REAL ENGLISH: 3 Must-Know Slang Terms for Daily Conversation

Have you ever been watching an American movie, enjoying it when all

of a sudden the main character uses the term you've never heard before,

I can almost 100 percent guarantee that that character used a slang term.

That's why you as an English learner must master English slang.

And today's lesson will help you do just that.

Are you ready?

Well, then I'm teacher Tiffani.

Let's jump right in.

The very first term you must understand is.

A game, a game.

Now, this is a term we use very often in English, but what does it mean?

So the term a game just means to do your best possible in any endeavor,

usually when speaking about competition.

Now, growing up, I was an athlete.

I still enjoy sports.

I still enjoy exercising.

But whenever I went to a game, whenever I participated in a competition,

I always wanted to do my best.

I always had this mindset.

Hey, Tiff, listen, when you get on that court, when you get in the field, you

have to make sure you bring your A game.

You have to make sure you're giving all of your best efforts.

Makes sense, right?

It's a term that we use very often in English, a game, but I want

to help you understand how to use it in real life situations.

So let's check out this first real life situation.

Imagine you're at a job interview.

And here's the situation when preparing for an important job

interview at a prestigious company, how can you use the term a game?

You want to get this job so bad, this company is absolutely

amazing and it is your dream job.

Here's how you can describe this situation and use the slang term a game.

I need to bring my a game to this interview at Google tomorrow.

It's a once in a lifetime opportunity.

Makes sense.

Right?

Again, you want to bring your a game to the interview, but what

about this real life situation?

Imagine, for example, you are in a sports competition, just like I said, I

loved sports growing up, but it's right before a championship game or a crucial

match, there are tons of people in the crowd looking forward to this game.

In this situation, you can say.

If we want to win the finals, everyone, everyone needs to

bring their A game tonight.

you, you, you saw it, right?

You can envision the situation.

Hey, if we wanna win, if we wanna go to the finals, we have to bring our A game.

You got it?

Yes.

All right.

Now check out this other real life situation.

Here's the situation.

Here's the example.

Business presentation at your job.

You have to give a presentation.

Here's the exact situation when preparing for a crucial

presentation to important clients.

I want you to imagine the clients.

They're your biggest clients and your boss is depending on you to make

sure this presentation wows them.

How can you describe the situation using a game?

Here we go.

The CEO will be at the meeting.

So make sure you bring your a game to the presentation makes sense.

Right?

Hey, I need you to do your best.

The CEO is going to be there, man.

I need you to bring your a game.

You got it.

Yes.

This term is very useful.

However, there are some do's and don'ts when it comes to this actual slang.

So first let's go over the do's of using this term.

A game.

The first one is do use it in professional or competitive context.

It's totally okay to use it when you're speaking about the work

environment and competitions.

You can also use it to encourage and motivate others.

Hey, listen, bring your a game, baby.

You got it.

I believe in you.

The third time you can use this is when discussing important events or

performances, you can use this slang term, a game in these situations.

Now on the opposite side, you can not use this slang term for

casual or routine activities.

I'm going to bring my a game when I brush my teeth today.

No boo boo, that is not the time to use a game or in this situation, don't

use it in formal written documents.

It's very important.

Again, it's a great slang term, but don't use it when you're

writing a formal document.

And also don't overuse it in daily conversation.

You don't want to have a conversation with your friend and keep saying, I

brought my a game to, to my, uh, to my brushing of my teeth situation.

I brought my a game when I was driving my car.

Don't over use it.

Got me.

All right.

So now that you know, the do's and don'ts of this slang term, a game,

I want you to listen to this quick story of how you can use this term.

Here we go.

Listen closely.

Sarah had been preparing for the national chess championships for months.

Her coach kept telling her, you've got to bring your a game tomorrow.

This is what we've been working towards.

The morning of the tournament.

Sarah felt nervous, but focused as she sat across from the defending champion.

She remembered all her training and took a deep breath.

Her a game kicked in.

And after an intense match, she became the youngest national champion in history.

Why?

Because Sarah bought her a game that day.

You got it, right?

Excellent.

All right.

So our first slang term again is a game.

Now we're going to move to our second slang term, but I want to actually let

you know, everything that I'm teaching you today actually comes from this document.

Again, you've learned a game and this comes from this course that I teach

the master English slang course.

So this is actually a PDF for those watching from the

course, and I just taught you.

The second slang term from this course, again, a gang.

Now I'm going to teach you two more slang terms to help you.

But again, if you want to learn even more, all you have to do, you heard that in

my voice, even I like to sing, but Ooh, today, I don't know if you want to learn

even more, all you have to do is hit the link in the description or go to www.

speakenglishwithTiffaniacademy.

com.

dot com and enroll in the master English slang course.

All right.

So I want us to now jump into our second English slang term.

Our second English slang term is all nighter again, all nighter.

Now this is a very commonly used slang term, and this term literally just

refers an event that lasts all night.

Or a time when you spend all night studying, especially for an exam, it can

also refer to working all night, literally what it implies spending all night.

Doing something in preparation for something else.

All right, we say all nighter, this is the slang term.

So here's a real life situation when you can use this term, the

very first real life situation.

I want you to think about college studies, being in college and

specifically preparing for final exams.

I remember so many times having to prepare for final exams.

Here's the example sentence I'll have to pull an all nighter to finish

studying for tomorrow's physics exam.

Makes sense, right?

Maybe you are in college right now.

Maybe you remember the old days like I do when I was in college.

And when you were in college, having to study for an exam by pulling an all

nighter, what about this other real life situation again, here's the setup.

You have a work deadline when completing an urgent project.

Your entire team is working on this project.

Here's the example sentence.

The team pulled an all nighter to get the proposal ready for the morning meeting.

Listen, guys, I know we're tired.

I know we're tired, but we have to pull an all nighter in order to get this project

done, and then we have this real life situation again, Think about working.

You have a creative project that you're working on and you're trying to

finish an artistic or creative work.

Here's the example sentence.

I pulled an all nighter to finish editing my short film

before the festival deadline.

You see how I was able to naturally describe the situation

using the slang term all nighter.

Again, you, my friend are going to be able to do the exact same thing.

So we understand how to use it, but now we have to look at the do's and the don'ts.

So let's start with the do's first of using this slang term all nighter.

Here's the first one again.

Using this slang term do use it when describing genuine situations

requiring overnight work.

I had to study all night.

I had to work all night.

These are real situations.

Also use it to express dedication to completing a task.

Listen, I'm going to work.

I'm going to work hard to knock this task out the park.

And finally, do use it in casual conversation with your peers, with your

friends, it's okay to use this in casual conversations, but don't use this slang

term to glorify it as a regular habit.

Huh.

Okay.

I stay up all night, every night working.

You don't want to glorify it.

It's not necessarily a good thing.

No one wants to stay up all night, every night.

Also don't use it in formal professional communications.

When you're emailing your boss, Hey, I had to pull it all nighter.

You want to change it.

It's not going to be used in these formal professional communications.

And finally, don't use it to brag about poor time management.

Don't use it.

Hey, I pulled an all nighter because I didn't study for my test.

You don't want to use it to brag.

It's not something good, right?

It's something that we have to do at times, but you

don't want to brag about it.

So check out this short story using the term, the slang term all nighter.

Here we go.

Mike and his roommate, James were notorious or famous for

their last minute study session.

The night before their final presentation, they pulled an all nighter in the library

fueled by coffee and determination.

As the sun rose, they had not only completed their presentation, but it

also created what turned out to be the most creative project in their class.

Their professor was impressed, but kindly suggested better time

management for future assignments.

You caught it, right?

Mike and his roommate James had to pull an all nighter.

So again, this slang term, our second slang term, All nighter.

You can start using it today.

Now this third slang term is also another good one.

We're going again.

Remember I mentioned to you that all of these come from the

document that I use when I teach the master English slang course.

So we're going to move to our third slang term and it actually is back seat driver.

PDF that I use in the course, but we're talking about back

Seat driver, backseat driver.

Now this is something we use very often as well in English.

And it just refers to someone who is always in the back trying

to tell the driver what to do.

Hey, Oh, you missed your turn.

Hey, Hey, Hey, you got to go to the left.

Hey, you should hang a right at this corner.

Someone in the back, always trying to tell the driver What to do in English.

We call that person a back seat, back seat, back seat driver.

I all, I thought about backstreet boys all of a sudden backstreet.

All right.

So here's the first real life situation.

All right.

You're on a road trip and you're traveling with your family or your friends.

Here's how you can describe the situation.

My mother in law is such a backseat driver.

She comments on every turn I make.

You see it, right?

Family road trip, mother in law's in the back.

Hey, that was the wrong turn.

Hey, I don't like the way you made that turn.

Again, my mother in law is such a backseat driver.

She comments on every turn I make.

What about this real life situation again, still speaking about backseat driver.

Think about your daily commute when carpooling with colleagues to

work, you guys are riding together.

Here's the example sentence.

I stopped giving Sarah rides because she's a backstreet backstreet.

I, I really, I guess I like backstreet boys.

She's a backseat driver who constantly tells me which lanes to use.

Backseat driver, and then this other real life situation, going on a family

vacation when driving with siblings on a long trip, here's the example sentence.

My brother is the worst backseat driver.

He keeps telling me I'm following too close to other cars.

He's the worst backseat driver.

So you understand how to use this slang term now, right?

But there are some do's and don'ts.

Here's the first do that I want you to pay attention to.

The first do is use it to describe unwanted advice politely.

I don't want their advice and I'm trying to express that politely.

Next, you can use it in casual conversations.

And finally, use it metaphorically in various situations beyond driving, right?

Like at my job, sometimes my boss is a backseat driver, right?

Metaphorically.

Now, there are things that you should not do as it relates to using this slang term.

First, don't use it in formal complaints or documents.

Don't email your boss or write up a document.

I want to complain about my coworker who is a backseat driver.

You don't want to use it in that situation.

Don't use it aggressively or confrontationally.

You don't want to be confronting someone using it in an aggressive way.

And finally, don't use it with people who might be sensitive to criticism.

We all have friends or family members that might be a bit more sensitive

about certain things, and that's fine.

We're human.

So be careful who you use it with and who you use it to describe.

Okay.

Now this again is a very useful slang term.

Who you use it to describe, right?

I just paused for a second.

Alright, now check out this story using the term.

Here we go.

John was driving his girlfriend Lisa to meet his parents for the first time.

Throughout the two hour journey, Lisa couldn't help but point out every speed

limit sign, suggest better routes, and gasp dramatically at every yellow light.

By the time they arrived, John laughingly told his parents, well, I, uh, just

discovered I'm dating a backseat driver.

Everyone laughed and Lisa promised to work on her backseat driving tendencies.

Makes sense right now, but you understand the term backseat driver.

Now, again, these slang terms are used almost every day by native English

speakers on a very regular basis.

So now that you know them, you can start using them.

And I'll talk to you in the next lesson.

You still there, you know what time it is.

Ain't nothing changed.

It's story time.

Hey, I said, it's story time.

All right.

So I actually had a specific story that I wanted to tell you as we are embarking

on this brand new time of improvement.

As you're on this English journey.

So what I want to tell you is a story of resilience, a story of pulling in

all nighter and how much you can achieve that will exceed your expectations.

So this happened.

Wow.

It's probably been about a decade.

Um, so this is when I was working as a web designer, I was working as a web

designer, and I've told this story before to some of my students, but again, it's

a story of determination, pulling an all nighter and exceeding your expectations.

Sometimes you don't realize how much you are capable of.

So I was working as a web designer and.

One of my sister's friends had his own business and he knew

that I was a web designer.

So we reached out to me.

It was an urgent situation.

His website for his business had crashed and he contacted me and he said, Hey,

Tiff, listen, I really need a big favor.

He said, I, my website crashed and I need my website back up.

Can you recreate my website?

So I'm like, Oh sure.

I got you.

Don't worry.

He said, here's the only thing.

I need it by tomorrow.

I said, wait, say that again.

He said, I know I'm asking a lot, but can you have it done by tomorrow?

Now, remember I said, this is a story about determination,

pulling an all nighter and exceeding your expectations, right?

Doing more than you actually realize your pot you're capable of.

Now I got off work and it was around 5.

P.

M.

He said he needed it by the next day, just to help you

understand, I am a morning person.

I am not a night owl.

I normally get in the bed at 8 PM.

True story.

I normally wake up at 4 AM.

Listen, in the morning, I got energy for days at 5 PM.

He wanted me to start working on his website.

But remember it was my sister's good friend.

I knew that he was in a very serious situation.

His website was down and I understood, Hey, he really needs my help.

I do have the skill to do this, so I'm going to have to pull it all nighter.

So I told him, yes, don't worry.

I'll take care of it.

Send me all of the information and I'll create the website.

I needed like the textual information, right?

I remember like it was yesterday, even though it was well over a decade ago.

I remember like it was yesterday sitting in my computer and saying,

all right, Tiff, let's get to it.

And I started plugging away.

I had my laptop.

I had the light shining on me.

My parents were like, are you okay?

Is everything fine?

I said, yep, I got it.

At that time I was staying with my parents to save some money.

And so I was creating a website and I started getting tired, but I was like,

no, remember why you're doing this.

Remember how much he needs this.

You have to help your friend.

Again, my sister's friend, but he was a friend of mine as well.

So I continued working again, determination.

I knew I had to pull this all nighter fast forward.

I could see the sun slowly coming up over the horizon and

I hit enter to publish the page.

It was live and I called him.

I said, Hey.

I finished the site, please go and check it out.

Let me know your thoughts.

He was elated.

He was so happy.

He was like, Tim, thank you so much.

And I was happy to have helped him, but I never forgot that situation.

Not because I pulled an all nighter and I was so tired, but because I

would have never imagined creating an entire website in less than 12 hours.

Why am I telling you this story?

You're embarking.

On a new part of your English journey at the time of this recording,

where at the beginning of the year, I want you to realize that you

can do more than you even imagine.

I want you to set goals and realize that you, my friend can achieve those goals.

Just like I had to focus on the reason, focus on the purpose

in order to achieve my goal.

I want you to focus on your purpose.

Maybe you want another job.

Maybe you want to inspire your children.

Maybe you're trying to travel abroad or actually immigrate to America or Canada,

or even another country in Europe.

Focus on that purpose and you will achieve your goal.

My friend was happy.

I was happy to have helped him.

And I'm also happy to help you as we continue on this English journey.

I love you.

I care about you.

And most importantly, I believe in you.

Let's keep going on this journey.

Let's jump right in.