Rough Translation How are the things we're talking about being talked about somewhere else in the world? Gregory Warner tells stories that follow familiar conversations into unfamiliar territory. At a time when the world seems small but it's as hard as ever to escape our echo chambers, Rough Translation takes you places.

Rough Translation

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How are the things we're talking about being talked about somewhere else in the world? Gregory Warner tells stories that follow familiar conversations into unfamiliar territory. At a time when the world seems small but it's as hard as ever to escape our echo chambers, Rough Translation takes you places.

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Global communication specialist Heather Hansen has a stock of English language books that no longer fit her approach to teaching. Heather Hansen hide caption

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Heather Hansen

Fan Favorites: How to Speak Bad English

Gregory talks "inside baseball" of American English. And we revisit an episode that sparked a lot of conversation among listeners in 2021–about the global pursuit of "good English" and what it takes to change the multi-billion dollar industry built around it.

Fan Favorites: How to Speak Bad English

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Chinese celebrity Xiao Zhan at an event in Nanjing, China, promoting his web drama, The Untamed. VCG/VCG via Getty Images hide caption

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VCG/VCG via Getty Images

Fan Favorites: Dream Boy and the Poison Fans

The unlikely places that fandom can take us, and how to know when we've gone too far. This week, we revisit an episode from 2020. And don't forget to subscribe to Gregory's Substack.

Fan Favorites: Dream Boy and the Poison Fans

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Mohamed Barud Ali

Fan Favorites: Anna in Somalia

Gregory tells a story about his first job out of college. And we revisit an episode from 2017. Also, what's your favorite Rough Translation episode? Let us know.

Fan Favorites: Anna in Somalia

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Rough Translation host Gregory Warner reports from Nairobi, Kenya. Moses Omusula/courtesy of Gregory Warner hide caption

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Moses Omusula/courtesy of Gregory Warner

This Is Not A Goodbye

Our host Gregory Warner reads your tweets and drops some big news about Rough Translation. Subscribe to Gregory's Substack and follow him on Twitter to stay on the journey. And coming soon: episodes revisiting our archives, plus an exciting summer season in collaboration with NPR's international desk.

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When doctors in Ukraine put out a call for abortion pills, a group of Ukrainian women answer. Oksana Drachkovska for NPR hide caption

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Oksana Drachkovska for NPR

Ukraine: The Handoff

We travel to Ukraine to follow a shipment of abortion pills, and discover a complicated conversation about pregnancy and choice in wartime. Part 2 of our collaboration with Radiolab.

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A doctor sees an essential medicine is needed in Ukraine and assembles a group of strangers to get it there. Oksana Drachkovska for NPR hide caption

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Oksana Drachkovska for NPR

Ukraine: Under The Counter

One weekend. An amateur smuggling operation. A wartime mission. The story, in collaboration with Radiolab.

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Pavel Kuljuk's cat, Dora, sits in a window in eastern Ukraine. Pavel Kuljuk hide caption

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Pavel Kuljuk

"As Russians approach his town, 'the cat must still be fed.'"

A hyperlocal news site in Red Hook, N.Y. posts a job opening. A journalist in Ukraine applies. And what readers think of as "local news" is going to change dramatically.

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Brandie Diamond stands by her FedEx Custom Critical truck in a Walmart Supercenter parking lot in Columbus, Ohio. Meg Vogel for NPR hide caption

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Meg Vogel for NPR

Alone@Work: Miles To Go Before I'm Me

726 miles in one day. Gas station sushi. Mysterious loading docks. We hit the road with two American women who found long-haul trucking as a means of escape and self-transformation.

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Author Chibundu Onuzo attends the Cliveden Literary Festival in 2021. David Levenson/Getty Images hide caption

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David Levenson/Getty Images

Ourselves@Work: Home Is Where The Hustle Is

Nigerian novelist Chibundu Onuzo dreams of returning to Lagos, but she worries she'll struggle to adapt in the city of her birth, where the word "oppressor" is often used as a compliment. In this episode, she seeks advice from her "big boss" older brother.

Ourselves@Work: Home Is Where The Hustle Is

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Our personas at work are not what they used to be. Sarah Gonzales for NPR hide caption

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Sarah Gonzales for NPR

You're@Work: The Right Persona for the Job

Who are you at work? In this episode, two stories of people who really commit to embodying their work selves. The result? New realms and new personalities.

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