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Posts Tagged ‘phrase’
English Idiom – Have your cake and eat it too!
To have your cake and eat it too
If someone wants to 'have their cake and eat it too', they want everything their way. It sometimes suggests that someone is not willing to compromise even when conflicts exist.
Examples: I worked at home so I could raise my family and still earn money. It let me have my cake and eat it too.
This idiom is often used in the negative: 'you can't have your cake and eat it too'
Example: If you want a senior consultant to work here, you must pay the salary she demands. You cannot have your cake and eat it too.
Similar idiom: An idiom with a similar meaning is: 'You can't have it both ways'.
English Idiom of the Day – Win by a Nose
To Win by a Nose
To 'win by a nose' means to win by a very small amount.
Example: I ran the fastest race I could, but I only won by a nose.
Sally won the race, but she only won by a nose
Did you know...? This idiom comes from horseracing, where from about 1900 on it referred to a finish so close that only the tip of the horse's nose reached the finish ahead of the second horse.
There is a similar idiom with the same meaning - to 'win by a whisker'.
English Idiom of the Day – Raining Cats and Dogs
It's Raining Cats and Dogs
It's 'raining cats and dogs' means it is raining very heavily.
Example: You should take an umbrella with you, it is raining cats and dogs out there!
The weather was horrible yesterday. It was raining cats and dogs all day.
Did you know...? This phrase originated in 17th century England. Very heavy rain would occasionally wash dead animals through the street. The animals didn't fall from the sky of course, but the sight of dead cats and dogs being washed down the street with the rain caused people to joke that it must have been raining cats and dogs.
English Idiom of the Day – Under the Weather
Under the Weather
If you are 'under the weather' it means you are sick or unwell.
Example: 'I think I will stay home from work today, I am feeling a bit under the weather'
'You should go to the Doctor, you look under the weather'
Did you know...? This idiom originated in the British Navy. When a sailor became sick, he was kept under the deck or 'under the weather' so he could get well.
English Conversation – Festivals & Celebrations
This is an English conversation lesson about festivals, carnivals, weddings and other celebrations. You can learn vocabulary and expressions associated with festivals and other celebrations as well as discover the most common questions people may ask you about this subject.
English Conversation – Crime
This is the preparation material for an English conversation lesson about crime. Learn useful vocabulary and expressions about crime, as well as common questions you might be asked when discussing this subject.
English Conversation – The Weather
This is the preparation material for an English conversation lesson about the weather. There are so many terms in the English language to describe the weather, some with only very small differences in meaning. This lessons outlines some of those words, as well as some common idioms we use when talking about the weather. There are also some conversation questions about this subject. read more
English Conversation – The Arts
This is the preparation material for an English conversation lesson about 'The Arts'. It includes an explanation about when to use the definite article when talking about art forms, some art vocabulary, idioms we might use when discussing the arts and some conversation questions we might use when discussing this subject. read more