1 00:00:00,360 --> 00:00:04,120 Speaker 1: I have some things to tell you today. Even though 2 00:00:04,519 --> 00:00:09,560 I had some trouble putting this lesson together. I mean, 3 00:00:09,759 --> 00:00:14,800 I had like some fifty different ideas, but I narrowed 4 00:00:14,839 --> 00:00:23,519 it down to this one. This is gonna be some lesson. 5 00:00:23,879 --> 00:00:27,559 Speaker 2: Welcome to another Happy English podcast, coming to you from 6 00:00:27,600 --> 00:00:31,399 New York City. And here's your English teacher, Michael. 7 00:00:32,200 --> 00:00:36,600 Speaker 1: All right, thank you John, and thanks everyone. It's Michael 8 00:00:36,640 --> 00:00:41,200 here from Happy English and I help people speak English better. 9 00:00:41,600 --> 00:00:47,079 And this is Happy English Podcast, Episode eight forty one. 10 00:00:48,119 --> 00:00:54,479 This is some lesson. Hello and welcome. Thanks for joining 11 00:00:54,520 --> 00:00:58,679 me for another episode of the Happy English Podcast. I'm 12 00:00:58,679 --> 00:01:02,880 your English teacher, Michael. Well, and I'm so glad you're listening. 13 00:01:03,359 --> 00:01:07,920 Today we're diving into a small word that does a 14 00:01:08,000 --> 00:01:14,719 lot of work in English. Some You probably already use it, 15 00:01:15,480 --> 00:01:20,200 But did you know that some has more than one meaning? 16 00:01:21,079 --> 00:01:25,159 Did you know that we have seven ways to use some? 17 00:01:26,439 --> 00:01:31,760 Let's break it down together, and as always, let's start simple. 18 00:01:32,719 --> 00:01:37,040 I think you already know that we use some when 19 00:01:37,040 --> 00:01:42,640 we're talking about an unspecified amount of something like I 20 00:01:43,000 --> 00:01:47,879 ate some French fries or Iran some errands. This morning, 21 00:01:48,959 --> 00:01:52,640 I didn't say exactly how many fries I ate or 22 00:01:53,280 --> 00:01:59,159 which errands iran. It's vague, and that's okay. Using some 23 00:01:59,560 --> 00:02:07,079 keeps casual and flexible. But here's where it gets interesting. 24 00:02:08,000 --> 00:02:13,960 Some can also mean a lot, like a surprisingly large 25 00:02:14,000 --> 00:02:19,319 amount of something. For example, I've known my buddy Paul 26 00:02:19,479 --> 00:02:24,120 for some years now. In fact, we've known each other 27 00:02:24,400 --> 00:02:28,400 since high school, and he sent me some pictures of 28 00:02:28,479 --> 00:02:34,039 his house. It looks amazing. He must have spent some 29 00:02:34,319 --> 00:02:40,599 money renovating his house. In this context, we use some 30 00:02:41,199 --> 00:02:45,159 to mean a large amount of something, and using some 31 00:02:45,520 --> 00:02:51,599 this way gives emphasis to that thing. I've known him 32 00:02:51,719 --> 00:02:55,960 for some years. This has the nuance that, yeah, it's 33 00:02:56,000 --> 00:03:00,319 been a while now. I could have just said I've 34 00:03:00,360 --> 00:03:05,280 known him for many years, but that's just a fact 35 00:03:06,120 --> 00:03:10,639 I've known him for some years gives us the nuance 36 00:03:10,960 --> 00:03:14,840 that it's been a long time. So, depending on how 37 00:03:14,879 --> 00:03:19,759 you say it and the context, some can suggest a 38 00:03:19,879 --> 00:03:20,639 big amount. 39 00:03:22,919 --> 00:03:26,400 Speaker 2: Okay, folks, now fasten your seat belts because it's gonna 40 00:03:26,439 --> 00:03:27,080 get bumpy. 41 00:03:27,319 --> 00:03:32,319 Speaker 1: That's right, Jenny. Because some can also mean the opposite, 42 00:03:33,159 --> 00:03:39,280 a small or regular amount, like I had some chips earlier, 43 00:03:39,680 --> 00:03:43,240 so I'm not hungry right now. You can imagine that 44 00:03:43,360 --> 00:03:47,199 I didn't eat a huge amount of chips there. Oh yeah, 45 00:03:47,680 --> 00:03:51,080 And I think I'll stay in the office another half hour. 46 00:03:51,759 --> 00:03:54,479 I have some work to finish before I go home. 47 00:03:55,639 --> 00:03:59,599 Just another half hour, not a lot of time, so 48 00:03:59,680 --> 00:04:04,400 it's just a small amount of work. I often say 49 00:04:04,759 --> 00:04:10,879 that context is king, and when it comes to using some, well, 50 00:04:11,639 --> 00:04:17,759 context is the King and the Queen. That's fun right now, 51 00:04:18,120 --> 00:04:22,120 moving ahead. We also use some when we're talking about 52 00:04:22,160 --> 00:04:27,759 a person or thing that's unknown. In this case, the 53 00:04:27,839 --> 00:04:31,399 word some has nothing to do with quantity at all. 54 00:04:32,399 --> 00:04:36,759 Some is just used to talk about the unknown. Like 55 00:04:37,560 --> 00:04:41,399 Jack had some trouble with his car this morning. I 56 00:04:41,519 --> 00:04:46,639 don't exactly know or say what the trouble was. All 57 00:04:46,720 --> 00:04:51,839 I know is he had some trouble. And speaking of cars, 58 00:04:52,360 --> 00:04:55,959 this afternoon, some guy hit my car in the parking 59 00:04:56,000 --> 00:05:00,079 lot and then drove off. I have no idea who 60 00:05:00,120 --> 00:05:04,759 it was. I just know what happened. Oh yeah, at 61 00:05:04,759 --> 00:05:09,240 the meeting yesterday they had sandwiches for everyone. There was 62 00:05:09,439 --> 00:05:13,240 some kind of meat in that sandwich. Not sure what 63 00:05:13,360 --> 00:05:21,240 it was. Using some tells us about a mystery. Next up, 64 00:05:21,879 --> 00:05:26,680 here's one of my favorite uses of some, when we 65 00:05:26,800 --> 00:05:31,879 say that was some and then and noun we mean 66 00:05:32,040 --> 00:05:38,920 it was amazing, impressive, or unforgettable, like did you see 67 00:05:38,920 --> 00:05:43,800 the Black Sabbath concert this weekend? That was some performance. 68 00:05:44,600 --> 00:05:48,040 I watched it at Jack's house and he cooked us 69 00:05:48,439 --> 00:05:53,959 some dinner. It was delicious. He is really some cook. 70 00:05:54,600 --> 00:05:58,160 Want to sound like a native speaker, try using some, 71 00:05:58,800 --> 00:06:04,560 like this time you're impressed with something. Oh, and don't 72 00:06:04,560 --> 00:06:10,160 forget this common usage. We use some for offers and 73 00:06:10,399 --> 00:06:15,800 polite requests, like would you like some coffee? Or can 74 00:06:15,839 --> 00:06:18,920 I get you some water? Hey, it's gonna be a 75 00:06:19,000 --> 00:06:24,360 long drive, let's listen to some music. And finally, and 76 00:06:24,439 --> 00:06:28,120 this one's a little more advanced, but we sometimes use 77 00:06:28,560 --> 00:06:34,120 some to estimate or guess a number, like the first 78 00:06:34,160 --> 00:06:38,319 time I saw that group in concert was some thirty 79 00:06:38,399 --> 00:06:45,279 years ago. Some thirty years ago means about or around 80 00:06:45,399 --> 00:06:49,759 thirty years ago. But the nuance of using some is 81 00:06:49,800 --> 00:06:54,519 that some thirty years ago was quite a long time ago. 82 00:06:55,560 --> 00:06:59,560 Oh yeah, and there were some two hundred people at 83 00:06:59,600 --> 00:07:03,879 the wedding here too, Using some gives us the meaning 84 00:07:04,000 --> 00:07:09,560 that there were about two hundred people, and the nuance that, wow, 85 00:07:10,079 --> 00:07:14,480 there were a lot of people at that wedding. Pretty useful, right, 86 00:07:15,399 --> 00:07:20,439 So to sum up this little word sum can mean 87 00:07:21,079 --> 00:07:26,600 a vague amount, a large amount, a small amount, something unknown, 88 00:07:27,240 --> 00:07:36,519 something awesome, something offered, and even something approximated. That's some word. Huh. 89 00:07:36,560 --> 00:07:41,839 All right, that's it for today. You're probably thinking, Wow, 90 00:07:42,360 --> 00:07:47,000 that was some English lesson. Keep in mind, the best 91 00:07:47,040 --> 00:07:50,519 way to remember English like this and any other word 92 00:07:50,600 --> 00:07:53,959 or phrase in English is to take that word or phrase, 93 00:07:54,480 --> 00:07:57,439 write it in a sentence that's true for you or 94 00:07:58,160 --> 00:08:03,040 true in your world, and then memory your sentences. Hey, 95 00:08:03,079 --> 00:08:05,839 do you want to get more practice using your English, 96 00:08:06,439 --> 00:08:10,519 then you need to join my podcast Learner's study group. 97 00:08:11,120 --> 00:08:14,839 There you can make new friends, join us for live 98 00:08:14,879 --> 00:08:19,920 group lessons every week where we practice these podcast lessons together. 99 00:08:20,439 --> 00:08:24,720 Plus you get access to the PVF transcript and audio 100 00:08:24,800 --> 00:08:29,000 download for every Happy English podcast in the past and 101 00:08:29,199 --> 00:08:32,399 in the future. And on top of that, each episode 102 00:08:32,480 --> 00:08:37,000 has exercises where you can practice this English point with 103 00:08:37,159 --> 00:08:41,960 speaking and writing checked by me. To learn more, just 104 00:08:42,080 --> 00:08:47,159 visit Myhappy English dot com and choose podcasts Lesson eight 105 00:08:47,559 --> 00:08:52,759 forty one. Remember, learning another language is not easy, but 106 00:08:52,879 --> 00:08:56,840 it's not impossible, and I'm here to help you on 107 00:08:57,399 --> 00:09:00,000 your journey. 108 00:09:00,080 --> 00:09:02,879 Speaker 2: As was brought to you by Happy English. Please visit 109 00:09:03,279 --> 00:09:07,559 myhappy english dot com. Show your support for Happy English 110 00:09:07,600 --> 00:09:24,639 by leaving us a review. Get English, Get happy, Happy English.