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Trivia of the Week: Ponytail, Pigtail
A ponytail is a hairstyle where the hair is gathered behind the head. It resembles a horse’s tail, and a pony is a small horse. Another hairstyle is pigtails. It consists of two bunches of hair on either side of the head. It is also named after an animal tail, but it...
Idiom of the Week: Green
“Do you think Bob would make a good team leader for this project?” “I don’t know. He’s very knowledgeable about the subject, but he’s still pretty green.” “Green” means “inexperienced”. Fruits and vegetables often start out green and then change color as they ripen....
Word of the Week: Opinion
Lucy: Chocolate is the best flavor in the entire world. It’s an undisputable scientific fact! Tammy: No, that’s just your opinion. I like vanilla better. An opinion is a subjective statement. It can be true for one person and false for another person. A fact is true...
Picture of the Week: Squirrel
January 21 is Squirrel Appreciation Day (started by a wildlife rehabilitator in 2001). Squirrels are rodents that live in trees and eat nuts. Squirrels bury nuts to eat during the winter. Sometimes they forget about some of the nuts, and the leftover nuts sprout new...
Phrase of the Week: That Makes Two of Us!
Phyllis: I love pizza! Jennifer: That makes two of us! Husband: I don’t want you to be transferred overseas. Wife: That makes two of us. In the first example above, Jennifer already knew one person who loved pizza: herself. Then when Phyllis said she loved pizza,...
TOEIC Practice Question of the Week
The _____ expenses are too high. We need to cut costs to make this project profitable. A. projected B. projection C. progression D. projectile 「予定した経費は高すぎる。このプロジェクトが利益を出すには、コストを低くしなければならない。」...
Trivia of the Week: Colors
Sometimes the colors we see when we look at things can be influenced by culture. An American picturing a tiger sees orange and black stripes, but the Hanshin Tigers have yellow and black stripes. The sun on the Japanese flag is red, but Americans usually color the sun...
Idiom of the Week: Sick as a Dog
“How are you?” “I’m sick as a dog. Don’t touch me; it’s contagious.” Dogs are not particularly more prone to sickness than other animals, but when someone is very sick, we say they are as sick as a dog. One theory about the origin of this phrase is that it is because...
Word of the Week: Recently
Bill: Ted and I used to hang out together all the time, but recently he never wants to go anywhere with me. Frank: I know. He’s gotten really busy with work lately. “Recently” or “lately” mean “in the period of time leading up to the present.” The starting point may...
Phrase of the Week: No Such Thing
Beth: Did you hear that? I think this place is haunted. Jan: Don’t be silly. There’s no such thing as ghosts. Do you believe in ghosts? Aliens? If you don’t, you can say that there is no such thing as ghosts or aliens. It means they do not exist. ...
