Put One’s Foot in One’s Mouth | All Ears | Clam up | Get Something off One’s Chest | Tip of the Iceberg

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Exercise 1

Vocabulary

put (one’s) foot in (one’s) mouth

Phrase

pʊt wʌnz fʊt ɪn wʌnz maʊθ

to say something that might embarrass or offend someone; to misspeak

He really put his foot in his mouth! He made Julia cry during the meeting.

She really put her foot into her mouth when she asked about his ex-wife.

all ears

Phrase

ɔl iːrz

eager to hear what someone has to say

So what happened? Please, tell me! I’m all ears.

Jane was all ears while listening to Mark’s story.

clam up

Phrase

klæm ʌp

to become silent suddenly, usually due to embarrassment or nervousness

Tim just clams up when you ask him about the breakup.

Shy people tend to clam up when strangers address them.

get (something) off (one’s) chest

Phrase

gɛt ˈsʌmθɪŋ ɔf wʌnz ʧɛst

to discuss problems that one has been worrying about for a long time; to confess

I have been keeping this secret for a long time, and I can't tell you how glad I am to get it off my chest.

I can see that you are worried about something; you should get it off your chest.

tip of the iceberg

Phrase

tɪp əv ði ˈaɪsbərg

a small, noticeable part of something much greater (usually a problem, or difficulty)

This small protest is just the tip of the iceberg. There will be a riot.

Spreading rumors was only the tip of the iceberg! She completely ruined his life.

Exercise 2

Dialogue Practice

Read the dialogue aloud with your tutor.

	Alicia Hey, Masa! Why do you look so sad? What's the matter?
	Masa It's not that important.
	Alicia Come on, don't clam up on me now! You know you can tell me anything.
	Masa Well, I put my foot in my mouth and told Sarah some horrible things.
	Alicia You did? What happened? Tell me! I’m all ears.
	Masa Well, I had to prepare for a serious project at work. It was very stressful. And that was just the tip of the iceberg, as I had problems at home, too.
	Alicia See? That's your problem! You never tell anyone about what’s bothering you.
	Masa I guess you’re right. Anyway, I got mad at Sarah and all the anger just came out. Honestly, I regret it now.
	Alicia I think if you apologize and tell Sarah what you have just told me now, she will forgive you.
	Masa Yeah, you're probably right. Thanks, Alicia. It feels good to get this off my chest!
	Alicia No problem!

Exercise 3

Article

Read the passage aloud with your tutor.

Monica is a great friend, mostly because she is a good listener. A lot of her friends turn to her when they need to get something off their chest. Whenever she meets someone, she is all ears. However, Monica is not good at giving advice. Sometimes she puts her foot in her mouth and says awkward things. That's why, most of the time, she just listens to people. Yesterday, her friend Lisa told her about the problems she had at work. But it turned out that was just the tip of the iceberg. When Monica asked her about her marriage, Lisa clammed up. But eventually, Lisa shared all of her problems with Monica. She felt much better afterwards.

Exercise 4

Fill in the Blanks

Fill in the blanks with the correct idioms to complete the dialogue.

	Nathan How's it going, Lauren?
	Lauren Hey, Nathan! Fine. I finally talked to Mike. I apologized for (1) in front of his friends. It felt so good to (2)! It was really bothering me for quite some time.
	Nathan You see, talking about it is way better than (3) and saying nothing.
	Lauren Yes, you were right, as always. He actually opened up as well and said what was bothering him. I was (4). I really wanted to know what was going on.
	Nathan So, what did he say? Is everything okay now between you two?
	Lauren Well, it turned out that the problem we had was just (5). There were some other issues that we needed to clear up. But now, everything is fine again.
	Nathan That's good to hear!