I'm glad you like it!

Ok, Christmas is right around the corner (coming soon) and so it is a time to give and receive gifts~!

Often a gift- giving conversation might go like this:

Alice: Here, this is for you.

Betty: Oh, you shouldn't have!

(opens the gift)

Betty: Wow! The purse I wanted! It's great!

Alice: I'm glad you like it.

Betty: Thanks a lot.

I'm glad you like it is a set phrase people use when giving gifts.

Tom: Do you like it?

Bill: Of course!

Tom: Good, I'm glad (you like it can be dropped).

Be careful, when talking about EXPERIENCES or PERISHABLES (things you can use up) you must use the phrase in the PAST TENSE.

Tom: Did you enjoy the movie?

Bill: Yeah, it was great! Thanks for treating me.

Tom: I'm glad you liked it. I thought you would.

---------------------------------

Heather: Those cookies were fantastic! Did you make them yourself?

Helen: Yeah. I'm glad you liked them.

Have  a  Merry Christmas everyone!

Phil

P.S. glad you is pronounced gladju

Nothing Ventured Nothing Gained.

Have you heard this expression before?

It means that if you don't take any risks you won't get any reward. 

Basically, you need to take a chance if you want to win.

Harry: Should I ask Helen out?

Ed: Nothing ventured nothing gained Harry. Go for it!

Harry: Thanks, I'll ask her out tomorrow.

As you can see, it is a common response to someone asking for your advice  about if they should do something. If you think they should take a chance, simply answer:

Nothing ventured nothing gained

You can tell from the phrasing that this is quite an old saying and it actually goes back to the 14th century!

Weblio says that in Japanese it means:

《諺》 危険を冒さなければ何も得られない, 「虎穴(こけつ)に入らずんば虎子(こじ)を得ず」

Have a great week, 

Phil

The flu is going around...

Do you guys know what that means? It is a pretty common expression, it means that it is really common right now and everyone seems to be getting sick on after another. I think in Japanese you would say ぐるぐる or possibly回る(まわる)


Henry: You look pale, are you ok?

Greg: Yeah, I just feel tired.

Henry: Be careful, there seems to be a nasty cold going around.

So whenever many people seem to be getting sick at the same time use the expression:

X is going around

a cold is going around

the flu is going around

a stomach virus seems to be going around

etc.

Please see my earlier lesson about the flu, you can find it here.

Often, if you are a teacher or parent maybe you think a child is faking. This means you don't believe that they are sick, you think they are pretending to be sick so that they don't have to go to school...

Kelly: cough... cough...

Mom: Are you ok?

Kelly: Mom my throat hurts... cough...

Mom: Hmmm.... isn't there a test today? Are you faking?

Kelly: MOM! I wouldn't do that!

Mom: Ok, we'll check your temperature and if you have a fever you can stay home today...

Kelly: cough... cough... ok...

You can use faking whenever you think someone is pretending to have a problem...

Hope you're healthy! Have a nice week,

Phil

Well, I got to go, take care.

Do you know when to use this sentence?

It is most commonly used when you run into someone and have a quick conversation. This is how you politely end the conversation so you can continue going where you were going before bumping into your friend. ^_^

Well

This indicates a change in topic or a conclusion.

I got to (pronounced godda) go or you could say 
I have to (hafta) go or
I need to go (formal)

and if you are in a rush you can switch go with RUN.

Then you finish the sentence with something polite related to your previous conversation:

take care

have a good time

see you

see you around

etc.

So the next time you have to continue on your way because you're in a hurry, please say something like this:

A: Well, it was nice bumping into you but I gotta run. Take care.

B: You too, see you.

Have a nice weekend,

Phil

Calisthenics

Hey guys, do you know what this word means? 

Calisthenics are physical exercises you use to build up your muscle tone and help your body feel healthy. They are often kinds of STRETCHES or gymnastics. In Japanese, it means 体操 (たいそう). You can find a link to wikipedia here and weblio here.

It is a good idea to do calisthenic stretches before going for a run.

I am trying to stay in shape so I started doing calisthenics every day.

Have a nice week,

Phil     

It doesn't make any sense...

Do you guys know what that means? It means that something isn't logical. It seems crazy to you and you can't understand it.

To make sense

To be logical, reasonable and understandable..

His explanations always make perfect sense.

What you're saying makes sense.

I can't make sense of calculus. It is too hard!

That movie didn't make any sense, I don't get why he wanted to date Julie... she was pretty but her character was so mean!

To not get something means to not understand something.

As you can see it is often used in a negative form to say that you didn't understand something or something isn't logical. You can also use it in a even more casual way by saying:

To make no sense

He was talking but what he was saying made no sense!

I could make no sense of what was written because of your horrible handwriting.(sounds formal)

It makes no sense coming back here tomorrow, let's just buy it now.

You can also have sense. In this case, it means that you are a reasonable person who makes good decisions.

He has a great fashion sense.
He is fashionable.

He has no sense.
He is foolish.

In British English, you will often hear the word nonsense. This sounds quite formal and means something is wrong, foolish or in vulgar North American English bullshit. 

Alice: Someday, Man will walk on Mars.

David: That's nonsense, it is too expensive. Man will never go there!

 Any questions?

Phil
 

Down the drain...

Do you know what a drain is? In Japanese, it is 流し. When someone says:

Something is down the drain

They mean that it is wasted. For example; you bought something and it broke, so your money went down the drain.

I can't believe it broke! I bought this lamp yesterday... that's 50 bucks down the drain...

Man, I spent the whole night with her and didn't even get a goodnight kiss! What a waste, my whole Friday night has gone down the drain...

As you can see, you can replace is with to go.

If you don't eat that pie soon it'll go bad. That'll be 3 bucks down the drain.

Bucks = dollars in casual North American English. 

Have a nice weekend,

Phil 

We all need to chip in and lend a hand!

Hey everyone, today we will look at the meaning of the phrasal verb:

chip in

It has three meanings. The first is to work together.

Ed: How were you able to get this party ready in just a day?

Fred: We all chipped in and did our best.

Ed: That's great.

The second meaning is related, it means to help pay for something together.

Paul: Wow guys, a new computer! You shouldn't have!

Friends: Well, we all chipped in.

Paul: Thanks a lot. I really appreciate it.

It is a great way to buy a really special gift for someone. Individually, you don't want to spend so much but together you can afford a fantastic present!

It is also useful when asking people to help pay for something.

Hey guys, it's almost closing time. I'll go get more beer if you all chip in.

I'll give you a ride to Tokyo if you chip in on gas.

The third meaning is to interrupt with a comment.

During my presentation this guy kept chipping in with stupid comments. It was really annoying...

If you have any questions or comments feel free to chip in with your two cents.

Someone's two cents, means their opinion. 

Any questions? 

Phil

It's no big deal.

I have talked about a good deal before, it means that something was good value for money. You can see that lesson here. Today, we will look at the usage of deal in the expression:

a big deal

This is a situation, subject or event which people think is important. It is often used to highlight something as important.

Alice: Did you hear? Ted got the promotion!

Bill: Wow, that's a big deal isn't it?

Alice: Yeah, his salary will double and he'll have lots more responsibility.

Bill: Good for him! 

It can also be used to be modest and humble(謙辞 - けんじ). In this case, you will say "it's no big deal" or "it's not a big deal". 

A: I hear you got 100% on your test.

B: Yeah, it's no big deal.

A: Don't be so modest! You worked hard for that grade.

 ------
C: Weren't you on TV for rescuing those kids?

D: It was not a big deal. I'm a firefighter, I was just doing my job.

Any questions?

Phil

We need to Talk...

Today we're going to have a quick cultural miscommunication lesson. Back when I first started dating my wife she sometimes emailed me the sentence "We need to talk" this always filled me with dread and caused me a lot of stress...

...do you know why? In English, when someone says "We need to talk" it is 95% of the time followed by BAD NEWS! So these words are REALLY strong in English and shouldn't normally be used.

For example:

Boss: John come into my office we need to talk.

John: Did I do something wrong? Am I getting fired???

Boss: No, no but you are getting transferred to our Arkansas office.

John: Arkansas... uh... OK...

The most common usage of this phrase you'll see in movies or TV shows is before someone breaks up with someone. In most cases when your boyfriend/girlfriend says this your partner thinks you will break up with them~!

Jill: John about your transfer to Arkansas...

John: Yeah, Jill?

Jill: We need to talk... I can't do a long distance relationship...

John: What? Are you breaking up with me??!?!

Jill: Sorry but long distance relationships never work out.

John: This week sucks!

So PLEASE don't use the phrase "We need to talk" lightly, instead try to say what you want directly or use the weaker"I have to tell you something" BUT remember try and be SPECIFIC.

"I have to tell you something" could also make people feel bad news is coming. If you say "I have to tell you something about my job" or "I have to tell you about my new hobby" then people won't feel any worry.

Ed: Hey Tina, I have to tell you about something. Do you have a minute?

Tina: Sure, what's up?

Ed: I'm gonna open up my own coffee shop.

Tina: Cool~!

Have a nice weekend,

Phil

What's a keel?

A keel is the spine of a ship, it is the middle part of the bottom frame. You can see a picture here:

http://www.f1technical.net/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4037

You can learn more on wikipedia in English here or in Japanese here.

Anyways, keel is used in a few popular idioms and phrases.

The most common is to keel over. This is like when a boat capsizes and flips over so the keel is on top. It means to collapse suddenly, usually it is used when someone faints or drops dead unexpectedly.

I was eating lunch with my boss when he suddenly keeled over grabbing his chest. He had a heartattack!

When my Mom saw my scary costume she keeled over in a faint!

My friend has diabetes and her blood sugar was low so she fainted and keeled over. I gave her some sweets and she woke up.

The other expression is on an even keel or keep something/someone on an even keel. It means things are going smoothly, calmly and without trouble. It comes from when a ship is sailing on calm waters the keel is flat and even.

My married life's been on an even keel lately, it's great!

We need to keep our company on an even keel in this tough economy.

After keeling over from overwork last week, I decided to take things a bit more slowly to keep myself on an even keel.

Have a nice sunny Saturday~!

Phil 

  

 

To Rob vs To Steal Revisted

Over a year ago I talked about steal/rob/mug and I think it is time to revisit the difference between steal and rob.

To steal is used with THINGS.

A: Get out! (throws guy onto the street)
B: Help! He stole my car! I've been carjacked!

Someone stole my new cellphone!

Did you ever steal anything?

Have you ever had something stolen?

To rob is used with PEOPLE or PLACES.

My house was robbed!

Jim: I need money fast so I'm gonna rob a bank.
Don: Are you crazy?

Did you ever rob someone?

Have you ever been robbed?

The meaning is pretty much the same but the usage is quite different so be careful! You GET robbed and you HAVE things stolen from you.

Harry: Someone broke into my house, I've been robbed!
Policeman: Did they take anything?
Harry: Yeah they stole my flatscreen TV, laptop and iPad.

Any questions?

Phil

I'm lost versus I lost.

Do you guys understand the difference in meaning between the two sentences? 

The other day one of my students said "I'm lost" during our lesson. This means "I don't know where I am" (迷っている)　needless to say, I was kind of surprised!

What she meant to say was "I lost" this means you didn't win a game, you failed to win. (負けた)

Now you can see how a very small difference can lead to a big difference in meaning!

For example:

go out for a drink

This means lets go out for 1 or 2 drinks. We use this when we want to go out for a short time.

go out for drinkS

This means go out for MORE than 2 drinks. We use this when we want to go out for a long amount of time.

Helen: Would you like to go out for a drink after work?

Samantha: Sure, that sounds like fun. Let's go to happy hour at Popeye's.

Helen. Great idea!

Samantha: But I have to leave at 7pm.

Helen: No problem.

-----------------

Ben: Wanna go out for drinks tonight?

Dan: Sorry man, I gotta get home early.

Ben: Alright, how about going out for a drink?

Dan: Sure, I can grab a quick drink on my way home.

Have a good week,

Phil

That's a low blow!

Hey guys, do you know the meaning of that expression? It comes from boxing, when you box you aren't allowed to hit "below the belt" any punch that goes below your waist is a low blow. It is considered mean and unsportsmanlike.

According to thefreedictionary it means:

• 1. Sports An illegal blow in boxing that lands below the opponent's waist.
• 2. An unscrupulous attack; an insult.

The idiomatic meaning is #2, it means someone says something VERY mean to hurt your feelings.

Harry: You're a real jerk Tom.

Tom: Screw you Harry!

Harry: Now I know why Sara dumped you! You're such a loser.

Tom: !!! (starts crying and runs off)

Bill: Harry that was a low blow! You made him cry!!! I know you guys are fighting but Sara was his girlfriend since high school. He really loved her and is still depressed about it.

Harry: ...I guess I was in the heat of the moment, I'll apologize... when he started crying and ran off I knew I went too far...

In the heat of the moment means that you were so excited/angry/etc that you said (or did) something without thinking.

So even if you get angry remember to think before you say anything too mean. If someone says "low blow" or "That was a low blow" you look really mean to them!

Have a nice weekend,

Phil

I'm in a bind.

Do you guys know what this expression mean?

It means I am between a rock and a hard place, I am in a tough situation.

A: Hey man, what's wrong?

B: Can you help me out? I'm in a real bind.

A: What happened?

B: I forgot my wallet at home~!

A: That sucks, don't worry though. I can cover you tonight. You can pay for me next week.

B: Sure, that sounds great. Thanks alot.

To cover someone means to pay their share.

A cuter way of saying I'm in a bind is I'm in a pickle!  When you use this expression it sounds cuter and softer.

Sam: OK Don, why did you call me...?

Don: Sam, I need you to give me a hand!

Sam: Looks like you got yourself into a bit of a pickle.

Don: Yeah, I locked myself out and was trying to squeeze through the window.

Sam: Are you crazy? That window's tiny!

Don: Just push me through.

----PUSH----

Sam: There you're inside! Next time call a locksmith...

Do you know what a locksmith is? It's someone who builds, sells, installs and fixes locks.

Have a nice week!

Phil

 

How do you like your steak?

Today we are going to talk about steak. If you go to a steak restaurant the waiter will pretty much always ask you:

"How do you like your steak?"

There are 6 ways to answer this question:

"I'd like it..."

...very rare.

This is barely cooked, the inside is still red and bloody.

...rare.

The outside is cooked but the inside is still red and a bit bloody.

...medium-rare.

 The outside is cooked, the inside is mostly pink.

...medium.

This steak is mostly cooked but it only has some pink in the middle.

...medium-well.

This steak is mostly cooked and has only a hint of pink inside.

...well.

This steak is completely cooked on the outside AND inside. There is NO pink anywhere.

If you want to see some photos of this you can find them here:

http://bbq.about.com/od/steaks/ss/aa101606a.htm

Have a nice weekend,

Phil

Did you enjoy your long weekend?

So everyone did you all enjoy your long weekend?

Do you know how to say long weekend in Japanese? It is renkyuu (連休 - れんきゅう). Basically, a long weekend is when you have a holiday on monday so you get 3 days off in a row.

That is why we also call it a three-day weekend or a 3-day weekend!

Have a great week!

Phil

A great article on how to boost your vocabulary.

I was reading the art of manliness today and they had a great article about the importance of having a large vocabulary and how to increase your vocabulary.

Check it out here:

http://artofmanliness.com/2012/10/03/the-importance-of-building-your-vocabulary-and-5-easy-steps-to-doing-it/

IELTS Practice 3 app

I just saw that this app is free at the moment so for everyone who has an iphone/ipad/ipod touch why not download it and give it a try.

Here is the link:

http://itunes.apple.com/app/ielts-practice-3/id534465805?mt=8

Remember, the important thing when learning a new language is practice practice practice!

Phil

Brace yourself~!

Hey everyone, my friend used this in an email to me last weekend and it made me smile. I hadn't heard it in a long time! He wrote:  

"We're on our way. Brace yourselves."

Do you understand what he meant? A brace is something that holds two pieces together or a part of a building that helps to keep walls or roofs standing. Brace yourself is a sailing term. It is used when a big wave or storm is coming. It means get ready for something big! Hold on tight so you don't fall off the boat!

So my friend was saying get ready for us!

You can use this whenever something big is about to happen. You are warning the people you are with to get ready and hold on tight.

A: We're gonna crash!
B: Aaaah... brace yourself!
$%%#%CRASH%$^&

Dan: Brace yourself, I have big news!
Ben: What's happening?
Dan: I quit my job!
Ben: REALLY? Why?
Dan: I'm starting my own business.
Ben: Good luck.

Let's all have an exciting October~!

Phil

kind of = sort of

Today I was reminded once again that most textbooks don't teach sort of. This has the same meaning as kind of. I feel it is more casual and maybe using it makes you sound a bit young. Plus, I feel it is probably a dialectical difference.

I mean depending on where the speaker is from they will be more likely to use kind of or more likely to use sort of. This is kind of like the difference between 超　（ちょう）　and　めちゃ. People in Osaka tend to use mecha and people in Tokyo tend to use cho but they mean the exact same thing!

That's why I think it is important to know both expressions as you will often hear them in different TV shows or movies. Anyways, here's a lesson I wrote a few years ago explaining sort of and kind of!

I just did some quick research and apparently kind of is preferred in American English and sort of is preferred in British English. Being from Canada I guess that is why it seems natural to me to use both!

The study focuses on modern British English and also states that kind of seems to be preferred in written English and sort of in spoken English. Maybe that's why most textbooks seem to focus on kind of... I think it is a really interesting study with lots of tips about usage of these two expressions in British English. You can find it HERE.

------------------------------------------------
Kind of, Sort of posted October 27th, 2010

Hey everyone, today I am just writing a quick lesson while taking a break from studying Japanese. In all the textbooks I've taught, they always teach:

KIND OF

which is a very useful expression. It has two main meanings:

- a type of thing

- a little bit, somewhat

That store sells many types of furniture.

means

That stores sells many kinds of furniture.

When you use type of it sounds a bit more formal/educated/business like and kind of sounds more casual/friendly. Also, the pronunciation of kind of changes pretty easily:

kind of ------> kindov ---->kinda

When you want to specify more than one kind of use kinds of. Which is pronunced:

kinds of -----> kinzov ----> kinza

Kinda and kinza are pronunced with a bit of a rising intonation on the a.

The second meaning of kind of is somewhat or a little bit, it is similar to め in Japanese:

柔らかい　－－－－＞　柔らかめ

Yawarakai (soft) becomes Yawarakame(kind of soft).

Now, most textbooks don't teach the even more casual form which has the exact SAME MEANING as kind of which is SORT OF.

The pronunciation of sort of is:

sort of -----> sordov -----> sorda

Again with a rising intonation on the a.

I'm somewhat hungry.

I'm a bit hungry.

I'm kind of hungry.

I'm sort of hungry.

So somewhat is the MOST formal and sort of is the LEAST formal. Remember, by saying sorda or kinda you will make it even more casual~! But all of these sentences have the same general meaning. ^_^

Have a good day,

Phil

Ummm... I'm stumped.

Hey everybody, have you heard this expression before?

According to thefreedictionary.com it means "to be at a loss, to baffle". It basically means that you don't know the answer to something, you are puzzled or confused...

It's either used as an adjective:

stumped

Tom's stumped. He has no idea what the answer is~!

or as a verb:

to stump someone

I learned a new riddle and hopefully I'm gonna stump the teacher!

OK, you stumped me. What's the answer?

You will often hear people use this when they are giving up figuring out a problem on their own and want some help.

Ally: I'm stumped.

Bill: Oh, what's wrong?

Ally: I can't figure out the problem with our new program.

Bill: Let me take a look. Together, I think we can figure it out.

Ally: Thanks Bill.

Have nice night,

Phil

I need a change of pace.

Hey everyone, last May I taught you the word pace. Which means a step or the speed at which you walk/move/do something. 

Phil walks at a quick pace.

Life in Tokyo is fast paced.

That movie was too slow paced, nothing happened for the first 40 minutes!

You can see that lesson here.

The other day I was teaching a lesson and taught:

a change of pace

I then realized I forgot to include this common idiom in my pace lesson! So today I will teach you how to use this very common idiom.

It means that something has been moving at the same speed for a long time and it has gotten a little boring or tiring. You need to change your pace (speed up or slow down) to feel refreshed.

When traveling on foot, you move faster if you change your pace (walk 10 minutes, jog 30 minutes, walk 10 minutes, run 10 minutes, jog, etc) than if you keep the same pace all the time.

This idiom is usually used to talk about your life, you are getting bored with how your life is going and you want a change of pace. Either you want to slow things down or you want to speed things up.

1. I used to be a stock-broker in New York but it was really stressing me out. My doctor told me I should slow things down so I decided to start an organic farm for a change of pace.                       
2. I've been stuck in this small town since college, I need a change of pace! Next year, I think I'm gonna move to the big city!                                                                                                    
3. I always go to McDonald's so sometimes I go to Lotteria for a change of pace.

As you can see, change of pace is usually used with need or for a. 

Need is often used BEFORE you've changed things, you use it to talk about a change you're thinking/dreaming of doing.

For a is used to explain the REASON you changed something. You are explaining that things had gotten boring and you needed to do something different.

After traveling around the world for a year and a half, I realized I needed a change of pace so I decided to settle down in Japan and teach English for awhile.

Have a good week,

Phil