Daily speaking expressions English Expressions in Speaking & Writing & How to Use Them

Contd.

• Phrases 7 and 8 are saying that the other speaker is completely wrong in a very direct, blunt way.
• Phrases 9 and 10 suggest you prefer your own opinion to others.

Encouraging

• Phrases 1 to 4 are often used to encourage someone who is working and doing well.
• Phrase 5 is used to say someone is not exactly right but could get it right if they tried again.
• Phrases 6 and 7 are general ways of encouraging and can suggest that the person should not stop.
• Phrases 8 and 9 can be used to encourage someone to try something new.
• ...try and try again. The first half of this phrase can be used to encourage someone to try again, even if the first attempt was unsuccessful.

Euphemisms

• Phrase 1 means that the person is a thief / steals things.
• Phrase 2 means that she has been in prison.
• Phrases in 3 mean that the person has died. 'Pass away' is more polite than 'kick the bucket'.
• Phrases in 4 mean that the person is dead. 'No longer with us' is more polite/formal than 'pushing up daisies'.
• Phrase 5 is a general way of referring to public toilets.

Contd.

• Phrase 6 is a polite phrase that some people use to say that they are going to the toilet.
• Phrases in 7 are talking about the homeless. 'Down and out' is an adjective but 'a down-and-out' is a noun that describes a person who is homeless.
• Phrase 8 means pregnant. Other euphemisms include 'she's expecting a baby' and 'she has a bun in the oven'.
• Phrase 9 means that she gave birth to a new child.
• Phrase 10 means that a man has married a woman.

Excuses for being late

• 1, 2 and 3 are all about problems waking up. We blame the alarm clock. 2 shows there was a problem with the alarm clock. 3 shows you were so tired that the alarm didn't wake you up.
• The traffic is often responsible for us being late. 4 says that the bus is responsible - it didn't arrive when it was supposed to. 5 is similar.
• 6. Here we are saying the traffic in general was responsible. You can use this if you are driving or travelling on the bus.