87 Best American English Phrases
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How do native speakers say they’re just trying to get through a tough day?
We're gonna start off with just some phrases that I use every day, just at home or making plans. First phrase, I'm just trying to get through the day. We say this when we're having a busy day or kind of a difficult day, and we're kind of stressed or overwhelmed. Our goal is just to simply make it through the day, not make it perfect or not, you know, do our best, best, best work.
I'm just trying to make it through the day.
Maybe you didn't sleep well, work was really stressful, maybe you have a sick kid. You might just say, I'm sorry, I'm just trying to make it through the day. This means I'm trying to get things done at the bare minimum. That's what we mean as English speakers when we say just trying to make it through the day.
I'm just trying to make it through the day.
So we definitely don't use this phrase if we're happy or super energized. We use it when we're stressed out or having a difficult time. Just tried to get through the day. The next phrase is used all the time because you know when someone does something and you weren't expecting it or they didn't warn you about something that you should know about, you might want to tell them, give me a heads up next time. Give me a heads up. Or a lot of times English speakers say, Hey, I'm just going to give you a heads up. This means I'm going to let you know something in advance that's in. Important to know later. I'm in. Just give me a heads up. Maybe you have some coworkers and they say, Hey, after work, do you want to go get drinks with us for happy hour?
You might say, I can't today. Next time try to give me a heads up and I'll plan ahead and try to go with you guys. So this means if I had more advanced notice or more time to plan, I could come, but today it's too short notice. I can't come. Give me a heads up next time. Promise I'll give you a heads up next time. Or you might wanna say to your coworker, hey, I'm gonna give you a heads up. Our boss is looking at these reports today, so make sure it looks really good. So you're kinda giving them advanced warning about something that you know so that they can be prepared in advance.
You know, let me give you a little heads up.
Sometimes in life when difficult things come up, we kind of want to procrastinate handling the situation or solving the problem. And sometimes that's okay. A common phrase that I find myself saying is, I'm not ready to deal with this, or I'm not ready to deal with this right now. This just means I can put it off till later. It's maybe too stressful. There's too much going on when I have time to sit and think later. More quiet, or my kids don't need my help with things, I can deal with that. I'll deal with this later. I say that phrase all the time as well.
I'm not ready to deal with that right now.
This phrase is pretty strong. So be careful who you're using it with and be careful of your tone. If you're at work and you'll say, I'll deal with this later, make sure you're not saying it to your boss in a tone that sounds like you're too stressed out or anything. Maybe you just want to say, like, I can prioritize this now and I'll deal with this later. So tone is really important when it comes to this phrase and context as well. Cause you don't want to be using it in a super profound. professional situation to imply that you're procrastinating something. Yeah, I'm not ready to deal with that right now. I always think about the phrase keep it simple, stupid. That's a funny phrase in English we use to just say, like, do not make things too complicated.
And if you don't want to say keep it simple, stupid, you want to say, let's not overcomplicate things.
When should you use the phrase “Give me a heads‑up” in conversation?
This just means that sometimes it's best to make things simple because it is not a difficult situation and you don't need to make it more difficult than it needs to be. So if you're making a plan or solving a problem. and it's just something small, don't overcomplicate it. Just solve the problem and move on. Don't make a huge deal out of it.
I don't want to overcomplicate that.
This phrase is really good for solving problems or just explaining something to someone quickly and say, hey, I don't want to overcomplicate it.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
How do native speakers say they’re just trying to get through a tough day?
0:00–3:24
2
When should you use the phrase “Give me a heads‑up” in conversation?
3:24–8:07
3
What does “I’m not ready to deal with that right now” convey and when is it appropriate?
8:07–12:41
4
Why do Americans say “Keep it simple, stupid” and what alternatives exist?
12:41–16:40
5
How can I use “I’ve been meaning to…” to talk about unfinished tasks or missed calls?
16:40–20:41
6
What does the expression “That’s the last thing I need today” mean in stressful situations?
20:41–24:52
7
How do you politely say you’ll handle something “when I get a chance”?
24:52–28:01
8
When is it appropriate to tell someone “We need to keep things moving” at work or home?
28:01–1:16:45