Hello and welcome to The English Like a Native Podcast. My name is Anna and you're listening to Week 43, Day 3 of Your English Five a Day. It is my mission to help you to improve your English by expanding your vocabulary and improving your overall listening comprehension and to keep you company during the duller moments of your day. Now, I do hope that you enjoy this session. Let's start with the idiom on the edge of your seat. On the edge of your seat. Edge, E D G E. Of your seat, S E A T. To be on the edge of your seat means that you are really excited and you're giving all your attention to something because you need to know what's going to happen. Now you're normally on the edge of your seat when you're watching a performance. Perhaps if you are watching a sporting event and you feel very passionate about the outcome, or you feel very passionate about watching the amazing sportsmen and women doing their thing, you might be on the edge of your seat for the whole thing. Or maybe it's the final of a big competition and it's a draw so far. Neither team are ahead and it's coming down to the final few minutes, so you are on the edge of your seat. Maybe it goes to a penalty shootout. I'm thinking about football now. And you are literally on the edge of your seat. Like, your bum is on the edge of the seat, as well as you being so excited and giving all of your attention to what's going on in front of you because you need to know what's going to happen next. So, to be on the edge of your seat. When was the last time you were watching a film or watching a performance or a sporting event and you were on the edge of your seat? Maybe you've been watching the Olympics that have been going on this summer and maybe you felt like you were on the edge of your seat during some of those incredible performances. Here's another example,"The movie had me on the edge of my seat, from the opening scene to the end credits". Next on the list is the noun underdog, underdog. We spell this U N D E R D O G, underdog, underdog. An underdog is a person, a team, or a country that is thought to be in a weaker position than the others and therefore they're not likely to be successful. So they're not likely to win a competition. For example,"Who doesn't love a film about the underdog?" And it's always very exciting when the underdog wins a big competition. Maybe a country or a team who are so unlikely to take the trophy to win the overall competition. And yet they do. And then you're like,"What? That's crazy. That's amazing. What a fantastic outcome!" So, the underdog. Next on the list is the idiom the plot thickens. The plot thickens. Plot, P L O T. Thickens, T H I C K E N S, thickens. The plot thickens. We use this phrase to say that an event has become more complicated, and we often use this to be humorous. So, if you tell me some additional detail that's really interesting about something that's going on, maybe we find out that someone at work has suddenly left the company. We're like,"What? Where did that come from? Did anyone know that this person was leaving? Why have they just suddenly left?" And then we hear that there is a police investigation."Ooh, that's interesting. What's gone on?" And then we hear that the police actually want to talk to the CEO and another member of staff. And then you're like,"Ooh, the plot thickens." This is becoming more complicated and also more interesting for the coworkers. Here's another example,"The plot thickens as the detective discovers a hidden room filled with unsettling artefacts, suggesting a more sinister motive behind the victim's death." Obviously, in that particular example, the plot thickens was not used humorously. So, you have to take it in context to know if it's being used humorously or not. Next on the list is the noun scapegoat, scapegoat. We spell this S C A P E G O A T scapegoat, scapegoat. A scapegoat is a person or a group who is blamed for something that they did not do, and it's often to protect others or to deflect the attention from the real cause. So, for example, if I do something terrible, like I set fire to a barn in a village. And the barn goes up in flames and it's destroyed, and it just destroys all the hay that will feed the animals throughout the winter. It's a big deal. It's a terrible crime and everyone in the village is really annoyed. And people ask me,"Excuse me, Anna, what happened here? You were here. What happened?" And I say,"Oh, I wasn't here, but I did notice that group of teenagers hanging around the barn in the days leading up to the fire." Those poor teenagers had nothing to do with it, but I'm deflecting, I'm redirecting the focus onto those teenagers to take it away from me. And so those teenagers start to become suspects, they get investigated, and during that time I can relax and try to come up with a good alibi. Here's another example,"The company executives made the new apprentice a scapegoat for the project's failure, even though he had little to do with it." Last on the list is the noun breakthrough, breakthrough. We spell this B R E A K T H R O U G H, breakthrough. Breakthrough. A breakthrough is an important discovery or event that helps to improve a situation or provide an answer to a problem. So for example, if we are therapists and we're working with someone who has psychopathic tendencies and they're behaving in very violent and erratic ways that have been problematic for a particular community. So we are working with this particular patient and previous therapists have had a difficult time getting through to this person. But we, as a fantastic partnership, we have tried a few new techniques and we have found a way to connect with this patient. A way to try and effect some behavioural change. So we could say we've had a breakthrough with this patient, we've discovered something that's very important; a way to connect and to change the behaviour of this patient. There's still lots of work to do, but this is a big breakthrough. Here's another example,"The university has been involved in many scientific breakthroughs and inventions." Okay, so that's our five. Let's do a quick recap. We started with the idiom on the edge of your seat, which means you're very excited and all your attention is on something that's happening because you need to know what's going to happen next. Then we have the noun underdog, a person, a team or a country who are thought to be weaker, not likely to be successful. Then we have the idiom,"Hmm, the plot thickens." Which is used to say that something is becoming more complicated. Then we have the noun scapegoat, which is a person, or a group being blamed for something they didn't do, normally to protect someone else. And we finished with the noun breakthrough, which is an important discovery or event that helps to improve a situation or provide an answer to a problem. So let's do this now for pronunciation purposes. Please repeat after me. On the edge of your seat. On the edge of your seat. Underdog. Underdog. The plot thickens. The plot thickens. Scapegoat. Scapegoat. Breakthrough. Breakthrough. Fantastic. Now, if I am entering a competition, and I am definitely the least experienced person in this competition, and it's not likely that I'm going to win, what could you call me? The underdog. Absolutely. But as the competition continues, I start to make gains and it's looking more and more likely that I could possibly win. You're watching this and you are very excited, and you cannot take your eyes off me. What idiom would you use here? You are... on the edge of your seat. You need to know what's going to happen next. Now, if a situation suddenly starts to become more and more complicated, what phrase could you use? The plot thickens, absolutely. If a person is blamed for something they didn't do, and it's obvious that it's in order to protect someone in a higher position, what noun do you use to describe this person who's being blamed? Scapegoat. Yes, very good. And finally, what noun is an important discovery that helps to improve a situation? A breakthrough! Fantastic! Well done! Okay, listen for these items once again in today's storytime. John sat in the dark cinema, completely captivated. The film,"Redemption Run," had him on the edge of his seat. On screen, Alex, a small-town mechanic with big dreams, was the ultimate underdog. He'd entered a high-stakes cross-country race competing against professional drivers with state-of-the-art cars. As the race began, Alex's old but lovingly restored car did well, surprising everyone. The audience cheered as he overtook flashier vehicles, his determination shining through. But halfway through the race, the plot thickened. A wealthy competitor's car mysteriously broke down, and Alex was blamed. Security camera footage seemed to show Alex tampering with the car. In a heartbeat, he went from underdog hero to despised cheater. Disqualified and shunned, Alex became the scapegoat for everything wrong with the race. John's heart raced as he watched Alex's world crumble around him. But Alex refused to give up. He became a frantic investigator, retracing his steps and questioning everything. With time running out and the true culprit still unknown, Alex had a sudden breakthrough. He realised the camera footage had been altered, and he knew who had done it. In an exciting climax, Alex raced against time to expose the truth. He had to outsmart the real saboteur, convince the race officials of his innocence, and get back into the race all before the other drivers crossed the finish line. John held his breath as Alex made a daring final sprint. Against all odds, Alex not only cleared his name but also won the race, transforming from scorned outcast to celebrated champion."Redemption Run" had lived up to its name, delivering an unforgettable ride of suspense, drama, and triumph. And that brings us to the end of today's episode. I hope you enjoyed this episode. If you did, please do recommend The English Like a Native Podcast to your English learning friends. Until tomorrow, take care of yourself and goodbye.