ESL Podcast 473 - Showing Respect and Disrespect

to snicker - to laugh quietly and in a mean way, making fun of another person

The children snickered when their classmate made a mistake while doing a math problem on the blackboard.

acclaim - praise; fame for having done something very well

Will any scientists of great acclaim be at the conference?

reverence - respect, admiration, and love for another person or for a god

The children were all born in the United States, but they show reverence for the culture and traditions of the country where their parents were born.

honor - something that one is proud of and grateful for, usually given because one has done something good or admirable

It is an honor to receive this award tonight.

to sweat like a pig - to be very sweaty, with a lot of water on one's skin, usually because one has done a lot of physical activity, or because one is very nervous

After two hours in the gym, he was sweating like a pig.

passionately - with a lot of emotion and love for what one does

We had never heard a politician speak so passionately about health care reform before.

I, for one,... - a formal phrase used to state one's opinion, especially when one knows that other people probably will not agree with it

I know that most people disagree with me, but I, for one, believe we're making a huge mistake.

dedication - commitment; hard work; the effort that one makes to do something, especially if it is difficult

Jaime shows a lot of dedication to his job, staying at the office until midnight when he has a lot of work to do.

to admire - to respect; to think that something is good and impressive

Many historians admire Harriet Tubman for helping slaves leave the southern states.

to make a fool of (oneself) - to do something that makes one seem silly and that makes other people laugh at oneself

You're making a fool of yourself by singing that way in public.

genius - extreme intelligence

Most people would agree that Albert Einstein was a genius.

to make a spectacle of (oneself) - to do something that makes other people pay attention and think that one is silly or foolish so that they want to laugh at oneself

They made a spectacle of themselves when they got into a big fight in the restaurant on Valentine's Day.

to stick to - to continue to do something, without changing what one is doing

Some of the employees think the company should open new stores, but the president has decided to stick to the original strategy and have only one store in each state.

hero worship - the practice of admiring someone very much, maybe so much that one does not see anything bad about that person and think that he or she is perfect

Many teenagers engage in hero worship of famous musicians and actors.

enough is enough - an informal phrase used to show that one has had enough of something and does not want or need any more of it

We've been very patient with you, but enough is enough! Please stop complaining about your job.