Casual English: 100 Common Idioms
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Casual English: 100 Common Idioms |
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Who Needs Idioms? If you are living in America, communicating regularly with Americans or watching American TV or movies, you should study idioms. If you are living outside of America and only need survival English, you may not need idioms as a course of study. Most Americans grow up using idioms. They are such a basic part of the culture. When I first began teaching ESL, I used to realize that I had spoken idioms to students and that they would not understand the meaning. Through teaching, I developed the skill of adapting my English to suit learners and speakers at different levels. But of course, most Americans will not have that skill. And since people use idioms all their lives, many will speak them and not even realize that they ought to translate the idioms to a non-native speaker. In most TV shows or movies, you will hear an idiom in the first twenty minutes. They are that popular and widely used. In many comedies, you will hear an idiom every five minutes. And even in serious shows, you will hear them quite often. To develop idioms classes, I created my own list. I noted idioms using my cell phone when I heard people talking, watched shows or movies or even thought to myself. After only three months of casually doing this, I had a list of 600 idioms. You can be sure that all of the idioms in this class are being used right now. Overall, Americans do use idioms very regularly. If you want to catch most of the jokes and/or feel like you are engaging in the culture, idioms are for you! How Can a Non-native Speaker Use Idioms? Some students feel awkward using idioms while others enjoy them. If you are concerned that you will sound odd, that you will miss the grammar or that your accent will cause people to misunderstand, choose just a few idioms to use. Otherwise, learn them to understand others. Idioms are expressions, and everyone uses some more than others. For instance, a serious person might regularly talk about a meeting being set in stone or not being set in stone and never use the phrase it's raining cats and dogs. A person who loves to joke might choose exactly the opposite. The idioms you use should fit your personality. If they do, people are more likely to understand you. And, on the plus side, even if someone misunderstands an idiom, you can explain and that can open the door to a longer conversation. As a general rule for this class, choose at least 1 or 2 idioms in each group of ten to add to your personal vocabularly. Learn the others to advance in your listening skills. |
Idioms 101 - 200 Course |
Idioms Introduction |