21 Advanced Phrases (C1) to Build Your Vocabulary | Advanced English

- Hello, lovely students and welcome back to English with Lucy.

Today we are focusing on an advanced level of English.

This is an advanced C1 level vocabulary lesson.

We are going to deep dive into 21 advanced English words and phrases that will significantly

elevate your level of proficiency in English.

Now, before we get started, I have two incredibly relevant things that I need to share with

you.

Firstly, I have created a free PDF for this lesson that contains all of the phrases we're

going to talk about and a quiz so that you can test your understanding.

Now, we're working on a very specific level of English.

It's called the advanced level or the C1 level of English.

For lots of students, this is the ultimate goal in English but many of them don't actually

know what they need to learn with grammar and vocabulary and listening and speaking

to be able to say that they are at that level.

I have developed an e-book, a C1 e-book that tells you all of the grammar, all of the vocabulary,

all of the skills that you need to master to be able to say confidently that you are

at a C1 level of English.

Now, it just so happens that on the 15th of May I release the beautiful British English

C1 Programme.

This is my first ever advanced level English programme.

Nothing has been announced yet, but in this ebook I have also included the curriculum

for the programme.

So if you would like to download the PDF and quiz for today's lesson the C1 ebook that

will show you everything you need to achieve a C1 level and you want to take a sneak peek

at the curriculum for my brand new C1 Programme.

All you have to do is go to the link in the description box you sign up to my mailing

list, the lesson pdf and the C1 ebook will arrive directly in your inbox and you will

sign up to the waiting list for my C1 Programme.

So you will be the first to know when it's released on Monday, the 15th of May.

All right, let's get started with the lesson.

The words and phrases are divided into three topics.

We have lifestyle and wellbeing, people, and work.

And I'm going to give you a short quiz after each section to check if you can remember

what you've learnt.

Let's start with lifestyle and wellbeing.

Firstly, we have at face value.

At face value means accepting something as it appears to be without questioning its true

nature or its authenticity.

For example, you shouldn't take everything you read about nutrition at face value.

Always verify the information is from reliable sources.

Next, we have to have a crack at something, to have a crack at something.

This means to attempt or try something often for the first time or with great enthusiasm.

For example, even though she had never tried rock climbing before, Tara decided to have

a crack at it during the team-building event.

We also have a lovely one to burn the midnight oil, to burn the midnight oil.

This means to study or work late into the night often to complete a task or to prepare

for something or meet a deadline.

For example, with exams approaching, Sarah found herself burning the midnight oil to

cover all the required material.

We also have to strike a balance, to strike a balance.

This means to find a compromise or a middle ground, another nice phrase, between two competing

factors.

For example, it's essential to strike a balance between work and leisure for a healthy lifestyle.

Next, we have to let off steam, to let off steam.

This means to do or say something that helps you to release some anger or frustration that

you feel.

I was so furious that I had to go for a walk around the block to let off steam, to release

my anger.

We also have to count one's blessings.

This one's lovely.

This means to make an effort to be grateful for the good things in your life, to count

your blessings.

For example, when I'm feeling down I try to remember to count my blessings and be grateful

for what I have.

Sometimes we use it in a sarcastic or patronising way.

If someone is being ungrateful for what they have, we might say count your blessings.

There are people that are way worse off than you are.

The final one for our lifestyle and wellbeing section is to bloom, to bloom, and you might

know this word in connection with flowers, for flower opens, it blooms, such a nice word.

Bloom.

Bloom.

When a person blooms they become healthy, happy, and confident.

We sometimes use it when talking about maturity although we'll use blossom as well but it's

a really positive phrase.

Karl bloomed during his six-week holiday in the countryside thanks to the fresh air and

healthy food.

Okay, first break, first quiz.

What can you remember from what I just taught you?

Firstly, which word is missing from this sentence?

I'm going to have a mm, ta kayaking today.

I'm nervous, but I'm sure it will be a lot of fun.

I'll give you five seconds.

It's crack.

Well done.

Okay, next.

If I'm really angry and I decide to go for a run to calm down, what am I doing?

Am I a, letting off steam or b, letting out a scream?

It was a, letting off steam although if you said letting out a scream I think people would

understand you were releasing anger.

Okay, and lastly, which of the words that I just taught you means to develop healthily

and happily?

Can you remember it?

It was bloom.

Well done if you got it right.

Okay, let's move on to talking about people.

First, one, to stick one's neck out, to stick one's neck out.

This means to take a risk or to expose yourself to possible criticism or danger by doing or

saying something.

For example, despite the controversy surrounding the issue, Jane decided to stick her neck

out and support the new policy.

Next, we have a knee-jerk reaction, a knee-jerk reaction.

Have you ever been to the doctor and they hit your knee with a hammer and you just can't

help but react?

It's your reflex, isn't it?

Well, a knee-jerk reaction is an immediate automatic response to a situation, often without

careful consideration or thought.

For example, when we heard about the increase in crime rates, our knee-jerk reaction was

to insist on more police patrols in the area.

That was just the immediate, gut reaction.

We also have to split hairs and I do have a few split hairs.

I just love doing my hair.

That's the problem.

But if you split hairs it doesn't mean you're styling your hair too much.

It means you have a very annoying character trait.

It means to argue or worry about very small details or differences that are unimportant.

For example, sometimes I feel like my husband splits hairs over insignificant matters and

it leads to unnecessary arguments.

Another phrase with a relevant backstory is pecking order, pecking order.

This is social hierarchy in a group in which all individuals in that group are aware of

how important everyone is.

The different levels of important.

And I presume that this comes from chickens or birds.

An example, there's a clear pecking order in their group of friends.

With Sally being top of the pile.

I was never top of the pecking order at school.

I just didn't have it in me.

Now, the next three words are adjectives used to describe people, and the first one is shrewd,

shrewd.

And this describes someone who is good at understanding and making judgements about

situations.

They're often quite good at taking the emotion out.

A shrewd person is able to make decisions that will give them an advantage.

For example, Claire was a shrewd business person and she made several wise investment

decisions when she was still young.

Next, number 13, we have obstinate, obstinate.

And notice how I pronounce it with a schwa at the end.

Obstinate not obstineit.

This means refusing to change your opinion or actions despite people trying to make you

do so.

We could also say stubborn in a way.

It's often used for children.

Henry was a very obstinate teenager and he consistently refused to admit that he might

be wrong about something.

An extra little Lucy's note here.

I've seen some students mix up obstinate with another advanced adjective, abstinent, abstinent.

It might be the combination of Ts and Ns but abstinent has an entirely different meaning.

It means to refrain from indulging in a particular behaviour.

This is often related to vices or bad habits.

You abstain from doing something.

Our final word in this topic is placid, placid with the s sound, the soft C.

We used placid to describe someone who's very calm, and isn't easily excited or annoyed.

Despite the hullabaloo around her, Ally remained placid and continued with her work.

It's quiz time.

It's quiz time.

Can you answer these three questions?

I'm going to give you five seconds to answer each one.

Firstly, which word is missing?

My knee- reaction to hearing my son had been arrested was to be utterly livid.

Jar, jam, jet or jerk.

It's jerk.

Excellent job if you got that right.

Number two, sometimes it's best to keep your opinions to yourself and not your out.

Is it stick your head, stack your neck, stick your neck, or stack your nose.

Have a think.

Stick your neck out.

Don't stick your neck out, or they'll chop your head off.

And the third one, which words that I just taught to you are synonyms for these words,

calm and stubborn.

Which two words are synonyms?

Placid, obstinate.

Bonus points if you got the pronunciation right of obstinate.

Okay, let's move on to our last section.

It is work, and our first phrase is to pull some strings, to pull some strings.

This means to use your influence or connections, often secretly or unofficially, to achieve

a desired outcome.

By pulling some strings, Tom was able to get his sister a prestigious position at a London-based

accounting firm.

The next one is to have a field day, to have a field day which means to take advantage

of a situation typically for personal benefit and often at the expense of others.

For example, when the news of the scandal broke, tabloid journalists had a field day

writing sensational stories.

Next, we have to be privy to, to be privy and note that pronunciation not praivy, privy.

This means to have access to or knowledge of secret or confidential information.

The CEO's assistant is privy to all the important decisions in the company.

Another one, what I use quite a lot is on the back burner, on the back burner.

If something is on the back burner, it's low priority, and it's not being dealt with at

the present moment.

Let's put this project on the back burner and focus on more pressing matters.

However, I'm really busy.

I put lots of things on the back burner.

Next we have an adjective, cushy, cushy.

I wonder if you can guess what it means.

It's very similar to another word cushion.

If something is cushy, it means it's very easy, requiring little effort, comfortable.

Sometimes people say cushty as well.

This is slang, but we use it in professional situations.

Ellen got a cushy job that pays well but allows her lots of free time.

Number 20 is a fantastic idiom.

It is to get your foot in the door, to get your foot in the door.

This means to enter a company or organisation at a low level with a chance of being promoted

or being more successful in the future.

Lena got her foot in the door as an intern but she worked her way up to department head

in just a few years.

And my final phrase for you is to go belly up, to go belly up.

And we use this to talk about companies and it means to fail completely and to have to

close.

The business went belly up after just a year of trading.

Okay.

Ah.

It is that time again.

Quiz time.

Which word is missing?

I managed to get my in the door at an amazing company earlier in my career and I've worked

my way up to management level.

Head, foot, leg or hand.

Foot, you get your foot in the door.

Number two, you know the prime minister, right?

Can you pull some and get me an interview with her?

Is it strikes, strides, streams, or strings?

That's right.

We pull some strings.

And finally, if a job is very easy and doesn't require much effort, how can we describe it?

Cushy, or if you said cushty, I'll let you have that one too.

Okay, that's everything from me today.

I really hope you enjoyed learning these 21 advanced words and phrases in English.

If you would like to download the pdf, we've got all of the information from today's lesson.

Lots more examples and we have an extra more difficult quiz actually.

Plus, I will also give you our C1 ebook, which will talk you through everything that you

need to master to be able to say that you are at a C1 level of English.

It also includes the curriculum of our brand new beautiful British English C1 Programme

that is released on the 15th of May.

If you would like to download those and sign up to the waiting list for the C1 Programme

click on the link in the description box.

It's just down there.

That's all from me.

I will see you soon for another lesson.

Muah.