Idioms in English: 'Bird'

Hi, James.

Do you know, I knew this man was going to win the election.

Obama.

You know why?

A little bird told me.

I can't tell you who, a little bird told me.

Let's go to the board and figure out what the heck did I just say.

Okay, we're going to work on idioms.

One of my favorite idioms has this in it.

Bird.

What's a bird?

Well, it flies.

It is very free.

Smaller than us.

And we have, for some strange reason, many idioms in English revolving around birds.

Let's take a look why.

Well, we have three reasons.

What could we possibly say?

Well, the first thing I told you is that a little bird told me something.

A little bird.

Really?

Cool.

Told me something.

In English, what that means is that somebody told you a secret and you really don't want

to say who it is.

Now, obviously, birds can't speak.

So, when I say a little bird told me, what I'm saying is I was given the information

and I know, but I'm not really allowed to tell you.

Sorry.

Next time.

Okay.

So, a little bird told me.

This is a good thing to say when, let's say, it's somebody's birthday and you say, "Happy

birthday."

They go, "Well, how do you know it's my birthday?"

You say to them, "A little bird told me."

They go, "Was it my mom?"

"Can't tell you."

"My girlfriend?"

"Can't tell you."

"My boyfriend?"

"You have a boyfriend?"

Just joking.

Okay.

A little bird told me means someone told me, but I can't say.

Okay?

That's the first one.

Now, here's another one for you.

I have a friend and they are like this.

I mean, very tiny.

Every time I see them eat, they eat just a little bit of food.

Just a little tiny bit of food.

They never eat a lot.

I mean, they don't eat big bowls of pasta or hamburgers or hot dogs, all good Canadian

American foods.

They'll have salad.

Now, what I usually say is, "You eat like a bird."

Why?

If you've ever seen a bird, birds eat just little bits of food and they're very small.

So, because they eat like a bird, they don't eat a lot of food.

So, if you say to somebody, "You eat like a bird," you're saying, "You don't eat a lot

of food."

Okay?

Let's get rid of this one first.

So, "You eat like a bird."

And what we're saying is, "You don't eat a lot."

Okay?

Cool?

All right.

Now, we've done that, but what do birds really eat?

What do they usually eat?

Well, they don't eat hamburgers and they don't eat hot dogs, but they do eat worms.

You know worms?

Okay.

We'll call this worm Ezekiel.

Okay?

Cool?

All right.

So, let's say this.

We say, "You eat like a bird," but we're not talking about worms.

You can say something that's really cool in English, which is, "The early bird gets the

worm."

What does that mean?

"The early bird gets the worm."

Well, it basically means this.

If you are first or get up early, you will get the reward.

All the people sleeping in don't get the reward because they're sleeping and you already ate

the worm.

Ezekiel.

Hi, Ezekiel.

He's happy today.

That's a good sign.

All right.

So, we've done, "Early bird gets the worm."

We've done, "Eats like a bird."

We've done, "A little bird told me," but there's another one I like.

And this is about, let's say, the importance of something, the importance of having something

versus thinking about it.

Sometimes we say, "A bird in the hand is better than two in the bush."

Now, a bush is like a tree.

It's like a tree, but it's small.

But, it doesn't matter.

It applies the same way in which, now watch.

I have a bird, tweet, tweet, tweet, in my hand.

Now, there are two in a bush.

Okay.

Pretend, okay?

It's video.

Two in the bush.

I don't have my hands in the bush, but I do have one in my hand.

When you use this saying, you're saying it's more important that what's in your hand than

what's possibly in the bush, because you know you have this.

This, you may never have.

So, when someone says to you, like, "Why don't you go for this?"

You can say, "A bird in the hand is better than two in the bush.

I know I have this.

I don't know if I'll ever have those two."

Got it?

Cool.

Now, here's one more idiom with birds and the number two.

Let's go.

So, we've done these.

You remember what it means?

It's better to have something now than to dream about something you don't have.

Right?

Basically.

It's better to have something now in your hand than dream about something and think,

"Oh, if only."

Okay?

So, remember we said we're going to do one more with birds and the number two, because

we talked about two in the bush?

Well, here's the other one with two.

Okay?

Sometimes, this is very mean.

Okay?

Do not do this at home.

Okay.

Here's a bird.

By the way, I can't draw.

Okay?

I'm not doing the missions here.

I cannot draw.

Here's a bird.

Okay?

Here's a bird.

Now, imagine there's two birds.

If you're lucky, I can do two birds.

Probably not.

Okay.

Here's two birds.

Now, if you have a stone, and you throw that stone, and it kills the two birds, good job.

Really.

This is an English idiom.

I'm not joking.

I wish I was.

Okay?

To kill two birds with one stone means to do one action, but get two things accomplished,

or complete two jobs.

Right?

You make one phone call, but two things get completed.

One stone kills two birds.

I do one thing, I get two things accomplished, or completed.

Okay?

Like my birds?

They're dead.

Okay.

To kill two birds with one stone, do one thing, complete two jobs.

Okay.

Now, look.

I'm going to do something right now, and kill two birds with one stone.

I'm going to help you get better at English, and I'm going to help answer your questions,

because you're going to go to, so we're going to kill two birds with one stone, go to www.engvid.com,

and A, you will learn more English from myself and other teachers, and I'll get to see you again.

Two birds, one stone.

Go.

Go now.

Take care.

It's been a pleasure.

Bye.