's Study Group here:...

Have you ever felt like a fish out of water? Maybe you’ve been in hot water recently, or in deep water with your boss. Do you feel like your relationship with the boss is like oil and water, or is that more like water off a duck’s back. Let’s discuss. Join my Podcast Learner's Study Group here: https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/transcript Visit my website: https://www.myhappyenglish.com/ This show is part of the Spreaker Prime Network, if you are interested in advertising on this...

After you arrive in New York, you can probably arrive at your hotel within an hour. Since you’ll be arriving with luggage, I’d suggest taking a taxi. When you arrive by taxi, the hotel will have a special entrance just for you. Let’s discuss. Join my Podcast Learner's Study Group here: https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/transcript Visit my website: https://www.myhappyenglish.com/ This show is part of the Spreaker Prime Network, if you are interested in advertising on this podcast,...

I suppose you’re listening to this podcast in order to learn something about English. I also suppose you’ll be taking notes. Why? Well, suppose you want to remember these English points. You’re supposed to do that, you know! Let’s discuss. Send me a DM with your suggestion or request for a lesson here! Visit my website: https://www.myhappyenglish.com/ Join my Podcast Learner's Study Group here: https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/transcript This show is part of the Spreaker Prime Network,...

In this podcast English lesson, I'm speaking with author and English teacher, Gregory Diehl. Gregory has a new book out called Our Global Lingua Franca: An Educator's Guide to Spreading English Where EFL Doesn't Work which explores the cultural and economic importance of spreading English as a universal language. Gregory has taught in more than a dozen countries and observed the persistent flaws that prevent the majority of learners from developing even conversational English fluency, let...