Catch Word #288 – The benefit of the doubt

Culips Everyday English Podcast

Culips English Podcast

Self-improvement, Education, Language Learning, Courses

4.8 • 968 Ratings

🗓️ 26 September 2025

⏱️ 25 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In this Catch Word episode, Andrew and Indiana teach you two very useful English expressions: “cut someone some slack” and “give someone the benefit of the doubt.” These are common phrases that English speakers use to ask for understanding, forgiveness, or trust when someone is under pressure or when we are unsure about their actions.

What you’ll learn with this episode:

* How to use “cut someone some slack” to ask for extra patience or forgiveness
* When to use “give someone the benefit of the doubt” to choose trust over suspicion
* The grammar pattern both expressions share
* Vocabulary like slack, taut, to be swamped, and to cover for someone
* Real-life examples from work, home, and friendship situations

This episode is perfect for:

* Intermediate to advanced English learners who want to sound more natural
* Anyone looking to build vocabulary for work, school, and social life
* Learners preparing for conversations with native speakers where trust and understanding are important

The Best Way to Learn with This Episode:

* Culips members get an interactive transcript, helpful study guide, and ad-free audio for this episode. Take your English to the next level by becoming a Culips member. Become a Culips member now: Click here.
* Members can access the ad-free version here: Click here.
* Join our Discord community to connect with other learners and get more English practice. Click here to join.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello, everybody. How's it going? My name's Andrew. Welcome back to another catchword episode here at
0:06.0	Culebs. Catchword is our vocabulary series where we teach you idioms, expressions, phrasal verbs, and other
0:13.1	useful phrases that will boost your English vocabulary. Learning these expressions will help you
0:19.0	to become a better English listener, a better speaker,
0:22.4	and better understand the psychology and culture of English-speaking people.
0:27.2	In just a moment, I'll be joined by my co-host, Indiana, but first, let me set the stage for today's lesson.
0:34.3	Today, we're going to cover a great suggestion that was made by one of our listeners,
0:39.2	Kareem, who left us a message on our Discord server, and he asked us to teach the expression
0:45.1	to give someone the benefit of the doubt. And this is such a great request because this is a
0:51.5	really common everyday expression that we use all the time. And while we're
0:56.3	at it, we'll also teach you a related expression to cut someone some slack. These two phrases
1:02.5	are connected because we use them when we want to be patient, forgiving, or generous in how we
1:08.1	think about someone. We'll get started with the lesson in just a moment, but before we do, let me remind you
1:14.3	that we have an interactive transcript and a helpful study guide for this episode available
1:19.7	to all Culeps members on Culeps.com.
1:23.7	So guys, check out the website, sign up and become a member so you can study along with me and Indiana, learn the vocabulary deeply, and really get the most of the time you spend here with us today.
1:35.4	And of course, a big thank you to all Culeps members out there.
1:38.9	Your support is what keeps the lights on here at Culeps.
1:42.0	So thank you, thank you so much.
1:45.9	Okay. And now let's jump into the lesson. Our first expression is to cut someone some slack. Here we go.
1:53.1	Our first expression that we're going to teach you guys today is to cut someone some slack. To cut someone some slack. Indiana, maybe I'll get you to say that
2:05.7	quickly at natural speed. How does it sound at full speed? So if I asked you, I would say,
	...

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