800 English Words for Every Day Life | English Vocabulary Masterclass

Thinking or approaches, you could say the adoption of digital technology in classrooms represents a significant paradigm shift. So a shift in thinking in education. Is that it's a paradigm that's trying to hold us back. So it's kind of a new paradigm that actually seems to unlock things not only in fundamental physics, but also in the foundations of mathematics and computer science, and possibly in areas like biology and economics as well. I believe it's time to reject that old paradigm and realize that our faiths are linked. #12 viable. Viable. This means capable of working successfully. It

can also mean feasible. So it's very important to learn alternatives, synonyms because you'll commonly see them. And if you want to discuss these same issues, you can use an alternative word, a synonym. So now we have viable. This is used in discussions about sustainability and practical solutions. For example, solar power, you could say, is becoming a viable alternative to traditional energy sources in many sunny regions at least #13 benign. Notice that silent G Benign. 9. Benign. This means having no significant harm or adverse effect. Negative effect. This is commonly used in discussions about impacts and

effects to talk about something not having an effect. For example, despite initial fears, the new construction projects are expected to have a benign effect on local wildlife. So it means the new construction projects don't have an effect. They don't have a significant effect. They have a benign effect. It's benign. Were they benign? Fine and benign. #14 conducive. Conducive. This means making a certain situation or outcome likely or possible. This is common in discussions about environments that encourage certain behaviors or outcomes. For example, students suggest that a clutter free space. A space free of clutter, free

of things, distracting things, is conducive to better concentration and learning, so it helps you achieve that outcome. It's not. Conducive. To health that. Engineer wasn't conducive, right? Doesn't isn't conducive to rhyming well. #15 incentive, Incentive. Do you know this one? This is a thing that motivates or encourages someone to do something. This is used in discussions about economics, business, and public policy. You hear this frequently. For example, to reduce emissions, the government introduced financial incentives for companies investing in clean energy. So those companies will get something in return and incentive if they invest in clean

energy #16 compile, compile. This means to produce by assembling information and other sources. This is often used in academic writing and research discussions. For example, the researchers compiled so gathered together compiled data from numerous sources to ensure a comprehensive analysis. Compiled them in our data processes. And combined it with compilation. Who? Compiled this map. 17 Contradictory Contradictory This means mutually opposed or inconsistent. This is used in writing when discussing conflicting ideas or conflicting data. For example, the study presents contradictory findings, with one portion indicating benefits and another highlighting potential risks. So they're opposed to each

other, risks and benefits and risks they're opposed. So it's contradictory. Saying that out loud almost sounds contradictory. Upside and grief. And honestly, our physics is telling us a lot of contradictory things. They allow us to interpret its complex and contradictory signals. #18 Foster. Foster. This is to. Encourage or promote the development of something and usually something good, and this is commonly used in discussions about education and social policies. Educational institutions should foster creativity. Encourage creativity because it is positive and critical thinking in their students #19 retention. Retention. This is the continued possession, use, or control

of something. This is used in writing when discussing education and employment practices. Very common in employment, for example, employee retention, the ability to retain keep employees. Employee retention remains a priority as high turnover. Employees leaving as high turnover can disrupt team dynamics #20 depict depict. This is to represent by a drawing, painting, or other art form. This is common in discussions about art and literature, which is common in writing tasks. For example, art from this. Typically depicts scenes so in that art you see this scene represented, so depicts scenes of everyday life. Show casting rural

traditions. Inside the church, the paintings depict scenes from the Old and New Testaments, and effigies of patron Saints would depict it as an illustration of the flexibility and wisdom of common law adjudication. The paintings depict the image of a chair in various stages of completion or dissolution. 21 to steer clear of. So notice here we have a phrase to steer clear of of something. This means to avoid someone or something. This is used in speaking and you can use it to give advice or recommendations, which is very common on IELTS. For example, health professionals often

advise patients to steer clear. Of to avoid. Processed foods to maintain overall well-being 22 solely solely. This means not involving anyone or anything else. It can also be a replacement to only. This is useful in writing to clarify specific points or responsibilities. For example, the success of the project does not solely depend on funding. So it does not only depend on funding, but also on effective management. So this is a nice complex sentence and you can replace only with solely 23. Abundant. Abundant. This means existing or available in large quantities. It also means plentiful. This

is commonly used in discussions about resources and, again, environments. The country is known for its abundant natural resources, particularly oil and timber. Public space must be as free and abundant as the air we breathe. Fishing near the village, fields and Caribou were abundant to. Speak of it does have abundant land and abundant sun and wind. We can't all duplicate that. 24 Sustainability Sustainability This is the ability to be maintained at a certain rate or level. This frequently appears in discussions about environmental issues and development. Investing in renewable resources is critical for the sustainability of our

environment. You will absolutely hear this word and you should use it as well. Biodiversity can contribute to the sustainability of a community. And I think the main way I. I think you should look at it is about sustainability. Sustainability, it's become something that a lot of people in the world are striving for because we recognize what's going on with the world these days. 25 Assess Assess This means to evaluate or estimate the nature, ability, or quality of something. This is common in writing when discussing evaluations in education and business, for example, teachers assess students understanding

through regular tests and assignments. It assesses test. Test your options. Interesting assessment. 26 Target Target This is an objective or result toward which efforts are directed. So you direct your efforts toward a target. This is commonly used in writing, especially in essays discussing your goals and objectives. You could say the initiative targets a 25% reduction in carbon emissions within five years. So notice here it's a verb, the initiative targets to target. This is also a noun, a target. The target is a 25% reduction. 27 illicit illicit. This is to get a response, answer or fact

from someone, often through questioning or discussion. This is commonly used in writing when discussing studies, research or data. For example. The questions were designed to elicit authentic responses. So to get real honest responses from participants #28 decipher. Decipher. This means to interpret or to make sense of something that is difficult to understand. A synonym is to decode, to decipher, to decode. This is commonly used in writing when discussing the meaning of someone or something. For example, scholars spent decades attempting to decipher the ancient script, so attempting to understand the meaning of the ancient script. Professor

Arm wants to decipher which data can lead to discriminatory actions or privacy invasions, and to set safeguards for a better protection of human subjects in data science. Students with hearing loss rely more heavily on visual cues to decipher what is being said. And now we have the capacity to decipher life in a way we never did before. 29 fluctuate, fluctuate. This means to change or vary irregularly, so not by following a pattern and often in amount or level. This is commonly used when discussing the results or current state of something. For example, the stock market

fluctuates. It's up, it's down, and it's not a regular pattern, it's irregular. The stock market fluctuates dramatically in response to world events. Any weight fluctuations? Just. Weight fluctuations. Any weight fluctuations? #30 Outline Outline. This is to give a summary of something, and it's often used in writing to present main ideas or structures clearly. For example, the professor outlined the main points of the lecture at the beginning. Just the outline. Anything you outline with this? I just outlined for you. 31 Promote Promote This means to support or actively encourage This is frequent in discussions about public

health, education, and social initiatives. For example, government campaigns often promote healthier lifestyles to reduce healthcare costs. 32 Habitat Habitat This is the natural environment in which an Organism lives. This is commonly used in discussions about ecology and conservation. For example, protecting forests is essential to preserving the habitats the homes of numerous species. 33 Augment Augment This is to make something larger, greater, or more intense. This is common in speaking and writing to discuss increases or improvements in systems, infrastructures, or even skills. For example, the government allocated additional funds to augment public health services so to

help improve the size or state of these public health services in response to rising demands. Now you'll learn how to talk about your daily routine at the C1 level so you sound fluent and advanced. Let's talk about Mark's daily routine. Say hello to Mark. Mark is a manager, he's married, and he has two young kids. Let me tell you about Mark's daily routine at an advanced C1 level, and after I'll explain all the advanced vocabulary and grammar that you can add to your speech. The alarm rings at 6:30 AM, signaling the beginning of Mark's day.

With precision, he orchestrates the morning routine, ensuring his two energetic children are dressed and fed. As the aroma of coffee fills the air, Mark reviews his schedule, preparing for the day ahead. Notice how this daily routine started in a very advanced way, almost a poetic way. The alarm rings at 6:30 AM. Most students would simply say I wake up at 6:30 AM or in this case Mark wakes up at 6:30 AM. But this is very beginner and boring. The alarm rings at 6:30 AM. That sounds so advanced. Why don't you try that? You can say

my alarm instead of the alarm. You can make it possessive. My alarm rings present simple conscious educated with my alarm It my alarm rings at. Put that in the comments and share what time your alarm rings, which is an alternative to saying I wake up at my alarm rings at. As for me, my alarm rings at 5:30 AM, signaling the beginning of Mark's day. Notice here we have signaling in the ING form. This is a present participle. It adds description by showing the result of the action with precision. Precision means that there was a high

level of accuracy. This is an advanced. Now you can also say with ease, with ease because you want to talk about your daily routine as being easy with ease. He orchestrates the morning routine again, notice the vocabulary is that that more advanced C1 level to orchestrate means to organize, arrange or coordinate and notice those verb conjugations because we're in the present simple and is being conjugated with the subject he ** *** is. You need to add that as with precision, he orchestrates the morning routine ensuring Notice here another present participle. Again it describes the action

ensuring his two energetic children are dressed and fed as the aroma of coffee fills the air. Notice here aroma is a more advanced way of saying the smell of coffee. The aroma of coffee Mark revealed use his schedule preparing another present participle, preparing for his day ahead. Let's move on. At the office, Mark transitions into his managerial role leading a diverse team. His day is filled with back-to-back Zoom meetings and presentations. Mark excelled in conveying intricate ideas during meetings and negotiations. At the office, Mark transitions into something his managerial role. Maybe you could say after

tending to my children, I have to transition into my marketing role or whatever your next role is. At the office, Mark transitions into his managerial role, leading a diverse team. Again, the present participle. It describes the action his day is filled with. To be filled with something, this means to contain a lot of. Now, although contain is a more advanced vocabulary term than filled with, adding phrasal verbs, idioms, and expressions is a great way to sound more advanced to sound more see one. So to be filled with sounds more advanced than saying contains and back-to-back

Zoom meetings and presentations. This means that as one meeting ends, another one immediately begins back-to-back. Mark excels in explaining intricate ideas. This is a C1 or C2 sentence. A more beginner sentence would be saying Mark is very good at communicating complex ideas, but notice that grammar difference to excel in something or doing something or to be good at. So you need a different preposition. Let's move on. As the work day concludes, Mark races against the clock to attend his children's extracurricular activities. Soccer practice, music lessons and art classes become integral parts of their routine. In

the car rides between activities, Mark cherishes the moments of connection with his children As the work day concludes. Concludes is a more advanced way of saying as the work day ends. As the work day concludes, mark races against the clock. This is an expression to race against the clock. This is when you have to work quickly to complete all your tasks within a limited amount of time. To race against the clock, soccer practice, music lessons and art classes become integral parts of their daily routine. Integral means essential or necessary. It's a more advanced term. Let's

look at this sentence. In the car ride between activities, Mark cherishes the moments of connection with his children. This is a complex sentence. The first part is a dependent clause, which means it is not a complete sentence. But if you add it to an independent clause, then it becomes a complex sentence. Using complex sentences is an integral part of sounding more advanced, fluent and see one. Let's move on. Following dinner, the family reunites in collective activities, whether it's a board game, a movie night or a stroll in the neighborhood. Mark, though weary from the demands

of the day, revels in the simple pleasures of familial bonds following dinner. This is a more way of saying after dinner the family reunites in collective activities. This is very advanced and again almost poetic. A more B1 everyday way of saying this would be the family spends quality time together. One of the activities is a stroll in the neighborhood. A stroll is a leisurely walk. So if there is a word stroll that means something else to walk leisurely, it sounds more advanced to use the one word that communicates that idea, a stroll. A leisurely walk.

Now, grammatically, you can use to go for a stroll. Following dinner, we went for a lovely stroll in the park. The verb is go, so it's conjugated in the past simple went. You can also take a stroll following dinner. We took the past simple of take. Following dinner we took a lovely stroll in the park. Both are common and equally used. Let's learn about how Mark ends his daily routine as the clock inches towards bedtime. Mark carves out a brief period for personal reflection by reading, meditating or journaling. As he slips into his comfortable bed,

he savers the tranquility that descends upon his home as the clock inches towards bedtime. This is very advanced. It sounds poetic as bedtime approaches, clearly sounds more intermediate, more basic than As the clock inches towards bedtime, Mark carves out a brief period for personal reflection by, by, and then you have your activities by reading, by meditating, or by journaling. You could say I start my day by and then whatever the activity is, I start my day by working out for 30 minutes. I end my day. I conclude my day to sound more advanced. I conclude

my day by meditating for 15 minutes. It's an integral part of my daily routine as he slips into his comfortable bed. To slip into is a more advanced, poetic way of saying to get into. I get into bed at 10:00. I slip into my warm and comfortable bed as the clock inches towards 10:00 PM. That sounds very advanced and poetic. He savers, he really enjoys. He savers the tranquility, the peace and quiet. He savers the tranquility that descends upon his home, descends, that enters, that fills his home. AB One student might simply say he enjoys

the quiet in his home. Now let's look at this whole sentence together, which is a complex sentence and I want you to notice the as he and then the other part of the sentence, he, as he, X, he, yx and Y being the activities. As I prepare my breakfast, I review my back-to-back meetings. As I is the dependent clause, which means it's incomplete. You have to connect it to an independent clause. I review my back-to-back meetings. That would be the independent clause. So this is a complex sentence, a great way to sound more advanced. Now

you'll learn 22 great phrases for negotiating. Let's begin negotiations. To negotiate this is when you have a discussion with someone in order to reach an agreement. For example, I negotiated with the seller for a 10% discount notice. Grammatically, you negotiate with someone and you negotiate for something, a discount. You could also say we negotiated over the price or on the price. So here you negotiate on or over something, the price, the terms of the agreement. So how about we negotiate, right? Right now you could say, Jennifer, I'll subscribe to your channel if you upload more

videos. A good job negotiating with me. So put let's negotiate, let's negotiate, let's negotiate. Put that in the comments. Now let's talk about negotiating the prices of goods and services. What you most commonly negotiate. First of all, these items are usually usually non negotiable. Items at brand name physical stores like Walmart, IKEA, or shopping malls in North America are usually non negotiable. Sure, you can try to negotiate, but don't be surprised if they say say no or are confused because you're negotiating at Walmart. But don't worry because there are many items that are usually negotiable

in North America. More expensive items like real estate, cars, furniture, jewelry, artwork are almost always negotiable. Services like home renovations, landscaping or consulting are usually negotiable. Or goods and services at independent stores or non physical stores, for example St. vendors, booze kiosks or souvenir shops. Have fun and try to negotiate. First let's talk about asking if a price is negotiable. This is a great place to start. You can ask is there any room for negotiation on the price? Any room for negotiation? Is the price flexible now? For this one, you'll get a yes or no,

but you can ask how how flexible is the price? So you're assuming the answer is yes and you just want to know to what degree. How flexible is the price? This is a good one. If you want to be less aggressive, you could say do you have any sales or promotions that I should know about? So you're letting the person know you're trying to get a discount or a lower price. Similarly, you can ask, are there any discounts available? One of my favorites is what's the best price you can give me? You could also say

what's the lowest price you could give me? Then the person knows, oh, you came to negotiate. Let's say you know a item is negotiable, so let's review some phrases for negotiating prices. Whatever phrase you use, my best advice is always try to provide a reason why you should get a discount, why the person should negotiate with you and make it a win win for both parties. Then you're more likely to get a yes. If I buy 2, can you give me 30% off? Another tip, always ask for more of a discount than you expect. So

if you would be happy with a 10% discount will ask for a 30% discount. Notice the grammar. Here we have if plus subject plus present simple followed by can plus subject plus base verb to form the question. Let's say you're buying a car. You could say if I buy this at full price, can you give me free maintenance for one year? Now free maintenance could be worth more than a 5 or 10% discount. So that's a great way to make it a win win. If I pay cash, can you give me 15% off? In North

America, 10 to 15% tax is added to the sticker price. The price you see tax is not included. So negotiating 10 to 15% the amount of the taxes is a great place to start. Here's a nice win win if I give you a great review on TripAdvisor. Can I get this for $100.00? So you let the seller know what price you want to pay. Another way to make it a win win is just compliment the seller. This is beautiful but it's out of my budget. Would you accept $250? You could also use. Will you accept?

Pamela, it's beautiful, but it's it's a little. Out of my price. Wood is for possibility and will is for certainty. With negotiating it is more common to use wood. Would you accept? Would you give me? You can also use would you be willing to, which I know is a longer structure but it's very common. Would you be willing to accept $300.00 if I recommend your store to others? Pay attention to this sentence structure. Would subject be willing infinitive And then next we have our if clause if subject present. Simple. Now let's review some phrases to

say that something is non negotiable. Maybe you're the seller and you can use these phrases or you're the buyer, but you need to be prepared when you hear these phrases from the seller. Generally, sellers will not be offended if you try to negotiate unless you try to offer them an extremely low price that is just offensive. But they'll be friendly and probably say something like, sorry, I'd love to help you, but our prices are non negotiable. Our prices aren't negotiable. Notice there are two different phrases to be not negotiable or to be non negotiable. They

mean the exact same thing and both are very common. Here's a very natural one. I wish I could help you, but my hands are tied. This is an idiom. Sorry. Buddy, I wish I could help you. My hands are tied. My hands are tied. This means I'm unable to act or decide because of external forces. So if the seller says this to you, my hands are tied. Then most likely the seller doesn't have the authority to give you a lower price. They just work at the shop. They don't set the prices, they just sell you

the item. Someone else controls the prices. My hands are tied. This is a very useful one. How about this one? Sorry, I don't have any wiggle room. Wiggle room on the price. That's fun to say wiggle room. I don't have any wiggle room on the price. Wiggle room represents the ability to change or flexibility. So if you don't have any wiggle room, it means you don't have any flexibility. So it's another way of saying my hands are tied. I'm unable to do anything about the prices. The seller might say our prices are already the lowest

they can go. This is the seller's way of trying to reassure you that you're getting a good price and at the same time saying they're not willing to negotiate. So it's a powerful phrase. The seller might say, if I could, I would. If I could give you a discount, I would give you a discount. If I could, I would. Now, implied in this is but I can't. But most likely they won't say that. If I could give you a discount, I would, but I can't. That's implied. It doesn't have to be said, but that's what

this means. So you try to negotiate. The seller said no. So let's talk about some phrases for you. When you want to stand your ground, to stand one's ground. This is when you maintain your position, your beliefs, or your opinion, especially when you're opposed. So if you stand your ground, it means I said I want a 10% discount. I'm not willing to buy this without a 10% discount. That is you standing your ground and often this is required to be a successful negotiator. Although it can be quite uncomfortable. You can say to the seller, I

understand, I understand your hands are tied, I understand you don't have any wiggle room. Whatever the seller just said I understand. But that price isn't in my budget. That price is out of my budget. So you can use to be within one's budget and then just make it negative. Or you can use to be out of one's budget. They have the same meaning. And if you stand your ground, it is possible that the seller will offer you the discount. They just wanted to know how serious you were. You could also say in that case, I'll

have to pass in that case, the case being that you don't have any wiggle room or your hands are tied. Again, whatever the seller said in that case, I'll have to pass when you use have to. It sounds like a forced obligation and pass means you're not going to buy the item. I'll pass. I'll pass. I'll have to pass. I'll have to pass. Unfortunately, I can't move forward at the current price. So move forward is to complete the next step, which would be to purchase the item. But you can't. Unfortunately, I can't move forward at

the current price. Please contact me if the price changes. This is another way you can open it up and try to encourage the seller to keep negotiating with you. It's too bad. It's too bad we couldn't come to an agreement. However, I appreciate your time. So it's too bad this is something negative. I appreciate your time. That's positive. So we use however to connect the two opposing ideas, the negative and the positive. However, I appreciate your time. Have a great day. As a note, make sure you end your negotiations on a positive note by saying

something nice. I appreciate your time. Have a great day because you never know when the sellers opinion or position may change and if you're polite they'll be more likely to negotiate with you. You could say, I'm sorry we couldn't work this out. Or you could work something out. When you work something out, it means you find a solution to a problem. The problem being what I want to pay is less than what you want to receive. I'm sorry we couldn't work this out and then add things anyway to be more polite and end on a

positive note. Would you like to learn some different ways to say I think, I think it's going to rain. Would you like to learn some different ways that will help you sound fluent in advance and more natural just like a native speaker? Well, let's get started. First of all, there's nothing wrong with saying I think I say it all the time, but I have many other expressions in my vocabulary that I use as well. And my choice depends on the situation I'm in. So let me share all the different alternatives that you need. First, let's

talk about everyday situations. Let's take the statement it's going to rain. Instead of I think you can say, I'd say it's going to rain. I'd say this is the contraction of I would, I would say, but native speakers use the contraction. I'd say it's going to rain. You can add to that and say if you ask me, I'd say it's going to rain. They're exactly the same is just something nice we add on. I believe is going to rain. This is the closest alternative to I think, and it's very commonly used. It seems to me

that the way I see it to me is going to rain. All three are used to really show your personal opinion. My close friend and always says I reckon, I reckon is going to rain. I personally don't say I reckon, but I really love when she says it. I prepared a free lesson PDF that summarizes all the expressions from this lesson, so you can find that in the description and in the comments section. Now you can also say it's going to rain and then add. That's my take on it. This is a very common expression.

My take on it take is your assessment, how you see the situation. That's my take on it. So you first share your opinion or statement and then say that's my take on it. You can do the same thing with the idiom. That's my two cents. Two cents that represents opinion is going to rain. That's my two cents. Now let me share some more formal expressions that you would use in a job interview, a conference, a work meeting or other formal situations. Let's say your opinion is we should revise the report. Revise means make changes too.

We should revise the report. Of course, you can say, I think that we should revise the report. You could also say from my perspective, this is a very common one. It sounds quite advanced. From my perspective, we should revise the report. Of course, you can simply say, in my opinion, in my opinion, we should revise the report. And that does sound more formal than saying, I think you could say it's my view that we should revise the report. Or it appears to me that we should revise the report. Keep in mind the word that is

optional. We generally use it in written English, and we generally exclude it in spoken English, But that's not a rule. So you could say it appears to me we should revise the report, or it appears to me that we should revise the report. Both of these are correct. Let's talk about some expressions that express certainty. Certainty 100%. So let's take our statement. We should promote John, Lucky John. Now if you're 100% certain, you could say I'm sure, I'm certain, I'm positive. We should promote John. You could say it's obvious that we should promote John. You

could replace obvious with indisputable, which means nobody could dispute it. It's indisputable that we should promote John. That sounds very firm. I like that one. Indisputable. It's undeniable. It's unquestionable. It's beyond a doubt. We should promote John. John must be really awesome. Now let's say that you do want to express some uncertainty or some doubt. So it could happen, but maybe it won't happen. You could say it's possible that she's going to get the promotion. Instead of possible, you could say it's probable or it's likely she's going to get the promotion. I figure or I

gather that she's going to get the promotion. 1 I really like is I have a hunch. I have a hunch that she's going to get the promotion. When you have a hunch, it's more based on your intuition rather than external evidence. I have a hunch that she's going to get a promotion. I just have this really good feeling. You could say, correct me if I'm wrong, but she's going to get the promotion. But if you say correct me if I'm wrong, you're admitting that you may be wrong. You could also say, if I'm not mistaken,

she's going to get the promotion. Again, there's some doubt there because you could be mistaken. You could say, to the best of my knowledge, to the best of my knowledge, she's going to get the promotion. Let's talk about some expressions that sound more diplomatic. So diplomatic because you might be introducing an opinion that people don't agree with or that is the opposite of what most people think. So maybe all your Co workers think that John should get the promotion but you don't. So our statement is John isn't a good fit. He isn't a good fit

to be honest. In all honesty, John isn't a good fit. Now remember, this is something that a lot of people don't agree with, so you might want to say it with some regret to be honest. In all honesty, John isn't a good fit. I'm sorry to say it, but John isn't a good fit. If you want to be more neutral, you could say. One could argue that John isn't a good fit. Everyone else is saying he is. So you want to be more neutral and talk about how he isn't. One could argue that my impression

is that John isn't a good fit. I saved my favorite for last to be diplomatic and that's. I get what you're saying, but John isn't a good fit. Now in this case, get means understand. So if you want to be more casual, informal use get. I get what you're saying, but John isn't a good fit. If you want to be more formal, you can say I understand what you're saying, but John isn't a good fit. Now you have so many different ways to say I think that. What was your favorite expression? Mine is probably I

reckon, even though I personally don't say it. I don't know why, but I really like how it sounds Reckon, I reckon. Plus, you get to practice that really strong R reckon, I reckon, and that is going to rain. Share your favorite in the comments section below. Goodbye. Would you like to learn some alternative ways to saying goodbye that will help you sound very fluent, advanced, natural, just like a native speaker? Well, let's get started. You can absolutely say bye or goodbye. It's grammatically correct. The problem is that it sounds very formal and native speakers don't

really say goodbye. We say goodbye, but then we add on a natural expression. So let's talk about natural expressions you can use in everyday situations like shopping at the grocery store, at a restaurant, or dealing with a customer service agent. You can say bye, but then add on take care, bye, take care. Now you can also say take care and then bye. Take care. Bye. Or you you can simply say take care. Take care. You can say have a good and then whatever the time reference is, have a good day, morning, afternoon, evening, night. Or

you can say have a good one, which is general to any situation, have a good one. Bye, take care. Have a good one. A quick tip is that native speakers commonly combine multiple expressions like I just did. Bye, take care, have a good night. It's very common to use 2/3 or more expressions, so feel free to combine them. Now you can replace the adjective good with a different adjective. Have a wonderful day. Have a fabulous afternoon. Have a fantastic weekend. You can say bye for now, which implies that you're going to see that person again.

Bye for now. Or you can say enjoy the rest of and then the time period. Enjoy the rest of your day, your night, your evening, your weekend, your vacation. Enjoy the rest of your evening. Now I created a free lesson PDF that summarizes all the greetings from this lesson. You can look for the link in the description or the comment section below. Now let's talk about saying goodbye to your friends. The most common is see you soon, see you later. A common one is also talk soon, bye, Talk soon. See. You later. I'll see you

later. Now if you have a future date planned with that friend, you can say see you next weekend, see you tomorrow, see you at the party and reference that next event you can add. Can't wait to to add some exciting. Can't wait to see you next weekend. Can't wait to see you at the party. You can say bye. It was so nice seeing you instead of so nice you can add. It was awesome. It was amazing. It was wonderful. It was lovely and instead of seeing you, you can add. It was lovely catching up. It

was lovely having dinner. It was lovely chatting. So you can add different alternatives to that expression. If your friend is getting into a vehicle, you can add buy, drive safe, buy, have a safe trip. Be well now. If you don't have a next date planned with your friend, you can add something to show you want to see them again by let's catch up soon. Don't be a stranger. Keep in touch. This is a very common one by keep in touch. Take care. Now let's talk about some more informal slang expressions. You can use these with

your friends, your family or even with your Co workers as long as a more informal situation. We commonly use gotta got you got to I got to go. I got a jet. I got to head out. I got to take off. I got to hit the road. I got to get going. It's. My 6:00 I got a jet. You can also say catch you later, which just means see you later, catch you later and notice I took you and reduced it to ya. Catch you later, catch you later. Sometimes we just say later later. A

fun expression is catch you on the flip side. I have no idea what the flip side is, but catch you on the flip side, catch you on the flippity flip I'll. Catch you on the flippity flip. Bye. Some people say peace out. I personally have never said this but I do hear it a lot from some other speakers. Peace out or simply peace. So if that suits your personality you can use that one. Peace out. One of the most common informal expressions is just see ya. So we take see you later and we reduce it

to see ya. OK, bye. See ya. Bye. Let's talk about some expressions you can use with your husband, wife, boyfriend, girlfriend, significant other, spouse, life partner. Bye, my love, my love. And we say it in such a nice voice. Bye, my love, I miss you already. I like that one. I miss you already. Even though they're right there. I miss you already. Bye my love. I miss you already. I miss you too. Now we can use our pet name for each other. Bye sweetheart, bye sweetie, bye cuddle bear. Bye my darling or whatever your romantic

name for each other is. And if you have young kids, you can use this really cute expression which goes, see you later, Alligator. Do you know what comes next in a while? Crocodile, but just use that one with young children. Now let's talk about professional expressions that you can use at work, in a job interview, a networking event or conference by looking forward to seeing you again soon. Looking forward to working together. So notice the gerund verb we need. You can also use a noun. Looking forward to the conference. Looking forward to the project. If

you're meeting someone for the first time, you can say bye. It was a pleasure. It was a pleasure meeting you. It was nice talking to you. In a job interview, we generally express appreciation. Thank you so much for this opportunity. I look forward to hearing from you. The interviewer will also express appreciation. Thank you so much for coming today. I appreciate your time. Thank you so much for your time today. We'll be in touch shortly. Notice that expression in touch. We'll be in touch soon. We'll be in touch shortly. Superiors can add some words of

encouragement by Keep up the good work, the great work, the amazing work. Or they might say, if you need me, I'm a phone call away by if you need me, I'm a phone call away. You know where to find me, which is letting you know you can just text me. You know where to find me, I'll be on my phone. You know where to find me or a common one in the office is by my doors always open. And that's encouraging you to come back if you want to discuss anything or if you need help.

My door is always open. Would you like to learn some different ways to say, I don't know, to help you sound more fluent, natural and professional in English? Let's get started. First let's talk about some everyday ways that you can say I don't know. You can use these in more casual situations and professional situations. So let's say your friend or Co worker asks you a random question like how far away? Is the. Sun and you don't know the answer, how can you reply? The most popular answer would be I have no idea and this is

really to stress the fact that you have no knowledge on the topic. Remember the question is how far away is the sun? I have no idea. Now we can also shorten this and simply say no idea. I have no idea, no idea. Another common answer is I'm not sure. I'm not sure. Now you can expand on this and you can say I'm not too sure, not too sure. I'm not too sure about that. That meaning the question. I'm not too sure about how far away the sun is. Not sure about that. Not sure about what

a fun one is. Simply to say who knows? Who knows? Seriously, who knows? Do you know who knows? You could say your guess is as good as mine. It's implying that you also don't know the answer. Your guess is as good as mine. Well, your guess is as good as mine. I created a free lesson PDF that summarizes all the different ways to say I don't know. You can look in the description or the comments section for the link. Now another one with the word guess is if I had to guess, I'd say so. You're

letting the person know that your answer could be completely wrong. So how far away is the sun? If I had to guess, I'd say 100 million miles. I don't know, am I right? You let me know in the comments. If I'm right, you could say I wish I knew. That's an interesting piece of knowledge. I wish I knew, but I don't. I wish I knew. I wish I could help you. I wish I could help you with that. I wish I could answer that for you, but I can't. I wish I knew, Robin. I wish

I knew. You could also say I can't help you with that one. I can't help you with that question. You could say that's an interesting question, but and then use any of the expressions we just learned. That's an interesting question, but I have no idea. You could also just say I've never thought about that before, which is probably true. A common way to answer that question now is simply to take out your phone and say, hey, Siri, how far away is the sun? Hey, I was actually pretty close. It was 149,000,000 miles away and I

said 100 million miles and I completely guessed. I'm pretty proud of that. So that's a great way to answer. Just ask Siri or Alexa or whoever else. There are two very common idioms that you can use. The first idiom is beats me. That beats me. But we commonly get rid of that and simply say beats me. And that's the same as saying I have no idea beats me. The other idiom is I haven't the slightest idea, and the slightest is this much the smallest amount possible, but you're saying you don't even have that. So it's

another way of saying I have no idea. I haven't the slightest idea. Now instead of slightest, you could say foggiest or faintest and it means the exact same thing. Or you can say I haven't a clue, which also means the same thing. So they're just slight changes to the same idiom, and they're very commonly used. Because I haven't the foggiest idea why. I mean, look at me. Now let's talk about some more professional expressions that you can use when you're asked a question but you don't know the answer. So let's say your boss asks you

how many units of a specific product were sold last month. You could reply back and say when do you need to know by and your boss will likely say an hour, two hours, tomorrow, next week and tell you when they need the information. Now, if they say right now I need it right now, then you can reply back and say let me get that for you get that, that being the answer, the information. Or you could say let me find out. Let me look into this instead of let me. You could also say I will

as a contraction. All I'll find out, I'll look into this, I'll let you know, I'll get back to you. Another way to reply is to say I need to check something and then I'll get back to you. So you're letting the person know that you just need to do something 1st. Instead of check, you could say I need to confirm something, I need to verify something, I need to look into something and get back to you. You can also specify a specific time or date when you'll have the information. Let me look into this and

I'll get back to you by 2:00, by the end of the day, by tomorrow, by next week, and let the person know. Let. Me look. Do it. Now, if you do want to admit that you don't know the answer now, you could say something like I'm not sure offhand. So offhand is just an expression we use to mean right now, I'm not sure offhand. Let me look into this and I'll get back to you by 2:00. Does that work for you? And you can add, does that work for you to clarify that getting back to

them with the information by 2:00 is acceptable? Your boss will likely say sure, no problem. Or they might say no, no, no. I have a meeting in 10 minutes and I need this information. Well then of course you say no problem, I'll find out right now and get back to you in a few minutes. Of course, by the deadline your boss just told you now instead of saying I'm not sure offhand. Which again, is just an expression. I'm not sure offhand you could say I'm not sure off the top of my head. So again, this

is another way of just saying right now off the top of my head, I'm not sure. Let me find out and I'll e-mail you the information in 10 minutes. So you could also use in and a time reference in 10 minutes, in an hour, in 20 minutes. Or you could simply say ASAP. I'm not sure off the top of my head. Let me check and I'll get back to you ASAP. That means as soon as possible. You can also say ASAP. There's two different ways to say it, ASAP or ASAP. They're both acceptable. I think

ASAP is more common though. I'll get back to you ASAP. Look into it and get back to you. ASAP. Now you'll learn 25 different ways to say I'm sorry. First, let's talk about some casual expressions that you can use in everyday situations. Let's take the example of bumping into someone at the grocery store and you want to apologize. So instead of saying I'm sorry, you can simply say sorry. I know it's a subtle difference, but it will really help you sound more natural to just say sorry, sorry. You can also add so or very in

front of it, so sorry, very sorry. Or you could say sorry about that, that being the mistake, bumping into the person at the grocery store. Sorry about that. So sorry about that. I'm so sorry about that. To help you remember all of these expressions, I created a free lesson PDF. You can look in the description or the section for the link to download the free lesson PDF. Another common thing is simply to make a sound effect like oops oops, whoops, Oh no, Oh my. And then you don't even have to say anything else because usually

it's your facial expression. Oops. Oh, oopsie, oopsie. Oopsie. Yikes. Whoops. A slightly more formal one, but that's still very casual, is to say, excuse me or pardon me, excuse me, pardon me. Those are quite common as well. Let's say that your friend asks you to buy her a chocolate chip cookie, but you bought her an oatmeal cookie. So instead of saying I'm sorry, you could say my bad, my bad. This is extremely common in North America and it will really make you sound like an American English speaker. My bad, my bad. Keep in mind it

is quite casual and it's used for smaller things you want to apologize for, like getting the wrong cookie, my bad. You could also say my fault, my fault or my mistake. My mistake, I got you the wrong cookie. My bad. Let's say you want to admit your mistake. For example, you told your friend the party started at 8:00, but it actually started at 7:00. You could say I was wrong. So instead of saying I'm sorry I gave you the wrong time, you could say I was wrong. Of course you can use any of our other

expressions. My bad. But want to specifically admit your mistake is simply to say I was wrong. Often we say sorry if we can't do something that someone wants us to do. So let's say your friend invited you to a party but you can't attend. It would be very common to say I'm sorry I can't attend your party. Instead of saying I'm sorry, you can say unfortunately. So replace I'm sorry with unfortunately. Unfortunately, I can't help you. Unfortunately, I can't attend your party. Unfortunately, I can't drive you to the airport. Now let's talk about some more

professional expressions that you can use in the workplace or a more formal situation. Let's say you arrive to an important meeting 10 minutes late. Instead of saying I'm sorry, you can say my apologies. Now you can expand on that and say my apologies for being late. To make it stronger, you can add sincere my sincere apologies for being late. To sound even more formal, you could say please accept my apologies. Please accept my sincere apologies for being late. That sounds very formal. Let's say you made a mistake at work and you or ordered 100 boxes,

but you should have ordered 10 boxes. Now in the casual example, we learned I was wrong to admit you made a mistake in a professional context. I recommend I take full responsibility. This sounds very professional because the word responsibility sounds professional. I take full responsibility for ordering the wrong number of boxes. My sincere apologies. And I take full responsibility. You could also say I understand I made a mistake, I'll fix it. Now instead of understand, you could say I know I made a mistake. I admit I made a mistake, I'll fix it. So notice you're

not just admitting it, you're also offering a solution. I'll fix it. I'll call the supplier right now. I'll get this resolved. So offering a solution is a great addition to admitting a mistake. Let's say that you kept a client waiting on the phone for a long time. Now instead of saying I'm sorry for the wait, you can say I appreciate your patience. So instead of talking about the negative, you talk about the positive, which is the fact that your client is patient. I appreciate your patience. Thank you for your patience. Thank you for understanding, thank

you for holding. I appreciate your time. I appreciate your patience. Now let's say that your boss, your Co worker or your client offers you some constructive criticism. So they tell you about something that you're not doing very well. Maybe your last presentation wasn't very good and they give you some constructive criticism, some feedback. Instead of saying, I'm sorry my presentation wasn't good, you can say thank you for bringing this to my attention or thank you for letting me know. And then you can add a solution. I'll work on that, I'll improve that. Or you can

even ask them, how can I improve? Can you give me some suggestions to improve? Thank you. For. Bringing this to my attention. There's one common idiom that you can use to admit you made a mistake. So remember in the casual example you can say I was wrong. In the professional example you can say I take full responsibility. The idiom that you can use in any situation is the buck stops with me, the buck stops with me. This simply means I was wrong or I take full responsibility. The buck stops with me. You've already learned different

ways to say I think let's keep going and you'll learn over 50 ways to share your opinion, agree with opinions, disagree with opinions, and ask others for their opinions. Now let's get started with first sharing your personal opinion. Let's say you're in a work meeting and you have an idea you want to share with everyone. We should hire a marketing expert to build our website. You can absolutely see that, but you can sound more professional, more advanced if you use an opinion word. Now there are many different phrases you can use to share your personal

opinion. I recommend starting with two to three that you like the most and then you can add more once you get comfortable with them so you have variety and you're not always using the same one. Here's the list. In my opinion, as far as I'm concerned, from my perspective, from my point of view, personally, I think that in my view, I'd say that I believe that. I strongly, firmly believe that. I'm convinced that there's no doubt in my mind that I feel that. In my mind, it seems to me that, so let's take our idea

again, we should hire a marketing expert to build our website. As far as I'm concerned, we should hire a marketing expert. In my opinion, in my mind, personally, I think that we should hire a marketing expert. So you can use any one of these. And remember, variety is key. You don't always want to say, in my opinion, you can absolutely use that, but you want to have variety. Now let's talk about agreeing with an opinion. So you're in a meeting and a colleague says we should postpone the conference. Or your colleague used an opinion word

and said I firmly believe that we should postpone the conference. Now let's say that you agree with your colleague. What can you say? Well, again, here's a big list. Start with one to two and add them as you get comfortable. I agree. I agree with you. I think so too. That's a good point. You're right. Definitely, absolutely. I 2nd that. I couldn't have said it better myself. I couldn't agree more. We're on the same page. You hit the nail on the head. So your colleague says from my perspective, we should postpone the conference. And you

say I couldn't agree more, we should postpone the conference. You're right, we should postpone the conference. Absolutely we should postpone the conference. I agree with you. Now let's say your colleague shared an opinion that started with, I don't think, I don't think we should postpone the conference. Personally, I don't think we should postpone the conference. We have one very specific phrase that you can use when you want to agree with a negative opinion. Do you know what that is? In my mind, I don't think we should postpone the conference. Neither do I. Neither do I.

You only use this when you're agreeing with I don't think neither do I. Now let's talk about disagreeing with an opinion. So you're in a meeting and your calling says in my mind we should look for a new supplier. Now you don't agree. What can you say? You can say I disagree with you. I'm afraid I disagree. On the contrary. I understand where you're coming from, but I respect your opinion. But that's a good point. However, I see your point, but I have a different perspective I think. Can I share my opinion? That's one way

of looking at it. But have you considered the fact that now the first one I shared, I disagree with you is probably the least commonly used because it sounds argumentative and we generally want to say this softly to someone. So it's way more common to say I'm afraid, I'm afraid I disagree with you. It makes it a lot softer. Or you could acknowledge that I respect your opinion, but I don't think that's a good idea. I respect your opinion, but I think we should keep our supplier. My personal favorite in this category is understand where

you're coming from, but and then you share your opinion or whatever information you like. I understand where you're coming from. This is another way of saying I respect your opinion. I understand where you're coming from, but right now isn't the best time to change our suppliers because it's our busiest time of year. We should wait until Q4 and remember, you can add your personal opinion words as well. From my perspective, in my mind, from my point of view, we should wait until Q4. So you can absolutely combine these different opinion words together. Now let's talk

about sharing a general opinion. So something that most people would agree with. Here's a statement. Repetition is key when you're learning any new skill. Now, I personally believe this, but it's not my opinion per SE. This is just a commonly held opinion by most people, by many different people. So here are some general opinion words you can use. It's said that it's believed that. I've heard that it's considered that. It's generally accepted that most agree that some say that. It goes without saying that researchers experts suggest that. So I could say it's generally accepted that

repetition is key when you're learning any new skill. And personally I agree. And personally I couldn't have said it better myself. So you absolutely can share a general opinion, but then agree with that general opinion using one of the phrases you've already learned. Or maybe you want to disagree with this statement. Well then of course you can use one of the phrases to disagree. On the contrary, repetition isn't that important. I'm afraid I disagree. Repetition isn't that important in my mind. And then you can share your opinion. And finally, let's talk about how to ask

someone for their opinion. So let's say I shared a general opinion. Most agree that repetition is key when learning a new skill. And I want to ask for your opinion on this specific topic. I can say, do you agree? What's your opinion? What do you think? What are your thoughts? What's your view? How do you see the situation? What's your take on it? What about you? How about you? Has that been your experience? What has your experience been? Are we on the same page? Is that something you would support too? So if you're talking to

someone who's currently learning a new skill, it could be really interesting to ask them. Has that been your experience? What are your thoughts on that? Do you agree? So now you have 50 plus phrases that you can use in any situation. Formal, informal, professional meeting, casual party with friends to talk about opinions. Because everybody loves sharing their opinion, right? So now you get to share your opinion. I want you to share either a personal opinion or a general opinion related to the subject of languages in the comments below and. The fun part, you can look

in the comments and then you can reply back to the other students and you can agree or you can disagree or maybe you can even ask someone more information about their opinion. Try to use the different opinion words that you learned in this lesson. So have fun in the comments below. Now you'll learn 50 transition words you can use every day. These transition words will help you expand on your ideas and show the connection between your ideas. Our first group of transition words are used to show cause and effect causation. So here I have two

separate ideas. I spilled my coffee. I changed my shirt. Now this is where we can use a transition word to combine these ideas together and to show the relationship between them. I spilled my coffee. As a result, I I changed my shirt cause and effect. Here are the transition words in this category, and they're listed from most formal to least formal, so you can take a screenshot of this. Consequently, Hence, accordingly Thus, for that reason, as a result, therefore, and so since because due to now the example I gave you, I spilled my coffee as

a result, I changed my shirt. This is a casual statement. It might sound a little odd, perhaps out of place, to use a very formal transition word such as Consequently, in such a common everyday speech, I spilled my coffee, consequently I changed my shirt. You could absolutely say it, it's grammatically correct, but the choice of transition word is just a little too formal. So do not think that formal is the best, and you absolutely should use formal. You should use formal when your ideas are more formal, they're more academic, they're more professional in a business

context. Let's look at a business context. The project is over budget. We have to cut costs. So again, we'll show our cause and effect. We'll use a transition word to combine these ideas, and because it's a more formal context, I can use a more formal transition word. The project is over budget, hence, consequently, thus, we have to cut costs. Our next group of transition words is chronology. This is how events are related based on when they occur. So think of time. Here are three events. I went to the store, I worked out, I made dinner.

Now, of course, we can add first, second, third, first, next, finally, that's chronology. And it instantly sounds more organized and more advanced when you add the transition words. So let's review the transition words in this category first. Firstly, to start, to begin at the beginning, at the start, 2nd, secondly, after, afterwards, next, then subsequently, later, third, thirdly, after, afterwards, next, then, subsequently, later, finally, lastly, last but not least. Now notice that for the second and 3rd events, many of the transition words are the same. You can use after, after for the second and third event,

or you can use next, next for the second and third and 4th and 5th event. But you might want to avoid that so you don't sound repetitive using the same transition word again and again. So you can use next, then, then subsequently, subsequently, finally. So you can use the different transition words just to show off your advanced vocabulary. Our next category of transition words is to show contrast when you have two opposing ideas. Let me give you 2 ideas. I love ice cream. I'm lactose intolerant. So can you see how these two ideas are in

opposition? I love ice cream is great. It's a really positive thing. But I'm lactose intolerant. That's negative, and it also means that I can't eat ice cream, so those ideas are in opposition. So we can use our contrasting transition words. However, although though, but I love ice cream, but I'm lactose intolerant. Same thing. The transition words are listed from most formal to least formal. Again, you could say I love ice cream, however, I'm lactose intolerant. But again, these ideas are quite simple, so you probably want a more simple transition word. Our next category of transition

words is addition of similar ideas. I love ice cream. I love cake. It's adding a similar idea because they're both in the same category, which is desserts or sweets. The most common transition words from most formal to least formal in this category are furthermore moreover, further additionally in addition also, and I love ice cream and I love cake. Obviously, you know that one. So why not try to advance your vocabulary by using in addition I love ice cream In addition I love cake. Now let's talk about generality. This is when things are true most of

the time. The most common transition words in this category are in general, generally, generally speaking, by and large, for the most part, most of the time, more often than not, usually, typically mostly. So let's take an example. Our meetings are very productive. Now, of course, I'm sure there's one or two meetings that aren't very productive, but most of the time, in general, generally speaking, our meetings are very productive. Now let's look at the category of examples. There are really only three main transition words. For example, as an example, for instance, this software has really helped

us. Now it can make your point a lot stronger or help you expand on your idea by adding an example. This software has really helped us. For example, as an example, for instance, it reduced our error rate by 40%. Our next category is emphasis. This category is used to make a point stronger by adding more supporting information. Let's take a simple example. I love pie. Now what if I wanted to make this point stronger? I could say it's my favorite dessert. I love pie. In fact, it's my favorite dessert. I love pie. As a matter

of fact, it's my favorite dessert. These are the only two transition words that are commonly used to add emphasis. And finally, conclusion transition words. Notice I just used a transition word. And finally, that is a conclusion transition word. Now, of course, in this category, we use these transition words when we want to end what we're seeing and our speech and our presentation. Here are the most common transition words listed from most formal to least formal. In conclusion, to conclude, to summarize, in sum, all things considered, finally, overall, ultimately, in the end, to wrap up, to

sum up, All in all, so let's say I'm ending my presentation at work and I want my colleagues to remember 1 very important fact. And that fact is if we want to remain competitive, we have to invest in automation. Now to let my colleagues know that this is the last point I'm going to make, my final point, I'm going to add a conclusion, transition word. Ultimately, if we want to remain competitive, we have to invest in automation. So now you have 50 plus transition words to help you communicate your ideas in a very professional and

organized way. Before you go, let me share a bonus tip with you. You can use transition words to help you expand on your ideas. So let's take one idea. In general, our meetings are very productive. Now I can pick any category of transition word. To expand on this idea, I could add a contrast. However, they usually run over time, so this is an opposing idea. Now let me give an example of my last point to add emphasis and to expand even more. For example, today our meeting was scheduled to end at 11 and it went

until 11/17. So let's expand on this even more. What was the effect of the meeting running over by 17 minutes? As a result, I was late for a meeting with a client. Were there any other effects? If there were, I could use an addition of a similar idea. Transition word. Additionally, I had to work through lunch to catch up. As you can see, transition words are an excellent way to expand on your idea. So now it's your turn. In the comments below, why don't you take 3 or more transition words and and start with one

idea and then just pick any other category and expand on that idea with three or more transition words. So you can do that in the comments below. Now you'll learn 150 common idioms to sound fluent to play something by ear. This is when you make a decision in the moment rather than planning in advance. So let's say you're talking about your weekend and your husband or your friend says what do you want to do this weekend? And you might say let's play it by ear. Let's decide as the weekend happens, not in advance. Let's play

it by ear to be all ears. We use this to say that you're ready to listen and you're paying full attention. So let's say you tell your boss you want to discuss something important about the project and your boss replies, I'm all ears, I'm all ears to wake up on the wrong side of the bed. This is a great one we've all done. This is when you wake up in a bad mood, you wake up grumpy. So let's say you wake up, you go in the kitchen and your wife, your husband says, oh hi honey,

how are you? Would you like some coffee? Coffee. What do you want for breakfast? And you're grumpy. I don't care. Where's my phone? And you're being grumpy. Well, then your wife, your husband can say, well, someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed. And that's just to let you know you're being grumpy to wing something. When you wing something, you perform a speech or presentation without planning in advance. So you definitely don't want to wing your IELTS exam, right? To make a mountain out of a molehill. A molehill is really small, a mountain

is really big. So it's when you take a minor problem or issue and you make it seem really serious or severe. So let's say you got one question wrong on a test and you're acting like it's extremely serious. Someone could say don't make a mountain out of a molehill. They're letting you know it's really not that bad to be at a crossroads. This is when you have to make a really important decision that could impact your life. Let's say you've been a graphic designer for 10 years, but you're considering going back to school and changing

careers and becoming a lawyer or a teacher. So you might say, I'm not sure if I want to be a graphic designer anymore. I'm at a crossroads because that decision will impact your life. To rain cats and dogs. This is when it rains heavily. So let's say your friend in a different city asked you, oh, did it rain last night? And it did. It rained heavily. You can say, yeah, it rained cats and dogs to be on top of the world. This is when you're really, really happy. So let's say you've got a new promotion.

You can say I'm on top of the world to give someone the cold shoulder. This is when you ignore someone, and you ignore someone on purpose, usually because you're mad at them, annoyed with them, they did something wrong or something to irritate you. So let's say your husband or your wife is ignoring you. You might say why are you giving me the cold shoulder? It's another way of asking why are you mad at me? What did I do wrong? Why are you giving me the cold shoulder? To sit on the fence. This is when you

delay making a decision, usually because that decision is difficult and you don't want to make it. For example, I asked my boss for a promotion, but he's sitting on the fence, so he won't answer me. He won't say yes, he won't say no. He keeps just saying, oh, I need to think about it, I'll get back to you. He's sitting on the fence to hit the nail on the head. This is when you accurately explain a problem or a situation. For example, you hit the nail on the head when you said we needed to reduce

our costs. So you explain the situation accurately to be as fit as a fiddle. This simply means you feel great, you have good health, you're in good shape. So maybe you could say since I changed my diet and I'm eating more fruits and vegetables, I feel as fit as a fiddle. This is a great 1 to get something out of your system. This is when you do something or you try something simply so you can move on. For example, let's say you've been talking about going skydiving for years and years. You research it, you look

at different websites, you talk to people about it, but you've never actually done it. Someone might say just go skydiving so you can get it out of your system. So once you do it, you can stop researching it, stop looking it up and just move on already. I like this one. Speak of the devil, speak of the devil. This sounds negative because of devil, but it's not at all. This is used when you're talking about someone and they appear exactly as you're talking about them. This has happened, right? Let's say you're talking to a friend

about your mutual friend, Bob, and you're talking about Bob. Oh, is Bob going to come to the party? Oh, I'm not sure. I haven't talked to Bob. And then your phone rings, and guess what? It's Bob. And then you can say speak of the devil to give someone the benefit of the doubt. This is when you trust someone when they tell you something. So if a coworker is late and they call you and they say I'm stuck in traffic, let's give him the benefit of the doubt. Let's trust that he's actually stuck in traffic. No

pain, no gain. This is a classic one. This is used to say that if you want results, real results, you have to be willing to work hard and get uncomfortable. So I might say if you want to improve your public speaking skills, no pain, no gain, you have to be willing to get uncomfortable. Hang in there. This is a great one. It simply means don't give up. I know learning a language is hard, but hang in there. A penny for your thoughts. This is used to ask someone what they're thinking. So let's say your friend

is just staring out the window and you probably are wondering what are they thinking about? You can turn to your friend and say a penny for your thoughts. It's not rocket science. Rocket science is complicated, right? But if we say it's not rocket science, this means it's not complicated. So I could say becoming a confident English speaker is not rocket science. It's not complicated. You just have to practice speaking to let someone off the hook. This is a great one because it means that you don't punish someone for a mistake or a wrongdoing. So your

boss could say, I know you came in late today, but I'm going to let you off the hook. I'm not going to punish you. To make a Long story short, this is when you take a long and usually complicated story and you make it very simple by sharing it briefly. So you could say Long story short, we missed our flight. So there's a long story about why you missed your flight, but you don't explain those details. You just say, Long story short, we missed our flight. Easy does it. Easy does it. This is a way

of saying slow down. So if your friend is at the gym and they're trying to do too many exercises with too much weight, you might say easy does it slow down to go back to the drawing board. This is when you need to start over and create a new plan or strategy because the first one failed. So let's say you were trying to solve a computer problem. You came up with a strategy, it didn't work. And then you can say to your team, well, let's go back to the drawing board and try again. Once in

a blue moon, this is an event that happens in frequently. For example, I only see Kara once in a blue moon, not very often at the drop of a hat. This is a great one because it means without hesitation or instantly. For example, call me if you need anything and I'll be there at the drop of a hat. It means I'll come instantly if you need anything. So it's a really nice, reassuring thing to say to someone. To add insult to injury, this is when you take a bad situation and it becomes becomes even worse.

So let's say you're going out on a first date and your date showed up late. That's already a bad situation. But then to add insult to injury, your date forgot his wallet and you had to pay for both of you to hit the sack. This means to go to bed, for example, I'm really tired, I'm going to hit the sack. The balls in your court. This is used when you need to make the next decision or the next step. So I might say we offered her a great promotion. So now the balls in her court.

So it's up to her to decide if she's going to accept the promotion or look for another job or do something else. To be or to go barking up the wrong tree. This is when you look in the wrong place or you accuse the wrong person. For example, if you think I lost your ring, you're barking up the wrong tree. You're accusing the wrong person to get or to have your ducks in a row. This is when you're well prepared or well organized for something specific. So you might say the conference was supposed to start

10 minutes ago. They should have gotten their ducks in a row. They should have been organized or prepared to get or have the best of both worlds. This is when you enjoy the advantages of two very different things at the same time. She works in the city, but she lives in the country. She gets the best of both worlds. The lion's share. This is the largest part or most of something, so you might complain. I did the lion's share of work on this project to be on the ball. This is when you're performing really well.

Wow, you completed all those reports already. You're on the ball to pull someone's leg. This is when you're joking with someone. So we usually use this to reassure someone you're only joking. Don't get upset. I'm just pulling your leg to pull yourself together. This is when you need to calm down. You regain your composure after being really upset or agitated, angry, annoyed, and then you calm down. So I might say pull yourself together. It was a false alarm. So the alarm made you really agitated and I'm telling you to calm down. So far so good.

This is how you reply when you want to let someone know that everything is okay until now. How's the project going? So far so good to be the last straw. This is when you have no patience left for someones errors or mistakes. So I might say this is her fifth time being late this month. That's the last straw. No more patience for her mistakes. Time flies when you're having fun. This is used to say that you don't notice how long something takes because it's enjoyable. So you might look at your watch and say, oh, wow,

it's 1:00 AM already. And then someone could reply and say, yeah, time flies when you're having fun to be bent out of shape. This is used to say you're upset, you're angry. For example, Janice is bent out of shape because she has to work late tonight to make matters worse. Matters in this sense means problems. To make problems worse, so I might say I have to work tonight. And to make matters worse, to make that situation even worse, I have an early appointment tomorrow. Don't judge a book by its cover. You've probably heard this one.

It means that you shouldn't judge someone or something on appearance. For example, let's say I'm hiring people and I say I'm not going to hire him. Look at his hair. And then my colleague would say, well don't judge a book by his cover, look at his resume to fall between 2:00. Stools. This is when something fails to achieve 2 separate objectives. So let's say you plan to watch a romantic comedy movie. That movie is supposed to be romantic and funny at the same time. A romantic comedy 2 objectives. So you could say that movie fell

between two stools. It wasn't romantic, and it wasn't funny to cost an arm and a leg. This is when something is exceptionally expensive. Now, airline tickets are usually expensive, but exceptionally expensive. Even more expensive than usual I might say. My flight cost an arm and a leg to cross a bridge when you come to it. This is used to remind someone that you only need to deal with the situation when it happens. So your friend might be concerned. What if I forget all my words during my IELTS speaking exam and then you tell that friend

cross that bridge when you come to it? Worry about that problem when it happens to cry over spilt milk. This is used when someone complaints about a problem or a loss from the past. So let's say I had a party weeks ago and now I'm complaining. I can't believe John didn't come to my party. Well my friend can say don't cry over spilled milk. It was three weeks ago, why are you still talking about it? Curiosity killed the cat. This is used to say that being inquisitive or asking a lot of questions can lead to

an unpleasant situation. So let's say your husband or wife is planning you a surprise birthday party and you try to ask a lot of questions. What are we doing? Where are we going? Who's coming? Then your husband or wife can say curiosity killed the cat. Just to remind you, don't ask so many questions to miss the boat. This is when you lose an opportunity because you were too slow to take action. For example, the application deadline was last week. I missed the boat to be on fire. This is to perform really well. Wow, your presentation

was amazing. You were on fire to spill the beans. This is when you reveal a secret when you shouldn't have revealed a secret. So let's say you're planning a surprise party for someone and then you tell everyone. Don't spill the beans. Don't reveal the secret to be under the weather. This is when you feel unwell, when you feel sick. I'm a little under the weather today, A blessing in disguise. This is when something, a situation seems bad or unlucky at first, but it results in something positive at a later date. So let's say you get

fired from your job. Obviously that seems bad, maybe even unlucky, but later on you get a job 10 times better. It pays better, you have a better boss, better Co workers, the location is better. Everything about this job is better. You can say getting fired was a blessing in disguise. My new job is so much better, a dime a dozen. This is used to describe something that is common and not special. So you can say tech startups in Silicon Valley are a dime a dozen. They're very common, they're everywhere, and they're not very, very special.

Everyone's a tech startup in Silicon Valley, a dime a dozen to beat around the Bush. This is when you avoid saying what you mean because it's uncomfortable or awkward. So let's say you want to end your romantic relationship with your partner. Your friend could tell you. Don't beat around the Bush. Be direct and tell that person you want to break up. Better late than never. So let's say you've been working with a company for 10 years and you finally got your first promotion after 10 years. And you're telling your friend this and you're a little

annoyed because you've been there for 10 years. But your friend could say better late than never to remind you that yes, it took ten years, but it's better than not having a promotion. Better late than never to bite the bullet. I love this idiom. This is when you force yourself to do something difficult or unpleasant because it's necessary or inevitable. Inevitable means eventually you have to do it. So why not bite the bullet and do it now? For example, just bite the bullet and ask your boss for a promotion. Break a leg. This is a

very common idiom that we use to say good luck, good luck, break a leg. But we especially use this before someone gives a performance, most commonly a theatrical performance. But when you're going for a job interview, you are in a sense performing. Or when you're doing your speaking exam for your IELTS, you are performing. So before your speaking exam, your friend, your partner could say break a leg, which means good luck to call it a day. When you call it a day, it means you stop working for that day, usually because time is up or

because you've done enough work for that day and you're going to stop. For example, it's getting late. Let's call it a day. Let's call it a day. So that means you can go home to cut somebody some slack. So let's say there's this Co worker who has been showing up late to work every day and not doing a very good job at work. They seem very distracted. They're not working very hard, they're not contributing. But that person's dad just died. So you might say, let's cut him some slack, His dad just died, so you're not

going to punish him as severely as you normally would. To be glad to see the back of this means that you're happy that somebody has left because you don't like them. So let's say it's Jane's last day at work. She quit. She has a new job, but you didn't like Jane. You can say I'm glad to see the back of Jane to be the best thing since sliced bread. This is a compliment used to say that something, usually technology or an invention, is extremely useful, excellent, or high quality. So you could give me a compliment

and say this YouTube channel is the best thing since sliced bread. If you think that's true, then put it in the comments. There are plenty of fish in the sea. So let's say your friend went on a date and she says Pierre hasn't called me back and it's been 3 weeks. You can encourage your friend by saying don't worry, there are plenty of fish in the sea come rain or shine. This is used to say that an event will take place despite external circumstances. So let's say tomorrow is a vacation day for you, but there's

a big project deadline tomorrow. But you might say I'm taking the day off tomorrow come rain or shine to cut corners. This is when you do something in the cheapest, easiest or fastest way, but by omitting something or by not following rules. So you might say we felt pressured to cut corners because of the tight deadline to get your act together. So your parents might say to you or your sibling or someone you know, you're 30 and you still live at home and you don't have a job. You need to get your act together. You

need to organize yourself so you can live in an effective and efficient way. Get your act together to break the ice. This is such an important one because this is used to help people who don't know each other to feel more comfortable around each other, especially when they're meeting for the first time. Let's break the ice by introducing ourselves and sharing something interesting about ourselves. Clear as mud. This is used to say that something is very difficult to understand. So if somebody gave you instructions but their instructions didn't make any sense at all and they

ask you, so is everything OK? Do you understand? You can say clear as mud which tells the person you do not understand at all. Crystal clear something is very clear and easy to understand. His instructions were crystal clear to rock the boat. This is when you do or say something that could upset people or cause problems. Don't rock the boat until the negotiations are done. So don't say anything that could upset someone or that could cause problems until we sign the deal and then you can cause problems if you want to to get out of

hand. This is another way of saying to get out of control, which means you no longer have control over a situation. You could say the party got out of hand, which means you were no longer able to control it. The party got out of hand and some valuables were broken. A bad apple. This is used to describe a bad or corrupt person within a group. You could say there are a few bad apples in the company. To cut to the chase, this is when you only talk about the most important points of a subject or

topic. So if you are running out of time in the in a meeting, you might say we're running out of time. So I'll cut to the chase. I'll only say the most important points to come in handy. This is used when something is very useful for a specific purpose. So if it's pouring rain outside, you might say an umbrella would come in handy. An umbrella would be very useful in this particular situation to reinvent the wheel. This is when you waste time trying to recreate something that somebody else has already created. So let's say you

ask your boss, should I create a presentation for the conference? And your boss suggests using last year's presentation. It's already created and your boss can add. Don't reinvent the wheel. So we often use this idiom in the negative to go with the flow. When you go with the flow, it means that you do what other people are doing or you agree with the opinion of others, the majority. So let's say you're having a company dinner and you originally wanted to have burgers, but the majority of people say they want pizza. So you can go with

the flow and have pizza instead of burgers because that's what the majority wants to be skating on thin ice. This is when you do something that is dangerous or involves risk. He's skating on thin ice by lying to his wife. It involves risk, it's dangerous, don't do it. A silver lining. This is something positive that comes from something negative. So the pandemic is negative, right? But is there anything positive? A silver lining, maybe we could say 1 silver lining of the pandemic is that it made us realize how important our relationships are with friends and

family to have a sweet tooth. This is somebody who likes eating sweet foods, especially chocolate. So if people offer me dessert, generally I'll say no because I don't like sweet food. So I could say no thank you. I don't have a sweet tooth, which means I don't really like sweet foods. To go Dutch, this is when you agree to share the cost of something, especially a meal. So let's say you're having dinner with a friend, family member, even a romantic partner, and they say I'll pay for the meal. You could say no, no, no, let's

go Dutch. Which means you're going to divide the cost 5050 to make ends meet. This is when you have just enough money to pay for essential items. You might say, with food prices increasing, we're barely making ends meet to ring a bell. This is when something, usually a person, a place or information is familiar to you. So let's say you're having a conversation with a Co worker and they say, oh, have you met Fred from accounting and you're thinking Fred, Fred, Fred from accounting? That doesn't ring a bell. The tip of the iceberg. This is

used to. Describe a small part of a much bigger problem. These small local protests are just the tip of the iceberg to blow off steam. This is when you say or do something that helps you release strong feelings or strong energy, strong emotion. After our fight, I went for a walk to blow off steam. So when you were on that walk, you were able to calm down, to release that negative energy. A piece of cake. This is something that was extremely easy. That exam was a piece of cake. To be out of the woods. This

is when you no longer have a problem or difficulty. Our profits are increasing, but we're not out of the woods yet to get over something. This is when you recover from an illness. It took me two weeks to get over that cold to not be ones cup of tea. This is used to describe a type or category that you don't like. Thanks for the invite, but camping isn't my cup of tea. I don't like that category of activity to be loaded. This means to be rich, to have a lot of money. I just found out

my cousin's loaded to nip something in the bud. This is to stop something before it has an opportunity to become established. We need to nip these rumors in the bud before the employees start worrying out of the blue. When something happens out of the blue, it happens suddenly and you weren't expecting it. My boss gave me a promotion out of the blue, you weren't expecting it. How awesome is that to keep one's chin up? This is to remain cheerful in a difficult situation because in difficult situations we tend to put our chin down, but when

we're happy, we tend to keep our chin up. For example, I know the economy seems bad, but keep your chin up to race against the clock. This is when you try to finish a task quickly before a specific time. I raced against the clock to finish the audit and meet the deadline. To catch somebody off guard. This is when you surprise somebody by doing something they weren't expecting or weren't prepared for. The politician was caught off guard when asked about the scandal. To be on one's radar. If something is on your radar, it means you're

considered during it or thinking about it or aware of it. You could say leaving the company isn't on my radar. It's not even something I'm considering to stab someone in the back. This is to betray someone to do something harmful to someone who trusted you. She told the client she did all the work on the project. I can't believe she stabbed me in the back like that to make a beeline for something. This is when you move quickly and directly towards something. So let's say you're at a wedding or a conference and they're about to

serve serve lunch the buffet lunch. Everyone made a bee line for the food. They went quickly and directly to the food. To be in hot water. This is when you're in a situation where you might be criticized or punished. The politicians in hot water after his comments on gender equality. To be dressed to the nines. This is when you're dressed formally, smartly or fashionably. We dress to the nines for our wedding anniversary, so you usually dress to the nines for a special occasion to be between a rock and a hard place. This is when you're

in a difficult situation or you have to make a difficult decision. If I accept the promotion, then I'll have to move abroad and I know Matt, my partner, won't come with me. So I either accept the promotion that I really want but then I have to lose Matt, or I stay with Matt and I don't get the promotion. I'm between a rock and a hard place. It's a difficult situation. It's a difficult decision. Lo and behold, this is an expression used to say that something surprising happened. I was on vacation in Japan and lo and

behold, I saw my childhood sweetheart. So it's very surprising that I see my childhood sweetheart across the world in a foreign city. Lo and behold, to let the cat out of the bag. This is when you accidentally reveal a secret. So let's say you're planning a surprise party for your wife or husband or friend and they know about it. You might say you know about the party, don't you? Who let the cat out of the bag? Who told you? Who revealed the secret? Who let the cat out of the bag to be on the same

page? This is used when all people agree on something and that something is generally a plan or how to approach something. For example, before we launch the product, we need to get everybody on the same page. So we need to make sure that all the different people agree on the plan to launch the product to sell. Like hot cakes. I love this idiom. This is used when something sells very quickly, easily, or in large quantities, large amounts. For example, her new book sold like hot cakes. So this is a very good idiom to fall through

the cracks or to slip through the cracks. This is used when something is not noticed or something does not have sufficient attention. And remember, you can use two different verbs, fall or through, and both have the same meaning, and they're both very common. For example, I'm sorry, I forgot to send you the report. It slipped through the cracks. It fell through the cracks, so I just didn't notice it. I didn't pay enough attention to it to be up in arms. This is a great one as well because we use it when someone is grumpy or

angry about something specific. For example, Julie is up in arms because we have to stay late tonight. So Julie is angry or grumpy because of something specific. We have to stay late tonight. She's up in arms, fair and square. This means honestly or according to the rules. So let's say my team lost a competition, but we deserve to lose. The other team played better than us. I can say they beat us fair and square. Honestly, according to the rules, they won fair and square to be a black sheep. This is when a member of a

group is different from the other members and we often use this with family. For example, all my cousins are married and have kids except tom-tom is the black sheep. He's different from all the other members of the group, in this case family, By the skin of one's teeth. This means barely or by a very slight margin. We won by the skin of our teeth. So we won by only by this much, not very much to get under one's skin. And this is to irritate or upset someone. For example, I don't know why, but Jerry really

gets under my skin. Jerry really irritates me. He upsets me to draw the line. This is when you put a limit on what you will allow or what you will do. For example, I want to help my sister, but I draw the line at lending her money. So that is what I will not do. I will not lend her money that is not allowed to give something a whirl. This is a fun one. It simply means to try something new. For example, you should give bowling a whirl. It's really fun. So if I know you've

never gone bowling before, I could say you should try it. You should give it a whirl to be a fish out of water. This is used to say that someone is in an unfamiliar and uncomfortable surrounding. For example, I feel like a fish out of water when I go to English meetings because you have to speak in English and that's unfamiliar and uncomfortable. You feel like a fish out of water to go the extra mile. This is when you make an extra attempt to achieve something or do something. For example, she's a great assistant. She

always goes the extra mile, so she does more than she needs to to not see the forest from the trees. This is a very popular one. This is when you're so involved in the small minor details of something that you don't see the bigger picture. You don't see the forest from the individual trees, for example. The project failed because we couldn't see the forest from the trees. We lost track of the bigger picture straight from the horse's mouth. This is when you get information directly from the source of that information. I heard straight from the

horse's mouth that we're not getting bonuses this year to cry wolf. This is when you call for help, but you don't actually need help, so in the future nobody will assist you because you lied about needing help. For example, I'm not surprised nobody responded to her e-mail. She always cries wolf so she always asks for help when she doesn't need it. But then one day she does need help, but nobody will help her because she cries wolf to have bigger fish to fry. This is when you have other more important matters to deal with. For

example, can you attend my meeting this afternoon? I have bigger fish to fry, so I have a meeting that's dealing with more important things than this other meeting. To play devil's advocate, this is when you argue against something, even if you think the opposite, simply to address all sides of a situation. For example, it would be great to get a promotion, but to play devil's advocate, it would mean longer hours. So you actually want the promotion, but you're going to examine the other side just to be complete, to steal one's Thunder. This is a very

popular one. This is to prevent someone from getting the recognition, praise, or success that they deserve. And you do that by saying exactly what that person was going to say. For example, she announced her engagement at my engagement party. She stole my Thunder. So I should have received the praise, the congratulations at my engagement party, but she announced her engagement. So now everybody is congratulating her. She stole my Thunder to rain on one's parade. This is to spoil someone's pleasure or special moment. Let's say my friend is very happy because she got an A on

the exam. I could say I hate to rain on your parade, but everyone got an A, so I'm spoiling her pleasure by saying that everybody got the exact same grade to be a cakewalk. A cakewalk. This is when something is very easy or effortless. For example, learning English is a cakewalk, right? Would you agree to take a rain check? This is when you decline an invitation by suggesting you'll accept that invitation at a future time. So not now, but later. Let's say somebody invites me to lunch today, but I'm very busy. I could say I'd

love to have lunch, but I need to take a rain check, which means not today but later. To go on a wild goose chase or to be on a wild goose chase, you can use either verbs go or be. This is when you're looking for something specific, but it's a complete waste of time because that something specific doesn't exist. For example, after hiking for five hours, we realized we were on a wild goose chase because the waterfall doesn't exist. So we were looking for a specific waterfall, but on the trail we were on, there is

no waterfall. The waterfall is at a completely different location, so we were on a wild goose chase because we're looking for something that doesn't exist to twist someone's arm. This is when you persuade someone to do something that they don't want to do. For example, I didn't want to go to the party, but Sarah twisted my arm. So Sarah persuaded me, convinced me to go to the party to face the music. This is when you accept criticism or punishment for something you did do. For example, I missed the deadline. So now it's time to face

the music. Now I have to meet with my boss. We both know I missed the deadline. It was wrong. So I am going to be punished and I deserve it. It's time to face the music. To hit the. Books. This means to study or do homework. For example, I can't go to the party tonight, I need to hit the books to turn a deaf ear. This is when you ignore someone when they complain or they ask for help. For example, I asked Maria to extend the deadline, but she turned a deaf ear. So when I

asked her to extend the deadline, I was asking her to help me, but she ignored me. She turned a deaf ear to break the bank. This means to cause financial ruin. For example, this vacation costs $5000. It's expensive, but it won't break the bank. It won't cause financial ruin to jump the gun. This is when you do something too soon without thinking about it carefully. For example, the company jumped the gun when they cancelled the conference, so they made that decision too soon. They should have thought about it more, took more time, and then decided

to read between the lines. This is when you try to understand somebody's real feelings or intentions based on what they said or they wrote. For example, she said she's happy, but if you read between the lines, it's obvious she's upset. So you try to interpret what she's saying to really understand how she feels through thick and thin. This is when you support someone or stay with someone even when there are problems or difficulties. For example, a true friend will be there through thick and thin. If there are problems or difficulties, a true friend will be

there. To go back to square one. This is to start working on a plan from the beginning because your previous attempt failed. For example, the board didn't approve our plan, so we have to go back to square one. We have to start again from the beginning, from scratch. This is from the very beginning. For example, I started this YouTube channel. For example, my family started this business from scratch. So when we started, there was nothing. We did everything ourselves from scratch to shoot oneself in the foot. This is when you say or do something that

could cause problems for you. For example, I shot myself in the foot when I agreed to stay late tonight. So I said yes. Well, my boss asked me to stay late, but it's my cousin's birthday so now I can't go to their party or I'm going to be late and I'm going to be in trouble. I shot myself. In the foot. Right off the bat. This means at the very beginning or immediately. For example, you can't expect to feel confident speaking right off the bat. So immediately at the very beginning when you first start, that's

right off the bat. You can't expect to feel confident right off the bat in the bag. This is when something is certain to be 1 achieved or obtained. For example, Jane has the promotion in the bag. So even though they haven't formally announced that Jane has the promotion, it's certain that it's hers. She has it in the bag. Hot air. This is a great one. This is when something is not sincere and will not have practical results. For example, the advertisement claimed I would lose 20 lbs in 20 days, but it was hot air. It

was not true to follow in someone's footsteps. This is when you do the same thing that someone else previously did, and that someone else is usually a family member, a friend, or a mentor. For example, she followed in her father's footsteps and became an engineer. This means that her father is also an engineer. To call a spade a spade, this is when you tell the truth about something, even if the truth is not pleasant and not polite. For example, let's call a spade a spade. This company discriminates against women, so that's not a very polite

thing to say, but it's the truth to be in the same boat. This is when you're in the same situation as someone else, and that situation is difficult. For example, we both lost money in the stock market. We're in the same boat to pick someone's brain. This is when someone has a lot of information on a subject or topic and you ask them to share that information or you ask them for their opinion, you pick their brain. For example, I'd love to buy you coffee and pick your brain sometime. Which means I'd love to buy

you coffee and find out what you know, ask you questions about what you know, or get your opinion on a specific topic based on your knowledge. To bounce an idea off someone, this is when you share an idea to get feedback on that idea. For example, can I bounce a few ideas off you before the meeting today? The devil's in the details. This is used when something seems simple, but the details are complicated and could cause problems. For example, the contract is only one page, which seems simple, but the devil's in the details. So in

that one page there's a lot of complicated information that could cause problems. The pot calling the kettle black. This is used to say that someone shouldn't criticize someone else for a fault that they have in themselves. Let's say Jack is always late and I get to our meeting 5 minutes late and Jack gets mad at me for being late but he's always late so I could say I can't believe Jack was mad because I was 5 minutes late. Talk about the pot calling the kettle black to take a backseat. This is when you choose to

not have responsibility in a organization or an activity. For example, my team is organizing a conference, but I'm taking a backseat. I'm not going to be responsible for the conference to be up for grabs. This is a great one. It's used when something is available and ready to be won or taken. For example, do you know if Sues Office is up for grabs? So Sue's office is now empty. Maybe she left the company or she changed offices. So is her office ready and available? Is it up for grabs to put something on ice? This is

when you delay something or you reserve something for future use. Let's put the conference on ice until the summer to bite off more than you can chew. This is when you try to do something that is too too difficult for you. For example, we took on three projects this month. I think we bid off more than we can chew, so 3 projects is too difficult for us to throw caution to the wind. This is when you do something without worrying about the risk or the negative consequences. For example, I wasn't happy at my job, so

I threw caution to the wind and I quit. So I didn't think about the negative consequences. When I made that decision. I threw caution to the wind across to bear. This is an unpleasant or painful situation or person that you have to accept even though it's very difficult for you to do so. For example, I lost our company's biggest client and that's my cross to bear. So that's a very painful situation knowing that I was personally responsible for this loss, but that's my cross to bear. I have to accept it and deal with that even

though it is painful. And finally, to keep one's eye on something or someone. This is when you watch something or you take care of something or someone. For example, will you keep an eye on the project while I'm at the conference? Will you take care of the project? Will you watch the project while I'm at the conference? Now you're going to learn 100 advanced adjectives to describe personality and people, and you'll learn these adjectives from A-Z. Can you think of an adjective with Z? Let's find out. Adaptable, Adaptable. This is when you're willing and able

to change to suit different conditions. So let's say one minute you're editing a report, next you're leading a presentation, next you're analyzing financial information. So you're working and changing to do many different things. I'm very adaptable. Adapt, Adapt. You're adept at something. Notice that preposition at When you're adept at something, it means you're skilled at something. You're very good at something. I'm very adept at using SAP. Adventurous. Adventurous. This is when you're willing to try new or different things. A job posting might say we're looking for someone who's adventurous because this position requires traveling all

over the world. So if you're adventurous, you can apply Affectionate Affectionate. This is showing feelings of liking or love. She gave me an affectionate farewell. So a very loving farewell. I've summarized all 100 adjectives into a free lesson PDF that includes the adjective, the definition, and an example sentence. You can look in the description for the link to download the free lesson PDF. Ambitious. Ambitious. This is when you have a strong desire to become successful in your career or in life. I'm attracted to ambitious men. Does that describe you? Are you ambitious, artistic, Artistic. This

is when you're able to create or enjoy. Art. Would you describe yourself as artistic, assertive, assertive? When you're assertive, it means you're confident, saying what you mean or what you feel without fear. I need to work on being more assertive. I need to work on saying what I want, saying what I feel, without being afraid of what other people might think of me. I need to work on being more assertive, attentive, attentive. When you're attentive, it means you're very helpful and you take care of others. I try to be very attentive to my students, which

means I try to be very helpful. Authentic. Authentic. This means that you're real, you're true. You're not pretending to be someone that you're not You're authentic. Sometimes being authentic around others is difficult. Sometimes being the real you is difficult because you're afraid that people might judge you. Approachable. Approachable. This describes someone who is friendly and easy to talk to. My goal is for all my students to describe me as approachable. Would you describe me as approachable, friendly, and easy to talk to? If so, put that in the comments. Jennifer, you're approachable, balanced, balanced. This is

when you consider all sides or opinions equally. Even though she's a Democrat, she's very balanced. She considers other sides and opinions other than Democratic opinions. Bright, bright. This is another way of saying smart or intelligent or someone who learns quickly. My students are all very bright. I know you'll learn these adjectives very quickly because you're bright, broad minded, broad minded. This is someone who is willing to accept different behaviors, different opinions, different lifestyles. Being broad minded is important when you work with people from around the world. Candid Candid. When someone is candid, it means that

they're honest and they tell the truth about a situation. To be candid. I left my job because I didn't like my boss. Cheerful. This is someone who is happy and positive. Cheerful. I try to surround myself with cheerful people. Chill. Chill. This is an informal adjective but commonly used, and it describes someone who is relaxed, who isn't worried, isn't anxious, who's very chill. As I get older, I become more and more chill, more relaxed. I don't stress as much. I'm not as anxious or worried. I'm chill. Are you chill? Put that in the comments if

you are. I'm chill, clever, clever. This is another advanced way of saying smart or intelligent. Someone who learns quickly. She's a very clever student. Commutative. Commutative. This describes someone who is willing to talk to others and who is willing to share information. Did you notice that Julie wasn't very commutative at the meeting today? Compassionate. Compassionate. This is someone who is very sympathetic to others, especially when others are in a difficult situation and they want to help that person. They're very compassionate. She's a compassionate reporter. Competitive. Competitive. This describes someone. Who? Really. Wants. To win and

who enjoys competition? I am very competitive. Sometimes I'm a little too competitive because I love winning. What about you? Are you competitive, charismatic, Charismatic. This is someone who is well liked and well admired, and because of that they're able to influence others easily. If you want to win the election, you need to be more charismatic. Consider it, consider it. This is when you care about and respect others. It was very considerate of you to change the meeting because you knew I had an appointment. Constructive. Constructive. This is usually information or advice that's meant to help

someone or help someone improve their performance. Can I give you some constructive criticism? Can I criticize you but in a way that's meant to help you improve, help you improve your performance? Can I give you some constructive criticism? Coy Coy. When someones coy, they intentionally don't reveal information because they want to make that information more engaging or interesting. She's being very coy about the party. So she's not sharing a lot of details about the party, but that makes you wonder about the party and want to know more, so it makes you interested in the party.

She's being very coy about the party. Courageous Courageous Someone who's courageous is able to control their fear or negative emotion in fearful or dangerous situations. It was very courageous of you to quit your job and go back to school in your 40s. Creative, Creative This is someone who produces or uses unique or original ideas. We're looking for someone who's creative. Curious. Curious This is someone who is interested in learning about the world around them. Being curious is a great quality when you're learning a language. Would you agree with them? If you agree, put I agree

in the comments. Dependable. Dependable. This is someone deserving of trust and confidence. My assistant is very dependable, determined, determined. When you're determined, you want something really badly and you're not willing to let anything or anyone stop you from getting this thing that you want. If you're determined, you'll become fluent. That's my promise to you. But it takes determination. You need to be determined. Direct, Direct. When someone's direct, it means they communicate in a way that says exactly what they mean in a very honest way, without worrying about being judged or hurting someone's feelings. I like

how our CEO is very direct, even when delivering bad news. Dynamic, dynamic. This is someone who has a lot of different ideas and who is very energized and forceful. Has anyone ever told you that you're very dynamic, easygoing, easygoing? This describes someone who is relaxed and who doesn't easily get upset. My new manager is way more easygoing than my last one. Eclectic. Eclectic. When something is eclectic, it consists of many different types, methods, or styles. I work with an eclectic group of students in the Finally Fluent Academy. So I work with many different types of

students in the Finally Fluent Academy. Emotional Emotional. This is when you have N express strong feelings and emotions. John became very emotional at his retirement party. Energetic, energetic. This is when you have a lot of energy. Even though she's almost 80. My grandmother is very energetic, enthusiastic, enthusiastic. This is when you have an interest in a particular subject and you're very eager to want to be part of that subject. I love how enthusiastic you are about our new plan. Extroverted. Extroverted. This describes a person who enjoys being with other people and are very energetic when

they're with other people. Although I'm not very extroverted, I love working in sales. Exuberant Exuberant. This describes someone who is very energetic and simply happy to be alive. She's an exuberant speaker. Fearless. Fearless. Of course, this means you're free from fear. Good negotiators need to be fearless. Flexible, flexible. This is when you're able to change or be changed based on the situation. My schedule is very flexible next week. Forgiving, Forgiving. This describes someone who forgives easily. I'm thankful I have a forgiving boss, a boss who forgives easily. Fruitful, fruitful. This is something that produces good

results. He had a fruitful career as a lawyer, so it says he was very successful in his career. He produced good results. Frank, Frank. This describes someone who is honest and sincere. Thank you for being Frank with me. Now remember that Frank is the name of a man, so you could possibly say Frank is very Frank. So a man whose name is Frank is very Frank, which means he's very honest and sincere. Fun loving, fun loving. This is when you enjoy having fun and not being too serious. Although I'm the CEO of a Fortune 500

company, I'm also very fun loving. Gregarious. Gregarious. This is someone who likes being with other people. Being gregarious is an important quality of a nurse because if you're a nurse, you need to like being around other people and spending time with your patients. Genuine. Genuine. This describes someone who is real and exactly what they appear to be. Her speech was genuine, Honorable, honorable. Notice that. Silent H Honorable. This is someone who's honest. Silent H honest and fair. She's an honorable boss and I respect her decision. Humble. Humble. This is someone who's modest, who shows a

low estimate of their own worth. Although she makes $2,000,000 a year, she's very humble, so this means she doesn't act like she makes $2,000,000 a year. She drives a regular car, lives in a regular house, wears regular clothes. She's humble, handy, handy. Someone who's handy means they're really skilled with using their hands, especially when it comes to tools and repairing, fixing or even making things. I am not very handy, which means I'm not very good at repairing or fixing things or making things using tools with my hands. What about you? Would you describe yourself as

handy? Are you handy? Imaginative, Imaginative. This is someone who can easily think of new, creative, original, innovative ideas. Kamal is an imaginative designer. Inquisitive. Inquisitive. This describes someone who wants to know about a lot of different things. Usually someone who's inquisitive asks a lot of questions. I love when my students are inquisitive about my lessons, so I love when my students ask questions. Impeccable, impeccable. This is something that is perfect, that has no mistakes, no errors, no flaws. Sylvia gave an impeccable performance. Intuitive Intuitive When someone's intuitive, it means they can understand things, but more

based on emotions and feelings rather than facts or information. I'm very intuitive when it comes to hiring, which means when I hire someone, I trust the feeling I get about that person rather than the facts on their resume. So they I might have this amazing resume, but when I'm talking to them, if I don't get a good feeling about that person, I'm not going to hire them, which means I'm very intuitive. I trust my intuition. I'm very intuitive, ingenious, ingenious. This is very intelligent or skillful. The way you handle that situation was ingenious, inviting, inviting.

Someone who's inviting makes you feel very welcome in any new environment or situation. The new HR manager is very inviting, jubilant, jubilant. This is feeling and expressing great happiness, usually because of a success. The fans were jubilant after the game, so they were very happy, which means the team won. The fans were jubilant. Keen, keen. This describes someone who is very willing and eager and wants something. She's very keen. She's already followed up with me, so maybe we had an interview yesterday and she already sent me an e-mail asking if I needed to know anything

else about her. She's very keen, Kind hearted, kind hearted. This is someone who really enjoys helping other people. My doctor is very kind hearted. Lively. Lively. This is someone who's full of energy and enthusiasm. My team is so lively today. Logical. Logical. This means reasonable based on good judgement. You made a logical decision. Loyal. Loyal. This is someone who provides support in any situation. Kirk is our most loyal manager. He's been with the company for 20 years. Laudable. Laudable. This is something that deserves praise. Even though there was no success or little success, your actions

are laudable. So even though you didn't succeed or get the result you wanted, you still deserve praise, most likely because you acted in a very responsible way. Mature mature. When someones mature it means they act in a way that's very well developed emotionally. Although Chirac is only an intern, he's very mature, so this suggests he acts in a way that makes him seem older because he's more well developed emotionally compared to his age. Meticulous, Meticulous. This means very careful with close attention to detail. As a quality assurance professional, I need to be meticulous, Marvelous, Marvelous.

This is another way of saying very good. Marvelous. They did a marvelous job for the new client. Nimble, nimble. This is someone who is quick and exact with either their movements or their thoughts. His nimble hands are perfect for repairing antiques. Antiques are very delicate, but he can move his hands in a very quick way. His hands are very nimble, open minded, open minded. This describes someone who is willing to consider ideas or opinions that are different from their own. Doctors are becoming more and more open minded, optimistic, optimistic. This describes someone who is hopeful.

Who? Sees the good. Parts of a situation or who believes that goodwill come from a situation. I'm optimistic that I'll pass my oral exam. I'm hopeful. Out of this world. Out of this world. This is something that's extraordinary, superb. Your design skills are out of this world. Outgoing, outgoing, going. This is someone who is friendly and energetic and finds it easy and enjoyable being with other people. Now that I feel confident with my English, I'm more outgoing at work. This is something a lot of students want to have, so definitely improve your English so you

can be more outgoing. Pensive, pensive. When someone is pensive, it means they're thinking, and they're usually quite quiet. They're thinking very seriously. They're pensive. Julie was very pensive during our presentation, which means she was quite quiet during the presentation and she was just thinking proactive. Proactive. This means that you take action to change something rather than waiting for the situation to happen and then simply reacting to the situation. One of my best qualities is that I'm proactive, perceptive, perceptive. This means that you're very good at noticing details and information that other people may not notice.

We really appreciate your perceptive comments. So you provided information that nobody else thought of, but you were very perceptive. We appreciate your perceptive comments. Persistent. Persistent. This is when you continue doing something in a determined way, even when you face difficulties or challenges. When I'm solving a problem, I'm very persistent, punctual, punctual. This means you arrive or you do something at this scheduled time. So it means not late. Thankfully, the contractors are very punctual. They say they'll be here at 9:00 AM and 9:00 AM. They're here. They're very punctual, qualified, qualified. This is when you

have the skill, the knowledge or the ability to do something specific. Ronnie is the most qualified accountant I know. Riveting, riveting. This means extremely interesting. The speakers at the conference, we're all riveting, Renowned, renowned. This means you're famous for something specific. Maya Angelou is a renowned poet, so she's famous, but for something specific. Poetry. She's a renowned poetry know it. Ravishing. Ravishing. This means extremely beautiful. You look ravishing in that dress, or if you're a male, you look ravishing in that suit. Reverent, reverent. This is showing great respect or admiration. The reverent crowd became silent

when she appeared on stage, so to show their respect and admiration, the crowd became silent. So we can say they're a reverent crowd. Self reliant, self reliant. This means that you rely on your own skills and abilities when you work remotely. You need to be self reliant, sensible, sensible. This means having and using good judgement. I like working with Hameed. He's very sensible, savvy, savvy. This means you have practical knowledge and skills. She's very savvy when it comes to marketing and I'm sure you're familiar with the term tech savvy, which means you're very skilled and

knowledgeable when it comes to technology. Tech savvy. I'm very tech savvy. What about you? Are you tech savvy? Put that in the comments. I'm tech savvy. I'm not tech savvy. Supportive, supportive. This is giving encouragement and approval. As a teacher, I try to be very supportive to all my students. Sincere. Sincere. This means honest, not false, not invented. Her apology was sincere, so she said I'm sorry and she said it in an honest way. Not I'm sorry. We're clearly she's not actually sorry. I'm sorry. Her apology was sincere. Straightforward, straightforward. This means honest and not

hiding one's opinions. I love how straightforward Shirley is. Sage. Sage. This means wise, and we use it specifically with people who are wise because they're old, and with their old age, they gain wisdom. They're very sage. The consultant has 20 years of experience so we can trust his sage advice. Steadfast, Steadfast. This means staying the same for a long time, not changing, not losing purpose. Jose is a steadfast assistant. Tenacious. Tenacious. This is when you're unwilling to accept defeat or unwilling to stop doing or having something. Felicity is a tenacious student. Thrilling, thrilling. This means

very exciting. Fabio's plan for the company is thrilling. Tender, tender. This means gentle, loving or kind. It's important to be tender when you're delivering bad news. Tactful. Tactful. This is when you're careful not to say or do something that could upset others. Youssef quit in a very tactful way. Upbeat. Upbeat. This means positive with hope for the future. Marie is very upbeat about the proposal. Unrelenting. I like this one. Unrelenting. This means extremely determined, never weakening or ending. I appreciate my parents unrelenting support. Their support never weakens, it never ends. It's unrelenting, versatile, versatile. This

is when you're able to change easily from one activity to another, or when you can use one thing in many different ways. Brad Pitt is a versatile actor, So he's 1 actor, but you can use him in many different ways. Romance, comedy, action, drama. He's a versatile actor. Vibrant, vibrant. This means energetic, exciting and full of enthusiasts. I love how vibrant my work environment is. Witty, witty. When someone's witty, it means they're funny, but in a very intelligent way. My pilot was very witty. Youthful, youthful. This means having qualities that are typical of young people.

Her youthful enthusiasm makes coming to work more enjoyable. So maybe she isn't youthful, maybe she is 50 or 60 years old, but her enthusiasm, her energy is youthful, which is a very positive thing. So it's more enjoyable coming to work. Zealous, Zealous, this means enthusiastic and eager. I appreciate how zealous she is. Amazing job with this master class. Do you want me to keep making master classes just like this? If you do put master class master class, put master class in the comments. And of course, make sure you like this lesson, share it with your

friends and subscribe to your notified. Every time I post a new lesson and you can get this free speaking guide where I share 6 tips on how to speak English fluently and confidently. You can click here to. Download it or look for the link in the description. And here's another master class I know you'll love. Watch it right now.