Your Monthly Dose of English - Best of March 2026

0:00 Wait.

0:00 [music] Before we start, do you

0:02 want a bundle of 30 printable English

0:04 PDF cheat [music] sheets teaching you

0:06 words and phrases for conversations for

0:08 free?

0:09 Then click the link in the

0:10 description [music] and sign up for a

0:12 free lifetime account to get access.

0:18 [music]

0:27 Ah, it's really quiet today, isn't it?

0:28 Yeah, it's the rain.

0:31 Nobody wants to walk outside in this

0:32 weather.

0:34 That's true.

0:35 It's nice for me though.

0:37 I can finally clean the espresso machine properly.

0:40 Do you want another coffee?

0:42 Or are you okay with that one?

0:44 I'm okay for now, thanks.

0:47 I'm actually just looking through some

0:48 old files on my phone.

0:50 Oh, working on a case?

0:54 No, nothing like that.

0:56 I'm off duty today.

0:58 No police work.

0:59 My mom sent me a message.

1:01 She scanned a bunch of old family photos

1:04 and sent them to me.

1:05 I haven't seen these pictures in years.

1:08 Really?

1:09 I love looking at old photos.

1:11 It's like traveling back in time.

1:14 Can I see?

1:15 Sure.

1:17 Be careful though.

1:18 I look very different.

1:20 You might not recognize me.

1:22 Now I have to see.

1:24 Show me the best one.

1:25 Okay, look at this one.

1:27 This was wow, maybe 15 years ago.

1:31 Let me see.

1:33 Oh, look at you.

1:35 You were so small.

1:37 Is that you in the middle?

1:39 Yeah, that's me.

1:41 I was about 9 years old there.

1:43 You look serious.

1:46 You aren't smiling.

1:47 [music] I know.

1:50 I was trying to be like my dad.

1:52 That's him standing behind me.

1:55 The man in the uniform?

1:56 He looks very tall and very strong.

2:00 He was.

2:02 He was a police officer, too.

2:04 Well, he's retired now.

2:06 But back then, he was very strict.

2:09 You can see it in his face, right?

2:11 He didn't smile very often in photos.

2:14 He has a very kind face though, even if

2:17 he isn't smiling.

2:18 I like his mustache.

2:20 It's a very classic

2:21 style.

2:22 Yeah, the mustache.

2:24 He had that mustache my whole life.

2:26 He finally shaved it off last year.

2:29 It was a big shock for the family.

2:32 We didn't recognize him.

2:34 So, where was this photo taken?

2:36 It looks like a forest.

2:38 It was a camping trip.

2:40 We used to go camping every summer.

2:42 My dad loved the outdoors.

2:44 He wanted to teach

2:45 me everything.

2:46 How to build a fire, how to set up a

2:48 tent, how to read a map.

2:50 That sounds fun.

2:52 I love being outside.

2:53 It was fun, but it was also

2:56 work.

2:57 See how my shirt is perfectly tucked in?

3:00 Yeah.

3:01 That was a rule.

3:03 Always look neat, Jake.

3:05 Clean your boots, Jake.

3:07 He treated our camping trips like a

3:08 training camp.

3:10 Maybe that's why I became

3:11 a physical training instructor at the

3:13 academy.

3:14 I'm used to the discipline.

3:16 It makes sense.

3:17 You followed in his

3:18 footsteps.

3:19 Exactly.

3:21 But I don't make my students tuck their

3:22 shirts in while we are camping.

3:25 I'm a little more relaxed than he was.

3:28 That's good.

3:29 Camping should be relaxing.

3:31 Wait, let me find another one.

3:34 This one is funny.

3:35 It's completely different.

3:38 Here, look at this disaster.

3:41 No way.

3:42 Is that Is that you?

3:45 Yes, unfortunately, that is me.

3:48 Oh my gosh.

3:50 Look at your hair.

3:51 It's It's purple.

3:54 It was electric violet.

3:56 That's what the box said.

3:58 I was 16.

3:59 I was in high school.

4:01 And you have earrings.

4:03 And look at that

4:04 T-shirt.

4:04 It's so big.

4:06 It was my rebellious phase.

4:08 You know, when teenagers want to break the rules.

4:12 I didn't want to be a police officer

4:13 then.

4:14 I wanted to be a rock star.

4:16 A rock star?

4:18 You?

4:20 Yes, I played the drums.

4:22 I was in a garage band.

4:24 We were terrible.

4:25 We made so much noise.

4:27 My poor neighbors.

4:28 [music] This is amazing.

4:31 You look so different

4:32 from now.

4:33 Now you have short hair.

4:35 You wear a uniform.

4:36 You're very polite.

4:38 In this photo, you look like a wild

4:40 person.

4:41 I felt like a wild person.

4:43 I remember that day.

4:45 It was a Saturday.

4:46 We were practicing for a school concert.

4:49 I thought I was so cool.

4:51 What did your dad say about the purple

4:53 hair?

4:54 If he was strict, he probably didn't

4:56 like it.

4:58 He hated it.

4:59 He didn't shout though.

5:01 He just looked at me, shook his head and

5:03 said, "Jake, you look like a grape."

5:08 [laughter]

5:07 A grape?

5:09 That's funny.

5:10 Yeah, I kept the purple hair for 2

5:12 weeks.

5:13 Then I had to cut it for a family

5:15 wedding.

5:16 I missed that hair.

5:18 But looking at it now,

5:20 I think short hair is better for me.

5:23 I agree.

5:24 But it's a great memory.

5:25 It shows you have a fun side.

5:28 I still have a fun side.

5:30 I still play the drums sometimes.

5:32 Just not with purple hair.

5:35 Do you have any photos of where you grew

5:37 up?

5:38 I'm from Portland, so everything here in

5:40 the city looks so different to me.

5:43 Actually, yes.

5:44 This album has a lot of scenery photos.

5:47 My mom loves taking pictures of

5:49 buildings and parks.

5:50 Let me scroll down.

5:54 Expand your vocabulary with our core

5:56 2000 [music] words ebook.

5:58 It's free and packed with essential expressions that

6:01 you'll use on a daily basis.

6:03 Start building [music] your vocabulary today.

6:05 Click the link in the description below

6:07 to download your free English ebook

6:09 before it's gone.

6:12 Okay, look at this one.

6:14 Do you recognize this street?

6:16 Hmm, let me look closely.

6:20 There's a bakery on the corner

6:22 and a tall [music] brick building.

6:25 Wait, is that the triple almond

6:27 apartment building?

6:29 Yes, that's our building.

6:31 But look at the date on the photo.

6:33 2010.

6:35 Wow, it looks so

6:38 clean.

6:39 It was practically new back then.

6:42 Or well, it had just been painted.

6:44 See the shop on the ground floor?

6:47 Yeah, it's a dry cleaner's in the photo.

6:50 But now, wait.

6:52 That's this coffee shop.

6:54 Exactly.

6:55 Before this was a coffee shop,

6:57 it was Dan's dry cleaning.

6:59 I used to come here with my dad to pick

7:01 up his uniforms.

7:03 That is so weird.

7:05 I'm standing in a dry

7:06 cleaner's right now.

7:08 Basically, the counter was in the same place.

7:12 But the walls were white, not brown.

7:14 And it smelled like chemicals, not

7:16 coffee.

7:17 I prefer the coffee smell.

7:20 Me, too.

7:21 Definitely.

7:22 And look at the street.

7:24 There are no bike lanes.

7:26 You're right.

7:28 Just cars.

7:29 It looks more dangerous.

7:31 It was.

7:32 The city has changed a lot.

7:34 They added the bike lanes and planted more

7:36 trees about 5 years ago.

7:39 It's much nicer now.

7:41 It's funny how photos freeze time.

7:43 You forget how things used to look.

7:45 Yeah.

7:47 My mom took this photo from across the

7:48 street.

7:50 We lived on the third floor back then.

7:52 Wait, you lived in the triple almond

7:55 building when you were a kid?

7:57 Yeah.

7:58 We moved out when I was 12 to a house in

8:00 the suburbs.

8:01 But when I got the job at the police

8:03 academy, I moved back in.

8:06 I'm in apartment 4B now.

8:08 No way.

8:09 I'm in 4D.

8:10 We're neighbors.

8:12 Really?

8:13 4D?

8:14 That's down the hall on the left, right?

8:17 Yes, the one with the green doormat.

8:20 I walk past that door every day.

8:23 I never knew that was you.

8:25 I guess our shifts are different.

8:27 I leave really early in the morning for

8:29 physical training.

8:31 And I leave later to open the shop.

8:33 That's crazy.

8:34 Small world.

8:36 It is.

8:37 So, you've seen the building now.

8:40 It's old, but it has character.

8:42 It does.

8:44 My heater makes a strange noise and the

8:46 windows rattle when it's windy, but I

8:48 like it.

8:49 It feels like home.

8:50 It does.

8:52 It has a lot of memories for me.

8:54 Do you have any more photos?

8:56 Maybe one of your mom?

8:58 Yeah, here.

9:00 This is a nice one.

9:01 This was at a picnic.

9:03 Oh, she's lovely.

9:05 She has a very bright

9:06 smile.

9:07 And look at the food.

9:08 Is that a birthday cake?

9:11 It was my sister's birthday.

9:13 See the little girl in the pink dress?

9:15 That's my sister.

9:17 She looks so happy.

9:19 And your mom is

9:19 holding a What is that?

9:22 A guitar?

9:24 No, that's a ukulele.

9:26 My mom loves playing instruments.

9:27 [music] She actually tried to teach me, but my

9:30 hands were too big.

9:32 I couldn't play the

9:33 chords.

9:34 That's why I chose the drums.

9:36 You hit things with sticks.

9:38 It's easier.

9:40 I don't think drums are easy.

9:42 You need rhythm.

9:44 True, but you don't need delicate

9:46 fingers.

9:47 Your family looks really close in these

9:49 pictures.

9:50 Everyone is together.

9:52 We are.

9:53 We had our problems, of course.

9:55 My dad was strict.

9:56 I was rebellious.

9:58 My sister was well, she was loud.

10:02 But looking at these photos,

10:04 I only remember the good stuff.

10:06 That's the best thing about photos.

10:08 They keep the good memories safe.

10:11 Yeah.

10:12 You know, I don't take enough photos

10:14 now.

10:16 I have a smartphone with a great camera.

10:18 But I mostly take pictures of documents

10:20 or my car.

10:22 I don't take pictures of people.

10:24 We should change that.

10:26 We are too busy

10:27 working.

10:28 We forget to capture the

10:29 moment.

10:30 You're right.

10:32 Hey, since we are neighbors and we are

10:34 both here, do you want to take a photo

10:37 for the new album?

10:39 Sure, but let me fix my hair first.

10:41 The rain made it a little messy.

10:44 It looks fine.

10:45 You look great.

10:46 Come on.

10:47 Stand next to the coffee

10:48 machine.

10:49 It's your natural habitat.

10:53 [laughter]

10:52 Natural habitat.

10:56 Okay, ready.

10:58 Okay, say triple almond.

11:00 Triple almonds.

11:04 Let's see.

11:06 Hey, that's actually a good picture.

11:09 Let me see.

11:11 Oh, I like it.

11:12 The lighting is nice.

11:14 And you are smiling.

11:16 A real smile, not the

11:17 serious police officer face.

11:20 I guess the coffee helps.

11:22 I'll send it to you.

11:24 Thanks.

11:25 I have an album in my phone

11:26 called city life.

11:28 This will be perfect

11:29 for [music] it.

11:30 Speaking of city life, looking at that

11:32 old photo of our building made me think.

11:35 About what?

11:37 About how much I missed this

11:38 neighborhood when I lived in the

11:39 suburbs.

11:41 It was quiet there.

11:42 Too quiet.

11:44 Here, you have noise, people, traffic.

11:48 But you also have community.

11:50 I know what you mean.

11:52 In Portland, I lived near the mountains.

11:54 It was beautiful.

11:56 Really beautiful.

11:57 I went bouldering every weekend.

12:00 But sometimes it felt a little lonely.

12:03 Here, I can walk downstairs and talk to

12:05 people.

12:06 Exactly.

12:07 Like today.

12:09 If I were in the suburbs, I would be

12:11 sitting alone in my house watching TV.

12:14 But here, I'm drinking coffee and

12:16 looking at old photos with a friend.

12:18 A friend and a neighbor.

12:21 Right, a neighbor.

12:23 So, about your camping hobby.

12:26 You said you still go?

12:28 Yeah, I try to go once a month.

12:30 Usually to the state park.

12:32 Why?

12:34 Well, since you like camping and I like

12:36 bouldering, maybe we could organize a

12:39 trip sometime.

12:40 The state park has some

12:41 great rocks for climbing.

12:43 That's a great idea.

12:45 I haven't tried bouldering before.

12:47 Is it hard?

12:49 It's a challenge.

12:50 It's like a puzzle for

12:51 your body.

12:52 You have to figure out how to

12:53 move up.

12:54 But you're a PT instructor.

12:56 You're strong.

12:56 You'll be fine.

12:58 A puzzle for your body.

13:00 I like that description.

13:02 Okay, I'm interested.

13:04 But only if we can

13:05 make a fire afterwards.

13:07 I make excellent campfire food.

13:10 Deal.

13:10 I can't cook, so that works

13:12 perfectly.

13:14 You can make coffee though.

13:16 We'll bring a portable coffee pot.

13:19 Now you are talking.

13:20 That sounds like the perfect weekend.

13:24 Oh, a customer.

13:25 The slow day is over.

13:28 Back to reality.

13:29 I should probably get going anyway.

13:32 I need to go to the grocery store before

13:34 I go back to the apartment.

13:36 Okay.

13:37 Thanks for showing me the photos,

13:38 Jake.

13:39 It was really nice to meet mini

13:41 Jake and purple hair Jake.

13:45 Please forget about purple hair Jake.

13:47 Just remember the neighbor Jake.

13:50 I'll try.

13:51 See you around the building.

13:53 See you, Lisa.

13:54 Have a good shift.

14:00 Purple hair.

14:02 I definitely won't [music]

14:03 forget that.

14:22 Okay, Michelle, focus.

14:24 The map says turn left at the post

14:26 office.

14:26 Or wait.

14:29 Is that a post office?

14:30 It looks like a bank.

14:34 This smartphone map is useless today.

14:37 The blue dot isn't moving.

14:39 I'm going to be late.

14:42 Excuse me.

14:43 You look a little lost.

14:45 Do you need some help?

14:47 Oh, hey, it's you.

14:49 Michelle, right?

14:51 From the building?

14:52 Oh, you scared me.

14:55 Yes, it's Michelle.

14:56 You're Jake, right?

14:59 From the triple almond

15:00 apartments?

15:01 That's right.

15:02 The triple almond.

15:03 Best apartment building in the city, right?

15:07 Well, the rent is good at least.

15:09 It's nice to see a familiar face, Jake.

15:12 I usually see you in uniform.

15:14 I almost didn't recognize you in your

15:15 jogging clothes.

15:18 Yeah, it's my day off.

15:20 I just finished a run around the park.

15:22 I try to stay fit for work.

15:24 You know how it is at the police

15:25 academy.

15:27 Oh, right.

15:28 You're a physical training

15:29 instructor there.

15:30 That sounds exhausting.

15:33 It can be.

15:35 But I love it.

15:36 Anyway, what are you doing out here?

15:39 You look a bit

15:40 stressed.

15:42 Stressed is the perfect word.

15:44 I'm not working today.

15:46 I decided to have a nice relaxing

15:48 culture day.

15:49 You know, visit a gallery, drink some

15:51 tea, clear my head.

15:53 That sounds great.

15:55 Lawyers work hard, so

15:56 you need a break.

15:58 Exactly.

15:59 But I'm completely turned around.

16:02 I'm looking for this specific place.

16:04 It's called the Velvet Curtain.

16:07 Have you heard of it?

16:08 The Velvet Curtain.

16:10 The Velvet Curtain.

16:12 Hmm.

16:13 That sounds familiar.

16:14 Is it a theater?

16:16 It's sort of a mix.

16:18 It's a tea house, but they have a small

16:20 stage for acting and poetry readings.

16:22 I heard it's a great place for actors to

16:24 practice.

16:25 Actors?

16:27 Do you like acting?

16:28 I thought you were a lawyer.

16:30 I am a lawyer.

16:32 But acting is my hobby.

16:34 I love being on stage.

16:35 It helps me relax.

16:37 When I'm acting, I don't have to

16:38 worry about contracts or court dates.

16:41 I can just be someone else for a while.

16:44 That's really cool.

16:45 I didn't know that.

16:47 It's good to have a creative hobby.

16:49 Thanks.

16:50 What about you?

16:51 Do you have any

16:52 hobbies or is it just exercise all the

16:54 time?

16:57 [laughter]

16:57 Well, I do love exercise.

16:59 But my real hobby is camping.

17:01 I love getting out of the city, sleeping

17:03 in a tent, and making a fire.

17:06 It's so quiet.

17:07 That sounds peaceful.

17:09 Maybe I should try that sometime.

17:11 But right now, I just want to find this

17:13 tea house.

17:15 My map app says it's right here, but I

17:17 only see a shoe store and a bakery.

17:19 Let me see.

17:25 Hmm, okay.

17:27 I see where you are.

17:28 Yeah, these maps are tricky in this

17:30 neighborhood.

17:31 The streets are very

17:32 narrow and the tall buildings block the

17:34 signal.

17:36 So, am I close?

17:38 You're close, but you're on the wrong

17:40 side of the block.

17:41 The Velvet Curtain isn't on the main

17:43 street.

17:44 It's actually hidden.

17:46 Hidden?

17:47 Yeah, it's one of those hidden gems.

17:50 The entrance is really small.

17:52 If you don't know where to look, you'll walk

17:54 right past it.

17:55 Ugh, great.

17:57 No wonder I couldn't find

17:58 it.

17:59 I've been walking in circles for 20

18:01 minutes.

18:02 Don't worry.

18:03 I can help you.

18:05 I actually know a shortcut.

18:07 It's a bit of a local secret.

18:09 Do you mind walking a little bit more?

18:12 Not at all.

18:13 Please, lead the way.

18:15 I'm tired of staring at this screen.

18:17 All right, let's go.

18:19 We need to cross the street first.

18:23 Expand your vocabulary with our core

18:24 [music] 2000 words ebook.

18:27 It's free and packed with essential expressions that

18:29 you'll use on a daily basis.

18:32 Start building your vocabulary today.

18:34 [music] Click the link in the

18:35 description below to download your free

18:37 English ebook before it's gone.

18:42 So, we're going to go down this side

18:44 street here, next to the flower shop.

18:47 The one with the red tulips outside?

18:50 That's the one.

18:51 See that small alleyway right after the

18:53 shop?

18:55 That tiny alley?

18:56 It looks dark.

18:58 It looks dark, but it opens up into a

19:00 really nice courtyard.

19:02 Trust me, it's the fastest way.

19:04 If we stay on the main

19:05 road, we have to walk all the way around

19:07 the shopping center.

19:09 Okay, I trust you.

19:11 You're the police officer after all.

19:14 Exactly.

19:15 I'm trained to know the city.

19:20 Oh, wow.

19:21 It's much quieter in here.

19:23 The city noise just disappeared.

19:26 Nice, right?

19:27 I take this route when I jog sometimes.

19:30 It's peaceful.

19:32 So, Michelle, how long have you lived at the triple

19:34 almond?

19:36 About 2 years now.

19:38 I moved to DC for my job.

19:40 Being a lawyer here is

19:42 intense.

19:43 There is always so much paperwork.

19:46 I bet.

19:47 I see you leaving the building early in

19:49 the morning sometimes.

19:51 You always have a big coffee in your

19:52 hand.

19:55 I can't function without coffee.

19:57 What about you?

19:58 How long have you been there?

20:00 Just over a year.

20:02 It's a great location.

20:04 Close to the academy, close to the

20:06 parks.

20:07 And the neighbors are nice.

20:09 They are.

20:10 Except for the guy on the third floor

20:12 who plays the drums at midnight.

20:16 [laughter]

20:15 Oh, I know him.

20:17 That's terrible.

20:18 I knocked on his door once to complain,

20:21 but he couldn't hear me because the

20:22 music was too loud.

20:25 That sounds about right.

20:28 Okay, here we are.

20:30 This is the courtyard I told you about.

20:33 This is beautiful.

20:35 I didn't know this park was back here.

20:37 Look at those trees.

20:39 It's a nice spot.

20:41 Okay, to get to the Velvet Curtain, we

20:43 need to go straight through this park.

20:45 Then we'll see a fountain.

20:48 Straight through the park, got it.

20:51 At the fountain, we need to turn right.

20:53 There's a big brick building.

20:54 It used to be a library.

20:56 The tea house is actually behind that

20:58 building.

21:00 Behind the old library.

21:01 That is tricky.

21:03 Yeah.

21:04 Most people try to enter from the

21:05 front street, but the door is locked

21:08 there.

21:09 You have to go around the back.

21:11 You really know your way around.

21:13 Do you come to this neighborhood often?

21:15 Pretty often.

21:17 There's a camping supply store near

21:19 here.

21:20 I go there to buy gear for my trips.

21:23 You really love camping.

21:25 Where do you usually go?

21:27 Usually up to the mountains.

21:29 It's only a few hours away by car.

21:31 The air is so fresh.

21:33 You should really try it.

21:35 It's good for stress.

21:37 Maybe I will.

21:38 But I don't have any gear.

21:40 No tent, no sleeping bag.

21:42 You can rent it.

21:44 Or you can borrow mine.

21:46 I have an extra tent.

21:48 That's very generous of you, Jake.

21:50 I might take you up on that offer someday.

21:53 But first, I need to master the art of

21:55 finding a tea house in the city.

21:58 One step at a time.

22:00 Okay, look.

22:01 There's the fountain up

22:02 ahead.

22:03 Oh, I see it.

22:05 The one with the stone fish?

22:07 That's the one.

22:08 So, remember, which way do we turn?

22:12 We turn right.

22:14 Toward the brick building.

22:16 Perfect.

22:17 You're a natural navigator.

22:20 I have a good guide.

22:21 That helps.

22:26 So, Jake, tell me more about your job.

22:28 Is it hard being an instructor?

22:30 It can be challenging.

22:32 The new recruits, the students, are very young.

22:35 Sometimes they don't listen.

22:37 They think they know everything.

22:39 That sounds frustrating.

22:41 It takes patience.

22:43 But when they finally

22:44 succeed, when they pass the physical

22:46 test, it feels amazing.

22:49 I feel proud of them.

22:51 You sound like a good teacher.

22:53 I try to be.

22:54 It's similar to being a lawyer, I guess.

22:57 You help people solve problems, right?

22:59 In a way.

23:01 I help them navigate the law.

23:02 It's like a giant maze.

23:04 Kind of like these

23:05 streets.

23:07 Exactly.

23:09 The law is a maze, and the city is a

23:11 maze.

23:12 We are both professional guides.

23:15 I like that comparison.

23:17 Okay, watch your step here.

23:19 The sidewalk is a bit uneven.

23:22 Thanks.

23:23 So, is that the brick building?

23:26 Yes, that's the old library.

23:28 Now, look closely.

23:30 Do you see that green

23:31 awning?

23:32 The little roof made of fabric?

23:34 The green one?

23:36 Oh, way down there?

23:38 Between the two dumpsters?

23:41 Yeah, sorry.

23:42 It's not the most glamorous

23:43 location, but that's the entrance.

23:47 Wow.

23:47 I never would have found that.

23:49 It doesn't even have a sign.

23:51 There is a small sign on the door, but

23:53 it's tiny.

23:55 That's why it's a secret.

23:57 Well, I'm glad I ran into you.

23:59 Seriously.

24:00 I would be in a taxi going

24:01 home by now if you hadn't helped me.

24:04 I'm happy to help.

24:06 It was nice to catch up, Michelle.

24:08 We live in the same building, but we

24:10 never really talk.

24:11 I know.

24:12 We're both so busy.

24:14 We should grab a coffee sometime.

24:16 In the building, I mean.

24:17 Not on a secret adventure

24:18 through the alleys.

24:21 That sounds great.

24:23 I'm usually free on

24:24 Sunday mornings.

24:25 Sunday mornings work for me.

24:27 Great.

24:28 Well, I should probably finish my

24:30 run.

24:31 I need to get back before it starts

24:33 raining.

24:34 The sky looks a little gray.

24:36 Oh, you're right.

24:37 I hope I don't get

24:38 stuck in the rain.

24:40 You'll be fine.

24:41 You're inside now.

24:43 Enjoy the tea and the acting.

24:46 Thanks, Jake.

24:47 Have a good run.

24:48 See you around the Tripple Homond.

24:55 What a nice guy.

24:57 Okay, let's see this hidden gem.

25:11 Hi everybody.

25:12 My name is Alicia.

25:13 In this lesson, I'm going to talk about how to

25:15 use the word once.

25:17 Let's get started.

25:18 For this lesson, I have

25:20 three categories of meaning for the word

25:23 once.

25:23 We'll break these down.

25:25 And then I have one list of expressions that

25:27 feature the word once.

25:29 So, we'll take a

25:30 look at the specific meanings of this

25:32 word, and then we'll look at some

25:33 special meanings at the end of the

25:35 lesson.

25:35 So, let's start with the first

25:37 meaning.

25:38 The first meaning of once is

25:41 one time.

25:42 One time.

25:43 So, let's take a

25:43 look at these example sentences and

25:45 break down how the word once is used

25:48 here.

25:49 First example.

25:50 I've been to Europe once.

25:53 I've been to Europe once.

25:55 In this example sentence,

25:56 once comes at the end of the sentence

25:58 and means exactly one time.

26:00 So, we could replace the word once with one time, and

26:04 the sentence would still be correct, and

26:06 it would have the same meaning.

26:08 I've been to Europe one time.

26:10 So, this is probably the most common use of once.

26:13 Let's take a look at the next example

26:15 sentence.

26:18 [gasps]

26:17 She said she rode a horse once when she

26:20 was a little kid.

26:21 She said she rode a horse once when she

26:24 was a little kid.

26:26 So, again, with this

26:27 use of once, we can replace once with

26:31 one time, and the sentence keeps the

26:32 meaning.

26:33 She said she rode a horse one

26:35 time when she was a little kid.

26:38 So, again, this use of once means one time.

26:40 One time only.

26:42 Okay?

26:43 Let's continue to the next example sentence now.

26:46 Can you keep a secret?

26:48 Just this once.

26:50 Can you keep a secret?

26:50 Just this once.

26:52 So, I wanted to include this example

26:54 sentence for this part right here.

26:56 Just this once.

26:58 It's like saying just this

26:59 one time, or this one time only.

27:02 So, sometimes when people want to make a

27:04 special request, they'll use the

27:06 expression just this once, or please do

27:10 this just once.

27:11 It sounds like just one

27:13 time.

27:13 Please do this thing just one

27:15 time.

27:16 So, this is one example.

27:17 Can you keep a secret?

27:19 Just this once.

27:20 It's like saying I only want to ask this of you

27:23 one time.

27:23 So, again, we can simply

27:25 replace this word once with one time,

27:27 and we keep the meaning.

27:29 But once is a

27:29 little bit more efficient.

27:31 Okay.

27:32 Let's continue on to the last two examples.

27:35 The last two examples use negatives,

27:38 which I think are very important to talk

27:40 about with this word, too.

27:41 Let's take a look.

27:43 First, my date didn't ask me a

27:46 question once.

27:48 My date didn't ask me a

27:49 question once.

27:50 So, in this situation,

27:52 the speaker is talking about their date.

27:54 So, the person they went on a date with.

27:56 We call the other person our date.

27:59 So, in this situation, we have a negative.

28:02 The person didn't ask me a question

28:05 once.

28:06 So, the same one time meaning

28:08 applies here.

28:09 That means this sentence

28:10 means my date didn't ask me a question

28:13 even one time.

28:15 So, this use of once that

28:18 we often see with this negative form,

28:20 tends to take the feeling of even one

28:23 time.

28:24 Like we're kind of surprised or

28:25 shocked in some way.

28:27 You have some expectation, right?

28:29 If you go on a date

28:30 with someone, you expect, probably,

28:32 they're going to ask you some questions,

28:34 right?

28:34 So, this person is expressing

28:36 some shock and surprise.

28:37 Not even one time is what this sentence expresses.

28:41 Let's look at another example of this

28:43 kind of once.

28:45 We worked so hard to cook a nice dinner,

28:49 but our guests didn't comment on the

28:51 food even once.

28:53 So, again, we worked so

28:55 hard to cook a nice dinner, but our

28:57 guests didn't comment on the food even

29:01 once.

29:02 So, again, this once is like

29:04 saying one time, and again, we have this

29:07 even feeling here.

29:08 In this case, I

29:09 included the word even.

29:10 So, again, we're emphasizing.

29:12 We expected some comment

29:15 about the food.

29:15 We worked really hard to

29:16 cook it.

29:17 So, we think maybe the other

29:18 person will have some comment about it.

29:21 This is so delicious.

29:22 Where did you find

29:23 the recipe?

29:24 What's in this?

29:24 And so on.

29:25 There are many comments we can make.

29:27 So, we probably expect some kind of comment

29:29 when we make something for someone else.

29:32 But the speaker is expressing surprise

29:34 or shock.

29:35 They didn't comment even one

29:37 time is what this expresses.

29:39 So, you can use these negative patterns to express

29:42 that kind of shock.

29:43 And we sometimes do

29:44 this.

29:45 And it really helps us see, like,

29:47 this person didn't meet expectations at

29:49 all.

29:50 So, all of these sentences express

29:52 the meaning of one time, literally just

29:55 one time, one instance of something.

29:58 Okay, with this in mind, let's continue

30:00 to the second group, the second category

30:03 for meaning for this lesson.

30:05 This category is formerly or at a past

30:09 point in time.

30:11 So, a key here, something

30:13 that you can use as kind of a hint, is

30:15 that often this use of once refers to

30:18 something that happened in the past, in

30:20 the far past, not like yesterday or last

30:24 week, but when you're talking about

30:26 history, for example, you might see this

30:29 use of once.

30:30 So, let's break down these

30:31 example sentences.

30:33 This city was once very popular for its

30:37 exciting nightlife.

30:39 This city was once

30:40 very popular for its exciting nightlife.

30:44 So, this once, you'll notice it appears

30:46 in the middle of the sentence.

30:47 It comes after this was, right?

30:50 So, we're talking about a past condition or a past status

30:53 of the city.

30:54 This city was once.

30:56 So, this position here shows us in context as well that

31:01 it's not so much about one time as in

31:04 one instance of something, but rather

31:07 one time in terms of a past point in

31:11 time.

31:11 So, we're not talking about like

31:13 one case of something, we're talking

31:15 about one past point in time.

31:18 So, in this situation, we can replace once with

31:22 formerly.

31:23 This city was formerly very

31:25 popular, or we could say, this city was

31:28 at a past point in time very popular for

31:31 its exciting nightlife.

31:33 The nuance here then is that this fact has changed.

31:37 So, in the past, at a point in time, it was

31:40 very popular for its exciting nightlife.

31:43 However, now it's not popular for its

31:46 nightlife.

31:47 So, we use this once often to

31:49 emphasize some kind of change from a

31:51 condition in the past.

31:53 Let's look at one

31:53 more example.

31:55 Her company was once a fun, relaxed

31:58 place to work.

31:59 Her company was once a

32:00 fun, relaxed place to work.

32:03 So, again, we have this once here.

32:05 This refers to a

32:06 past point in time or a former

32:09 condition.

32:10 So, this sentence is saying,

32:12 in the past, at a past point in time,

32:14 her company was a fun and relaxed place

32:17 to work.

32:18 So, the nuance here is now it's

32:20 not a fun, relaxed place to work.

32:22 Maybe it's very stressful and it's very

32:24 difficult.

32:25 So, this use of once refers

32:27 to some kind of past point in time.

32:30 You can kind of see the context is very

32:32 different here.

32:33 We're talking about very

32:35 different topics over here.

32:36 We're talking about a city, a company, some

32:39 kind of condition, whereas when we

32:41 talked about one time experiences, we're

32:44 talking about travel, conversations,

32:47 uh personal experiences, and so on.

32:50 These aren't so much about conditions.

32:52 Here, we're talking about conditions a

32:55 bit more.

32:55 So, that's another context

32:57 hint you can use to help you understand

32:59 which once is the meaning here.

33:01 Okay, let's continue to the last use, the last

33:05 category of meaning.

33:06 It's as soon as, as

33:09 soon as.

33:10 So, let's break down these

33:11 examples.

33:12 First, call me once you finish

33:15 work.

33:16 Call me once you finish work.

33:17 A very, very common request.

33:19 So, in this case, we can substitute as soon as for

33:24 once here.

33:25 Call me as soon as you finish

33:28 work is also 100% correct, but once is a

33:31 little more efficient.

33:32 So, this once, you'll notice

33:35 comes after a verb expression, yeah?

33:38 It's like a command.

33:38 Call me once you

33:39 finish work.

33:40 This is saying, call me the

33:42 moment you finish work, or in other

33:44 words, as soon as you finish work.

33:46 It's like asking for a very quick thing to

33:49 happen once or as soon as something else

33:52 is complete.

33:53 So, when this is done,

33:54 please do this.

33:55 We can use once to do

33:57 this very efficiently to communicate

33:59 this.

33:59 Okay, let's look at the next

34:01 example of this meaning.

34:03 He can make the rent payment once he

34:05 gets paid.

34:06 He can make the rent payment

34:08 once he gets paid.

34:09 So, in this case, the

34:10 topic is paying rent.

34:12 So, to make a rent

34:14 payment means to give the person who

34:16 owns your house or her owns your

34:17 apartment money for the month.

34:19 That's the rent payment.

34:21 He can make the rent

34:22 payment once he gets paid, once he gets

34:25 paid.

34:25 So, again, we have this as soon as

34:28 meaning here.

34:29 So, he can make the rent

34:30 payment, this will happen after he gets

34:33 paid.

34:33 So, when this happens, the rent

34:35 payment will be made.

34:37 We use once to

34:38 express this sequence.

34:39 As soon as A, B.

34:41 We use once to do this.

34:42 Okay, so, these are the three most common uses of once

34:48 generally.

34:48 There are a couple of other

34:50 uses that are a bit less common and

34:52 they're kind of specific to certain

34:54 situations, but in most cases, these

34:56 three will be great for everyday

34:58 communication.

34:59 So, keep in mind some of

35:00 the context clues that I talked about

35:03 here.

35:03 Personal experiences and conversations for one time, conditions

35:08 and statuses for past points in time,

35:10 and verbs, actions for as soon as.

35:14 Okay, great.

35:15 So, now let's move along to some

35:17 expressions that feature once.

35:19 These are some very common expressions that use

35:22 the word once and the meanings are

35:24 sometimes very different from those we

35:26 discussed earlier in the lesson.

35:28 So, let's break them down.

35:29 First, we have at

35:31 once, at once.

35:33 This means immediately or

35:35 right away.

35:36 It can also, in some more

35:38 formal situations, it might sound a

35:40 little old-fashioned.

35:41 It can also be

35:42 used to mean both.

35:44 So, let's take a look

35:44 at some example sentences.

35:46 First, call an ambulance at once.

35:49 Call an ambulance at once.

35:51 So, an ambulance is an emergency medical car.

35:54 So, there's an emergency, call an ambulance at once

35:57 means call an ambulance right now,

35:59 immediately.

36:00 It's important.

36:01 So, we can use at once to express this.

36:04 One more, he came home at once.

36:07 He came home immediately.

36:08 He came home right away.

36:10 So, at once expresses this feeling of

36:12 doing something immediately, at the

36:14 moment.

36:15 Lastly, I want to give one example of

36:18 this both use.

36:20 So, this example, as I

36:21 said, sounds a little bit old-fashioned

36:24 and we don't use it so much.

36:25 You maybe will see it in writing, some writing

36:28 pieces somewhere, but we don't use it as

36:30 much in everyday communication.

36:32 Let's take a look, though.

36:33 The song was at

36:35 once sad and beautiful.

36:37 The song was at

36:37 once sad and beautiful.

36:39 So, this means both.

36:40 The song was both sad and

36:42 beautiful.

36:43 So, this at once, if you look

36:45 at it and you think, does this mean

36:47 immediately?

36:47 Does this mean right away?

36:49 It doesn't seem to make sense in this

36:51 situation.

36:52 Like, immediately?

36:52 The song was immediately sad and beautiful?

36:55 It sounds strange, right?

36:57 So, this at once

36:58 is kind of like saying, at the same time

37:01 or simultaneously.

37:02 The song was simultaneously sad and beautiful.

37:06 So, again, as I said, this isn't so commonly

37:08 used today, but you might see it from

37:10 time to time.

37:11 Okay, let's move on to the

37:12 next expression.

37:13 The next expression is

37:15 once and for all, once and for all.

37:17 We use this typically after we've been

37:19 working on a challenge for a while or

37:21 we've been trying to solve a problem,

37:24 we've been working hard as a sports team

37:26 or as a company, something like that,

37:28 and we get to the last step.

37:30 We want to make a statement about the last step or

37:33 the final step.

37:34 We use once and for all

37:36 sometimes to do this.

37:37 So, this expression is like saying definitely or

37:40 finally or for the last time.

37:43 So, let's look at our examples.

37:45 First, let's win the game and show everyone we're the

37:49 best team once and for all.

37:51 Let's win the game and show everyone we're the

37:53 best team once and for all.

37:55 So, this is something a sports team might say at the

37:59 championship game, the last game of the

38:01 year.

38:02 So, let's show them we're the best

38:03 team once and for all.

38:05 Sounds like we want to show other people that we are

38:08 the best.

38:09 We are here at the last stage.

38:10 We're going to do this for the last

38:12 time.

38:13 Let's make it big.

38:14 That's kind of the feeling of once and for all.

38:16 Let's look at one more example.

38:18 Her great plan solved the company's

38:21 sales problems once and for all.

38:23 Her great plan solved the company's sales

38:26 problems once and for all.

38:28 So, in this example sentence, we know the problem.

38:30 The company has some kind of sales

38:32 problem and this person created a great

38:35 plan.

38:36 So, her great plan solved this

38:38 problem finally, at the end, after lots

38:41 and lots of struggles, once and for all.

38:44 So, it's kind of like saying, you can

38:45 think of this once part as kind of like

38:48 being with one action or one instance or

38:51 one case, the problem was solved or they

38:54 were able to overcome the challenge

38:57 forever.

38:57 That's kind of one way to

38:59 understand this.

39:00 With one movement or

39:01 with one action, they were able to make

39:03 a change forever.

39:04 That's kind of the

39:05 feeling of once and for all.

39:07 Okay, let's move on to our next expression.

39:09 The next one, you may already know, it's every

39:12 once in a while, every once in a while.

39:15 Please note, native speakers sometimes

39:17 write every once and a while, incorrect,

39:20 every once in a while, in a while.

39:23 So, this expression means sometimes or

39:26 occasionally.

39:27 We like to use it in very

39:28 casual conversations and we usually say

39:31 it very quickly, every once in a while.

39:33 So, let's break it down.

39:35 I like to go to the movies every once in

39:37 a while.

39:38 I like to go to the movies

39:39 every once in a while.

39:40 We can replace every once in a while with sometime, and

39:44 it creates exactly the same meaning.

39:46 Again, every once in a while just sounds

39:48 a little bit more casual.

39:49 Yeah, I like to go to the movies every once in a

39:50 while.

39:51 That's how a native speaker would

39:52 probably use this expression.

39:54 One more.

39:55 We eat at expensive restaurants every

39:57 once in a while.

39:58 We eat at expensive

39:59 restaurants every once in a while.

40:01 So again, we're expressing this feeling of

40:03 occasionally, every once in a while.

40:06 Again, this is a set expression which

40:08 just means sometimes, so okay.

40:10 Let's continue to the last one.

40:12 The last one is actually two, but they have the same

40:14 meaning, so they are once again and once

40:18 more.

40:18 Once again and once more.

40:20 These both mean one more time.

40:23 One more time.

40:24 So I wanted to include these because I

40:26 know lots of learners like to request

40:28 from their teacher, can you say that

40:30 once more, or can you say that one more

40:32 time?

40:33 Just be careful not to mix them.

40:36 Sometimes I hear learners say like

40:39 once more time, something like that, or

40:41 just one more.

40:43 No, neither of those are really correct.

40:45 Make sure to say, can you say that once

40:48 more, or can you say that one more time?

40:50 So once again and once more both mean to

40:54 do something one more time.

40:55 So our examples.

40:57 First, once again, thank you

40:58 for coming today.

41:00 Once again, thank you

41:01 for coming today.

41:02 So we sometimes do

41:03 this when we're giving presentations to

41:05 mean I already said this, but I'm going

41:08 to say it one more time.

41:10 This is usually done, like I said, in presentation and

41:13 speaking situations, and in this case

41:17 typically the expression comes at the

41:19 beginning of the sentence.

41:21 Also, sometimes people will use this

41:22 expression when they feel frustrated.

41:25 Like if someone asks a question

41:27 repeatedly, they get the same question

41:29 many, many times, or if there's a rude

41:31 behavior or something like that, that

41:33 person in charge, they might use once

41:36 again to express their frustration, to

41:38 say, once again, please no talking

41:40 during the presentation, something like

41:42 that.

41:43 So that kind of tone with this

41:45 expression means I have to say this

41:47 again?

41:47 I'm saying it again?

41:49 So please pay attention to the speaker's tone.

41:51 Sometimes it's very happy, right?

41:53 Once again, thank you for coming.

41:55 That sounds good.

41:56 But sometimes we use this

41:57 expression to show that we are tired of

42:00 saying the same thing again.

42:01 Like once again, please be quiet, something like

42:04 that.

42:04 So please keep keep an eye out, I

42:06 guess, keep an ear out for the speaker's

42:08 tone.

42:08 Okay, last example is, let's

42:11 practice this part once more.

42:13 Let's practice this part once more.

42:15 So again, let's practice this part one more time.

42:18 We can use the two interchangeably, or

42:21 we could say, let's practice this part

42:23 once again.

42:24 So these all mean one more

42:26 time.

42:26 It's up to you to choose whichever

42:28 you prefer.

42:29 Just as I said, make sure

42:30 not to mix them.

42:31 Not once more time, or

42:32 just one more.

42:33 Make sure to say once

42:35 more, or one more time.

42:37 Okay, great.

42:37 So I hope that this lesson helped you to

42:40 understand the different ways that we

42:42 use the word once.

42:44 In lots of situations, we use it to mean just one

42:46 time.

42:47 Sometimes we use it to talk about

42:49 past points in time, past conditions.

42:51 Sometimes it means as soon as, and of

42:53 course we have many expressions that

42:55 also use once.

42:56 And there are other

42:58 expressions I didn't cover in this

43:00 lesson, but I can hopefully cover them

43:02 at a future point in time.

43:04 Awesome.

43:04 So I hope this video helped you to be able to

43:06 use once with a little more confidence.

43:09 Of course, if you have any questions or

43:11 comments, or if you want to practice

43:13 making some sentences with the word

43:14 once, please feel free to do so in the

43:16 comment section of this video.

43:18 Also, if you like this lesson, don't forget to

43:20 give it a thumbs up and subscribe to

43:21 this channel if you haven't already.

43:23 Also, check us out at

43:24 englishclass101.com for some other

43:26 things that can help you with your

43:27 English studies.

43:29 Thanks very much for

43:29 watching this lesson, and I will see you

43:31 again soon.

43:32 Bye.

43:34 Hi everybody, my name is Alicia.

43:36 In this lesson, we're going to look at how to

43:39 use apostrophes.

43:40 Let's get started.

43:41 Okay, in this lesson, I want to talk

43:44 about two basic uses of the apostrophe.

43:48 The things I'm going to talk about in

43:49 this lesson will cover most basic uses

43:52 of the apostrophe.

43:53 There are two categories of use.

43:56 We're going to look

43:57 at showing possession, and we're going

43:59 to look at contractions to show the

44:02 missing letters in words.

44:04 Let's start by showing possession with apostrophes.

44:08 So to show possession with an apostrophe,

44:11 you can use apostrophe s after a noun.

44:15 So this expresses that something belongs

44:19 to the noun.

44:20 So let's look at some very

44:21 basic examples of this.

44:24 First, my teacher's pen.

44:27 In this example, we have my teacher as

44:30 the noun that we have to show possession

44:32 for.

44:33 We have the apostrophe here, and

44:35 then it's followed by s.

44:37 Next is pen.

44:39 This shows that the pen is owned by my

44:42 teacher.

44:43 We can use apostrophe s to

44:45 demonstrate this.

44:46 Let's look at the next

44:47 example.

44:48 His sister's car.

44:50 His sister's car.

44:52 In this sentence, sister is the person

44:55 owning something, or rather, his sister.

44:58 So again, apostrophe s shows the

45:00 ownership in this situation.

45:02 The car is owned by his sister.

45:06 Let's look at the last basic example.

45:08 It's my father's wallet.

45:11 My father's wallet.

45:12 Again, we have apostrophe s

45:15 after the owner of the object.

45:17 So here, my father is the owner of the wallet.

45:21 So we can use apostrophe s to show

45:24 ownership in this way, but there are

45:26 some very important rules to keep in

45:29 mind to make sure that you always

45:30 express this ownership clearly and

45:33 correctly.

45:34 So let's take a look at two

45:35 key rules for you to follow.

45:38 Okay.

45:38 First, number one.

45:40 If it's a singular noun.

45:43 So this means if you want to show the possession of

45:46 something that is a singular noun, that

45:48 means just one thing, or just one

45:50 person, add apostrophe s to make it plural.

45:55 Okay?

45:56 This is true even if the singular

45:59 noun ends in s.

46:02 So this part right here

46:03 is sometimes confusing even for native

46:05 speakers.

46:06 You learn, sometimes I

46:07 shouldn't put another s after the noun.

46:10 When should I do that?

46:11 I don't know.

46:11 So this is the rule.

46:13 So if it's a singular

46:14 noun, add apostrophe s to make it

46:16 plural.

46:17 So let's look at some examples

46:18 of this.

46:19 First, the business's plan.

46:22 The business's plan.

46:24 In this situation, business

46:28 is our noun.

46:28 We want to express

46:29 something that is owned by the business.

46:33 So business ends with an s, but it's a

46:35 singular noun, one business, right?

46:38 We still have to add apostrophe s to make

46:41 it plural.

46:42 I'm sorry, we still have to

46:43 add apostrophe s to show ownership.

46:45 This is a singular noun.

46:46 We're not making it

46:47 plural here.

46:48 The business's plan.

46:49 So this shows the

46:50 plan owned by the business.

46:53 Okay?

46:53 Let's look at another example of this.

46:56 His bus's schedule.

46:58 His bus's schedule.

46:59 So again, bus is a singular noun that

47:03 ends with s.

47:05 We still have to follow

47:06 this rule.

47:06 We add apostrophe s after the

47:08 bus to show ownership.

47:10 So this schedule belongs to the bus, or his bus in this

47:15 case.

47:15 So it's some kind of connection

47:17 we're showing here.

47:18 Here's one more example of this s rule.

47:21 Her dress's color.

47:23 Her dress's color.

47:24 So again, dress is our singular noun, it

47:27 ends in s.

47:28 We still have to put

47:29 apostrophe s to show ownership.

47:32 So in this case, the dress doesn't actually

47:34 own the color, of course, but the color

47:37 is a quality that belongs to the dress.

47:40 So even if your singular noun ends in s,

47:43 you need to put an apostrophe s after it

47:46 to show possession, to show ownership.

47:48 We saw the same thing up here.

47:50 So these singular nouns do not end in s, but we

47:54 have to follow the same rule.

47:55 So this one is an easy one, right?

47:57 If you're just talking about one of something, one

48:00 noun, just put apostrophe s after it to

48:02 show ownership.

48:04 Okay, great.

48:05 So let's continue on to rule number two.

48:07 Rule number two is a little bit trickier than

48:09 rule number one, so let's take a look.

48:11 Okay.

48:12 For rule number two, if it's a

48:15 plural noun.

48:16 So plural means more than

48:17 one of something.

48:18 If it's a plural noun,

48:20 use an apostrophe after the s.

48:23 That means no additional s after it, unless

48:26 the plural noun does not end in s.

48:29 So this is kind of tricky.

48:30 Let's break down what this means.

48:32 So plural nouns, generally, when we create a plural noun,

48:36 we simply add s to the end of the noun

48:38 to make it plural, right?

48:39 Like teacher becomes teachers, right?

48:42 Or sister becomes sisters, or father becomes

48:45 fathers, right?

48:46 More than one of

48:47 something.

48:47 We add an s to the end of it.

48:49 So if it's a plural noun that follows

48:51 this rule, just add an apostrophe after

48:54 the s.

48:54 You don't need to add apostrophe

48:56 plus s.

48:57 Just one apostrophe, and it's

48:59 done.

48:59 It's done.

48:59 It's finished.

49:00 It's good.

49:01 Unless, however, there is an exception.

49:03 Unless the plural noun doesn't end in s.

49:07 So there are some plural nouns that

49:08 don't end in s, right?

49:09 They're special nouns, right?

49:11 So we'll see an example of

49:12 this here.

49:13 So let's take a look at these

49:15 kinds of examples that we have and break

49:17 down what's happening.

49:18 So first one, my

49:19 parents' house.

49:21 My parents' house.

49:22 So in this example, my parents is the noun.

49:25 This is the plural noun, two people,

49:27 parents, right?

49:29 And we have an

49:30 apostrophe after the s.

49:32 In this situation, there's no extra s after

49:35 this, because it follows this rule.

49:38 So, the plural noun

49:39 parents, in this case, just gets an

49:42 apostrophe here, like this.

49:45 Okay?

49:45 So, my parents' house.

49:46 This shows the house

49:48 that belongs to my parents.

49:50 Okay?

49:50 Let's look at the next example.

49:52 The next example, our children's grades.

49:55 Our children's grades.

49:57 So, this is an

49:58 example of the exception here.

50:01 So, children is an example of a plural noun

50:04 that does not end in s, right?

50:06 We have one child, two children, right?

50:09 So, this is a plural noun that does not end in s.

50:12 In this situation, we need to use

50:14 apostrophe s, just as we did with rule

50:16 number one, right?

50:17 So, in this situation, when you have a plural noun

50:20 that doesn't end in s, make sure to add

50:22 that apostrophe s.

50:24 So, if you want to

50:24 talk about other things, like mice, for

50:26 example.

50:27 So, the mice's something, we

50:29 need to add that apostrophe s.

50:30 So, this is a good one to keep in mind when

50:33 you're writing a sentence that uses

50:35 those plural nouns that are kind of

50:37 irregular.

50:38 Okay?

50:38 Let's go to the last

50:39 example.

50:40 The students' party.

50:42 The students' party.

50:43 So, here again, we have

50:45 a regular plural noun.

50:46 It's just student plus s, right?

50:48 Students.

50:49 We again put the apostrophe after students.

50:52 No additional s, because it follows the

50:55 basic rule right here.

50:57 So, no exception in this case.

50:59 So, keep this one in mind.

51:00 This one requires a little bit more

51:02 thought.

51:02 Just consider that s at the

51:04 end.

51:04 Plural noun or singular noun.

51:06 Those are kind of the two things it's

51:07 important to keep in mind with this.

51:10 Okay.

51:10 So, this is what I want to talk

51:12 about for showing possession, using

51:14 apostrophes to show possession.

51:16 Let's go now to part two.

51:18 So, the other part of

51:19 today's lesson is using apostrophes to

51:22 show contraction.

51:24 So, a contraction is

51:25 the short form or the reduced form of

51:27 two words, generally.

51:29 So, we use apostrophes to show or to kind of

51:32 represent missing letters.

51:34 That's one way that you can think of the apostrophe

51:37 use here.

51:37 So, apostrophes can be used to

51:41 show the missing letters in words.

51:43 So, what does this mean?

51:44 Let's take a look

51:45 at some examples.

51:46 For example, when we

51:48 write do not in the reduced form or the

51:50 contracted form, we use this spelling,

51:53 right?

51:53 Don't.

51:54 d o n apostrophe t.

51:56 So, you can think of this apostrophe as kind

51:59 of a replacement for the letter that's

52:01 missing, right?

52:01 So, we have do not.

52:03 O is missing here.

52:04 It's kind of like we're

52:05 showing the O is gone with the

52:07 apostrophe.

52:08 So, don't.

52:09 Here's another example.

52:10 We are.

52:11 We are becomes we're,

52:13 right?

52:14 So, again, we have a letter

52:15 missing.

52:15 In this case, it's the a.

52:17 We are becomes we're.

52:19 So, the apostrophe shows where that letter used to be.

52:23 One more example.

52:25 I am.

52:26 This becomes I'm.

52:27 Again, we have a missing letter.

52:29 The a used to be right here.

52:31 We have an apostrophe there instead.

52:33 So, apostrophes can be used in this way to

52:35 show that letters are missing from a

52:37 word.

52:38 So, these are extremely extremely

52:40 common.

52:40 You probably know about these

52:42 already, but I also want to talk about

52:44 another use that's typically done in

52:46 books and other stories, those kinds of

52:49 things.

52:49 Sometimes, this apostrophe, this

52:52 missing letter apostrophe is used at the

52:54 end of a word or sometimes even in the

52:57 middle.

52:57 It's a little bit rare.

52:59 Usually, this is at the end of a word.

53:01 But sometimes, you'll see an apostrophe

53:03 at the end of a word to express a way of

53:06 speaking.

53:07 So, this kind of sends tends

53:09 to sound a little more casual or

53:11 sometimes this is used to indicate like

53:13 a character's certain way of speaking.

53:15 So, let's look at some examples so you

53:17 can see what I mean here.

53:18 Here's one.

53:19 I'm thinking about what to make for

53:21 dinner.

53:22 I'm thinking about what to make

53:23 for dinner.

53:24 So, first we have this

53:25 contracted form, right?

53:26 The apostrophe here.

53:27 And then we have this, thinkin.

53:29 Thinkin.

53:30 Here, the apostrophe is at the

53:33 end of the word.

53:34 So, we tend to see this

53:35 use a lot in ing verbs, actually, verbs

53:38 that end in ing, to show that the g

53:41 sound is not clearly pronounced.

53:42 So, I'm thinking about what to make for dinner.

53:45 So, this thinkin is a little bit

53:47 different from thinking, right?

53:49 I'm thinking about what to make for dinner

53:51 would be the standard way to say this,

53:53 right?

53:54 But this thinkin sounds a little

53:55 bit more casual.

53:57 People may choose to

53:58 use this kind of thinking to express a

54:01 certain kind of casual level of speaking

54:04 or to express a kind of accent,

54:06 something like that.

54:07 So, that's what this apostrophe at the end of an ing

54:11 verb means.

54:12 It means that g sound is

54:13 missing.

54:13 Let's look at another example.

54:15 We have been walking for hours.

54:18 We've been walking for hours.

54:19 So, here again, we have this basic contraction, we have,

54:23 we've been walking for hours.

54:26 So, again, there's this apostrophe at the end of

54:29 this ing word, right?

54:30 And the g is

54:31 missing.

54:31 So, the apostrophe is showing

54:33 us something is missing and we've cut

54:35 the word off early.

54:36 So, walking becomes walkin.

54:39 Walkin.

54:40 We've been walking for

54:40 hours.

54:41 So, this expresses a kind of

54:43 rough or casual manner of speaking.

54:45 One more.

54:46 You're working hard.

54:48 You're working hard.

54:49 You might hear people say this to

54:50 you at work, like your coworkers might

54:52 make this comment to you.

54:53 You're working hard.

54:55 Again, we have a basic contraction

54:56 here, you're, you are, right?

54:59 And here, working.

55:01 So, the standard spelling is

55:03 working with a g at the end.

55:05 We have this apostrophe here that shows

55:07 something is missing.

55:08 You're working hard.

55:09 So, this sounds kind of more

55:10 casual, a little more friendly than

55:12 you're working hard.

55:13 Okay?

55:14 So, that's what you might see occasionally.

55:16 Usually, we see this in text like

55:19 stories and maybe novels, maybe short

55:22 stories or essays, that kind of thing.

55:24 But often times, people like to speak

55:26 this way and sometimes they want to text

55:28 that way as well, too.

55:29 So, if you see

55:30 this in like a text message or

55:31 something, that's what this apostrophe

55:33 at the end of the word means.

55:35 And as I said, you might see it in the middle, I

55:37 suppose, in certain places.

55:39 You might even see it at the very beginning of a

55:41 word, but that's an indicator, that's a

55:43 sign that someone has cut off usually

55:45 like a letter or something like that, a

55:47 very small sound and they're showing

55:48 that with the apostrophe.

55:50 Okay, great.

55:51 So, those are the two key points that I

55:52 want to talk about for this lesson.

55:54 We use apostrophes to show possession and

55:57 we use apostrophes for contractions to

55:59 show missing letters.

56:00 I want to finish

56:01 this lesson by covering a very common

56:03 couple of questions, some very common

56:06 errors, some problem points for learners

56:08 and for native speakers.

56:10 This question box right here shows them.

56:13 They are the differences between it's with an

56:15 apostrophe, it's with no apostrophe, and

56:19 whose with an apostrophe s and whose h o

56:22 s e at the end here.

56:25 What is the difference?

56:26 So, let's talk about it's

56:27 and its first.

56:29 i t apostrophe s means it is.

56:33 It is.

56:35 i t no apostrophe s is the possessive.

56:38 So, this is an exception to what I

56:41 talked about over here.

56:42 Of course, that's like kind of hard for you to

56:44 remember, I know.

56:45 But thankfully, it's just this one.

56:47 There's only one that you

56:48 need to remember this exception for.

56:50 So, it's with no apostrophe is the

56:53 possessive form, okay?

56:55 It is is this it

56:57 with an apostrophe s at the end.

56:59 So, this is one tricky one to remember.

57:01 Okay?

57:02 Then the second one, this whose whose

57:04 question.

57:05 So, h I'm sorry, w h o

57:07 apostrophe s means who is.

57:11 Who is.

57:12 w h o s e is the possessive.

57:16 So, whose bag is this, right?

57:18 We're asking about someone's possession.

57:20 Whose bag is this?

57:21 Whose marker is this?

57:23 We use this w h o

57:25 s e word to do that.

57:27 Whose with an apostrophe s means who is, like who's he

57:31 talking to, right?

57:32 That's not a question

57:33 of possession.

57:34 So, these words sound

57:35 exactly the same when we are speaking,

57:37 right?

57:38 But it's important to remember

57:40 that they are very different on paper.

57:42 So, keep these small differences in mind

57:44 because they do matter.

57:46 Okay, great.

57:46 So, this is a quick introduction to how to

57:49 use apostrophes.

57:51 This is a very basic

57:52 introduction to this very important

57:54 punctuation mark, but these rules will

57:55 help you in the majority of situations.

57:58 So, keep this in mind.

57:59 Of course, if you

58:00 have any questions or comments or if you

58:02 want to practice making some apostrophe

58:04 words, feel free to do so in the comment

58:06 section of this video.

58:07 Also, if you like

58:08 this lesson, don't forget to give it a

58:09 thumbs up and subscribe to this channel

58:11 if you haven't already.

58:12 Also, check us out at englishclass101.com for some

58:15 other things that can help you with your

58:16 English studies.

58:18 Thanks very much for

58:18 watching this video and I will see you

58:20 again next time.

58:21 Bye.

58:23 Hi everybody.

58:23 My name is Alicia.

58:24 In this lesson, we're going to look at 10

58:27 different ways to use the preposition

58:29 by.

58:30 I'm going to cover some of the most

58:32 important and most common uses of this

58:34 preposition, but of course, there are

58:36 some other uses such as phrasal verbs

58:39 and idioms and so on.

58:41 Today, we're going to look at 10 very important and very

58:44 great to know uses of this preposition.

58:47 Let's get started.

58:48 Okay.

58:48 First, let's look at this one, number one here.

58:52 This is the use of by to mean near or close,

58:57 referring to its position from you.

58:59 So, for example, he lives by the park.

59:03 He lives by the park.

59:04 In this sentence, we

59:05 could replace by with near or close and

59:09 the sentence would remain the same.

59:10 The meaning would remain the same.

59:12 He lives near the park or he lives close to the

59:15 park.

59:16 Same thing with our next example.

59:18 My bag is by the door.

59:20 My bag is by the door.

59:22 So, my bag is near the door or my bag is

59:25 close to the door.

59:27 Last example.

59:28 She put her coffee by the

59:30 computer.

59:31 She put her coffee by the

59:33 computer.

59:33 Again, this means near.

59:35 She put her coffee near the computer.

59:38 So, all of these refer to by as meaning

59:41 close to something else.

59:43 Okay, let's move on to the second use.

59:46 The second use is to describe the method of travel.

59:51 So, we use this by along with a way of

59:55 getting somewhere, like a bus, an

59:57 airplane, being on foot, and so on.

1:00:00 Here are examples.

1:00:01 We went by bus.

1:00:03 We went by bus.

1:00:05 So, by comes before the method of

1:00:08 transportation.

1:00:09 In this case, bus is our

1:00:10 method.

1:00:11 We went by bus.

1:00:13 Second example, I've never traveled by

1:00:16 train before.

1:00:17 I've never traveled by

1:00:18 train before.

1:00:20 Again, by comes before the

1:00:22 transportation type here.

1:00:25 Okay?

1:00:25 Last example, she's coming by car.

1:00:28 She's coming by car.

1:00:30 So, again, we have car

1:00:32 here, our method of transportation, and

1:00:35 in front of that is by.

1:00:36 She's coming by car.

1:00:38 Please note the only time that we

1:00:40 don't use this is when we're talking

1:00:42 about traveling on our feet.

1:00:44 When we talk about traveling on foot, we use the

1:00:47 expression on foot.

1:00:49 So, it's about 10

1:00:50 minutes on foot.

1:00:51 We don't say by foot or

1:00:53 by walking, really.

1:00:54 We say on foot.

1:00:56 So, this is a special exception to this one.

1:00:58 If you're talking about buses, cars,

1:01:02 bicycles, and so on, you can use this by

1:01:05 method.

1:01:05 Okay, let's go on to number

1:01:07 three.

1:01:08 Number three is also about a

1:01:09 method, but it's a little more open.

1:01:12 We use by to describe methods of doing

1:01:16 things.

1:01:16 So, there are two kind of

1:01:18 breakdowns that I want to talk about

1:01:20 here.

1:01:21 The first one is using by before

1:01:24 an ing word.

1:01:26 So, this is a way of

1:01:27 expressing the process of something.

1:01:30 Let's look at some examples.

1:01:31 First, turn on the car by pressing this button.

1:01:36 Turn on the car by pressing this button.

1:01:39 So, in this situation, we have by before

1:01:42 this ing word, by pressing.

1:01:45 So, this sentence is saying you can turn on the

1:01:48 car if you do this action.

1:01:50 So, this part here is telling us the method of turning

1:01:55 on the car.

1:01:56 Turn on this car by pressing

1:01:58 this button.

1:01:59 Let's look at another

1:02:00 example.

1:02:01 Download the file by clicking this link.

1:02:04 Download the file by clicking this link.

1:02:06 So, again, we have by

1:02:08 and next is an ing word, by clicking.

1:02:12 So, clicking is this motion on the

1:02:14 computer or tapping on a smartphone.

1:02:16 So, download the file by clicking this

1:02:19 link.

1:02:19 This is another way to say you can

1:02:21 download this file if you click this

1:02:23 link.

1:02:24 So, we're talking about the method

1:02:26 of doing an action.

1:02:28 One more example of

1:02:29 this.

1:02:30 Make an appointment by calling our

1:02:32 office.

1:02:33 Make an appointment by calling

1:02:34 our office.

1:02:35 So, again, we have by

1:02:37 followed by an ing word.

1:02:39 Make an appointment by calling our office.

1:02:42 So, we're talking about the manner or the

1:02:44 method by which we can do this thing.

1:02:48 Okay, so this is the first one that I

1:02:50 wanted to talk about, the first way that

1:02:52 we use this by to describe the method of

1:02:55 doing something.

1:02:56 We always do this with

1:02:57 an ing word after by.

1:03:00 There is a second

1:03:01 type that I want to talk about, and we

1:03:03 typically use this to talk about

1:03:05 communication, methods of communication,

1:03:08 and methods of making payments.

1:03:11 So, this In this case, we follow by with a noun,

1:03:15 a noun that's related to communication

1:03:18 or a noun that's related to payments.

1:03:20 So, let's look at these examples.

1:03:21 I have two examples I want to talk about here

1:03:24 and a couple of notes for you.

1:03:25 So, first example, I'd like to pay by credit card.

1:03:29 I'd like to pay by credit card.

1:03:31 So, in this situation, it's a payment

1:03:33 situation, right?

1:03:34 I'd like to pay by

1:03:35 credit card.

1:03:36 Here we have by followed by

1:03:38 the noun phrase credit card, okay?

1:03:41 So, this is a very common way to express I

1:03:43 want to use my credit card.

1:03:45 It's just a different way of saying I want to use my

1:03:47 credit card.

1:03:49 So, here we have I'd like to pay by

1:03:51 credit card.

1:03:52 Okay, that's one type of payment.

1:03:54 Maybe you have a debit card, for example, I'd

1:03:56 like to pay by debit card.

1:03:58 You might also hear people say I'd like to pay by

1:04:00 check.

1:04:01 It's possible you might hear that

1:04:03 depending on the region, but we also in

1:04:06 this kind of case, we tend to use the

1:04:08 word with a lot, though.

1:04:10 So, for example, I'd like to pay with a credit

1:04:14 card or I'd like to pay with a check.

1:04:17 We also use this when we're talking about

1:04:20 cash.

1:04:20 We do not use by when we want to

1:04:23 pay with cash.

1:04:24 We don't say I'd like to

1:04:25 pay by cash.

1:04:26 Totally incorrect.

1:04:27 We often say I'd like to pay with cash or I'd

1:04:30 like to pay in cash.

1:04:32 You might also hear

1:04:33 no preposition.

1:04:34 I'd like to pay cash for

1:04:35 this, please.

1:04:36 So, these are all common

1:04:38 ways of expressing payment, but we

1:04:40 typically use by before a card type.

1:04:43 I'd like to pay by card type or maybe by

1:04:46 bank transfer or wire transfer, as well.

1:04:49 Okay, let's look at the next one.

1:04:51 The next one is a communication example.

1:04:54 So, when I say communication, I mean, for

1:04:56 example, phone or fax or email or maybe

1:04:59 online meeting and so on.

1:05:01 So, let's look at this example and then I'll talk a

1:05:04 little bit about some other patterns

1:05:06 that you might see here.

1:05:07 So, we sent the contract by express mail.

1:05:11 We sent the contract by express mail.

1:05:14 So, in this situation, we're expressing a

1:05:16 kind of communication or in this case,

1:05:18 transfer of information.

1:05:20 We sent the contract by express mail.

1:05:23 So, express mail means physical mail, right?

1:05:26 Express means fast, right?

1:05:28 So, we sent the

1:05:28 contract by express mail.

1:05:31 You might see this used to talk about

1:05:34 the type of mail that was used to send

1:05:36 something.

1:05:37 So, maybe in your country or

1:05:38 in your region, there's like a basic

1:05:40 kind of mail, express mail, maybe

1:05:43 there's a special kind of super express

1:05:45 mail, whatever.

1:05:46 If it's important to

1:05:48 express that kind of thing, like the

1:05:50 level of mail, you can use by to do

1:05:52 that.

1:05:53 By is the most natural way to do

1:05:54 that.

1:05:55 However, in recent years, we use things

1:05:58 like Skype or other online meeting

1:06:00 things, like Zoom, for example, but we

1:06:03 don't really use by to express that.

1:06:05 For example, if you want to talk about a

1:06:07 meeting that you have on Skype or on

1:06:09 Zoom, we generally don't use by to talk

1:06:12 about that.

1:06:12 We generally don't say we're

1:06:14 going to have the meeting by Zoom or

1:06:16 we're going to have the meeting by

1:06:17 Skype.

1:06:18 We don't use by in these online

1:06:20 situations.

1:06:21 Instead, we typically use

1:06:23 on.

1:06:23 We're going to have the meeting on

1:06:25 Skype or we're going to have the meeting

1:06:26 on Zoom.

1:06:27 So, please keep this one in

1:06:29 mind.

1:06:29 So, this by tends to be used by

1:06:32 I'm sorry, tends to be used to talk

1:06:34 about mail, physical mail.

1:06:36 You might also see it used to talk about fax, like

1:06:38 he sent it by fax.

1:06:40 You may also see the

1:06:41 word via, v i a, used in these cases.

1:06:46 So, there as you can see, there are a

1:06:48 few different ways that we can express

1:06:50 communication, but I just want to point

1:06:52 out that sometimes we do use by in these

1:06:55 cases to talk about payments and to talk

1:06:57 about communication.

1:06:58 But, generally, if you want to express the method of doing

1:07:01 something, this is a really easy one to

1:07:03 remember, by plus an ing verb.

1:07:07 Okay, that was a lot of information.

1:07:08 Let's go along to the next one, then.

1:07:10 The next one, number four, is by used to express

1:07:14 a deadline.

1:07:15 So, a deadline, that means

1:07:16 the finish point for something.

1:07:18 So, let's look at our examples.

1:07:20 Submit your application by Friday.

1:07:23 Submit your application by Friday.

1:07:25 This means Friday is the deadline.

1:07:28 So, you have until

1:07:29 Friday to do this action, okay?

1:07:32 The next example, call me by 3:00 p.m.

1:07:35 Call me by 3:00 p.m.

1:07:37 So, by is before the deadline

1:07:40 for something.

1:07:41 So, 1:00 p.m.

1:07:41 is okay, 2:00 p.m.

1:07:42 is okay, 3:00 p.m.

1:07:44 is the last chance that you have.

1:07:46 So, by comes before our deadline, our stop point for

1:07:49 the action.

1:07:51 Last one, finish the proposal by next

1:07:54 month.

1:07:55 Finish the proposal by next

1:07:57 month.

1:07:57 So, all of these sentences mean

1:08:00 that it's okay to do that action before

1:08:03 the deadline.

1:08:04 This by just marks the

1:08:06 last possible point for something.

1:08:08 A lot of learners ask about the difference

1:08:10 between by and until, and I'm not going

1:08:13 to talk about it in this lesson because

1:08:15 there are a lot of differences, but I

1:08:17 have a video about this, so definitely

1:08:19 check out the by versus until video that

1:08:22 I've made, and I hope that that will

1:08:24 help answer your questions about those

1:08:25 differences.

1:08:26 Okay, let's move on to

1:08:28 number five.

1:08:29 Number five, we can use by

1:08:31 when we want to express that we are

1:08:33 doing something alone or that someone

1:08:35 else is doing something alone.

1:08:37 There's a very specific grammar point we need to

1:08:40 keep in mind here.

1:08:41 So, let's look at

1:08:41 these examples.

1:08:43 First, she likes to go

1:08:44 to the movies by herself.

1:08:46 She likes to go to the movies by herself.

1:08:49 So, this by herself means alone, just one person, in

1:08:53 this case, she.

1:08:54 So, she likes to go to

1:08:55 the movies by herself.

1:08:57 We use by before

1:08:58 this word, herself, herself, okay?

1:09:02 This is an example of what's called a

1:09:04 reflexive pronoun.

1:09:06 We're going to see

1:09:07 this kind of pronoun in all of these

1:09:09 example sentences, so you'll notice a

1:09:11 pattern here.

1:09:12 Let's look at the next one

1:09:13 first, then.

1:09:14 I ate lunch by myself today.

1:09:17 I ate lunch by myself today.

1:09:19 So, I ate lunch by,

1:09:20 again, myself.

1:09:22 So, we have this

1:09:23 reflexive pronoun here after by.

1:09:26 This sentence expresses I ate lunch alone

1:09:28 today.

1:09:29 It's just a different way to

1:09:30 express that idea.

1:09:32 One more example, my

1:09:33 son got dressed by himself this morning.

1:09:36 My son got dressed by himself this

1:09:38 morning.

1:09:38 So, this is probably a sentence

1:09:40 about a very very young boy.

1:09:42 So, my son got dressed by himself.

1:09:45 Again, reflexive pronoun.

1:09:47 So, when you want to use this

1:09:48 by plus himself, herself, myself pattern, it

1:09:53 always is used to express that something

1:09:55 is happening alone.

1:09:57 Someone is doing something alone.

1:09:59 We will always use

1:09:59 these reflexive pronouns to do that.

1:10:02 So, if you want to know more about reflexive

1:10:03 pronouns, I also have a video about this

1:10:06 topic that you can check out as well for

1:10:08 more information.

1:10:09 So, in this example, I

1:10:11 used herself, I've used myself, and

1:10:13 himself.

1:10:14 We also have ourselves or

1:10:16 themselves and so on to talk about more

1:10:18 than one person, but in those cases,

1:10:21 we're talking about doing something with

1:10:22 just two people in these cases.

1:10:25 So, I hope that you check out that other video

1:10:27 about reflexive pronouns if you want to

1:10:29 know more about this, but this is how we

1:10:31 use it together with by.

1:10:33 Okay, on to the

1:10:34 next one.

1:10:34 Number six.

1:10:35 Number six is a

1:10:36 very simple use of by.

1:10:38 We use by to talk

1:10:39 about the author or the creator of

1:10:42 something.

1:10:43 So, the creator of your

1:10:44 favorite book, your favorite song, your

1:10:46 favorite movie, your favorite piece of

1:10:48 art, and so on.

1:10:49 When you want to talk

1:10:50 about the person who made it, you can

1:10:52 use by to do that.

1:10:53 For example, my favorite book was written by George

1:10:57 Orwell.

1:10:58 My favorite book was written by

1:11:00 George Orwell.

1:11:01 So, by comes before the

1:11:03 name of the person who created that

1:11:05 thing, in this case, a book.

1:11:07 Second example, this film was directed by Christopher

1:11:11 Nolan.

1:11:12 This film was directed by

1:11:13 Christopher Nolan.

1:11:14 So, we have by before

1:11:17 the director's name, the movie

1:11:18 director's name in this case,

1:11:20 Christopher Nolan.

1:11:21 So, again, this is

1:11:22 talking about the creator of a work or

1:11:24 the director of a work.

1:11:26 Okay, one more.

1:11:27 Her favorite piece of music is by

1:11:30 Beethoven.

1:11:31 Her favorite piece of music

1:11:32 is by Beethoven.

1:11:34 In this case, we have

1:11:35 just one name, Beethoven.

1:11:36 So, some artists, some creators are known by just

1:11:39 one name, or maybe they have a

1:11:41 performance name or something like that.

1:11:43 If it's a very famous artist like

1:11:45 Beethoven, for example, most people just

1:11:47 know it by one name, and that's okay.

1:11:49 So, we use by before the creator's name

1:11:52 to talk about the person who made

1:11:54 something.

1:11:55 Okay, let's move along to

1:11:56 number seven then.

1:11:57 Number seven is to

1:11:59 pass a location or to stop somewhere for

1:12:02 a short time.

1:12:03 We can use by to do both

1:12:05 of these things.

1:12:06 And you might think,

1:12:06 well, how do I know which is which?

1:12:08 How do I know if it means pass or stop

1:12:10 somewhere?

1:12:11 Generally, we can understand

1:12:12 from the situation, from the context.

1:12:14 So, let's take a look at these examples.

1:12:17 First, I drove by your house today.

1:12:19 I drove by your house today.

1:12:21 So, here I have drove, past tense of drive, drive a

1:12:25 car, by your house today.

1:12:28 In this case, it means I passed by your house today.

1:12:31 So, how do we know that it means pass

1:12:33 and it doesn't mean stop?

1:12:35 Well, probably if I'm telling the other person, "Hey, I

1:12:39 drove by your house today." I probably

1:12:41 didn't talk to that person, right?

1:12:42 I'm letting them know, "Oh, I was in your

1:12:44 neighborhood.

1:12:45 I was in the area." So, if

1:12:47 I stopped at the house, I would have

1:12:49 talked to the other person, right?

1:12:50 They probably would already know.

1:12:52 In this case, it means pass.

1:12:54 I passed by your

1:12:55 house today is another way to understand

1:12:57 that.

1:12:58 Okay, next one.

1:12:59 Can you please stop by the supermarket?

1:13:02 Can you please stop by the supermarket?

1:13:04 So, here we have by before the location.

1:13:07 Can you please stop by the supermarket?

1:13:09 So, how do we know?

1:13:09 Does this mean pass or does

1:13:11 this mean stop somewhere?

1:13:13 Well, our big hints are here, stop.

1:13:15 Can you please stop by, which means go very quickly to

1:13:18 the supermarket.

1:13:20 It would be very

1:13:20 strange to say, "Can you please pass the

1:13:22 supermarket?" right?

1:13:23 This sounds like a

1:13:24 request.

1:13:25 We probably would start a

1:13:26 request for something with this

1:13:28 expression, right?

1:13:29 So, this one means,

1:13:30 "Can you please stop at the supermarket

1:13:32 very quickly for something." Okay, last

1:13:35 one.

1:13:35 We walked by the library yesterday.

1:13:38 We walked by the library yesterday.

1:13:40 Here we have walked, again, past tense, by

1:13:43 our location, by the library.

1:13:45 We walked by the library yesterday.

1:13:48 This sounds like it's probably passing.

1:13:50 We walked past the library yesterday is how we

1:13:53 understand this.

1:13:55 So, generally, based on

1:13:56 the situation, we can understand if it

1:13:58 means pass or if it means stop somewhere

1:14:01 for a short period.

1:14:02 Okay, we're almost done.

1:14:04 Let's continue on to number eight

1:14:05 now.

1:14:06 Number eight is using by to talk

1:14:08 about changes or differences with

1:14:11 numbers.

1:14:12 Let's take a look at these

1:14:13 examples.

1:14:14 First one, sales increased by

1:14:17 15% this year.

1:14:19 Sales increased by 15%

1:14:21 this year.

1:14:22 This means that the total number of

1:14:25 sales increased, so it went up.

1:14:28 This by shows us how much of a change,

1:14:32 okay?

1:14:33 So, one big question that people

1:14:35 have is, what should I Is it two or is

1:14:37 it by?

1:14:38 What should I use here?

1:14:40 Sales increased to 15% means that from

1:14:44 some, like, for example, 13% or 10% or

1:14:47 something like that.

1:14:49 The point that the

1:14:50 sales reached was 15%.

1:14:53 However, sales increased by 15% means the total change

1:14:58 was 15%.

1:15:00 So, by and to communicate very different

1:15:03 things.

1:15:03 By is telling us the difference

1:15:06 in change.

1:15:07 To is talking about the point

1:15:09 that was reached.

1:15:10 So, they are very

1:15:11 different.

1:15:11 Keep this one in mind.

1:15:13 We tend to use this a lot with the verbs

1:15:15 increase and decrease.

1:15:17 Also, just go up

1:15:19 and go down.

1:15:20 So, we'll see that again in

1:15:22 another example.

1:15:23 So, sales increased by

1:15:25 15% this year.

1:15:26 That's the total change.

1:15:28 Okay, next example.

1:15:29 The temperature went down by 5°.

1:15:33 The temperature went down by

1:15:34 5°.

1:15:35 So, that means the temperature

1:15:36 decreased by 5°.

1:15:39 This means the total

1:15:40 change was 5°.

1:15:42 For example, from 30 to

1:15:43 25, that's a 5° change, right?

1:15:47 Again, if we say the temperature went down to 5°,

1:15:50 that means the end temperature was 5°.

1:15:53 So, again, we cannot use to and by in

1:15:56 the same way.

1:15:57 By tells us the change or

1:15:59 the amount of difference.

1:16:00 Okay, last one.

1:16:02 We missed our bus by 5 minutes.

1:16:05 Oh, sorry, we missed our bus by 2 minutes.

1:16:07 So, this sentence is a little bit

1:16:09 different here.

1:16:10 So, in this case, we're

1:16:10 talking about like a change or a

1:16:12 difference in schedule.

1:16:14 For example, if the bus leaves at 12:00, we arrive to

1:16:18 catch the bus at 12:02,

1:16:21 we can say we missed our bus by 2

1:16:24 minutes.

1:16:25 So, we can express this

1:16:26 difference in time with by.

1:16:29 So, when you miss something or you're late for

1:16:31 something, you can use by to do this.

1:16:34 Like, "Oh my gosh, I was late for my

1:16:36 plane by an hour." So, we're expressing

1:16:38 that difference in time with by.

1:16:41 Okay, let's move on to number nine.

1:16:43 Number nine is using by for units of

1:16:46 measurement.

1:16:46 This one is a very

1:16:47 straightforward and easy to remember

1:16:49 one.

1:16:50 So, we use by to talk about the

1:16:52 dimensions of an object.

1:16:54 So, dimensions mean the height and the length and the

1:16:58 depth of something.

1:16:59 So, let's look at

1:17:00 our examples.

1:17:01 This room is 5 m by 10 m.

1:17:04 This room is 5

1:17:05 m by 10 m.

1:17:08 So, we use by to talk about

1:17:10 kind of the total area of a space.

1:17:13 So, when we're talking about the length and

1:17:15 the width, we connect them with by.

1:17:19 We can do this with three units of

1:17:21 measurement, too.

1:17:21 So, I mentioned earlier, length and width and height or

1:17:25 depth, depending on the object.

1:17:27 We can do that with something like this.

1:17:29 Her bag is 30 cm by 60 cm by 28 cm.

1:17:35 So, this gives us three units of measurement, 30

1:17:38 cm by 60 cm by 28 cm.

1:17:42 So, we connect all

1:17:43 of those different measurements with the

1:17:45 word by.

1:17:46 Okay, one more example.

1:17:48 Our living room is about 13 ft by 18 ft.

1:17:53 So, in this case, I'm using feet as the

1:17:55 measurement.

1:17:56 This is a common unit of

1:17:57 measurement in the USA.

1:18:00 [snorts]

1:17:59 This room is Oh, sorry, our living room

1:18:01 is about 13 ft by 18 ft.

1:18:04 So, typically, we express two dimensions, two units of

1:18:08 measurement, at the same time in this

1:18:10 manner, as in example sentence one and

1:18:13 example sentence number two, when we

1:18:15 talk about a room or maybe a house or

1:18:17 something like that.

1:18:18 If it's an object,

1:18:19 we might use three different dimensions

1:18:21 to talk about those, but we connect all

1:18:23 of those with by.

1:18:25 Okay, let's move on to

1:18:26 our last one for this lesson.

1:18:28 The last use of by I want to talk about is with

1:18:31 passive.

1:18:32 So, we use passive sentence

1:18:34 structures sometimes to hide information

1:18:37 or if we don't know who did an action or

1:18:40 if we just want to focus on the effects

1:18:42 of the action.

1:18:43 But sometimes, we want to

1:18:45 indicate or we want to share at the end

1:18:47 of the sentence who did the action.

1:18:50 We can do that with by.

1:18:51 Let's take a look.

1:18:53 The file was sent by my co-worker.

1:18:56 The file was sent by my co-worker.

1:18:59 So, a basic passive sentence is just the file

1:19:02 was sent.

1:19:03 The file was sent.

1:19:03 This sentence is 100% correct.

1:19:05 But sometimes, maybe it's important to share a little

1:19:08 bit about who did the action.

1:19:10 In this case, we have my co-worker.

1:19:13 So, who did the action?

1:19:14 My co-worker.

1:19:15 Okay, next example.

1:19:17 Her bag was stolen by a man on the

1:19:19 subway.

1:19:20 Her bag was stolen by a man on

1:19:22 the subway.

1:19:23 So, this is answering who

1:19:25 stole it?

1:19:26 A man on the subway.

1:19:27 So, we connect the two with by here.

1:19:30 So, again, her bag was stolen is perfectly fine.

1:19:33 If you don't know who stole the bag, that's

1:19:35 okay.

1:19:36 You can just use that sentence.

1:19:37 But if you want to include some extra

1:19:39 information about who did that action,

1:19:41 you can do it with by.

1:19:43 Okay, last one.

1:19:45 Our reservation was changed by the staff

1:19:48 at the hotel.

1:19:49 Our reservation was changed by the staff at the hotel.

1:19:53 So, who changed our reservation?

1:19:55 The staff at the hotel.

1:19:57 We add this information

1:19:58 with by to the end of the basic passive

1:20:01 sentence.

1:20:02 So, you can do this if you

1:20:03 want to give that information and you

1:20:05 want to use a passive sentence structure

1:20:07 for some reason.

1:20:08 So, it's up to you if

1:20:10 you want to use an active or a passive

1:20:11 sentence here.

1:20:12 That's your choice, but

1:20:13 here is how you can share about who did

1:20:15 that action.

1:20:16 Just use by to do that.

1:20:18 Okay, great.

1:20:19 So, those are 10 uses of

1:20:21 the preposition by.

1:20:22 As I mentioned at

1:20:23 the beginning of this episode, of course

1:20:25 there are many other ways to use by.

1:20:28 For example, we use it in phrasal verbs, we

1:20:31 use the word by in idioms, and there

1:20:33 other expressions that we see by used

1:20:36 from time to time.

1:20:37 Of course, I cannot

1:20:38 cover all uses of by in one video

1:20:40 because there are too many, but I hope

1:20:42 that these 10 uses will help you a lot

1:20:44 and help you to understand the different

1:20:46 ways that you can use this preposition

1:20:48 in your communication.

1:20:50 So, I hope that this lesson was helpful

1:20:51 for you.

1:20:52 If you have any questions or

1:20:53 comments, or if you want to practice

1:20:55 making some example sentences with this

1:20:57 word, please feel free to do so in the

1:20:59 comment section of this video.

1:21:00 Also, if you like this lesson, don't forget to

1:21:02 give it a thumbs up and subscribe to our

1:21:04 channel if you haven't already.

1:21:06 Also, check us out at englishclass101.com

1:21:08 for some other things that can help you

1:21:10 with your English studies.

1:21:11 Thanks very much for watching this lesson and I will

1:21:13 see you again soon.

1:21:15 Bye.

1:21:17 Hi everybody.

1:21:18 My name is Alicia.

1:21:19 In this video, I'm going to look at how to use

1:21:21 the preposition to.

1:21:24 Let's get started.

1:21:25 Okay, first I want to talk about using

1:21:28 the preposition to to express a

1:21:31 destination.

1:21:33 So, we use to when expressing the end

1:21:37 point or the destination of a movement.

1:21:41 So, we can use this form of to when we

1:21:44 talk about our travel experiences or

1:21:47 just when we are talking about moving

1:21:49 inside a room, moving inside our

1:21:51 community, and so on.

1:21:53 So, let's take a

1:21:53 look at how we use to in this situation.

1:21:57 First, she went to the bank.

1:22:00 Here, to is before the destination, in this case,

1:22:04 the bank.

1:22:04 She went to the bank.

1:22:06 The bank is the destination or the end point of

1:22:10 her movement.

1:22:11 We use this with the past

1:22:12 tense verb.

1:22:13 Next example is they drove to Mexico.

1:22:17 They drove to Mexico.

1:22:19 In this case, the

1:22:20 destination or the end point is a

1:22:22 country, Mexico.

1:22:23 We put to before the

1:22:25 end point here to mark this.

1:22:27 Again, we have a movement verb in this sentence.

1:22:31 So, here we have drove, the past tense

1:22:33 of drive.

1:22:34 Our first example was went,

1:22:36 the past tense of go.

1:22:37 Let's look at one

1:22:38 more example of this.

1:22:40 Let's move this meeting to a coffee

1:22:42 shop.

1:22:43 Let's move this meeting to a

1:22:44 coffee shop.

1:22:45 So, this is an expression

1:22:46 we can use if we want to stop having a

1:22:49 meeting somewhere and go somewhere else

1:22:51 to continue talking.

1:22:52 Here we have the

1:22:54 destination or the desired, in this

1:22:56 case, end point, a coffee shop here.

1:22:59 So, this person is making a suggestion.

1:23:02 This is not a past tense example, but they're

1:23:04 saying, "Let's move to this

1:23:07 destination." So, they're talking about

1:23:09 a destination in the future.

1:23:11 So, we can use to before a specific end point for

1:23:16 our movement.

1:23:17 Please keep in mind you

1:23:18 cannot use the word there in this case.

1:23:21 Sometimes I see learners say, "I want to

1:23:23 go to there." or "I lived to there." or

1:23:27 "I went to there." So, we cannot use

1:23:29 there in this position because there is

1:23:32 not a specific end point.

1:23:34 We always use a specific location at the end of this

1:23:38 to phrase, okay?

1:23:40 So, make sure you mark

1:23:41 those end points with to.

1:23:43 Okay, let's continue to the second one.

1:23:46 Number two is for recipients.

1:23:49 Recipients.

1:23:50 So, that means we use to to

1:23:52 mark the person receiving something.

1:23:56 So, in a give and receive situation, when

1:23:59 you want to express the person who takes

1:24:01 the thing or who receives the thing, you

1:24:04 can mark that person with to.

1:24:06 Let's look at some examples.

1:24:08 Okay, first one.

1:24:09 Please send this file to the client.

1:24:13 Please send this file to the client.

1:24:15 In this case, the client is the person or

1:24:18 the group that is receiving the file.

1:24:21 Please send this file to the client.

1:24:23 If it helps you, you can think of this

1:24:26 person as the destination for something.

1:24:29 It has kind of the same feel.

1:24:30 That's the end point or the end person for the

1:24:34 item.

1:24:34 So, please send this file to the

1:24:36 client.

1:24:37 Next one.

1:24:39 I gave my sweater to my mother.

1:24:42 I gave my sweater to my mother.

1:24:44 Again, my mother is the recipient of this object,

1:24:49 my sweater.

1:24:50 I gave my sweater to my mother.

1:24:53 So, this is one kind of example

1:24:55 sentence.

1:24:56 There are other ways to talk

1:24:57 about giving and receiving.

1:24:59 For example, I gave my mother my sweater is also 100%

1:25:03 correct.

1:25:03 It's just that this is a

1:25:04 different pattern that you can use to

1:25:06 express this giving and receiving

1:25:08 situation.

1:25:09 Okay, last example.

1:25:12 Take your application to the manager.

1:25:14 Take your application to the manager.

1:25:17 So, again, we have our recipient here.

1:25:19 So, in the future, this person is going to take

1:25:22 their application to this destination person, the manager

1:25:26 in this case.

1:25:27 So, we use to to mark the

1:25:29 person who receives something or who is

1:25:31 going to receive something.

1:25:33 They're kind of the end person or the end point

1:25:36 person.

1:25:37 Okay, let's continue on to

1:25:39 number three here.

1:25:40 So, number one and

1:25:41 number two were really about marking end

1:25:43 points with people and places.

1:25:45 Number three is about marking an end point with