Read the text about how expressions related to weather can be used to describe other things. Then do the exercises below.

Marcin Legeżyński Weather Idioms Full of Meanings

What do you talk about to people who you meet for the first time? Why not talk about the weather? It’s something that everyone has in common and we can all relate to it. But what if you need more than just an icebreakericebreakericebreaker (a way to start a conversation)? You’re going to learn how to use English weather idioms to talk up a stormtalk up a stormtalk up a storm (talk a lot) about a variety of other topics.

Why use idioms? First of all, they’re common in conversations. Learning English weather idioms will improve your understanding of spoken English, as most native speakers will use a few of them several times a week, just out of habit. Should you worry about a storm coming when somebody says “lightning never strikes in the same place twicelightning never strikes in the same place twicelightning never strikes in the same place twice”? No, all they mean is that that an unusual event is not likely to happen again to the same person or in the same place. And when somebody is snowed underbe snowed undersnowed under, they aren’t necessarily covered with a layer of snow, but simply have too many duties to complete at school or work.

Also, they help you to express difficult ideas. Weather idioms are useful in many contexts. They’re metaphorical, too, which means that they use something you can see, hear, or feel, like snow, thunder or wind, to talk about ideas that are less tangibletangibletangible (able to be touched or noticed with your physical senses). Learning idioms is not chasing a rainbowchasing a rainbowchasing a rainbow,or trying to get something that you can never have. You can master them with just a little practice.

In addition, they improve your cultural understanding. How is happiness like sunshine? How is a hard‑hearted person like ice? Why does rain mean trouble? People shape language, but language also shapes people. When you learn English weather idioms, you get more insight into the “personality” of the English language. That means that you can better understand how English speakers think about different ideas. Does it mean that the saying to take a rain checktake a rain checkto take a rain check fits what most people think is typical English weather? Perhaps not, but it’s still worth knowing this idiom in case you want to tell someone politely that you cannot accept their invitation now, but would like to do so at a later time.

Finally, idioms make your speech more interesting. Adding English weather idioms to your conversations will help you speak more colourfully. These expressions will give nuancegive nuancegive nuance (small differences of meaning) to your speech, letting you express yourself in more interesting ways. With a range of idioms you have learned, it is simply a breeze!it is simply a breeze [be simply a breeze]it is simply a breeze!

1 Źródło: Marcin Legeżyński, licencja: CC BY-SA 3.0.