Pilot "Modules" course - Writing & Speaking
Pre-Intermediate Plus
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Using English - IDIOMS
Softly, softly, catchee monkey is a variation of "Softly, softly, catchee monkey". It is an Ashanti (Ghana) proverb quoted by Lord Robert Baden-Powell, Founder of the Boy Scouts.
From the people of Ghana, Baden-Powell learnt the phrase `softly softly catchee monkey' - and he learnt that he could get the best work out of his force by dividing it into small groups, or patrols, and giving responsibility to the captain of each group.
It's discussed in Eric Partridge's "Dictionary of Catch Phrases." Partridge says it means "Gently does it!" and probably appeared in the late 19th century. Origin is hazy because the phrase was largely "neglected by the editors of the relevant works of reference." Partridge quotes a paraphrase by Wilfred Granville, "Dictionary of Theatrical Terms" (1952): "Stalk your prey carefully; or, generally, to achieve an object by quiet application."If you are 'Young at Heart', you think, feel or act like young person despite being older.
Example:
Despite being over seventy he keeps playing tennis every day. He is truly amazing and so young at heart!
If you are trying to 'wrap your head around' something, you are trying to understand something that is very foreign to you.
Examples:
"I can't wrap my head around quantum physics—it's so complex!"
"She finally wrapped her head around the new software update."
"They couldn't wrap their heads around the sudden policy changes."
"Once you wrap your head around it, chess becomes very enjoyable."
"He's struggling to wrap his head around the idea of moving abroad."
If you try your hand at something, you attempt something for the very first time.
Examples:
"After years of office work, she decided to try her hand at pottery."
"I thought I'd try my hand at writing poetry this weekend."
"They're trying their hands at digital photography to capture stunning landscapes."
"Why not try your hand at gardening? It's quite relaxing."
"They're going to try their hand at sailing during their holiday."
If you "stuff your face", you eat a lot of food.
Example:
He stuffed his face with sweets all day and felt very ill afterwards
To be in 'deep water' is to be trouble or in a difficult or serious situation:
Example: "The director knew he'd be in deep water if he didn't mention his wife in his acceptance speech."
"Thief don’t like to see thief carry long bag" means that a dishonest person dislikes competition from other like-minded persons.
Editor's note: There are a few variations of this idiom found online, such as "Tief nuh like si neda man wid long bag" and "Thief neva like fi see thief with long bag", but they all express the same idea.
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BBC News - News front page
- The company that became Cambridge Analytica boasted about interfering in foreign elections, according to documents seen by the Sunday Politics.
- A false missile alert was broadcast in Hawaii urging people to take shelter.
- Schoolchildren from Kirton Primary in Boston run their own bank with its own currency to learn about saving money.
- A man was filmed jumping from a hijacked EgyptAir plane cockpit window shortly before the hijacker surrendered.
- Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades has said that the hijacking of the plane that landed at Larnaca was not linked to terrorism.
- The FBI has managed to unlock the iPhone of the San Bernardino gunman without Apple's help, ending a court case, the US justice department says.
- With so-called Islamic State militants active in Egypt's Sinai, Israeli troops are on alert for attacks just across the border.