Phrase Mix 10, early VS soon, renovate decorate, refurbish, furnish, touch up.

1. Is there anything else I can help you with today? You are at a bank. You just deposited some money into your account, and now the bank teller wants to make sure that you're finished with everything you needed to do. He asks you this. This is a set phrase that bank tellers, customer service representatives, and other workers that deal with customers say when you're finished with your conversation. It sounds very polite and formal. It's a way to make sure that the customer doesn't have any more questions. I went to see a talk last night. You went to a talk given by a writer last night at a community center in your neighborhood. Your coworker asks you what you did last night and you tell her about the event. You answer them like this. see a talk "A talk" is an event where an author, a researcher, an expert, or some other person speaks to a large audience. It's similar to a "speech", but a speech is more associated with politics, debating issues, or formal ceremonies. A "talk" is for explaining interesting ideas to people. You "see" a talk or other performance. Some other things that you can "see" include: see a dance performance, see a play, see a concert. On the other hand, for TV and movies it's more common to say that you "watch a movie" or "watch TV". Are you getting a refund? You are talking on the phone to you brother. He says that he just finished doing his taxes. You are curious to hear whether he's getting money back or will have to pay extra. You say this. get a refund This means to get back money that you paid. You can get a refund for something that you bought at a store when you return the item: I took those jeans back and got a refund. Or you can get a tax refund like in the example above. You pay money for taxes to the government from each paycheck. At the end of the year, when you figure out the exact amount of tax you're supposed to pay, you may find out that you paid too much. In that case, you get a refund. So have you done your taxes yet? The deadline for filing your tax return is April 15. Today is April 11, but you have been procrastinating 拖拖拉拉 and haven't sent yours in yet. So you've been thinking about taxes all weekend. You run into your neighbor and make small talk with her. This is one of the questions you ask her. do (one's) taxes In the U.S., money is usually taken out of your paycheck to pay for taxes. But once a year, you have to calculate the exact amount of tax you owe, and fill out paperwork to send to the IRS, which is a government agency that's in charge of taxes. Calculating your tax and filling out the paperwork is called "doing your taxes". 2. I was originally hired as an engineer, but I wound up in sales. You're giving a speech about something related to your job. You want to introduce your work history quickly so that the audience will understand why you're qualified to talk about this topic. Your history is that you were an engineer when you started working for your company, but now you are a salesperson. You explain this quickly by saying this. (someone) was hired as a (job title) To be "hired" means to get a job. Here are some of the phrases that you can make with the word "hired" You tell who got the job this way: "she was hired". You tell what person or company gave the person a job this way: "hired by XYZ Corporation". You tell the job title that the person got in this way: "hired as the V.P. of sales". (something) winds up (adjective / verb) The way something "winds up" is the way that it is in the end. We met in a bar in Mexico, kept in touch over email, and wound up getting married a few years later. You usually use "___ wound up ___" when there are a lot of details to the story that you want to skip over because they're not important and take too long to tell. (someone) is in (a field) You tell what field or industry you work in by saying that you are "in" that field or industry: I'm in accounting. Here are some examples of different fields that you can be "in": education (teachers, school principals), entertainment (actors, musicians, directors), software (programmers, testers, etc.), marketing (marketers for any company), sales (salespeople), hospitality (working in a hotel or on a cruise), accounting (accountants). At this point, I don't think there's much we can do about it. You are almost finished with a major project at work when a coworker from another department points out a problem with the original plans for the project. You agree that this is a problem, but in order to fix it you would have to go back and start over from the beginning. You don't want to do that, so this is what you tell him. at this point "At this point" means "now". But you use "at this point" when it's too late or too early for something: At this point the library is probably already closed. (too late) A this point, all I know is that we're meeting some time on Saturday. (too early). So when you use "at this point" it means "now" but also suggests that now is a bad time for whatever situation you're describing. there's (nothing / not much) (someone) can do When someone is asking for help, but you can't help them (or don't want to help them), you use the phrase "there's nothing I can do". Using this phrase makes it sound like you don't have any control over the decision to help or not help them. For example, if you are following a set of rules or if it's too late to make changes, you can say that "there's not much I can do about that". I'm keeping my options open. You're a first-year college student and you haven't decided on your major (your area of study) yet. You are talking to a professor who asks what your major is. You want to tell her that you haven't decided yet, but you want it to sound like a positive thing. keep (one's) options open To "keep your options open" means not to decide on something, so that you don't restrict yourself. It means to stay undecided so that you can still choose freely later on. A: Have you decided what you're going to study yet? B: No, I'm still keeping my options open. "Keeping your options open" is usually thought of as a positive thing. 3. Sorry, I've kind of been in my own little world lately. Your wife is angry at you because you aren't paying enough attention to her. You're always focused on work and don't spend time with her. You say this to apologize for not paying attention to her. be in (one's) own world This means to be focused only on your own thoughts, and to not pay attention to other people or events. This phrase is a metaphor. It's comparing your thoughts to being on a planet with no other people. You can add "little" to this phrase to make the thoughts you're having "in your own world" sound unimportant and selfish. I wish you'd told me sooner. Your department is working on a long-term project that is supposed to be completed two days from now. One of your employees comes to your office to tell you that there is a problem, and he thinks the project will be delayed an extra 3 or 4 days. Angrily, you say this because you think that someone should have warned you of the delay before this point. I wish (something) had (happened) This phrase is used as a polite way to complain to someone about the way that something happened in the past. "I wish" is a way to talk about the things that you want but aren't possible or likely. When you use "I wish" to talk about things that have already happened, you are saying the way that you would like to change the past: I wish Aiden had asked me before buying it. I wish you'd called me first. A similar way to criticize someone's actions or decisions is "Why didn't you ___?": Why didn't you tell me sooner? "I wish you'd ___" is more polite-sounding, but at the same time more disappointed and critical-sounding than "Why didn't you ___?" (do something) soon "Soon" and "early" are similar, but they measure time from different points. "Soon" measures the time after something. That can be after now: I'm leaving soon. Or it can be after a point in the past, like the point when the employee noticed that there would be a problem: Why didn't you tell me about this sooner? "Early" measures the time before something, like before now or before the time when something is going to start: Let's go. I want to get there early. 4. Have you noticed that Lisa's been acting a little strange lately? You are having lunch with a coworker. You saw another coworker, Lisa, yesterday and earlier today. She usually looks busy and stressed out, but yesterday and today she looked quite happy and relaxed. You wonder if your coworker also saw this. You ask this to her. (be) acting strange When a person is "acting strange" it means that they are acting differently than they normally do. People often say this about someone when they think that the person has a secret that they are hiding. That's not necessarily true. You're debating with your friend over weight loss methods. Your friend says that if you exercise 4 or 5 times per week, you'll definitely lose weight. You think that that's usually true, but you can also remember some examples of people you knew who exercised a lot but didn't lose weight, so you say this. not necessarily (adjective) 不一定是 Use the phrase "not necessarily" to show that you don't think something is completely true, although it may be true in most cases or for most of the time. For example: Larger fighters are not necessarily stronger. ... means that larger fighters are usually stronger, but sometimes they aren't. When someone says something you don't think is completely correct, you can also just reply "Not necessarily": A: It's always more expensive to fly on the weekend than on weekdays. B: Not necessarily. "Not necessarily" is a pretty safe and polite way to disagree with someone. People use this phrase when debating things at work, at school, when discussing politics with friends, and so on. You should always submit a cover letter, even if they don't ask for one. You're sending an email to a younger person who's applying for her first job out of college. She asked you if you think it's important to include a cover letter when she applies for jobs. You do think it's important, so this is what you write. submit (something) When you "submit" an application, a homework assignment, or some other official document, it means that you give it to the person or organization who has asked for it and who has authority over it. For example, you "submit" a job application to the company that might hire you. The word "submit" is a slightly formal word. In casual conversation, you can use the phrase "turn in (something) or "turn it in": Make sure to turn in your application by Friday. Are you going to be able to make the deadline? There is a school assignment due in two days. You are talking to your friend, who hasn't started working on the assignment. You are worried for your friend that she won't be able to finish it by the deadline. You ask her this. make a deadline To "make a deadline" means to finish something by or before it is due. People also use "meet a deadline" in the same way. When you use "make" it sounds like it was more difficult to finish on time. So you'd probably be more likely to see "make" in a sentence like this: I just barely made the deadline. And you'd see "meet" in a sentence like this: Aaron's usually pretty good about meeting his deadlines. I think you need to get your priorities straight. Your friend didn't go to his son's birthday party because he was working. You think that going to the party was more important than going to work. Angrily, you say this to your friend. get (one's) priorities straight 搞清孰轻孰重, 知道轻重缓急, 知道哪个优先, 知道哪个更重要 This phrase describes changing your priorities to place high value on the correct things. Your "priorities" are the things that you think are important. You can think of your priorities as a list, with the items at the top of the list being most important, the next items being less important, and the items at the bottom of the list being unimportant. Many people put their family at the top of this list, followed by friends, work, then things like their hobbies. If you act in a way that shows that your priorities match this ideal, people will say that you "have your priorities in order". If you show that you value something else, like money or fame, higher than your family and friends, people will say that you "need to get your priorities straight". Did you catch the last episode of Lost? You are in the break room at work and chatting with a coworker. You have spoken with this person before about how you both like the TV show Lost. You want to discuss what happened on the most recent show. You ask this. catch (a TV show) This is a casual way of describing watching a TV show. When you say "watch (a show)", it sounds neutral. When you say  "catch (a show)", it sounds as if the person wanted to watch it. You can also talk about "catching a show" when someone doesn't see all of it. For example: I caught the first few minutes of it, but then I had to leave. In addition to TV shows, you can "catch" things like: other people's conversations, live sporting events, concerts, songs on the radio. an episode of (a TV show) The word "TV show" can be confusing, because it can mean the entire continuing series, or just one 1-hour or 30-minute part of the series. The word "episode" is a more specific way to refer to and count the individual parts of a show. Here are some other specific words for TV shows: a season is one group of episodes that are shown in order around the same time. There's usually one season per year. a series is the entire show, from beginning to end. However, in Britain the word "series" is used to mean what we call a "season" in America. the premiere of a show is the first episode. Each series has a series premiere and each season has a season premiere. the finale is the last episode. Just like "premiere", there is a season finale, which is the last episode of a season. The series finale is the last episode of a TV show before it goes off the air. I'm in support of anything that generates new jobs 创造就业. A person you used to work with is volunteering for an organization. The organization is trying to change the law to allow foreigners to move to your country to start a business. You don't know much about this law, but you think that it might be good if foreigners start businesses in your country. You think that it might help to create new jobs, so you say this. be in support of (something) This phrase means to like an idea. It's usually used to talk about an action that people are debating on. For example, if people in the government are discussing whether to raise or lower taxes, you could say: I'm strongly in support of the idea of raising taxes if it means improving our education system. The phrase "in support of" is not really casual or formal, but it's usually used to talk about decisions so it's likely to be used in politics, classroom discussions, and in the news. generate jobs This means to create new jobs for the people of a country or region. "Generate" is a more specific word than "create", so it sounds more technical. If you want to sound smarter when discussing economics, you should use the word "generate". When you want to sound more casual and friendly when talking about the economy with your friends, use "create". Other words that fit with "generate" include: generate profits, generate interest, generate (electrical) power. You not only disobeyed me 违抗命令, 抗旨不尊, 不听话, you betrayed my trust. Your daughter wanted to go on an overnight trip with her friends to see a concert in another city. You told her she couldn't go, but she bought tickets to the concert anyway. On that day, she lied and said that she was studying late with her friend. When you find out about this, you are very angry. You yell this at her. disobey (someone) (obey an order/command/instruction: The commandos were used to obeying orders. obey the law/rules: Drivers are not obeying the new traffic laws.) This means to do something that your parents, teacher, or boss told you not to do. This phrase wouldn't be appropriate to use to describe something your friend, husband or wife, or parent did. You can only "disobey" someone if they have complete authority over you. betray (someone's) trust When someone trusts you, and you do something to hurt them, you have betrayed that person's trust. This phrase describes a very strong feeling, only used for very bad situations like this one: Sandra Bullock's husband betrayed her trust by cheating on her with another woman. 5. If only we'd just waited there, this never would have happened. You wanted to go to a certain restaurant, but the wait to get in was long. You put your name down on the waiting list, but your girlfriend wanted to see if the wait at another restaurant nearby was shorter. You went to the other restaurant, but they had an even longer wait. So you went back to the 1st restaurant, but you find out that they already passed you on the list 叫过了号 and you have to be added to the bottom of the list again. You say this because you wish you hadn't tried to leave. if (something had happened), (something) never would have happened This is a way of expressing regret or anger at how something was done. It's used when you think a mistake was made, but now it's too late to change it. The condition can be positive, as in the example at top, or negative like this: If you hadn't distracted me, the accident never would have happened. if only (someone) had (done something)... / if only (something) had (been a certain way)... "If only..." is a poetic-sounding phrase that's used to express something you wish had happened. It brings to mind an image of someone imagining how much better life would be if this imaginary event had happened. Because of its poetic tone, "if only" is not used when someone is really angry about how things happened. It's used in situations where you wish things had been different, but you accept that you can't change the past. This can be used to express what actions should have been differently, like in the example at top, or what conditions should have different: If only it hadn't rained, we could have cooked out on the grill. You can use this phrase by itself, without telling what the result would be: If only I'd listened to her.... Just a heads up - we're going to have to meet soon. You were in a meeting at work where you heard about a change in your work schedule. You're talking to an employee who wasn't at the meeting. You want to talk to her about the schedule change, but you're not ready to discuss it yet. You say this to her. just a heads up - This is a phrase that you say before warning someone of something. The phrase "Heads up!" comes from sports. You say this before throwing a ball to someone to let them know to raise their head and look for the ball, so they don't get hit. This phrase has spread to business and social situations as well, in the form "(this is) just a heads up". a change in the schedule Use "in" to express a schedule change: There's been a change in today's schedule. Come on! Did you have to bring that up? You're having a conversation with your mother and she mentions an embarrassing story about you. You wish she wouldn't tell that story, so you say this to her. bring up (a topic) This means to introduce a topic into the conversation, or to start talking about a topic. When you use "that", "it", "her" or other pronoun, the order is "bring ___ up". When you use a noun or longer phrase, use the order "bring up ___" I'm glad you brought that up. I don't know why she had to bring up the fact that we used to go out in front of all those people. People in a position of authority have a responsibility not to abuse that authority. You are writing an essay about your opinion on a scandal. The scandal involved a school principal who was spying on his students over the Internet. You want to say that it was wrong for this principal to spy on the students because of his position. You write this to say that it' also wrong for other people to do similar things. (someone) is in a position of authority A "position of authority" is a job or title that puts a person in control of other people. Some common positions of authority are: a boss or manager, a teacher, a political leader, a military leader, a doctor, a police officer. have a responsibilty to (do something) This means that you must do something because it is your job or your moral duty. You have to do this because people are relying on you: As a parent, don't you have a responsibility to keep your children safe and healthy? The example above uses the negative form: "a responsibility not to do something" abuse (one's) authority 滥用权力, 滥用权威 To "abuse" a power or a privilege means to use it to do bad, selfish things. In this case, it means to use your authority in ways that benefit you unfairly, or in ways that hurt other people. For example, here are some examples of people "abusing their authority": The admissions director for a university lets her nephew into the school, even though he didn't have good grades in high school. The head of a department makes his employees go out to get coffee for him in the morning. A junior high school soccer coach sometimes yells at the players until they cry. 6. If you promised them you'd be there, you'd really better follow through. Your husband was invited to meet his friends at a bar for drinks and told his friends that he would go. But now he doesn't want to go and is considering staying home instead. You think he should go because he told the friends that he would. You give him this advice on integrity. follow through (on a promise)(I. If you follow through an action, plan, or idea or follow through with it, you continue doing or thinking about it until you have done everything possible. The leadership has been unwilling to follow through the implications of these ideas. I was trained to be an actress but I didn't follow it through. The government needs to follow through with some very necessary reforms. He decided to follow through with his original plan. II. [intransitive] 完成动作. to continue the movement of your arm or leg after you have hit, kicked, or thrown a ball in a sport. to complete the movement of hitting, kicking, or throwing a ball by continuing to move your arm or leg in the same direction: You need to follow through more on your backhand. follow-through I. A follow-through is something that completes an action or a planned series of actions. The reality is that people's intentions are rarely matched by their follow-through. II. A follow-through is a movement that completes an action such as hitting a ball. In sports, a follow-through is the action of continuing a swinging motion of the arms or legs when making a play: My tennis instructor says I need to have a better follow-through on my backhand. Focus on making a short, firm follow-through. ) This means to do what you said you'd do, or do what you promised. You can express what you're following through by using "follow through on ___":  Are you going to follow through on your promise? You can express what the promise was using "(someone's) promise to ___"  I'm starting to think that she might not follow through on her promise to pay us back. Was this renovated recently? A real estate agent is showing you an apartment that you are considering renting. You ask him this because the building is old, but the apartment looks new. renovate 装修 (a building or structure) "Renovate" means to rebuild and make improvements to a building, a room, or other structure. It can only be used for buildings or structures, not for smaller things. Also, the changes that are made need to be major changes. For smaller changes, you could use words like "redecorate 重新装潢" (changing the curtains, re-painting, getting new lights, etc.) or "repair" (fixing something that's old or broken). refurbish [riːfɜːrbɪʃ] To refurbish a building or room means to clean it and decorate it and make it more attractive or better equipped. We have spent money on refurbishing the offices. This hotel has recently been completely refurbished. to make a building look new again by doing work such as painting, repairing, and cleaning: The developers refurbished the house inside and out. Refurbished iPhone 翻新的 means that the phone is not new but has been evaluated by Apple and any repairs that are necessary are performed to the unit and it is deemed 'like new'. The unit is completely returned to a factory fresh state. furnish I. If you furnish a room or building, you put furniture and furnishings into it. Many proprietors try to furnish their hotels with antiques. II. If you furnish someone with something, you provide or supply it. They'll be able to furnish you with the rest of the details. furnishings 家具饰品 The furnishings of a room or house are the furniture, curtains, carpets, and decorations such as pictures. touch up If you touch something up, you improve its appearance by covering up small marks with paint or another substance. to improve something by making small changes or additions: She touched up her lipstick and brushed her hair. We thought the photo had probably been touched up, because he looked so much younger in it. ...editing tools to help people touch up photos. The painting has yellowed 发黄的 but the gallery has resisted pressure to touch it up 修补一下, 修饰一下. to make a surface look better with small improvements Touch up the paint before you try and sell the house. software that lets you touch up your photos. a. to make your makeup look better by adding a little more. Ella was touching up her lipstick 补妆 in the mirror. So, I heard you're leaving us. A co-worker told you that another co-worker is leaving the company and taking a new job somewhere else. You want to talk to the person who's leaving to say goodbye. You start the conversation by saying this to her. 7. Is there any way I can convince you to reconsider 我要怎么才能说服你? You are a salesperson and one of your clients has told you that she's canceling her account and moving over to a competitor's product. You ask her this because you don't want to lose the business. convince (someone) to (do something) "Convince" means to make someone decide something based on what you say to them. You can use "convince" without "to". For example, the following can be said if it's already clear from the conversation what you have been convinced of: Use "to (do something)" to tell an action that the person was convinced to do. Use "that (clause)" to express that the person was convinced of an idea: Ed convinced me that the fastest way to get to New York was Highway 95. reconsider (something) 重新考虑, 再考虑考虑 "Reconsider" means to think about your decision again, and possibly change it. In the example sentence above, "reconsider" is used as an intransitive verb. But it's usually followed by a noun: Please reconsider my offer. In the example above, both the speaker and the listener understand what is being reconsidered, so it's left out of the sentence: Is there any way I can convince you to reconsider (cancelling your account)? I got yelled at 被吼了 for not calling. You're a teenager and you stayed out late the night before without calling your parents to tell them. They were angry and yelled at you. The next day at school, you tell your friends this. get ___ed For actions that other people do to you, you can use "got ___ed". Usually this structure suggests that the action was negative: I got yelled at. I got punished. He got thrown in jail. For positive actions, it's more common to use the "was ___ed" form: I was praised for my presentation to the board. When you use this structure, remember to include the words like "at" which go along with the verb. not (doing something) "Not doing" something is the opposite of "doing something". This is a good casual way of talking about something that you didn't do. More formal ways to describe it are "failing to (do something)" and "neglecting to (do something)."