Treadmill

This is a treadmill. (tread+mill)

tread: a synonym of walk

mill: a machine used for grinding or crushing/steel roller used for impressions

Interesting fact: Treadmills were used as punishment in British prisons in the early 1800s.

The word treadmill, originally a type of mill operated by a person treading steps of a wheel to grind grain, now designates a piece of indoor sporting equipment for running without moving any distance. (wikipedia)

Rain Check

If you go to a waterpark and it starts to rain, they will usually give you a rain check. It's a free pass to come again at a later time (when it's not raining).

"This term comes from baseball, where in the 1880s it became the practice to offer paying spectators a rain check entitling them to future admission for a game that was postponed or ended early owing to bad weather." -urbandictionary.com

Also, if you go to a store and want to buy a sale item that is out of stock, you can request a rain check to buy it in the future for the same price.

In everyday English, it is something that you say when you cannot accept someone's invitation to do something but you would like to do it another time. For example:

I can't go to the movie tonight, but I'll take a rain check, if that's all right.

I won't play tennis this afternoon but can I take a rain check?

I can't come to dinner Tuesday but I hope you'll give me a rain check.

My Word of the Year: Pavo Real

Royal Turkey?

NO.

Pea Cock?

YES!

Pavo Real = PEACOCK!

Back to the Basics

When putting Math into words, we use the following:

Sizes and measurements: 4 x 6 reads "4 BY 6."

This is a "4 by 6" picture frame:

Multiplication: 1 x 4 = 4 reads "1 TIMES 4 EQUALS 4."

"When I was little, I could never remember 9 times 8."

Teen and Ty

On Monday we were talking about prices in restaurants.

Clara was talking about a place she went to in Palermo and said, "The place was really casual. A liter of beer was 50 pesos."

"50 pesos!?!" said Eugiene and Allison.

"Yes, 50 pesos," Clara said. "Why, do you think that's expensive?"

"Yeah, it's really expensive!" Eugiene and Allison agreed.

"What do you think is cheap for a liter of beer in a restaurant?" added Vicky.

"15 pesos," Allison said.

"That's what I said!!!!" replied Clara.

"No, you said 50," argued Eugiene.

So, what was the problem? The pronunciation of FIFty (50) vs. fifTEEN (15).

The stress of (50) is on the first syllable: FIF-ty.

The stress of (15) is on the the second syllable: fif-TEEN.

Common Mistake #1

I am agree. NO.

I agree. YES!

I am not agree. NO.

I disagree. YES!

Agree and disagree are verbs, not adjectives.

Triubute to the Chilean Miners

Yesterday, I couldn't remember the word derrumbe in English. Juan and Gustavo stared at me as my brain just worked and worked and worked, but the word didn't come.

We were discussing the Chilean Mining accident, and the word would be collapse, better expressed by the New York Times and other sources as a collapsed mine shaft.

Knowing that they have started to rescue the miners is wonderful news!

From the NYTimes:
Mario Sepúlveda, the second miner to be rescued and the narrator of the much-watched video that took viewers on a tour of the underground quarters, told Chilean journalists, "God and the devil fought over me, and God won."


For more news in English, click here.