Britcent - [S6E13] Giving Presents

Steph  00:02

Hello, Dalya. 

 

Dalya  00:03

Hello there, Stephanie. How you doing today? 

 

Steph  00:06

I'm very well, thank you. How are you? 

 

Dalya  00:09

I'm - if you can believe it - I'm actually thinking about Christmas, this week.

 

Steph  00:14

How are you thinking about Christmas? It's August. 

 

Dalya  00:16

Because, well, it feels as if autumn has started and soon as autumn starts, it feels as if summer's over and then the next thing to look forward to, or the next stage in life, is Christmas. 

*feel as if ~처럼 느껴지다.

 

Steph  00:28

If you look forward to Christmas that is, and getting some interesting presents along the way, which is surprisingly, the topic of the day. 

*along the way 그 과정에서

 

Dalya  00:39

Oh, what a coincidence.

*coincidence 우연의 일치, (의견 등의) 일치 

 

Steph  00:40

Oh, really. So in our last episode, we were talking about moving in, moving out, and we were discussing housewarming presents. 

 

Dalya  00:49

Yeah. 

 

Steph  00:50

If any of you have not caught up on that yet, it is Season 6, Episode 12. Check it out. So we thought we'd talk about presents because, you know, comparing cultures from our lessons with our Korean students, we have noticed a couple of things that were quite interesting. Haven't we? 

*catch up on (뒤떨어진 일을) 만회하다, (소식, 정보를) 알아내다.

 

Dalya  01:10

Yeah, lots of differences.

 

Steph  01:13

In, like, the kinds of things that we give as presents and when we give them, et cetera. 

 

Dalya  01:18

Yeah, indeed. 

 

Steph  01:20

Yeah. And something we wanted to point out is this structure - which is something that I've noticed and I think you have as well, Dalya - is that we can say 'to give someone something'. So you could say for example, "She gave me a present."

*point out (주의를 기울이도록) 언급하다, 지적하다.

 

Dalya  01:40

Yeah. And it always confuses students, rightfully so, because the person comes before the thing. So it sounds as if you're holding the person and giving them to someone else. 

 

Steph  01:51

Right. Yeah. Yeah, exactly. 

 

Dalya  01:53

It is, yeah, it's probably more common than 'give a present to someone'.

 

Steph  01:58

Yeah. So I wouldn't really say, "Oh, she gave a present to me." 

 

Dalya  02:01

You could, but it sounds-- 

 

Steph  02:03

--a bit unnatural, I guess.

*unnatural 비정상적인, 이상한, 자연스럽지 않은

 

Dalya  02:04

Yeah. 

 

Steph  02:05

So if you want to sound natural, which I'm sure everyone does if you're learning English, yeah, try to say this instead. So, 'give someone something', 'give someone a present', for example. So yeah, let's talk about presents. Don't forget, guys, we are gonna mention three interesting or useful phrases and words; listen out for them at the end.

 

Dalya  02:27

Yep, indeed.

 

Steph  02:30

So can you remember the last present that you got, first of all?

 

Dalya  02:35

The last present that I got. Actually, it was my birthday a few months ago. What did I get? I'll have to think about this. You go, what did you get? 

 

Steph  02:44

I'm trying to think. 

 

Dalya  02:45

I can't remember. That's really bad, isn't it? 

 

Steph  02:47

It was my birthday last month, actually, so it wasn't that long ago. What did I get? Well, my husband's side, let's say; they are quite methodical with their present buying. So they always ask the person whose birthday it is, or, you know, when it comes to Christmas time, for them to give them some ideas, like to kind of write a little list of things that you would like to have, and then each of them will buy something off the list. So you always get something that you like.

*methodical 체계적인, 꼼꼼한

 

Dalya  03:19

That's nice. 

 

Steph  03:20

Yeah. So I did get a lovely dress that I'd really wanted, a red dress. I love it. What else did I get? I got a couple of other things. I can't remember now but the red dress sticks out. Oh, yeah! I got a swimsuit that I'm wearing on my honeymoon very soon. So I needed some new swimwear.

*stick out 눈에 띄다, 잘 보이다.

 

Dalya  03:39

Oh, I love presents that you can actually use and are actually useful. 

 

Steph  03:43

Yeah, me too. Those are my favourite kinds of presents. Not really things that you can just look at, but more things that you can use. 

 

Dalya  03:50

Yeah, definitely. 

 

Steph  03:51

Yeah. Practical presents, I guess. 

 

Dalya  03:54

Yeah. It's always a bit of a-- I always feel a bit conflicted when someone gives you something, you know, they're very thoughtful and very nice, but you can't really use it. It just kind of sits in your house. And if you don't really like it, it's a bit awkward, because you have to kind of put it out when they come out of politeness. 

*conflicted 갈등을 겪는

*thoughtful 배려심 있는, 친절한

*put something out (눈에 띄게) ~을 내놓다.

 

Steph  04:11

Oh, do you do that? 

 

Dalya  04:12

I have done that, yeah. 

 

Steph  04:14

Yeah, that's funny. Yeah. I mean, I think that for me, if somebody doesn't know what to get me, I'd rather if they just gave me a voucher. 

 

Dalya  04:28

A gift card, yeah. 

 

Steph  04:30

A gift card or maybe some money or something. So at least I can buy something myself because they might just end up buying me something that I would never use; I'd feel like they've wasted their money. But then of course, you know, we say, "It's the thought that counts", right?

"It's the thought that counts" (물질적 가치보다) 마음이 더 중요하다.

 

Dalya  04:43

That's true. The thought that counts. Actually, I have to agree with you. I always used to think gift cards were a little impersonal. But one of my presents this year was from my mum; it was a voucher with quite a lot of money on it for Waitrose or John Lewis. And if anybody knows, they're quite fancy shops. Like, Waitrose is a fancy food shop. And John Lewis is a fancy shop with lots of stuff in it, like furniture and electric goods. My first thought was, "Oh, I'll get something useful for my flat", you know? And my mum said, "Well, how about you just treat yourself to some nice food?" And I did and it was amazing. That was such a great present.

*impersonal 인간미 없는, 특정 개인과 상관없는

 

Steph  05:23

Yeah, I love those sorts of things. I've had John Lewis gift cards before. And I actually used one to-- I wasn't able to pay for the whole thing but I paid for half of it to buy myself a Dyson vacuum cleaner. 

 

Dalya  05:39

Oh my god, my-- 

 

Steph  05:40

Wireless, naturally. Cordless, rather. 

 

Dalya  05:41

--vacuum cleaner is one of the expensive things I have ever bought. So I totally, totally understand. 

 

Steph  05:46

But they're amazing. 

 

Dalya  05:47

They are. They are incredible.

 

Steph  05:49

And it has changed my life. 

 

Dalya  05:50

Yeah, yeah, they are amazing. 

 

Steph  05:51

So that was a great prezzie. And yeah, I'm totally, yeah, I'm up for getting gift cards. So if anyone's listening to this and they want to buy me a little something--

*prezzie 선물

*be up for ~할 의향이 있다.

 

Dalya  06:00

Send Steph a gift card in the post. 

 

Steph  06:02

Feel free to give me a gift card. It's not impersonal, don't worry. 

 

Dalya  06:09

Fair enough. 

 

Steph  06:10

But something interesting that I've noticed from my lessons at Britcent with my Korean students - now, you'll have to tell me whether this is something you've noticed, too - so I've had students saying, "Oh, you know, it was my mum's birthday the other day", or "My dad's birthday", or whatever. And I'll say, "Oh, did you get them a present? Did you get them something?" And a lot of the time, they will say that they've given them money.

 

Dalya  06:36

Yeah, yeah, definitely. Most of my students say that as well. 

 

Steph  06:39

Money from the daughter or son to the mum or dad. And I find that really unusual because it's not that common here, is it?

 

Dalya  06:48

Well, when you're a kid, when you're a child, it's usually the other way round. Usually your parents, your grandparents give you money, but it's usually as an exciting thing that they put in the card as a surprise. And it's usually not a lot; like your grandparents will give you £5 or £10 but it was very exciting when we're children. But no, not to parents; I think they'd be a bit surprised.

*the other way round 반대로, 반대 (상황)

 

Steph  07:12

Yeah, I've never given my parents money. My parents have definitely given me money. But yeah, it's more the fact that it's the other way round that I find unusual, because obviously everyone could find a use for money, right? But it just seems a little bit unusual for the child, even if the child is an adult, to be giving money to the parents. Nothing wrong with that; I'm not saying there's anything wrong with that. I'm just saying it's just very unusual for me. So I was very surprised when I heard that. 

 

Dalya  07:42

Yeah, it goes to show just how cultural differences are just pretty arbitrary sometimes, aren't they?

*arbitrary 임의적인, 제멋대로인 

 

Steph  07:47

Yeah. Yeah. I mean, they didn't think anything of it, really. And another thing I've noticed that my Korean students often say they've given to their parents or older relatives is ginseng. 

 

Dalya  08:02

Ah, vitamins. And yeah, like...

 

Steph  08:04

Vitamins and stuff. Like, expensive vitamins. 

 

Dalya  08:06

Yeah. And if you did that here, that would just be-- yeah, people just wouldn't really understand.

 

Steph  08:12

They'd be so offended as well, wouldn't they? Like, can you imagine giving someone older than you some vitamins? They'd be like, "What are you trying to say? Are you trying to say I need these?"

 

Dalya  08:22

Yeah. But actually, it's a really good idea, isn't it? I mean, it's healthy.

 

Steph  08:29

Yeah. Definitely if that's something they want. Most of my students who have told me they've given these things to their parents said that they really appreciated them and they really wanted those things. So that's great. I just-- yeah, I don't know, I find them unusual, I suppose. But last time we were talking about giving toilet paper as a, what was it, as a-- 

 

Dalya  08:55

Housewarming present. 

 

Steph  08:56

Housewarming present! And we also said that's something we wouldn't do in the UK but it's quite common now.

 

Dalya  09:01

But again, functional, practical. 

 

Steph  09:03

Very functional, very practical. Exactly right. So do you like to be surprised, or would you rather receive a gift that perhaps you needed?

 

Dalya  09:17

Well, I was gonna ask you the same thing, because you know earlier you talked about, kind of like a gift list. What's it called? Yeah, a wishlist, sorry. A friend and I were talking about this the other day, because it's kind of swings and roundabouts, because it's nice to get something that you like. But then sometimes it can take the kind of, I don't know, it can take the element of surprise out of it. And you end up just giving each other your shopping lists.

*swings and roundabouts 장점과 단점이 공존하는

 

Steph  09:44

That's a good point, actually, yes.

 

Dalya  09:46

Do you know what I mean? 

 

Steph  09:47

I know exactly what you mean, yeah.

 

Dalya  09:49

So I think both, to be honest. It depends who it's from because if someone knows you very well, they're more likely to actually get you something that you like without you having to tell them. And it's nice when someone says like, "Oh, you know, a little birdie told me that you like, you know, you like this and that." So it can be very personal, so...

 

Steph  10:10

That's very true. Yeah. I also find it really sweet when someone gives you a little something just to say thank you. So it doesn't have to be anything massive or anything super expensive but, I don't know, like if someone's going through a hard time and you send them a little box of chocolates or something or some flowers or something like that. Or somebody's giving you a hand with something, you know, done a favour for you and they're like, "Oh, I want to show you my appreciation with this" and they give you something. 

 

Dalya  10:44

Absolutely. 

 

Steph  10:45

That's thoughtful, I think. Very thoughtful, very sweet.

 

Dalya  10:47

Yeah, presents that are not kind of expected. You know, not for Christmas or birthday; they're the best. They're really amazing because someone's really gone to the trouble.

 

Steph  10:57

Yes, exactly. Somebody's thought about you at a time when it's not necessarily your birthday, when everyone's thinking about you specifically, you know what I mean?

*specifically 특별히, 분명히, 명확하게

 

Dalya  11:07

Yeah, that's why if I were a millionaire, I would just buy my friends and family things all the time. It'd be great. 

 

Steph  11:12

Just buy presents all the time. There you go. Well, maybe we should go back to our words and phrases that we mentioned today. So something we said earlier was 'prezzie'. This is actually an abbreviation for the word 'present'. Obviously, it's quite informal to say 'prezzie'. And I think it's used more in the UK than in America.

*abbreviation 축약

 

Dalya  11:42

Yeah, I don't think I've ever really heard it being used on a series or film or something.

 

Steph  11:47

No, me neither. So you can say like 'a birthday prezzie', for example, instead of 'a birthday present', for instance. Yeah. So, some examples. You could say, "Have you bought your mum a birthday prezzie yet?" Or, "There are so many prezzies under the Christmas tree." 

 

Dalya  12:05

Yeah, it's often used with kids, isn't it? 

 

Steph  12:08

Hmm. Yeah. It's like a cute word, I guess. A cute way of saying 'present'. So that's one of them. What else did we mention?

 

Dalya  12:17

So we said, 'a little something', or 'just a little something', which is a present that is not of great value. So it's not extremely expensive. It's also used when you're trying to be a bit humble or modest, and not make a big deal of your present. Yeah. So we could say, "I want to buy a little something for Val when I visit her in hospital." 

*be of great value 대단한 가치가 있다.

*modest (크기, 가격) 그다지 대단하지는 않은, 겸손한

 

Steph  12:48

Yeah, that's a nice example. 

 

Dalya  12:50

We could also say, "I've brought you a little something to say thank you for your help." 

 

Steph  12:56

Yeah, I really like this expression. 'A little something'. 

 

Dalya  12:58

Yeah. It's cute. 

 

Steph  12:59

It makes it sound, yeah, like even more interesting, I guess. Yeah. And then the other one that we said - and I don't know if our Korean listeners say anything like this in Korean. Perhaps? - but it's an idiom, and it's 'a little bird told me'. Or you could also say 'a little birdie told me'. Obviously, this is quite informal as well. And we use this when we want to say that somebody told you something, but you don't want to say who it was. So we don't want to reveal who told you that information, basically. And we often use it when it comes to, yeah, events like birthdays and things, or things that people want, things that people like. So you might say, "A little birdie told me that it's your birthday today." So maybe you didn't tell me directly, but someone told me it was your birthday. So instead of saying 'someone told me', you could say 'a little birdie told me'.

 

Dalya  13:58

All of these phrases are just used to be cute, aren't they?

 

Steph  14:01

I know! Yeah, very cute. You could also say like, let's say someone gives you a really nice present that you really wanted, you could say: "Oh, how did you know I wanted these." "Ah, a little birdie told me."

 

Dalya  14:16

That exact same thing happened to me. 

 

Steph  14:18

Oh, really? 

 

Dalya  14:19

Yeah, it was really nice.

 

Steph  14:20

Yeah. It's sweet. Yeah, it's really sweet. So giving presents is good, basically.

 

Dalya  14:26

Yeah, let's all buy each other presents-- no, it's good. It's all good.

 

Steph  14:33

So yes, you're right; the next kind of occasion that we have I suppose in the UK would be Christmas. Which makes me sad because that means the year's nearly over; let's not talk about Christmas already.

 

Dalya  14:44

No, we've got three months left. 

 

Steph  14:47

We have but then a lot of-- 

 

Dalya  14:49

Four months. 

 

Steph  14:50

--shops are starting to... 

 

Dalya  14:51

I know. That's why-- 

 

Steph  14:52

Have you noticed? 

 

Dalya  14:53

Oh yeah, that's why I'm thinking about it. I don't like to because I find, yeah, you end up wishing your life away. 

*wish something away ~이 없어지기를 바라다.

 

Steph  14:59

Yes, that's right.

 

Dalya  15:00

But yeah, you can't-- but in a cold country, like England, coldish, not compared to Korea. No, let me-- sorry, let me rephrase that: in a country with miserable weather, we need something to look forward to, right? 

*rephrase (뜻을 분명히 하기 위해) 바꿔 말하다.

 

Steph  15:15

That's true. That's very true. Yes. So yeah, if any of you are wondering what we're talking about, some shops here are starting to display Christmas items and Christmas foods, ready for December, Although it's August. So, crazy if you ask me, but anyway.

 

Dalya  15:34

Anyway. I mean, that's a lot of shops' main income; their whole-- it all revolves around Christmas, so they have to. 

*revolve around ~을 중심으로 다루다.

 

Steph  15:39

Yeah, for sure. 

 

Dalya  15:41

Anyway, let's not get into that because it's August.

 

Steph  15:44

Exactly. I'm sure we'll talk about Christmas when it comes round.

*come a(round) 돌아오다.

 

Dalya  15:48

Indeed, indeed.

 

Steph  15:49

Okay--

 

Dalya  15:50

Well, Steph...

 

Steph  15:51

--that is all for today.

 

Dalya  15:53

Lovely to see you.

 

Steph  15:54

Great to see you as well. I'll see you in the next one.

 

Dalya  15:57

See you soon. Bye-bye.