ESL Podcast 245 - Characteristics of an Ideal Mate

to set up (someone) - to help two people meet and begin dating each other because one thinks that they will like each other

Her aunt always sets her up with men who are almost twice her age!

type - the ideal characteristics (personality and physical appearance) that one wants to find in another person for a romantic relationship

Romulo's type has always been the same: tall, red-haired, and very intelligent.

rich - wealthy; with a lot of money

Bill Gates, the founder of Microsoft, is a very rich person.

hot - very attractive and sexy

Every woman I know thinks that Brad Pitt is hot.

smart aleck - someone who does not give serious answers, but instead gives funny answers, making it difficult to talk with him or her

Why are you such a smart aleck? I wish you would be serious sometimes.

sense of humor - the ability to make other people laugh or to recognize funny things in life

Janine has a great sense of humor. She's always making other people laugh, even in difficult situations.

kind-hearted - kind; nice; generous

Today I saw Denise do a very kind-hearted thing. She bought breakfast for an old man who was sleeping on the streets and then helped him buy a new jacket.

easy to talk to - comfortable to speak with; not difficult to have a conversation with

He's shy with most people, but his is roommate is so easy to talk to that sometimes they stay awake until 4:00 a.m. talking about life.

supportive - giving help, support, and advice; willing to give help, support, and advice

Cheryl's parents are very supportive of her decision to study in Africa.

vital statistics - the physical appearance of someone, including age, height, weight, hair color, and other things

The modeling agency has the vital statistics of each of their models, so that they can find the right person for each modeling job.

picky - difficult to please, because one wants only a certain type of something

Little children are often picky eaters. For example, they might not want to eat green foods or they might not like to eat meat.

to narrow down - to go from a large number of choices to a small number of choices

At first, Yoko was considering all the universities in the state, but now she has narrowed down the list to just three schools.

deal killer - something that makes one decide not to do or accept something

They were going to offer Marshal the job, but the deal killer was his demand for 10 weeks of vacation each year.

chatty - very talkative; talking a lot about things that are not very important

Eri is very chatty, so there is never a moment of silence when we're together.

bossy - likes to give orders; likes to tell other people what to do

Jubel's older brother is so bossy! He's always telling him what to do and how to do it!

open mind - willingness to consider many different things; flexible; not close- minded

Polly has an open mind and is willing to try almost any type of foreign food, from Tanzanian to Mongolian!

to put up with (someone) - to tolerate someone; to deal with someone; to be able to be with someone even though it is difficult to be near him or her

How can you put up with Ron? He's the most annoying person I know.

catch - a person who is good for something, such as marrying or working in one's company

Kenuke is a great catch. He's intelligent and good-looking, he has a great job, and he treats other people nicely.