5 English vocab words (3)

 

a glitch – a technical problem. i.e. Ladies and gentlemen, please bear with us, there has been a technical glitch in our sound equipment, but we are confident we can fix it shortly. Or: The rollout of the new model of the cell phone was delayed because engineers discovered a glitch in the system and were not sure how to fix it.

to overhaul something – to fix something so that it works better. i.e. My car was pretty old and it was not running well, so I went to the mechanic and he was able to overhaul it so that it runs perfectly now. Or: Our accounting department has been working too slowly, so its supervisor decided to overhaul it by replacing some accountants and hiring new ones.

a temptation – something that makes you want to do something that you know you shouldn’t do. i.e. That cake was a real temptation for me to eat, but because I am on a diet I was able to resist the temptation and I am so proud of myself. Or: Quitting this stressful job was a real temptation, but because I need to make a living, I resisted the temptation and I still work here.

your carbon footprint – this means the amount of carbon dioxide you have used or are currently using. Carbon dioxide is a gas that results when electricity is generated or when you use a car. Global warming is due to the carbon dioxide building up in the atmosphere. Your footprint is the mark you leave with your foot as you walk, so your ‘carbon footprint’ is the carbon dioxide you cause to be created in the world as you live. i.e. I try to turn off the lights when I don’t need them, and I use a fan instead of air conditioning. In this way I hope to reduce my carbon footprint. Or: Joe is so irresponsible. He takes 30-minute hot baths, runs his air conditioning all the time, never shuts off his lights – his carbon footprint is huge.

a moocher – this is someone who tries to get lots of free things from others. i.e. Someone I know from Guangzhou decided to visit me in Shenzhen. Little did I know he was a moocher who would never pay for any of the meals we ate at restaurants or any of the tickets for events we attended. I was bleeding money while this moocher was in town because I paid for everything. Or: Bob’s brother-in-law came to stay for a week. The moocher ate all the food in the refrigerator and never bought anything for Bob’s family. 

ESL vocabulary - 5 useful words (2)

 

to complicate something – to make something more difficult, usually making a problem worse. i.e. I asked Joe our IT guy to help me with a computer problem and he just complicated things. Now my computer does not even work. Or: I was having trouble with my girlfriend and I told her that I wanted to talk to her. But our conversation wasn’t very useful; things just became more complicated and now we hate each other.

to morph into something – to change into something. Bob used to be a real idiot in the office but suddenly he just seemed to morph into a decent human being. Now we have no problem with him. Or: Joe used to be one of the nicest people I knew, but constant stress made him morph into a total butthole.

a meltdown –  this is when a person has been under too much stress and cannot take it anymore and becomes overly emotional; he/she might scream or cry or become very upset. A meltdown literally happens in a nuclear reactor when something wrong happens and radioactive smoke is released into the environment. i.e. I knew Joe was under a lot of stress but I was shocked to see him go through such a meltdown. He started screaming at everyone and then just sat down and started crying very hard. Or: Suddenly Bob just started crying and blaming everyone for all of the problems in the office. He had never had this type of meltdown before and we were quite concerned. 

a mindset – this is when a person establishes an attitude and will not change it even if he/she is wrong and people prove that the person is wrong. i.e. The problem with Trump is that he has a very negative mindset concerning immigrants. Even though they are good for the economy, he will always believe that they are evil. Or: It is difficult to change one’s mindset if it is not challenged by experience. Bob never thought women could be great managers until he started working with Jill.

to get rusty – this is when you had a pretty good skill at something, but you did not use the skill for awhile and the skill has lessened. Rust is the red stuff that appears on metal after many years, when the metal gets old. i.e. I used to be able to read German pretty well, but I haven’t tried to read anything in months. I might be a little rusty at reading German these days. Or: I used to be a pretty good golfer, but I might be a little rusty now because I haven’t played in two years.

ESL vocabulary - 5 useful words

 

to dread something – (pronounced: dred) to really hate the idea of doing something, to feel kind of sick when you think of doing something. i.e. My tooth is really hurting me, but I dread the idea of going to the dentist. Or: I know the number 4 line of the Shenzhen subway is going to be so crowded that I dread going there this morning.

to be on the ball – to be doing what you should be doing and doing it well. i.e. Hey, we are falling behind in our work so we need to get on the ball and start working harder. Or: I don’t like working with Joe, he’s just not on the ball and he wastes my time.

a bombshell – something shocking, like a bombshell news report. i.e. The report that Trump stupidly tried to get Ukraine to help him win the next election was bombshell news. i.e. When Bill told us he was leaving the company after 35 years, this was a bombshell that left all of us very shocked and sad. – a bombshell is the package that a bomb is enclosed in, so you would think the term ‘explosion’ would be better, but for some reason people use ‘bombshell’ instead.

a sixth sense – we have five senses: sight, hearing, taste, touch and smell…so a sixth sense means a feeling beyond our normal senses, sort of an intuition or awareness that doesn’t come from anything in the outside world.  i.e. Joe didn’t say or do anything, but my sixth sense told me that he was angry with me this morning. Or: When I woke up this morning my sixth sense told me this would be a great day, and my sixth sense was right.

alleged – this is a common word in US newspapers and it means that the police believe someone committed a crime but it hasn’t been proved. i.e. The alleged murderer has claimed that he is innocent, so we will have to wait until his trial to find out the truth. Or: It has been alleged that Trump broke the law, so now the government must investigate him thoroughly.

ESL vocab (9)

 

a cheapskate – someone who doesn’t like to spend money, someone who is not generous. i.e. Janet’s boyfriend was a real cheapskate who always took her to the least expensive restaurants. Or: Everyone said that Joe was a cheapskate, but, in reality, he was quite poor and could not afford to be generous.

a slowpoke – someone who moves or does something too slowly. i.e. I hate this Starbucks! The counter staff are al such slowpokes. It takes them 10 minutes just to pour me an Americano. Or: When is Joe going to have that report finished?! He is such a slowpoke, he takes forever on every project.

nose-bleed seats – these are very cheap seats at a performance, usually very far away and high up. Sometimes mountain climbers will experience nose-bleeds if they climb too high too quickly. i.e. I love hearing piano music played live, but all I can afford are the nose-bleed seats at the concert hall. i.e. Joe told me we were going to be sitting in the front row at the soccer match, but the cheapskate bought tickets in the nose-bleed seats! The players looked like ants.

ESL Vocab (8)

 

to get some consolation – this means that something didn’t turn out as you had hoped it would, but you were about to get some good from it anyway. i.e. I didn’t get promoted to the upper management this year, but receiving a good job performance assessment was some consolation. Or: My dream girl doesn’t love me but she wants to hang out every once in a while, so that’s some consolation.

to indulge in something – to really enjoy something that you normally wouldn’t enjoy. i.e. I have been on a diet for three months now and am feeling pretty good, so I am going to indulge in some KFC tonight, just as a treat for myself. Or: I love classical music and I have been saving up my money, so I am going to indulge in an orchestral performance at the concert hall this weekend.

to be loaded – to have a lot of money. i.e. Wow, I thought Dan was loaded when I noticed he was wearing some Bruno Magli shoes, but then I learned he bought them at a resale shop for $3. Or: Trump is fat and ugly and can’t control his emotions and must be difficult to live with, but three attractive women have married him, could it be because he is loaded?

ESL Vocab (7)

 

from the get-go – from the start. i.e. Bob did not like Joe from the get-go. Joe would come to the office and spend most of his time talking to other office staff while Joe tried to work. Bob began to irritate Joe from the get-go.  i.e. From the get-go Debra has been a very hard worker who has initiated a lot of good ideas.

a loud-mouth – someone who talks too much, often too loudly. i.e. There was no doubt about it, the new guy in the office was a loud-mouth who could not focus on his work and who was going to bother Bob every day. “How do I deal with such a loud-mouth?” Bob wondered every morning.

to be rational – the opposite meaning would be ‘emotional’. If you are rational you make decisions by thinking instead of feeling. You use ‘reason’ and not ‘emotion’. You think about possible consequences and whether what you will do will be right or wrong. i.e. Obama was much more rational in his decisions than Trump. Trump just does what he feels like without thinking. i.e. I need to be more rational when I make my choices. I can’t let my emotions guide me not bad decisions.

Three useful words for the ESL student (6)

 

to be in a pickle – to be in a difficult situation. A pickle is a small, flavored cucumber. You often find pickles on hamburgers. You make pickles by putting baby cucumbers into a jar with water and dill (a flavoring herb). I am not sure why “to be in a pickle” means to be in a bad or difficult situation. i.e. How am I feeling? Well, I’m a little stressed out because I’m in a bit of a pickle at work. I had an argument with a director. Or: I am a little worried about Bob, he seems to be in a pickle because his wife caught him sending text messages to his secretary that were not work related.

an eyewitness – this is a person who actually sees something that happened. i.e. Yes, I was in New York City for 9/11/2001, but I was not an eyewitness to the attacks. I saw the smoke from the buildings afterwards, but I did not see the attacks. Or: A person was attacked on the subway today and I saw it. So the police want me as an eyewitness in the attacker’s trial. (a trial happens after a person is arrested by the police – it determines whether a person is guilty or innocent of something)

to be a pain in the butt – if a person annoys or irritates you, you can say he is a pain in your butt. ‘Butt’ is the nice or polite term for the part of your body that you sit on. i.e. Joe, in my office, has finished his work and has nothing to do. He is now a pain in my butt because he won’t stop talking to me while I try to do my work. Or:  Those kids sitting next to me at the Shenzhen Concert Hall were such a pain in the butt. They wouldn’t stop chatting with each other. (so you can say someone is a pain in your butt or a pain in the butt)