[00:00:00] On today's episode of the Real Life English with Gabby podcast, I'm teaching you 16 slang words, phrasal verbs, and idioms for getting lost and giving directions. You'll be learning words and expressions like off the beaten path, all turned around, out in the boondocks, wander off, drift off, and more. Let's get to it.
Hey there, welcome to the Real Life English with Gabby podcast. I'm your host, Gabby, your fun and friendly English teacher from the one and only New York City. My goal is to teach you phrasal verbs, idioms, and slang that will help you speak English confidently and understand real American conversations. Are you ready to improve your English skills? Let's jump right in.
Hey, hey, hey, welcome to episode number 26. Thanks so much for joining me today [00:01:00] for this episode. I'm so excited that I'm going to be teaching you all about getting lost, giving, and getting directions. This is a really important episode because if you're a traveler, it's pretty much guaranteed that at some point you'll get lost in another country. If it's an English-speaking country, you're definitely going to need English to ask for directions and talk about getting lost. But even if you're in a non-English-speaking country, guess what? There are probably English speakers in the area who will also be able to show you or tell you where to go.
Have you ever been lost in a foreign city or country? It's happened to me quite a few times, unfortunately, and I wish that I had learned this type of vocabulary in the native language of the countries that [00:02:00] I was in at that time so that I could have asked for directions. Usually, before I travel to a foreign city, I like to learn some expressions in that language, including questions on how to find my way. Because often when you travel, you don't have Wi-Fi depending on where you are. So, when you come to the United States, a lot of areas don't have Wi-Fi. I’m sure there are places like Starbucks that will offer you some Wi-Fi, but in case you don't have Wi-Fi, this is very important. Or if your phone dies, you're going to need to know how to ask for directions.
One story I have about getting lost in a foreign country was when I was in Bangladesh. I was there doing humanitarian work with a team from the USA. Actually, we were teaching free English camps to students. It was amazing, but I'll talk more about that in a future [00:03:00] episode. Anyway, my friend and I were in a little jitney, cart horse carriage type of thing, and it was evening. Our entire team was going back to our hotel, and we got separated from the group. Our driver did not speak English, and he did not know the name of our hotel since he was following the group. We remembered the name, but the driver didn't know where it was. We were in a very remote village. This means like a small village, small town. It was not one of the big cities in Bangladesh. The driver just seemed to be totally lost, leading us farther and farther away. He was not being helpful. We didn't feel safe staying in that cart any longer, and we decided to get off and walk around for a bit. We figured we'd get another one, and hopefully that person [00:04:00] knew the hotel. Thankfully, there were a lot of people outside and I just want to say that I've been to a lot of countries. I've been on a lot of humanitarian trips and vacations, and I have to say that Bangladeshi people are some of the nicest people I've ever met. What a beautiful culture. Kind and hospitable. They really rolled out the red carpet for us, meaning that they showed us the best hospitality. So, everyone was helping us. A lot of them didn't speak English, but we would say the name of the hotel. Some people knew where it was. Eventually, someone who spoke English helped us and directed us back to the direction of the hotel. So, we started walking toward the hotel and some of the team members had come back to find us. Thankfully, we were reunited. We were very lucky that we were in a safe place and with friendly people because [00:05:00] sometimes getting lost in a foreign country has a very sad ending. At that moment, I truly wished that I had learned some directional phrases in the language of Bengali.
Hopefully, after this episode, if something similar happens to you in a foreign city, you'll know exactly what to say to someone in order to find your way. Today's episode is going to actually talk about grammar and expressions that you can use when you're asking someone for directions and when you're lost. It's also going to teach new slang, idioms, and vocabulary.
Before I teach you questions to ask, I just want to mention that there is a study guide waiting for you. Along with this episode, this study guide will help you really learn what I teach you. In this [00:06:00] episode, it's got practice activities, all the definitions, the transcript, and the story so that you can study more and really, really get these things inside your brain. The link to the study guide is in the show notes. I will link them for you.
Okay, first up, here are some questions to ask someone if you're lost. I'm going to use the Brooklyn Bridge as an example here, and I'm going to go from the most basic to the most advanced. Often time, the most basic way to ask someone is not the most polite or formal way to ask someone. The first way, if you're lost and you're looking for the Brooklyn Bridge, you can say, excuse me, you always say, excuse me, excuse me. Where is the Brooklyn Bridge? When you ask this question, this is the most basic question. This [00:07:00] is like what an A1 student would ask maybe because it's not really polite. Someone will respond.
It's and then give you directions, which we'll talk about shortly. Next, we have how far is it to the Brooklyn Bridge? Same thing, they'll respond with it's or it is. How far is the Brooklyn Bridge? So, how far is it to the Brooklyn Bridge? And how far is the Brooklyn Bridge? Someone might say it's about 10 minutes away from here. It's about 10 minutes from here. It's a 10-minute walk, a 10-minute drive. Do you know where the Brooklyn Bridge is?
Next, can you tell me where the Brooklyn Bridge is? So, these two questions end with is. We have the verb at the end. Next, can you tell me how to get [00:08:00] to the Brooklyn Bridge? And excuse me, is this the right way to the Brooklyn Bridge? And then someone will typically say yes, keep walking, keep going. Or no, it's actually the opposite way. No, it's two blocks down, two blocks over. Blocks here is slang for streets. When you come to the USA, we typically don't say streets, we say blocks. Central Park is five blocks down. The Brooklyn Bridge is two blocks away, for example.
Now, these are the most common questions to ask. But how do you give directions? What can you expect people to tell you? Because when you come to the USA, people are going to be speaking very quickly. So, what can you expect? How do you give directions?
Okay, first off, let's have the verb go. What can you use with go? [00:09:00] Go straight, go right, go across the street. Someone might say, oh, the Brooklyn Bridge, yeah, just go straight two blocks and make a left. So, we're going to use go. Okay, then we're going to use take and make for turns. Take a left, take a right, take the train two more stops, take the bus downtown, make a right, make a left, for example. Then we're also going to say around the corner. Go around the corner. That means if they tell you to take a right or take a left, it should be right there. We say across the street, cross the street or intersection, or we'll say next to the bank, for example.
Here's what it might sound [00:10:00] like. Excuse me, can you tell me how to get to the Brooklyn Bridge? Sure, you're going to go straight two blocks. Then you're going to make a left. You're going to walk one more block and then you're going to make a right and go around the corner. Once you're around the corner, go across the street and right next to the bank, there's your destination. And that's often what directions will sound like. Or if you're on the subway, excuse me, can I take this train to the Brooklyn Bridge? Yeah, just stay on this train for three more stops. Get off. Go outside. You can't miss it.
So, it's very important again to understand how to give directions. People will also tell you continue straight, keep going, don't stop. Or they'll say, you'll see the bank on your right, on your left, or it'll be on your right, or on your left.
A great way to practice [00:11:00] this is to pretend that you're giving me directions from your house to the bank, the closest bank. So you can do this as a practice activity. And if you would like to, you can email me. I'll put my email address in the show notes for you. But if you're already on my email list, you already know how to contact me.
So, let me give you two more examples. Excuse me, where's the Disney store? Walk straight for three blocks, then turn right. It'll be on that block, just across the street next to the bank.
Example number two. Continue on this street and then take a left when you see McDonald's. Drive straight for two more blocks, and you'll see it on your right.
All right, now you know how to ask for directions and how to understand when they're giving you directions. Maybe you even feel [00:12:00] confident enough to give directions yourself. Because I know many of you listening to this live in the United States, and you're trying to survive life here in a new country.
Here is the vocabulary that you'll be learning in this episode. Off the beaten path. To have a good or bad sense of direction. To be all turned around or get turned around. To lose your bearings or lose your way. To be all mixed up. To be not from around here. To hang a Uey or hang a Louis. Take or make a left. You can't miss it. In the middle of nowhere. To wander off. To get lost. To wander aimlessly. To drift off. And to ask around. [00:13:00] Now let's get into the story.
For those of you listening for the first time, I'm going to read a story to you that has all 16 vocabulary words and expressions. And I want you to listen for the context. Try to figure out the meaning while I'm reading the story to you. Afterward, I will explain word by word what everything means.
Okay, here we go. Jonathan, Luz, and Marcos were on vacation together in a new city they'd never been to before. After four days of doing typical tourist activities, they wanted to do something off the beaten path. They decided to drive over to a beautiful mountain range an hour outside of the city. [00:14:00] Jonathan had a good sense of direction, but Luz and Marcos were notorious, or famous, for getting all turned around without GPS. Thankfully, Jonathan was driving their rental car.
Unfortunately, after driving for about 30 minutes, Jonathan lost his bearings. This was the first time in his life that he was truly all mixed up. Driving in a foreign country is often difficult and confusing. They were all shocked at how quickly they had gotten lost. Their GPS was no help due to not having any wifi. Thankfully, they saw a group of people and asked them if they knew how to get to the mountains. "Sorry, we're not from around here," [00:15:00] they said.
Further down the road, they asked someone for directions, and he said that they should hang a Uey because they were going the wrong way and then go straight for one mile and make a left. He said, "You can't miss it." But apparently they missed it. After about 15 minutes, they realized that they were in the middle of nowhere. Finally, after driving for about 30 minutes, they found the mountains that they had been looking for. There were a few signs leading to different hiking trails, and they chose one that was medium difficulty. They're really out in the boondocks. While on the trail, they saw a beautiful waterfall in the distance, and they decided to walk towards it. They didn't realize how much they had wandered off the main trail. After a 15-minute hike, [00:16:00] they were right near the waterfall, and it was breathtaking. Lisa saw a beautiful tree that she wanted to take a picture of, and she started walking towards it. She was very, very careful, though, because she kept telling herself that she couldn't drift off, or else she'd get lost. Thankfully, she didn't go too far. She wanted to just forget about time and wander around aimlessly, but she was afraid of not being able to find her way back again.
The three friends got together again and decided to finish their journey up the main mountain trail. When they got to the top, they were in awe. It was one of the most beautiful things they had ever seen in their lives. It very much made their long journey worth it. At the top, they asked [00:17:00] around for someone to take a picture of them. And thankfully, they got beautiful pictures together at the top of the mountain. The day had started out very stressful and extremely frustrating, but as they watched the sunset from the top of the mountain, they were extremely grateful that they made this trip. They would never, ever forget this day. The end.
Wow. This really makes me just want to travel. Okay, let's talk about these words and expressions that you just heard.
After four days of doing typical tourist activities, they wanted to do something off the beaten path. "Off the beaten path" is an expression that refers to a place that is not commonly visited or known by tourists. It's away from popular or well-known routes. We say, not touristy. [00:18:00] So, you know, when you travel, you can see all the touristy things, or you can also do some things off the beaten path. The path that has not really been set yet.
Next up, the story says that Jonathan had a good sense of direction, but Luz and Marcos were notorious or famous for getting all turned around. A good sense of direction means the ability to navigate well and find your way easily. A bad sense of direction is the opposite, when you have difficulty navigating and when you get lost often. Do you have a good sense of direction or a bad sense of direction? I have a good sense of direction in some places, and then some other places I'm just totally lost, and there's no hope for me. Thankfully, my husband is very good. And if I can't figure out where we're going, [00:19:00] he can. Those of you out there who have a bad sense of direction, there is hope. Marry someone who has a good sense of direction. Okay, "all turned around." To be all turned around means to be confused about directions and where you are. Maybe you're a little disoriented. You have no idea where you are. Maybe you get lost, and you call someone, and you're like, "I got all turned around. I really have no idea where I am."
Next up, it says that Jonathan lost his bearings or lost his way. This means to be confused about where you are and unable to find the right path. To lose your way, the way forward or the way is often the trail. So you literally lose the trail. We can also say to have your bearings. "I don't have my bearings right now. I [00:20:00] don't have a sense of where I am."
Next, it says that this was his first time being all mixed up. This means to be confused or disoriented about something. Now, this is more general than the previous expressions because you can be mixed up about anything. Specifically directions or instructions. In the context that it's used in the story, we use it for directions and getting lost, but it's commonly used when you don't understand a task or don't understand instructions. For example, if you buy furniture from Ikea and you get confused while building the furniture, I would say, "Oh gosh, I'm all mixed up. I have no idea what to do next."
Next, you see that when they ask people for directions on the side of the road, the people say, "Sorry, we're not from around here." This is a very common [00:21:00] phrase that we use when we are not familiar with the local area or region. So if I travel to California and someone asks me for directions, I am going to be like, "Sorry, we're not from around here." Very, very common expression. That means, sorry, I can't help you. I don't know this area.
While getting directions from a man, the man tells them to hang a uey and then make a left. So let's break this down a little bit. We talked a little bit about this when we were talking about what to say when you're giving directions. But let's talk about verbs again. The most basic directions that you typically learn in school are turn left, turn right, go straight, go, and turn. However, in real life, Americans typically use other verbs for directions.
For example, we say make a left or right, hang a left, hang a right. And I know this is extremely [00:22:00] weird. Hang a left. Why? It's one of those weird expressions. Sometimes English just does not make sense. And I'm sorry, I didn't create it. I just work here. But anyway, hang a uey, make a uey. A uey is a U-turn, we call it in English. It's a 180-degree turn that sends you in the opposite direction. Someone could say, "Make a U-turn," but you're more commonly going to hear, "Make a uey." And if you're in certain parts of the United States, you'll hear, "Hang a Louie." Louie meaning left turn. Hang a Louie. I don't say this, but depending on who you ask for directions, you will hear this.
The last thing the guy tells them is you can't miss it. You can't miss it is a funny thing we say because it means you [00:23:00] can't miss it. You have to see it. It's obvious. But usually, it's not. Usually, when someone says, "Oh, you can't miss it," they're going to miss it. People often end up missing the thing that they're told they can't possibly miss.
After about 15 minutes, they realized that they were in the middle of nowhere. In the middle of nowhere means that you're in a remote or isolated place far from the populated area.
We also say, in the story, they also say out in the boondocks or boonies. It has a similar meaning. It means that I'm in a very rural or low populated area. We call the quiet suburban areas the boonies or the boondocks. You went there. That's out in the boonies or that's in the middle of nowhere.
Next up, we have the phrasal verb wander off. They didn't realize how much they had wandered off from the main path. [00:24:00] Firstly, let's talk about the word wander. Wander is a word that we use a lot in English, especially for travel and movement. It means to walk around aimlessly without an aim or a goal, without a set destination. If you've ever gone to a new city and just walked around to see new things or get to know the city, you have wandered around.
Now wander off means to move away from a place in an unpredictable way. It typically means that you're with people or you're on a specific path, and then you move away from it. You move away from them without really knowing where you're going or how to get back. It's a common thing to say to kids or people in tour groups like, "Okay, don't wander off."
Later, they say that she just wanted to wander aimlessly. And this is very similar. It just means that you're moving around without a clear direction or clear purpose. [00:25:00] However, the way that this is different than just wandering or wander off is because wandering aimlessly can be used in a negative way, like someone high on drugs, someone with a bad mental state, or maybe memory loss. We would say, for example, the news might say, "A child was found wandering aimlessly on the side of the road."
So we can use it to talk about walking around and relaxing without any plans, but it's also used to negatively talk about someone who doesn't know where they're going.
So you may have heard this in certain crime shows or crime movies. Next, we say the expression get lost. I've already used it multiple times in this episode. But we use the verb get and be with the word lost. To be lost is the state, and get [00:26:00] lost is the action. Getting lost is the process, and being lost is the state. When people are lost, they typically say, "I'm lost," or "I got lost." Both of them are correct, so you can choose whichever one you're comfortable with.
Next off is a phrasal verb drift off. Drift off is to gradually or slowly move away from a starting point, move away from a path, move away from a group. And often you don't even realize it. You look around and suddenly you are nowhere near the place that you were supposed to be.
So imagine a child sees an ice cream truck and the child just follows the ice cream truck. And they look around and their parents are nowhere to be found. That child drifted off. [00:27:00] They walked away from where they were supposed to be without even realizing it.
Lastly, they asked around to see if someone could take their picture or photo.
Ask around is a phrasal verb, and it means that you're asking multiple people. You go from person to person with a request or to gather information or directions. "Where should we have the party next year?" "Let me ask around and see what everyone wants to do." Or, "Hey, can you ask around and see if anyone has seen my cell phone?"
Well, guess what, folks? You just learned some awesome vocabulary for getting lost, getting directions, and giving directions. Now that you've learned these words, I almost guarantee that you will hear them the next time you're taking in English media. [00:28:00] From podcasts to TV shows to movies, I hope that you grab the study guide so that you can become confident in how to give directions to someone in English and how to understand when someone's giving you directions in English. I'm so glad that you tuned in to this episode.
Well, that's a wrap for today's episode of the Real Life English with Gabby podcast. Be sure to download today's study guide so that you can learn how to use this vocabulary confidently. If you enjoyed this episode, don't forget to subscribe for more weekly adventures in English learning. Also, I'd love to hear from you, so please leave me a review.
Thanks so much for tuning in.
