Learning English

brownie points

Meaning:

Praise or appreciation, usually a result of something one has done.

I think I'll earn some brownie points with my mom if I set the table.

brownie points

Credit for a good deed

John earned a lot of brownie points for doing his boss's report for him.

The term originated with the points earned for various achievements by the youngest group of the Girl Scouts, called Brownies. In the mid-1900s it was transferred to general use.

Alumna

From Latin alumna.

Pronunciation
IPA: /əˈlʌmnə/

Noun

A female pupil or student (especially of a university or college).

A female graduate.

sick day
noun

a day when you are not at work because you are ill:
Vacation days or sick days can reduce a four-person crew to three.
Each employee gets 14 paid sick days each year.
take/use a sick day Workers often take sick days for routine doctor's visits.

ESSEX GIRL

The expression “Essex girl” has been removed from a dictionary used to teach English after a campaign by women from the county who described the term as offensive.

According to the Oxford University Press, “Essex girl” was previously defined as “a name used especially in jokes to refer to a type of young woman who is not intelligent, dresses badly, talks in a loud and ugly way and is very willing to have sex.”

It has now been removed from the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary, used to teach non-native English speakers, after a campaign group called the Essex Girls Liberation Front said using the expression was “very offensive”.

Tap into

Phrasal Verb

To establish a connection with something, especially in order to take advantage of something

To access a resource or object.

When he ran out of money, he decided to tap into his trust fund.

water down

watered down; watering down; waters down

Definition of water down

transitive verb

: to reduce the force or effectiveness of something

He watered down the plan

Synonyms & Antonyms for water down

Synonyms

adulterate, cut, dilute, extend, lace, sophisticate, thin, weaken

Antonyms

enrich, fortify, richen, strengthen