The cool thing about languages is that they are always changing—obviously the English that Shakespeare spoke is not the same as the English we speak today! Every year we find new words in the English language, and many of them become popular with people your age and my age. Here are some expressions you might hear (some common ones and some that are “new”) and that you might like to use yourself.

Have a one-track mind: when you only think about one thing

Example: “Thomas only thinks about football, he has a one-track mind.»

Walk the walk: to act according to the words you say (some people say a lot but do not act the same way!)

Example: “Carly says that she really wants to go to university, but she never studies. She needs to walk the walk.»

A piece of cake: something that is really easy

Example: “That English exam was a piece of cake, I got a 10!»

FOMO: “Fear Of Missing Out”—when you go somewhere because you don’t want to miss anything fun.

Example: “It was so rainy this weekend and I wanted to stay home, but then my friends invited me to a party. I had FOMO so I ended up going.»

basic: someone who is very boring/plain/does everything that is popular at the moment that everyone else is doing it

Example: “Allyson is wearing her white Converse sneakers with jeans and a short shirt. She’s so basic.»

YOLO: “You Only Live Once”—an expression used to motivate us to do something, because life is short

Example: “I was super nervous to go skydiving, but hey—YOLO!»

babe: a name for a really attractive person, also a name we use for boyfriends/girlfriends

Example: “The actor from The Hunger Games is such a babe, I love him.»

busted: when you get in trouble

Example: “Stephanie had a party in her house when her parents were gone, but they came home early and were so mad. She was busted.»

geek: a name for someone who is a little strange and likes things that are less popular (stereotypically they do not have a lot of friends, do not dress well, and are very intelligent—look for Steve Urkel on Google and he is the perfect example!)

Example: “That kid over there with the huge glasses and white socks is always on the computer alone. He’s kind of a geek.”

Hope to hear some of these in class with me this week and next! 🙂

ANIMAL ONOMATOPOEIAS

     A funny question that I have sometimes heard from the youngest students is «Do dogs say ‘Guau’ in English?», or «How do dogs bark in English?». It may sound naive or childish but it is not so stupid to make that question as most people think.

     To begin with let me show you this illustration that provides the onomatopoeia used in many languages of the sound dogs make. This will show you that we are dealing with a cultural aspect radically different from one language to another. 

     It is funny to notice the amount of onomatopoeias that there are in English.  There are lots of words that imitate sounds and whose meanings are related to the sounds they evoke. Crash, crack, splash, zip, twank, boo, flip, knock, hiss, jingle, twinkle, boom, … and many more, are good examples.

      When it comes to animal sounds, and in spite of a few similarities, it is funny to notice how different animals sound in English, that is, how different the word used to reproduce the sound of an animal in English is from the one used in Spanish. This is a very interesting cultural aspect.

If a cow says «moo» in English, what does she say in Spanish? Mu, of course. But when we’re talking about sounds that animals make, it isn’t always that simple.

That shouldn’t be surprising — after all, in English words such as «bark,» «bow-wow,» «ruff-ruff» and «arf» are used to imitate the sound of a dog.

The following list shows the sounds made by various «Spanish-speaking» animals and the equivalent word or sound used by the «English-speaking» animals.

• abeja(bee):bzzz (zumbar)— buzz
• búho(owl):uu uu (ulular)— who, hoo, hoot
• burro(donkey):iii-aah (rebuznar)— heehaw
• caballo(horse):jiiiiiii, iiiiou (relinchar)— neigh, n-a-a-a-y
• cabra(goat):bee bee (balar)—baa, b-a-a-a-a
• cerdo(pig):oink-oink, oinc-oinc (gruñir)— oink
• gallina(hen):coc co co coc (cacarear), kara-kara-kara-kara— cluck
• gallo(rooster):kikirikí, ki-kiri-ki (cantar)— cock-a-doodle-doo
• gato(cat):miau (maullar)— meow
• león(lion):grrrr, grgrgr (rugir)— roar, growl
• oveja(sheep):bee, mee (balar)— baa, b-a-a-a-h
• paloma(dove):cu-curru-cu-cú (arrullar))— coo
• pato(duck):cuac cuac— quack
• pavo(turkey):gluglú— gobble
• perro(dog):guau guau, guau (ladrar)— bark, bow-wow, arf, ruff
• pollito(chick):pío pío— chirp, tweet (That’s why Tweety is Piolín in Spanish)
• rana(frog):cruá cruá, berp, croac (croar)— ribbit, croak
• vaca(cow):mu, muuu (mugir)— moo
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