LEARN 105 ENGLISH VOCABULARY WORDS | DAY 11

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Video Transcript:

Welcome to day 11 in your 30 Day Vocabulary Challenge. One video a day, every day, for 30 days. We’re learning 105 words from the academic word list, so these are words you’ll need to know if you’re preparing for the IELTS or TOEFL exam. But also if you read or watch the news in English or have conversations in English. These are intermediate words and we’re going to study them in real situations so your understanding will go beyond just memorizing a definition. So grab your friends, have them join you in this challenge, and let’s do this! As always, if you like this video, or you learned something new, please like and subscribe with notifications. I’d love to have you as my student.

During these 30 days, we’re learning 105 words together. I do have a download for you, a list of all the words with definitions and sample sentences, as well as quizzes to make sure you’re really getting and remembering these words. You can get that download by following this link or the link in the video description. Today, we’re learning four new words and we’re looking at the different ways these words are used in various real situations. For each word, you’ll get the definition, we’ll go over the pronunciation, you’ll get to see it up close and in slow motion, and then we’ll also go to Youglish for five examples from real life.
Our first word is COMMISSION. Commission. This is a three syllable word with middle syllable stress. You don’t really need to put a vowel in the first or last syllable. com– com– comi– sion, sion. Commission. It’s a noun, a group of people who’ve been given the official job of finding information or controlling something. She served on the city’s water commission. It also means money paid to an employee for selling something. This job will give a base salary, plus commission for each sale you make. As a verb, it means to order or request something to be made or done. The travel magazine commissioned a story on the world’s best beaches. Let’s look again up close and in slow motion.
And now we’ll go to Youglish to see five examples of this word in context.
My salary might change in the way that I get a lower base salary, but a higher commission.
This woman leads outdoor camping adventures for groups. She has a guaranteed base salary or minimum salary, then in addition to that, she makes extra money, a commission, for each person that goes on this adventure. For example, maybe she receives another fifty dollars per person.

My salary might change in the way that I get a lower base salary, but a higher commission.
Here’s another example.
Serving on that commission was a transformative experience for me.
Serving or working on a commission. This means that working with a group of people on specific projects was a powerful thing that changed something about the way that he thinks or feels.
Serving on that commission was a transformative experience for me.
Let’s see another example.
We filed a successful complaint with the main human rights commission.
A human rights commission is a group of people that hears and helps resolve problems that have to do with freedom of opinion, the right to work, and education, and so on. For example, if a person feels that they aren’t being treated equally because of the color of their skin, they can file a complaint or report to the human rights commission. This group will help this person’s voice be heard in a legal way, and work towards fair treatment.
We filed a successful complaint with the main human rights commission.
Let’s look at another example.
It doesn’t have to be, you know, joining a huge commission or something that’s big and showy.
Commissions are typically groups of people that are working on specialized problems and they’re public. This means their work and decisions are not secret or hidden. If you join a commission, that’s something that people in public spaces are going to know about, which could feel big and showy.
It doesn’t have to be, you know, joining a huge commission or something that’s big and showy.
Our last example.
So the story was uh, this was commissioned by, and for National Geographic.
This guy is saying that the magazine, National Geographic, paid money to a writer to travel the Australian outback all by herself for a period of time, then write an interesting piece about it to publish in the magazine.
So the story was uh, this was commissioned by, and for National Geographic.
Our next word is CREDIT. As a noun, this word has several meanings. It can mean borrowed money that has to be paid back in the future. For example, in the past, stores allowed their customers to buy food and other things on credit. It also means a record of how well you’ve paid bills in the past. She always pays her bills on time so she has good credit. It can also mean an amount of money added to an account. We’ll put credit back on your card for the return. And finally, it can also mean praise or special attention for doing something. Bill got credit for inventing the telephone, though many other inventors were working on the project. As a verb, it means to add an amount of money to a total. Your payment of $38.50 has been credited to your account, which brings the total you owe down to $25. Let’s look again up close and in slow motion.
And now we’ll go to Youglish to see five examples of this word in context.
Your credit cards are maxed out.
Maxed out. Every credit card has a maximum limit that you can use it for. If your card has a max limit of five thousand dollars, and you use it to reserve five thousand dollars of airline tickets, you won’t be able to buy anything else with that card until you pay the credit card company back that five thousand, plus interest, depending on how long it takes you to pay them back. You’ve maxed out what you can buy on credit.
Your credit cards are maxed out.
Here’s another example.
But to his credit, he was so funny.
To his credit. Something good or positive about someone. He probably just mentioned a negative quality about another guy, maybe this guy was always a few minutes late to work, but he was funny, so his boss didn’t mind too much. This thing, this positive quality was to his credit.
But to his credit he was so funny.
Let’s see another example.
I can take credit for the failures, not for the success.
This is a very humble thing to say. Instead of saying yes, this thing turned out amazingly well and it’s all because of me. He’s taking responsibility for the mistakes along the road to success. It’s a way to honor the other people who helped you, or worked with you. When someone says congratulations, you might reply, I can’t take full credit or something like that.
I can take credit for the failures, not for the success.
Let’s look at another example.
Finch, Moody’s, and S&P have now given the state its highest credit rating in over 40 years.
There are a few companies in the US that can look at all of your purchase loan and credit history and give you a score called a credit rating. If you want to borrow a large amount of money to buy a house or a car, the lender or bank will first look at that number, your credit score.
Finch, Moody’s, and S&P have now given the state its highest credit rating in over 40 years.

Our last example.
I, I think I’m gonna have to credit you now for an idea.
Here, ‘credit you’ means to point to you as the source. When my four-year-old decided to stop taking afternoon naps, my husband suggested that we let him listen to audiobooks in his room for an hour instead, and it worked. We did get that hour of space to ourselves that we needed. It was a great idea and I credit David for it. It was his idea, not mine.
I, I think I’m gonna have to credit you now for an idea.
Our next word is INVESTMENT. This word has a T between two other consonants, so it might be dropped. Investment, or it might be a true T, investment. But more commonly, it will be dropped. Investment. It’s a noun, and it means the act of using money to earn more money. Also, it means spending money, time, energy, and so on, with the idea that it will increase something in value or usefulness. Buying our house was a great investment. I’m investing the time to do extra Math games with my daughter because I want her to be confident at Math. Let’s look up close and in slow motion.
And now we’ll go to Youglish to see five examples of this word in context.
My investment is in their success and that’s it.
Who’s invested in your success? These are the people who’ve spent time helping you get the knowledge and skills that you need. They’ve helped pay for classes, or tuition, or other training, or maybe they’ve given you support in non-financial ways, like helping you study, or taking care of your kids so you could work. They’ve invested in you because they want to see good results in your life.
My investment is in their success and that’s it.
Here’s another example.
We’re making a rather large investment in the technology for this.
He’s saying that his company or partners are giving lots of money to the people who are designing the technology. They give money to help start something new, and later, these investors hope to see the technology succeed and get all of their invested money back, plus more.
We’re making a rather large investment in the technology for this.
Let’s see another example.
They are mothers who are living in communities where the schools are failing, where there’s a lack of investment.
What does it take for students in a school to be successful? Of course, good teachers, good resources, like books, computers, materials, classrooms, and how do schools get these things? Money. Government, or private money is needed to help a school get the things it needs for students. She’s saying that no investment leads to underperforming schools.
They are mothers who are living in communities where the schools are failing, where there’s a lack of investment.
Let’s look at another example.
We doubled down on our investment in renewable energy.
Doubled down means to try twice as hard, or with two times as much effort for something. Obama reports that the US increased its spending on renewable energy like solar or wind power. It doubled down.
We doubled down on our investment in renewable energy.
Our last example.
So I think a lot of it is being funded by investment money.
Investment money helps businesses grow. If you receive investment money, you can use it to pay for things like employees, or to set up your business. But with it, you take the promise you’ll pay it back, plus interest.
So I think a lot of it is being funded by investment money.
Our last word today is PURCHASE. A two syllable word with first syllable stress. We’ve got the UR vowel there like in bird and it mixes, it blends with the R, they’re really just one sound. Pp–urr– Pur— purchase. It’s a verb, it means to buy property, goods, etc., you can purchase souvenirs at the gift shop. As a noun, it means the act of buying something. My most expensive purchase this year was my car. Let’s watch again up close and in slow motion.
And now we’ll go to Youglish to see five examples of this word in context.
Every time he made a wine purchase, Lussier thought about the parties he would host for his friends.
Use a noun before ‘purchase’ to describe exactly what you spent money on: a car purchase, a home purchase, a vacation property purchase. this structure, is a fancy way to say I bought something.
Every time he made a wine purchase, Lussier thought about the parties he would host for his friends.
Here’s another example.
Farmable soil, if you go to purchase it, costs four dollars a pound.
He’s talking about the cost of soil or dirt that can be used to grow plants.
Farmable soil, if you go to purchase it, costs four dollars a pound.
Let’s see another example.
One of the things I’m looking at now is what types of equipment do I purchase?
This speaker is in charge of a health and wellness program at UC Berkeley. He’s thinking about what kind of gym equipment he needs to buy.
One of the things I’m looking at now is what types of equipment do I purchase?
Let’s look at another example.
They have our credit cards, they have our location, they have our purchase history.
Google, Facebook, and other companies are always collecting information, about how we use our computers and phones, things that we search for, and things that we buy, or our purchase history.
They have our credit cards, they have our location, they have our purchase history.
Our last example.
Real estate is obviously a major purchase.
Real estate. Land and the buildings on it. Buying a piece of real estate, like a house, is a big decision, a major purchase.
Real estate is obviously a major purchase.
Seeing their real-life examples can really help you understand how to use these words, can’t it? I have a challenge for you now. Make up a sentence with one of these words, and post it to social media, tag me, and use the hashtag #rachelsenglish30daychallenge

Don’t be shy, you can do this. Our next video comes out tomorrow at 10AM Philadelphia time, come back to learn four more vocabulary words. In the meantime, keep your studies going with this video, and check out my online courses at rachelsenglishacademy.com You’ll become a more confident English speaker. And please do remember to subscribe. I love being your English teacher. That’s it and thanks so much for using Rachel’s English.

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