Look Up, Look Down

As a phrasal verb, to look up means the future seems positive. The full expression, "Things are looking up.", means the future seems generally positive for the person. This expression is the most common, by far.

Look up has the added meaning of researching a piece of information, usually in a directory. Example: #1) I looked up his phone number in the phone book. #2) I looked up the word in the dictionary. #3) I've never heard of Harry Partch, but I will look him up on Wikipedia tonight.

Look down may have the opposite meaning of the phrasal verb look up (i.e. Things are looking down.) However, there is a more common expression, "Things aren't looking good", which means the future of a situation seems negative.

Look down has the added meaning of feeling/expressing contempt for someone, or not having respect for someone. Example: #1) He looks down on poor people because he believes they're lazy. #2) My brother looks down on me because of my drug addiction. #3) My wife looks down on me because I cannot last for more than three minutes in bed.

Carried Away

One common English expression that is rarely used by English learners is carried away.

If someone is carried away with something, it means they have been performing some action to an unhealthy extreme, or they are making a quick judgment. The expression is most often used in the negative to warn somebody who is at the risk of being carried away.

Example:
#1) A little exercise is good for you, but don't get carried away.
#2) I know your wallet is missing and you think Kevin took it, but don't get carried away with your accusations. Maybe you left it somewhere.
#3) You always get carried away with your work. You should really learn to ask other people for help.
#4) I know your angry with him for lying to you, but don't get carried away. He's still your brother.

I'm Not The Person

When describing your personality, you might want to draw a relationship between yourself and a routine behavior. It's often necessary because English lacks the adjective or title to give you a good description, or because you want to give a more detailed description. To do this, you use the phrase "I'm (not) the type/kind of person who..."

Example:
#1) I'm the type of person who tries to finish my work in a hurry.
#2) He's the type of person who sleeps with a woman and doesn't call her again.
#3) I'm not the kind of person who lets other people do my work for me.
#4) She's not the kind of person who gives her phone number to just anyone.
#5) I'm the type of person who eats everything I see on my plate.
#6) We're the type of couple who does everything together.


A common mistake amongst English learners is using: I'm the person who... This indicates that there is only one person who behaves this way. Example: I'm not the person who kisses a boy and tells everyone. Many people do this, so using "the person" is incorrect. The correct way to use the expression is below:

Example:
#1) I'm not the person who ate your cookie.
#2) He's the person who clogged the toilet.
#3) She's the woman I saw talking to your ex-boyfriend.
#4) I'm the person who left the note in your mailbox.

Expressions for "Knowing"

If you knew what I did, you would... means that one person has more information than the other. The person with more information believes the other is making a mistake by acting on or making a judgment based on that lack of information, and is advising the person not to go through with that action or to alter their judgment.

Example:
#1) If you knew what I did, you wouldn't say that about her.
#2) If you knew what I did, you would start looking for a new job.
#3) If you knew what I did, you would hire a divorce lawyer.


You don't want to know. is usually a response to a question that is better unanswered. It is used to protect the questioner from negative information.

Example:
#1) What were you two arguing about? You don't want to know.
#2) Where have you been for the past two weeks? You don't want to know.
#3) Is David having some kind of problem? You don't want to know.



If only I knew... means you are lacking vital information that will probably significantly effect the future. It is often tied to emotion, and is often the response to a question.

Example:
#1) What are you going to do after the company shuts down? If only I knew.
#2) How does she really feel about you? If only I knew.


I wish I knew then what I know now. means that you made a mistake in the past based on a lack of information. If you had the information in the past, you believe you would have acted differently.

Example: I didn't study in school and I couldn't get a good job later. I wish I knew then what I know now.

Prepositions + Time

Over / In time - refers to an event that took, or will take, a long period of time to occur
Example:
#1) The boy didn't like school, but, in time, he learned to enjoy it more and make friends.
#2) You might not care about me now, but, in time, you will grow to love me.
#3) Over time, the problem will get worse until it finally kills us.
#4) Over time, the man grew bitter and his friends abandoned him.


On time - refers to punctuality
Example: He is usually on time, so why was he late today?


Down time - refers to a period of rest
Example: I've been working hard all week, and I really need some down time.

Detailed Comparisons

When making comparisons, you use more, less or the suffix -er.
To express the highest degree of that adjective, you also the the superlatives most, least or the suffix -est.

Cake is sweeter than bread.
Tokyo is more expensive than New York City.
Lobsters are less intelligent than dolphins.

Blue whales are the largest marine animal.
Rolex watches are the most expensive.
North Dakota is the least populated state in the USA.



There are other words you may use that give a degree of separation between two things.

My father is a little older than my mother.
The Nile river is a little bit longer than the Amazon.
This job is marginally better than my last one.
After four years on college, I'm marginally smarter than I was before.

Living alone is a lot better than living with someone you despise.
Getting a divorce cost me a lot more than the wedding.
My boyfriend is much better looking than my ex-husband.
Life has been much easier since I left him.

Request: Rude to Polite

There are many ways to make the same request. Your requests can range from extremely rude to extremely polite. In most cases, you just want to be polite. The examples are below. The best requests will be listed in green.

Close the motherfuking door! (Extremely Rude)
Close the door! (Rude)
Please close the door. (Low Polite)
Could you close the door? (Polite)
Could you close the door please? (Polite)
Would you mind closing the door? (Polite)
Would you mind closing the door please? (Very Polite)
If it's not too much trouble, would you close the door please? (Extremely Polite)
If you have a moment and it isn't too much trouble, would you mind doing me a favor and closing the door please? (Extremely Polite)
If you can spare a moment of your time and it isn't too much bother, could you do me an enormous favor and please close the door. I would be forever grateful. (Extremely Polite)

About Expressions

Like most prepositions, About has several meanings and can be used in many expressions. You are probably aware of the most common uses already.

Subject: What is the movie about? What are you talking about?
Approximation: We will leave at about 7pm. It will cost about $50.

However, there are a few additional uses for about. You may heard them before, but practice using the expressions too.

About to is used for actions that will happen in the immediate future. Example: #1) I was about to call my brother. #2) You can't fire him. He's about to have a new baby.

About ready to is a synonym of about to. It is used for actions that someone is preparing to do. Example: #1) Are you about ready to leave? #2) He was about ready to quit before the boss calmed him down. #3) He was so angry that he looked about ready to kill that dog.

While "What is it about?" can be used to ask about the subject of something, you can use the expression "What is it about ________ that...?" to get more detailed information about something.

Several examples follow with two sentence formats:
#1a) What is it about her that you like?
#1b) What do you like about her?
#2a) What is it about your ex-boyfriend that you hate so much?
#2b) What do you hate so much about your ex-boyfriend?
#3a) What is it about that movie that makes it so good?
#3b) What's so good about that movie?
#4a) What is it about Venice that makes the city so special?
#4b) What's so special about Venice?
#5a) What is it about the Spring that makes it so magical?
#5b) What is so magical about the Spring?

Descriptions of Limb Positions

It takes many words to describe position or posture of limbs, but the job can be done much more easily with pictures. Below is a list of physical positions and postures. If any of the terms are unfamiliar to you, you may google them and find a picture that matches the action.

cross/fold arms - She folded her arms and looked at him uncertainly.

cross legs - She sat on the sofa and crossed her legs, pulling the hem of her skirt over her knee.

cross-legged - He sat cross-legged on the floor, even though there was a sofa.

side-by-side - She invited him to the sofa and they sat side-by-side.

chin on hand - He turned to look at her, putting his chin on his hand.

arm around shoulder - He put his arm around her shoulder.

to rest ____ on _____ - He rested his hand on her knee. She rested her head on his shoulder.

wrap arms around - He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer.

put hand on hips - She pushed him away stood up quickly, putting her hand on her hip.

hold hands up/out - He stood up quickly, and held up his hands in dismay.

cover face with hands - She turned away and covered her face with her hands as she wept.

hand to chest - He held his hand to his chest as he pleaded with her, but she left the apartment with tears in her eyes.

World Events: Present Progressive

The present progressive tense is used for events that have started, are happening now and you expect to stop in the future. You can use this to talk about events within somebody's life, but the tense is equally valid for global events. Here are some examples:

#1) North Koreans are mourning the death of their great leader.
#2) The United States is going through it's election process.
#3) The European economy isn't expanding. It is contracting.
#4) People aren't investing in Europe anymore.
#5) Demonstrations are happening in Syria.
#6) Tensions are rising in parts of the Middle East.
#7) Flood waters are rising in Thailand.
#8) Workers are losing their jobs in England.