14 Advanced English Phrases for DAILY LIFE

Vanessa: Are you ready to level up your vocabulary

so that you can speak clearly and express yourself confidently?

Yes.

Well, I have some good news.

Today, you are going to learn 14 daily life expressions that I used in this video, where

I baked some blueberry oat muffins with my family, and you will be able to use those

expressions yourself.

Hi, I'm Vanessa from SpeakEnglishWithVanessa.com, and today, I have created a free PDF worksheet

for you with all of today's important daily life expressions.

Plus, at the end of this worksheet, I have something new for you.

It is a quiz, so if you want to see if you really know these expressions after this lesson,

I recommend clicking on the link in the description to download the free PDF worksheet plus the

quiz that goes along with all of these phrases.

Are you ready to test yourself?

I recommend clicking on that link to download the PDF and test yourself.

Let's get started with the first important daily life expression, and then we'll watch

the clip from the original conversation so that you can see the original context.

The first expression is this, to eyeball something.

So usually, we say that this is your eye, but you can say it's your eyeball.

Here, we're using it as a verb.

When you eyeball something, you're not using an exact measurement.

I think this is something that we know a lot of our mothers or grandmothers do when they

bake something.

They just eyeball it.

If you ask them, "Grandma, how much seasoning do you use on this?

I want to make it myself, but I don't know how much you use," she would probably say,

"Well, I don't use a recipe, I just eyeball it."

Well, it doesn't help you very much when you try to replicate her recipe, but that's what

a lot of people do, they just eyeball it.

All right.

Let's watch the original clip from the conversation so that you can see how to eyeball it was

used.

We are going to need one and a half cups of oats.

All right, dump it in, and a half.

We'll just eyeball it.

There you go.

We are going to need one and a half cups of oats.

All right, dump it in, and a half.

We'll just eyeball it.

There you go.

The second important daily life expression is a fun phrasal verb, to pass something off.

You might notice that we can split this phrasal verb, to pass something off.

We can use this in the physical way.

I'm going to pass this paper off to my friend.

Okay, you're just passing it to your friend, but we can use it in a negative way too.

You might say, "Ah, well, when my younger sibling didn't want to sweep the floor, she

passed it off to me.

Somehow, she convinced me that it was a good idea to sweep the floor.

I don't know how she did it."

So here, she is trying to get me to do a task that maybe she doesn't want to do.

Maybe she uses some manipulation to pass the task off to me, so it could just be a physical

thing, pass the bowl off to your brother, or it could be passing a task off to someone,

tricking them into doing it.

Let's watch how it was used in the original conversation.

All right, if you guys can do that together without arguing about it then ...

Theo: I can.

Vanessa: Or you can pass it off to each other.

All right, if you guys can do that together without arguing about it, then.

Theo: I can.

Vanessa: Or you can pass it off to each other.

The third important daily life expression is to take on the role of something.

We're using the phrasal verb, to take on, plus adding a bit to it, to take on the role

of something.

We can imagine almost that you are putting on a costume, and you are pretending like

you are that person.

So you could say, "When my children have friends over to the house, I take on the role of supervisor

more than playmate.

I don't really play with them, instead, I just supervise and make sure that everyone

is okay."

So I'm kind of changing my role.

Usually, I play with my kids, but when they have other friends at our house, they just

want to play together, so I take on the role of supervisor.

All right, let's see how this was used in the original conversation.

Okay.

Well, it sounds like Theo is really taking on the role of teaching baking.

Is this Theo's cooking class?

Okay.

Well, it sounds like Theo is really taking on the role of teaching baking.

Is this Theo's cooking class?

The fourth important daily life expression is a fun rhetorical question, "You know what?"

Do you sense in my voice there's some surprise?

"You know what?"

I'm excited to reveal something that I just realized, so you might say, "I just was talking

with my grandparents, and you know what?

They never actually got married.

I'm so surprised.

I thought that they were married this whole time, but they really weren't.

They just didn't have enough money to have a ceremony and go to the courthouse and sign

the papers.

You know what?

That is shocking."

So here, we can use this fun expression to show that you're surprised.

Let's see how it was used in the original conversation.

And you can put cinnamon in there.

You know what?

I think you could even put a lot.

And you can put cinnamon in there.

You know what?

I think you could even put a lot.

The fifth important real-life expression is a funny one, it's to get the crazies.

Now, this is a little bit slang, a little bit informal.

It's often used with children because if you've ever been around children, you know that sometimes

they just get the crazies, and it means that you have a lot of energy and you're doing

the silly things, so you might say, "If I don't get enough sleep, I feel like I've got

the crazies," or if your kids are just doing maybe naughty stuff in the house, ripping

things, cutting things, you could say, "Hey, you guys have got the crazies."

"You need to go outside and run around.

It's better to do that outside."

It's this kind of pent up energy that needs to be let out or maybe your mind isn't focusing

in the right way if you haven't gotten enough sleep.

All right, let's see how we've used this in the original conversation.

Theo: We need the sugar.

Vanessa: No, I don't know if you guys even need any

sugar.

You guys got the crazies.

Theo: No, we want some.

We need the sugar.

Vanessa: No, I don't know if you guys even need any

sugar.

You guys got the crazies.

Theo: No, we want some.

Vanessa: The sixth important real-life expression is

to mush up something.

This is similar to mash up something, and really, they have a similar meaning.

You're just squishing something to make it kind of gooey.

I know a lot of parents when they have young children, like little babies who are just

starting to eat food for the first time, they mush up their baby's food before giving it

to them so that they don't choke.

Just, I think parents have concerns about those types of things, so maybe they will

mush up their baby's food, or we could substitute mash.

They'll mash up the baby's food so that they can eat it easier.

Let's see how it was used in the original conversation.

Let's see if Freddie can be the musher.

Freddie: Mush, mush.

Vanessa: Here, this is the bananas.

Can you mush, mush, mush like that?

Let's see if Freddie can be the musher.

Freddie: Mush, mush.

Vanessa: Here, this is the bananas.

Can you mush, mush, mush like that?

The seventh important real-life expression is a fun one, may the chaos ensue.

We don't really use the word ensue in daily life anymore.

It's kind of old-fashioned, but in this expression, you will definitely hear it.

This is kind of a hurrah when you know that something crazy is about to happen, so you

could say, "Oh my goodness, I just won the lottery.

May the chaos ensue," so you know that a lot of crazy things are about to happen.

Maybe there will be friends you didn't even know were friends who start calling you.

Maybe you have a lot of TV appearances.

The chaos is about to happen, or may the chaos ensue.

All right, let's see how this was used in the original conversation, because let me

tell you what, there was a lot of chaos while I was baking with my two, young sons.

That's what happens.

May the chaos ensue.

We're going to pour the bananas in here.

Theo: And now we're going to mix it..

Vanessa: And can you mix all that up please?

May that chaos ensue.

We're going to pour the bananas in here.

Theo: And now we're going to mix it.

Vanessa: And can you mix all that up please?

May chaos ensue.

The eighth important real-life expression is the beginning of a sentence, I wouldn't.

This is another way to give some advice.

It's a little bit indirect.

It's not saying you shouldn't, instead, it's talking about yourself, but we often use this

if you're in a place of authority, if you're a teacher, if you're a parent.

You might say this to a child, so you might say, "I wouldn't hit your friend.

He might not play with you the next time."

You're giving some advice.

You could be more direct, and sometimes children need directness.

"You shouldn't hit your friend.

He won't want to play with you."

This is very direct, but if you want to be a little more indirect, you could say, "I

wouldn't hit your friend if I were you.

He probably won't want to play with you," but we can use this also for a friend if you

want to give some friendly advice.

Let's imagine that your friend says, "Oh, man, yeah, my neighbor is just really weird,"

and you're near her neighbor's house.

You might say, "Oh, I wouldn't say that if I were you.

She might hear you."

So here, you're giving some advice.

"Shh, shh, don't say that now.

I wouldn't say that if I were you.

I wouldn't say that so loud."

You got to be careful.

All right, let's see how I used that in the original conversation.

Almost.

These are pretty easy to make.

Theo: Can I eat one?

Vanessa: I wouldn't need that, but you can put your

finger in there to get it into the pan.

Almost.

These are pretty easy to make.

Theo: Can I eat one?

Vanessa: I wouldn't need that, but you can put your

finger in there to get it into the pan.

Important expression number nine is a parenting expression, and it is to take turns.

So oftentimes, I think parents push the idea of sharing, "You need to share with your brother,"

"You need to share with your friends," but this is hard for kids to understand.

Doesn't mean that I need to give up everything right away and not use it myself?

Well, in our family, we use this idea of taking turns.

I learned this in a wonderful parenting book that I highly recommend.

There's also a sibling version, Peaceful Parent, Happy Siblings, and this idea of taking turns

means that your children are used to asking the question, "Can I have the next turn?,"

or, "I would like the next turn," and it means, "When you're done, I would like it," and you

know what?

I have been shocked.

Every time that my children use this, the other child so willingly, within a reasonable

amount of time, gives up the toy, gives up whatever it is, and gives it to the other

person.

I didn't interfere, I didn't push them.

It's amazing.

I think this feeling of generosity comes out.

"I can be generous, and I'm in control.

I can give it to you when I want."

So this is kind of a big parenting concept, but it's something that has really worked

in our family, and it's a great expression to know because you might hear this in a movie

or TV show, or maybe you have kids, and you want to use it yourself.

So let's see how it was used in the original conversation to take turns.

Let's see.

Freddie: It's my turn.

Vanessa: All right.

Theo, are you done with your turn?

Okay.

Theo: And I'll just-

Vanessa: Looks like it is Freddie's turn to stir.

Theo: I'll pour in some chocolate chips.

Freddie: It's my turn.

Vanessa: All right.

Theo, are you done with your turn?

Okay.

Theo: I'll just-

Vanessa: Looks like it is Freddie's turn to stir.

Theo: I'll pour in some chocolate chips.

Vanessa: The 10th important daily life expression is

whole thing of.

You can imagine that this is a little bit informal, and we use this to talk about a

full container of something.

So you might say to your friend, "If you open the fridge, whoa, did you just eat that whole

thing of cheese?"

Here in English, the word thing is replacing those specific words that we use for various

items, the whole block of cheese, the whole loaf of bread.

Instead of using block or loaf, you're just saying thing, and as an English teacher, I

want to encourage you, if you don't know those specific words, don't worry about it.

We often substitute the word, thing.

That whole thing of cheese, and you'll see how it's used in the original conversation.

Maybe you can use it in that way too.

Let's watch.

You can hold onto that whisk.

Theo: And I'll put in some blueberries and chocolate

chips.

Freddie: And I want to eat the chocolate chips.

Vanessa: Freddie, can you dump that whole thing of

blueberries into that bowl?

You can hold onto that whisk.

Theo: And I'll put in some blueberries and chocolate

chips.

Freddie: And I want to eat the chocolate chips.

Vanessa: Freddie, can you dump that whole thing of

blueberries into that bowl?

Important daily life expression number 11 is another polite suggestion, why don't you?

You could say, "Why don't you pick up your toys and I'll make you a snack?

Here, I'm giving a suggestion.

"Why don't you do this, and I'll do this."

It's a wonderful way to just be polite while also suggesting that someone do something.

You can even use this in the workplace.

I know a lot of these examples are with kids because the original context was with my children,

but you can use this in the workplace as well.

So let's imagine that you tried to send an email to a co-worker, and the co-worker didn't

get the email, so you asked the co-worker, "Hey, do you get my email?," and they said,

"No," and say, "Oh, what should I do?"

Your co-worker might say to you, "Why don't you send it to this email address instead?"

Okay, they could just say, "Can you send it to this email address instead," or, "Try this

email address instead," or you can use today's beautiful expression, "Why don't you send

it to this email address instead?"

Great.

It can be used with kids, it can be used in the workplace, it can be used anywhere.

Let's see how it was used in the original context.

Ah, that's a little too much to eat before the muffins, so why don't you put those in

the batter?

Theo: Can I eat this much?

Vanessa: Ah, that's a little too much to eat before

the muffins, so why don't you put those in the batter?

Theo: Can I eat this much?

Vanessa: The 12th important daily life expression is

all you do to, plus a verb.

Here, we're talking about a simplified way of doing something, of describing a task.

Let me give you some examples.

I like to say that I've been making bread before it was cool.

I know that during the COVID lockdown times, a lot of people started to make bread.

Well, I was making bread before that, so I often like to joke, "Well, I was making bread

before it was cool," and when someone asks, "Vanessa, how do you make this bread?

It looks amazing.

It tastes great, but doesn't bread take a lot of work?"

I could say, "Well, all you do to make this bread is mix the salt, yeast, flour, and water

together.

It's simple.

Easy-peasy.

All you do to make this bread."

Now, I just want to give you a little warning, if you're explaining a really complicated

task, maybe you're in the workplace and someone who has just started the job says to you,

"Hey, could you help me with this?," and then you say, "Well, all you do to do that is this,

this, and this, and this, and this, and then you file this, and you go over here."

This is very complicated, so I would not recommend saying, "All you do to file this report,"

and then you list a lot of complicated things because it might make the other person feel

a little bit dumb.

Like, "Oh, you're trying to make it seem simple, but it is not simple," so use this expression

when you are trying to explain something simple.

"To make this loaf of bread, it's actually pretty simple.

You don't need to do all of these complicated tasks.

All you need to do is mix these ingredients together."

All right, let's see how this was used in the original context.

Theo: You can only cook shoelaces in a shoelace

cake.

Vanessa: Oh.

Theo: All you do to make a shoelace cake is make

a cake and put shoelaces on it.

You can only cook shoelaces in a shoelace cake.

Vanessa: Oh.

Theo: All you do to make a shoelace cake is make

a cake and put shoelaces on it.

Vanessa: The 13th important real-life expression is

bonding or to bond.

The original meaning here has to do with almost like glue.

This tape can bond two things together, maybe two pieces of paper, maybe two things that

have broken.

You can bond them together with this super sticky tape, but in the daily life conversations

that we usually have, we're not talking about really sticking things together, instead,

we use this for relationships and to bond or bonding means that you're growing closer

in your relationship.

So for me, I think that cooking is a great way to bond with my family.

We spend time chopping things together, following the recipe, and then, of course, eating it

at the end, but this is a great way to bond.

I have to admit that sometimes cooking with my kids is a little bit chaotic, sometimes

a little bit stressful, so I have to remind myself that bonding with my family is the

key priority.

It's not making a perfect meal.

Bonding with my family is the key priority.

All right, let's see how this was used in the original conversation.

Well, technically the recipe says don't overmix, but you know what?

It's just muffins.

It's okay.

You can mix them, and then the important thing is bonding, spending time together, right,

guys?

Theo: Yep.

Vanessa: Well, technically the recipe says over mix,

but you know what?

It's just muffins.

It's okay.

You can mix them, and then the important thing is bonding, spending time together, right,

guys?

Theo: Yep.

Vanessa: Our final important real-life expression is

forgiving.

We usually use the word to forgive when we've made a mistake.

"Oh, will you please forgive me?

I'm so sorry," but here, we're talking about it in a slightly different way.

Remember that bread recipe that I was talking about, that all you do to make the bread is

just mix a few simple things together?

Well, we could also say the recipe is really forgiving.

In fact, one time, I added an extra scoop of flour by accident because I got distracted,

and you know what?

It still worked.

Unbelievable, I'm not even kidding.

The loaf of bread was still fine, so we could say the recipe is really forgiving.

That means it's flexible.

It's not strict, it's not stringent, it's quite forgiving.

So let's see how this wonderful expression forgiving was used in the original conversation.

Let's watch.

I like making recipes that are forgiving.

That means that if you add lots and lots and lots of toppings, it's fine.

It still cooks.

I like making recipes that are forgiving.

That means that if you add lots and lots and lots of toppings, it's fine.

It still cooks.

Well, congratulations on learning these 14 important real-life expressions from conversations

that I've had with my family.

You know what?

Now, it's time for you to test yourself.

I want you to take on the role of Supercharged Student, and you can download the free PDF

worksheet that goes with this lesson, it has all of these real-life expressions, definitions,

many more sample sentences, and then, like I mentioned at the beginning of this lesson,

you can answer the quiz questions.

Test yourself.

Do you really know which expression goes with which sentence?

So download the free PDF worksheet with the link in the description.

Test yourself, and let me know how it goes.

Well, thank you so much for learning English with me, and I'll see you again next Friday

for a new lesson here on my YouTube channel.

Bye.

But wait, do you want more?

I recommend watching this video next.

It is the full baking conversation that I had with my children.

Immerse yourself in English and see some very strange things like cinnamon explosions and

eating corn with bananas.

I don't even know why.

Click on that video, and I'll see you there.

Bye.