Culips Everyday English Podcast

Have you ever been so focused on one goal that you forgot to slow down? In this bonus episode, Andrew spends a holiday afternoon trying something new with his family, and it makes him rethink how he spends his free time. Listen along to learn some vocabulary that will help make your English more natural and to improve your listening fluency.

https://esl.culips.com/lipservice/B183_regular.pdf

https://esl.culips.com/1000/10/18161/

The brand new Culips app is live!

Study this episode with an interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary: Open this lesson in the Culips app.

Study materials for this episode

• The interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary are free for everyone. No membership needed.
• The comprehension quiz and the PDF study guide download are for Culips members.
• Become a Culips member to get study materials for every episode, live speaking classes, ad-free audio, member-only perks, and more.
• Join our Discord community to connect with other learners and get more English practice.

Keep an ear out for these expressions during the episode:

• To be down
• To burn off
• Right on the money
• Newbie
• Prickly
• To wander off
• Foraging
• Nature’s bounty
• Wake-up call
• Half the battle

Is Halloween a big deal where you live? Andrew and Indiana share their favorite childhood Halloween memories and the costumes they’re most proud of, and Indiana explains how trick-or-treating works for anyone who didn’t grow up with it. Along the way, you’ll learn useful English vocabulary like “to go hard,” “to liven up,” “to be over something,” “a gripe,” “to wane,” and “groundless.”

https://esl.culips.com/Lipservice-prtd/SS255_StudyGuide.pdfhttps://esl.culips.com/1000/10/18155/

The brand-new Culips app is live!

Study this episode with an interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary:
Open this lesson in the Culips app.

The Best Way to Learn with This Episode:

• Culips members get an interactive transcript, helpful study guide, and ad-free audio for this episode. Take your English to the next level by becoming a Culips member. Become a Culips member now.
• Members can access the ad-free version here: Click here.
• Join our Discord community to connect with other learners and get more English practice.

Links from this episode:

• Learn about Stop Making Sense, the concert film behind Indiana’s favorite costume.
• Watch David Byrne dance in his big suit.

Keep an ear out for these phrases during the episode:

• To go hard
• To liven up
• To be over something
• A gripe
• To wane
• Groundless

Do you still remember your best friend’s phone number from when you were a kid? Andrew and Indiana share some fun memories from the days when every home had a phone connected to the wall, and talk about the pros and cons of life with a landline. Along the way, you’ll learn useful English vocabulary like “a peek behind the curtain,” “to get through to someone,” “a comedy of errors,” “fishy,” “to come in handy,” and “peak something.”

https://esl.culips.com/Lipservice-prtd/SS254_StudyGuide.pdfhttps://esl.culips.com/1000/10/18147/

The brand-new Culips app is live!

Study this episode with an interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary:
Open this lesson in the Culips app.

The Best Way to Learn with This Episode:

• Culips members get an interactive transcript, helpful study guide, and ad-free audio for this episode. Take your English to the next level by becoming a Culips member. Become a Culips member now.
• Members can access the ad-free version here: Click here.
• Join our Discord community to connect with other learners and get more English practice.

Link from this episode:

• Watch the Curb Your Enthusiasm phone etiquette scene that Indiana talks about.

Keep an ear out for these phrases during the episode:

• A peek behind the curtain
• To get through to someone
• A comedy of errors
• Fishy
• To come in handy
• Peak something

Would you keep going in a race if something embarrassing happened to you halfway through? Andrew and Anna talk about an Australian athlete who had a bathroom accident during a Hyrox race in Beijing and kept going until she won. They discuss why the story traveled so fast online, what it meant for her sponsors, and whether pushing yourself to your limit is always a good thing. Along the way, you’ll hear expressions like “to have one’s blinkers on,” “a perfect storm,” “blowback,” “plastered all over,” “to spread like wildfire,” and “to lay low.”

Listening to Andrew and Anna share their opinions on a real news story will help you follow how English speakers talk about current events in everyday conversation.

https://esl.culips.com/Lipservice-prtd/CB354_StudyGuide.pdfhttps://esl.culips.com/1000/10/18142/

The brand-new Culips app is live!

Study this episode with an interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary:
Open this lesson in the Culips app.

The Best Way to Learn with This Episode:

• Culips members get an interactive transcript, helpful study guide, and ad-free audio for this episode. Take your English to the next level by becoming a Culips member. Become a Culips member now.
• Members can access the ad-free version here: Click here.
• Join our Discord community to connect with other learners and get more English practice.

Link from this episode:

• BBC: “Hyrox athlete apologises for continuing race after soiling herself”

Keep an ear out for these phrases during the episode:

• To have one’s blinkers on
• A perfect storm
• Blowback
• To be plastered all over (something)
• To spread like wildfire
• To lay low

In this bonus episode, Andrew tells the story of something new that he and his wife recently started together, and what it’s like to be a total beginner again. Listen along to learn some vocabulary that will help make your English more natural and to improve your listening fluency.

https://esl.culips.com/lipservice/B182_regular.pdf

https://esl.culips.com/1000/10/18131/

The brand new Culips app is live!

Study this episode with an interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary: Open this lesson in the Culips app.

Tell us about a time you were a beginner! Record a two-minute audio story about an awkward, funny, or embarrassing moment from trying something new, and Andrew might share it in a future episode: Record your story here.

Study materials for this episode

• The interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary are free for everyone. No membership needed.
• The comprehension quiz and the PDF study guide download are for Culips members.
• Become a Culips member to get study materials for every episode, live speaking classes, ad-free audio, member-only perks, and more.
• Join our Discord community to connect with other learners and get more English practice.

Keep an ear out for these expressions during the episode:

• To deteriorate
• Self-conscious
• To weigh the pros and cons
• To stick with (something)
• As the crow flies
• To put off
• A sales spiel
• A gym rat
• Ego lifting
• To be juxtaposed

What’s the one thing you just can’t say no to? Andrew and Indiana share their biggest weaknesses when it comes to food, shopping, screen time, and a few basic life skills, and Andrew tells a story about an unexpected visitor at his desk. Along the way, you’ll learn how to use “Achilles heel,” “a goody two-shoes,” “mid,” “cooked,” “your own worst enemy,” and “a coping mechanism.”

https://esl.culips.com/Lipservice-prtd/SS253_StudyGuide.pdfhttps://esl.culips.com/1000/09/18125/

The brand-new Culips app is live!

Study this episode with an interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary:
Open this lesson in the Culips app.

The Best Way to Learn with This Episode:

• Culips members get an interactive transcript, helpful study guide, and ad-free audio for this episode. Take your English to the next level by becoming a Culips member. Become a Culips member now.
• Members can access the ad-free version here: Click here.
• Join our Discord community to connect with other learners and get more English practice.

Link from this episode:

• The fashion scene at Dongmyo Market (SSENSE)

Keep an ear out for these phrases during the episode:

• An Achilles heel
• A goody two-shoes
• Mid
• To be cooked
• To be one’s own worst enemy
• A coping mechanism

Does sport bring people together, or does it divide us? Andrew and Anna’s conversation moves from the World Cup to the Olympics, the Commonwealth Games, and even esports. Along the way, you’ll hear expressions like “in the wake of,” “to not have a dog in the fight,” “emotionally charged,” “over the top,” “good grief,” and “to check a box.”

https://esl.culips.com/Lipservice-prtd/CB353_StudyGuide.pdfhttps://esl.culips.com/1000/09/18117/

The brand-new Culips app is live!

Study this episode with an interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary:
Open this lesson in the Culips app.

The Best Way to Learn with This Episode:

• Culips members get an interactive transcript, helpful study guide, and ad-free audio for this episode. Take your English to the next level by becoming a Culips member. Become a Culips member now:
• Members can access the ad-free version here: Click here.
• Join our Discord community to connect with other learners and get more English practice:

Keep an ear out for these phrases during the episode:

• In the wake of (something)
• To (not) have a dog in the fight
• Emotionally charged
• Over the top
• Good grief
• To check a box

In this Catch Word lesson, Andrew and Indiana teach you five English expressions that are often used in meetings and in the workplace: “circle back,” “touch base,” “drop the ball,” “in the weeds,” and “move the needle.” Learning these expressions will help you be a clearer speaker and a better listener the next time you find yourself in a meeting.

https://esl.culips.com/Lipservice-prtd/CW295_StudyGuide.pdfhttps://esl.culips.com/1000/09/18104/

The brand-new Culips app is live!

Study this episode with an interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary:
Open this lesson in the Culips app.

Keep an ear out for these phrases during the episode:

• To circle back
• To touch base
• To drop the ball
• Across the board
• In the weeds
• To move the needle

In this bonus episode, Andrew takes one day off at the end of the summer and heads to the beach with his wife. They are only away for 24 hours, but they fit a lot into it. Listen along to learn some vocabulary that will help make your English more natural and to improve your listening fluency.

https://esl.culips.com/lipservice/B181_regular.pdf

https://esl.culips.com/1000/09/18079/

The brand new Culips app is live!

Study this episode with an interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary: Open this lesson in the Culips app.

Study materials for this episode

• The interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary are free for everyone. No membership needed.
• The comprehension quiz and the PDF study guide download are for Culips members.
• Become a Culips member to get study materials for every episode, live speaking classes, ad-free audio, member-only perks, and more.
• Join our Discord community to connect with other learners and get more English practice.

Keep an ear out for these expressions during the episode:

• The last hurrah
• To be closed off
• A puppy mill
• To take one for the team
• Buoyant
• To zone out
• Not really a thing
• To luck out
• Big ups / props
• Health-maxxing

Hang out with your English-speaking friends, Andrew and Indiana, for a catch-up! Indiana has been growing tomatillos on her patio, and she rode 40 miles along New York’s Empire State Trail on a very hot day, though the ride did not go the way she planned. Andrew went to see a Damien Hirst exhibition at the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Seoul, and he has been letting an AI design his marathon training plan.

https://esl.culips.com/Lipservice-prtd/SS252_StudyGuide.pdfhttps://esl.culips.com/1000/08/18014/

The brand-new Culips app is live!

Study this episode with an interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary:
Open this lesson in the Culips app.

Keep an ear out for these phrases during the episode:

• On deck
• To clue in
• Happy-go-lucky
• To put a bad taste in someone’s mouth
• To hit the pavement
• A mishap

In this bonus episode, Andrew tells the story of the most stressful morning he’s had in a long time, and it all started with something small that ended up in a place he couldn’t reach. Listen along to learn some vocabulary that will help make your English more natural and to improve your listening fluency.

https://esl.culips.com/lipservice/B180_regular.pdf

https://esl.culips.com/1000/08/18007/

The brand new Culips app is live!

Study this episode with an interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary: Open this lesson in the Culips app.

Tell us about your own terrible morning! Record a two-minute audio story and Andrew might share it in a future episode: Record your story here.

Study Materials for This Episode

• The interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary are free for everyone. No membership needed.
• The comprehension quiz and the PDF study guide download are for Culips members.
• Become a Culips member to get study materials for every episode, live speaking classes, ad-free audio, member-only perks, and more.
• Join our Discord community to connect with other learners and get more English practice.

Keep an ear out for these expressions during the episode:

• Wiggle room
• Flush
• TMI
• Minuscule
• To fall between the cracks
• To lull someone to sleep
• To emit
• Tongs
• To rig up
• A last ditch effort

What does a heat wave actually do to your day? Andrew and Anna compare their summers from opposite sides of the world. Anna is in Madrid, where a hot day reaches 40 degrees and the blinds stay closed until evening. Andrew is in Seoul, where the rainy season just ended but the humidity stayed. They talk about air conditioning, lost sleep, cold showers, and the wildfires that burned west of Madrid this summer.

Keep an ear out for these phrases during the episode:

• Not so fast
• Respite
• Bar none
• To do one’s business
• Bone dry
• To burn to a crisp

Study Materials:

https://esl.culips.com/Lipservice-prtd/CB352_StudyGuide.pdfhttps://esl.culips.com/1000/08/17999/

Episode link: The 2026 Spain wildfires

The brand-new Culips app is live!

Study this episode with an interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary:
Open this lesson in the Culips app.

In this bonus episode, Andrew picks up the story he started last time and tells you what happened next. He heads out to the edge of the city on a hot summer evening and gets home much later than he planned. Listen along to learn some vocabulary that will help make your English more natural and to improve your listening fluency.

The brand-new Culips app is live!
Study this episode with an interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary:
Open this lesson in the Culips app.

Expressions

To set the stage
To count down the days
Headlining
The tail end
A certain je ne sais quoi
When all is said and done
Boy, was I wrong
Artsy-fartsy
To rub someone the wrong way
To write off

How do you get from intermediate English to sounding almost like a native speaker? Jesús Florez did it, and he's back on the show to tell Andrew how. He explains the years he spent creating his own English immersion at home and names the four shows that finally moved him up to an advanced level. Listen in to hear his story and his advice for taking your own English to the next level.

The brand-new Culips app is live!
Study this episode with an interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary:
Open this lesson in the Culips app.

Free Resources and Links

The interactive transcript, study guide, and quizzes for this episode are free for everyone. No membership needed.

Join our Discord community to connect with other learners and get more English practice. Click here to join.
Jesús's YouTube channel
Jesús's Instagram

Keep an ear out for these phrases during the episode:

A long time in the making
To shift gears
Give or take
To lend itself to (something)
A cut above (the rest)
It bears repeating

Have you ever gotten a second chance at something you thought you would only get to do once? In this bonus episode, Andrew talks about the first Culips meetup in Seoul and then tells the story of trying to see one of his favorite bands play a second time. Listen along to learn some vocabulary that will help make your English more natural and improve your listening fluency.

The brand-new Culips app is live!
Study this episode with an interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary:
Open this lesson in the Culips app.

Expressions

A turnout
To talk into the void
To be taken aback
A high-water mark
Now or never
Once-in-a-lifetime
To shell out
When life gives you lemons, make lemonade
Someone’s mind is made up
To go through

Have you ever looked up from your phone and realized that an hour just disappeared? In this Catch Word lesson, Andrew and Indiana teach you how to tell someone to "touch grass" and how to describe a person as "terminally online" or "chronically online." They explain the difference in tone between these expressions, why "touch grass" can sound like a real insult, and when each one is appropriate to use.

The brand-new Culips app is live!
Study this episode with an interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary:
Open this lesson in the Culips app.

Keep an ear out for these phrases during the episode:

To touch grass
Terminally online / Chronically online
To be cooped up
To be wrapped up in something
A break with reality
To get the last word

Have you ever traveled to a city far from home and felt like you had already been there? The same coffee shops, the same clothing stores, even the same songs playing inside the cafes. In this Chatterbox episode, Andrew and Anna talk about hyperblanding, the idea that fashion, music, food, and design all over the world are slowly becoming the same. The word comes from a 2026 trend report, and you can read more about it here.

Listen to the full conversation to learn what hyperblanding is, decide if you agree with the idea, and build your English fluency at the same time.

The brand-new Culips app is live!
Study this episode with an interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary:
Open this lesson in the Culips app.

Keep an ear out for these phrases during the episode:

A myriad of
To get under someone's skin
To regurgitate
Been there, done that
To ride the wave
Variety is the spice of life

What does a name really say about a person? In this episode, Andrew and Indiana talk about baby names and the stories behind them. They chat about how naming has changed in North America since the 1950s. You'll also hear about old-fashioned virtue names, why so many parents today want something different, and the existence of "middle names" in the U.S. and Canada.

The brand-new Culips app is live!
Study this episode with an interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary:
Open this lesson in the Culips app.

To build your fluency, try listening to the episode more than once and saying the new expressions out loud until you feel comfortable using them yourself.

Links mentioned in this episode:

Popular baby name data (U.S. Social Security Administration)
List of Korean surnames (Wikipedia)

Keep an ear out for these phrases during the episode:

At opposite ends of the spectrum
A hat tip to (something)
A copycat
Claim to fame
To fit in
To stand out

How do you like your eggs? It sounds like a small question, but the answer can tell you a lot about a person. In this episode, Andrew surprises his co-host Kassy with a list of weird, wacky, and random questions. She hasn't seen them before, so you get to hear her real, unplanned answers. They talk about all sorts of everyday things, from what they would want to be famous for to how they wake up in the morning, and they use some natural expressions that native speakers say all the time.

The brand-new Culips app is live!
Study this episode with an interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary:
Open this lesson in the Culips app.

Keep an ear out for these phrases during the episode:

Infamous
No holds barred
To zonk out
Dogs
Up and at 'em
To come full circle

In this bonus episode, Andrew shares a few quick updates from behind the scenes at Culips and tells a story about following the World Cup as a fan with more than one team to cheer for. Listen along to learn some vocabulary that will help make your English more natural and improve your listening fluency.

The brand-new Culips app is live!
Study this episode with an interactive transcript and vocabulary glossary:
Open this lesson in the Culips app.

Free study guide: This episode comes with a free study guide for everyone. Download it to review the vocabulary, follow along with the episode, and practice using the new expressions.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

RSVP for the Culips meetup in Seoul
Become a Culips member
Join the Culips Discord server