Show up and showdown
Up is the opposite of down but show up is not the opposite of showdown. They are two different things entirely. First “show up”. Notice that this consists of two separate words. It is...
Graham's Grammar Posts
Life and Soul of the Party
In British English we often talk about someone being the “life and soul of the party”. The American English equivalent is “life of the party”. We use the phrase to refer to people who...
Inherent or inherited?
Inherent or inherited? Inherent and inherited are similar words with different meanings. You could easily confuse them, so this might help you to learn the difference. We use “inherent” when we talk about a...
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...
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...