10 WORK Expressions in English

Hello. My name is Emma, and today we are going to learn some work expressions, okay? So these

expressions don't necessarily actually have to do with work, but they're expressions that

use the word "work". So today, I will teach you ten new expressions. Let's get started.

Expression No. 1: "overworked". What does it mean to be "overworked"? If you are "overworked",

it means you have too much work, okay? So this is not a happy situation. So you might

tell your boss, "Listen. I feel a little overworked." Maybe you complain to your friends on the

phone, "Work is so hard. I'm overworked. There's no staff. It's all me. I work, work, work.

I'm overworked." So "over" usually means, like, "more". So that's a hint, "overworked".

One thing about all of these expressions: Pay careful attention to the preposition because

with work expressions, a change in preposition can completely change the meaning of the expression.

So that is "overworked". I hope none of you are overworked, and I hope none of you are

"underpaid", meaning you're not getting enough money.

Our next expression is "dirty work". I really like this expression. So what is "dirty work"?

Well, "dirty" is the opposite of "clean", okay? So "dirty" is "no clean" -- "not clean".

"Dirty work" is work that is not fun work. No one wants to do dirty work, okay? So it's

unpleasant -- see the sad face? -- work. What is an example of dirty work? Well, maybe you

work at a company, and maybe there's a co-worker, or maybe you have some staff, and someone

wants you to "fire" that staff, meaning someone is not happy with this person's work, so they

want this person to be "fired". Instead of them saying "You can't work here now", they

will tell you to fire this person. So it's a job you don't want to do, essentially.

There are many examples of "dirty work", but what it really is, is a job no one wants to do.

Clean toilets might be dirty work. Maybe your friend is having a party, and there're a lot

of people invited, and the party has to be cancelled. Maybe the dirty work is you have

to tell everyone the party is cancelled. So it's work you don't want to do.

Example No. 3: "get worked up". What does it mean to "get worked up"? It means you get

very, very angry or very upset. It means you get very emotional. When you get worked up,

you get very angry or emotional. So "get worked up". An example of that: Maybe it's the night

before your big test, and you haven't studied, and you're very stressed out, and you start

to cry, and you say, "I'm not going to pass this test. My life is ruined. I'll never get

into a university. Everything's horrible." That's you getting worked up, okay? Because

chances are you will do all right on your test, and you will get into university, and

even if you don't, you can try again at a later time.

No. 4: "work out". So "work out" has two meanings. The first meaning is "exercise", okay? Do

any of you guys work out? I think working out is fun. So it just means, you know, if

you like to run, if you like to lift weights. Maybe you like to play basketball -- these

are "workouts"; it's exercise to become healthy. The second meaning of "work out" is when you

"work something out", you find a solution to that. So for example, maybe you have a

math problem, maybe two times two, two times two: You have to "work it out". That one is

a little easy, but maybe you have calculus. One more example of "work out" is the expression,

"It will all work out", meaning "everything in the end will be good". So if maybe you

have a friend -- you have a big fight; it will all "work out", meaning "in the end,

everything will be good", so "find a solution". No. 5: "work on" -- "work on something". "I

worked on a project all night." "I worked on these English videos." "I worked on an

art piece." "I worked on a painting." "Work on" just means you do work, usually on a project.

You can work on your basketball skills. You can get better at playing basketball. You

can work on your painting skills, your English skills -- every day I work on my Chinese.

I hope every day you work on your English. So that's an example of "work on". But it's

usually something that isn't yet finished -- you're still on the journey to completing.

You haven't finished yet. Usually, "work on" refers to: you're doing a project, but you

haven't finished a project. Expression No. 6: "Work up an appetite". What

does this mean? "Appetite" has to do with food, okay? When you "work up on appetite",

it means you've been maybe exercising. Maybe you've been at work all day. Maybe you've

been in the office at the computer, but you're getting more and more hungry. Your stomach

is rumbling. You want food. You have worked up an appetite. So it just means you're very

hungry. Okay, so now we are at expression number 7:

"Workaholic". So this has one, two, three, four parts, four syllables: "Work", "a", "hol",

"ic". What's a "workaholic"? A "workaholic" is a person. You use it as a noun: "He is

a workaholic." She is a workaholic." What does it mean? It's someone who works all the

time. They have a problem because they work so much. Maybe they never see their family

because they're always working. So it's -- it's a problem. We use "aholic" whenever we're

talking about doing something too much. So if you drink too much alcohol, you would be

an "alcoholic". If you drink every day at breakfast, and it's very unhealthy, it's an

"alcoholic". If you shop all the time, and you spend all your money shopping -- every

day you go shopping -- and you can't pay your bills, you're a "shopaholic", "shopaholic".

So you will see "aholic", and it just means "to do something too much and it's not healthy".

So "workaholic" is not a good thing. It means you work too much, and you're missing out

on time with your family and your friends. So I hope none of you are workaholics.

No. 8: "work it". This expression is a fun expression. You might see it on TV sometimes,

and it means -- it's almost to encourage someone. So maybe someone is up on a stage, and they're

walking. Maybe they're modeling clothes. You might call out, "Work it." And it means you're

giving them encouragement. You're telling them, "Yeah, you're doing something confident."

So when you see someone do something confidently, and you want to encourage them, you can say,

"Work it." I had a friend who always said this. Anytime she saw me walking down the

street, she would yell, "Work it! Work it!" Which means, you know, "walk confidently."

So it's an encouraging expression. No. 9: "to work someone in". What does it

mean to "work someone in"? It means -- in this case, we're talking about maybe you're

at the doctor's or the dentist, and you're talking to the receptionist, and you want

to get an appointment. You need to see the doctor. The receptionist might say, "Today

we're busy, but I can work you in." This means, "even though it's busy, you can get an appointment".

So we use "work someone in" a lot with dentists, doctors. Usually it's a receptionist or a

secretary who says this, meaning, "I can get you an appointment for what you need." Same

with hair. If you ever get your hair cut -- they're very busy -- maybe the hairdresser will say,

"I'm busy today, but I will work you in. I will cut your hair."

No. 10, last expression on the list: "work something out". What does it mean to "work

something out"? It means "to make an arrangement". So for example, usually people will say, "We

can work something out. We can make an arrangement. We can make some sort of plan." So maybe you

have a new job, but you live in France, and the job is in Dubai. How are you going to

work in Dubai? Maybe your boss will say, "It's okay, we can work something out. We will make

some sort of plan." So it's just where two people make some sort of plan together.

Okay, so I hope you have worked hard today while watching these videos. I hope, again,

that you're not going to be workaholics with English and study all the time, but that you'll

take some breaks. I also hope you will come and work on our test at www.engvid.com. I

promise you there will be no dirty work. Until next time.