Daily phrases

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phrasemix

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Hi guys,
I'm going to use this thread to post some English phrases that I think could be helpful to everyone. Please ask me if you have any questions about any of these:

I'm going to grab a bite to eat
You are talking casually to someone and want to tell them that you're going to eat something. You want it to sound very quick and casual.

Let me jump in the shower and...
You're telling a friend or casual acquaintance that you're going to take a shower before going somewhere. You want it to sound quick and casual.

take someone out to eat
This describes going with someone to a restaurant to eat. It sometimes suggests that you are going to pay for the meal.

take in a movie
This describes going to a movie theater to watch a movie in a light, casual, unplanned way.

Shoot me an email
You are asking a friend or coworker to send an email message to you but want to express that it can be a very simple, quick message and not something formal or complicated.
 
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xpert

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Fantastic idea! :up:
 

phrasemix

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Thanks xpert!

Here are 5 more for today:

first thing's first,...
You are starting a discussion or meeting. You want to introduce the most important topic at the beginning.


at the end of the day,...
You're talking about an issue at work and have been discussing many aspects of the issue. You want to make a conclusion and introduce what you think is the most important point.


I touched on this topic earlier, but...
You are giving a presentation or explaining something. You want to introduce a topic that you talked about before, but now you want to give more detail about it.


That's a tough act to follow
Someone just gave a great, really exciting presentation, and you have to give the next presentation but don't think that yours will be as exciting.


we had a nice turnout
You are involved in planning or attending an event. You want to say that a lot of people came, and show that you're happy about that.
 

phrasemix

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Monday's phrases:
We're making changes across the board

You are in a work situation and want to tell someone that you are making changes to every part of the business, not just to one area or department.


We have made a renewed commitment to ___

You are making an official announcement for your company and organization and want to tell people that the organization will support something more than you have in the past.


build on our core competencies

You are discussing a your company or business. You want to describe the business continuing to do what it does well. You want to say this in an intelligent, impressive-sounding way.


2008 saw their first decrease in sales

You are giving a formal report on a company and describing how a company lost money in 2008 for the first time.


We need to book the sales in the system

You are at work in a sales job. You want to suggest that you should enter the information about sales that have been made into the company's database or sales tracking system.
 

phrasemix

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Don't freak out, but...

You are speaking informally to a friend, parent, or person you feel very comfortable with. You are going to tell them something that you are afraid will make them angry. You want to prepare them for the news and ask them to stay calm.


Chill out.

Someone you are very close to or don't want to be polite to is angry, scared, or upset. You want to tell that person to calm down.


She never saw it coming.

Something bad happened to someone. You want to describe that she totally didn't expect it, in a way that sounds like you might be a little happy about it.


Bring it on.

Someone or something is challenging you. You want to accept the challenge and show that you are confident in your strength and ability.



Hit me with your best shot.

Someone is challenging you and you want to accept the challenge. You want to show that you don't think the other person's ability is very high.
 

Mad-ox

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These sound great. However, I have a humble requirement:when you post an idiom/phrase, could you also exemplify it in a sentence so as to have no doubt that the meaning of these phrases are understood by the readers.


thank you in advance

best,

Madox
 

euncu

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could you also exemplify it in a sentence so as to have no doubt that the meaning of these phrases are understood by the readers.

The non-native speakers who frequently watch the American TV shows are already familiar with some of these daily phrases mentioned above. Maybe it would be a nice idea to find and post some dialogues that contains some of these phrases.
 

phrasemix

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Hi Mad-ox,
That's definitely a good idea. I'll try to do that whenever I have the time to find examples. It is time-consuming to find good examples, though, so I don't know if I'll be able to do that every day.

I'm sure you already do this, but I find that Google is a great tool for finding examples of words and phrases. The longer the phrase, the easier it is to find examples of it in Google.

~phrasemix.
 

phrasemix

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Don't miss out on this amazing opportunity.

You are trying to sell something to an audience (not one-on-one). You want to tell the audience to take your offer while making the offer sound great and making it sound like there's a danger of missing it.

http://www.classifiedads.com/real_estate-ad2385852.htm
http://www.feinberg.northwestern.edu/AWOME/Current_Students/Global_Health/events/index.html

This will be a huge leap forward.

You are describing a new technology or system. You want to explain that you think it will be a great improvement over the previous system.

http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2008/09/fresh-take-on-browser.html



a spectacularly beautiful sunset

You are describing a beautiful sunset and want to express that it was extremely wonderful and emotionally moving.

http://whywontgodhealamputees.com/forum/index.php?topic=14623.msg347107



That was hands-down the best performance I've ever seen.

You saw an amazing performance. You want to express that it is much, much better than any other performance you've seen.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/kagoldberg/3168123317/


There's nothing like the smell of fresh-cooked bacon.

You smell some bacon, and you love how it smells. You want to express how happy you are with it.

http://americanfood.about.com/b/2009/12/28/theres-nothing-like-homemade-dinner-rolls.htm
http://www.army.mil/-news/2009/04/0...utting-on-this-uniform-and-being-proud-of-it/
 
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phrasemix

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OK, like Mad0Ox suggested, I added a couple of example sentences to my last set of phrases.

Also, I noticed that it would be a little better to say "Don't miss out on..." instead of "Don't lose sight of..." for the first phrase, so I changed that.

This took me about 15 minutes to pull together, so I'll try to add the examples when I can, but probably not every day.
 

phrasemix

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I can't quite make it out.

You are looking at some writing far away. You want to say that it's a little too far or a little to unclear for you to read.


I can't stop thinking about you

You are interested in someone romantically or sexually. You want to express your strong feelings for this person and let them know that you are thinking about them a lot.


I guess they're not coming

You were supposed to meet someone at a certain time, but it's now well past that time. You want to acknowledge that they probably aren't coming.


I might as well take one.

You are taking one of something. You want to show that you were almost going to leave it, but the reasons for taking it are slightly stronger than the reasons for leaving it.


I don't have time to talk

You are talking on the phone with someone that you don't need to be polite to. You want to tell them that you need to end the conversation because you are busy.
 

phrasemix

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burst into tears

This describes someone suddenly starting to cry loudly.


it breaks my heart to do this, but...

You are going to do something harmful to someone. You want to show that you are sorry and you don't want to do it, but you feel that you have to do it.


You're fired!

You are someone's boss and are extremely angry with them. You want to fire them in a very dramatic and angry way.


I think she's cheating on me.

You are talking to a friend about your wife or girlfriend. You want to say that you think she may have another lover.


My girlfriend and I broke up.

You are talking to a friend and telling them that you are no longer together with the person who used to be your girlfriend. You are suggesting that the break-up was agreed on by both people.
 

phrasemix

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has mainstream appeal

You are describing a musician, actor, writer, etc. This phrases expresses that it is something that could become popular with the majority of people.


veteran firefighters

This phrase describes firefighters who have a lot of experience on the job.


a quiet neighborhood

You want to describe a residential neighborhood that is peaceful and doesn't have much crime.


an obnoxious host

You want to describe a television show host who is loud, tells bad jokes, and annoys you.


enormous quantities of gold and silver

You are writing an essay or book and want to describe that there is a lot of gold and silver.
 

phrasemix

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What's it going to be?

Someone has been trying to decide something. You want to push them to make the decision now.


We'll see what happens.

Someone is asking you to decide something, but you don't want to give an answer. You say this phrase to tell them that you will decide later.


There's a lot at stake.

There is a big decision being made. You want to express that this decision is important and could cost a lot of money, time, or even people's lives.


I'd like to get a second opinion on something.

You are asking someone a question which you already have an answer to - either your own opinion or someone else that you've asked. You want to get this person's opinion and let them know that they're not the only person whose opinion you're considering.


overlook an important detail

You are describing a person who made a decision or did an action. You want to explain that they did not notice something that was a small but very important detail.
 

phrasemix

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Fine - have it your way.

You are disagreeing with someone in a playful way about a decision. You want to show that you still disagree but will follow their decision.


He thinks he's running the show.

Someone is acting like the boss. You want to point that out and show that you're annoyed by it.


It's up to you.

You are trying to decide on something together with someone else. You want to tell the other person that they should make the decision.


We turned them down

Someone was offering or suggesting something to you and you said "no."


all the more reason not to do it.

You are trying to convince someone not to do something. They have said something that you think supports your argument, and you want to point this out.
 
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