Tag: C2

Posted in Phrase of the Day

Proficiency Phrase of the Day #16: To keep someone waiting

Posted on by Tim Warre

Today’s phrase is…

To keep someone waiting

Introduce the expression with some examples:

The hotel staff kept us waiting for the best part of four hours before our room was ready.

Keeping your date waiting for you to arrive is not a good look.

The expression means “to make someone wait”. There’s also a bonus expression today: “for the best part of an hour/a day/etc.”, which means “almost an hour/a day/etc.

Put students in pairs or small groups and have them answer these questions:

  1. How punctual are you in general?
  2. Do you have any friends/relatives who are always late?
  3. How do you feel when you have to wait around for someone?
  4. What’s the longest you’ve had to wait for a friend/relative to arrive?
  5. What’s the longest you’ve kept someone else waiting?

Here’s the Quizlet set of all the previous phrases of the day.

Posted in Phrase of the Day

Proficiency Phrase of the Day #15: Go halves on

Posted on by Tim Warre

Today’s phrase is….

to go halves on something

Introduce it with an example:

On a first date you should always go halves on the bill when it arrives. Do you agree?

The expression means to split/divide the cost of something between two people.

Put students in pairs or small groups and have them discuss these questions:

  1. What’s your opinion of dating etiquette when it comes to paying the bill in a restaurant? How has this etiquette changed over the years?
  2. If you’re sharing a house/flat with a partner, what do you think is the best way to organise the finances? Should the two people’s relative income be taken into account?
  3. When you were a child/teenager and you wanted a particularly expensive item for our birthday/Christmas/another celebration, did you ever split the cost with your parents?

Here’s the Quizlet set of all the previous phrases of the day.

Posted in Phrase of the Day

Proficiency Phrase of the Day #14: To bite off more than you can chew

Posted on by Tim Warre

Today’s phrase of the day is…

To bite off more than you can chew

Introduce it with some examples:

When I took on that extra part-time job I bit off more than I could chew.

The government bit off more than they could chew when they tried to completely overhaul the tax system.

Lead students to the meaning: to accept too much responsibility and fail to complete a commitment/try to do something that is too hard for you.

Put students in pairs or small groups and have them discuss these questions:

  1. How much do you have on your plate at the moment? Can you handle it? Or have you taken on too much work?
  2. How good are you at predicting how long a piece of work will take?
  3. When it comes to taking on new responsibilities, where is the line between being ambitious and being naïve?
  4. Have you ever accepted a job/project that was too difficult for you? What happened?

Here’s the Quizlet set of all the previous phrases of the day.

Posted in Advanced C1, Exam Preparation Class, Phrase of the Day, Proficiency

Proficiency Phrase of the Day #13: Bury One’s Head in the Sand

Posted on by Tim Warre

Today’s phrase is…

To bury one’s head in the sand

Introduce the expression to your students with some examples.

When it comes to climate change, most governments are burying their heads in the sand and just going on as normal.

You can’t just bury your head in the sand, your symptoms are bad, you should see a doctor.

The expression means: to avoid or ignore unpleasant facts even though they might have a bad effect on you in the future.

Put students in small groups and have them ask and answer these questions. Encourage them to use the phrase of the day:

  1. Apart from climate change, are there any other major issues that you think governments are refusing to face up to?
  2. How do you normally deal with potentially scary news or information? Do you face up to it? Or try to avoid thinking about it or discussing it?
  3. How do you normally deal with strange symptoms or other health problems? Do you get them checked out? Or ignore them and hope they go away?

Here’s the Quizlet set of all the previous phrases of the day.

Posted in Advanced C1, Exam Preparation Class, Phrase of the Day, Proficiency, Vocabulary Classes

Proficiency Phrase of the Day #10: By the skin of one’s teeth

Posted on by Tim Warre

Today’s phrase is…

To do something by the skin of your teeth.

Introduce it to your students with some personalised examples from your own life:

I passed my driving test by the skin of my teeth, one more mistake and I would have failed.

My football team managed to win the league by the skin of their teeth, it came down to goal difference in the end.

Lead them to the meaning: by the thinnest of margins. Point out that it’s most commonly used in the contexts of exams/tests, elections or competitions.

The politician held onto his seat in parliament by the skin of her teeth.

The golfer qualified for the next round by the skin of her teeth.

I passed my Spanish speaking exam by the skin of my teeth.

Put students in pairs and encourage them to think of examples from their own life.

As a counterpoint, you could introduce the following opposite expressions:

  • to pass with flying colours
  • to sail/breeze through

Here’s the Quizlet set of all the previous phrases of the day.

Posted in Advanced C1, Phrase of the Day, Proficiency, Vocabulary Classes

Proficiency Phrase of the Day #9: Get out of hand

Posted on by Tim Warre

Today’s phrase is….

To get out of hand

Introduce it to your students with some personalised examples:

The party got a little bit out of hand after you left.

His Miley Cyrus obsession has got a little bit out of hand.

Help students to infer the meaning of the expression:

to become difficult to control

Have students discuss the following questions in pairs or small groups:

  1. Have you ever been to a party that got a bit wild?
  2. Have you ever attended or witnessed a celebration or protest that became difficult for authorities to manage?
  3. At school, were there specific times of day or times of the year when teachers had difficulty controlling students?
  4. Do you have any hobbies, tastes or pastimes that you think might be turning into obsessions?

Use this Quizlet set to recall previous phrases of the day.

Posted in Advanced C1, Exam Preparation Class, Phrase of the Day, Proficiency, Vocabulary Classes

Proficiency Phrase of the Day #7: Do wonders for

Posted on by Tim Warre

Today’s phrase is….

to do wonders for

Introduce it to your students with a personalised example:

“Getting away from the city for a couple of days did wonders for my mental health.”

Show them some more examples to help them grasp the meaning:

All that sunshine does wonders for your mood.

Yoga will do wonders for his fitness.

Fresh vegetables and pure water can do wonders for the liver.

Get a pet – my dog has done wonders for my soul.

The expression means to have a big positive effect on something. It’s most often used to describe positive impacts on physical or mental health, but can also be used to describe improvements to relationships or reputations.

The couples therapy did wonders for their marriage.

The announcement of the ceasefire did wonders for the country’s standing on the world stage.

Put students in pairs or small groups and have them think of some examples:

  1. A product or activity that has had a positive impact on their mental or physical health.
  2. Some advice you could give a couple who are going through a rough patch.
  3. Something that a celebrity did that had a really good impact on their career or reputation.
Posted in Advanced C1, Phrase of the Day, Proficiency, Vocabulary Classes

Proficiency Phrase of the Day #6: Spare a Thought for…

Posted on by Tim Warre

The phrase of the day today is…

Spare a thought for someone.

As we’re over a year into the horrific war in Ukraine, we should spare a thought for all of the people who have been killed, injured or displaced as a result of Russia’s brutal invasion.

The expression means to stop and think about that group of people. The expression often appears like this:

Spare a thought for those less fortunate than you.

Encourage your students to think of other marginalised groups who need more support and attention at the moment. Perhaps consider creating a poster display with all your students’ messages of support for different groups.

Have them discuss the following questions in pairs:

  1. How often do you think people spare a thought for those less fortunate than them these days?
  2. What else can be done to raise awareness of the plight of marginalised groups?
  3. Do you know anyone who has taken in refugees or offered support in other ways?
  4. Would you be willing to do it?

Use this Quizlet set to practice past phrases of the day.

Posted in Advanced C1, Exam Preparation Class, Phrase of the Day, Proficiency, Vocabulary Classes

Proficiency Phrase of the Day #5: Contrary to Popular Belief, …

Posted on by Tim Warre

The phrase of the day today is….

“Contrary to popular belief,….”

Introduce it to your students with some examples:

“Contrary to popular belief, you can’t catch a cold just from being cold.”

“Contrary to popular belief, gorillas are shy and gentle creatures.”

“Contrary to popular belief, British cuisine is actually quite good.”

The expression is used to introduce a fact or statement that is the opposite of what most ordinary people think

Challenge students to be stereotype/myth busters. They can either choose to disprove a stereotype about people from their country/region using the expression, or they can disprove a commonly held theory or “old wives’ tale”.

Please post some of their example sentences in the comments!

Posted in Advanced C1, Exam Preparation Class, Phrase of the Day, Proficiency, Vocabulary Classes

Proficiency Phrase of the Day #4: To Draw the Line at

Posted on by Tim Warre

Today’s phrase is….

“To draw the line at something”

Introduce it to your students in a personalised example:

“I like scary movies but I draw the line at the Saw films, they’re too gory for me.”

Ask them to guess the meaning with their partner. The expression means to set a limit on what you’re willing to do or accept. You could show them more examples:

“I like exotic pizza toppings, but I draw the line at pineapple.”

“She’s all for her daughter expressing herself but she draws the line at her getting a nose ring.”

First have students consider the three examples. When it comes to horror films, where do they draw the line? What about pizza toppings? Where did their parents draw the line when they were growing up?

Encourage them to write 2 or 3 personalised examples and share them with the class.

Here’s the quizlet set with all of the phrases of the day so far.