Speak English to Speak English

Sunday, 6 September 2026

If an English Scholar and a layman meet…

Scholar: What’s up? (What is happening?)

Layman: The tree! 😳

Scholar: You're pulling my leg!

(You're joking with me!)

Layman: No! I never touched your leg. You’re lying.

Scholar: Ok. Ok. Keep your shirt on!

(Stay calm; don’t get angry.)

Layman: I’m not taking my shirt off. Are you mad?

Scholar: Don’t you know any idiom? Use your head. (Think carefully.)

Layman: Yes I’m using my head. Not an idiot as you said.

Scholar: You’re a tough nut to crack!

(You’re difficult to understand or convince.)

Layman: I am NOT a nut! And please don’t crack me!

Scholar: Hold your horses!

(Wait / calm down!)

Layman: Stupid! I don’t really have any horses! 🐴

Scholar: Oh My God! Why don’t you understand any idiom. It’s just a piece of cake. (Easy to understand).

Layman: I love cake. But just one piece? No problem. Let me adjust. By the by, Where is the cake you are talking about?

Scholar: Look here. First lend me your ears. (Listen to me.)

Layman: No, I can’t. I need both.

Scholar: You’re driving me up the wall!

(You’re making me extremely annoyed.)

Layman: No wall here. I'm sure. You are mad.

Scholar: Now, I had to bite the bullet (force myself to face a difficult situation)

Layman: No. Don’t do it. Your brain is likely to blast.

Scholar: Oh My God. I'm really under the weather (feeling sick).

Layman: Yes. Above us, it’s so cloudy now.

Scholar: Oh..You are making me run around like a headless chicken (acting in a hyperactive, disorganized way)

Layman: I only saved your head from biting the bullets. Now you say, you are a headless chicken and I’m the reason. Again you are lying.

Scholar: See, pipe down(stop talking).

Layman. See, no pipe is down here. You can’t make me a fool.

Scholar: Please, give me some space.( stop bothering me)

Layman: Already, there is two feet 3 feet distance between us.

Scholar: Go jump in a lake.(Go away)

Layman: Come on. Why can’t we both enjoy swimming there?

(Scholar started running away from the scene)

Wednesday, 2 September 2026

Let them cook or touch some grass -Modern English Expressions

Here are two modern English expressions for your daily use:

1. Let them cook

The phrase has nothing to do with preparing food. "Cooking" is a metaphor for working on a plan, being creative, or showing skill.

It tells others not to disturb, and let a person finish their work because they are doing a good job.

Variations: You can also say "let him cook," "let her cook," or "let that boy cook".

Examples:

a) Don't interrupt her. She is actually doing good. Let her cook.

b) He is doing his best. Let him cook. Don't disturb him.

c) (in sports) He is funding his rhythm and scoring in his own way. Let him cook.

2. Touch some grass

It means to step away from the computer or phone, go outside, and reconnect with the real world.

Examples:

a) Mother: you are always playing games or busy with shorts. Go and touch some grass.

b) Why are you arguing with strangers in comment sections for hours? It's a clear sign, you need to touch some grass.

Wednesday, 12 February 2025

Today's English: Are you happy or joyful?

When things go wrong, you are sad whereas when things go right as you wish, you are happy. When you get the expected promotion, you are happy; if you don't, you feel sad. Here you cannot use joyful. Happy is connected with expected one but joyful is with unexpected moments.
When you miss something or somebody, you are sad. When you find them again, you are happy. When you lose in business or in game, you are sad. When you gain in business or win in game, you are happy. Here you don't use joyful.
When you want to say, how you felt or how you would feel in a particular period of time, you use happy. e.g. happy childhood days, happy school days, happy marriage and the like. But joyful is connected with moments and occasions. When you go on tour, you catch the joyful moments. Your college annual day is a special occasion when you clap and dance. Here you are joyful that shows higher level of happiness.
Happiness is feeling good or feeling better about something but joyfulness is being moved in heart, feeling excited, especially as a response to something. Songs of the bird, gentle kiss of the wind and lovely touch of the buds on your cheeks can make you joyful at that moment. They don't just make you happy.
But both happy and joyful are just two different feelings of the soul, varying in degree. Are you happy now? Or joyful?