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All Ears English Podcast

AEE 2641: Should You Call Someone a Bummer?

25 Jun 2026

Transcription

Transcript generated automatically by AI and may contain errors.

Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?

0.031 - 16.587 Aubrey Carter

This is an All Ears English podcast, episode 2641. Should you call someone a bummer? Welcome to the All Ears English podcast, downloaded more than 200 million times. Are you feeling stuck with your English?

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Chapter 2: What does it mean to call someone a bummer?

16.968 - 48.228 Aubrey Carter

We'll show you how to become fearless and fluent by focusing on connection, not perfection with your American host, Aubrey Carter, the IELTS whiz, and Lindsay McMahon, the English adventurer. coming to you from Arizona and Colorado, USA. To get real-time transcripts right on your phone and create your personalized vocabulary list, try the All Ears English app for iOS and Android.

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48.388 - 54.456 Aubrey Carter

Start your seven-day free trial at allearsenglish.com forward slash app.

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59.38 - 71.871 Lindsay McMahon

the words you use need to match the gravity of the situation. Do you know when to use the word bummer and when not to? Today, find out how to make sure you don't trivialize a situation in English.

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76.357 - 103.731 Shannon Maldonado

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104.993 - 112.808 Aubrey Carter

Hey, Aubrey, how's it going? I'm great. How are you, Lindsay? Good. Aubrey, is there anything that's getting you down this week, making you feel kind of low?

113.169 - 123.188 Lindsay McMahon

Yeah, I just got home from vacation, which is always tough. I haven't had to cook for anyone in several days. Now I'm like, what do I make for dinner?

123.168 - 129.804 Aubrey Carter

Yeah, there's always a bit of a letdown when you come home from vacation, right? Yeah, get back to work and everything. That's such a bummer.

130.185 - 140.569 Lindsay McMahon

Really, it is such a bummer that I have to start having my mom responsibilities back. It's always kind of nice to get a break, but yeah.

141.055 - 146.868 Aubrey Carter

So today we're talking on the show about the word bummer. I mean, this is, it doesn't get more slangy than this, right?

Chapter 3: When should you use the word bummer in conversation?

226.241 - 228.987 Aubrey Carter

Like the death of a family member is not a bummer.

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229.307 - 238.847 Lindsay McMahon

Okay. Exactly. That's such a good point, right? If you're wanting to be a supportive, this could be offensive or just tone deaf, depending on the situation.

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239.307 - 259.116 Aubrey Carter

Right. Okay. So we got a lot to get into today. I love when we have a chance to break down slang into how to use it to connect. So guys, if you love our style, connection, not perfection is what we call it. Go ahead and hit the follow button right here on the podcast. Or if you prefer YouTube, go over to YouTube, find Allers English, hit subscribe.

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259.096 - 271.875 Lindsay McMahon

Yes. Awesome. So let's dive in and talk about when we can use bummer, right? This is for small or medium disappointments. So things that are annoying, but not devastating.

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272.215 - 277.583 Aubrey Carter

Yes, exactly. So you could say that something was a bummer, right? So for example, how was your date?

278.304 - 286.021 Lindsay McMahon

Oh, the cafe was closed when we arrived. It was such a bummer. Yeah, right. It's not that big of a deal. A little bit of a disappointment, but not the end of the world.

286.984 - 292.399 Aubrey Carter

Exactly. We can also frame this in what a bummer. So what seat did you get on the flight?

293.161 - 294.505 Lindsay McMahon

I got the middle seat.

295.387 - 301.838 Aubrey Carter

What a bummer. Exactly. Right. I'm always in the middle. I'm always in the middle. Honestly, this is where I live. I often am too.

Chapter 4: What are examples of situations where bummer is appropriate?

744.586 - 748.513 Aubrey Carter

And also you could say, you know, what a downer, right? How was your work dinner?

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748.773 - 753.081 Lindsay McMahon

It started off well, but then they announced budget cuts. What a downer.

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753.483 - 776.233 Lindsay McMahon

not good that's a good way to ruin a work dinner that's horrible yeah big downer so these are good ones downer right and let down are really good examples of things that feel about the same as bummer okay exactly let's do a role play here you and i went on vacation in this replay and we had high expectations but we were let down by the whole experience oh that's the worst

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776.213 - 779 Aubrey Carter

All right, here we go. I was so excited for this vacation.

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779.061 - 784.174 Lindsay McMahon

Me too. The hotel pictures looked so good, but the reality is kind of a letdown.

784.194 - 788.586 Aubrey Carter

I know. The rooms are smaller and a little outdated. It's such a bummer.

788.887 - 793.593 Lindsay McMahon

The hotel restaurant isn't the best either. The food is okay, but the service is really slow.

793.633 - 804.188 Aubrey Carter

Yeah. And the staff seem like they really don't want to be here. It's such a downer. Oh man, has that ever happened to you? You see the brochure, shiny, shiny, beautiful pictures. Yes.

805.309 - 819.81 Lindsay McMahon

I have a feeling everyone out there has experienced this at some point. And really this role play highlights how we do need multiple ways to say that. If you're going to have this conversation, imagine if you said disappointment over and over and over. No, we need lots of ways to express this.

Chapter 5: What situations should you avoid calling a bummer?

924.352 - 926.294 Aubrey Carter

This isn't the end of the world.

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926.554 - 933.022 Lindsay McMahon

Worst things are happening around the world, right? Yes, we're disappointed, but we're recognizing it could be worse.

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933.342 - 939.529 Aubrey Carter

That's another good example. Any kind of like war, global unrest is not a bummer. It's much deeper than that, right?

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940.069 - 944.494 Lindsay McMahon

That's really trivializing it to call it a bummer or a downer. Yes. Yes.

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944.474 - 960.643 Aubrey Carter

Yeah, that's exactly it. Don't trivialize big things, right? But use this in the right moment at the right time. It's perfect. Okay, guys, go over to 2566. Does strong English run in your family? Learn about how to talk about traits that you might share with family members.

960.623 - 977.972 Lindsay McMahon

Yes, I love this. This is such a great connection moment. There will be times when you are disappointed when something is a bummer. And there are some missteps you could accidentally make here. If you go too strong with the reaction, or if you call something a bummer, that shouldn't be because it is a really big deal.

978.293 - 982.159 Lindsay McMahon

So this is really vital for the connection that you set the right tone with your vocabulary.

982.291 - 1009.097 Aubrey Carter

Yeah, I love it. Missteps can break connection. So maintain the connection by knowing that tone. That's it right there. All right. Good stuff, Aubrey. We'll see you soon. Take care. Awesome. See you next time. Okay, bye. Bye. Thanks for listening to All Ears English. Would you like to know your English level? Take our two-minute quiz. Go to allearsenglish.com forward slash fluency score.

1009.318 - 1018.592 Aubrey Carter

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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