Episode 37 - English Expressions With Parts of the Body | Learn Everyday English

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My name is Gary and I will be your host today.

I am a native English speaker born and raised in the United States and a retired engineer living in a small Texas town about one hour north of Houston.

And I'm also a language learner like you.

I'm studying Spanish so I know what it is like to learn a new and different language.

Hey, so now let's jump right in to today's episode.

Hey, hello listeners and a big howdy y 'all from Texas here in the United States of America.

Welcome to this episode of the Learn Everyday English podcast.

Glad to have you with me.

And again, my name is Gary.

Hey, in this episode we're going to be talking about expressions that we use in English that have parts of the body in the expression and I think you'll find this interesting and hopefully you'll find it useful.

You can use some of these expressions or phrases when you're speaking English.

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Well that's enough for now, so without further ado, hey, let's jump right in to today's episode.

On today's episode, we're going to be going over expressions in English that use or have parts of the human body in the expression.

So the first expression is to keep at arm's length, to keep at arm's length, and this means to keep someone from getting too close to you in a personal way, not really in a physical way, but just in a personal way, or to not interact with or to deal with someone.

So what I'm going to do is give you the expression, give you a definition, and then use the expression in two separate sentences so you can get an idea of how it's used.

So the first example sentence is this, and maybe your mother could tell their son this, hey, John is a bad influence on you and will get you into trouble.

You need to keep him at arm's length.

John is a bad influence on you and you will get into trouble.

You need to keep him at arm's length.

That means you should not be associating with John.

He's not a good influence for you.

The next expression or sentence is this, I didn't trust her or I did not trust her, so I kept her at arm's length.

I didn't trust her, so I kept her at arm's length.

That means I didn't trust her, so I didn't really want to interact with her.

I didn't want to have to deal with her for whatever reason because you lost her trust.

The next expression is on the tip of my tongue, on the tip of my tongue, and this means to be almost able to remember something but you just can't remember it.

You can almost remember it or you can almost think about it, the answer, but you just can't finally do it, so that means on the tip of my tongue.

For example, his name was on the tip of my tongue, but I needed to ask him.

His name was on the tip of my tongue, but I needed to ask him.

That means I almost could remember his name, but I just couldn't and I just had to ask him what his name was.

The next example sentence is this, what did you want to tell me earlier?

This is a question somebody could ask you.

What did you want to tell me earlier?

Oh, it's on the tip of my tongue, but I can't seem to remember it right now.

So again, what did you want to tell me earlier?

Oh, it's on the tip of my tongue, but I can't seem to remember it right now.

It means I am trying to remember it.

I can almost remember it, but I can't really think it the final answer, so I'm going to have to let you know later.

It's on the tip of my tongue.

The next expression is to pick someone's brain, to pick someone's brain.

That means to talk with someone to find out information from them.

So to talk with someone, to get information from them, you might ask them a question to get their ideas or get their opinion or opinions about something.

For example, the first sentence is this, hey, can I pick your brain for a minute?

I know you have experience with the problem I am having and I need some advice.

Again, can I pick your brain for a minute?

I know you have experience with the problem I am having and I need some advice.

That means, hey, can I talk to you and ask you about something so I can maybe get some information that will help me solve my problem?

The next sentence is this, I need to pick your brain.

Do you have some time when we can talk?

I need to pick your brain.

Do you have some time when we can talk?

That means, hey, I need to talk with you and get some information from you, get your opinion about certain things.

The next expression is off the top of my head, off the top of my head, and this is information that is given or offered quickly without much thought, research, or calculation.

So if somebody asks you something and you tell them something, you offer or give them information without really thinking about it very much or doing much research.

For example, somebody could ask you, hey, do you remember how many people were at the party last week?

And your answer could be this.

Off the top of my head, I would say about 100.

Do you remember how many people were at the party last week?

Off the top of my head, I would say about 100.

So off the top, I'm saying, I think it was about, I estimate, it was maybe 100 people.

You know, I'm not really sure, I'm not exactly sure, but I'm just giving you my best guess or my best estimate.

The second example sentence is this, off the top of your head, how far would you say it is from Houston to Austin?

Off the top of your head, how far would you say it is from Houston to Austin?

And Houston and Austin are two cities in Texas, so you're asking the person, how far is it?

How many miles is it?

Do you think it is from Houston to Austin?

So just give me an estimate, kind of like your best guess.

That means off the top of your head.

The next example expression is to cost an arm and a leg.

To cost an arm and a leg, this means to be very expensive.

For example, wow, Shirley just bought a new BMW that must have cost her an arm and a leg.

Wow, Shirley just bought a new BMW that must have cost her an arm and a leg.

And a BMW is kind of a very expensive German car.

The second example sentence is this, you sure you want to buy a house in that neighborhood?

It's going to cost an arm and a leg.

You sure you want to buy a house in that neighborhood?

It's going to cost an arm and a leg.

And so this is an interesting sentence because it says, you sure you want to buy?

That means, are you sure you want to buy?

But instead of saying, are you sure you want to buy a house in that neighborhood?

Sometimes we just say, you sure you want to buy a house in that neighborhood?

Or you're sure you want to buy a house in that neighborhood?

It's going to cost an arm and a leg.

That means you know it's going to be very expensive.

The next expression is get something off one's chest.

Get something off one's chest or get something off my chest.

This means to tell someone your problems or frustrations that you are having or you are experiencing.

For example, you could tell someone, thanks for listening to me complain about my brother.

I needed to get it off my chest.

Thanks for listening to me complain about my brother.

I needed to get it off my chest.

I needed to tell somebody about this so I can relieve myself of these frustrations that I am having.

The second example sentence is this.

Do you have a minute?

I need to talk to you and get something off my chest.

Do you have a minute?

I need to talk to you and get something off my chest.

I need to talk to you so I can tell you about some problems that I am having that will maybe make me feel better if I talk to someone about them.

The next example expression is give someone a hand or give someone a hand with something or with doing something.

Give someone a hand.

This just means to help someone with something or help someone do something.

So, again, it means to help someone with something or help someone do something.

For example, can you give me a hand moving this couch over to the other wall?

It's too heavy for me to move by myself.

Can you give me a hand moving this couch over to the other wall?

It's too heavy for me to move by myself.

The next example sentence is this.

Do you mind giving me a hand with washing all these dishes?

The next example expression or expression is keep your chin up.

Keep your chin up. This means to try to stay positive when things seem negative or to try to stay positive or in a good frame of mind when things are not going well and things are bad.

First example sentence is this.

The next example sentence is this.

The next expression is like pulling teeth.

Like pulling teeth, this means to be very difficult to do or to get something accomplished.

To be very difficult to do or to get something accomplished.

You have a hard time doing something or getting someone to help you with something.

For example, the first sentence is this.

Trying to get a straight answer out of my son about what happened at the party last night is like pulling teeth.

To get a straight answer is like to get a clear answer about exactly what happened.

The mothers or fathers asking their son about what happened at a party and their son is not giving them much information.

He's making it difficult for them to find out what happened.

So they were saying it's like pulling teeth to try to get their son to tell them exactly what happened.

Here's another example sentence.

They don't seem to want to repair my car and are always giving me the runaround.

Like it's very difficult.

It's hard to get it accomplished getting my insurance claim completed after my car accident and dealing with my insurance company.

And they are giving me the runaround.

The runaround means they are not giving me clear answers.

They are not really trying to help me.

They are making it difficult for me.

That means to give someone the runaround.

The next expression is to be all ears.

And we mainly use this a lot in the expression I am all ears or I am all ears.

This means to give someone your full attention or to listen to what someone has to say with much attention.

For example, I cannot wait to hear what you have to tell me about Judy and her new boyfriend.

I am all ears. I cannot wait to hear what you have to tell me about Judy and her new boyfriend.

I am all ears. I am ready to hear.

I am ready to listen to what you have to say, to what you have to tell me.

I have your full attention.

The next example sentence is this.

Okay, you said you wanted to talk to me.

I am all ears. Okay, you said you wanted to talk to me.

I am all ears. So it's like, all right, now I am ready.

You said you wanted to talk.

So you have my full attention.

Go ahead and let me know what it is that you wanted to talk to me about.

I am ready to hear you.

The next expression is cold shoulder.

And we usually use this in a manner where we say to give someone the cold shoulder.

To give someone the cold shoulder.

And this means to like ignore someone and not talk with them or interact with them.

For example, Steve would not talk to James after their argument.

He has given him the cold shoulder.

Steve would not talk to James after their argument.

He has given him the cold shoulder.

So Steve gave James the cold shoulder because he wouldn't talk to him after their argument.

Another example sentence is this.

And the last example expression is to agree on something with someone.

So if you see eye to eye with someone, that means you agree on something.

For example, John is a Republican and his wife is a Democrat.

They do not see eye to eye on many things.

John is a Republican and his wife is a Democrat.

They do not see eye to eye on many things.

And a Republican and Democrat are the two major parties, political parties here in the United States.

And the second example sentence is this.

We may disagree on most things, but at least we see eye to eye on this matter.

Well, I hope you enjoyed this episode of the Learn Every Day English podcast about expressions in English using parts of the body or that have parts of the body in the expression.

I'd love to hear from you what you thought about this episode.

If you have any questions for me or if you have any suggestions for specific topics you would like me to discuss on this program, you just go to the Learn Every Day English homepage and at the bottom you'll find a contact form.

Just fill that out and send me a message.

Again, make sure you go to the podcast resources page and download the program notes so you can follow along with me.

And I guess that's it for now.

I hope you have a good day, rest of the week, wherever you are, whatever country you're in, and that you are doing well with the coronavirus, that you're staying safe and sound as we say in English.

So again, that's it for now.

Be sure to check out our upcoming episodes and thanks for listening.

Hey, goodbye.

[Common English Idioms Incorporating Body Parts]-[Episode 37 - English Expressions With Parts of the Body]

📋 Summary

Exploring English Idioms Using Body Parts

Interpersonal Boundaries and Communication

Mental Processes and Information Exchange

Actions, Effort, and Agreement

Conclusion

🎯Key Sentences

📝Key Phrases

📖 Transcript

[Common English Idioms Incorporating Body Parts]-[Episode 37 - English Expressions With Parts of the Body]

📋 Summary

Exploring English Idioms Using Body Parts

Interpersonal Boundaries and Communication

Mental Processes and Information Exchange

Actions, Effort, and Agreement

Conclusion

Deep Learning with ListenLeap

🎯Key Sentences

📝Key Phrases

📖 Transcript

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