Englishpod_B0002pb 【Calling In Sick】(讲解)

M: Hello English learners! Welcome to EnglishPod! My name is Marco. 
E: And I’m Erica. 
M: And today we’re gonna be bringing you a very useful lesson about being sick. 
E: Yeah, um, we’re going to learn, um, how to tell your boss that you can’t go to work, because you’re sick. 
M: Exactly! This is really important, because we all get sick and sometimes you just can’t go to work. 
E: Yes! Or maybe sometimes you just don’t want to go to work. 
M: You just… exactly, maybe you’re lying. 
E: Yeah. 
M: But we’re gonna be teaching you how to do it anyway, so, before we start with our dialogue, let’s take a look at “vocabulary preview”. 

Vocabulary preview. 
E: In this vocabulary preview we have two words for you. Uh, the first one is quite ill. 
M: Quite ill. 
E: Quite ill. 
M: So, quite ill… 
E: Very sick. 
M: Very sick. 
E: Uhu. 
M: Quite is a synonym（同义词） of very. 
E: Exactly! 
M: Okay. 
E: Yeah. 
M: And ill… 
E: Sick. 
M: Sick. 
E: Yeah. 
M: So, they both mean the same thing, no difference. 
E: No difference at all. I just think, uh, ill is more common in British English. 
M: Uh, exactly. Alright, let’s take a look at our second word – flu. 
E: The flu. 
M: The flu. 
E: The flu. 
M: So, the flu is a virus. 
E: Yeah, it’s a sickness. 
M: Okay, and, uh… 
E: Uhu. 
M: It’s very similar to a cold. 
E: Yes, but just a lot worse. 
M: A lot worse, so, it’s stronger. 
E: Yeah, yeah. Um, it’s also called influenza. 
M: Influenza. 
E: Aha. 
M: Exactly. So, the flu. 
E: Uhu. 
M: Okay, so, let’s listen to our dialogue. What’s gonna happen here today? 
E: Well, we’re going to listen as Julie calls her boss to tell him she’s sick. 
M: Alright, but is she really sick? 
E: I don’t know. Let’s find out. 

DIALOGUE, FIRST TIME 

Elementary - Calling In Sick (B0002)

A: Hello, Daniel speaking, how may I help you?

B: Hi, Daniel, Julie here.

A: Hi, Julie, how are you?

B: Actually, I’m feeling quite ill today.

A: I’m sorry to hear that. What’s wrong?

B: I think I’m coming down with the flu. I have a headache, a sore throat a runny nose and I’m feeling slightly feverish.

A: I see... so you’re calling in sick?

B: Yes, I was hoping to take the day off to recover.

A: OK, then. Try and get some rest.

M: Alright, so, Julie didn’t really seem to be sick, ha? 

E: Yeah, I… I don’t know th… that cough was just a little too much. 

M: It seemed like she was acting. 

E: Yeah. 

M: Alright, so, let’s take a look at some of this vocabulary in “language takeaway”. 

Language Takeaway. 

E: We have five words for you here and these are all great words to describe a sickness, right? 

M: Uhu. 

E: Alright, the first one – headache. 

M: Headache. 

E: Headache. 

M: Headache. 

E: So, when you have a headache, you have a sore head, right? 

M: Right, your head hurts. 

E: Uhu. 

M: So, it’s pretty simple. 

E: Yep. 

M: You have a headache. 

E: It’s the way you feel after, um, being at a bar too late. 

M: Yeah… 

E: Yeah. 

M: When you drink too much… 

E: Yeah. 

M: You get a headache. 

E: Yeah. 

M: Alright, let’s take a look at our next word – sore throat. 

E: Sore throat. 

M: Sore throat. 

E: Sore throat. 

M: So, basically, we have two words here, let’s look at the first one – sore. 

E: Hurting. 

M: It hurts, right? 

E: Yeah. 

M: And your throat is… 

E: Well, it… you know it’s the part right here, at the back… oh, you can’t see me. [Comment: Erica points at her throat, but realizes right away that we can’t see her, because it’s a podcast, not a videocast] 

M: Hehe. 

E: Well, it’s the part, um, at the back of your mouth that goes down to your stomach. 

M: Alright, that’s your throat. 

E: Yeah. 

M: So, you use your throat to swallow. 

E: Uhu. 

M: Okay. Now, we can use the word sore with different body parts, right? 

E: Yeah, like, um, a sore back. 

M: A sore back, right? Or maybe you were playing tennis all weekend, so you have a sore arm. 

E: Aha, or even a sore neck. 

M: Right. 

E: Uhu. 

M: So, the word sore. Let’s take a look at our third word – running nose. 

E: Running nose. 

M: Running nose. 

E: Running nose. 

M: This is a very strange word. 

E: I know. 

M: But it doesn’t mean that your nose is running, right? 

E: No, but… okay, um, it… no, but when you have a running nose, um, there’s lots of water coming out of your nose, right? 

M: Right. 

E: So, it’s interesting though, because when you run, you go fast, right? 

M: Hehe. So, a lot of water is… 

E: Coming fast out of your nose. 

M: Out of your nose. Running nose. 

E: Yeah. 

M: Okay, our forth word today – slightly feverish. 

E: Slightly feverish. 

M: Slightly feverish. 

E: Slightly feverish. 

M: So, again, slightly is… 

E: A little bit. 

M: A little bit… 

E: Uhu. 

M: Right? A little bit. And feverish? 

E: Well, let’s break this word down. Um, we know fever, right? 

M: Uhu. 

E: Um, so, when you’re… when your body is very, very hot… 

M: Right. 

E: Because you’re sick. So, feverish is the feeling or your body being very, very hot. 

M: Uhu. Okay, so, you have a high temperature. 

E: It’s not that you have a high temperature, but you feel like you have a high temperature. 

M: Okay, so, slightly feverish. 

E: Uhu. 

M: And our last word – to recover. 

E: Recover. 

M: Recover. 

E: Recover. 

M: So, this means to get better, right? 

E: Exactly. 

M: Can you only use it when you’re sick? 

E: So, when you recover, you get better and you rest, so, maybe you can say, um, “I was so busy this week, I need to recover at this weekend”. 

M: Okay, so, yeah, if you feel tired… 

E: Yeah. 

M: Or you feel sick, you can recover. 

E: Uhu. 

M: Okay, let’s listen to our dialogue again and we can listen to these words that we’ve just talked about. 

DIALOGUE, SECOND TIME 

Elementary - Calling In Sick (B0002)

A: Hello, Daniel speaking, how may I help you?

B: Hi, Daniel, Julie here.

A: Hi, Julie, how are you?

B: Actually, I’m feeling quite ill today.

A: I’m sorry to hear that. What’s wrong?

B: I think I’m coming down with the flu. I have a headache, a sore throata runny nose and I’m feeling slightly feverish.

A: I see... so you’re calling in sick?

B: Yes, I was hoping to take the day off to recover.

A: OK, then. Try and get some rest.

M: In this dialogue we listened to some really interesting phrases of how you can tell your boss that you’re feeling sick, right? 

E: Yeah, some great phrases, so, let’s look at these in “fluency builder”. 

Voice: Fluency builder. 

M: Okay, let’s take a look at our first phrase on fluency builder – I’m coming down with. 

E: I’m coming down with. 

M: I’m coming down with. 

E: I’m coming down with. 

M: Alright, so, let’s listen to some examples and then we’ll come back and explain this interesting phrase. 

Example one. 

A: My throat really hurts. I think I’m coming down with a cold. 

Example two. 

B: You have a running nose. Are you coming down with the flu? 

Example three. 

C: I don’t feel well. I think I’m coming down with something. 

M: Okay, so, basically, coming down with means… 

E: Starting to get sick. 

M: Uh… um, beginning to feel sick. 

E: Yes. 

M: Okay, so, you can use it with “I’m coming down with the flu”. 

E: Aha, I’m coming down with a cold. 

M: Uhu. Or I’m coming down with a cough. 

E: Yeah, or I’m coming down with something. 

M: With something, you don’t know what it is. 

E: Exactly. 

M: Okay, let’s take a look at our second phrase – calling in sick. 

E: Calling in sick. 

M: Okay, calling in sick. 

E: So, this phrase is great! You know, when you say “I’m calling in sick”… 

M: Uhu. 

E: You’re saying “hey I’m not going to come to work today, because I’m sick”. 

M: Okay, so, literally, it means that you call your office… 

E: Yeah. 

M: And you say you’re not going to work. 

E: Yes, um, but it’s great, cause it’s three words that show such a long idea. 

M: Right, because otherwise you would have to say “I’m calling, because I don’t feel well, so, I’m not gonna go to work”.  

E: Yes! 

M: But if you say “I’m calling in sick”, everyone knows… 

E: Everyone understands. 

M: That you’re not gonna go to work. 

E: Yep. 

M: Okay, now, let’s take a look at our last phrase – take the day off.

E: Take the day off. 

M: Take the day off. 

E: Take the day off. 

M: Now, this is a great phrase! To take the day off is to… 

E: Not go to work. 

M: On that day. 

E: Yes! 

M: Now, you can say “take the… week off”. 

E: Uhu, take the month off. 

M: Take the month off or… 

E: Yeah. 

M: Take the year off. 

E: Yeah, if you’re so lucky. 

M: Hehe. Alright, so, take the day off means to not go to work on that day. 

E: Uhu. 

M: Alright, let’s listen to our dialogue again now and then we’ll come back and talk a little bit more. 

DIALOGUE, THIRD TIME 

Elementary - Calling In Sick (B0002)

A: Hello, Daniel speaking, how may I help you?

B: Hi, Daniel, Julie here.

A: Hi, Julie, how are you?

B: Actually, I’m feeling quite ill today.

A: I’m sorry to hear that. What’s wrong?

B: I think I’m coming down with the flu. I have a headache, a sore throatarunny nose and I’m feeling slightly feverish.

A: I see... so you’re calling in sick?

B: Yes, I was hoping to take the day off to recover.

A: OK, then. Try and get some rest.

E: Well, Marco, um, have you ever done what Julie did? Did you ever call your boss to say you’re sick to… when you’re not really? 

M: Yeah, of course! I mean, sometimes you just don’t feel very well, but you’re not really sick, you just don’t feel like going to work. 

E: Yes. 

M: Or sometimes you have something to do. 

E: Uh. 

M: Right? 

E: Yep! You know what we call those in Canada? Um, we call them personal days. 

M: Personal days. 

E: Yeah! So, you say “oh, I’m gonna take a personal day”… 

M: Ouh. 

E: Meaning I’m gonna call in sick, but then go shopping. 

M: Hehe. We used to do that a lot, because, for example, soccer games are such a big deal. 

E: Oh, yeah! 

M: And, you know, sometimes you would have, ah, a soccer match between, I don’t know, Brazil… and it would be maybe at 10 a.m. or 11 a.m., so, everyone would call in sick on that day. 

E: Yeah, so, the boss at least could plan that he would have an empty office. 

M: Yeah, or sometimes you would take half the day off. 

E: Uh. 

M: So, you would just go… you say “well, I’m not gonna make it in the morning, but I’ll come in the afternoon”. 

E: So, you would recover…  

M: A l… 

E: Very quickly. 

M: Yeah, I’m feeling a little bit sick, but I’m going to be better in the afternoon. 

E: Yeah. 

M: Alright, so, well, if you have any questions or comments, please come to our website and if you have any calling in sick stories, please let us know. 

E: Yes, you can visit us at englishpod.com and Marco and I are always there to answer your questions. 

M: Alright, folks, so, we’ll see you next time. 

E: Thank for listening, goodbye! 

M: Bye! 

Cloze——Elementary - Calling In Sick (B0002)

A: Hello, ______________, how may I help you?

B: Hi, Daniel, Julie here.

A: Hi, Julie, how are you?

B: Actually, I’m ________ quite _______ today.

A: OH, I’m sorry to hear that. What’s wrong?

B: I think I’m ___________ with the flu. I have a headache, a ______ throat a __________ and I’m feeling slightly _________.

A: I see... so you’re calling in sick?

B: Yes, I was hoping to take the day off to recover.

A: OK, then. Try _______ get some rest.