Forgetting

I've already discussed Memory in one of my posts. Now, I would like to mention some very common expressions related to forgetting.


#1) "It escapes me." -- Sometimes, you know a piece of information (usually a name/title), but you can't immediately think of it. You probably just need a little time to think of it, but at that moment you can say, "It escapes me."

Example: "I've met her before, but her name escapes me."
"I've saw a movies a few weeks ago, but the movie title escapes me at the moment."


#2) "It slipped my mind." -- Sometimes, you may forget to do something. When you explain the situation later, you can say it slipped my mind.

Example: "I knew there was a meeting this morning, but it completely slipped my mind."
"I know you asked me to buy groceries on the way home, but it slipped my mind."


#3) "to take one's mind off (of) something" -- Other times, there is something you want to forget about. Maybe you want to forget temporarily, so you can have a few moments of peace. In these moments, you can say, "...to take my mind off (of)..."

Example: "I'm going on a day trip this weekend to take my mind off of work."
"I'm going to do some heavy drinking to take my mind off my troubles."
"You need to start dating again to take your mind off of your divorce."


#4) "to draw a blank" -- When you're trying to remember some information, you know that you knew it before, but you can't remember, you are drawing a blank.

Example:
"This is frustrating. She told me when her birthday was, but I'm drawing a blank."
"I wish I could remember his name, but I'm drawing a blank."
"Do you know which film stars Robert DeNiro as a taxi driver? I'm drawing a blank."


#5) "to be on the tip of one's tongue" -- Finally, when you almost remember a piece of information (again, usually a name), you can say it's on the tip of my tongue. By the way, this is a very frustrating feeling.

Example: "What is her name? It's on the tip of my tongue."
"Who was that actor in the movie Taxi Driver? His name is on the tip of my tongue."
"What's the capital of Poland? Starts with a 'W'. It's on the tip of my tongue."