to get a chance

Context #1:

Akiko: Guess what! Next week I'm going to go to my first American Baseball game.

Shuhei: Really? That's great!

Akiko: Yeah! I hope I get a chance to see someone hit a homerun!

Context #2:

Shane: Last Saturday I went to my 20-year high school reunion.

Tony: Wow! Did you have a good time?

Shane: I had a great time! I got a chance to hang out with a lot of my old friends.

Meaning: to get a chance is an American idiom that means you have a special opportunity to experience something. This idiom is followed by infinitive verbs, as you can see in the examples above. It is also commonly used with the definite article "the" instead of "a." You can say, "I hope I get the chance to... + verb."

This idiom is taken from the LSI textbook "Speaking Savvy." LSI teachers use this book to teach the Level 5 Speaking class. For more information please visit www.languagesystems.com

To Keep One's Cool

Context #1:

Jane: I heard you and your boyfriend got into an argument after class yesterday.

Cindy: Yeah... he was really upset and he started yelling at me.

Jane: Did you yell back at him?

Cindy: No, I just kept my cool. Later he felt bad and apologized to me. I'm glad I didn't lose my temper too.

Context #2:

Tom: In California some people are crazy drivers! People cut me off all the time.

Sam: Yeah, me too! One time I got mad and honked my horn at the guy who cut me off. What do you do when people cut you off?

Tom: I keep my cool. I don't honk my horn or give them a dirty look. I try to remain calm.

Meaning: to keep one's cool is an American idiom that means to remain calm and to not lose your temper or get angry. This idiom comes from the LSI textbook Speaking Savvy. LSI teachers use this book to teach Level 5 Speaking/Listening. For more information please visit www.languagesystems.com