📘 Part 3: Breaking and fixing things

This episode's vocabulary

Shatter (verb) – break suddenly into many pieces. → The glass vase fell and shattered all over the floor.

Crack (verb/noun) – to break without separating into pieces; a narrow break. → There's a big crack in the window after the storm.

Chip (verb/noun) – to break off a small piece; a small broken bit. → I chipped a plate while washing the dishes.

Dent (verb/noun) – to make a hollow area; a small hollow caused by impact. → The refrigerator door got dented when I moved it.

Scratch (verb/noun) – to damage a surface with something sharp. → The table was scratched when we dragged a box across it.

Leak (verb/noun) – when liquid or gas escapes through a hole. → The kitchen sink started to leak last night.

Clog (verb/noun) – to block something so it cannot function. → The bathtub drain is clogged with hair.

Appliance (noun) – an electrical device used in the home. → The washing machine is a very useful appliance.

Fixture (noun) – a permanent part of a house (like a sink or toilet). → The bathroom fixtures are starting to rust.

Gadget (noun) – a small electronic or mechanical device. → She uses a handy gadget for peeling vegetables.

Fuse (noun) – a safety device that protects electrical systems. → The lights went out because the fuse blew.

Jammed (adjective) – stuck or unable to move. → The door is jammed and won't open.

Repair (verb/noun) – to fix something that is broken. → We need to repair the broken shelf in the living room.

Handyman (noun) – a person skilled at general home repairs. → We called a handyman to fix the leaking tap.

Power outage (noun) – a period when electricity supply is lost. → The power outage lasted for two hours yesterday.

DIY (noun/adjective) – do-it-yourself, the activity of making or repairing things yourself. → DIY projects can save a lot of money.

Warranty (noun) – a promise by a manufacturer to repair or replace a broken product. → The microwave is still under warranty.

Instructions (noun) – steps that explain how to do something. → Always read the instructions before assembling the furniture.

Replace (verb) – to exchange something old or broken for something new. → We replaced the broken window with a stronger one.

Spare part (noun) – an extra piece for repairing a device or machine. → We keep spare parts for the washing machine in the garage.

Questions and Answers

Maria: What kind of things are more likely to be broken by people at home?

Rory: Oh, well, I mean, what aren't you likely to break, especially if you have kids? I suppose the most common thing is stuff like plates and glasses, since they're, well, they're being handled all the time. But it could be anything, even windows, if children are playing football in the garden or something like that.

Maria: What kind of people like to fix things by themselves? I'm not a psychologist.

Rory: But maybe people who are pretty independent or isolated from places and people who can fix things up for them. That could be the physical location, like someone on a mountain or in the Antarctic, or it could be financial isolation, like a family that isn't so well off. Of course, you could just be a very knowledgeable or independent person and that just comes naturally to you. So you don't really bother to do it or don't really bother to ask other people to do things for you.

Maria: Do you think elderly people should teach young people how to fix things?

Rory: I've never really thought about it, to be honest. I've certainly never seen it, but I don't think there's any harm in assuming the support they give is useful. They might have some pretty sage advice about less technological things, though I'd be sceptical if, well, I'd just be sceptical about anything they had to say about computers, since it's not really an area of expertise you'd expect an older person to cover. I'd be willing to be proven wrong, though. I mean, some old people are very wise about these things.

Maria: Is the older generation better at fixing things?

Rory: Like I said, it depends on what we're talking about. Stuff that's been around longer, like simple electrical devices like lamps, should be pretty easy to advise on how to fix. But more modern and complex gadgets might be a struggle for them. It would be hard for anyone to fix, frankly speaking, unless you have a degree or something like that.

Maria: Do you think handmade clothes are more valuable?

Rory: Well, they could be, I guess, especially if they're particularly vintage or they use valuable or unusual materials or a particular style. I'm not well-versed in fashion, though, so I have no idea what specific things that might involve, just the generalities. Obviously, quality matters as well. No one wants to buy something that falls to pieces easily.

Maria: Do you think clothes produced in the factory are of better quality than those made by hand?

Rory: Well, that's a pretty broad question, to be honest. So much of that depends on the technicalities of it all. I mean, a factory that uses something like substandard materials that fall apart in days of being bought, then clearly that's not much good. But if you buy something made by a barely trained person with a home business who uses good stuff but has no idea how to put things together, then that's not going to be much better. So, I suppose it's less about the process and more about how it interacts with the other parts of the equation. At least, that's how it seems to me.