School Dropouts
Friends talk about dropping out of school. The English Grammar focus is on Transitive Verbs.
Naji: “I think I’ll skip my classes this week.”
Grover: “You’ll fall too far behind.”
Naji: “Nah, I don’t think it will matter.”
Grover: “How can you say that? You missed some days last week too.”
Naji: “I’m sick of school, to be honest.”
Grover: “Get sick on the break. It’s too early to lose heart now.”
Naji: “I know, but I can’t last for six more weeks.”
Grover: “Drink some strong coffee and get back to work! You can throw in the towel later.”
Naji: “Okay, you win. Let’s go to Starbucks.”
VOCABULARY WITH IDIOMS
Fall behind is a phrasal verb which means to lag behind, to fail to keep up a pace. See online Idioms Dictionary.
Lose heart means to lose one’s courage or confidence. See online Idioms Dictionary.
Get back means to return (to some previous location). See online Idioms Dictionary.
Throw in the towel means to give up, to quit or abandon something, to admit defeat or failure. See online Idioms Dictionary.
ENGLISH GRAMMAR
Suggested Topic for Comments: Transitive Verbs
“Okay, you win.” The English language is known to be an S-V-O (Subject-Verb-Object) language but Intransitive Verbs do not take objects the way Transitive Verbs do. In this sentence, “win” is an Intransitive Verb and does not require an object.
INTERMEDIATE-ADVANCED DIALOGUE
New Idioms are “Flunk out” and “Cry in your beer.” The English Grammar focus is on linking Adverbs.
Bea: “I flunked that business class. Next, I’ll flunk out of school altogether.”
Janine: “What are you talking about? They know you were sick.”
Bea: “I didn’t contact everyone I was supposed to. I was supposed to get an incomplete in that class, not an ‘F.’ “
Janine: “What about your art class?”
Bea: “That was fine, the teacher and I went out for drinks when I got my diagnosis and she knew the whole story. But I forgot to file the form for the other class.”
Janine: “I’m sure you can fix that, no problem.”
Bea: “Now I see all these healthy girls and clean-cut boys running around confidently in school and I feel like a loser.”
Janine: “You’ll be okay, you just have to tell admin what happened.”
Bea: “For all I know, these radiation treatments are going to make me a total zombie for a year or something.”
Janine: “Go cry in your beer.”
Bea: “That’s really sensitive, thanks.”
Janine: “I told you, just file the form and go out with me this evening and we can cry together. It just looks bad because you’re too young for this.”
Bea: “That’s a little better. Okay, well, not sure whether young or old matters.”
Janine: “True, this sucks no matter where you are in life, but you have what it takes to get through it. I know you do, you’ll be fine.”
VOCABULARY WITH IDIOMS
Flunk out means to leave school or a course because of failure. See online Idioms Dictionary.
Clean-cut means neatly groomed. See online Idioms Dictionary.
For all I know means one is uncertain or has limited details about something. See online Idioms Dictionary.
Cry in one’s beer means to feel sorry for oneself, to bemoan one’s fate or life. See online Idioms Dictionary.
Have what it takes means to have the necessary qualities or attributes for success. See online Idioms Dictionary.
ENGLISH GRAMMAR
Suggested Topic for Comments: Adverbs
“I flunked that business class. Next, I’ll flunk out of school altogether.” The word “next” is versatile in its uses as a preposition, adjective or adverb, or even pronoun. Here it is a linking adverb like then, first, eventually, etc. This group of adverbs can have many functions, but here “next” has a sequential function in the text. An adverb that has a simultaneous function is “meanwhile,” and one with a transitional function is “incidentally.”
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