Woman's unusual pronunciation of 'broccoli' goes viral on TikTok

Nick's ESL News Lessons

A printable worksheet for news-based English conversation classes.

Date: 2024/01/24

Difficulty: Intermediate B1

PDF: Woman's unusual pronunciation of 'broccoli' goes viral on TikTok

Vocabulary Match

go viral -   - protected
pronunciation -   - green vegetable
broccoli -   - way of saying
attention -   - interested
curious -   - awareness
defended -   - become popular

Article

A woman from Queensland, Australia, named Kate Young, has gone viral on TikTok because of her strange way of saying 'broccoli'. Kate is a 23-year-old wife and mother who often shares parts of her life online. Recently, she made a video about the quality of food she gets from online shopping.

But what caught people's attention was her pronunciation of 'broccoli'. She said it as 'bro-kuh-lie' instead of 'bro-kuh-lee'. Many people asked her about it in the comments. One person wrote: "Are you saying broccoli like that as a joke? I'm really curious." Another person said: "BROCK O LAI…. What just happened?!"

Kate later said that she always thought she was saying it correctly. She added: "I don't know how else to say it... Why has no one told me this before?" Some people defended her, saying that everyone they know in Australia says it that way. They think 'Broco-LEE' is how Americans say it.

Quiz

  1. Who has become popular on TikTok?
  2. What caught people's attention in Kate's video?
  3. How did Kate pronounce 'broccoli' in her video?
  4. What did some people say when defending Kate's pronunciation?

Conversation

A: Can you please move the Chester drawers to the other room?
B: It's not 'Chester drawers', it's 'chest of drawers'.
A: What? I've always called it 'Chester drawers'. Are you sure?
B: Yes, I'm sure. It's a chest made of drawers, not drawers from Chester.
A: Oh, that makes sense. I've been saying it wrong all this time.
B: Don't worry, it's a common mistake. Let's just move it.

Discussion

  1. Have you ever mispronounced a word for a long time before realizing it?
  2. What other words have you heard pronounced differently in various English accents?
  3. Have you or your friends ever become popular online? Why or why not?
  4. How has the internet changed the way we communicate and share our lives?

Vocabulary Answers

go viral → become popular
pronunciation → way of saying
broccoli → green vegetable
attention → awareness
curious → interested
defended → protected

Quiz Answers (examples)

  1. Kate Young has become popular on TikTok.
  2. Her pronunciation of 'broccoli' caught people's attention.
  3. She said it as 'bro-kuh-lie' instead of 'bro-kuh-lee'.
  4. They said that everyone they know in Australia says it that way.

Source Material

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/weird-news/woman-realises-shes-pronounced-broccoli-31946093

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