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Welcome to The English We Speak, with me, Neil.

And me, Feifei.

We're going to teach an informal expression

which means 'to accept the loss of an opportunity or loss of something'.

It's 'kiss something goodbye'.

'Kiss something goodbye'. When did you have to kiss something goodbye, Neil?

I once left my phone on the train.

I asked the train company if they'd found it, but they hadn't.

I had to kiss my phone goodbye.

You accepted that you had lost your phone and would never see it again.

Yes. I also recently tried to get a promotion at work,

but I didn't do very well in the interview.

In the end, I had to kiss the opportunity goodbye.

Well, hopefully you'll do better in the next interview.

Thanks. I'll prepare more next time. Let's hear some more examples.

I took my car to a mechanic, but sadly it couldn't be fixed.

I had to kiss the car goodbye.

After the actor's latest controversial statement,

he might have to kiss his film career goodbye.

Sadly, the business hasn't made a profit for three years.

We're going to have to kiss the company goodbye.

You're listening to The English We Speak from BBC Learning English

and we're learning the expression 'kiss something goodbye',

which is an informal way of saying 'accept the loss of a thing or situation'.

Yes, it's very informal

and is often used to highlight that the person has accepted

that a thing or situation is gone for ever.

Can you also use it for people?

Yes, but this would probably be more literal

in the sense that you might kiss someone you love

when you're saying goodbye to them.

Well, that brings us to the end of this programme.

— Bye! — Bye!

Hello and welcome to The English We Speak. I'm Feifei.

And it's me, Rob.

Er, Rob, are those crumbs around your mouth?

Er, no, I don't think so. Why do you ask?

Well, I filled the office biscuit jar with biscuits yesterday and today it's empty.

Oh, I see, you think I ate all the biscuits!

You do like biscuits. Hold on, what's that in your pocket?

Er, well, they're biscuits.

Caught red-handed, Rob! You are the biscuit thief.

My hands aren't red.

I'm not worried about the colour of your hands,

it's what you were doing with them!

So, when someone is 'caught red-handed',

they are discovered doing something wrong and there is no doubt.

So, Rob, you've been found out!

Yeah, well, I can explain, but let's have some examples first.

Jorge was caught red-handed having a sneak peek of his presents before his birthday!

We caught Svetlana red-handed eating chocolate

as she said she was giving it up.

The bank worker was sacked

after being caught red-handed putting money into his bag.

This is The English We Speak from BBC Learning English.

Rob has been caught red-handed stealing all the biscuits from our biscuit jar,

which means he's been caught doing something wrong.

Let's face it, Rob, you are guilty!

OK, OK, I did steal all the biscuits, but it's because I didn't have time for lunch.

A likely story.

So, shall I put them back in the jar then?

Yuck, no! I think you need to buy us some more.

— And I'm going to put a lock on the jar. — Why?

So, you won't be caught red-handed again.

Oh, crumbs!

— Bye. — Bye!

Hello, and welcome to The English We Speak with me, Feifei.

And hello, it's me, Rob.

Have you had a busy day today?

Oh, I sure have! And there's plenty more to do before home time!

Well, after this programme, I think I'll call it a day.

I've got my yoga class to go to.

Call it a day?!

You've only been here seven hours and there are 24 hours in a day.

I know that, Rob. But I've finished my work, so that's my day finished!

When we 'call it a day',

we just mean we have decided to stop what we are doing for the rest of the day.

It could be because we have just finished a task,

done enough, or are just bored of doing it.

So, Rob, I've done my work, so I really must call it a day —

I don't want to miss my yoga class.

Haven't you got time for some examples?

Of course.

We've been working on this presentation for hours now.

Let's call it a day and carry on tomorrow.

Can we call it a day? We've been training since this morning. I'm exhausted.

It's almost six o'clock, so let's call it a day

and carry on with the building work tomorrow.

This is The English We Speak from BBC Learning English.

We're looking at the phrase 'to call it a day',

which we can say to express

that we're going to stop what we're doing for the rest of the day.

Now, Rob, if you think you've done enough, why don't you just call it a day?

I couldn't possibly finish work now! I'm going to be working into the night.

So, Rob, what are you doing that's making you work so late?

Well, I volunteered to write some extra The English We Speak scripts.

Don't worry about that now, Rob. Call it a day and do it tomorrow.

Oh, OK, Feifei, if you say so.

In that case, maybe I could join you at your yoga class?

Sure. Come along.

Great!

Hello and welcome to The English We Speak. I'm Feifei.

And I'm Rob. Hey, Feifei, someone told me that you've been baking.

Yes, I have. I love baking and I know you like eating cakes.

Yep, that's great to hear. Will there be anything for me to try, maybe?

Maybe.

I've been experimenting with a new vegan recipe

that involves making a cake with cabbage and beetroot.

Cabbage and beetroot? Yuck!

That sounds disgusting. If you want someone to try it, don't ask me!

Oh, Rob, you'll eat your words.

Eat my words?!

Hm, I'm sure my words will taste better than a cabbage and beetroot cake.

No, Rob! I mean you'll regret saying that.

The phrase 'eat your words' means you have to admit

you were wrong about something you have said.

And here are some more examples of people 'eating their words'.

You said my coffee business wouldn't work, but you'll have to eat your words —

it's been a huge success.

Despite what I said, I'll have to eat my words

because my sister is now happily married to her first boyfriend.

You said I'd fail the exam, but I ended up with an A+.

You'll have to eat your words now.

This is The English We Speak from BBC Learning English,

and I'm telling Rob he'll be eating his words about my cooking.

The phrase means to admit you're wrong about something you have said.

So, Rob, how about trying my cake before you decide you don't like it?

Oh, OK, Feifei, but I know I won't like it.

Here, try this.

Mm. Are you sure you used cabbage and beetroot?

This tastes like a normal cake.

It is a normal cake, Rob, and I assume you like it?

Mm, I must admit, I do.

You know, it has inspired me to get baking. I'm off.

Where are you going?

To bake a word cake, so I can literally eat my words!

— Ha-ha. Good luck. Bye. — Bye.

The English We Speak.

From BBC Learning English.

Morning, Neil. In a rush today, were you?

Just a bit, Feifei. You know, kids, breakfast, commute. The usual. Why?

Well, I noticed your shirt isn't ironed.

Ah, very attentive of you.

And your shirt has ketchup on it?

Ah, yes, beans for breakfast.

And you haven't shaved, have you?

Well, no.

You really do need to make more of an effort.

Feifei, why are you having a go at me?

Relax, Neil.

I'm just giving you the opportunity to use the phrase we're teaching,

which is 'have a go'!

Well, that's a relief.

'To have a go at someone', as we've just seen, means to criticise someone.

That's right. Here are some examples.

The boss really had a go at Michaela after she offended our clients.

Susie had a go at her husband last night. He'd forgotten all about her birthday.

Why do you always have a go at me? Why can't you say something nice?

That's our phrase —

'to have a go at someone', which means to criticise someone.

There. Can we be nice to each other now?

Well, we can have a go!

Ah, very clever. 'To have a go' has another meaning — 'to try'.

Yes, if you 'have a go' at something, you try it.

Why don't you have a go at making an example sentence, Feifei?

OK then. I'm going to have a go at cooking a Thai curry from scratch.

Mm, tasty. 'To have a go' meaning 'to try'.

And one last thing, Feifei. Do I really look scruffy?

Not at all. Though you could shave once in a while.

I'll have a go. Just for you, Feifei.

— Bye. — Bye.

The English We Speak.

From the BBC.

Welcome to The English We Speak with me, Neil.

And me, Feifei.

We're explaining the phrase 'fill your boots'.

It means 'take advantage of a situation',

or 'to get as much of something as possible'.

'Fill your boots'.

It sounds like you're telling someone

to load their boots with as much as they possibly can.

That's a very good way of looking at it, but it's not literal.

So, for example, when a supermarket has a big sale,

you might want to 'fill your boots' with all the deals.

Yes, you'll buy as much as you can.

Or, Neil, you have an amazing library. Can I read some of your books?

Fill your boots — read as many as you want. Let's have some examples!

I love my local restaurant.

It has an all you can eat buffet — you can fill your boots.

Have you watched any of our videos? Fill your boots and learn as much as you can.

My mum is cooking Christmas dinner.

She asked me to go to the supermarket to get food.

She told me to fill my boots and buy as much food as I want!

In this The English We Speak, we're looking at the phrase 'fill your boots'.

It's used to tell someone to make the most of an opportunity

and take as much of something as they can.

Speaking of which, have you seen those cakes at the BBC café?

Yeah, they look amazing. Really colourful, with so much cream! Have you tried one?

Yes, it was delicious. I think it was one of the best things I've eaten in my life!

Oh, stop, you're making me hungry!

Don't tell me any more — I think I'll go and fill my boots and find out for myself.

Well, I'll just finish some work and then I'll come with you

and we can fill our boots together.

— Bye for now. — Bye.

This is The English We Speak with me, Feifei.

And me, Rob.

Rob, I've got some very exciting news to share with you and our listeners.

Well, can I just tell everyone my news first?

Go on then.

Well, I passed my Grade 1 guitar exam!

Oh, well done, Rob! But you've stolen my thunder now.

I'm not a thief, Feifei, I was just telling everyone my good news.

I'm not calling you a thief, although you are stealing my attention!

If you 'steal someone's thunder', you take the attention away from the other person,

usually to your own advantage.

It also means you get the praise for something someone else has done.

So, Rob, well done, enjoy the attention.

Thanks. Now, will these examples steal your thunder as well?

Joe stole my thunder by announcing his promotion

before I got to tell everyone about mine!

She's always stealing my thunder by telling people our news before I do.

I was telling a joke and he just interrupted me to tell a different one.

He always steals my thunder.

This is The English We Speak from BBC Learning English

and we're learning about the phrase 'to steal someone's thunder',

which means to do something

that takes the attention and praise away from someone else.

So, Rob, you're now the focus of attention.

Why do you sound so angry?

Well, I had some big news I wanted to share.

Oh, go on then, tell everyone, share your important news.

It's just that I've been studying for years, I've passed my final exams

and I'm now a fully qualified brain surgeon.

Oh, I knew that. I saw the certificate on your desk.

Yeah, well done.

Thanks. Looks like you've stolen my thunder, again.

— Bye. — Bye.

Welcome to The English We Speak. I'm Jiaying.

And I'm Rob.

In this programme, we have an expression to use

when we want to say something is difficult to achieve,

because there are things preventing us from reaching our goal.

The expression is 'jump through hoops'.

'Jump through hoops'. It's metaphorical language.

We wouldn't actually jump through a hoop to achieve something, would we?

No, we wouldn't.

But imagine if we actually did have to jump through hoops —

that would be very difficult and that's the sense of this expression.

What we mean is you have to do something difficult to get to the result you want.

Furthermore, the effort involved is often unnecessary —

the process is just made more complicated.

Right. So, you mean there's really no need to jump through the hoops

to achieve the end result.

A bit like trying to get a refund for my airline ticket.

I had to talk to so many departments before I got through to the right person.

Mm, it can be frustrating, Jiaying.

I had to jump through hoops trying to get a loan from the bank.

There were forms to fill in, paperwork to find, appointments to attend.

Well, we're not alone. Listen to these people who had to 'jump through hoops'.

I had to jump through hoops to get the shop to fix my new laptop.

They claimed I had broken it!

I really want to buy a new car,

but I've got to jump through hoops to get a loan from the bank.

He had to jump through hoops to get you a ticket for the match,

so I hope you appreciate it.

This is The English We Speak from BBC Learning English,

and we're looking at the expression 'jump through hoops',

which means to have to do lots of difficult and sometimes unnecessary things

to achieve something.

Yes, it can be challenging and frustrating,

like you trying to get a refund for your airline ticket. Did you succeed?

I did, Rob. I jumped through lots of hoops, but got the result I wanted.

How about you? Did you get your loan?

Sadly not, despite jumping through lots of hoops!

But, hold on, now you've got your money back from the airline,

maybe you could lend me some money?

Well, Rob, you'll have to jump through more hoops to get my money.

The first one is to make me a cup of tea!

— Oh, OK. Bye for now. — Bye.