BETTER ENGLISH
For You
Stephen Lau
For You
Stephen Lau
ENGLISH SLANG
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Dead from the neck upwards: stupid.
e.g. Don’t follow his example; he’s dead from the neck upwards.
In for it: likely to have trouble.
e.g. If you don't listen to my advice, you're in for it.
Easy on the eye: good looking.
e.g. I say, your girlfriend is easy on the eye.
Killer: a very funny joke.
e.g. That last one was really a killer; everybody laughed.
Kick back: relax and enjoy.
e.g I really want to kick back and enjoy the music.
Act your age: behave yourself according to your age.
e.g. You’re almost an adult. Come on, act your age, and stop behaving like a spoiled brat!
In a jiffy: soon.
e.g. The manager will see you in a jiffy.
Next to nothing: hardly anything.
e.g. “Did she leave you anything at all?” “Well, next to nothing.”
Go: attempt.
e.g. Have a go at doing this on your own.
Easy mark: a likely victim.
e.g. If you are so unsuspecting, you may become an easy mark for swindlers.
Bazillion: a great number of.
e.g. The national debt is now in bazillion dollars, and the Congress needs to do something about that.
No way: not at all.
e.g. “Are you going to give him a hand?” “No way; he’ll be on his own.”
Beat: broke, no money.
e.g. Without a job, we are beat, no copper and no bread.
Chip on one’s shoulder: a grudge against.
e.g. She still has a chip on her shoulder: your infidelity some years ago.
Ace someone out: win out over someone.
e.g. I plan to ace him out in the first round of the competition.
Head above water: out of debt.
e.g. Nowadays, it is not easy to keep your head above water.
Ask me another: I don't know.
e.g. "Does your daughter want a baby?" "Ask me another!"
No two ways about it: no other alternative.
e.g. The man had to file for bankruptcy; no two ways about it.
Stephen Lau
Copyright© by Stephen Lau
e.g. Don’t follow his example; he’s dead from the neck upwards.
In for it: likely to have trouble.
e.g. If you don't listen to my advice, you're in for it.
Easy on the eye: good looking.
e.g. I say, your girlfriend is easy on the eye.
Killer: a very funny joke.
e.g. That last one was really a killer; everybody laughed.
Kick back: relax and enjoy.
e.g I really want to kick back and enjoy the music.
Act your age: behave yourself according to your age.
e.g. You’re almost an adult. Come on, act your age, and stop behaving like a spoiled brat!
In a jiffy: soon.
e.g. The manager will see you in a jiffy.
Next to nothing: hardly anything.
e.g. “Did she leave you anything at all?” “Well, next to nothing.”
Go: attempt.
e.g. Have a go at doing this on your own.
Easy mark: a likely victim.
e.g. If you are so unsuspecting, you may become an easy mark for swindlers.
Bazillion: a great number of.
e.g. The national debt is now in bazillion dollars, and the Congress needs to do something about that.
No way: not at all.
e.g. “Are you going to give him a hand?” “No way; he’ll be on his own.”
Beat: broke, no money.
e.g. Without a job, we are beat, no copper and no bread.
Chip on one’s shoulder: a grudge against.
e.g. She still has a chip on her shoulder: your infidelity some years ago.
Ace someone out: win out over someone.
e.g. I plan to ace him out in the first round of the competition.
Head above water: out of debt.
e.g. Nowadays, it is not easy to keep your head above water.
Ask me another: I don't know.
e.g. "Does your daughter want a baby?" "Ask me another!"
No two ways about it: no other alternative.
e.g. The man had to file for bankruptcy; no two ways about it.
Stephen Lau
Copyright© by Stephen Lau
By a long chalk: by a great amount.
e.g. He lost his re-election by a long chalk.
Get wise to: discover; realize.
e.g. Soon you’ll get wise to what is really happening under the roof.
Kick back: relax and enjoy.
e.g I really want to kick back and enjoy the music.
Go the whole hog: go through thoroughly.
e.g. The prosecutor went the whole hog when he inspected the murder weapon.
Alive and kicking: in good health.
"How is your grandmother doing?" "Very much alive and kicking."
For a song: very cheaply.
e.g. I got that piece of antique for a song.
Head above water: out of debt.
e.g. Nowadays, it is not easy to keep your head above water.
In a jiffy: soon.
e.g. The manager will see you in a jiffy.
Head above water: out of debt.
e.g. Nowadays, it is not easy to keep your head above water.
Mean-green: money.
e.g. Can I borrow a little mean-green from you?
Kick back: relax and enjoy.
e.g I really want to kick back and enjoy the music.
Smoke eater: a fire fighter.
e.g. Do you really want to be a smoke eater -- a dangerous occupation?
Hard put to it: in difficulty.
e.g. During the Great Depression people were hard put to it to make both ends meet.
Boil over: become angry.
e.g. Get away from him: he's boiling over with rage.
All that jazz: all that sort of thing; etcetera.
e.g. He was telling everyone about his success in real estate investment and all that jazz. Well, we all heard that before.
Shag: depart.
e.g. I gotta shag now!
Kick the bucket: die.
e.g. He kicked the bucket when he smashed his car into the wall.
Keep one's cool: calm down and in control..
e.g. The burglar was able to keep his cool when he was stopped by the policeman.
Jammed up: in trouble.
e.g. He got himself jammed up (arrested) with the police
Face-off: a confrontation.
e.g. After my face-off with the manager, I quit the job.
Screw around: waste time.
e.g. Stop screwing around! Find something to do!
Cop out: plead guilty.
e.g. I decided not to cop out and got a lawyer instead.
Beefcake: a muscular man.
e.g. She has been dating a beefcake.
e.g. He goes to the gym regularly because he wants to be a beefcake.
Caught short: caught at a disadvantage.
e.g. The market plunged, and we were caught short just as thought we were on the road to recovery.
Stephen Lau
Copyright© by Stephen Lau
Also, go to: Learn More Slang.
e.g. He lost his re-election by a long chalk.
Get wise to: discover; realize.
e.g. Soon you’ll get wise to what is really happening under the roof.
Kick back: relax and enjoy.
e.g I really want to kick back and enjoy the music.
Go the whole hog: go through thoroughly.
e.g. The prosecutor went the whole hog when he inspected the murder weapon.
Alive and kicking: in good health.
"How is your grandmother doing?" "Very much alive and kicking."
For a song: very cheaply.
e.g. I got that piece of antique for a song.
Head above water: out of debt.
e.g. Nowadays, it is not easy to keep your head above water.
In a jiffy: soon.
e.g. The manager will see you in a jiffy.
Head above water: out of debt.
e.g. Nowadays, it is not easy to keep your head above water.
Mean-green: money.
e.g. Can I borrow a little mean-green from you?
Kick back: relax and enjoy.
e.g I really want to kick back and enjoy the music.
Smoke eater: a fire fighter.
e.g. Do you really want to be a smoke eater -- a dangerous occupation?
Hard put to it: in difficulty.
e.g. During the Great Depression people were hard put to it to make both ends meet.
Boil over: become angry.
e.g. Get away from him: he's boiling over with rage.
All that jazz: all that sort of thing; etcetera.
e.g. He was telling everyone about his success in real estate investment and all that jazz. Well, we all heard that before.
Shag: depart.
e.g. I gotta shag now!
Kick the bucket: die.
e.g. He kicked the bucket when he smashed his car into the wall.
Keep one's cool: calm down and in control..
e.g. The burglar was able to keep his cool when he was stopped by the policeman.
Jammed up: in trouble.
e.g. He got himself jammed up (arrested) with the police
Face-off: a confrontation.
e.g. After my face-off with the manager, I quit the job.
Screw around: waste time.
e.g. Stop screwing around! Find something to do!
Cop out: plead guilty.
e.g. I decided not to cop out and got a lawyer instead.
Beefcake: a muscular man.
e.g. She has been dating a beefcake.
e.g. He goes to the gym regularly because he wants to be a beefcake.
Caught short: caught at a disadvantage.
e.g. The market plunged, and we were caught short just as thought we were on the road to recovery.
Stephen Lau
Copyright© by Stephen Lau
Also, go to: Learn More Slang.