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Speaker 1: People often say that Americans speak very directly. Have you

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ever heard that? Have you ever thought that? Well, in

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some cases it's true, but quite often in everyday English conversation,

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we tend to soften our language in order to sound

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less direct. And that's what today's podcast English Lesson is

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all about.

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Speaker 2: Welcome to another Happy English podcast, coming to you from

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New York City. And here's your English teacher, Michael.

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Speaker 1: All right, thank you John, and thanks everyone. It's Michael

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here from Happy English and I help people speak English better.

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And this is Happy English Podcast Episode nine to ninety seven,

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how native speakers soften statements in English. And before we

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get started, I have something special coming up. Episode one

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thousand of the Happy English Podcast drops on February twenty eighth,

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and I'd really love to include you in it. Yes, you,

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If you've been listening for a while and this podcast

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has helped you in any way, please send me a

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short message about twenty to forty seconds is fine. Just

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tell me your first name, where you're listening from, and

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how long you've been listening and how the podcast has

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helped you. You can record it on your phone in

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a quiet room and email the audio to me at

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Michael at Myhappy English dot com. That's Michael at Myhappy

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English dot com. And if you'd rather write a message instead,

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that's totally fine too. Some of your messages will be

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featured in episode one thousand, so please send them by

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February twenty. I can't wait to hear from you. Okay,

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let's dive into today's topic. Have you ever noticed that

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native speakers don't always speak in extremes. We often use

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phrases to soften our language, like I'm kinda tired, or

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it's a bit cold outside, or when someone asks are

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you hungry, we don't always say no, we say not really.

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Native speakers soften things all the time. So today we're

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going to look at five very common softening phrases kinda, sorta,

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a bit, a little and not really. These small phrases

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can completely change your tone and make your English sound

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more natural, more polite, and more conversational. Let's start with

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kind of. We use kind of to make something sound

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less strong and less direct instead of sounding one hundred

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percent certain or dramatic. Kind of reduces the intensity. And

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here was a pronunciation tip. We usually say kind of

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like kinda like, imagine you stayed up too late watching Netflix,

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and the next morning your coworker says, huh, you look tired.

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You could reply with, yeah, I'm kinda tired today. That

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sounds softer and more casual than saying yes, I'm tired today.

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Or let's say you try a new restaurant and your

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friend asks, so how was it? If you didn't love it,

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but you don't want to be harsh, you might say

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it was kind of expensive for what we got. That

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sounds honest but not aggressive. Sort of works almost exactly

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the same way. Sort of also softens a statement and

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makes it less direct and just like kind of sounds

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like kinda sort of is usually pronounced sorta in casual speech,

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like I sort of get it or I'm sort of confused.

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For example, if your manager asks did you understand the

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new system and you're not completely confident, you might say, yeah,

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I sort of get it. That sounds more natural than

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saying I do not understand. Or imagine your friend asks

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are you mad, and you don't want to start a

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big discussion, you might say, no, I'm not mad, I'm

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just sort of frustrated. Again, sorta softens the feeling and

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it's very natural now let's move on to a bit

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and a little. These are also softeners, but they usually

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describe degree, especially with adjectives. Imagine you're at a friend's

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house and they ask if comfortable. Instead of saying it's

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hot in here, which can sound like a complaint, you

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might say it's a bit warm in here, or it's

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a little warm. That sounds much more polite and relaxed.

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Or imagine you're trying a dish at a restaurant and

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your friend asks what you think. Instead of saying it's salty,

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you might say it's a little salty. That softens your

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opinion and makes it sound less critical. Here's another one.

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If you're watching a movie and your friend asks are

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you following the story? Instead of saying this doesn't make

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any sense, you might say, hmm, I'm a bit confused.

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And if someone asks how you're feeling after a long day,

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instead of saying I'm exhausted, you could say I'm a

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little tired. These small changes make your English sound calm

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and natural. Now let's talk about not really. Not really

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is a common soft negative answer in English. Instead of

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saying a hard no, we often say not really. Like

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if a friend asks are you hungry, you can say

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not really, I just ate. That sounds a lot softer

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than just saying no. Or imagine your friend says, hey,

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did you like the movie and you didn't love it?

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Instead of saying no, it was bad, you might say,

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not really, it was kind of slow. Notice how we

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can combine these softeners. Here's another situation. Your coworker asks,

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are you finished with that project? If you're almost done

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but not completely, you might say not really, I still

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need about an hour. Again, not really avoids a blunt response,

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so let's step back for a second. Speakers soften statements

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for three main reasons. First, to avoid sounding too strong

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or too dramatic. That's where kinda and sorta come in. Second,

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to be polite, especially when describing problems are giving feedback.

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That's where a bit and a little are useful. Third,

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to soften negative answers. That's where not really shines. These

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small phrases don't weaken your English, they actually make you

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sound more socially aware and more fluent. So here's your

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challenge this week. Instead of saying I'm tired, try saying

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I'm kinda tired. And instead of saying it's cold, say

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it's a bit cold, and instead of saying no, try not. Really,

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That's how you start sounding more natural. And keep in

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mind the best way to remember English like this and

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any other word or phrase in English, is to take

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that word or phrase, write it in a sentence that's

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true for you or true in your world, and then

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memorize your sentences. Hey, thanks for listening, and remember learning

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another language is not easy, but it's not impossible, and

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I'm here to help you on your journey.

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Speaker 2: This podcast is brought to you by Happy English. Please

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visit Myhappy English dot com show your support for Happy

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English by leaving us a review. Get English, Get Happy,

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Happy English