October 20th, 2019

BBC LEARNING ENGLISH:

CULTURAL DIFFERENCES
1. How long?
6 minutes.
2. How many percent can I understand after one time listening?
85%.
3. Content:
- Using gestures with hand and head to express your feeling is common in
some countries, and some are not.
- In India, shaking head means lots of things.
- Shaking head mostly means no, but to some countries in Southeastern
Europe such as Bulgaria, it means yes, and nodding head also has the
opposite meaning.
- You should be careful when meeting or greeting people in different cultures to
avoid offending people or making awkward situations.
- Using thumbs up every day might offend people in Middle East.
- In Dubai, emotional expression can be misunderstood to shouting or fighting.
4. What I learned/ I like best:
- That I should be learning about other country’s differences whenever I travel
to that country. It is also really interesting to know more meanings of an
expressive action.
5. New words/phrases
- Gesticulate (v): make gestures with hands and arms.
Ex: Her baby usually gesticulates wildly to her whenever she wants to eat..
- Perceive (v): to notice or become aware of something.
Ex: Walking into this room, the detective immediately perceived something strange.
- Faux pas (Phr): do something embarrassingly in social situation.
Ex: I committed a faux pas that my friends have never let me forget.