EFE learning modules / Sustainability & The Environment

Sustainability & The Environment

Common Expressions Back to Catalog

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Green thumb

/ግሪን ታምብ/

የአትክልት እንክብካቤ ተሰጥኦ

Exceptional skill in gardening or growing plants.

አትክልቶችን የማሳደግ ወይም የመንከባከብ ልዩ ችሎታ።

In Practice

"My grandmother has a green thumb; her garden is amazing."
"I wish I had a green thumb like you."
Fluent Tip

Used to describe someone who is naturally good at gardening.

Tip of the iceberg

/ቲፕ ኦፍ ዘ አይስበርግ/

የችግሩ መጀመሪያ

A small visible part of a much larger problem.

ከትልቅ ችግር ውስጥ የሚታይ ትንሽ ክፍል ብቻ።

In Practice

"The melting glaciers are just the tip of the iceberg of climate change."
"This waste issue is only the tip of the iceberg."
Fluent Tip

Commonly used in environmental discussions to warn of deeper issues.

Stem the tide

/ስቴም ዘ ታይድ/

መጥፎ ነገር እንዳይቀጥል መከልከል

To stop something bad from continuing or worsening.

አንድ መጥፎ ነገር እንዳይስፋፋ ወይም እንዳይባባስ መከላከል ወይም መግታት።

In Practice

"We must stem the tide of plastic pollution in the ocean."
"Policies are needed to stem the tide of deforestation."
Fluent Tip

Formal context regarding stopping environmental degradation.

Weather the storm

/ዌዘር ዘ ስቶርም/

አስቸጋሪ ሁኔታን መቋቋም

To endure a difficult period or situation.

አስቸጋሪ ጊዜን ወይም ሁኔታን በጽናት ማለፍ።

In Practice

"Coastal cities must prepare to weather the storm of rising sea levels."
"Small eco-businesses are trying to weather the storm of high costs."
Fluent Tip

Metaphorical, often used regarding resilience against climate effects.

Breath of fresh air

/ብሬዝ ኦፍ ፍሬሽ ኤር/

አዲስ እና መንፈስን የሚያድስ ነገር

A person or thing that provides a refreshing change.

አዲስ እና የሚያነቃቃ ለውጥ የሚያመጣ ሰው ወይም ነገር።

In Practice

"The new electric car policy is a breath of fresh air."
"His eco-friendly ideas are a breath of fresh air for the city."
Fluent Tip

Positive connotation for new environmental initiatives.

Down to earth

/ዳውን ቱ እርዝ/

ትሑት እና ተግባራዊ

Practical and realistic; unpretentious.

ተግባራዊ እና እውነተኛ የሆነ፤ የማይኩራራ።

In Practice

"We need down-to-earth solutions for recycling."
"The environmental activist is very down to earth."
Fluent Tip

Used to describe realistic approaches to sustainability.

Clear the air

/ክሊር ዘ ኤር/

ግልጽነት መፍጠር

To remove tension or misunderstandings.

ውጥረትን ወይም አለመግባባትን ማስወገድ።

In Practice

"The environmental summit helped clear the air between the two nations."
"We need to clear the air about our sustainability goals."
Fluent Tip

Often used in negotiations regarding climate policy.

Living on borrowed time

/ሊቪንግ ኦን ቦሮውድ ታይም/

ባለቀለት ጊዜ ውስጥ መኖር

To exist after a point where death or destruction was expected.

ሊጠፋ ወይም ሊያልቅ በተቃረበ ሁኔታ ውስጥ መቆየት።

In Practice

"Many endangered species are living on borrowed time."
"Our planet is living on borrowed time if we don't act now."
Fluent Tip

High urgency regarding environmental collapse.

Nip it in the bud

/ኒፕ ኢት ኢን ዘ ባድ/

ገና ሲጀመር ማስቆም

To stop a problem before it has a chance to develop.

አንድ ችግር ገና ሳይስፋፋ በመጀመሪያው ደረጃ ላይ ማቆም ወይም መግታት።

In Practice

"We must nip pollution in the bud with strict laws."
"Early signs of drought must be nipped in the bud."
Fluent Tip

General advice for early environmental intervention.

Back to nature

/ባክ ቱ ኔቸር/

ወደ ተፈጥሮ መመለስ

A return to a simpler way of life, closer to the environment.

ወደ ተፈጥሯዊ እና ቀላል የኑሮ ዘይቤ መመለስ።

In Practice

"Many people are moving back to nature to live sustainably."
"Organic farming is a way of going back to nature."
Fluent Tip

Describing lifestyle shifts toward sustainability.

In the dark

/ኢን ዘ ዳርክ/

መረጃ ማጣት/አለመወቅ

To be unaware of or uninformed about something.

ስለ አንድ ነገር መረጃ ማጣት ወይም አለማወቅ።

In Practice

"Public is often in the dark about where their recycling goes."
"Don't keep me in the dark about the climate report."
Fluent Tip

Used when discussing lack of transparency in eco-policies.

Beat around the bush

/ቢት አራውንድ ዘ ቡሽ/

ነገሩን ማድበስበስ

To avoid talking about the main topic directly.

ዋናውን ጉዳይ በቀጥታ ከመናገር መቆጠብ።

In Practice

"Stop beating around the bush and address the carbon emissions."
"The politician beat around the bush regarding the coal mine."
Fluent Tip

Used when environmental issues are avoided in debates.