Stop beating around the bush and just tell me what happened.
Okay?
You're not telling me.
Okay?
So stop beating around the bush.
I can't stand it.
To beat around the bush is to avoid addressing the main issue directly.
It's often used when someone is hesitant to talk about something uncomfortable.
So they're talking about all these other things, but not about the one thing that we're here to discuss or they want to talk about.
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Hey everyone, it's Hadar.
Today we are going to talk about five idioms that you cannot avoid in American English.
Idioms are short expressions that usually their meaning is very different than the literal meaning of the phrase or the expression.
Today we are going to talk about the pronunciation of the idiom.
We're going to talk about the meaning and I'm going to give you some example sentences and then you will have an exercise to come up with your own sentences with that specific idiom.
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The first idiom that I'm going to teach you is barking up the wrong tree.
Nice connected speech practice here and also a really cool idiom.
The definition of this meaning is to focus on the wrong thing or make a wrong assumption about something.
Now, it's often used when someone is blaming the wrong person for taking the wrong approach, okay?
So if I'm blaming you for not doing your chores but you've done your chores all day long and I keep nagging you about it then you need to tell me Hadar, you are barking up the wrong tree.
Okay?
To pronounce this phrase, you want to connect the words together.
Bar-king up.
The stress is on up.
Barking up the wrong.
Connect those two words together.
Tree.
T-R together, turn into a ch sound.
Tree.
Barking up the wrong tree.
You're barking up the wrong tree.
For example, I think you're barking up the wrong tree without accusation, my friend.
Or if you're looking for help, you're barking up the wrong tree asking Jane.
It's not her fault.
It's not her responsibility.
Don't do that.
Don't talk to Jane.
You're barking up the wrong tree.
He's barking up the wrong tree if he thinks I'll help him cheat.
Okay?
I'm not a cheater.
It's not aligned with my values.
He's barking up the wrong tree.
If he thinks I'll help him cheat.
Barking up the wrong tree.
Right now, I have a task for you.
In the comments, either write a sentence with the phrase he's barking up the wrong tree, or give me a specific situation where you might say that.
Okay?
Maybe a situation that you've had in the past that you could have used your barking up the wrong tree.
The next phrase is to beat around the bush.
Beat around the bush.
To beat around the bush is to avoid addressing the main issue directly.
It's often used when someone is hesitant to talk about something uncomfortable.
So they're talking about all these other things.
But not about the one thing that we're here to discuss or they want to talk about.
Maybe they're uncomfortable.
Maybe they're shy.
Maybe it's a little difficult.
Okay?
So, to beat around the bush.
And the pronunciation is beat around.
So, we have a flap T there.
Beat around.
Beat around.
D connects to the TH.
The TH is really small here because it's a function word.
Beat around the bush.
BUSH.
Not BUSH.
BUSH.
Lacks a kuk-luk-buk.
To beat around the bush.
Examples.
Stop beating around the bush and just tell me what happened.
Okay?
You're not telling me.
Okay?
So stop beating around the bush.
I can't stand it.
Stop beating around the bush and just tell me what happened.
Next example.
I don't have time for you to beat around the bush.
Just get to the point.
I don't have time for you to beat around the bush.
Just get to the point."
What a very nice sentence to say.
She's always beating around the bush when it comes to serious topics.
She's always beating around the bush when it comes to serious topics.
Okay, so now it's your responsibility to put it into action.
So write one sentence with the idiom beat around the bush, or write a certain situation where you might use this idiom, or you could have used it in the past.
Okay?
The next one is get your ducks in a row.
To get your ducks in a row is to get organized and prepared.
And usually this is used when someone needs to focus and get their things in order before moving forward.
So, for example, if you want to improve your English, you have to plan and get your ducks in a row before you can actually see tangible results.
Here you have connected speech and sound assimilation.
So it's get your, get your, get your.
When the T appears before a ya sound, what happens is that you get a little bit of a ch sound in American English.
Get your, get your, get your, get your ducks in a row.
In, in, in, lax, eh, in a row.
And you connect the whole phrase together.
Get your ducks in a row. you can't start the project until you get your ducks in a row.
I need to get my ducks in a row before the presentation tomorrow.
She's usually all over the place, but she managed to get her ducks in a row.
And now she's all set.
She's good to go.
Got it.
Okay.
Either write a sentence with this phrase or write a situation where you could use it in the future or where you could have used it in the past.
Next up, we have the phrase to steal someone's thunder.
It means to take credit for someone else's idea or achievement or focus.
It's usually used, when someone does something, to take the attention away from someone else's accomplishment or to take away from their moment.
Okay?
Don't steal my thunder, please.
To pronounce this phrase, steal, that's a high E and a dark L. Steal.
Someone's thunder.
So here usually you could say steal her thunder, steal my thunder, steal their thunder, steal someone's thunder right.
So that someone is negotiable.
You can use different pronouns here.
Examples.
He completely stole my thunder by announcing the idea before I did.
I hate it when it happens.
He completely stole my thunder by announcing the idea before I did.
She stole his thunder when she told everyone about his promotion before he had a chance.
She stole his thunder when she told everyone about his promotion before he had a chance.
Why did she steal his thunder?
The next one.
Don't steal my thunder.
I've been planning the speech for weeks.
Don't steal my thunder.
I've been planning the speech for weeks.
Okay, so now write a sentence with this phrase or a situation where you could or could have used it.
The next one is to get your feet wet.
Here you also have that CH sound.
Get your, get your, get your, get your, get your feet wet.
We started with pronunciation because it's fun.
Get your feet, high E, not fit, feet wet.
Fit is a different word.
Get your feet wet.
To get your feet wet is to try something for the first time or to get involved in something new and try it out.
Okay?
It's often used when you're starting new activity or trying something out before the first time.
Okay?
Just test the waters.
That's another idiom.
Test the waters.
To get your feet wet.
Examples.
I just started my new job and I'm still getting my feet wet.
Getting acquainted.
I'm just like getting to know the projects and the work.
Getting my feet wet.
Okay?
I'm not full-on swimming in the job.
Do you know what I mean?
To use that imagery and metaphor.
It doesn't need to be perfect right away.
You need to first get your feet wet and see how it goes.
Get your feet wet and see how it goes.
As soon as you get your feet wet, you'll start to love it.
As soon as you get your feet wet, you'll start to love it.
Trust me.
All right, my friends, that is it.
These were five idioms that you cannot avoid in American English.
I think they're fun.
And of course you don't have to use idioms to sound more fluent or sophisticated in English.
You are already sophisticated simply by being who you are.
You don't need fancy words, but it's really nice to have these idioms accessible.
You don't need to know all of them, but just knowing a few is usually really cool to pull out whenever it feels right and whenever the situation requires it.
And also it's important for understanding, because sometimes you might hear it and you're like I get it from the context, but I, you know, I also have to think about all these other things right now, so I don't really get it.
So I hope this video helps you explain these five idioms so that you can understand them and maybe even use them next time.
Remember to be able to use something confidently, you have to say it out loud, quite a few times more than the times that we've said those idioms in the video.
So just say them out loud again and again and again.
I'm going to write them down all in the description or the show notes, if you're listening to the podcast.
And then really think of situations where you can use them and even simulate the conversation.
Say it out loud.
That is how you make it stick.
That is how it's going to stay in your head and stay accessible, so you'll be able to retrieve it whenever you need it.
That was a rhyme.
It wasn't a rhyme because it was just the same word twice.
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it.
Have a beautiful, beautiful rest of the day, and I will see you, my friends, in the next video.
Bye.
