Welcome to English as a Second Language podcast number 730, Waiting for Exam Results.
This is English as a Second Language podcast, episode 730.
I'm your host, Dr Jeff McQuillan, coming to you from the Center for Educational Development in beautiful Los Angeles, California.
Download this episode's learning guide, an 8-10 page guide.
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This episode is a dialogue between Joel and Suzanne.
They're talking about a school test, an exam that they took, and waiting for the results of that exam to see if they passed it or not.
Let's get started.
Did it come?
No, it's not in today's mail.
Why do I bother anyway?
I know it's a foregone conclusion.
I've failed.
That's bull.
I know you passed.
You're just on tender hooks waiting around for the results to arrive and you're psyching yourself out.
No, I'm not.
Don't you remember that when you came home after taking the exam, you thought you had aced it?
I did, but that was before I started thinking about all of the questions I got wrong.
Then, I thought it was a toss-up whether I passed or not.
Now that I've had even more time to think about it, I'm sure I biffed it.
See what I mean?
You've been psyching yourself out for weeks.
You studied really hard, and I have no doubt that you passed with flying colors.
All right, you're not going to hear today, so let's get your mind off of the exam, okay?
All right, how you can help me study for the exam.
I'm taking it at the next administration.
I have no intention of bombing it or even squeaking by by the skin of my teeth, like some people.
Very funny.
Okay, so maybe I'm psyching myself out a little bit.
Okay, I'm game.
Where do we begin?
With all of the ones you thought you got wrong.
What?
There's no sense wasting all that worrying.
And if you did fail it, you'll need to get ready to take it again.
Gee, thanks.
Joel begins by saying, did it come?
Meaning, did something arrive?
We're not sure what it is.
But we find out a little bit later.
Suzanne says, no, it's not in today's mail, the mail that arrived today.
Why do I bother anyway?
Meaning why do I worry about it?
It's a foregone conclusion.
I've failed. a foregone conclusion is a result that is certain to happen or an expected result.
The team from Albert Lee High School has won the championship every year for 10 years.
So this year's result is a foregone conclusion, meaning that It's obvious.
Albert Lee High School will win again.
Well, the foregone conclusion that Suzanne believes is true is that she has failed.
To fail means to be unsuccessful in an examination, a test, or an interview.
When you don't pass, to fail is the opposite of passing.
Joel says that's bull.
B-U-L-L.
Bull is a polite, shorter way of saying a vulgar expression.
The full expression is bull, S-H-I-T.
But that's not a very nice thing to say.
So sometimes in more polite conversation, we just say bull.
If somebody says something to you and you think it's wrong or they're lying or it's nonsense, you'll say oh, that's bull.
It's kind of strong, however.
You would never say that in a formal conversation.
Never say it to your boss if you still want your job.
Joel says, I know you passed.
You were successful.
You're just on tenderhooks waiting around for the results to arrive and you're psyching yourself out.
To be on tenderhooks T-E-N-T-E-R-H-O-O-K-S.
One word means to be in suspense about what will happen in the future, to feel nervous or concerned about something that will happen.
Joel says that Suzanne is on tenderhooks because she is waiting around.
She is waiting for the results of her exam to arrive.
And she's psyching herself out.
To psych P-S-Y-C-H yourself.
Out is a two-word phrasal verb meaning to prepare yourself mentally for something that is going to happen, usually something that is difficult or unpleasant.
To psych yourself out usually means that you are thinking about it and because of the way you are thinking about it, you will fail.
You will not do well.
You can psych someone else out.
You can say things to them that will make them think about a situation or a problem or a game that will cause them to lose because of what you said.
This is different than to be psyched.
To be psyched means to be prepared to be thinking about something, but looking forward to it, happy about it.
There is a third expression, to be psyched up, which is similar to the expression to be psyched.
To be psyched up means to be ready for something.
But to be psyched out usually means that you are thinking negatively and because of that will not succeed.
Suzanne says, no, I'm not.
I'm not psyching myself out.
Joel says, don't you remember that when you came home after the exam, you thought you had aced it?
To ace A-C-E.
Something usually means to pass an exam or a test by getting an excellent score, perhaps even a perfect score.
I very rarely aced exams when I was in school.
Suzanne says I did.
I did think that I aced the exam, but that was before I started thinking about all of the questions I got wrong.
Then I thought it was a toss-up whether I passed or not.
A toss-up. is a situation in which all of the possibilities are equally likely to happen.
A toss-up is when you can't decide, when there are different possibilities and they all look good.
Toss has a couple of different meanings in English.
Take a look at the learning guide for some additional explanations.
Suzanne says that She then thought it was a toss-up whether she passed or not.
She couldn't decide.
Now that I've had even more time to think about it, I'm sure I biffed it.
To biff, B-I-F-F, means to do very poorly, to do a poor job at something.
I biffed the exam means I failed it.
I didn't do very well.
To biff can also mean to fall or to fail at some sort of sporting event or sporting activity.
That's another use of that word.
Both ideas are similar.
They relate to failure when you biff.
He approached a beautiful woman at the bar, but he biffed when he started talking to her.
That could mean that he fell down, or it could mean that he failed.
And if he fell down, well, he definitely failed.
Not a good way to impress a beautiful woman, to fall down in front of her.
Well, back to our story.
Suzanne says that she's sure she biffed her exam.
Joel says, see what I mean?
You've been psyching yourself out for weeks.
You studied really hard and I have no doubt meaning.
I'm absolutely sure that you passed with flying colors.
To pass with flying colors means to receive a high score on the test to do very well.
All right, Joel says, you're not going to hear today, so let's get your mind off of the exam, okay?
To get your mind off of something means to stop thinking about something that you are worried about or that you are, we would say, obsessing over thinking about constantly, over and over and over again.
Like when you biffed talking to the beautiful girl at the bar.
So...
Suzanne says, all right, how?
How are we going to get my mind off of the exam?
Joel says, you can help me study for the exam.
I'm taking it at the next administration.
An administration of an exam is an opportunity to take the examination, to take the test.
If you want to go to college in the United States you often have to take the Scholastic Aptitude.
I guess they call it Scholastic Achievement Test, the SAT.
Or if you study at a college and you're from another country, you may have to take the TOEFL exam Test of English as a Foreign Language.
There are many different administrations of these exams.
They give them in different places at different times.
Joel says To bomb B-O-M-B something means to get a very low score on something, usually an exam or a test.
To clearly fail.
It could be, however, you clearly fail something else, like that girl at the bar.
I bombed when I tried talking to her.
Your friend says, how did it go?
Oh, I bombed.
I did terribly.
Bomb has a number of meanings in English, however.
Some of them, not all of them, some of them are in the learning guide.
Joel says that he is not going to squeak by.
To squeak by means to pass an exam or pass some sort of challenge, but just barely by a very small amount.
To do something by the skin of your teeth means something similar.
To do it, but just barely.
To be successful by a very small amount.
Joel combines these two similar ideas by saying to squeak by, by the skin of his teeth.
So, Suzanne says, very funny, because Joel is saying that that's what Suzanne did.
She says, okay, so maybe I'm psyching myself out a little bit.
Okay, I'm game.
Where do we begin?
To begin means to be willing to try something or do something, especially something that may be a little risky or that you have never done before.
I'm game means I'm willing to do it.
Suzanne says, where do we begin?
Joel says with all of the ones you thought you got wrong, meaning he wants to go over all of the questions that Suzanne thinks she got wrong on the exam.
Of course, this is not a very good way to get Suzanne's mind off of the exam, which is what Joel is supposed to be doing.
Suzanne can't believe what Joel is saying.
She says, what?
Joel says, there's no sense wasting all that worrying.
The expression, there's no sense, means there is no reason to or it is useless to.
There's no sense talking to her.
She is already married.
Well, Joel says there's no sense wasting all that worrying meaning, since Suzanne has been worrying about the exam, she should try to do something constructive with it, something useful with it.
Joel says and if you did fail it, if you did fail the exam, you'll need to get ready to take it again.
Suzanne then says, gee, thanks, but she says it in a way that means the opposite.
Gee, thanks is what we say when someone tells us something that they think may be useful but we know is not.
For example, well, you don't have a date tonight, but at least you can watch baseball on television.
You might say, gee, thanks, meaning it's not really the same.
It's not as good as having a date tonight.
Although for me, I would probably prefer to watch baseball.
Now let's listen to the dialogue, this time at a normal speed.
Did it come?
No, it's not in today's mail.
Why do I bother anyway?
I know it's a foregone conclusion.
I've failed.
That's bull.
I know you passed.
You're just on tenderhooks waiting around for the results to arrive and you're psyching yourself out.
No, I'm not.
Don't you remember that when you came home after taking the exam, you thought you had aced it?
I did, but that was before I started thinking about all of the questions I got wrong.
Then, I thought it was a toss-up whether I passed or not.
Now that I've had even more time to think about it, I'm sure I'd biffed it.
See what I mean?
You've been psyching yourself out for weeks.
You studied really hard, and I have no doubt that you passed with flying colors.
All right, you're not going to hear today, so let's get your mind off of the exam, okay?
All right.
How?
You can help me study for the exam.
I'm taking it at the next administration.
I have no intention of bombing it or even squeaking by by the skin of my teeth, like some people.
Very funny.
Okay, so maybe I'm psyching myself out a little bit.
Okay, I'm game.
Where do we begin?
With all the ones you thought you got wrong.
What?!
!
There's no sense wasting all that worrying.
And if you did fail it, you'll need to get ready to take it again.
Gee, thanks.
Our scriptwriter never biffs when she does her work.
That's because it's the wonderful Dr. Lucy Say.
Thank you, Lucy.
From Los Angeles, California, I'm Jeff McQuillan.
Thank you for listening.
Come back and listen to us again here on ESL Podcast.
English as a Second Language Podcast is written and produced by Dr Lucy Say, hosted by Dr Jeff McQuillan.
Copyright 2011 by the Center for Educational Development.
