Back to Back

Back is used to indicate a return to a time or place.For that reason, back is used most often with "to go" and "to come." However, it may be used with other verbs related to movement, travel, jobs and relationships. You may also say "to be back," which is the condition of returning from a place. The examples follow and they're self-explanatory.

To Be
#1) We are going to the United States tomorrow and we will be back in two weeks.
#2) My husband left three hours ago to buy milk and he isn't back yet.
#3) When I'm back from my trip, I will call you.
#4) I heard that Tom and Sally are back together. (return to a relationship)
#5) How does it feel to be back? It's good to be back.

To Go
#1) I loved Holland and I plan to go back next Summer.
#2) She will go back to her hometown to care for her sick mother.
#3) I forgot my textbook, so I have to go back to school.
#4) Marie went back to her old job because they offered her more money. (return to a job)
#5) I will never go back to my husband. (return to a relationship/marriage)
#6) I wish I could go back in time and change the past.

To Come
#1) I'm leaving now, but I will come back in an hour.
#2) My roommate came back very late last night and he wasn't alone.
#3) Come back! I'm so lonely without you. (return to a relationship)
#4) I asked for my job back, but they said that there's no job to come back to. (return to a job)

Other
#1) Welcome back! How was your trip?
#2) Get back in line! (military / school / prison expression)
#3) He lent me his car and he took it back the next day.
#4) Stay back! I will jump off this building. (Don't come closer to me! -- suicide expression)
#5) We had to walk back home because our car broke down.
#6) I take back everything I said. (I said something, but I want to un-say it.)
#7) We drove around the city for two hours before we turned back.
#8) Give me back my guitar!

Widespread (Dis)approval

There have been elections throughout Europe this Spring and there will be a big election in the United States this Fall. If you want to discuss public opinion in English, you need to know the terms for approval and disapproval. Brief explanations follow each example.

Below:

#1) The approval rating for the president has reached 88%, which is a new high. (very good)

#2) The approval rating for congress has reached 9%, which is a new low. (very bad)

#3) The law to legalize pot was met with widespread approval. (well liked)

#4) The law that would allow infants to carry handguns was met with widespread disapproval. (much disliked)

#5) The public is for new laws regulating food safety. (support)

#6) The people are against going to war with Vatican City. (don't support)

#7) The people are rallying for measures to limit government spending. (acting to support)

#8) The public is rallying against the law that prevents gay couples from adopting pets. (acting to stop)

#9) Voter turnout is very high this year. (number of voters)

#10) Voters are turning out in record numbers. (Voters are voting...)

#11) The new government is wildly unpopular and there have been many demonstrations. (much disliked)

#12) The positive/negative response to the Kittens for Criminals program has been unprecedented. (previously unknown; can be good or bad)

#13) The capable government is highly praised by all its citizens for its cooperation and interest in public welfare. (much liked and talked about)

Better...Than

To Be Better...Than is used for an overall comparison of two things.

Example: #1) Coke is better than Pepsi.
#2) San Diego is better than Los Angeles.
#3) My mom is better than your mom.
#4) Motorcycles are better than cars.
#5) Zebras are better than horses.

To be a better...than uses a title/role, narrowing the definition of quality.

Example: #1) He is a better guitarist than me.
#2) Kevin is a better employee than David.
#3) I am a better parent than my father was.
#4) My mother is a better cook than my wife.
#5) You are a better lover than my husband.

To Be Better At...Than is used for comparing the quality of a skill.

Example: #1) He is better at swimming than I am.
#2) She is better at lying than me.
#3) Kevin is better at kissing ass than David.
#4) My girlfriend is better at English than me.
#5) I am better at cooking than she is.

Topics: Abortion

People sometimes feel uncomfortable when discussing abortion. You may talk about the abortion directly, saying "I had an abortion!", but most people will use a softer tone when expressing the pregnancy and the resulting procedure.

An unplanned pregnancy is exactly what it sounds like, a pregnancy you didn't plan for. You may also (unkindly) refer to the resulting child as an accident. Example: #1) This is an unplanned pregnancy and I don't know what to do. #2) The parents resented and mistreated the child because she was an accident.

To be careful means to avoid pregnancy through contraception and post-intimacy sanitation. Example: #1) I don't know how she got pregnant because she and I were so careful. #2) We drank too much and we weren't careful. Now, we are going to be parents.

To keep the baby means deciding not to have an abortion. Example: #1) Our parents forced us to keep the baby, even though we didn't want it. #2) We decided to keep the baby and destroyed our dreams in the process.

To get rid of the baby means to have an abortion. Example: #1) I got rid of the baby without telling my husband. #2) They got rid of the baby and now they'll never know the joys of parenting.

To terminate/end a pregnancy also means getting an abortion. Most people prefer to say this because it isn't technically a "baby" until after birth. Example: #1) I have consulted a doctor before ending my pregnancy. #2) Because of the strict laws in America, I went to Mexico to terminate my pregnancy.

Unattended

If something is left unattended, no one is actively watching it and they probably should be.

Example

#1) She left her child unattended and the child was kidnapped.

#2) He left the stove unattended and it burned down the house.

#3) I left a campfire unattended and it burned down the forest.

#4) She left her running car unattended and it was stolen.

#5) Don't leave your dog unattended in the park.

#6) If you leave your bag unattended, it will be destroyed by security.

The opposite, attended, is not commonly used as an adjective. However, I person may attend to something, and this is similar to taking care of something.

Example

#1) I can't come with you now. There's something I should attend to first.

#2) Forgive me for leaving early. There's a problem I need to attend to.

On Between

Between is used to describe two places, times or things and the space that may separate the two. The definition may change from use to use, but it's guaranteed that two separate bodies exist.

Between You and Me is used for secrets, not to be shared with other people. Example: #1) I think Mary might be dating someone new, but that's just between you and me. #2) Between you and me, I'm going to divorce my husband. #3) Between you and me, my older brother has is overly fond of sheep.

Between Jobs means you are unemployed; you left one job and expect to start another. Example: #1) I am between jobs now. I have been between jobs for almost six months.

Between (Places) Example: #1) There aren't any gas stations between this city and the next one. #2) The grocery store is between my home and office, so I can stop there on the way home. #3) The gunman shot the sheriff right between the eyes.

Between (Times) - Example: #1) I will come home between 7pm and 8pm tonight. #2) Sometime between this morning and last night, somebody stole my car. #3) It will take between 6 and 8 hours to do all the work. #4) After he cut his wrists, it took between 45 minutes and an hour for him to die.

To Choose Between Something and Something Else - Example: #1) I had to choose between a low paying job that I love or a high paying job that I hate. I chose the job that I love. #2) I had to choose between a rich husband that neglects me and a poor man that treats me well. I stayed single. #3) I only had enough money to send one of my children to university, so I had to choose between my son and daughter. #4) You can choose between two flavors, French Vanilla and Toffee.

The Difference Between is used to describe how two things are different. Example: #1) There are a lot of differences between my brother and I. He is athletic and I spend all day on adult websites. #2) The difference between this computer and that one is the speed and the size of the hard drive.

To Part; To Take Part In; To Take Apart

To Part (Ways / Company) is used when two people leave each other. This could be physically or when a relationship ends.

Example: #1) Though we wanted to be together, we parted at the end of the night. #2) My ex and I couldn't reconcile our differences and we had to part ways. #3) My friends and I parted company after the third round of drinks.

To Take Part In is a synonym of "to participate in." It is used when the subject has an active role in an event.

Example: #1) He took part in a meeting this morning, asking many important questions, making notes and adding to the discussion. #2) I took part in the Highland Games this year, wearing a traditional kilt, drinking too much ale and showing a crowd of people my backside.

To Take Apart means to separate into individual pieces. It is used for machines and anything that must be assembled. The opposite is "to put together."

Example: #1) After I put together the shelves, I saw that they didn't fit my interior, so I took them apart and returned the shelves to IKEA. #2) I took apart my computer to install a new hard drive. #3) I took apart the DVD player to fix it, but I couldn't put it together again.

Empty

Empty can be used as a verb, which means to make something empty. A few things that can be emptied in spoken English include ( most to least common): garbage, bank account, room, cupboards, bathtub/bathwater, mind, stomach, bowels. Examples follow.

#1) The garbage can is overflowing, but no one will empty the garbage.
#2) After she killed her husband, she emptied her bank account and left the country.
#3) The band emptied the room by playing "Hotel California."
#4) My relatives stayed for a week. They emptied the cupboards, eating everything in the house.
#5) Don't empty the bathtub yet. I want to take a bath, too.
#6) Before going to sleep, I try not to think. I empty my mind and try to relax. (not think)
#7) Someone drank too much at the party and emptied their stomach on the bathroom rug. (vomit)
#8) During our fishing trip, my father emptied his bowels over the side of the boat. (shit)


A person may also feel empty and this could indicate an absence of: emotion, purpose, energy or a combination of the three. Example: #1) I had a challenging week at work and now I feel empty. #2) I felt empty after my wife and kids left me.

Highs and Lows

High and low can be used for a variety of situations, including: elevation, temperature, salary, evaluation,  emotion / mental state, etc. The following examples include some of the most common uses.

Elevation
Lake Titicaca is the highest lake in the world.
The suicide jumped from a very high building.
The dead sea is the lowest point on Earth.
My apartment is too low, so the traffic is very loud.

Temperature
The lake freezes over in low temperatures and people can ice skate on it.
Despite my neighbors' complaints, I open the windows at home and take off all of my clothes in high temperatures.

Salary
I have a much lower salary than my friends and it has given me a low self-esteem.
The company offered me a better position with a higher salary, but the offer was withdrawn because I have high blood pressure.

Evaluation
I got a high grade in anatomy because I'm interested in the human body.
I got a low grade in theology, so I stopped believing in God.


Emotional / Mental State
I feel very high spirited because of the beautiful weather. (to be positive)
I feel very high because I took a massive amount of LSD. (to test positive for...)
This is a low point in my life and I want to die.
I have never felt so low and I have no reason to continue living.

Deal!

As a noun, a deal can be described as any exchange of money for products or services. Additionally, there are good/great deals and bad/shitty deals, which depends on who benefits/suffers the most from the deal.

Example: #1) I bought this brand new television for $25. It was a great deal. #2) That man paid me $25 for the television. The television was stolen, but it's still a shitty deal. #3) The shirt cost me $30. I think it was a good deal. #4) You paid $30 for that ugly shirt!? What a bad deal!

To give/make a deal is the verb for the transaction. Example: #1) I thought the price was too high, so I asked the salesman to make me a deal. #2) I'm a regular customer, so they gave me a good deal.

(No) deal! can also be used when you reach an agreement. Example: #1) You want me to pay $150 for a 30 minute session. Deal! #2) You want to spend $55 on sneakers for our 5-year old son. No deal! Find something cheaper.

To deal with something is used for resolution of a situation. Example: #1) I have to deal with many customer complaints at work. #2) My child has trouble focusing and I always have to deal with his hyperactivity.

“Deal with it!” is an expression used when there's a problem or situation (sometimes emotional) that someone needs to fix. The expression can be used strongly with other people. Example: #1) You created this problem. Now, deal with it! #2) My pet fish just died. I'm incredibly sad, but I will just deal with it. #3) I know your girlfriend left you, but you can't change it now. Just deal with it!

To deal also a means to give something away to other people or entities. It's most commonly used for playing cards and drugs. Example: #1) He deals the cards quickly. He is a professional blackjack dealer. #2) He deals drugs to school children. He is a drug dealer with an entrepreneurial spirit.