執筆者 Modern English | 2014年08月09日 | Phrases
“Would you care for some tea?” “Yes, thank you.” “Care” has many meanings. Here it is the same as “Would you like some tea?” It is a polite way to ask someone if they want something. We don’t want our guest to feel like they have to drink tea if they don’t want to....
執筆者 Modern English | 2014年08月02日 | Phrases
“Hi, I’m Sam.” “Isn’t that a boy’s name?” “It’s short for Samantha.” When a word or phrase is too long, we can abbreviate it or make it shorter. Then we say the shortened version is “short for” the longer version. Do you know what “DNA” is short for? What is short for...
執筆者 Modern English | 2014年07月26日 | Phrases
“I see you couldn’t be bothered to put your dishes in the sink when you were done. Well, I can’t be bothered to make lunch for people who don’t clean up after themselves.” We usually use “can’t be bothered” when we are criticizing someone for being too lazy to do...
執筆者 Modern English | 2014年07月19日 | Phrases
“I got so bored in the middle of this book, I didn’t bother to finish it.” “The windows were all dark and the store looked like it was closed, so I didn’t bother to go up to the door and look at the sign.” “Don’t bother to close the door. I’m going right back out.” We...
執筆者 Modern English | 2014年07月12日 | Phrases
“I’m fed up with this rain! When will it stop?” When we are tired of something or have had enough of something, we say we’re “fed up” with it. It sounds like we’ve eaten a lot of it and can’t eat anymore. Are you feeling fed up with anything? 「雨はもうたくさんだ！いつになったら止むのか？」...
執筆者 Modern English | 2014年07月05日 | Phrases
“When are you going to go?” “It depends on the weather.” This is a useful phrase when you can’t answer without more information. Sometimes the necessary information is unknown, like tomorrow’s weather. Remember, learning a language is a big job. It takes a lot of...
