Coffee Break English - Season 1, Episode 9 Summary

Introduction

• Hosts: Josie & Mark
• Episode Topic: Tea and the use of gerunds vs infinitives

Tea in Britain

• Cultural Significance of Tea

  • 63% of people in the UK drink tea daily.
  • Tea is integral to British culture; many can't imagine life without it.
  • Origin: Brought to Europe by Portuguese priests and merchants in the 16th century.
  • Popularity: UK ranks second in tea consumption, after Turkey.

• Types of Tea

  • English breakfast tea is common, often with milk and sugar.
  • "Builder's tea": strong tea with sugar; named for builders who prefer it this way.
  • Afternoon tea once included cakes and sandwiches, now it's more casual with biscuits.

• Terminology

  • "Tea" can also refer to the evening meal (dinner).
  • Regional variations in meal names: breakfast, lunch, dinner vs. breakfast, dinner, tea.

Gerunds vs. Infinitives

• Key Rules

  • Gerunds (verb + ing) used after:
    • love, like, hate, don't like
    • Example: "I like reading."
  • Infinitives (to + verb) used after:
    • need, would like, learn
    • Example: "I need to drink tea."

• Examples from Discussion

  • "British people love drinking tea so much that they can't imagine living without it."
  • "I like drinking tea" vs. "I would like to drink tea."
  • Infinitive after 'would like': "I would like to have tea."

Fun Facts

• British children learn to make tea at a young age.
• Dipping or dunking biscuits in tea is common.
• The word "biscuit" is pronounced "bis-kit".

Conclusion

• Encouragement to explore the cultural aspects of tea and practice English through the podcast.
• Mention of the Coffee Break Academy for additional learning materials.
• Next episode will be the final one in the season.

Additional Notes:

• Social Media Interaction: Engage with questions about food and drink in different cultures.
• Hosts express personal tea preferences noting they prefer coffee.