Words of the Week with Alisha for Advanced Learners #8 - Really Long Words
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Hi, I'm remembering to introduce the series this week. My name is Alisha, welcome back to weekly words. This week we're going to talk about really long words that are actually used. Okay, this is going to be interesting I think. Let's start.

The first word is photosynthesis. Photosynthesis is an eighth grade American science school word. It's an eighth grade science word. This refers to the process that plants use to convert sunlight to oxygen. The process of photosynthesis is vitally important to the survival of humans.

right? The next word is imperturbable. Imperturbable means someone who can't really get upset or excited, like it's hard to change the emotions of a person. So you might say, "I have a friend who is imperturbable. No matter what we do or what we say, he doesn't get angry with us."

Onward. The next is counterintuitive. Counterintuitive is a good word, which means it's the opposite of common sense. So we talked about the word intuitive in a previous episode of Weekly Words, where intuitive means able to sense something or able to do something correctly without having to know much about it. Counterintuitive, however, on the other hand, means not intuitive, or it seems like something

That just doesn't make much sense. It's not a common sense thing. So maybe, let's see, something that doesn't seem to make very much sense to you. Maybe on your office building, for example, you have to first push the door and then pull it in order to open it. You might say, "Oh, the way the doors work in this building is very counterintuitive. It doesn't make much sense."

The next word is presumptuously. Presumptuously means failing to observe the limits of what is permitted or appropriate. Oh, this is a tough one to use in a sentence.

So anytime somebody does something that's just beyond the limits of what is considered normal in your culture, you can say that they're being presumptuous or they're acting presumptuously. So if for example a salesman comes to your door for some reason, but they enter the house and sit down on your sofa, you might say, "The salesman presumptuously entered my house and sat down on my sofa. I couldn't believe it." What? Sphigmamanometer? Sphigmamanometer.

An instrument for measuring blood pressure. This is a new one for me too. Sphagmominometer is this word.

Isn't this called really long words that are actually used? I have only been familiar with this word in terms of the blood pressure cuff. When you go to the doctor and they need to check your blood pressure, they'll put this thing, this sphygmomanometer on your arm usually and then they'll kind of pump it up and check your blood pressure. So it's a very technical word. The doctor might say to a nurse or to another doctor, "Can you please get me the sphygmomanometer? We need to check this patient's blood pressure."

Wow, okay, I learned a new word today. And those are all the long words that are actually used sometimes. Give them a try, work on your pronunciation for these. They're kind of interesting ones, I think. Thanks again for joining us for Weekly Words. I will see you next time. Bye-bye. This is a big momminometer.