English Language Blog

Summertime and the livin’ is easy

Posted on 19. Jun, 2012 by gabriele in Culture, English Vocabulary

I think it is fair to say summer has finally arrived (at least for those of us in the northern hemisphere).  The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, the bugs are biting, and people are ready to go outside!  To celebrate summer I want to look at some summertime vocabulary over my next few posts.  In these posts we will be looking at summer clothing and common summertime activities.  First though, let me introduce you to a classic summertime song written by a famous American composer named George Gershwin.  This song was written for an American opera entitled Porgy and Bess.  This song uses a very casual form of English speaking and writing.  In this song all the words that usually (and should) end in “-ing” end in “n’.”  This is a common way to shorten words when speaking in English.  You are not as likely to see the n’ abbreviation in written English, but you are very likely to hear it in spoken English.  I hope you take a look at the song below and a listen to the audio/video recording of this song being sung by Ella Fitzgerald to help get you in the mood for summer and the summer vocabulary I am going to introduce to you tomorrow.  I have defined the words that are starred in the song at the bottom of this post.  If there are any other words you would like to know the definitions for, just let me know.

Enjoy and remember, it is summertime so the living should be easy, relaxed, and fun!

“Summertime”

Summertime and the livin’ is easy
Fish are jumpin’ and the cotton is high
Oh, your daddy’s rich and your ma is good-lookin’
So hush*, little baby; don’t you cry

One of these mornings you’re gonna** rise up singing
And you’ll spread your wings and you’ll take to the sky
But till*** that morning, there ain’t**** nothin’ can harm you
With daddy and mammy***** standin’ by

Here is a video of the famous Ella Fitzgerald singing this song.

*hush = be quiet
**gonna = going to
***till = until
**** ain’t = isn’t
***** mammy = mother (commonly used words for mother are: mom, ma, mama)

Tags: summer, summertime, summertime and the liven' is easy

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About gabriele

Hi there! I am one of Transparent Language's ESL bloggers. I am a 32-year-old native English speaker who was born and raised in the United States. I am living in Washington, DC now, but I have lived all over the US and also spent many years living and working abroad. I started teaching English as a second language in 2005 after I completing a Master's in Applied Linguists and a Certificate in English Language Teaching to Adults' (CELTA). Since that time I have taught ESL in the United States at the community college and university level. I have also gone on to pursue my doctorate in psychology and now I also teach courses in psychology. I like to stay connected to ESL learners around the world through Transparent Languages ESL Blog. Please ask questions and leave comments on the blog and I will be sure to answer them.

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