English through Music

Adele: Hello

Reaching out after a long silence

B1–B2Approximately 32 minutesAdults

Created by Denis M., British English teacher.

01 Watch 02 Useful English 03 Quick quiz 04 Speaking

Your goal: Understand an attempt to reconnect and practise language for careful conversations.

Regret, an ended relationship and unsuccessful attempts to reconnect.

01 · 8 minutes

Watch

Watch the complete video once without pausing. Focus on the overall meaning and mood; you do not need to catch every word.

Listen for the speaker’s purpose in contacting someone and the difficulty of making contact.

If the player cannot load or reports an error, open the video on YouTube.

Open on YouTube

Choose one word for your first reaction. There is no correct answer.

02 · 5 minutes

Useful English

Four useful items connected with the song. Definitions and examples are original; not every item is claimed to appear in the recording.

British English vocabulary audio

Open the full MP3

Choose an item to hear its word, meaning and example.

reach out

phrasal verb

To contact someone to offer support or begin communication.

I reached out to an old classmate after several years.

make amends

verb phrase

To try to repair harm caused by something you did.

He offered to replace the broken cup to make amends.

drift apart

phrasal verb

To gradually become less close to someone.

We drifted apart after we moved to different cities.

closure

noun, uncountable

A feeling that a difficult experience has ended and can be left behind.

Finishing the final meeting gave the team a sense of closure.

Closure is not guaranteed by one conversation or another person’s reply.

03 · 9 minutes

Quick quiz

Choose one answer for each question. Questions 1–2 focus on the song; questions 3–6 practise useful vocabulary.

Open the six-question quiz

1. Why does the speaker try to make contact?

To arrange a first meeting with a complete stranger.To announce that the past has never mattered to her.To reconnect and express regret about the past.

2. How is communication presented?

The two people are having a relaxed conversation every day.The speaker describes repeated attempts without a successful response.Both people have already agreed never to discuss the past again.

3. You reach out to a former colleague. What do you do?

You physically stretch your arm towards them.You criticise them in public.You contact them.

4. Which action best shows someone trying to make amends?

Repairing damage they caused and apologising.Explaining that nobody should care about the damage.Waiting for someone else to accept all responsibility.

5. Two friends drift apart. What usually changes?

They suddenly move in together.They gradually become less close.They become friends for the first time.

6. A final discussion gives someone closure. What does this mean?

It helps them feel the matter is finished.It forces them to restart the disagreement.It proves that every memory was inaccurate.

1–2 minGrammar in a minuteB1–B2 · A careful indirect question

An indirect question can make an invitation to reconnect less abrupt.

I was wondering if you had time to talk.

Original practice model, not a song lyric

After if in an indirect yes/no question, use statement order: you had, not did you have. The opening softens the approach; it does not guarantee that the other person wants to talk.

Choose the correctly ordered indirect question.I was wondering if you were free this afternoon.I was wondering if were you free this afternoon.I was wondering if did you be free this afternoon.

Grammar support

B1–B2Indirect questions

04 · 10 minutes

Speaking

Give your opinion and explain it. Different reactions are welcome. You may use invented examples instead of personal experiences.

Open the three speaking questions

1. What makes an apology sound sincere?

Name one useful action as well as useful words.

An apology sounds sincere when…

2. How can someone reach out without putting pressure on the other person?

Give a short, respectful opening.

I was wondering if…

3. Can people find closure without receiving an explanation?

Give a reason for your view; an invented example is welcome.

It may be possible because…

Back to English Through Music