Bonfire Night
People in the United Kingdom celebrate Bonfire Night on 5th November each year. Other names for Bonfiore Night are Guy Fawkes Night or Fireworks Night. The story of Bonfire Night starts in the year...
Category: Usage
Less or fewer?
Less or fewer? “Less” and “fewer” are used in different ways from each other but many people – especially native speakers of English – get them mixed up. Both words are comparative adjectives and...
The proof is in the pudding
“The proof is in the pudding” is an English idiom. At first sight it doesn’t make much sense. When a pudding has jam in it, it’s a jam pudding. When a pudding has steak...
Me and My Shadow
“Me and My Shadow” is a popular song, written nearly a hundred years ago and recorded countless times since then. It is about being lonely – the only company the singer has is his...
“Approve” or “approve of”?
“Approve” can mean something different from “approve of”. “Approve” changes its meaning depending on whether or not we follow it with “of”. We use approve without “of” to show that someone agrees to –...
Out of order
When we say that something is out of order, we might mean that it isn’t working properly and can therefore not be used. Some examples: Similar expressions include: We also use “out of order”...
Don’t Count Your Chickens
“Don’t count your chickens” is a shortened version of “Don’t count your chickens before they’re hatched”. It is an English proverb that has been used for over 500 years. In fact, though, its first...
You can’t make an omelette without breaking eggs
When we say that you can’t make an omelette without breaking eggs we mean that it’s impossible to do something good without damaging something else. It’s an idiom that we often use – sometimes...
Bee in your bonnet
We say that someone has a bee in their bonnet when they can’t stop talking or thinking about something. This might be because they are worried or angry about it. Or it might be...