Convey English Language Club

Phrasal Verb of the Day: Pull out.
Meaning: to move your car from a parking spot or a side street into a traffic lane, or to move out from one traffic lane to join another.

For example:

- I checked to see that no other cars were coming, and then I pulled out and drove off.

- Some idiot pulled out in front of me just as I was about to overtake him. He nearly caused an accident.

Quick Quiz

If you're pulling out in front of other cars, you should always:

a) have your handbrake on.
b) have your indicator flashing.
c) have your horn blowing.

GREAT WEEK :)

Phrasal Verb of the Day: Move in on.
Meaning: to try to take control of something that someone else has control of.

For example:

- The gang war started when one of the gangs tried to move in on the other one's territory.

- If you don't protect your market share in business, someone else will move in on it and take it from you.

Quick Quiz

A large American corporation is planning to move in on their main competitor's:

a) new products.
b) main market.
c) biggest factory.

A, B, C, or D ;)

Idiom of the Day: Make a song and dance about something.
Meaning: If you make a song and dance about something, you make a big deal out of, or a fuss over, something that isn't very important.

For example:

- Why are people making such a song and dance about the fact that the health minister used to smoke ci******es? You'd think he'd worshipped the devil from the way they're carrying on about it!

- Carol thinks people should be angry about the injustices in the world, but instead they make a song and dance about things like the high price of bananas.

Quick Quiz

The staff in our company are making a song and dance about:

a) how bored their receptionist seems.
b) how short the new security guard is.
c) how bad the coffee in the canteen is.

Saying of the Day: Neither a borrower nor a lender be.
Possible interpretation: Do not borrow things. Do not lend things.

Note: borrow (verb) = take and use money or some other thing that one does not own with the intention of returning it later. Borrower (noun) = a person who borrows. Lend (verb) = allow another person to use money or some other thing that one owns with their agreement to return it later. Lender (noun) = a person who lends.

Quick Quiz

The saying "Neither a borrower nor a lender be" is self-evidently not a philosophy of:

a) the library system.
b) the justice system.
c) the banking system.

'Devise' or 'device'? What are the differences between these two words?

A 'device' [/dɪˈvaɪs/] is a piece of electronic equipment like a mobile phone.

- "Don't drop your device!"

- "We are so reliant on our devices these days, it's not always a good thing."

To 'devise' [/dɪˈvaɪz/] can mean to plan or invent something by thinking through it very carefully.

- "The school devised a system to help students study the course online."

- "We devised a plan to grow the company's profits."

Apart from different pronunciations, here's another way to remember whether you should use 'device' or 'devise':

'Device' is a noun and it refers to an object while 'devise' is used as a verb.

Slang of the Day: Vamoose.
Meaning: to depart quickly.

For example:

- The kids heard someone coming, and one of them said, "S**t! We'd better vamoose before we're caught!"

- The neighbours called the police because the party was so noisy, and when the guests saw the cops arrive, most of them vamoosed.

Origin: from the Spanish word vamos, meaning "let's go".

Quick Quiz

- If someone says "Vamoose, kiddos!" to a gang of kids, they want the kids to:

a) play a game called "vamoose".
b) go away.
c) come closer.

Phrasal Verb of the Day: Let in.
Meaning: If you let someone in, you allow them to enter a room or a building.

For example:

- Just a moment while I let the cat in. I can hear her scratching at the front door.

- He left the key under a pot in front of the house so we could let ourselves in.

Quick Quiz

The guards wouldn't let us in the courtroom, so we had to:

a) wait inside.
b) stay outside.
c) go inside.

How about you, have you flown out the nest??

Idiom of the Day: Make the most of.
Meaning: If you make the most of something, you get as much as possible from it.

For example:

- The warm weather won't last long, so we should make the most of it while we can.

- After I retire from work I'll make the most of all the free time and do all the things I've never had time for.

Quick Quiz:

She made the most of her time in Egypt by:

a) sleeping a lot.
b) exploring the Pyramids.
c) playing computer games.

Great week everyone ;)