Computer Vocabulary in English: Pronunciation Practice 2.12

Katie asks a simple question — how clean is your computer screen? — and gets one of the more honest answers we've recorded: "It's not clean. It's disgusting." A moment later comes the admission, "I don't think I've ever cleaned my computer screen." That's the sort of thing that happens when you ask real people about their computers instead of reading them a dialogue. Along the way you'll pick up fifteen everyday computer words and the pronunciation patterns that go with them.

What you'll hear in this episode

The episode is built in two halves. First the nouns: software, monitor, network, a virus, the cursor, a mouse, a screen. Katie puts the questions to Clare, who thinks software prices are "extremely high" and not accessible to people earning a standard wage — she can understand illegal downloading, though she adds, "whilst I'm not saying that it's correct", and doesn't think anyone belongs in prison for it. Asked about a virus, she laughs, blames it on watching too much on the internet, then admits she's "really not very technical" and simply took the machine to a friend.

Then the verbs: to forward, reply, delete, crash, back up, cut, copy and paste. Here Katie talks to Kami, who opens with "I am actually one of those people who hates forwarded emails". She describes opening her inbox and going "delete, delete, delete!", and has actually written to serial forwarders asking, "Please take me off of your forward list". She's proud of replying "in a timely fashion" and of constantly pushing the save button — but the backing-up question catches her out. One of the speakers keeps an external hard drive at their parents' house, a long way from the computer: "I haven't backed up in quite a... quite a long time." On cutting and pasting, she's a keyboard person — "the control X, control C, control V, cut, copy, paste".

Quick facts

Episode	2.12 – Computers
Pack	Vocabulary and Pronunciation 2
Level	2
Duration	18 minutes 27 seconds
Voices	Katie, with Clare and Kami
Vocabulary	15 glossary entries with phonetics
Workbook practice	Three sections, including pronunciation

What you'll learn

The teaching sections work by definition rather than translation: you hear a description — "something that gets into your computer and causes problems" — and have to produce the word before the beep. That forces recall, not recognition.

The pronunciation work targets the places learners of English usually slip. In monitor, the stress lands on the first syllable /mɒn/ and the last syllable is weak, /tə/. The end of cursor is just /ə/, not a strong "or". In network, the t isn't strong. Forward ends /wəd/, and reply begins with a quick /rɪ/, not "ree".

The conversations give you something else: listening to fluent speech with all the mess left in. Clare repairs herself mid-sentence — "the price of...a lot of the...the programmes" — and Kami corrects "the recent future" to "the recent past" as she speaks. Learning to follow speakers who restart, hesitate and self-correct is a skill in itself, and it's the skill real conversation actually demands. You'll also hear network used beyond computers: a network of friends, a network of shops.

Vocabulary from the workbook

software /sɒfweə/ (noun) – a program that a computer uses to do things, for example Microsoft Word. The word behind Clare's answer about high prices.
a monitor /mɒnɪtə/ (noun) – the screen and the stand that holds it. Clare doesn't have one: she works with a laptop and a tablet.
to forward /fɔːwəd/ (verb) – to send something on to the next person. Kami's least favourite verb.
to back up /bækʌp/ (verb) – to make copies of information so that it is safe.
to crash /kræʃ/ (verb) – for a computer to stop working.
the cursor /kɜːsə/ (noun) – the little line you see on the screen when you move the mouse or when you type.
to paste /peɪst/ (verb) – to place something, especially something you have cut or copied, to a different place on a computer, using the cursor.

What's in the workbook

The workbook for 2.12 is part of the all-in-one pack. It opens with the full unit script, so you can read every question Katie asks and every answer Clare and Kami give — useful for checking what you thought you heard in the faster stretches.

After that comes a vocabulary glossary with all fifteen terms, phonetics and short definitions, then three practice sections. Practice 1 asks open questions that check meaning rather than spelling: what can you do with an email? What does the mouse move on your screen? Practice 2 is five sentences where you underline the right word — network or cursor, backed up or crashed, monitor or mouse. Practice 3 is the pronunciation exercise: six pairs of words where you decide whether the underlined sounds match. Do program and mouse share a vowel? Do software and monitor? Full answers with the phonetic symbols are printed at the back, so you can mark your own work.

Get the complete courseAll workbooks and audio — €39

Questions

Is the audio free?

Yes. The English conversations are free to download. The workbook that goes with this episode comes with the €39 all-in-one pack.

Is the conversation scripted?

No. Clare and Kami answer Katie's questions unrehearsed, hesitations and all. The teaching sections that set up the tasks and give the answers are scripted, so the instructions stay clear.

What level is this episode?

Level 2, from the Vocabulary and Pronunciation 2 pack.

Do I need the workbook to follow along?

No, but the pronunciation exercise in Practice 3 needs the printed pairs, and the glossary gives you the phonetics for all fifteen words.

How long does it take?

The audio runs 18 minutes 27 seconds. Add ten to fifteen minutes for the three practice sections.

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