Learn English with Bob the Canadian

Read along to practice your English and to learn the English phrases "to shoot for" and "Oh, shoot!"
TRANSCRIPT:
In this English lesson, I wanted to help you learn the English phrase to shoot for. When you shoot for something, it means you're planning to do that. If you were to ask me, Bob, how many videos, how many English lessons are you going to put out on this channel? I'm going to shoot for one per week.
I'm going to try and put out one video per week. I know in the past, I was putting out two per week, but I feel like as I relaunch this channel, I think I'm going to shoot for one English lesson per week. And I will probably shoot for putting that English lesson out on Wednesdays.
So it's Tuesday right now, if you haven't figured it out. So when you shoot for something, it means you plan on doing that. The other phrase I wanted to teach you today is the phrase oh, shoot. And this is just a really nice way of saying a different word so that you don't say that word, which is kind of a curse word or swear word.
When you say oh, shoot, it's an exclamation that you make when something goes wrong. If I dropped this paper, I'd be like, oh, shoot. But if I wanted to say something a little bit more crude, if, I wanted to use a swear word, I would use the word that starts with the same two letters and ends with the same letter, but instead of two O's, it has an I in the middle.
And I think you know what I'm talking about. It's not a super, like, bad swear word, but it is a swear word. So. So when you say oh, shoot, it simply means, something just went wrong. So to review, when you shoot for something, it means you are aiming for that, you are trying to accomplish that.
And when you say oh, shoot, it's the same as saying oh, sh. Maybe I'll just switch and go to a comment from a previous video instead of actually saying that word. Let me get the comment out. This comment is from Judit or Aerosmith77.
It was a really good start with two videos. Do I remember well, your videos were cut for 4 minutes and 8 seconds. This video lasted 4 minutes and 18 seconds. Is it planned this way also? Thank you for the video and my response. I used to stop at exactly four minutes, but now I tend to go over a bit if I go too long the transcript doesn't fit in the description box below the video.
There is a 5,000 character limit, so I shoot for four minutes. So thanks, Judit. Thanks, Aerosmith77 for that comment. So, yes, if I talk for too long or if I talk too fast, then, the transcript doesn't fit in the description below the video.
So I usually try to aim for about four minutes, because that's kind of like the sweet spot. I guess I say about 5,000 letters or that many words. Hard to kind of explain this. I say about 5,000 letters in about four minutes.
This is getting boring. I should show you something exciting. Let me switch quickly and say, here is a camper van, or more of a camper. I guess it's a little big to be called a camper van. I'm not sure what this is doing in my local town.
It is not camping season. I also think there's a dog inside, so I'm not going to go close to that at all. If you remember, a few years ago, I had a bad experience with two dogs running out, and, they were pretty vicious. Not from a camper, but, while I was walking down the road.
But, I'm not sure what that's doing out and about. Oh, like, I got 30 seconds left. I have to be careful here. I... I'm not sure what that's doing out and about in February, but, as you can see, I have no winter hat and no gloves because I think it might actually be one degree now, I thought earlier it was minus two or minus one, but, man, it feels a lot warmer than that.
So, anyways, thanks for watching this short English lesson, and I'll have another one ready for you, in a week. Bye.

In this English lesson I will help you learn about regional differences in the English language. What might seem like a mistake in one place, might actually be fine in another.
In particular I talk about the verbs to bring and to take, which to native English speakers in my area can be used interchangeably in different situations.
I hope you enjoy this English lesson. Have a great day!

In this English live lesson I'll spend about 1 hour answering all of your questions about the English language. Come and enjoy the time together in the chat with other English learners and pick up a few things! I'm sure you'll enjoy it!
In this live English class you can ask me questions about the English language, or anything else that you've been wanting to ask a native English speaker, and I'll do my best to answer them. I'm always happy to help!
This English lesson is from Saturday February 7, 2026.

In this fun and practical English lesson, you’ll learn quirky, everyday idioms and expressions that native speakers use all the time in real conversations. These sayings can sound strange at first, but once you understand them, they make your English sound more natural, relaxed, and confident.
In the English class I'll help you learn phrases like: an apple a day keeps the doctor away, to hold your horses, to spill the beans, to hit the nail on the head, to bark up the wrong tree, to pull someone’s leg, to go off the rails, to be on thin ice, to throw in the towel, and many more! You’ll hear what each one means, when people use it, and how it to pronounce each one.
By the end of this lesson, you’ll be able to recognize these playful expressions when you hear them and start using them naturally in your own speaking. I hope you enjoy this English lesson about idioms!

Read along to practice your English and to learn the English phrases "in good shape" and "in bad shape"
In this English lesson, I wanted to help you learn the English phrase in good shape. When we say something is in good shape, it means that, well, let's say we're talking about a vehicle. That would mean it has no rust on it. The engine runs really, really well. The thing is in good shape.
The thing is, not falling apart. That would be the opposite. You can also use this to talk about people. If you say he's in good shape, it usually means he has some muscles and he's healthy. He's not overweight. He's in good shape. The other phrase I wanted to teach you today is the phrase in bad shape.
Now, if I was talking about a vehicle and I said it was in bad shape, that would mean it's probably rusty. It probably has holes in the side. When you try to start it, it might not start the first time it is in bad shape.
But when we talk about people, this means something slightly different. If you're in good shape, you're healthy and you have muscles and you're not overweight. But when you're in bad shape, it sometimes means that you're hurt. After a car accident, you might say, oh, he's in bad shape.
He has a broken arm and he has a broken leg. Then that person would be in bad shape. So it doesn't mean the opposite of healthy. It more means, like, injured. So to review, if a car is in good shape, it means that it looks really good.
The paint looks good, the engine runs very smoothly. If a person's in good shape, it means that they're healthy and muscular and go to the gym a lot. If a car or something else is in bad shape, it means it probably has rust on it and the engine doesn't run well. If a computer is in bad shape, it means it just doesn't turn on all the time.
And if a person is in bad shape, it usually is used to describe them after something like a car accident when they have, injuries. But, hey, let's look at a comment from a previous video. This comment is from Mahsa.
Hello, Bob. Oh, hello, Mr. Bob. You haven't been active on this channel in the last few months. What was the reason in my response, And I have said this a number of times, so sorry if you've heard this a million times. I broke my collarbone last summer, and it has taken a while for me to feel a hundred percent.
I also had a very busy schedule in the fall at school. Now I'm feeling much better, and my schedule is much nicer. So, thanks, Mahsa, for that, question. And, it was fun to be able to kind of let you know the reason and I'll explain in a little more detail.
I didn't just break my collarbone. I also tore a hamstring. And that seems to have caused it to take a long time for me to heal. But I have been feeling pretty good since last fall. But in the school year, there are semesters.
And last semester, or in my school year, not every school has that. I had, to teach period two and three. So I basically was at work almost like it was full time. When I normally teach part time, I either teach for most of the morning or most of the afternoon.
And so that was a little different for me. I've never had that schedule before. And it was, hard to get used to. I found I was spending more time at work than I should have been. By the way, this van, it's in good shape, sort of, but it is starting to rust a little bit.
It's our least reliable vehicle. It's not on the road right now. We take it off the road in the winter, because we don't have as many drivers. Two of my kids are at university. So yeah, my semester, last semester was really busy. Now I'm teaching in the afternoons.
So when I go to work, on a Monday, when, I go to work this Monday, I will... Oh, by the way, it's the weekend right now. I'm recording this early. I should have told you that. Not that that's that important. Anyways, I don't have to go to work until about 10 or 11 in the morning.
Anyways, that's it for this little short lesson. I'll see you next week with another short English lesson.