Quote
1. Quote - Listen to the quote and guess what the slang means.
“I have two films in the works and I’d love to do more TV.”
- Actress Eva Longoria on her plans after Desperate Housewives. (Us Weekly)
Definition
1. Definition - Study the definition.
in process, getting ready to happen
2. Use - Learn how the slang is used.
After seven years on TV, the international hit Desperate Housewives is in its final season. But that doesn’t mean the stars of the show are going to be out of work. Actress Eva Longoria says she has plenty of projects in the works.
Whatever your plans, dreams, or schemes are, that’s what you have in the works. When something is in the works, it is being prepared or getting ready to happen. It hasn’t happened yet, but it probably will soon. When Eva Longoria says she has a couple of films in the works, it probably means that she has agreed to star in a couple of films, but hasn’t started working on them yet.
There are several other idioms that use “work.” For instance, if something works like a charm, it goes perfectly. If someone throws a wrench in the works, on the other hand, they ruin it.
Can you think of any other idioms that use “work” or “works”? What plans do you have in the works right now?
Examples
1. Examples - Hear some example sentences.
“Opening a restaurant is something we’ve had in the works for years, and it looks like it’s finally going to happen.”
“Do you have any big plans in the works for this weekend?”
“Sean likes to keep busy. He always has a lot of different projects in the works.”