Lesson 217 --In Shape and how to get there and stay there

This is an awesome picture.

 

 

English uses the verb "be", "stay" and "get" to make some subtle, but important distinctions.  In today's lesson we are going to use the idea of "in shape".

be in shape = be fit

get in shape = work hard, hoping to be fit, or becoming fit

stay in shape = maintain your fitness level.

 

John is in shape.  John is in better shape than Adam.  Adam is in horrible shape.

Pamela is going to the gym 6 times a week.  She wants to get in shape for the summer.

Manuel has taken up jogging to stay in shape.

Lesson 215--Work Out and Workout

The phrase "work out" has more than one meaning.  Both of them are useful, and both of them are worth learning.

She's working out

work out = exercise

Brian worked out for three hours yesterday.

Martha works out every day before work.

It can be used as a noun (workout)

Amanda's workout wasn't so hard.

Preparing for the triathlon was a very hard workout.

Can you work this one out?

work out = figure out/solve

Matthew couldn't work out the solution to the problem.

Tracy and Peter were fighting, but everyone knew they would work things out.

There is no noun in this usage.

Lesson 204--be after (Phrasal and no Phrasal meanings)

Be after

 

She's after the top job in Ontario.

This is a confusing phrasal verb because it has a non phrasal verb meaning, and a phrasal verb meaning. 

Non phrasal verb meaning = next, following

The letter b is after the letter a.

The credits are after the movie.

First John, then Mike.  Tom is after both of them.

Phrasal verb meaning = chasing, trying to acquire

The police are after Yannick because he stole some cigarettes.

Amanda is after a new job.

Paul is always after a good deal on cars.

Lesson 197--Using the word sale

 

Everybody has to shop, so you should be ready to do it in English.  Here are some confusing words you are going to have to master.

 

Be on sale:  This means that the price is lower than normal.

e.g. The PS4 is on sale at the electronic Superstore.

Go on sale:  This means they will start selling this product.

e.g. The new iPod goes on sale Friday.

For sale: This just means you can buy it.  It is available to buy.

e.g. The beautiful house is for sale.

Selling:  This is used to describe who sells the product or which store sells the product.

e.g. The Future Shop is selling the biggest TV in Canada.

e.g. Jacob is selling his car.

Lesson 189--Using Grab in different ways

the easy definition of grab

 

English has lots of useful, but confusing, words.  I like to tell people about them so they will understand when the come across them.  Today's word is grab.

grab = to hold something tightly in your hand.

Unfortunately, a lot of English expressions use grab in a way that really doesn't mean that.  Here are some examples.

grab a snack

Grab a bite to eat = eat something, possibly go out and eat.

James invited Sally to grab a bite to eat.

Grab a snack = eat a snack

I'm hungry, so I am going to grab a snack before we leave.

Grab a nap = take a nap

Grab a shower = take a shower

Grab a beer/coffee = drink a beer/coffee

 

Grab a cab = take a cab 
 

As you can see, grab is a useful word.  Now that you know it, I am sure you will see it everywhere.

Lesson 184--Wishes that are regrets

as a child, this is how we made wishes....and weeds

 

 

The last way I want to look at wish this week is how we use wish in the past.  When we use wish in the past, we are regretting something we did, or something we didn't do.

The form is

wish + subject + had/hadn't + past participle

examples                 

I wish I had bought stock in Apple when I was young.

Samantha wishes she hadn't spent so much money on shoes.

My parents wish I had become a doctor or lawyer.

Most of my students wish they had studied English harder in elementary and high school.

Lesson 183--Wish for the Impossible

 

Wish for Impossible Things (present and future)

 

When something is impossible, but we want it be different we can use the verb wish to express this.  Even though we use the past tense, we are referring to the present or future, not the past.  We use the following pattern

Wish + past tense*

*strict grammar says you should use were instead of was....but more relaxed users sometimes use was.

examples

I wish I were taller.*

I wish I had a PS4.

Cynthia wishes she had a new car.

Sam wishes he didn't have to work today.

Lesson 173--Bar talk

 

Phrases for ordering beer

A large number of students have told me that they speak better when they are drinking.  I don't want to doubt them but my experience say that this isn't really true.  However, since these students go to bars, they should have some language to help them.

Some of these phrases will also work for juice or soft drinks, but we should practice the language you really want to speak for a place you really want to speak it.

 

Ordering

I'll have a beer.

I'd like a beer.

One beer please.

Beer sounds good.

I'm in the mood for a beer.

I'll take a beer.

(Just say the name of a beer)

Asking questions

What's on tap?  (asking for what selection of draught beer they have)
What do you have on tap? (same as above)

What do you recommend?

What's your best deal in beer? (surprisingly, they might have a sale on one of their beers)

What's on special? (They may or may not have something on special.)

***please also see my blog post on asking where the toilet is.

Lesson 172--Getting Even

 

One of my favourite expressions with get is the interesting phrase

get even

It has the same meaning as another get phrase

get revenge

If someone has done something bad, you might want to get even with them.

examples

After his sister stole his chocolate bar, Paul promised to get even.

To get even with Marcia, Jimmy stole her Barbie doll.

Don't get mad.  Get even!

Pamela scratched her ex-boyfriend's car to get even with him.

Lesson 171--Jumping to Conclusions

 

Jump to conclusions

 

We use this phrase when you make a quick judgement about something without taking time to consider all the facts.  If you make a mistake people will criticize and tell you not to jump to any conclusions.

examples

When Philip saw Maria walking with another man, he jumped to conclusions and assumed they were having an affair.  He felt stupid when he found out that was her brother.

Paul's father always criticized him for jumping to conclusions before he had all the facts.

Lesson 169--I fell asleep

Last night before I had a chance to type out today's blog/lesson I fell asleep on the couch.  I hadn't been feeling well, so I wasn't really surprised.  It got me to thinking that I should probably give everyone some useful expressions for sleep and things related to sleep.  Sorry about being so late with today's post.

Adjectives

tired-a useful word that describes an average feeling.

worn out-this means you are quite tired, probably from doing some hard work.

exhausted-really, really tired.

drowsy-describing a sleepy feeling, you want to sleep, or are almost falling asleep.

examples

I slept for nine hours, but I was still tired.

After studying hard all day, I was completely worn out.

I was so exhausted that I wanted to sleep for a whole day.

Verbs

sleep/fall asleep

crash/crash out-a slang expression for sleep.

doze off-fall asleep without really planning to.

examples

I crashed at my friend's house because I was too drunk to go home.

I dozed off while I was watching darts.

Lesson 168--phrases meaning complete

 

In English there are lots of ways to say that we have completed something.  Here are a couple of useful ones.

wrap up (separable phrasal verb)

Though this also means cover with paper or cloth (like a present) it can also mean finish or end.

example:          We wrapped up the project two days early.

                        Maria's boss asked her to wrap the meeting up quickly.

                        Although I worked hard, I couldn't wrap everything up today.

 

polish off (separable phrasal verb)

We usually use this for finishing the last of the food.

example:          Daniel polished off the cake before anyone got home.

                        Although she was hungry, Melanie couldn't polish off the spaghetti.

                        There is only a little coffee left, why don't you polish it off.

Lesson 166--Expressions with "take" part two

 

 

There are lots of expressions using "take:" in English--maybe enough to write a book about them (I will call it "Take That").  While I won't argue with my students about these expression, I will do my best to teach a few of them.

take offense

This means to be insulted by what someone has said or done.

example:          George took offense when Mary didn't listen to his concerns.

                        Martha always takes offense when people don't compliment her cooking.

take heart

This means to take comfort, or something positive from a situation.

example:          I take heart in the fact that this blog is helping people.

                        At least I can take heart in the efforts my students are making.

Lesson 165--Expressions with "take" part one

My students often tell me that there are too many expressions with "take" in English.  While I can't agree that there are too many, I certainly must admit that there are a lot of them.  However, they are fun to teach, so here are two good ones for today's lesson (and two more for Wednesday)

take stock (of a situation)

This means to reflect on, consider, or at least think about a situation.

example:         After the monthly sales and expenditures were calculated, the President and the Vice President sat down to take stock of the situation.

                        After taking stock of the situation, Mary knew exactly what to do.

take charge

This means to assume control, to become the leader.

example:         When the boss went on Vacation, Patricia took charg

                        Everyone panicked, except Bob.  He took charge.

Lesson 152--Phrasal Verb Quiz

Phrasal Verb Quiz

 

Choose the best phrasal verb for your answer.  When you are done, click on the Quiz Answers link in the top right corner of this blog to check your answers.  Remember to check you answers because some of them might surprise you.

 

1. I went to the station to __________ my friend.

a) pick out b) pick apart c) pick up

2. To fix my computer I had to ___________ my hard drive.

a) take off b) take apart c) take up

3.  When Maria no longer loved Peter she ________ the wedding.

a) called off b) called on c) called for

4. Bob asked his daughter to __________ the town.

a) show her cousin off b) show her cousin to c) show her cousin around

5. Santiago ________ doing his homework.

a) put off b) put back c) put away

6. Pablo ____________ the job offer because the salary was too low.

a) turned down b) turned away c) turned off

7. The police _________ the bank robbery.

a) looked forward to b) looked after c) looked into

8. After failing his exam, Peter _______ his PS4.

a) gave up b) gave into c) gave out

9. Madeline _______ flour while she was baking cookies.

a) ran into b) ran away from c) ran out of

10.  After dinner the children_______ to their homework.

a) got hold of b) got away with c) got down to

Lesson 151--Words like can

In English there are lots of ways to say the same thing.  For today's blog I have decided to show you a few of them.  While they mean the same thing, you should note that the grammatical structure of the sentences are quite different.

 

I can play the guitar.  (can + base form)

I am able to play the guitar. (be able to + base form)

I am capable of playing the guitar. (capable of + gerund or noun)

I have the ability to play the guitar. (have the ability to + base form)

I know how to play the guitar. (know how to + base form)

Lesson 148--sleeping in vs oversleeping

sleep in versus oversleep

 

to sleep in means to purposefully sleep longer than normal.

examples

I always sleep in on Sunday.

Marsha had nothing to do on Saturday, so she slept in.

Greg works hard but loves sleeping in when he can.

 

to oversleep means to sleep later than you intended, and probably means that you probably missed something.

 

examples

Bob overslept and was late for work.

Oversleeping caused Jim to lose his job.

James set the alarm, but was so tired that he overslept.

Lesson 140--two great expressions with playing

Two great expressions with playing

 

 

 

1.  Playing a joke/trick on someone.

This means doing something to fool a person.

examples

I played a trick on my teacher by writing my report backwards.

My brother loves to play ticks on people.

Because they were twins, Maria and Antonella tried to play tricks on their teachers.

 

2.  Playing a prank on someone.

This also means to trick someone, but this also includes physical humour like unscrewing the lid of the salt shaker, exchanging salt for sugar.

examples

Martha played a prank on her brother.  She pretended to be a secret admirer on Facebook.

April first is the best day to play pranks on people.

 

note:  sometimes pranks are called practical jokes.

Lesson 127--Using the verb pay

to pay

 

This is a useful verb, but seems to cause a lot of confusion amongst my students.  The meaning is clear, but some of the combinations are not.

He paid for dinner.  =  He bought dinner.

He paid for my dinner. = He paid for my dinner.

He paid me to do fix his computer. = I fixed his computer for a small fee.

He was paid to design a new logo. = He designed a new logo and charged the company some money.

He paid a high price.  =  This might mean is was expensive, or it might be an idiom indicating that the result required some sacrifice (He scored a goal, but was injured in the play.)

Lesson 110--to blow it

to blow it

 

He doesn't look happy.  I guess he blew it.

This expression means to fail, to not succeed, to miss an opportunity.

examples.

Although he knew the answer, he blew it by not answering quickly enough.

The baseball player blew it for his whole team when he struck out.

Daniel doesn't want to blow it with his new girlfriend, so he is taking it slow.

HIs coached warned him not to blow this perfect opportunity.