TODAY'S IDIOM: KEEP IT UNDER YOUR HAT

"KEEP IT UNDER YOUR HAT"

If someone tells you a secret and you keep it under your hat, you don't tell anyone.

Example: Aunt Biddy said she couldn't possibly tell me the family secrets because she'd pledged on her mother's grave to keep them under her hat. 

Mantenerlo en secreto.

Example sentences:

• I'll only tell you if you promise to keep it under your hat / Solo te lo diré si me prometes que mantendrás el secreto.

• I agreed to keep it under my hat and never tell anyone / Yo acordé en manterlo en secreto y nunca decírselo a nadie.

Additional examples:

• Keep this under your hat, but I'm getting married.  

• I've got some interesting news, but you must promise to keep it under your hat for the moment.

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TODAY'S IDIOM: GO OVER YOUR HEAD

"GO OVER YOUR HEAD"

If someone goes over your head, they go to someone with more authority than you in order to get something that you would normally grant, possibly because they think you won't give it to them.

Example:

I wouldn't go over her head if I were you. It'll make her angry, and next time you ask her for something she might say no.

Pasar por encima de mi cabeza.

Example sentences:

• If someone decides to go over your head to get something, they could go to your boss / Si alguien decide pasar por encima de tu cabeza para obtener algo, podría ser tu jefe.

• He knew I wouldn't give him time off, so he went over my head and asked my boss / Él sabía que yo no le daría tiempo libre, así que pasó por encima de mi cabeza y le preguntó a mi jefe.

Additional examples:

• I really don't want to go over her head but if she won't listen to me I have no choice.

• I would occasionally go over my manager's head to complain to the top financial officer. 

   

   

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TODAY'S IDIOM: AT YOUR WITS' END

"AT YOUR WITS' END"

If you're at your wits' end, you're upset and frustrated because you've tried everything you can think of to solve a problem, and nothing has worked.

Example: I'm at my wits' end! I've been trying to solve a problem with some software all morning and I still haven't got it to work!

Desesperado.

Example sentences:

• Kelvin says he's been trying to get tickets for the game all day, but he's at his wits' end. Nobody's got any left / Kelvin dice que ha estado tratando de conseguir entradas para el juego durante todo el día, pero ya se desesperó, nadie le echa una mano.

• I'm at my wit's end with this problem. I cannot figure it out / Ya me desesperó este problema. No puedo entenderlo.

• Tom could do no more. He was at his wit's end / Tom no podía hacer más. Estaba desesperado.

Additional examples:

• If someone's at their wits' end, they probably feel quite unhappy.

• I have a problem that has me at wit's end, and I'm hoping you can help.

El blog "La cultura del Inglés" es patrocinado por:

www.laculturadelingles.com 

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TODAY'S IDIOM: OUT-OF-DATE

"OUT-OF-DATE"

Something is out-of-date if it is old and therefore no longer useful or no longer accurate. 

Example: I didn't know the timetable was out-of-date. I got it off the internet so I thought it'd be new, not an old one from the 1990's.

Pasado de moda / Vencido / Viejo

Example sentences:

• Don't waste money on old textbooks because they could be out-of-date and the information might no longer be correct / No desperdicies dinero en libros viejos que podrían estar pasados de moda y la información podría no ser correcta.

• The map we had was out-of-date, so we had trouble finding our way / El mapa que tenemos está viejo, así que tuvimos problemas al encontrar nuestro camino.

Additional examples:

• The 70's style couch is out of date.

• That program had been updated; your version is out of date.

• The milk expired two weeks ago and is thus out of date.

El blog "La cultura del Inglés" es patrocinado por: 

www.laculturadelingles.com 

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TODAY'S IDIOM: JUST MY LUCK

"JUST MY LUCK"

You can say "Just my luck!" when something goes wrong for you, or when something inconvenient happens. 

Example: A police car behind him started wailing and flashing its lights. After a lop-sided smile and a quick look to the heavens, Kenny said, "Just my luck!"

¡Que suerte la mía!

Example sentences:

• Just as Leon got to the park for his run, it started to rain. "Just my luck!" he said / Justo cuando Leon llegó al parque a correr, comenzó a llover. "¡Que suerte la mía!, dijo.

• Jeremy smiled and said "Just my luck!" when the traffic lights turned red and he had to stop / Jeremy sonrió y dijo "¡Que suerte la mía! cuando el semáforo se puso en rojo y se tuvo que detener.

Additional examples:

• So he left five minutes before I got here, did he? Just my luck!

• They sold the last ticket five minutes before I got there, just my luck!

 

El blog "La cultura del Inglés" es patrocinado por:

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TODAY'S IDIOM: VIS-A-VIS

"VIS-A-VIS"

You can say vis-a-vis instead of saying "in relation to".

Example: Here's the data I was telling you about vis-a-vis our customers' age groups and income brackets.

En relación a...

Example setences:

• Did you get my memo on the new laws vis-a-vis gay marriage? / ¿Te llegó el memo con la nueva ley en relación al matrimonio gay?

• Stanley was looking for information on council regulations vis-a-vis property taxes / Stanley estaba buscando información sobre los reglamentos del consejo en relación a los impuestos de propiedad.

Additional examples:

• Can I talk to you vis-a-vis the arrangements for Thursday's meeting?

• The current strength of the dollar vis-a-vis other currencies makes it hard selling American products overseas.

 

 

 

El blog "La cultura del Inglés" es patrocinado por:

www.laculturadelingles.com 

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