AEE - Honestly, It's Best to Be Upfront in English
Summary
TLDRIn this engaging podcast episode, the hosts Michelle and Lindsay delve into the nuanced use of the word 'honestly' in conversation. They explore its function as an adverb to convey sincerity, emphasize opinions, and sometimes to express unexpected or unpopular views. The discussion highlights the importance of the word in providing a sense of truthfulness and authenticity in dialogue. The hosts also address a listener's question about the impact of repetitive word use on IELTS speaking scores, advising on the use of synonyms like 'truthfully', 'frankly', and 'to be honest' to demonstrate vocabulary range. They emphasize the value of varying language to enrich communication and foster deeper human connections. The episode concludes with a role-play scenario demonstrating the practical application of these terms in a shopping context, reinforcing the advice given throughout the discussion.
Takeaways
- 🗣️ The word 'honestly' is often used to convey sincerity or to emphasize the truth of a statement.
- 🤔 When used in questions, 'honestly' can seek to extract a genuine opinion or express skepticism.
- 💬 'Honestly' can also be used to share an opinion, sometimes one that may be unexpected or unpopular.
- 🧐 In conversations, 'honestly' can signal a shift to a more truthful or open dialogue between participants.
- 🔄 Repeating the same word frequently in language exams like IELTS can limit the opportunity to demonstrate a wide vocabulary.
- 📚 Alternatives to 'honestly' include 'truthfully', 'frankly', 'to be honest', and 'really', which can be used to express similar sentiments.
- 📉 Overuse of a single word can negatively impact one's score in language proficiency tests by lacking lexical variety.
- 🗣️ 'Frankly' tends to be more formal and serious, suitable for professional settings or when conveying direct truth that might be hard to hear.
- 👗 In a role-play scenario, using 'honestly' can lead to more truthful and constructive feedback.
- 🌐 The podcast discussed the use of 'honestly' in different contexts, including casual conversation and more serious discussions.
- ✨ Emphasizing honesty in communication can deepen human connections and foster more authentic interactions.
Q & A
What is the main topic of the conversation between Michelle and Lindsay?
-The main topic of the conversation is the use of the word 'honestly' and its synonyms in different contexts.
Why does Michelle mention her dislike for olives?
-Michelle mentions her dislike for olives to discuss the use of 'honestly' when expressing personal opinions and tastes.
What are the two main ways 'honestly' is used according to the conversation?
-The two main ways 'honestly' is used are to express sincerity and to share an opinion, often when the speaker is annoyed or expressing a hard truth.
How does Lindsay feel about the use of 'honestly' in the context of asking about liking olives?
-Lindsay believes that using 'honestly' in this context might be more about sharing an opinion rather than just expressing sincerity.
What is the listener's question that prompted the discussion about 'honestly'?
-The listener asked if making a podcast about the synonyms of 'honestly' would affect their score and how using the word repeatedly might impact it.
What are some synonyms for 'honestly' that were discussed in the conversation?
-Some synonyms for 'honestly' discussed include 'truthfully', 'truly', 'frankly', 'to be honest', and 'really'.
How might repeating the same word, like 'honestly', affect someone's score in a language proficiency test?
-Repeating the same word may not directly cause a mark down, but it does mean missing opportunities to show vocabulary diversity and lexical range, which are part of the scoring.
Why is it important to use different synonyms in a conversation or discussion?
-Using different synonyms helps to avoid monotony, enriches the conversation, and demonstrates a command of the language and its nuances.
What does the conversation suggest about the use of 'frankly'?
-The conversation suggests that 'frankly' is used in a more serious and professional context, often when the speaker is about to say something that might be hard for the listener to hear.
How does the conversation relate to human connection and communication?
-The conversation highlights the importance of being sincere and honest in communication, as it facilitates genuine human connection and helps in building trust and understanding between individuals.
What advice does the conversation offer for someone taking a speaking test?
-The conversation advises to mix up synonyms and avoid repeating the same words to show a broader vocabulary and understanding of the language, which can positively impact the speaking score.
Outlines
🫒 Olives: A Matter of Taste
The conversation begins with a discussion about olives, where Michelle and Lindsay share their contrasting opinions. Michelle expresses her love for olives, citing their saltiness and the fact that she enjoys salty foods like pickles. Lindsay, on the other hand, admits to not liking olives due to their aftertaste. The dialogue also touches on the listener's recommendation of certain olives to try and the hosts' plans to discuss the use of the word 'honestly' in language.
🗣️ The Use of 'Honestly' in Conversation
The hosts delve into the use of the word 'honestly' in two main contexts: to convey sincerity and to share an opinion. They discuss how 'honestly' can emphasize good intentions, as in the example of Lindsay helping to sell her aunt's house. The second context involves sharing an opinion that might be unexpected or unpopular, such as expressing a dislike for a widely loved item like Harry Potter. The paragraph also explores the placement of 'honestly' within a sentence and how it can alter the meaning based on intonation.
🌍 IELTS Vocabulary and 'Honestly'
The discussion shifts to the implications of using 'honestly' and its synonyms in the context of the IELTS speaking exam. The hosts suggest that overusing the same word can limit the opportunity to demonstrate a diverse vocabulary, which affects the score. They recommend using alternatives like 'truthfully,' 'frankly,' 'to be honest,' and 'really' to enrich the conversation. A role-play scenario is introduced to illustrate how these words can be used in a shopping context, emphasizing the importance of truthful communication between friends.
🛍️ Role Play: Shopping and Honest Feedback
In a role play scenario, the hosts act out a shopping conversation where they use various synonyms for 'honestly' to provide feedback on a dress. Initially, they give their opinions using 'honestly' and 'truthfully,' which are direct and truthful. The conversation progresses with the use of 'frankly,' which adds a more serious tone, suggesting that one person is being too hard on themselves. The hosts conclude that while 'frankly' might be too formal for casual settings, it serves well in more serious or professional contexts. They emphasize the importance of using these words to facilitate genuine human connection and provide constructive feedback.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Honestly
💡Olives
💡Salty
💡
💡Podcast
💡Consistency
💡Twang
💡Deli
💡Weekend
💡I score
💡Vocabulary
Highlights
Discussion on the topic of liking olives and the use of 'honestly' in conversation.
Introduction to the listener's question about the use of 'honestly' and its synonyms.
Explanation of using 'honestly' to express sincerity and emphasize good intentions.
The use of 'honestly' to share an opinion, often in a context where the opinion might be unexpected or unpopular.
Differentiation between using 'honestly' to express truth and to share an opinion.
The impact of repeating words on IELTS speaking scores and the importance of vocabulary diversity.
Alternative words to 'honestly' such as 'truthfully', 'frankly', 'to be honest', and 'really'.
The context-appropriate use of 'frankly' in more serious or professional settings.
Role play scenario demonstrating the use of 'honestly', 'truthfully', and 'frankly' in a conversation.
Emphasis on the importance of truthful communication in building human connections.
The role of 'honestly' in making thoughts sound more complete and facilitating genuine dialogue.
Advice on varying the use of synonyms for 'honestly' during an IELTS exam to demonstrate vocabulary range.
The significance of adjusting language use based on the part of the IELTS speaking exam being undertaken.
Encouragement for listeners to explore the podcast for more in-depth discussions on language use.
The hosts' personal anecdotes related to the topic, adding a relatable touch to the discussion.
Final thoughts on the utility of 'honestly' and its synonyms in everyday communication.
Transcripts
hey Michelle how you doing today hey Lindsay I'm good I'm good we've talked about this question
before but I can't I can't remember do you like olives honestly honestly do you like
them um honestly yeah actually I love olives I can't say anything else other than I love
them um I think you really don't like them is that right right and I remember we had a great
listener recommend certain olives for me to try I have not tried them yet because I'm too
I don't know I just haven't scared I don't say too scared because that's ridiculous but yeah
yeah is it the saltiness Michelle or is it the like the consistency what is it with olives that
you I don't know it's the aftertaste I think I cuz I like salty I like I love salty things I
like pickle I love pickles um oh interesting okay yeah but I I I I I don't know it's something it's
the there's like a twang after the salt it's that there's some sort of disgusting thing that happens
after the initial that I don't like okay got it it's just a you don't like fair enough exactly
exactly no offense no offense so today we are going to answer a listener question about the
word honestly right because I asked you do you like olives honestly um and that was something
that I added on I could have just said do you like olives we'll talk about that today before
we do though H head over last week we did um a podcast can't stand Mayo plus the best deli in
New York city so mayo and olives those are kind of two polarizing Foods uh they are yeah you love
them or you hate them and yeah so go ahead and listen to that episode and I bet our listeners
also want to know Michelle what is the best deli in New York City I mean that's a Hot Topic right
there so guys go over and listen to that podcast that episode over there from last week uh guys
don't forget to also hit follow right here on the all ears English podcast because today is Saturday
Michelle and we are now publishing episodes on Saturdays so we can be your weekend companion
as well as during the week so cool right yes I know because a lot of you say that you um listen
to us on your commute so I'm I'm hoping that you guys are listening to us now maybe you're
having breakfast in bed maybe you're maybe you're taking a nice stroll in the park so it's kind of a
different way to listen actually Saturdays are the best Michelle always treat myself to a cappuccino
on the weekends and take my dog for a walk in the park and everything just kind of slows down which
is so nice isn't it the best Yes actually my son recently he started realizing how much he loves
the weekend and he said the other day he said why is the weekend only only two days and I said I
know and he said he said why did the earth decide to do that oh I love it how how old is your son
now he's five he's five so yeah fivey olds have a lot of wisdom don't they yeah I it's true I I
I don't know unfortunately but anyway let's get into the question today honestly I think this is
going to be a good episode oh I love it I love it here we go so I'll read the question this by
the way is from our YouTube channel which is a great way to consume our show if you want to see
our faces you want to see our Expressions if you are more of a visual learner and you are able to
go on YouTube go to YouTube type in all English hit subscribe here we go yeah our listener here
says hi I'm wondering if you can make a podcast about the synonyms of honestly and if I use this
word repeatedly like twice or three times would it affect my score thank you I love you wow we love
you too we love our listeners yeah and I think our listener here is asking about I score score yeah
very interesting so I still wanted to seal this question for all ear's English but I do think that
Lindsay and I can give you some tips about you know how how often you use it so wanted to snatch
it up we're going yeah so uh we will talk about this not so much in the context ofs but just in
general conversation but if you are taking I go over and find the E energy podcast with Jessica
and Aubrey all right love it all right so great question Lindsay when do we use honestly we're
going to talk about two of the main ways today um because of course it's used all the time in
different context so we're going to talk about two main ones today so Lindsay what's the first
one okay number one is when we are we are telling the truth we're being sincere for example I mean
it honestly right he honestly just wants the best for his family so you're just coming clean like
you're you're being straight with someone right you're say you're telling the truth okay right
and again it's interesting because this word in this kind of a way it could just be taken
out but what do you think it does I mean when I said do you like olives honestly or saying he
honestly just once what do you think it does well I think probably the olives question belongs more
in bucket two which we're going to talk about in a minute I feel like it does to share an opinion
uh but in terms of you know he honestly just wants the best for his family this is used to emphasize
especially that someone has good intentions yeah right honestly you know for example right now I'm
helping clean out my aunt's house in California and and some people are oh why are you doing this
why are you doing that on honestly I just want to sell this house right so that's something I would
totally say and I don't want to be involved in any drama I just want to move on right yes right yes
and we are wishing for that for you Lindsay yes for sure so that that's it that that's number one
that's bucket one it's being sincere it's giving a little bit of oomph to your answer it's kind
of giving a little proof to your to why you're saying something do you agree yeah definitely
definitely and the second way is really more about sharing an opinion I feel like it's used a lot if
you're annoyed um so for example honestly I think we should just forget about the train ticket it's
too expensive let's just take the bus maybe not necessarily annoyed but almost almost like the
hard truth right so honestly this is just too this is out of our budget honestly but I mean for the
olives one yeah I yeah what do you think Michelle I I I feel like you can tag this onto the for for
me the olives example it's almost saying I think I can't understand how anybody would like olives so
I'm saying do you like olives honestly basically you can't really like olives so I'm saying really
tell tell me the real truth oh interesting I thought of it exactly the the opposite way that
if you know I ask you if you like olives that you most people like olives I I think most people like
but your opinion is a little different and so honestly I don't that's the way I think of it
so maybe we have to revisit that part to see you know yeah right like everyone loves Harry Potter
but honestly I really didn't think it was that great right so this kind of opens up a third way
is to share maybe an unexpected or maybe unpopular opinion common opinion I think that's safe to say
I think that's safe to say yeah yeah yeah so I think it's basically about really showing
someone's genuine about something or sharing an opinion um and that's what I think this is
mostly used for so but let's go let's go into some examples or conversation questions uh Lindsay do
you honestly think we will move to another planet one day honestly I doubt it yeah right so yeah
and this is interesting how you put it here in a different like a different part of the sentence do
you honestly think right as an adverb interesting so and this kind of depends on intonation here
because it could have two different meanings so in the first one if I say Lindsay do you honestly
think we'll move to another planet I'm more really asking for your opinion but if I say it like this
Lindsay do you honestly think we will move to another planet right you are showing skepticism
in your voice there it's very blatant right right and and I might even maybe you've expressed that
you feel that this could happen before it almost sounds like I'm a little bit critical of your
opinions I don't think you're being that smart do you honestly think right yeah or this would
be something you could say to someone who believes in conspiracy theories which are rampant right now
all rampant conspiracy theory what's an example of one I don't I don't even want to repeat them
on the show yeah I don't either but um do you honestly believe that XYZ whatever you read in
right who knows what publication right do you honestly believe that okay yes yes um what's
another example okay so a little different so I honestly think I'm ready for another episode
after this now what are we saying here this is different this is more bucket one this is just
truthfully I mean again if I just said I think I'm ready for another episode after this that's
fine too but honestly adds a little something um that it's really your opinion truthfully
this is really how you feel I think it's there's something comforting in this for for the speaker
in telling the truth right there's something very look this is how it is for me okay I'm just going
to put it all out there on the table and works well to do that for you right yes but let's say
maybe I would say to you honestly let's just stop after this episode I'm so tired Michelle we just
started recording I mean 10 minutes ago Lindsay I don't know you know yeah yeah yeah so clearly
it's a pretty uh diverse word that can do a few different things for us yeah Michelle yeah it
definitely can okay do we have anything else so our listener here on YouTube asked if there are
other things that could be used in the same way as honestly what else could they be absolutely
we have there are tons of them tons I've chose a few today well one would be truthfully or truly
so truthfully we need to get our act together yes okay this one I feel is a little less common for
me um but it means basically means the same thing right it can be used in in the way to just come
clean speak from your heart tell the truth yeah or frankly yeah this one's a fun one frankly this
one is this one's very serious very professional sounding I feel like this one is only for very
direct things so for example frankly it's just another five minutes you can wait right yeah to
share an opinion again that might be controversial or where you have to say the truth and maybe it's
going to be hard for the person to hear you're tired of talking around something so you start
to tell the truth I agree Michelle professional context it's really good right and the next one
is to be honest so instead of honestly we have to be honest so you could say it's really hard for me
to get this done on time to be honest to be honest yes love that and then really so this is probably
the one basic that our listeners know the best and are most familiar with Can it can also be genuine
like I really want to help you I really want to make your life easier right yes yes exactly so
you have a ton of different ways to say it but let's talk about the I question um using this
what do you think ly well we know that if you are repeating the same words over and over as far as I
understand again if you really want like the deep I expertise go to I energy but what we know about
ISS is that if you're repeating the same words and over and over it's not so much that you're
marked down as that you are losing opportunity to show your vocabulary and vocabulary is part of
your score there are multiple parts of your score it is calculated as part of your score so you're
missing an opportunity to show the diversity your lexical range all the other things that you know
mean the same thing so don't do it right don't do it use some of these other mix it up always
mix it up always and you also obviously want to pay attention to which part of the speaking exam
you're in we know that speaking part one is a lot more casual questions about maybe your live your
daily routine and then we get into telling a story and speaking part two and deeper societal systemic
questions in part three so that's where we could use the difference between really and frankly for
example right definitely so good stuff so go over and check out I energy if you want to know more
guys but that is my my basic gist on the is vocab question all right love it love it all right let's
do a role play we we're we we shared a ton of them so we'll use as many as we can um so in this role
play we are shopping okay here we go all right let's do it do you like this dress I do honestly
well truthfully I think it's a bit baggy oh okay see yeah I agree thank you for telling me really
so are you going to get it no honestly this looks terrible frankly I think you're being too hard on
yourself you're right um I'll get a different size I do love the colors nice yeah so we're being very
truthful here with each other um at first not so truthful yeah that's what happens right I
feel that's right as soon as you the other person senses now we're going to tell the truth you both
tell the truth and how do you get to that place right interesting right right right so yeah uh
you said you do like the dress and I'm sensing that you're not being truthful so I just say
honestly honestly right so you're asking are you telling me the truth by saying honestly
yeah right and then I say well truthfully it's a bit baggy right telling the truth um and then I
said I agree thank you for telling me and then I said really so I could have just said Thank you
for telling me what do you think the really does why did I add that you're emphasizing the thank
you and you're saying now we're really speaking the truth to each other we're being upfront and
honest right right I I I really appreciate you telling me the truth because I wouldn't want
to spend the money on something that doesn't look good and it sounds like I know that it's not good
either I just needed to be validated right and then you said I said so are you going to get it
and you said no honestly this looks terrible and that we're really telling the truth yeah now well
now we're oh man this is terrible okay and then you said frankly I think you're being too hard
on yourself now in the conversation between two friends I feel like this would be a little too
a formal sounding it's a little awkward sounding for this situation but I wanted to show how it's
used yeah I think I would save frankly for the more not so much the the you're in a shop in the
dressing room trying on things um more serious arguments self-disclosure in a serious context
things like that right that's what frankly works for yeahh definitely so wow take any takeaways
any final thoughts Michelle today well this is just really useful for so many things expressing
opinions asking for opinions maybe giving harsh realities giving someone a little tough love
there's a lot that we could use this with and as far as the eys question we gave you other
ways to say it so sprinkle those in continue to mix it up but this is just a very useful
word and you see frequently it's kind of an add-on sometimes yeah you could do without it you don't
need it but sometimes just it's completing it's fulfilling sometimes it just makes the thought
sound a little more complete more complete for sure and then I would also say from a
human connection perspective which is why we're here on this show it's why allers English exists
human connection I think there's something really profound when we drop all the pretenses right we
drop all the the putting on a mask and saying this is great uh from both sides and any words
that we can have that facilitate that will build that connection faster don't you think Michelle
definitely is what that does yeah all right well honestly I think we answered the question
so let's jump off the mic but thank honestly all right thank you so much to The Listener
for this question great one this was fun and have a good day all right Michelle take care bye bye
[Music]
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