English - Some common spoken words and their usage

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Keep going

• Meaning: Continue
• Usage: keep going. You need the exercise.

 Drop by

• Meaning: Visit for short time
• Usage: I dropped by the camera store to pick up our photos.

 In charge of

• Meaning: Responsible for; supervisor of
• Usage: He is in charge of training new staff.
• Note: sometimes in charge of + _ing

Running short of time

• Meaning: Getting close to a deadline
• Usage: I’d love to finish this meeting soon. Let’s move on to the next point because we’re running short of time.

Get a move on

• Meaning: Go faster
• Usage: We have to get a move on if we want to finish by Wednesday.

Ahead of/ on/ behind schedule

• Meaning: Faster than planned / as planned / slower than planned
• Usage: Please drive faster. We’re behind schedule.
• Project is going fine. Everything is on schedule.

Tied up

• Meaning: Busy doing something that you can’t stop
• Usage: I’m tied up now, but I’ll be free in an hour.

Held up

• Meaning: Delayed
• Usage: I got home at 10 o’clock last night. I was held up at the office doing paperwork.

No wonder

• Meaning: Now I understand why
• Usage: I didn’t study. No wonder I failed.

It slipped my mind

• Meaning: I forgot
• Usage: I was supposed to meet my friend last night, but it slipped my mind.

Under a lot of pressure

• Meaning: Feeling stress
• Usage: Students are under a lot of pressure at exam time

Put up with something

• Meaning: Accept something bad
• Usage: my office is freezing, but I put up with it because I love my job.

Right away

• Meaning: Immediately; now
• Usage: The client is waiting. He needs the report. I’ll get it right away.

It’s not the end of the world

• Meaning: The situation is not very bad
• Usage: I hurt my knee, but it’s not the end of the world. I can still play golf.

In the same boat

• Meaning: In the same situation
• Usage: We all lost money last year. We’re all in the same boat.

Can I take a rain check?

• Meaning: Can we change the plan to another time in future?
• Usage: I have to cancel our plans for lunch today. Can I take a rain check?

On top of that

• Meaning: In addition to; also
• Usage: I’m very busy. I have two children, I work full time, and on top of that I take evening classes.

For good

• Meaning: Forever; permanently
• Usage: I’ve tried to quit smoking before, but this time I’m quitting for good.

I heard it through the grapevine

• Meaning: Someone told me something as gossip or a rumour
• Usage: He lost his job. I heard it through the grapevine.

Better off doing something

• Meaning: Say this to show a better choice
• Usage: the bus takes five hours. I’m better off taking the train.

Run into someone

• Meaning: Meet someone unexpectedly
• Usage: sometimes I run into him at the bank. We both go on Mondays.

We don’t see eyes to eye

• Meaning: This is a polite way to say we don’t agree
• Usage: we both agree on the problem. But we don’t see eye to eye on the solution.

Play it by ear

• Meaning: Do it without a plan
• Usage: Don’t book a hotel room. Play it by ear. Look for a hotel when you get to the city.

Come off

• Meaning: Become detached
• Usage: I bought a cheap suitcase. The wheels came off after one week!

Give someone a hand

• Meaning: Help someone
• Usage: He had to photocopy 100 pages, so I gave him a hand with the job.

Get by

• Meaning: Manage but with difficulty
• Usage: we don’t have much money, but we can get by if we don’t spend much.

Can’t make it

• Meaning: Not able to attend
• Usage: He’s working late. He can’t make it to the movie.

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