downsizing
13×a company cutting jobs
Workplace mockumentary · American English
The Office (US): English level and how hard it is to understand
Office vocabulary, normal speaking speed, and lots of hesitation (um, uh) that gives you time to think. The humour is about awkward silences, which helps learners.
Updated
Short answer
The Office (US) is best for B1 learners. In 12 episodes we measured, a B1 learner knows about 96.3% of the words, and the characters speak at about 145 words per minute (average).
The Office (US) in numbers
- Recommended level
- B1
- Speaking speed
- 145 words / min
- Words per episode
- 2,464
- Known at B1
- 96.3%
- Known at B2
- 97.35%
- Different words
- 3,359 in 12 episodes
Difficulty rank: 2 of 11 in our TV shows by English level list (easy vocabulary, awkward humour).
Beyond the numbers
What makes The Office (US) hard (or easy)?
- Characters often stop mid-sentence, repeat themselves, or say “um” and “uh”, which can feel messy after textbook English.
- Business words such as downsizing and severance come up in serious storylines.
- Much of the humour is in what people do not say, so watch faces as well as words.
The Office (US) is mostly American English. Accent and speed matter as much as vocabulary: if you know the words but can’t catch them, turn on English subtitles and slow down.
Learn these first
Useful words from The Office (US)
B2–C2 words that came up again and again in the episodes we analysed. Counts are for the 12 episodes.
condo
9×an apartment you own (US)
shun
8×avoid someone on purpose
severance
6×money paid when a job ends
beets
6×a dark red root vegetable
concussion
5×a head injury from a hit
receptionist
3×the person who greets visitors
homeowner
3×a person who owns their house
Spoken forms you will hear constantly
okay ×266yeah ×208uh ×157hey ×144um ×118gonna ×103
gonna = going to · wanna = want to · gotta = got to / have to. Textbooks rarely teach them, but TV uses them all the time.
Vocabulary profile
How common are the words in The Office (US)?
Share of all spoken words in each frequency band (A1 = the 5,000 most common words).
A187.51%
A25.23%
B13.56%
B21.04%
C10.69%
C20.63%
Unlisted1.34%
Watching plan
How to learn English with The Office (US)
- Treat the hesitations as a gift: real people talk like this, and it is slow enough to follow.
- Learn the office words below. They are useful at work too.
- Watch the interview moments closely: one person speaks to the camera, which is easy to follow.
In TeakReader you can import the subtitles of any episode, see the words you don’t know yet, and study them as flashcards before you press play. How it works
How we measured it
We took English subtitles for 12 episodes spread across the first seasons (S1E1, S1E5, S2E3, S2E7, S2E12, S2E16, S2E20, S3E2, S3E7, S3E11, S3E15, S3E19), removed sound descriptions, speaker labels, and character names, and matched each of the 29,572 spoken words to the same frequency list we use for classic book levels. Speaking speed is spoken words divided by the time the subtitles are on screen. Only statistics and single words are shown here.
The recommended level is our estimate from vocabulary, speed, and style, not an official CEFR rating. Later seasons can be easier or harder.
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
Is The Office (US) good for learning English?
The Office is a good second show after Friends. Vocabulary is everyday and work-related, and the speed is average for American TV. B1 learners can follow most episodes with subtitles. We recommend it from B1.
How fast do they speak in The Office (US)?
About 145 words per minute of dialogue, which is average for TV. Everyday conversation is often around 150 words per minute.
How many words do I need to understand The Office (US)?
A learner who knows the most common 20,000 English word forms (our B1 band) knows about 96.3% of the words spoken. Research on listening suggests that knowing about 95% of the words is enough to follow most of what is said, so subtitles help until you reach that point.
How did you measure this?
We analysed the English subtitles of 12 episodes from the first seasons (29,572 words), removed sound notes, speaker labels, and character names, and matched every word to the same frequency list we use for book levels. The level is our estimate, not an official CEFR rating.
Can I study the vocabulary of The Office (US) before watching?
Yes. In TeakReader, search for the show, import an episode’s subtitles, and you get a list of its words you don’t know yet, with meanings and flashcards.
Ready to read
Learn the words from The Office (US) before you watch.
Import any episode’s subtitles in TeakReader and get its unknown words with meanings and flashcards. Free on iPhone, iPad, and Android.