AEE: We Are Certain You’ll Love This English Vocabulary
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This is an All Ears English podcast. We are certain you'll love this English vocabulary. Welcome to the All Ears English podcast downloaded more than 200 million times. Are you feeling stuck with your English? We'll show you how to become fearless and fluent by focusing on connection, not perfection with your American host, Aubrey Carter, the IELTS whiz.

and Lindsay McMahon, the English adventurer, coming to you from Arizona and Colorado, USA. To get real-time transcripts right on your phone and create your personalized vocabulary list, try the All Ears English app for iOS and Android. Start your seven-day free trial at allearsenglish.com forward slash app.

There is a certain word in English that has at least four different meanings. Listen in today to find out how to use this diverse and dynamic word in English.

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hey there aubrey what's shaking i'm great how are you lindsay pretty good today we're recording today on a monday but today is actually a saturday so that's right i heard a certain someone is remodeling their bathroom how's that going that's right a certain someone is that would be me um let's just say it's loud

The sound of tile being cut. I think I could do without it for the rest of my life, but it'll be done soon. It's actually two bathrooms at the same time that we're doing. So it's a lot. Yeah. Yes. That's exciting though. It's fun to remodel these older homes, right? I've done some of that too, but it is very loud. It's always very disruptive. Very loud. A certain

Someone is how you open that. That's a creative thing to say, Aubrey. What did you mean by that? I'm excited to dive into this. This is such a fun, playful way to refer to something you already know about someone, right? To be like, I heard a certain someone is and whatever you've heard.

And we got a really good question about the word certain. There's a lot of ways we use it that we're going to dive in, but I think this is my favorite, the way we started out here. And this connects to something Michelle and I taught on Allers English, right here on Allers English, I think, where we talked about sometimes, for example, if my dog steals food or something, he doesn't actually do that. But just for example, someone stole a chicken and

Right? So that's another option instead of saying certain just saying someone is when you know who the person is and you're teasing them a little bit, right? Exactly right. These are two different ways we do this. And yeah, it's fun to like, point out something you already know without naming them in just a really playful way to tease like that. I love it. Yeah, so that is somewhere in our back catalog guys, go check out all the episodes of all layers English so you don't miss a single one. Well, Aubrey, we have a question. Do you want to read the question?

from Dream? - Absolutely, yes. - Okay. - So it says, "Hello, Lindsay, Michelle, Jessica, and Aubrey. My name is Dream. I'm a doctor from Thailand.

I would like to give a big shout out to you guys for helping my English skills. Your podcast is perfect for me who is stuck at a B2 level and hope to get to C1 soon. Very native and natural English. I love this. Thank you, Dream, for this positive feedback. That is our goal here. And I love that she is recognizing like this is the podcast to get me there. That's it. I love that. And then she said, may I ask some questions? How do you use certain in sentences when you're speaking?

Great question. A real way to up level today, right? Absolutely, right? So we're going to do it because we use this lots of different ways. And it means something totally different. There's so many different meanings. So this is tricky. I can imagine Dream and a lot of you out there have heard the word certain in a lot of different sentences, often meaning very different things. And that can be super confusing. So I'm excited to clarify today.

Yes, guys, before we get into this to answering the question for dream and for any listeners who really do want to move up to that C1 level, right, we're going to get into it. But first, hit that follow button. So Aubrey, let's get into number one. Let's just go right to it. Yeah. So first, certain can mean known for sure something that has been established beyond doubt.

So for example, I might say, "It's certain that more changes are coming." So this is just everyone who's listening to what I'm saying. I'm saying something that's a known fact, something that's certain to everyone. There's no question. - Yeah, so again, what you said was, "It's certain that more changes are coming." So you're guaranteed that you're gonna see more changes, right?

- Exactly, or how else could we use this, Lindsay? - All right, you could say, "I wasn't sure if they were gonna visit this year, but it sounds like it's certain." Meaning, yes, it's definitely going to happen. - Exactly, whatever they have said to you has made it clear that it's guaranteed, it's definitely happening, so it'd say, "Oh, okay, it's certain."

And the pronunciation is interesting here to dive in for just a second. Depending on where a speaker is from, they might pronounce that T certain. But often in our regional dialects, we use more of a glottal stop there, certain, and we don't pronounce the T. Yeah. I remember when I was teaching English in New York, a lot of my students would really get hung up on the Manhattan thing.

We used to practice it a lot. It was a big sticking point there to be able to say that correctly. It's that same glottal stop, right? Manhattan, when there's the T and the N with a vowel in the middle, button, certain, Manhattan. We see it a lot and it's weird for people.

It's very weird. It is, right? You see the T and you think, I should be pronouncing this hard T here. But for a lot of words, you don't hear it at all. And certain is one of those. Yes. All right. And then what else, Aubrey? What's the second way? The second meaning is confident to have complete conviction. And this is where you're saying it about yourself. I'm certain. I'm certain. And this is interesting where when I say it this way, I'm more likely to pronounce the T, to say, I'm certain about this.

Oh, so not do the... Interesting. So, let's see. And it's almost because I'm trying to emphasize my surety to say, "Okay, I'm certain this will happen." Yeah, I think that might be a personality difference between us. I think I would still do the Guadalupap. Just, "I'm certain you'll like that." For me, I don't know if I would say that as much. I would say, "I'm sure. I'm sure you're going to like this."

I'm just a little more casual, I think, in the way I speak. That's a good point that this is a little bit less casual, right? If you say, "I'm certain you'll like this movie." And I think I go back and forth because there I would say, "I'm certain." Or, "Are you absolutely certain about this?" And a lot of people would say, "Sure." Are you sure? Are you absolutely sure? But this is a good option though, let's say at work, if you want to just up level a little bit, feel a little more formal, asking your

you know someone in the accounting department are you absolutely certain that your numbers are correct yeah or even just to not repeat yourself if you just said are you sure about that and you want to ask again you could say but are you certain about that you asked me the same question yes right you're using a different word but you're still asking me if I'm sure right right

All right. That's good stuff. So number three now is about being specific, but not explicitly named or stated. Tell us about this one, Aubrey. Yes. So we use this when we want to avoid giving specifics for some reason. So for example, if I say, he raised certain concerns while we were chatting, so I decided not to go on a second date. This is where I don't want to share all of those concerns. I'm not going to go into all of the details. So I'll say, oh, he raised certain concerns. I

Yeah, this is interesting. Or there are certain things we should discuss. Now, you're going to discuss them. But here in this moment, when I tell you we need to discuss them, I don't want to discuss them yet. Exactly. Yes. And for that one, you could just say, oh, there are some things we need to discuss that means the same thing, right? This is interesting. And you could say, you know, he raised some concerns. Really, these mean the same thing. But I like certain here. You know, if I'm going to say like, oh, there were certain things.

certain issues where you're almost sort of emphasizing the import of them. Yeah. And it's kind of the opposite of what you said at the beginning. I heard a certain someone is having their bathroom remodeled. It's kind of in the top of the show, you use that a little bit facetiously, whereas this is the more

straightforward version of it where you're not naming that person. You're not naming that thing. Does that make sense? Exactly. We know that there will be specifics or we know there are specifics that aren't named, right? Whereas that other use, and we're going to go into that one next, is so much more playful because you're just pointing out like, oh, this is something I know and I'm not naming you to be silly.

Yeah, exactly. And this is more in line with that other episode where we said someone. Now we're going to show you how to use it with certain someone. So let's get into that one now because I think our listeners know that teasing someone a little is a true connection skill if you have the rapport, right? Yes. This is definitely my favorite of all the ways to use certain. You're referring to someone without naming them, like we said, sort of to tease. So maybe I'd say...

it looks like a certain someone got a haircut. I love it. And this is not as much playful. I'm just saying like, oh, I noticed you got a haircut. I love it. It's just another fun way to say that. Very cool. And it does bring you closer to them, I think. I don't know. I think using just someone alone maybe brings you even closer. But certain someone is just a variation, right? And that would be, you know, just say someone got a haircut. It looks great. Yeah, exactly. And then here's another example.

a certain someone is coming over for dinner tonight. So everyone be on their best behavior. So the assumption here is that we all know who that person is. Exactly. Maybe like someone has invited a, you know, a boyfriend and we're all excited to meet them. So if you say this, it's known that everyone knows who it is and be like, okay, guys, remember a certain someone is coming over. So be on your best behavior.

And that carries some gravity. Like there's something, it's kind of a big deal to who you're saying it to that this person means something to these people. Right. You wouldn't just say it about like grandma. Like there's something that's kind of a big deal that this person's coming over. Exactly. Exactly. Love it.

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Okay. And then we have a French phrase, which I'll let you pronounce Aubrey because you're our resident fluent in French person. Such a fun expression. I use this a lot. It's a certain je ne sais quoi, which means like something usually an appealing quality, but that you can't

really describe in words, it's difficult to express. We'll say this, you might say, that actor has a certain je ne sais quoi, which just means in French, I don't know what. It means like, the actor has a certain, I don't know what, I can't quite put my finger on it.

Yeah, a certain swagger or confidence or just, I don't know what it is. Something about them that we just can't quite name. It could be, you know, but it's usually positive. It wouldn't, you wouldn't say something like you think someone's a terrible person, be like, oh, they have a certain je ne sais quoi. Nope, this is something appealing.

Yeah. So you might hear that as a chunk occasionally in movies or something like that, right? Yeah. And it's interesting. We usually do use it with certain like this, right? It would almost be strange to be like, they have a je ne sais quoi. We almost always say a certain je ne sais quoi. Yeah. That's interesting. I think everyone knows that phrase, but I had never thought about it needs to have the certain with it. That's fascinating. Yeah.

And we also want to make sure you guys don't miss, we did this really fun episode not long ago, 2138, right here on Allers English called, Are You Making These French Pronunciation Errors? And they're chunks that we use in English all the time, but are French words that are sometimes mispronounced by natives and language learners alike. So be sure to go check out that episode if you missed it. All right, Aubrey, let's dive into our role play. So here we are friends and we're meeting to discuss a project.

Awesome. I'll start us out. Hello. Are you surprised a certain someone is on time? I was certain you were going to be late. I know. It's usually certain that I'll be 10 minutes late. I

I love the scarf you're wearing. It's giving you a certain je ne sais quoi. Well, I'm glad you're here. There are certain things we need to discuss that I've been dreading a bit. Clearly, one of us is very serious and the other is just kind of floaty like, I'm here. I love your scarf. I know. I kind of love it. I can imagine this at work when one person's like, la, la, la. The other person's like, we've got things we need to talk about. It's always fun with comedy skits where you have two totally different personalities. Totally.

yeah funny stuff all right good so here we said hello are you surprised so who is the certain someone that you're talking about this you can use it to refer to yourself right so i've shown up to this meeting i'm usually late and i say are you surprised a certain someone is on time and i'm talking about myself i just got here on time so this is another fun way to use this yeah that's fun so you're

It is kind of a connection skill to recognize your own sort of shortcomings or maybe in your mind, it's not a shortcoming. I don't know, just floating around enjoying life. But it's to say that, to name that and to be able to do it in English is very high level.

Yeah. And this is so much more fun than just, are you surprised I'm on time? Right? If you can use this chunk, call yourself a certain someone and notice our intonation, how it changes. Because it would be kind of strange to say, are you surprised a certain someone is on time? No, no, don't do that. Don't do that. I don't understand. You have to use this really sing-songy, playful intonation. Exactly. With Michelle, last week, we were talking about the certain...

phrases or expressions require a theatrical delivery, almost like you're on stage. This requires that too, a little bit. And I love that you just used it there naturally. You said certain phrases require this. That is exactly how we use this. It's strange there to say some phrases because it's almost like you're getting more specific about that content.

Yeah, I'm not sure if that was one of our, you know, one of the specific ways that we outline certain, but it is it is a little bit more specific than some.

Absolutely. Yeah, this is that was number three, like, it wasn't not explicitly named or stated, right? Certain phrases need this intonation. Yes. And then I said, I was certain you were going to be late. So I'm the serious one. Clearly. You were. And this means the same as I was sure you were going to late. That was be late. That's that second meaning there. Yeah, excellent. And then you said, Aubrey, I know.

I know. It's usually certain that I'll be 10 minutes late. That was that first meaning, something that's expected, sort of general knowledge. Everybody knows Aubrey's going to be late. This isn't true for me in real life, by the way, guys. I really try to be on time. Yeah.

That's so funny. And then you said, oh, I love this scarf you're wearing. It's giving you a certain je ne sais quoi, right? So really good stuff. Yes. That just means like, and this is kind of a fun way to compliment someone like this, right? If you're just saying like, I like what you're wearing, it's just kind of giving you something fancy, something extra, you know, it's very complimentary.

It reminds me of some movie scene when everyone, all the serious workers are in the room and the floaty person comes in and they're just kind of like waving their own scarf in the air and sort of, well, it's almost like I'm trying to distract you, right? You're like, yeah, you're always late. And I'm like, I like your scarf. Yeah. So funny. And then I said, well, I'm glad you're here. There are certain things we need to discuss that I've been dreading a bit. Uh-oh.

Yeah. So this is number three again, where, you know, these are, there's specific things in your mind, but you have not stated them yet. They're not explicitly stated yet, but we're going to be talking about them. I could tell you've got a plan here. I love it. I love it. So this episode also pairs well, we mentioned where to go for another episode, but it also pairs well with that someone. I'm not sure what the number is or when it came out just in the last month or two guys. So just check back in the back catalog to see what else you can find. Yeah, search someone on the blog and they'll

Yes. Aubrey, what is the takeaway for today? I almost said Michelle, but I didn't do it. Good job stopping yourself. So yeah, this vocab is so great for connection, especially these that we've really highlighted, a fun way to say like a certain someone. This helps you stay general and gives you a playful expression to connecting in English. Yeah, sometimes there is

a time to be lighthearted, to be fun, and to have personality in certain situations. It's just a very diverse word that gets a lot of things done for you. Exactly, right? It's so useful, but we use it so many different ways. So listen to this episode again if you're unclear on some of these because you're going to hear them a ton. You should be able to use them in English. They're so flexible. All right, Aubrey. Guys, hit the follow button on All Ears English, and we'll see you next time. Awesome. See you next time. All right. Bye. Bye.

Thanks for listening to All Ears English. Would you like to know your English level? Take our two-minute quiz. Go to allearsenglish.com forward slash fluency score. And if you believe in connection, not perfection, then hit subscribe now to make sure you don't miss anything. See you next time.