ESL Dialogue

A:  Hey, what’s going on? B:  I’m thinking of asking one of the new girls out. A:  Does she work here in the office? B:  Ya.  I heard through the grapevine that she’s single. A:  You can’t do that.  They’ll can you if they find out. B:  I know it’s against office policy, but I thought in reality office romance is just frowned upon.  It seems like a grey area to me.  Besides, who’s going to find out? A:  First of all it’s more than frowned upon and it’s very black and white.  Fred got the axe last year for dating Karen.  The other thing is you know how chicks like to gossip.  If you guys start having any relations, it won’t be long before everyone knows. B:  Fred didn’t get canned just because of dating Karen.  That was just the excuse they used.  They wanted to let him go for a long time but couldn’t think of a reason.  My work has been outstanding this year and I’m sure they’ll look the other way if they think something’s going on. A:  Good luck.  Who is she by the way? B:  Heather, the new secretary. A:  Wow.  She’s really hot.  Realistically, I’d also chance it if I were you.

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Heard through the grapevine: This phrase means that you found out some information somehow.  You either don’t want to say how you found out or you don’t remember how you found out.

Can: This is slang for “fire”.  My boss canned me last week but I don’t know why.  I hope that no one gets canned because of this mistake.

Frowned upon: This phrase mean that people don’t approve of some kind of behavior.  It’s not illegal but people look down upon it.  Wearing those kind of ugly clothes to such a nice restaurant is frowned upon.  It means you can do it but people won’t like it.

Grey area: This is something that is debatable or unclear.  “Dating in the office is a grey area” means that its not certain whether dating someone in the office is ok or not.

Black and white: This phrase means that something is either one way or the other.  You could say, “Dating in the office is not a grey area.  Its black and white.  If you date someone in the office you will get fired.  Guaranteed.”

Got the axe: This phrase also means to get fired.  He got the axe after only working in the company for 2 weeks.

Gossip: To talk about rumors or other people’s personal matters.

Let him go: This is a polite way of saying you fired someone.  Although I liked Mark, I had to let him go because he kept coming late every day.

Look the other way: This phrase means to pretend that you don’t see something bad.  It also means you won’t punish or penalize someone for doing this act.  For example, if your boss saw you dating someone in the office but he looked the other way, it means he didn’t mention it to you and he won’t punish you for it.  He just pretended it didn’t happen.

Chance it: This is a slang phrase that means to take a chance or a risk.  I’m not sure if tomorrow will rain but I’m going to chance it and go to the golf course anyway.

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