Archive for June, 2010

idiom: to be (to take) a stab in the dark

{ June 10, 2010 @ 3:45 pm } · { idioms }
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STab-in-the-Dark

Hi there everyone. I apologize for not writing a blog entry for the last couple of days. I’m on vacation right now, so I don’t have the chance to write as often as I’d like to. Still, I’ll try to write the blog as much as I can.

Anyway, for today’s blog, I’d like to do another idiom: “a stab in the dark”. This can be used with either of the verbs “be” or “take”. It is used when we talk about make a complete guess about something that we don’t know the answer to at all. For example:

I don’t know what the capital of California is, but I’ll take a stab in the dark and say it’s Los Angeles.

A: How did you know the right answer to the teacher’s question? It was a really hard question.

B: I didn’t know it actually. It was a complete stab in the dark. I just got lucky.

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A: I really don’t know what the answer is.

B: Well, just take a stab in the dark. It’s better than saying nothing.

We can use this idiom whether or not we get the answer correct. Sometimes we do, as in the second example, and sometimes we don’t, as in the first example. (The capital of California is Sacramento).

separable phrasal verb: hear out

{ June 7, 2010 @ 1:10 am } · { phrasal verbs }
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index

Today’s phrasal verb is “hear out”, and it is used when we talk about getting another person to listen to a reason, idea or excuse about something. For example:

I know you’re angry at Brett for missing your birthday party, but he has a good excuse, so just hear him out.

I thought the boss would listen to my idea for improving business but, after I told him it would cost a few thousand dollars, he refused to hear me out.

A: I don’t want to hear any more of your stupid ideas to get rich!

B: Just hear me out. This one is a really good idea.

So when we use this expression, the listener doesn’t want to listen because of being angry, annoyed, busy, etc. The speaker uses “hear out” as a way to get the reluctant person to listen.

grammatical word: wonder

{ June 6, 2010 @ 11:16 am } · { grammatical word }
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index

For today’s blog entry, I’d like to write about the verb “wonder”.  It is used when we ask ourselves a question about something we want to know about. For example:

Kate was supposed to come to my party, but she didn’t. I wonder why she didn’t come.

I wonder how much Jake’s new car cost. It looks very expensive.

Cheryl invited us over for dinner on Saturday night. I wonder what she’s going to cook.

We can also use the verb wonder with the past progressive form (was + ing) as an introduction to a very polite request. For example:

I was wondering if you could help me with my project.

I was wondering if I could have the day off tomorrow.

My wife and I were wondering if you’d like to join us for dinner tomorrow night.

Sometimes people ask me why we have to use the past tense form (was). The reason is that the action of wondering started in the past. When you ask the question, the wondering is already over and the asking of the question is happening now.  As I mentioned before, when you use this, it’s very polite.

grammatical expression: get rid of

{ June 4, 2010 @ 1:42 am } · { grammatical expression }
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Bosses-Get-Rid-of-Employees-With-Too-Many-Bad-Habits

Today I’ve got another very useful and common expression for you: “get rid of”. This is used when we talk about wanting to dispose of something that we have. Therefore the thing is not something that we like, and we want it to go away. For example:

In this card game, you want to have all high cards like jacks, queens and kings, so you should try to get rid of your low cards as soon as possible.

I have an old TV that I need to get rid of. It still works. Would you like to have it?

I have a problem with ants in my kitchen. Do you know how I can get rid of them?

Brad and Jane are bringing over their children tonight, so please get rid of any sharp objects in the apartment. We don’t want the kids to hurt themselves.

Those old running shoes smell so bad!  Please get rid of them as soon as possible!

There are many ways of getting rid of something. We can throw it in the garbage (as with the running shoes), kill it (as with the ants), hide it (as with the sharp objects), give it away (as with the TV) or just stop holding it (as with the cards). As I said before, this is an extremely common expression in English, so I hope you’ll be able to use it now.  🙂

adjective: inevitable

{ June 3, 2010 @ 4:21 am } · { adjectives }
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images

The other day I was watching a TV show and one of the characters used the word “inevitable”, so that’s what I’d like to write about today. This adjective is used to talk about things which are impossible to stop or avoid. For example:

More immigration to our country is inevitable because our population is decreasing.

I’m afraid a tax increase is inevitable. The government just doesn’t have enough money right now.

When you study a language, making mistakes is inevitable, but you shouldn’t let that bother you.

Everyone dies eventually. Death is an inevitable part of life.

This word is often used with negative ideas such as tax increases, making mistakes or death but could also be used with neutral ideas such as immigration. It’s possible to use it with positive ideas, but that is quite rare with this word. It’s usually used when talking about serious things.

idiom: to talk shop

{ June 2, 2010 @ 5:17 am } · { idioms }
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index

Today I have another useful idiom for you: “to talk shop”.  We use this idiom when two or more co-workers talk about their work together in their free time. For example:

When your co-worker comes over for dinner tonight, please don’t talk shop. It’s really boring for me.

Can we please not talk shop at the office party? I’d rather talk about other things.

I invited my friend from the office out for dinner last night, and all she did was talk shop. I wish she wouldn’t do that.

In our culture, “talking shop” has a rather negative feeling to it because most people want to talk about other things in their free time. What about you? How do you feel when your co-workers start talking shop when you’re not at work?

the difference between words: too and either/neither

{ June 1, 2010 @ 6:22 am } · { the difference between words }
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eitherneither

Today, I have a blog entry for you about a common misunderstanding: the difference between “too” and “either”. Basically, it’s very simple: we use both “too” and “either” to say that something is also true for a second person or thing. The difference is that we use “too” for positive statements and we use “either” and “neither” for negative statements. For example:

I like pizza, and my wife does too.

I don’t like carrots, and my husband doesn’t either. 

A: I’ve been to Korea many times.

B: Oh really? I have too. What’s your favorite place in Korea?

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A: I’ve never been to South America.

B: I haven’t either, but I’d really like to go there one day.

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A: I can play the piano.

B: Oh really? Me too!

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A: I can’t cook very well.

B: Me neither.

There is no difference in meaning between “either” and “neither”. We use “either” when there is  another negative word in the sentence such as “not” or “never”. For example:

A: I’ve never tried scuba diving.

B: Oh yeah? I haven’t either.

However, we use “neither” when there is no other negative word in the sentence. For example:

A: I’ve never tried scuba diving.

B: Oh yeah? Neither have I.

So, we can say “Neither have I.” or “I haven’t either.” but we CANNOT say: “I haven’t neither.” because there are two negative words in the sentence.

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