This is an All Ears English podcast, episode 2658, English grammar that will make your day.
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Again, that's allearsenglish.com slash f l u e n c y s c o r e. Hello, Aubrey.
How's it going?
I'm great, Lindsay.
How are you?
Good.
What are we talking about today?
Well, I have a question to start us out here.
Okay.
What is something that happened recently that made your day?
Well, every time, and last week I picked up my dog from daycare and he was so excited to see me.
It's like he jumped up over the thing to try to get out and was barking like crazy.
And you could just tell like his mom's picking him up.
So that was the best.
I love that.
Yes.
I used this phrase recently in our community because something one of the students posted really made my day.
It was like a really positive comment about the podcast something.
And I was like, that just made my day.
And then a student asked...
On that post, a really good question.
They said, can we use the expression that made my day in other tenses?
For example, you're making my day or he makes my day.
I'm like, what a great question.
This was Noriko.
Shout out to Noriko in our community.
Yes.
Hello, Noriko.
Thanks for being an amazing member of our community.
I mean, this is so important because we walk through the world and we go about our daily lives, but we don't realize we actually have impact on people, right?
Totally.
Yes.
And it's so nice when someone gives you that shout out, right?
They like acknowledge the impact, share what they're feeling, because a lot of us feel that and we don't think to let people know.
I know.
We really should more often, right?
Because then you'll make their day letting them know that they made your day.
Absolutely, right?
Pay it forward.
So let's talk about the phrase, made my day.
Where do we start today?
We're going to go into this one and then we'll share a few similar phrases we use because these are so great, like you said, for connection.
We're also going to dive into the grammar of this so that you know how this works because we do use it in other verb tenses.
So first of all, made my day.
Let's share a couple of examples.
We might say, I received a message from an old friend that I hadn't spoken to in years and it really made my day.
Or it always makes my day when a coworker brings me a coffee, of course.
Yeah.
And there you used it in present simple, right?
So this is interesting.
We do say it often in past tense, that made my day, but we will, when we're talking about a general situation that would always make our day, we use it in present simple.
This always makes my day.
Yeah, but we usually don't say, I mean, do we say that continuous tense, right?
You're making my day.
Yeah, it's very rare, right?
Like someone might be like, oh, you're making my day, you know, but it's super rare.
Instead, we would usually say it in past tense because it already improved our day.
Like even if we're talking to them, they said something that's already in the past.
So we already would probably be like, that made my day.
Exactly.
Exactly.
We've already had the experience.
What about in present simple, Aubrey, here?
Tell us some examples.
So yeah, we do use it to describe something that always makes our day.
So for example, he makes my day when he shows up on time, something like that, right?
And then we're talking about sort of a general situation that anytime it would happen, it would make my day.
And how would you complete this sentence?
It always makes my day when someone blank for you, Aubrey.
Personally, what would someone cleans up after themselves?
That's a classic mom answer.
Yes.
Right.
When someone thinks to, uh, because it's interesting as a mom, often people will just sort of expect you to do things like there's some kind of cleaning fairy that does everything.
So when kids start getting older and they start cleaning up after themselves, oh,
That always makes my day.
That makes your day.
I love that.
We could also use this as a conditional, like asking someone to do something.
Maybe it would make my day if or just asking for a condition to be true.
It would make my day if these clouds would clear and the weather were amazing, right?
Yes, perfect example, right?
We do use this as a conditional.
It would make my day if my kids would not fight today.
Yes, perfect.
And the future.
It will make my day when...
Yeah.
And this is more rare, but every now and then you will hear this.
It's like one day, right?
It will make my day when you finally arrive on time.
I think that's what we use that the most when we're saying like something that hasn't happened yet.
But when that happens, that is going to make my day.
It's a unique way of teasing someone a bit or like trying to offer some constructive feedback, right?
You're never on time, but it will make my day when you eventually...
This is one of those that you can use.
It is most commonly used in the past tense.
That made my day is a chunk we say all the time, but we will sometimes change the verb tense and use it in these different ways.
Yeah.
And sometimes we even change the verb and we say something like brighten my day.
This one I think is a little more straightforward, right?
Maybe a little less common.
So brighten my day is our second one today.
Yeah.
We have a few phrases because you want more than one way to say this.
You want to be able to tell people when they're
You know, brightening your day, making your day.
Of course.
You could say, when I saw your kind comment on my post this morning, it really brightened my day.
So that's nice.
Yes.
Or the barista remembered my name and that small gesture brightened my day.
And in the same way, these can be used in other tenses, right?
It always brightens my day when someone fill in the blank.
Love it.
Or you could say to the person that really put a smile on my face.
Yes, I love this.
Your message about the good news really put a smile on my face.
It has the same meaning.
Just made me happy, made my day.
You're showing people how they affect you, which is really important for people to know, right?
Absolutely.
Watching the kids play in the park put a smile on my face after a stressful afternoon.
Yeah.
Yes.
Right.
I love this one.
It's so positive.
Right.
It's very literal.
Like it made me happy.
It made me smile.
Yes.
And then that was the highlight of my day.
Another way to say this thing really was great for me.
Catching up with you over lunch was definitely the highlight of my day.
Yes.
Or getting that handwritten note from my friend was the highlight of my day.
And it's interesting how we might use this to exaggerate just to like make a friend feel cared about or let someone know that we found something very thoughtful.
It doesn't have to literally be the highlight of your day, right?
It's just a way of saying that made me really happy.
Yeah.
And also just to follow up here, can something also be the highlight of my week or my year?
Absolutely.
Sure.
Good point, right?
Yes.
Absolutely.
If something really big happens, could absolutely be the highlight of your year.
Maybe if you have a child, if you get a major promotion, something big like that, you could say that.
Yep.
All right, Aubrey, let's break into a role play and again, an important conversation to see how people affect you.
Let them know, right?
So we're coworkers and we run into each other in the break room here.
Yes, I'll start us out.
Hey, thanks for sending me that article about the new cafe downtown.
It looks awesome.
Oh, no problem.
I figured you'd be interested since you're always looking for new coffee spots.
Yes.
I checked out their menu during lunch.
Honestly, that really brightened my day.
I need something to look forward to.
I get that.
It's been a long week.
Did you see they roast their own beans?
Yes.
I can't wait to try it.
And all those cute cookies put a smile on my face.
My daughter would love them.
Right?
They'd be fun for a kid's party.
I'm thinking of going this weekend.
It always makes my day to sit and enjoy a good coffee.
Absolutely.
You know a day has been tough when enjoying a coffee is the highlight of your day.
That's so true.
Yeah, that's true.
Sometimes when we have a hard day, it forces us into a sense of mindfulness where we're like, I'm just going to smell this coffee and that is going to be a pleasure, right?
Right.
I'm going to take pleasure in this.
I'm going to allow this to make me happy.
Yes.
It's amazing.
Even though it's something very minor.
Mm hmm.
That's kind of good, though, that we can be forced into a sense of the breeze, the smell of the clear breeze in the morning, the fresh wind can really be great.
Yeah.
Yeah, for sure.
Okay.
Where do we start here, Aubrey?
Okay.
Okay.
So I first said, honestly, that really brightened my day.
I needed something to look forward to.
So it's something minor.
Like you sent me this info about a new coffee spot and clearly I'm having a rough week or a rough day.
I need something to look forward to.
And so I'm letting you know that was thoughtful.
Thanks for sending that to me.
That brightened my day.
Yeah, really nice conversation between coworkers here.
And then you said, and all those cute cookies put a smile on my face, right?
Yes.
And this one, it was interesting when I was writing this role play.
Some of these are a little bit nuanced, right?
I was realizing that put a smile on my face, we wouldn't say about just anything.
Right.
It felt at least maybe this is more about our own personal way of speaking and the words you would choose to use.
For me, I would say this, like I'm imagining these really cute handmade cookies.
And I'd be like, because it's like.
Cute
I'd be like oh that puts a smile on my face
But I probably wouldn't say to a co-worker thanks for telling me about that
That cafe that put a smile on my face
That sounds kind of cheesy to me but I would say that brightened my day that made my day
I'm having kind of a tough day
Yeah, I agree with you.
Put a smile on your face is a little bit special for little cute things, right?
Smiles, cookies, puppies maybe.
Yeah, maybe like a handwritten note a kid gives you, kids playing puppies, things like that that are like literally put a smile on your face.
Right, right.
That's when you'd use that.
Yeah.
So be a little selective with that.
It does depend on your personality.
Certain personalities would expand that out to different things if maybe you're kind of like trying to be sweet or something.
But yeah.
It's not grammatically wrong to use those.
It's more about the person's personality.
Some people might say that
For anything that made them happy.
And they were like, some people are cheesier and that's okay.
People are cheesier.
Yeah, for sure.
And then I said, it always makes my day to sit and enjoy a good coffee.
Yes, I love that one.
Makes my day, made my day.
And then I said, you know, you could tell a day's been tough when enjoying a coffee is the highlight of your day.
It sounds like I've had a rough week here.
Yeah, it does.
I hope it's almost Friday for your sake.
Exactly, right?
Yeah.
I love that there's a lot of variety here because this conversation is a good example of you might want to say a few different ways that something made your day or was the highlight of your day and you don't want to repeat that same vocabulary over and over.
A hundred percent.
So guys, this is really important.
We're giving you the tools to show how what someone did for you really affected you, which again, I can't overemphasize how important that is for connection.
Yes.
And we also want to share, this is actually a two-part series because we use a different set of phrases to imply that we were feeling down and something cheered us up, like it cheered me up.
So we are going to share those on the Business English podcast because often the way we use those is in more of a work context.
Context when we more easily feel down, right?
So follow both Hear Allers English and follow the Business English Podcast to get part two of this series.
Yeah.
Guys, just go ahead and open your search bar, type in Business English Podcast, and the yellow will come up.
You'll see us.
Hit that follow button.
All right.
Good.
Awesome.
And we'll see you over there.
And thanks
For joining me.
I think for a takeaway here, this is such a great moment of connection.
Like we were saying at the top of the episode, Noriko and a lot of our community students, I see when they comment on each other's posts and they're like positive about the progress they're seeing each other make.
And then the other personal posts would be like, thank you.
That made my day or that brightened my
Day.
And you can see and feel the good feelings there to have that support.
And they don't have to say that, right?
But it's such a connection moment to go that extra step and say something.
And it makes our day to see that too, right?
Absolutely.
Running the community for sure.
So, so good.
All right.
I'll be a great one today.
This recording just made my day.
Same.
I feel so good right now.
I'm going to have a good rest of the day.
All right.
We'll talk to you soon.
Have a good one.
Awesome.
See you next time.
Bye.
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