Culips Everyday English Podcast

Of course we all need to push some buttons to turn on a computer or our MP3 players. But to push someone’s buttons has a very different meaning from that literal meaning. In fact, it’s usually not a good idea to push someone’s buttons! In this episode, we look at three expressions, to push buttons,Read More

If you want to tell someone to keep something a secret or promise to keep a secret for someone else you can use this expression: mum’s the word. At first it seems like a strange expression…mum is the word? Weird. But you will see it is not so complicated when we explain the possible originRead More

Eliza from China emailed to ask us about Wedding Anniversaries. Here we talk about different ways to wish someone a happy anniversary, what couples do on their anniversaries and the special names of some anniversaries. If you’re married or not, listen below. Copyright: Audio/Study Guide: Culips

Are you healthy? Or are you coming down with something? Have you been sick for a few days and feeling under the weather? Or maybe you are lucky and are getting over it? In this episode we look at some casual expressions to talk about being sick, from the beginning of your cold to theRead More

If you are single and looking for a partner, then you are looking to hit it off with someone. You can also hit it off with a new friend, a new boss or colleague, or any new person in your life. We also look at the similar expressions, to get along and to have chemistry.Read More

Many different languages around the world have this expression. Do you have this expression in your language? Listen to this episode about There are plenty of fish in the sea and see if you recognize a similar expression in your native language. Hint: This expression is often used when talking about relationships that didn’t workRead More

Sometimes English pronunciation is very difficult. Sometimes we spell words quite differently from how they sound. This happens often because the word originally comes from another language. This is the case with the silent P that comes at the beginning of some words. (As we don’t hear the P when we speak, this could beRead More

Sometimes we don’t want to be rude and so we need to tell a little white lie. Other times it may be important to be completely honest, and this is called brutal honesty. When is it OK to tell a white lie and when is it necessary to be brutally honest? Harp and Maura discussRead More

Sometimes studying another language is really hard. We wish we could just get it over with and speak the language well. That is today’s expression to get something over with. We usually use this expression when we have an obligation to do something that we don’t want to do. We use the examples of homeworkRead More

The expression rain check in this episode has a few different meanings. The first one is described in the transcript below. And of course is connected to rain. Another kind of rain check is used in a story. And another one is used when people cancel plans. Get to know all the explanations by listeningRead More

Sometimes it is not easy to get what we want. What we want could be a job or tickets to a really popular show. In these cases, sometimes we can pull strings to get what we want. When people pull some strings, they use power to get what they want. Is it fair to pullRead More

Harp recently went on a trip to India with her family. Have you ever been to India? Harp tells us about the weather and the food. She also tells us about shopping in India, because this was a shopping trip with Harp’s two sisters and mom! Expressions included in the Study Guide Out of nowhereRead More

The expression when pigs fly is used when people talk about something they would never do, or some event that would never happen. It is a very old expression, and no one knows why we talk about pigs! We can also use the similar expression, when hell freezes over. Check out the examples in thisRead More

Are you holding a grudge against someone? Have you been mad at someone for a week? A year? 10 years? We hope not! To hold a grudge is not a good thing and means that you are mad for a long time. It is much nicer to be happy! Listen to this fun episode toRead More

Oh Sweetheart! Sweetheart is one of the most popular terms people use to show someone they care about them. Every language has special names to use when speaking to the one you love. In English we have tons of names like this. This episode Maura and Robin explain some of these dear names, and whenRead More