Today we're looking at the phrase "in lieu" which is a French word, often used in English workplaces. I hope you find it useful!

DAILY Business English VOCABULARY builder

I'm sorry, you can't have that. Can I give you this instead?

Let's go for a walk in Saint-Petersburg again! I'll tell you about places where young people usually hung out. If you visited Saint-Petersburg I'd be happy to hear about your favorite places in the city. All episode is in Russian. Good for B1-B2 level

Russian Fluency

Walking in Saint-Petersburg Part 2

Luke Littler became the youngest world champion in darts history on January 3 when the 17-year-old Englishman beat three-time champion Michael van Gerwen 7-3 in the final.

"Everyone dreams of lifting this trophy," Littler said after beating van Gerwen. "I can't believe it."

The teenager has also become a sporting sensation. He's an ordinary English teenager who enjoys fast food and video games but has an extraordinary talent for throwing darts.

That talent has earned him fame and fortune. He made $1.28 million in prize money during 2024 and he added another $620,000 to that when he won the 2025 World Championship.

He has become one of the most talked about sports stars in the UK since finishing as the World Championship runner-up in 2024.

According to Google, he was the most searched sportsperson in the UK in December, and the third-most searched celebrity, behind only Donald Trump and Kate Middleton.

Littler's success has also helped bring darts back into the mainstream.

Although Littler is young, he's been working at his game for more than a decade. There are videos of him throwing magnetic darts while still wearing a diaper.

Van Gerwen was previously the youngest world champion in the elite Professional Darts Corporation competition, winning the 2014 final at age 24.

Van Gerwen said losing his record "hurt" but was full of praise for Littler.

"Every 17 years a star gets born," Van Gerwen said, "and he is one of them."

Many were already wondering if Littler can reach Phil Taylor's record of 16 world titles. Claiming a first title at age 17 will now supercharge that conversation.

Practice Listening, Reading & Comprehension

17-Year-Old Becomes Youngest Darts World Champion

Here in this podcast we will talk about functional languages and how they will be useful for you! 

Book an appointment: https://teach.italki.com/teacher/4464159

Try Pimsleur for 7 days and see if this wonderful learning app is right for you! https://imp.i271380.net/c/2790308/973051/11472

The Language Bro

Functional Languages

The system of Chinese characters is a language system with the longest history, and is used by the largest population in the world. Chinese characters are something akin to an art form or a magic cubic puzzle. Many people from other countries may find Chinese characters study a formidable task. This audio will help you to get know about what Chinese characters are, and I hope this will stimulate your interest in learning Chinese.

Learning Chinese culture with Miss Zhang

Chinese characters 1

Hi, and welcome back to Captain Seasalt and the ABC Pirates with Teacher Alyse!
Today, we’re going on an adventure to learn words that start with the letter R. Are you ready? Listen carefully, repeat after me, and then try reading them on your own.
Rat, raisins, robin, roses, reindeer, rooster, rabbit, raccoon, raspberries, raven, rhinoceros, rattlesnake.
Great job!  Keep practicing, and if you’d like free flashcards to follow along, send me a message. You can also watch this Super Simple Songs Captain Seasalt video on YouTube to learn even more!
See you next time—bye for now!


Captain Sesalt & The ABC Pirates

Letter R

From the Book Pocket Rainbow:
Chapter: Scarlet
In this chapter, Ntombi as various recollections of her mother -- some positive, some traumatic. We understand why she's on the street at age 14. 

Please note: there are thousands of colours in a rainbow, not just seven. The titles of the chapters reflect that. 

Pocket Rainbow

Scarlet

こんにちは、あかりです。今日(きょう)は、鳥(とり)のいる生活(せいかつ)について話(はな)します。

Usage of Slow Japanese:
STEP 1. Listen to the episode without seeing the scripts.
STEP 2. Go to mochifika.com/podcast/ and check "Key vocabularies of this episode", and listen again to the episode while seeing the list.
STEP 3. Check the whole script, it'll fill the gap in your understanding.

👉Support the Mochifika project, and see full scripts + access to the additional materials!
https://www.patreon.com/mochifika

Buy me a coffee:
https://www.buymeacoffee.com/mochifika