ESL Podcast 436 - Dealing With an Angry Client

certainly - definitely; clearly; without any doubt; obviously

Buying that house last year was certainly a good decision because it's already worth $20,000 more than we bought it for!

awful - horrible; terrible; very bad

They served an awful soup that nobody ate because it tasted so bad.

substitution - the replacement of one thing with another; the use of one thing in another thing's place

The team made a substitution and had Manuel play instead of Ryan.

on behalf of (someone or something) - for someone or something; doing something for someone because he or she cannot do it; as a representative for someone or something

On behalf of everyone who worked on this film, I'd like to thank the judges for giving us this award.

sincerely - honestly and openly, without lying or pretending

I'm sincerely sorry to hear that your mother has passed away.

magnitude - size; amount

It's difficult for many people to understand the magnitude of the problems that global warming will cause.

slogan - a short phrase that is used in advertisements or repeated often, usually to make people buy a product or vote in a particular way

The presidential candidate's slogan was, "No new taxes."

to get (something) - to fully understand something

She tried to explain the problem to her boss, but he just doesn't get it.

laughingstock - someone who has done something silly or stupid, so other people laugh at him or her and don't take him or her seriously

Bernice was the laughingstock of the high school when she fell down during the dance.

I can't tell you (something) - an expression used to show that one cannot fully express something because it is bigger or more important than words can say

I can't tell you how much it meant to us when you sent flowers while my wife was in the hospital.

egregious - a very bad, obvious problem or error that is impossible to hide or deny

The manager made an egregious mistake that cost the company almost $2 million.

the least (someone) can do - a phrase used to show that one is very willing to do something, especially when it is small or unimportant in comparison to what should be done

Sending a thank-you note is the least we can do to thank them for their generous gift.

to make amends - to do something to show that one is sorry and try to make another person forgive one for what one did

When he was 30 years old, he bought his parents a car to make amends for all the bad things he had done while he was a teenager.

to be called on the mat - to be held responsible for something; to be punished for having done something wrong

Whoever is responsible for this mess is going to be called on the mat!

rest assured - a formal phrase used to comfort another person and let him or her know that something will definitely happen, so he or she shouldn't worry about it anymore

Rest assured that our travel agency will take care of every detail of your trip so that you can just relax during your vacation.

heads will roll - a phrase used to mean that the people who have done something wrong will lose their jobs

If we don't get that important sale, heads will roll!