ESL Podcast 454 - Hailing and Taking a Taxi
taxi / cab - a car, usually painted yellow, that is driven by another person and that one uses to go somewhere, most often in a large city
How much will it cost to take a taxi to the airport?
from start to finish - throughout the whole process; during every moment of doing something; from the beginning to the end of something
We had a huge project to finish in just two months, so from start to finish, we were working 14-hour days.
to hail (a cab) - to get the attention of a taxi driver so that he or she lets one get into a car and takes one where one wants to go
To hail a cab in New York City, just raise your right arm high into the air.
cabbie - a taxi driver; a cab driver
Good cabbies know the main streets of a city.
off duty - not working at a particular moment, usually because one is not scheduled to work then or because one is taking a break
Are police officers allowed to wear their uniforms when they are off duty?
to take no notice of (someone or something) - to not pay attention to someone or something; to not see or respond to someone or something; to ignore someone or something
Chelsea was reading a book while walking, and she was so interested in the book that she took no notice of the hole in the sidewalk.
to pull over - to drive to the side of a street and stop there for a few moments, usually to let someone into or out of one's car
Let's pull over and ask that lady for directions.
return fare - money received from a person who rides in a taxi from point B to point A after the taxi has already taken someone else from point A to point B
Whenever taxi drivers take someone to the airport, they know that they can easily get a good return fare because so many people want to go from the airport to downtown.
taxi stand - a place where taxis wait in line for people who need a taxi ride
There is a large taxi stand in front of the bus station, with about seven taxis waiting for passengers at any time.
flat rate - an amount of money that is paid for a service, no matter how difficult the service is or how long it takes
When he writes stories for the magazine, he charges a flat rate instead of a fee per word.
meter - a small machine in a taxi that shows how much money one needs to pay, based on how long one has been in the taxi and how far the taxi has gone
When you sit down in a taxi, don't forget to make sure that the meter starts at zero!
posted - placed or hung where people can see or read something
The teacher's rules for the classroom are posted by the door where all the students can read them.
suit yourself - an informal phrase meaning that one can do whatever one wants and that it doesn't matter to the person who is speaking, especially if he or she thinks it is a silly or bad idea
When Pollyanna said she was going to eat a whole box of cookies by herself, I said, "Suit yourself, but your stomach is going to hurt afterwards."
to steer clear of (something) - to stay away from something; to not use something; to not become involved with something
Steer clear of the freeways around 5:30 p.m. because there are too many cars on the road then and they move very slowly.
license - official, legal permission to do something, usually presented on a small piece of paper
How old were you when you got your driver's license?
to take (someone) for a ride - to trick someone, especially to get money or to make someone believe something that isn't true
The salesman sold us an expensive bottle of pills that he said would help us lose weight really quickly, but it didn't work. He really took us for a ride.