English Learning for Beginners: Media Vocabulary

Dialogue

Current Situation

In our modern world, we interact with various types of media every single day. From watching TV shows and movies to scrolling through social media, listening to podcasts, or reading the news, media is a big part of our lives. Learning media vocabulary helps you understand daily conversations, follow current events, and enjoy entertainment in English. These words are very common and useful!

Key Phrases

• Online video: A video you watch on the internet.

  Example: “I watched a funny online video about a dog playing piano.”

• Internet sensation / Viral sensation: Something that becomes extremely popular very quickly on the internet.

  Example: “That dance challenge became an internet sensation.”

• TV show / Series: A program that is broadcast on television, often with many episodes.

  Example: “My favorite TV show is a comedy series.”

• Podcast about (something): An audio program, similar to a radio show, that you can download and listen to.

  Example: “She listens to a podcast about true crime stories.”

• Social media feed / Posts: The stream of updates, photos, and videos you see on social media platforms.

  Example: “I scroll through my social media feed to see my friends’ posts.”

• News / Headline / News app: Information about current events; the title of a news story; an application for news.

  Example: “I check the news app every morning for the latest headlines.”

• Documentary: A non-fiction film or TV program that provides factual information about a subject.

  Example: “I watched a fascinating documentary about nature.”

• Streaming service: A service that provides media (like movies or music) directly over the internet.

  Example: “Which streaming service do you use for movies?”

• Commercial / Advertisement (Ad): A short film or message promoting a product or service.

  Example: “There are too many commercials during my favorite TV show.”

• Magazine: A periodical publication containing articles, stories, photographs, etc.

  Example: “I like flipping through a fashion magazine at the doctor’s office.”

Grammar Points

1. Present Simple (for Habits and Routines)

We use the Present Simple tense to talk about actions that happen regularly, often, or are generally true.

• Form: Subject + Base Verb (e.g., I watch, you read)
  • For he/she/it, we add ‘-s’ or ‘-es’ to the verb (e.g., he watches, she reads, it scrolls).
• Examples:
  • “I watch TV in the evenings.” (A regular habit)
  • “He scrolls through his social media feed.” (A routine)
  • “Alice listens to podcasts.” (A general truth about Alice)

2. Past Simple (for Completed Actions)

We use the Past Simple tense to talk about actions that started and finished at a specific time in the past.

• Form: Subject + Verb + ‘-ed’ (for regular verbs) OR Irregular Verb (e.g., watched, listened, saw).
  • Regular verbs add ‘-ed’ (e.g., watch -> watched, listen -> listened, scroll -> scrolled).
  • Irregular verbs change their form (e.g., see -> saw, read -> read (pronunciation changes), know -> knew).
• Examples:
  • “Yesterday, I listened to a history podcast.” (The action of listening is finished)
  • “Last night, Bob watched a movie.” (The action of watching is finished)
  • “I saw a funny video online.” (The action of seeing is finished)

3. Common Verbs for Media Activities

Different media types often pair with specific verbs:

• Watch: TV, movies, videos, documentaries, series, shows

  Example: “Let’s watch that new movie.”

• Listen to: podcasts, music, radio, audiobooks

  Example: “I like to listen to music while I work.”

• Read: newspapers, magazines, news, articles, posts, books

  Example: “Do you read the newspaper every day?”

• Scroll through: social media feed, posts, articles on a phone/computer

  Example: “I often scroll through my social media feed before bed.”

Practice Exercises

Exercise 1: Match the verb with the media type.

1. Watch: (a) a podcast (b) a movie (c) a magazine
2. Listen to: (a) a TV show (b) the news (c) a podcast
3. Read: (a) an online video (b) a newspaper (c) a series

Exercise 2: Fill in the blank with the correct word from the box.

(news, social media, podcast, streaming, viral)

1. I love listening to a history __________ during my commute.
2. That funny cat video became __________ very quickly!
3. I check the __________ app every morning for headlines.
4. Do you use a __________ service to watch movies?
5. My __________ feed is full of pictures from my friends.

Exercise 3: Change the verb in ( ) to the Past Simple tense.

1. I (watch) a TV show every night. -> Yesterday, I __________ a TV show.
2. She (listen) to a podcast. -> This morning, she __________ to a podcast.
3. They (scroll) through their phones. -> Last night, they __________ through their phones.
4. He (read) a magazine. -> Last week, he __________ a magazine.
5. We (see) a documentary. -> Two days ago, we __________ a documentary.