実践ビジネス英語 Thursday, September 20
1) Nissen says another of his slogans is "Pay attention to portions." He and Collins agree that Americans now regularly eat enormous amounts of food and Collins says she orders from children's menu to avoid that. Nissen says he limits himself to portions that are the size of the palm of his hand or a deck of cards and also takes care to eat slowly and enjoy each bite.
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- -
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
Losing Weight (2)
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- -
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
2) catchy: We often use this about songs and phrases that are memorable, easy to say, you know, so they catch in the mind. We hum catchy commercial jingles, don't we, and remember catchy phrases from political campaigns, like, "Yes, we can!"
3) get out of hand: This means get out of control, become unmanageable, go too far. Our spending can "get out of hand" if we are not careful, for example.
4) reach the point where: It's reached this level, this degree, Collins is saying. She also could have said, "It's gotten to the point where I order from the kid's menu." I don't drink soda anymore. But a few years ago, it 'reached the point where' I drank three or four a day.
5) keep a tight rein on: This expression uses the image of keeping a horse under close control by pulling tightly on its reins, not letting it run around freely. So "keep a tight rein on" means to restrain, curb or control something carefully. For example, the company managed to reduce its debt by keeping a tight rein on personnel costs. Or he keeps a tight rein on his staff; all their decisions have to be approved by him.
6) off-limits: If something is "off-limits," and we are not allowed to use it, access it, etc. Some companies have elevators just for the top executives, right? So those elevators are "off-limits" to all other staff.
7) keep something in check: This also means to restrain something, control it. In winter, I wear sweaters to "keep my electricity bills in check." I use a smartphone app to help "keep my spending in check."
8) pace, don't race: One very common use of "pace" is "pace oneself," which means "regulate one's pace," so we don't get exhausted, burn out. Let's say I decide to clean my apartment, a friend could tell me, "Don't try to do everything in one go, you know, 'pace yourself.'"
9) make a concerted effort to: Now some people would say this is a mistake. In some dictionaries, "concerted" refers to a joint combined activity. So by this definition, "make a concerted effort" would mean make an effort in cooperation with other people or organizations," such as, "Members of the U.N. are 'making a concerted effort to' malaria. However, many people use it as Nissen does to mean make a diligent, serious effort, and this definition is included in other dictionaries.
