A vaccine for cancer

https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/features/6-minute-english_2025/ep-250227

breakthrough: sudden, dramatic and important discovery

a number of (something): or many; used to add credibility to what you are saying

Nothing to see here!: to encourage people to move or look away from something, or to stop them from paying it much attention

hijack: take control of something that does not belong to you for your own advantage

blind to (something): fail to notice or realise the threat of something

re-educate: teach somebody to think or behave in a new or different way

Young women on social media

https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/features/6-minute-english_2025/ep-250220

a soft spot: an affectionate liking or fondness for someone or something

spark: cause (a debate, conversation, fight etc) to start happening

intimidated: frightened or nervous because of a lack of confidence

Oh my gosh! / Oh my God!: of feelings such as shock, surprise, anger, disbelief

shrink yourself: make yourself smaller and don’t use your full potential in order to make others feel comfortable

stand up for (someone): vocal in defending or supporting a person who is being criticised or bullied

Rage bait: How online anger makes money

https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/features/6-minute-english_2025/ep-250213

rage bait: social media content designed to provoke an emotional reaction so that people engage with the content thereby generating income for the online creator

the more (X)… the more (Y)…: one thing (X) happens repeatedly, another thing (Y) happens more as a result

incite: encourage someone to do or feel something unpleasant or violent; stir up; provoke; rouse

manipulative: trying to influence or control someone to your advantage

eyeballs: the number of people viewing a particular website, television programme etc.

biases: feelings, often hidden or unconscious, either for or against an idea or a group of people

Why smells make us feel at home

https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/features/6-minute-english_2025/ep-250206

anosmic: unable to smell; having no sense of smell

weird: strange; unusual; odd; bizarre

a good chance: quite a high likelihood or probability (that something will happen)

out of the ordinary: unusual; uncommon; exceptional

scent: distinctive smell; smell produced by an animal

filter (something) out: remove or separate something unwanted from a substance

Becoming a musician

https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/features/6-minute-english_2025/250130

open mic nights: events where anyone can sing or play music

songwriters’ circles: meetings for people interested in writing their own music

a bunch of people: a group of people

take (someone) under your wing: protect or guide someone

busking: performing in a public place for money

busker: someone who performs on the street or in public places

main earner: main source of income

gigs: musical concerts

owe a lot (to someone or to something): success or happiness because of that person or thing

How the world learned to love fast food

https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/features/6-minute-english_2025/ep-250123

at the heart of: to be the most important part, or main cause, of something

can-do attitude: showing determination and confidence to take action and achieve results

The American dream: the idea that everyone in the United States of America has the chance to be successful and happy if they work hard

long-standing: having existed for a long time

a take on (something): variation of, or new way of presenting, something which already exists

the final nail in the coffin: (idiom) an event that causes the final end of something that had already started to fail

Which country has the best schools?

https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/features/6-minute-english_2025/ep-250116

contentious: argued about, controversial

outpace: go faster than

rival: a competitor

knowledge economy: a service economy based on highly skilled industries such as IT, finance or advanced engineering

regardless: without considering, or being influenced by

segregate: separate and keep apart

Eating 50-year-old stew

https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/features/6-minute-english_2025/ep-250109

perpetual stew: pot of stew into which new ingredients are regularly added so that the food is kept going and can be eaten over a long time

simmering: cooking at a temperature slightly below boiling so that the food bubbles gently

replenish: fill up again

not strictly true: not completely or entirely true

from scratch: from the beginning, without the help of anything that has already been made

cumbersome: difficult to do; taking a lot of time and effort

Are you drinking enough water?

https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/features/6-minute-english_2025/ep-250102

arrive at (a number or statistic): decide on it after doing calculations

take grip on: take control of

pretty much: almost; almost completely

ballpark figure: a number which is a guess but an acceptably accurate approximation

dehydration: condition of not having enough water in your body so that you feel ill or weak

symptom: sign or feeling in the body showing the presence of an illness or a condition