Episode 37
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Hi, everyone!
I'm Georgiana, founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help YOU to speak English fluently and confidently.
Today I'll help you to learn the difference between the similar terms: shout, yell, and scream.
Later you'll practice these terms with a funny story told from 3 different grammar points of view.
Great! Let's get started!
I'm perfectly aware that English can get very confusing because there are so many words with very similar meanings.
And very often, students have asked me about the difference between the words "scream," "shout," and "yell." The level of intensity and the purpose escalates from shouting, tolling, and lastly, screaming. Shout and yell are very similar, but if one shouts in anger, we often call that "yelling" rather than "shouting. "Additionally, in everyday conversation, the word shout is more common, and both words are less intense than screaming. When you shout, you're just raising your voice without any particular emotional aim. For example, you may shout at someone that wouldn't hear you otherwise. Example: "It's too noisy in here!" she shouted. The word scream, however, tends to include a very loud pitch sound and indicates terror, panic, rage, and other strong emotions. You scream when you're afraid of something or extremely angry! Example: "When he woke up and realized what had happened, he screamed in terror." Let's see some more examples of the words yell, shout, and scream: "She yelled out in pain." "I saw you and Jerry yelling at each other yesterday." "When Ann shouted for help, they were finally able to rescue her." "I overheard someone shouting, so I got closer to see what was happening." "She screamed with terror and caused both men to cover their ears." "He wanted to scream, but his vocal cords were paralyzed."
Let's continue with a story told from different grammar points of view. It'll be fun!
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GRAMMAR MADE EASY
POV Story: Grammar in Context
Read the same story in two different points of view and notice how the grammar changes naturally.
Third Person · Past Tense
Once upon a time, on a small island in the middle of the ocean, there was a curious tribe called Tiny Ears.
The main characteristic of the tribe was that their ears didn't allow them to hear very well.
Because of their small ears, they had trouble understanding each other. However, the people at Tiny Ears were smart; they formulated an efficient communication system.
For regular conversations, they'd shout at each other. Of course, a tourist there would be stunned because even though they were at a short distance, they were shouting at the top of their lungs.
Although the shouting improved their communication considerably, there were many misunderstandings, and they were often angry and frustrated.
Later on, they stopped shouting at each other and started yelling at each other. The yelling was also part of their fascinating culture. They were very fearful people, but for a good reason. There were strange and dangerous creatures on the island that made even the bravest man tremble.
Naturally, when they discovered these creatures, they screamed in terror and began to flee as quickly as they could.
This was the story of the Tiny Ears tribe. Because of their small ears, they had to yell and shout at each other to communicate.
Tourist · Future Tense
I imagine that in the future, I shall travel to a small island in the middle of the ocean, where there will be a curious tribe called Tiny Ears.
The main characteristic of the tribe will be that their ears won't allow them to hear very well because they'll have small ears.
Because of their small ears, they'll have a hard time understanding each other. However, the people at Tiny Ears will be smart; they'll formulate an efficient communication system.
For regular conversations, they'll shout at each other. Of course, a tourist like me will be stunned because even though they'll be at a short distance, they'll be shouting at the top of their lungs.
Although the shouting will greatly improve their communication, there will be many misunderstandings, and they'll often get angry and frustrated.
Later on, they'll stop shouting at each other and start yelling.
The yelling will also be part of their fascinating culture.
They'll be very fearful people, but for a good reason. There will be rare and dangerous creatures on the island that would make even the bravest man tremble.
Naturally, when they'll discover these creatures, they'll scream in terror and start running away as fast as they can.
This will be the story of the Tiny Ears tribe. Because of their small ears, they'll have to yell and shout at each other to communicate.
First Person · Present Tense
I'm gonna tell you a little bit about our tribe called Tiny Ears, which is situated on a small island in the middle of the ocean.
The main characteristic of our tribe is that our ears don't allow us to hear very well.
Because of our little ears, we have trouble understanding each other. However, people at Tiny Ears are smart; we formulated an efficient communication system. For regular conversations, we shout at each other. Of course, a tourist here would be stunned because even though we're at a short distance, we're shouting at the top of our lungs.
Although the shouting has greatly improved our communication, there are still many misunderstandings, and we often feel angry and frustrated.
Lately, we've stopped shouting at each other, and we've started yelling. Yelling's also part of our fascinating culture.
We're very fearful people, but for a good reason. There are strange and dangerous creatures on the island that make even the bravest man tremble.
Naturally, when I discover these creatures, I scream in terror and start running away as fast as I can.
This is the story of the Tiny Ears tribe. Because of our little ears, we have to yell and shout at each other to communicate.
Thanks for listening, and I’ll see you in the next episode.
Review
Vocabulary
Review the most useful words and expressions before listening again.
shout
speak very loudly so someone can hear you.
at the top of your lungs
as loudly as you possibly can.
yell
shout loudly, often because of anger or excitement.
in terror
in a state of extreme fear.
scream
make a very loud, high sound because of strong emotion.
misunderstanding
a failure to understand correctly.
raise your voice
speak more loudly than normal.
tremble
shake because of fear, cold, or emotion.
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yes I enjoy so fantastic
Thank you Georgiana, I appreciate what you do for us. all the best
THANK YOU!!!
Thank you for the great help. Words cannot express how grateful I am to you.
Thanks a lot Georgiana.
Thankful for your kindly help.You are my great teacher.
Am i get fired at work if i answer the other person in a loud voice just to be heard but she did not listen anyway?