Australia Network - English Bites - Series 7 - Episode 9: Beach Volleyball

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Episode 9: Beach Volleyball

Transcript

We'll look at the word 'work' and the expressions 'away you go' and 'having a go'.

City Beach itself was officially opened on the 25th of October in 2001. We're literally in the city of Adelaide. All governments at the moment are looking at getting people more active. Our current lifestyle is not the most active unfortunately and we're actually trying to get more people out and doing things. People come literally straight from work in their business suits and strip down and jump on the courts in a singlet and board shorts and away they go.

Away they go - this means they start an activity. Away they go.

Now, where did they come from?

People come literally straight from work in their business suits and strip down and jump on the courts in a singlet and board shorts and away they go.

From work. Here work is a noun that refers to both the place where people have a job and the job itself. When you say that you're at work, you can mean both that you are doing your job and that you are in the place where you do it. You don't say you're in work unless you just mean to say that you have a job.

Now listen to another use of 'work':

Everybody on the team is from where I work and we get together once a week to play and then there's another during the week where we can have training if we want and so usually get together for the game and then head out to the pub for a drink after, something like that so it's more than just the sport, it's social as well.

Everybody is from where I work -here work is a verb. But he could have used the noun and said they were from work, like this woman:

when City Beach was set up a few of us from work decided that it could be fun to be in a team and we've been playing ever since.

Now listen for another noun form of work:

I came to Australia in 20o6 and my workmate asked me to come with them I decided to play volleyball, I've been playing volleyball for a very long time so it was an opportunity for me.

Workmate. A Workmate is someone you work with and are also friends with.

Listen to some more talk about work:

To be able to take half an hour out of your day once a week and come down here, stretch your legs, get the blood flowing, get the mind out of work, that work space is not just about the physical side about it, of it, but the mental side as well and you can then go back to work and generally you're in a lot better position than to your bosses are a lot happier for it. Beach volleyball and City Beach is about everyone getting in and having a go, it doesn't matter how young you are, just come down, have a go, grab a ball, we'll teach you the basics. Just have a bash and see what happens, if you like it.

He says have a go and have a bash. Both these expressions mean to try or make an attempt. Listen again:

Beach volleyball and City Beach is about everyone getting in and having a go, it doesn't matter how young you are, just come down, have a go, grab a ball, we'll teach you the basics. Just have a bash and see what happens, if you like it.

So we've seen that work can be a verb and a noun, that at work means doing your job or being where your job is and in work just means having a job. Having a go and having a bash mean to try something and a workmate is a friend at work.

We'll finish with the expression 'leave work behind', which means to forget about your job for a while.

It's a really good way to de-stress after work. It's really good to kind of be able to leave work behind and come somewhere with nice music and do some physical activity and just relax.

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