How to use 'pop' in informal English: Ask BBC Learning English

Bubbles pop.

Balloons pop.

But do you know how to use 'pop' in informal English?

That's what Jaoa wants to know.

Some people were asking me about 'pop in' and 'pop out'.

What does it mean?

OK, that was Jaoa's question, but we want to hear from you,

so send us your questions to our email address.

Now on with uses of 'pop'. OK,

so in informal English, 'pop' just means 'go somewhere for a short time',

so you can pop to a place.

I'm just going to pop to the hairdressers.

I'm back! Don't ask.

You could also use 'pop' with the preposition 'out'.

And this means you go out of the place you're in for a short amount of time.

I'm just going to pop out and take this call.

We often use it to talk about leaving home for a short time.

I'm just going to pop out to get some milk.

I'm back.

We can also use 'pop in' or 'into' if you go inside a place for a short time.

I'm going to pop in the bank and get some money out.

We often use 'pop in' to talk about visiting someone in their home.

This is very casual and informal.

Why don't you pop in for a quick cuppa?

We can also use 'pop over' or 'pop round' to mean 'go to someone's house

for a short time'.

Do you want to pop around for a cuppa later?

It's very casual, very familiar.

So 'I'll pop over'

means 'I'll come to your home'.

'You pop over' means 'you come to my home'.

OK, I'll pop over and see you this afternoon.

You could also 'pop back'.

It's getting cold. I'm going to pop back inside.

You can also use other prepositions,

so use 'pop up' if you're going up somewhere for a short time.

For example, upstairs, or 'pop down', for example, if you're going downstairs.

I'll pop up in a bit.

I'm just doing some filming.

Careful though, because sometimes words have more than one use in English,

so 'pop up' can also mean 'appear'.

Sian's videos keep popping up on my feed.

So, as you can see, 'pop' is a very useful word to know in English.

In British English, you might also hear 'nip'.

We use it in a similar way.

I'm going to nip out.

I'll nip around and see you later.

I'm just going to nip upstairs.

I'm just going to nip out for a walk.

OK, so we've looked at lots of ways to use 'pop' to talk about moving somewhere,

but you can also use 'pop' in informal English instead of 'put'.

I'll pop the kettle on.

I'm just going to pop the food in the oven.

I'm just going to pop the kettle on.

Ooh, and I'll pop a bit of cake in the oven too.

I'll just pop my glasses on. I can't see very well.

So as you can see, 'pop' is super useful in English,

but check below for some more information on this topic.

And don't forget to pop back next week for another great video.