Common Phrases for KIDS
Put out the
bins (British); take out the trash (American) – this
is how you tell your child (or your partner) to take out the trash can
(American) or a waste bin (British) and leave it on the street for collection
the next day: “Can you take out the trash tonight?”
Can you please
do the dishes? – want to ask someone to wash the dirty dishes and
cutlery? This is the right expression to use in such a situation!
Do the laundry –
this is an English expression describing the process of putting dirty clothing
into the washing machine: “Can you do the laundry please? I’ll do the dishes
tonight!”
Tidy up you
room – if you want your child to organize their room, this is how you
say it: “Could you tidy up your room, please?”
Clean it up –
quite a self-explanatory phrase, but still a lot of foreigners might get it
wrong! So basically when you’re referring to getting something cleaned up –
especially if there’s a spillage of water or some other liquid – this is how
you put it: “Jonny, your little sister just spilled her drink, can you clean it
up?”
Make the bed –
this expression will come in handy for you when asking your kid to make their
bed presentable by straightening the blanket and covering it with a bed-cover:
“Sweetie, can you make your bed before we leave?”
Get dressed –
another very simple yet useful English phrase to be used around the house quite
often: “Honey, I think it’s time to get dressed – we have to go in an hour!”
My homework is
Due - this is something you’d ask your child in order to check on the
deadline for a specific homework. Obviously, if they respond with something
like: “Well, it’s due tomorrow…”, you’d be telling them to start doing it
immediately!
Off school for
a... – the collocation “off school” might be another problem
area for you as a foreign English speaker, so make sure to memorize it. And
here’s a practical application of this phrase: “Isn’t it great Jenny you don’t
have to get up early in the morning? You’re off school for a week!”
What’s for
dinner? – this is how you ask the question. You see, the thing is that
in real life we sometimes tend to overthink such simple matters and eventually
we may get it wrong: “What did you make… eh… cook… as a dinner… eh… for
dinner…” So, make sure to memorize the simple phrase “What’s for dinner?” and
you’ll never have those awkward moments again!
Take a few more
bites! – This is something you’d tell your child if they’ve had very
little to eat: “Please Harry, just take a few more bites and then you’re free
to go!”
Time to get up! –
your daughter or son will hate you for saying this, but what other option have
you got? If they have to get up for school or a trip, it just has to be said!
Hurry up!
– this is a very simple way of telling someone to make it quicker.