It's an animal but also something you shout. Find out when you use it:

BBC Learning English

Duck!

 

Thousands of plastic ducks float down the River Thames in the Great British Duck Race. Photo: Anthony Devlin/ PA Wire

Today's Phrase

If you tell someone to duck it means that they should lower their head because something is about to hit them.

Examples:
As I walked in the door someone shouted "Duck!" But it was too late and I hit my head.

The batsman shouted "Duck!" as he hit the ball right at where the spectators were standing.

Take note

To duck out means to try and escape or get out of doing something.

Example:

Sorry, I've got to duck out of this meeting, I've got too many other things to do.

Interesting fact

The yellow duck in the photograph was among around 250,000 other blue plastic ducks floating along a one kilometre stretch of the River Thames near Hampton Court Palace in London. This Great British Duck Race raises money for charity.

Source:  http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/language/2013/06/130611_todays_phrase_duck.shtml

An expression that will come in handy when life is hard: keep your chin up!

BBC Learning English
The English we speak

Rob tells Vera to 'keep her chin up' when she hurts herself. Will this help her to feel better? Listen to the programme to find out what this phrase means.

 www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/language/theenglishwespeak/2012/10/121030_tews_95_keep_your_chin_up.shtml

How to make small talk during greetings

BBC Learning English
How to...

In this programme, we look at some handy topics and phrases to use when you've said hello to someone, but want to continue the conversation. What kinds of things are suitable for small talk during greetings, beyond the usual 'how are you?'
After you have listened to the programme, get some more practice with the quiz below.


http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/radio/specials/1142_greeting/page5.shtml

How does plastic affect environment?

What can we do to make the situation better?

BBC Learning English

6 Minute English

Plastic pollution

Join Dan and Kate this week as they talk about pollution. How is plastic affecting the environment and what can we do to make the situation better?

This week's question:

How many pieces of plastic are there in each square kilometre of the world’s oceans? Is it:

a) 22,000 pieces of plastic
b) 38,000 pieces of plastic
c) 46,000 pieces of plastic

Listen out for the answer in the programme!

http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/general/sixminute/2010/02/100218_6min_plastic_page.shtml