1. go back
   Intransitive
   Meaning: return to a place
   Example: When do you go back to Brazil?

Remember the difference between “come” and “go” depends on whom you’re talking to.  If you are speaking with the people you are leaving, use “go.”  If you are speaking with the people you are joining, use “come.”

For example, my family lives in New York, but here I am in Ecuador.  When speaking to my family I might say, “Mom, Dad, I am coming back to NY for Christmas!”  But when I am speaking to my friends in Ecuador I might say, “Amigos, I am going back to NY for Christmas.”

• The world’s most widely spoken languages by number of native speakers and as a second language, according to figures from UNESCO are: Mandarin Chinese, English, Spanish, Hindi, Arabic, Bengali, Russian, Portuguese, Japanese, German and French.

• There are actually more non-native speakers of English than native speakers in our world today.

• Of all the languages in the world, English has the largest vocabulary about 800,000 words.

Can you read this?

Aoccdrnig to rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn’t mttaer in waht oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsat ltteer be in the rghit pclae… Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.

Pretty cool, right?

1. eat out
   Intransitive
   Meaning: eat at a restaurant
   Example: I don’t feel like cooking tonight.  How about we eat out?

Did you know that most Americans eat out 4-5 times a week?   How often do you eat out?   Do you like to cook?  Share your favorite recipe!

My favorite recipe:

Ingredients
Rice or Quinoa
1 can black beans or pre-cooked beans
Chicken
Peppers
Onions
Garlic salt seasoning
Salt
Pepper
Olive oil
Sriracha chili sauce
Chorizo (optional)

1. Cook 1 cup of rice in rice cooker (2 cups water per 1 cup rice)
2. Cut up 2 peppers and ¼ onion into long, thin slices, cut up 1-2 chicken breasts into cubes
3. Put a teaspoon of olive oil in pan.
4. Place peppers in pan—coat with olive oil and season with salt and pepper—simmer on low heat for 10 minutes
5. Put a teaspoon of olive oil in separate pan—add chicken and season with garlic salt— Add chorizo (optional)—Cook for 10 minutes or until chicken is browned.
6. Add beans to chicken—heat for 1-2 minutes
7. Add ingredients together and serve!  Mmm!

It takes two to tango: If two people were involved in a bad situation, both must be a little responsible.

Variety is the spice of life: You should try many different kinds of experiences, because trying different things keeps life interesting.

Every cloud has a silver lining: All ‘bad’ things come with some ‘good’ attached to them

People who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones:  You should not criticize other people for having the same faults that you have.

Burn your bridges: To cutoff the way back to where you came from, making it impossible to retreat

Burning the midnight oil: Working late into the evening or through the night.

Water under the bridge: Something that belongs to the past and isn’t important or troubling any more.

Wear your heart on your sleeve: To display one’s feelings openly, rather than keep them private.

What goes around, comes around: Whatever you do in this life to other people, whether it is good or bad, the same will eventually return to you.

Two’s company, three’s a crowd: A way of asking a third person to leave because you want to be alone with someone.

1. sleep over
   Intransitive
   Meaning: stay somewhere for the night (intransitive)
   Example: You should sleep over tonight.  I don’t want you to drive in this weather!

My dad works for an airline, so because of that I fly stand-by, which means that I never have a confirmed seat on a flight.  I often go to the airport, and wait around all day until there is an empty seat on a flight.  As a result, there have been many times when I’ve had to sleep over at the airport.  I’m lucky that I can fall asleep easily!

1. sink in
   Intransitive
   Meaning: to be fully understood
   Example: I have to look over my notes and let everything sink in.

Did you know that the easier it is for you to pronounce a new English word, the quicker the word sinks into your vocabulary?  Does it take you a long time to learn a new word?  I hope that this phrasal verb sinks in!

Meet John!

John is a native English speaker from Texas with four years of experience teaching English in Thailand and Ecuador.  He has a degree in Sociology and Spanish, and loves hiking, the outdoors and Muay Thai.