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Zapp! English Vocabulary & Pronunciation Audio 3.16 - Superstitions
Taught by Katie Wood — Cambridge CELTA · Cambridge DELTA · Cambridge-accredited Teacher Trainer
Recorded and taught by a team of British and North American English teachers, based in Oxford (UK) and Barcelona (Spain).
Katie starts by admitting she's "a bit…maybe a bit gullible" about mirrors, cracks in the pavement and black cats. Tom's answer is short: "Where's the evidence?" Her reply is rather good — "if there was evidence it wouldn't be a superstition". Then, two minutes later, he lets slip that "I still say Hello Mr Magpie" when he sees one in a field. This is a Level 3 vocabulary and pronunciation episode built on that unscripted disagreement, and on fifteen words for belief, doubt and nonsense.
What you'll hear in this episode
The conversation comes in two parts, split by the teaching sections. In the first, Katie lists the superstitions she can't shake off — she still doesn't like standing on cracks, and still "get[s] the panics" if she breaks a mirror. Tom pushes back: it's "quite naïve to believe in any superstitions really", because they come from a time when there were reasons for them, to do with farming and food. They agree the ladder one has some basis in reality — walk under a ladder, something falls on your head — and Katie concedes you'd be right to be cautious. Tom's verdict on the rest is a flat "Nonsense!", which makes her laugh: "What you think they're nonsense?"
The second part gets more personal. One of the speakers describes a father who is logical and rational and calls the whole thing "a load of old mumbo jumbo"; another talks about keeping smooth pebbles from a beach in Cornwall in a pocket, holding one in moments of stress because it felt like a connection with the sea — "It wasn't rational at all", but it worked. There's a Hamsa, or Fatima's Hand, and an attempt to convince a sceptical relative to hang one in his lounge. "He's not having it at all." Tom's warning is that once you start buying charms, the whole world of superstition opens up. Katie's conclusion: "ridiculous or not… we pay attention to them".
Quick facts
| Episode | 3.16 – Superstitions |
| Pack | Vocabulary and Pronunciation 3 |
| Level | 3 |
| Duration | 14 minutes 56 seconds |
| Audio | Free to download |
| Workbook | Included in the all-in-one pack |
What you'll learn
Fifteen words, taught in two batches, each one checked for meaning first and then pronunciation — you hear a definition, guess the word, then repeat after the beep. The pronunciation focus is unusually tidy here, because so many of these words end the same way. Gullible, logical, rational and credible all finish with the same weak /əl/, and the audio keeps pointing that out. You'll also work on the /əs/ ending shared by cautious and ridiculous, the silent b in doubt, and the first sound of absurd, which is spelled a but pronounced /ə/.
Stress placement gets its own attention: first syllable for gullible and credible, second for naïve and coincidence. Then there are pairs that look similar and aren't — coincidence /əʊ/ against convince /ɒ/, absurd /ɜː/ against a charm /ɑː/, doubt /aʊ/ against omen /əʊ/.
Because the conversation is unscripted, you also get the real thing around the target words: hesitation, repetition ("still…still, still, still…"), and natural expressions like old wives' tales and mumbo jumbo that a coursebook dialogue wouldn't give you.
The vocabulary
- cautious /kɔːʃəs/ (adjective) — careful, doesn't take risks, avoids danger. Katie uses it about walking under ladders.
- gullible /ɡʌləbəl/ (adjective) — easy to lie to or trick because they believe anything.
- naive /naIiːv/ (adjective) — believe things easily because they haven't got much experience in the world.
- nonsense /nɒnsəns/ (noun) — making no sense, not sensible, not true. Tom's one-word verdict.
- absurd /əbsɜːd/ (adjective) — silly, unreasonable, stupid.
- evidence /evIdəns/ (noun) — a fact that shows another thing to be true and believable.
- a coincidence /kəʊInsIdəns/ (noun) — when two things happen together by chance without any planning.
- credible /kredəbəl/ (adjective) — believable, we can trust this information or person.
- an omen /əʊmən/ (noun) — a sign which some people believe signals something good or bad in the future.
- a charm /tʃɑːm/ (noun) — a thing that some people believe will bring good luck or keep bad luck away.
Also covered: ridiculous, logical, rational, to convince and to doubt.
In the workbook
The workbook for 3.16 carries the full transcript of both halves of the conversation, so you can go back and see exactly where Katie hedges and where Tom interrupts. There's a glossary with all fifteen entries, each with phonemic transcription and a plain definition.
Then three practice sections. Practice 1 is an anagram task inside opinions about superstitions — lugliebl, snosnene, devicene, ivocncen, glocial, meon, diconcincee — which forces you to spell the words rather than just recognise them. Practice 2 is five choose-the-best-word sentences that separate near neighbours: cautious or gullible, charm or omen, credible or ridiculous, evidence or nonsense. Practice 3 is pronunciation: find the sound shared by gullible, logical, rational and credible, then decide whether four pairs of underlined sounds are the same or different. Full answer key at the back, including the phonemes for each pair.
The workbook is part of the Zapp! English all-in-one pack — every episode, every level, €39 once, no subscription.
Get the complete courseAll workbooks and audio — €39
Common questions
Is the conversation scripted?
The conversation between Katie and Tom is unscripted — they'd hardly contradict themselves so neatly if it weren't. 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 3. You'll manage it if you can already follow a two-person discussion at natural speed and want to sharpen precision in word stress and weak endings.
Do I need the workbook to follow the audio?
No. The audio works alone, and it's free. The workbook adds the transcript, the glossary and the three written practice sections with answers.
How long is it?
14 minutes 56 seconds, including both halves of the conversation and both pronunciation drills.
What if I only care about pronunciation?
Go straight to the two Meaning and Pronunciation tasks and repeat after each beep. The /əl/ endings and the coincidence/convince contrast are the parts worth replaying.
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