Hello and welcome to The English Like a Native Podcast. My name is Anna and you're listening to Week 44, Day 5 of Your English Five a Day. The aim of this series is to keep your English vocabulary healthy and growing. It's here to improve your English listening skills and I'm hoping to keep you company during whatever it is that you're doing. So, let's start today's episode with the conjunction albeit, albeit. We spell this A L B E I T, albeit, albeit. Albeit means although or even though. Here's an example,"The cake was delicious, albeit a bit too sweet for my taste." So I really thought it tastes nice even though it was sweeter than I usually like, even though it was a bit too sweet for my taste. Or I could say,"On my son's third birthday, we had planned to go to a theme park. And we actually had the best day ever, albeit it rained the entire day." And that's a true story. If you want to visit a theme park, then prepare for a very wet day, and go on a day when it's raining, because that puts everybody off and they decide to stay at home instead. And so you get the theme park all to yourself but you're prepared for wet weather so it's fine. Next on the list is the verb amputate, amputate. We spell this A M P U T A T E, amputate, amputate. To amputate is to surgically remove a limb or a part of the body. This isn't a pleasant thing, but sometimes it is a necessary thing to do to amputate. Here's an example,"After the accident, the doctors had to amputate his leg to save his life." I'm hoping that you've never experienced this action. Maybe you know someone who has. I do. And that takes me onto the next item, which is the noun amputee, amputee. We spell this A M P U T E E. And amputee is a person who has experienced amputation. They have had to have something amputated. So a person who's had a limb or a part of their body removed by surgery. And so this is like an extremity cut-off. If you've had your kidney taken out or you've had a lung removed, that's not amputation. That's different. It's having something external removed like a finger or a toe, a foot, a leg, a hand, an arm. It has been amputated, whatever it is. So here's an example sentence with amputee,"Despite being an amputee, she completed the marathon with an inspiring determination." Next on the list is the adjective untouchable, untouchable. We spell this U N T O U C H A B L E, untouchable. Untouchable means impossible to be affected or harmed by anything. Sometimes people in powerful positions, like politicians, they might feel they can do whatever they like and make whatever decisions because they are impossible to be affected. Or a criminal might feel like they are untouchable. They might feel that they have all the protection that they need and they can't possibly be harmed or affected by anything. Here's an example,"In his prime, the footballer seemed untouchable, scoring goals in every match." So in that example, the sportsman, the footballer is untouchable. He is so focused on his game. He is so consistent and predictable. Nothing can affect him. You can't get into his head. You can't pitch your best players against him and actually have any effect on his game. He'll still continue to be an excellent footballer and continue to score goals. He is untouchable. Next on the list is the adjective fateful, fateful. We spell this F A T E F U L, fateful. Fateful describes having important, often negative consequences. So something that is also destined to happen. So if I talk about the Titanic, I will say something along the lines of,"On April 12th, 1912, that fateful night would be a night remembered by the entire world as the Titanic hit an iceberg." Sorry, that was terrible. I should prepare more for these podcast episodes. With more planning, things would run more smoothly. Here's an example sentence that might work better,"On that fateful night, the storm hit, changing their lives forever." So a fateful night is a night or a day or a time that is important, usually in a negative way because there are very important consequences to what happens. Okay, let's do a quick recap. We started with the conjunction albeit, which means although or even though. We had the verb amputate, meaning to surgically remove a limb, a part of the body. Then we had the noun amputee, which is a person who has had a limb removed. Then we had the adjective untouchable, which means that something is impossible to be affected or harmed by anything. Then we had the adjective fateful, describing having important consequences, often negative, or being destined to happen. Okay, let's do this now for pronunciation practice. Please repeat after me, Albeit. Albeit. Amputate. Amputate. Amputee. Amputee. Untouchable. Untouchable. Fateful. Fateful. Very good. Okay. What's the conjunction again that means although? Albeit. Well done. And if I say that a politician is impossible to be affected or harmed by anything, what adjective could I use? He is untouchable. Absolutely. If I am describing a particular time when something really important happened, there were important consequences, and it was quite negative. What adjective could I use to describe this time? Fateful, yes, fateful. And if I am talking about a person who has had a leg removed, what noun could I use for this person? An amputee. So what has an amputee had done? What happened to them? What happened to their leg? It was amputated. So to amputate. Very good. Okay, let's listen out for these items once again in today's storytime. The mountain had always been her sanctuary, a place where she felt alive, untouchable. But that fateful day changed everything. The fall was sudden, a moment of misjudgement on the icy ledge. When she woke in the hospital, pain was her first sensation, followed by the gut-wrenching realisation that her right arm had been amputated. The days that followed were a blur of doctors, therapy sessions, and a flood of emotions she never thought she'd have to face. But giving up wasn't in her nature. She was a climber after all used to battling the elements and pushing her limits. This was just another challenge, albeit the hardest one she'd ever faced. Relearning everything was brutal. Simple tasks, like tying her shoes or brushing her hair, became mountains of their own. But she attacked each one with the same determination she once reserved for scaling cliffs. Slowly, she adapted, learning to balance with one arm, using her body in ways she'd never imagined. Her first climb as an amputee was terrifying, her heart pounding as she reached for the rock with her remaining arm. But as she ascended, she felt that familiar rush of adrenaline and hope. She wasn't just surviving; she was climbing her way back to life. And that brings us to the end of this episode and the end of Week 44. I do hope you found it useful and if you did, please do take a moment just to leave a like if you're watching on YouTube or a rating or review, depending on which streaming platform you're listening on. Until next time, take very good care and goodbye.