Episode 0229

Hello everyone and welcome back to English Pod. My name is Marco.

My name is Catherine and today we've got an upper intermediate level lesson.

That's right. We're gonna go and buy shoes.

Okay, this is very fun. I like buying shoes. Although, I have a hard time finding shoes in my size sometimes, but uh we're here talking about men's shoes specifically.

That's right. We've actually decided to talk about this topic buying shoes separately between men and women's shoes because I think each type of shoe has its own type of vocab and that can be very useful for men or women.

That's right. So let's take a listen to today's dialogue and we'll be back in a moment to talk more about the specifics of men's shoe styles.

Hi, I'm looking for a pair of shoes for my son.

Sure thing. Here we are. If you're looking for dress shoes, we have several different styles of Oxford for boys. We also carry athletic shoes, hiking boots.

Oh, Jacob, how about these sneakers?

Well, then how about these? What is this style called?

They're tennis shoes. They're very popular with teens and young adults.

What are those?

I don't know. Would they go with your clothes? The backs are really high and the way the tongue just sticks up, they're almost like a boot.

And the sole doesn't look like it would have a very good grip.

Okay, try them on.

What size are your feet?

He's a size nine.

We'll try a size 43 on you first and see how that fits.

A what?

They come in European sizes. He should be a size 43. I'll be right back.

All right, we're back. So as you saw, we have a lot of different shoe styles, and so we're gonna take a look at these on language takeaway.

Okay, first up, we have a very popular style of shoe. This is called an athletic shoe.

Okay, athletic shoe. Now, I imagine that athletes wear these shoes.

Good guess, Marco. So athletic, athletes. This is actually for sports in general. So this is sports shoes, but in English we say athletic shoes.

Okay. So it's not specifically for any type of sport, but they're just comfortable shoes that you can do most sports in.

Right, like running shoes and basketball shoes and soccer shoes. These are all kinds of athletic shoes.

Very good. Okay. So these types of athletic shoes, they're usually um they're they're kind of low, right? They don't have a lot of support around the ankle.

No, but they do have a lot of support in the heel, the bottom of your foot.

Right, because you're running, you need that extra support. Exactly. Now, on the opposite, if you're going hiking, if you're maybe trekking, then you need a special type of shoe that that's gonna give more ankle support and these are called hiking boots.

Okay, hiking boots. So like you were saying, you get a lot of support in your ankle, that's the back of your foot, and the area around your leg. Um, so these shoes tend to come higher on your leg. They're taller on your leg.

And they're usually pretty heavy.

Yeah, yeah. And I think they are more uh weather resistant. So if it rains or if it's wet, um these shoes uh will respond better.

You're not gonna get wet feet.

You're not, yeah. And uh so hiking boots. And now uh we have another interesting word. I'd never really understood it why they're called this way, but we have sneakers.

Sneakers. Sneakers.

Right.

Um, so Converse is another brand. Sneakers are shoes that are not fancy, they're not like leather or work shoes, but they're also not athletic shoes because you don't necessarily use them when you're playing sports.

They're basically very simple shoes for, you know, normal daily stuff.

Just normal walking.

Young people wear them usually.

Okay, sneakers. Now, I never understood why they're called sneakers because I think if you sneak maybe on someone, I guess these shoes are good for sneaking up on people.

Perhaps, I don't know.

They're less they're less noisy than other shoes.

Yeah, yeah, that's right. Okay, so we have sneakers. And now another type of shoe that is can be a little bit confusing, um they're called tennis shoes.

Okay, tennis shoes can be considered a kind of sneaker. Again, it's not the kind of shoe that you would normally wear to work. It's not leather, it's not a hiking boot.

Um, they're low shoes, so low ankles generally, and they have, um, they tie up, you know?

Right. But it's you would think that you use these shoes to play tennis.

Mm, not necessarily.

But not necessarily, right? I mean, you don't have to play tennis, or they're not specifically designed to play tennis.

No, perhaps originally they were tennis shoes for the game tennis, but nowadays they're very, very common. They're like sneakers. They're they're shoes that most young people wear to school or to play around in.

Okay, so they're kind of a uh yeah, like you say a sneaker.

And now moving on, these might seem a little bit strange, but we call them Chuck Taylors.

Chuck Taylors, uh well, basically Chuck Taylor is a brand. Uh Converse, Chuck Taylors. We also call them Chucks. And this is a style of shoe that this brand made very famous.

Um, they're very, very thin canvas shoes, so the fabric is not leather, it's canvas.

Okay.

And they come in bright red or black or green.

Or green. Yeah, yeah.

And uh some of them are very low, and some of them have a ankle, a piece of the ankle that comes up.

So it almost looks like a uh like a like a boot to a certain extent, but it's not like a a hiking boot. It's not very hard. It doesn't support your ankle as much, it's just the style is higher.

It's exactly. And so because these are made of fabric, they're very thin, they're very light. They're not very good for hiking, for example.

Right.

Right. So these are called Chuck Taylors. They're very, very popular with teenagers, right?

That's right. Teenagers all over the world wear Chuck Taylors.

And I think they're very old. This style, these Chuck Taylors have been around for like 30 years, I think, or so.

Yeah, I think since the 1960s or 70s. But they're still popular.

Yeah, and they haven't changed.

They haven't changed.

Right, so these are the five types or styles of shoes that we're gonna take a look at. Why don't we move on now to more specific vocab related to the parts of the shoe on language takeaway part two.

Okay, so Jacob is talking to his mother, and his mom wants to know, hey, how about these sneakers? What do you think? And Jacob says, mom, they've got Velcro.

So Marco, what's this Velcro Jacob speaks of?

Well, as you can see, Velcro is uh capitalized, right? And so that means this is a proper noun, and it's actually a brand.

Okay, it's like Chuck Taylors.

Like Chuck Taylors. So Velcro is uh supposed kind of like a like a zipper, right? A fastener, but instead of zipping it up, you just put two pieces of cloth together and they stick.

Okay, and when you pull them apart, they make that sound, yeah. They make a loud sound. And so sometimes with baby shoes or young children's shoes, we don't want to tie them because it's too hard. So we have Velcro. This is a kind of fabric, like you said, that sticks together. We don't have to spend all this time tying things.

So you see Velcro on hats, on gloves, on jackets, on shoes. It's a very popular way to make things, um, close things or to to keep things secure.

In a very easy way, right? You just push them together and that's it. They're they're sealed.

So the next time you see it, now you know that it's called Velcro. I I imagine in other languages it's probably called the same thing.

Well, right, it's it's the brand name. Yeah. Yeah.

So. Okay. And well, now moving on to the parts of the shoe, uh we have the tongue.

Okay, well think about the body part, the tongue, right? When you look at your tongue, it's straight and it's flat and it kind of curves at the bottom. Well, on a shoe, when you're putting your shoe on, you know, in the front of the shoe, you can get stuck, you have to pull the tongue. It's a a piece of fabric, or piece of the shoe, um where the top of your foot is.

Yeah, very good. So that's called the tongue. Now some shoes have a a very small tongue or a low one, and others have a very high one. Like, for example, Chuck Taylors, they have a big tongue.

That's right, very long tongue. And so the tongue is the part that rests on top of your foot, um and usually that the shoelaces are over the tongue.

Exactly. And now moving on to the bottom part of the shoe, that's called the sole.

S O L E, sole. Uh this is a really important part of shoes. I always look at the sole before I buy a pair of shoes because this is the part that um you use the most because you're walking on the ground.

Right. So uh in so for example, hiking boots, they will have a very high sole and they will have kind of like a a pattern so that you don't slip if you're walking on dirt, right?

That's right. Sometimes rubber, a rubber sole.

Um but other times, like Chuck Taylors also have a rubber sole, but it's very thin.

It's very thin. And some shoes, for example, they have a a plastic sole maybe because they're used for other purposes, so they might be a little bit slippery if you go onto a a smooth surface.

Exactly.

So the sole, that's the bottom part of the shoe. And the last part of the shoe that we're gonna take a look at, and probably the most important, are the shoelaces.

Shoe laces. So shoelaces are basically long pieces of string that you use to tie your shoes closed. Uh because you want your shoes to be tight on your foot. You don't want it to be too loose, otherwise it might fall off.

And uh Chuck Taylors and some other shoes are very famous for having crazy colored laces, or for people using crazy colored laces to tie them up.

Right, so that's the part that you use to tie the or tighten the shoe with. So on the opposite, if a shoe doesn't have shoelaces, it's probably gonna have Velcro.

That's right. Velcro or shoelaces.

Okay. So those are all the words that we have for you today. Uh why don't we go back and listen to the dialogue for the last time.

Hi, I'm looking for a pair of shoes for my son.

Sure thing. Here we are. If you're looking for dress shoes, we have several different styles of Oxford for boys. We also carry athletic shoes, hiking boots.

Oh, Jacob, how about these sneakers?

Well, then how about these? What is this style called?

They're tennis shoes. They're very popular with teens and young adults.

What are those?

I don't know. Would they go with your clothes? The backs are really high and the way the tongue just sticks up, they're almost like a boot.

And the sole doesn't look like it would have a very good grip.

Okay, try them on.

What size are your feet?

He's a size nine.

We'll try a size 43 on you first and see how that fits.

A what?

They come in European sizes. He should be a size 43. I'll be right back.

All right, so talking about shoes, you say that you always take a look at the sole. Why is this?

Because I I'm always afraid that my shoes are gonna wear out. And I don't buy shoes very often. Um I love sneakers. I love my Pumas, and I love flat shoes. And so um when you buy a pair of shoes you really like, you don't want to buy another pair in six months. You want to get a pair that has a really good sole so that it will last for a long time.

Right, right. That yeah, that's true. I think uh for me, yeah, that's probably one of the most important parts is is the sole as long as it's comfortable because some soles, some shoes can be very rigid. So it's a little bit uncomfortable to walk with. And uh but I don't know, I don't really have that many pairs of shoes if I think about it.

Well, most people have one fancy pair of shoes for special occasions, and then a pair of work shoes that are leather, and then maybe a couple pairs of sneakers and some sandals for the summer. Mhm.

So, but you have uh sandals and you have flip-flops, or are they the same?

Well, sandals is basically a a kind of shoe. It's an open shoe that you wear in the summer. Flip-flops are a kind of sandal. So they usually have a V in the front and that's where you put your your your your big toe.

Your big toe, and the second toe.

Yeah, so you you wear them in the shower or at the beach. They're usually made of plastic or rubber so that you can get them wet. But they're sandals are flip-flops are a kind of sandal.

Yeah, very good. Uh it's very interesting how many styles and types of shoes. And actually for men, I think it's it's not that complicated, but when we get into women's shoes, then we'll see a lot of different things.

There are too many styles. I can't keep track.

All right, so uh that's all the time we have for today, but we'll see you guys on the website if you have any questions, any doubts, or if you just want to chat with us, we'll see you at Englishpod.com.

See you guys there. All right, bye. Bye.

The English Pod audio review.

Listen to the meaning, then say the vocabulary word.

A shoe use as a component of formal wear.

Dress shoe.

A canvas shoe with a pliable rubber sole.

Tennis shoe.

The flap of material under the laces of a shoe.

Tongue.

Way of grasping and holding firmly.

Grip.

A long, thin material used for fastening a shoe.

Shoelaces.

The underside of footwear.

Sole.

Let's try that faster.

The underside of footwear.

Sole.

The flap of material under the laces of a shoe.

Tongue.

Way of grasping and holding firmly.

Grip.

A long, thin material used for fastening a shoe.

Shoelaces.

A shoe used as a component of formal wear.

Dress shoe.

A canvas shoe with a pliable rubber sole.

Tennis shoe.

Now say the word and hear it in a sentence.

Tennis shoe.

Tennis shoe.

Tennis shoes used to be very plain, but now they come in many different colors and many different styles.

Tennis shoe.

My tennis shoes are old and ratty, but I still love them.

Tongue.

I put my foot back in my sneaker, pulled up the tongue, tightened my laces, and I kept on running.

Tongue.

The tongues of these shoes keep falling down.

Tongue.

The shoe tongue is supposed to keep the laces from rubbing against the foot.

Sole.

The soles of my shoes were starting to wear down.

Sole.

I went to the cobbler and got him to put rubber soles on my shoes.

Sole.

After dancing for several hours, the soles of my feet were sore.

Grip.

My new sneakers have a much better grip than my old ones.

Grip.

My shoes lost their grip, and I slipped on the polished floor.

Grip.

Shoelaces.

In the Olympics, the shoelaces of one figure skater broke in the middle of his performance.

Shoelaces.

Shoelaces.

My mom tightened my shoelaces, made a knot, and then told me to go play outside.

The English Pod audio review.