Idiom of the Week: Never Mind

執筆者 | 2014年10月22日 | Idioms

“Where did you get that shirt?” “Well, it’s a long story. It all started ten years ago when I took a trip to see my cousin in—” “Never mind. I don’t want to know.” You can use “never mind” to take back something you said. If you asked a question, but no longer want to...

Idiom of the Week: Jump on the Bandwagon

執筆者 | 2014年10月15日 | Idioms

“That’s your costume for the Halloween party? You’re dressing as Harry Potter, too?” “Yep, I resisted for a long time, but I’ve jumped on the bandwagon and become a Harry Potter fan.” A bandwagon was originally a wagon carrying a band in a parade or circus. Bandwagons...

Idiom of the Week: State of the Art

執筆者 | 2014年10月08日 | Idioms

“My new phone is state of the art!” “Whatever. It’ll be outdated next week.” If something is “state of the art”, it has the latest technology and features. It reflects the current “state” of its field (e.g. the “art” of making cell phones). 「私の新しい携帯は最新型だ！」...

Idiom of the Week: Butcher

執筆者 | 2014年10月01日 | Idioms

To butcher something is to do a very bad job. You can butcher a performance, assignment or project. Originally it meant to kill and cut up the body of an animal. 「信じられない、あんなに歌が下手なんて」 「大丈夫、カラオケで誰も期待してないから」...

Idiom of the Week: Hold All the Cards

執筆者 | 2014年09月24日 | Idioms

“I’m sure the senator will vote for our bill. We have information he wouldn’t want to be made public, and we have the power to support his own pet issues. We hold all the cards.” “Holding all the cards” means having a great advantage. In some card games, having more...

Idiom of the Week: Big Words

執筆者 | 2014年09月17日 | Idioms

“I bet I can beat you at this game even with a handicap.” “Ooh, big words. You’ll regret them in a minute!” This is a taunting phrase we use to suggest that someone’s words may be big but their abilities do not match. It’s easy to say grand things, but much harder to...