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In part 2 of this lesson, you’ll explore the wild and colourful world of slang with phrases featuring the word shit. Let’s dive into the 50 shades of shit and describe problems!
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Describing problems
In this section, we’re going to learn some phrases with the word ‘shit’ that are used for describing problems.
Exercise 8
Read the transcript, guess which words are missing and watch the clip to check your answers.
A. "Is there some way to just give the money back?"
"What, do you mean, just hand them a check for the exact amount they're missing?"
"Well, we have to do something."
"Maybe we could launder the money."
"That's a great idea. Okay, how do we do that?"
"I think coke dealers do it."
"Okay, alright. Do we know any coke dealers?"
"My cousin's a cokehead."
"We're in … shit." (big trouble)
"Yes, we are in very, very … shit." (big trouble)
Glossary
Extra exercise for clip A
Context
B. "Mr. Simms, you are a cover-up artist and you are a liar."
"But not a snitch! This is such a … of shit! (bullshit, horseshit, nonsense) What is your motto here? Boys, inform on your classmates, save your hide. Anything short of that, we're going to burn you at the stake? Well, gentlemen, when the shit … the … (situation suddenly goes wrong), some guys run and some guys stay. Here's Charlie facing the fire and there's George hiding in Big Daddy's pocket."
Glossary
Extra exercise for clip B
C. "Five minutes from now these kids are going to be running around all sugared up. You know, playing with their new toys and, like, bonking people on the knee and whatever. Like, it's going to be a shit… again." (total disaster)
"Yep. But hopefully, it's going to be a shit… that he manages and enjoys better than before." (total disaster)
Glossary
D. "When you first ever started talking about self-defence stuff and everything like that, and I, like, saw it on Twitter one time, I was like, 'Oh, that's really cool, like, that's so awesome."
"Oh my god, that means so much to me. I used to be a lot more active on Twitter when it was Twitter and now that it's X, like, … to shit. (become ruined, get much worse) Oh my god, that's so cool.'"
Glossary
Extra exercise for clip C
E. "I've been tracking you since your bounty hit the airwaves. Quite a shit… (a situation marked by violent controversy) you stirred up down south. I thought I'd tap in, won’t let you have all the fun.”
Glossary
Extra exercise for clip E
G. "I need you to solve this case."
"Why?"
"Because we are in … shit (in trouble), detective. This administration? We were in … shit (in trouble) before, but this is a thousand times worse. We are in, like, a well of shit. Do you know when some kid falls down some hundred-foot well? We are in that, but it's a well of shit."
Extra exercise for clip G
F. “They had to have noticed, right?”
”They noticed.”
”Did you chicken out or something? Paula, what happened?”
”Look, if I were you, I would keep my voice down, okay? Cause you are in a shit… of trouble.” (a lot of trouble)
Glossary
Extra exercise for clip F
Exercise 9
Let’s see if you remember all the phrases we’ve learnt in this section. Write the correct phrase next to its definition.
… - to be in a lot of trouble
… - situation suddenly goes wrong
… - bullshit, horseshit, nonsense
… - a situation marked by violent controversy
… / … - to be in trouble (two phrases)
… - total disaster
… - become ruined, get much worse
Theory
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picture in the text form:
Exercise 10
Complete each sentence with one of the following terms: be in deep shit, shitload, when shit hits the fan, go to shit, shitshow, shitstorm, crock of shit
You may need to adjust the form of the word slightly to fit the sentence.
- We had a ______ of orders come in right before closing time, so we had to stay late.
- I thought their excuse was a total ______—there’s no way their internet was "down for a week."
- If my boss finds out I lost the contract, I’ll be ______ for sure.
- The company tried to cover up the data breach, but ______ when the media found out.
- The politician’s controversial statement caused a ______ on social media, with thousands of people arguing about it.
- We knew we'd be in a ______ of trouble if we didn’t finish the report before the deadline.
- I can already tell this event is going to be a ______—nothing is set up properly, and people are arguing.
- I trusted him, but it turns out everything he said was a ______—he was lying the whole time.
- Everything was fine at first, but once the manager left, the whole place ______.
- The wedding was meant to be elegant and well-planned, but it turned into a complete ______ with missing food, bad weather, and a drunk best man.
- I was already behind on my bills, but when my car broke down, that’s when ______.
- If you don’t study for the test, you’ll ______ when the teacher sees your score.
- After the CEO resigned, the company’s leadership ______, and nobody knew what was going on.
- She promised she’d help, but I’ve heard that before—it’s just a ______.
- We had a ______ of paperwork to do before the deadline, and everyone was stressed.
Answer key
Exercise 11
Fill in the gaps and answer the questions.
- Imagine you order something online, expecting one item, but instead, a 💩______ of the same thing arrives at your door. What do you do?
- Have you ever had an amazing trip planned, only for everything to ______ 💩 because of bad weather, lost luggage, or other disasters?
- Have you ever witnessed a 💩______ on social media where a company or influencer got canceled? What caused it?
- Have you ever worked at a place that was a total 💩______ —terrible management, constant drama, or absolute chaos? What made it so bad?
- Infomercials often promise life-changing products, but most are a ______ 💩. Can you name a few of the worst ones?
- Have you ever forgotten to pay a bill, missed an important deadline or hid a bad grade from your parents and ended up in ______ 💩? How did you fix it?
- Some people are great when things are calm, but not when 💩 ______ . Do you completely fall apart under pressure or do you handle it well?