2009年ESL之就医和人际交往17 Snooping and Eavesdropping

 

17 Snooping and Eavesdropping 

GLOSSARY 

to talk (someone) into (something) – to get another person to agree to do 

something that he or she doesn’t really want to do 

* How did you talk Mousari into buying your car at that price? 

to rifle through – to quickly look through many pieces of paper, usually while 

searching for a particular page or piece of information

* If I were more organized, I wouldn’t have to spend somuch time rifling through 

papers on my desk to find what I want. 

to snoop – to spy; to look at things that one shouldn’t see, or that don’t belong to 

oneself, usually when trying to learn a secret 

* Mark snoops on his older sister by reading her diary. 

suspicion – a thought or feeling that something is wrong, or thatsomeone is 

doing something wrong, but without having any proof 

* He has a suspicion that the cashier is stealing money fromthe store, but he 

hasn’t yet seen her do it. 

to confront – to deal with something that is difficult or unpleasant;to speak with 

another person about something that is difficult to talk about, especially when 

one wants to tell another person that what he or she is doing is wrong 

* I think we should confront Silvana about her drinkingproblem. 

height of stupidity – extremely stupid and foolish; something that is not a good 

idea 

* When we were teenagers, we used to drive as fast as wecould on dark 

highways. It was the height of stupidity. 

to be holed up – to be trapped in a small space, unable to get out; to be stuck in 

one place, not able to leave 

* We were holed up in our house for almost a week during the snowstorm. 

to sit tight – to stay in one place, being patient and without moving 

* We all wanted to know when the flight would leave, but the airline employees 

just kept telling us to sit tight, even though we had already been waiting in the 

plane for more than two hours.

confined – without very much room; without allowing someone to moveor 

stretch 

* I don’t know how people can wear such tight clothing.I’d feel too confined. 

to make a break for it – to escape; to leave a place, especially when one is 

trapped there and cannot or should not leave it 

* The prisoners decided to make a break for it while theguards weren’t paying 

attention. 

to suffocate – to die because one cannot breathe; to feel as though one will die 

because there is not enough fresh air 

* Doctors say that babies should never sleep with pillows or heavy blankets, 

because they might suffocate under them. 

to kvetch – to complain loudly and repeatedly 

* Please stop kvetching about the weather! There’s nothing we can do to change 

it. 

to eavesdrop – to listen to something that one is not supposed to hear; to 

secretly listen to another person’s conversation, not letting that person know that 

one is listening 

* Have you ever eavesdropped on your wife while she talks onthe phone? 

to lose (one’s) mind – to go crazy; to do something very strange, irrational, or 

illogical 

* Liam got really mad while driving and lost his mind, screaming at the other cars 

and almost getting into an accident. 

no guts, no glory – a phrase meaning that if one doesn’t do things that are 

difficult or frightening, one won’t be able to win; a phrase meaning that one needs 

to be brave and do something difficult in order to getwhat one wants 

* Michelle was scared to sing on stage in front of so many people, but she told 

herself, “No guts, no glory.”

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS 

1. Which of these is a way to snoop on someone? 

a) Suffocating. 

b) Kvetching. 

c) Eavesdropping. 

2. Why does Kumar say he’s going to suffocate? 

a) Because he doesn’t like being in the tiny closet. 

b) Because he wants to tell Dan about what Kate’s doing. 

c) Because he doesn’t have any guts or glory. 

______________ 

WHAT ELSE DOES IT MEAN? 

to talk (someone) into 

The phrase “to talk (someone) into (something),” in this podcast, means to get 

another person to agree to do something that he or she doesn’t really want to do: 

“How are we going to talk Leanne into letting us stay in her apartment for a 

month?” The phrase “to talk some sense into (someone)” means to say 

something that makes another person change his or her behavior or what he or 

she was planning to do: “Someone needs to talk some senseinto Sakari before 

she hurts herself.” The phrase “to talk (someone’s) ear off” means to talk to 

someone too much: “Claudia talked his ear off, telling him about her work for 

hours.” Finally, the phrase “now you’re talking” is used to show another person 

that one agrees with what he or she has said: “When Brooke suggested making 

margaritas, we said, ‘Now you’re talking!’” 

confined 

In this podcast, the word “confined” means without very much room, or without 

allowing someone to move or stretch: “It must be difficult for astronauts to get 

used to living in such a confined space.” Or, “Junior feels too confined whenever 

he drives a small car.” The phrase “to be confined to (someone or something)” 

means to affect only a certain person, thing, or group: “These restrictions are 

confined to all new members, but not current members.” Or, “So far, the disease 

is confined to one state.” As a verb, “to confine” means to limit: “Their research 

is confined to information that was published in the past seven years.” Finally, 

the phrase “to be confined to (something)” means to be forced to stay in a 

particular place: “The patient was confined to his hospital bed for weeks.” 

CULTURE NOTE 

Normally, U.S. government agencies like the National Security Administration 

(NSA) must have a “warrant” (official permission to enter one’s home or look for 

something) for “domestic” (within the United States) “spying” (trying to find secret 

information) activities. However, in 2005, the New York Timespublished an 

article about how “then-President” (the person who was President at that time) 

George W. Bush “authorized” (allowed; gave official permission) the NSA to 

eavesdrop on Americans. The NSA didn’t have warrants or any other legal 

permission, but it started listening to Americans’ telephone conversations and 

getting copies of their “phone records” (a written history of telephone calls one 

has made and received). 

The government argued that the eavesdropping and other types of domestic 

spying were necessary to look for “evidence” (proof) of terrorist activity after the 

attacks on September 11, 2001. However, since the government’s activities are 

secret, nobody knows how many conversations the NSA listened to, and whether 

they were limited to just “suspected” (thought to have done something wrong) 

terrorists. 

Most Americans thought it was a “violation” (something that breaks a rule or law) 

of their “privacy” (one’s right to have secrets or not share information). The 

Fourth “Amendment” (a section of text added to the U.S. Constitution, or 

America’s most important legal document) protects Americans against 

“unreasonable” (not justified) searches. Many people think the eavesdropping 

was unreasonable, but the government argues that the eavesdropping was 

necessary to protect Americans from terrorists. 

This has become known as the domestic spying “controversy” (something that 

people do not agree on, but have very strong opinions about). 

______________ 

Comprehension Questions Correct Answers: 1 – c; 2 – a 

COMPLETE TRANSCRIPT 

Welcome to English as a Second Language Podcast number 513: Snooping and 

Eavesdropping. 

This is English as a Second Language Podcast episode 513.  I’m your host, Dr. 

Jeff McQuillan, coming to you from the Center for Educational Development in 

beautiful Los Angeles, California. 

Our website is eslpod.com. Go there to download a Learning Guide for this 

episode that contains all of the vocabulary, definitions, sample sentences, 

additional definitions, comprehension questions, culturalnotes, and, would you 

believe it, a complete transcript of everything we say on this episode. 

This episode is called “Snooping and Eavesdropping.” These are different ways 

of gathering or collecting information secretly, sometimes illegally. We’ll listen to 

a conversation Enrique and Stella, who are trying to get information about 

Stella’s boyfriend. Let’s get started. 

[start of dialogue] 

Enrique: I don’t know how you talked me into coming with you to Dan’s 

apartment to rifle through his papers. This snooping is stupid! If you have 

suspicions, you should just talk to him. 

Stella: Confront him without any evidence? That would be the height of 

stupidity. 

Enrique: Instead, we’re holed up in this closet until he leaves. I thought you said 

he wouldn’t be home until 6:00. 

Stella: That’s what I thought. Just sit tight. I think he just came home to pick 

something up. He’ll be gone in a minute. 

Enrique: I don’t like confined spaces. If we don’t makea break for it soon, I’m 

going to suffocate. 

Stella: Stop your kvetching. Now that we’re here, maybe we can do better than 

looking through his papers. We can eavesdrop on his conversations. 

Enrique: Have you lost your mind? Do you know what hewould do to us if he 

found us here? 

Stella: No guts, no glory! 

[end of dialogue] 

Enrique and Stella are inside of Dan’s apartment. Infact, they’re inside one of 

the closets of Dan’s apartment, the small space you use usually to put clothing or 

other things. Dan has come home unexpectedly while Enrique and Stella were 

there trying to find information about him. 

Enrique says, “I don’t know how you talked me into comingwith you to Dan’s 

apartment.” “To talk (someone) into (something)” is to get another person to 

agree to do something that they don’t really want to do, and usually we use this 

expression when you discover later that it was a mistake, that you should have 

said no. “I don’t know how you talked me into buying this car, it’s too expensive” 

– I should not have listened to you. The verb “to talk”has several different 

meanings; take a look at the Learning Guide for this episode for some more 

explanations. 

Enrique says that he doesn’t know how Stella talked him into coming with her to 

Dan’s apartment to rifle through his papers. “To rifle through (something)” means 

to look through something quickly, usually to steal it, usually for reasons that are 

not good. Someone who’s looking for something who wants to steal something 

may rifle through your desk – the papers on your desk in order to find that 

something. Enrique says, “This snooping is stupid!” “To snoop” (snoop) means 

to spy, to look at things that you shouldn’t be looking at or that don’t belong to 

you, usually things that contain some sort of secret information. Enrique says, “If 

you have suspicions, you should just talk to him.” A “suspicion” is a thought or a 

feeling that something is wrong. You don’t have any proof, you don’t have any 

evidence, but you have a suspicion – you think that something might be wrong. 

Stella says, “Confront him without any evidence?” “To confront (someone)” 

means to talk to someone or deal with something that is difficult or unpleasant, 

usually to talk to another person about a very difficult topic. Stella says, asking 

Enrique, “Confront him without any evidence? That would be the height of 

stupidity.” “Stupidity” is a noun for things that are stupid or foolish. The 

expression “the height of stupidity” means this would beextremely stupid, very 

stupid. We use this expression sometimes, “the height of”followed by some 

noun, usually when we’re expressing something negative that has happened, 

something very bad. For example: “That is the height of arrogance to tell the 

President of the United States that he should cut his hair.” It’s the height of 

arrogance – it’s the very extreme example, the highest example of that particular 

quality. 

Enrique says, “Instead (instead of confronting Dan directly), we’re holed up in this 

closet until he leaves.” “To be holed up (somewhere)” means to be trapped in a 

small space and you can’t get out. You’re stuck; you can’t leave. If you go skiing 

and suddenly there’s a lot of snow and you can’t leave your hotel, you could be 

holed up in your hotel. Sometimes we use this expressionwhen someone 

voluntarily goes somewhere that they don’t want to leave,to be separated from 

other people. But here, Enrique is using it to mean that they are in a small 

space, a closet, and they can’t leave. They can’t leave because they’re in Dan’s 

apartment, and Dan doesn’t know that they are there. 

Stella tells Enrique to sit tight. “To sit tight” means to be patient and don’t move, 

don’t go anywhere else. “I think Dan just came home to pick up something up (or 

to pick something up – it means the same). He’ll be gone (he’ll leave) in a 

minute.” Enrique says, “I don’t like confined spaces.”  “Confined” means you 

don’t have a lot of room, you can’t move easily. “Confined” has a couple of 

different meanings in English; take a look at our Learning Guide for some more 

explanations. 

Enrique says that he doesn’t like confined spaces – confined places. “If we don’t 

make a break for it soon,” he says, “I’m going to suffocate.” “To make a break for 

it” means to escape, to leave a place where you are trapped or that you’re not 

supposed to leave. A prisoner may try to make a break forit, meaning try to 

escape from the prison. Enrique says if they don’t make a break for it soon (if 

they don’t leave – escape out of this closet), he’s going to suffocate. “To 

suffocate” means to die because you can’t breathe. Someone may be 

preventing you from breathing by covering your mouth, ormaybe there just isn’t 

enough oxygen in the air; that could also cause you tosuffocate – to die because 

you can’t breathe. 

Stella says to Enrique, “Stop your kvetching.” “To kvetch” is an informal 

expression meaning to complain loudly and repeatedly. Someone who’s always 

complaining, “Oh, it’s so hot in here. Oh, why can’t we get a better air 

conditioner (etc., etc.),” this is someone who likes to kvetch. The word “kvetch” is 

a Yiddish word, a language spoken by primarily Jewish immigrants to the United 

States. There are several Yiddish words that have become part of the general 

English language, at least American English. 

Stella says to Enrique, “Stop your kvetching. Now that we’re here, maybe we 

can do better than looking through his papers. We can eavesdrop on his 

conversations.” “To eavesdrop” means to listen to somethingthat you’re not 

supposed to hear, to secretly listen to someone else’s conversation. If someone 

is in a restaurant sitting next to you in the next table, and you’re not supposed be 

listening to their conversation but you are, that wouldbe to eavesdrop. Often 

people eavesdrop in order to get information – to get secret information. 

Enrique says, “Have you lost your mind?” “To lose your mind” means to go 

crazy, to do something very strange or even illogical. He says, “Do you know 

what he would do to us if he found us here?” “Do you know what he would do to 

us?” – do you know what sort of punishment he would give us, perhaps. Stella, 

however, says, “No guts, no glory!” “To have guts” means to have courage; it’s 

an informal expression. “No guts, no glory” means that if you don’t have courage 

– if you’re not willing to do something that’s difficult, you’ll never be able to win. 

In order to get things that you want, things that aredifficult to obtain, you have to 

have guts, and if you don’t, you will never get those things. “Glory” here refers to 

either being famous but more generally getting something desirable that you 

want. 

Now let’s listen to the dialogue, this time at a normal speed. 

[start of dialogue] 

Enrique: I don’t know how you talked me into coming with you to Dan’s 

apartment to rifle through his papers. This snooping is stupid! If you have 

suspicions, you should just talk to him. 

Stella: Confront him without any evidence? That would be the height of 

stupidity. 

Enrique: Instead, we’re holed up in this closet until he leaves. I thought you said 

he wouldn’t be home until 6:00. 

Stella: That’s what I thought. Just sit tight. I think he just came home to pick 

something up. He’ll be gone in a minute. 

Enrique: I don’t like confined spaces. If we don’t makea break for it soon, I’m 

going to suffocate. 

Stella: Stop your kvetching. Now that we’re here, maybe we can do better than 

looking through his papers. We can eavesdrop on his conversations. 

Enrique: Have you lost your mind? Do you know what hewould do to us if he 

found us here? 

Stella: No guts, no glory! 

[end of dialogue] 

The script for this episode was written by someone who never kvetches, Dr. Lucy 

Tse. 

From Los Angeles, California, I’m Jeff McQuillan. Thank you for listening. Come 

back and listen to us next time on ESL Podcast. 

English as a Second Language Podcast is written and produced by Dr. Lucy Tse, 

hosted by Dr. Jeff McQuillan, copyright 2009 by the Centerfor Educational 

Development.