Meaning of FLAT BROKE and IN SECONDS FLAT - A Short English Lesson with Subtitles

8,375 views ・ 2020-02-26

Bob's Short English Lessons


Please double-click on the English subtitles below to play the video.

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So in English when you say that you are flat broke,
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it means that you have no money at all.
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It means that your wallet is empty.
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Maybe your friend says to you,
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"Hey do you wanna go and see a movie tonight?"
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You could answer by saying,
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"Sorry, I'd love to go, but I'm flat broke.
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"I don't have a penny to my name."
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Oh, there's another phrase for you
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that we use in English when we are talking
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about having no money,
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and again you could just say that you're broke.
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In English if you say I'm broke,
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it means that you have no money,
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but when you say that you're flat broke,
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it means that you really have no money.
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No money in your wallet, no money in the bank.
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You're just flat broke.
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And (laughing) it's a pretty common thing
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for people to say when they are in university,
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or when they are in college.
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When I was a student, I was often flat broke.
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It was quite common for me at that time in my life
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to have no money after I paid for textbooks,
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and after I paid for tuition.
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I didn't have a lot left over.
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I was usually flat broke. (laughing)
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Sorry my paper is not cooperating today.
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I have another phrase here that uses the word flat in it.
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If I can get it up to the camera,
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I can (laughing) show it to you.
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And that is in seconds flat.
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Nope, the wind's not cooperating today.
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This is gonna be the most entertaining
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short video that I've made.
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When you say that somebody does something in seconds flat,
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it means that they do it very, very quickly.
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Maybe you have a friend who's a really good runner,
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and he could run from one building
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to another in seconds flat.
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It means that he is very, very fast at running.
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Or maybe when you go out to buy groceries,
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you can get your groceries done in seconds flat.
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So anyways, sorry about the wind today.
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When you're flat broke it means that you have no money,
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and when you get something done in seconds flat,
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it means you get it done (laughing)
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really, really quickly.
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Anyways, Bob the Canadian here,
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and you're learning English with me.
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I hope I'm helping, and I hope you have a great day.
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