Understanding American English Phrases

Snoopyboy, you got it, very appropriate use of the phrases.  I like how you adjusted the “come up short” for past tense (came up short) and used “pulled it off” in a negative sense (”...haven’t pulled it off.”)  As with anything, use it or lose it!  Good job!

Mini-Lesson 3 “Phrase broth” use the following ingredients : Hanging in the balance/ come up short/ Pull it off/

I have felt hanging in the balance on many occasions. My most recent one was my last year’s transition from company A to Company B. The personnel in charge were very unpredictable and strict, and I felt as if my job security was coming at risk. I personally thought my new bosses came up short by not disclosing a predetermined set of rules. After only two weeks, I was shown the door. I guess I haven’t pulled it off according to their plans. I’m sure other opportunities await. (This paragraph has been dramatized; it’s based on fictional facts, hehehe)

Thanks Teacher!

Mini Lesson No. 3

Hanging in the balance / Come up short / Pull it off

A. Hanging in the balance=

Being in a precarious or uncomfortable position where the outcome (result) can be either one way or another way.

Origin/background of the phrase:

The origin dates back to the 15th century during biblical times concerning scales and the significance of things being in balance.

“Hanging in the balance” came to mean a situation is left to uncertainty. For example, if the head of a family went to stay in a hospital because of an illness, the family would be left “hanging in the balance” because they would not know what their fate would be.

Examples of the phrase:

1. I was told by my supervisor that my salary was going to increase, but I haven’t received any increase in salary. It looks like my pay increase is “hanging in the balance!”

2. If the speaker of the hour does not arrive, the host will be left “hanging in the balance!”

3. I’ll be left “hanging in the balance” if my car doesn’t start and I can’t get to my job!”

B. Come up short= To have an insufficiency and not meet a requirement.

Origin and background of the phrase:

Determining the origin of this phrase is not clear. To a non-native the phrase may not make any sense if you take the literal meaning of the words and try to put them all together to understand the meaning. Come up is a phrasal verb which would mean to “rise up,” however, the word “short” would be the opposite of “tall.” If you take the fact that short is less than coming up, you maybe can understand that something is not rising to a certain level or in other words, it is insufficient to meet the requirement.

Hopefully, this explanation will give you some idea of how the phrase is used in conversational English. Here are some examples of the phrase:

1. Father to son: Son, I want you to take this money and go to the store to purchase the items on my list. I’m giving you more than enough money so you won’t “come up short.”

Son: Okay Dad!

2. Some politicians “come up short” when they don’t fulfill their campaign promises!

3. If you “come up short” on your test scores, you may not receive a passing grade.

C. Pull it off= To accomplish a task or goal usually under challenging circumstances.

Origin/background of the phrase:

This is another phrasal verb that the origin can’t be identified. However, it is known to date back to at least 1887 in written text (Black, 5th edition). Concerning it’s use, it basically means “to win” which when used in conversational English, the speaker is communicating that something is going to be accomplished or not be accomplished depending on the construction of the sentence. Here are some examples:

1. Susan: “Say Jan, you’re a full-time student and work a full-time job. Are you going to be able to “pull it off?”“

2. Jan: Well Susan, I have no choice because I need the money and the chance of a better job.

3. Susan: “You go girl!” (slang for encouraging someone to do it)

English lessons from within:

The key to improving in English is learning vocabulary and using it. One way to increase your vocabulary twice as fast is through the use of antonyms. Antonyms is the opposite meaning of any word. For example, the antonym of “up” is “down”, the antonym of “left” is “right.” Therefore, if you learn one word, learn the opposite word at the same time and you will double your vocabulary for about the same amount of time. Well, that’s all for now, there are 21 more mini lessons in the Teacher’s Forum which I will share with you, here’s the link: http://www.englishbaby.com/forum/TeacherTalk/thread/390410

Mini Lesson No. 4 words are:

Pushing the envelope / Stay put / Back down

Mini Lesson No. 2 (21 in the teacher’s forum) has been posted but you must scroll down to be able to read it.

Lesya, you make it look easy using phrases and it is, once you understand.  Good job!

We are waiting for our boss to weigh in his opinion about the future contracts we must conclude during the tender today. There is a company which hopes to get a leg up during the tender. The top brass nailed it talking about the profit our company could get during the year. Seems to be it was a piece of cake for them to make all these conclusions.

Thank goodness, our company is not between a rock and a hard place now.

Cr!stal, I got your back! (support you- see mini lesson no. 5 [8/26/10])

Snoopyboy, now that’s what I call creative writing!  Good job on tying all of those phrases together and making sense.

Today’s Special!!” Idioms Broth” ingredients > have a fit ; piece of cake ;nail it ; weigh in. I go first ;).(use all idioms in one sentence or a coherent paragraph)(winks)

Last semester, I had a fit during my final exam and only had myself to blame. I was a student who always hit the nail on the head on every quiz. This final exam was supposed to be a piece of cake for me, but I flunked it when I should have nailed it. It was so unusual that  even the provost had to weigh in with a rather strict tone he said to me “What is wrong with you Snoopy boy?”

We should not be discouraged by not knowing  all the colloquial  expressions that  maybe are of everyday use  in the US.  I know of people that  had  lived for many years in the US and still  were clueless  at some words or expressions. I Think that the same  must be for  the americans  that  have learned a foreign language at school  and on visiting that country  they can not understand  what people are talking about in the street. If we can understand  Jason, Ella , Devan and the rest of the staff , even not 100 per cent  then  , o.k , is fine,  we are on  the right track  . 

Buttafly, I have noticed the same situation long time ago. For some strange reason, the English textbooks we have in the book-shops in my country have many words or even the tenses, that are unknown for the native English speakers. 

It is a paradox, indeed.

On my opinion it is always “a piece of cake” to learn English with such amazing teacher and other nice people here, that can explain each question in the most understandable way.

I was sure that idioms, phrases and slang are not for the Business English. It would be strange to use them in the official documentation. 

Buttafly, I understand your dilemma, the phrase: “a piece of cake” is very commonly used and means “a task is easy,” that is, something is not difficult to perform.  If you ask why a piece of cake?  It could be because cake is sweet and easy to digest.  Therefore, something that is easy to do is sweet and a delight to do.

Actually learning phrases is a “piece of cake” if you’re exposed to them and they’re explained.  I want my students to be informed about phrases and slang so if they come to the US they can surprise the natives and teach them!

Snoopyboy, your comment concerning when to use phrases are right on, in other words, “you hit the nail on the head!”

Concerning your suggestion of me writing a book, I’m writing a book which will be titled:

“Understanding American English Phrases.”

It will have phrases that are commonly used with the same format as what you read here.

Concerning the website, funding has to be generated.  Thanks for your thoughtfulness!

Julito, I like how you used the negative scenario to bring understanding to the phrase “hit the nail on the head” which means to make a statement that is absolutely correct in making a point.  The opposite would be to not hit the nail on the head which would mean missing the point, or in other words, not being correct in what is said.  Good job!

Kotlesya and Others,

You’ll find that idioms, phrases and slang are not a separate language but are incorporated right into conversational English.  The speaker may weave in and out using standard English and phrases or may just use a whole phrase sentence.  You won’t find them in Business English but after the business meeting in an informal setting, everything can change, depending on the people.

For those of you who can listen to the music in the Relaxation Lounge, I would suggest you listen to the songs.  It’s not only for relaxation but for you to listen to the lyrics and understand what is being said.

If anyone cannot see the songs in the Relaxation Lounge and want some songs to listen to for English purposes, send me an email and I’ll recommend some that you can find on the Internet.

WOW! Snoopyboy, I can imagine  your beautiful singing on the snow desert of Antarctica :))))) Seems to be you are the best singer in your area :))))

Nite to here that you are multilingual. Well done!

Hehe, Kotlesya! I can speak French as well and I sound like a hummingbird. Italian sounds fancy I agree. don’t take English too seriously it’s just a means of communication a hobby to all of us here.

Snoopyboy, there can be no competition between your and mine skills in the English grammar. Your grammar is better of course. My English is very poor, but I have no ambition to be advanced.

English is just my hobby. I like English because it is so nice and “rich”. It sounds like a melody for my ears. I don’t need English in my work whatsoever.

By the way the Italian and French languages sound like a melody as well. They are so tender on my viewpoint. I don’t speak Italian and French, I just like to hear them from the native speakers.

Yes, Julito  at long last I hit the nail on the head by the using English,Baby as a tool to learn English and I think I have already found nice people among all of us. I’m glad