Video Transcript

Hello everybody. Welcome back to English with Max.

In this video we’re going to look at 50 advanced movement verbs. 

I’m actually going to act these out for you.

I’m not going to be jumping around like in this video, but I’ll be using my eyes, my hands, and other parts of my upper body to demonstrate these verbs.

I recommend getting a pen and paper to take notes.

Let’s first look at things that you can do with your eyes.

The first word is “blink”.

Blink.

This means to open and close your eyes quickly.

I am blinking.

There I was doing it quite obviously, but usually it’s not something that we think about.

I’d say most people blink without thinking.

Now we have “wink”.

Wink.

This means to close one eye and open it again quickly.

The next word is “squint”.

Squint.

This means to look at something with your eyes partly closed in order to see better.

Like this.

It might be because there’s a lot of light or because your eyesight isn’t great, like mine.

I often squint if i try to read something without my glasses.

This word is “stare”.

Stare.

This means to look at something or somebody for a long time.

I am staring at Frank.

Actually we’re staring at each other.

Now we have “glower”.

Glower.

This means to look at somebody or something in an angry way.

This is me glowering.

The next word is “glare”.

Glare.

This basically means the same thing as “glower”, but there’s a sense of some duration, so it means to look at somebody or something in an angry way continuously.

This is me glaring.

Next we have “scowl”.

Scowl.

This is very similar to “glower” and “glare”, but I’d say it isn’t quite as strong.

It means to look at something in a very annoyed way, perhaps like this.

Next we have “scan”.

Scan.

This means to look at somebody or something quickly, but not very carefully.

You might scan a document, for example.

Or you could say: When I arrived at the party, I scanned the room looking for my friends… because I did not want to talk to the other people.

The next word is “frown”.

Frown.

This means to move your eyebrows closer together.

People often frown when they’re worried, sad, angry, confused, and sometimes just when they’re concentrating.

I often frown when I’m thinking about something, which is why I now have this lovely line in the middle of my face.

This one is not a verb (it’s a phrase), but I thought it was important to include.

This is: to raise one’s eyebrows.

It’s to do this.

I am raising my eyebrows.

Some people can raise their eyebrows separately.

I am able to raise this eyebrow separately, so I can do this.

But I can’t do the other one, so I’m not able to do that trick when you go “ding ding ding ding ding”.

Before we continue, I’d like to tell you a little about my advanced vocabulary course, which now has more than 400 words.

If you have an intermediate to advanced level in English, but you feel like you still have gaps in your vocabulary, this is the course for you.

I’ve made sure to include words that most native speakers know, but that we don’t necessarily use every day.

The course also has quizzes and audio files to help you remember all of the words.

To receive my special discount for it, you just need to click the link in the description.

Remember that I also send out free advanced English email lessons every two weeks.

If you’d like to subscribe to those, you’ll also find the link in the description.

Let’s move to the nose.

First we have “smell”.

Smell.

This has a few meanings.

It can mean to have a particular smell.

For example: Frank’s bedroom smells like old socks.

It can also mean to notice or recognise a particular smell.

For example: I could smell garlic coming from the kitchen.

But it can also mean to put your nose near something and breathe in, in order to discover what kind of smell it has.

For example: I am smelling this carrot.

I’m now going to smell Frank.

This word is “sniff’.

Sniff.

It means to breathe in air through your nose in a way that makes a sound, especially if your nose is running (like if you are crying or if you have a cold or allergies).

It’s doing this.

It can also mean to smell something, in other words, to breathe in air through your nose in order to discover the smell of something.

For example: I’m sniffing this cheese to see if it’s still okay.

Now we have “snort”.

Snort.

This means to make a loud sound by breathing air noisily through your nose.

It might be on the way in or on the way out.

Some people snort when they’re annoyed, and some people snort when they laugh.

I do that sometimes.

I’ll try to snort for you, but it can be hard to force it.

Let’s move on to the mouth.

The first word is “smirk”.

Smirk.

This means to smile in a small and satisfied way.

People smirk when they’re perhaps very pleased with themselves, or maybe if they know something that other people don’t know, or if they’re amused by something.

This is what smirking sometimes looks like.

Next we have “wince”.

Wince.

This means to suddenly change the expression on your face in reaction to something painful, upsetting or embarrassing.

It’s doing this.

This word is “grimace”.

Grimace.

It’s similar to “wince”, but it’s stronger.

To grimace means to make an ugly expression with your face to show pain, or strong dislike or disapproval.

If you grimace, it looks something like this.

Now we have “chew”.

Chew.

This means to bite food several times in your mouth to make it smaller.

Like this.

It can also mean to bite something continuously.

You can chew gum, for example.

And dogs often like to chew bones.

This word is “nibble”.

Nibble.

This means to bite something with small bites, usually food. This is me nibbling a biscuit.

This word is “munch”.

Munch.

It means to eat something continuously and often noisily.

It’s usually when the food is a bit hard or dry, like an apple or toast.

This is me munching an apple.

Now we have “crunch”.

Crunch.

This is similar to “munch”, but there’s a greater focus on the sound.

It means to eat something hard noisily.

It’s also often food like apples, toast or crisps.

This is me crunching a carrot.

Now we have “swallow”.

Swallow.

This means to make something in your mouth (like food or water) go down your throat into your stomach.

I have just swallowed some water.

We also sometimes do the same action with our throats when we’re nervous or we hear some bad news.

For example: George swallowed when he was told that he would have to speak in public.

Next we have “sip”.

Sip.

This means to drink something slowly, taking a very small amount into your mouth each time.

I’m now going to sip this water.

This word is “gulp”.

Gulp.

It means to swallow large amounts of food or water quickly.

This is me gulping water.

We also often say: to gulp something down.

I have just gulped down some water.

And similarly to “swallow”, it’s also something that people sometimes do when they’re nervous, scared or surprised.

I gulped when I saw the restaurant bill at the end of the night.

Next we have “slurp”.

Slurp.

This means to drink a liquid noisily because you suck air into your mouth at the same time as the liquid.

We often slurp things that are hot.

I’m just going to slurp this water.

This word is “gargle”.

Gargle.

It means to move liquid around in your throat by blowing air through it.

We often do it with medicine or perhaps water and salt when we’re sick.

This is me gargling.

Next we have “spit”.

Spit.

This means to force something out of your mouth like saliva, food or drink.

I’m not going to properly show you because that might be a bit disgusting, but it looks something like this.

If you force something out of your mouth that’s not saliva, we often say “spit out”.

For example: I thought it was a piece of chocolate, but I spat it out when I realised that it was liquorice.

Let’s now talk about the head.

First we have “nod”.

Nod.

To nod means to move your head up and down – like this.

In English-speaking countries it’s one way to say yes.

It can also mean to move your head down and up again once, for example, to acknowledge somebody’s presence.

Now we have another phrase, so it’s technically not a verb, but I thought it was important because it’s the opposite of “nod”.

This is: to shake one’s head. If you shake your head, you move it from side to side – like this.

In English-speaking countries it’s one way to say no.

And now the shoulders.

This word is “shrug”.

Shrug.

It means to raise then lower the shoulders – like this.

And now the hands.

Most of these have several meanings, but we’re just going to look at the meanings that relate to hand movements.

First we have “click”.

Click.

It means to make a short, hard sound.

I’m now going to click my fingers.

You can also click some other things, like your tongue.

This word is “snap”.

Snap.

It has several meanings, but in relation to the fingers, it means the same thing as “click”.

I’m going to snap my fingers.

But we can’t say to snap our tongue, so this – that’s clicking.

Next we have “poke”.

Poke.

If you poke something with your finger, you do this.

Now we have “prod”.

Prod.

This means the same thing as “poke”, but the word sounds a little gentler than “poke”, so usually prodding is like soft poking.

The next word is “squeeze.”

Squeeze.

This means to press something, either using your fingers or your whole hand.

For example: I am squeezing this toothpaste tube.

I am squeezing this ball.

You can also use two hands to squeeze something – like this.

This word is “fiddle”.

Fiddle.

It means to keep moving or touching something with your hands.

We often do it if we’re nervous or bored.

You could say that I’m fiddling with my keys.

Now we have a word that’s very similar to “fiddle”.

This is “fidget”.

Fidget.

It means to keep moving your body or a part of your body, like your hands or your feet, because you’re nervous, bored, excited, etc.

You can fidget with any part of your body, but we usually do it with our hands.

It can look something like this.

This word is “pat”.

Pat.

It means to touch something gently multiple times with your hand flat.

It’s doing this… or doing this.

It’s often what we do to animals like cats or dogs, but you can also, for example, pat somebody’s hand to perhaps reassure them or show empathy.

This word is “caress”.

Caress.

It’s very similar to “pat”, but it means to touch somebody or something gently in a way that shows affection.

For example: I am caressing Ethel.

A very similar verb is “stroke”.

Stroke.

It means to move your hand gently and slowly over something, like hair, an animal’s fur or perhaps even material.

Now we have “rub”.

Rub.

This means to move your hand or something like a cloth backwards and forwards over a surface while pressing it.

For example: I am rubbing my arm.

I am rubbing this jar with a cloth.

This word is “scratch”.

Scratch.

It means to rub something with your nails.

I am scratching my arm.

We often scratch something if it’s itchy.

The next word is “dab”.

Dab.

It means to touch something lightly several times, usually with a cloth or a tissue.

I am dabbing my eyes with a tissue.

This word is “wipe”.

Wipe.

It means to rub a surface with something in order to remove liquid or dirt from it.

I am wiping this plate with a cloth.

Next we have “brush”.

Brush.

I’m sure you know the phrases “to brush your teeth” or “to brush your hair”, but “to brush” can also mean to remove something from a surface using a brush or your hand.

For example, if there were some dirt here, I could say: I’m brushing the dirt off me.

This word is “swipe”.

Swipe.

It means to hit or try to hit somebody or something with your hand by moving your arm in a curved movement.

It usually looks like this.

For example, if somebody threw a ball at me, and I didn’t think I was going to catch it, and I didn’t want the ball to hit me, I might swipe at it.

It can also mean to do this on a phone or another electronic device.

For example, you can swipe up, you can swipe to the side, you can swipe down, etc.

Now we have “twist”.

Twist.

This means to turn something around in a circle with your hand.

For example: I am twisting my ring.

You can also twist things like screws.

This word is “tie”.

Tie.

It means to attach or hold two or more things together using something like rope or string.

I’m going to tie these two pencils together.

It’s a bit tricky like this.

There we go.

You can also tie a knot or a bow.

I’m going to tie a knot in this string.

That’s the knot.

If you have long hair, you can also tie it back.

That means to take something like a hair tie and go like this.

Now we have “wind”.

Wind.

It means to wrap or twist something several times around something else.

I am winding this string around this pencil.

Next we have “spin”.

Spin.

This means to turn something around and around very quickly.

For example: I am spinning my bracelet.

A popular children’s toy is the spinning top.

I don’t have one, but they look like this and you go like this with them and they turn and turn.

And the last word today is “twirl”.

Twirl.

It’s very similar to “spin”.

It means to turn something around and around, but in a way that’s lighter than spinning.

I could say: I’m twirling my bracelet.

You can also twirl liquid around in your glass.

And some people twirl the ends of their moustache.

That’s it, everybody.

Thank you very much for watching.

If you liked the video, as usual don’t forget to hit the thumbs up.

And remember that if you’d like to enrol in my advanced vocabulary course, or if you’d like to subscribe to my free email lessons, those links are in the description.

See you next time!

This plugged in?

… spinning my bracelet.

Next we have…

… brush your teeth.

I’m sure you know the “phrashes”…

Now we have w…

This is very… This word is…

It means to move…

… gulping water.

This we have…

Nibble.

… something.