ESL podcast 867 – talking about attractive men and women

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GLOSSARY

hottie – someone who is very beautiful and sexually attractive

* Apparently, Dave is dating a hottie, but I haven’t met her yet

babe – a beautiful, very attractive young woman

* Nikolai often talks about the babes he went out with in college

to sway – to gently move from side to side, especially when talking about one’s

hips

* Look at how she’s swaying her hips to get the men’s attention

to ogle – to stare at someone in an unpleasant way, especially in a sexually

aggressive way

* Many women don’t feel comfortable walking by construction sites, because they

think the men are ogling them

to undress (someone) with (one’s) eyes – to look at someone while pretending

that he or she is naked, imagining what that person would look like without

clothes on

* Sheila hates talking to Gregorio, because she says it always feels like he’s undressing her with his eyes

to avert (one’s) gaze – to turn one’s eyes away from someone or something; to

focus one’s vision on something else

* The reporter warned viewers to avert their eyes, because the images would be

upsetting

to check out – to look at and pay attention to someone or something

* Check out that couch! Wouldn’t that look great in our living room?

tall, dark, and handsome – a phrase used to describe the perfect man that

many women are looking for, someone who is tall, has dark skin and dark eyes, and is very attractive

* At this point, Meghan has given up looking for someone who is tall, dark, and

handsome She’s just looking for someone who is kind and has a job!

pretty boy – a man who cares a lot about his physical appearance and spends a

to be into (oneself) – to be very interested in oneself and one’s interests and

appearance, and much less interested in other people; to be very self-centered and selfish

* Owen is so into himself! During the hurricane, he kept worrying about what all

the wind was doing to his hair, and didn’t seem to care that other people were losing their homes

to pose – to position one’s body in a particular way, especially for a photograph,

usually to appear more beautiful or powerful

* The photographer asked Jenna to pose with her head leaning toward her left shoulder and her hand on her hip

exhibitionist – someone who wants to be noticed by other people and does

surprising and unexpected things to get other people to look at oneself

* I think Andrei became a singer because he’s an exhibitionist who loves having

an audience

teeny tiny – very small; extremely small

* Hermione has a terrible fear of bugs and screams whenever she sees even a

teeny tiny insect

bikini – a small, two-piece bathing suit for a woman, designed to allow other

people to see a lot of her body

* A competitive swimmer needs a strong, one-piece swimming suit, not a bikini

to show off – to make something visible to other people so that they can admire

it and make one feel good

* Jeremiah was trying to show off while playing basketball, but the coach got mad

at him for not passing the ball to the other players

what God gave (one) – a phrase used to describe the natural attributes and/or

physical appearance that a person has, based on genetics, not the changes one has made to one’s body

* Cristina is considering getting plastic surgery to her nose to improve on what God gave her

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS

1 What is a hottie?

a) A woman who is very attractive

b) A woman who is wearing shorts and a t-shirt

c) A woman who is very young

2 What are the women wearing?

a) Nothing at all

b) Very small swimsuits

c) Light jackets

WHAT ELSE DOES IT MEAN?

babe

The word “babe,” in this podcast, means a beautiful, very attractive young

woman: “He’s telling everybody that his new girlfriend is a babe.” The word

“babe” can also be used when speaking to a young woman, especially a

girlfriend, although it may be considered rude or inappropriate: “Hey babe, do you want to go see a movie with me on Friday?” A “babe” is sometimes a human baby: “The young mother leaned over her babe to protect him from the rain.” Finally, the phrase “a babe in the woods” describes someone who is very nạve and can be tricked or fooled easily: “Armando may be very intelligent, but he is a babe in arms in social situations and people often take advantage of him.”

to pose

In this podcast, the verb “to pose” means to position one’s body in a particular way, especially for a photograph, usually to appear more beautiful or powerful:

“Before there were cameras, important politicians had to pose for hours to have their image painted or sculpted.” The verb “to pose” can also mean to present a problem or a risk: “The approaching storm poses a risk to the local farmers.” The phrase “to pose a question” means to ask a question: “She posed a question asking the presenter whether his management ideas would work in a factory.” Finally, the phrase “to pose as (someone)” means to pretend to be somebody

CULTURE NOTE

Beauty Pageants

The United States has many “beauty pageants” (competitions that identify the most beautiful woman) at local, regional, state, and national levels In general, the winners of the local and regional levels “advance to” (move up to compete in) the state level, and the winners of the state level compete at the regional or national level

The “annual” (happening every year) Miss America pageant began in 1921 Today, it presents itself as a scholarship pageant, as the winner and the

“runners-up” (people who almost got 1st place, but did not win) receive

“scholarships” (money that can be used for one’s education) The winner is

“crowned” (given a shiny object to wear on the top front of her head, like a

queen) “Miss America” and attends many events throughout the year “in that capacity” (in that role; as Miss America)

In 1950, a Miss America pageant “contestant” (someone who is participating in a competition) refused to wear a swimsuit for “publicity pictures” (photographs used

to promote the event) The pageant “sponsor” (a company that provides money for an event to happen) “pulled” (removed; took away) its sponsorship and

created an alternative pageant: Miss USA

Miss USA began in 1952 The winner, who is crowned “Miss USA” represents the United States in the international Miss Universe pageant

Other pageants allow younger and older women to compete Miss Teen USA is a pageant for teenagers, girls ages 13-19 The Mrs America pageant allows

married women ages 20-50 to participate, with the winner “going on” (advancing)

to the Mrs World pageant

Comprehension Questions Correct Answers: 1 – a; 2 – b

COMPLETE TRANSCRIPT

Welcome to English as a Second Language Podcast number 867: Talking About Attractive Men and Women

This is English as a Second Language Podcast episode 867 I’m your host, Dr Jeff McQuillan, coming to you from the Center for Educational Development in beautiful Los Angeles, California

Our website is ESLPod.com Become a member of ESL Podcast and download the Learning Guide for this episode You can also take a look on our website at our ESL Podcast Store which has some additional courses in business and daily English I’m sure you will enjoy

This episode is a dialog between Pamela and David about how we might

describe physically attractive men and women – not me, in other words Let’s get started

[start of dialog]

Pamela: You know that your tongue is hanging out of your mouth, right?

David: That’s because I’ve never seen so many beautiful women in one place before Why have I never been to this beach before? Look at her! She’s a hottie!

Pamela: Isn’t that what you said about that woman over there?

David: No, I said she’s a babe Look at the way she sways when she walks Pamela: Stop ogling her or her boyfriend or husband is going to come over here David: I’m not ogling I’m admiring the perfection of the female body

Pamela: You’re undressing her with your eyes Avert your gaze before you regret it Oh, wow!

David: What?

David: That pretty boy over there? He’s too into himself Look at the way he’s posing so every woman on this beach can get a look at him He’s nothing but an exhibitionist

Pamela: And the women you’ve been ogling in the teeny tiny bikinis?

David: Those women? They’re just showing off what God gave them!

[end of dialog]

Pamela begins by saying, “You know that your tongue is hanging out of your mouth, right?” The expression “to have your tongue” – which is, of course, inside

of your mouth normally – “hanging out of your mouth” means that you are sort of like a dog or an animal that sees food and, in reaction to that, sticks his tongue out The tongue comes out, indicating that he wants that food – that he wants to eat that food

Sometimes, this expression is used to describe men who see beautiful women or

a beautiful woman and are sort of not aware that they are looking at them or that they are showing their interest in such an obvious way Pamela is saying that about David David says, “That’s because I’ve never seen so many beautiful women in one place before Why have I never been to this beach before?”

So they are down by probably the ocean, or a lake that has a beach – a place, usually filled with sand, that people sit on in order to either sunbathe – that is, take in the sun and have it change the color of their skin, at least if they’re light-skinned like me – or to go swimming And of course, at beaches, people usually wear swimming gear or swimwear that reveals their body more than you would see almost anywhere else

David says, “Look at her” – pointing to one particular girl – “she’s a hottie!” A

“hottie” (hottie) is someone who’s very beautiful, very sexually attractive Pamela says, “Isn’t that what you said about that woman over there?” David says, “No I said she’s a babe.” A “babe” (babe) is a beautiful, young, attractive woman It really means the same as “hottie.” “Hottie” has a little bit more of a sexual

meaning “Babe” is always a woman who’s very attractive It’s a little older word –

it was popular, I think, late 80’s and 90’s, a little less popular now but you’ll still hear it

David says, “Look at the way she sways when she walks.” “To sway” (sway)

down the street may sometimes sway her body naturally from side to side and men often find that attractive, in the way that a woman might be walking

Pamela says, “Stop ogling her or her boyfriend or husband is going to come over here.” “To ogle” (ogle) – which some people might pronounce “oogle” like

“Google,” but “ogle” is the standard pronunciation – means to look at someone, usually a man looking at a woman, but it could be the other way around, with a strong sense of sexual attraction You’re staring at them You’re looking at them for what would be considered too long of a period to be polite It might make the other person even uncomfortable, the way you are looking at them because you find them so beautiful, so attractive That’s why Pam tells David to stop ogling her Stop looking at her that way, or if he doesn’t, the woman’s boyfriend or husband may come over here and, of course, not be very happy that David is looking at his girlfriend or wife

David says, “I’m not ogling I’m admiring the perfection of the female body.” I’m just admiring the beauty, her physical beauty Pamela says, “You’re undressing her with your eyes.” “To undress” means to take your clothes off It’s the opposite

of “to dress.” “To undress a person” – someone – “with your eyes” means that you are looking at that person who has clothes on, but you’re imagining them without their clothes I think you understand what I’m saying here That’s what David is doing according to Pamela He’s not looking at this woman as some sort

of work of art He’s looking at her in a very sexual way

Pamela says, “Avert your gaze before you regret it.” “To avert” (avert) means to avoid or to turn away Your “gaze” (gaze) is your look You’re looking at

someone You’re gazing at someone “Avert your gaze,” means to turn your eyes away from someone Don’t look at something We might say this if it’s something particularly ugly or negative or violent In this case, we’re saying it to David

because he might get in trouble if he keeps looking at this beautiful woman who obviously has a man with her

Then Pamela says, “Oh, wow.” David says, “What?” Pam says, “Check out that guy over there.” “Check out” here is a two-word, phrasal verb, meaning to look at and pay attention to someone or something “Check out this new television

show,” you might say to someone, and show them on your television what you’re talking about “Check out that guy” means look at that man over there

man, not a woman So, “guy,” in the singular, is usually a man “Guys” can be men or men and women

Getting back to the story then, Pamela is looking at some guy – some man – and she says, “Hello Mr Tall, Dark, and Handsome.” The expression “tall, dark, and handsome” describes the perfect man that many women are looking for – a man who’s tall, a man who has perhaps dark skin and dark eyes – although, of

course, not all women like men with dark skin and dark eyes, fortunately for me, since I have neither “Handsome” (handsome) is a way of describing a man who’s very physically attractive A good looking man would be described as

“handsome.” We wouldn’t typically use handsome to describe a woman or a girl Usually, it’s just for a boy or a man

David says, “That pretty boy over there? He’s too into himself.” A “pretty boy” (pretty) boy is a man who takes care of his physical appearance, who probably spends a lot of time and money on his hair and on his clothing Some men, of course, think that other men who do that are somehow too much concerned about their physical appearance A real man doesn’t worry about how his hair looks – that would be the idea I don’t worry about how my hair looks, for

example “Pretty boy” is used here, somewhat, as an insult to this man “He’s too into himself,” David says “To be into yourself” means to be very interested in what you are doing, in your appearance, almost to the point of being very selfish

or self-centered “I only care about me” – that’s the idea behind this phrase, “to

be into yourself.”

David says, “Look at the way he’s posing so every woman on the beach can get

a look at him.” “To pose” (pose) means, here, to position your body in a particular way, usually for a photograph so that you appear more beautiful You may turn one way or another – turn your face or your head from one side to another That would be to pose This man is posing, according to David, so that all the other women on the beach can look at him

He says, “He’s nothing but an exhibitionist.” An “exhibitionist” (exhibitionist) is someone who wants to be noticed by other people, who does things so that other people pay attention to him or her Some people even go so far as to take off part

of their clothing so that other people will notice them That’s usually the

connection we have to this word An exhibitionist is often someone who will try to get other people to pay attention to them by taking their clothes off

Pamela says, “And the women you’ve been ogling in the teeny tiny bikinis?”

“two-piece” we would call it, bathing suit for women The top part of the bathing suit goes around a woman’s chest or breasts and the bottom part goes where she would wear a pair of underwear “Teeny tiny” means very small So, these bikinis are not very big, relative to the women who are wearing them That is, you can see a lot of their skin

David says, “Those women? They’re just showing off what God gave them.” “To show off” is a two-word, phrasal verb meaning to make something visible to other people so they can admire it, so they can see how beautiful it is We can also use this expression when we tell people things about ourselves that we want to

impress them with “Oh, I just won a Nobel Prize in literature, didn’t I tell you?” You are showing off You are telling other people about your accomplishments or you’re showing them something physically that you want them to admire You want them to say, “Oh, well that’s very beautiful,” or “That’s very impressive Congratulations on your Nobel Prize for literature.”

“What God gave someone” is a phrase that we use to describe your natural abilities or your physical appearance So when David says that the women are just showing off what God gave them, he’s saying that the women are just

showing the world the gifts, if you will, that God has given them in creating their beautiful bodies I think that’s what David is trying to say here

Now let’s listen to the dialog, this time, at a normal speed

[start of dialog]

Pamela: You know that your tongue is hanging out of your mouth, right?

David: That’s because I’ve never seen so many beautiful women in one place before Why have I never been to this beach before? Look at her! She’s a hottie!

Pamela: Isn’t that what you said about that woman over there?

David: No, I said she’s a babe Look at the way she sways when she walks Pamela: Stop ogling her or her boyfriend or husband is going to come over here

David: What?

Pamela: Check out that guy over there Hello, Mr Tall, Dark, and Handsome!

David: That pretty boy over there? He’s too into himself Look at the way he’s posing so every woman on this beach can get a look at him He’s nothing but an exhibitionist

Pamela: And the women you’ve been ogling in the teeny tiny bikinis?

David: Those women? They’re just showing off what God gave them!

[end of dialog]

She never shows off but God did give her a wonderful talent for writing scripts I speak of our wonderful scriptwriter, Dr Lucy Tse Thank you, Lucy

From Los Angeles, California, I’m Jeff McQuillan, thank you for listening Come back and listen to us again right here on ESL Podcast

English as a Second Language Podcast is written and produced by Dr Lucy Tse, hosted by Dr Jeff McQuillan Copyright 2013 by the Center for Educational Development