Latest news with #WordsandTheirStories
Voice of America
09-03-2025
- General
- Voice of America
Green Means Spring and Other Things
Now, the VOA Learning English program Words and Their Stories. Today we talk about a color found all throughout nature – green! Green is also very common in American English. Let's hear Warren Scheer read a story about these colorful expressions! Green is an important color in nature. It is the color of grass and the leaves on trees. It is also the color of most growing plants. Sometimes, the word green means young, fresh and growing. Sometimes, it describes something that is not yet ripe or finished. For example, a greenhorn is someone who has no experience, who is new to a situation. In the fifteenth century, a greenhorn was a young cow or ox whose horns had not yet developed. A century or so later, a greenhorn was a soldier who had not yet had any experience in battle. By the eighteenth century, a greenhorn had the meaning it has today - a person who is new in a job. About one hundred years ago, greenhorn was a popular expression in the American west. Old-timers used it to describe a man who had just arrived from one of the big cities back east. The greenhorn lacked the skills he would need to live in the hard, rough country. Someone who has the ability to grow plants well is said to have a green thumb. The expression comes from the early 1900s. A person with a green thumb seems to have a magic touch that makes plants grow quickly and well. You might say that the woman next door has a green thumb if her garden continues to grow long after your plants have died. The Green Revolution is the name given some years ago to the development of new kinds of rice and other grains. The new plants produced much larger crops. The Green Revolution was the result of hard work by agricultural scientists who had green thumbs. Green is also the color used to describe the powerful emotion, jealousy. The green-eyed monster is not a frightening creature from outer space. It is an expression used about four hundred years ago by British writer William Shakespeare in his play "Othello." It describes the unpleasant feeling a person has when someone has something he wants. A young man may suffer from the green-eyed monster if his girlfriend begins going out with someone else. Or, that green-eyed monster may affect your friend if you get a pay raise and she does not. In most places in the world, a green light is a sign to move ahead. A green light on a traffic signal means your car can continue on. In everyday speech, a green light means approval to continue with a project. We want you to know we have a green light to continue this series next week. And that's all the time we have for this Words and Their Stories. Don't forget to tune in again for another story about American English expressions. Until next time! I'm Anna Matteo. Marilyn Christiano wrote this program. Warren Scheer and Anna Matteo narrated.
Voice of America
22-02-2025
- General
- Voice of America
The Importance of Being ‘Dialed In'
And now, Words and Their Stories, from VOA Learning English. Technology is always progressing. Today, many modern devices can be controlled by touch or voice. This has led to some traditional electronic controls – such as dials and switches – being replaced with new technologies. Digital displays have also become increasingly common. For example, digital number readouts have long replaced the hands on many clocks. Many other devices also now operate purely with digital tools instead of mechanical systems. But some expressions and idioms used by English speakers still describe older technologies. First, let's talk about dials. These controls are used for changing settings on a piece of equipment, like a radio or old television. We use the dial to tune in to a specific channel. That's where the expressions dialed in and tuned in come from. If we are dialed in or tuned in to a radio or television program, we can hear it clearly. There is no noise or static. The same can be said when using these terms in personal conversations. For example, if you are dialed in to a project or problem, you know exactly what needs to be done. You are thinking clearly about it and remain very focused. And when you are tuned in , you understand clearly what is going on around you. 'Don't touch that dial' and 'stay tuned' are two ways to tell someone to keep watching or listening to a program. Now, let's talk about switches. These are built to either be off or on. There are no in-between settings like with a dial. So, when we flip the switch , we make something happen quickly and easily. It can also mean that we suddenly change something. Let's listen to an example. The restaurant's change to all organic food happened slowly over time. It wasn't a matter of flipping a switch. Now, for our last expression -- to move the needle. Needles on measuring devices like a scale move to show a desired level has been reached. So, when something moves the needle , it causes a noticeable change in something, usually for the good. And that's all the time we have for this Words and Their Stories. Don't forget to tune in again for another story about American English expressions. Until next time, I'm Anna Matteo. Anna Matteo wrote this story for VOA Learning English. _______________________________________________________ Words in This Story dial – n. a device that may be operated to make electrical connections or to regulate the operation of a machine switch – n. a device for making, breaking, or changing the connections in an electrical circuit replace – v. to take the place of, especially as a substitute digital – adj. of, relating to, or using calculation directly with digits rather than through measurable physical quantities display – n. an electronic device that gives information in visual form tune in – phrasal verb to listen to or view a broadcast of static – n. noise produced in a radio or television receiver by atmospheric or electrical disturbances conversation – n. talking or a talk between two or more people focus – v. to cause to be concentrated flip – v. to move with a small quick motion needle – n. a slender pointer on a dial : a slender bar of magnetized steel that is free to turn (as in a compass) to show the direction of a magnetic field scale – n. a device for weighing
