English Language

09 Jul 2017 05:33

Idiom of the Day

🔰leave well enough alone | let well enough alone
🇺🇸American English

☑️Meaning: If you leave well enough alone, or let well enough alone, you don't try to improve or change something that's already good enough.

📌For example:

🔺he kids seem happy enough now so let's just leave well enough alone and forget about finding a new school for them.

🔺Unless there's a problem, I'd suggest you just let well enough alone and let your staff get on with their work.

🔘Note: "Leave well alone" and "let well alone" are also used, esp. in Australian and British English.

✔️Variety: This idiom is typically used in American English but may be used in other varieties of English too.
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💯 @EnglishoftheDay

English Language

07 Jul 2017 17:12

Phrase of the day

📕Straight over my head

✍️We use this expression to say we have not understood something or we have misinterpreted a situation because it is too difficult to understand.


Written: No🎗Spoken: Yes🎗Formal: No🎗Informal: Yes

✨Example 1
🅰️Did you understand that documentary about European politics?
🅱️No, it went straight over my head.

✨Example 2
🅰️Did he really believe Kate when she said she would never have children again?
🅱️Yes, he did. The joke went straight over his head!
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English Language

07 Jul 2017 05:39

Slang of the Day

👁‍🗨noggin
American and Australian English

💬Meaning: a person's head

✔️For example:

🔺Use your noggin! Think before you say something!

🔺I sometimes wonder what goes on in that noggin of yours!

〽️Variety: This slang term is typically used in American and Australian English but may be used in other varieties of English too.
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❣️ @Englishoftheday

English Language

05 Jul 2017 16:12

Slang of the Day

📌geezer
Offensive

📝Meaning: an old person

📍For example:

🔺I'm late because I got stuck behind some old geezer at the bank who took ages to sort out his stuff.

🔺One day I'll be one of those old geezers who sit in the park all day playing chess and checkers.
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💢 @Englishoftheday

English Language

05 Jul 2017 05:31

Slang of the Day

🔰antsy
📍American and Australian English

☑️Meaning: restless, impatient, unsettled

💧For example:

➖While he waited for the guy to get back with the dope, Greg was feeling antsy. He kept rubbing his hands and he couldn't sit still.

➖Many of the students were getting antsy as the exams got nearer.

💥Variety: This slang term is typically used in American and Australian English but may be used in other varieties of English too.
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💢 @Englishoftheday

English Language

04 Jul 2017 04:17

Slang of the Day

🔰in the know

☑️Meaning: If someone is "in the know", they know something that only a few people are aware of.

✨For example:

➖Maggie is close to the Prime Minister, so she's usually in the know when it comes to the government's latest plans.

➖Before you buy your new computer, ask David about getting a good deal. He's in the know about all that stuff.
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💢 @Englishoftheday

English Language

02 Jul 2017 23:39

Idiom of the Day

🔰a quantum leap

☑️Meaning: A quantum leap is a major step in the development of something, or in the improvement of something.

✨For example:

➖The discovery of penicillin was a quantum leap in the treatment of bacterial infections.

➖The election of an African-American president amounted to a quantum leap forward for racial equality.
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💥 @EnglishoftheDay

English Language

01 Jul 2017 16:49

Idiom of the Day

🔰joie de vivre

💢Meaning: If you have joie de vivre, you feel the joy of living.

✨For example:

▪️People loved her because of her joie de vivre and the fact that she was such great fun to be with.

▪️A positive, easy-going attitude seems to go hand-in-hand with a natural joie de vivre.

✔️Note: This phrase is borrowed from French and can be translated as "joy of life".
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💥 @EnglishoftheDay

English Language

30 Jun 2017 04:22

Idiom of the Day

🔰the jury is still out

☑️Meaning: We can say the jury is still out when a decision still hasn't been made about something.

✨For example:

➖It was a terrible mistake, and the jury's still out on whether Bob will lose his job over it, or not.

➖The jury's still out on who's going to be the new CEO, but we should find out soon.

💥Origin: Metaphorical, and based on the fact that in many legal trials, the result of the trial isn't known until a jury has finished discussing the case and making a decision. Until then, we say that "the jury is still out".
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💢 @EnglishoftheDay

English Language

29 Jun 2017 07:39

Idiom of the Day

📚ahead of the game

☑️Meaning: You are ahead of the game if you have an advantage over your competitors in any activity in which you try to do better than others, such as in business, academia, sports, etc.

✨For example:

➖We got ahead of the game by employing the best people in our research laboratories.

➖You'll be ahead of the game when you start at university if you do a lot of preparation before the term begins.
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🔰 @EnglishoftheDay

English Language

27 Jun 2017 07:21

Idiom of the Day

@Englishoftheday
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English Language

25 Jun 2017 07:02

Slang of the Day

🔰jollies
🇺🇸American English

☑️Meaning: fun, thrills, enjoyment

🔹For example:

➖I can't see the attraction myself, but Bill says he gets his jollies from building and flying model planes and helicopters.

➖A lot of young people get their jollies from doing adventure stuff like white-water rafting and bungee-jumping.

💥Variety: This slang term is typically used in American English but may be used in other varieties of English too.
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✅ @EnglishoftheDay

English Language

21 Jun 2017 20:26

Idiom of the Day

🔰the upper crust

☑️Meaning: If you are one of the upper crust, you are a member of society's highest class.

✨For example:

➖If Laura was really part of the upper crust, she wouldn't need to borrow money all the time, would she?

➖Marge does a great imitation of an upper-crust "society queen". It's really funny, and her upper-crust accent is perfect.

💥Note:
If used to modify a noun or a noun phrase, a hyphen should be added, as in "upper-crust party".
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💢 @EnglishoftheDay

English Language

19 Jun 2017 07:19

‍ Idiom of the Day

🔰the ball's in your court

☑️Meaning: If someone you're negotiating with says "the ball's in your court", they think it's your turn to make a move or make an offer.

✨For example:

🔹We've offered him ten thousand dollars a month, so the ball's in his court now.

🔹They know our position, so the ball's in their court. If they want to pursue the matter, they'll have to make the next move.

💥Origin: Metaphorical, from sports such as tennis and badminton in which players take turns to hit a ball over a net into each other's end of the court.
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💢 @EnglishoftheDay

English Language

17 Jun 2017 05:39

Phrasal Verb of the Day

💥laze around

☑️Meaning: to relax and do very little

✨For example:

➖My son would laze around in front of the TV all day if we let him.

➖Instead of doing exciting things like kite-surfing and jet-skiing, my daughter just lazed around the pool tanning herself and chatting on her phone.
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🔰 @Englishoftheday

English Language

08 Jul 2017 04:10

Idiom of the Day

🔰think the world of

☑️Meaning: If you think the world of someone, you admire and respect them very much.

✨For example:

➖If there's one person most of us think the world of, I guess it'd be Nelson Mandela.

➖You're a wonderful teacher Miriam, and your students think the world of you, so please don't quit your job.
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💯 @EnglishoftheDay

English Language

07 Jul 2017 12:11

Idiom of the Day

📗take the plunge

📝Meaning: If you take the plunge, you decide to do something you really want to do even though it's risky and possibly dangerous.

✨For example:

➖I'd always wanted to be a writer, so when I was thirty I took the plunge. I quit my nine-to-five job and worked full-time on my novel instead.

➖Bill decided to take the plunge and put all his money into the stock market - just before the market crashed. Now he wishes he'd left it in the bank.
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English Language

06 Jul 2017 04:21

Idiom of the Day

🔰plain sailing

☑️Meaning: If something is plain sailing, it's very easy to do and there are no problems to overcome.

✨For example:

➖Golfer Tiger Woods hit a couple of bad shots early in his round, but it was plain sailing after that and he won the match easily.

➖I answered the first few questions in the exam without any problems, and I knew it'd be plain sailing from then on.

💥Origin: From sailing, in which plain sailing means to sail at good speed without facing any obstacles.
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💯 @EnglishoftheDay

English Language

05 Jul 2017 15:20

Idiom of the Day

🔰a pat on the back

☑️Meaning: You've given someone a pat on the back if you've told them they've done something well, or done a good job.

✨For example:

➖Don't you think Salim deserves a pat on the back for his report? Why don't you tell him it was excellent work?

➖Our boss doesn't often praise us for our work, so if he gives you a pat on the back for something, you've really earned it.
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📗 @EnglishoftheDay

English Language

04 Jul 2017 20:15

Idiom of the Day

📗a foregone conclusion

💢Meaning: You can say the result of something is a foregone conclusion if everyone knows what it's going to be before it happens.

✨For example:

➖Everyone thinks it's a foregone conclusion that Roger will win, but I'm not so sure.

➖The result of the election is a foregone conclusion thanks to the government's control of vote counting.

💥Note:
We can say "a foregone conclusion", but not "the foregone conclusion".
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🗣 @EnglishoftheDay

English Language

03 Jul 2017 13:22

Idiom of the Day

🔰a done deal

🇺🇸American English INFORMAL
☑️Meaning: A done deal is an agreement or a decision that is final.

✨For example:

➖It's a done deal so we can go ahead and start planning the details.

➖No-one knew about it, but the contract has been a done deal since the senator spoke to the minister last month.

💥Variety: This idiom is typically used in American English but may be used in other varieties of English too.
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🗣 @EnglishoftheDay

English Language

02 Jul 2017 03:36

Slang of the Day

🔰on the take

☑️Meaning: to be receiving illegal payments or bribes

💧For example:

🔹He seems to have a lot of money for a cop. He has to be on the take, doesn't he?

🔹It was a really corrupt period. Just about every member of the governing party was on the take.
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💢 @Englishoftheday

English Language

01 Jul 2017 06:13

Slang of the Day

🔰nipper

☑️Meaning: a young child, esp. a young boy

✨For example:

➖When he was a little nipper Louis Hamilton raced go-carts, and now he's driving Formula One racing cars.

➖It's not easy teaching young nippers how to play football. They get too excited to stay in their positions and they run all over the field chasing each other and the ball.
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💢 @Englishoftheday

English Language

29 Jun 2017 12:42

Slang of the Day

funk
🇺🇸American English

☑️Meaning: (in phrase be in a funk) an unhappy, depressed mood

✨For example:

➖He's been in a real funk since his girlfriend left him.

➖Everyone in the office has been in a funk since we heard that our company might be going bankrupt.

💥Variety: This slang term is typically used in American English but may be used in other varieties of English too.
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🔰 @Englishoftheday

English Language

27 Jun 2017 19:13

Slang of the Day

🔰pack it in

➕Meaning: to stop what you're doing, to quit

💧For example:

🔹The rain's not going to stop, so let's pack it in. We can finish the job tomorrow.

🔹Our restaurant isn't doing too well, so we might have to pack it in and try another type of business instead.

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🔰 @EnglishoftheDay

English Language

26 Jun 2017 03:59

Idiom of the Day

🔰a head start

☑️Meaning: If you have a head start, you start something ahead of others or with an advantage over others.

✨For example:

➖If you're born into a rich family, and you've had a good education, you're lucky enough to have had a head start in life, so don't waste it.

➖Marylin's beauty and natural grace gave her a big head start in the modelling and acting business.
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💥 @EnglishoftheDay

English Language

23 Jun 2017 08:23

Idiom of the Day

🔰(something) occurs to you

☑️Meaning: If something occurs to you, you think of it.

✨For example:

➖I was surprised when I heard that Anne had quit. It had never occurred to me that she wasn't happy working here.

➖Has it ever occurred to you that your daughter's happiness is more important than what your friends might think if they know she's gay?
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English Language

20 Jun 2017 21:26

Slang of the Day

🔰hooky | hookey
🇺🇸American English

☑️Meaning: (in phrase play hooky) to stay away from school or work without permission

✨For example:

🔹Let's play hooky tomorrow and go watch the golf. Things are pretty quiet at work anyway.

🔹When I was a kid, I was caught playing hookey when school inspectors nabbed us at the mall.

💥Variety: This slang term is typically used in American English but may be used in other varieties of English too.
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💥 @EnglishoftheDay

English Language

17 Jun 2017 05:45

Slang of the Day

🔰chockablock | chock-a-block | chock-full

☑️Meaning: completely full of people or things, crammed full

✨For example:

➖My suitcase is chockablock with clothes and books and shoes and stuff. I couldn't possibly get anything else in there.

➖@Englishoftheday is chock-full of great stuff for learners of English.
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💥 @EnglishoftheDay

English Language

15 Jun 2017 17:17

Idiom of the Day

💥red tape

☑️Meaning: Strict adherence to rules and regulations so that a procedure seems to take longer than necessary.

✨For example:

➖It takes a long time to set up a company in some countries because of all the red tape involved in getting government permits.

➖It took two weeks to get visas for our aid workers because of all the red tape.

📌Origin: Probably related to the fact that bundles of official government documents are often tied together with red tape.
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