Everybody ESL

Episode 204 (mini)

Episode Summary

This mini episode teaches you a very common meaning of the word “pretty.”

Episode Notes

Episode 204 of the Everybody ESL podcast is a mini episode that teaches you a common meaning of the word pretty. Send your questions about English and your suggestions for future episodes to EverybodyESL@gmail.com! (And let me know if you’d like to record the introduction to a future episode.)

Episode Transcription

Intro

“Hello, everyone. This is Helen, from Shenzhen, China, and you are listening to Everybody ESL.”

Welcome to episode 204 of Everybody ESL, the podcast for everybody who wants to improve their English, practice their English, or just learn more English. My name is Ben, and I have a mini episode for you today, where I am going to teach you about one English topic. You can subscribe to the Everybody ESL podcast at Apple podcasts, on the Stitcher app, and wherever you find your podcasts. If you like Everybody ESL, leave it a good review so other people can find out about it too. And if you have any questions, comments, or suggestions for me, please send an email to everybodyESL@gmail.com. Okay! Let’s get on with this mini episode.

The episode

Today, I want to talk about a very common word. This is a word that I’m sure you know, but you might not be very familiar with a certain meaning of this word. The word is pretty. Pretty. P-r-e-t-t-y. Pretty. I’m sure you know all about the adjective pretty. When we use pretty as an adjective, it means “nice to look at” or “attractive” or “beautiful” or “cute.” But pretty can also be an adverb.

Do you remember what an adverb is? Just like an adjective modifies or describes a noun, an adverb modifies or describes a verb, an adjective, or another adverb. And pretty can be used as an adverb. 

When we use it this way, it does not mean “in a cute way” or “in a beautiful way” or “in an attractive way.” Instead, it has a completely different meaning. It has nothing to do with the way something looks. When we use pretty as an adverb, it means “somewhat” or “quite” or “very.” The exact meaning might depend on the situation or even the intonation that someone gives the word when saying it. 

I think that the adverb pretty is somewhere between “a little bit” and “a lot.” I think it’s usually in that range: more than a little bit, less than a lot. 

Let’s look at a couple of examples, and I think this meaning of pretty will become clear:

Let’s say that somebody wants to buy a new cell phone. Then she realizes how expensive new cell phones really are. Somehow, she was not aware of this. And she’s a little bit discouraged. And she says, “New cell phones are pretty expensive.” New cell phones are pretty expensive. Again, when we use pretty this way, we’re not talking about the way something looks. In this sentence, pretty is modifying or describing expensive. How expensive? Pretty expensive. And what does that mean? It means somewhat expensive. More than a little bit expensive, but probably less than very expensive.

Here’s another example:

Let’s say that your friend invites you to go on a walk, and you ask your friend, “Should I wear a hat?” Your friend answers, “Well, it is pretty cold outside today.” Your friend is saying, “Yes, I think you should wear a hat because it is more than a little bit cold today.” 

And you might hear this sentence a lot: If somebody is telling you how certain he is about something, he might say, “I’m pretty sure.” In other words, “I’m quite sure. I’m not only a little bit sure. I’m pretty sure.” 

This use of the word pretty is extremely common in American English. You will hear it all the time. You will hear it every day. You will also see it in writing. It really is a very common adverb.

And that is the adverb pretty. It’s a word that I think you should know.

Outro

And we have reached the end of episode 204 of Everybody ESL. Remember: if you have any questions about English, or if you have comments or suggestions about the podcast, or if you would like to record an introduction that I can use at the beginning of future episodes—the same way Helen recorded the introduction you heard at the beginning of this episode—send an email to everybodyESL@gmail.com. I'll be back soon with another episode, and until then, keep going, keep practicing, and keep learning. Goodbye! I'll see you soon.