Posts tagged expression

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In this episode, Robin and Jessie discuss the expression to shrug something off. Check out the picture here to see an example of someone shrugging. In certain situations a person may want to shrug it off, or have to roll with the punches, and afterwards pick up the pieces. Listen to hear how all these expressions are used differently.

Jessie: So, I know that another example that I would have at work is sometimes, if my boss says something about my work, maybe gives me some criticism, says something I could be doing better, sometimes that kind of hurts my feelings but I know that it’s just work, it’s just my job. So I try to just shrug it off, and, you know, not get upset about it, not care, just shrug it off.
Robin: Forget about it. It’s not a big deal.
Jessie: So, are there any other expressions that we can use to talk about dealing with problems?
Robin: Absolutely. Another expression that we use to deal with problems is to roll with the punches.

Podcast/ Lipservice: Culips ESL Podcast, Illustration: Asami Takemoto

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Sometimes movies are corny, or music is corny. It is a fun adjective that can describe just about anything. A synonym for corny is cheesy, and it has nothing to do with cheese! Check out this episode to hear our corny examples.

Harp: Corny.
Jessie: I like it.
Harp: I like it as well.
Jessie: So, does that mean having to do with corn?
Harp: Um, no, not at all.
Jessie: What does it mean?
Harp: Something that is corny is something that is cliché, unoriginal; it’s oldfashioned.
Jessie: OK, so corny is an adjective describing something that’s not very sophisticated, maybe kind of sentimental.
Harp: Yeah, exactly.
Jessie: Not original.

Podcast/ Lipservice: Culips ESL Podcast, Photo: flydime

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When people commit crimes sometimes they get caught! That person may be caught in the act of doing it, and if you are caught in the act then we can say that you were caught red-handed. Another similar expression that is almost never used in a serious way is to be caught with your hand in the cookie jar. We give you lots of examples of being caught doing something and how to use the expressions here.

Jessie: So the phrase being caught red-handed is actually an old phrase and was probably first used in Scotland. And it was actually pretty serious because it was about murdering somebody.

Maura: Right, yeah.

Jessie: If you murder somebody you might get blood on your hands. Your hands would be red and if somebody saw you, they would know that you were the murderer.

Maura: Right, if you have the blood on your hands of the person who was killed, then probably you killed that person.

Jessie: Right, but today we can use this in a more light-hearted way too.

Podcast/ Lipservice: Culips ESL Podcast, Photo credit: Chief Trent

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At Culips, we plan our episodes in advance, we don’t just wing it. You can be specific and say that people can wing presentations or speeches, or you can simply say “wing it.” When you are not prepared, but you have to do something, you should try winging it.

Maura: Let’s give a dialogue example, OK. Hey Harp, how was work today?
Harp: It was good. I had a presentation to give.
Maura: Oh really?
Harp: Yeah, I didn’t have any time to prepare for it so I had to wing it.
Maura: How did it go?
Harp: It went really well. I was on the spot, I improvised and people really enjoyed it.
Maura: Yeah, some people don’t need to prepare in advance.
Harp: I usually do but this time I winged it and it worked.

Podcast/ Lipservice: Culips ESL Podcast, Photo: D’Arcy Norman

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Sometimes we embarrass ourselves by saying something stupid. You can say, I embarrassed myself by saying something stupid or you can say I put my foot in my mouth. In this episode we look at that expression and also to make a fool of myself. Both of these expressions are used for embarrassing behaviour. Listen to this episode to hear our examples of situations most people consider embarrassing.

Maura: Today’s expression is to put your foot in your mouth. It’s a long one.
Harp: Yeah, I like this one as well. So, this is to put your foot in your mouth.
Maura: Right. So the meaning of this expression is to embarrass yourself by something you that you say.
Harp: And this can also make others uncomfortable or embarrassed too.
Maura: Right! So you say something stupid or strange and it creates an uncomfortable situation.
Harp: Yeah. If you imagine trying to actually put your foot in your mouth, it would be embarrassing, and make you look stupid.
Maura: Yeah, I think for most people it would be a very difficult thing to do, to put your foot in your mouth.
Harp: Exactly!
Maura: So, the result is really the same. In both cases, whether you say something stupid or you try to put your foot in your mouth, you are embarrassed and you look stupid.

Podcast/ Lipservice: Culips ESL Podcast, Photo: Jo Jakeman

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Many different languages around the world have this expression. Do you have this expression in your language? Listen to this episode about There are plenty of fish in the sea and see if you recognize a similar expression in your native language. Hint: This expression is often used when talking about relationships that didn’t work out.

Jessie: So the expression There are plenty of fish in the sea means that there are other options available. So, just like if you were going fishing and you caught a fish but at the last minute he got away, someone might say, “Well, don’t worry. There are plenty of fish in the sea.” So that means you can easily catch another fish.
Harp: Exactly. So now, you can use this expression in different ways, but the most common one is used in reference to relationships.
Jessie: Right, so a boyfriend or a girlfriend. So it’s almost like saying that you are catching a boyfriend like you are catching a fish. So if you break up with your boyfriend, it’s like the fish got away.

Podcast/ Lipservice: Culips ESL Podcast, Illust: wynlok