Hello everyone, this is Mia from South Korea.
You are listening to Everybody ESL.
Welcome to episode 461 of Everybody ESL, the podcast for everybody who wants to improve their English, practice their English or just learn more English.
My name is Ben and I have a mini episode for you today where I am going to teach you about one English topic.
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Okay, let's get on with this mini-episode.
In this episode, I am going to teach you an interesting expression.
If you have not heard this expression before, it might sound a little bit strange.
The expression is, something is my middle name.
Something is my middle name.
And when people use this expression, instead of saying something, they say some kind of activity or some kind of personality trait.
Something is my middle name.
Before I talk about what this expression means and how to use it, let me make sure that you know what a middle name is.
In the US, and in many other places, people often have three names.
They have a first name.
This is someone's given name.
This might be a name like John or Mary.
Those are or were very common first names.
Everyone also has a last name.
This is their family name.
This is sometimes called a surname.
Surname.
S-U-R-N-A-M-E.
So that's the first name and the last name.
Many people also have a middle name.
This is sort of like the second part of their given name.
That is the name that this expression is referring to.
Something is my middle name.
What does it mean if someone says that something, some activity or some quality is their middle name?
If you say that something is your middle name, you are saying that you have a lot of that trait, or you do that activity a lot, or you are very good at that activity.
Really, I think what you are saying is that thing, that trait or that activity is a very basic part of who you are.
It's really a part of you.
It's a part of your identity, in the same way that your name can feel like a real part of you, a real part of who you are.
Here are some examples of this expression.
Somebody might say, music is my middle name.
That means music is very important to me.
It is a real part of me.
It is a real part of my personality or my identity.
Someone could also say tennis is my middle name.
That sounds like they are saying I love tennis.
Tennis is an important part of me and an important part of my life.
Someone could also say something like Organization is my middle name.
I'm a very organized person.
That is a fundamental, a basic part of who I am as a person.
I am a very organized person.
Someone might say, adventure is my middle name.
That sounds like they are saying, yes, I love adventure.
I love to do new things.
That is an important part of me and my life.
Often when people use this expression something is my middle name They are trying to sound kind of funny or boastful, like they are kind of bragging about themselves or they are saying that they are special in some way.
I think this is kind of a funny expression.
If you use this expression, I think you will sound very natural.
That is, something is my middle name, an interesting expression that I think you should know.
This is the end of episode 461 of Everybody ESL.
Remember if you have questions about English, or if you have comments for me, or if you would like to record an introduction that I can play at the beginning of future episodes.
The same way, Mia recorded the introduction you heard at the beginning of this episode.
Send an email to everybodyesl at gmailcom.
I'll be back soon with a new episode.
And until then, keep going, keep practicing, and keep learning.
I'll see you soon.
Goodbye.
