Trivia of the Week: Joe Bloggs

Joe Bloggs is a placeholder name commonly used in the U.K. and other countries. It’s different from John Doe in that John Doe is a real person with no name, while Joe Bloggs is a name with no corresponding real person. For example, you can use it as a fake account to...

Idiom of the Week: Sure-Fire

“This is a sure-fire plan. There’s no way it could fail!” We don’t really “fire” a plan, but we do fire guns. So imagine you are a soldier, and you have been marching through a swamp or hiding in a forest. Your gun is dirty and it got wet. Will it still fire? It will...

Word of the Week: Fib

“I fought a bear during summer break.” “No, you didn’t. You’re fibbing.” A fib is a lie. To fib is to tell a lie. A fib is usually a childish or unimportant kind of lie, rather than a serious lie with grave consequences. 「夏休みに熊と戦ったんだ。」 「やってないよ、うそだろ。」 Fib...

Picture of the Week: Bay

Horses have been important to humans for a long time, so there are many special words to describe them. This horse’s coloring is called “bay”. It means a reddish brown horse with black mane, tail, and legs....

Phrase of the Week: Take Turns

“Let’s try this new video game I got.” “But it’s only single player.” “That’s okay. We can take turns.” When something can’t be shared by more than one person at the same time, you can still share it by...