Hoje falamos sobre duas expressões super comuns com GET, e você pode usar uma delas para expressar “Não começou bem”.
Transcrição
Hey, everybody! What’s up? This is Ana Luiza, with a new episode of the inglesonline podcast. To download or just listen to other episodes and download transcripts, go to inglesonline.com.br and click Podcast Inglesonline.
So, picture this: you’re a manager at some company, and recently your personal assistant of nine years quit for personal reasons. You’re a little upset because you really liked her, but hey, life goes on so you hired a new assistant. So today is your new assistant’s first day on the job, and she’s trying to learn everything… And, at the same time, you’re so nervous because the VP of Finance decided to visit your office. So of course you want everything to go perfect, and you are so worried about little details, and at the same time you have to instruct your new assistant. She seemed like a great assistant when you hired her, so you’re hoping everything will go great today. Then the VP arrives, and your assistant is rude to him. Yeah, she’s rude to him. The VP of Finance. He talked to her and she ignored him. She was on the phone, on a personal call, and she continued to talk like the VP wasn’t even there.
When you realize what she’s done, you dash off to the reception area and welcome the VP into your office. The most surprising part is that the woman is still on the phone. At lunchtime, a coworker asks you “So, how’s the new assistant doing?” and you say “I’m not 100% sure yet, but I can tell you that she definitely got off on the wrong foot”. Your coworker says “Really? She got off on the wrong foot? What happened?” And you tell him what happened, and he agrees with you: your new assistant definitely got off on the wrong foot.
So, “to get off on the wrong foot” is a very, very common expression and you can hear it very often in movies and TV series. Usually, it’s a situation where two people were randomly brought together by some sort of circumstance… For example, they both got hired to work together, or they find out that they’re gonna be lab partners for the rest of the semester, or they’ve never met before but they’re going on a trip together because they’re in the same group of friends…. So in movies it’s usually a situation where these people didn’t know each other and now for whatever reason they are forced to interact and spend time together. And what happens, specially in romantic comedies is that they fight a lot in the beginning, then they get on each other’s nerves a lot…
That happens a lot in movies, right? So very often one of them will try to call a truce and he or she will say “OK, I think we got off on the wrong foot. Can we start over?”
So, what does that mean? That means that this person is acknowledging that they didn’t get along very well in the beginning, for whatever reason they got on each other’s nerves, but this person thinks that it would be better if the two of them got along and just coexisted peacefully. So this person says “We got off on the wrong foot. Let’s start over. Can we start over?”
By the way, let me focus a little bit on the expression “get on someone’s nerves”, which I just used a few seconds ago. This expression is used to communicate, basically, that something or someone annoys you. I think people use it more to talk about other people. Let’s say you have a coworker who likes to whistle while he works. He’s a perfectly nice guy, but when he starts to whistle… he just gets on your nerves, and you’re working up the courage to be honest with him and let him know that the whistling just gets on your nerves. Here’s another example: your dance teacher keeps clapping through the entire dance class. You understand she’s doing it to get everyone to focus on the music, but she does it nonstop and it’s really getting on your nerves.
So, what gets on your nerves? Maybe there’s something about your favorite soapopera that gets on your nerves? And have you ever started a relationship on the wrong foot, and then as time went by you and the other person actually ended up being really good friends? Let us know, and talk to you next time!
Key expressions
get off on the wrong foot
get on someone’s nerves
Glossary
dash off to = vai rápido até
lab partners = parceiros nas atividade de laboratório na escola
for whatever reason = por uma razão qualquer
call a truce =dar uma trégua
let’s start over =vamos começar do zero (com intenção de ser melhor dessa vez)
whistle = assobiar
working up the courage = arrumando, tomando coragem
Ana criou um blog de dicas de inglês em 2006, e depois de muito pesquisar o que faz alguém ganhar fluência numa segunda língua, criou seu primeiro curso de inglês em 2009.
It was very good to see the use of the expressions TO DASH OFF TO and TO GET OFF ON THE WRONG FOOT. It remembers me, for a long time past, when we had streetcars in some cities in Brazil, some persons had the habit of getting off on the wrong foot from the streetcars and fell down on the streets.
Sorry, I typed the word distracted wrong.
Lots of laughers rss…
Please, keep in touch.
X.O.X.O
Teacher, Ana Luiza, a big hug to you and talk to you soon.
Teacher, Ana Luiza, congratulations ,your podcasts are amazing.when I`m distrated in my houseworks and my husband frightens me, that gets on my nerves.
If possible, answer me: I say , windows live or windows láivi, when I
read this word, I pronouce….
Gosto muito dos seus podcasts. É sempre um melhor que o outro. Sempre acho muitas novidades aqui. Sou iniciante ainda, logo comentarei em inglês. hehee
When I’m watching some show on TV I really like and people start talking around me… it gets on my nerves
usually… when I’m home or I’m out but doing something and the telephone rings it gets on my nerves… I hate phones.. kkkk
