Self driving cars are officially here
Today's story: Self-driving cars have struggled for decades because driving requires human judgment in unpredictable situations. Early syste...
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Learn English the fun way—by listening to a podcast in English! Plain English is a program that you can understand! Join Jeff twice a week for an American English podcast about current event...
Today's story: Self-driving cars have struggled for decades because driving requires human judgment in unpredictable situations. Early syste...

Learn the English phrasal verb, "fill out" Get the full story and learning resources: https://plainenglish.com/expressions/fill-out -- Plain...
Today's story: French authorities arrested suspects in the Louvre heist, but there was another high-profile museum robbery. The Air Canada C...

Learn the English expression, "track down" Get the full story and learning resources: https://plainenglish.com/expressions/track-down -- Pla...
Today's story: Hachette, a major book publisher, pulled a horror novel from bookstore shelves after online critics found the text was full o...

Learn the English expression, "Add up" Explore the full lesson & practice using today's expression: https://plainenglish.com/expressions/add...
Today's story: Mahjong, a traditional Chinese tile game, is gaining popularity again around the world. Once a major trend in the U.S., it de...

Learn how to use the English phrasal verb, "figure out" Get the full story and learning resources: https://plainenglish.com/expressions/figu...
Today's story: GLP-1 drugs, originally developed for diabetes and later used for weight loss, are now showing surprising benefits in other a...

Learn the English expression, "come up with" Get the full story and learning resources: https://plainenglish.com/expressions/come-up-with --...
Today's story: Pennsylvania Station was once one of the most beautiful train stations in the United States, but the building was demolished...

Learn how to use the English expression "up close" Get the full story and learning resources: https://plainenglish.com/expressions/up-close...
Today's story: Alex Honnold, a 40-year-old American climber famous for his "free solo" climbs without ropes, thrilled millions of viewers by...

Learn the English expression, "show up" Explore the full lesson & practice using today's expression: https://plainenglish.com/expressions/sh...
Today's story: For decades, the United States followed other wealthy democracies in becoming less religious. The share of Americans identify...

Learn how to use the English expression, "come to grips" Explore the full lesson & practice using today's expression: https://plainenglish.c...
Today's story: The 2026 Winter Olympics were kind to some 40-something competitors, but devastating to the skier Lindsay Vonn. Mikhail Shaid...

Learn the expert-level English expression "turn the tables" Get the full story and learning resources: https://plainenglish.com/expressions/...
Today's story: When a Canadian producer pitched a TV adaptation of a gay hockey romance novel, major U.S. streamers hesitated. It was about...

Learn the English expression "run out" (and listen until the end to hear what Jeff's first boss said he can *never* run out of...) Explore t...
Today's story: Coffee is one of the world’s most popular drinks, but not everyone drinks it the same way. The two most popular styles, espre...

There's no getting around it: you need to learn the English expression "get around" Explore the full lesson & practice using today's express...
Today's story: A “millionaire” is someone with a net worth of one million dollars. But the reality of a million dollars today is very differ...
Today's story: The 2026 World Cup will be jointly hosted by the U.S., Canada, and Mexico. FIFA says it has received over 500 million ticket...

Learn the English expression, "turn in." Explore the full lesson & practice using today's expression: https://plainenglish.com/expressions/t...
Today's story: The Hudson’s Bay Company started as a fur trading monopoly in British North America, thanks to a royal charter signed by King...

Learn the English expression "fall for" (hint: it's not something you want to do!) Explore the full lesson & practice using today's expressi...

Today's story: Southeast Asia has become the global hub of online scams, where scammers in massive compounds target workers around the world...

Learn how to use the English expression, " get rid of ". What things do you need to get rid of? Explore the full lesson & practice using tod...
Today's story: LEDs have replaced older light sources in homes, offices, cars, and city streets. They are more efficient, longer-lasting, an...

Learn what it means to have your work cut out for you (hint: it's not about cutting). Explore the full lesson & practice using today's expre...
Today's story: Wine has been part of daily human life for centuries, and today it's produced in 70 countries. But winemakers and vineyards a...

Learn how to use the expression “keep your options open,” a phrase people use when they haven’t yet made a decision. Explore the full lesson...
Today's story: Labubu is a mischievous, rabbit-eared character created by illustrator Kasing Lung. Chinese toymaker Pop Mart has turned Labu...

We're starting the new year right at Plain English, with a new learning path to help you learn the best English expressions. At PlainEnglish...

Revisit this classic lesson on cognitive switching from the Plain English archives: What is cognitive switching? It’s when you switch your a...

Enjoy this episode from the Plain English archives (with a recent update for 2025): The San José, a Spanish treasure ship carrying gold, sil...
Today's story: Classic stories are an important part of Christmas traditions for both kids and adults. They teach values of generosity, fami...
Today's story: Ted Danson stars in *Man on the Inside*, a warm, thoughtful comedy about a retired professor who becomes a private investigat...
Today's story: Though most Christmas trees are plastic, millions of families like to get live Christmas trees every year. Real trees are gro...
Today's story: Scientists used to rely on stickers to track monarch butterfly migration—but that only showed where a butterfly started and e...
Today's story: Monarch butterflies migrate thousands of kilometers from across the U.S. and Canada to just a few mountain forests in central...
Today's story: The United States Mint struck its final penny in November 2025, ending a 232-year run of producing the one-cent coin. The dec...
Today's story: Zippers are everywhere: on clothes, bags, and accessories. But the basic design of a zipper hasn't changed in a century. Now,...

We're opening up the archives to repeat episode 223 from January 2020, just before COVID-19 halted air travel. Enjoy! -- In between economy...

Today's episode is one from the archives, originally number 583. Enjoy! -- Cold plunges are the new health trend championed by high-fliers a...
Today's story: Parkrun is a free, volunteer-run event that takes place every Saturday morning in parks around the world. Participants run, j...
Today's story: Snake bites kill over 100,000 people each year, but antivenom (the treatment for poisonous snake bites) has hardly changed in...
Today's story: Screen time among senior citizens has been growing recently, as more and more retirees use phones and tablets, in addition to...
Today's story: Publishers Clearing House made its name by offering magazine subscriptions through the mail—along with the chance to win big...