AEE: Ding! Buzz! Beep! Which Word Should You Use When You Hear a Sound?

Summary

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All Ears English Podcast

Episode: Ding! Buzz! Beep! Which Word Should You Use When You Hear a Sound?
Hosts: Lindsay McMahon & Michelle Kaplan
Date: June 27, 2026

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Episode Overview

In this lively episode, Lindsay and Michelle break down the everyday sounds we encounter—dings, beeps, buzzes, and more—and discuss the specific English words we use for them. They explore how these words function both as sound labels and as vivid expressions, explaining when and how to use each naturally in conversation. The episode is both fun and insightful, designed to help ESL learners navigate American English’s sound vocabulary, boosting comprehension, fluency, and social connection.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Why Sound Words Matter in English ([01:45]–[03:27])

• Everyday Relevance: Sounds are part of daily life (phones, alarms, household items). Knowing the right vocabulary for describing them is essential for natural English.
• Cultural Note: Speakers learn and use different words for sounds in different languages—what’s natural in one language may not be in English.
• Practical Use: Mastery of sound words helps learners describe events, respond to situations, and join in jokes or sarcasm.

“So today we’re going to go over words that deal with everyday sounds... We assume the same thing is true about a car horn or a phone voicemail. Right. So we’re going to get into it today.”
— Michelle Kaplan [03:27]

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2. DING: The Friendly Notification Sound ([04:36]–[06:51])

• Definition: “Ding” typically describes a high, bright tone—common for incoming texts or notifications (especially on iPhones or WhatsApp).
• Social Function: Can be used sarcastically or playfully, especially in confirming something or calling out an answer (think game shows).
• Nuance: The tone of “ding, ding, ding!” can convey celebration, sarcasm, or just calling attention.

Memorable Quotes:

“Ding, ding, ding. That’s the missing piece that we haven’t understood about this person.”
— Lindsay McMahon [05:33]

“You can bake in sarcasm here... Like, hey, I’ve been walking the dog every night. It’s your turn. Right?”
— Lindsay McMahon [06:51]

Usage Examples:

• “I just heard a ding. Was that your phone?”
• “Ding, ding, ding! You got it right.”

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3. BEEP: The Electronic Alert ([07:21]–[09:01])

• Definition: “Beep” is a short, simple sound—typical for voicemails (“Leave a message after the beep”), microwaves, smoke alarms, electronics, or car horns.
• Common Contexts: Voicemail prompts, kitchen timers, smoke detectors (especially at inconvenient hours—cue personal anecdotes).
• Auditory Imagery: Often spoken aloud when mimicking devices.

Memorable Quotes:

“You always hear this: Leave a message after the beep.”
— Lindsay McMahon [07:28]

“I couldn’t sleep because the smoke alarm was beeping all night even when I replaced the batteries.”
— Michelle Kaplan [09:23]

Usage Examples:

• “The microwave beeps when it’s done.”
• “Please leave a message after the beep.”

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4. BUZZ: The Vibration ([09:49]–[11:17])

• Definition: “Buzz” refers to a vibrating or low droning sound—think phone on vibrate, electric razors, certain doorbells.
• Societal Connections: Used for describing notifications set to vibrate, haircuts (“buzz cut”), building security (“buzz someone in”).
• Phrasal Expressions: “At the buzzer” (last-minute event, often in sports or competitions).

Memorable Quotes:

“If you live in New York in a walk-up building, someone buzz—You have to buzz someone in.”
— Michelle Kaplan [10:40]

Usage Examples:

• “My phone was buzzing so I had to leave it outside.”
• “He made a goal right at the buzzer.”

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5. CLICK: The Mechanical Tap ([12:43]–[14:04])

• Definition: “Click” is a short, crisp sound—found in buttons, door locks, computer mice, or old telephones.
• Anecdotes: Once, you’d literally hear a “click” when someone hung up the phone, but not so much now with smartphones.

Usage Examples:

• “I heard a click—she definitely hung up on me.”
• “Turns out my son kept locking and unlocking the door. I heard this weird clicking sound.”

— Michelle Kaplan [13:14]

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6. ALARM & RING: Full Volume Alerts ([14:04]–[15:20])

• Alarm: Loud, attention-demanding, signals danger or a warning (smoke detectors, security system, alarm clocks).
• Ring: Traditional term for the sound of phones, bells, or doorbells.

Memorable Quotes:

“I mean, sometimes you might hear, like, church bells...the church bells will ring right?”
— Lindsay McMahon [15:20]

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7. Role Play – Bringing It All Together ([15:54]–[19:43])

• Scenario: Michelle recounts a sleepless night filled with beeps, dings, rings, buzzes, and clicks in her apartment (noisy smoke alarms, late-night texts, ringing phone, dog tapping at the door).
• Emphasis on Nuance: The dialogue highlights how each word precisely describes the type of sound or interruption.

Key Distinction:

“That’s a really important distinction...Ring is a call. Ding is a noise, right?”
— Lindsay McMahon [18:23]

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Notable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)

• Missed Calls Story:
  “My phone was on silent for like two years...I would always have these missed calls from my partner. I was like, this person’s kind of a stalker.”
  — Lindsay McMahon [02:39]

• Game Show Reference:
  “You might also hear it like on a game show...ding, ding, ding, that’s the correct answer.”
  — Michelle Kaplan [06:13]

• Friends TV Show Reference:
  “That makes me think there’s a Friends episode where they’re looking for the beep.”
  — Michelle Kaplan [09:23]

• Dog with the Stare:
  “He will stand there and just stare at me...he’ll just stare. He’s got this stare, you know.”
  — Lindsay McMahon [17:17]

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Important Timestamps

• [01:45] – Everyday need for sound words (awkwardly timed device noises)
• [03:27] – Introduction to why onomatopoeic words differ by language
• [04:36] – “Ding” and sarcasm in English
• [07:28] – The classic voicemail “beep”
• [09:49] – “Buzz” for vibrations and haircuts
• [12:43] – “Click” in mechanical sounds, old phones, and doors
• [14:04] – “Alarm” and “ring” for urgent and traditional sounds
• [15:54] – Role play connecting all key vocabulary in context
• [18:23] – Key distinction: “Ring is a call. Ding is a noise.”

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Takeaways & Closing Insights

• Nuance Is Key: Each sound word carries its own context and emotional tone—use them to be clear, natural, and expressive.
• Not Just Semantics: Sound words bridge the gap between “correct” and “connected” English, sparking fluency and making daily small talk easier.
• Fluency Level Up: Mastery of these sounds is vital for progressing from intermediate (B2) to advanced (C1), especially in social and work environments.

“This is not super sophisticated grammar today, but this is part of fluency... As you’re getting to the B2-C1 level, think about mastering this because you can say a lot here, right?”
— Lindsay McMahon [20:28]

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Quick Reference: Which Word When?

| Word | When to Use | Example | |-------|--------------------|-------------------------------| | Ding | Notifications, correct answer | “My phone dinged.” / “Ding, ding, ding!” | | Beep | Electronic alerts, voicemail | “Leave a message after the beep.” | | Buzz | Vibrate mode, electric tools | “My phone buzzed.” / “Buzz me in.” | | Click | Small mechanical sound | “I heard a click.” | | Alarm | Loud warning/advisory | “The alarm went off.” | | Ring | Phones, bells, doorbells | “The phone is ringing.” |

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Final Words

This episode blended practical ESL instruction with everyday humor, showing listeners how to “connect, not perfect” in English conversation by mastering the language of everyday sounds. Whether you’re dealing with burnt popcorn, a persistent smoke alarm, or a clever dog, you’ll always have the right word at your fingertips!

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Transcript

[Lindsay McMahon]

This is an All Ears English podcast.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Ding.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Buzz, beep. Which word should you use when you hear a sound?

[Michelle Kaplan]

Welcome to the All Ears English podcast downloaded more than 200 million times. Are you feeling stuck with your English? We'll show you how to become fearless and fluent by focusing on connection, not perfection with your American hosts like Lindsay McMahon, the English adventurer and Michelle Kaplan, the New York radio girl coming to you from Colorado and New York City, usa. To get real time transcripts right on your phone and create your personalized vocabulary list, try the Allears English app for iOS and Android. Start your seven day free trial at allearsenglish.com.

What can you say when your phone goes off? Or when someone calls or when someone rings your doorbell? There are so many moments in life when we need these words. Listen in to get them Today.

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[Lindsay McMahon]

Hello there Michelle. How's everything today? How you feeling today?

[Michelle Kaplan]

Feeling good. How are you?

[Lindsay McMahon]

I'm pretty good. I'm pretty good. Michelle, I got a question for you. Ready? So are you good about putting your phone on silent when you actually need to? Like, is your. Is your phone on silent right now?

[Michelle Kaplan]

That's a good question. I should check that.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Yeah. Or does it ding or ring a lot? Maybe when you're recording a podcast or when you're public or in awkward places where it's really rude to phone ring?

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yeah, it's always it. I mean it definitely has, you know, where I've had an alarm go off when we're recording or something like that. So it can happen. I try to be pretty careful about it. Actually, I think I have more the opposite issue. I think it's I mostly have it on silent and then I can't find it.

[Lindsay McMahon]

I know that that happens to me all the time. Yeah.

[Michelle Kaplan]

And then you're calling and then you're like, well, it's on time. Yeah. Yeah.

[Lindsay McMahon]

So when my as a funny story, my partner and I first started dating back in 2016, my phone, I didn't know it, but my phone Was on silent for like two years.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Oh, my gosh.

[Lindsay McMahon]

And so I would always have these missed call. I would have like three missed calls from my partner. I was like, this person's kind of a stalker. You know, why am I getting. Why are they calling three times? Like, one's enough. One miss calls enough. And realize until later that it was actually on silent for a long time.

[Michelle Kaplan]

So funny. Yeah. So, yeah, sometimes you couldn't go too far with being on silence. Hilarious. But I feel that Dan is always having things go off and I'm like, turn it off.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Like, that is really annoying. Right. Lots of dings and rings and dings and rings. Who knows what else, right?

[Michelle Kaplan]

Y. So today we're going to go over words that deal with everyday sounds. So actually a long time ago, I think we did an episode on Onomatopoeias, but that was over a thousand episodes ago. And today we're focusing on these words because of a recent episode we did on the word ding. Dealing mostly with cars.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Yeah. Right. You got a ding in your car. More of a dent type of thing. But these. These sounds like. What do they sound like? I know the sound of a dog barking is articulated differently in French versus Japanese versus English. Right. We know this, we learn this, we learn different languages. We talk about these fun little, little aspects of the language. Right. So it's kind of similar. We assume the same thing is true about a car horn or a phone voicemail. Right. So we're going to get into it today.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yeah, exactly. So this is going to be fun. So, guys, hit the follow button wherever you're listening to the Allers English podcast so that you never miss an episode. We are here five days a week. Let us drop right into your queue so you don't have to go searching around for us.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Exactly. So let's start with the most common thing we hear, which I feel like now my phone's gonna ding while we're recording. I'm gonna feel very self conscious about it. My WhatsApp or something is gonna ding for sure. What is. What is the word, Michelle? It is.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yeah. Ding, ding, ding. Yeah. So I would say this is the sound. Is. Is the sound an iPhone. So text message makes, like specifically iPhone. I feel like it's a ding. Right? It's a cute little ding.

[Lindsay McMahon]

IPhone or I think WhatsApp makes that sound. But yeah, like I. I feel like you can. Well, there's standard baked in, like automatic default settings for iPhone, which I think is usually a ding. Right?

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yeah. Or you might hear someone say ding, ding. Ding. Like saying someone is. Right. Right. Possibly sarcastically. Oh, ding, ding. Like, ding, ding, ding. You got it right. Being sarcastic.

[Lindsay McMahon]

No, I even said this last night. I had a theory. We have a contractor working in our house, and I had a theory about the contractor. Something. And then I. I said the theory. And then. And then I said to myself, ding, ding. That's it.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Right.

[Lindsay McMahon]

That's the missing piece that we haven't understood about this person.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Right, right. It's like you figured it out. Yeah, yeah.

[Lindsay McMahon]

So we can.

[Michelle Kaplan]

So you might also hear it like on a game show or. Now that I'm. Now that I'm talking about it. I. I think also maybe like, the sound of like. Like a oven. Like a. I think of like an easy baked oven. Right? Like, you know.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, sure.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Opening.

[Lindsay McMahon]

It's ready. Whatever you've baked is ready, right?

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yeah. Yes.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Yeah. Love it. So you say something like, ding, ding, ding. That's the correct answer.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Right, Right. Or I just heard a ding. Was that your phone?

[Lindsay McMahon]

Right. So the difference here. Here you're using the word as the thing, whereas in the first example, you're actually making the sound ding, ding, ding.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Right.

[Lindsay McMahon]

That's the correct answer. Right.

[Michelle Kaplan]

And you have to do ding, ding, ding. Like, you can't. You can't just be like, ding, ding, ding. That's what. No, you have to. You have to sing it.

[Lindsay McMahon]

I do. Kind of have to elevate your voice a little bit.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Right, right. Or with a little bit of a snark. Ding, ding, ding. You're right. It is time for you to walk. Yeah.

[Lindsay McMahon]

And we. We can bake in sarcasm here. Right? There's a little sarcasm here. A little like, hey, I've been walking the dog every night. It's your turn. Right?

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yeah, yeah. Like. Like, oh, don't you think you should be doing something right now? Oh, I. I don't know.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Oh.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Oh, the dog hasn't gone out. Ding, ding, ding.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Exactly, exactly. You're maybe you're overwhelmed with all the work you're doing, and your partner's just there watching tv, you know.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yep, yep, yep. So I had. That has some smart sm. Snark to it.

Snark.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Yeah, yeah.

[Michelle Kaplan]

What else?

Yeah. Well, then there's beep. Yeah, yeah.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Beep.

[Michelle Kaplan]

So what do. When would you hear this one?

[Lindsay McMahon]

Oh, you always hear this. Leave a message after the beep. Right. You've reached Lindsay's voicemail. Leave a message after the beep.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Beep. Right.

[Lindsay McMahon]

And then usually a beep. Right.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Or Right. Or maybe. Yeah, this is a Big one. Smoke alarms running out of battery, which

[Lindsay McMahon]

always happens at 3 in the morning.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yes, exactly. And then you have to find it, and then you have to get up on a ladder. So. Yeah, that. In my hair. Or like, lots of electronics. I mean, the microwave beeps, you know, when you're pressing the buttons or the

[Lindsay McMahon]

fridge beeps if you leave it open too long.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Oh, that does, yes. Yeah.

[Lindsay McMahon]

I always, like, leave the fridge open constantly, just.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yeah, yeah. Or your TV might be bright, some sort of electronic. So. But then there's also the car horn. Right?

[Lindsay McMahon]

Yeah, it's always like the, The. The pitch of the horn is always commensurate with the size of the car. I feel like you're driving a little Mini. It's always like. And then.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Right, right.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Trucks have a. You know, they obviously don't have a horn like that.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Right, right, right, right. Or also, not just honking the horn, but like, maybe you hear. If you're describing like a. Something backing up like a big truck, like, you can tell that they're. They have that beep sound. Come on. Beep, beep, beep.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Yes. Or we might articulate Beep, beep. Right. We might say that if we're trying to move through a group either driving through or. Yeah, this is a funny episode.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yeah, it is around today. But anyway. But it is funny also. I mean, you made a good point, Lindsay, because sometimes you just say it like, oh, leave a message after the beep. And sometimes you actually do the sound.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Yeah, you do the sound exactly right. So some examples here. We're not available right now, but please leave a message after the beep. Okay. Yes.

[Michelle Kaplan]

So that's a very common script for voicemail. Or I couldn't sleep because the smoke alarm was beeping all night even when I replaced the batteries. So that makes me think there's a Friends episode where they're looking for the beep.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Probably like a friend's scenario.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yeah.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Or you'll know the microwave is done when you hear it beep.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Right.

[Lindsay McMahon]

The popcorn is ready. Yes, yes, yes.

[Michelle Kaplan]

And then there's buzz.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Yeah.

[Michelle Kaplan]

So this is more of like a vibration sound. I mean, when you think about how it sounds like buzz, it's a vibration. So it could be like from a phone. Right. If you leave your phone on vibrate, maybe not silent, maybe vibrate or like an electric razor buzz. Right. Anything else you can think of?

[Lindsay McMahon]

I mean, that's why they call it like a buzz cut. Right. Because when you get. When guys get a buzz cut, they. I'm guessing that's why I'm guessing.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yeah, I never thought about that. Yep.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Yeah. Yeah, that's interesting. Anything else that buzzes? H. I mean sometimes certain doorbells can buzz, right? Like when you especially, I don't know, maybe like mansions or something. I'm imagining a fancy home might have a buzz doorbell or an apartment. If you live in New York in a, in a walk up building, someone buzz.

[Michelle Kaplan]

You have to buzz someone in to buzz someone in. That's a great one. Yes. So and then. Or also a device, right. Like at the buzzer. So like maybe at the end of a game, like, you know, somebody makes a shot right at the end at the buzzer or in a game show. Right.

[Lindsay McMahon]

So time's up, right?

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yeah, exactly. So here's an example. My phone was buzzing so I had to leave it outside.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Yes. Or he made a goal right at the buzzer, meaning right at the last minute of the game.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Right?

[Lindsay McMahon]

Yes. So it was a valid goal.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Okay. Exactly.

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[Michelle Kaplan]

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[Lindsay McMahon]

All right, Michelle, there's a few more here that we want to share with our listeners. What is click so a click?

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yeah, this is more like a tapping sound. So like a, like it could be like a short sound, something like a button you're pressing or a door you're locking. Right, so. Or it could be the sound you hear. Not so much Anymore. But it used to be the sound you hear if somebody hangs up on you, you know, pressing the actual. You know, the little button.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Oh, yeah. Because you can't hear that anymore. Now it's just blank. Right. If someone hangs up on you. But it used to be. Yeah, it would just be the click until you hear the click. Yeah, I heard this weird clicking sound. Turns out my son kept locking and unlocking the door. Yeah.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Or. Oh, I heard a click. She definitely hung up on me. Have you, Lindsay, have you ever thought someone hung up on you, they just lost the connection?

[Lindsay McMahon]

Yeah, sure. All the time. And we've done episodes on this, too, before. What? You know what to say when the connection's going out. You're going into a tunnel or something, right?

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yes.

[Lindsay McMahon]

But, yeah, the click. Yeah. This. I feel like this is just about the function of something. So this can really depend on what you're talking about. If there's some kind of an item that has to latch, usually you would talk about a click because you would hear that.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Right, right, right. Or then there's alarm. So that's loud, right? Like the warning of something. So smoke alarm or security alarm. Very loud. Or, I mean. Or your alarm clock, of course. Sure.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Yeah. Yeah. Do you use your phone as your alarm clock or do you have a special alarm clock, Michelle?

[Michelle Kaplan]

I use my phone. I know you have an alarm clock because you're putting your phone away. How has that been working out?

[Lindsay McMahon]

Well, these days we've been moving around because of our renovation project, so I have been. Been. We've been in different condos and Airbnbs, all sorts of things. Life is chaotic right now, Michelle. It's crazy.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yeah.

[Lindsay McMahon]

So I am now using my phone, but when I get back into my home soon, I will go back to that nice Zen alarm clock. It's great.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yeah. So have you. So. But has it made you look at your phone a lot again before bed?

[Lindsay McMahon]

No, I would actually say as long as I have a book that I can read that I'm interested in, I'm pretty good at still, like, letting the phone sit it next to the bed and leaving it. Right. It's not. I don't feel that same pull that I used to feel quite as well. That's really incredible. Yeah. Small wins. Small wins, small wins.

[Michelle Kaplan]

And then we're gonna do one more it. And that's the ring. Right. So more just like what you say, oh, my phone is ringing, or a bell ringing. Yeah.

[Lindsay McMahon]

I mean, sometimes you might hear, like, church bells. I grew up in New England. A Place where every little town has a town square and has a church at the head of the square. It's very cute scenery you'd see in a post. And sometimes the church bells will ring right? At certain times.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yep. Yep, exactly. So you might hear your phone is ringing. I hear it in another room. Yeah.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Or did someone ring the doorbell?

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Okay, so we got a lot of sounds. Rings, clicks, dings. We got a nice role play here. So let's go through a meeting.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yep.

[Lindsay McMahon]

You are telling me why you're so tired today.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Day.

[Lindsay McMahon]

So tell me.

[Michelle Kaplan]

All right. So I was almost asleep, and then I heard this beeping sound, so I figured it was a smoke alarm.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Oh, that's the worst. I hate when that alarm goes off.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yeah. But then it stopped out of nowhere, so I was relieved, so I went to sleep. And then I woke up to my phone dinging at 3am so my friend was texting me who lives in California, so she thought I was still awake.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Oh, no, you have to put it on silent.

[Michelle Kaplan]

I should. So then it started to ring and I picked it up and it was just a butt dial from the same friend.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Oh, not the butt dial. That's the worst.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yeah.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Oh, gosh. If you don't want to put your phone on silent, you could put it on vibrate. So it just buzzes.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yeah, true. That would be less disruptive, but. So then I heard a clicking sound from the other room.

[Lindsay McMahon]

That's creepy. What was it?

[Michelle Kaplan]

Of course it was Charlie just standing outside my door, tapping on it, waiting for me to let him come into my room.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Oh, I guess he wanted an early walk.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Ding, ding, ding.

[Lindsay McMahon]

You need a nap. Oh, yeah. Dogs will do that.

[Michelle Kaplan]

They.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Some. Some dogs are really smart. They know how to open doors. They know exactly what to nudge to make a sound. Right?

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yeah. Just keep forever. Wake you up for an earlier walk.

[Lindsay McMahon]

He, like, he will stand right by the bed. And he's a border collie, so he's used to moving things with his eyes, making things happen with his eyes. That's what border collies do, right? When they're like, originally, that's what they did is move sheep. And so he will stand there and just stare at me. But it's always right at the time that the alarm goes off. If it doesn't go off, he'll get up at that time. He knows what time we get up. Yeah, he's so smart. But yeah, he'll just stare. He's got this stare, you know.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Oh, yeah. You said he gives you the side eye. Too, Right.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Be the side eye. Yeah, they. Those dogs are incredible. Anyways, I could go on and on, but I won't. Let's go through the role play here, Michelle.

[Michelle Kaplan]

All right, so you said. I said I was almost asleep and then I heard this beeping sound.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Yep. And then I said, oh, that's the worst. I hate when that alarm goes off. Right.

[Michelle Kaplan]

And then I said I went to sleep and then woke up to my phone dinging at 3am So I didn't say ringing. Right. So that sounds more like a text message. Right. I wouldn't say dinging if it was. If it was somebody calling. Right.

[Lindsay McMahon]

That's a really important distinction, actually. I mean, that's a really big key with today's episode. Ring is a call. Ding is a noise, right?

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yeah, yeah. Yes.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Kind of a. A buzz or a. Kind of a. Yeah, a beep. Oh, my gosh. And then. And then he said I should. So then it started to ring and I picked it up and it was just a butt d. Someone did call you, right?

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yes. So then you made a suggestion. You said if you don't want to put your phone on silent, you could put it on vibrate. So it just buzzes.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Buzzes, Right. So a more. Maybe a different pitch of a sound.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Less disruptive.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Yeah. And then you said, yeah, true. That would be less disruptive. Then I heard a clicking sound from the other room. So this sounds like a door. Right. Trying to latch or opening or something.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Right, right, exactly. And then so it turns out it was Charlie, my dog, standing outside of my door tapping on a tap is another one we could have done, but we'll save that for another day. We've done a lot. And you said, oh, I guess he wanted an early walk. And I said, ding, ding, ding, which is the one we're saying that you're right.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Yeah. You're indicating a little sarcasm, a little exhaustion here.

[Movie Trailer Voice]

Right?

[Google Chrome Ad Voice]

Yeah.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yes. Not towards you, towards the dog.

[Lindsay McMahon]

I think towards the dog. Yeah. Towards all your responsibilities at home, maybe. Right, exactly.

[Michelle Kaplan]

So it was a very noisy night.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Noisy night. All right. Chaotic evening, guys. Go on over to 2606. Scratch, sting or dent. How to talk about car damage in English. This was the inspiration for today's episode, but it's a very different episode. We're talking about car damage. So if you're driving a car in an English speaking country or just want to know about this, Cars are a big part of American culture. We can tell you that for sure.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Right. So, yeah, take away for today. I mean, this is Just a, like a fun, silly episode. But it's actually very useful because there are a lot of nuances between these words. Right, Lindsay?

[Lindsay McMahon]

Yeah, and we had a lot of fun recording it, so that's. Yeah. Hopefully our listeners had fun listening. Guys, this would be, I mean, you know, it's, it's. This is not super sophisticated grammar today, but this is part of fluency. Right? So as you getting to the B2C1 level, think about mastering this because you can say a lot here, right?

[Michelle Kaplan]

Yeah, yeah, exactly. So knowing that, I mean, it's, it sounds so silly, but it's. People are constantly talking about all these noises. The, the ding, the buzz, the beep.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Right. And if you don't know what to say, what do you say? Right. If you don't know what that word is in English, what do you even say?

[Michelle Kaplan]

Right. Right.

[Home Depot Announcer]

Yeah.

[Lindsay McMahon]

So this is perfect. Yeah.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Great.

All right.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Today.

[Michelle Kaplan]

All right. All right, Lindsay. Well, I don't. I'm trying to think of a creative way to end it, but I. All right.

[Lindsay McMahon]

For the buzzer.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Wait. All right, guys, thanks for listening. Bye, Lindsay.

[Lindsay McMahon]

Take care. Bye.

[Michelle Kaplan]

Bye.

Thanks for listening.

[Lindsay McMahon]

To all ears.

[Michelle Kaplan]

English. Would you like to know your English level? Take our two minute quiz. Go to allearsenglish.com forward/fluency score. And if you believe in connection, not perfection, then hit subscribe now to make sure you don't miss anything. See you next time.

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[Lindsay McMahon]

Your call has been forwarded to voicemail.

[Michelle Kaplan]

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