Hi, I'm Alex 👋
This is the game I began learning English with, so it’s very special to me! Press play, read along and pick up the phrases that helped me years ago.
After Resident Evil Requiem, I went back to the original Resident Evil 2 and the Raccoon City Police Department. 🚓 The dialogue is short and dramatic, perfect for learners: Buckle up, first day on the job, Hold your fire, I don’t have a clue, Hang in there. I also explain where 9mm Parabellum and This too shall pass come from.
Tap any line of the interactive script to jump to that moment. Then flip the vocabulary cards and try the exercises.
▶️ Watch and read along
Where it all began
- Alex: And the thing is that I remember that I began learning English with this game…
- Guy’s a maniac. <mark>Why’d</mark> he bite me?
- Alex: Why did he bite me?
Buckle up
- <mark>Buckle up</mark>.
- Alex: So, fasten your seat belts.
- Radio’s out.
- Claire: You’re a cop, right?
- Leon: Yeah. <mark>First day on the job</mark>. Great, huh? <mark>Name’s</mark> Kennedy. Nice to meet you.
- Claire: <mark>Mine’s</mark> Claire Redfield.
Quite a mouthful
- Alex: “They were parted by an <mark>inescapable destiny</mark>.” Yep. That’s quite a <mark>mouthful</mark>.
Hold your fire
- Who are you? What are you doing here?
- <mark>Hold your fire</mark>. I’m human.
- Sorry about that. I thought you were one of them.
- What’s going on in this town?
- <mark>I don’t have a clue</mark>. By the time I noticed something was wrong, the entire city was <mark>infested with</mark> zombies.
9mm Parabellum
- Alex: I was reading a description of a handgun, and it says it uses 9mm Parabellum rounds. What does it stand for?
- Alex: So the 9mm means millimetres, which refers to the <mark>diameter</mark> of the bullet. In other words, the bullet is 9mm wide.
- Alex: And Parabellum is the name of the <mark>cartridge</mark> type, originally developed for the Luger pistol in Germany around 1902.
- Alex: The word comes from Latin: <i>si vis pacem, para bellum</i>. If you want peace, prepare for war.
This too shall pass
- Alex: <mark>This too shall pass.</mark> Look at that expression. I’d never read it playing the game.
- Alex: Apparently, it means this difficult or unpleasant situation will not last forever. It’s a way of reminding yourself that everything is <mark>temporary</mark>, even bad moments.
- Alex: The expression is often linked to an old Persian story. According to the legend, a king asked his wise men to create a sentence that would always be true in every situation, whether he was happy or sad.
- Alex: They gave him the phrase “This too shall pass”. Why? Good moments pass, bad moments pass too. Everything changes.
Running out of bullets
- Alex: Okay, we’ve <mark>run out of</mark> bullets, <mark>haven’t we</mark>?
- Alex: Okay, we’ve run out of bullets. That is not good, <mark>is it</mark>?
- Alex: Is it Lickers? Yeah, I think that’s Lickers.
- Alex: <mark>Do you mind if</mark> I just run past? Thank you very much.
- Alex: That’s very good. We <mark>got away with it</mark>.
- Alex: I don’t think that’s a good idea, because we’ve <mark>nearly run out of</mark> ammo.
Shutters and ink ribbons
- Alex: So if we talk about a <mark>shutter</mark>… a metal covering that protects the windows and entrance of a shop.
- Will you take the <mark>ink ribbon</mark>?
- Alex: Yeah, of course. With that one, you can save your progress in the game.
Hang in there
- Marvin: Who? Who are you? Oh, you must be the new guy. Leon, sorry, but it looks like your party has been cancelled.
- Leon: What happened?
- Marvin: About two months ago, there was this incident involving zombies in a mansion located in the <mark>outskirts</mark> of this city.
- Marvin: Chris and the other S.T.A.R.S. members discovered that Umbrella was behind everything. They <mark>risked their lives</mark> to reveal the truth, but no one believed them.
- Marvin: Not long after that, all this started to happen.
- Leon: <mark>Hang in there</mark>.
- Marvin: Don’t worry about me. Just rescue the survivors in the other rooms. Here, take this key card. You should be able to unlock the doors in the hall with this. Now, go.
- Leon: But…
- Marvin: Just go!
- Leon: Fine, but I’m coming back for you. <mark>Just hold on</mark>.
Short excerpts are quoted for teaching purposes; all rights belong to their owners.
Want to watch the whole video? It’s on my YouTube channel: Playing Resident Evil 2 but I’m an English Teacher: Back to the RPD After RE9 Requiem.
🃏 Words from this episode
- Buckle up: fasten your seat belt. Also: get ready for something difficult or exciting!
- first day on the job: your first day at a new job
- Name’s… / Mine’s…: “Name’s Kennedy” = My name is Kennedy. “Mine’s Claire” = My name is Claire.
- a mouthful: a word or phrase that is long and difficult to say
- Hold your fire!: don’t shoot!
- not have a clue: to know nothing about something
- infested with: full of animals, insects (or zombies!) in large, unpleasant numbers
- This too shall pass: this difficult situation won’t last forever
- run out of: to use all of something so there is none left
- Do you mind if I…?: a polite way to ask for permission. Answer “No, go ahead” if it’s okay!
- get away with it: to do something risky or wrong and not get caught or hurt
- shutter: a metal or wooden cover that protects a window or shop entrance
- outskirts: the areas at the edge of a town or city
- Hang in there: don’t give up; stay strong
🔗 Exercise 1: Match the phrase to its meaning
- Buckle up
- Hold your fire
- not have a clue
- This too shall pass
- get away with it
- Hang in there
✍️ Exercise 2: Fill the gap
- “___ up.”
- “Yeah. First day on the ___. Great, huh?”
- “Hold your ___. I’m human.”
- “I don’t have a ___.”
- “…the entire city was ___ with zombies.”
- “This too shall ___.”
- “Okay, we’ve ___ out of bullets, haven’t we?”
- “That’s very good. We got ___ with it.”
- “…a mansion located in the ___ of this city.”
- “___ in there.”
🔽 Exercise 3: Pick the right question tag
- “Okay, we’ve run out of bullets, ___?”
- “That is not good, ___?”
- “You’re a cop, ___?”
- Grammar check: “Leon was a new cop, ___?”
🧠 Exercise 4: Quick quiz
- “Name’s Kennedy.” What’s the full sentence?
- “Why’d he bite me?” What does “why’d” stand for here?
- Where does “Parabellum” come from?
- When would you say “This too shall pass”?
- “Do you mind if I just run past?” If it’s okay, the polite answer is…
- If something is a mouthful, it is…
Which game did you learn English with? Tell me in the comments on YouTube. I’d love to know! And remember: this too shall pass. 🚓
Alex