If you read or listen to news from the UK to help you learn English, you may have read or heard a lot about Brexit. This week, especially, there is quite a lot about Brexit in the news.

But how much do you know about Brexit? Do you read newspaper articles in confusion and give up?!

If so, don’t worry! I will explain a few of the main words related to Brexit below to help you understand a bit better…

 

1. Brexit

So what does the word Brexit mean?? It is made up of two words: ‘Br’ from ‘Britain’ and ‘exit’ from ‘exit’.

This word is talking about Britain’s exit from the EU.

 

2. EU

But hang on, what is the EU? The EU is the European Union.

The EU is a bit like a members club which is made up of 28 countries (‘member states’) at the moment, including the UK.

 

3. Eurosceptic

So why would Britain want to leave the EU? The reason is the Eurosceptics.

Well, what is a Eurosceptic? This is a person who doesn’t like, or doesn’t want to be in, the EU.  (These people are also sometimes called ‘Brexiteers’.)

 

4. Remainer

And what is the opposite of a Eurosceptic? A Remainer.

A Remainer is someone who wants to stay in the EU.

 

5. Referendum

Okay, so there are Eurosceptics and Remainers. They both want different things. So how can the UK decide what to do?

Well, a referendum is a vote for the residents of a country to answer a question on their country’s future.

In 2016 we had a referendum in the UK. The question was: “Should the United Kingdom remain a member of the European Union or leave the European Union?” 51.9% said “Leave” and 48.1% said “Remain”.

So, the Eurosceptics won!

Now, people are talking about a second referendum (sometimes called a “people’s vote“). This means asking people in the UK to vote again about whether we should leave the EU or not. This might happen, but it also might not…

 

6. Politician

Since the referendum in 2016, politicians from the UK have been talking a lot to politicians from the EU about the UK leaving the EU.

So who is a politician? You probably know this word! A politician is a person who works in politics.

 

7. MP

Okay, maybe you know the word ‘politician’ but keep reading about MPs – who are they?

MP stands for Member of Parliament: a politician who has been elected (voted for) in an election.

All the different MPs have very different views on Brexit!

 

8. Parliament

And what is this word Parliament?

Parliament is the group of politicians who make the laws for the country. Parliament is made up of politicians from different political parties.

At the moment, Parliament is considering the Brexit deal Theresa May (the Prime Minister) agreed with the EU.

 

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So what will happen next? Keep following the news and find out! Will the UK exit the EU after all??

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What do you think about Brexit? Would it be a good or a bad thing for the UK to exit the EU? Let me know what you think, or if you have any questions, by writing a reply to this blog post below, or send me an email at charlottesenglishlessons@gmail.com.