Fixed expressions
I've chosen some fixed expressions that do not change.
For example: It's not my cup of tea! (I'm not interested in it./ I don't enjoy it.)
Do you like reading the news? Not really, it's not my cup of tea.
Learn fixed expressions as they appear below, as chunks (phrases):
1. I'm all ears! (I'm listening, you have my full attention.)
eg. Have you heard the latest gossip? No! I'm all ears!
2. Hold your horses! (Wait!/ Hang on!)
3. Spill the beans! (Tell me everything!)
In ancient Greece, people used to use beans to cast anonymous votes. If someone knocked over the jar and 'spilled the beans', the results were revealed.
4. Break a leg! (Good luck!)
5. Your guess is as good as mine! (I have no idea!)
6. It's a piece of cake! (It's very easy!)
7. No pain, no gain! (You have to put in effort to see results, normally when exercising.)
8. Let's call it a day! (Let's stop working now.)
9. It's not rocket science! (it's simple, not complicated.)
10. You're driving me around the bend! / You're getting on my nerves! (You're annoying me!)
Advice for learning Expressions
- Find a memorable image you can associate with its meaning
- Look up the origin as the story may help you memorize it
- Put it in a personalized example
- Put it in a contexualized example you find when reading articles/ watching series etc...
Don't forget, as always, take advantage of your private classes to ask your teacher about how these expressions are really used. They can give you other examples that us English native speakers use in our day-to-day lives.