![]() You have a gut feeling that may be positive or negative about something. Rather than specify exactly what features make something top quality, you can say that it has ‘all the bells and whistles’. When something has the latest technological features. You could say ‘he’s got something up his sleeve’ when you’re confident that he’ll be able to work his way through a difficult situation. It likely comes from poker language, when a cheater had an ace hidden in a sleeve to exchange with another card to create a winning hand. This means that somebody has a strategy, secret reserves, or contingency plans. This word is likely a short version of the word recruit. Descriptive SlangĪ newbie, a new recruit, somebody new to a field or profession. Come over - a casual way to invite somebody, with a sense of some urgency. ‘This talk show drives me up the wall’ means you have strong feelings against it. You stop communicating with them and you ‘give them the cold shoulder’. This is when you avoid contact with somebody. Normally ‘bail’ is used in English to release somebody from jail before trial, with money that the government holds to assure the defendant will return to court to stand trial. You can use it casually at a party, pub or event as in ‘let’s bail’ meaning that you want to leave because you don’t like the atmosphere. This means to leave or abandon a place or a situation. ‘Don’t try to pull a fast one (on me)’ means don’t try to trick me. This expression means to trick somebody. You may hear people say ‘don’t mince words’ when they want the other party to openly and directly express their opinion, even if it is negative. 'To mince words or to mince one’s words' Slang verbsĮnglish is full of examples with verbs that are slang expressions. This is another example of a phrasal verb. Another way of saying, 'you’re history, you’re a has-been, you’re a thing of the past.' You might use this expression especially if somebody is trying something for the first time. “They went to an all-you-can-eat buffet and pigged out.” In this context we are using ‘pig’ as a verb and as you see, ‘to pig out’ is a phrasal verb. Pig is usually a noun and it’s rare to use it as a verb. This means to eat too much in a short time. For example, “Stay clear of the tracks when the tram approaches.” You can also say ‘Keep clear of the tracks when the tram approaches.’ You use it to tell somebody to keep one’s distance from something because of danger. We often use phrasal verbs to create slang. ‘Have a good one’ is more casual than ‘take care’. ‘Take care’ is not so much a slang expression and although it implies a sense caution and safety, it is a common way to say goodbye to somebody. ‘Have a good one’ and ‘take care’ are not as casual as ‘catch you later’. Now it’s time for an example of what you might say when you depart somebody’s company. Because “what have you been up to?” can also sound a bit suspicious, so you’ll want to pay attention to intonation to make sure you sound interested in the other person and not suspicious that they’ve been doing something mischievous. In this case, the verb is followed by two prepositions.Įnglish is full of phrasal verbs which act as idiomatic expressions. A phrasal verb is a verb followed by an adverb or a preposition. When you learn to use ‘have been’ you are showing your ability to speak in the present perfect tense, so you’ll be able to show off your English ability and sound more fluent. Many formal textbooks only teach new learners of English to say ‘how are you?’ or ‘how do you do?’ But because you’ll be engaging with people in natural settings, you’ll want understand people when they greet you in a variety of ways. You can use this to say “How’ve you been?” or “how’s it been going?” 19 Common English Slang Words to Help You Sound Fluent Some alternatives to ‘how are you?’ We will warn you about expressions whose usefulness is more limited and explain where and why you might only find them useful in certain contexts and places. In this post we’d like to share some expressions and English slang words with you that will make you sound more fluent, while keeping it to expressions that you will find useful in most of the English-speaking world. Some slang words or expressions are a fad, while others are limited to particular regions. Because slang is often restricted to a particular context or group of people, it can be tricky to use at times. It’s more common in speech than in writing. Slang is a type of language which is informal. As you continue to improve your English, you’ll want to become familiar with slang. ![]()
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