Vanessa explains a frequent confusion between “almost” and “almost all.” “I almost watch English movies” suggests that someone nearly watched them but decided not to; a learner who watches them with subtitles most of the time should say “almost all of the time.” She then teaches almost always, almost never, and almost all. Almost always describes something that happens on nearly every occasion and usually goes before the main verb. Almost never means very rarely; in connected American speech, the final t in almost may be unreleased or omitted before the n in never. Almost all means nearly the whole amount or group, while allowing some exceptions. Vanessa's examples cover breakfast, students preparing for lessons, eating fish, English practice, and co-workers who speak the learner's native language. The lesson's key distinction is almost + verb for an action that nearly happened, versus almost all + a time phrase or noun for near-total frequency or quantity. Learners finish by writing a sentence with one or more of the three expressions.
The examples make the difference easier to apply. “I almost watched a film” describes an action that nearly happened but did not; “I watch films almost all of the time” describes a repeated habit. With almost always, Vanessa points out that the adverb usually comes before the main verb: “I almost always eat breakfast.” Almost never expresses the opposite frequency, as in rarely eating a particular food. Almost all works with a group or amount—“almost all my students,” for example—and leaves room for a few exceptions. Listen for the same grammar in a positive statement, a negative-sounding frequency, and a quantity phrase; the words after almost tell you which meaning is intended. The lesson is useful for describing routines honestly without claiming that something happens every single time. Learners can finish by choosing one habit and writing both a near-regular and a near-absent version, checking that almost is attached to the right phrase.