Slang, idioms, parables, colloquialisms, phrases, and jargon are a few things you don’t need to know or learn in English. Unfortunately, verb phrases are important.
Slang and colloquialisms can be a common language only used and understood in one town, city, or region. One regional phrase I like is, “Where’s that to?”. If one of the English learners I help would say this phrase, I would be over the moon. And then advise them never to use it again!
“Excuse me. What does over the moon mean?” It’s one of the many idioms that I use often so maybe that would be important to teach? Not really. If you use idioms that a native English speaker would use, the listener expects you to be fluent! And even if you are fluent, the listener may not know the phrase.
It’s funny that a native English speaker can use ‘bad’ grammar, the incorrect word, a sentence that seemingly doesn’t make sense and it would be still be considered authentic English. But, if English is your second language and you did the same it would be considered bad English.
Someone asked me is it true you need to read the Bible to understand English better? That’s a fair question as many phrases which are in common use come from the Bible. Please don’t use the Bible for learning English. It would not help you unless you are an advanced learner and even then, people may think you’re religious when you are not! I think many native English speakers use a phrase or two without knowing it came from the Bible.
In Britain, there are many diverse English dialects. You can have two British people in the same room who could have difficulty understanding each other. “Shall I mash the tea?”, “Eh? I dinnae ken.”, “No dinner, just tea!”. “Mash the tea.” = “make some tea”, in some parts of England. “I dinnae ken.” = “I don’t understand.”, some Scottish people may say.
I’m a native British English speaker and I can still learn a lot more about my own language. I have also lived in many regions in England which have very different dialects. I DO think all these different parts of my language are fascinating and amusing but not important.
So, if once in a blue moon you do talk to a native English speaker and hear an unusual phrase, just ask,
“What do you mean by ********” you may have just learnt a bit of culture. I don’t recommend actively learning these things for the purpose of communication. They are interesting but can be seldom used.
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