Thinking in English

Today, we're trying something a little different. This is a vocabulary-focused episode based on a recent news story, where we'll take one interesting event and use it to learn useful English words and expressions in context.

Our story today comes from Spain, where an eviction involving an 87-year-old woman has led to large protests and a national debate about the country's housing crisis.

We'll look at what happened, why housing has become such a serious issue in Spain, and along the way, we'll learn vocabulary related to housing, economics, politics, and protest. I'll first explain the story and the wider context, and then we'll break down some of the most useful vocabulary from the story, looking at what these words mean, how they're used, and how you can use them yourself.

So, let's begin with the story of an 87-year-old woman, an apartment in Madrid, and a housing crisis affecting millions of people.

BBC Article - https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cwm2qmjgy93do

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TRANSCRIPT - https://thinkinginenglish.blog/2026/10/19/410-why-spain-is-banning-evictions-vocabulary-in-the-news/

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00:00 Introduction

01:36 Spain Eviction Story

04:38 Vocabulary: Eviction

05:41 Vocabulary: Landlords & Tenants

06:38 Vocabulary: Rent

07:34 Vocabulary: Housing Shortage

08:28 Vocabulary: Afford

10:43 Vocabulary: Intervene

11:31 Vocabulary: Speculative

12:40 Vocabulary: Vulture Fund

13:44 Vocabulary: Roll Over

14:18 Vocabulary: Approve

14:45 Vocabulary: Lack a Majority

15:50 Vocabulary: Protest

16:52 Vocabulary: Strike a Balance

17:42 Big Picture Discussion

18:54 Final Thought

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The United Nations has recently voted to adopt a new world map. The UN now supports the Equal Earth map which tries to represent the relative size of continents and countries more accurately.

If you compare the Equal Earth projection with the traditional Mercator projection (I’ll explain these later in the episode, don’t worry), you will notice that Africa is much larger, Greenland and Antarctica are much smaller, and some countries have shifted slightly in their position.

So, why did the UN vote to change the map? And was the old map actually wrong?

Today, we're going to look at why our maps of the world look the way they do, why the famous Mercator projection has some major problems, what Equal Earth does differently, and whether it is possible to create a completely accurate map of the world.

And we will practice you English listening comprehension and learn some new vocabulary along the way!

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TRANSCRIPT - https://thinkinginenglish.blog/2026/10/12/409-the-world-map-is-changing-english-vocabulary-lesson/

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Today, we’re going to talk about one of the most famous historical objects in the world: the Bayeux Tapestry.

The Bayeux Tapestry is a huge piece of embroidered cloth, about 70 metres long, covered with pictures showing kings, soldiers, ships, horses and battles. It was created almost 1,000 years ago and tells the story of the Norman Conquest of England in the year 1066.

The Bayeux Tapestry is in the news right now because it has travelled to Britain. The tapestry normally lives in the French town of Bayeux, but it is currently being displayed at the British Museum in London. This is the first time in nearly 1000 years that the tapestry returned to Britain.

What exactly happened in 1066? Who were the people fighting for the English throne? Why did the Normans invade England? And how reliable is the Bayeux Tapestry as a source of historical information?

Let’s talk about some British history while improving our English listening comprehension and learning some new vocabulary!

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TRANSCRIPT - https://thinkinginenglish.blog/2026/10/05/408-the-bayeux-tapestry-english-vocabulary-lesson/

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British food has a bit of a reputation.

I’m sure that for a lot of you, the words “British food” brings to mind boiled vegetables, overcooked meat, greasy breakfasts, and meals that are, above all, rather bland. British cuisine is often compared unfavourably with the food of countries such as France, Italy, Spain, or Japan. There is a common idea that while other countries have sophisticated culinary traditions, Britain somehow missed out.

This stereotype is not completely new. British people themselves have made jokes about their country's food for years. British comedy is full of references to terrible meals.

But why exactly did this reputation develop? And is it actually true?

So, let's talk about British food while improving our English listening comprehension and learning some new vocabulary!

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TRANSCRIPT - https://thinkinginenglish.blog/2026/09/28/407-is-british-food-really-bad-english-vocabulary-lesson/

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Where is the best place to study English? Is it better to move to Britain, the US, or another English-speaking country, or can you learn just as effectively at home? Does studying in person produce better results than studying online?

Is a private one-to-one class better than a small group or a large class? What about structured lessons that teach grammar and vocabulary compared with conversation-focused classes?

In this episode, we’re going to look at the research behind these questions and try to work out what makes an English-learning environment effective. The goal of the episode is to explore what combination of place, teaching, interaction, and practice gives you the best chance of improving your English!

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TRANSCRIPT - https://thinkinginenglish.blog/2026/09/21/406-where-is-the-best-place-to-study-english-english-vocabulary-lesson/

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