Episode 158 Celebrate Thomas Telford: What Did He Build? And Why Do We Still Care?

This week on the podcast we're celebrating the birth of famous British (Scottish) Civil Engineer, Thomas Telford. This is a great lesson to practise your English listening skills. There are quite a few unusual phrases that you might find useful. We're talking a little bit about British history around the 1700's, British infrastructure, including bridges, roads, canals and aqueducts, and legacy. Vocabulary Came from poor beginnings - common phrase meaning someone was poor or their family was poor, more often used in writing than speaking. now making a comeback - comeback is used to describe something that was popular and is becoming popular again. It is often used like this 'make a comeback'. gain a trade - there are several words that historically would have gone with 'trade' the idea of having a trade was that you had a skill you could use to make money. These days there aren't many jobs like this, plumber, electrician and builder are good examples. We can have a trade, gain a trade (get) and ply a trade (to use or sell your services). patron - someone who is wealthy and helps support a poorer person so that they can develop a skill or talent. saw promise in you - to see potential in someone he made his name as a civil engineer - to become famous, or at least known in your area of expertise. What made him stand out - to be identified as different, could be good or bad. revival and restoration - revival, meaning more and more people are enjoying the canals, and restoration meaning the canals have been improved, modernised and in some cases rebuilt entirely. feat of engineering - an achievement of engineering. We can say 'a great feat' to describe something that was difficult to do 'climbing Everest was a great feat', but it is very commonly put together with engineering to notice something that is difficult or possibly thought of as impossible to achieve. out of sight out of mind - idiom - describes something that we don't want to remember or acknowledge so we place it far away from our eyesight. Prolific - to complete a great many projects or pieces of work Legacy - the thing we leave behind after our death Hearty laugh - a big or loud laugh Commemorated - to remember in some way, perhaps by a special day, place or plaque. #emmaseslenglish #englishpodcast #english #englishvocabulary #thomastelford #civilengineering