O que significa "not everything in the garden is rosy"? [expressões com a palavra garden]

Hoje eu tenho duas expressões que, fora a palavra garden, de nada tem a ver uma com a outra. A primeira expressão é a que você vê no título de hoje: not everything in the garden is rosy. Você tem ideia do que possa significar? É muito simples. Se você traduzir ao pé da letra [o que nem sempre é recomendável], verá que quer dizer algo como "nem tudo no jardim é cor-de-rosa". Essa expressão se refere a tudo aquilo que, à primeira vista, pode ser 100% perfeito, mas no fundo tem alguns defeitos ou desvantagens. Veja esse exemplo: But not everything in the garden is rosy. Sales may look good but they're actually 10% down on last year.

Agora vamos para nossa segunda expressão de hoje com a palavra gardin. Eu disse que de nada tem a ver com a outra, e você vai perceber o porquê. Na postagem anterior [em Inglês], eu ensinei uma meneira de expressar a ideia de "enganar aqlguém": He's selling me a bill of goods [ele está me enganando]. A expressão de hoje tem esse mesmo sentido, mas assume uma forma completamente diferente. Veja: to lead someone up the garden path. Ao pé da letra, significa levar alguém pelo caminho do jardim. Eu sei que é difícil relacionar essa ideia com a ideia de enganar alguém, mas a etimologia da expressão sugere que a ideia de levar alguém por um caminho agradável de um jardim o torna mais distraído e, assim, mais fácil de ser enganado. Veja este exemplo: That cheater really led me up the garden path. [Aqeuele charlatão me enganou direitinho.]
Take care!

O que significa "sell someone a bill of goods"? [e outras expressões com a palavra BILL]

Hello everybody. Today we're talking about expressions with the word bill. Are you familiar with that word? It says on Dictionary.com that "a bill is a statement of money owed for goods or services supplied", like an electricity bill, gas, fuel, hospital, phone bills. We're talking about that little piece of paper you find under your door you find every end of the month. If you feel like your phone bill has been huge/big/large/high lately, you can decide to reduce or cut it. What you can't do though is to leave the bill unpaid.

But let's go back to the expressions with the word bill I was talking about. If someone is selling you a bill of goods, what do you think he is doing to you? Let's suppose you came home late one night, and your wife's very upset by the door waiting up for you. The truth is, you were at a bar with some friends and lost track of time, but you want to get your wife to believe something else, something that isn't true. But your wife's reluctant to believe in you. That's when you say: I'm not selling you a bill of goods. What I say is true. "To sell someone a bill of goods" means to deceive someone.

Now imagine one day you kind of felt really bad and needed to be examined. The problem is that you need to get out of that hospital as soon as possible because you have something else on, but they won't let you out before the doctors give you a clean bill of health. But what, what do the doctors need to give you? A clean bill of health. That means they have to examine you and state that you are healthy, in good condition, they need to give you a clean bill of health.
Take care!

O que significa a expressão to space out?

Quando a gente fala da palavra space, mais comumente lembramos do substantivo espaço. Mas uma coisa legal de se saber é que space também assume a forma verbal [como a maior parte dos substantivos na língua inglesa]. Vejá só a expressão no título: TO SPACE OUT. Você tem noção do que quer dizer? Se não, veja se com exemplo ajuda: I have a tendecy to space out at the end of a hard day. To space out significa ficar desorientado, aéreo. Muitas coisas podem te fazer ter essa sensação: um dia cansativo, um susto, fraqueza, mal estar. Veja só este outro exemplo: Judy spaced out during the meeting and I didn't understand a word she said. [Judy ficou desorientada durante a reunião e eu não entendi uma palavra que ela disse.]
Take care!

Talking about bad habits in English

There's no chance you go through life without having a bad habit. They're too many, but today we're basically touching on the most famous ones. Would you be able to talk about your bad habits in English? Let's see.

Nail biting is the first one that comes to mind. Many people gnaw at their fingernails when they're nervous. It's like a feel-good tendecy or a stress reducer, or whatever you may wanna call it. What's important to keep in mind though is that it is not a healthy habit. It can become really difficult to break it if it becomes an obsessive compulsive disorder. That's maybe when professional help should step in. But if you bite your nails and want to quit with willpower alone, you may wanna try to keep your nails short, wearing gloves or maybe coating your nails with bitter nail coatings. It will make you avoid giving in to the habit.

The second bad habit is more commonly found in girls. That's because they're the ones who have longer hair most of the time. The bad habit is twirling hair, or playing with it. When a girl is playing with her hair, it may be a sign of anxiety or nervousness, or even boredom. The thing is, sometimes it can be mistaken as a way of flirting. If you're a girl in public places and you're always twirling your hair, men may think you're flirting with them [when in actuality, you're just bored and want to leave the place]. A way of getting rid of that habit is simply giving your hands some kind of distraction so you won't feel appealed to reach for your hair.

Crocking joints is our third bad habit. I sometimes do it myself, but it is not a vice. It becomes a problem when you're obsessed with it and do it as a way of reducing stress. Have you ever been in a quiet place with someone cracking his knuckles next to you? Some people cringe just at the sound of it, because it is a hideous sound. I'm not sure how one can avoid that habit, but you can simply stretch or massage your joints without actually crecking them.

Those are our first three bad habits. I'll talk about some more on future posts. Stick around!

Você sabe o que significa "squeaking wheel gets the oil"?

Essa expressão de hoje é bem legal. Você conhece alguém que consegue tudo na base da insistência e reclamação? Geralmente nós encontramos mais adolescentes ou crianças agindo dessa maneira. Essa expressão é perfeita para elas. Mas nem sempre essa expressão tem um sentido negativo, que se refere a um ato mimado. As vezes, a gente tem que reclamar mesmo até conseguirmos os nossos direitos ou algum tipo de vantagem.

Por exemplo, você vai num hotel e não é tratado como deveria. Ao conversar com um amigo sobre a falta de estrutura e serviços do hotel, ele te aconselha: Make sure to tell the manager that you're dissatisfied. The squeaking wheel gets the oil. Eu não consigo pensar em nenhuma equivalente literal na nossa língua portuguesa para essa expressão, mas é algo como "quem reclama muito consegue o que quer". Só que se você traduzir a expressão ao pé da letra, verá que a tradução equivale a algo como "a roda que range recebe o óleo".

Eu não conheço a origem dessa expressão, mas é fácil imaginarmos que, assim como uma pessoa que reclama muito e consegue as coisas, quando uma roda começa a ranger, geralmente ela é a primeira a receber o óleo.
Take care!

O que significa "to put one's shoulder to the wheel"?

With so many activities to do, sometimes we find it hard to focus on what really needs to be done. There's a term that's become very popular lately that refers to the act of postponing important tasks as much as possible, which is to procrastinate. I'm sure you've heard about it before.

But what if you decide not to procrastinate anymore and really get down to business? Is there an expression for that? Yes, there is. Let's suppose you've been procrastinating a job for very long, but now you've decided to put time and effort into it and finish it quickly. You say to yourself: I'll never finish this job unless I put my shoulder to the wheel. What does that mean? In other words, you said  you really need to do the hard work to get the job done otherwise you won't accomplish anything.

Sometimes I leave what I have to do to the last minute, but when it's really time to get it done I put my shoulder to the wheel. That's not the best way to get things done, but that's how things work for me. What about you? Does it take you long before you really put your shoulder to the wheel?
Take care!

O que significa binge?

Para tornar as coisas mais simples, coloque na cabeça que binge é o ato de se engajar em alguma atividade ao extremo. Por exemplo, a shopping binge. Uma das possíveis traduções para essa expressão seria o ato impulsivo de fazer compras. Muitas pessoas compram compulsivamente para se sentirem melhor. Se você é uma dessas pessoas ou conhece alguém que é, você poderia dizer: Whenever Sandra is feeling blue, she goes on a shopping binge. Mas perceba que binge aí está assumindo o papel do substantivo. Nem sempre ele vem nessa forma. Temos também a forma adjetiva e verbal. Vamos conhecê-las!

Binge drinking, binge eating significam respectiviamente consumo imoderado de bebida e compulsão alimentar. Ambos se referem a atividades exageradas, sem limites. Perceba que binge, dessa vez, veio antes do substantivo, assumindo assim a forma de adjetivo. Veja alguns exemplos: 1) Another study found out binge drinking is especially dangerous for hypertensive men. 2) Binge eating is considered a woman's issue, and one that few men will admit to. Todos esses exemplos com a palavra binge que eu dei até agora se referem geralmente a problemas muito sérios, que devem ser tratados inclusive como doenças. Mas binge também pode se referir a qualquer outro ato de exagero menos grave que todo mundo acaba fazendo uma hora ou outra.

Por exemplo, você está de dieta, mas quando foi a uma festa exagerou na comida. Como dizer isso em Inglês usando a palavra binge? Veja essa possibilidade: I knew I was on a diet, but I couldn't help binging on all that food at the party. Perceba que, além do binge está servindo aqui como verbo, ele vem seguido da preposição ON. Ou seja, o que vem depois de "binge on" se refere ao que você tem exagerado. Veja esses exemplos: To binge on junk food, drugs, debt, sugar, qualquer coisa que deve ser moderada.
Take care!

O que significa "at the expense of someone or something"? [e outras expressões com a palavra EXPENSE]

People like to joke around, don't they? But sometimes you laugh at someone and the person doesn't like it. He feels like it was uncalled for, he feels offended. That happens all the time, right? Maybe because people like to be funny no matter what the consequences are. In Portuguese, we say something like: Eu perco o amigo, mas não perco a piada. In English, there's no such expression, but you can say: I can't help telling this joke, even though I might lose a friend. It's not the same thing, but it conveys the same message. In situations like that, you're having a good laugh at the expense of someone. What does that mean? When you do anything (like laughing) at the expense of others, you're doing it to the detriment or harm of them. Very often, you do things like that just for the sake of your own enjoyment, but to the detriment of other people. You're not worried about what other people think or feel as long as you're having a good time.

There's another expression with the word expense that has a lot to do with that one. For example, you're using your parents' money to throw a party for you and your friends. You really wanna throw the best party of your life, and no expense is spared in making the guests feel comfortable. But wait, no expense is spared? What does that mean? When no expense is speared in arranging something, it means you're spending a lot of money to make it wonderful [in this case, to make the party wonderful]. Maybe because it's not your money, but your parents'. You could also say: I don't care how much it costs. Let's treat ourselves well and hang the expense! When you hang the expense, you spend whatever is necessary. It gives the idea that you're literaly hanging the bill somewhere so you don't worry about how it will cost.

Take care! 

Como dizer em Inglês: passar a perna em alguém [e outras expressões com a palavra FAST]

You're now a teenager trying to get away with something wrong you've done. Let's suppose you went to a party and got home very late at night. Now you're afraid your parents are going to punish you, so you try to sneek into your house very quietly. The problem is that your mother is waiting up for you by the door, and soon start making you many questions about where you've been or who you've been with. So you cleverly say: Sorry mom, I was at the library. I just lost track of time while studying. Your mom throws a very puzzled look at you and replies: Don't try to pull a fast one on me! I called one of your friend's mother and she said you were having a party.

But wait, what did your mother mean by "pull a fast one"? When you pull a fast one on someone, you're succeeding in an act of deception. In that example, you were trying to make your mother believe in something that would be beneficial for you [no matter if it's honest or not]. Many people act in a persuasive way to achieve their goals. Many dealers, for example, are known for pulling a fast one on their clients. They don't miss the oppoprtunity to make some profit at the expensive of others. But don't fool yourself. At many points of your life, you're gonna find yourself pulling a fast one on people around you. It can be very simple things, like pretending to have a headache so you don't need to do something you don't feel like.

How can you call someone who's always pulling a fast one on people? A fast talker! No, it doesn't mean the person speaks fast. A fast talker is someone who speaks in a very clever way, but very often proceeds in a disonest way to get what he wants. If you find your friend being persuaded by a disonest car dealer, for instance, you try to give him a heads up by saying something like: Don't trust him! He's a fast talker! Go find someone else!

And since we're talking about disonest dealers, many of them want to make a quick buck. That's why they're all fast talkers. They need to be clever enough to make a quick buck. What's "to make a quick buck" you may ask? When you make a quick buck, you're earning money very quickly and often in a way that is not honest. In the business world, people want to make profits by any means. They want to make a quick buck wherever and however they can. So watch out!
Take care!

O que significa "all roads lead to Rome"? [Mais expressões com a palavra Rome]

Hi again guys. Let's pick up where we left off in the last post. We were talking about the expression "the road to hell is paved with good intentions" that, as you already know, refers to people who mean well but do bad things. Like that expression, there are some more containing the word Rome. Let's get to learn some of them!

As an English student, I've witnessed many discussions around which way would be the best to learn English. Sometimes, people strongly believe the way they learned English is the best one just because it fits them better. But as we all know very well, every student is different and may learn English in a way that may not be good for you, but it's perfect for them [and the other way around]. That's why discussions like that will never end. And to some extent, that's a good thing because the more people worry about it, the more ways will be developed to make the process of learning English easier and faster. But on a personal note, I believe all roads lead to Rome.

Wait, what did I just say? What does "all roads lead to Rome" mean? It's a way of saying that there are many different routes to the same goal [in our example, language acquisiton]. I meant to say, no matter how many methods there are to learn English, or how exactly you learned English yourself, every attempt should count and works towards the same goal. But don't get me wrong. Of course there are some ways of learning english that are clearly considered wrong, or go by some rules that clearly do not work. Well, they may work or may not work. We'll never know. There's always someone claiming to have learned English through a very peculiar way. That's why I still say "all roads lead to Rome". Do you agree with me? Let me know in the comment section!

Whatever you believe, though, there's something you can never deny: It takes a lot of time to achieve a goal like learning a different language. After all, "Rome was not built in a day"; and that's one more expression with the word Rome. If you take it to the letter, you'll see it says something very obvious. Of course Rome was not built in a day. That would be impossible, right? And why is it impossible? Because it takes a lot of time to build an entire city, or to achieve something that important. So, if you've been studying english for very little time and someone comes up to you and asks if you're already fluent, you can say: It'll take me a while. Rome was not build in a day.
Take care!

When in Rome, do as the Romans do

I don't know exactly where and when I saw it, but there's a quote that goes like "we never really grow up, we just learn how to act in public". Do you agree with that quote? Well, unregardless of what you think, you've got to agree that when we're adults, we're often held back by social concepts. You want to behave differently, but you end up behaving accordingly people expect you to.

It's easier to think that way when you're in a foreign country too. For example, you're brazilian visiting India now. As you may have heard, India has a very peculiar culture that may be very different from the culture we have here in Brazil. But the thing is, when you're in India, if you wanna fit in and not draw unnecessary attention, you have to adapt yourself to the customs they have in India. After all, when in Rome do as the Romans do. But wait, Rome? What does Rome have to do with India? Well, in this case, nothing. At least when it comes to the expression. When you say "When in Rome, do as the Romans do", it doesn't really matter the place you are; you're just saying one should behave however other people around behave. That is to say, when in India, you'd better be open minded and step out of your comfort zone, cause you'll have to behave differently from what you're used to.

As I said before, you most commonly use that expression when visiting foreign places, but there's still more to it. You can use it in other situations too. Picture this: You've been hired by a company and you're now only some hours away from going to work in your very first day. But there's a problem. You saw people in the office all dressed very casualy, and you're just not sure if it would be okay if you showed up dressed just as casually. You're afrad you'd come off as an irresponsable person. So you decide to ask a friend if you should dress that way, and she says: By all means! When in Rome, do as the Romans do!

Take care!

Como dizer em Inglês: De boas intenções o inferno está cheio!

Hey guys. Today I'd like to introduce you to an expression with the word road that you may have never heard of. Road is what you drive on while on a trip for example. Something very interesting about the word road is that it will very often be followed by the preposition down, as in "I've been driving down this road for hours trying to find my way back". But let's go to the heart of the matter.

There's a very common expression in english containing the word road, which is "the road to hell is paved with good intentions". Can you tell me how do we say that expression in Portuguese? Yes, it is right in the title of the post, and as you may have noticed, it doesn't contain the word road. That's a great example of idiomatic differences between two languages like Portuguese and English. Not always will you find an expression correspondent with the same words. It's not impossible to find them, but keep in mind they're the minority. Now let's imagine a little story!

Let's suppose you have a very close friend you turn to everytime you wanna open up. One day, you decide to tell him a secret that you've kept with yourself for years. As I said before, this friend of yours is really close to you, and you wouldn't tell him the secret if you didn't judge him as a really reliable person. The problem is that this time, you've been totally disappointed by him. You find out he went around telling people about your secret without any kind of discretion, and yet is not willing to take responsability for his bad attitude. Everytime you try to talk to him about what he's done, he says things like: I didn't mean to hurt your feelings; I only wanted to help you. Of course these things he tells you don't mean a thing, so you say: The road to hell is paved with good intentions; your good intentions do not matter to me now. But wait, what do you mean by that?

When you use that expression, you're just saying people often mean well but do bad things, like your friend did by giving away your secret. That expression is very often used in the kind of situation I just described. That is, when you want someone to take responsability for his bad atitudes or confess what he's done, but he keeps saying he meant well or did it with good intentions.
Take care!