Phrases & Expressions

Example: It was a blast from the past, and it really brought out the kid in me.

Example: A deluge of complaints. A deluge of unsolicited advice.

Example: My wife noticed me staring quietly at the wall the other evening and asked, "A penny for your thoughts?"

Example: A torrent of words. A torrent of criticism.

Example: In poker, going all in means pushing every single chip you have into the middle of the table, betting absolutely everything on one hand.

Example: All's well that ends well.

Example: If you think you can become fluent in English just by reading a grammar textbook and memorizing vocabulary lists, well, you've got another thing coming.

Example: The original expression wasn't 'another thing coming.' It was 'another think coming.'

Example: We got to the restaurant early, so we decided to order some apps while we waited.

Example: Hospitals run around the clock, because people need care at 3 a.m. just as much as they need it at 3 p.m.

Example: For many immigrant communities, assimilation was not a choice; it was something imposed.

Example: That's what's at stake now, in a way that simply wasn't at stake before she existed.

Example: For now, I'm taking baby steps by learning how to build a small home server.

Example: Give me a couple of days and I'll be back on my feet.

Example: There's a phrase for that: better late than never.

Example: Big-picture goals are the final destination.

Example: I have not merely put a lot on my plate. I have bitten off more than I can chew.

Example: We're up here for a family reunion, and it's also, as it happens, where we have now had not one, but two cars break down.

Example: It brings out the kid in me.

Example: When you burn the candle at both ends, you're using up the early part of your day and the late part of your day, working both edges at once, and your capacity to keep that up is running out faster than it looks.

Example: I was up burning the midnight oil to finish the script before morning.

Example: After years of silence, the two of them finally decided to bury the hatchet.

Example: He could not shake the feeling that there was something very, very wrong about the cradle.

Example: Some managers run on the carrot and the stick: a bonus for hitting the target, a warning for missing it.

Example: So is there a place your people have already been going without you, or something you've been meaning to catch up on?

Example: Researchers study bee cognition to understand how bees learn and remember.

Example: This will probably not come as a shock to you, but reading is the number one way to improve your vocabulary.

Example: You wake up one morning and you have come down with a cold.

Example: Which brings me to today's second phrase: Come together.

Example: Times like these really push me outside of my comfort zone, bouncing her on my hip, singing the same four words of a song I'd invented.

Example: That's what I mean by couldn't put it down.

Example: If someone wears traditional clothing from another culture as a costume at a Halloween party, without any knowledge of its meaning or significance, many people would call that cultural appropriation.

Example: I tried to save time by cutting corners on my preparation, and unfortunately it showed.

Example: There's a phrase for that in English: cut it close. Cut it close.

Example: As a teacher, I cut my teeth on in-person group classes, teaching from a textbook.

Example: If someone had asked me to predict my favorite theatrical experience from this trip before we arrived in Utah, The Far Gaze would probably have been a dark horse.

Example: A tiny local business taking on an enormous corporation might be called a David-versus-Goliath fight.

Example: David's victory is a reminder: don't judge a book by its cover.

Example: The phrase is: drag your feet.

Example: While teaching a class, in front of about twenty students, I drew a blank on something I should have known like the back of my hand.

Example: You can drown in paperwork, drown in debt, drown in regret.

Example: An early bird is a person who naturally wakes up early and feels most alert in the morning. You can also call this person an early riser or a morning person.

Example: All we needed was a screwdriver and a bit of elbow grease.

Example: You can be flooded with emails after a vacation, flooded with memories when you visit a place from your childhood, or flooded with emotion at a wedding.

Example: He thought that he'd get away with it, but he forgot to get rid of the copies in his locker.

Example: We got by that hour, mostly by sheer endurance rather than skill.

Example: We're getting hitched next month.

Example: I don't get it. Why would anyone need to cheat to pass her class?

Example: I'm sure she'll get over it soon.

Example: He forgot to get rid of the copies in his locker.

Example: Someone got up on the wrong side of the bed this morning.

Example: This meeting is really important, so let's give it 110 percent.

Example: She always goes the extra mile for her students, staying late whenever someone needs help.

Example: Chip and Kass brought a board game rather than a ball, but we still had a ball playing it.

Example: Between those plans, a family wedding, a reunion, and everything else that comes with traveling with a one-year-old, I have a lot on my plate.

Example: My brother brought up that argument from five years ago at the dinner table. I think he has an axe to grind.

Example: You don't really know until you've hit the road.

Example: In English, we have a phrase for that: in the back of your mind.

Example: Two roommates splitting a lease are in the same boat the moment they sign it, like it or not.

Example: Once I got in the zone, the writing just kept flowing.

Example: If I build an elaborate blanket fort in the living room, I might say that I am letting my inner child have some fun.

Example: He landed on integration as the word that best captured keeping your roots while joining something larger.

Example: It really does take a village sometimes.

Example: Hold on to that vision. That's your prize. Keep your eye on it.

Example: Kenneth spent most of his time there and knew the layout like the veins on the back of his hand.

Example: My home-server project has a fairly steep learning curve.

Example: Today we'll be looking at my number one tip for leveling up your English listening and speaking skills.

Example: Today, I was locked in on solving a problem I'm genuinely proud of solving.

Example: Long story short, I was able to learn to speak comfortably in Japanese within only a few months.

Example: The next time something breaks down on you, big or small, see if you can take even a peek at the bright side.

Example: He looked us up and down, and gestured for us to come in.

Example: Lord comes from the Old English word hlafweard. Hlaf means loaf, as in a loaf of bread. And weard means guardian or keeper.

Example: My wife and I have certificates giving us the titles of Lord and Lady. But I'll try not to lord it over you.

Example: We had lost hope of ever finding his ring again.

Example: After the third delay of the morning, I finally lost patience.

Example: I lose track of time when I'm completely focused on something.

Example: You lose yourself in music. You lose yourself in a good film.

Example: It's their loss leader, and if I leave the store with a cart full of groceries, that inexpensive chicken did considerably more than provide a good base for my chicken curry.

Example: The role was his lucky break after years of small parts.

Example: The other half has its own phrase: make a mountain out of a molehill.

Example: I hope we can make some more memories before we leave Texas and move on to potentially greener pastures.

Example: Bees collect nectar from flowers and transform it into honey.

Example: A night owl is a person who naturally stays up late and does their best work at night.

Example: I'm totally fine too! Not a scratch on me…

Example: I wouldn't have bought a minivan for all the tea in China.

Example: Rolling a ball to a target was a novel problem for the bees.

Example: You're on the mend now. Just rest up and drink plenty of water.

Example: Once she has it, it'll be done in a day and we'll finally be on the same page.

Example: And then, yesterday, something happened out of the blue.

Example: Bees use pheromones to warn the colony about danger.

Example: I don't want to phone it in with the people I love most.

Example: Someone who keeps replying to a flirtatious coworker while they're already in a relationship is playing with fire.

Example: Some days I feel like I'm pulling my weight. Other days, I'm pretty sure Emma's doing the rowing for both of us.

Example: So on Saturday, I put off my usual cleaning time so we could get on the road a bit quicker.

Example: Eliana likes to raise Cain, and she knows it. She often makes sure to get my attention right before she does something she's not supposed to do.

Example: Some days will be storms, and you'll just have to ride them out.

Example: Rome wasn't built in a day is about why that gap gets rarer over years.

Example: They're only rowing in the same direction once they actually agree on how to split chores and bills.

Example: There is no royal road to English. But there is a road, old, reliable, and well trodden.

Example: Some of his habits rubbed off on me.

Example: I was sick as a dog for four days and could barely get out of bed.

Example: Language learning turned out to be something I could truly sink my teeth into.

Example: Just go home, sleep it off, and you'll feel better in the morning.

Example: Ripped pants right before the performance? Story of my life.

Example: They struck gold with a side project no one expected to take off.

Example: Running into an old friend at the airport was a real stroke of luck.

Example: These long tour weeks really took it out of him.

Example: The phrase to go with that is "the best-laid plans."

Example: Every morning, Monday through Saturday, I wake up a good bit before the crack of dawn, at 4:30 so that I can prepare to teach at 5:00.

Example: The early bird gets the worm, so I wake up before dawn to prepare for my first lesson.

Example: After months of planning, my brother-in-law and his fiancee finally tied the knot today.

Example: There's another phrase commonly connected with marriage: till death do us part.

Example: Time flies when you're having fun.

Example: Once I sit down to work on that server, It’s easy to get tunnel vision.

Example: I was just beginning to feel under the weather myself.

Example: A bee waggles her abdomen during the waggle dance.

Example: And when was the last time you intentionally walked down memory lane?

Example: English speakers might still say that he and his wife walked down the aisle today.

Example: I'm going to try and walk you through some of the reasons you might want to use shadowing to improve your English.

Example: When it rains, it pours, and this month it absolutely poured.

Example: If I say I will clean my brother's room when pigs fly, I am not just saying no.

Example: That's not like you to give up when the going's tough.

Example: That sure sounds like a win-win scenario to me!

Example: A surprise tax refund is a windfall.

Example: It's honestly hard to wrap your head around:

Example: The phrase is: you've made your bed, now lie in it.