Improving our vocabulary: WAYS OF SAYING "YOU'RE CRAZY"
TO BE CRAZY = TO BE...
bananas
loony
loopy
mad
mental
nuts
nutty
whacky
mad as a hatter (from Alice in Wonderland)
mad as a March hare
non compos mentis
round the bend
TO BE SLIGHTLY CRAZY = TO BE...
barmy
bonkers
cracked
dotty
funny in the head
queer in the head
EXPRESSIONS FOR WRONG THINKING OR NOT THINKING CLEARLY (used humorously)
You're wired-up wrongly
You have the brain in neutral
You have a lame brain
You have a screw loose
You have a loose connection up top
That's curious!
THE STORY BEHIND THE IDIOMS
To break the ice
This expression means "to break down social stiffness, to start up a conversation". It originally comes from the ships known as icebreakers, that were used to break the ice on the sea or rivers, making a path for other larger ships. In the 17th century, that phrase began to be used with the figurative meaning of "breaking the cold atmosphere" in uncomfortable social situations, especially when meeting a stranger.
Esta expresión significa "romper la frialdad social, comenzar una conversación". Proviene originalmente de los barcos conocidos como rompehielos, que se usaban para romper el hielo en el mar o los ríos, abriendo camino para otros barcos más grandes. En el siglo XVII, la frase comenzó a utilizarse con el sentido figurado de "romper la atmósfera fría" en situaciones sociales incómodas, especialmente al conocer a un extraño.
Hot dog
The use of this word to mean sausage comes from the XIX century. Hot referred to the temperature of the sausage, of course. And dog may have been a reference to the alleged contents of the sausage. In 1845 there were many accusations against sausage makers of using dog meat to make the sausage (which was not true). The term became popular and was often used in newspapers, making it as common as it is today.
El uso de esta palabra para significar salchicha proviene del siglo XIX. Hot se refería obviamente a la temperatura de la salchicha. Y dog sería una referencia al presunto contenido de la salchicha. En 1845 hubo muchas acusaciones contra los fabricantes de estos embutidos de utilizar carne de perro para fabricar la salchicha (lo cual no era verdad). El término se hizo popular y era utilizado comúnmente en los periódicos, haciendo que sea tan común como lo es hoy .
Vocabulary
TEACHER, PROFESSOR OR LECTURER?
A teacher is somebody who teaches in a school.
A professor is somebody who teaches in a university or college.
A lecturer is somebody who isn't a professor and teaches in a university.
teacher
The new teacher is very kind.
The children love the new teacher.
professor
The professor of economics always has an explanation for everything.
Who's your history professor?
lecturer
Mary works as a lecturer in ancient history.
A lecturer came to our class yesterday.
"GO SHOPPING" or "DO THE SHOPPING"?
We say go shopping to talk about a leisure activity, something done in our spare time. We say do the shopping to talk about housework or activities that are part of the routine.
go shopping
She loves going shopping and buying new clothes.
(She does it in her spare time.)
do the shopping
She usually does the shopping every Saturday.
(She buys the necessary things for the home,
it's part of the housework.)
