Hi, everyone. Welcome to this advanced English lesson. Today, we're going to be talking about a few words that sound like they are made up. They sound completely fake, but in reality, they are real words that we use in the English language. So if you're ready, let's get started. All right. So you may have heard some of these words before and thought to yourself, oh, my goodness, is that a real word?

Or you might not have and you might be hearing them for the first time here in this advanced English lesson. Regardless, I want you to keep them in mind and try to use them as soon as possible in your next conversation. Because the more we practice with the language that is newly acquired, the more it is actually going to stick.

And that is one of the ways we get the vocab to stick into our minds. We have to use it or what happens? We lose it, right? If you don't use it, you lose it. So it's the same principle here. All right. So without further ado. All right, so with that being said, let's get into the words. All right.

So the first one is hullabaloo. Hullabaloo is a lot of commotion. It's a lot of fuss. So, for example, you might be in a room where you're trying to get work done. Maybe you have an important call and you're getting ready to say, sign in to your video conference room. And all of a sudden you hear so much noise coming from a room next to you.

So you go on over to that room and you say, What's all the hullabaloo? And so maybe there are children playing, or maybe there are pets and people and they're just making a lot of noise. And so you can say, what is all the hullabaloo? What's all the hullabaloo? Okay. So again, it's a lot of commotion and fuss.

And again, you have your conference, so you need there to be peace and quiet. So it's the opposite of peace and quiet. All right. The next one is a rigamarole. So there's two different meanings for this. One is meaningless talk, but the way I hear it more often used is the second definition, which is a complex or sometimes ritualistic procedure.

Ritualistic procedure means like it feels like a ritual. It's like a ceremony. There's very much a beginning, middle, and it's very structured. There's a ritual around it. For example, you say we had to go through a whole rigmarole of installing the systems, getting everything ready. For example, maybe you installed new house alarms and there was this whole new system that needed to be put in place.

And it was very complicated and it felt like a big rigmarole. So it was a rigmarole to get all of the equipment, set it up, put that system in place and make sure things were running properly, not to mention get it installed properly. Right. So there's a lot of different steps there. There is almost ritualistic procedure involved and it's not easy.

So again, that's rigamarole and you can go through a metal rigmarole, right? We had to go through the rigmarole of doing something. Okay. All right. The next one is kerfuffle. Kerfuffle is commotion and fuss, but it's really about conflicting viewpoints. So there's some type of conflict involved. So there was a kerfuffle over what movie we should watch tonight, or there is a kerfuffle about X and Y and those are being debated.

It's similar to hullabaloo, but the difference here is that it's about conflicting points. All right. The next one, gibberish. So if something is gibberish, it does not make sense. So someone might be speaking gibberish. And that just means that whatever they're saying doesn't have any sense to it. There is no logic. So, for example, somebody might be explaining something, but maybe the way they're saying it is not very effective, even though they're trying to convey it to you in a simple way, they're not getting that point across.

So you might think of some type of mathematical equation that is being presented to you, and the person presenting it is not doing an adequate job of teaching those concepts. And so you might say you're speaking gibberish right now, and that means you've got to slow it down, pull back and start over, because it just does not make sense.

Or, for example, another instance of gibberish would be maybe you are getting into a conversation and you start to go off on a tangent, meaning you lose focus and you start talking about something else, maybe unrelated. It might not make sense to the person that is listening and engage in the conversation with you. And so to them, you're speaking gibberish, right?

It's nonsense. And it doesn't mean necessarily that you're using words and language that is gibberish. Like it doesn't make sense. No, you could be using correct words and correct language, but there's something about the communication that is not getting across. The message is not being effectively transmitted to the other person. And so if they're not understanding it, that means that it is gibberish, nonsense.

All right. The next one is gung ho. All right. So that's two words. They're gung ho and you don't really pronounce the G at the end. It's there's a little bit of a liaison there. Right. So it's a connected linking happening, right? Gung ho, gung ho, gung ho. Okay, that's gung ho. And that means really excited, enthusiastic. And it's when you are really motivated and so someone can be super gung ho about something or the other word that we use that is that doesn't sound like a made up word is adamant.

To be adamant about some things to be enthusiastic about. But because we're talking about these specific words today, gung ho might sound made up to you. Gung ho, gung ho. But it's not. It's a real expression. And so you might say, I'm super gung ho about our vacation. This summer. It's going to be a lot of fun or I'm really gung ho about getting my workout in first thing in the morning so that I can check it off my to do list that day.

All right, so skedaddle is the next one. And that means to hurriedly run away, to move along. For example, we couldn't stay much longer. We had to skedaddle. So it's when you leave. And the idea is that you kind of do it in a hurried way. Maybe you do it in a way that other people don't see. So, for example, if you wanted to make an exit at a party that you didn't want to be at anymore, you could skedaddle.

You could tell the friends that you came with, Let's get at Ole. I'm really tired. I want to go to bed. Right. Something like that. So skedaddle. All right. The last one is a jungle. So a jungle is actually a piece of hardware. It's a device that connects to your computer so that you're able to plug something in.

So if you have a wireless mouse and a wireless keyboard, there's a little dongle, a little USB thing, and you stick it into your computer and that connects your devices so that you're able to use those wirelessly because you don't have a wire that you plug into your computer and steadies the dongle. And it connects those devices to your computer.

Right. So that's a dongle and it might sound made up, but it's a real word. And this one, because there's a tech component to it, you probably use a dongle yourself. So that's one of the ones that you might have actually heard of and maybe even used. All right. So those are the words, some of the words in English that sound like they could be totally made up and totally fake, but they're not.

And I gave you an example sentence, and now I encourage you to try to come up with your own sentences and try to use them in the real world. So if you want, feel free to send in your sentences, you can just write them in the comments section on YouTube. Or if you're listening on Spotify, you can add them in the section there.

We have a Q&A tab open for you and we look forward to hearing from you. I want to know what your sentences are and I want to know if you practice them as well. So let me know how that goes and be sure to subscribe to the channel. Follow us on our podcast and be sure to share it with friends and family and anyone who wants to improve their English language and communication skills.

And speaking of communication, we have another channel called Explearning Communication. You can also find it on YouTube as Explearning with Mary Daphne, that's me. And there you're going to get tons and tons, hundreds of videos and lessons about how to improve your social skills, your communications skills, both in the office and in life, your workplace communication skills, your public speaking skills, and your interview skills.

So lots of amazing different topics that are within the scope of communication, which is super important, as you know, and it is a passion of mine and I'm so happy to be sharing that with you all. So I hope that you enjoy it and do check that out. You can also check out the website Explearning dot co and don't forget that we have our newsletter, so be sure to be subscribed to those as well.

All right. I will see you in the next advancing legs where we're going to continue advancing your English together. Until then, keep up the awesome work and I will see you very soon. Bye for now.

About the Author and the Explearning Academy:

Mary Daphne is an expert in communication, executive skills and professional development. She is the founder of the Explearning Academy, a platform dedicated to helping individuals enhance their social fluency, boost their careers, and elevate their social game. Through immersive group coaching programs like the Executive Communication Lab and self-guided journeys, participants gain the social superpowers and career catapults they've been searching for. If you're ready to take your negotiation skills to the next level and connect with like-minded individuals, visit academy.explearning.co and explore the various plans available. Join the Explearning Academy community and unlock your full potential.

Thank you for reading! If you found this blog post valuable, don't forget subscribe to our YouTube channel and follow our podcast!

✨

🎁5-DAY FREE CHALLENGE 🎁
🎤 Sign up for my group coaching program🎤
🤩 Join our community 🤩 for a self-guided fully-supported journey
✨ Learn more about Explearning Academy ✨
🏆 Sign up for our 33-Day Executive Excellence Challenge 🏆