EFE learning modules / Hobbies & Free Time

Hobbies & Free Time @ Discussing sports, music, and reading

Common Expressions Back to Catalog

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Ball is in your court

/ቦል ኢዝ ኢን ዩር ኮርት/

ውሳኔው ያንተ ነው

It is your responsibility to make the next move or decision.

ቀጣዩን እርምጃ የመውሰድ ወይም የመወሰን ኃላፊነት የእርስዎ ነው።

In Practice

"I've suggested the movie, so the ball is in your court."
"The ball is in your court regarding the game strategy."
Fluent Tip

Commonly used in sports and casual discussions about decisions.

Music to my ears

/ሚዩዚክ ቱ ማይ ኢየርስ/

የሚያስደስት ዜና

Something that is very pleasant or gratifying to hear.

ለመስማት በጣም ደስ የሚል ወይም የሚያረካ ነገር።

In Practice

"Hearing that my favorite band is touring was music to my ears."
"Her compliment on my playing was music to my ears."
Fluent Tip

Used when receiving good news or positive feedback.

Read between the lines

/ሪድ ቢትዊን ዘ ላይንስ/

ድብቅ ትርጉሙን መረዳት

To find a hidden meaning in something said or written.

በተባለው ወይም በተጻፈው ነገር ውስጥ የተደበቀ ትርጉም ማግኘት።

In Practice

"If you read between the lines, the book is actually a social critique."
"He didn't say he was bored, but I could read between the lines."
Fluent Tip

Often used when discussing literature or subtle communication.

Kick off

/ኪክ ኦፍ/

መጀመር

To start an event or activity, especially a sports game.

አንድን ክስተት ወይም ተግባር መጀመር፣ በተለይም ስፖርት።

In Practice

"The concert will kick off at 8 PM."
"We should kick off our reading club meeting now."
Fluent Tip

Frequently used for sports matches and social gatherings.

On the ball

/ኦን ዘ ቦል/

ንቁ መሆን

Alert and efficient; quick to understand and react to things.

ንቁ እና ቀልጣፋ; ነገሮችን በፍጥነት የመረዳት እና ምላሽ የመስጠት ብቃት።

In Practice

"Our team captain is always on the ball."
"You need to be on the ball if you want to win this match."
Fluent Tip

Used to describe someone who is focused and capable.

Face the music

/ፌስ ዘ ሚዩዚክ/

ውጤቱን መቀበል

To accept the unpleasant consequences of one's actions.

የድርጊትን ደስ የማያሰኝ ውጤት መቀበል።

In Practice

"He failed the practice, now he has to face the music."
"It's time to face the music and admit we lost the game."
Fluent Tip

Used when dealing with the repercussions of a mistake.

Give it a whirl

/ጊቭ ኢት ኤ ዌርል/

መሞከር

To try something new to see if you like it or can do it.

አዲስ ነገርን መውደድዎን ወይም መቻልዎን ለማየት መሞከር።

In Practice

"I've never played guitar, but I'll give it a whirl."
"Why don't you give tennis a whirl this weekend?"
Fluent Tip

Encouraging someone to try a new hobby.

A whole new ball game

/ኤ ሆል ኒው ቦል ጌም/

ሙሉ በሙሉ የተለየ ሁኔታ

A completely different situation, often more difficult.

ሙሉ በሙሉ የተለየ ሁኔታ፣ ብዙ ጊዜ የበለጠ አስቸጋሪ።

In Practice

"Playing professional sports is a whole new ball game compared to college."
"Once you start reading classics, it's a whole new ball game."
Fluent Tip

Comparing two levels of an activity.

Throw in the towel

/ትሮው ኢን ዘ ታወል/

ተስፋ መቁረጥ

To quit or admit defeat.

ማቆም ወይም ሽንፈትን አምኖ መቀበል።

In Practice

"Don't throw in the towel just because the training is hard."
"The runner threw in the towel after the tenth mile."
Fluent Tip

Originating from boxing, used for giving up on a hobby or goal.

Blow your own trumpet

/ብሎው ዩር ኦውን ትራምፔት/

ራስን ማሞገስ

To boast about one's own achievements or talents.

ስለራስ ስኬቶች ወይም ችሎታዎች መፎከር።

In Practice

"I don't mean to blow my own trumpet, but I won the piano competition."
"She is always blowing her own trumpet about her golf skills."
Fluent Tip

Used when someone talks excessively about their leisure success.

Get the ball rolling

/ጌት ዘ ቦል ሮሊንግ/

ነገሮችን ማስጀመር

To start a process or activity so that it can continue.

እንዲቀጥል አንድን ሂደት ወይም ተግባር መጀመር።

In Practice

"Let's get the ball rolling by choosing a book for this month."
"We need to get the ball rolling on the sports event planning."
Fluent Tip

Initiating a group activity or project.

Play second fiddle

/ፕሌይ ሰከንድ ፊድል/

ረዳት መሆን (ተከታይ መሆን)

To take a subordinate role to someone else.

ለሌላ ሰው የበታች ወይም ረዳት ሚና መጫወት።

In Practice

"I'm tired of playing second fiddle to the lead singer."
"He is happy playing second fiddle in the team as long as they win."
Fluent Tip

Used in music or team sports to describe roles.