Hello, all. Nesse episódio do podcast Inglês Online eu vou falar sobre algumas expressões em inglês com a palavra LET.
Transcrição
Hi, what’s up? Today we have a new episode of the inglesonline podcast. Please subscribe to this podcast using the Podcasts app for iPhone or iPad, or listen to the episodes using the Inglesonline Android app. To download or just listen to other episodes and download transcripts, go to inglesonline.com.br and click Podcast Inglesonline.
So I’m pretty sure almost everyone must know the song Let it be, by the Beatles? Well, if you don’t… In case you’ve never heard this song before, go listen to it now and then come back to this podcast. Well, did you know that let it be is sort of a popular expression in the English language?
Picture this: you’re at work, discussing a project with your colleague John. The project is about building a new residential complex for students in your town. You’re both responsible for the project and all the suppliers have already been hired, and the project is well underway. But John insists that you should have hired a different company to take care of the project design. There’s nothing either of you can do about that now. A design company has already been hired and you’ve already paid them, they’re doing their job in a satisfactory way; all is well. You can’t understand why John is so adamant about this company being a mistake. You’ve asked him about it, and he can’t explain it. He just keeps repeating over and over “We should have hired that other design company”.
Finally, you think you guys have had enough of this discussion. This is going nowhere: it’s too late to do anything about this now and you’re not even sure why John isn’t happy with the current supplier. So you say “John, I know you’re not happy but just let it be. Let it be! There’s nothing we can do about this now.” When you say “Let it be!”, what you’re saying is “Leave the situation alone as it is”. Just walk away, try to forget about it, go do something else with your time, let it be! Just let it be.
So when something’s really bugging you and you can’t stop talking about it; or when you’re worrying about something too much that you really have no power to change, or zero control over what the outcome will be; in these situations someone might say to you Let it be. Just let it be.
And here’s another expression with let: let it slide. This is an interesting one – imagine you’re going somewhere with your spouse and your kids. When you get there – let’s say it’s a restaurant – your daughter misbehaves a bit. What is she doing exactly? She’s punching her little brother and saying she won’t go in. Your spouse just picks her up and takes her inside the restaurant anyway. So, normally, you would have given your daughter a bit of tough love right there, but this time you just let it slide. What does that mean? That means your daughter misbehaved, and you didn’t do anything about it. You just let it slide. Why did you do that, instead of giving her some tough love?
Because you guys were about to walk into the restaurant to meet friends, and you were kinda running late as it was. Since you guys were running late, your daughter misbehaved and you just let it slide. You know when a friend sometimes says something to you that you don’t think is nice, but you just let it slide? Or when someone at work kinda takes advantage of you, but you think “This isn’t such a big deal.. I’ll let it slide this time. If it happens again, I will definitely do something about it but this time I’ll let it slide”…?
Tell us about a time when someone said or did something and you let it slide. Let us know in the comments, and talk to you next time!
Key expressions
let it be
let it slide
Glossary
is well underway = está em movimento, acontecendo, progredindo
adamant = insistente, determinado
to misbehave = se comportar mal
running late = atrasados
running late as it was = vocês já estavam atrasados naquela situação, daquele jeito
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.
Hi Ana!
Last tuesday I and my Friends went to the movie.
So they leave me alone on the shopping. I lost my friends, and they don’t call me back or something like that.
I just let it slide!
I went home and its ok, but the next time i will say something about it!
Please Ana I would like very much to find the following brazilian expressions in english: ” já que você vai a rua “aproveita” e compra o jornal” ?..esse ‘aproveita’…com certeza não é ‘enjoy ‘…que seria engraçado e muito menos ‘ profit ‘ .. então se você puder me esclarecer fico agradecido, isto é, se existe at all essa mesma expressão em inglês. Ou poder ser que seja simplesmente no mais coloquial possível que me vem a mente no momento ; ( já ciente de que a pessoa está saindo ) ” Please could you buy me the paper ?A outra expressão seria: “obrigado por se dar o trabalho de fazer isto por mim..esse “se dar ao trabalho também não sei se existe com a intenção que se usa no português do Brasil.
Muito Obrigado Ana
Selmo
Well, first of all, thanks for all your posts. I’ve been just letting it slide, I mean, just hearing and thinking: “Wow, what a great help in my way to become a english speaker. :)”. But today I decided don’t let it be. So I decided to put my message as you always ask in your podcasts. :)
Thanks for all your posts! You’ve been helping me a bunch! And see you next time. ;)
Hi, Ana!!Sometimes when I’m in public place I don’t wanna discuss with my kids for obvious reasons,then I let it slide.For while.When we get home we can solve the matter.Kisses!!!!
