Three Nature Idioms – The Free Your English Podcast Episode Four

Hello! It’s Sarah here. Welcome to episode four of the Free Your English Podcast where I help you improve your English speaking skills by discussing interesting and informative topics and then offering you opportunities to practice speaking about them.

If we haven’t properly met, let me introduce myself quickly. I am British native English speaker, an Intermediate Brazilian Portuguese learner and I’m also a professional educator. Over the past 23 years, I’ve helped thousands of people uplevel their speaking confidence.

In my last episode, I read an article from my membership, The English Speaking Society, that described the remarkable story of João and Dindim, the South American penguin.

Today, we are going to learn about three idioms that were used in the previous episode. These are: ‘a force of nature,’ ‘the tip of the iceberg,’ and ‘a thorn in one’s side.’

I will read you some example sentences and then ask you to think about what you think the idiom means.

Let’s start with the idiom “a force of nature.” Here’s an example from last week’s episode:

“In recent years, a remarkable story has come out of Brazil about a South American penguin who defied all expectations and became quite literally a force of nature.”

And here’s another example sentence for you:

“Despite her small stature, the gymnast was a force of nature on the balance beam, performing with incredible skill and grace.”

Okay, time for you to define it!

Which of the following best describes what “force of nature” means?

A) An abnormally sized person or animal
B) A destructive and violent force
C) A dangerous place
D) Someone or something with a strong and dynamic personality

The correct answer is D) Someone or something with a strong and dynamic personality.

This idiom expression is used to describe someone or something that has a powerful and unstoppable impact on people or things around them. In the story, Dindim the penguin defied all expectations (which were that he would disappear once he was better) and became quite literally a force of nature in João’s life because he stuck around and had a big impact on João and people all over the world who heard their story.

That brings us to our second idiom: ‘the tip of the iceberg.’

Last week’s episode told us that for João and dindim:

“Their first interactions became just the tip of the iceberg of their connection.”

Here’s another example:

“The small surface scratches on the car were just the tip of the iceberg when it came to the damage caused by the accident; the engine and transmission were also affected.”

What does the idiom “tip of the iceberg” mean?

A) A small problem that is easy to solve
B) The main part of a problem or situation
C) The surface of a problem or situation that reveals a larger, more complex issue
D) A metaphor for an iceberg that has lost its tip

Answer: C. The surface of a problem or situation that reveals a larger, more complex issue.

It means that what we see or know is just a small part of a larger problem or situation. In our story, the connection that Dindim and João made when Dindim was first recovering was just the tip of the iceberg as their friendship has lasted for years.

Our final idiom for today is “a thorn in one’s side.”

In last week’s episode, it was mentioned that there had been lots of false facts given out about Dindim and his rescue. The man who originally reported the story said these errors had been a “thorn in his side for a while.”

Here’s another example:

“The loud neighbours were a constant thorn in her side, disrupting her sleep and making it difficult for her to concentrate.”

In case you aren’t clear, a thorn is the sharp pointy part of a stem or plant. For example, roses have lots of thorns.

What does the idiom “thorn in one’s side” mean?

A) A painful medical condition
B) An irritating problem or obstacle
C) A challenging physical task
D) A dangerous situation or risk

Answer: B) An irritating problem or obstacle.

This idiom means a source of constant irritation or frustration. In our story, the false or speculative assumptions about Dindim’s migratory patterns were a thorn in the side of the person who had originally reported the story. He wanted to set the record straight (i.e. clarify the truth) about the penguin’s movements.

Now that we have gone through – i.e. learned about – all three of these idioms, it’s important that you immediately begin using them so they can become part of your active vocabulary.

I’m going to give you three speaking prompts that you can use once you finish listening to this podcast.

For each one, record yourself speaking and make sure to use the idiom as you speak. If it’s too hard to remember the prompts, remember that you can read the transcript of this episode, and indeed all my episodes, on my blog. The link is in the show notes.

1. Describe a powerful person in your life who has a strong personality and is definitely a force of nature. (One thing to remember is that the connotation of “force of nature” is mostly positive.)
2. Have you ever had a “thorn in your side” at work or school? How did you deal with it?
3. Describe a time when you discovered that your knowledge of a subject was just the tip of the iceberg. Was it exciting or depressing?

Make sure to actually follow through and do the speaking tasks.

Once you’ve done so tag me on Instagram or Facebook and let me know how it went. I would love to celebrate with you! You can find my social media links in the show notes.

Be sure to subscribe to the Free Your English podcast so you can catch all the future episodes.  Thanks for listening.