Watch Friends to Learn English: Season 1 | Episode 1 | Part I

Have you always wanted to watch Friends in English, but find it hard to understand? There are tons of phrasal verbs and expressions that can make it very difficult for someone with a basic or intermediate level to understand everything, and of course the accent and speed complicate things even further. In this YouTube series, I (a native English teacher) will be reacting to episodes of Friends to help you start understanding the way native speakers really talk.

The best way to learn English is by seeing real-life examples, not by practicing from a textbook. It’s important to expose yourself to real conversations from native speakers to learn the most common phrases and expressions used so that you can start sounding natural and comfortable when you speak. And not just that – you’ll also find it a lot easier to communicate with people speaking to you in English.

Watch Friends to Learn English

I am making this YouTube series based on Friends because it is a great source of this type of day-today language. You will learn the most common and important phrasal verbs, expressions and grammar from real, contextual examples. Every video comes with a blog post where you can revise all the content, and even do a quiz to practice the phrasal verbs even further. So far I have uploaded just my first video which you can watch on this page and on YouTube.

Phrasal Verbs:

• Go out with: To date someone or have a romantic relationship with them.
• Go through something: To experience a difficult situation
• Turns out: To have a particular, often unexpected, final result.
• Move out: To permanently leave the place where you live.
• Turn on (sexually): To make someone feel sexually excited or attracted.
• Freak out: To suddenly become very angry, scared, shocked, or panicked.
• Drift apart: To slowly lose closeness or become less friendly over time.
• Buzz (someone) in: To press a button that unlocks an apartment building’s front door for a visitor.
• Ask out: To invite someone to go on a romantic date.
• Come over: To visit someone at their house or apartment.
• Put together: To build, assemble, or organize something from different parts.
• Hang out: To spend time relaxing or socializing casually with friends.

Verbs

• Keep: To continue doing something without stopping
• Wanna / gonna: Informal, spoken contractions for “want to” and “going to.”
• It hit me!: An expression meaning a realization or sudden idea just popped into your head.
• Guess: To suppose, believe, or assume something is likely true.
• Wonder: To think about something with curiosity or doubt; to ask yourself.
• Head (to, off): To move or start traveling toward a specific direction or location.

Vocabulary

• Guy: A casual word for a man, or plural (“guys”) for a group of people of any gender.
• Strip joints: Slang for strip clubs, “joint” is slang for any establishment (restaurants for example).
• Sure!: An enthusiastic way of saying “yes” or “of course.”
• Gravy: A thick, savory sauce made eaten with meat or vegetables.
• Pants/trousers: Clothing worn on the lower half of the body (Pants is pantalones in US English; Trousers is UK English; but pants in UK English is underwear).
• Purse: A small bag used by women to carry everyday personal items like keys and money.
• It’s Paul / Paul is it?: A way to introduce oneself or double-check someone’s name.