ESL Podcast 319 - Being Under Stress

to act up - for a part of one's body to not work correctly or to feel pain; for something to be wrong with a part of one's body

Bill's knee started acting up, so he had to stop playing soccer before the match ended.

stress - the feeling of being worried, nervous, and anxious because one is under a lot of pressure or has a lot of responsibilities and things to do in a short period of time

The doctor told me that people who have a lot of stress in their lives are more likely to have heart attacks.

to cope - to be able to manage a difficult situation; to be able to succeed when things are very difficult

Lynn copes with her husband's death by meeting with other people who have also lost their husbands or wives.

pressure - things that one needs to do, but are difficult and make one feel worried, nervous, and anxious

Jacqueline is under a lot of pressure to finish the report by tomorrow afternoon.

worn out - very tired; exhausted

Lupe was worn out after skiing all day.

to lose sleep - to not be able to sleep, usually because one is worried about something

Dominique is losing sleep because he's worried about his parents' divorce.

no wonder - not surprising; not unexpected

It's no wonder that he has problems with his teeth, since he eats candy and drinks soda all day long.

demands - things that one must do; things that other people make one do

Having a dog places a lot of demands on the owner to feed it, take walks with it, and play with it.

dog-eat-dog - very competitive and aggressive

Financial analysts on Wall Street work in a dog-eat-dog industry where everyone wants to be the best at their job.

nerves - feelings of being anxious, worried, and stressed

How do actors control their nerves before a performance?

shot - worn out; tired; no longer working correctly

This car's tires are shot. We need to buy new tires as soon as possible.

to work something out - to be able to find a solution for something; to find a way to be able to do something

At 3:00 tomorrow, Harvey is supposed to attend a meeting at work and go to his son's baseball game, but hopefully he'll be able to work something out so that he can do both things.

to take (one) up on (something) - to accept someone's offer; to agree to do what someone has suggested

Timotei was surprised when Carol agreed to take him up on his offer to pay for her dinner.

breather - break; rest; a short period of time when one doesn't have to do something

We've been working on this project for hours. Let's take a breather and then meet again at 4:30.

If it doesn't kill you, it'll make you stronger. - a phrase meaning that things that are difficult teach people to be better, as long as they aren't too difficult

Rebecca was complaining about how difficult her chemistry class was, but her father said, "If it doesn't kill you, it'll make you stronger."