ESL Podcast 282 - Offending Someone
to grab - to quickly reach out and hold something in one's hand
When Bala slipped on the ice, he grabbed his friend's shoulder so that he wouldn't fall.
off-color - in poor taste; not appropriate; inappropriate; not acceptable to other people
All through the party, Dion made off-color comments to the other guests and the host finally asked him to leave.
to be offended - to be angry, shocked, and upset about something that another person does or says
Claudia was offended when she heard her coworkers laughing about her work.
to intend - to mean to do something; to do something on purpose and intentionally; to want to do something
We intended to buy an apartment in Dupont Circle, but then we found one that we liked in Adams Morgan and decided to buy it instead.
to insult (someone) - to say or do something that makes another person angry, shocked, and upset; to say or do something that offends another person
Izzy was insulted when his friend told him that he wasn't good enough at math to become an engineer
a tough time - difficulty; having problems
Keisha is having a tough time finding a job after getting fired from her last one.
to fit in - to be a part of something, especially a social group; to make friends and be comfortable with other people in a particular group
Teenagers are under a lot of pressure to fit in during high school.
the butt of a joke - the person that other people make jokes about; the thing that jokes are made about
Kristoff became very angry when his friends made him the butt of a joke.
ethnic joke - a joke that is funny because it is about a person's race (skin color) or nationality
In the United States, comedians tell ethnic jokes about many of the cultural groups in the country.
stereotype - something that is believed to be true about an entire group of people, but that are not necessary true about the individuals; the belief that a person or a group of people will be a certain way, even though one doesn't know them
We shouldn't be hiring employees based on stereotypes. We're turning away good applicants and hiring unqualified people.
oversensitive - too easily offended by what other people say or do; too sensitive; very easy to be hurt by what other people say or do
Kim is oversensitive about his apartment and he gets angry if anyone says it's too small, because he doesn't have enough money to move to a larger one.
leprechaun - an imaginary, small, magical person who wears green clothes and protects pots of gold at the end of rainbows in Irish stories
Do you believe that there is a leprechaun at the end of every rainbow?
insensitive - not concerned about other people's feelings; not realizing how other people will be affected by what one says or does
I stupidly made an insensitive comment about Janessa's weight and I felt horrible when she started crying.
to accept (one's) apology - to believe another person when he or she says that he or she is sorry for what was said or done, and to stop being angry with that person
Did you accept his apology for forgetting your birthday?
to take (one) at (one's) word - to believe what one says without asking for any additional proof or evidence
I took Clark at his word that he didn't steal the money, but then we saw him do it on the security video. I shouldn't have believed him.
to shake - to shake hands; to face another person and hold each other's right hands while gently moving the arms up and down, usually to show agreement or to say hello or goodbye
The two representatives from their companies shook after signing the contract.