Blog
Word of the Week: Nod
“Did you make these sandwiches all by yourself?” Mom asked. The boy nodded proudly. Nodding is moving the head up and down. We usually use it to answer “yes” using body language and not words. It can sometimes be used for other things. For example, when you fall...
Phrase of the Week: On Purpose
“Ow! You stepped on my foot!” “Sorry. It wasn’t on purpose.” When you do something intentionally, we say it was “on purpose”. That is, it was your purpose to do so. It wasn’t a mistake or an accident. 「痛い！今、私の足を踏んだ！」 「ごめん！わざとじゃなかった。」 何かをわざとするとき、それは「on...
TOEIC Practice Question of the Week
“When you move to a new house, you realize how much unnecessary clutter you ______ over the years. Fill in the blank. A. require B. accumulate C.acclimate D. respite 「引っ越しをするとき、これまでどれだけ不要なガラクタを集めていたのだろうと思い知らされる。」...
Trivia of the Week: Typhoon vs. Hurricane
Both typhoons and hurricanes are large, dangerous, spiral-shaped storms. Typhoons are common in Japan, while hurricanes often strike America. So what’s the difference? Actually, the only difference between a hurricane and a typhoon is where it was formed. Hurricanes...
Idiom of the Week: State of the Art
“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 It’ll be outdated next week.”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！」...
Word of the Week: Eureka!
“Eureka” is an exclamation that comes from Greek, meaning “I have found it!” You can say this when you find an answer or idea that you have been thinking about very hard. The story behind the word is that the Greek scholar Archimedes yelled, “Eureka!” when he realized...
Picture of the Week: Chestnuts
Chestnuts are actually associated with Christmastime in America. Perhaps you already know the French word for “chestnut”. It’s marron. It sounds like it could be English, and is more well-known in Japan, so some people mistake it for the English name....
Phrase of the Week: I Dare You
“I dare you to touch this worm!” “Ewww! No way!” To “dare” someone is to challenge them to do something. Children often dare each other to do things that are scary or unpleasant. Many children have gotten in trouble for doing something they were dared to! “Billy dared...
TOEIC Practice Question of the Week
“The procedure takes a long time because it is very uncomplicated.” Find the mistake. A. procedure B. long time C. because D. uncomplicated 手続きに時間がかかる理由として、「簡単だから」は間違っています。簡単でも時間がかかる事はありますが、簡単だから時間がかかるというのは変です。手順が複雑と言った方が自然です。 Complicated が「複雑」と言う意味なので、「～ではない」という意味の...
Trivia of the Week: Dustbin
A dustbin is the same thing as a garbage can or trash can. A “bin” is not much different from a “can”—cans tend to be round, but we can call something a trash can even if it isn’t round. So is dust the same as trash or garbage? Actually, no. On its own, “dust” is...
