April Fools!

April Fools' Day falls on the first of April each year and every year; this day is also known as All Fools' Day.  First celebrated in France, people believe it came from a calendar change in the 16th century when the calendar transition switched New Year's Day from April 1 to Jan. 1. People who would continue celebrating New Year's on the first of April were considered to be "April fools." As such, people would play tricks on those who celebrated. Many people play pranks and tell funny lies on the April fool’s day, so be alert! After a person has played a prank, they say "April fools" to let everyone know it was just a prank or joke.

Dialogue 1: 

Cindy:  Yuck!!! These doughnuts are HORRIBLE! What kind of filling is this?

Pat: Ha ha! April fools!

Cindy:  What??

Pat: It's April 1st today, so it is April Fools' Day! You know that you are officially allowed to play pranks and tell lies on April Fools' Day. I put mayonnaise filling in the doughnuts!

Cindy: Gee, thanks! Let me see if Bob would like a doughnut....

Dialogue 2:

Patricia: Did you see Ken's status on Facebook!!

Cherri: No, what happened! Calm down and take a few deep breaths.

Patricia: He just changed his status from single to married!!! I didn't even know he was engaged. He just married someone named Betty, who is 52 and lives in Texas. 

Cherri: Come on! You know that can't be true. It's probably an April fools' joke. I mean, he's only 19.  She is old enough to be his mom.

Patricia: That's right! It's April Fools' Day. I always forget. 

Meaning: In dialogue 1, Pat played a prank at the office by filling the doughnuts with mayonnaise for April Fools' Day.  In dialogue 2, Ken made up a fake status about marrying a much older woman in another state.  

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To Get Away From It All

To Get Away from It All: To leave your home, workplace, or a stressful situation and go somewhere relaxing or peaceful.

Example #1

Jim: I am so stressed out at work right now! I have to get so many things done by next week and I just don't have enough time in the day.

Tim: That doesn't sound good. Maybe after you turn all your work in next week, you should go on vacation, to get away from it all!

Jim: You're right. A nice trip to Hawaii sounds good. I could just hang out on the beach all day and do nothing!

Tim: Well, that's a good way to get away from it all! 

Example #2

Sally:  I can't believe how beautiful the weather has been recently. Not a cloud in the sky!

Jill: I know. After the cooler winter it is a welcome change. At work, I can't even concentrate. I just stare out the window at the blue sky!

Sally: Yeah, on days like today, I just want to get away from it all. Do you know what I mean?

Jill: Yes, I do. Getting away from it all would break the boredom of my everyday life!

Meaning: To get way from it all means to go somewhere different from where you live in order to have a rest or vacation. In example #1, Jim is super stressed out at work and probably needs to get away from his work for a while and just relax.  In example #2, the weather is nice and Jill is bored with her everyday life, so she would like to go somewhere different on vacation to enjoy the nice weather.  

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Spring Fever

Spring Fever:  A feeling of restlessness and excitement experienced at the beginning of springtime.     

Dialogue

Teacher: OK everyone. Please stop talking so that we can do today’s grammar lesson.

Student 1: (Ignoring the teacher) Wow! Look at today’s beautiful weather!

Student 2: (Also ignoring the teacher) Yes, it’s the perfect day to go to the beach!

Student 1: What’s the teacher saying? I can’t focus on this lesson at all because I have spring fever.

Student 2: Spring fever? What does that mean?

Student 1:  It means that I feel restless because of the changing season and so I want  to do something other than study!

Student 2: Oh, I see. Well, why don’t we skip the last class and go to the beach. If the teacher asks us tomorrow, we can say we were suffering from spring fever!

                                          News report from KLSI:     

News Anchor:  All through the ages, writers and poets have documented a special illness that seems to spread quickly during the months of April and May.  The symptoms of this illness include restlessness and daydreaming.  It’s commonly known as spring fever!

This week, scores of students hit the beach during spring break to find a remedy for spring fever. Road trips and all-night parties have also been known to cure the restlessness that many feel when springtime begins. 

What are you planning to do for spring break? Take our survey on our website:

What are your plans for spring break?

      1.    Party all night long.

      2.  Hit the beach and surf.  

      3.  Sleep.

      4.  Go on a road trip.

We will show the results of this survey tonight at 11:00. 

Meaning: Spring Fever  is the restlessness and excitement felt at the beginning of spring or the body’s psychological response to changing seasons. In the dialogue, the students cannot focus in class because they have spring fever, so they decide to just go to the beach.  In the news report, the news anchor is introducing a story and survey about spring break, when a lot of people feel the effects of spring fever.

 For more information, please visit:www.languagesystems.com. 

Money Doesn't Grow On Trees

Idiom:  Money Doesn’t Grow on Trees; used as an idiomatic phrase.

Example:  

“Alex had asked his father to buy him a new Ferrari sports car as a high school graduation present so that he could drive himself to college.  Unfortunately, Alex’s father could not afford to buy him such an expensive present.  His father told him that money doesn’t grow on trees, and bought him a Toyota instead.”

Meaning:  

Money Doesn’t Grow on Trees means that it is not so easy to earn money.  It can also be used to mean that you should be careful about how much money you spend.  In this example, Alex’s father could not afford to buy him an expensive car for college.  In general, the kind of money needed to buy a Ferrari is not so easy to obtain, so instead, Alex’s father bought him a much cheaper and more sensible car.  This idiom can be used to give people advice on how they spend their money.  It can especially be used to convey the idea that money is not so easily earned.  This idiom is used as a phrase in this example.

This idiom is from the LSI book "The Idiom Advantage – Fluency in Speaking and Listening," which is used as the primary Idioms textbook in LSI’s Advanced Conversation classes.

For more information, please visit www.languagesystems.com

Slip Through One's Fingers

Idiom:  Slip Through One’s Fingers; used as a verb.

Example:  

“Even though the police had been thoroughly searching the area, the jewel thieves somehow managed to slip through their fingers and escaped the area.”

Meaning:  Slip through one’s fingers means to escape from someone or to elude capture or control.  In this example, the police had failed to capture the jewel thieves.  By narrowly escaping capture, the thieves had successfully avoided being caught by the police.  This idiom can apply to any situation where somebody is trying to avoid being caught.  This idiom is used as a verb in this example.

This idiom is from the LSI book "The Idiom Advantage – Fluency in Speaking and Listening," which is used as the primary Idioms textbook in LSI’s Advanced Conversation classes.

For more information, please visit http://www.languagesystems.com/ 

To settle a score with someone

This is another idiom related to sports that can also be used in many situations.  To settle a score with someone means to “get even” with someone or to “even up a score.”  If you are playing a game or sport with someone, you want to win, right?  If you don’t win, you would at least like to have a tie or be “even”.  Maybe you lose one match, then you when another match and you have “settled” or “evened up the score.”  It can be used in a good natured and fun way, such as when two fans are talking together, as in Example One below.  It can also be used in a more sinister way, as in Example Two below.

Example One:

Frank:  I hope that the Ducks win the pennant this year.  They got beaten so badly by the Penguins last year, and they are playing against them again in the finals.

Joe:  Yeah, I would really like them to settle the score with those Penguins once and for all!  Go Ducks!

Frank:  Yep!  Go Ducks!  Quack Quack!

In the above example, the idiom is used literally in the terms of the scores that sports teams play for.  The Ducks’ fan wants to get even with the other team; he wants his team to have a higher score and to beat the Penguins.  Therefore, he wants to”settle the score” by being victorious over the other team.

Example Two:

Defense Attorney:  Your honor, my client is completely innocent!  He did not kill his wife’s lover!

Prosecutor:  That isn’t true, you are lying!  We know that your client did indeed murder his wife’s lover, and we have the evidence to prove it!

Defense Attorney:  That is ridiculous!  What would his motive possibly be?

Prosecutor:  Why, to settle a score, of course!  He knew that his wife was sleeping with your client, and he wanted to get back at her and get even by killing her lover!  Isn’t it obvious?  It was for revenge!

In the second example, the husband is accused of killing his wife’s lover.  He wants to extract revenge on both of them, and to punish both of them.  Therefore, he “settles the score” by murdering his wife’s lover.  Now he feels like he is “even” with both of them for what they have done to him.

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The Ball is in Your Court

Sports idioms are used quite often in everyday life.  They are most interesting when they are used as analogies for important issues such as business or politics.  If you want to increase your English skills and understand American current events, you should focus on some of these idioms.  For example the idiom “the ball is in your court” is a typical idiom that can be used in a business or political situation.  A business owner makes an offer to another company to make a merger.  He makes a great offer and says “the ball is now in your court.”  This means he is telling the other company that he has made them an offer.  They can take the offer, make a counter-offer, or reject the offer.  They are the next entity to make a move.  In an international situation, an American president can give an ultimatum to a dictator in another country and tell him that “the ball is in your court” meaning that he can either take the ultimatum that the government has made, or he can go against it and perhaps cause World War III!

Example One:

Mr. Business Owner A:  I am offering you ten million dollars for your business.  You know that you will go bankrupt if you don’t accept my offer, because everyone knows that this business is failing under your management.  I can make it great again; just give me a chance to take it over.

Mr. Business Owner B:  I just don’t know.  This business was started by my great grandfather, and I just can’t stand the thought of losing it.  Let me think about your offer for a few more days.

Mr. Business Owner A:  You go ahead and do that.  You know you won’t get any other offers like mine.  Don’t be sentimental about this, go ahead and do the right thing for your employees and for your customers.  The ball is now in your court.

In the above example, Mr. Business Owner A gives an offer to Mr. Business Owner B.  Mr. A starts the game, and now it is Mr. B’s turn to “play”.  The “advantage” goes back and forth as business offers are made, modified, accepted and rejected. 

Example Two:

American President:  Mr. Megalomaniac, you had better get those troops out of Xanadu.  It is a sovereign nation, and you have no right to interfere.

Mr. Megalomaniac:  But that land originally belonged to my country!  My people want it back!

American President:  That may be true, but The United Nations has agreed that you have no further rights to Xanadu.  You have 3 days to get your troops out of there.  Please think carefully about what you will do next.   Do you want to turn this into an international war?  Please consider it carefully.  The ball is in your court.

In this situation, as in the business situation, Mr. Megalomaniac has been thrown an “ultimatum” by the American President.  Therefore, Mr. Megalomaniac now holds the “ball” and it is his turn to “play”.  He must make the ultimate decision as to the future of the world! 

This idiom comes from the game of tennis where a tennis ball goes back and forth from one court to the next between two players.  When you have the ball in your court, you are considered to have the “advantage” and it is now your turn to make the next “play” by hitting the “ball” back to the other “court”, hence the expression, “the ball is in your court”.  It is your turn to make a decision and choose whether or not to continue the “game”.

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